Face: Up to It?

"That's why I don't play poker," a young man said at our regular job the other day.

His reason had nothing to do with money or ethics. "I don't have a poker face," he explained. He added he tends to let his expressions and feelings come forward - so if he's dealt pocket Aces, the rest of the table probably would know in an instant.

The "poker face" has become such a common cliché that Lady Gaga made a hit song with that title (albeit with questionable lyrics). We think some people who have trouble maintaining one in club games try to make up for it with big talk - boasting about winning hands they might or might not have.

Believe it or not, there are times in the Bible where people are told to have a "poker face" of sorts. One case occurred when a leader lost two sons due to their disobedience....

Then Moses said to Aaron and his sons Eleazar and Ithamar, "Do not let your hair become unkempt, and do not tear your clothes, or you will die and the Lord will angry with the whole community..." - Leviticus 10:6

No obvious signs of grief were allowed, because the fire that killed the other sons had come from God (verses 1-2). The victims simply received what they deserved. Perhaps that carries over to some ministers today. To be honest, we've seen modern TV preachers with "poker faces" so grim that it's hard to believe they consider the gospel "good news".

So how do you develop and keep a good poker face? One idea we have is to think about the worst thing that could possibly happen, such as the Bible scene above. Or if you see two Aces on the flop and you have pocket Aces, pretend someone else is on a royal flush draw.

But when the hand is over and a pot is won, it's OK to show some emotion. That's true with any blessing God gives, too:

The Lord is my strength and my shield.... My heart leaps for joy, and I will give thanks to him in song. - Psalm 28:7

A good "poker face" indeed takes some practice, but it can help make you a good poker player. We've offered our suggestion for developing one. If you have a better one, please leave a comment.

Poker Night 476: Stand Your Ground

There are times in many lives when you have to take a stand. That's true in poker tournaments as well - but the key is knowing when to take it, and how. Here's a case from Monday night's tournament at Yvie's....

BLINDS: 400/800

IN THE POCKET: King-10 of diamonds

We won a small early pot, but folded most of what we've been dealt. We come to this hand with about 8,100 chips. While this hand is iffy for us, we decide to play it - and are thankful when no one raises. About half the table of seven is in.

ON THE FLOP: 10s-2c-4s (suits may not be exact)

Top pair with a higher kicker is good news for us. But a man across the table wearing a bowler hat hints at bad news: he raises ahead of us to 2,000. With that phrase "taking a stand" clearly in mind, we call - but we wonder if he's hiding something like pocket Jacks.

ON THE TURN: 9d

We're heads-up now - and as long as the cards are numbers and not letters, we're satisfied. Our opponent checks. So do we.

ON THE RIVER: 9s

The board pairs, so we have two pair. When Mr. Bowler Hat checks again, we sense a chance to gain the advantage. We bet 1,500, and our opponent ponders it for a moment.

"Probably hit a flush," he mumbles as he folds.

To be honest, we didn't notice three spades on the board until that moment. If he had hit a flush, we would have been embarrassed. Instead, he backed down and our chip count jumps above 13,000.

"Good bet," another player says. Thank you - risky as it was.

We played safely, and reached the first break at 9,600; coloring up chips brought us back to our starting 10,000. But then we missed a great opportunity right after the break, when Mr. Bowler raised to 10,500 pre-flop. We saw 5-5, decided against betting it all - and were amazed to see a third 5 arrive on the turn, while other players fought over things like A-10.

We finally pushed with Q-Q in the Small Blind, after a woman to our left pushed as well. The man in the Big Blind simply had to check. He did, showed 2-2 - and amazingly, he caught 2 on the river to go with 3-3 on the board for an absurd full house. He knocked out two, and we left tied for 16th place.

MINISTRY MOMENT: We don't recall the exact details, but a man at our table complemented a woman for being "blessed."

"I think we're all blessed in some ways," we commented.

No one challenged that at the table - but does that comment challenge you? Have you received any blessings lately? They can come in many ways, you know - and we believe this:

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. - Ephesians 1:3

You might think of a "blessing" as a physical thing - anything from a new car to a spouse to rain for your garden. But the apostle Paul puts the emphasis here on spiritual blessings. For instance...

To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. - Romans 2:7

God wants people who will seek His rewards. They might not include a big poker payday. But they'll last a whole lot longer. In fact, they can last forever. So please leave a comment and let us know -
how has God blessed you lately?

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 177 final tables in 476 games (37.2%) - 33 cashes.

The Tell Overture

If you can figure out when your opponent is bluffing, you're far more likely to succeed at a poker table. But we never imagined there are so many ways to do it.

One man is making a living by telling about "tells." He has at least 16 videos, along with books about things to spot that could tip off a player's hand. For instance: if a player waits for you to act, it usually "will indicate nervousness and hence weak hands."

Maybe so - but here's our question about this. Do videos revealing potential tells actually make some players more likely to include those "tells" as part of their bluffing strategy? The game becomes more than simply a reaction to your cards - it becomes how well you sell that reaction.

Perhaps this is why some professional actors like Don Cheadle have done well in tournaments. They know all about "Hollywooding", as it's called in poker. Some of us call it an acting job. And it's been used to fool people for a long time:

David took these words to heart and was very much afraid of Achish king of Gath. So he pretended to be insane in their presence; and while he was in their hands he acted like a madman, making marks on the doors of the gate and letting saliva run down his beard. - I Samuel 21:12-13

This occurred before David became the Bible's "King David." He was on the run from the then-ruling King Saul (verse 10), who wanted him dead (chapter 19). David apparently was concerned about King Achish as well, so he did some "Hollywooding" to avoid staying long.  Some might call this kind of acting a form of lying....

