Lil Kim's Cove traditionally is closed on Thanksgiving. So we've traditionally traveled to Soho Bar and Grill on Thanksgiving Eve, for their Wednesday night tournament.
We did it again tonight - and found hardly anyone was there. A staff member told us the poker game was on Tuesday night this week -- moved up for some kind of pre-Thanksgiving bash tonight.
That's their choice, and we respect that. We only wish the notice had come much earlier, to spare us the drive.
So we'll update our weekly poker statistics another time. In the meantime, here's something else that could raise your.... well, hold it. A New York doctor says he has a way to prevent your eyebrows from going up, and giving your hand away. It's a form of plastic surgery he calls "poker-tox."
We think the price of several hundred dollars is a bit steep - especially considering it only lasts a few months. Would you give it a try? Why or why not?
Showing posts with label Soho. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Soho. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Howl-No-We Won't Go
"Are we having poker here next Wednesday night?" we asked the Tournament Director last Wednesday at Soho Bar and Grill. We had noticed a sign on the door the Director had not, promoting a cover-charge Halloween party at the club.
It turns out Soho's party will override live poker tonight. That's too bad, because we wanted a place to escape from the crowds of Halloween-keepers -- from children begging for candy to grown-ups acting like children with scary costumes.
The essence of Halloween involves things such as witchcraft, haunted houses and zombies - things which lean away from God, and toward God's arch-enemy.
So if you're bogged down in sin or overzealous for things of "the dark side," this might be a day to avoid feeding that habit -- and even break free from it. The devil has nothing worth celebrating.
It turns out Soho's party will override live poker tonight. That's too bad, because we wanted a place to escape from the crowds of Halloween-keepers -- from children begging for candy to grown-ups acting like children with scary costumes.
The essence of Halloween involves things such as witchcraft, haunted houses and zombies - things which lean away from God, and toward God's arch-enemy.
The great dragon was hurled down -- that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. - Revelation 12:9Read the verses around that one, and you'll find Satan lost a "war in heaven" against angels (verse 7). The devil's dream from ages past (we don't really know how long ago) is to usurp God. Note these words from God....
You said in your heart, "I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God... I will make myself like the Most High." - Isaiah 14:13-14God did not allow that (verse 15) - yet Satan has been looking for a following on Earth ever since. Maybe you've joined Satan's ranks, without realizing it.
The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. - II Corinthians 4:4Demonic influences are frequently connected to Satan -- and Jesus had several encounters with demon-possessed people. But in a recent Bible study, we were surprised to learn that's not always the case:
Now the Spirit of the Lord had departed from [King] Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord tormented him. Saul's attendants said to him, "See, an evil spirit from God is tormenting you." - I Samuel 16:14-15Huh?! An evil spirit from the Lord? Yes, the Bible indicates Saul's servants had it right. You can read another example of God sending evil spirits in Judges 9:22-24 -- in both cases sent in punishment for a leader's sins.
So if you're bogged down in sin or overzealous for things of "the dark side," this might be a day to avoid feeding that habit -- and even break free from it. The devil has nothing worth celebrating.
Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. - James 4:7
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Poker Night 210: Count Your Blessings
Pardon our lateness in posting this -- but due to Lil Kim's Cove being closed for Thanksgiving Day, we played in the Wednesday night tournament at Soho Bar and Grill. We actually checked before we left home, and found we'd made four final tables there in 22 tries. The "drive for five" had a bold beginning....
BLINDS: 25/50
IN THE POCKET: A-J offsuit
We're second in the betting order, and play by our credo: "Limp early, bet late." We call -- and unlike other early hands, so does most of the table.
ON THE FLOP: 10-K-6
We miss -- sort of. There's a "gutshot" straight draw. The table checks to us, and we're happy to join the wave. We're a bit relieved when the entire table checks.
ON THE TURN: Q
Put us on Broadway! But we don't want to shine our neon light too much, so we check again. A player to our left bets 1,000. A man across the table calls. Good.
"I raise," we announce -- and add another 1,000. The man to our left thinks for a moment, smells trouble and folds. The man across from us calls.
