A Hard-Learned Lesson

You're never too old to learn a lesson on how to play poker. Take it from someone who knows.

One of the lessons I have preached to members of this website is 'Don't fall in love with a hand.' When you do, it can turn into a disaster.

Well, tonight I fell in love with a hand and it cost me.

The game was $8-16 seven card stud high-low. This is a game where you normally ignore hands where all of your starting cards are high with one exception.

Wired trips.

A player receives three of a kind in his first three cards so rarely that I hardly even talk about it. But there I was with three wired queens and they looked awfully good to me.

A player who goes by the nickname Hippo -- don't ask me where it came from -- was showing an ace for his up card. Another player called in front of him and Hippo raised. I re-raised and Hippo came out swinging. He re-raised again and I capped the betting.

My heart was pounding. If I had bothered to think things through, which I didn't, I would have come to only one conclusion. I had three wired queens. Hippo could only have three wired aces.

But in the heat of poker battle, sometimes the brain doesn't function very well. The dealer dealt fourth street, fifth street and the river. I filled up my full house with a pair of sevens. Hippo did not show a pair going to the river.

I strongly suspected -- in fact I was certain -- that he had wired trip aces going to the river. All I could hope for was that he wouldn't fill up on the river.

He did and I lost a huge pot to him.

When my heart settled back to normal, I realized I could have saved some money by not pressing my three queens so hard. Big deal. After the horses get out of the barn, it's too late to close the door.

I learned a painful lesson in that hand and I don't think it will happen to me again. At least that is my hope and I plan to stick to it.

Nick the Greek once commented that the only thing as exciting as winning a big pot is to lose one. Boy, was he right on that account.

In case I was not clear, let me repeat it to you: don't fall in love with a hand no matter how big it is because almost any poker hand can be beaten. Take it from someone who learned the lesson the hard way.

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 ).