'Scotty Warbucks' Wins

Before the tournament began, Charlie paid me the following compliment: "Your columns have allowed me to improve my play in no-limit hold'em so much that I recently won a nice no-limit tournament." I'm used to taking a lot of BS from the other players, but one look at Charlie told me he was being sincere, so I thanked him and the tournament began.

After the tournament, Charlie (aka Scotty Warbucks) said, "I didn't know I could play no-limit hold'em. I've played limit poker in California the past 12 years and never considered no-limit, as I knew that one mistake or one bad judgment call would put you out. I am a very aggressive player, and if I make a bunch of misjudgments in limit ring games, I can still have a winning session. In fact, one brilliant play can make up for a multitude of questionable plays. Every time I entered a small no-limit hold'em tournament, I didn't know how much to bet, what types of hands to look for, or hardly any of the main ingredients that add up to being a top pro.

"I've always enjoyed reading Phil Hellmuth's Hand of the Week columns, as many are about no-limit hold'em. Specifically, one of his columns about laying down a royal flush draw on the flop while being a 54 percent or so favorite with two cards still to come hit a chord in my brain. Phil explained that he would have to risk all of his chips, and even though he was a favorite, he chose to wait for a better scenario, as he thought he could win the tournament and was not prepared to risk it all at this stage of the game. OK, a light went on. 'Protect' your chips and look for the right situations. Risk an amount that you can afford without risking elimination.

"I have always played poker without intellectual thinking … going by gut feelings and inspiration. There are only 52 cards, and the combinations and possibilities are deeply ingrained in my being after 60 years of poker, starting as a 5-year-old in family games. My analogy of this is blackjack. If we knew 50 years ago what we know now about blackjack, we could have beaten the game all day long. So, going past the basic odds, it comes down to picking your spots and protecting your chips, and doing it from your gut feelings - inspiration, not analysis. I believe that we are all in communication with each other on an energy basis, and a combination of ESP, body language, and verbal language. We know exactly where we stand on each hand. That information is available to us only to the extent that we can tune in to our intuition and reveal the best choice instantly for every play.

"In conclusion, I got hit by the deck and probably will never win another no-limit hold'em tournament again. It's important to be realistic in the real world."

When we reached the final three players that day, a deal was proposed that was very fair. Charlie and Levi asked me to make a deal, and I agreed under the condition that I got the best of it. They both said, "No problem." With a deal on the table in which I would lock up $72,000, Charlie $76,000, and Levi $55,000, with about $9,000 left over to play for first place, things looked pretty fair. Levi was giving up only a little bit and was going to be able to lock up close to second-place money with a short stack, but he decided at the last minute - and I mean last minute - that we would continue to play on without the deal. This didn't bother me too much, as I thought I would be a big favorite when Levi and I tangoed. I didn't think Charlie and I would play a big pot for a while, as we were staying away from each other. But, if a big pot were to come up against Charlie, I thought I would be in great shape.

At this point, I stupidly bluffed off $60,000 to Charlie - who I knew was excellent at reading people - and left myself with $250,000 when the following hand came up. Levi limped in for $8,000 (the blinds were $4,000-$8,000, and the three of us voted out the antes) from the button, and I looked down at my unluckiest hand ever - A-Q. Rather than mess around with a smaller raise, I went ahead and raised it $30,000 more into that little $24,000 pot to send a message that I was strong. Levi didn't read the message very well, and as he began to study, I started to root for him to move all in. I put him on A-10 or so, and put an old acting move on that I save for the biggest moments in poker. I acted weak. I made my aura appear weak; I made myself look terrified of any action at all.

Levi announced, "I'm all in," and I said, "I call" as fast as is humanly possible. He then said, "Uh-oh," and flipped up A J. I thought, "Please let me win this pot." I hadn't played any other key pots all day long. This was the one pot that I was the most vulnerable to losing, as it would leave me with only $30,000 in chips. If I won it, I would bust the guy who didn't want to make a good deal, as always seems to be the rule in poker tournaments. Plus, I was going to get at least $90,000 in a heads-up deal with Charlie. Instead, the cards came up 5 3 2 6, at which point they announced that I was drawing dead!

Shortly thereafter, I walked away with $34,000 instead of the $90,000-plus that I could have won. I was shellshocked!

Levi had been a bit of a wild card all day long; at one point, he took out Tab (Phongthep Thiptinnakon) with the 10 9. He plays pretty recklessly, but I like his style. He has some potential, and he'll do well if he can ever learn to slow down a bit. It must also be said that he seems like a great guy.

Meanwhile, Charlie played excellent poker throughout the final table, and I believe he'll be back again soon in a no-limit hold'em event, as his "reading powers" are very strong. I just wish he hadn't starting reading my columns!

I hope you enjoyed this Hand of the Week. Good luck playing your hands this week.

Editor's note: You can often find Phil at UltimateBet.com, table "philhellmuth," playing $4-$8 limit hold'em. For more info about Phil or to read more Hand of the Week columns, go to PhilHellmuth.com.