ON THE RIVER: 2
As we recall, this put three clubs on the board. But we don't think our opponent is waiting for a flush, so we bet 2,000 directly at him. The man thinks it over for several seconds -- then disgusting throws his cards right in front of us. He has K-Q, but that's a two-pair fold. We never show how he was topped.
That big chip gain was followed by a lengthy drought -- but in the second hour, things happened. Another A-J led to two pair, and a double in our stack when we went all-in. A later push with K-Q of hearts led to a pair of Queens, which held up. Then we pushed with A-K of spades, made Aces and 3's and advanced our stack to 100,000.
We reached the final table with 115,000 chips -- then made a flush from J-9 of diamonds to jump to 225K! But then came a big loss and rising blinds. Forced to push again with A-7, we lost to a flush. But we went home feeling good -- as a fourth-place finish was our best since Labor Day.
MINISTRY MOMENT: "I'm ready to eat a drumstick," a man to our left said during the tournament.
"So what are you thankful for this year?" we asked. He proceeded to run down his Thanksgiving menu, as if he didn't understand our question.
"Soho Bar!" another man declared when we asked what made him thankful. A few minutes later, he revised that answer: "I'm thankful for every blessing of every day." Now that's more like it; see the post below this one for why we say that.
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 86 final tables in 210 nights (41.0%) -- 15 cashes. Three final tables in a row is a much more pleasant streak.
NATIONAL LEAGUE OF POKER TOTAL: Five-player sit-n-gos - 7-11-7-3-2. Full tournaments - 91 point wins in 485 games (18.4%), 37 final tables, two cashes.
We returned to sit-n-goes last weekend, hoping to gain enough points to make the Sunday night weekly championship. A first place finish helped; a third hurt.
POKER STARS.NET TOTAL: Full tournaments - three "top ten percent" finishes in 13 games (23.1%). Pretend cash games - $23,059, down $540.
BLINDS: 25/50
IN THE POCKET: A-J offsuit
We're second in the betting order, and play by our credo: "Limp early, bet late." We call -- and unlike other early hands, so does most of the table.
ON THE FLOP: 10-K-6
We miss -- sort of. There's a "gutshot" straight draw. The table checks to us, and we're happy to join the wave. We're a bit relieved when the entire table checks.
ON THE TURN: Q
Put us on Broadway! But we don't want to shine our neon light too much, so we check again. A player to our left bets 1,000. A man across the table calls. Good.
"I raise," we announce -- and add another 1,000. The man to our left thinks for a moment, smells trouble and folds. The man across from us calls.
ON THE RIVER: 2
As we recall, this put three clubs on the board. But we don't think our opponent is waiting for a flush, so we bet 2,000 directly at him. The man thinks it over for several seconds -- then disgusting throws his cards right in front of us. He has K-Q, but that's a two-pair fold. We never show how he was topped.
That big chip gain was followed by a lengthy drought -- but in the second hour, things happened. Another A-J led to two pair, and a double in our stack when we went all-in. A later push with K-Q of hearts led to a pair of Queens, which held up. Then we pushed with A-K of spades, made Aces and 3's and advanced our stack to 100,000.
We reached the final table with 115,000 chips -- then made a flush from J-9 of diamonds to jump to 225K! But then came a big loss and rising blinds. Forced to push again with A-7, we lost to a flush. But we went home feeling good -- as a fourth-place finish was our best since Labor Day.
MINISTRY MOMENT: "I'm ready to eat a drumstick," a man to our left said during the tournament.
"So what are you thankful for this year?" we asked. He proceeded to run down his Thanksgiving menu, as if he didn't understand our question.
"Soho Bar!" another man declared when we asked what made him thankful. A few minutes later, he revised that answer: "I'm thankful for every blessing of every day." Now that's more like it; see the post below this one for why we say that.
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 86 final tables in 210 nights (41.0%) -- 15 cashes. Three final tables in a row is a much more pleasant streak.
NATIONAL LEAGUE OF POKER TOTAL: Five-player sit-n-gos - 7-11-7-3-2. Full tournaments - 91 point wins in 485 games (18.4%), 37 final tables, two cashes.
