I Drove 800 Miles to Play One Hand of Poker: L.A. Poker Classic Media Tournament

Commerce Casino and the World Poker Tour jointly sponsored a media tournament for the purpose of publicizing the L.A. Poker Classic to the general public.



The winner of the media tournament was to get a coveted seat in the WPT Invitational, along with 75 celebrities and 200 top pros, and a chance for fame and glory in the form of a television appearance plus a share of a $200,000 prize pool, with $100,000 for first place.



So, naturally, I was pleased to be asked to participate. I drove down from the Bay Area, planning to confer, converse, and otherwise hobnob with my fellow media wizards. Among the invited guests were poker writers for major magazines and websites, plus media representatives who had little, if any, poker experience. The latter included producers and hosts from Southern California television and radio stations.



It turned out to be a good opportunity, because there were only 24 participants. That figured to be a nice overlay, considering there was no cost to participate in the media event. There would be none of this wading through hundreds of satellite participants, as players had already been doing to win their buy-ins to the $10,000 main event of the L.A. Poker Classic, a World Poker Tour event.



Prior to the tournament, I checked out the action at the L.A. Poker Classic. I saw many well-known pros, including Antonio Esfandiari, Phil Laak, Michael Mizrachi, David Plastik, and Barbara Enright. She, it turned out, was there for the media event, along with her sweetie, Max Shapiro, who was doing the official reportage. Max told me he was exhausted, after a month of reportorial duties, including having had to cover two final tables simultaneously.



Commerce Casino Poker Tournament Director Cheri Dokken, a protégée of Jack McClelland, seated the participants at three tables. I knew no one at my table. In fact, of the 24 players, I knew only two. Before the cards were in the air, we were brought salads, part of an excellent meal that was included. It's a good thing I had the salad, because the rest of the meal was not to be mine.



Each player started with a stack of $800 in tournament chips. There were to be 20-minute rounds, with blinds starting at $25-$50 and generally doubling until about the fourth round, what would be termed a fast structure.



I drew seat No. 9, and the deal started with seat No. 1. The dealer put out the first hand. I watched to see how all these strangers reacted to their cards before looking at mine. Everyone folded to seat No. 8, who studied his cards for a moment before opening for the minimum. I looked at my cards and found a pair of deuces. I called, thinking the first few rounds likely would not see aggressive play from these mostly beginners, and this was a good speculative hand at this juncture. It did not occur to me to raise, because anyone who called would be at worst very close to a coin flip, and maybe have me badly beat. I hoped to hit the flop or otherwise be able to get out cheaply and easily.



The small blind called and the big blind rapped.



The flop was a thing of beauty, 4-4-2. I had hit a full house. The first two players checked, and the opener looked at his cards again, hesitated, and then bet $50. I got the distinct impression that he didn't have much and would quickly fold to a raise. I hoped something would come to improve his hand so that I could win something. I called. The small blind folded and the big blind called.



A jack of a third suit appeared. One of the fours was the same suit as the deuce. The big blind checked. The opener hesitated a moment, and checked. I didn't want to get nothing for my flopped full house, so I bet $200, a bit more than half the pot. The big blind called and the opener folded.



A queen of a fourth suit came on the river. I was disappointed that there were not three cards of the same suit, in case the big blind had been going for a flush. I didn't think I'd win any more on the hand. I was right, but not in the way I expected. The big blind checked. I said, "$600," wanting to look like I was overbetting. I counted my remaining chips out, $500, which was less than the size of the pot. The big blind quickly called.



I turned over my 2-2 and he turned over 4-2, for a bigger full house. That had completely blindsided me. The fellow had never once initiated a bet; he just called all the way. Well, why should he, when some sucker seemed determined to get all of his chips in? There was no point in berating myself, though. He likely would have played an overpair to the original board or a bare 4 exactly the same way. Two full houses flopping at the same time is an unlikely event, but, as players are fond of saying, that's poker.



So, I didn't even wait for the remainder of the meal, which was just arriving as I got up from the table. I told the final 23 players, "That was fun. Good luck, all." The meal looked good, actually, but I just wanted to leave. I didn't feel like hanging around, so I drove straight back to the Bay Area. So, I can report that I drove 800 miles to play one hand of poker.



Here is the official list of finishers:

First place got the entry in the WPT Invitational. Second and third received Commerce jackets, and fourth and fifth got recognition.

Michael Wiesenberg's The Ultimate Casino Guide, published by Sourcebooks, is available at fine bookstores and at Amazon.com and other online book purveyors. Send encomia, enigmas, and expostulations to [email protected].