Poker Day 463: Sitting in the Club

"If you can get to final 3 in this one, you are probably among the best players in Wichita area."  This statement was on Facebook at midday today, inviting us to the "Sunday Showdown" at Arrowhead Poker.  The post also said:

..all complimentary, all day...Join us today as my guest and see if our little club is a place you would like to be a part of,.

Given what's happened with Wichita poker in recent weeks, we wondered if we might get to play for free today. So we went, saw the outline of state poker laws on a bulletin board near the pay window, and were told the entry fee was still $75.

"I thought I might get to play for free."

"You can," the woman behind the counter said. "But you have to stand."

"Stand up?"

"Yes, the entire time."

So yes, there was still an unofficial "chair rental." The food was the "complimentary" part. But we brought our ATM card exactly for this possibility - and succumbed to withdrawing some money and sitting at the table, since the table's height had not been raised.

But the possibility of winning had been raised, as only five players showed up for the tournament. One organizer assured us the poker attendance had not gone down, with the recent police crackdown. Perhaps the lack of Sunday afternoon football made a difference?! Whatever the reason, there still would be moments of drama....

BLINDS: 1,000/2,000

IN THE POCKET: A-3 offsuit

The start of this five-handed game was slow for us. Our starting stack of 62,000 chips was draining slower than a leaky waterbed (trust our experience on that). Sitting in second position, we call and no one raises. As we recall, three players are in.

ON THE FLOP: 7-3-3

Three times three, a delight to see! And since we effectively have button position, others can lead right into us. The Small Blind man at mid-table bets 5,000. The Big Blind folds. We modestly call.

ON THE TURN: 2

A harmless-looking card. The Small Blind checks. We shake our head no to that, and offer our own 5,000. Our opponent ponders, then calls.

ON THE RIVER: 5

We didn't jot down the suits, but this may have put three clubs or spades on the board. The Small Blind checks again, and now we bet big - 20,000. This gives our opponent an anguishing decision.

"You're not in the blind," he says as he tries to figure out our hand.

"No. In fact, you are."

After several more seconds of puzzlement in which Mr. Small Blind wonders if we might have hit a straight or flush, he folds. We don't show a thing - unless he finds this blog.

We dealt that man a crippling blow a bit later, in a raising contest with a 3-Q-Q flop.  We went all-in for 50,000 with Q-10. He called with Q-8! That moved us to 133,000 chips. But then we lost a lot of that trying in vain to put a second player out.

Finally things looked bleak with three players left and the blinds at 10,000/20,000. We were all in twice for the Big Blind. Once with A-Q, the other players folded. The second time we had a lowly 2-9 - but a 2 came on the flop, and that turned out to be the only pair!

A comeback which can only be described as miraculous led us to the final two, earning prize money. A woman was ready to chop the money with us - and a manager noted that's technically not allowed under the newly-emphasized state law. But he decided to make one last tournament exception. The least we could have won was $100, but we wound up with $150 - double our entry fee!

We're told Arrowhead Poker will have "affordable" fees to join its "private social club," which it now advertises. No details have been finalized yet. But there might be a couple of freerolls every month. We hope so - because $75 still is a steep price to play poker in our city.

But we made money by spending money. We left thankful for whatever help God provided (probably a lot) - and with that "best players" title, which we're not really sure we deserve. 

MINISTRY MOMENT: "A packet of salt, huh?" a man in his seventies said as he reached for our card protector.

We repeated the statement we've made at other times about that - Jesus has told us we're to be the salt of the earth (Matthew 5:13). "What does everyone think of Jesus?" we asked the remaining table of four plus a dealer.

"I shouldn't do that," a man across from us replied, "but I'm going all in."

Translation: no one wanted to talk about Jesus. But we noticed practically every player cursed at one some point in the game - several times invoking the name of God in the process. The Bible clearly warns about that:

You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name. - Deuteronomy 5:11

We were reminded during a weekend Bible study that the ancient Jews took this verse to an opposite extreme. They were reluctant to say the name of God at all - even writing it in Hebrew shorthand as YHWH, with no vowels. Yet Jesus showed no reluctance at all....

