We were prepared to write that today was one of those days at the poker table. In an afternoon online tournament, we busted out in a record-fast two hands -- folding A-J when opponents bet big and wound up with a straight, then sent all-in and losing with A-7.
Things didn't look much better at Lil Kim's Cove tonight. A big early loss compared with only one modest pot win left us with only 1,500 chips after the one-hour break. But then the rally started! A push all-in with A-5 led to three Aces. A big bet with pocket Kings led to another big win, putting our chip stack above 10,000. Could we keep it up?
BLINDS: 1,000/2,000
IN THE POCKET: Q-10
Wellll -- we were already heading the other direction. A losing bet had dropped our count to about 3,500 at this point. We call, as do two others at the semifinal table.
ON THE FLOP: Q-6-Q
We're first in line to bet -- and with three Queens at this point in the match, a push is automatic. We go all-in. A man to our right guesses correctly that "you caught a Queen." His turn is coming, but a man in between calls.
ON THE TURN: 7
Hold it -- that card-guesser hadn't decided about calling yet. The dealer turns the card around, but too late. Everyone saw it. He decides out of courtesy to fold, and even shows the 6-7 he gave up. His two pair wouldn't have beaten us.
Trouble is, it also wouldn't beat the man who called us. He shows K-Q, which means he has a higher kicker.
ON THE RIVER: K
Change that abbreviation to Favored, but Annihilated Queens. Our opponent hit a full house, but we take comfort in knowing we rallied to finish 11th overall.
MINISTRY MOMENT: The closest one that came tonight occurred when the table talked about college football. A man next to us said Florida quarterback Tim Tebow "should have taken the money" and entered the N.F.L. draft last April.
"But he decided some things are more important than money. Like mission trips," we replied.
The man granted us that, but still thought Tebow should have left Florida after his junior season. We then disagreed about whether he would have been the top overall pick in the draft. (He said yes.)
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 39 final tables in 93 nights (41.9%) - 9 cashes.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
WSOP, ESPN Split the Pot
We found this on a TV news web site today:
ESPN and Harrah's Interactive Entertainment extended their partnership with a new seven-year deal which keeps the World Series of Poker (WSOP) on ESPN through April 2018. ESPN has aired WSOP tournaments since 2003, drawing in a total audience of approximately 82 million US viewers annually.
Good news? Bad news? And is that big crowd of viewers due to all the reruns on various channels?
ESPN and Harrah's Interactive Entertainment extended their partnership with a new seven-year deal which keeps the World Series of Poker (WSOP) on ESPN through April 2018. ESPN has aired WSOP tournaments since 2003, drawing in a total audience of approximately 82 million US viewers annually.
Good news? Bad news? And is that big crowd of viewers due to all the reruns on various channels?
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Sugar or Smacks
Some people approach the poker table the way they approach a basketball game. They seem to borrow from the old book Winning Through Intimidation, and try to "psych out" their opponents by talking them down with semi or full-fledged insults.
This has many street names -- from "trash talk" to "talking smack." Yet when we visit a poker table, we take exactly the opposite approach. We think it's a much more godly approach.
"Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones," says Proverbs 16:24.
You can boast about yourself or put down others -- as some people seem to have forgotten Muhammad Ali did in his boxing prime. Or you can do what the apostle Paul recommended in I Thessalonians 5:11. "Therefore encourage one another and build each other up...."
The latter approach is what many youth league coaches tell children to take. We're old enough to remember when it was called sportsmanship. Which approach do you think makes a poker table more pleasant and more fun -- and might actually gain you more friends?
This has many street names -- from "trash talk" to "talking smack." Yet when we visit a poker table, we take exactly the opposite approach. We think it's a much more godly approach.
"Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones," says Proverbs 16:24.
You can boast about yourself or put down others -- as some people seem to have forgotten Muhammad Ali did in his boxing prime. Or you can do what the apostle Paul recommended in I Thessalonians 5:11. "Therefore encourage one another and build each other up...."
The latter approach is what many youth league coaches tell children to take. We're old enough to remember when it was called sportsmanship. Which approach do you think makes a poker table more pleasant and more fun -- and might actually gain you more friends?
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Poker Night #92: A Tie is Like....
In sports, they sometimes say it's like kissing your sister. But when you're unemployed and trying to make money any legal way you can, a tie can feel a bit like heaven -- and it did for us tonight. We tied for first place in the early tournament at Lil Kim's Cove!
