Read It Now - Gambling Times

Transcription

Richard G. Burke gives PAGE
The Straight Skinny—
NEW COLUMN!
18
PAGE
Johnny Moss
PLAYER PROFILE
by Phil Hevener
38
Wendeen H. Eolis
reports from Poker’s
biggest wedding
PAGE
15
POKER PLAYER
Vol. 8 Number 18 March 7, 2005 A Gambling Times Publication Copyright ©2004 Bi-Weekly $3.95 USA/$4.95 CANADA
SHARKS Circle Players PACK
Commerce
Pechanga Open
Although itʼs several
miles from the Pacific
Ocean, there is no doubt
that the poker sharks were
out circling the tables at
the Commerce Casino in
Commerce, California these
last 2 weeks. Some 14
additional events have been
concluded since we brought
you events 1-8 in the last
issue of Poker Player. Only
the championship remains,
which we will cover next
issue.
If you donʼt understand
the last paragraph, itʼs
because you havenʼt been
reading Poker Player carefully on the results of major
events like the Los Angeles
Poker Classic. These
high but affordable buyins attract a large crowd
of wanna-be winners who
are just chum for the more
experienced tournament
players. Names like John
Phan, Amir Vahedi and Mel
Judah along with a host of
other pros whose names
For five nights, thousands
of poker players wanting
a piece of the tournament
action, not to mention
the prize pools, descended on
the Pechanga Poker Room
to play in the first “Pechanga
Open” tournament. Each
night, the stakes went higher
as the number of competitors and buy-in amounts
increased. In the end,
the Pechanga Poker
Room crowned
five intense
No-Limit Holdʼem winner John Phan walks away from
Commerceʼs LAPC XIV with $300,578
you will see repeatedly at
the final tables dominate
these games where money
is like blood in the water
for the poker sharks. Oh
(Continued on page 11)
National Lampoon Brings
You STRIP Poker
How about the World
Championship of Strip
Poker, filmed at a lush
nude beach resort in
Jamaica? This was an his-
toric poker event which I,
as a renowned journalist,
was asked to chronicle.
Reluctantly, I agreed.
Harvey Hunnicutt from Irvine, CA wins $59,210 in
fifth event of Pechanga Open.
A Word from the
“Mad Genius,”
Mike Caro
Today’s word is...
“FIVE”
Turn to page 4 for more
0
74470 05299
9
1 0>
By Max Shapiro
With every day seemingly bringing a new poker
tournament, TV show,
online site, boot camp,
seminar, cruise, etc., etc.,
what else could possibly be
new in the world of poker?
players as the victors in their
respective tournaments each
night.
The first night, February
9th, the poker room was
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
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3
Caro’s Word: “FIVE”
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
L
ast time, I pointed
out that there was a
simple, magic way to
shift gears in poker.
Actually, there were two
ways. One is the MCU TwoGear system, and the other
one is the expanded fivegear system. If youʼre thinking the five-gear system is
going to be more complicated, youʼre mistaken. If
you can count to four, itʼs
just as easy as the two-gear
system. There are absolutely
no levels of aggression to
remember.
How can you shift gears
without dealing with different levels of aggression?
Well, last time I showed
you how to do that for a
two-gear system. It was an
all-or-nothing system. You
were either choosing the
more aggressive tactic or the
more conservative one. And
you were doing that simply
based on your borderline
hands — those hands that
dictated close decisions,
where you wouldnʼt be faulted whatever your choice.
Now, Iʼm going to use
a favorite TV technique
to bring you up to speed.
Youʼve seen some longer
episodes of shows that continue into the next week.
They often use a device of
taking short video clips from
the previous show, so that
those who missed it will be
able to comprehend the final
segment, and those who
had seen it will have their
memories refreshed. Fine.
Iʼm going to adapt that technique to this column. If you
missed the last column, here
it is distilled to a series of
short clips...
Begin recap in
preparation for today’s
big secret
The three-gear methodology
in poker is used routinely
by many professionals, but
thereʼs a much better way.
Itʼs the MCU Two-or-Five
Gear System. Itʼs actually two systems, but you
should be prepared to use
either one, depending on
which is best suited for your
opponents. Against unsophisticated opponents, The
five-gear system is usually
reserved for trickier and
more observant foes. Weʼre
about to examine the twogear option. It wins money
the easy way.
You donʼt want to give
alert opponents an advantage
by being too predictable.
A secondary reason to shift
gears is to adapt to a different group of opponents or
to game conditions. Most
players donʼt know when to
shift – and they shift basically at random.. When
you shift randomly, just for
the purpose of shifting and
nothing more, youʼre shifting away from your most
obvious strategy, sometimes
unnecessarily. Your most
obvious strategy is usually
the most profitable and you
should use it unless a need
for deception or opponentsʼ
styles dictate otherwise.
Against opponents in a
universe where opponents
never adapt to your play,
you wouldnʼt need to shift
gears. You might change
gears against another set of
opponents, whose style of
play was different, but you
wouldnʼt against the same
opponents who did their
same old thing regardless of
how you played.
A little more strength
Actually, when to shift isnʼt
that complicated. If your
opponents call too much,
you enter pots with more
hands, since you donʼt need
as much strength to make
a profit. Thatʼs because
the hands youʼll be bumping heads with wonʼt be as
strong, either. Generally,
you just need to average
a little more strength than
your opponents to have an
edge, and that means if they
play more hands, you can,
too. You only need to stay a
little more conservative than
they are in your hand selection. And, of course, you
can bet more hands against
them once youʼre already
involved in a pot. Why? Itʼs
because youʼll get called by
worse hands than you nor-
mally would, so you donʼt
need normal strength to justify a wager.
Essentially, you need to
bet more often and play
more hands when opponents
are timid or intimidated by
you. This happens when
you control the game, usually when youʼre conspicuously winning. On the other
hand, you must be more
conservative about your bets
and about which hands you
play when opponents are
inspired. Thatʼs when theyʼll
make correct raises and calls
and bet more rationally.
Opponents are inspired
when their winning or when
youʼre losing – and a combination of the two can be
deadly. Against inspired
opponents, you need to back
off – you need to gear down.
Two gears
It all centers around nearly
borderline hands. Borderline
hands are those that afford
decisions that are extremely
close and itʼs not obvious to
you what the better choice
is. By “nearly borderline”
Iʼm stretching the definition
to give a little leeway, to
include truly borderline decisions and those that almost
fit the category. With every
borderline choice, thereʼs an
aggressive and an unaggressive decision possible.
All you have to do is
pause a moment before
acting and ask yourself,
“Does this feel like a close
decision where I could act
aggressively or not without
seeming ridiculous.” If the
answer is yes, this is a nearly borderline decision.
Either acting aggressively
or not acting aggressively
would be acceptable. But
which is better? Under the
MCU Two-Gear System,
you shift up by always taking the more aggressive
action when a decision
seems nearly borderline. If
you feel that youʼve become
too aggressive against a certain player or that game conditions in general dictate a
more conservative approach,
you always take the less
aggressive action. Itʼs the
simplest way to shift gears
there is.
Donʼt let your emotions
dictate which of the two
gears youʼre using during
the heat of poker combat.
Decide before any cards are
4
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
POKER PLAYER
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EDITORIAL CONSULTANT
Phil Hevener
CONSULTANT
Contributing
Columnists
Nolan Dalla
George Epstein
“Oklahoma Johnny” Hale
Ashley Adams
Susie Isaacs
Diane McHaffie
James McKenna
I. Nelson Rose
Nic Szeremeta
Rich Wilens
John Vorhaus
Ernie Kaufman, Sports
Poker Player will be published Bi-Weekly
by Gambling Times Incorporated,
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Volume 8 Number 18.
Copyright © March 2005 by Gambling
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M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
5
A Poker History Lesson, PART 1
CHIP CHATTEr
By SUSIE ISAACS
How much do you know about our favorite game? I’m
going to tell you all you never knew that you wanted
to know about the sport that is sweeping the nation, indeed the world.
Jonathan H. Green made one of the earliest written references
to “poker” in 1834. Although poker has always been considered
a man’s game, today women are coming on strong. Don Jarchow,
owner of the Gambler’s General Store in Las Vegas, which houses
the largest collection of gaming books and paraphernalia in the
world states, “Women buy over 50% of the cars in this country and
they control 68% of the wealth. If you think they can’t play poker,
you better sit down and buckle up.”
History suggests that card sharks developed the card game in
France. New Orleans, once controlled by the French, was a gateway to
America and it was in New Orleans that poker was first played in this
country. It is believed that Americans derived the actual name “poker”
from the French word “poke” which came from “hocus-pocus” a term
widely used in reference to magic. In the early days cheating was rampart as were the murders of the cheaters, if they were caught.
The Old West was a gambler’s circuit. Wyatt Earp and Wild Bill
Hickock were the first known professional poker players. Poker
Alice was the first known female professional poker player. Hickock
was shot in the back and died in a poker game in 1876 holding what
became known as the “Dead Man’s Hand”, aces and eights.
Riverboats and paddle wheelers were prominent along the
Mississippi, Ohio and Missouri coasts in the mid 1800s. By 1850
steamboats had gambling and commerce on the move and it was a
gambling and poker-playing Mecca. With the offerings of luxurious
passenger cabins, elaborate décor with grand staircases and carpeted lounges, the rich and famous men and women played poker in
fancy parlors. Playing poker on riverboats was actually considered a
fashion statement and the participants dressed accordingly.
This acceptability phase did not last long. Steamboats quickly
became relics in an era gone by with the completion of the first
transcontinental railroad. At the turn of the century poker was
considered an illegal activity in the majority of America. Men still
played poker, but they did so secretively. Females did not play,
unless they were rebels.
One such rebel, the most famous female poker player of the
time was Poker Alice, born Alice Ivers on February 17, 1853, in
Devonshire, England. As a girl she moved with her family to
Colorado. She married a gambler, Frank Duffield who taught her how
to play poker. After being widowed as a young woman, she spent
time in gambling halls and became a professional poker dealer. Her
second marriage was to a gambler named Tubbs. History reports
that Tubbs usually lost at poker and annoyed Alice with his lack of
luck and ability at the poker table. Alice was the winning player.
She supported their family of four boys and three girls with poker
winnings, which could total as much as $6,000 on a good night. A
fortune in the late 1800’s! She always carried a .38 revolver and
used it when necessary.
In the 1920’s only five games were legal in Las Vegas, and three
of those games were poker; stud, draw poker and lowball, the
other two games played were a game called “500” and bridge.
Legalization of gambling began in 1931 and the first lawful casino
license was issued to a woman, Mayme Stocker. When she first
arrived in Las Vegas in 1911 she referred to her new environment
as the “doorstop to hell.” The Stocker family moved to Las Vegas
because the men folk, her husband and two sons worked for the
railroad. The railroad had made it clear that anyone entering the
business of gambling in Las Vegas would be fired. In order to keep
her husband and sons respectable, she agreed to have the license
put in her name. It was a good gamble and Mayme Stocker and her
family eventually became leaders of the communities.
In the next edition of Chip Chatter, we’ll continue on our historical poker journal.
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Susie Isaacs has written about poker and poker
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M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
7
AT T I T U D E S
POwer POKER PSYCHOLOGY
By JAMES A. M C KENNA, P H D.
Reserved
ASSERTIVENESS
8
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
Responsive
have the “nuts.” When
In my article on “Reading People,” I
negative, these players
discussed how differently people take
aim and fire. Their mottos ranged from are harder on themselves than others.
These players are patient and can wait
“Ready, Aim, Fire” through “Ready,
for the right conditions to invest rather
Aim, Return Fire” to “Ready, Fire, and
than bet their stakes.
Aim.” Let’s talk more about the attiAttitude of Community. Many less
tudes such players bring to the table.
aggressive players who tent to be more
Poker players bring a variety of
emotional will come to the table to be
attitudes to the game that can limit
with people and to socialize. Their attior can enhance their game. Some
tude is one of community and getting
players are provocative, some are
controlling, others are withdrawn and along. They avoid upsetting other players, yet often
focused, and
ATTITUDE GRID*
ATTITUDE
GRID
other players
a few are just
Aggressive
are annoyed
there to socialby their conize. Players
stant talking
can be very
CONTROL
RISK
and wanting to
structured
socialize. “Are
(Reserved) or
you going to
very impulsive
check or bet
(Responsive).
or WHAT!?”
Still, while being
STUDY
VISIT
In good times,
tight or loose,
these players
these same
are enjoying
players can be
Receptive
others and like
very passive
to talk a lot. In
(Receptive) or
R
E
S
P
O
N
S
I
V
E
N
E
S
S
bad times, they
very aggresmake a lot of
sive. So, notice
*For more information on this chart, see my soon to be
mistakes and
what attitudes
published book on “Beyond Tells.”
will talk less.
happen when
Attitude of Risking. Player who like
you group players in combinations of
to live-on-the-edge are there for exciteintroverts and extroverts.
ment. They are there to take risks and
*For more information on this
will play with abandon—more on their
chart, see my soon to be published
impulses than on the odds. They get
book on “Beyond Tells.”
rewarded whether they win or lose.
Note: Swiss Psychiatrist, Carl
When successful, they celebrate how
Gustav Jung was the first to create
much a chance they took. When failing,
the words extrovert and introvert. He
they are still proud that they tried.
compared personality types by lookAttitude of Gratitude. Having the
ing at such levels of assertiveness and
right attitude is probably the single
combined these with what he called
attitude or what we are calling degree most important power a person has
to bring to the table. The best attiof structure.
tude to play with is a positive one.
Some players are there to control
Attitude is like an odorless gas that
how they play and like to control othcan poison the room or infect others
ers. Other players prefer to use poker
much like “laughing gas.” Attitude will
to study others and figure odds. Still,
turn a seasoned and skillful player
there are those who are there to visit
into a pompous child sulking because
with people and playing cards is a way
someone broke the “secret bargain”
to create community. Finally, there are
the adrenalin junkies who are loose and and stayed long enough to beat them.
Attitude is not something players
are there to risk and to find excitement.
are born with. Besides being learned,
Attitude of Control. Structured
attitudes can be changed. That’s the
player can also be aggressive. They
good news. By changing attitudes,
like to control how they play and how
players will enjoy others, the game,
others behave. They will show this
and even themselves more. Players
by being openly critical. “How could
with bad attitudes are much easier to
you stay with that garbage after I
beat than players with good ones are.
raised!?” They like to play the game
“perfectly” and expect others to be
perfect (according to their standards).
James A. McKenna, PhD., has been a
With a positive attitude these traits
practicing individual and group therapist
can make a lot of money. It’s when
for over thirty-five years. His knowledge
this type of player gets distressed
of human behavior combined with over
that the attitude turns negative.
thirty years of gaming experience gives
Attitude of Study. There are struchim a unique perspective on the psycholtured players who are more laid back
ogy of the gamer. His book, “Beyond Tellsand are busy figuring odds and studyPower Poker Psychology,” will be published
ing outs. They analyze each hand for
soon by Gambling Times. Write to him at
its value and will only raise bets if they
[email protected].
Sam Mudaro, BA, MBA, is a practicing tax accountant and
financial executive originally from New York with over 35
years of analytical business expertise. He and his wife Eva
are nine-year Las Vegas residents. Sam uses simulation software to analyze
Sam Mudaro is the...
and develop
strategies for
Omaha Hi/
Lo and other
forms of poker.
Reach Sam at:
[email protected].
past articles we have
examined the powerful ace low. The next lowest
card after the ace is the deuce.
Unlike the ace though, the
deuce will only work one way.
Yes the deuces may be used in
a straight and a flush. It does
not however have any high
card potential in and of itself.
The ace can form both the
nut low and the nut high. The
deuce is severely limited in
both regards. It will often form
the second best low if the ace
does not hit the board and has
limited straight and meager
flush potential.
We will examine only those
hands that do not contain an
ace for this article. The A-2
combination was covered in
previous articles. We will also
only consider those hands that
produce a positive return.
Lets take a look at how the
deuce works in pair situations.
The clear winner here is the
pair of Kings. It combines with
the 2-3 to yield an excellent
return of $7.38. It also works
In
Hand
2-3-K-K
2-4-K-K
2-3-3-4
2-3-4-4
2-2-3-4
2-3-Q-Q
2-5-K-K
2-3-5-5
2-2-3-5
2-3-3-5
2-4-5-5
2-4-4-5
2-2-4-5
2-4-Q-Q
1PDS 1PHS 1PLS
7.38 2.67 2.99
4.90 0.28 0.25
3.88 1.23 1.14
3.65 1.42 1.16
3.41 0.93 0.76
2.88
2.87
2.27 0.16 0.38
1.94 0.33 0.34
1.90 0.52 0.40
1.43
1.24
1.19
0.56
1PBS
0.89
0.35
1.29
0.66
0.36
0.31
0.34
with the 2-4 and 2-5 to a lesser
extent. Note the absence of the
1PNS. Not a single non-suited
deuce low hand is profitable!
Remember we are not considering combinations with an
ace. A number of good players
I know will play some of the
non-suited hands. The average
player, who understands that
Omaha H/L is basically a low
game, will play 2-3 with any
pair, suited or not! We have all
seen these players who stay
till the end to wind up with the
second best hand.
The Deuce Low
The Queens only combine
with a 2-3 or 2-4 profitably
and only when double suited.
The two flush draws really do
help. Do pay attention to the
difference between the King
high flush and the Queen
high flush.
Note the absence of a six
through a jack in the hands.
The best J-J hand, 2-3-J-J
will cost you $0.33 on average while the best 6-6 hand,
2-3-6-6 will cost you $0.36.
Note the absence of any
hands containing 2 pair. The
best two pair hand 2-2-3-3
double suited will cost you
$0.30. Those of you thinking
that maybe the 2-2-K-K may
be better check this out: 2-2K-K double suited will cost
you $2.09, 2-2-K-K single
suited will cost you $1.40
and 2-2-K-K non-suited will
cost you $1.56. Why does the
single and non-suited variety
cost you less? Two factors
come to mind. It is easier to
muck the non-suited variety.
You will make the second
best flush twice as often with
the double suited hand and
will be more susceptible to
losing to the nut flush.
Pairs and hence two pair
hands are not that great in
Omaha H/L as they are in
Hold-Em. As you must use
two cards from your hand
the advantage of two pair
appears to be psychological. Yes you do have a better
chance of flopping a set. You
also have a better chance of
losing to a full house. This
will be analyzed in a future
article.
So what have we learned?
Pairs containing a deuce are
not as profitable as those containing an ace. On the high
side only play K-K or Q-Q
and Q-Q only when double
suited. Avoid paired hands
that contain a six through a
jack even if double suited. If
you have 2 pair and one of
those pairs is a deuce muck
the hand unless you are in the
blinds. Next time I will finish
up with deuce low hands not
containing an ace or a pair.
Route 66 Casino Opens New Poker Room
Route 66 Casino recently
held the grand opening of
its state-of-the-art poker
room. Two-time World
Series of Poker champion
Jennifer Harman helped to
celebrate the grand opening
with an autograph session
and she played poker with
Route 66 guests throughout
the day. With a sophisticated and comfortable design,
special amenities, and a
variety of games, the new
poker room is one of New
Mexicoʼs finest.
To celebrate the grand
opening, poker room guests
had the opportunity to play
a game against Harman
simply by dropping their
names into a drawing bin.
Each hour, a drawing was
held and nine guests were
selected to play a few hands
for cash winnings against
Harman.
“Poker is among the most
popular casino games today
and our players have said
that they would love to play
the game here at Route 66
Casino. Now they can,” said
Route 66 Casinoʼs poker
room includes 12 tables
that offer Texas Holdʼem
Omaha High and Low, and
7-Card Stud
“Our guests
will find that our
room is designed
to be relaxing
and yet it will make them
feel special,” added Ihm.
The décor of the room
includes dark woods with
a special
glass railing
to a separate poker
bar area.
Dan Ihm, marketing director of Laguna Development
Corporation, which owns and
operates Route 66 Casino.
“Our room includes many
popular games and variations
on the game”
The Route
66 Casino
poker
room is
designated
as a non-smoking area. It
includes in-room food and
beverage service from a
select menu in addition
to the bar. Four plasma
screen televisions allow
guests to view the most
exciting sports action and
news.
CIRCUIT
TOURNAMENTS
..........................
HARRAH’S
ATLANTIC CITY
Pechanga
Winner
Bound For
WSOP 2005
One man in Corona,
California is counting down
the months and weeks until
his day arrives when he
gets to play for the giant
stakes in the World Series
of Poker in Las Vegas.
John DeBuono came into
the Pechanga Poker Room
for the month-end “Big
Showdown” Tournament
and out of 141 entries,
found himself the victorious card player. His Big
Showdown win scored him
not only a $10,000 entry
into the 2005 WSOP, but
also an additional $4,575
he won while playing in the
tournament.
JANUARY 7 – 18
HARRAH’S
RINCON
FEBRUARY 20 –
GO ALL IN.
MARCH 2
RIO
LAS VEGAS
MARCH 12 – 22
HARRAH’S
LAKE TAHOE
APRIL 26 –
MAY 10
HARRAH’S
PLAY THE CIRCUIT FOR YOUR CHANCE TO WIN POINTS TO
sm
QUALIFY FOR THE $2 MILLION TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS .
NEW ORLEANS
MAY 21 – 30
Here’s a chance to win a seat at the free-roll World Series Of Poker ®
Tournament of Champions. Enter each daily event
because the more you play the more points
you may win. Only the top 20 point winners from
each Circuit tournament get a seat.*
HOSTED BY
GAMBLING LEGEND,
JACK BINION
Go to worldseriesofpoker.com or call 1-877-367-9767 for more information.
*Top 20 from each independent Circuit event plus the final table from Event #42 at the World Series Of Poker will receive a free-roll invitation to the Tournament
of Champions. Official rules and details available at the Total Rewards® Center. Must be 21 or older to participate in event. Must be 21 or older to gamble.
Know When To Stop Before You Start.® Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-522-4700. ©2005, Harrah’s License Company, LLC. All Rights Reserved. 5090-031-05
John DeBuono
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
9
PART 42,
The Suited Flop
improving performance
By TOM “TIME” LEONARD
A suited flop is a pretty sight indeed. Of
course, if the flop is suited and you don’t possess at least one of that suit, then it becomes a scary sight!
It seems that when, for example, I’m suited in hearts and the
flop comes suited it’s in spades! Of course, that may well just
be confirmation bias at work. When you hold two suited cards,
it is 118 to 1 that you will make a flush on the flop. While this
happens on occasion, most players are pleased to make two of
their suit on the flop and then be only 1.86 to 1 to make their
flush by the river. What we’ll discuss today is when you only
hold one of the “flushing” suit or none. What do you do then?
Well, as you have read many times by many writers, it depends.
It depends on a variety of factors such as the texture of the
game, whether you hold a draw to the nuts, are your opponents
checking or betting, betting or raising, what odds is the pot
offering, and most importantly, whether your moon is in the
right quadrant to properly impact your Karma. OK, so I was kidding about that last factor!
If you hold a three flush after the flop and need runner/runner (a card of that same suit on the turn and then again on the
river) to complete your flush, the odds against this occurring
are 23 to 1. Rarely will the pot be offering you those kinds of
odds so you should a: have other outs and/or b: hold the nut
card of the flopped suit in order to continue if there is a bet
to you. Even with both a and b being satisfied, I would still
consider other factors before blithely investing more money. If
someone already flopped a flush or a set you could really be
running uphill trying to complete a 23 to 1 shot or be drawing
completely dead trying to pair an over card.
A major key on how to play a scary looking board like this is
how many players are in the hand. If you have either the Ace
or King of the flopped suit or top pair or better, then if first to
act (either by position or if checked to) go ahead and bet to see
where you stand. A bet in this position has to be respected by
your opponents as they can see the scary board as well. Many
times these kinds of situations favor whoever gets his money
in first. The other players many times feel it is not worth going
to war and are content to wait for the next deal. Of course, if
you get played back at then all the rules just changed. If you do
thin the field but get a caller or two, you’re still not home free.
Someone could be slow playing a made flush or set, hoping the
board pairs. If a blank comes on the turn, you should bet again.
However, if you’re raised it usually means you’re beat. Now is
the time to figure out what your opponent’s raise truly means.
Could the raiser be on a re-steal? Did the raiser wake up with a
hand and you played right into him? Does he just want to isolate
you and get heads up? Did you just get caught with your hand in
the cookie jar? Unless you have a draw to the nut flush and the
pot is offering more than four to one it may be time to retire.
On the other side of the suited flop dilemma, if you do flop a
flush and it is a small one, do not slow play this holding. Giving
your opponents a free card to possibly hit a fourth suited card
and make a higher flush than yours is very weak poker. Bet and
raise attempting to make other drawing hands take the worst
of it. Even though suited flops can provide good bluffing opportunities, if you meet resistance remember a hasty retreat can
save a stack of chips. I like to play a suited flop aggressively
but put on the brakes at the first sign of trouble. Our goal for
this session is not to play weak/tight in these situations but
rather strong and aggressive unless it becomes obvious that
you are running uphill. Then don’t get married to your hand.....
a new, fresh one will be dealt in a matter of moments. See you
next “TIME”.
No stranger to the green felt, Tom “Time” Leonard has played
poker for more than 30 years and has been a serious student of
the game and writer on the subject since 1994. He has regularly
played the cardrooms of Atlantic City, Las Vegas and California.
His experience as a sales and marketing professional have
helped him hone his skills at “selling” a hand and “buying” a
pot. Tom can be contacted at: [email protected].
10
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
Sharks Circle Commerce
sure, once in a while a newcomer wins, but, like as not,
he or she is just a sharkin-training, waiting for his
chance to clean up.
