The Art of the Deal

Our last post mentioned what should have been a big disappointment for us - falling one spot short of the money at a poker tournament. But instead, we wound up with a "bubble boy" consolation prize from the other players. It was three-fourths of our $80 buy-in.

How did we do that? Well, we've never read the Donald Trump book that inspired our title. But here are some things that we think helped our cause - and they could help you in poker someday as well:

1. Be friendly. Some players show up at the table like poker is something between a workday at the office and a prelude to World War III. But we're reminded of a verse our long-time pastor in Georgia quoted often....

A man that has friends must show himself friendly.... - Proverbs 18:24 (KJV)

If Mr. Grumpy Grinder had finished fourth on Sunday night, then stormed away from the table, there's no way the other players would have offered to help him. But we tried to be friendly all evening, and it paid off.

2. Be a good sport. Related to #1, be willing to encourage other players when the moment is appropriate. Consider these words to a church group long ago....

Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. - I Thessalonians 5:11

Keep the trash talking to a minimum. We also make sure we shake hands with the player who knocks us out of a tournament. Many of them are stunned when we do that.

3. Develop a sense of humor. Long-time readers of this blog know we wrote a mostly-comedy blog first, and had a subscription comedy service before that. So we've developed a good sense of how to keep things light during a tournament. And believe it or not, the Bible supports laughing....

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven.... a time to weep and a time to laugh.... - Ecclesiastes 3:1, 4

There had been talk of splitting the prize money late in the final table. But after we were eliminated, we said tongue-in-cheek to the dealer, "You'll notice no one talked about 'Bubble Boy' money here." That little one-liner inspired the donations!

One of the final three on Sunday night said it was a "very entertaining" tournament. That's part of our goal, but only a part. To borrow from a church bulletin we saw years ago: to get them listening (as in comments about God and Jesus), get them laughing.

If you have other ideas, feel free to leave a comment. And may your poker days be not only profitable, but even a little fun.

Blabbermouth or Bully?

The World Series of Poker Main Event will have final table action in a few days. But right now, some players are talking about a hand earlier in the tournament which turned into major-league drama.

ESPN showed a hand from a semifinal table where Canada's Griffin Benger had his "poker face" tested to the extreme. Britain's William Kassouf talked to/at him for a couple of minutes, apparently trying to get a hint about what he had. But finally, Benger had enough - and declared Kassouf guilty of "verbal abuse."

Kassouf said moments later Benger "can't take it," and declared he "got under your skin." But eventually in poker, the cards speak louder than any human. Benger's pocket pair eliminated Kassouf, and propelled him to the "November Nine" (being played early this year because of the U.S. election).

So after watching the clip, what do we think? Well, it's one thing to talk to your opponents at a poker table - but another thing to say so much that you become ridiculous and annoying.

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven.... a time to be silent and a time to speak. - Ecclesiastes 3:1, 7

Timing not only is important in when you check, raise or push - but also when you talk at the table. Our approach to the talk usually is to be conversational with other players, but not insulting or boastful. That wouldn't set a proper example - especially considering one of our poker goals:

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered... - I Corinthians 13:4-6

Yes, we know - a "loving" approach to a poker game sounds weird. But it also can be weird in any kind other of competition, from a political campaign to a boxing ring. We think a loving approach can open the door for a discussion about matters of faith.

Watch the end of the clip carefully, and you'll see Benger accepts a handshake from the "abuser" Kassouf. Another man at the table who stayed out of the showdown did not shake Kassouf's hand. So give them both a few points for being good sports - and think about how you might top both of them, next time you play:

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. - Philippians 2:3

Nothing Up Your Sleeve?

When we're in the dealer position at a live poker table, we like to think we're in control of the action.  But the other night, we missed something other players did not.

 

With a 2-3-4 showing on the board, one player turned over two pair at showdown.  As we recall, another man still in the hand declared he'd won the pot.  Then as the next dealer started collecting the cards, that other man turned over A-5 of hearts.

 

"That's a straight," someone else pointed out.  We frankly didn't notice it -- but it suddenly occurred to player #2 that yes, he hit a winning straight.

 

"It's too late.  He started shuffling the cards," a player to our left said.

 

But maybe not; the player with two pair counted out 6,000 chips, and tossed them to the straight-holder.

 

What's this?  A display of good sportsmanship in a poker room?!?!  Yes - and it happens more often than you might think.  In a free tournament like the ones we usually play, the prizes aren't that pricey.  So fair play and a good time tend to prevail.  In fact, it should be that way all the time....