You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor. - Deuteronomy 5:20

....But consider what happened to David. God didn't punish him for what he did. In fact, he gained a total following of about 400 men (I Samuel 22:2) - although we'd note they weren't necessarily the cream of the crop, described as "in debt or discontented".

So we're led to think a little "acting while you're acting," if you know what we mean, is OK. But we'd add this....

Let your moderation be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. - Philippians 4:5 (KJV)

There can be such a thing as "ham acting" - going so far overboard that you're not simply telling, you're screaming.

So what do you think? Are tells that common at the poker table? Have some people "shown a tell" to throw you off the track? And what's the top thing you examine, in considering an opponent's hand?

Poker Night 323: Anniversary Present

Several people were amazed at Lil Kim's Cove tonight, when we mentioned it was our fifth anniversary of live poker tournaments.  They couldn't believe we remembered the date.  But what happened during the first hour may have seemed even more unbelievable....

BLINDS: 100/200

IN THE POCKET: J-J

We've already had a roller-coaster ride, even though the table is playing relatively tight.  We made a straight on the flop holding 5-6 -- but only 150 at first, allowing two players to stay in and make flushes on the turn.  Their big betting cost us thousands, but we were wise to fold on the river before going all-in.  We've taken a couple of pots since then, including the Big Blind with 8-3.  Now we're in the small blind with this, and choose to limp in.  Most of the table gets in.

ON THE FLOP: 5-J-7

Triple J's look quite OK!  So in lead position for action, we offer 600.  That's too much for most of the table, but the dealer to our immediate right calls.

ON THE TURN: J

Whoa!!  J now stands for jackpot -- but we know we can't claim a 5,000-chip bonus for quads unless the hand goes all the way to the river.  So we check.  The dealer checks as well.

ON THE RIVER: 7

We play innocent and check again.  The dealer is in no mood for that -- and gives us even more than we expected.

"Four-thousand," he says.  Now it's time for what they call in TV poker "Hollywooding."

"Four-thousand?!?!?" we ask with mock astonishment.  We start counting our chips, because we're honestly not sure how many we have.

"Don't do it, man.  Don't do it," the dealer advises.

"That might put me all in," we say while we count.

"You don't want to do it."

"I shouldn't do it?!" we ask with an added measure of uncertainty in our voice.

"Don't do it."

Nope.  Our mind is made up.  "I'm going to do it," we say with a hint of resignation.  "I'll call."  Our count totals 3,875, slightly below the dealer's bet.

"But I've got a boat," our opponent says.  He flips over a 7, to show a full house.

"But I've got to call, when I've got quads."

We turn over the Jacks, and the table is stunned.  One man guessed we might have pocket Aces, but nobody saw quads coming.  We win a double-up and that 5,000-chip bonus.

"I had to bet.  I had a boat," our opponent says in frustration -- not once, but several times.  We can't really blame him.  But he ran into an unexpected buzz saw.  At least he was able to joke about it minutes later.

"You didn't have to call," he said.

"I know, but something told me I should call there."

"But you didn't have to listen to that something."

"I think it's called The Idiot's Guide to Poker," we said with a smile and a giggle.

That was the middle of three hands in a row which we won -- the following hand coming when we dealt ourselves Q-Q, and they prevailed.  We reached the one-hour break with more than 20,500 chips.  Trouble was, we lost half of them early in the second hour to a woman who made two big hands.  A comeback with Queens returned us to 15,500.  But a final push with A-Q and an Ace on the flop lost to a man who made three of a kind.  Our anniversary night ended in 16th place - at least better than five years ago.

MINISTRY MOMENT: A young man walked over to our table during the one-hour break, and told some players about a couple of habits he's given up recently.

"I've stopped drinking.  In fact, I gave up smoking pot."

One person described him as "clean and really sober."  Then he continued.

"Several months ago, I made a promise to the man upstairs that if he'd help me give up pot, I'd quit.  The man upstairs has given me the strength."

"God's helped you do it," we said -- making sure of which "man upstairs" he meant.  Indeed, he gave God the credit.  And he went on from there, to mention which church he attends every week -- a church which was familiar to a couple of people at the table, but not to us.

Two thoughts come to mind here.  First, we're glad God has helped the man overcome those habits.  If you have weaknesses or addictions in your life, God can help you as well.

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. - Psalm 73:26

How does this happen?  How does God become your strength?  It begins by confessing your weak areas to God -- and admitting you need His help.

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.... I can do everything through him who gives me strength. - Philippians 4:6, 13

Our second thought may seem a bit nit-picky -- but it involves the wording that young man used.  We think some people use the phrase "man upstairs" to avoid possibly offending people with a direct mention of God.  The apostle Paul took a similar approach when he addressed a crowd in Athens....

In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.  For he has set a day when will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed.  He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead. - Acts 17:30-31

Paul never named the name of Jesus Christ in this mini-sermon -- but that's clearly the "person" he was describing.  A few men followed Paul after that address, and believed in God (verse 34).  Perhaps this young man's testimony (even posted here) will help others do the same.

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 114 final tables in 323 nights (35.3%) - 17 cashes.

NATIONAL LEAGUE OF POKER TOTAL: Full tournaments - 236 point wins in 992 games (23.8%), 76 final tables, 7 cashes plus 2 other wins.  No-River Hold 'em - 6 point wins in 34 games (17.6%), 5 final tables, 1 cash win.

We mentioned the qualifying tournament we won last Friday.  In addition, we came in seventh out of 203 players in a No-River tournament Wednesday.

POKER STARS.NET TOTAL: Pretend cash games - $78,791, down $630.