Third Time's The Charm

(This is third and final part of the post I started here and continued here.  It picks up right where the second part left off.)

Finally, after I had been in the room for about two hours, I was called to the one of the other existing games.  I quickly racked my chips and took off.  I believe Douchebag wished me luck or said have a good night or something, but I was having none of it.  I said nothing.  Not on this night.

Even at this table there was, apparently, a maniac, but at least he wasn’t verbally harassing anyone.  This guy was actual a human ATM, putting out big bets with air and getting felted time and time again.

But damn, I got there too late to take advantage of it.  In fact, I later realized that I made a terrible laydown against him right after I arrived at the table.  I think I was the big blind with Jack-rag and caught top pair with the Jack.  I bet and he called.  An overcard hit the turn and we both checked.  The river made a flush possible and since I had no read on the guy and he had a pretty big stack I just checked—and he shoved.  I wasn’t about to risk much on such a weak hand with a flush out there so I folded.  But based on the next few hands I saw him play I realized he probably was making a stone cold bluff there and my Jacks were likely the better hand.  But I was too new at the table to have known that.

Just a few hands later, he shoved again, got called, tabled a stone-cold bluff, lost all his chips, and instead of rebuying, he took off and called it a night.  Everyone was disappointed he was leaving, he was apparently that proficient at giving away his chips.  The guy to my left even asked the dealer to reserve his seat for him even tho he had given no indication he was coming back! 

Soon after I got there, I felt my chair being kicked.  Since Mike is off Monday nights, it had to be Abe.  Sure enough, he had just arrived and was on the list for a game.  He pulled a chair up behind me and I started to explain to him what a frustrating night I’d had, and how I had excused myself from two tables already.

Just then, Jack came by on his way to his next table.  He leaned into Abe and said, “Whatever you do, don’t ask Robert where’s he from.”  I tried to explain that that wasn’t exactly the question that Douchebag had asked me, but he took off to push into his next game.  I gave Abe a brief explanation but I never got a chance to tell him the whole story.

I spent an hour or so at this table winning and losing small pots, nothing worth noting.  Then, with about 20 minutes left before the cash drawing and I had exactly zero tickets.  At least the last hour or so I had given myself a chance to earn one.

Then in the big blind I had 2-4 of diamonds.  Now usually with the most powerful hand in poker I might raise there, but I wanted to see the flop and try for a flush.  And indeed I flopped a flush draw. Nobody bet the flop and I caught my flush on the turn. I bet $20 and had one caller.  The river was a blank and I didn’t value-bet, hoping for a cheap showdown, not sure my 4-high flush was good.  The other player checked and I don’t even remember what he had, but my baby flush was good and I had my first drawing ticket, some three-plus hours after starting my session.

At around 9:56PM I looked down at Jack-10 spades and figured this would be the last hand to win a ticket to the drawing.  I limped in and a bunch of us saw the flop, which was pretty awesome.  A-Q-x, all spades. I had the second nut flush and a gut-shot Royal draw.  Have I ever mentioned I have never had a Royal Flush in a real poker game?  Never!

And when the poker room cut back the drawings from three times a day, seven days a week to just twice a day Monday through Thursday, they added high hand bonuses.  It starts at $50 but it’s not progressive; instead, you draw an envelope which could be anywhere between $50 and $1,000 (obviously $50 and $100 are the most likely).  If you have a straight flush (instead of quads, the minimum high hand), you get three times the envelope you draw and it’s five times the amount for a Royal.  So a Royal would be worth a minimum of $150 and a maximum of $3,000. Thus, I was thinking that this would be a nice way to reward me for having to put up with all that shit earlier in the evening….a Royal, pull the $1K envelope and collect a cool three grand.  Oh, and get a ticket for the cash drawing too, and have that hit!  Sounded pretty good to me.

So I didn’t bet the flush. I figured that this was a good enough hand to slowplay anyway and I wanted to see two more cards.  No one bet and the turn was a red card.  I checked and this time a guy bet $20, which I just called.  I wanted to see that King of spades!  But no, it was another red card, and didn’t pair the board.  This time I bet, $40, and the other player called.  He had a pair of Aces.  I took the pot, got the ticket, had to fill it out in a hurry as this was indeed the last hand to qualify for the drawing.

