It had come down to this:
I had picked up Q-Q at wsop.com and tossed in a raise. The villain who had been raising too often re-raised. I didn’t give him credit for much — A-K at the best and quickly shoved for my last remaining chips.
In fact, it was my last remaining chips from the last remaining buy-in. My earlier buy-in had gone up in brilliant, dancing flames when my three eights ran into a flopped straight.
So I lose this, and I’m tapped out at wsop.com.
The cyber dealer flipped ’em up just like a live game game. Q-Q for me, and yes, A-K for the villain.
You’ve seen this hand on television a million times. Maybe 2 million.
I have an edge on this hand — I’ll win it about 54 percent of the time. Not a big edge, but an edge nonetheless.
Of course, often enough, an ace or king will come on the flop, turn or river. Rarely, there will be a highly competitive flop: A-K-Q or Q-J-10.
This time, it was 8-8-4. Followed by a deuce. Followed by another 4.
Undramatic, really, but the pocket queens were a winner. A rather nice pot slid over to my stack on the virtual felt.
Not broke yet.
Played a few more hands and cashed out. I would have enough chips to play another day.
And when that day came, I logged on again with enough chips to buy in.
A few hands into the game, down a few chips but still very much in the game, I pick up Kh-Qh and toss in a small raise. It’s called around and the flop comes 10s-8h-4s.
I bet and get raised. Oh-kay.
The villain in this case could have a big 10 or a spade flush draw.
I decide to look at the next card, based on my overcards and a backdoor heart flush draw.
The heart jack falls.
Not a bad card. I’ve picked up a flush draw, a straight draw and still have overcards to the 10. That’s enough outs, I figure I’m roughly only a 2.5-1 dog at this point.
But I let the villain bet — after all, I don’t actually have a hand yet — and call.
The cyberdealer burns and turns and the river is … the diamond ace.
That’s the nut straight and, in fact, the absolute nuts.
I hesitate for a few second before I shove all-in. The villain takes a few seconds to think and calls — he’s got A-10.
The pot helps out immensely and after a few other hands, I log off.
Not broke yet.
