DON’T PLAY WITH THE BIG BOYS
By: Brian D.
I was playing in a tournament hosted by one of my former bosses (let’s call him “Mark”). Also in this tournament was my most recent former boss (let’s call him “John”). So I’ve got a professional work history with several players in this tourney, and we all still work for the same company.
A while in, I get dealt AK suited on the button. There were three callers in front of me, so I raised to six times the big blind (the blinds were about 100 and 200 at this point of the tourney, and everyone started with 5000 in chips). The small blind folds, the big blind (”John”) calls, everyone else folds. The flop comes A 7 10 all clubs. I don’t have a club in my hand. The big blind checks, and sensing I had the best hand (and wanting to scare off a flush draw), I bet about 10 times the big blind, nearly the size of the pot.
“John” calls. Turn comes an offsuit 2. “John” checks again.
I figured the two couldn’t help him, so I went all in for about 20 times the big blind (I barely had him covered). “John” thinks about it for a minute and then calls. I turn over my AK, he turns over… 6 8 offsuit, no clubs. So he called a bet for all his chips, on just a gutshot straight draw. No flush possibilities, and not even a pair. He couldn’t possibly think he had the best hand, could he? Everyone at the table let’s out a collective “huh?” and “Mark”, my other former boss, even goes so far as to say “What the hell are you doing?
Well, in case you couldn’t figure it out, the river brings him his nine to complete a gutshot straight, 6 7 8 9 10. John doubles up, and I’m crippled and gone five minutes later. So instead of being one of the chip leaders, I’m whamboozled by a guy who called a significant preflop raise with 6 8 offsuit, then chased it all the way to the river, calling off all his chips in the process, then hits his miracle.
I sat there, trying to understand his thought process as he called a big preflop raise with nothing, then called a big raise on the flop with nothing, then called a big raise on the turn with nothing. At no point in that hand did he have anything resembling a winning hand; he couldn’t have possibly thought he had me beat, and he was risking his entire tournament on a four-outer. The worst part is I still see this guy almost every day, and every time I do I’m reminded of that hand. But I can’t say anything to him because he’s a manager at my place of employment and he really is a nice guy, so it’s not like I can even rip into him. I often see “Mark” as well, and he likes to remind me of that hand. I’ll pass him in the hall, and he just shakes his head and says “6 8, wow.” I may need to request a transfer.
