Remember when we played in a Saturday night heads-up poker tournament a couple of weeks ago? We were eliminated in what would have been the semifinals -- and as we drove him, we wondered if it might have been a double elimination event.
Tonight we returned to The Red Barn, and found out. Yup, it was. We left too soon, and could have won after all. :-(
At least we knew tonight. Not that it helped. We went 0-2. :-(
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Poker Night 206: Overrunning the Army
"I want you to mention me in your blog," a man to our right said tonight at Lil Kim's Cove. "I want you to mention my name."
OK, fair enough. On this Veterans Day, we were joined at the table by E.J. -- who has served his country in Iraq and Japan. But we don't think he wanted to be mentioned for this....
BLINDS: 25/50
IN THE POCKET: J-10 offsuit
We're at a table of six. No one's raising, so we decide to lay low and limp in.
ON THE FLOP: J-5-9
We have top pair, but other players are ahead of us. The table checks to E.J., who bets 300. We call, while everyone else folds.
ON THE TURN: J
E.J. checks. But now we have three of a kind, so we're marching instead of limping. We bet 600, leading at least one man at the table to guess we have a Jack. E.J. probably hears that, but he calls anyway. (Of course, he might also have a Jack.)
ON THE RIVER: 10
....but we really doubt he has a full house now, as we do. E.J. checks, and we bet 1,500.
"That tells me you have the Jack," E.J. says. We say nothing, while he thinks it over for several seconds. Finally he folds -- and while neither of us show what we had, we're guessing he made the right decision.
That hand gave us a nice gain after early losses -- but nothing came our way beyond that. A last-ditch push with K-Q lost to a player with A-10, who took three players out at once with two pair. Final score: a tie for 19th place -- and a final table slump that's climbed to 11 tournaments in a row.
MINISTRY MOMENT: Earlier in the day, we were joined at an online tournament by a player with an unusual Biblical name....
Dealer: Ararat wins Main Pot ($820) with Flush, queen high
THE_GLASSMAN: nh
Me: Chips mount for Ararat.
Ararat: tx
Dealer: flopblogger wins Main Pot ($570)
Me: With a name like Ararat, are you a Bible reader?
Ararat: oops no
Me: That's where Noah's Ark landed in Genesis....
Ararat: yes sure thats right
Me: (Double-checked it just now. :-) )
You can see that mention of Mount Ararat in Genesis 8:4. Now let's encourage you to be a Bible reader: can you find another place in Scripture where Ararat is mentioned? We'll have the answer in a future post.
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 83 final tables in 206 nights (40.3%) - 15 cashes.
NATIONAL LEAGUE OF POKER TOTAL: Full tournaments - 88 point wins in 478 games (18.4%), 37 final tables, 2 cashes. We had a sixth-place finish in an 84-player game Sunday afternoon.
POKER STARS.NET TOTAL: Full tournaments - Two "top ten percent" finishes in 12 games (16.7%), no cashes. Pretend cash games - $22,204, down $220.
We never mentioned how we did in the "Million Dollar Challenge Freeroll" last Sunday night. It was our best showing in that massive game yet -- lasting until the one-hour break, finishing at #7,996 out of almost 37,000 players.
OK, fair enough. On this Veterans Day, we were joined at the table by E.J. -- who has served his country in Iraq and Japan. But we don't think he wanted to be mentioned for this....
BLINDS: 25/50
IN THE POCKET: J-10 offsuit
We're at a table of six. No one's raising, so we decide to lay low and limp in.
ON THE FLOP: J-5-9
We have top pair, but other players are ahead of us. The table checks to E.J., who bets 300. We call, while everyone else folds.
ON THE TURN: J
E.J. checks. But now we have three of a kind, so we're marching instead of limping. We bet 600, leading at least one man at the table to guess we have a Jack. E.J. probably hears that, but he calls anyway. (Of course, he might also have a Jack.)
ON THE RIVER: 10
....but we really doubt he has a full house now, as we do. E.J. checks, and we bet 1,500.
"That tells me you have the Jack," E.J. says. We say nothing, while he thinks it over for several seconds. Finally he folds -- and while neither of us show what we had, we're guessing he made the right decision.
That hand gave us a nice gain after early losses -- but nothing came our way beyond that. A last-ditch push with K-Q lost to a player with A-10, who took three players out at once with two pair. Final score: a tie for 19th place -- and a final table slump that's climbed to 11 tournaments in a row.
MINISTRY MOMENT: Earlier in the day, we were joined at an online tournament by a player with an unusual Biblical name....
Dealer: Ararat wins Main Pot ($820) with Flush, queen high
THE_GLASSMAN: nh
Me: Chips mount for Ararat.
Ararat: tx
Dealer: flopblogger wins Main Pot ($570)
Me: With a name like Ararat, are you a Bible reader?