The Commerce Casino
is the largest poker room
in the world. More people
play there in live games
then anywhere else in the
world, on a regular basis.
An arena such as this cannot help but develop the
relative skills of it s participants and many pros
have made their mark at the
Commerce. In a sense the
Commerce is pokerʼs graduate school. Fortunately for
the pros, there is no exam
for admission; only tuition
money is required to get
into a game. At this institution of higher learning, the
tuition can be pretty steep.
Yet some of these students have managed to
graduate, summa cum
laude.
Check the names below
and last weeks winners, and
youʼll see what we mean.
Thanks to Max Shapiro for
his astute narrative reporting on the events.
either out of habit, or simply to distract his opponents. Whichever it was, it
worked.
Phan, a Long Beach,
California pro, won two
bracelets at the Jack Binion
World Poker Open last year,
only the third player to do
so in one year. He also had
a second at the LAPC in
2004.
His young opponent, who
also played extremely well,
is one of a contingent of
10 Swedish players, nine
men and a woman, who
arrived here together. One
of them, William Thorson,
finished fifth tonight. “This
Down 7-1 Heads-Up,
John Phan Beats
Young Swede for
300k No-Limit Win
When tonightʼs tournament
got down to two, John Phan
had only about 160,000
chips to more than one million for Tobias Persson, a
23-year-old poker player
from Sweden. Phan immediately went to work,
moving in and winning
four times in the next six
hands. He kept the pressure
on, took the lead after 14
deals, and two hands later
had all the chips and a victory in the 22nd event of
LAPC XIV, $2,425 no-limit
holdʼem.
The win, his biggest ever,
was worth $300,578. There
were no deals.
It was a grueling final
table that lasted more than
eight hours, with the chip
lead changing countless
times. The pace was also
maddeningly slow, with the
clock called for about nine
times along the way. Phan
was especially deliberate,
time and again endlessly
separating and then riffling
a stack of chips whenever
he had a close decision,
is the way poker should
be played,” said noted pro
Thor Hansen, watching the
action. He emphasized that
even though Persson and
Thorson are friends, they
played very hard against
each other.
COMMERCE CASINO
L.A. POKER CLASSIC
2/16/05
NO LIMIT HOLD’EM
BUY-IN $2,500 + $80
PLAYERS 335
PRIZE
POOL
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
$812,375
John Phan . . . . . . . $300,578
Tobias Persson . . . . $154,351
David Cai . . . . . . . . . $77,176
Max Pescatori . . . . . $48,743
William Thorson . . . $36,557
6.
7.
8.
9.
Christopher Bell . . . $28,433
Bill Henson . . . . . . . . $20,039
Benjamin Johnson . . $16,248
Hon Le . . . . . . . . . . . $12,998
Fight for Horse
Costs Patty Galagher
$26,327 as Raul Paez
Wins Hold’em
“A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse.” A horse
cost Patty Gallagher not a
kingdom, but a kingʼs ransom.
When tonightʼs limit
holdʼem event got headsup, she had a 182,000 to
167,000 chip lead over
Raul Paez of Barcelona.
She offered an even split
(Continued from page 1)
of the remaining prize
money ($97,310 for first,
$$48,655 for second), with
her keeping the impressive Remington “Bronco
Buster” trophy. Paez wanted to split the cash and play
for the trophy, and a lively,
entertaining argument then
broke out between the
Spaniard and the uninhibited, unpredictable Gallagher.
“I want the horse! Who
cares about the money?”
Patty exclaimed.
“I donʼt have a car,
I need a horse,” Paez
responded.
There was no deal and
What’s better than pocket aces?
A pocket full of cash.
THE MIRAGE POKER SHOWDOWN
A World Poker Tour Event
•
May 9 – 26, 2005
Go head-to-head in the beautiful Mirage poker room for a real knock down, drag out series where the
winner takes the monster pot and a seat at the WPT finals in April 2006.
May 2
May 9
May 10
May 11
May 12
May 12
May 13
May 14
Satellites begin
No Limit Hold ’em
$1,000 + $60*
7 Card Stud (2 p.m.)
$1,500 + $70
Pot Limit Omaha
$1,500 + $70
Omaha 8/B
$1,500 + $70
Heads Up US NLH Championship
(2 p.m.)
$15,000 + $300
No Limit Hold ’em
$1,500 + $70*
Limit Hold ’em
$2,000 + $80
May 15
May 16
May 17
May 18
May 19
May 20
May 21
May 22
May 23–26
Pot Limit Hold ’em
No Limit Hold ’em
Limit Hold ’em
No Limit Hold ’em
Pot Limit Omaha
No Limit Hold ’em
Super Satellite No Limit Hold ’em (1-day event)
Super Satellite No Limit Hold ’em (1-day event)
WPT No Limit Hold ’em Championship
$2,000 + $80
$2,000 + $80*
$2,500 + $100
$2,500 + $100*
$3,000 + $100
$3,000 + $100*
$1,500 + $70**
$1,500 + $70**
$10,000 + $200***
May 2 – May 22, 7 p.m. daily, $500 + $40 Super Satellite ($500 unlimited rebuys in the first hour)**
Reserve your seat by calling 800.77.POKER (800.777.6537) • 702.791.7291
mirage.com
All main events start at noon (except where noted). * Champion receives $10,000 + $200 entry (non-negotiable, non-refundable, non-transferable)
into the May 23, 2005 Championship event. ** Super Satellites will award as many entries as possible. *** Champion receives $25,500 entry (non-negotiable, non-refundable,
non-transferable) into the 2006 WPT Finals at Bellagio. 3% of the prize pool will be withheld for poker room staff. Management reserves the right to modify, suspend,
or cancel this promotion at its sole discretion and without prior notice. All tournaments are subject to table availability.
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
11
English Courses for Casino Staff
DEBBIE BURKHEAD INTERVIEWS...
Removing the language barrier in European casinos is the aim
of a UK based teaching team consisting of Lara Leonard and my
poker-playing daughter Kate.They are producing a special four
week English course specifically tailored to the
needs of casino employees.
Barry Dodd
ENTREPRENEUR, SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA POKER TOUR
Poker in Europe
By Nic Szeremeta
The course consists of 40 lessons—two 90
minute sessions each day—which will take
people from a very basic standard of English to a level where
they can communicate more confidently with casino customers. Lessons are being offered on site at times to suit the
staff’s working hours. Up to 20 people can be accommodated in
classes of 10.
Lara, a CELTA qualified English teacher for the past 13 years
said: “We are designing the course to teach all types of casino
employees to understand and deal with the sort of situations
which they come across in the course of their work. It is not
just dealers and floor staff who will benefit, but also management, security and reception staff. As well as work-related
English we will also be teaching conversational English.”
The organisation will be producing special tapes and course
books as learning aids.
In some European countries casino staff speak near perfect
English—as do their customers. But in a number of countries
there is a big lack of English speaking people—even in international style casinos. This can lead to misunderstandings and
confusion.
Lara said: “We see the course as a big benefit both to the
casino and its employees. Because CELTA is an internationally
recognised teaching qualification casinos may qualify for grants
to defray the cost of the courses.”
The programme is due to start in May but reservations
can be made now. A maximum of nine courses per year will
be available. For further information contact Kate on email:
[email protected]
Poker Gains Ground in Ukraine
Slovenian Stasko Stibilj who developed poker in Nova Gorica is
now doing the same in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. He established a card room in the Mirald Casino there but it closed last
year. This gave him the opportunity to develop a new operation
in a casino double the size right in the city centre. Now the
Casino Timeout has two tables in action each night with daily
cash games and tournaments. The cash action is either $10-20
hold’em or pot limit Omaha at $1-2 or $5-5.
Stasko said that around 20 former players at the Mirald
were now regulars there but that a new breed of poker enthusiasts was emerging. He said: “Internet poker is available in
the Ukraine and this is bringing new players, mainly younger
people, into the game. Some of the older players did not know
how to behave and would lose their tempers and cause trouble.
To start with I was a bit nervous of barring them but now I just
ban anyone who steps out of line.
“One of the main things I teach the new recruits is poker etiquette and this has resulted in a card room with a very good atmosphere.” He is also encouraging the locals to spread their wings
and travel to tournaments in other countries. Three of them, Yura,
Sasha and Igor won trips to the recent Helsinki Freezeout.
The Timeout also hopes to get some visitors from abroad.
Already Russian players from St.Petersburg and Moscow spend
poker weekends in the picturesque city and a small international tournament is planned there from June 15th to 19th this year.
Kiev is not the only Ukrainian city where poker is catching
on. The Black Sea coastal resort of Odessa and the town of
Harkiv are also launching card rooms this year.
Nic Szeremeta is managing editor of Poker Europa
magazine, the monthly news and views publication from
the Euro side of the pond. To subscribe ( EURO 55 /
$70) email: [email protected], and to find out
what goes on in Europe, go to www.PokerInEurope.com
12
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
If youʼre an avid reader of
my interviews, and I hope
you are, you will most
likely recognize the last
name of my current subject. In the previous issue
of Poker Player I interviewed Matthew Dodd,
co-founder of the Southern
California Poker Tour,
thus the subject of this
interview is Barry Dodd.
Barry is Matthewʼs father
and the other half of the
brains behind the Southern
California Poker Tour.
In this issue weʼll learn
more about the father-son
partnership that has culminated into a very successful televised poker tour for
the average poker player.
Barry Dodd was born
in Ashford, England, his
mother was a war bride
and his father a G.I. Due
to insufficient funds his
father was forced to leave
his new bride and infant
son behind when he was
transferred back to the
states. But when Barry
was 15 months old he and
his mother were reunited
with his father in Orange
County, California.
Barry grew up in
Orange County, California,
graduated Westminster
High School in 1963,
enrolled in Orange Coast
Junior College and six
months later he transferred
to Utah State. At the time
his grades werenʼt high
enough to avoid Uncle
Sam and he received his
draft notice. His choice of
service was the Air Force
but six months after enlisting a medical condition
unknown to Barry landed
him an honorable medical
discharge.
Barry returned home
after his discharge from
the Air Force and took a
job selling vacuum cleaners. Within six months he
became the sales manager.
In 1968 he left vacuums
behind and began selling computers. During
that time he met Ellen,
they married and in 1969
Matthew was born.
In 1970 he left the computer sales business to
pursue a career as a headhunter for Management
Recruiters. His mission
was to find engineers and
product managers for manufacturing companies.
In 1974 he went to work
for Levitt Homes as a sales
manager, selling modular
homes. In 1981 he was
hired away from Levitt
by Moduline Industries to
develop their modular line.
In 1984 he was hired away
again by Golden West
Industries to run a modular home project in Palm
Desert, California.
In 1985 Barry became
Senior Vice President of
Palm Springs Savings
Bank handling foreclosed
properties. His job consisted of cleaning up and
selling the foreclosed
properties.
In 1998 he formed a
business installing modular housing in San Marcos,
California. Two years
later Barry went back to
headhunting for Dunhill
Staffing where he recruited
construction personnel for
commercial construction
companies.
A year later Barry
decided to take off on
his own and formed his
own recruiting business. That same year his
mother became ill and
Barry moved her in with
him. Eventually the business began to suffer so
he decided to give up the
business and devote all of
his time to taking care of
her. Barryʼs mother passed
away in 2001.
In 2004 Barry and his
son Matthew formed the
Casino Dealers Academy
and within six months
the birth of the Southern
California Poker Tour took
place.
DB: Letʼs start with the
dealer school, how did
Matthew convince you to
partner up in a business
you were so unfamiliar
with?
BD: He showed me the
need for more table game
dealers in California casinos. He had all the qualifi-
cations to teach, he was a
dealer at the time. Heʼs an
excellent dealer and knows
all the games.
DB: When did you decide
to teach dealers to deal
poker?
BD: When poker went
crazy we decided to get
more serious about training dealers to deal poker.
We bought three poker
tables and became certified by the state to teach
poker. Our school is a state
registered vocational skill
and all of our students
receive a state certificate
upon graduation.
DB: What is your part in
the dealer school?
BD: I answer the phones,
collect the money and
handle the marketing.
Matthew was the primary
instructor until recently,
we just hired another
teacher to help Matthew
out. My time is spent
visiting the casinos and
marketing the school. My
job is to get the casinos to
use our students when they
need dealers.
DB: Now letʻs talk about
the poker tour, Matthew
stated he came up with the
idea, true?
BD: Iʻll give him that. I
remember we were riding back from Pechanga
one afternoon and we
began a discussion about a
poker tour for the average
poker player. Being the
hard-nosed dad that I am,
I wanted to approach the
casinos with the idea first.
DB: What was their reaction to your proposal?
BD: They liked it but it
had problems. Our original concept was that they
would supply the room
and we would bring in
the tables, the dealers,
the cards, the chips, literally everything necessary
to run a traveling poker
tour. The idea was good
but the problems were too
many, the licensing of the
dealers, the handling of
the chips, just too many
issues. The issues were
also inconsistent among
many were in the room!”
The cab pulls up in front of
the greasy spoon where Jenny
had been abducted.
I tell the cabby, “Wait.”
“Jennyʼs not here,” says
Jake.
I tell him who is here. In
like. Oh yeah! I remember it
now cause it was kinda funny
heʼd say somethinʼ like that. It
wuz the corner of. . . .”
A gunshot explodes in her
face. Jake yells, “Run!” and
fires into the darkness. Run!”
he yells again. Iʼll be right
“V” is for Vig
A Poker Player Murder Mystery by Robert Arabella
“Clear!” shouts the paramedic.
Ignoring my life-and-death
struggle, Gyp says, “Not awl
aʼ us at da game wuz kilt.”
“You mean me?ʼ
“No. As a matta a fact I
donʼt. . . ”
“think heʼs going to make
it. You. . .”
“woodnʼ eider f yaʼd tink
out. Da problum iz ya havenʼt
counted up the numba a . . .”
“dead! One more failed
shock and weʼre declaring
him dead.”
“. . . jusʼ like me anʼ da
three poka playas. Nows iz
dat”
“Clear!”
I start breathing again.
Jake says, “You were
dead.”
I reply, “Just like Gyp and
the three poker players!”
I refuse to go to the
Hospital. Instead I go out into
the street, hail a cab, and give
the driver a skid row address.
On the way I explain it to Jake
who then asks, “You want me
to believe that Gyp, who is
dead, told you, when you were
dead, that youʼd mis-counted
the number of poker players at
the massacre.”
“Yes, thatʼs right!”
“No, thatʼs crazy! The cops
found four dead poker players.”
“Only because I told them
that number. They asked me
how many players were in
the game. I said, “Five.” I
didnʼt count Gyp - he wasnʼt a
player, he was the dealer!
There were, in fact, six of
us at the table: Gyp, dealing, and Mo, Larry, Curley,
Shemp, and me playing.
Start subtracting from six.
I saw Gyp and the Three
Stooges dead. Thatʼs three.
Iʼm, more or less, alive, thatʼs
two, which leaves only one:
Shemp!”
“Shemp? What about The
Small Man? I thought heʼs the
murderer.”
“He is a murderer. Just not
their murderer. No, Iʼm sure
Shemp killed them. Killed
them all for the vig. To prove
it to the cops I have to find
Jenny. She can tell them how
an alleyway we find the bag
lady whoʼd witnessed Jennyʼs
kidnapping. “The Small Man
who grabbed the blond. You
told me they got into a cab.
Right?”
She nods yes.
Do you remember where he
told the cabby to take them?”
“Lemme think,” she says.
“It wuz somethinʼ familiar-
behind!”
I run. At the top of the alley
the cab waits. I jump in. Jake
does not follow.
“Where to?” asks the
cabby.
A Goon steps out of the
alley.
I yell to the driver, “Step
on it!”
“Where to?” he asks.
“Somewhere! Anywhere!”
The Goon raises his gun.
“I need an address.”
I scream, “Winslow,
Arizona! Go!”
I collapse back in the seat.
Close my eyes. Sleep. The cab
lurches to a halt, waking me .
“Weʼre here,” says the
driver.
“Where?”
“Exactly where you asked
to be taken. The corner of
Winslow and Arizona.”
I pay the driver and get out.
Heʼs left me in front of an old
brownstone. A woman appears
at the top of the stairs.
“Hello Jack,” says Jenny,
“Welcome to the House of
Cards.
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
(To be continued in the next
issue of Poker Player)
13
The Lights Turned On
I struggled, depressed and exhausted not able to see all the
beauty that surrounds me. I knew the beauty existed because I
sensed it near by, I just couldn’t see it because the lights were off.
Oh Goodness, how could I have let this happen?
Why didn’t I pay attention? Illumination, skill and
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By Jennifer Matiran
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joy cannot be taken for granted. What were you
thinking Jen, that you were the source? No, no you had tapped
into the source and that’s why the little light shined. Remember
that famous author he said something like “you got to rage
against the dying of the light.” It means you’ve got to actively
nourish it, by studying, seeking, asking and sharing. You’ve got to
expand and grow to keep it alive, the tango with darkness must be
brief otherwise it will take over. I began to sing.
“This little light of mine, I’m going to let it shine, let it
shine, let it shine.” I began to sing this over and over again.
Miraculously, the light switch flipped back on and the darkness
was gone. I have been told that darkness hates it when you
sing and boy was that the truth. My senses awoke and my intuition strengthened once again. I was kinder, more sympathetic
towards my fellow human beings. I noticed their beauty and tried
to remind them once again about their little light. It’s a choice
whether or not to let our little light shine. And sometimes, it’s a
battle to keep the light a bright but if one does not give up, they
will always, always, find the sun and live this life and eternity,
gloriously.
So you ask, what does this have to do with Poker? It has the
world to do with Poker. In my opinion, you cannot be a winner if
you do not feel like a winner before you get to the table. When
your inside is conflicting or when you believe “it’s all about you”,
the senses are weak and when the senses weak, one’s intuition is
shot and in any sport especially cards one needs their sixth sense.
I know that the game is somewhat, mathematical but one needs
heart to have the winning edge.
In No-Limit, there’s a power play. When you join the table you
must set precedence at the beginning. I do not mean bluff and
win a pot, (that may come later) I mean when your first showdown
comes you better flip over the winner and from that point on you
will represent a solid player. There are two types of players the
powerful ones and the weak chickens and I must admit I have
been both, powerful and a chicken, bok, bok.
I have learned that in No-Limit you cannot be afraid to bet it
all. If so, other more talented players will walk all over you like a
cheap piece of bathroom linoleum. The game’s exhilarating when
you do not fear risking big, it makes your heart beat out of your
chest, like the first time you jumped off a high dive or like your
first kiss. And in Poker, just as in life, when you carefully risk big
you win even bigger.
Self-control and quitting when you have won is key to being a
winner, especially in No-Limit because one bad beat could mean
all your chips. So get up, don’t sit at that table of success for to
long, when the rush is over say “adios.” Oh and of course, the
position and pot odd factors are muy importante but it’s not my
calling to teach you that, there are many fabulous books written on these subjects, I suggest reading a few. Be a student and
never take for granted your joy or your good fortune, protect it
and help it grow like a mother does a child.
Until next time, I’d like to express that I am a second generation American with foreign parents who have charming foreign
accents. I believe ALL accents are beautiful. With that being
said, I sincerely apologize to anyone who was offended by my last
article...I’m very, very sorry, it was unintentional.
Changing the world one sentence at a time, Jennifer
Matiran believes the pen is, and always will be, mightier than the sword. She hopes to emerge into the tournament circuit of Poker. Contact her with questions,
comments or interesting material at PO Box 2331,
Corona CA 92878, or by e-mail at matiran@sbcglobal.
net. Ms. Matiran has just completed her latest screenplay, her other passion (besides Poker!).
14
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
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Robert Williamson Wins HER Hand
in her own right.
They heartily toasted the bride and
groom as did college whiz
kid David Williams, last
yearʼs second place WSOP
finisher in a pack of 2,576
entrants. David showed up
with his girlfriend Brittany.
WSOP 2004 bracelet
winner Thomas (Thunder)
Wendeen H. Eolis
A ten-foot high ice carving
proclaimed Mr. and Mrs.
Robert L. Williamson III
King and Queen of the ballroom. They presided over
their second wedding reception February 12, 2005 and
kept up the festivities for
the Valentine weekend at
the Wild Horse Pass Resort
near Phoenix, Arizona.
Hosting more than a hundred twenty guests, Robert
and Catherine Williamson
were celebrating wedded
bliss a second time to make
up for their first hastily
planned Las Vegas nuptials last September, after
a two month courtship and
a whirlwind thirty-hour
engagement. For the second
round celebration, Robert
and Catey brought their
friends to Cateyʼs hometown, where they tended
to every detail to insure
the complete comfort of
their guests—for three days
straight!
In addition to their
families, Chris Caywood,
Robertʼs best friend since
childhood and best man
at his wedding (with fiancée Brandy Maulden) and
Cateyʼs lovely matron of
honor, MaryAnn (Mimi)
Pitts made encore appearances. And plenty of poker
friends flew into town to
party and pay their respects.
Robert started playing
poker as a kid in Granbury
Texas and found his way
to Las Vegas through his
father, who was a gambler.
Robert is among the most
popular players in the poker
world; No one has a bad
word to say about him.
The poker player guest
list was seemingly plucked
from a “Whoʼs Who” in
the upper echelon of the
poker world with a slew of
pals that have made plans
to follow Robert to the
altar later this year—Andy
Bloch, Jeff Shulman, and
Dewey Tomko among
them. And plenty more
poker friends flew into
town including World
Series of Poker Champion
Carlos Mortenson and his
wife Cecilia, a tough player
Robert Williamson:
happy at the table,
and at the altar!
Keller and his
wife met up with
other poker stars at one
of the large round tables
that circled the ballroom.
Antonio (the “Magician”)
Esfandieri) strolled in
with his new lady, singing her praises as a cook
as well as a caretaker.
Phil (“Unabomber”) Laak
walked into the ballroom
arm in arm with Jennifer
Tilly, making clear this
linkage is not just a sometime thing. And of course
there was UPN poker host
Chad Brown, who offered
his congratulations to
Robert and Catey with special plaudits for Robertʼs
Newlyweds Robert and
Catherine Williamson
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
15
LESSON 44:
Seven-Card Stud
For at least the last quarter century, the most common form of
poker in America has been seven-card stud. We seem to have
lost track of it’s heritage It’s still popular in many cardrooms
and homes, although hold ’em reins as a spectator sport.
Lessons from mike caro
university of poker
BY DIANE MCHAFFIE
Mike says not to ignore seven-card stud. I
had the opportunity to read the manuscript for the new Doyle
Brunson’s Super/System 2 before it even went to press. There’s
an enlightening chapter on seven-card stud by Doyle’s son, Todd
Brunson, who has become one of the most feared and knowledgeable players in the world.
One of his points comes into play after the starting hands
are dealt and two players show an ace against you. Imagine you
have a pair of kings. Todd explains that you should be more concerned about facing a pair of aces than if you only saw one ace
among your opponents door cards. (A door card is the last one
of your three starting cards in seven-stud. It’s dealt face up; the
other two are face down and remain secret.)
A little shocked. Now, some players are going to be a little
shocked, because they’ll reason that when you see two aces,
there are only two left to create a pair. If you only see one ace,
then there are three left, and instinctively it seems more likely
you’d be up against a pair of aces. But that is wrong. Todd is right.
You see, with two players, there are four chances in the hole
to provide the other ace. When you have four chances to catch
one of two remaining aces, it’s more likely that you’ll face a pair
of aces. When you only see one ace, there are only two chances
in the hole to catch one of three remaining aces. And even
though there’s an extra ace that could pair the exposed one,
there are only two hole cards to worry about. That means you
should be less worried. (Mike points out that opponents could
still have a pair of aces buried and, in fact, are a little more
likely to, when you only see one ace exposed.)
I asked Mike, “Is the reason you should be less worried because
four chances times just two aces equals eight, but two chances
times three aces equals six? He said, “That’s not a precise answer
conceptually, but its close enough and gets the idea across.”
Doubly important. Mike said, “In seven-card stud, when
you start with a pair, it’s doubly important to consider the door
cards of the players surrounding you.”
So, if you have a pair of jacks and see just one ace against you,
that’s less scary than if you see two aces. Of course, it’s better
if you see no aces, kings, or queens, because that makes it less
likely that bigger pairs than yours exist or could easily be made.
You wouldn’t want to see another jack out there either,
because that narrows your chance of catching three-of-a-kind.
In the case of two jacks, the least scary would be to see all
cards ranking 10 or lower. Remember, if two players have the
same higher card, that often puts you in more immediate jeopardy than if only one does, even though both players are unhappy
about seeing their rank in an opposing hand.
Mike says if you see an ace and king among the door cards,
that’s even scarier than two aces, because now there are two
players with unrestricted chances of having a pair bigger than
yours. So, while seeing two aces is scarier than seeing one ace,
seeing two high cards of different ranks is scarier still. There is
one redeeming thing about being up against two aces: It’s much
less likely that you’ll end up losing to three aces. So, if you get
lucky and make three of a kind, you’re more likely to win.
All these considerations in seven-stud seem complex at first,
but they’re important. We’ll talk more about seven stud in the
future, whenever Mike gives me a lesson geared to it. I hope you
found this topic as interesting as I did.
Diane McHaffie is Director of Operations at Mike Caro
University of Poker, Gaming, and Life Strategy. Her
diverse career spans banking, promotion of major financial seminars and the raising of White-tailed Deer.
You can write her online at [email protected].
16
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
JOE
MEETS
HOBBY
A
Joe
Joe &
& Hobby
Hobby
fiction by
David J.