I told the dealer I needed the King of spades (not that she couldn’t see that) and she was sad.  “Damn, why didn’t I put that King of spades out there?”  Why, indeed.

Anyway, to make a long story short (that should be good for at least a five minute laughter pause), I didn’t win the freaking cash drawing, even with my two tickets in the drum.  Jack pushed into this table and realized that he had likely been the dealer for the lucky ticket. It was a guy who had quad deuces and stacked two players who had boats.  Not a bad hand.  Then he pulled a $1,000 envelope for the cash drawing (he’d only gotten a $50 prize for the quads).  The shift manager came by to give Jack some red chips as a tip for the $1K drawing.

Oddly enough, with Jack dealing I had another Royal draw.  This wouldn’t have counted for the high hand bonus since I only had one of the two cards in my hand, and I missed it anyway.  But I won the pot with a Jack high flush. 

I believe I had close to my $200 starting stack, maybe a little less, when I had arrived at this table and now I was actually up a bit, but less than $100.  Then in the big blind I had 10-4 offsuit and no one raised.  The flop was 6-4-4, two hearts.  It was a limped pot so I just bet $5.  Only one caller, the guy immediately to my left.  Blank turn, I bet $15 and this time the guy made it $45.  Hmm.  I called.

The river was the Ace of Hearts.  Ordinarily I would check there and try to get a cheap showdown, but the third heart made me think a bit.  I decided to bet out, a blocking bet.  If he had a flush, he might be worried about a boat and just call, or maybe (unlikely) fold.  If he had a 4 with a better kicker, maybe he’d lay it down, thinking I caught my flush.  Although I probably needed to bet bigger for that to work.  But I was thinking that by betting small there, I was indicating that I wanted a call.  Maybe he’d fear a big hand and lay it down.

He tanked and then raised to $70.  Damn, that didn’t work.  And a min-raise is usually a sign of a monster.  Did he have a boat?  Or at least a flush?  I was leaning towards folding, but I flashed back to the latest Ed Miller book I read, his newest one.  I haven’t finished it but the main thesis is that players fold too much.  You should call more often than you currently do.  But perhaps more importantly, the amount of the pot (approx $210) dictated a call for only $35 more.  How could I lay that down?  The only reason to was that the min-raise indicated a big hand.  But that was the same logic I had used in sizing my original bet.  Who was outsmarting whom?

Whatever, I had to call.  And the guy flipped over 4-3! He had trips with a much weaker kicker than I did.  The 10 played and I took down a sweet pot.  Everyone at the table seemed to think I had made a great, daring, gutsy call, but really, as I’ve described, how could I have laid it down?

Then a girl who had recently joined the table with a short stack (actually, she had kind of a big stack, but for now I’m talking about her stack of chips) shoved in front of me for $22.  I think she had started with $100.  I had pocket Jacks so I called, and another guy called.  It was a low flop and I bet $50 and the other guy folded.  Didn’t matter.  Nothing hit and she turned over pocket Aces to take it down. Putting as much sarcasm in my voice as possible, I said, “You shoved with that?”

She took those winnings and doubled it or so.  By the time this next hand happened, she had at least $140-$150.  I was still up and had her covered.  She raised preflop to $20, a big raise at the table and for her.  I had pocket 10’s.  With her stack now healthy I didn’t assume, based on her play, that she was raising light.  So since I didn’t want to three-bet, she probably didn’t have enough behind to justify calling.  But I did anyway. I thought she might let A-K, A-Q go if she missed.

No one else called, and the flop was 10-8-3, rainbow.  She led out for $35.  I made it $80 and she shoved.  I snap-called (not exactly a tough call with top set).  Blanks the rest of the way and her pocket Jacks were no good.  I stacked her.  Ok, that sounds dirty, but would it be better if I said I felted her? Anyway, she didn’t rebuy.

A Set of "10's"

And that was the last hand I made note of.  It was getting late, especially since I had to drive back to L.A. the next day.  I racked up and left with a $300 profit.  It turned out to be a pretty good session after a horrific start.