Poker Beginners

Beginner's Luck: Part 2

By Steve Hill

October 2005

HillyTheFish’s secret weapons failed to have the desired effect

Advice is all very well on paper, but unfortunately poker is played on felt. I’d read the strategy guides, studied the hands, memorised the odds and then blundered into a live tournament like a flapping fish.

The occasion was the PokerPlayer launch party, hosted by East London’s bespoke poker venue, The Gutshot. The evening started promisingly enough: a couple of polite scoops with the good, the bad and the ugly of the gaming industry, which boasts more sharks than you’ll find round any poker table. After an hour or so of pressing the flesh and ‘enjoying’ my newly found status as a fish out of water, all competitors were summoned to the tables.

Collecting 3000 in chips, I take my place in seat one, to the left of a particularly fussy French dealer, armed with my secret weapons, namely a print-out of the hand rankings and a bottle of strong European lager. After a couple of dummy hands we’re under way; I post the small blind and – boom! – land A-K, the Big Slick. Not even feigning disinterest, I roll out two black thousand-dollar chips to the astonishment of my fellow players. It’s an idiotic bet in so many ways. For starters, I’ve risked two-thirds of my chips in an attempt to steal some tiny blinds, whereas a smaller bet might ...