The Borgata!!!

The combination of circumstance that could drive a low stake internet poker hack to get in his car at 11PM on a Friday night and make the one hour drive to Atlantic City by himself to sit down at a poker table in his first ever live game is unquestionably unique. But, by some manner of fate, that combination of circumstance happened this Friday night and I found myself driving down to AC for an unplanned all-night initiation into “real” poker.

I arrived at the Borgata at a little after 11PM with only a MAC card in my pocket. I hadn’t been into a casino in 15 years, so it took me a few seconds to adjust to the magnitude of what I planned to do. I shuffled around the floor of the Casino looking for the poker room. Finally, after two laps, I found the secluded stairway that led down to the Borgota’s poker room. At 11:30 I put my name on the list, 1-2 No-Limit Hold’em. The problem was that the list was 45 names deep with only 5 tables running as 1-2 No-Limit tables. After waiting a little while, seeing the slow progression of 3 names off the list in 45 minutes, I added my name to the 2-5 No-Limit list grabbed a bite to eat, and sat back to wait it out.

An hour later my name was called: it was 1:30 in the morning. The max buyin at the table was $500 and I bought in for $300. I had to get my chips from the cashier because the dealer was out. I was more nervous than I have been in quite a long time and by the time I got back to the table I was literally shaking. The chip tray was rattling as I set it on the rail. I tried to pull the chips out of the tray and set them casually against the rail, but my hands were shaking so badly that chips were falling over and I knocked over my own stacks. The other players were looking at me with little sly smiles. Finally, after getting my chips arranged, I found myself sitting there with an empty tray and no idea what to do with it. After a minute or so, one of the pit people let me know that I could put it under the table. I really felt stupid at this point.

It was at this time that I made my first intelligent decision of the night, I told the dealer than I wanted to wait for the big blind. I needed time to get my act together and a little time to get a feel for the table and what I was supposed to do. I didn’t even know the mechanics of betting properly yet and I hadn’t been willing to ask anyone.

One thing that waiting for the big blind did for me was let me know how incredibly loose this table was. In the four or five hands that led up to my first bet, I saw every hand raised pre-flop with four or five callers. One guy, who I will call Boisterous, was raising 2 to 3X the standard BB on every hand with any two cards. One hand saw a raise to 20, a re-raise to 50, and another raise to 100 which both original raisers matched. Sure enough, the third to act had the Aces and took down a large pot. But other hands had raising going on and then people betting the second pair like it was the nuts. I was convinced that this was a table I could make a lot of money at.

On the last hand before the BB hit me, the player to my right, who we will call Johnny Buyin, raised pre-flop to 40 and got one caller, a player two to my left who I will call The Maniac. The flop hit with a Queen high and a couple of low cards. Johnny Buyin bet $100. The Maniac called. The turn was an Ace and Johnny bet 200. The Maniac went all-in. Johnny, down to his last 100 called. There was excitement over this hand because they both obviously had something large. Johnny turned over his AQ to claim top two pair. The Maniac did not turn over. The river came a 7 and The Maniac flipped over his pocket 7’s to take down the $1000 pot. I was floored. Venom came into Johnny’s eyes and he looked for a moment like he was going to jump over the table to kill The Maniac. After a second, Johnny got his composure and stepped away from the table. He would return a few minutes later with another $500. It was the worst play I think I saw all night by far.

Finally, I started playing some hands. Every hand was raised pre-flop and I folded my first 6 hands until I found myself in a late position holding QJ off-suit. I called the $15 bet. The flop was 893. Two players in front bet and called $20 respectively and I called with two over cards and a straight possibility. The turn was a 2. This time everyone checked. The river came a Jack. Both players checked and I decided to make my first play for a pot. I wanted to bet $40. I was still nervous as hell, and I couldn’t keep my hands from shaking. I wanted to bet $40 so I weakly grabbed what I thought was $40 and put it out. Realizing it was only $35 I tried to go back and get $5 more. The player 3 to my left, Slick, called out, “You can’t do that”. I wasn’t sure what I had done wrong. But he explained that I had strung my bet. I replied, “Oh, OK. I am used to just clicking a button.” But, after understanding the explanation, I pulled $5 back and left my original bet out there; $35. Player one folded, and the second player looked at me. He said, “You are shaking like crazy, you don’t have a hand.” I replied, “Think what you want, I have been shaking like this since I got here.” He called and I showed my top pair. He mucked his cards and I won my first pot of the night, which was pretty big. I was up to about $400 already.

