You want action? I'll show you action

The Horseshoe Casino Tunica has an interesting Wednesday night tournament -- no antes! Even though players start with only 8000 in chips and the levels are 20 minutes, you get a lot of play. People underestimate how much antes eat into your chip stack.

There were 72 players who signed up last night including moi -- a pretty good turnout for a Wednesday evening.

When the blinds were 200/400, a new dealer came to the table. "You are my lucky dealer," said Seat 10. "Deal me something good."


"If I'm your lucky dealer, you are in big trouble," the dealer replied. Little did he know.

The dealer immediately dealt Seat 10: ♥A ♦A. He made a min-raise to 800. I guess he didn't want to raise too much -- he wanted action, you see.

Three players called to me in the big blind. I had ♣J ♣9 and was already in for 400, so an easy call.

The flop was ♥J ♦9 ♣8. I bet 3000 into a 4200 pot, and the aces went all in. The next guy to act had ♣A ♠10 for an open-ended straight draw. He thought for a while and called, putting him all in. The next two players folded, I called, and we turned our cards over.

The turn was the ♠2, helping no one.

"Pair the board," Seat 10 said, "you are my lucky dealer."

The river did pair the board, it was the ♠J giving me a full house and this large pot.

Notice the dealer did exactly what he asked for -- he paired the board, only not the pair this guy wanted. Maybe Seat 10 will play aces differently next time, but I wouldn't count on it. Once a fish, always a fish.

I'd like to say I won the tournament, but I busted out 11th (nine were paid) for a disappointing night, but I do have this story to tell. Just about every time I play, I can find a story, no?