Valley
PART 3
Army basic training is
tough but manageable if
you follow the rules. Itʼs
very physical: calisthenics,
long marches, and a lot of
double-time hustle around
the post. But the foodʼs
passable and thereʼs plenty
of it. Many guys, including
Hobby Newton and yours
truly, Recruit Joe Crest,
were bulking up muscle.
We also worked out when
we had time off. I taught
him street fighting and he
tried to teach me how to
play tennis. His quickness
and manual dexterity were
used to good advantage in
the game. I was hopeless in
comparison and content to
watch. He beat everyone.
I was sprawled on the
grass when Hobby finished
off his last contender.
“Hobby, youʼre a hell of
a tennis player. Where did
you learn?”
“I grew up playing tennis, golf, and skiing. We
have a home in Malibu and
one in Aspen, Colorado.
My parents are good athletes and, other than socializing, itʼs about all they
do.”
“Your father doesnʼt
work?”
“Not much. He goes to
an office in Century City
occasionally, but never
talks about it. I donʼt know
where the money comes
from. When anyone asks
Dad, he says his father
was Fig.” I didnʼt get it,
as Hobby could tell from
the look on my face. “You
know, like Fig Newton, the
cookie.”
“Really?” I said. Iʼm
usually a savvy guy, but
hardly acquainted with the
Rich and Famous. I didnʼt
know what to believe.
Hobby laughed and said,
“Thatʼs a joke, Joe. But I
really donʼt know about
the money except itʼs been
in the family a long time.
Anyway, donʼt tell the
guys.”
“I wonʼt, Hobby.” I
couldnʼt see anything but
problems if it were known
heʼs rolling in dough.
I was chewing on a nagging thought. “Hey, Hobby,
explain something to me.
How the hell did you wind
up in the draft. You could
have gotten a college
deferment, or had your old
man make arrangements.”
“I was on a deferment,
but I screwed up in college. I had it all. My freshman year at USC I played
on the tennis team. I had
a new Mustang, plenty
of spending money—and
then I met April—and
everything changed.”
Hobbyʼs eyes rolled and he
clammed up.
“So…?” I said. “Cʼmon,
donʼt stop there!”
He hesitated; it was
obviously painful for him.
“Joe, Iʼve had a lot of girlfriends, but I never really
fell for anyone until I met
April.”
“So tell me about her.”
“I saw her at a drive-in
hamburger joint, where
she worked. She took
my breath away with the
brightest blue eyes and
the prettiest face you can
imagine. I stuttered trying to order a hamburger.
When she returned, I
ordered another one. I
kept ordering to bring her
back. When I couldnʼt eat
anymore, I put them on the
floor.”
“Did you ask her out?”
“Not then, but I went
back every day until we
had a date. We went to a
drive-in movie and necked.
I was in heaven. I started
cutting classes so I could
spend more time with her.
It was great, weʼd find a
place to park, and smooch;
pretty soon we were making out. Man, I was in
love. Unfortunately, I was
falling behind at school.
Three Ds and I got kicked
off the tennis team. Next
semester I found out April
was seeing a football jock.
I followed them to Logan
Pond, one of our favorite
spots. I damned near died
when I saw them climb
into the back seat.” His
face got rigid with anger,
“Was that it? Did you
break up?”
“Yeah, we broke up,
but that wasnʼt it. I was
so damn mad I rammed
his car into the pond. You
should have seen the big
bastard trying pull up his
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Straights are the most misunderstood
Hold’Em hands. Some “experts” opine,
Robert Williamson
STRAIGHT SKINNY
By RICHARD G. BURKE
“Don’t play three-gap connectors, because
when you make a Straight it could lose to a higher one,”
and, “Never play the ‘idiot end’ of a Straight.”
That’s bunk. If you have the 2nd-nut or 3rd-nut Straight
using both your cards, then bet it up because it’s quite
likely you’ll have the best hand!
For the results that follow we spare showing you all the
intermediate computations. We do want to point out that
these results are not from simulations: they are from exact,
mathematical proofs for a ten-handed Hold’Em game.
Suppose you have the 2nd-nut Straight, e.g., KÐ-9Ð with
Q-J-T-3-2 rainbow on the table. There are ten cards that
could endanger your hand: four Aces; three Kings; and three
Nines. Those danger-cards could be scattered among your
nine opponents, or they could be concentrated in the hands
of one, two, three, four or five opponents. The chances that
four or five each hold two danger-cards are negligible.
The probability that your 2nd-nut Straight will win, lose,
or tie depends on exactly which two danger-cards are held
by your opponents. Each of the cases was examined and
the table below shows the combined probability that your
2nd-nut Straight will win, lose, or tie.
No.your
of Danger-card
Pairswill win, lose,
The probability that
2nd-nut Straight
Zero
One
Three
or tie depends
on exactly
which Two
two danger-cards
are
Prob.
.314Each of.044
.002
Results
held
by your.640
opponents.
the cases
was examWin
.533shows.267
.133 prob.819
ined
and the1.0
table below
the combined
Lose
0
.267
.476
.653
.106
ability
that your
2nd-nut
Straight
will win,
lose, or .075
tie.
Tie
0
.200
.257
.213
You will win with your 2nd-nut Straight 81.9% of the
time; lose to the nut Straight 10.6% of the time; divide the
pot with one opponent or more 7.5% of the time. That’s
not too shabby. In fact, it’s surprisingly good.
Suppose you have the 3rd-nut Straight, e.g., 9Ð-8Ð
with Q-J-T-3-2 rainbow on the table. If anyone has AceKing or King-Nine, then you will lose. If anyone else has
Nine-Eight, then you will tie. There are fourteen cards that
could endanger your hand: four Aces; four Kings; three
Nines; and three Eights. The probabilities are tiny that four
or more opponents each hold two danger-cards, even in
a ten-handed game. The probabilities that zero to three
opponents each hold danger-card pairs are shown in the
third row below.
No. of Danger-card Pairs
Zero
One
Two
Three
Prob.
Win
Lose
Tie
.383
1.0
0
0
.430
.593
.306
.099
.159
.415
.515
.070
.024
.203
.691
.107
Results
.711
.233
.056
The probability that you will win, lose, or tie depends on
exactly which danger-card pairs the opponents hold. We
examined all the cases: the results are that when you hold
the 3rd-nut Straight, you’ll win about 71.1% of the time;
you’ll tie 5.6% of the time, about one time in eighteen.
If there are four cards to a Straight, three or more suited cards, and/or there’s a pair on the table, then you could
lose to a higher Straight, a flush, a full house or better.
You’re a good enough player to slow down in the face of
those threats, or muck when you’re sure you’re beaten.
If the nut Straight would be best after all the cards are
out with exactly three connectors on the table, then the
2nd-nut Straight will win about 82% of the time and the
3rd-nut Straight will win 71% of the time. The myths about
Straights are now debunked: you can bet on that.
Mr. Burke is the author of Flop: The Art of Winning at
Low-Limit Hold ’Em, 2nd ed., available from amazon.com,
gamblersbook.com, and www.kokopellipress.com. E-mail
your Hold ’Em questions to [email protected].
18
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
great state of
Texas, and
Republican politics. And
he kept up the pace during a post-cruise trip
to Vancouver. While in
Vancouver, the affable
Robert turned yet more
serious on the topic of
marriage after a giddy
late-night game of Chinese
poker. He talked about hav-
Wendeen H. Eolis
outstanding job on the Ultimate
Poker Challenge show.
Most of the guests arrived
in fancy duds; the ladies
favored black dresses and
low cut tops.
Annie Duke took up
residence at a smaller table
with her brother and sisterin-law, Howard (“The
Professor”) Lederer
and his wife Suzie
(poker shift manager at Bellagio)—up
front, near the buffet.
They were perfectly
positioned to draw
traffic from all points
of the ballroom and
within quick reach
of the tenderloin
steak, poached fish
and perfectly grilled
veggies. Meanwhile,
Casey Thompson,
associate publisher of All
In Magazine, sauntered
through the door, just in
time to take me for a spin
on the dance floor, before
scrambling for a smoke
with the smartly dressed
Annie.
It was some four years
ago that I got to know
Robert beyond the poker
table during a poker cruise
to Alaska. I learned
that the successful
pancake house entrepreneur had an appetite for a bigger longterm plan. The twentysomething fellow said
that the idea of marriage was beginning to
cross his mind.
Thanks to Robertʼs
failure to drum up
interest in a high
stakes Pot Limit
Omaha game on
board, he backed into
his natural role as
conversationalist and
storyteller, keeping
several of us royally entertained day and night as we
navigated around Alaskan
glaciers and made pit stops
in major towns and cities.
(It was no wonder that there
were no takers lining up to
play with him; Robert had
just earned his first World
Series of Poker bracelet in
PLO a few months earlier).
Aboard the CardPlayer
cruise, we talked a blue
streak about poker, the
ing been raised in a very
religious home and wanting to find a good wife
with whom to make his life
some day—but not necessarily too soon.
A year later, Robert was
in Paris for a tournament at
the Aviation Club. He was
on his own, happy to dance
all night long with my married daughter, before taking
off as the “chauffeur” for
a side trip with Doug and
Edna Dalton (Directors
of Poker Operations at
the Bellagio and Aladdin,
respectively) and me to the
Loire Valley. Robert managed to keep his eyes on
the road after a night of
disco dancing, and during
lunch once again he became
philosophical about love
and marriage.
He predicted that his
winning poker skills would
get even better once he
settled down, but Robert
didnʼt talk much about
becoming the marrying
kind that year. He did,
however, take down a third
place finish in another
WSOP Omaha event. And
last year, while remaining
one of the confirmed bachelors with a bevy of ladies
around him that were
anxious for his attention, the unassuming
Robert gathered in
the chips again. This
time he placed second
in yet another WSOP
Omaha Pot Limit
competition.
During the past
several years, between
WSOP Pot Limit
Omaha Tournaments,
Robert got passionate about the game
of triple draw poker,
becoming a top-rated player
during regular road trips
to Tunica, MS. And, as if
business deals in Texas and
poker games across the
country were not enough
to keep Robert busy, while
looking around for a wife,
he also hooked himself
up to the world of “sports
options” in Costa Rica.
Maximizing his frequent
flier miles was a recipe for a lady in every
port, but it did not
prove fruitful in his
search for the woman
of his dreams.
When the well-traveled Robert blew into
New York last year
for a reunion with
his buddies on Long
Island, he called to
invite me to dinner
with the group. The
other guys were married. Robert listened to
their tales of woe but
kidded about them,
saying they sounded
more like testimony to the
Institution. Marriage was
clearly still on his mind, but
he continued to shy away
from the idea near–term.
The boys guffawed when
Robert said, “Iʼll know the
right one when I find her.”
Having decided to undergo the controversial gastric
bypass surgery that triggers massive weight loss,
Robert soon turned svelte
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
19
Movin’ On UP!
STUD SENSE
By ASHLEY ADAMS
So, you’ve been crushing the $1/2 game,
beating the $2/4 game and running over the $3/6 game.
You wonder if you’re ready for higher stakes games. How
can you know? Here are some things for you to consider
before making the big step.
The first consideration is the minimum buy-in. Generally
it’s ten times the small bet for the lower tier mid limit
games and ten times the big bet for the higher tier mid
limit games. So $5/10 requires a minimum of $50, $10/20
requires $100 and $20/40 requires $400. And that makes
sense because the action tends to be more aggressive
once you hit $20/40.
The second consideration is how much of a bankroll you
need to play seriously at a higher level. You want enough
money to test yourself – to withstand the expected vagaries of chance. You don’t want to start off with a bad run
of cards or a series of bad beats, only to bust your entire
bankroll and have to go down to the lower stake with your
tail between your legs.
I recommend that you have at least 300-600 times the
big bet before you seriously take on a higher stakes game,
leaning toward the higher multiple as the stakes go up. So,
roughly, that would mean a minimum bankroll of $3,000 for
$5/10, $10,000 for $10/20 and $24,000 for $20/40. If you
chew up half of that bankroll at the higher level I suggest you
go back down to the lower level and start again. Of course
these are just rules of thumb. If you’re a very conservative
player you might start out with less. If you tend to be more
aggressive and wild you should probably have more.
But you don’t have to wait until you’re ready for a full
transition. I think it’s often best to start by taking just a
stab at the higher stakes game. Look around for a time
when the game seems to have some weaker than average
players and then just take a seat. Plan to stay only a short
time. You still want more than the minimum buy-in – but it
doesn’t have to be a full bankroll. I’d recommend that you
have 60 times the small bet for the games up to $10/20
and probably 100 times that amount for the $15/30 games
and above. That will give you enough to withstand a short
run of bad cards – enough for you to get a feel for the
game before you move back down.
You’ll find that taking a stab will help you become both
acclimated to the higher level – making your final transition to that level much more smooth—and help with your
lower stakes game, as you become more confidant with
the lower stakes players because of your experience in the
higher stakes game.
Move out of the lower spread limit games like $1-3 and
$1-5 as soon as possible, regardless of your ability. These
games usually have a very steep rake, making them tougher to beat than the slightly higher games. Give your learning dollars to other players rather than to the casino and
you’ll be better off.
Finally, keep careful notes, keeping track of your winnings
and losses for every level you’re playing at. Make sure
you know which stakes game you’re actually beating. And
don’t let your pride get in the way of dropping down when
the lower stakes game looks appealing or the bigger game is
too tough. There’s no prize for losing at the biggest game in
town when you could be winning at a lower game.
Ashley Adams is the author of Winning 7-Card Stud,
(Kensington Press 2003). He has been playing 7-Card
Stud for 40 years—and profitably in casinos for the past
10 years. He has played in casinos all over the world,
including England, Denmark, Sweden, Austria, Hungary,
Canada and the United States, but plays most frequently
at at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Ledyard Connecticut.
Professionally, he is a union organizer and an agent for
broadcasters. He can be reached at: [email protected]
20
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
Caro’s Word: “FIVE”
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4
dealt. Decide whether youʼre
going to play aggressively
against any opponents – and
which ones. Often, youʼll
shift gears by not really taking individual opponents
into account. Youʼll just shift
for the whole table – and
that makes things simple.
But, whatever you decide to
do, remember: Itʼs only borderline choices you need to
consider. Nothing else matters. Most of your decision
are borderline!
So, shifting between the
two gears will dramatically
change your style of play.
End of recap—
Moving to five gears
Now weʼre ready to move
on. Iʼve promised you that
graduating to the most powerful, simplified system of
shifting gears would be easy.
Whenever you tell people
about five gears, they immediately think, “Oh, no! More
complexity. More levels of
aggression to master.”
Say it ainʼt so! OK, “It
ainʼt so.” The MCU FiveGear system does shift into
one of five gears whenever
you choose, but you donʼt
have to remember anything
about each gear! Sound
impossible? Well, what if I
could teach you to choose
between totally conservative, somewhat conservative,
normal, somewhat aggressive, and totally aggressive
without having to learn any
tactics at all? Would that be
big magic?
Well, thatʼs what Iʼm
going to do. You can throw
away all worries about
learning specific hands or
specific situations. Just like
with the two-gear system,
youʼre only concerned with
borderline decisions. All
other decisions are too obvious to mess with, and you
should play them the same
all the time. When thereʼs
a credible choice — a truly
borderline decision — youʼll
know it, because your mind
will automatically pause and
ponder.
What to do
Now, hereʼs what to do.
Donʼt let anyone tell you
that the MCU Five-Gear
system requires you to count
to five. The system doesnʼt
require even that much
mathematical sophistication.
You only need to count to
four. Confused? Good. Now,
Iʼll unconfused you. The
five-gear system really is
the two-gear system, except
thereʼs a count built into it.
You just keep track of which
hand this one is in sequence:
1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4,
over and over.
All you need to do is
choose which gear is most
appropriate and youʼre
immediately in that gear!
Follow these instructions:
Gear 1 (totally conservative). Do exactly the same
as you would in the MCU
Two-Gear system. Always
choose the more conservative tactic when faced with
a borderline situation. It
doesnʼt matter what the
count is. You can keep
counting, anyway, but it
wonʼt change your play.
Gear 2 (somewhat conservative). Choose the more
conservative tactic on counts
1, 2, and 3. Choose the more
aggressive one on count 4.
Gear 3 (average). Choose
the more conservative tactic on counts 1 and 2, and
the more aggressive one on
counts 3 and 4.
Gear 4 (somewhat
aggressive). Choose the
more conservative tactic
only on count 1, otherwise
choose the more aggressive
one.
Gear 5 (totally aggressive). Just like with gear
one, you donʼt really need to
count, but you can. At every
borderline decision, choose
the more-aggressive tactic.
Don’t bother
your brain
I promise you that the mystery of shifting gears in
poker will no longer haunt
you. Once you try the MCU
five-gear system, youʼll
wonder why you ever used
more complex methods
— or why you never used
any method at all.
The entire method doesnʼt
require you to memorize
anything or to bother your
brain with deep thoughts
that require you to take your
focus off important aspects
of the game. You gain maximum deceptive value. And
you get to keep your head
handy for other important
poker decisions. The MCU
Five-Count System is amazingly effective and it doesnʼt
limit your concentration
upon other aspects of the
game.
Try it and youʼll believe!
Five powerful gears can
be as simple as counting to
four.
Mike Caro is widely regarded as the worldʼs foremost
authority on poker strategy,
psychology, and statistics. A
renowned player and founder
of Mike Caro University of
Poker, Gaming, and Life
Strategy, he is known as
“the Mad Genius of Poker,”
because of his lively delivery of concepts and latest
research. You can visit him at
www.poker1.com.
Robert Williamson Wins HER Hand
and more self-assured than
ever, while keeping his
unpretentious ways and
heart of gold intact. Known
for his loyalty and sincere
concern for friends, Robert
was one of the first people
in the poker world to reach
me after I was rushed to a
hospital with a blood clot.
Upon learning that I had
reached the hospital none
to soon, Robert fired the
perfect line to salve my
worries. He assured me that
my head was far too thick
for a blood clot to penetrate
my brain!
Realizing that I might be
perky enough to inquire for
the zillionth time about the
status of his deliberations
about taking a wife, Robert
short-circuited the query,
telling me not to hold my
breath. “Aha,” I said, “Your
magnified (or more precisely, slimmed down) good
looks have gotten to you.”
He smiled, but said, “No, I
am just happier about getting into better shape.” He
said he needed a little time
and space to get comfortable with the developing
direction of his life.
For all of his outward
exuberance and clever
quips, Robert is highly analytical and a deep thinker.
These traits may well
account for his considerable success at the poker
tables, his recent top notch
performance as a commentator on the GSN Battle of
the Sexes Tournament, and
his proudest success this
year—finding the woman
of his dreams.
Last June 30th, Robert
stumbled into Catherine
Wakem at the Bellagio
Sports Bar. He was instantly smitten, but there was
another lady with whom
he had planned his yearly
poolside party for the following weekend. Catey
remained on the sidelines,
holding back from falling
head over heels for him
until the party was over and
Robert had declared himself a free man. The savvy
Catey gave Robert plenty of
rope, priming him to energize a full court press. For
his part, Robert needed no
courtship school. He aced
the program all by himself!
A few weeks after their
first meeting, Robert
met Cateyʼs parents
and escorted Catey to
her brotherʼs wedding.
A week later he was on
bended knee in the Great
Moments Room of the
Las Vegas Club, while on
a break from a UPN tele-
vised poker tournament
for which he was a commentator. Two days later
Catherine Wakem morphed
into the role of Robertʼs
wife. The Williamsonsʼ
traditional wedding vows
were enhanced by Robertʼs
specially chosen Biblical
references that reflected his
Christian upbringing and
the strong spiritual roots
that he and his Catholic
wife share. From a balcony of the Bellagio and
overlooking the waterfall
canons outside, a gathering
of Las Vegas-based poker
player friends wished the
bridal couple well.
On the second goround—the weekend
wedding celebration in
Phoenix—there were fancy
invitations, beautiful floral arrangements, a video
of the original wedding,
nightly dinner parties, cars
to take late-night revelers
to nearby discos, and lots
of down home hospitality
in keeping with Robertʼs
Southern roots and his wife
Cateyʼs natural disposition.
Catey echoes her husbandʼs
words saying with glowing
pride, “He was the man of
my dreams.”
From the camaraderie to
the food to the massages in
the spa, the weekend was
a series of perfect happenings—except for Robertʼs
nagging health crisis related
to after effects of his gastric
bypass. The weekend started for him with a faltering recovery following an
emergency procedure a few
days before the Phoenix
festivities. It ended with
preparations for Robertʼs
return journey to a hospital
in California for yet further
surgery.
Robert Williamson—
married man, PLO expert,
and a good friend with a
golden heart—has been
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M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
21
Spring, and Cards are in the Air
Poker season blossoms this week in Reno with the annual
“Spring Poker Tournament” (Feb. 26-March 6) at the
PEPPERMILL Hotel/Casino. The casino will be filled with
Hold’em Horticulturists hoping to win a
prize for the prettiest bouquet of cards.
NORTH BY NORTHWEST
By Byron Liggett
The guy in charge of the Spring thing is
Tournament Director Cash McCollum. “We’re
gonna have a huge crop of poker posies this year,” he predicts, “registration is up more than 50% over last year!”
Poker flora from card gardens throughout the land will
be there. First to arrive will be the “daffodils” – players
who show up early and don’t stay long. There’ll be lots of
poker pansies adding color to the pots. Sweet peas and
gladiolas are happy players whether they win or not. Nasty
nasturtiums hate to lose. There’ll be cries like, “My cards
need Miracle Grow” or “Gimme the Round-up, I gotta get
rid of the weeds in my pot.” All the Flop Flowers at the
Peppermill’s Spring Poker Fair hope to get enough chip fertilizer to win a trophy.
“Winners all get a bundle of money and marigolds,” Cash
claims. He knows. Cash has been cultivating cards a long
time. Always ready with a quip or a laugh, he’s got the
right personality for a big poker garden party.
Someone said Cash’s middle initial is a dollar sign, $, and
someone else added, “Yea, with a lot of zeroes behind it.”
In Washington State, a good place to play some poker
while you water your horses is the LITTLE CREEK
CASINO, in Shelton, at the south end of Puget Sound. Poker
Station Master Mark Dutton will ‘gitcha’ a good seat around
the Hold’em campfire. They like $3/6, $4/8 and No-Limit
tournaments. One or all of those are always going on.
A half-hour north of Seattle, the TULALIP CASINO
(two-lay-lip) is always a popular place for a poker pow-wow.
It’s a Hold’em hunters’ hang-out. If that’s the kind of game
you’re looking to bag, you’ll find a good one there. They’ve
got all kinds of stuff to shoot at; from small, fast, and tender $2/4 to trophy size $200/400 and No-Limit.
Tulalip’s Chief of Tournaments & Promotions, Harold
Smith, has a Big Game Feed coming up July 31st. It’s called
“The Northwest Championship of Poker”. It’s a $550 buyin to the No-Limit Hold’em hunt. Smith has scheduled a variety of creative promotions and ways to win entry into the
Championship. What’s more, hunting season is open. “We’re
starting now to build the excitement, the prize money and
the number of entries,” Safari Director Smith says.
The Pendleton Rodeo Round-up is one of the premier
annual events in the West. So, too, is the town’s “Spring
Poker Round-up” at the WILDHORSE Resort & Casino,
March 23-April 2nd. The “Spring Poker Round-up” features
a huge chip herd. There’s more than $80,000 added and $1
million in guaranteed prize money. Entry fees to all events
are just $10 and there’s a maximum $2 rake on live games!
All Round-up participants receive an inexpensive room rate
in the newly remodeled hotel. You can’t afford not to go!
Much-decorated tournament card cowboy Vince Burgio
will host the “Spring Poker Round-up” for the fourth year.
He says this year the event will be shot for television. So,
if you’re if card bronco buster, a Texas Hold’em roper, a
Stud bull rider, or an Omaha Hi/Lo barrel racer, see you at
the Poker Round-up. Remember, all you gotta do is pick
a good one, climb on, hold tight, and ride. If you don’t get
thrown-off, you could walk away with enough for a new
horse ‘n saddle.
Byron Liggett grew-up in the Northwest, working as a
journalist and consultant for cardrooms in the early 1970s.
Moving to Nevada in 1984, he became a gaming writer, editor and columnist for major player and trade publications.
He has also acted as a consultant for most major poker
tournaments to produce press & PR materials.
Write him at [email protected]
22
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
asked & answered:
Quizzes from Mike Caro University of Poker
This series is based on the MCU library of research and advice found at Poker1.
com. Each issue, Mike Caro presents 10 new questions covering a category of
poker, targeted for beginner, intermediate, or advanced players.
Quiz #14 is about Seven-card stud strategy, for intermediate players.
(Answers and explanations appear in the following issue.)
Strategy – Seven-card
Stud (level: beginner)
c. about 75 percent likely;
d. about 10 percent likely.
1. If you begin with a small
or medium pair, seeing just
one card of your pair’s rank
among the face-up cards of
opposing players means...
a. your hand is probably
unprofitable and you should
usually fold;
b. your chances of making three of a kind is slightly
impaired, but the hand is still
profitable, regardless of the
rank of your unpaired, third
card;
c. such a hand will only
win about once in 175 tries, if
you decided to play it;
d. such a hand will only
win about once in 80 tries, if
you decide to play it.
5. If you begin with three
suited cards and see two of
your suit among the exposed
cards around you...
a. you should always fold;
b. you should consider the
rank of the opposing cards in
relation to your own ranks,
before deciding whether to
continue playing;
c. always call a single
raise, but never a reraise;
d. take the initiative by
raising to thin the field of
opponents.
2. Compare these firstfour cards of two seven-card
stud hands. Hand A: 9-8-7-6.
