"I'm getting cards, too. Only not as good," we deadpanned at one point as we folded. We realized we had to play patiently against him and other gamblers in this tournament, while waiting for the right moment....
BLINDS: 25/50
IN THE POCKET: A-3 of diamonds
We've only played one hand outside the blinds in the first 20 minutes of action, so we haven't lost much. Our stack is 3,425 from a starting 3,500. This is the first Ace we've been dealt today, and the large man bets large ahead of us. He raises to 275.
"He wants me to bet," we say. And we call him, mainly because it's an Ace and we're suited. Two other men at the full table call as well.
"I don't necessarily want you to bet," he explains. "Especially if you've got me beat." Well, we'll see....
ON THE FLOP: A-3-8 (rainbow, no diamonds)
Now we're glad we came. And when the large man makes a continuation bet of 700, we're quietly thrilled.
"Told you, you want me to bet," we say as we call. The other two men fold, so we're heads-up.
ON THE TURN: 6
The way our opponent is playing, we expect another big bet. Instead, he surprises us by only tossing out the minimum 50. We laugh at the sight of this.
"You bet so big," we exclaim. This latest bet is like slamming on the brakes to avoid hitting a dog. But we decide to see how serious he really is.
"Raise to 350," we say - and he folds.
"I didn't want to see that Ace," he admits. "I had a pocket pair." We don't tell him we hit two pair - simply smiling as our stack jumps to 5,300.
That was the only hand we won in the first hour, which ended with us at 3,750. Hour 2 started with pocket Aces in the Big Blind, which turned into a 1,000-chip gain. But then we took a big loss in the blinds, with A-J falling short and A-K missing the flop and turn.
We finally saw A-3 of diamonds again, with the large man going all in for 2,500. We told him this was a replay of the earlier hand for us, then pushed for 1,400. The flop brought us a 3. But a 9 on the turn gave that man a higher pair, and sent us away. Out of 60 entries, we finished around 22nd place.
MINISTRY MOMENT: That large man lost other hands as well - saying after one loss, "Jesus Christ!"
"He's my hope of salvation," we said quietly in response. We're not sure if anyone heard it. But this is something we've learned to do in response to expletives like this. We want Jesus to receive proper respect, in a world that often does the opposite. That's what God wants as well.
You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name. - Deuteronomy 5:11
Before you think this commandment is talking about God the Father instead of Jesus Christ, consider what the Lord said....
I and the Father are one. - John 10:30
Some ministers try to say Jesus was making a moral and ethical comparison to God the Father. But that's not how the people who heard Jesus took it:
Again the Jews picked up stones to stone him.... "We are not stoning you for any of these," replied the Jews, "but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God." - John 10:31, 33
Did the Jews misunderstand Jesus's words? Based on what else John wrote, we don't think so....
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.... No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father's side, has made him known. - John 1:1, 18
The "Only One" at the Father's side now is the resurrected Jesus Christ. He was God, and still is today. Will you give that name the respect it deserves?
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 189 final tables in 523 games (36.1%) - 39 cashes. Experiment cost: Up $25.
No comments:
Post a Comment