"I tell you the truth," Jesus answered, "before Abraham was born, I am!" At this, they picked up stones to stone him.... - John 8:58-59

Why did critical Jews do this? Because Jesus invoked an ancient name for God:

God said to Moses: "I AM who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I AM has sent me to you.'" - Exodus 3:14

Long before Popeye the cartoon sailor, God called Himself "I AM" - and Jesus did, too. Jesus thus revealed Himself to be God. If you're not comfortable with that, we suggest reading through the gospel of John from the beginning. You might be surprised by what it says about Jesus's relationship with God the Father.

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 175 final tables in 463 games (37.8%) - 33 cashes.  Since Thanksgiving 2015, we have cashed in four out of six tournaments for more than $320. Thanks be to God!

The Private Plan

Steps continue to unfold in our area's crackdown on gambling - which seems primarily to be a crackdown on poker rooms and tournaments.

We've now learned a big tournament was held earlier this month, outside the Wichita city limits - put on in the suburbs as a fundraiser for the football team. The school district and football team websites didn't seem to have anything about it when we checked today (including the fine print about whether there was a required buy-in). But one poker group's Twitter feed indicates it's gone on for several years.

Then there's the move by our primary Wichita poker room. Arrowhead Poker has cleansed its Facebook feed of dozens, perhaps hundreds, of posts about cash games in progress and upcoming tournaments. Now it says this:

Arrowhead Poker Cardroom is a private social club. We offer free texas holdem tournaments daily. Like this page to keep up with current events we are running. We are seeking Spades players as well for future tournament play details to come. 

The poker room's website still advertises daily tournaments - but the "Sunday Showdown" which once had a $75 buy-in now has no price showing.

"Private clubs" have a long history in our state. They go back to a time when "liquor by the drink" was not openly allowed, people would cross state lines to stock up on wine, and a minister with a lost voice box led an anti-alcohol "Life at Its Best" movement warning about "drug suffering."  That all changed in Kansas in the mid-1980s. But we wonder if what Arrowhead Poker is promoting is a first step toward bringing it back.

If you choose to play poker in private to get around local and state laws, keep one thing in mind. You might be able to hide your cash game from police - but you can't hide it from God:

..All who sin under the law will be judged by the law.... This will take place on the day when God will judge men's secrets through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares. - Romans 2:12, 16

To borrow from a song co-written by the late Glenn Frey, "You can't hide your lyin' eyes." Not from God, you can't. He watches over "the wicked and the good" (Proverbs 15:3).  But that doesn't mean secret acts are bad.  In fact, the Bible also says....

..And your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. - Matthew 6:18b

The King James Version says God will "reward you openly."  He wants others to know about the deeds you do for Him - but on the other hand, He doesn't want you to promote them:

So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men.... do not let your left hand know what you right hand is doing. - Matthew 6:2-3

We've heard ministers preach for decades about attempts by big government to encroach on your "right to privacy." But ultimately, that "right" does not exist. The idea is a farce, because God watches it all and will judge based on all. How are you spending your private time - and will it pass the final judgment test?

Poker Night 462: Nilla Folders

"So what's the difference between this game and 'Cards for the Cure'?" we asked at one point during Saturday night's poker tournament.

"They haven't shut this one down yet," a woman down the table answered. Perhaps sarcastically - but perhaps with a grain of truth.

"You'd better show us your ID," another woman said jokingly.

But then she gave us a break, as we had admitted it was our first time at Nilla's Poker Room. It's close to a main highway in our city, but a bit hard to find - hidden behind a rather notorious nightclub.  We found a nicely set-up place, with a full bar and a few food items.  Room for cash games were secluded behind walls in corners, while the main tournament was out in the open.

We went to Nilla's this weekend, even though Nikki's Poker Room is open again.  Nilla's cost $30 to play, so we theorized the prize pool would be better than the Nikki's "totally free" approach. And as a side issue, we might learn more about the current poker crackdown by Wichita police.

One woman at our table put the two recent shutdowns together, declaring Nikki's led to the end of Cards for the Cure. "They applied to renew their liquor license, and said up-front: We are a poker room."

"They didn't have to be so honest," another woman said - and that's a topic for another day. Now let's get to the action....

