Poker Day 423: Fake or Double Take

"If you're learning, this is a good place to do it," one of the managers at Winners Cardroom told a couple of players leaving the table this afternoon.

"Or if you're a cheapskate, like me," we said to him half-jokingly.

We were at Winners because "freeroll fever" has struck local poker rooms -- with several games being played with no chair rental every week.  It means we can play as we once did in Georgia: paying only the cost of food, drinks and tips.  And on Sunday, there's money to be won -- as Winners pays $150 to the tournament champ.

But with other players paying $10 extra for a "double stack" of chips, we'd have to play carefully to gain an edge.  So we tried to strike early....

BLINDS: 100/200

IN THE POCKET: K-9 offsuit

It's the second hand of the day, and we have close to our starting amount at 11,400 chips (2,000 extra for arriving on time).  We have the dealer button.  No one at the full table is raising, so we dare to enter small.  Most of the table is in.

ON THE FLOP: 5-6-7

This 5-6-7 doesn't strike anyone as heaven.  Everyone checks -- and while we have a straight draw, we choose to do the same.

ON THE TURN: 3

That's a miss for us.  But the table checks again -- and since we're last to act, we can try what they call on TV a "stab at the pot."  We bet 700.

"Oh no, you might have a 4," a manager at the table declares as he folds.  Uh-huh.

A young man next to him says nothing - except to raise.  He goes up to 2,200.  The players between us get out of the way, leaving us with a tough decision.  Did he raise because he smelled (correctly) a bluff on our part?  Or is he trying to out-bluff us?  We think it's the latter.  And in a way, we have 10 outs (3 Kings, 3 9's, 4 8's) - so we dare to call.

ON THE RIVER: 8

Thank you very much!  We made the top straight.  Now we hope betting history repeats itself.  Our opponent checks.  We offer 700 again -- but this time, he simply calls.

"I didn't have the 4," we say as we slowly turn over the cards, "but I have a 9."

We never see what our opponent has - but we hit the river well, to take a pot of more than 5,000 chips.

We won a few other hands as well, including a timely deal of Q-Q which brought a third Queen on the flop.  But the cards went dry as blinds went up.  With 12 players left, we went all-in on the flop with A-K and a flop of K-3-J.  A man called us with J-9.  But of course.... a 9 came on the river.  His two pair prevailed, and we were eliminated in 12th place.

MINISTRY MOMENT: We took a small reflector light for our "card protector."  We told a man sitting to our left during the one-hour break we brought it as a reminder to reflect the light of Jesus Christ.

"What do you think of Jesus?" we asked.  "Is he your Savior?"

We might as well have asked the man to turn over his cards before the flop.  He said nothing, simply staring with his best poker face.

"I hope everyone believes in Jesus as their Savior," we said.  He still said nothing.

Maybe he didn't expect our question.  Or maybe he was reacting to Jesus as other people did long ago....

Then Jesus asked them, "Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?"  But they remained silent. - Mark 3:4

"They" were people in the synagogue -- probably Pharisees, who didn't respect what Jesus was doing (verses 1-2).  Jesus refused to back down:

He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, "Stretch out your hand."  He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. - Mark 3:5

The "Lord of the Sabbath" did a healing act in a synagogue on God's Sabbath day.  Then the crowd started talking....

Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus. - Mark 3:6

There's a time when we should be silent when it comes to Jesus.  That time is in worshiping Him and God the Father....

But the Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth be silent before him. - Habakkuk 2:20

But if you're silent when it comes to the simple (well, seemingly simple) question of believing in Jesus, that can be another matter.  God can track our thoughts -- so what is your silence about Him really saying?

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 150 final tables in 423 games (35.5%), 25 cashes.  This was our first final table miss of the year, in six tries.