A Little Game of Cards: I’ve always enjoyed playing cards. I like contract bridge but I love poker.
You know, anybody can have a good night at poker when the cards love you. On the other hand, anybody can have a bad night when the cards just aren’t going your way.
Some people judge how good a poker player is by how much he wins on a good night. I don’t. I judge how good a poker player is by how little he loses on a bad night. You know that old Kenny Rogers song, “You have to know when to hold and know when to fold.”
When I was six, my father taught me how to play poker. That was just after World War II. Before I was seven, I not only knew what a full house was, I knew what beat what.
Daddy also taught me things to do and things not to do. For example:
– If you are playing draw poker and should be lucky enough to get four of a kind, don’t keep a pat hand. Draw one card and try to look a little disappointed when you see the card you drew. Note here: Don’t overact.
– If you are playing draw poker and get three aces, don’t bet the farm. Either a check (that’s no bet) or a small bet to see what happens. Oh yes, with three of a kind, I keep the three and the other highest card, called a “kicker.” Some differ on that and draw two. I draw one because I feel there are better odds to get either four of a kind or a full house with one new card than it is to get that lone fourth card with two new cards. Maybe I’m wrong. Note that I don’t keep a “kicker” if I am holding a pair.
– If you are playing five-card stud and your first two cards are aces wired (that’s one hidden and one showing), check and see what happens. It’s like this, if a ten makes a bet against the ace you have showing, he just may have a pair. Of course, he just may be a nut. In other words, try to get a handle on the other players. There is another reason for the “no bet.” Make a big bet and the other players say, “Pair,” and fold. What I am saying is that the big bet usually buys the ante. You are there to make money, not just the lousy ante.
Oh, yes, lest I forget. If you have three aces or some such better than average hand, don’t pant and slobber all over yourself. Just give the same expression you would on any other hand. It’s called a poker face.
I believe that Daddy’s favorite game was five-card stud, which he called “the old Army game.”
The photograph is of my father in his Army uniform, age 24, in 1918.