It is God's will that you should be sanctified.... and that in this matter no one should wrong his brother or take advantage of him.  The Lord will punish men for all such sins, as we have already told you and warned you. - I Thessalonians 4:3-7

The context here involves sexual conduct, but shouldn't it apply in everything else we do?

Do not steal.  Do not lie.  Do not deceive one another. - Leviticus 19:11

These concepts come straight out of God's Ten Commandments.  And if they've been "done away," as some believers claim, why are there laws against such actions in most countries on Earth today?

We should note the player who had the straight seemed prepared to accept his loss.  That might be an even harder thing to do at a poker table, especially when big money is involved -- but it's the godly approach as well.

Why not rather be wronged?  Why not rather be cheated?  Instead, you yourselves cheat and do wrong, and you do this to your brothers. - I Corinthians 6:7-8

There's an element of "getting even" built into all sorts of human activities -- from poker to competitive sports.  But we need to be willing to accept losses, even if they hurt.  After all, everyone "loses" in the game of human life -- because we're all eventually doomed to die.  May our focus be toward God, because....

The sting of death is sin.... But thanks be to God!  He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. - I Corinthians 15:56-57

Bluffing Beyond Bounds

The river card was a heart. It put four hearts on the board. Two players remained in the hand, and they checked.

"Have you got a pair?" one player asked. "If you've got a pair, you win."

"I do," the opponent answered, and slowly showed his cards.

Then the first player flipped over an Ace of hearts. No, he won the pot -- holding the nut flush.

"That's not fair," the losing player said firmly but not loudly. "It's not sportsmanlike."

This actually happened recently at a live poker table we watched. The loser didn't directly say it, but the man with the flush lied at the showdown -- claiming the man with a pair could win the hand, when he really couldn't. Perhaps the winner wanted to avoid showing a piece of his strategy, by deflating his opponent into mucking his cards.

Bluffing is part of the game in poker. Even misleading comments happen during hands. But this man with a flush took it farther than we've ever seen, with a flat-out lie after the betting was finished.

"Kings take pleasure in honest lips," says Proverbs 16:13; "they value a man who speaks the truth."

Compare that with the last part of Revelation 21:8. "All liars -- their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death."

There's a time and a place in poker for bluffing. But we personally never make a lying statement. We know from the Bible what the potential punishment could be, and we take that seriously.

The man with the nut flush apologized to the man he beat, and even threw him a chip worth 1,000 to make up for it. Did he learn a lesson in sportsmanship? Only time will tell with him. Hopefully you have now.

Words of a Warrior

Some people can be friendly at an online poker game. Others seem to role-play as the exact opposite. We're giving that benefit of the doubt to someone we encountered at National League of Poker the other day -- a man who was calling players he beat "loooooosers" and sounding like quite the bully. An excerpt from the chat:

junkmanisin: the names are not needed brock if U cant say nothing nice then say nothing at all....
BROCKwarrior: that advice is for sissies
BROCKwarrior: a real man sais what he thinks

Do you agree with that statement ("says" being misspelled)? Some poker stars on TV seem to do that often; the name Hellmuth comes to mind. But when we read this, a scripture came to our mind:

Me: Well.... to a point.
Me: I read once you should speak the truth in love.

That phrase is in Ephesians 4:15. "Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ."

It's one thing to merely speak the truth. People can do that in a mean-spirited and attacking way -- whether in evaluating poker hands or telling off their spouses. But Paul adds the words in love to show where our heart should be. The modern-day term for it is "constructive criticism" -- to lift up and not beat down.

Paul writes elsewhere concerning people's spiritual gifts: "If it is encouraging, let him encourage.... if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully." (Romans 12:8) Maybe this is a gift you can show someone at the table. Ask God to reveal the gifts He's given you.

Sugar or Smacks

Some people approach the poker table the way they approach a basketball game. They seem to borrow from the old book Winning Through Intimidation, and try to "psych out" their opponents by talking them down with semi or full-fledged insults.

This has many street names -- from "trash talk" to "talking smack." Yet when we visit a poker table, we take exactly the opposite approach. We think it's a much more godly approach.

"Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones," says Proverbs 16:24.

You can boast about yourself or put down others -- as some people seem to have forgotten Muhammad Ali did in his boxing prime. Or you can do what the apostle Paul recommended in I Thessalonians 5:11. "Therefore encourage one another and build each other up...."

The latter approach is what many youth league coaches tell children to take. We're old enough to remember when it was called sportsmanship. Which approach do you think makes a poker table more pleasant and more fun -- and might actually gain you more friends?