How do you tie for first? When two players remain at the final table, and a crowd of players is waiting for the second half of the doubleheader to begin. A man named Mike across the table offered to settle things by splitting the top two prizes, and we accepted. It turned out to be a financial gain from the second-place finish we probably were facing.
(Mike actually could have cleaned us out in heads-up play. With the blinds at a staggering 50,000/100,000, we posted the big blind with only 10,000 to spare -- and we were dealt 5-3. It should have been curtains, but Mike never called and allowed us to take the pot unopposed.)
For both of us, this was a final table of dramatic comebacks. We were at 15,000, going all-in barely above the big blind level. But then an amazing run happened:
* A-7 all in -- and both cards pair on the flop. We gain a big double-up.
* Q-Q all in, next hand -- and a third Queen falls on the flop. Suddenly our 10,000 chips has become more like 100,000.
* A-J all in, after a couple of setbacks -- and a Jack pairs on the board, to top the other players.
* An opponent pushes all in with K-J (or something similar), and we call with 6-6. Nothing pairs on the board, and we win again.
Then there was this hand, when another player was sure he had us....
BLINDS: 5,000/10,000
IN THE POCKET: Q-10 of spades
We have about 20,000 chips, but the blinds are huge. A player across from us bets even more than that, and we go all-in. A third player calls the higher bet, creating a sidepot.
ON THE FLOP: 9-9-5 (no spades)
Our main opponent makes a big bet, and the player who started the action folds. We turn over the cards, and he has A-8. He leads the race.
ON THE TURN: J.
The Ace is still ahead, and we need help in a hurry.
ON THE RIVER: 8.
The opponent starts to claim all the chips and a big win, thanks to his Ace kicker. But hold on....
"Don't I have a straight?" we say -- and point out our cards make 8-9-10-J-Q. Why yes, we do. Our opponent wins the sidepot, but we capture the main pot with a major escape. We praise the Lord out loud -- one of several times we do that during the final table.
MINISTRY MOMENT: "Where's your baseball?" a man to our left asked early in the match. We carried our candle again, as we did last night. After a hand was finished, we were ready to explain -- and that man made sure nearly the entire table was listening.
"I read in a book...."
"You can read?!" the man to our left joked.
"Yes I can," we answered playing along. (We'd just read cards well enough to win a nice pot.) "I read in a book that you're supposed to be a light to the world."
The table seems stumped, and doesn't really say anything more about it. We later explain to a young woman at our right that the phrase comes from Jesus in the Bible. She didn't know it was there.
"Do you read the Bible?" we asked her.
"Not really," she answered. We encouraged her to try it, in small portions.
"You don't have to read it all at one sitting," we explained. This may be one reason why some people don't read the Bible at all -- it can be imposing at first reading.
The man to our left happened to be the one we engaged in the "esteem others better than yourself" discussion last Thursday night. He also didn't know this was a Biblical phrase. But he added: "No one's lit your candle.... I don't think you're very hot."
He had a point. The candle sat unused all evening, except to protect our cards. Cigarette smokers around us never offered to light it.
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 39 final tables in 92 nights (42.4%) - 9 cashes.
This was our first "cash finish" (top two) at Lil Kim's Cove since early June. And the last time we finished first (sort of) was a similar settlement last December.
(P.S. We were the only player to make the final table at Lil Kim's two nights in a row. We're praising the Lord for that -- but that's a topic for another day.)
YAHOO POKER TOTAL: $13,226 - down $69. (But we hit a personal record last Friday at $13,341.)
NBC SPORTS POKER TOTAL: Five-player sit-n-goes - 27-33-5-4-8. Full tournaments - 16 final tables in 117 games (13.7%), 2 cashes.
That's another thing we're praising God about -- as we actually made TWO final tables today! The first was an afternoon online game, where we finished fifth out of 137 players. Going back to Wednesday afternoon online, we've made four final tables in a row.
How do you tie for first? When two players remain at the final table, and a crowd of players is waiting for the second half of the doubleheader to begin. A man named Mike across the table offered to settle things by splitting the top two prizes, and we accepted. It turned out to be a financial gain from the second-place finish we probably were facing.
(Mike actually could have cleaned us out in heads-up play. With the blinds at a staggering 50,000/100,000, we posted the big blind with only 10,000 to spare -- and we were dealt 5-3. It should have been curtains, but Mike never called and allowed us to take the pot unopposed.)
For both of us, this was a final table of dramatic comebacks. We were at 15,000, going all-in barely above the big blind level. But then an amazing run happened:
* A-7 all in -- and both cards pair on the flop. We gain a big double-up.
