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This was the kind of tournament poker that I enjoyed playing. Managing a big stack, being active, picking up small pots, losing some small pots, getting paid in big pots. Until very late in a tournament, that is the payoff for being aggressive. It isn’t the bluffs or the steals, but the presumption that I can’t have it if I am playing so many hands.  I have to keep control by picking my spots and managing the hands in which it does NOT work out, but it’s beautiful when I’m in the flow.

After about three hours, with the blinds at 300-600/75 ante, I got a chance to collect, provide a lesson to the swelling rail, and even serve as an international poker ambassador. It started with a pretty simple hand in which I raised and got hit by the deck. Somebody limped in early position for 600 and I made it 3,000 from the cut-off with As-9d. The blinds folded and the limper called.

The flop was perfect: Ah-5h-9s. It seems like I am playing a lot of pots and always betting, and I raised here so I am expected to bet. I bet 2,400 and was called. At this point, I figured the limper limped with an ace (which meant he had to be behind) or he picked up a flush draw, or had some kind of middle pair. With any of those holdings, I would be glad that I bet.

It got even better on the turn when the nine of clubs came. Now I had a full house and my best hope was to get something out of my opponent – a mistaken bluff or value bet or the possibility that he’ll make a second-best hand – on the river. I am so far ahead by now that it doesn’t hurt and in fact helps to give a free card. I follow up the other player’s check by checking myself.

I was rewarded in the greatest possible way. The river was the three of hearts, putting three hearts on the board. The other player led out by betting 4,800. I raised to 13,000, to put him all-in. He called and my nines full of aces took the 40,000-chip pot, giving me a large chip lead in the tournament.

During the next hand someone on the rail asked what the other player had. (As I mentioned in a recent blog, observers can’t see the hands of losing callers in a showdown.) I told the observer the losing player had 8h-7h and made a flush on the river.

This started a discussion, which led me to point out an often-overlooked point: “The luck isn’t what hand you get. It’s when your opponent makes a good hand you can beat.” When several players on the rail began talking about that, it gave me the opening to tell my favorite non-poker poker story:

“I use this story to illustrate the point:  Guy is walking along the edge of a swamp with his wife. He takes a stick and starts poking a sleeping gator. His wife says ‘Better stop that. You can’t outrun that gator.’ He says, ‘I don’t have to outrun that gator. I only have to outrun YOU.’”

The players at the table and the observers all cracked up at that. A couple hands later, one player at the table, PhoenixBLR (from Belarus) said, “Bad that can’t understand all words in story.”

I apologized for Phoenix not being able to understand the story and said, “Your English is probably better than my . . . russian?” He gently corrected me; the language of Belarus is Belarusian. I replied, “See, I’m ignorant too. Sorry.”

I tried to make it up to him by, over the next few hands, breaking down the story into component parts and making sure he understood each part. It was probably the online equivalent of dealing with someone who doesn’t speak your language by simply talking LOUDER and making wild hand gestures.

But I think Phoenix understood the story and I am sure he appreciated the effort. He said, “Good story understand ty,” and then made the happy face with his avatar.

So don’t say I haven’t done my part to promote international relations. A number of players told me later in the tournament they thought it was nice of me to go through the trouble of trying to explain the story. The general good feelings promoted many friendly discussions throughout the tournament. One Full Tilt player, who said he owns a hotel in Mykonos, invited me to come to Greece and be a guest at his hotel. We were in the money and I was concentrating on the business at hand, but I thanked him for his offer, asked him to email me with the information, and said I would find out if Uncle Tilty would let me review his establishment as part of a Full Tilt Poker Guide to Mykonos.

I am still waiting to hear from both Mr. Mykonos and Uncle Tilty, so I won’t hold my breath.

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2 Responses to “#866 – October is for (Poker) Lovers, Part II – I’m an International Poker Ambassador!”

1. TreeHippo Says:
   October 7th, 2009 at 11:47 pm

   And here I thought you were going to get Rounders’d.

2. Joanie B. Says:
   October 8th, 2009 at 11:21 am

   Hi, I’m new to reading this blog. Nice post!

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