Saturday night's all right for poker

I went to the Gold Strike and played in their 7 p.m. tournament. $135 buyin for 10,000 in chips. There were 55 players and first place paid $2200. I made it to the final table with a short stack (only seven were paid). About one orbit in, I limped in with ♦J ♥10. The flop was 10-X-X. I bet, got raised, and moved all in. Desperate times call for desperate actions. The other player called and showed ♠Q ♣Q, ooops. This is the same thing that happened to me on Thursday night. Hope it doesn't become a habit.

(Below) Tee shirt seen on a guy in the tournament:


In case you can't read it: "Poker is like sex...it's more fun when you go all in." After one hour, we had our first break. The man was already busted out. Probably a lousy lover, too.

At 10:25, a guy made a big raise and the lady next to me moved all in for aroung 22,500 in chips. The first guy called and showed A-K. She turned over 10-8 offsuit. The board ran out and she hit an 8 to double up.

"Shoot," she said. "I have a reservation to go eat at 10:30 and was trying to get it over with!"

I was licking my chops hoping she'd try that again and I'd get her chip$. Unfortunately, I didn't get any of them.

You see some amazing stuff at live poker. A guy made a big bet on the river and was called. The board was 7-6-10-2-A. He turned over 8-5 and announced "I have a straight." Um, no buddy, a straight takes five in a row.

Wayne Newton was at the Gold Strike on New Year's Day. I overheard this:

Man A: "Wayne Newton was here.
Man B: "Why did he come here? Doesn't he own all of Las Vegas?"
Man A: "Nah, only 40%."

I played at a table with a lady who had seen the show. She reported that Newton had a lady with him who was a terrific singer. She said Newton's voice isn't very good anymore, but he still put on a good show.

After my less-than-graceful exit from the tournament, I went to the Horseshow Casino to play Omaha-8. For those who don't know, the Horseshoe and Gold Strike are right next to each other, so you walk out the door of one and enter the door of the other. Both were still crowded from the holiday weekend tourists.

The Omaha game was crazy. There was a guy who raised every hand, no matter what he held. Others had figured out he was raising with crap, so they were re-raising to build bigger pots. I strapped in and went along for the ride. I bought in for $140 and worked it up to $480 at one point.

Here's an example: I had ♠A ♠J ♦4 ♣2. After a bunch of raises, the flop came with ♥J ♦10 ♦2. This killed my ace-deuce for low, but there was betting and I called. I forget the turn, but the river was another jack, giving me a full house and a scoop.

It's hard to keep a big stack in a game like that. Here's an example. I was dealt A-3-8-8. It was a kill pot and there was the usual bet and raise. The flop was 10-10-8, giving me a full house. I bet and got three callers. On the turn, I bet and was raised and called by another. The first guy had A-10-X-X and the second had K-10-X-X. What's wrong with this picture? I have a full house, they have trip 10s. In Omaha, you have to play two cards from your hand and three from the board. The river was a king, giving the second guy the over-boat and a $150 pot.

But, hey, I'm not complaining. I ca$hed out with a nice profit. Life is sweet.

I took this shot on my way out:

Images by MOJO and taken with my P&S.