* Q-Q all in, next hand -- and a third Queen falls on the flop. Suddenly our 10,000 chips has become more like 100,000.
* A-J all in, after a couple of setbacks -- and a Jack pairs on the board, to top the other players.
* An opponent pushes all in with K-J (or something similar), and we call with 6-6. Nothing pairs on the board, and we win again.
Then there was this hand, when another player was sure he had us....
BLINDS: 5,000/10,000
IN THE POCKET: Q-10 of spades
We have about 20,000 chips, but the blinds are huge. A player across from us bets even more than that, and we go all-in. A third player calls the higher bet, creating a sidepot.
ON THE FLOP: 9-9-5 (no spades)
Our main opponent makes a big bet, and the player who started the action folds. We turn over the cards, and he has A-8. He leads the race.
ON THE TURN: J.
The Ace is still ahead, and we need help in a hurry.
ON THE RIVER: 8.
The opponent starts to claim all the chips and a big win, thanks to his Ace kicker. But hold on....
"Don't I have a straight?" we say -- and point out our cards make 8-9-10-J-Q. Why yes, we do. Our opponent wins the sidepot, but we capture the main pot with a major escape. We praise the Lord out loud -- one of several times we do that during the final table.
MINISTRY MOMENT: "Where's your baseball?" a man to our left asked early in the match. We carried our candle again, as we did last night. After a hand was finished, we were ready to explain -- and that man made sure nearly the entire table was listening.
"I read in a book...."
"You can read?!" the man to our left joked.
"Yes I can," we answered playing along. (We'd just read cards well enough to win a nice pot.) "I read in a book that you're supposed to be a light to the world."
The table seems stumped, and doesn't really say anything more about it. We later explain to a young woman at our right that the phrase comes from Jesus in the Bible. She didn't know it was there.
"Do you read the Bible?" we asked her.
"Not really," she answered. We encouraged her to try it, in small portions.
"You don't have to read it all at one sitting," we explained. This may be one reason why some people don't read the Bible at all -- it can be imposing at first reading.
The man to our left happened to be the one we engaged in the "esteem others better than yourself" discussion last Thursday night. He also didn't know this was a Biblical phrase. But he added: "No one's lit your candle.... I don't think you're very hot."
He had a point. The candle sat unused all evening, except to protect our cards. Cigarette smokers around us never offered to light it.
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 39 final tables in 92 nights (42.4%) - 9 cashes.
This was our first "cash finish" (top two) at Lil Kim's Cove since early June. And the last time we finished first (sort of) was a similar settlement last December.
(P.S. We were the only player to make the final table at Lil Kim's two nights in a row. We're praising the Lord for that -- but that's a topic for another day.)
YAHOO POKER TOTAL: $13,226 - down $69. (But we hit a personal record last Friday at $13,341.)
NBC SPORTS POKER TOTAL: Five-player sit-n-goes - 27-33-5-4-8. Full tournaments - 16 final tables in 117 games (13.7%), 2 cashes.
That's another thing we're praising God about -- as we actually made TWO final tables today! The first was an afternoon online game, where we finished fifth out of 137 players. Going back to Wednesday afternoon online, we've made four final tables in a row.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Poker Night #91: Candle Power
"Where's your baseball?" the man sitting to our right asked at Lil Kim's Cove tonight.
"That was last week," we explained. We changed "card protectors" tonight to a small candle with a glass holder. See if you can guess why we brought it, as we review a hand which had us guessing to the end....
BLINDS: 50/100
IN THE POCKET: A-10 offsuit.
We're late in the betting order, and a man ahead of us raises to 400. Fine by us.
ON THE FLOP: 10-4-2 (suit not a factor)
We make top pair with the "top kicker." Yet the man who raised before bets even more now, tossing out 600. We call; perhaps one other player does.
ON THE TURN: 6.
The man ahead of us bets 600 again. Could he actually be in the lead with two pair? We're fretful, but calling.
ON THE RIVER: 4.
Now we have two pair -- but the man ahead of us attacks again, betting 1,200.
We had resolved before tonight's match to play a little tighter. Chasing dream hands hurt us online a few times this week. But....
"I'm probably wrong," we say -- and call.
"I ain't got nothing," the opponent says. Oh yeah? He's a master of understatement, as he shows a 10-J. He has the same two pair we do.
