Poker Night 536: The Grand Opening

If you show up late for an event, you might miss something big. In sports, that could mean a first-inning first-pitch home run or a kickoff returned for a touchdown. In poker.... well, check what happened Wednesday night at Hollywood Casino Indiana:

BLINDS: 25/50

IN THE POCKET: Ace of clubs-King of spades

Talk about a slow night for poker. Only three people have shown up for the tournament! The single cash game table seems to have open seats as well. But we were on time, and received good cards for the first hand of the night.

We limp in with them as first to act. A man across the table raises to 425. Then a visitor from central Ohio re-raises to 950! This seems promising, so we simply tag along by calling. So does the other man.

ON THE FLOP: Kc-Qc-10c

Big cards. Good cards! We have top pair, top kicker and a flush draw. The Small Blind checks. The Big Blind offers 500. Slow and steady still could win our race, so we call again. As we recall it, the Small Blind folds. But what does the visitor have? Hopefully not two pair....

ON THE TURN: 6s

Nope, not what we wanted. The Big Blind bets 500 again. Now we're more concerned about a possible two pair - but we suddenly realize something. The Jack of clubs would give us a royal flush! We'll call 500, hoping for the best.

ON THE RIVER: Jc

The dream card comes true! But what we can do with it? The Big Blind checks, giving us an open floor. We ponder for a moment, then decide to test our betting opponent by tossing out 1,000. He says no, and folds.

"I don't think I've ever had this before," we then say....

"Royal flush," the Small Blind guesses. He's correct, and we prove it. The Big Blind never shows his cards.

"I only wish more people had been here to see it!" we admit. (Not to mention giving us more chips.) We advance from a starting 12,000 chips to nearly 15,000.

The tournament attendance eventually grew to eight total players. But our chip stack went down, more than up - as several quality cards missed flops, and we missed draws. We won a couple of pots, but dropped to 6,450 at the first break.

We certainly didn't want to be the first player out after opening with a royal flush, so we tightened up from there. A timely pair of pocket Aces allowed us to triple from 3,300 to 9,900. Then other players pushed without success. We were still in the running at the second break, even with a short stack of 12,900.

Four players remained at that point, and it was a winner-take-all contest for money. But as the third hour started, our visitor went all-in. We had A-8, dared to call.... and ran into K-K. A third King on the flop did us in. A memorable night ended with us in fourth place - a result that sounds good, as long as people don't bring up phrases like "small group."

MINISTRY MOMENT: "Is that gold bouillon?" the man from central Ohio asked when he saw our card protector. We let him look closely as we revealed what it really depicts - an artist's depiction of the "Lord's Supper."

"He's on your side," the man said.

"I hope He is," we replied. God indeed has come to the aid of His people many times through history....

If the Lord had not been on our side - let Israel say - if the Lord had not been on our side when men attacked us, when their anger flared against us, they would have swallowed us alive.... the raging waters would have swept us away. - Psalm 124:1-3, 5

The Biblical King David wrote these words from personal experience. He spent a long time on the run, as King Saul tried to kill him so someone else would be heir to Israel's throne (I Samuel 18-31). David praised and thanked God for personal protection.

But to be truthful, life ultimately is not about whether God is on our side. The question is whether you are on His side - and there's a big difference.

...Jesus answered, "You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me." - John 18:37

Why listen to Jesus Christ? Because He is the truth (John 14:6) - and He pointed interested people to the Scriptures, as God's "word is truth" (17:17). The Lord added:

He who is not with me is against me.... Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it." - Luke 11:23, 28

To borrow a Christian cliché, obeying the Bible will help "get you on God's good side." We think that's far better than the alternative. What do you think?

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 195 final tables in 536 games (36.4%) - 40 cashes. Since we have no control over who shows up (or doesn't) for a tournament, a one-table night still counts as a final table to us.

Poker Day 487: Royals, Baseball

We should explain that title right away. The Kansas City Royals' baseball season is over. They missed the playoffs. But playoff baseball was on TV at the Kansas Star Casino poker room Friday. And the royals? Well, keep reading....

BLINDS: 50/100

IN THE POCKET: A-Q offsuit

We split an early pot with a full house, but haven't done much else so far. Yet these are cards that could spark a comeback. We start the hand with about 3,000 chips from a starting 3,500. When a player across the full table raises to 250, we call. Four players are in.