Hand B: A-K-Q-J. Which of
the following statements is
true?
a. Hand A is more likely to
become a straight;
b. Hand B is more likely to
win with a pair or two pair;
c. Hand A is usually more
profitable against a larger
number of active opponents,
while Hand B is usually more
profitable against fewer
active opponents;
d. all of the above.
3. In seven-card stud, you
should often fold two small
pair, such as 4-8-8-J-4 if an
opponent has a larger pair
exposed, such as ?-?- (downcards) 7-9-9.
a. True
b. False.
4. After all the cards are
dealt, if an opponent’s four
exposed cards are of all the
same suit, and you’re sure
he began with a buried pair,
about how likely is it that he
holds a flush? (This question
is meant to test you instincts
more than precise mathematical ability.)
a. about 40 percent likely;
b. about 25 percent likely;
6. With 10-10-10 dealt to
you as a starting hand, you
should
a. always raise or reraise;
b. always just call, hoping
to set a trap;
c. fold;
d. tend to raise if most
opposing cards shown are
lower than a 10, otherwise
just call.
7. 4-3-2-K after the first
four cards has less chance of
forming a straight than 6 5 4
Q
a. true;
b. false.
8. If, on your first three
starting cards, you begin
with a pair, which statement
is true?
a. It’s equally likely that
you pair will be fully concealed (in the hole) as that
one of the rank will be
exposed;
b. It’s impossible to make
a flush before the river card
is dealt;
c. It’s impossible to make
a straight before the river
card is dealt;
d. It’s twice as likely that
a member of you pair will be
exposed as that the pair will
be buried.
9. What are the odds
against beginning with three
cards of the same suit?
a. 18-to-1 against;
b. 30-to-1 against;
c. 5-to-1 against;
d. 10-to-1 against.
10. The fewer players in the
pot...
a. the more likely it is that
a big pair will win the pot;
b. the less profitable it
is to pursue a small flush
attempt;
c. the less profitable it is
to pursue a small straight
attempt;
d. all of the above.
WATCH FOR
ANSWERS IN OUR
NEXT ISSUE!
If you do not remember the questions, you will find them on our
web site, www.gamblingtimes.com/
poker_player. When you arrive at the
to last issue’s questions
page, click on the “current issue.”
answers
Q #1 ANSWER: (d). All of
these factors make your
chances better whenever you
play a seven-card stud starting hand that has no pair and
three ranks not in sequence:
(1) If the ranks are as high as
possible, so if you make pairs,
they’re likely to win; (2) If the
cards are all of the same suit,
giving you an extra opportunity to win with a flush; and
(3) You don’t see the same
ranks face-up surrounding you,
meaning they’re not available
for you to pair. You should
also, consider other factors,
of course, such as the ranks
of your opponents’ exposed
cards.
Q #2 ANSWER: (d). In hold
’em it’s impossible for anyone
to already hold a flush when
a pair flops. A straight is also
impossible.
Q #3 ANSWER: (a). It’s 16to-1 against beginning with a
pair in hold ’em. It’s easy to
understand if you think about
it this way: Once you get your
first card, there are only three
more of that rank left out of
51 cards. Three out of 51 is the
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M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
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26
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
Time . Some events H ...... Hold’em
L ................. Limit
N ...........No Limit
7. 7-Card Stud
O .......Omaha
H/L ...... High/Low
C start after the hour
O A, P ........ AM, PM
..............Week
D Wk
gametimes
E & . Add’l
on this day. Call
•Denotes Advertiser
REGION/Cardroom(Ad Pg.)
NV •Aladdin (p37)
SOUTH Cannery Casino
Circus Circus
Club Fortune
Col.Belle-Laughlin
Golden Nugget
Split
Pi ....... Pineapple
Po.........Pot Limit
Pn.......Panginque
S........... Stud
5 ...Five Card
MONDAY
Time Games
10A& N H
NH
10A
11A
L/N H
12P
7P&
11A
7P
Horseshoe
2P
•Imperial Palace (p17) 1P
•Mandalay Bay (p31) 10A
6P
•Mirage (p11)
7P
10A
11A
7P
Time
10A&
10A
11A
Games
NH
NH
L/N H
WEDNESDAY
Buy-in
$30
$25
$40AO$3
Time Games
10A& N H
10A
NH
11A
L/N H
NH
NH
NH
NH
NH
NH
NH
$60RB(1)$40 2P
$40RB$10 7P
$25RB$10AO$10 2P
NH
$50 7P
NH
$25 12P& L/N H Z
HZ
$30(30M) 10A
NHZ
$60(30M) 6P
L H $130RB$100AO(1)$100 7P
H
NH
NH
River Palms
6P&
•Sahara (p45) 11A
7P
11P
•Sam’s Town (p20)
O H/L
NH
NH
NH
Stardust
10A
•Sunset Station (p6) 10A
•Texas Station (p6)
Virgin River Casino
6P
NH
LH
NH
12P& L H Sh
Cactus Petes-Jackpot
7P
Pi
Circus Circus
Eldorado
Harrah's Reno
4P
H
10A&
•Harvey’s Tahoe (p9)
Peppermill
Reno Hilton
Rainbow Cas. W Wendover
NH
Buy-in
$30
$25
$40AO$3
NH
$24
H
$110
L/NL $60RB(1)$40AO$40
N H $125RB$100AO(1)$100
12P O H/L B
7P
NHB
•Plaza Casino (p38) 12P
NH
8P&
NH
$18 10A
$15RB(1)$15 11A
$120 7P
$60RB(1)$40 2P
$50RB$25 7P
12A
NH
NH
12P
7P&
11A
7P
$60RB(1)$40 2P&
$50RB$25
$25RB$10AO$10 2P
NH
$50 7P
NH
$25 12P& L/N H Z
NH
L/N H
NH
$25RB$10AO$10 2P
NH
$50
$25 12P& L/N H Z
$30(30M) 10A
$60(30M)
$230RB(1)$200
HZ
H
NH
NH
H
NH
NH
H
NH
$18 10A
$15RB(1)$15 11A
H
NH
$19 10A
$15RB(1)$15 11A
$120RB(1)$100 6P
12P
7P
12P
8P&
NHB
HB
NH
NH
$25RB$10AO$20
$40RB$20AO$2
$40RB$20AO$2
$40RB$20AO$2
6P&
11A
7P
11P
7 H/L
NH
NH
NH
$25RB$10AO$20
$40RB$20AO$2
$40RB$20AO$2
$40RB$20AO$2
6P&
11A
7P
11P
NH
NH
NH
NH
$40 10A
NH
$18AO$2 10A L O High
7P& O H/L
$20RB$10 6P
NH
$40 10A
$18AO$2 10A
$32(30M)
F
NH
NH
$15 10A&
7P
$15RB$10
$15 12P& L H Sh
$22RB$10
NH
7P
7 Sh
NH
$18 10A
$15RB(1)$15 11A
$25RB$10
$40RB$20
$27RB$10
$50RB(1)$50
$50RB(1)$50
$25RB$10AO$20
$40RB$20AO$2
$40RB$20AO$2
$40RB$20AO$2
12P
HB
7P O H/L B
12P
NH
8P&
NH
12P
7P
12P
8P&
O H/L B
NHB
NH
NH
$25RB$10AO$20
$40RB$20AO$2
$40RB$20AO$2
$40RB$20AO$2
$45RB$20AO$20
6P&
11A
7P
11P
7P
O H/L
NH
NH
NH
NH
H
NH
NH
NH
NH
$40 12P
$23AO$2 10A
LH
LH
F
$23AO$2 11A
NH
$20RB$10
6P
$15 10A&
7 Sh
$15 12P&
7P
$25 10A
$40AO$3
12P
10A
11A
7P
$60RB(1)$40 2P&
$25RB$10AO$10 2P
SUNDAY
Buy-in Time Games
NH
$25 10A
NH
$24
Pi Z
$12
L/NL $30RB$20AO(1)$20
$330RB$200AO(1)$200
NH
NH
12P
10A
11A
7P
$60RB(1)$40 2P&
1P
$25RB$10AO$10 2P
$25 12P& L/N H Z
Buy-in
NH
$25
NH
$24
Pi Z
$12
L/NL $60RB(1)$40AO$40
N H $125RB$100AO$100
NH
NH
$60RB(1)$40
$50RB$25
NH
$25RB$10AO$10
$25 12P& L/N H Z
$25
$30(30M)
5P
$27RB$10
$27RB$10
$50RB(1)$50
$50RB(1)$50
6P&
11A
7P
11P
7P
SATURDAY
Buy-in Time Games
NH
$24
O H/L B $25RB$10AO$20
L/NL $60RB(1)$40AO$40
N H $230RB$200AO$100
HZ
NHZ
NH
$27RB$10
$40RB$20
$50RB(1)$50
$50RB(1)$50
$18 10A
$15RB(1)$15 11A
H
NH
$18 10A
$15RB(1)$15 3P
N H$330RB$200AO(1)$200
H
NH
$40RB(1)$20
$60RB(1)$40
$50RB(1)$50
$50RB(1)$50
12P
7P
12P
8P&
HB
NHB
NH
NH
$50RB(1)$20
$125RB(1)$100
$50RB(1)$50
$50RB(1)$50
12P
7P
12P
8P&
NHB
HB
NH
NH
$25RB$10AO$20
$40RB$20AO$2
$40RB$20AO$2
$40RB$20AO$2
$45RB$20AO$20
6P&
11A
7P
11P
7P
Po H
NH
NH
NH
NH
$25RB$10AO$20
$40RB$20AO$2
$40RB$20AO$2
$40RB$20AO$2
$45RB$20AO$20
6P&
11A
7P
11P
7P
NH
NH
NH
NH
NH
$18
$25RB$10
$50RB(1)$20
$60RB(1)$50
$50RB(1)$50
$50RB(1)$50
$25RB$10AO$20
$40RB$20AO$2
$40RB$20AO$2
$40RB$20AO$2
$45RB$20AO$20
NH
$23AO$2 11A
NH
$23AO$2 Varies Varies
Varies
L H Sh
NH
$15 10A&
$22RB$10
7 Sh
$15 12P& L H Sh
7P
NH
12P
H
$15
$22RB$10
F RB$20
F RB$10
$15 4P
$22RB$20
$25 10A
H
$15 4P
H
$15 4P
H
$15 10A
H
$15 10A
H
$15
NH
H
NH
NH
NH
$25 10A
NH
$25 10A
NH
$25 10A
NH
$25 10A
NH
$25
1P
NH
6P
$25AO$10 1P
H
NH
$15(24M) 9A&
$25RB$20
NH
$25AO$10
$65 7P
$15(24M) 9A&
NH
NH
$115RB$100 6P
$15(24M) 9A
8P
NH
NH
LH
$110 6P
$15(24M) 9A
$25RB$20
NH
NH
2P
$110
$25(30M) 9A
6P
$33RB$30
NH
NH
NH
LH
NH
NH
9A
8P
$25RB$20
$25AO$10 1P
7P
$15(24M) 9A
NH
NH
$25(30M)
$50
5O
$10RB$10AO$10 7P&
H
NH
$15RB$10AO$10 10A&
NH
DC
H
NH
H
H
NH
$5RB$5AO$5
$5RB$5AO$10B$5
$15RB$10AO$10
O H/L
$17RB$5AO$5 10A
LH
O H/L
10A
NH
$15
LH
$12
NH
$12B$5
O$30RB$20AO(1)$50B(20)$5
CA •Bicycle Club (p5) 12P
7P
L.A.
LH
NH
$35 10A
6P&
10A
10A&
10A
$15RB$10 12P
$60 7P&
$30RB$10AO$20 10A
N Cz Pi
$10RB$10AO$10 7P&
H
$15RB$10AO$10 10A&
NH
$15RB$10AO$10 10A&
NH
$60 10A
4P
$15RB$10AO$10 10A&
$17RB$5AO$5 10A
6P
NH
NH
$17RB$5AO$5 10A
$20RB(2)$15
LH
$17RB$5AO$5 10A
NH
$35 10A
NH
$55 10A
LH
$15 6P&
NH
$20
NH
$12 10A 7 H/L Sp
$12
O H/L
$12B$5 10A& N H
$12B$5
NH$30RB$20AO(1)$50B(20)$5 10A
O$30RB$20AO(1)$50B(20)$5
NH
NH
$15RB$10 12P
$25RB$20 7P
NH
NH
Club One Casino
7P
Commerce Club
•Crystal Park Casino (p29)
NH
$27RB(2)$15 10A
NH
•Diamond Jim’s (p29) 6P
O Pi H
$25RB$10 6P
LH
Hawaiian Gardens
12P
•Hollywood Park (p5) 11A
7P
NH
7 H/L
LH
$15RB$10 12P
$17RB$10 11A
$35 7P
O H/L
NH
NH
•Hustler Casino (p13) 7P
Normandie Casino
NH
11A
Cache Creek
$14RB$5/$10AO$20 7P&
7P
NH
Pn
S H/L
O H/L
LH
$35 10A
NH
$25
H
F
O
$12B$5
O$30RB$20AO(1)$50B(20)$5
$15RB$10 12P
$25RB$10 7P
$60RB(1)$50
$27(80M)RB(2)$15 10A
$40
NH
$14RB$5/$10AO$20 10A
7P
7P
L H $28RB(1)$20AO(1)$20 11A
11A
12P
$15RB$10 12P
$17RB$10 11A
$35 7P
H
H
NH
$15RB$10 6P
$17RB$10 11A
$35 8P
LH
Sp L H
H
NH
$25 6P LH/L OH/L $50RB$20AO$40 11A
$36RB$20 11A
H
$77 11A
$25RB$20 12P O H/L
$55 6P
LH
H
H
$48
$36RB$20 11A
$10
H
$50 7P
H
$20RB 7P
O
$50RB$20 7P
H
$50
$40RB$40 6P
H
$40RB(1)$40 6P
LH
$40RB$40AO$40 6P
H
$60RB$40
NH Sh
NH
1P
$20
$45RB(1)$40 10A
H Sh
6P
10A
NH
$15 1P
6P
$45RB(1)$40 10A
H Sh
NH Sh
NH
11A
H
H/O H/L
6P
11A
$20RB$20(1) 7P
LH
H
H
6P
H
$10RB$5AO$10
7P
AZ •Apache Gold (p41)
12P
12P&
12P
11A
NH
NH
7B
Harrah’s Ak Chin
Hon-Dah Casino
Paradise Casino
6P
Flop
H
$25 10A
LH
$22 6P&
NH
$12B$5 10A
NH$30RB$20AO(1)$50B(20)$5 10A
HH N H
HH N H
7P
NH
Pn
NH
LH
NH
NH
H
H
NH
LH
$10RB$10AO$10 12P
$5RB$5AO$10B$5 4P
$15RB$10AO$10 10A&
$17RB$5AO$5
O H/L
LH
$22RB$11 10A
$65
LH
$15
NH
$12RB$10AO$10
NH
$25B$5
O$30RB$20AO(1)$50B(20)$5
$20RB$10
$20RB$20
H
$14RB$5/$10AO$20 7P& N H (80M)
$40 1P
Pn
$15 7P
NH
1P
LH
$25RB 6P
$17RB$10 11A
$225RB(1)$200 8P
Mx
7
Po H
3P&
Sp L H
Fort McDowell
Gila River/Wild Horse Pass
Gila River-Vee Quiva
10A
$35 11A
$30RB(2)AO(1)
6P
NH
HZ
S Sh
$17RB$5AO$5 10A
$25
7P
•Casino Arizona-Scottsdale (p33) 11A
Casino Del Sol
10A
Cliff Castle
6P&
LH
$10RB$10AO$10 11A
$5RB$5AO$10B$5 4P
$15RB$10AO$10 10A&
H
10A
6P&
10A
10A
H
LH
NH
LH
7P
HH L H
$22RB$11
$20
$17
$12B$5
$25RB$20AO$50
$30RB$10
$20RB$10
$27RB(2)$15 12P
$40 1P
$15
LH
Pn
$19RB$5/$10AO$20
$40
$25RB$10 1P
1PWk4
F RB$10
$17RB$10 11A
$330RB(1)$300 4P
NH
NH
$50
$100
LH
N H Sh
$22RB$10
$120
$125RB(1)$100
7P
Blue Water Casino
Bucky’s Casino
10A
6P&
10A&
10A
NH
LH
NH
$20RB$10 6P Wk4LadiesL H
$15RB$10 12P
$17RB$10 11A
$35 7P
10A
6P&
10A&
10A
NH
$15RB(1)$10 12P
$60RB(1)$10 7P
8P
•Club Caribe (p40)
Oaks Card Club
•Palace Indian Casino
Sonoma Joe's
12P
NH
$24
7P& O H/L B $25RB$10AO$20
11A
L/NL $60RB(1)$40AO$40
7P
N H $125RB$100AO$100
Games
HZ
$30(30M) 10A
NHZ
$60(30M) 6P
Po H $130RB$100AO(1)$100 7P
HB
NHB
NH
NH
•Pechanga (p26) 6P&
Sycuan
10A
Viejas
10A
Village Club
10A
Gold Rush
Kelly’s Cardroom
Lucky Chances
FRIDAY
Buy-in Time
$30
$25 10A
$40AO$3 11A
HZ
$30(30M) 10A
NHZ
$60(30M) 6P
N H $130RB$100AO(1)$100 7P
12P
7P
12P
8P&
LH
California Grand
Casino San Pablo
Garden City
THURSDAY
Time Games
10A& N H
10A
NH
11A
L/N H
$60RB(1)$40 2P
$50RB$25 7P
$40RB$20
$25RB$10AO$10 2P
NH
$50 7P
NH
$25 12P& L/N H Z
$27RB$10
$40RB$20
$50RB(1)$50
$50RB(1)$50
•Lucky Lady (p45)
Oceans Eleven
10A
CA Artichoke Joe’s
NORTH Bay 101
DAILY TOURNAMENTS
Note: All tournaments are subject to change. Check with the Cardroom for any updates.
Cardrooms-please send your schedules to Tournament Editor Joel Gausten,
[email protected]
$15 4P
6P
$25 10A
CA •Casino Morongo (p17) 10A
SAN Casino Pauma
DIEGO •Harrahs Rincon (p9) 10A&
&
INLAND •Lake Elsinore (p39)
EMPIRE
TUESDAY
Buy-in
$30
$25
$40AO$3
#M ..# of players
maximum
RB ......... Re-buys
AO ......... Add Ons
Cz .............. Crazy
E....... Elimination
$24 12P
7PWk1&
L/NL $60RB(1)$40AO$40 11A
N H $125RB$100AO$100 7P
The Orleans
NV Atlantis Casino
NORTH Boomtown
Al ...... Alternates
F .............Freeroll
Z......... Freezeout
Q .............Qualify
Sh .........Shootout
NH
$24 12P
HB
$25RB$10AO$20
L/NL $60RB(1)$40AO$40 11A
N H $125RB$100AO(1)$100 7P
•Jokers Wild (p40) 2P
NH
NH
7P
Luxor
12P& L/N H Z
Nevada Palace
Oasis-Mesquite
Stud
Mx ..Mexican Poker
DC Dealer’s Choice
HH ... Headhunter
B .......... Bounties
Sp ............ Spread
$60 7P
$10RB$5 10A
$15 11A
$13RB$10AO$20 12P&
$25RB$20
$20 11A
$10 6P
H
NH
O H/L Z
H Sh
NH
HB
$15 1P
$20
$45RB(1)$40
H Sh
$15 1P
$60RB$50AO$50
$10RB$5AO$10
$20RB$20(1)
$25RB$15 7P
7P
O H/L
H Sh
10A
LH
11A
H
$13RB$10AO$20 12P&
$15+$5 11A
H Sh F
DA I LY TO U R N A M E N TS CO N T I N U E O N PAG E 29
7P&
F 6P
F 5P
NH
$30RBAO
$99 11A
Sp L H
6P
$70RB(1)$60 11A
NH
H
$49RB$20AO$40
$70RB(1)$60
2P
10A
7P
H
NH
Sp L H
$50 2P
$25RB(1)$20 10A
$120RB(1)$100 7P
H
NH
H
$50
$25RB(1)$20
$60RB$40
$15 1P
5P
$55 10A
H Sh
NF
LH
$15
F 6P
$65 12P
NH Sh
NH
$20
$25RB(1)$100
12P
Varies
LH
$65RB(2)$50
$20
$25
12P
NH
Cz Pi Z
O H/L
NH
HB
O H/L
H
$130 11A
$10RB$5 10A
$30 11A
$65RB$50AO$50 1P
$10RB$5AO$10
6P
O H/L
HB
$25RB$5AO$25
$130 7P
$10RB$5 10A
$15 6P&
Pai Gow
NH
NHZ
H Sh
$60 11A
$10RB$5 10A
$15 11A
$13RB$10AO$20 12P& N H
$13RB$10AO$20 12P&
12P Men H/N A I$25RB$10AO(1)$20
$15+$5 11A
HB
$15+$5
$25RB$15 7P&Ladies H Cz Pi
$10 6P
O H/L
$20RB(2)$10 1P
$25
NH
Pi
H Sh
NH
H
3P
2P
$25RB$10AO$30 1P
$60 4thWk10AN H
$10RB$5
$15
$13RB$10AO$20 12P&
12P
NH
$25RB$15AO(1)$10 12P
3P
1P
RB$10
H
O H/L
7F
$20RB$10
$25
H Sh
$15
NH
$13RB$10AO$20
HB
$15+$5
$150
11A
$13RB$10AO$20 12P&
11A
NH
O H/L F
H
H
O H/L
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
$25RB$15 12P
$10
$13 1P
H
$40
H
$13
27
He Reraised My Pocket Aces!
SENIORS SCENE
By George “The engineer” EPSTEIN
In a recent column, I explained why raising preflop with pocket aces was a viable
strategy -- to try to force out some of your opponents. I
call that reducing the size of the playing field (RSPF). That
strategy is based on the fact that probability theory shows
your pair of aces generally is favored to win so long as
there are no more than three opponents vying for the pot.
During my visit to Las Vegas to participate in the World
Poker Players Conference, I got in a $4-$8 hold’em game
at the Mirage. I was in a middle position when I looked
down at pocket aces. Wow! Two opponents had called the
blind bet; I raised, of course!
A big, husky player to my left immediately reraised,
making it $12. Well that certainly RSPF‘d the table.
Everyone folded to me. Now it was just the two of us.
Thinking about it: I knew he was a loose-aggressive
player. But what could he be holding? A pair of aces is the
best possible hand preflop; if he also held pocket aces,
we would end up in a tie. More likely, I reasoned, he held
a high pair – kings or queens. Possibly he was reraising
with A-K; but I reckoned the high pair was more likely. In
any case, I was in the proverbial “catbird seat” with my
pocket aces.
Guess What! This may or may not come as a surprise
to you. He reraised me again! Well, I thought, whatever
is going on here? I reinforced my conclusion that he held
pocket kings or queens and he didn’t think I had aces. Or,
perhaps he wasn’t thinking -- or burying his head in the
sand, refusing to consider that possibility. Loose-aggressive players may act that way. . .
So I Did the Obvious. Now there were just the two
of us. That meant there was no limit on the number of
raises allowed. (Most poker rooms limit the number of
raises to three, sometimes four, when there are three or
more players in the pot; but there is no limit when it is
heads-up. That serves to protect players against collusion by two partners playing at the same table.) I pointed
to the message on the crown of my new poker cap, a gift
from a friend. It reads: “All In.” As I reraised him, I added:
“Well, I’m ready to go all in.” He looked at me with what
I perceived to be a smirk; then he smiled: “OK; let’s go!”
And he pushed out the rest of his chips. The dealer did
a count and I added the chips I needed to match his bet.
(Just like the WPT games on TV, I thought. I never play
all-in games. That requires a whole set of strategies with
which I am not familiar.)
His jaw dropped several inches when I turned up my
pocket aces; sheepishly, I thought, he showed a pair of
queens. I could hear the murmurs from the other players
at the table.
The flop brought nothing higher than a 10. The turn
paired the 10 on the board. And the river was a nondescript middle card. I won a huge pot! And he was broke...
P.S. The player a few seats to the left told me afterwards that he held 9-10 in the hole, and folded because
of the raises. He would have made trip 10s. I guess I was
lucky too...
. . . So readers, what’s YOUR opinion?
George “The Engineer” Epstein is the author of “The
Greatest Book of Poker for Winners!” A retired engineer
who received many industry and government awards and
commendations, he continues to be active by consulting,
editing an international technical newsletter, teaching an
engineering course at UCLA, and serving as an officer
in a professional engineering society. One engineering
society has a scholarship in George’s honor. In writing his
poker book, he applied the lessons learned while working
as an engineer to solve problems. He is currently writing
his next book on The Four Rules for Success in Life and
Living. He can be reached by e-mail: [email protected]
28
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
Jefferson Davis
Confederate President,
No-Limit Loser
by Byron Liggett
President of the Confederate
States, Jefferson Davis,
wagered the lives of a quarter
million southerners in the
defense of slavery; almost as
many were wounded. It cost
the North twice as many bodies
and wounded to call his bet.
One Civil War historian
wrote, “America as a nation of
poker players understood all
about the business of calling
bluffs. Not until the guns began
to go off would the North
realize that when men like
Jefferson Davis talked about
seceding from the Union they
meant every word of it.”
A military man, Jeff Davis
was born in Kentucky in 1808
and graduated from West Point
in 1828. His father and all his
uncles were soldiers during the
American Revolution.
As a young Army officer,
Davis had a reputation as a
tough soldier. It was said he
“joined in the roughest sports,
shirking no danger”. According
to one of the earliest biographies written after Davisʼ death,
a sport common among frontier
troops was “fighting horses”.