"I have 10 with an Ace," we note -- and the kicker saves the day, allowing us to claim a pot on the order of 6,000 chips.
We only won one other hand from that point, missing out on a couple of others by "resisting temptation" and folding potential winners. But we held on through other people's all-in moments and a couple of timely "blind skips" to reach the final table. Our last straw came with only 4,500 chips, and 4,000 committed to the big blind. The play checked to us.
"I'm ALL-IN!!!!!!" we declared with loud mock drama. Our last green 500 chip went in, and we had 7-7 -- but another player had an Ace, and paired it on the flop. He knocked out another player with us, so we wound up tied for fifth place -- our best live showing in three weeks.
MINISTRY MOMENT: "Do you know why a brought a candle?" we said to the man at our right who asked about it. "I read in a book I'm supposed to be a light to the world."
"Oh," the man answered. He was baffled by the reference, so later we explained what book had that phrase.
"It's in the Bible. The words of Jesus. [Mt. 5:14, 16] Do you read the Bible?"
"Not regularly." We encouraged the man to do so, saying he might find some surprising things there.
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 38 final tables in 91 nights (41.8%) - 8 cashes.
This actually was our second final table of the day. During the afternoon, we finished ninth in a 43-player online game at NBC Sports.
"That was last week," we explained. We changed "card protectors" tonight to a small candle with a glass holder. See if you can guess why we brought it, as we review a hand which had us guessing to the end....
BLINDS: 50/100
IN THE POCKET: A-10 offsuit.
We're late in the betting order, and a man ahead of us raises to 400. Fine by us.
ON THE FLOP: 10-4-2 (suit not a factor)
We make top pair with the "top kicker." Yet the man who raised before bets even more now, tossing out 600. We call; perhaps one other player does.
ON THE TURN: 6.
The man ahead of us bets 600 again. Could he actually be in the lead with two pair? We're fretful, but calling.
ON THE RIVER: 4.
Now we have two pair -- but the man ahead of us attacks again, betting 1,200.
We had resolved before tonight's match to play a little tighter. Chasing dream hands hurt us online a few times this week. But....
"I'm probably wrong," we say -- and call.
"I ain't got nothing," the opponent says. Oh yeah? He's a master of understatement, as he shows a 10-J. He has the same two pair we do.
"I have 10 with an Ace," we note -- and the kicker saves the day, allowing us to claim a pot on the order of 6,000 chips.
We only won one other hand from that point, missing out on a couple of others by "resisting temptation" and folding potential winners. But we held on through other people's all-in moments and a couple of timely "blind skips" to reach the final table. Our last straw came with only 4,500 chips, and 4,000 committed to the big blind. The play checked to us.
"I'm ALL-IN!!!!!!" we declared with loud mock drama. Our last green 500 chip went in, and we had 7-7 -- but another player had an Ace, and paired it on the flop. He knocked out another player with us, so we wound up tied for fifth place -- our best live showing in three weeks.
MINISTRY MOMENT: "Do you know why a brought a candle?" we said to the man at our right who asked about it. "I read in a book I'm supposed to be a light to the world."
"Oh," the man answered. He was baffled by the reference, so later we explained what book had that phrase.
"It's in the Bible. The words of Jesus. [Mt. 5:14, 16] Do you read the Bible?"
"Not regularly." We encouraged the man to do so, saying he might find some surprising things there.
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 38 final tables in 91 nights (41.8%) - 8 cashes.
This actually was our second final table of the day. During the afternoon, we finished ninth in a 43-player online game at NBC Sports.
Less than or equal to?
At a live tournament last week, we mentioned a player's comment about Philippians 2:3. He said he doesn't like to consider someone "better than yourself" because we're all equal.
In a perfect world, we'd all be equal. But this world isn't perfect -- so while it's nice and noble to consider the people around you as equals, we're really not. Some have more money than others. Some have health problems, while others don't. You can cite your own examples from there.
In most poker tournaments, the players all sit down as equals. There's no handicapping, as in golf. As an online poker TV ad says, we all start with the same number of chips (unless you play where we play, and buying drinks can gain you 1,000 bonus chips at a time.)-- but the difference lies in what you do with them.
All that being said, what's wrong with "esteeming others better than yourself?" It comes from a part of Philippians 2:3 we admittedly didn't quote at the table. The King James Version puts it this way: "in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves."
The NIV Study Bible notes about this verse: "This is the mind-set of the person who is not conceited but who has a right attitude about himself."