ON THE FLOP: Kd-8h-Qd

We have a piece of the flop, but not the best piece. That man across the table makes a continuation bet of 250. We sense this is a "feeler" bet and he doesn't have a lot. Considering our kicker, we want to stay in - so we call. It's still a four-horse race.

ON THE TURN: 8s (suit may not be precise)

Now we have two pair - and if that bettor is using the King as a "kicker" card, we have him topped. He offers 250 again.  Of course, he could have a King - but he's not betting big like he does. So we call in hope. It's still a four-horse race.

ON THE RIVER: 10d

A third diamond potentially complicates matters. That bettor tosses out another 250. We've committed this far, so we're prepared to go all the....

But wait a minute. A man wearing red ahead of us goes all-in - for 1,250. That extra 1,000 is too steep for us.

"We were doing fine, until you did that," we joke as we fold. The other three players fight on.... only to see the man in red turn over Ad-Jd!!! It's not merely a flush. He made a royal flush!

He wins big, of course - but because it's a tournament, he doesn't win a "high hand" or "bad beat" jackpot. He tells us later that was the first royal flush he's ever had.

That loss hurt, but we mounted a comeback near the first break. An all-in bet for 925 with two pair helped. Going all-in again with A-K and winning a race with J-10 thanks to three Aces helped even more. We reached the break back at the starting line of 3,500. But a third all-in try with J-7 and a Jack high on the flop lost to A-J. We wound up betting our last 300 on the Big Blind and failed, finishing about 37th on a day with 75 players.

MINISTRY MOMENT: "Are we having a séance?" the first dealer asked when he saw our card protector. We brought an old, well-worn candle - but of course, the occult had nothing to do with it.

"I brought it to remind me," we explained, "that I need to be a light for Jesus Christ."

"Sounds like a plan," the dealer said.

"It's a very good plan," we assured him. We should have clarified that remark. Our candle may not have been a good plan - but God's plan involving being a light is.

For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. - II Corinthians 4:6

This verse speaks of a plan that goes all the way back to creation. The world was a dark place then....

Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep.... - Genesis 1:2

There's one school of thought based on the original Hebrew that the earth became that way, because Satan rebelled against God.

And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness." - Genesis 1:3-4

Much later, Jesus Christ came to Earth to be "the light of the world" (John 8:12). And until Jesus comes back, believers are to be "lights" in their own right. That means having "knowledge" of God's glory through Christ. And we think it means sharing that light with other people.

For you were once darkness, but now are you light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth)... - Ephesians  5:8-9

Feel free to read on in that section of Ephesians; we plan to come back to it in future posts. But that little candle opened a way for us to share the light of God with others in a poker room on Friday. What can you do when you play poker, to be a positive light to others?

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 180 final tables in 487 games (37.0%) - 35 cashes. Our next live tournament probably won't be for several weeks; we'll explain why in an upcoming post.

Change in an Instant

Many people dream of hitting the lottery jackpot, and becoming instant millionaires. For others, it takes a bit more time.... say, six hands of poker.

Courtesy The West Australian

Nigel Williams of Perth, Australia only played six hands at a casino last week. But ohhhh, that sixth one. Williams had the 10 of diamonds. The flop was Ad-Qd-Jd. Then came the turn - the King of diamonds!

Williams hit a royal flush, and won a progressive casino jackpot of $2.7 million. Considering he made a $10 bet on the flop, it was a bit overwhelming. It showed in a TV interview about his success.

First Williams called his wife, who said bluntly: "What are you doing at the casino?" Then he admitted being a "workaholic," and sobbed at the thought of reducing his workload from seven days a week to five to "spend more time with my children."

There are many lessons we could take from this story. The biggest one for us is how a big payday may change this man's priorities. Williams seemed to admit being detached from his children - which reminds us of this:

Fathers, do not aggravate your children, or they will become discouraged. - Colossians 3:21 (NLT)

We think one way to cause aggravation is to be "missing in action" - and it can happen by being a poker-holic, every bit as much as a workaholic. A father who's not close to his children risks losing their love - as well as the opportunity to build an even more important loving relationship:

Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it. - Proverbs 22:6

The best way to go is God's way - following "the way, the truth and the life" otherwise known as Jesus Christ (John 14:6). But then, there's the reaction from Williams's wife to where he was.

Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them. - Colossians 3:19

We've never been married, but we've heard wives appreciate nice surprises. A check for $2.7 million would be one - but to learn your husband is in a casino may not seem like the nicest thing to learn.

If a wife objects to "punting" (as the Aussies say), a loving husband should respond by not doing it. Your family ought to come before your pastimes and hobbies - especially if they could cost your family a lot of money.

 We wish Nigel Williams well, and hope you learn from his example. Why wait for a playing card to motivate you to do what you know you should be doing already? Take time to make your family a success - because a "flop" there probably won't be in your favor.

Poker Night 467: All About Yvie's

"So did the police do something to the poker rooms?" a woman asked at the place where we played tonight.  If you have to ask, you're probably a part-time player.

To be fair, that woman probably is. Tonight we went to the opposite end of the poker spectrum from the Heartland Poker Tour - back to the amateur version of World Poker Tour, where we started playing in Kansas three Aprils ago.  It's now called "WPT League", and it's dropped from several weekly locations in our city to only one.

Yvie's Bar and Grill on the west side of town is much more "bar" than "grill." Signs with beer jokes abound. It's a throwback to the places where we played poker in Georgia and Alabama years ago - and police are unlikely to raid it, since the games are totally free to enter (no chair rental) and you can buy as much or little refreshment as you wish.

Two tournaments were going simultaneously at this small bar tonight. One was a "VSC" - Venue Series Championship, with top players from recent weeks competing for a trip to Las Vegas for a high-stakes contest. Then there was ours. The "open division" tournament had some distinct characters, reminding us more of a classic TV sit-com. It also had surprising twists....

BLINDS: 200/400

IN THE POCKET: K-10

The open division has only two tables. We're at a table of six, and have won a nice pot followed by a fairly big loss to a flush.  Now we're in the Big Blind, and a player ahead of us has raised to 800. These cards are pretty substantial, so we call. As we recall, four players are in.

ON THE FLOP: Kc-Qc-10c

We make two pair, but we see potential trouble with so many clubs showing.  The Small Blind checks, and we offer a large "get lost" bet of 1,500. Our goal is to stop potential chasers, and two of them fold. But the Small Blind calls.

ON THE TURN: As

Well, at least that's not a club. But it's potentially more trouble, because now a Jack makes a straight. The Small Blind checks again. If he was waiting for an Ace, our two pair would still top his one - so we repeat the bet of 1,500.  He quietly calls again. Hmmm.

ON THE RIVER: Jc

Uh-oh - there's the fourth club.  That's such a big concern that only much later do we realize that card put a straight on the table. The Small Blind checks once more - and we don't dare risk any more. We check as well, and he shows.... the Ace of clubs! 

We led the hand all the way to the river - and then the Small Blind hit a royal flush!  This marks the second time we've lost a hand that way, although the prior case was much more of a bad beat.

But we recovered from that loss by winning more hands, eventually eliminating the royal flush man and another player when A-K of spades turned into a "nut flush" on the river. That led us to the open final table with 43,500 chips - and we gained from there to make the final two, heads-up!

We were behind in chips to a middle-aged woman, but rallied from 10,000 and a forced all-in to 70,000. We finally went all-in with J-J while she called with a measly 4-3 of spades.  You might guess what happened - she paired both her cards, with a 3 on the river giving her the match.

Second place would allow us to play in a couple of WPT League online tournaments for small prizes - but both weekly times don't fit our current schedule. Yet it was nice to "go back in time" for a night. Back to when the games were free, the players were more entertaining than serious and people actually talked about their lives - even if some brought up ex-spouses' divorces.

MINISTRY MOMENT: "You doing good?" a man asked as we waited in line outside the small men's restroom during the one-hour break.

"I try to do good," we told him. "But that's not always easy."

He nodded, and we continued. "It's like a man once said - the good things that I ought to do, I don't always do. And the things that I don't want to do, I wind up doing."

"The apostle Paul," the man responded.

How about that! At that small bar, a customer knew exactly what we were talking about, and where we found that quote....

I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.... For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do - this I keep on doing. - Romans 7:15, 19

The way many Bibles phrase this section makes it almost sound like a comedy routine. But we think Paul was very serious. He wanted to do good things....

