Bad Beat Jackpots

When I tally up my poker winnings over the years, I have to admit that I have probably won more money on bad beat jackpots than I have won in regular cash games.

The most money I have won came from tournament play. But most card rooms collect $1 from each pot to go into the bad beat jackpot, and that is where the real money lies.

Right now, for example, the bad beat jackpot for Omaha high-low at BestBet Casino in Jacksonville, FL. is around $45,000. To trigger a bad beat, one of the players at the table must have quad jacks or better beaten by a higher hand.

The Texas Hold'em bad beat is around $260,000. The jackpot is much higher than Omaha High-Low because quad 10s must be beaten by a higher hand, and that is not an easy prospect. It can and will happen because of the many combinations of cards that are possible, but it takes time.

I enjoy thinking and talking about bad beats. Seven or eight months ago at BestBet, my four aces were beaten by a royal flush and I collected $19,000, while the winner and the rest of the table shared the rest of a $40,000 bad beat jackpot.

Sometimes I will have fun with the dealer. I'll say something like, 'If you deal me one of the high hands in a bad beat jackpot, would you rather have a down payment on a trip to Aruba or cash?"

Most dealers will respond "Cash!." One or two might say "Aruba." One dealer, a cute redhead from New Orleans, asked sweetly, "Can I have both?"

To hit a bad beat jackpot, you need to play hands that you might ordinarily throw away. For example, a high pair in Omaha High-Low iss rarely worth playing without a couple of cards that could make a low hand. But if I am in position, I will often call a bet in hopes of making four of a kind. It takes only one good flop to hit a bad beat jackpot and you can't win without playing.

It's fun to verbalize what a person might do if he collects the major portion of a bad beat jackpot. The other night at BestBet, I got the conversation going on how we would spend our money.

The dealer said she would pay her bills. A man in his 60s claimed he would pay off his car and take a trip to Italy. I said I would take a cruise to the South Pacific. I have always wanted to visit Tahiti and with a bad beat jackpot, that could happen.

Some of the oldtime poker players don't like bad beats. They know how long the odds are on catching the right hands to make the bad beat possible and would rather have that extra dollar be added to the pot.

I respectfully disagree with them. Poker and gambling are about fantasy and having those fantasies fulfilled. Why not risk that extra dollar to make a dream come true? Isn't that what the lottery and life are all about?

Let the games begin!

Author: Geno Lawrenzi Jr.

(Geno Lawrenzi Jr. is an international journalist, magazine author and ghostwriter and poker player who lives in Phoenx, AZ. He has published 2,000 articles in 50 magazines and 125 newspapers. If you want to share a gambling story or book idea with him, send an email to glawrenzi@gmail.com ).