To say I'm equal with you is an even-handed approach -- and it's something the Bible confirms. We've all sinned, and come short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:23). To treat you better than me takes a change of mind and spirit -- especially at a poker table, where some people can play "psych-out" mind games to gain an edge.
Jesus didn't play such games when the critical moment came. "He was led like a lamb to the slaughter," Isaiah 53:7 says. Verse 13 goes on to note, "He bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors."
While Jesus had equality with God the Father (Phil. 2:6), He gave that up to bear our sins at Calvary -- so that we might have salvation. We don't deserve it. Jesus opened the door for it. His crucifixion put us before Him. That's what Philippians 2:3 is all about -- and it's available equally to all who accept it. Will you?
In a perfect world, we'd all be equal. But this world isn't perfect -- so while it's nice and noble to consider the people around you as equals, we're really not. Some have more money than others. Some have health problems, while others don't. You can cite your own examples from there.
In most poker tournaments, the players all sit down as equals. There's no handicapping, as in golf. As an online poker TV ad says, we all start with the same number of chips (unless you play where we play, and buying drinks can gain you 1,000 bonus chips at a time.)-- but the difference lies in what you do with them.
All that being said, what's wrong with "esteeming others better than yourself?" It comes from a part of Philippians 2:3 we admittedly didn't quote at the table. The King James Version puts it this way: "in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves."
The NIV Study Bible notes about this verse: "This is the mind-set of the person who is not conceited but who has a right attitude about himself."
To say I'm equal with you is an even-handed approach -- and it's something the Bible confirms. We've all sinned, and come short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:23). To treat you better than me takes a change of mind and spirit -- especially at a poker table, where some people can play "psych-out" mind games to gain an edge.
Jesus didn't play such games when the critical moment came. "He was led like a lamb to the slaughter," Isaiah 53:7 says. Verse 13 goes on to note, "He bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors."
While Jesus had equality with God the Father (Phil. 2:6), He gave that up to bear our sins at Calvary -- so that we might have salvation. We don't deserve it. Jesus opened the door for it. His crucifixion put us before Him. That's what Philippians 2:3 is all about -- and it's available equally to all who accept it. Will you?
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Almost perfect
"Therefore you are to be perfect, as your Heavenly Father is perfect." - Matthew 5:48, NASB
That's a tough standard set by Jesus, isn't it? In poker, it's even tougher. Sometimes the most perfect moments can fall apart. We saw this today at an NBC Sports online tournament....
BLINDS: 150/300 (25 ante)
IN THE POCKET: Q-6 of spades
We have 2,640 chips, and decide to give it a try by calling. A few other players join in.
ON THE FLOP: 7-5-4
We don't recall any spades falling -- but that's OK, because we have an open-ended straight draw. We check at first. But someone else bets $300, and we call in hope.
ON THE TURN: 3.
Perfect! And we're first to bet, so we don't hesitate to push all-in with about $2,040. But a player across the table calls us. He has 7-7. Three of a kind vs. our straight? "He needs some help," we say.
ON THE RIVER: 3.
"Nooooooooooooooooooooo" we write in anguish -- like a wicked witch floating into outer darkness in a movie. His help came, and he hit a full house. Ouch, that hurts -- but at least we finished in 20th place, barely getting points from the game.
If all this talk about being perfect concerns you, maybe it shouldn't. Grab a Bible, go through our study on that subject -- and you may wind up comforted.
That's a tough standard set by Jesus, isn't it? In poker, it's even tougher. Sometimes the most perfect moments can fall apart. We saw this today at an NBC Sports online tournament....
BLINDS: 150/300 (25 ante)
IN THE POCKET: Q-6 of spades
We have 2,640 chips, and decide to give it a try by calling. A few other players join in.
ON THE FLOP: 7-5-4
We don't recall any spades falling -- but that's OK, because we have an open-ended straight draw. We check at first. But someone else bets $300, and we call in hope.
ON THE TURN: 3.
Perfect! And we're first to bet, so we don't hesitate to push all-in with about $2,040. But a player across the table calls us. He has 7-7. Three of a kind vs. our straight? "He needs some help," we say.
ON THE RIVER: 3.
"Nooooooooooooooooooooo" we write in anguish -- like a wicked witch floating into outer darkness in a movie. His help came, and he hit a full house. Ouch, that hurts -- but at least we finished in 20th place, barely getting points from the game.
If all this talk about being perfect concerns you, maybe it shouldn't. Grab a Bible, go through our study on that subject -- and you may wind up comforted.
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