We returned to sit-n-goes last weekend, hoping to gain enough points to make the Sunday night weekly championship. A first place finish helped; a third hurt.
POKER STARS.NET TOTAL: Full tournaments - three "top ten percent" finishes in 13 games (23.1%). Pretend cash games - $23,059, down $540.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Poker Night 169: Four Times Better
It had been six weeks since we spent a Wednesday night playing poker at Soho Bar & Grill. But the way our schedule for the week turned out, we went there this week after skipping the Red Barn.
Soho is a much more competitive place to play -- with five or six tables going at once. A big early loss took away half our stack, making it look like we wouldn't survive table #1. But then a double-up came with A-K. A couple more big wins followed, including a full house from 2-2. And then....
BLINDS: 1,000/2,000
IN THE POCKET: 9-9
Only three tables remain in action. We have about 35,000 chips. Other people might push with this rather high pocket pair, but we merely call when our turn comes. No one raises.
ON THE FLOP: 10-9-9
Are you kidding me?!?!?! Quads on the flop!!! But yes -- this looks familiar, and we were burned not long ago in this position.
Yet the Big Dog Poker rules haven't changed -- you can't claim 5,000 bonus chips for quads unless the hand reaches the river. So we turn on the deadpan poker face, check and hope. About three other players in the hand check as well.
ON THE TURN: A
As we recall, a possible straight flush became impossible at this point. So we have a winner for the moment. A big-talking guy to our right bets 4,000. We look at our pocket cards carefully, in nothing more than an acting job -- then politely call. Everyone else ponders and folds, as we sip a little soda.
ON THE RIVER: 4
The man to our right thinks for a moment, then decides: "8,000."
We could have gone all-in here, to really tempt our opponent into a disastrous mistake. But we want to leave no doubt about the quad bonus -- so we say quietly, "I'll call."
"He's GOT the f**king NINE!!!" the man exclaims before we can finish counting our eight 1,000-dollar chips. He walks away from the table and halfway across the room, a bit like Phil Hellmuth on a bad day.
"Come here," we say quietly to the opponent. "I want you to see this."
After a moment of venting, he returns to the table for show-and-tell time. "I didn't have just one nine...."
"Quaaaaaads!" the rest of the table shouts. We don't. We take the pot and the bonus with a smile. Our opponent didn't show his cards, but admitted later he had A-10. (Another man noted we were downright nice, in not eliminating him. Call that another lesson of Memorial Day.)
That big gain helped us reach the final table -- something we haven't been able to do at Soho since last November. But another early exit happened there, as we went all-in pre-flop with A-K. The board didn't pair, and a man beat us with a pair of 10's. Yet we left satisfied with ninth place -- and a reminder that quads do win most of the time.
MINISTRY MOMENT: The discussion at one table turned to noisy players, and one man across from us recalled a game the week before. "I wanted to be like Kurt Cobain," he said, "and blow my brains out. I know that's a bad comparison...."
"Kurt Cobain sold his soul to the devil," someone else said.
As the discussion continued and we took the deal, we said: "It's better to be soul-ed out for God -- to give your soul to him."
The man who brought up Cobain took issue with that idea. "My soul belongs to me. It's mine."
"Who gave it to you, then?" we asked.
"My parents did."
Hmmmm -- what do you think of that explanation? Our thoughts will appear in an upcoming post.
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 69 final tables in 169 nights (40.8%) -- 11 cashes.
Soho is a much more competitive place to play -- with five or six tables going at once. A big early loss took away half our stack, making it look like we wouldn't survive table #1. But then a double-up came with A-K. A couple more big wins followed, including a full house from 2-2. And then....
BLINDS: 1,000/2,000
IN THE POCKET: 9-9
Only three tables remain in action. We have about 35,000 chips. Other people might push with this rather high pocket pair, but we merely call when our turn comes. No one raises.
ON THE FLOP: 10-9-9
Are you kidding me?!?!?! Quads on the flop!!! But yes -- this looks familiar, and we were burned not long ago in this position.
Yet the Big Dog Poker rules haven't changed -- you can't claim 5,000 bonus chips for quads unless the hand reaches the river. So we turn on the deadpan poker face, check and hope. About three other players in the hand check as well.