BLINDS: 25/50

IN THE POCKET: King of hearts-King of diamonds

Nilla's is easily the busiest poker room we've visited in Wichita - with four full tables playing in the tournament on a regular Saturday night. We haven't won a pot yet, despite a couple of feelers.

Now we have "the donuts" (K-K) in lead position, holding about 9,900 chips (starting with 10,500, including a newcomer's bonus) - so we limp in. A man across from us raises to 500, and we call. As best we recall, about four players are in.

ON THE FLOP: 10d-7d-6d

The jewelry store is open, but we're thinking more about our overpair. We bet 700 on it. That chases a couple of people away, but not the man who raised pre-flop. He calls.

ON THE TURN: Qc (may not be precise)

Not a diamond - but not a rib-sticking Ace, either. We increase the bet to 1,000, and get called again.

ON THE RIVER: Jd

We hit the diamond flush - but one card beats us. Does our opponent have it? We bet 1,000 again to find out. We're not really sure if he calls or not - but he flips over pocket Aces! Thankfully, they're both black Aces! The flush is a winner, and we gain more than 3,000 chips.

Another pot win brought us close to 14,000.  But then the third period of blinds brought disaster - as our A-K brought an Ace on the flop.  But 2-3 showed up, and a man with 4-5 hit a straight which severely hurt our stack.

We staggered to the one-hour break at 5,500 chips, and couldn't recover from there. We went all-in with A-Q of spades (as best we remember) - but the board brought only two spades. It also brought three clubs, which a woman used to make a winning flush.

While two players were "eliminated" at the table ahead of us, they took a re-buy option. We did not, walking to the bar to finish our soda in roughly 30th place - and wondering if we should keep going to a place which seems on the edge of breaking city law.

MINISTRY MOMENT: A couple of women at our table were quite talkative. One of them mentioned how "God gave me such good looks...."  We think she was making fun of herself, but we responded to it.

"You should be thankful to God for your good looks," we said. "We should be thankful to God for every blessing."

The woman didn't respond to that. But perhaps we made her stop and think for a moment.  The Bible describes several beautiful women, even in ancient history....

..The sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose. - Genesis 6:2

But there's a different kind of beauty that God ultimately is seeking:

Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight. - I Peter 3:3-4

Outward beauty is "fleeting" (Proverbs 31:30) - but godly character from a proper spirit never goes out of style. If you're a woman who plays poker, what sort of beauty are you trying to develop?

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 174 final tables in 462 games (37.7%) - 32 cashes.

Back in the Game

Well, that didn't take long. Look what was posted on Facebook today about the place where we had our last two poker tournaments:

10 hrs · 

We're not bluffing. We're re-opening our doors TODAY!

With our re-opening and with new city regulations, Nikki's will undergo a few changes.

As Nikki's is a family operated business, our mission is to always put our customers & staff first. Nikki's has and will continue to honor any card player's choice to play for free in our daily tournaments. Chair rentals are an optional charge to maximize a player's comfort during the tournament. As a courtesy to our players, we choose to donate the chair rental fees back to the players as a prize rather than keep the rental profit to our business. Our focus is our players.

Nikki's does not claim to be a gambling establishment. Our business focus is to serve our patrons beverages in a entertaining and safe environment.

Nikki's is currently in operation of scheduling upcoming tournament events.

As a family operated business, Nikki's would like genuinely thank those who showed support at our time of closing.

The "new city regulations" obviously are vague. The next time we visit Nikki's Poker Room, we plan to ask about that.

But based on what they're posting on social media, we're led to conclude people who want to "play for free" now will be allowed to do so. We somehow doubt those players will be eligible to win money; we've faced situations like that a few times in the past.

It all may boil down to what the motive of each player is.  Are you there simply for fun and fellowship? If so, let 'em play for free.  Are you there to build a "poker resume," getting ready to go after a WSOP bracelet? If so, that can be a different matter.

But keep one thing in mind: God in heaven knows your motives - and may well know them far better than you do:

And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the Lord searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts... - I Chronicles 28:9

We think God is far more likely to bless your efforts if you do them for the right reasons.

Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to win their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. - Colossians 3:22

This verse could apply to a poker player, abiding by the rules of the game. It could also apply to a poker room, trying to avoid another police raid. God wants us to develop an obedient heart - not only for those we serve around us, but for Him.

