BLINDS: 25/50
IN THE POCKET: K-K
It's the second hand of the night. We folded 5-8 in the first one, so we still have our original 7,000 chips (2,000 gained by purchasing soda). But the man sitting to our immediate right is "Big Daddy" - a man we've mentioned here before, who's known for huge bets and off-kilter play. He's first to act, and he raises 1,000. When we see our cards, we don't hesitate to call. So do two other players at the table of seven.
"I'd just like to say," Big Daddy tells the table, "f**k you, and have a nice day." Hmmm - does that mean he didn't really want callers?
ON THE FLOP: 4-5-6
A woman in the Small Blind checks. Big Daddy then tosses out 2,000. We realize, of course, this must be a "continuation bet" to buy the pot. With a big overpair, we call. One man folds; the Small Blind calls.
ON THE TURN: 9
The woman checks again. "Five-thousand," Big Daddy announces. He started with around 30,000 extra chips, due to things such as buying food or feeding the jukebox. So he can afford a big bet like that. We can't.
"All I have," we say as we count, "is 4,000." But after what happened with pocket Kings last Monday night, there's no doubt we're calling to go all-in. We're confident he's bluffing.
"I fold," the Small Blind says.
"I flopped it," Big Daddy says. Huh?!
He tosses his cards across the table -- 3-7! He has a straight! We have no hope.
ON THE RIVER: J
Big Daddy does what we used to call the "male bonding symbol" - pumping his fist in a couple of times.
"You need an easy button," we tell him. "That was easy." Ridiculously easy. We never expected him to have a straight. But then again, how many people would raise 1,000 pre-flop with 3-7?
For the second Monday in a row, pocket Kings are our ruin. We are "two-hand slammed" out of the tournament -- first out at our table, and the fastest exit we can recall making at a live tourney. Why, we were eliminated even before we even opened the can of Diet Coke we bought.
We drove home with that can and a cup of ice. They now sit in our refrigerator/freezer. Maybe we should make that an "incentive can" -- opening it only when we win a tournament.
MINISTRY MOMENT: We sat down about ten minutes early, and were on our way home ten minutes into the game. That gave us no time to develop any kind of a ministry topic (and we had one in mind, in light of the day's local news). Maybe there's a lesson for us there, too....
Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. - James 4:13-14John Madden was fond of saying the cruelty of pro football playoffs is that every team except one eventually loses. That's true in poker as well. Lots of people enter tournaments with dreams of staying around for a long time, and winning money at the end. But for most players, the game doesn't turn out that way.
That can of Diet Coke in our refrigerator is good through 21 January (according to the date stamp on the bottom). But our opportunity to do poker ministry came and went in a hurry. It can't be retrieved again. Neither can our lives. So what our you doing with the days you have -- especially since you probably don't know how many you have left?
Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near. - Isaiah 55:6Wait too long to seek God, and you risk missing out on something wonderful:
Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years. - Revelation 20:6That first resurrection will be granted to those who believe God (I Thessalonians 4:14-17). Are you living a life which shows you really believe?
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 124 final tables in 362 nights (34.3%) - 19 cashes.
No comments:
Post a Comment