....But I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. - Romans 7:23

Every human has the innate ability to sin.  Some people, of course, are more concerned about that than others. Paul indicated he was quite concerned:

What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?  Thanks be to God - through Jesus Christ our Lord! - Romans 7:24-25 

If you're becoming aware of your "sin nature," that can bring bad feelings. But God wants to turn those feelings into a good life. It starts by repenting of your sins and accepting Jesus as the sacrifice before God for them. If you need help doing that, leave a comment and we'll be happy to help.

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 176 final tables in 467 games (37.7%) - 33 cashes. We've split our "vacation poker" so far, although our financial planner probably would prefer the order had been reversed.

Poker Night 337: Hearts and Letters

Have you ever played poker against someone who seems to be weak, yet keeps winning pots?  The sort of player you want to get in a big hand when the right moment comes, so you can score a huge gain?  That situation faced us tonight at The Red Barn.  A man who said he "plays poker, but not Hold 'em" seemed unsure about what he was doing, yet kept building his stack.  Then came this....

BLINDS: 100/200

IN THE POCKET: A-K offsuit

We've had mostly marginal cards all evening, and haven't won a pot yet.  A starting stack of 7,000 chips (helped by a soda purchase) has slowly dropped to about 5,500.

Now we're in the Big Blind at a table of six with our best hand of the night -- and the man with the big stack is two seats to our left.  The table calls to us, and we raise 500.  That man calls; in fact, most of the table does.

ON THE FLOP: 4-5-K

Top pair, top kicker -- top-notch for us!  When the Small Blind checks, we put in a continuation bet of 500.  But to our disappointment, Mr. Big Stack folds -- which surprises one player enough to point it out.  Only the Small Blind accepts our challenge and calls.

ON THE TURN: 7h

This puts two hearts on the board -- but all we're really noticing is the top King.  Our opponent checks, and now we bet 1,000.  She folds, and we win the hand.

"Can I see the last card?" a woman across from us (who also seems new) asks.

ON THE RIVER: 10h

"F**kin' A," she says.  We apparently chased her off a flush.  Good (giggle).  We recover to 8,100 total chips -- but this is a "Big Blind Special" we really hoped would be more profitable.  Should we have waited on that confident man to bet first?

We had little reason to be confident after that, because we didn't win any more pots.  We lasted well into the second hour, but finally went all-in with A-4 and failed to match the board.  A woman with two pair eliminated another player with us, and we finished tied for 18th.

But look at what happened to us online, earlier in the day!  A suited King-Queen in the Small Blind turned into a "diamond jubilee," as we made a royal flush on the river.

"Ralph" across the table made his own straight on the flop, but didn't make big bets to run us off.  The river card prompted the player at our left to go all-in with two pair.  Then Ralph made a big raise, to around 1,300.  We doubled that bet -- and wound up stunning the table.

That big win gave us enough cushion to reach the final table of this qualifying tournament, and finish fifth overall out of 63 players.  So we'll be back in the National League of Poker Senior Championship at the end of August.

MINISTRY MOMENT: Back at the Barn, a flop of 7-7-K prompted the man with the big stack of chips to have a moment of praise.  "How did you know, Lord?" he said in a loud voice.  "How did you know?!?"

"Because God knows everything," we answered him.  "He knows it all."

Yes, we realize that man probably was joking.  But he didn't comment on our serious response.  The Bible reveals a God of brilliance....

Can anyone teach knowledge to God, since he judges even the highest? - Job 21:22

Besides, God made the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1).  Have you seen any humans do that lately?  And God knows more than the big things of creation -- He knows you.  Personally.

Then they prayed, "Lord, you know everyone's heart.  Show us which of these two you have chosen to take over this apostolic ministry...." - Acts 1:24-25

When God looks at your heart, what does He see?  A life filled with vices, and corrupted by sin?  Or a heart you're trying to clean up, with His help?

Create in a me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. - Psalm 51:10

King David knew he needed to ask God for help, in cleaning up His life.  And God knows how to do that -- if you'll ask Him for help.

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 120 final tables in 337 nights (35.6%) - 19 cashes.

The Biggest Slick

"Any two cards can win," poker players like to say.  But only a few combinations of cards allow you to make the biggest hand possible.  Take what happened to us at Poker Stars.Net earlier this week....