Ararat: oops no
Me: That's where Noah's Ark landed in Genesis....
Ararat: yes sure thats right
Me: (Double-checked it just now. :-) )
You can see that mention of Mount Ararat in Genesis 8:4. Now let's encourage you to be a Bible reader: can you find another place in Scripture where Ararat is mentioned? We'll have the answer in a future post.
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 83 final tables in 206 nights (40.3%) - 15 cashes.
NATIONAL LEAGUE OF POKER TOTAL: Full tournaments - 88 point wins in 478 games (18.4%), 37 final tables, 2 cashes. We had a sixth-place finish in an 84-player game Sunday afternoon.
POKER STARS.NET TOTAL: Full tournaments - Two "top ten percent" finishes in 12 games (16.7%), no cashes. Pretend cash games - $22,204, down $220.
We never mentioned how we did in the "Million Dollar Challenge Freeroll" last Sunday night. It was our best showing in that massive game yet -- lasting until the one-hour break, finishing at #7,996 out of almost 37,000 players.
Trash or Treasure
"Trash-talk" has become commonplace in the sports world -- and we even hear it sometimes at local poker tournaments. A few online players can take it to outlandish extremes. Here's one recent example at National League of Poker:
SALGUNDY: i am your king
SALGUNDY: u my servants
Sal was talking about defeating the entire table, as if his "day job" is in professional wrestling. But we felt compelled to speak up, and gained some support:
Me: No. Jesus is my king. :-)
teindaddy02: amen to that
SALGUNDY: jesus is a mexican name
Me: OK, I'll be more specific.
Dealer: _EMELY_ wins Main Pot ($1400) with Two pair, kings and fives
teindaddy02: sal u are a dumb***
Me: Not Jesus Alou (former baseball player).....
Me: but Jesus Christ.
SALGUNDY: oh
SALGUNDY: oh
SALGUNDY: ohhhhhhhhhh
Jesus Alou actually was born in the Dominican Republic, but that's not our point. Our point is that the other Jesus is a King, and believers are to be His subjects -- now and for eternity:
The next part of the chat went like this, as our supporter went all-in to be eliminated:
teindaddy02: im out of here i dont want to hear this idiot....
teindaddy02: flop gl buddy
SALGUNDY: buy
SALGUNDY: buy
Me: Take care - and go with God. :-)
SALGUNDY: buy daddy
SALGUNDY: buy dad
teindaddy02: always no other way to go
As a radio minister of years gone by liked to say, "Walk with the King today and be a blessing!" An Old Testament prophet recommended that as well....
Notice that -- to walk humbly? We don't think that means bragging or trash-talking at the table. Unless, perhaps, you're giving God the glory.
SALGUNDY: i am your king
SALGUNDY: u my servants
Sal was talking about defeating the entire table, as if his "day job" is in professional wrestling. But we felt compelled to speak up, and gained some support:
Me: No. Jesus is my king. :-)
teindaddy02: amen to that
SALGUNDY: jesus is a mexican name
Me: OK, I'll be more specific.
Dealer: _EMELY_ wins Main Pot ($1400) with Two pair, kings and fives
teindaddy02: sal u are a dumb***
Me: Not Jesus Alou (former baseball player).....
Me: but Jesus Christ.
SALGUNDY: oh
SALGUNDY: oh
SALGUNDY: ohhhhhhhhhh
Jesus Alou actually was born in the Dominican Republic, but that's not our point. Our point is that the other Jesus is a King, and believers are to be His subjects -- now and for eternity:
I charge you to keep this command without spot or blame until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, which God will bring about in his own time -- God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of Kings and Lord of lords.... -- I Timothy 6:13-15
The next part of the chat went like this, as our supporter went all-in to be eliminated:
teindaddy02: im out of here i dont want to hear this idiot....
teindaddy02: flop gl buddy
SALGUNDY: buy
SALGUNDY: buy
Me: Take care - and go with God. :-)
SALGUNDY: buy daddy
SALGUNDY: buy dad
teindaddy02: always no other way to go
As a radio minister of years gone by liked to say, "Walk with the King today and be a blessing!" An Old Testament prophet recommended that as well....
He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. -- Micah 6:8
Notice that -- to walk humbly? We don't think that means bragging or trash-talking at the table. Unless, perhaps, you're giving God the glory.
Monday, November 8, 2010
Poker Night 205: Calle Ocho
After missing the final table in local live tournaments nine times in a row, we went to The Red Barn tonight determined to turn things around. Sitting at a table where players bought shot after shot to add chips to their stacks, this would be an uphill climb -- and our objective was to wait for the right moment:
BLINDS: 100/200
IN THE POCKET: 8c-8h
We're in the small blind, and won a big early pot with a pair of Queens. But now we're back to about 7,500 chips, and the woman we topped before raises to 1,200. A couple of years ago, we probably would have presumed the worst here and folded. But now we call. One other player does as well.