ON THE TURN: A
As we recall, a possible straight flush became impossible at this point. So we have a winner for the moment. A big-talking guy to our right bets 4,000. We look at our pocket cards carefully, in nothing more than an acting job -- then politely call. Everyone else ponders and folds, as we sip a little soda.
ON THE RIVER: 4
The man to our right thinks for a moment, then decides: "8,000."
We could have gone all-in here, to really tempt our opponent into a disastrous mistake. But we want to leave no doubt about the quad bonus -- so we say quietly, "I'll call."
"He's GOT the f**king NINE!!!" the man exclaims before we can finish counting our eight 1,000-dollar chips. He walks away from the table and halfway across the room, a bit like Phil Hellmuth on a bad day.
"Come here," we say quietly to the opponent. "I want you to see this."
After a moment of venting, he returns to the table for show-and-tell time. "I didn't have just one nine...."
"Quaaaaaads!" the rest of the table shouts. We don't. We take the pot and the bonus with a smile. Our opponent didn't show his cards, but admitted later he had A-10. (Another man noted we were downright nice, in not eliminating him. Call that another lesson of Memorial Day.)
That big gain helped us reach the final table -- something we haven't been able to do at Soho since last November. But another early exit happened there, as we went all-in pre-flop with A-K. The board didn't pair, and a man beat us with a pair of 10's. Yet we left satisfied with ninth place -- and a reminder that quads do win most of the time.
MINISTRY MOMENT: The discussion at one table turned to noisy players, and one man across from us recalled a game the week before. "I wanted to be like Kurt Cobain," he said, "and blow my brains out. I know that's a bad comparison...."
"Kurt Cobain sold his soul to the devil," someone else said.
As the discussion continued and we took the deal, we said: "It's better to be soul-ed out for God -- to give your soul to him."
The man who brought up Cobain took issue with that idea. "My soul belongs to me. It's mine."
"Who gave it to you, then?" we asked.
"My parents did."
Hmmmm -- what do you think of that explanation? Our thoughts will appear in an upcoming post.
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 69 final tables in 169 nights (40.8%) -- 11 cashes.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Poker Night 147: Tell It All, Brother
It had been more than three months since we played midweek poker at Soho Bar and Grill. While we didn't play that well tonight, the evening was eventful. A free tournament sometimes has a more friendly atmosphere than a cash game, and that helped us out several times....
BLINDS: 50/100
IN THE POCKET: 9-8 offsuit
A few hands before, a big bettor to our left scared us off a nice high pair -- then showed a measly 2-7 of a bluff. We're anxious to atone for that, so we play this hand despite his raise to 500. A man across the table calls the 500 bet as well.
ON THE FLOP: 9-6-6
Two pair looks nice, so we offer a bet of 200. That man across the table raises 2,000 -- or nearly half our stack. Could he be bluffing, too? We're thinking so, and call.
ON THE TURN: K
"I'm all in," the man across from us announces -- and he has our remaining 2,300 more than covered. But then he shows how friendly the table is.
"If you don't have a 6, you do NOT want to call." He actually turns over the 6! Yes, he has three of a kind -- and we don't need to see anything more.
"Well, I don't, so I'll fold." Many players at other tables would not have been that gracious and generous. (P.S. the last card wouldn't have helped us.)
We rallied from that setback by going all-in with pocket Kings, and jumping from 2,200 to more than 11,000. But we never won another hand -- and daring to push with middle pair left us steamrolled by another player's full house. Final result: about 34th place.
MINISTRY MOMENT: Soho is primarily a rock music nightclub, and someone put money in the jukebox for a couple of songs which sounded like "death metal" -- or even construction equipment. A young man across from us was glad, when that music stopped during the one-hour break.
"It was like they were calling up demons or something," he told us.
"That's why I have this," we answered -- tossing our "Jesus as your Savior" coin across the table, for him to examine. "Do you believe that message? Is Jesus your Savior?"
The young man with a giant spiderweb tattooed on one arm said he believed it. "He's the best out there," he answered -- and he's right about that. Compared with Jesus, who else really is there?