We were dealt A-K of spades.  The flop brought out the Queen and Jack of spades.  And the turn -- the turn -- produced the 10 of spades, giving us the ultimate in royal flushes.

And to make things more fun, "1SlyPiggy" across the table did all the lead betting.  We called a bet on the turn.  Our dramatic screenshot comes from the river, where the Piggy tempted us (he thought) with a bet of 110.  We responded by going all-in for our remaining 639.  He called.  And we wound up going "wee-wee-wee" all the way home.

(Well, except we play on our home computer -- so we were at home already.)

We left that pretend cash game session with a $612 gain.  Too bad it was only pretend; at some poker rooms, we would have won a bonus in the hundreds of dollars.

Hitting It Biggest

We used to be in charge of "Factoids" for a cable news channel.  As we were going over some archived lists tonight, we found this one:

The odds of drawing a royal flush in a poker game are 649,739 to one.

So have you ever accomplished that?  And what are your memories of it?

Poker Night 163: Q's As in Lose

Our Memorial Day poker tournament at The Red Barn included one of those memorable hands you might see only once in a lifetime. But we don't want to give away the plot:

BLINDS: 50/100

IN THE POCKET: Q of clubs - Q of spades

We're in the small blind with a potentially big hand. The play calls to us, and we raise 400. A couple of other players call.

ON THE FLOP: Kh-Qh-Qd

Potentially?!?! We have just hit quad Queens on the flop!!!! But we're first to act, and remember a Big Dog Poker rule: you can only claim a 5,000-chip bonus for quads or a straight flush if the hand lasts through the river card. So we play dumb and check.

The Tournament Director sits across from us, and bets 600. A woman to our right raises to 1,200. We call. So does the Director. Poker face is turned on.

ON THE TURN: 4d

We innocently check again. So does the Director. But the woman to our right bets 1,500.

"1,500?!" we ask, pretending to show stunned disbelief. With a sigh, we call. The Director does as well. Sweet.

ON THE RIVER: Ah

The appearance of this card assures us the quad bonus. But since our neighbors are in such a betting mood, we check once more to them. The Director checks. Now the woman bets 1,800.

"1,800 more?!?!" we say in the same tone of voice. But we notice at this point something unusual -- top three hearts are on the board. A royal flush is possible. But that's so unlikely, and we've quietly dominated this hand all along!

We pretend to bumble with the chips a bit as we call. The Director amazingly calls again. Now comes the big moment for us to announce our quads: "Q is...."

"This has never happened to me before," the woman interrupts, "but I have a straight flush!"

Shock of shocks -- she has J-10 of hearts! She was on an open-ended straight flush draw, and wound up with a ROYAL flush to top our quads!! The gold chip for a 5,000 bonus goes to her. We get nothing but words of consolation.

The Tournament Director had 3-4 of hearts, for a flush of his own. "If this was a casino, everybody would have won," he says. Some poker rooms have "bad beat jackpots" for the worst loss of a tournament. He called this the "worst of all bad beats." Oh yeah -- we agree.

(So put yourself in our chair -- how would you have reacted to this moment? We'll reveal what we did in our next post.)

That hand obviously cost us a lot of chips -- but minutes later, Q-Q came our way again. This time we simply called. But when the flop showed J-J-8, we pushed all-in with 1,425 left. Trouble was, the Tournament Director had a Jack. His three of a kind eliminated us in 17th place. But if you have to get bounced from a tournament early, it might as well be in a way that will have people talking.

MINISTRY MOMENT: That woman who hit the royal flush is one of the few poker players we've met who's able to talk somewhat about the Bible. We had a follow-up discussion with her tonight about last Monday night's chat concerning salt and light.

"I thought you said He was the salt of the earth," the woman said. She misheard us. Jesus actually said in Matthew 5:13, "You are the salt of the earth...." We promised to double-check for verses where God or Jesus is called salt -- and we found none.

But both Jesus and you qualify for the "light of the world" title. Jesus called Himself that in John 8:12, then added: "He that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life." Christians need to be mirrors, reflecting the light of their Lord.

UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 66 final tables in 163 nights (40.5%) - 11 cashes. A streak of six consecutive final tables ends. The hard way.