ON THE FLOP: 3c-5c-8d
We have "top trips," but we're not the ones who started piling on the extra chips here. So we check -- and sure enough, a man to our left bets 1,500. The woman across the table folds, and we know we have (at least for the moment) the best hand.
"Raise -- 3,000" we announce. Our opponent isn't flustered by this, and calls.
ON THE TURN: 9h
We check again, wary of what the other man has -- but that might have been a mistake. Two clubs are showing, and he could be on a flush draw. (Then again, the 9 might have made him a straight.) He checks, which makes us feel better.
ON THE RIVER: Kc
Uh-oh -- there's that third club. We check once more, and our opponent bets 1,500.
"If you've got a flush, you've got me," we admit -- yet to be honest, we smell a big bluff. With a good bit of confidence, we quickly call.
"I don't have a flush," he says. He shows pocket Queens. "What do you have?"
"Triple-eight," we say turning over a big winning hand. Our opponent is left frustrated -- moaning aloud to himself about how the river bet was supposed to scare us away. Instead, our chip stack jumps above 17,000.
That was the last hand we were to win all night -- and with mostly tight play after that, we almost reached the final table. Practically forced to go all-in with our last 4,000 chips on A-4 of spades, the woman across the table topped us with Kings and Queens. She took two players out in the process, leaving us tied for ninth (tenth in terms of points) -- one hand away from ending our streak.
MINISTRY MOMENT: We take a small digital voice recorder to the table to note our hands for this blog. After recording the early pot win, a man to our right said: "Talking to yourself?"
"I'm talking to this."
"Talking to yourself -- because you'll be listening to it."
Well, yes.... but: "If God hears everything I say, I never talk to myself."
The man agreed with that perspective -- but later in the tournament, he was cursing up a storm. We would only point out the warning words of Jesus:
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 83 final tables in 205 nights (40.5%), 15 cashes.
BLINDS: 100/200
IN THE POCKET: 8c-8h
We're in the small blind, and won a big early pot with a pair of Queens. But now we're back to about 7,500 chips, and the woman we topped before raises to 1,200. A couple of years ago, we probably would have presumed the worst here and folded. But now we call. One other player does as well.
ON THE FLOP: 3c-5c-8d
We have "top trips," but we're not the ones who started piling on the extra chips here. So we check -- and sure enough, a man to our left bets 1,500. The woman across the table folds, and we know we have (at least for the moment) the best hand.
"Raise -- 3,000" we announce. Our opponent isn't flustered by this, and calls.
ON THE TURN: 9h
We check again, wary of what the other man has -- but that might have been a mistake. Two clubs are showing, and he could be on a flush draw. (Then again, the 9 might have made him a straight.) He checks, which makes us feel better.
ON THE RIVER: Kc
Uh-oh -- there's that third club. We check once more, and our opponent bets 1,500.
"If you've got a flush, you've got me," we admit -- yet to be honest, we smell a big bluff. With a good bit of confidence, we quickly call.
"I don't have a flush," he says. He shows pocket Queens. "What do you have?"
"Triple-eight," we say turning over a big winning hand. Our opponent is left frustrated -- moaning aloud to himself about how the river bet was supposed to scare us away. Instead, our chip stack jumps above 17,000.
That was the last hand we were to win all night -- and with mostly tight play after that, we almost reached the final table. Practically forced to go all-in with our last 4,000 chips on A-4 of spades, the woman across the table topped us with Kings and Queens. She took two players out in the process, leaving us tied for ninth (tenth in terms of points) -- one hand away from ending our streak.
MINISTRY MOMENT: We take a small digital voice recorder to the table to note our hands for this blog. After recording the early pot win, a man to our right said: "Talking to yourself?"
"I'm talking to this."
"Talking to yourself -- because you'll be listening to it."
Well, yes.... but: "If God hears everything I say, I never talk to myself."
The man agreed with that perspective -- but later in the tournament, he was cursing up a storm. We would only point out the warning words of Jesus:
But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned. -- Matthew 12:36-37
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 83 final tables in 205 nights (40.5%), 15 cashes.
Liquid Assets
We've been talking about the woman who won first place at a local poker tournament, and the Bible verse she mentioned as she talked about it. She won a 50-dollar first prize, but then admitted: "I spent more than 50 dollars on alcohol...." So she was probably at the club for a good time, and won a poker tournament along the way.
It would be interesting to know how many professional poker players drink alcohol during tournaments. NBC's room for Poker After Dark has a bar on one side, but we've never really noticed many players getting drinks there.
We'd think serious poker players would want to keep their minds as clear as possible. That's a good idea for living as well:
Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit. -- Ephesians 5:18
That's Spirit with a capital S, as in the Holy Spirit of God. There's no real "hangover" with that Spirit -- and if you're filled with it for events tonight, the memories of the "morning after" are likely to be clear and positive.
