I remember one particular hand that I got into with Gus Hansen at last year’s Aussie Millions. There were 18 people left, so we were pretty deep in the money and playing short-handed. In fact, there were only four people at our table. I started the hand with about 380K and Gus had about 600k, which represented the chip lead at our table. The blinds were 5K/10K with a 5K ante and Gus – being Gus – was raising about 80% of the hands. At this point it was tough, because I wasn’t picking up many cards, so I really had to pick my hands.

In this particular hand, Gus was under the gun and raised to about 27K. I was in the big blind with A-J suited. Looking back, it’s hard to say what I should have done with that kind of stack. I made the decision to call because I was pretty sure that he would make a continuation bet on the flop – represent with a pretty big bet – and then I could check-raise him all in and force him to fold. The only problem here is that Gus doesn’t like to fold if he even thinks that he has anyouts at all, which gives him a chance to hit a worse hand. Anyway, that’s what I decided to do – just flat call.

As I expected, he made a continuation bet of 50K on an 8-7-5 rainbow flop. I thought about it for a while and, like I said, he doesn’t like to bluff and these cards were definitely in his range. Ultimately, I had to go with a physical read. I didn’t think that he looked very strong, so I made the decision to move all-in for about 300K more.

My thought was that he might fold a middle pair with an Ace or something like that; something that did have me beat, but that wasn’t that strong. He sat there and thought forever, and the more he thought, the more nervous I got. After about five or six minutes, he decided to call.

Immediately, he looked at me and said “I have nothing.” I thought “oh my God – did I just get called with A-K?!” I told him that I didn’t have anything either, and we turned them over. He had A-6, giving him an open-ender.

Honestly, I was happy to see that. If he was going to call, that’s about the best hand that I could hope for, because it was almost a coin-flip at that point – I was just a little bit ahead. The turn brought a 6 and gave him a pair, but before I could really think about it the river was a 4 and we chopped the pot.

It was a nerve-wracking hand. When he said “I call,” I thought that I was dead. When I pushed on the flop, I really thought that I had enough to get him to fold because 300K represented a good portion of his stack. And up until then, he was doing just fine running over the table. I don’t know if I would’ve done anything different looking back at it, but it was very, very nerve-wracking hand. I guess that if there is a moral to this story, it’s “don’t bluff Gus.”

I think that the game that is most translatable to poker is backgammon. It’s a great game of skill with a healthy dose of luck. It’s a complicated game because you’re dealing with a lot – you have to be thinking with every single move that you make. You’re constantly trying to minimize the effectiveness of the most likely rolls of your opponent and trying to maximize the number of possible good rolls for your next turn. You’re distributing your checkers in a way that makes them flow nicely over a wide range of numbers while trying to minimize the good numbers for your opponent.

In poker, you’re trying to do that all of the time. You’re tying to maximize the chances that the chips you put in the pot are going to come back to you with a nice, healthy return. You’re also thinking about a wide range of potential cards - tying to minimize losses when the cards go poorly for you and maximize your chance of winning when they’re in your favor.

Chess is also a great game – you develop discipline and good critical thinking skills, but there’s been a poor crossover to poker, particularly with players at the highest levels. Although chess requires a great deal of skill to master, it’s a game that rewards your skill too consistently – at least compared to poker. It’s one of the reasons people don’t really gamble at chess.

It’s certainly not a lesser game, but when you reach the level of grand master in chess, one of the skills that you really haven’t learned is how to deal with the luck. I think that someone who has reached that level has a hard time making the transition to a game where they might play great for an evening and then lose. It’s hard to deal with emotionally. On the other hand, backgammon players do this all of the time. And you see that a lot of the world’s best backgammon players have successfully made the crossover. Guys like Gus Hansen and Erik Seidel, amongst others. I can’t give you a list for chess.

Something else that’s developed with or through other games that’s relevant is competitiveness – the desire to beat your opponent. We’re hardwired to compete in this world. In the real world 10,000 years ago, this competition was for food or maybe a territorial skirmish where, in both cases, life was on the line. The beauty of games is that you get to satisfy these urges and no one dies at the end (usually). It’s the idea of engaging in competition, and the fact that there is honor in winning. 

