The stars at night are big and bright...

The stars at night are big and bright...
The stars at night are big and bright...

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Just Call Me "South 40 Slim"

Wow, have I been burning up the pavement here the past few days. Tonight I went to Devol, Oklahoma and played in the poker tournament at Comanche Red River Casino. To my surprise I didn't completely suck! I actually made it all the way to the final table.

Things started out slow. I couldn't draw a decent pair of cards to save my life. I felt like Felix Leiter in Casino Royale, "I'm bleeding chips!" But after a dealer switch my luck began to change. Slowly but surely I began to win a hand here and there. Before long I had a decent stack and I was back in the game.

I was apparently the unknown factor to everyone else as the small talk between the players made it apparent these people knew each other from previous play. I tried to remain quiet, still and emotionless to keep from giving off any tells (we'll come back to that later) and it seemed to be paying off.

I started working on the chip leader and before long I WAS the chip leader. I had a freaking $12,000 chip lead at one point! One by one I began to knock off players and others became intimidated by me. I was winning pots just by making a raise.

My adrenaline was pumping and it was everything I could do to keep from shaking like a leaf! Fortunately, it was freezing in there and it was easy to feign being cold instead of an anxiety attack. Then it happened. I made it to the final table.

It was time for the big boys and girls to play!

One problem with playing at an Indian casino is the absence of liquor. I was desperately in need of a shot to calm me down. I decided to walk it off during the break. It didn't work.

When play resumed I continued to win. Two players exited and then came the dealer change. It was the dealer I had when the tourney started and had such rotten luck. This was a bad sign. Just like that my luck went to pot. I would draw very good cards but couldn't do a thing with them. I had Big Slick(ace/king) 3 times and lost every stinking time. I started making mental mistakes like playing out of turn. That's pretty freaking amature and it showed everyone just how inexperienced I am.

I joked it off the first time it happened. But the second time was a giant neon sign. I had drawn a pair of tens and the flop was 3 queens. A boat! A player went "all in" with about half my chip count. The player before me had folded and I could have sworn the player before him had too. So when I defiantly called "all in" and pushed my chips in everyone looked at me.

Uh, it's not your turn dumbass!

Everyone folded. I won the pot but got many thanks for saving them a lot of money. The guy sitting next to me said "that's called a tell..." It was the beginning of the end. That would be the last hand I won. My final hand I was holding a pair of fours and there was nothing threatening showing. I went "all in" and the chip leader called. The river was an ace. I'll give you 3 guesses what he was holding...

I finished in 7th place.

Overall it was a good thing. I gained a lot of experience and made it a lot further than I had expected. Maybe I'm not ready to quit my job and move to Monte Carlo just yet.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

funny, still not selling firewater to the Injuns ehhh?

oh and calling "all in" out of turn is a big tell. you big dummy. ;-)

Anonymous said...

bubba, you always thought you were a bull shitter!! And I'm shocked you did not take your own bottle!!
Love ya sis

Anonymous said...

JUST THOUGHT ALL SHOULD SEE THIS!! I JUST WANTED TO SPREAD THE NEWS!!

I know there is probably a better way to let people know about a decision that I have made, but I just wanted everyone to know at the same time. I have had nearly 10 years at Alvord ISD and I could not have chosen a better place to raise the kids and see them through school. You are a tremendous staff of caring people.



I have decided that it would serve the best interest of the children of this district for me to retire. I will be proposing a separation agreement to the school board that will allow me to retire this coming week. If it is accepted, then I will officially retire the end of August.



You will always be in my prayers as you continue doing a great job for our kids. If I can ever be of service, please let me know.



Sincerely,



John Trice


AMEN!! and please pray he takes the DA oops I mean AD and Holson & Bullard & LARD ASS & the Parrs too!!!