Describing the “sport”,
the Davis historian explains,
“Two vicious beasts would be
enclosed in a pen some forty
feet square, there to snap, bite
and kick each other till, bloody
and exhausted, one of them
would refuse to come from his
corner. The other animal would
then be adjudged winner of the
stakes.”
Pitting several dogs against
a wolf was another popular
contest. Davisʼ biographer tells
us that sometimes “the daredevil young officer would leap
into the ring” and take on the
wolf in a “fair, fist-and-skull
fight, administering a coup de
grace by choking the animal to
death.”
Davis was a colonel under
General Zachary Taylor during
the war with Mexico. After the
war he was appointed to the
U.S. Senate by the governor of
Mississippi to fill a vacancy.
He supported Franklin Pierce, a
northern pro-slavery Democrat,
for President. Winning a narrow victory in 1852, President
Pierce appointed Davis to be
his Secretary of War. When
Pierce left the White House,
Mississippi returned him to the
U.S. Senate.
Before the Civil War,
Senator Davis was considered one of the nationʼs
great leaders and statesmen.
Nevertheless, this distinguished, accomplished, highly
regarded American owned
slaves, considered slavery
moral and was prepared to
defend it in Congress... or in
combat.
After Republican abolitionist Abraham Lincoln won
the election in 1860, South
Carolina seceded. The other
southern states soon followed. The South intended
to form a slave nation. When
Confederate troops fired on
Union troops at Ft. Sumter, in
Charleston Harbor, the Civil
War ignited.
Jefferson Davis hoped
to lead the Confederate
Army; instead he became the
Confederate President. Among
his cabinet appointments were
several gamblers. For Attorney
General he appointed J.P.
Benjamin whoʼd been expelled
from Yale for cheating at
cards and gambling. Likewise,
Davisʼ Secretary of State,
Robert Toombs, was expelled
from the University of Georgia
“unbecoming conduct in a
card-playing incident.”
The Civil War sometimes
matched poker playing commanders against each other.
Confederate General Hood had
a reputation as a bold, gutsy
poker player. He was reputed
to have bet $2,500 on a successful bluff. When General
Sherman heard the story he
concluded Hood was not a sly
defensive tactician. Sherman
ordered his Union troops to
brace for an attack. Hood
failed and Sherman marched
to Atlanta, dealing the South a
crippling blow.
Throughout the Civil War,
gambling was a commonplace
way for soldiers on both
sides to pass the time. Lice
races were a favorite form of
gambling. The critters were
plentiful, required little care
and even the lowest ranking
grunt could maintain a stable
of steeds. Buttons and kernels
of corn served as chips.
In one battle, a stone
wall separated Northern and
Southern soldiers. A small
body of Rebels behind the wall
held the hill. Over several days,
7,000 Union troops trying to
move across the open field to
take the wall were slaughtered.
Throughout the siege a poker
game went uninterrupted. The
Rebels who had money played;
those who didnʼt held off the
Yankees.
A famous Civil War gambling story is told about a
Union paymaster captured by
a small Confederate band with
$50,000 in his wagon. Before
the day was out, a poker game
started and the paymaster prisoner was allowed in the game.
Eventually the Union paymaster won all the money
back. Before they could decide
to kill him, the Rebels were
attacked and run off. The
paymaster greeted his Union
comrades happily. He reported
being captured and robbed by
the Rebels, but he never said
anything about winning the
money back.
Gambling was a principal
pastime of prisoners of war
on both sides of the conflict.
They diary of a Union prisoner
captured by the Rebels said
that after breakfast they “commonly engaged in an exciting
game of penny poker”. When
Richmond, the capital of
the Confederacy fell, Union
soldiers found the floors of
Libby Prison covered with faro
layouts.
With the Northʼs victory
and an end to the Civil War,
Jefferson Davis was arrested
for treason and imprisoned.
After two years, he was
released on bail and never did
stand trial. Free, Davis was
greeted throughout the South
with adoration.
Davis never expressed regret
or remorse for his defense of
slavery and the principles of
succession. He remained a hero
of the South until his death
in 1889. His funeral train,
moving through the southern
states from New Orleans to
Richmond, was mobbed by
admirers.
e-mail: [email protected]
Time . Some events Wk ..............Week H ...... Hold’em 7. 7-Card Stud Pi ....... Pineapple S........... Stud DC Dealer’s Choice Sp ............ Spread Z......... Freezeout #M # of players max DAILY TOURNAMENTS
(CONT’D FROM PAGE 27)
start after the hour & . Add’l gametimes L ................. Limit O .......Omaha Po.........Pot Limit 5 Five Card Stud HH ... Headhunter Al ...... Alternates Q .............Qualify RB ......... Re-buys
A, P ........ AM, PM
on this day. Call N ...........No Limit H/L High/Low Split Pn.......Panginque Mx ..Mexican Poker B .......... Bounties F .............Freeroll Sh .........Shootout AO ......... Add Ons Cz .............. Crazy E....... Elimination
● Denotes Advertiser
REGION/Cardroom(Ad Pg.)
MONDAY
Time Games
CO Midnight Rose
TUESDAY
Buy-in Time Games
12P
H
7P
$10 12P
8P
LH
$100 8P
NH
Derby Lane
Palm Beach Kennel Club
1P
12P
NH
H
6P
$45 6P
$45 6P
NH
LO H/L
H
Palm Beach Princess
Pompano Park Casino
Seminole Hollywood Casino
St Tropez Cruise
6P
H
$55 6P
H
12P
8P
NH
O H/L
7P
10A
NH
DC
Ute Mountain
CT Foxwoods
FL Dania Jai-Alai
IA Catfish Bend
Isle of Capri
Winn-A-Vegas
$75 6P
$70RB$30AO$50
$20RB$20M24
$10RB$10 6P
WEDNESDAY
Buy-in Time Games
NH
S
$40 7P
$10 12P
$150
O H/L
NH
$45
$45 1P
$45 12P
6P&
NH
$25RB$5AO 6P&
LA Grand Coushatta
6P
NH
H
MI Chip-In's Island
Gold Strike Casino Resort
4A,6P& LH
MN •Canterbury Park (p38) 10A
7
Fortune Bay Casino
Northern Light Casino Hotel
Shooting Star Casino
NH
6P
$35RB$15AO$25 4A,6P& NH
Grand Casino(Biloxi)
Grand Casino(Gulfport)
Grand Casino(Tunica)
Pearl River Resort
$55AO$(1)$5 6P
12P
NH
12P
H/O
$15RB$10
12P
H
$10RB$15AO$25 6P&
$25 12P
5P
NH
NJ Tropicana
7P
6P
NH
NH
$30RBAO 7P
$120 6P
6P
7P&
NH
F RB(1)$15AO$100 6P
$20RB$20 2P
7P
Isleta Casino & Resort
•Sandia Casino (p4)
NY Turning Stone
10A
NH
$100
6P
$45 6P
$45 6P
NH
NH
H
NH
$55
$45
$65RB$10 6P&
7P
NH
$20RB$20M24
N H/O
$10RB$10AO$10
1P
NH
$150
NH
$10RB$10AO 7P&
$40 12P
6P
Pi
$35RB$15AO$25 4A,6P& LH/NH
Varies
$25AO$(1)$5 6P
NH
$10RB$5 6P
$35RB$15AO$25 11A
S H/L
$10 12P
S
12P
$10 12P
$45
$45 1P
$45
NH
$45 1P
NH
6P
$45 1P
12P
$300 6P
8P
N H Sh
NH
L/N H
NH
12P& N H Sh
$75 12P& N H
12P
7
$25Z 4P
Pi
$25Z 5P
12P
H
$5RB$15 12P
$5RB$15AO$25 12P
H
$35RB(1)$15 12P
$25 12P
7
NH
$30RBAO 7P
$65 6P
NH
NH
$40RBAO 7P
$65 6P
Cz Pi
H
Varies
$20RB(1)$10 6P
$15RB(1)$15 7P&
$35
H
NH
$25 6P
$20RB(1)$20 2P
$50RB$20 1P
H
$25RB$5 7P&
H
$35RB$10 7P
NH
Dakota Magic
7P
S
F RB$10 7P
NH
7P
$30RB$10 7P
7
S H/L
OR Chinook Winds Casino
4P
H
$25RB(1)$5AO(1)$5 4P
6P
6P
Gold Dust Casino, Deadwood
Rosebud Casino
7P
S H/L
NH
$40RB$20AO 12P
NH
LH/NH
$30RB$20 6P
$35RB$15AO$25 11A
12P
$25 2P
NHZ
O H/L $25RB(1)$5AO(1)$5 4P
H
$18RB$10
H
NH
NH
$100 10A
NH
$35 7P(1st Wk) H
NH
LH/NH
NH
12P
Varies
$40RB$20 1P
$35RB$15AO$25 11A
NH
LH/NH
$10RB$5 7P
F RB$10 7P
$25RB$5AO$10 4P
6P
$110 7P
LH
NHZ
$50
$10
NH
NH
$45
$45
$45
$130RB$20
2P
N H/O
$10RB$10AO$10
$10RB$10 10A
NH
$10RB$10
NH
LH
$25RB$10
$35RB$15AO$25
10A
H Sh
12P Wk1 N H
$12
$120
Varies
$25RB$10 3P
$35RB$15AO$25 2P
5PWk4LadiesN H
$25AO(1)$5
F$5RB(2)$5AO$5 12P
NH
$10RB$10AO$10 12P
$25 12P
NH
$50RB$10AO$10 12P
7
$10RB(3)$5AO$5
$30RB$10AO$10
S
$15RB$10
$50Z
NH
$95
$15RB$15
O H/L
$10RB$15AO$25 10A
5P
LH
NH
$60RB(1)$50 10A
$10
NH
7P
NH
$30RB$10AO$10 7P
NH
$30RBAO 4P
$120 6P
NH
NH
LH
NH
1P
O H/L $20RB(1)$10AO$50 6P
H
$15RB(1)$15 7P&
S H/L
O H/L
H/L Sp Z
$10RB$5 7P
$25 7P
Tahoe H/L $25RB(1)$5AO(1)$5 4P
N H $33RB(2)$15AO$15
H
H
H
H
$65RBAO 12P
$340 6P
$20RB$10 5P
$15RB(1)$15 2P
12P
11A
NH
$25RB$5
$10RB$5 2P
2P
H
NH
$20RB$10
$30RB$10 3P
$25RB(1)$5AO(1)$5
S H/L
$10RB$5 4P
O H/L
$50
$30RB$10AO$10
7P
NH
O H/L
$10
$30RB$10AO$10
NH
NH
H $30RB(1)$20AO$200 5P
N H $50RB(2)$25AO(1)$35 2P
H
NH
$60RB(1)$50
2&7P
$60RBAO 12P
$225 6P&
$25RB$5
6P
H
Buy-in
NH
S
$20RB$20M24
HB
$10RB$5
7P
$45
$65 6P&
$70RB$30AO$50
10A
$25AO$(1)$5
NH
1P
SD Dakota Sioux
Buy-in Time Games
$60
$30RB$10AO$10
Wildhorse Casino Resort
Buy-in Time Games
SUNDAY
Varies
$25 12P
H
SATURDAY
F RB$15AO$15/$30
NHZ
ND 4 Bears Casino
WA Blue Mountain Casino
Chips Bremerton
Chips La Center
NH
11A
7P
NM Cities of Gold
NH
Buy-in Time Games
$20 7P
$10
7P
7P
NE Rosebud Casino
Trump Taj Mahal
H
N H Sh
NH
Buy-in Time Games
FRIDAY
$15RB$5AO$10
$20RB$10AO$10
MS Copa Casino
NH
H
$55 6P
12P
$70RB$10 6P
IL Hollywood Casino-Aurora
KS Harrah’s Prarie Band
NH
S
THURSDAY
NH
NH
O H/L
H
Varies
H
$55RBAO
$120
$20RB(1)$10
$15RB(1)$15
$35
F RB$10
4P
1P
NH
H
$25RB$5AO$50
$18RB$10
$10RB$5 4P
2P
$30RB$10AO$10 6P
V
H
NH
$20RB$10
$40
$30RB$10AO$10
1P
9A
12P
N O H/L
NH
NH
$20RB(1)$10 1P
$20 9A
$20 12P
NH
NH
NH
$20RB(1)$10 1P
$20 9A
$20 12P
NH
NH
NH
$20RB(1)$10 1P
$20 9A
$20 12P
N O H/L
NH
NH
$20RB(1)$10 1P
$20 9A
$20 12P
NH
NH
NH
$20RB(1)$10 1P
$20 9A
$20 12P
N O H/L
NH
NH
$20RB(1)$10 1P
$20 9A
$20 12P
NH
NH
NH
$20RB(1)$10
$20
$20
Chips Lakewood
Chips Tukwila
Goldie’s
9A
4P
11A
NH
NH
NH
$20 9A
$20 4P
$13RB(1)$10 11A
NH
NH
NH
$20 9A
$20 4P
$13RB(1)$10 11A
NH
NH
NH
$20 9A
$20 4P
$13RB(1)$10 11A
NH
NH
NH
$20 9A
$20 4P
$13RB(1)$10 11A
NH
NH
NH
$20 9A
$20 4P
$13RB(1)$10 11A
NH
NH
NH
$20 9A
$20 4P
$13RB(1)$10 11A
NH
NH
NH
$20
$20
$28RB(2)$10
Little Creek Casino
Northern Quest
Suquamash Clearwater Cas
Wild Grizzly
7P
10A
11A
5P
LO
NH
NH
NH
$15RB(2)$10
$25RB(2)$10
$20
$13RB$10
7P
10A
11A
5P
L/N H
NH
NH
NH
$25
$25RB(2)$10 10A
$20 11A
$13RB$10 5P
NH
NH
NH
7P
$25RB(2)$10 10A
$20 11A
$13RB$10 5P
NH
NH
NH
NH
$45
$25RB(2)$10 10A
$20 11A
$13RB$10
NH
NH
5P
$15RB(2)$10 10A&
$20 11A
2P
NB
NH
NH
NH
$35
F RB(2)$15 10A
$20
$25RB$20
NH
$25RB(2)$10
8P
V
CAN Casino Regina
$25RB$20AO$20
Debbie Burkhead interviews Barry Dodd
d
DB: Where can we find the
Southern California Poker
Tourʼs schedule of events?
BD: Our ad in Poker
Player furnishes information on how to qualify and
where to find out more
information. Check out
our website for the event
schedule at www.4scpoker.
com.
Diamond Jim’s Casino
118 20th St. West
Rosamond, California
Exit A 14 Freeway
The Best Little No-limit Tournament in Southern California
The Last Sunday of Each Month $100 Buy-in–No Rebuys $8,000 in Tournament Chips
Call for more info: 661-256-1400
★ $12+$3 Buy-in (Multi-rebuys)
FRID
No-Lim AYS
it Hold
’em
SATUR
No-Lim DAYS
it Hold
’em
Starting
at 7:00
PM
E
DB: What do you provide
casinos in the way of marketing?
BD: Each casino receives
two hours of television
in San Diego and Los
Angeles and we assist in
advertising and promot-
DB: What is your ultimate
goal?
BD: To be the minor
leagues of poker and to
get the local poker player
involved in television. To
have some consistency in
tournaments and tournament structures. We are
about the little guy but if
the pros want to come and
play, we welcome them,
but thatʼs not what weʼre
about.
BLUE LIN
DB: So how did you conquer those problems?
BD: We decided to let
each casino run their
own individual event, we
would take on the task of
securing a television station to air the event and
each casino would be part
of a tour. This changed
everything and we were
off and running.
ing the event. We arrange
a venue spotlight that is a
two minute plug designed
just for them. We bring
in the film crew, the table
with cameras and organize
the entire filming.
Alameda Blvd.
the various casinos.
123 E. Artesia Blvd., Compton, CA 90220
(310) 631-3838 ♠ www.crystalparkcasino.com
h
M A R C H 7, 2i 0 0 5
f E R P Li AY
f ER
i
PfO K
29
“Never Play Poker With a Man Called Doc!” This phrase
is almost as old as the game of poker itself. Have you
ever really considered why it is to your detriment to play
against these opponents? If Doc is really a physician then
he must have some attributes that make him a player
worthy of respect. So what attributes does Doc have that
caused someone to come up with this saying? There are a
number of them. Let’s think about it and compare them to
a professional poker player.
NEVER PLAY Poker with
a man CALLed “DOC”
Pechanga Open
open to all casino employees,
even from Pechanga Resort
& Casino, for No Limit Hold
ʻEm. They came from as far
away as Fresno and even
Arizona for a chance at the
$13,000 prize pool. With a
total of 130 players in the
competition, the top three
while on vacation. Indeed it
happened and Brandon took
$15,580 home with him to
Wyoming. Two players from
southern California won
the second and third places
– Luke Montes from Ontario,
CA won $7,080 and Eduardo
Mayor from Placentia, CA
coming in second place, and
John Yu from neighboring
Murrieta, CA won $4,455
claiming third place.
This particular Sunday
was anything but a day of
rest for the 382 players who
qualified to play in Pechanga
Open Finals. Those who
Star McCormick
Brandon Palm
Nick Padovan
places went to participants
from three separate casinos. Star McCormick from
Oceans 11 in Oceanside,
CA beat the rest of the
mostly male contenders and
took home $4,415. Daniel
Fitzgerald from Pechanga
Resort & Casino and Robert
Ryan from Sycuan rounded
out the top three spots.
The next evening, 251
people sat down inside the
Pechanga Poker Room to
play in the Limit Hold ʻEm
tournament that awarded
cash prizes to players in first
through 30th place. A prize
pool of $25,100 was enough
incentive for Matt Gilsdorf of
Escondido, CA to race into
played a good game for
$4,130.
On Saturday night, 165
players each put up the $300
buy in for a chance at the
$49,500 pool, and the chance
to play in the tournament
finals for an even bigger
stack of cash the following
day. The competition was
stiff and the mood was heated but through all that, Nick
Padovan from San Pedro,
CA came out ahead of the
rest and took home $16,830.
Gregory Stein from San
Diego won himself $7,920
placed through the 40th
spot would take home cash
prizes but with a prize pool
of $191,000, all players
were shooting for top seed.
After hours of intense play,
Harvey Hunnicutt from
Irvine, CA narrowly beat
out Jay Siegel of Tustin, CA
and Brett Bodie from San
Diego. Winning $59,210,
Harvey announced that the
Pechanga Poker Room was
now his favorite in southern
California and that he would
be back next year to defend
his title.
By Dr. Scott Aigner, M.D.
A physician has to be very competitive.
Without this characteristic a physician would never have
made it through the rigors of college, medical school, and
then a residency. We have to strive to obtain the highest
grades, to work hard, and have a strong resolve to never
give up in our quest to become a doctor. Our education
is filled with a selection process. The best high school
students go to college. From there the best college students who strive to be physicians are selected for medical
school. After we complete medical school we go through
another weeding out process and the top students are
again selected for positions that are available for training.
Medicine requires a life long ability to learn. We have
to keep up with all of the newest technologies, the newest medications, and the latest studies. We are constantly
absorbing new information and refining our techniques. This
mental training obviously spills into our other endeavors.
A single sign or symptom rarely narrows the disease
of a patient to one specific disorder. A physician may find
one symptom and it directs us to ask about other common
symptoms. Only when we have found the symptoms can
we look for signs. The entire picture unfolds as we find one
sign and then the next. Reading opponents is very similar.
A bet by itself is meaningless. Position, prior hands that an
opponent revealed from similar position, the player’s body
language, as well as other factors leads us to the diagnosis. In essence we are all diagnosing our opponents when
we play poker.
A physician has to make very important decisions when
it comes to their patients. Decisions that represent a
significant difference in the quality of a patient’s life not
to mention life itself. We have to deal with more pressure
than the average person. It is similar to the pressure an
athlete has to endure when the game is on the line. When
the going gets tough, the tough get going!
There are a number of other traits that physicians possess such as discipline, patience, and maintaining focus for
long periods of time. We have to handle unique situations
as they develop. No two operations are exactly the same.
We have to pick up on the smallest findings and observe
people in order to first diagnose a patient’s illness and
then to treat it properly. Every patient we see repeats this
process. Although the variables might change we recognize patterns that lead us to the right diagnosis.
Of course no one can make the right decisions in poker
all of the time due to the fact we never have all of the
information available to us. There is an art and a science
to poker just like there is in medicine. Every situation is
unique and correctly identifying an opponent’s holding
based on the information available to us is what makes
poker so great. As a physician, I have found the transition to poker very easy. I enjoy the competition and utilize
everything I have learned about the game in order to win..
I work hard and I play hard. There is no other way for me.
So next time a man called Doc sits down at your game
think about what I wrote about in this article. Until proven
otherwise, this person just might be able to play the game!
Dr Aigner is a board certified Urologist. He has multiple final table finishes in major tournaments including a WPO bracelet in 2001. You can contact him at
http://www.PokerStrategyForum.com
30
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
asked & answered:
C O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E
same as one out of 17 (just
divide 51 by 3 to prove this).
So, you can divide the pie
into 17 slices or chances
and one of those gives you
a pair, while 16 don’t. Thus,
it’s 16-to-1 against.
Q #4 ANSWER: (c). In the
movie, “The Cincinnati Kid,”
the form of poker used to
determine the world championship was five-card stud.
Matt Gilsdorf
first place. Matt won $8,285
in this Thursday night portion of the Pechanga Open.
Friday night would see
big action in the Poker room
as 236 players vied for the
$48,600 prize pool. On a
visit to California from the
small town of Horsebreath,
Wyoming, Brandon Palm
said he plays poker frequently with friends back
home, but never expected to
win a tournament, especially
Q #5 ANSWER: (d). Doyle
Brunson’s nickname is
“Texas Dolly.”
Q #6 ANSWER: (a). A suddenly shaking hand almost
always means your opponent holds a big hand.
Q #7 ANSWER: (b). You
should go into a poker game
eager to make correct decisions.
Q #8 ANSWER: (d). In
22
a poker tournament, if
first place pays $100,000
and second place plays
$60,000, then the final two
players are fighting over
$40,000 — winner take all.
They’ve each already won
$60,000, the second-place
guarantee.
Q #9 ANSWER: (d).
Opponents who just sat
down are, on average, more
conservative and willing
to fold hands. Therefore,
they’re easier to bluff.
Q #10 ANSWER: (b). It’s
false that jack-10 of the
same suit is the most profitable hold ’em starting hand,
even though in the games
earlier days, some players believed it was. They
thought that way jack-10
was the highest-ranking
two suited cards that gave
maximum room to make a
straight.
Liebert Selected as
WWPT Spokesperson
The Womenʼs Poker
Network.com along with
partner World Womenʼs
Poker Tour announced
today that Professional
Poker Player Kathy Liebert
will be the official spokeswoman for the group.
Kathy is one of the top
female Pros in the world
and the first female to win a
million dollar payday when
she won the first Party
Poker Million prize.
The Womenʼs Poker
Network and The World
Womenʼs Poker Tour
have been established to
provide information, education, and opportunity
for women interested in
entering the fast growing
world of organized Poker.
The WPN/WWPT has
several tournament events
currently scheduled and
more on the way. When
visiting them online
women will find articles
featuring top poker pros,
calendars of events, a
forum to share their
thoughts and experiences
in Poker and much more.
The Reno Hilton will be
the site of the next event
on April 2, and 3, 2005.
This two day Tournament
will feature a Limit and No
Limit event along with a
One of Las Vegas’ most comfortable and elegant
poker rooms also offers poker players the most exciting bonuses.
Hit any qualifying high hand during a bonus round and
receive an additional $50.00.
$1-5 Seven-Card Stud • $4 & 8 Hold ’Em with a 1/2 Kill
• $6 & 12 Hold ’Em with a 1/2 Kill
Monday through Friday $30 and $50 Buy-in Tournaments
(Please check Tournament Schedule)
For Player Room Rates call toll-free 877- 632-7510 or 702- 632-7790.
mandalaybay.com
Kathy Liebert at the table. For more information on the
WWPT, visit www.womenspokernetwork.com
Strip Poker
Late last year, the
National Lampoon flew a
film crew to a resort called
Hedonism II to film three
“National Lampoonʼs Strip
Poker” productions for
release on video, DVD and
pay per view. The shows
would feature 15 magazine models, with comedy
and commentary provided
by O.J. house guest Kato
Kaelin and comedian Fred
Stoller, with music by
Metal Skool.
To insure authenticity,
Barbara Enright was hired
to be the technical adviser
to teach the girls poker and
advise them about tournament procedure and strategy.
Kaelin, himself a poker
enthusiast who has appeared
on celebrity poker TV and
is a regular in Vince van
Pattenʼs home game, also
helped with the coaching.
Enright was also asked to
come up with a revolutionary innovation: how to play
strip poker with chips. The
concept she devised was
allowing the girls to trade
clothing for chips. A blouse
Poker Seminar for registered players led by Linda
Johnson and Jan Fisher.
The Hilton is offering great
discounted room rates for
event participants.
would buy so many chips,
a bra more, etc. Even after
losing all her clothing, a
girl could continue to play
so long as she had chips
left. Once a girl had no
chips and no clothing left to
barter, she would dive nude
into the swimming pool and
swim to Kaelinʼs “guest
house” to be interviewed.
The winners of each event
would receive cash prizes.
After two days of
poker coaching, the filming began outdoors in the
hot Jamaican sun near the
swimming pool, using a
regulation poker table that
was specially flown in at
enormous expense. The
girls were all poker neophytes who, at the outset,
couldnʼt tell their ace from
a hole at the ground. But
they quickly got into the
game, and by the time filming was complete, and the
last girl had dived nude into
the pool, they had become
poker enthusiasts. It may
have not been the World
Series, but, on the other
hand, who would pay to
watch Chris Moneymaker
strip naked?
