New Year’s Resolution: Do the Right Thing

One of the most difficult tasks in poker or in life is to do the right thing. Doing the right thing is doubly difficult. First, you have to know what the right thing is. Then, you have to do it. Let’s look at some examples from life and poker.

Hewlett-Packard does the wrong thing: I purchased an expensive desktop computer from HP. It often makes a lot of noise when running. According to an e-mail that HP sent me, the fan in my machine and in many similar machines was defective. After making many phone calls, trying to find model and serial numbers, and spending a lot of time on hold, I finally reached someone who was willing to help. He began his “help” by telling me, “Remove the back of your computer …” I went nuts. If I wanted a do-it-yourself machine, I could have gotten one for a lot cheaper. I won’t bore you with all of the painful details, but the fan has not been changed, and HP will never receive an order from me again. I recommend avoiding them if you’re smart.

Taj Mahal poker management does the right thing: I was so aggravated by the noise that my HP made when I played online, I decided to go to the Taj Mahal for the $2,500 pot-limit Omaha event during the U.S. Poker Championship. The first two days would consist of playing down to the final seven players, who would return a few days later to play the final table, which would be filmed for Spike TV. I thought this would draw a big crowd, but unfortunately, the tournament’s starting day coincided with a big tournament at the Borgata, and only 32 players registered. At the end of two days, there were seven of us left to return for the final table. (The seven included some very tough players: fellow Card Player columnist Matt Matros, Matt Glantz, Michael Binger, Amnon Filippi, and eventual winner Allie Prescott.) Unfortunately, only the top five of those seven were scheduled to receive a payout. There were some delays in starting the final table, and six hours after the originally scheduled starting time, I was the first one to go out (details below). My initial thought was that it would have been better to suffer with the HP’s noise and play online. Then, Tom Gitto, director of poker operations, informed me that the Taj had decided to add (out of its own pocket) small payouts for sixth and seventh place. Wow, a casino actually did something to show that it appreciates its poker players!

I try to do the right thing in the tournament, but pick the wrong time:
I have tried to blot this hand out of my mind, but the following description is reasonably accurate. Michael Binger and I both have less than 40,000 in chips and are the short stacks. With blinds of 800-1,600, he raises to 5,000 or so from early position, and I am in the small blind with the K J 10 7, and decide to call. The call is somewhat questionable, but my plan is to play any good flops strongly, and check-fold anything else. The flop comes Q 9 4. This gives me a big wrap, and may well have missed him completely. Maybe I can win it right here. I lead for 10,000, he thinks for a long time, and calls. I am pretty sure that he doesn’t have a really huge hand, or he’d move all in with this draw-heavy board. My guess is that he has hearts and maybe some straight shots, like the A K J 10, which is a big favorite over my hand, but he could have anything. If we both check the turn, he won’t be able to call a river bet without at least two pair if a blank hits. The turn is the 7. This doesn’t help him if he has hearts, and my lowly pair of sevens now makes me a favorite over hands like the A K J 10. So, rather than hope that we’ll both check, I go all in. My reasoning is that he might fold some really bad hands and call with some hands where I’m a favorite. If I check, he’ll bet most of the hands where he’s a favorite, and I’ll have to call. He calls, and shows one of the hands that has me totally dominated: K K J 10. We have the same wrap, but he has kings to my sevens. I have only two outs, the sevens, and obviously a bunch of ties. Overall, I’m a pathetic 5-1 dog, and am promptly eliminated. Even though I tried to do the right things in this hand, I managed to do everything wrong. Michael is the next to go when he loses an unlucky hand to Allie. But, the two of us can thank the Taj for our tiny payday.

Dr. Ray does the right thing: Dr. Ray is a successful eye doctor from Brooklyn. I’ve known him since our college days at Columbia, more than 40 years ago. He has started going to Atlantic City on weekends, and has done well in some of the Borgata’s Friday $300 buy-in tournaments. He is often accompanied by his mom, now in her mid-90s, who loves the slots. He was playing in a $2-$5 cash game, and made the nuts on the river against an obnoxious opponent. He shoved for around $300, and his opponent said, “OK. What do you have?” Ray, as would many players not used to angle-shooters in casinos, assumed that this meant he was calling. He turned up his hand. His opponent mucked, but insisted that he had never said, “Call,” or put his chips into the pot. The floorman made the obvious ruling: Ray hadn’t been called. Later in the session, this same player was sucking on a lemon drop (to sweeten his disposition). Somehow, he managed to inhale the lemon drop, and couldn’t breathe. Ray leaped out of his seat, remarking, “I can’t believe I have to save your miserable (bleeping) life!” He walked around the table and performed the Heimlich Maneuver. The lemon drop shot halfway across the room. The man’s life was saved. Someone else remarked, “Ya should have let him choke.” But, Dr. Ray did the right thing.

New Year’s resolution: If you are looking for a good resolution for 2010, why not resolve to do the right thing? Not only should you try to do the right thing, you should become more aware of those times, especially in poker, when you don’t know what the right thing is. In those cases, make an attempt to figure it out.

Steve “Zee” Zolotow, aka The Bald Eagle, is a successful games player. He currently devotes most of his time to poker. He can be found at many major tournaments and playing on Full Tilt, as one of its pros. When escaping from poker, he hangs out in his bars on Avenue A — Nice Guy Eddie’s at Houston and Doc Holliday’s at 9th Street — in New York City.