I was a pretty good backgammon player, and I think that this competitive drive is what helped me. As my skill developed, I was able to be around world-class players. There was always a certain mentality, a certain approach that they took; it was an uncompromisingly self-critical ability that’s common amongst those who had become world-class. It was this mentality that I applied to poker. I really hadn’t been exposed to people like that before and, if I hadn’t, I don’t think I could have developed the critical ability necessary to become a great poker player. I believe that’s important for sure.

It might not be so much about the games themselves as much as being exposed to the players who have developed that ability. If you’re serious about poker, choose your friends wisely. Find accomplished people that are really excited about the game. That’s what will make you a better player.

Instead I found an entertaining narrative of Gus’ experience from start to victory at the 2007 Aussie Millions. Taken directly from recordings that he consistently made throughout the tournament, Gus methodically walks through what was happening at the table and in his head every step of the way. Rather than the diary of a madman at the table, Revealed gives the reader clear and direct insight to Gus’ critical thought process from start to finish.

Gus explains his decisions employing the type and depth of theory that you’d expect from a player of his caliber, but his delivery is more practical application than treatise on game theory. More to the point, its how it was – in fact is – for one player rather than a “how to play” instructional. Supported by liberal commentary and subtle humor, it’s a good read if you’ve ever wondered how Gus makes some of the plays that he does.

Examples of this abound, but his philosophy on avoiding certain “ugly scenarios” illustrates the tone of his book. As Gus details the hand where he busted Patrick Antonius, his “toughest opponent” who “easily made his top-ten list of pretty, Finnish poker-players,” he methodically examines his options following the turn:

“…and No. 3: The all-in bet: 1.7 million! Pulling the trigger is often my favorite play. No more nonsense, no more worrying about disgusting river bets, just the plain and simple ‘Do you wanna dance?’ puts on the ultimate pressure.”

Reckless out of context, his discussion identifies exactly how he arrived at this decision and how it played out – and sent Patrick to the rail. Later, Gus offers a final opinion on “the all-in play,” stating that even if it’s a mistake, “at least it’s gonna be the last one you make.”

As books go, Every Hand Revealed is a poker book written by a professional poker player specifically for poker players. Gus gives us his experience Down Under one hand at a time to illustrate exactly how he operates. In his own words, it’s a visit to his world.

That folks, is the scenario that played out in the Bellagio on Saturday when David Chiu staged one of the most dramatic comebacks ever seen on the felt and ended what looked like Gus’ easy march to victory in the WPT’s biggest event of the year. In case you missed the drama, here’s a quick recap of the action:

• Final table play begins with six competitors and Hansen holding the big stack
• Gus knocks four players off the table in just 22 hands and enters heads-up play with 80% of the chips in his possession
• Chiu manages a couple of key double-ups and then takes the chip lead on hand #78
• On hand #80, Chiu catches trip Aces on the river, beating Hansen’s two pair of 10s and 8s, and walks away the victor 

The win earned Chiu, a four-time WSOP bracelet winner, nearly $3.4 million in prize money – the biggest payday of his career.

In another move sure to warm the hearts of poker players all across the land (at least in the continental United States and maybe, just maybe, in Alaska and Hawaii too), Congressman Barney Frank is stepping up his efforts to stop the UIGEA in its tracks.

Frank, along with Congressional life partner Ron Paul, has authored a letter to the heads of the US Treasury and Federal Reserve warning both agencies not to spend any more time trying to implement UIGEA-related regulations. Frank and Paul go on to say the law is seriously flawed at it’s most basic level and that it would be imprudent for the agencies to “devote additional agency resources to this Sisyphean task, especially as we plan to pursue legislation to prevent the implementation of these regulations.”

Way to go Barney and Ron. Just one thing though – most members of Congress seem to have the mental agility of small soap dishes, so referencing tragic figures in Greek mythology may cause their synapses to short circuit. Still, we appreciate your Herculean efforts on behalf of online poker players everywhere.

One of the strangest stories floating around this week involves Phil Ivey and David Blaine. Yes, the Phenom and the Magic Man are apparently friendly enough to break bread – and glasses – at the Tao restaurant in Manhattan.

According to sources, Ivey offered Blaine a very tasty prop bet - $10K to eat a glass from the table. Blaine, ever the entertainer, took the bet and Ivey’s cash after smashing a “large glass” and devouring the pieces.

So there you have it people – Gus “The Sperminator” Hansen takes down Beth Shak-tacular by a score of eight to one. Hey, it wasn’t a flawless victory, but it was close. Check back next week for some more fun and games…