I began folding like crazy again, until I found KK in my hand and orbit later. This could be good. Someone bet $20 and Boisterous raised to $40. He had been raising almost everything and winning some pots with low pairs. I raised to $80. He called. The flop came out either very bad for me or very good. QJQ. This was when I made my first and last mistake of the night. I bet: $80. He went over the top of me, betting $160. I took a minute, thought about it, figured I still hand the best hand, and… folded. He turned over his A4s but wrong suit and took the pot. I would have been mad, but his showing the cards taught me a lesson. My mistake was that I bet at all. On the flop, I should have taken my time and then checked. There is no way he could have bet in that situation, knowing that I could be slow playing a hand like AQ, AA, or KK. He would have had to have checked too. If he had bet, even if he was bluffing, I could have folded right then, only losing my original bet. I made an awful play and lost and additional $80 on it to a bluff. I put myself in a bad spot. I got angry at myself and vowed not to do it again… but I was down $50 overall at this point.

I won a small pot a little later when my AQ flopped ace high and I didn’t get any callers and was back to even.

I found myself on the button a little while later holding 89s. The pot was raised to $15 in front of me. Knowing that raises meant next to nothing in this game, I called. The flop came QJX rainbow. Three players were in and three players checked. The turn was nothing and everyone checked again. The river came a 10. There was a $40 bet. Boisterous called and I called. They turned over a lower pair each and I showed my straight, winning a nice sized pot and putting myself in the green again.

I won some smallish pots when my top pair bets drew no response and I ended up at about $500. I was pretty excited at this point and… was really excited that my shaking had finally stopped.

Johnny Buyin blew out of the game soon afterwards losing his second $500 buyin and getting up and walking away in a huff. The one thing I don’t know that I will be able to get used to sitting at these real tables is seeing people lose money that you just know they can’t afford to lose. Johnny lost $1000 in the span of an hour and a half. He dressed like he could afford to lose that money, but in reality, and judging by his reactions, it was clear that he couldn’t. Taking money from other people is a lot harder than taking it from the house in a game like Black Jack. I guess you can’t think about it, but if you do, the thoughts can be really sad.

A new player, Young Gun, joined in Johnny’s place. He was about 25 and set down $400 in chips. He was confident and measured in his play and he played OK, winning and losing some pots and working his way up to around $500. I was folding hand after hand at this point. Waiting for something at least decent to play.

Again, I found myself on the button holding Qd10d. Four people were in the pot in front of me and I called the $20 bet. The flop came Kd, Jd, 4d. I had flopped the second to nut flush and an open ended straight flush draw. I had a royal flush draw too. A small bet up from and Young Gun raised to $50. With two cards to go I decided I needed to take this pot down right here with the Ad out there. I bet $100 thinking he would realize I had the flush and drop out. Everyone folded to Young Gun and… instead… he re-raised by $100. Again, I wanted the pot right here. If he had the nut flush, I would have expected a flat call from him. Coming over the top could only drive me away. He was TRYING to drive me away and therefore I KNEW he didn’t have the nut flush. I suspected he was drawing to it and his bet was a semi-bluff. I wanted him gone. I made it $400, leaving my $85 sitting in front of me. He thinks for a second and says all-in. Now I wonder if I have read this right. He seemed so confident. But with my last $85, I call. No diamonds on the turn or the river and I turn over my flush. I see him deflate. His eyes go blank and he mucks. He is absolutely despondent. As he mucks, one of his cards turns over. The 7 of clubs. Either he had the Ace of diamonds in his hand or he had top pair and put me on a draw. Either way, he made a terrible play and I cleaned him out. He left the table with his shoulders hung low and a look of panic on his face. Again, the thought that I am taking money from people who can’t afford to lose it strikes me. But when I look down at the nearly $1000 that are being pushed in front of me, the thought slides out of my consciousness. Young Gun dug his own grave. This hand officially constitutes the largest bet of my life. $485 bet on one hand. AND I DOUBLED UP! Very cool!

I hit almost no big hands for the next hour. I fold and fold and fold. I play a couple of marginal hands for small pots, losing a couple winning one or two and find myself at right around $900. It is 5:30 in the morning and the table is getting short handed. We are down to four players left. I find Ah6h in the small blind. The bet is $20 and I call. Again, a perfect flop hits, Jh, 10h, and 4h. I have the nut flush! Two players are in with me. I check, player A bets $20, and player B raises to $40. I check my cards again. I am now shaking again, this time on purpose. I call. Player A calls. This pot is getting big. Someone must have the flush too. Better for me! The turn comes, no hearts. I check. Player A bets $40 and Player B calls. I call. This pot is going to be huge. I plan to check the river again. Let them bet and I will come over the top by just enough to force them to call. I’m already counting the chips. The river comes, a 7… of hearts damn it! Now, the cat is out of the bag. Player A checks. Player B checks. I pointlessly make a 100 chip bet and they both fold. I rack in a pretty big pot, and show my nut flush on the flop. They both proclaim how the 7 saved them. Each was playing two pair. It was a nice pot, but not anything like what it could have been. In two more hands the table breaks up and I am done for the night.

I cash out for $1076, up over $776. Maybe I will try this again some time.

I am now officially a winning poker player, by a long shot. I have way more than offset my Party Poker losses. With a 9th in a huge field tournament and a triple up at the casino, I am feeling pretty confident these days. That could be dangerous.