Rounders, Inc.

Last night was an amazing session for me. Fairly accurate reads and even better hand selection.

I left the table for a couple hours and came back to see a new player. She was in her 60s with about $600 in chips.

Was not sure if she bought the chips or earned them, but I gave her the benefit of doubt and assumed she earned them.

On my first hand back to the table, I have J-J in early position and make it $50 to go.

My friend Barry was first to act. He likes to see alot of flops and calls.

The woman I mentioned above follows Barry’s lead and also calls.

The flop comes Kc-9s-6s.

I am first to act and bet $100 to see where I am at in the hand, hoping to represent either A-K or K-K.

My friend missed the flop and folds.

The lady, however, calls me.

She seemed bothered by the king, so I put her on a flush draw.

The turn is 3d.

I bet another $100.

She ponders a call.

“You are on a flush draw, huh?”, I ask.

“No, I have something better than a flush draw,” she replies.

She is trying to sell me a king, but my gut says flush draw.

The river is a 2h.

I check the river hoping for a check raise play, but my opponent checks.

She shows 10s-7s.

Ten high.

Baffled, I show the jacks.

“I thought you had something better than a flush draw?” I ask.

“I did. I had a gutshot straight flush draw,” she says.

She paid $250 to chase the 8 of spades on a 50-to-one longshot gutshot?

Nearly half her stack is now gone on my first hand back to the table.

Two hands later, another $250 made its way into my growing tower of checks.

This time, things just worked out.

I don’t know why. Maybe I was getting frisky to play a pot after a big laydown the hand earlier. It just felt right.

I get Q-J offsuit in middle position and limp-in.

What was I thinking? I never play this garbage hand in middle position.

We go to the flop with four players. One ahead of me and two behind.

The flop comes 10h-9-h-8d.

Wonderful. I flop the nuts. My hand can only get worse from here if we see more cards.

What do I do now with a straight flush draw on board when I am holding the nut straight.

The first player over-bets the pot: $35 into a $8 pot.

This is a solid player. I put him on Q-J. He bet exactly what I would have bet hoping to force out the draws.

I raise him another $100 hoping to take it down right there.

My hopes were dashed when a loose player behind me who has been losing all night re-raised me $100.

The fourth player calls.

The original bettor calls.

Now what?

One of these guys is on a flush draw and one may have the low end of the straight.

I have $137 invested in a $848 pot.

I know three things: I have the best hand, we are going to the river, and I am pot-committed.

I go all-in which puts my three opponents all-in.

Of course, they all call.

The loose player to my left shows 6-7 off for the low straight.

The last player to act shows A-J hearts for the nut flush draw and open-ended straight draw.

The first player to act shows K-J.

Fortunately for me, fourth street and fifth street were blanks.

I am still in disbelief that the solid player called off all his chips on a gutshot.

Three outs at best put him at a 9-to-1 dog on the turn and a 13-to-1 dog going to the river.

He was only getting 3-to-1 on his money.

That is what I play for … big pots holding the big nuts.