One of the things a poker player looks forward to is a rush.
Nobody knows what causes rushes or where they come from. It's like a mighty prairie wind that springs up from the ground and seizes control of everything -- the cards, your luck, and the outcome of a poker hand. But when a rush occurs, it can be a major change in your bankroll and your feelings about the same.
The first time I heard about rushes was when I interviewed Doyle 'Texas Dolly' Brunson in 1984.
Brunson had come to the Phoenix Press Club in Phoenix, AZ. to promote one of his tournaments. He shared a lot of stories with the reporters who attended his press conference, but the one that stands out to me had to do with an illness he suffered in the early 1960s shortly after he and his wife, Louise, were married.
About four months after they were married, Doyle woke up with a sore throat. He thought he was coming down with a bad cold or the flu. He also had a lump about the size of a pea on the side of his neck. His wife worked at a pharmacy and she told him he needed to see a doctor.
After a brief examination, the doctor consulted a cancer specialist who examined Brunson and immediately scheduled him for surgery.
Doyle's brother had died of cancer and he was concerned about the lump. He went into surgery at 6:30 a.m. and when he came out, the doctors ordered further tests. When the tests were completed, they gave him the bad news: he had cancer. It was located in several parts of his body and the prognosis was grim.
Doyle's wife was pregnant. He wanted to see his child born, but it didn't look like that was going to happen.
After other sessions in the hospital, the doctors gave him months to live. They scheduled him for further surgery. Doyle and his wife had joined a church and there were many prayers for his recovery. When he emerged from the surgery, the doctors were stunned to see the cancer had gone into remission.
'When I left the hospital after my operation, I recuperated for a while and then I returned to the poker circuit with a zest and appreciation for life that I never had before,' he said. 'Each day when I woke up, the sky was bluer and the grass was greener. The world was as bright as it could be. I was alive.
'I started playing again and I won 54 straight times in a row.
'Never before or since have I ever had such a streak. I won enough to clear my immense doctor completely and hospital bills and had plenty left over to keep my family comfortable for years.'
I know how Doyle felt that tremendous rush. I had been playing at the Meadows Casino in Washington, PA. when I discovered the Rivers Casino in Pittsburgh. One day I decided to try out the new poker room at the Rivers.
It was a large room with over 30 tables. I sat down at a game of limit poker and started winning immediately. That night I cashed in for more than $900.
I returned another couple of days later and won again -- this time about $800.
Day after day I returned to the Rivers. I would play six to eight hours before taking the last bus back to my hotel in Charleroi and I continued winning. The other players simply could not beat me. A couple of the players who knew my younger brother, Legs, even complained about my luck. They said I only played the 'nut' hands and that was why I kept winning.
I don't know about that. I just know that I won 15 straight times before I booked a losing session. It was my longest winning streak to date and I will never forget it.
Doyle told me, 'Before my surgery I would have classified myself as a slightly better than average player. But after my cancer ordeal, something happened to me. Everything in life seemed to click. I was playing better than I had ever played in my life. My playing became almost instinctive. The cards came to me, I read my competition accurately, and I felt an inner peace and self-assurance that I had never experienced before.
'My brush with death had opened something up and ignited innate abilities that had never surfaced before. I was in awe of that power. I knew one thing: poker was my game and it would be my life. From then on, I was going to make my way through life my way.'
One thing Doyle does to this day and that is when he wins a hand; he always plays the next hand regardless of his cards. He is looking forward to a rush and to get a rush; you need to give the cards the chance to come.
While my recent luck in Florida has not been very good, I have not given up. I will soon be heading back to Las Vegas and Phoenix. I have been working on my game and I think I am ready to experience some more winning sessions and, hopefully, a rush that surpasses that one I encountered in the Rivers Casino. Wish me luck. Good luck to you -- and 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 ).
