Mean Gene

Great Moments In Poker

So I'm playing a HORSE tournament the other day and I've got some chips through the second go-round. We switch to Razz and I'm dealt a deuce and a trey down and an ace up. Very nice. We get to betting and my next card is a six. I bet and get two callers. The guy to my left is showing a nine and a seven. The guy to my right is showing a seven and a king.

My next card is a brick, but the other two guys get even worse cards. I bet, the guy on my left calls, and the guy on my right calls showing 7-K-J. OK. The next card he gets another King. He's showing 7-K-J-K and checks. I get a five, so I have a tasty six-high. I bet, the guy to my left folds...and the guy to my right check-raises me.

Check raises me, even though his board reads 7-K-J-K. And I'm showing A-6-Q-5. Now, I know what's going on here. The guy somehow forgot we're playing Razz. He thinks we're playing Stud or something. OK, brain cramps happen. The next card is dealt and he folds to my bet. I type in chat, "Forgot we were playing Razz?"

He answers, "I had A-5 in the hole."

Ah.

We move to my play tonight. I get aces cracked on the turn with the money in preflop, but luckily the other guy didn't have much money in front of him so it didn't hurt much. I hit a few hands and get myself comfortably in the black. And then comes this hand. I'm dealt pocket fives in the big blind. There's a fairly large raise in early position, one caller before me.

The flop comes A-5-5. The original better makes a pot-sized bet.

Now, this is a dream situation. We both have big stacks. He probably has AK, AQ, maybe even aces. This is a chance to stack him and have myself a really nice night. How to play this? Raise, and maybe get him to re-raise and get it all in right now? Maybe, but I might scare him off. Just call, make him think I have a medium ace (or maybe a medium pair?) and induce another bet after the turn? What to do, what to do...

Sadly, this discussion is moot.

See, I folded preflop.

I have no excuse, even though I'll offer this one up--I was playing three tables and was watching a player have a meltdown at another table (I ended up stacking him a bit later, which brought on another tirade, semi-deserved). I was in the big blind and getting around 3.5 to 1 to call, but of course the implied odds if I hit my set make that a must-call even if I think the other guy has aces.

But I didn't call. After I confessed my donkitude to the table the guy said he had AQ. Might've stacked him. Never gave myself the chance. A lesson learned.

But the Poker Gods smile at the donkey who is humble and accepts his load with a merry whinny. At the table that distracted me I was dealt 55 the very next hand and flopped a set. I didn't win a big pot because the flop came with two hearts and another two popped on the turn and river, cramping my style, but the other guy only had 2nd pair and came along for the ride. So, I still love poker.

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