Capture the Flag

Eli Elezra helps orchestrate the renowned "big game" that is held at Bellagio in Las Vegas; without his coordination efforts, it would be difficult to round up the requisite number of players for the game. That is because the average buy-in is the astounding sum of $300,000, and the stakes are often as steep as $4,000-$8,000. Elezra is not just a poker player, though; he is also a family man and a businessman. In his opinion, his skills from both of these other roles in life transfer naturally to the poker table and make him a better player.

Lizzy Harrison: What factors make for a good cash game?

Eli Elezra: First of all, the players in the game are important. It is good to have two or three players who are there to gamble. When I say players who gamble, I mean someone like Sammy Farha. When Sammy is in a game, he gives lots of action and he gets a lot of action in return. You don't want to play with people who play too tight.

LH: What is your preferred game, and why?

EE: I don't have one favorite game. Some people think that I am better at seven-card stud eight-or-better or Omaha eight-or-better, but I like to play a variety of games. I like to play 12 or 13 games, because my talent is the same in all of the games. In the big game, some people are weaker in certain games and stronger in others.

LH: Is there a game you will not play?

EE: I will not play only one game. For example, I won't play only no-limit hold'em or only no-limit deuce-to-seven triple draw. It doesn't matter what game it is, I will play it as long as it is part of a mixed-game setup.

LH: Why don't you like to play only one game?

EE: A few times, I played in Larry Flynt's game; it is $4,000-$8,000 seven-card stud. You have to be very patient to be able to sit down and play the same game hand after hand. Even though Flynt's game is a good game, and I did OK in it, I still believe that playing only one game is my weakness.

LH: When did you first start playing cash games?

EE: I started playing at the Stardust in 1987, when I first arrived in Las Vegas, and I was not a winning player. Then, about a year or two later, the Mirage opened and I started playing Omaha eight-or-better and stud; we usually played a mix of two or three games. At the Mirage, we raised the stakes to $50-$100 and then to $100-$200. In the early '90s, we started playing $150-$300 and $200-$400 regularly.

LH: What adjustments did you make to your game to turn yourself into a winning player?

EE: When I was playing $150-$300 and $200-$400, I started to get better. I sat at the tables with Chip Reese, Doyle Brunson, Barry Greenstein, and David Grey for hours. I saw the hands that they showed down and I was able to learn a lot from those players. I was part of a very good group. We played at the Mirage and then we moved to Bellagio when it opened. We started playing very high there, $1,000-$2,000 and $2,000-$4,000.

LH: What stakes do you play on a day-to-day basis?

EE: The average stakes lately, for the last year or so, have been $3,000-$6,000. When Guy Laliberte and Lyle Berman are in town, and sometimes other players like Sammy Farha, we play $4,000-$8,000. Sometimes, when there are fewer players, we start out playing $2,000-$4,000.

LH: What are the highest stakes you have played?

EE: $5,000-$10,000 is the highest that I have ever played. There were a few newcomers to town in the game about four or five years ago; that is why we played that high. It does get kind of expensive, so unless we are playing with someone who is in town for the first time, which makes it worth it, we don't play $5,000-$10,000.

LH: How should a player determine when he is ready to move up in stakes?

EE: First of all, he has to have the bankroll. I never would suggest that a person move up with a small bankroll. If he were to go broke, he could not rebuy; that is, unless he was a businessman like me [laughing]. The second thing is how comfortable you feel in a game. If you are intimidated by the other players and think they are better than you, then you should go back down in stakes. You have to feel good when you sit down to play.

LH: You mentioned that you are primarily a businessman; what do you do?

EE: I own more than 20 retail stores on Las Vegas Boulevard, and I own a lot of real estate in town. I also build shopping centers; that is my main business now.

LH: So, you do not depend on poker to pay the bills?

EE: People think that I do, but I don't. The only players in our game who are in a situation like me are Guy Laliberte and Lyle Berman. We do not depend on our bankrolls at all. Most people think that I am a professional poker player, but first of all I am a family man; I have five kids. Second of all, I am a businessman, and then I am a poker player -- even though I have been playing a lot of poker lately [laughing].

LH: What is the most common mistake you see inexperienced cash-game players making?

EE: They jump into games they do not belong in, and they are too aggressive. They are aggressive for no reason, and that makes the other players start to enter more pots to try to catch them. In no-limit, that flaw is even more dangerous because, as they say, going all in works every time except the last time.

LH: What mistakes do experienced players make?

EE: Look at some of the players who play in our game. One player, for example, was on top of the world recently. He had about $10 million or $12 million to his name. He played as high as $8,000-$16,000 and now he can't even ante in our game. Now he is playing much smaller games, $400-$800, which is still big to some people. But he can't come to our game anymore because he has to build himself up first. I think that he made a mistake by jumping too high.

LH: Which poker players have most influenced your game?

EE: I played a lot of threehanded sessions with Chip Reese and Doyle Brunson at the Mirage and at Bellagio. I played $1,000-$2,000 and $2,000-$4,000 with them, and everyone else thought I was crazy. I did well in those sessions, as they taught me. In addition to teaching me how to improve my game, they taught me to be a better person. Before Chip Reese died, we talked a lot, and he helped me to realize that poker is not everything. Also, he taught me that when you are going to go play poker, you must go as a winner. If you think you will win, you will win.

LH: What characteristics do great cash-game players share?

EE: They all are very patient; the first thing is patience. People might doubt that I said that, because I don't have much patience [laughing]. However, I do think patience is important. Also, the people I play with can move $100,000 into the pot on a draw. Great players are willing to put all of the money in when they do not have it. You have to be able to do that; tight players do not survive very long in our game.

LH: Which cash-game players do you most respect, and why?

EE: For a long time, I did not like Gus Hansen's game, but recently he has been playing very well. I also think that Jennifer Harman is a very good cash-game player. Doyle Brunson is 74 years old and he makes new moves in our game every day. Barry Greenstein, though he has not been running well recently, is one of the best in our game; he reads people. Phil Ivey, in my opinion, is the next Chip Reese; he is just so good. Tim Phan is one of the newcomers to our game, and he is very, very good.