"Covet earnestly the best gifts," Paul recommended in I Corinthians 12:31. The best gift God could give sinful man is a perfect sacrifice, to pay our penalty. Have you accepted it -- namely, the Son of God?
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 59 final tables in 147 nights 940.1%) - 11 cashes.
BLINDS: 50/100
IN THE POCKET: 9-8 offsuit
A few hands before, a big bettor to our left scared us off a nice high pair -- then showed a measly 2-7 of a bluff. We're anxious to atone for that, so we play this hand despite his raise to 500. A man across the table calls the 500 bet as well.
ON THE FLOP: 9-6-6
Two pair looks nice, so we offer a bet of 200. That man across the table raises 2,000 -- or nearly half our stack. Could he be bluffing, too? We're thinking so, and call.
ON THE TURN: K
"I'm all in," the man across from us announces -- and he has our remaining 2,300 more than covered. But then he shows how friendly the table is.
"If you don't have a 6, you do NOT want to call." He actually turns over the 6! Yes, he has three of a kind -- and we don't need to see anything more.
"Well, I don't, so I'll fold." Many players at other tables would not have been that gracious and generous. (P.S. the last card wouldn't have helped us.)
We rallied from that setback by going all-in with pocket Kings, and jumping from 2,200 to more than 11,000. But we never won another hand -- and daring to push with middle pair left us steamrolled by another player's full house. Final result: about 34th place.
MINISTRY MOMENT: Soho is primarily a rock music nightclub, and someone put money in the jukebox for a couple of songs which sounded like "death metal" -- or even construction equipment. A young man across from us was glad, when that music stopped during the one-hour break.
"It was like they were calling up demons or something," he told us.
"That's why I have this," we answered -- tossing our "Jesus as your Savior" coin across the table, for him to examine. "Do you believe that message? Is Jesus your Savior?"
The young man with a giant spiderweb tattooed on one arm said he believed it. "He's the best out there," he answered -- and he's right about that. Compared with Jesus, who else really is there?
"Covet earnestly the best gifts," Paul recommended in I Corinthians 12:31. The best gift God could give sinful man is a perfect sacrifice, to pay our penalty. Have you accepted it -- namely, the Son of God?
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 59 final tables in 147 nights 940.1%) - 11 cashes.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Scared off my game
As we drove to a poker tournament tonight, two ideas were bouncing in our head -- fear and fleeing. The Bible seems to be against the former, and in favor of the latter. Yet some would say we wound up doing both.
We walked down the strip mall sidewalk toward the door of Soho Bar and Grill. "You coming in?" a man at the door asked.
We were, so we correctly guessed what that meant. We pulled out our wallet, to show a legal ID. "Sweet," the man said.
"NO! You can't play tonight! You can't play tonight!" Someone from behind reached around and grabbed us.
"OK, I'll leave." We did a 180-degree turn and walked the other way -- away from the door of Soho, never stepping inside.
"Come back," a voice behind us said -- the voice of the man who had grabbed us. "I was kidding. Please stop!"
We didn't. The voice sounded familiar, as a man who plays with us often. But without even turning around to see who was talking, we went directly to the car, pulled out and drove home -- not stopping until we reached home to post this.
It's a sad truth that most free poker tournaments take place in bars and nightclubs. Our city has had several shootings at bars in the last couple of years, including places which have poker nights. (Admittedly, the attacks came well after the poker ended.)
It's also a fact that Halloween is approaching -- an annual event which plays on people's fears. It's an event we personally avoid as much as possible, because we don't consider it a Christian thing to do.
Put those two pieces of evidence together, and you might understand why we reacted as we did tonight. If we don't feel safe entering a place to play poker, we're not addicted to the game enough to go in and risk trouble.
We don't have to go out and drive across town for poker nights, after all. We can play online, in the safety of our computer room. It's obviously not the same, but we can.
"Deliver me, O Lord, from thine enemies: I flee unto thee to hide me," says Psalm 143:7 in the King James Version. On the other hand, I John 4:18 says, "There is no fear in love.... He that fears is not made perfect in love."
How do we balance these two things? We're not sure if we did it the right way tonight or not. Your comments are welcome about it.