We should note Nikki's has another game people can play for free. A big checkerboard with giant checkers sits outside the main poker area. But we don't think even the lesser cable sports channels have reached the point where they're showing "Championship Checkers" - and side bets on a game might get the poker room in trouble as well.

Shutdown #2

You can walk for a cure. Swim for a cure. Maybe even tap-dance for a cure. But you can't play poker for a cure. Not in our state.

The evening news tonight (on the station where, for purposes of full disclosure, we have a job) revealed the Kansas State Poker Tournament has been canceled - only 10 days before the event. It was a fundraiser for the Susan G. Komen Cancer Foundation.

Things changed so quickly that the event's website was only updated today to change the location. There was a plan to move it outside of Wichita, because the city attorney ruled the tournament violated state gambling rules. (It should be noted the venue would have been a hotel owned by the city.)  But the alternative site north of town apparently developed cold feet, too.

A "Cards for the Cure" VIP Party can go forward, because there's apparently no poker game. People buy tickets, then join in a silent auction.

After five years of a state tournament, apparently with the blessing of local prosecutors, police determined state gambling laws were violated with Cards for the Cure. We suspect it's probably for the same reason Nikki's Poker Room shut down last week: people had to pay to play. (An update on that is coming later tonight.)

We'll offer our thoughts on this in a future post - bur for now, please offer your comments. The Wichita poker crackdown seems to be real. What do you think of it?

Aces Cracked?

Our background is not in poker, statistics or even theology. It's journalism - so when we see an interesting poker story, we can't help breaking the news. That's what we're doing here today.

It stems from Saturday night. We went to Nikki's Poker Room for our third tournament there, walked to the door - and declared, "It's locked."

"We know," one of three people standing outside said.

"Why?"

"We don't know." The "OPEN" light was on, but no one was home - well past the posted opening time of 6:30 p.m.

Since the night was cool, we went to our car and waited to see if someone would open the door for the other men. But no one did. Minutes later, one of them came to our car with stunning news: "They decided to shut down. Friday was their last day."

Wow - what led up to this?  That man learned the information from Facebook. So when we returned home, we checked Nikki's page:

The city of Wichita has begun shutting down all known gambling establishments. With heavy hearts we are sad to announce that Friday, January 15th, will be our final night of business.... With hope, we look forward to opening our doors again in the future....

In response to some comments, Nikki's added this:

...seems the city feels we hurt the casino.

Posts by Nikki's on Thursday and Friday seemed to reveal where the issue really is:

IT DOES NOT COST TO PLAY POKER . THIS IS A CHAIR RENTAL FEE. 

We wondered about this wording when we moved back to Kansas three years ago. It's how poker rooms justify how they operate and make a profit. But is it legal?

Another Wichita poker room has posted "legal links" on its website. One of them includes this noteworthy statement:

It is illegal to require any person to make a donation or contribution in order to gain admittance to "casino night" to play the games.

A poker tournament isn't really a "casino night" fundraiser. But let's face it: if you don't pay the "chair rental" at poker room, you don't get any chips or cards.

(The Kansas State Poker Championship was challenged on this a couple of years ago. It's a "Cards for the Cure" event with an entry fee, but organizers insisted they gained proper permission from the District Attorney's office.)

If other local poker rooms are receiving a "crackdown" by Wichita police, they have not said so publicly. But this blog can reveal a Wichita police officer sat at our table (plain-clothes) during our December 24 tournament; he told us so as he was eliminated. Whether or not he was checking the legality of Nikki's actions, we don't know.

There's a broad lesson in all of this - for poker tournament organizers, poker players and people in general. Looking for loopholes in the law can get you in trouble with the law.

Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. Abstain from all appearance of evil. - I Thessalonians 5:21-22 (KJV)

Things that look a little strange or suspicious are bound to get investigated sooner or later. Ask any of this year's presidential candidates about that. It's far better to stay close to the law, and to the God who is the "lawgiver."

The law of the wise is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death. - Proverbs 13:14 (KJV)

In the meantime, we can say we went two-for-two in tournaments at Nikki's Poker Room - both making final tables and winning money. We thank God for a nice touch on the poker resume.