Another Tale from the Trenches

Posted: Sat Jul 28, 2007 12:18 am
This is the end; my dearest friends, the end. I promise this will be the final bad beat story for a while, the reason for which will become shortly apparent. Another Thursday evening/Friday trip to the casino. AQ 2 pair drawn out or beat by God knows what on the river. Top pair being flushed out on, without odds. Other regular informs me the two guys I was sitting between were using eye signals. Informs me that was why he left our table early and didn't see fit to tell me or the floor about it until long after they had left. High drawing hands going nowhere with the odds to call. Good old AK, which I'm proud to say I folded at the appropriate times. UTG KK, flop 3KQ rainbow, slowplay; pair of fives hits runner runner for flush. A limper or two. SB raises, I call in BB with 9s. One caller. Flop is 10 10 9. SB makes small bet, I smooth call. Other player raises it up 100, I go all in. He calls, J 10. Jack on the river. Sure, he apologized. I gently pushed my chair in and said, "It's been a pleasure." In the last 24 hours I have probably played some of the best poker of my short career. Unfortunately it was during a "bad run" and my bankroll is now at a level that prohibits any casino play. Yes, it has been a pleasure, if somewhat stressful. It's been a pleasure because I have been afforded the luxury and latitude to make these weekly trips. My dear spouse calls my bank my "learning money." Bless her heart. That would be just fine if I didn't adhere to some fundamentals of the game, bankroll management in this particular instance. So, for the foreseeable future, I'm done. I believe there are some salmon and steelhead that need catching.....