July Senior Championship: Plan A, All the Way?

We had a "Plan A" and "Plan B" for playing poker tonight.  Lil Kim's Cove had a live tournament on Tuesday again -- but that was plan B.  The monthly National League of Poker Senior Championship began 30 minutes earlier.  An early bust at our computer meant we could walk to the live game.  A big night online would mean a live postponement until Wednesday night.  Which would it be?

:01 IN: We have 6-7 of diamonds.  The flop is 3-4-3 (no diamonds).  The table checks.  The turn is 10.  We call a minimum bet of 30, with a straight draw.  The river is Q.  We miss.  Our opponent checks.  So do we - and he has A-10.  A modest loss.

:05 IN: We have A-10 of spades in the Big Blind, and call a doubling of the blind.  The flop is 5s-Ax-7x.  We bet 60; our opponent raises to 400.  We dare to call.  The turn is 6 (not a spade) - and we've never felt more trapped at a poker table.  We know our opponent is going to go all-in, but there's nothing we can do about it and we don't consider this an "all-in" hand.  We check.  He pushes.  We fold, concluding he has something like A-K or two pair.

:20 IN: We've waited 15 minutes to play a hand since that ugly moment.  Now we have J-8 under the gun, fold it -- and J-J-8 appears on the board.  We miss a full house.

:24 IN: We're moved to a different table, and have A-Q of spades under the gun.  We choose to limp in; no one raises.  The flop is 8x-7x-4s.  Everyone checks.  The turn is 9s.  We call a minimum bet of 100, hoping for the best.  The river is Qh -- but that's still top pair.  So when other players check, we go all-in for 265.  They thankfully fold, and we recover to 1,065.

:29 IN: Right before the break, we have 8-8 with the button.  The flop is 3-5-6; everyone checks.  The turn is K.  Everyone checks again.  The river is 7.  Everyone checks again -- and the 8's are good enough!  We win $550.

That gives us $1,265 at the first break -- good for 202nd out of 357 remaining players.  We're thankful for a timely rally.

:35 IN: We have Q-Q, double the blind -- and a player goes all-in for 640 more.  We call, and face A-K of clubs.  But the board brings 6-7-7-9-8 with few clubs!  It's a $1,780 win.

:38 IN: We give 10-4 of clubs a whirl.  The flop is 10s-6s-Ac.  We bet the minimum 150, and get a caller.  The turn is 5s.  Everyone checks.  The river is 10d, giving us three of a kind.  We make a massive (for us) 1,000 bet.  Our opponent folds, and have a total gain of $1,750.

:45 IN: We have 7-10 in the Small Blind, and decide to try it.  The Big Blind goes all-in, with only 75 more chips, and we call.  The flop is 7-4-8.  We bet the minimum 200 with middle pair, and call when an opponent doubles it.  The turn is 9, and that opponent goes all-in for about 105 more.  We quickly call -- which honestly was a mistake, since he showed 9-K.  But the river is J, giving us a winning straight!  Two players get tossed, as we win $2,045.

Not much comes after that, so we reach the one-hour break at $2,890.  We're 86th, with 146 players left -- and Lil Kim's Cove looks very unlikely.

1:08 IN: We return from the break with A-8 of diamonds.  A player goes all-in; we fold -- and that player steals the pot with K-K, because a winning Ace (for us) appears on the flop.

1:17 IN: We have 8-A of spades in the Big Blind.  The flop is a dream-come-true: A-A-8!  Other players in the hand have been quick to bet, so we check.  They don't.  The turn is J.  Now someone bets the minimum 400; we raise to 800 and two players call.  The river is 6.  We go all-in for 1,115  -- and a bit to our disappointment, the opponents fold.  We gain $3,165, never show the full house we hit, and forget about Lil Kim's for the night.

1:24 IN: After a failed straight draw chase with K-10, we have 10-10.  The flop is 3-8-K -- and with the advantage of button position, we respond to checks by betting the minimum 600.  The table runs away, and we win $3,375.

We win two pots in the third period, but rising blinds and antes eat away at them.  The break finds us exactly where we were before: $2,890.  With only 60 players left, we're 51st.  What happens next?  The answer's ahead, but first....


MINISTRY MOMENT: We were moved during the third period to a table where someone had been eliminated moments before by "JudisChips."  We join the chat in progress:


Inda:  lucky judas, read the Book of Judas

We didn't realize Inda was out, so we typed a response....


Me:  Psst Inda - there's
Me:  no book of Judas
Dealer:  johns1938 wins Side Pot 1 ($8020) with Two pair, queens and jacks
Me:  in the Bible

No one responded to our comment, so we don't know if we gave anyone a quick Scripture lesson or not.  But assuming Inda meant what she wrote, it's an example of how many people think things are in the Bible when they're really not.  Let's look at one example, which many poker players can appreciate....

For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.  Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. - I Timothy 6:10

Read that verse carefully, and note the wording.  It does not say "money is the root of all evil."  For one thing, Paul wrote "the love of money."  After all, he also wrote....

Commend those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. - I Timothy 6:17

God provides the blessing of wealth in the first place -- so Paul's point is to put God first in planning for the future, especially beyond this life.

Note also Paul did not say "the love of money is the root of all evil."  It's a root, but not the only one.  For instance....

But no man can tame the tongue.  It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. - James 3:8

Regular Bible study will help you learn what God considers good and evil.  You might also learn what are the real 66 books of Scripture.

Now back to the tournament drama, with seven tables left:

1:42 IN: We have 8-A of hearts with the blinds at 600/1,200.  After pondering it, we get in -- but the flop is 4-9-J with no hearts.  When a player bets 3,540, we have no choice but to fold.

1:44 IN: The next hand brings 3-A -- and we decide with blinds approaching, we have little choice.  We go all-in for 1,315.  The flop is 3-5-8.  The turn is 9.  The river is Q.  Another player who pushed with Q-4 wins the main pot, and our great adventure is over.

Out of 1,067 entries in the Senior Championship, we finished 53th -- our best finish in this event in more than a year.  We would have made money in both big NLOP monthly tournaments this month, had we been in a real poker room or casino.  Now if we can carry that over to the live games we really play....