Three cash buy-in tournaments were also organized
in the evening for cast
and crew. Not surprisingly, Enright won the first
two. At the third one, I
got heads-up with Kaelin.
He got lucky and beat me,
causing him no end of
excitement.
The DVDs and videos
are planned for a summer
release, and pay for view,
on Direct TV, late summer or early fall. The girls
might not interest you,
but thereʼs a much better
reason for watching one
of the productions. At the
last minute, I was offered
a part (comedy, not stripping). In it, Iʼm sitting on a
ledge in the pool, trying to
have conversation with one
of the models, but all she
wants to do is have sex, so
I get annoyed and push her
into the pool and do a little
soliloquy. By unanimous
agreement, I was the best
part of the show.
I totally agree.
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
31
Perks and Picks
The movers and shakers behind the scenes in downtown
Las Vegas continue to evolve. Now, in somewhat of a surprise
move, the “golden boys” have sold the Golden Nugget to
Landry’s Restaurants, Inc. for $295 million. Landry’s is buying
the Nugget from Tim Poster and Tom Breitling,
former dot-com owners and multi-millionaire
tycoons. Stay tuned.
The Bargain Bin
By H. Scot Krause
This month, Harrah’s Entertainment
relinquishes the legendary Binion’s Horseshoe to new permanent owners, MTR Gaming Group, who currently operate
the Ramada Inn Speedway Casino in North Las Vegas and
Mountaineer Race Track located in Chester, WV. The new
owners are planning plenty of changes over the next year or
two. First thing on the drawing board will be the signage and
name change to Binion’s Gambling Hall and Hotel (Harrah’s
will keep the Horseshoe brand name). During the course of
2005, MTR plans to spend about $7.5 million in improvements
to develop a new player-friendly tracking system, re-open the
former Race & Sports Book, introduce more slot machines to
the floor and upgrade their existing inventory to include TITO
(ticket-in-ticket-out). They also plan to be very active and
aggressive with regard to table games and poker including
offering higher limits, adding new tournaments and allowing
credit lines.
If you plan to be in Las Vegas for St. Patrick’s Day, the
Fremont Street Experience (FSE) annual downtown parade
has moved. The Las Vegas Sons of Erin, a non-profit organization dedicated to the community and promoting Irish
heritage, has moved its annual St. Patrick’s Day parade from
downtown to Henderson. The 39th Annual St. Patrick’s Day
Parade & Block Party will be held on Saturday, March 19 starting at 11:00 a.m. The FSE will host free Irish entertainment
under the canopy for the holiday weekend.
In other news... last month we mentioned the opening of yet
another new card room in Las Vegas, at the Santa Fe Station
Casino. The 2,400 square-foot room is non-smoking and nicely
appointed with eight tables and 80 seats spreading both high
and low limit games. Buy-in between 2:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m.
and receive a complimentary t-shirt with a minimum of one
hour play as a grand opening celebration gift. When it’s time to
take a break and grab a bite, try the Grand Café located right
next door to the enclosed Poker Room. They offer daily Blue
Plate Specials and late night bargains too.
Additionally, Station Casinos announced that the poker
rooms at the Texas Station and Palace Station are now also
smoke-free. Smoking will still be allowed on the slot floor,
bingo rooms, casino bars and other casino areas at Texas
and Palace. The poker rooms at Boulder Station and Sunset
Station will continue to allow smoking.
The promotion-happy Palms Casino Resort Poker Room
has yet another new cash drawing which offers guests a shot
at some extra cash each day, Monday through Friday, during
the Diamonds Are Forever Poker Giveaway. Play in the poker
room with a Club Palms card and poker players who make
a flush in diamonds Sunday through Thursday from March 6
through April 29 will be entered to win $200 cash. After completing your winning hand, you will be entered into the next
day’s drawing. There will be a total of $1,000 in daily prizes.
The first drawing will be held on Monday, March 7th and the
last drawing will be held Friday, April 29. See the Palms Poker
Room for complete rules and details.
That’s it for this week!
H. Scot Krause is a freelance writer, gaming industry
analyst and researcher, originally from Cleveland, Ohio.
While raising his two year-old son, Zachary, Scot reports,
researches, and writes about casino games, events,
attractions and promotions. He is an eight-year resident
of Las Vegas. Questions or comments are welcomed.
Card room managers are also invited to send your specials and promotions to: [email protected]
32
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
Card Room Roundup
Boomtown Casino Hotel
I-80 Exit #4, Reno, NV 89439
(800) 678.3790
www.boomtownreno.com
Thereʼs a BOOMTOWN
in the foothills of the High
Sierras, about ten minutes
west of Reno. Like the Old
West mining town after
which itʼs modeled, this is
where the actionʼs at.
Gambling is a principal
feature at the Boomtown
Casino Hotel. Folks come
from all around to load up
their ʻbuckʼ boards with cash,
their saddlebags with chips
and their bellies with good
grub.
Thereʼs a large, rich Field
of Slots that will catch the
imagination of any silver
miner. Many a lucky fortune
seeker has hit the jackpot
here.
Boomtown is flopʼem and
dropʼem. “The only good
poker player is a broke poker
player,” declares a guy with
pocket-Aces as he starts firing chips at the pot.
Currently, every Saturday
and Sunday at 2pm, Holdʼem
miners can buy into a dandy
little gold hunt for $50 &
$10 entry fee. In addition to
prize money for the winners,
1st Place gets into the May
21 Championship gold rush.
When the smoke clears, the
miner with the nuggets gets
$1,000 and a pick ʻn shovel
at the richest gold field in
the game – the World Series
of Poker in July. Or, you can
take the $11,000 and buy a
Boomtown is a favorite
stop for families who like to
circle their RV wagons next
to the Casino overlooking
the Truckee River. “No fear
of hostiles here,” the Mayor
says with pride, “the RV
camp is well lit and thereʼs
24hr. security. Of course, for
fine Ladies and Gentlemen,
thereʼs a first class hotel.”
For the children and young
at heart, thereʼs the Fun
Center. With a 3-D motion
theater, Ferris wheel and
more than 200 recreational
games thereʼs a lot to do
when the chores are all done.
Mayor Fisher reports that if
you just want to ride the golf
range, “we got a lot of big
spreads to choose from.”
Boomtown also boasts an
important full-service Wagon
Train Truck Stop. The wagon
masters who drive the big
rigs fuel their horses and feed
themselves before moving on.
Clearly, whether youʼre a
video game gunslinger, gambler or golfer, Boomtown is
High stakes fun in a high
Sierra setting—Thatʼs
Boomtown Casino!
If you prefer to go for the
gold at the tables, youʼll find
a full compliment of opportunities to hit pay dirt. Just
stake your claim to a game
and start chipʼn away. One
old timer says, “All yaʼ gotta
do is separate the real nuggets from the ʻfools goldʼ.”
Poker Prospectors have
a mine of their own. Some
players hope to flip through
enough flops ʻtil they find a
nugget they can keep. Others
pan for hands at the river.
There are lots of claim-jumpers who wonʼt let you have
the gold without a fight.
In High Desert Poker
Country, itʼs best to go well
armed. You never know
when youʼre going to meet
some crazy young card cowpoke who wants to try and
outdraw yaʼ. There are lowlimit stampedes, Holdʼem
hold-ups, and no-limit shootouts. Soon as you ride off
with some playerʼs nuggets
youʼve got the whole Poker
Posse after you.
The law of the hand at
new sluice box.
Poker Sheriff Joe
Bennett keeps the peace at
Boomtown. Explaining his
strategy, he says, “I kill ʻem
with kindness” and to prove
it he adds, “No one has ever
seen an unhappy dead guy in
my poker room!”
The Mayor, General
Manager Jack Fisher, points
out to all who will listen
that thereʼs much more to
BOOMTOWN than gamblers
and gold miners. “We get a
lot of families here,” he says.
The Mayorʼs right.
where the actionʼs at. Bet on it.
For more information on
the Boomtown Casino Hotel,
please call (800) 648-3790 or
visit www.boomtownreno.
com.
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ENDLESS SUMMER 2/10/05
NO LIMIT HOLD’EM
LIMIT HOLD’EM
NO LIMIT HOLD’EM
LIMIT HOLD’EM
BUY-IN $20 + $15
BUY-IN $20 + $15
BUY-IN $20 + $15
PLAYERS 176
REBUYS 494
ADD-ONS 232
PRIZE
POOL
NO LIMIT HOLD’EM
BUY-IN $20 + $15
PLAYERS 150
REBUYS 390
ADD-ONS 214
PRIZE POOL
$14,340
Allen Zuckerman
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Allen Zuckerman. . . . $5,730
Ali Fesharakinia . . . . $2,865
Don Wilson . . . . . . . . . $1,435
Chris Horner . . . . . . . . .$930
Makya McBee . . . . . . . .$715
Sam Chan . . . . . . . . . . . .$500
Alan Gilbert . . . . . . . . . .$360
James Long . . . . . . . . . .$285
John Bastian . . . . . . . . .$215
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
$17,135
Marcjean Blawers . . . $6,855
Warren Plouffe . . . . . $3,430
Justin Yousefi . . . . . . . $1,715
Majid Zarrinnam . . . $1,115
Tuong Luu . . . . . . . . . . .$855
Arthur Destephen . . . . .$595
Robert Martinez . . . . . .$435
Faith Hindrichs . . . . . . .$345
Ted Robbins . . . . . . . . . .$260
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
BUY-IN $20 + $15
PLAYERS 99
REBUYS 181
ADD-ONS 132
PRIZE POOL
PLAYERS 167
REBUYS 414
ADD-ONS 210
PRIZE POOL
PLAYERS 84
REBUYS 145
ADD-ONS 134
PRIZE POOL
$7,825
$15,030
$6,895
Larry Decair
Fred Koubi
Angela McFarquhar
Larry Decair . . . . . . . $3,130
Dmitry Sharin . . . . . . $1,800
Jerry Singer . . . . . . . . . .$940
Willie Williams . . . . . . .$550
Harry Kay . . . . . . . . . . .$430
Sabri Assaad . . . . . . . . .$350
Kendall Small . . . . . . . .$275
Lessie Rogers . . . . . . . . .$195
Steve Sax . . . . . . . . . . . .$155
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Fred Koubi . . . . . . . . . $6,010
Larry Decair . . . . . . . $3,005
Satish Vitha . . . . . . . . $1,505
Kirk Miller . . . . . . . . . . .$975
Norman Powers . . . . . . .$755
Larry Stone . . . . . . . . . .$530
Ann Wygle . . . . . . . . . . .$375
Kenny Watson . . . . . . . .$300
Randy Mellon . . . . . . . .$225
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Angela McFarquhar . $2,760
Herb Ross . . . . . . . . . . $1,585
Leo Kay . . . . . . . . . . . . .$830
Sayed Mazarei . . . . . . . .$480
O.J. Alcaraz . . . . . . . . . .$380
Jerry Singer . . . . . . . . . .$310
David Williams . . . . . . .$240
Mather Zickel . . . . . . . .$170
Jesse Egler . . . . . . . . . . .$140
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POKER PLAYER
LIMIT HOLD’EM
BUY-IN $20 + $15
PLAYERS 83
REBUYS 146
ADD-ONS 102
PRIZE POOL
$6,290
Glenn Smith
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Glenn Smith . . . . . . . . $2,515
Sayed Mazerei . . . . . . $1,445
Jonathan Kukurudz . . .$755
Paul Courmier . . . . . . . .$440
Eric Dahan . . . . . . . . . . .$345
N/A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$285
Larry Smith . . . . . . . . . .$220
Michael Strusinski. . . . .$160
Siw Valdes . . . . . . . . . . .$125
NO LIMIT HOLD’EM
BUY-IN $20 + $15
PLAYERS 153
REBUYS 452
ADD-ONS 207
PRIZE POOL
$15,425
Nila Ha
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Nila Ha . . . . . . . . . . . . $6,170
Young Song . . . . . . . . $3,085
Jeff Corrigan . . . . . . . $1,540
Dave Stann . . . . . . . . . .$1000
Maurice Azoulay . . . . . .$770
Mark Hangen. . . . . . . . .$540
David Taylor . . . . . . . . .$385
Omar Campolongo . . . .$310
David Shayne . . . . . . . . .$230
LIMIT HOLD’EM
BUY-IN $20 + $15
PLAYERS 62
REBUYS 119
ADD-ONS 86
PRIZE POOL
$15,030
Javid Berjis
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Javid Berjis . . . . . . . . $2,030
Christopher Hall . . . . $1,170
David Williams . . . . . . .$595
Helen Ichmelyan . . . . . .$360
Ali Alimi . . . . . . . . . . . . .$280
Adam Feierstein . . . . . .$230
Ray Honne . . . . . . . . . . .$180
Daryn Duff . . . . . . . . . . .$125
Desmond Thomas . . . . .$100
Just make the final table and be one of nine to win
a $10,000 entry to the major poker event in Las Vegas.
Come play in Casino Arizona’s No Limit Hold ‘Em Points Challenge.
Tournaments are held every Monday - Friday and the last Saturday of the
month, now through April 30, 2005. Qualifying players will go on to
compete in the Semifinals, held May 7th, 2005, with top players
advancing to the Championship Challenge on May 8th, 2005. The top nine
players receive a $10,000 entry to the major poker event in Las Vegas.
Call Casino Arizona for details.
Casino Arizona reserves the right to cancel or alter this promotion at any time. All winners will be responsible
for any tax liabilities.
WE’VE GOT YOUR GAME
101 & Indian Bend Adjacent to Scottsdale
480-850-7777 www.casinoaz.com
Owned and operated by the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community.
Please gamble responsibly.
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
33
Psychology of Playing Blind
As a professional Counselor, I continually see the
power and adaptability of the human mind with
many clients. Harnessing this unique power while
on the table is certain to bring players nice profits.
Because poker is a game which can lull the mind to
a into a monotonous pattern, I always
encourage players to find a way to
POKER COUNSELOR
By John Carlisle, MA, NCC
keep the game fresh while focusing
on learning and improving. The best
players continue to grow and improve, and they
certainly understand that consistently winning
comes from superior psychological strength.
We have all heard of the phenomenon involving
the visually impaired having heightened senses
of scent, touch, and hearing. This adaptation is
remarkable, but not terribly surprising. With less
information to be processed and filtered, the brain
assigns higher priority to the information that it
does receive. I feel that this same philosophy can
be used to improve your game, taking it to a deeper level.
When the opportunity is presented, try playing
a few hands blind (do not look at your own cards.)
A freeroll tournament online, or perhaps a Friday
night home game, may be one of the best places
to implement this tactic to help you improve your
overall poker skill-set. By doing so, your mind is no
longer focused on the cards in your hand. Instead,
you are fully engrossed with the actions and thinking of your opposition. Their reaction to the flop will
be more obvious, and the motivations of their bets
will be clearer than ever. After doing this exercise
a few times, you are sure to begin to hone the valuable instincts involved with reading people. Like a
complex puzzle that you are starting to unravel, you
will start to detect slight nuances and patterns that
will forge a feeling within you. You may not be so
lucky as to pick up obvious tells, but you will being
to truly “see” you opponents in a different, clearer
way. Use these slight cues and clues to dictate your
play for the hand, and then evaluate the accuracy of
your read after the hand unfolds.
A key positive outcome of playing hands in this
fashion will be the building of your own personal
confidence. You will literally feel your confidence
boom as you accurately predict the strength of
others and the outcome of the hand. More than
ever, you will be able to catch reads on other players and trust your instincts while you play. When
you utilize this skill and newfound confidence during regular play, you are likely to reap some clear
benefits.
Remember to always challenge yourself to continue to learn and grow within this great game.
When you have a chance, play your hands blinds
a few times to sharpen your reads and instincts.
While understanding strategy and pot odds are
primary factors to success, grasping the psychology of the game and your opponents is the key to
bolstering your bankroll in the long run. Work to
maximize the power of the mind in order to maximize your winnings. Now go make it happen.
Now go make it happen.
In addition to being an avid poker enthusiast, John is a
certified Counselor in the state of Pennsylvania. He has
a Master of Arts degree in Counseling from West Virginia
University, and a Bachelor's degree in Psychology
with a minor in Sociology from Lock Haven University.
You can ask the “Poker Counselor” your question at
[email protected].
34
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
JOE
MEETS
HOBBY
scowled at me and said,
“Youʼre next, Recruit
Crest.”
I was out-stacked two to
one, so I suggested Hobby
ask for side bets if the 1st
Platoon guys would pay
2:1 odds. Certain their
leader would beat me,
they happily complied. No
one knew I grew up playing head-up poker with
my father, a professional
gambler. I was prepared.
Playing cautiously and
with a fair amount of luck,
I slowly whittled down
my opponentʼs stack until
we were about equal. He
became more and more
agitated. In desperation
he said, “To hell with this
rinky-dink betting, weʼll
PART 3
pants as he crawled out of
the water. Unfortunately,
they saw me and told the
police. I got thrown out of
school. My parents were
furious. When the draft
notice came, I said, “Screw
it, Iʼm going in the Army.”
“Did your parents have
a fit?”
“Yeah, my Mom cried,
but my Dad said it was
time for me to ʻaccept the
logical consequences of my
irresponsible behavior and
grow up;ʼ thatʼs the way he
talks. So here I am.”
“Hobby, I agree with
your Dad, you were a
smuck.” He responded with
a hurt look, so I added,
“But that was then, this is
now. Youʼre shaping up.
The Army is making a man
out of you!”
“And have you noticed,
Joe, Iʼm even winning at
poker. Which reminds me,
when are you going to join
us and show off your poker
skill?”
“I donʼt know, Hobby,
but Iʼve been thinking
about it.”
“Great! Tonight would
be perfect. We have a challenge from the 1st Platoon.
Five of us against five of
them and weʼre one man
short. Itʼs a $10 buy-in, last
man playing wins all the
loot. How about it?”
“Youʼre on Hobby,” I
agreed.
It was a 25/50 cent
game, my first actual experience with Texas Hold
ʻEm. I understood it well
enough, but until I got a
better feel, I played conservatively. After about an
hour, I hadnʼt won a hand
but I was only down three
dollars. Suddenly I got
great cards—first a pair of
kings that netted a big pot,
followed by a flush, and
then a pair of snowmen
that held up. We were then
down to three players, I
was the only one from the
2nd Platoon. One of the
other guys was the Platoon
Sergeant of the 1st. He was
a mean dude and had the
biggest stack. I did some
bobbing and weaving,
avoiding serious challenges
while the Sarge knocked
off his teammate. He
I showed the 7, 10. My
supporters gasped. One
whined, “How could you,
Joe.”
When the river showed
an 8 there was a momentary cheer from the 1st
Platoon and then cold
silence when they realized
I hit a straight. Then it was
our turn to celebrate. Sarge
play no-limit.”
“Suits me, Sarge,” I
agreed.
After a few minor skirmishes I was dealt a 7,
10 and the flop was a 9,
J, K giving me a double
gut-buster draw. Sarge
bet heavily pre-flop and I
called. The turn produced
another J. I was still looking for one of eight outs.
When my opponent went
all in I figured him for a
set of jacks. I told Hobby,
though I knew it was a
long shot, “There comes
a time when you feel itʼs
right to gamble,” and
announced, “Iʼll call!”
“Trip Jacks,” Sarge said
as he turned over his J, A.
Feeling a bit foolish,
stormed off in a cloud of
colorful language.
Hobby expressed his
sentiment, “Are you an
idiot or a genius, Joe?”
“Good question, Hobby.
I canʼt really answer except
to say, Iʼm a poker player.”
Write to author David Valley
at: [email protected]
$1,000,000 guaranteed!
$81,500 added
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Date
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For hotel reservations call Billie Robbins at 541-966-1549
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M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
35
MONEY
Money seems to be the answer to almost every question
regarding life. Question: Why did the chicken cross the
street? To get to the other side is the answer. You do not
see money involved in this quest for answers. No. Upon
closer examination, there it is right in front of your face.
You see, the chicken-which is short for poultry-entails eat-
Dealer Vibes
By Donald W. Woods, Jr.
ing-which is directly related to purchase,
closely related to store which translates
to money. Now take street for example, it
is signifying some path or place to cross,
thereby, bringing to mind city streets, which
translate to taxes. Certainly, your awareness has all ready
beat me to it, taxes equate to money. Here again money
coming full circle to reign supreme in the focal point of
discussion even about chickens and streets.
Upon choosing, to play cards at the neighboring casino
the topic of conversation, either for self or another is:
How much money do I have to invest? Now the “high
rollers”, the well-to-doer card players have allocated
x-amount of dollars to invest long term in a specified
time to play, thereby, for them eliminating any possibility of monetary constraints. In other words in street
parlance: these players won’t be comin’ up short! While
the aforementioned players ponder a game plan, you are
back to: how much money do I have to invest. Obviously,
if you decide to go with limited cash you’ll have limited
options. The lifeblood of the gaming world depends on
these and like decisions from players like you. Oh yeah
you say, why? Simply put, without the shorthanded
bankroll, limited buy-ins, advanced payday loans, and in
street parlance: don’t go money; it would severely affect
the casino customer count. I am very confident that the
casinos would not enjoy a decision from you to forego
today’s outing until you acquire a proper bankroll. Now
the choice is yours to go with what you have, stay home,
or call a friend. If you decide to go with what you have,
there’ll be limitations on what games you can play. So
ultimately, the style of your play, the decisions you make
will be compromised by the lack of financial resources
for this particular outing, Then why go? I go... to get to
the other side, same as the chicken. See, getting to the
other side entails being in action. The one thing your
decision will surely take into account, the fact that you
can’t win at home. Well, let me take that back. You could
play on line poker, but where’s the fun in that.
So, for all intents and purposes, let’s say that your
choice is to try your luck. Most people in the business of
giving advice would probably suggest that you exercise
caution and discretion. Discretion is a good thing, but
throw caution to the wind! Broke now or broke later it’s
the same damn broke. Play bravely, for you will feel a lot
better about a loss if that is the way it turns out. Do not
concern yourself with the things that you cannot change,
merely focus on a balanced attack designed to be the
aggressor when the situation dictates it. After all, careful
tenuous play is just another way to lose in the key of slow.
Finally, if the wheels fall off and you are faced with
that long walk to the car, remember you are not the first
and you won’t be the last. When you do get your hands
on some fresh money, your competitors will know that
you came to play the game.
Donald W. Woods, Jr. is a 9 year professional dealer.
Some of his diversified interests include, track and
field coach at the high school level yielding a championship in 2002. He is currently penning an original
script, outside the poker arena, for his maiden voyage
to movie-land. For more information, contact him at
[email protected]
36
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
SHARKS CIR
they played it out. After
some 40 spirited hands,
with a couple of chip-lead
changes, Paez prevailed and
kept the entire $97,310...
and the horse.
Gallagher is known for not
favoring deals, and this has
cost her dearly before. Last
year she finished third in a
$5,000 WSOP event and will
always be remembered for
the farewell salute she gave
to the players, tournament
director and the TV crew
when she busted out.
Paez splits his time
between running his delicatessen and playing poker.
Making his first U.S. trip
this year, he had a first in
pot-limit holdʼem at Tunica,
and a ninth in pot-limit
Omaha.
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8. Hank Karwowski. . . . $6,402
9. Jinyoung Sung . . . . . . $5,123
2/15/05
LIMIT HOLD’EM
BUY-IN $1,500 + $80
PLAYERS 176
PRIZE
POOL
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
$256,080
Raul Paez
Raul Paez . . . . . . . . . $97,310
Patricia Gallagher . . $48,655
Steve Dunning . . . . . $24,072
Steve Rosling . . . . . . $15,365
Chip Jett . . . . . . . . . . $10,243
Eric Gault. . . . . . . . . . $8,963
Art Charoen . . . . . . . . $7,682
Down to $375, Binh
Do Runs Over Field
to Win Super-Tight
Shootout
What this tournament
needed was some WD40. Play was so tight that
it took 5-1/4 hours just to
lose half the field. The
eventual winner of this
no-limit shootout (or was
it a no-limit sleep-in?) was
Washington state pro Binh
Do. He had $500 left
after his set was outrun by
a flush, and then dropped
to $375 before fighting his
way back.
Mixing up his play,
gambling, frequently mov(Continued on page 37)
Williamson Weds
stopped in his tracks only
temporarily. Knowing
Robert as I do, I fully
expect him to rise to the
occasion of the next tournament on the Professional
Poker Tour to which he was
elected on the recommendations of his peers.
Keep your eye on Robert.
He is poised for more fame,
thanks to his abundance of
talent and his sister Karen
who has recently taken
on the management of his
career. Poker Player wishes
Robert a speedy recovery
and a fast return to the forefront of the poker world
where he says “he enjoys
some incredible friendships”
as well as the major poker
competitions from which he
“consistently earns a very
considerable living.”
Wendeen H. Eolis was featured in the 2004/2005 WPT
televised Ladies Night II
event. She has to her credit
seven world record-setting
performances for a woman
in major tournaments
and is a member of the
Professional Poker Tour.
She has been interviewed
by ESPN, Fox Sports,
Travel Channel, A&E
Biography, Court TV and
BBC television network. By
day, She is CEO of Eolis
International Group, Ltd,.
which reviews law firms
and selects counsel, worldwide—for companies, governments, and individuals.
You may contact Ms. Eolis
at [email protected].
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CLE COMMERCE
ing in, he steadily moved
up until, when a three-way
deal was made, he owned
more than 19,000 of the
28,500 chips in play.
