I usually send my recollections of the most interesting hands I play to Anthony. He and I often sit and talk about poker for hours. I wanted to send you this one, since you come out looking so well in it. I’ll also send you the two from the other night where you lost all your money, so you can see what happened. I try not to embellish these stories, but my memory is not perfect, and sometimes I have to figure out what mostly likely happened. I don’t think you’ll see anything too far out of what really happened. And yes, I know I had only had a couple of beers. I have to save face somehow. Incidentally, you may know, but WRT means "win right there," and a poke boat is a small canoe like craft made of Kevlar, therefore a poke boat hand is a small full boat of undeniable quality. One more thing, I can’t remember f the seven of spades was second or third, and if the four was fourth or fifth, but I wrote it up as if it were seven, seven, four, and I think that’s right.
1. Short on sleep, and mired by too much beer, it is the end of the night for me. I’ve accumulated a healthy chip lead. Only one player remains, and he has a paltry twelve dollars next to my twenty-three. This is dealer’s choice, but after catching god-awful cards at hold’em for increased stakes, and then throwing money at second-best hands at stud I’m down to ten dollars facing into twenty-five, and as always this is no-limit. If you’ve never played Crazy 8 no-limit, I honestly can’t recommend it as a serious gambler’s game, but I’m looking for nuances to exploit at this point. Being in good position, I want a game with lots of betting rounds, and a healthy dose of confusion for my opponent, so 8 it is. I catch an ace of hearts, a seven of diamonds, a four of clubs, and a queen of spades. The first card on the board is a seven, so I figure I have an advantage, being four-suited with a pair to begin. I’m checked to, so I bet a dollar, antes are fifty cents. I get called, but most people have calling fever this early at eight. The second card is the seven of spades. I have three of a kind. Checked to again, I bet another dollar. This is the point at which I probably erred. I probably should have tried to end it right there. I got called, and the middle card was a four of spades. I made a full house, but I didn’t have a very good card for the other half. I get checked to again, and bet three dollars, leaving me with only five black chips left. Getting called, I assume I am facing a somewhat low spade in my opponent’s hand. Card 4 is trash, and checked to, I start to wonder if I am being trapped by a really low spade, but not wanting to lose an opportunity to WRT over a five or six or something, I throw in the final five. It was all I had, but I knew it wasn’t enough, but like I said, I was short on sleep and mired with beer. I get called. My opponent shows me his cards with a triumphant whoop, as I am already all-in. I don’t remember exactly what kind of trash came out of his mouth, but his hand held the three, five, and six of spades. Straight flush, with the three. I was so impressed I almost didn’t care about leaving empty-handed.
2. I learned a little something new last night. I was dealing, it was five card draw, jacks or better, no limit. Fifth round of cards looking for openers, I am dealt three deuces plus trash. Nathan is in first position, Kyle in second, both are a little drunk, as am I, Tina in third, and I am in last. Nathan opens for twenty cents. Kyle raises to a dollar. Tina calls. I call. Nathan raises all-in, six dollars seventy cents additional. Kyle calls, Tina folds, I raise Kyle all-in his last four dollars and change. He calls. I smile gregariously, because the money is in the pot. Nathan draws three, and it’s obvious he’s been caught trying to steal. Kyle draws one, so it looks like a two pair draw or a drunken flush or straight draw. As I draw two, I announce to the table that I like the way things are going. This is five card draw, so there was no flip over after the all-in bets, so they don’t know for sure how behind they are. I draw a ten, and another ten. I say, "Sweet." Nathan and Kyle bicker over who shows first, I go ahead and show off my nice little poke boat. It becomes clear that neither of them has improved, and Kyle was sitting on Jacks over. They, meaning mostly Kyle, question the fact that I was dealing, that nobody had anything until that last hand, and then I took them both out effectively ending the game in one hand. I realize that my manner after the all-ins was the reason they were uncomfortable. I’ll remember not to rub it in when I am dealing for now on. It was sure sweet seeing those two tens, though, not that I needed them.
3. One other amusing hand, hold’em, I held aces and Nathan had sixes, he re-raises me pre-flop, so of course, I move in. He calls, and flips, announcing that he figures me for a higher pair, but he KNOWS he will hit another six. He does, on the turn, and would have won the pot if not for that damned ace on the flop.

I had an epiphany the other night while playing. I think it may take my game to the next level. Kyle O’Hair had accumulated almost as many chips as I had. We made it to the river with mediocre betting, and everything Kyle did was whispering to me, "I don’t have a hand." I had a pair of sevens, and there were over cards on the turn and river, but something in his manner told me that he didn’t hit. I bet twenty on the river, to try and get a read on him. He bet all-in with eleven something. I thought about it for a long time, and I finally decided that I was about a sixty-percent favorite to win the hand. I was that confident he was bluffing. Then I took into account the fact that I had never played with him before in my life. Then I measured the fact that he was getting drunker and drunker, and that I had at least a thirty percent chance of taking all of his money anyway, even if I let this one go, and the fact that if I was wrong about his hand I was going to lose a substantial chip lead, with only three dollars remaining. The central fact was that I realized I could wait on his money, and I figured there was an excellent chance it would come to me anyway. I folded. He showed a pair of fours. I’m sure he showed them to me to get at me, but I explained to him that I figured that’s what he had, but that I was just too patient to try to take money the hard way when I could take it the easy way. I think it bothered him that it didn’t bother me.
After that blatant confirmation of all his tells, he tried the same crap with a pair of tens about ten hands later, against my aces. I smiled when I turned them over. He said, "I’ve got three tens." I was quite surprised and a little confused. I said, "Lay them down, then." He laid down a ten and a four, and admitted he was just kidding. I said, "Yeah, I thought so," as I raked in all his chips. Patience is rewarded.

Being so busy with the ritual, I will forgive you for not heading on down to Nathan's so I could win your money. Actually, I'm glad you didn't come disturb my karma. Last night was one of the few nights I have "won the felt" so to speak. I almost felt guilty for talking Nathan into buying in that third time. He played on it for quite a while. It eventually got to head's up, and he wanted to keep playing. Unfortunately, the board held 456Krainbow while he had K2 and I had Q7. He had me whooped until that 3 fell on the river and he bet a dollar. I raised him all-in, just because I felt like he might call. He did. [insert sinister laugh here]