A Brief Lull In The Action
2008-02-19 12:59:06
By:
Gene Bromberg
Last night was the second episode of
The Best Damn Poker Show and a few more contestants were sent to the rail. I felt bad when Kristy was eliminated, as Phil and Annie weren't able to agree on a victim and instead did a blind draw among three players. It's bad enough to dodge bad beats on the felt, and so losing in a situation like that when you're a 2-1 favorite is doubly cruel. Though I have to admit that I was hoping Melissa wouldn't be eliminated, for reasons I'm too shy to divulge.
Actually, Phil and Annie weren't able to agree on much during last night's episode, and that led to something of a brouhaha that took up much of the middle third of the show. These things happen when you put two accomplished, opinionated people in close quarters and force them to reach a consensus. That's why juries have 12 people instead of two--you wanna spread things out a bit, add some other voices to the mix, and have at least one person who can step in when the chair-swinging begins. Maybe for the next series Howard Lederer can join the group and sit between Phil and Annie. Serve as a kind of buffer. And, of course, engage Phil in debate over his style of play, which was a major topic of conversation last night.
Some quick observations:
- Are you allowed to give yourself a one-word name like "Bones", or does someone else have to do it for the name to stick? There was a much-beringed gentleman named Bones (and just Bones) at last night's table and, well, I'd kinda like a name like that. Don't have the look to pull that off just yet, but it's something I can work on.
- I thought that Team UB's Gary "debo34" DeBernardi would escape Phil and Annie's wrath when he flopped a set and played it smooooth all the way to the river. But then he checked the river, hoping to lure a played named Evie into making a mistake, but she checked behind and the disgusted "Aaaaahhh" Debo emitted is a sound I make just about every time I try to get fancy with a set. Sadly, that hand sealed Evie's fate and she was also eliminated.
- One thing the novice player can learn from this show is that calling raises with lousy hands is a bad idea. BAD. There's a raise, you look down at 9-5 offsuit (or even a hand that looks prettier like Q-10) and make the call. OK...now what? Short of flopping trips or something miraculous like that, whattya gonna do now? You don't gain much info by calling. Are you up against Aces? Ace-King? Nines? If you whiff on the flop (and most hands to just that) what do you do then? Even in position calling with junk isn't too bright because you're probably gonna face a continuation bet. Throw the junk away.
Permalink:
http://www.ultimatebet.com/poker-blog-post/A-Brief-Lull-In-The-Action/2469