Along the way, he also
made a great laydown. He
had top pair with an ace
kicker, along with a flush
draw, and folded against
a set.
COMMERCE CASINO
L.A. POKER CLASSIC
2/14/05
NO LIMIT HOLD’EM
SHOOTOUT
BUY-IN $1,000 + $60
PLAYERS 190
PRIZE
POOL
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
$184,300
Binh Do
Binh Do. . . . . . . . . . . $67,820
Tom Franklin . . . . . . $35,017
Alex Golshanara . . . $17,324
Tony Cousineau . . . . $11,058
Mel Judah . . . . . . . . . $7,372
6.
7.
8.
9.
Derek Bukowski . . . . $6,451
Ramzi Daniel . . . . . . . $5,529
Paul Pirrone . . . . . . . . $4,608
Alan Smurfit . . . . . . . $3,686
Highway Contractor
Playing Poker Just 10
Months Wins #19,
No-Limit
John Smith, a highway contractor, must be a fast learner. After only 10 months
experience playing poker,
he was the declared winner
of event 19 of LAPC XIV
after a four-way deal.
The key hand for him
in this $970 no-limit
holdʻem event came early
at the final table. Smith
had started as leader with
135,600 chips, followed by
Glenn Cozen with 113,000.
On the third hand the two
big stacks tangled. Smith
ended up taking about
50,000 from Cozen, jumped
into a huge lead and was
never headed after that.
Smith is mainly a
$10-$20 no-limit sidegame player, though he
had one prior final table at
Commerce last year. In this
event he said he worked
his way up slowly but surely, playing selectively “and
aggressively when I needed
to be.” He paid tribute to
Cozen, who finished second
at the 1993 WSOP championship. “He wouldnʼt
let me get away with anything,” Smith said.
When the deal was made,
Smith had 171k in chips,
followed by Chris Crockett,
127k; David Daneshgar,
126k; and Steve Shkolnik,
109k.
Crockett is in the construction business with his
father, who finished 10th
in limit holdʼem the night
before. He is only three
weeks past 21. When he
was only three days past
21, he made the money at
a $3,000 no-limit event at
Tunica, and tonight worked
his way up to second place
after starting second-lowest chipped. The youngster
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would seem to be a someone to keep an eye on.
COMMERCE CASINO
L.A. POKER CLASSIC
2/13/05
NO LIMIT HOLD’EM
BUY-IN $1,000 + $60
PLAYERS 355
PRIZE
POOL
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
$344,350
John Smith
John Smith . . . . . . . $127,410
Chris Crockett . . . . . $65,425
David Daneshgar . . . $32,713
Steve Shkolnik . . . . . $20,661
Derek Harrington . . $15,496
Glenn Cohen . . . . . . $12,052
Norman Lapin . . . . . . $8,609
Paul Kostashul . . . . . . $6,887
Chris McCormack. . . $5,510
Avoiding the ‘Crazies,’
Amir Vahedi Plays
Straight Poker,
Gets 2nd Win
final table with the most
chips, Amir Vahedi was the
official winner of event 18
of LAPC XIV, $1,455 limit
holdʼem, which carried a
$1.2 million prize pool.
But it was no wire-towire performance because
he found himself at an
unimaginably wild table.
One pot was eight-bet
before the flop. Another
saw a player bet blind into
the flop, turn and river.
Bluffing and calls with
almost nothing were rampant. One pot had numerous raises on the flop and
turn; the board showed J-J9-7-K and pocket 4s won
it! And, of course, the chip
swings were just as wild.
“I tried to stay out of
these crazy peopleʼs way,
and put myself in the right
position,” Vahedi said afterwards. “Maybe a few times
I let go of the best hand,
but I had no problem with
it because I didnʼt want
confrontations with these
crazies. I wanted their
chips, and didnʼt get much
of them, but I knew they
Starting and ending the
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M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
37
Johnny Moss was THE
man... the “Grand Old
Man of Poker.”
Pokerʼs answer to Babe
Ruth, the winner of three
World Series championships. He might have had a
fourth, but Puggy Pearsonʼs
ace-high in the 1973 no
limit hold ʻem event left
Moss in second place.
During his best years, no
one cast a longer shadow
than Moss.
big an impact he had on
poker then.”
The game would be rescheduled until the “Grand
Old Man” could get there.
“I had never heard of any
such thing.”
Wasnʼt much that
Horseshoe founder Benny
Binion wouldnʼt to for his
life-long buddy. Moving
PLAYER
Profile
one event didnʼt seem like
a big deal . . . the natural
thing to do when it involved
Moss.
Of course poker, was
a far smaller piece of the
casino business during
those early years. Many of
the best known players, the
characters, the personalities are now in the Poker
Hall of Fame: Red Winn,
Pearson, Murph Harrold,
Tommy Abdo, “Puggy”
Pearson. And, of course,
Moss
“Those guys,” Pearson
says, “They was the head
scufflers back in those
days.” Thinking about that,
adding, “Yes sir, itʼs a fact
that pokerʼs changed a
whole lot since then.”
Harroldʼs son Dean, a
veteran Las Vegas gaming
executive, remembers Moss
as a regular in some of the
games thatg consumed so
much of Murphʼs time.
“Johnny was one of the
best,” Dean says, “A man
who had a certain instinct
you donʼt get from reading
books about how to come
away a winner.”
By the time, Brunson
first sat down at a Brenham,
Texas, poker table with
Moss in 1960, “The Grand
Old Man” had already
taken on and beaten Nick
“The Greek” Dandolos in
the marathon Las Vegas
poker sessions, that adsded
to the reputations of every-
Poker Player is pleased to welcome Phil Hevener back to its pages.
Hevener was the Managing Editor of Poker Player from July 1983 to
December 1985. Phil wanted to produce his own publication, which he
did with Larry Hall. They called it, “Las Vegas Style.” A popular journalist who writes for many major publications, Phil was replaced in 1985 by
Gary Thompson, who is now the spokesman for Harrahs Entertainment.
38
JOHNNY
Moss
BY PHIL HEVENER
He was already a member of the Poker Hall of
Fame when he died in Las
Vegas in 1997 at the age
of 89.
During his best yearʼs
Moss was pokerʼs equivalent of the fastest gun in
town that every new comer
with big goals and a bankroll to match wanted to take
a shot at. You had to beat
Moss to get a reputation
that would stick.
Which is how he and
Doyle Brunson met. It was
a 1960 game in Brenham,
Texas, one of the many
road games that kept the
best poker players on the
move in the years before it
was possible to settle down
in locales such as Las Vegas
or Atlantic City.
“Moss was THE man
then,” Brunson says. “I was
the young challenger to
people like him.”
Winning a reputation
meant beating Moss at
games such as no limit low
ball and hold ʻem
Poker pro Eric Drache
who ran the Horseshoeʼs
World Series of Poker for
16 years, remembers showing up in 1972 to play in
the WSOPʼs seven-card
stud tournament.
“They told me the tournament had been rescheduled for another day
because Johnny Moss had
played late in a side game
the night before and had to
get his sleep.”
Drache laughs about that
now. “I had no idea who
Moss was, but thatʼs how
one involved.
Most of them were
played at the Flamingo,
says Jack Binion. But
some of the best known
ones were played at the
Horseshoe, where Jackʼs
dad and Horseshoe founder
Benny, had decided a good
high stakes poker game
featuring a couple of solid
personalities, might
attract people to the new
Fremont gambling hall the
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
elder Binion had opened in
1951.
“Johnny was a much better player,” Jack Binion
remembers, “but thatʼs the
game Nick wanted to play.
The two of them played
over a number of years,
back into the 1940s. Most
of their sessions were at the
Flamingo.”
Did they play in Texas?
Binion grins at that. “No
. . . no, Nick never went
down to Texas.”
The passage of years
and the astounding nature
of Mossʼ larger than life
achievedments in the world
of poker a half century and
more ago have tended to
soften recollections of his
approach to poker and life
in general.
But no one pretends that
there was anything gentle to
the Moss approach.
“The man had a sense
of humor but he could also
show you all the sharp
edges, like a bundle of
barbed wire,” says a Moss
acquaintance who did not
want to be identified. “He
could be so cantankerous it
was hard to be in the same
room with him.”
Drache says, “I remember Johnny saying one day
that anyone over the age of
about 60 should be taken
out and shot. What made
this funny was at the time
he said this he was more
than 70.”
A Las Vegas reporter
remembering his first
interview with Moss says,
“I asked the guy what it
takes to be successful at
the poker table. He looked
at me like I had just asked
him the stupidest question
he had ever heard. He taps
a finger against his wrist,
says, ʻYouʼve gotta have
ice water in your veins. You
cut me right here and now,
thatʼs what youʼre gonna
get. Isnʼt gonna be blood,
itʼs gonna be ice water.ʼ”
More than four decades
after their first games on
the Texas poker circuit,
Brunson says of Moss, “We
were friendly but we never
really friends. We were
friendly adversaries. Johnny
was too much the rattlesnake for me.”
Was Moss as good as the
legend has painted him?
“He was very, very
good,” Brunson says, “the
big man of poker back then.
Me? I was the young challenger.”
Mossʼ death closed the
book on a period when
poker players accomplished
big things, as much through
the force of personality as
the use of skill.
“I played in games with
Johnny maybe 30 times,”
says former Poker Player
editor Gary Thompson. It
was mostly the middle limit
games because in the later
years his skills had slipped
some. Everyone knew that,
but I could still see flashes
of the player he had been.
What really stand out was
those piercing eyes, like he
could look right through
you.”
Drache remembers Moss
for some of the “good
advice” he got from him.
“When I got out to Las
Vegas about all I played
was seven-card stud. That
was my game, but Johnny
was the one who told me
I should learn as many as
I could. He said you never
knows where youʼre gonna
find a good opportunity and
you hate to miss it because
itʼs not your game.”
“The thing about
Johnny,” Binion says,
“Poker was his life. He
played it till he died.”
World-Class Championship Poker Tournament At The Peppermill
Poker is the hottest game
going and the Peppermillʼs
smoke-free Poker Room
is playing host to some
the gameʼs top players Saturday, Feb. 26
– Sunday, March 6 for the
prestigious Spring Poker
Tournament, which has a
total estimated prize pool
of over $350,000, including gold bracelets for the
winners of the Limit Hold
eʼm and No Limit Hold
ʻem championship events.
A field of 1,500 players is expected to take
part in the eight days
of heated poker action
that will include Limit
Holdʼem, No Limit Texas
Hold ʻem and Omaha HiLow Split. Each day will
feature two new tournaments, one at noon the
other 7 pm, and there
will be an 8 am Satellite
tournaments every day
for players wishing to
win their way into the
afternoon tourneys.
The action begins on
Saturday, Feb. 26 with
a warm up Satellite Day
tournaments with a $60
buy-in followed by the
First Chance tourney
with a $220 buy-in and
no re-buys.
The serious competition
begins with No Limit Hold
ʻem on Sunday, Feb. 27 at
noon, with a $225 buy in
with a $200 re-buy.
Here is the daily schedule:
• Saturday, Feb. 26,
“Satellite Day”—10am:
$60 buy-in, Limit and No
Limit Hold ʻem satellites
• Sunday, Feb. 27—Noon:
No Limit Hold ʻem, $225
buy-in, $200 rebuy; 7 pm:
Limit Hold ʻem, $120
buy-in
• Monday, Feb. 28—Noon:
Limit Hold ʼem, $225
buy-in, $200 re-buy; 7 pm:
No Limit Hold ʻem, $120
buy-in
• Tuesday, March 1—Noon:
No Limit Hold ʼem, $220
buy-in, no re-buy; 7 pm:
Omaha Hi/Lo Split, $120
buy-in
• Wednesday, March 2—
Noon: Omaha Hi/Lo Split,
$120 buy-in, $100 re-buy;
7pm: No Limit Hold ʻem,
$120 buy-in
• Thursday, March 3—
Noon: No limit Hold ʼem,
$120 buy-in, $100 re-buy;
7pm: Limit Hold ʻem,
$120 buy-in
• Friday, March 4—Noon:
Limit holdʼem, $120 buyin, $100 re-buy; 7pm: No
Limit Hold ʻem, $120
buy-in
• Saturday, March
5, “Championship
Event”—Noon: Limit
Hold ʼem $535 buy-in,
no re-buy; 7pm: No
Limit Hold ʻem $120
buy-in
• Sunday, March 6,
“Championship Event”—
Noon: No Limit Hold
ʻem $535 buy-in
Registration for the Noon
tournaments begins at 9 am,
evening tournament registration begins at 6 pm.
Tournament players will
enjoy a smoke-free environment and food service.
Special room rates are
available for tournament
players, based on availability.
For further information
please call 800-648-6992
or 689-7275, or go to www.
peppermillreno.com.
Win $10,000 WSOP Seat at Sam’s Town
Win your way into the World
Series of Poker at Samʼs
Town in Las Vegas. Samʼs
Town is giving away two
seats to the 2005 World
Series of Poker at no cost to
the players. Players making
the final table in any 7:00
p.m. evening tournament
through May 29, 2005 will
earn one point. The top nine
point earners in the evening
events will play in a one
table satellite on Saturday,
June 4, 2005 and the winner
will win a $10,000 seat at the
WSOP Championship event
to be held on July 7, 2005.
Players finishing 10
through 19 in the point
standings will play in a one
table satellite on the same
day for a $2,000 seat at the
WSOP.
Players who didnʼt make
the top 19 point earners will
still have a chance to win
a seat in the “Wild Card”
drawing. To be eligible for
the drawing players must
earned at least five points in
the evening events and must
be present to win. In the
event that the player chosen as the “Wild Card” had
qualified in the 10-19 bracket that player will move up
to the $10,000 one table
satellite and a replacement
will be drawn to play in the
$2,000 one table satellite.
For more information,
see ad on page 20 or contact poker room at 702454-8092.
Thursday, March 3rd · 7:15pm
Omaha H/L Split · $35 Buy-in · $5 Entry Fee · One $30 Rebuy
Friday, March 4th · 7:15pm
No-Limit Hold’em · $60 Buy-in · $15 Entry Fee · Two $40 Rebuys
Saturday, March 5th ·
No-Limit Hold’em · $55 Buy-in · $10 Entry Fee · No Rebuys
Sunday, March 6th · 2:00pm
No-Limit Hold’em · $5 Entry Fee · Multi $10 Rebuys · Two $10 Add-ons
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
39
The Case of the Missing Marker
Do any of you folks remember the old
Thunderbird Casino on the strip in Las
Vegas?
BacK in the saddle Again
By OKLAHOMA JOHNNY HALE
Most of you folks know that I come from
Oklahoma—and the fighting 45th army division was
from Oklahoma and the boys and girls proudly wore the
emblem of a thunderbird patch on the shoulders of their
uniforms during World War II.
Times changed and the Thunderbird changed its name
to the Silverbird—then it changed again to the El
Rancho casino. Then it set empty for a while—and now the
area has been changed once again too very expensive
high rise condominiums.
I remember Jimmy Durante when he played in the lounge
of the old Thunderbird and who could ever forget that
enormous schnozzola (his nose) and his signature line of
“Good Night Mrs. Calabash, whereever you are.” I remember I took my wife Carol there to see the Broadway musical of the day—“Flower Drum Song”—when the name was
changed to the Silverbird.
There was a high-stakes poker game held most of the
time at the Silverbird, where all the high-rolling poker
players of that day usually played. I will not name the
names of the players—to protect the innocent.
The poker players invited me to sit in the game and play
a little poker with them. This poker game went on during Major Riddle’s latter days when he was winding down
and giving a lot of his money back to the poker players.
The Major very often played high-limit poker in the poker room at the Silverbird.
I did not always carry enough cash with me to play at
those high stakes, so I set up a line of credit so that I
could obtain poker chips from the cage when I needed
them.
On one occasion I found myself short of cash and I took
out a marker for $5,000. Good fortune did not smile
on me that day and I lost the money. A few days later I
returned to the Silverbird’s cashier cage to pay off the
marker. When I arrived at the cage with the cash, nobody
could find my marker—the $5,000 marker had vanished.
Nowhere could they find any evidence of my taking down
the $5,000 marker. The Silverbird cashier’s cage could
never find the marker!
Now I know what happened to the marker—but even at
this late date—I cannot tell the complete story of the
missing $5,000 poker marker! Keep reading this column—
just maybe someday I can tell the rest of the story! But
too many people are still around—for me to tell you folks
right now!
But it seems strange, doesn’t it, that the cage couldn’t
find a $5,000 marker? Anyway, I told the cage at the
Silverbird—when you find the marker—I will pay it! But
they never found the marker and I have never had to
pay it.
Until next time, remember to STAY LUCKY!!!
Editor’s Notes: You may contact OK-J at his e-mail
[email protected], or play poker LIVE, ONLINE
with Johnny, Carol and Sarah at www.seniorpoker.
com. Johnny’s book, “The Gentleman Gambler,” is in
its third printing. Contact Johnny for your copy.
40
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
Book reviews
Doyle Brunsonʼs
Super System 2
by Doyle Brunson and others
Doyle Brunson, two-time
winner of the World Series
of Poker (1976 and 1977),
needs no introduction to
knowledgeable poker players. His original Super
System (1978) sold for $100
and no one even blinked
after learning the price.
Several years ago there
were rumors his book would
be updated or revised.
Based just on the rumors
Gamblerʼs Book Shop
received dozens of phone
calls and inquiries about
when it would be available.
Certainly much of the
game has changed, as has
the new generation of
players. The seven stud
high-low split game now
requires an eight or better
for low (previously that
qualifier did not exist).
Omaha and Omaha highlow split barely existed
as a popular game in the
1970s. The double blind for
holdʼem did not exist then,
nor did the game of triple
draw in its present form.
Brunsonʼs Super System
2 has arrived in time for
the new generation to enjoy
and employ at the tables.
The book begins appropriately with background
information about Brunson-his early days, his personal
life and what led him to the
land of poker and eventually, Las Vegas. Crandall
Addington, a world class
player offers a history
of no-limit holdʼem and
Brunson follows with the
good side and bad side of
online poker. Mike Caro,
author of several books
including the monumental
study on poker tells, presents 43 tips for playing
holdʼem, most keyed to
subconscious things players
do to bluff or disguise how
good or bad their hands are.
Steve Zolotow, also a
world class player, offers a
section titled Specialize or
Learn Them All. Jennifer
Harman, one of the better
world class women players, who has made many
television appearances,
presents an 80-page section
on limit holdʼem, followed
by Bobby Baldwinʼs key
77-page chapter on Omaha
eight-or-better.
Brunsonʼs son Todd
follows with a 55-page
chapter on seven-card stud
high-low eight-or-better,
with Lyle Berman focusing
in on pot-limit Omaha high
(48-page chapter).
In the past year, there
have been more questions
about triple draw (lowball)
than any other new form of
poker. Thankfully, Daniel
Negreanu now answers
many of the questions with
a 53-page chapter, including a rank comparison chart
for ace-to-five and deuceto-seven.
Brunson has written a
nice compact section titled
Tournament
Overview,
to prepare
players for the
decision-making theyʼll
face from opening day to
final table, should one be so
fortunate.
Perhaps the frosting on
the cake comes from Doyle
himself in a magnificent
chapter on no-limit holdʼem
(91 pages) with sections
on how to play particular
hands such as A-A, K-K,
A-K, Q-Q, pairs other than
aces, kings or queens, small
connecting hands, borderline or trouble hands and
trash hands.
Despite some minor
editing flaws, (Crandall
Addingtonʼs first name is
incorrectly spelled Crandell
for example), and the fact
Iʼd love to see many more
of the hands illustrated with
actual miniature playing
cards, the book is a solid
9.9 on a scale of 10 being
perfect. Itʼs as important a
book for the price as youʼll
add to your poker gaming
library this year--snap one
up now.
—Howard Schwartz
WE ARE YOUR PLACE TO PLAY POKER TOURNAMENTS!
DAILY AT 11:00 A.M.
$25 No Limit Hold’em Tournament
DAILY AT 2:00 P.M.
$25 No Limit Hold’em Tournament.
$10 Rebuys
$250 GUARANTEED TO FIRST PLACE
MONDAY – THURSDAY AT 7:00 P.M.
$50 No Limit Hold’em Tournament.
Rules and structure sheets are available in the poker room. Management reserves
all rights to change or alter these promotions at any time.
Commerce
would either blow their
chips off or blow somebody
elseʼs off.”
The strategy worked, and
when Vahedi was heads-up
with electrical contractor
Jason Chan, he had 740,000
in chips to 540k for Chan,
and decided to do a deal.
This was the second victory
for Vahedi, who also won
a limit holdʼem shootout
event. Actually, another
deal for most of the prize
pool had been made earlier with three players left.
Chan at that point led with
480k to 465k for Vahedi
and 295k for Finnish pro
Juha Helpi.
COMMERCE CASINO
L.A. POKER CLASSIC
2/12/05
LIMIT HOLD’EM
BUY-IN $1,500 + $80
COMMERCE CASINO
L.A. POKER CLASSIC
2/10/05
NO LIMIT HOLD’EM
BUY-IN $1,000 + $60
PLAYERS 406
PRIZE
POOL
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
PLAYERS 427
REBUYS 402
PRIZE
POOL
(Contʼd from page 37)
$393,820
Frank Sinopoli
Frank Sinopoli . . . . $145,711
Chris Fargis . . . . . . . $74,826
Shant Shahkarami . $37,413
Dennis Waterman . . $23,629
Nick Mao . . . . . . . . . $17,722
Mark Seif . . . . . . . . . $13,784
Paul Pirrone . . . . . . . . $9,846
Steve Simmons . . . . . . $7,876
Andrew Lambo . . . . . $6,301
COMMERCE CASINO
$1,206,195
L.A. POKER CLASSIC
2/9/05
7-CARD STUD
BUY-IN $1,000 + $60
PLAYERS 111
PRIZE
POOL
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Amir Vahedi
Amir Vahedi . . . . . . $446,292
Jason Chan. . . . . . . $229,177
Juha Helppi . . . . . . $114,589
Michael J. Siegal . . . $72,372
Paul Darden . . . . . . . $54,279
Peter Tran . . . . . . . . $42,217
Aram Zerounian . . . $30,155
Jim Lester . . . . . . . . $24,124
Greg Hopkins. . . . . . $19,299
COMMERCE CASINO
L.A. POKER CLASSIC
2/11/05
NO LIMIT HOLD’EM
BUY-IN $1,500 + $80
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
$107,670
Shoot it out
on the World Poker Tour.
Mel Judah
Mel Judah . . . . . . . . $41,991
Daniel Torla . . . . . . . $21,534
Ted Forrest . . . . . . . . $10,767
Esther Rossi . . . . . . . . $7,106
Spring Cheong . . . . . . $5,384
George Rechnitzer. . . $4,307
Joe Rocco . . . . . . . . . . $3,230
Joe Baron . . . . . . . . . . $2,155
Jian Liu . . . . . . . . . . . $1,615
PLAYERS 304
PRIZE
POOL
$442,320
COMMERCE CASINO
L.A. POKER CLASSIC
2/8/05
LIMIT HOLD’EM
BUY-IN $1,000 + $60
PLAYERS 217
PRIZE
POOL
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Eli Pearlman
Eli Pearlman . . . . . $163,658
Mike Vatan . . . . . . . . $84,041
Bryan Kim . . . . . . . . $42,020
Christian Kruel . . . . $26,539
Mike DuFloth. . . . . . $19,904
Danny Fuhs . . . . . . . $15,481
David Gee . . . . . . . . . $11,058
Mike Joon Lee . . . . . . $8,846
Humberto Brenes . . . $7,077
$210,490
World Poker Tour Shoot-Out Satellites.
All satellites start at 11 a.m. each Saturday
through March 19th. Register after the
conclusion of the previous satellite, limited
to the first twenty players registered. $100
buy-in plus $5 entry fee. Play-off winner
goes to the Bellagio with paid entry fee and
$3,000 for travel. For further details, call
1-800-APACHE 8, ext. 3618. Go For The Gold.
Scotty Brown
1. Scotty Brown . . . . . . $77,880
Must be 21 years of age to participate in any gaming activities. apachegoldcasinoresort.com
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
41
Entertainment
Listings
Entertainment RePORT
By LEN BUTCHER
Scanning the entertainment listings
on this page I noticed a few names
that brought back fond memories. The
first was Willie Nelson, that country rogue whom just
about everybody loves, and for good reason. He’ll be
performing at the Grand Casino in Biloxi March 5-6.
Not only is he a talented singer/songwriter, but
his efforts in helping America’s farmers, and his own
problems with the IRS, of which many of us, including
myself, have had, has endeared us to him.
I remember the first time I met Willie. I had gone
to see Emmylou Harris at the Golden Nugget in Las
Vegas and while I was waiting for the show to start, I
looked around the room and saw him sitting by himself at a table. I walked over, introduced myself, and
asked him if I could set up an interview with him. He
was very gracious, asked me to sit down and said that
next time he performed in Las Vegas we could get
together for the interview. I thanked him and got up
to leave, but he said, “Are you with anyone?” When I
said no, he invited me to share his table.
He said he had stopped by to see his good friend
Emmylou perform. We talked about a lot of things
before the show began, and he took me backstage to
meet Emmylou when the show finished. His friendliness and down-to-earth personality didn’t surprise
me, as over the years, I have interviewed many country stars and they all had those same traits.
Willie may not have the voice of a Tim McGraw or
Toby Keith, but ya gotta love ’im. Try to catch his
show if you happen to be in the Biloxi area.
The second name that caught my eye was James
Darren, who will be at The Orleans in Las Vegas Feb.
