Poker Night 355: Slow and Unsteady

From time to time, fellow poker players like to think they have us "figured out."  If we're deep into a hand, they think they know why -- and with what.  But part of the art of poker success comes in throwing your opponents off-guard.  Look at what happened tonight at Lil Kim's Cove....

BLINDS: 500/1,000

IN THE POCKET: 6-6

On an evening when the play never has moved beyond two tables, we're doing all right.  We've won a few pots, received a little help from a player who divided his chips because he had to leave, and even was given 1,000 chips by the longtime Tournament Director simply because "he never buys food here."  (We do, but not often.)

We reached the one-hour break with 13,500 chips, and want to keep playing sound poker.  So we call with this pocket pair, and a tight-playing table means no one raises; as best we recall, three total players are in.

ON THE FLOP: Ac-6s-2s (based on best memory)

Good news for us, as we have a well-hidden three of a kind.  It's so well hidden that since we're playing first, we check.  But no one jumps in at the sight of that Ace; the opponents check as well.

ON THE TURN: 5 (don't recall the suit)

Since no one budged before, we conclude the time is right.  Now we bet 4,000.  That's too much for one man across the table, who folds.  The other quietly calls.

ON THE RIVER: 3

Uh-oh -- now the chances for a straight have improved.  But we don't think our opponent still would be in this hand with a 4.  So we bet 5,000.  The other man ponders for a moment, then calls.

"I've got a beast," we say to borrow a popular phrase by that Tournament Director.  "The beast of Revelation - triple 6."

Our opponent is frustrated.  He shows A-7, giving us a pot of much more than 10,000.  Then he mutters a bit about our actions to the men at his side.

"I don't understand why he didn't bet the flop, since two spades were out there."

The men answer with something we don't hear -- perhaps explaining our "slow play" approach.  Instead, we turn to a man at our left and say in faux sorrow, "We disappointed him."  Then we tell our opponent, "Sorry."

(He actually has a good point; players with the lead in hands often "throw a block" by betting big to run away straight and flush chasers.  But our approach maximized our gains.)

We won enough timely pots to stay comfortably in the running, and reached the final table with more than 30,000 chips.  We held 35,000 at the two-hour break -- but then after losing a pot, we went all-in for 25,000 with A-Q of hearts in the Big Blind.  The chip leader called with a 10, and was rewarded when a flop of Q-10-10 gave him three of a kind.  He wound up with a winning full house.

Another man was knocked out with us, but we felt good about finishing tied for fourth.  It was our best finish in live poker (in fact, our first final table) since early September.

MINISTRY MOMENT: A woman who came to the final table knows we bring card protectors with a message.  So she asked about the small rock in front of us.

"That reminds me that Jesus is the rock of my salvation," we were able to say to everyone at the table.

She simply nodded in response.  But did you know the "rock" symbolism for God begins very early in the Bible?

Joseph is a fruitful vine.... his bow remained steady, his strong arms stayed limber, because of the hand of the Mighty One of Jacob, because of the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel. - Genesis 49:22, 24

The King James Version actually says "stone of Israel."  But why such a word comparison concerning God? Apparently because large stones in ancient times were very hard to move.  They were used in building a temple for God in I Kings 5-7.  And that may have led to this New Testament reference:

Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.  In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. - Ephesians 2:19-21

Jesus should be the key piece in building a Christian church, as well as a holy people who make up the membership.  If your spiritual life isn't "rock solid," we suggest comparing it carefully with how Jesus lived and what He taught.

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 124 final tables in 355 nights (34.9%) - 19 cashes.

NATIONAL LEAGUE OF POKER TOTAL: Full tournaments - 269 point wins in 1,177 games (22.9%), 83 final tables, 10 wins and 10 cashes. No-River Hold 'em - 15 final tables in 55 games (27.3%), 12 final tables, 1 cash win.

We actually had two top-five finishes in poker today; the first came in the mid-afternoon No-River Hold 'em tournament - fifth out of 113 players.

POKER STARS.NET TOTAL: Pretend cash games (corrected after review) - $86,783, down $1,343.