But come to think of it, many a chip stack has been lost by the poker player who boldly went all-in with what he thought was a good hand -- only to find his opponent across the table had one even better. It's the stuff of poetry....
He who should have folded and fled
Pushed and went all-in instead --
Only to wind up drawing dead.
We walked down the strip mall sidewalk toward the door of Soho Bar and Grill. "You coming in?" a man at the door asked.
We were, so we correctly guessed what that meant. We pulled out our wallet, to show a legal ID. "Sweet," the man said.
"NO! You can't play tonight! You can't play tonight!" Someone from behind reached around and grabbed us.
"OK, I'll leave." We did a 180-degree turn and walked the other way -- away from the door of Soho, never stepping inside.
"Come back," a voice behind us said -- the voice of the man who had grabbed us. "I was kidding. Please stop!"
We didn't. The voice sounded familiar, as a man who plays with us often. But without even turning around to see who was talking, we went directly to the car, pulled out and drove home -- not stopping until we reached home to post this.
It's a sad truth that most free poker tournaments take place in bars and nightclubs. Our city has had several shootings at bars in the last couple of years, including places which have poker nights. (Admittedly, the attacks came well after the poker ended.)
It's also a fact that Halloween is approaching -- an annual event which plays on people's fears. It's an event we personally avoid as much as possible, because we don't consider it a Christian thing to do.
Put those two pieces of evidence together, and you might understand why we reacted as we did tonight. If we don't feel safe entering a place to play poker, we're not addicted to the game enough to go in and risk trouble.
We don't have to go out and drive across town for poker nights, after all. We can play online, in the safety of our computer room. It's obviously not the same, but we can.
"Deliver me, O Lord, from thine enemies: I flee unto thee to hide me," says Psalm 143:7 in the King James Version. On the other hand, I John 4:18 says, "There is no fear in love.... He that fears is not made perfect in love."
How do we balance these two things? We're not sure if we did it the right way tonight or not. Your comments are welcome about it.
But come to think of it, many a chip stack has been lost by the poker player who boldly went all-in with what he thought was a good hand -- only to find his opponent across the table had one even better. It's the stuff of poetry....
He who should have folded and fled
Pushed and went all-in instead --
Only to wind up drawing dead.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Poker Night 107: Get Over It
A pastor in our city likes to say, "Get your higher education -- and then get over it." We should have remembered that advice tonight, as our Wednesday night poker game moved to Soho Bar & Grill. But we didn't, and a big loss led us to an early end in about 30th place.
We won two nice pots early, including one where Q-9 of diamonds turned into a flush on the turn and gained us 4,000 chips over the man who always seems to know what hand we have. (He guessed "flush draw" on the turn, when we already had it.) But a huge stack of chips made us a little overconfident....
BLINDS: 50/100
IN THE POCKET: K-Q suited
Standard calling occurs at a full table, until we raise to 300. One man to our left calls -- but then a man in the big blind re-raises by 2,000. Our stack is huge enough that we can afford it, so we call. Only then the man to our left raises even more, and goes all-in for about 9,500.
"Yeow," we say as we count our chip. We have a lot, but this would cost a lot. But we think there's some deep-down bluffing going on (we took a man out earlier who bet big with only 8-10), so we call again.
ON THE FLOP: K-9-7 offsuit.
The man who went all-in turns over pocket Aces. Trouble is, two players still can bet! If that's not bizarre enough, our opponent then pushes all-in for several thousand.
"You know they're going to bet now," a man out of the hand declares. And since we have top pair (at least compared with the board), we call a second all-in bet. The opponent for the sidepot shows 8-8.
"They're two-timing you," the man to our left says. But we still could get a consolation prize -- especially if a King or Queen comes.
ON THE TURN: 4 (we think, can't recall)
No help to anybody.
ON THE RIVER: 8.
"Hey, I've got 8's." The man whose big over-the-top raise started all this winds up taking everything -- an estimated 30,000 chips. We're left with about 3,000, and a good dose of disbelief.
MINISTRY MOMENT: At one point late in our time at the table, a player brought up the idea of "karma" happening in poker.
"Or as I read in a book once," we responded, "you reap what you sow."