The Bible indicates drinking a little wine at times is fine (I Timothy 5:23) -- and Jesus shared some with His disciples only hours before His death (Mark 14:23-25). But the key word is "moderation." Is a 50-dollar bar tab moderate, or excessive? To be honest, we're not sure. We've been too focused on winning poker tournaments to experiment with that.
It would be interesting to know how many professional poker players drink alcohol during tournaments. NBC's room for Poker After Dark has a bar on one side, but we've never really noticed many players getting drinks there.
We'd think serious poker players would want to keep their minds as clear as possible. That's a good idea for living as well:
Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit. -- Ephesians 5:18
That's Spirit with a capital S, as in the Holy Spirit of God. There's no real "hangover" with that Spirit -- and if you're filled with it for events tonight, the memories of the "morning after" are likely to be clear and positive.
The Bible indicates drinking a little wine at times is fine (I Timothy 5:23) -- and Jesus shared some with His disciples only hours before His death (Mark 14:23-25). But the key word is "moderation." Is a 50-dollar bar tab moderate, or excessive? To be honest, we're not sure. We've been too focused on winning poker tournaments to experiment with that.
Sunday, November 7, 2010
From Nine to Two
While you may have been busy with college football games or clock-changing this weekend, the "November Nine" sat down to conclude the World Series of Poker Main Event. (We admittedly thought this wasn't occurring until Monday or Tuesday.)
After 13 hours of action, two finalists remain. Top marquee name Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi left in fifth place. Quebec's Jonathan Duhamel holds a six-to-one chip lead, heading to heads-up action against Florida's John Racener.
You can review Saturday's action at the WSOP Twitter feed (or wait for Tuesday night on ESPN). But now: do you think Racener can rally? Are you surprised about how things have gone?
After 13 hours of action, two finalists remain. Top marquee name Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi left in fifth place. Quebec's Jonathan Duhamel holds a six-to-one chip lead, heading to heads-up action against Florida's John Racener.
You can review Saturday's action at the WSOP Twitter feed (or wait for Tuesday night on ESPN). But now: do you think Racener can rally? Are you surprised about how things have gone?
Sunday Rewind: Know It, Show It
We helped a woman at the Thursday night poker tournament with a Bible verse about rich men. Then she admitted how she'd already spent the "riches" she earned from finishing first -- on alcohol.
The Bible passage quoted Jesus as saying it's hard for a rich man to enter God's Kingdom. But we intentionally stopped before giving the rest of the story....
How can a wealthy person enter God's Kingdom? For that matter, how can you? Jesus offers the answer moments before, while talking with a man commonly called a "rich young ruler."
The young ruler told Jesus he was keeping the commandments (verses 17-20), but the Lord called for more. He called on the ruler to give to others -- a way based on love instead of hoarding, or give instead of get.
Some wealthy people in our society attempt to practice this; the Gates Foundation comes to mind. Even some professional poker players do that, by playing in tournaments for charity.
But here's the thing which might baffle some people. The woman was complaining about an opponent being greedy with the prize money -- when the object of a poker tournament is to "greedily" collect everyone else's chips!
We think the key is in drawing boundary lines -- knowing when the game ends and the reality of living begins. Professional athletes have to draw that line, yet we sometimes hear of players blurring the lines and getting in trouble with the law. Even poker players need to be careful.
There's one more aspect of the woman's story we have yet to address. It also involves boundary lines. Stay tuned for another post about that.
The Bible passage quoted Jesus as saying it's hard for a rich man to enter God's Kingdom. But we intentionally stopped before giving the rest of the story....
When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, "Who then can be saved?" Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." -- Matthew 19:25-26
How can a wealthy person enter God's Kingdom? For that matter, how can you? Jesus offers the answer moments before, while talking with a man commonly called a "rich young ruler."
Jesus answered, "If you want to be perfect, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth. -- 19:21-22
The young ruler told Jesus he was keeping the commandments (verses 17-20), but the Lord called for more. He called on the ruler to give to others -- a way based on love instead of hoarding, or give instead of get.
Some wealthy people in our society attempt to practice this; the Gates Foundation comes to mind. Even some professional poker players do that, by playing in tournaments for charity.
But here's the thing which might baffle some people. The woman was complaining about an opponent being greedy with the prize money -- when the object of a poker tournament is to "greedily" collect everyone else's chips!
We think the key is in drawing boundary lines -- knowing when the game ends and the reality of living begins. Professional athletes have to draw that line, yet we sometimes hear of players blurring the lines and getting in trouble with the law. Even poker players need to be careful.
But each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. -- James 1:14-15
There's one more aspect of the woman's story we have yet to address. It also involves boundary lines. Stay tuned for another post about that.
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