24-27. He recently performed here at another Coast
casino, the Suncoast, his first appearance in Las
Vegas in 24 years, and packed the house. “I have not
played Vegas since I stopped performing with Buddy
Hackett in 1980,” he told me. “I worked with him for
12 years—he didn’t work with anyone else.”
It’s hard to believe, but this star of the Gidget movies first appeared in Las Vegas at the Sands Hotel with
Joey Bishop in 1966. In 1980 he was signed to play in
the TV series, T.J. Hooker. This led to another careers.
“There was one episode that was not assigned to
a director, so I asked if I could direct it, and they said
yes. After T.J. Hooker, I directed from 1986 to 1998
and did shows like Hunter, Wise Guy, Melrose Place,
Walker Texas Rangers and Beverly Hills 90210 to
name a few. I really love directing.”
In 1998, Darren met the creator of Star Trek: Deep
Space Nine, who offered him a part. “He told me I’d be
perfect, but I didn’t want to do it because I’d be playing a singer and that was too on the nose.”
He says he turned down the role three times, but
then “my agent asked me to at least read the script. I
read it and loved it. The character, Vic Fontaine, was a
singer in the Rat Pack era and he wasn’t real—he was
a hologram—and I knew I was right for it.”
Darren found that when sang on the set, the crew
would come out and applaud. He was told he should
start singing again as he was having so much fun
with it. The Star Trek gig led to a record contract with
Concord Jazz and took him back out on the road in
1999. That’s good luck for us. He puts on a great show
and his voice is as good as ever. Plus he’s a really nice
guy and that goes a long way with me.
Len Butcher, a 25-year resident of Las Vegas, is
an online columnist for the Las Vegas ReviewJournal and a former Managing Editor of the Las
Vegas Sun and of Gaming Today. Reach him at
[email protected]
42
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
Poker Player Advertisers are shown in RED along with their ad’s page number
To list your event, contact Len Butcher, Entertainment Editor at [email protected]
CALIFORNIA
Agua Caliente Casino
Comedy Shop
Commerce Casino
Arena Patio
Ballroom Dance Party
Crystal Park Casino & Hotel Cambodian Dance Party
(29)
Karaoke
El As De Oros Night Club
Bonnie Raitt
Fantasy Springs Resort
Smokey Robinson
Harrah’s Rincon (9)
Hollywood Park Casino (5) Finish Line Lounge
Pechanga Resort & Casino Bill Cosby
(26)
CONNECTICUT
Grease
Foxwoods Resort Casino
Toby Keith
Mohegan Sun Casino
MISSISSIPPI
Gold Strike Hotel Casino
Carrot Top
(Tunica)
Willie Nelson
Grand Casino (Biloxi)
Charlie Daniels Band
Grand Casino (Tunica)
Charlie Daniels Band
Grand Casino (Gulfport)
Horseshoe Casino (Tunica) Kenny Wayne Shepherd
NEW JERSEY
Juanes
Taj Majal Hotel & Casino
Tropicana Casino & Resort Boyz II Men
(Atlantic City)
NEW YORK
Jon Stewart
Turning Stone Casino
NEVADA-LAS VEGAS
Aladdin Hotel & Casino (37) Magician Steve Wyrick
Donn Arden’s Jubilee!
Bally’s Resort & Casino
O
Bellagio Resort & Casino
Binion’s Horseshoe Hotel & Honky Tonk Cowgirls
Casino
Vinnie Favorito
Boulder Station Hotel &
Chris Cagle
Casino (6)
Cannery Hotel & Casino (16) Viva: Tribute to Santana
Thunder From Down Under
Excalibur Hotel & Casino
Gladys Knight
George Wallace
Flamingo Las Vegas
Bottoms Up
The Second City
Bruce Willis & The
Golden Nugget Hotel &
Accelerators
Casino
Clint Holmes
Harrah’s Hotel & Casino
Imperial Palace Hotel &
Legends In Concert
Casino (17)
Blue Man Group
Luxor Resort & Casino
Midnight Fantasy
8:30 p.m. Featuring three top comedians
weekly.
East L.A., Live Wednesdays 9 p.m.; Top comics,
Karaoke Thursdays 8 p.m.
Thursdays 8 p.m. to Midnight, Sundays 2-6 p.m.
Fridays 8 p.m. to 2 a.m.
Nightly, except Tues., Wed.
Presents Banda Nortina Sats 8 p.m.-3 a.m.
Feb 27, 8 p.m.
Feb 19, 8:30 p.m.
Live Jazz, Tues. 8 p.m.
Feb 18, 7 & 9:30 p.m.
Mar 4-5, 9 p.m.
Mar 4, 8 p.m.
Mar 5, 8 p.m.
Mar 5-6, 8 p.m.
Mar 11, 9 p.m.
Mar 5, 8 p.m.
Mar 11, 9 p.m.
Mar 5, 8 p.m.
Mar 11-12, 8 p.m.
Mar 5, 8 p.m.
Ongoing, Wednesday through Monday, 7 & 10 p.m.
Sat-Thu, 8 p.m.
Fridays through Tuesdays, 7:30 & 10:30 p.m.
Ongoing, 7 & 11 p.m. (dark wednesdays)
Ongoing, Tue-Sat 8 p.m., Fri-Sat 8 p.m.
Mar 12, 8 p.m.
Mar 4-5, 8 p.m.
Fridays through Wednesdays. 8:30 & 10:30 p.m.
Tuesdays through Saturdays, 7:30 p.m.
Tuesdays through Saturdays, 10 p.m.
Mondays through Saturdays, 2 & 4 p.m.
Thursdays through Tuesdays, 8 p.m.
Mar 4-5, 9:30 p.m.
Monday through Saturday, 7:30 p.m.
Mondays through Saturdays, 7 & 10 p.m.
7 p.m. Nightly
Tuesdays through Sundays, 8:30 p.m.
p.m. Wednesdays, Thursdays, Sundays; 8 p.m.
7
Mamma Mia
Mandalay Bay Resort &
Fridays; 7 & 10:30 p.m. Saturdays, Mondays.
Casino (31)
Dave Matthews Tribute Band Mar 3, 7 p.m.
Impressionist Danny Gans
8 p.m. (Monday thru Friday)
The Mirage Hotel & Casino (11)
Jay Leno
Mar 4, 9 p.m. & Mar 5, 10:30 p.m.
Tuesdays thru Saturdays, 7pm; Tuesdays &
Magician Lance Burton
Monte Carlo Resort & Casino
Saturdays. 7 & 10 p.m.
Feb 24-27, 8 p.m.
The Orleans Hotel & Casino James Darren
Palace Station Hotel &
Casino (6)
Laugh Trax comedy club
7:30 & 10 p.m. Tuesdays thru Saturdays.
Plaza Hotel & Casino (38)
The Comedy Zone
9 p.m. Tuesdays thru Sundays.
The Platters, Coasters and
Sahara Hotel & Casino (45) Drifters
8 p.m. nightly
Sam’s Town Hotel & Casino
(20)
Mar 6, 8:30 p.m.
Stardust Hotel & Casino
Sunset Station (6)
Texas Station (6)
LAUGHLIN
John Kaye
Don Rickles with Lainie
Mar 3-6, 8 p.m.
Kazan
Rock ’n’ Roll Hypnotist Thom Kaz Fridays, 10 p.m.
Love Shack
Fridays and Saturdays, 10 p.m. & 2 a.m.
Riverboat Ramblers Strolling
Colorado Belle Hotel Casino Dixieland Jazz Band
Tanya Tucker
Flamingo Hilton Hotel Casino
Ramada Express Hotel Casino Tribute to the Beatles
Mel Tillis
Riverside Hotel Casino
RENO
The Palmores
Atlantis Casino Resort
Sex & The Second City
Eldorado Hotel Casino
Richard Jeni
Reno Hilton Hotel Casino
Fridays & Saturdays, 8 p.m.
Mar 19, 7 p.m.
Feb 26-28, 8 p.m.
Mar 1-6, 7 p.m.
10 p.m.-4 a.m.
Mar 2-20, 8 p.m.
Mar 12, 8 p.m.
Sharks Circle Commerce
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Johannes Murez . . . $39,993
Meng Ching . . . . . . . $19,997
Jan Olav Syavik. . . . $12,629
Luis Sanchez . . . . . . . $9,472
Vinnie Landrum . . . . $7,367
Mickey Nguyen . . . . . $5,262
Jean R. Roukoz . . . . . $4,210
Derek Bukowski . . . . $3,368
winning one of PokerStarʼs
Sunday tournaments.
COMMERCE CASINO
L.A. POKER CLASSIC
2/5/05
NO LIMIT HOLD’EM
BUY-IN $500 + $40
COMMERCE CASINO
L.A. POKER CLASSIC
2/7/05
PLAYERS 767
PRIZE
POOL
$396,995
7-CARD STUD HI-LO
2. Larry Eubanks . . . . $69,474
3. Mickey “Mouse” Mills . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $34,142
4. Patrick Wachs . . . . . $20,247
5. John Rodeffer . . . . . $15,880
6. Scotty Brown . . . . . . $11,910
1. Airy Phanhyaseng . $146,071
COMMERCE CASINO
5. Russell Hendricks . . $17,766
L.A. POKER CLASSIC
2. Loi Van Phan . . . . . . $75,010
3. Chuck Pacheco . . . . $37,505
4. Amir Vahedi . . . . . . . $23,687
2/4/05
6. Cuong Huynh . . . . . $13,818
NO LIMIT HOLD’EM
7. Wayne Chang. . . . . . . $9,870
BUY-IN $1,000 + $60
PLAYERS 407
PRIZE
POOL
BUY-IN $1,000 + $60
$394,790
8. Mike Lee. . . . . . . . . . . $7,896
Qi Liu
9. Aram Zerounian . . . . $6,317
1. Qi Liu . . . . . . . . . . . . $46,075
2. Scott Fischman . . . . $23,038
PLAYERS 124
PRIZE
POOL
$120,280
COMMERCE CASINO
3. Steph Stapornkul . . $11,398
L.A. POKER CLASSIC
4. Michael “Zip” Vitullo $7,275
2/3/05
5. Jeff Calkins . . . . . . . . $4,850
OMAHA HI-LO
6. Eulises Sandoval . . . . $4,244
BUY-IN $1,000 + $60
7. Mike Longo . . . . . . . . $3,638
PLAYERS 125
Scott Dove
1. Scott Dove . . . . . . . $142,916
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Airy Phanhyaseng
PRIZE
POOL
$121,250
8. Hieu Ma . . . . . . . . . . . $3,031
9. Anthony Reategui . . . $2,425
Param Gill
Param Gill . . . . . . . . $46,907
Paul Darden . . . . . . . $24,056
Brian Goddard . . . . $12,028
Scott Fischman . . . . . $7,938
George Shahrezay . . . $6,016
Ken Steinberg . . . . . . $4,811
Steven Metzger . . . . . $3,608
Alex Papachatzakis . . $2,408
Larry Eubanks . . . . . $1,804
COMMERCE CASINO
L.A. POKER CLASSIC
2/6/05
NO LIMIT HOLD’EM
BUY-IN $1,000 + $60
PLAYERS 219
PRIZE
POOL
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
$212,430
Ken Goldstein
Ken Goldstein . . . . . $78,597
Jeff York . . . . . . . . . . $40,362
Sam Grizzle . . . . . . . $20,181
Antonio Esfandiari . $12,746
Joe Deniro . . . . . . . . . $9,559
Binh Do. . . . . . . . . . . . $7,435
Agop Boghssian . . . . . $5,311
Alan Smurfit . . . . . . . $4,219
Ahn Dang . . . . . . . . . . $3,399
Online Player Scott
Dove is Winner Of
No-Limit Event
Lasting 1 Hour
Dove, a resident of
Scottsdale, Arizona has been
playing poker for only 16
months after being tutored
by two of his friends. He
spends about 70 percent of his
poker time online, his biggest
cash-out being $87,000 for
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
43
The So-Called Coin Flip, PART 2
Last time we were talking about the so-called
“coin flip” confrontation between overcards and
pocket pairs. We noted that while
pocket pairs always have a slight
KILLER Poker
By John Vorhaus
edge over overcards, they’re huge
underdogs to bigger pairs, and so must be played
with circumspection and smarts. This time let’s
look at the other side of the confrontation, the
overcard side, and see how it performs.
One thing overcards have going for them is that
they’re rarely badly dominated like pairs can be.
The only time a hand like A-K is in serious trouble,
for instance, is when it finds itself up against A-A
or K-K, in which case the A-K figures to lose seven
to nine times out of ten. But the odds against an
opponent having one of these hands are extremely
long, especially since you hold an ace and a king
yourself. Therefore, when you bet big with A-K, you
can usually be confident of being no worse than
a slight underdog —though never a pure favorite—
against the likeliest calling hands, other pocket
pairs.
This fact gives you a little room to get creative
with your A-K holdings. Let’s say you’re playing in
a no-limit game with $2 and $5 blinds, and three
players have limped in before the action gets to
you. You have $100 in your stack. If you push allin and get one caller, you’ll be betting $100 to win
around $120. The dead-money overlay gives you
proper odds if you get called by a pocket pair from
queens on down, plus extra equity from the times
that no one cares to contest.
Of course, you have to know your foes. In today’s
wild and wooly low buy-in no limit games, people
will make all sorts of -- I don’t want to call them
stupid, so let’s call them imaginative -- plays. Get
two callers in this situation and, depending on
their hands, you’re usually slightly worse than a
3-2 favorite to win. Yes, you’re still a favorite, but
you’ll still go broke two times out of five. It’s no
fun to go broke, especially if the agony of defeat
can put you on tilt and cause you to start hemorrhaging at the wallet. So not only do you have to
know your foes, you have to know yourself: Can
you make high-risk, high-reward moves, encounter
adverse outcomes, and still stay on your game? If
so, go ahead and play Big Slick strongly, confident
that with rare exceptions the hand is never in terrible shape to start. If not, snug up your starting
requirements and look for opportunities to drive
pure premium hands, or else to trap where the
cost is low and the potential profit is high.
Next time we’ll talk about “tweener” situations,
where one player holds a high and a low card and
his opponent holds two in between. Until then, “go
big or go home,” but go always with care.
[JV’s latest books, POKER NIGHT and THE KILLER
POKER HOLD’EM HANDBOOK are available now in
bookstores or through www.vorza.com.]
2005 WORLDWIDE
POKER TOURNAMENTS
To list your 3 day events contact: Joel Gausten, Managing Editor at: [email protected]
DATE
EVENT
LOCATION
Jan 26-Feb 24
LA Poker Classic
Commerce Casino, Commerce, CA
Feb 20-27
Bregenz Open
Casinos Austria, Bregenz, Austria
>Feb 20–March 1 Harrah’s Rincon Poker Tourn (ESPN) Harrah’s Rincon (AdPg 9), Valley Center, CA
Feb 21-27
Midway Medley
Grosvenor Casino Walsall, West Midlands, UK
Feb 26-Mar 6
Spring Poker Tournament
Peppermill Hotel and Casino (AdPg 17), Reno, NV
>Mar 3-20
Winnin’ o’ the Green
Bicycle Casino (AdPg 3), Bell Gardens, CA
Mar 4-6
ATLARGE 2005
Trump Taj Mahal, Atlantic City, NJ
Mar 4-11
Bay 101 Shooting Star Tourn. Bay 101, San Jose, CA
Mar 10-12
No Limit Hold’em EPT Event
Concord Card Casino. Vienna, Austria
Mar 10-12
E-WSOP Trial
Concord Casino, Vienna, Austria
Mar 10-Apr 1
World Poker Challenge
Reno Hilton, Reno, NV
Mar 11-28
Masters Ch’ship of Poker
The Orleans, Las Vegas, NV
>Mar 12-22
Rio Las Vegas Poker Tourn (ESPN) Rio Hotel & Casino (AdPg 9), Las Vegas, NV
Mar 15-20
EPT Grand Final
Casino Monte Carlo, Monte Carlo, Monaco
Mar 21-28
Sussex Masters Easter Festival Rendezvous Casino at the Marina, Brighton, UK
>Mar 22-Apr 2 Spring Poker Roundup
Wildhorse Resort Casino (AdPg 35), Pendleton, OR
Mar 28-Apr 11
New England Poker Classic
Foxwoods Resort Casino, Mashantucket, CT
Mar 29-Apr 3
The Poker Classics
Grosvenor Victoria Casino, London, England
>Mar 30-Apr 10Sport of Kings
Hollywood Park Casino (AdPg 5), Inglewood, CA
Mar 31-Apr 24
3rd Ann. 5-Star World Poker Classic Bellagio, Las Vegas, NV
>Apr 11-May 1 Stars and Stripes
Apr 12-17
Southern Classic 2005
Grand Casino Gulfport, Gulfport, MS
Apr 18-24
Torneo di Poker
Hit Casino, Nova Gorica, Slovenia
>Apr 20-May 17 Plaza World Poker Classic
Plaza Hotel & Casino (AdPg 38), Las Vegas, NV
Apr 24-May 2
WSOP Warm Up VI
Garden City Casino, San Jose, CA
>Apr 26-May 10 Harvey’s Lk Tahoe Poker Tourn (ESPN) Harvey’s Resort Casino (AdPg 9), Stateline, NV
May 1-31
World Ch’ship of Poker
May 5-10
Oasis Open
Oasis Casino, Mesquite, NV
May 6-22
Heavenly Hold’em
May 8-15
Paris Open of Poker
Aviation Club de France, Paris, France
May 11-15
Western Canadian Poker Classic Casino Yellowhead, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
May 12-22
Spring Pot of Gold
>May 21-30 Harrah’s New Orleans Bayou Poker Challenge (ESPN) Harrah’s Casino New Orleans (AdPg 9), New Orleans, LA
June 1-5
Estonian 5th Open Ch’ship
Astoria-Palace Casino, Tallinn, Estonia
>Jun 3-Jul 8 MSOP
>Jun 3-Jul 15 World Series of Poker 2005 Rio Hotel & Casino (AdPg 9), Las Vegas, NV
Jun 6-12
The World Masters
Grosvenor Victoria Casino, London, England
Jun 18-30
Fiesta al Lago
Bellagio, Las Vegas, NV
July 1-31
U.S. Open Ch’ship of Poker
>Jul 2-17
Larry Flynt’s Grand Slam of Poker IV Hustler Casino (AdPg 13), Gardena, CA
Jul 11-29
Rendezvous a’ Paris
Aug 3-6
WPX London Open
Old Billingsgate Market, London, UK
>Aug 4-Sept 4 Legends of Poker
Aug 28-Sept 4 Speedway of Poker VII
Garden City Casino, San Jose, CAAug 29–Sept 18
Aug 29-Sept 18 Borgata Poker Open
Borgata, Atlantic City, NJ
Sept 6-25
Calif. State Poker Ch’ship
Sept 26–Oct 2 The European Championships Grosvenor Victoria Casino, London, UK
Sept 29-Oct 10 Fall Pot of Gold
>Sept 29-Oct 16 Big Poker October
Oct 5-9
Canadian Poker Championship Casino Yellowhead, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
>Oct 17-30
Nat’l Ch’ship of Poker
Hollywood Park Casino (AdPg 5), Inglewood, CA
>Nov 2-12
Fall Poker Roundup
Wildhorse Resort Casino (AdPg 35), Pendleton, OR
Nov 4-20
Holiday Bonus Tournament
Nov 13-20
The Hold’em Series
>Nov 24-Dec 11 Turkey Shoot/Ho Ho Hold’em Bicycle Casino (AdPg 3), Bell Gardens, CA
Nov 29-Dec 18
Five Diamond World Poker Classic Bellagio, Las Vegas, NV
Nov 30-Dec 5
Campionato Italiano di Poker
Hit Casino, Nova Gorica, Slovenia
POKER PLAYER:
IT’S ON THE INTERNET!
The entire publication of Poker Player, ads and all, is now available on
the internet. You can read the Current issue and all of our back issues, in
their entirety, by going to: www.gamblingtimes.com/poker_player.
44
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
ouisiana has long
been famous for
many reasons; the
stateʼs history and culture,
the unique cuisine and the
annual Mardi Gras celebration are usually among
the first to come to mind.
However, the game of
poker has become popular
L
hardly any difference
between a docked riverboat
casino and a land based
building.
“When you walk onto the
boat, itʼs hard to tell youʼre
on a boat unless you go
outside,” Douga said. “We
donʼt have to cruise, but
weʼre on the river.”
Poker Rooms in Louisiana
MAP # CASINO
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Isle Of Capri
Harrah’s
Harrah’s
Coushatta Resort
Hollywood Casino
Paragon
Argosy
Boomtown
CITY
Lake Charles
New Orleans
Lake Charles
Kinder
Shreveport
Marksville
Baton Rouge
Harvey
OPEN
HOURS
# OF
TABLES
GAMES
24/7
24/7
24/7
24/7
24/7
Wed-Mon 10a
24/7
24/7
25
23
21
16
10
7
7
7
H 7
H 7 O
H 7
H 7
H 7
H 7
H 7
H 7 Oh/l
Hotel - Hotel/motel physically attached to casino
* - Half of tables smoking, half non-smoking
*** - Hotel under construction
here as it has across the
country, and several of
Louisianaʼs casinos have
been meeting the challenge of providing poker
to a growing base of fans.
Several of the stateʼs poker
rooms offer live no-limit
Texas Holdʼem, among
other games and tournaments.
One of Louisianaʼs larger
poker rooms is located in
the Isle of Capri Casino,
a riverboat casino in Lake
Charles. Poker room manager Billy Douga, who
was named to the position
a year ago after four prior
years of employment at
the Isle of Capri, has been
watching the poker room
expand over the past few
years to meet the needs of
an increasing poker-playing
clientele.
“In May two years ago,
we went from twelve tables
to 20 tables,” Douga said,
“and in November a year
ago, we went to 25 tables.”
For those who have
never been in a riverboat
casino, Douga said thereʼs
players in our smaller tour- that you want to put in the
room, supervision and dealnaments to 120 players.
ers, followed by a pretty
We have a tournament
lengthy training process. Iʼd
every day.”
say all in all itʼs probably
As for the future,
Douga believed the
a four-month process from
southern United
start to finish.”
States is beginRohrer said, with most
ning to be seen
everything in place, all they
as a poker
have to do now is wait.
destination
“We were going to open
– “More and a poker room in this
more so,” Douga current casino, and
said – and the future of decided to hold off
the game in Louisiana was
and wait and put it in
only looking up.
“Bigger and better,” Douga said.
“We continue to
By Jason Zinzilieta
expand and continue
to grow.”
this new casino, so
As with other casinos
weʼve done most of
across the country, a few
our training,” Rohrer
in Louisiana are looking
said. “What weʼll
to add or expand their own
have to do now is just a
poker rooms. Two new
refresher course prior to the
rooms are scheduled to
opening.”
Rohrer said the new room
would open with eight to
ten poker tables and, beyond
HIGH
that, the rest would be up to
NL?
LIMITS
S/NS HOTEL
the clientele.
Y
20-40
S
Y
“Weʼre going to pretty
Y
10-20
S*
N***
much allow anything the
Y
20-40
S
Y
Y
10-20
S**
Y
customers want,” Rohrer
Y
20-40
S
Y
said. “We can go no-limit,
N
4-8
N
Y
high limit, low limit, whatY
10-20
N
Y
ever they want, weʼre going
N
4-8-12
S**
N
to let them to dictate what
type of tables they want.
Whatever there is a need
for, thatʼs what weʼre going
to do.”
Rohrer said, with everyone wanting to play poker,
he believed business at the
new poker room would be
good from the get-go, and
improve with time.
LOUISIANA
“Myself, I believe that
weʼre going to have the
need for more tables,”
Rohrer said, “Weʼre a little
limited for space in this
new building, but thatʼs
always an obstacle that we
can work around, whether
it be expanding the building itself or moving the
poker to the current casino,
thereʼs always opportunity
to take care of that if the
need arises.”
S/NS - Smoking (S) or non-smoking (NS) poker room
** - Non-smoking during tournaments
Days open, hours of operation and tables may vary
Douga said poker in
Louisiana has grown quite
a bit in the past few years
as it has almost everywhere
across the country, and with
that growth the people who
play have changed.
“Weʼre getting younger
people and more females
lately,” Douga said.
“Mostly a lot of younger
and middle aged people.”
Douga also said live nolimit Texas holdʼem games
have become popular at the
Isle of Capri, even though
they only started them a
few months ago, and heʼs
also had to expand his tournament schedule to handle
the new crowds who have
been demanding more
poker and more tournaments.
“Only in the last year or
so have we expanded our
tournaments,” Douga said.
“Prior to our expansion,
we had two tournaments a
week, and they would bring
in about 30 to 60 people.
Now we have eleven tournaments a week, and they
range anywhere from 30
open in the next several
months:
the Horseshoe Casino in
Bossier City, a few miles
east of Shreveport, which
is expected to open their
poker room in March, and
the Cypress Bayou Casino
in Charenton, located
about 45 miles southeast
of Lafayette. According to
Tony Rohrer, director of
table games at the Cypress
Bayou, the poker room
will actually be located in
their new casino, Shortyʼs,
scheduled to open next door
to the Cypress Bayou in
July. Rohrer told us theyʼre
ready to go when the new
casino opens, and told a
little about whatʼs involved
with opening a new poker
room in Louisiana.
“Itʼs a very long process,” Rohrer said. “First
comes the approval of
the governing entities,
the state police and tribal
gaming commissions. You
then have to develop your
internal controls and policy
manuals, then thereʼs the
selection of the employees
M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
45
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48
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M A R C H 7, 2 0 0 5
Home of the Largest Tournaments Online

Read It Now - Gambling Times

Transcription

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