A man sitting next to us affirmed that idea. "That's why I try to be nice to other people," he said -- which was interesting, because he spent a great deal of time during the tournament engaged in cursing taunts aimed at other players (including us).
Do you know what book has that line about reaping and sowing? It's the Bible -- Galatians 6:7, to be exact. Read verse 8 with it, and consider what you're sowing in life.
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 44 final tables in 107 nights (41.1%) - 10 cashes.
We won two nice pots early, including one where Q-9 of diamonds turned into a flush on the turn and gained us 4,000 chips over the man who always seems to know what hand we have. (He guessed "flush draw" on the turn, when we already had it.) But a huge stack of chips made us a little overconfident....
BLINDS: 50/100
IN THE POCKET: K-Q suited
Standard calling occurs at a full table, until we raise to 300. One man to our left calls -- but then a man in the big blind re-raises by 2,000. Our stack is huge enough that we can afford it, so we call. Only then the man to our left raises even more, and goes all-in for about 9,500.
"Yeow," we say as we count our chip. We have a lot, but this would cost a lot. But we think there's some deep-down bluffing going on (we took a man out earlier who bet big with only 8-10), so we call again.
ON THE FLOP: K-9-7 offsuit.
The man who went all-in turns over pocket Aces. Trouble is, two players still can bet! If that's not bizarre enough, our opponent then pushes all-in for several thousand.
"You know they're going to bet now," a man out of the hand declares. And since we have top pair (at least compared with the board), we call a second all-in bet. The opponent for the sidepot shows 8-8.
"They're two-timing you," the man to our left says. But we still could get a consolation prize -- especially if a King or Queen comes.
ON THE TURN: 4 (we think, can't recall)
No help to anybody.
ON THE RIVER: 8.
"Hey, I've got 8's." The man whose big over-the-top raise started all this winds up taking everything -- an estimated 30,000 chips. We're left with about 3,000, and a good dose of disbelief.
MINISTRY MOMENT: At one point late in our time at the table, a player brought up the idea of "karma" happening in poker.
"Or as I read in a book once," we responded, "you reap what you sow."
A man sitting next to us affirmed that idea. "That's why I try to be nice to other people," he said -- which was interesting, because he spent a great deal of time during the tournament engaged in cursing taunts aimed at other players (including us).
Do you know what book has that line about reaping and sowing? It's the Bible -- Galatians 6:7, to be exact. Read verse 8 with it, and consider what you're sowing in life.
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 44 final tables in 107 nights (41.1%) - 10 cashes.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Poker Night #73: Mama's Night Out
We tried a new poker location tonight, invited by the director of the Thursday night games at Lil Kim's Cove. Soho Bar and Grill has rock bands on weekends, but it was conservative enough to have The O'Reilly Factor on TWO of its four TV screens when we walked in.
For one group of players, it was family poker night. The mother sat to my immediate right. She gave herself away with several statements that you'd only hear a mother say -- things like, "Daughter, would you share a fry?"
At one point early in the evening, "Mama" (which is what we called her) demanded respect from the rest of the table -- and we offered her some on the spot. "So would you put in the small blind, please?"
But Mama played well enough to make the final table. And so did we, tying with her for fifth place on the evening. We've heard the winner at Soho gets $100 -- and when we left, a Lil Kim's Cove regular named Harry was in line to get it. He was on fire at the final table, so when the moment came to take him on, we felt confident....
BLINDS: 5,000/10,000
The tournament director is in a lively mood, and throws two gold chips for 10,000 onto the table just for the fun of it. Somehow we don't think "ante" rules at casinos work this way.
IN THE POCKET: ACE of hearts-ACE of spades!
Our stack stands at 55,000 -- but that doesn't sound so good when the blinds are so high. We only raise to 30,000, hoping to induce further betting. In a hopeful sign, Harry (holding what looks like 550,000) asks how many more chips we have -- then re-raises to 55,000.
Mama sits in the big blind, and dares to join the jamboree. She only has 15,000 left. Haggling then ensues over exactly what Mama can win. We're tempted to declare it won't matter -- but Deuteronomy 5:16 says we should honor mothers.
