BLINDS: 25/25
IN THE POCKET: A-A
That's a nice sight to see in the early minutes of a tournament. We've only lost 25 of our original 3,500 chips. Sitting early in the order at a table of eight, we limp in and hope for pre-flop raises. As usual for us, there are none. About five players are in.
ON THE FLOP: 10-9-7
Two diamonds are showing, so that's a caution flag for us. Players to our right offer 50. They're nibbling. We want a big bite.
"That's not enough," we say - and we raise to 350. Several players take the hint and fold. But a young man who acts like a "newby" calls. We're heads-up.
ON THE TURN: 10
The board pairs, which makes us a bit more uneasy - especially when our opponent bets 200. We suspect he has a 9 for two pair. But our two pair are better, and we want to make sure he knows that.
"400," we say. He calls our raise. Hmmm.
ON THE RIVER: 10
Gulp - a third 10. We now have the best full house. But the newcomer now bets 500. Did the longshot come through for him? We decide not to risk a raise.
"If he has quads, he's got me," we say (stating the obvious). "But I'll call."
Our opponent then turns over.... Q-J! He missed his straight draw, and tried to bluff us away. Our full house means a gain to 4,975.
"Good play," a woman at the table says.
"Be careful - don't inflate his ego," a man in between us jokes. We smile, and offer the opportunity for players to pat our back. No one does.
The newcomer was the first to go bust at our table, while we almost doubled our chip stack to 6,950 at the first break. But then came some explosive hands where several players bet big and topped our A-J and similar hands. We were happy to make it to the second break with 3,600, with 17 players left.
We made six all-in bets from the second hour on. Only one was called - and that was the problem. We forced our way in with Q-10 of clubs and rising blinds. A man to our left called with A-4, and caught an Ace on the flop. While it was another good tournament day, this time we missed the final table by placing 12th out of 50 players.
"I brought it to remind me of something," we said as we extended the tape a bit. "Narrow is the way that leads to life, and few people find it. But wide is the way that leads to destruction."
The man knew right away what we meant. We didn't write down his exact response, but it was along the lines of this verse....
Open for me the gates of the righteous; I will enter and give thanks to the Lord. - Psalm 118:19 (2011 NIV)
Thanksgiving Day may be over in the U.S., but we're not sure there's ever a wrong time to give thanks to God for His blessings. And the righteousness described there should not be something we create:
But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known.... This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference.... - Romans 3:21-22
Our righteousness is worthless (Isaiah 64:6). God's righteousness, through faith in Jesus, is priceless.
But let's back up a second. Did our statement about the tape measure seem familiar? It should....
Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. - Matthew 7:13-14
These are words of Jesus Christ. What do you think He meant by them? Offer a comment with your thoughts, and we'll compare notes in an upcoming post.
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 188 final tables in 516 games (36.4%) - 38 cashes. Experiment cost: up $100.
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