"Oh yes, and I'll call," we declare when a quiet half-moment comes. Three of the six players at the table then turn up their cards. Harry has A-10 of diamonds. Mama has Q-8 of diamonds. We feel good.
ON THE FLOP: Jd-6d-3 (forget which suit).
"How about a diamond?" Harry asks. Oh no...
ON THE TURN: 2d.
Flushed out again! Harry's happy, and our Aces have no chance.
ON THE RIVER: 10.
Like so many hands on this night, it was a big Harry deal.
MINISTRY MOMENT: Early in the evening, someone across the table from us used the name "Jesus" in a semi-profane sort of way.
"He's my hope of salvation," we say quietly -- probably too quietly for that person to hear. But Mama next to us heard it.
"Oh, He IS my salvation!" Mama declares. (Oh, is Jesus yours as well? Review Acts 4:12 for a stern warning about that.)
Mama later hears the word "Jesus" in a song on the Soho background music. She points it out to us.
"I heard the name, but I didn't hear the rest of it," we admit. Neither did she; she wondered if we caught the context. We then add: "Lots of folks say the name of Jesus, but that doesn't always mean it's the right way."
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 31 final tables in 73 nights (42.5%) - 8 cashes. While we won no money, fifth place put us in the running for a "quarterly" big game at Soho in a few weeks.
(Yahoo and NBC Sports records will be updated after the Lil Kim's Cove game Thursday.)
For one group of players, it was family poker night. The mother sat to my immediate right. She gave herself away with several statements that you'd only hear a mother say -- things like, "Daughter, would you share a fry?"
At one point early in the evening, "Mama" (which is what we called her) demanded respect from the rest of the table -- and we offered her some on the spot. "So would you put in the small blind, please?"
But Mama played well enough to make the final table. And so did we, tying with her for fifth place on the evening. We've heard the winner at Soho gets $100 -- and when we left, a Lil Kim's Cove regular named Harry was in line to get it. He was on fire at the final table, so when the moment came to take him on, we felt confident....
BLINDS: 5,000/10,000
The tournament director is in a lively mood, and throws two gold chips for 10,000 onto the table just for the fun of it. Somehow we don't think "ante" rules at casinos work this way.
IN THE POCKET: ACE of hearts-ACE of spades!
Our stack stands at 55,000 -- but that doesn't sound so good when the blinds are so high. We only raise to 30,000, hoping to induce further betting. In a hopeful sign, Harry (holding what looks like 550,000) asks how many more chips we have -- then re-raises to 55,000.
Mama sits in the big blind, and dares to join the jamboree. She only has 15,000 left. Haggling then ensues over exactly what Mama can win. We're tempted to declare it won't matter -- but Deuteronomy 5:16 says we should honor mothers.
"Oh yes, and I'll call," we declare when a quiet half-moment comes. Three of the six players at the table then turn up their cards. Harry has A-10 of diamonds. Mama has Q-8 of diamonds. We feel good.
ON THE FLOP: Jd-6d-3 (forget which suit).
"How about a diamond?" Harry asks. Oh no...
ON THE TURN: 2d.
Flushed out again! Harry's happy, and our Aces have no chance.
ON THE RIVER: 10.
Like so many hands on this night, it was a big Harry deal.
MINISTRY MOMENT: Early in the evening, someone across the table from us used the name "Jesus" in a semi-profane sort of way.
"He's my hope of salvation," we say quietly -- probably too quietly for that person to hear. But Mama next to us heard it.
"Oh, He IS my salvation!" Mama declares. (Oh, is Jesus yours as well? Review Acts 4:12 for a stern warning about that.)
Mama later hears the word "Jesus" in a song on the Soho background music. She points it out to us.
"I heard the name, but I didn't hear the rest of it," we admit. Neither did she; she wondered if we caught the context. We then add: "Lots of folks say the name of Jesus, but that doesn't always mean it's the right way."
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 31 final tables in 73 nights (42.5%) - 8 cashes. While we won no money, fifth place put us in the running for a "quarterly" big game at Soho in a few weeks.
(Yahoo and NBC Sports records will be updated after the Lil Kim's Cove game Thursday.)
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