Bet With Johnny and Phil - Part II

In the last issue, I encouraged you to bet about a hand that occurred at the United States Poker Championship in Atlantic City. Johnny Chan and I bet on whether or not Erik Seidel was bluffing in a particular hand. I gave you a few reasons to side with me, and I gave you a few reasons to side with Johnny. In my mind, it was close – so close, in fact, that I bet Johnny a mere $1,000, when he was willing to bet much, much more. (I couldn't handle the thought of being bluffed out by Seidel and paying Chan $5,000, as well!)

With three players remaining in the championship, Toto Leonidas was in seat No. 1, Erik Seidel was in seat No. 2, and I was in seat No. 3. With the blinds at $10,000-$20,000, Erik made it $55,000 to go from the small blind, and I looked down to see A-8 offsuit in the big blind. I studied Erik, and immediately sensed strength.

My options at this point were to call, reraise, or fold. Because I sensed strength, I decided that reraising here was a bad move. Calling seemed reasonable, but folding just seemed too tight to me. Folding A-8 here didn't seem like the proper play; therefore, I called the $35,000 raise.

The flop was A-J-10, and Erik bet out $70,000; I called. On fourth street, a deuce came, for a board of A-J-10-2, and Erik bet out $155,000; I studied for one minute and called. The last card was a 6, and Erik bet out $200,000; I studied for a long time, and finally, I folded. I folded because I thought Erik had A-Q, but he more likely had A-J, A-10, or a set.

Johnny Chan said, "You called and hit your best card; I would have just said, 'the heck with it,' and called the $200,000." At this point, Johnny and I made our $1,000 bet, with Johnny betting that Erik was bluffing.

Erik reluctantly agreed to reveal what his holecards were, and believe me, he is notorious for not wanting to give away information. He talks about this hand only because his cards will be seen on a Travel Channel broadcast of this tournament at the beginning of 2004.

Erik said, "Actually, Phil, my cards won't be seen on TV; somehow they missed that hand. The only reason I'm revealing them now is because of my strong interest in teaching one and all the great game of no-limit hold'em. Wherever I go, I try to impart some wisdom about the game I love." Folks, if you believe that comment from Erik, I have a bridge to sell you in the Mohave Desert!

Erik revealed this: "I had A-K (aha, Erik did have me beat), and I made it $55,000 to go, a little underraise, hoping that Phil would move all in with a worse ace high. I got a pretty good flop for A-K, and decided to bet right out, especially since Phil calls me a lot on the flop. Fourth street was pretty harmless (a deuce), so I continued betting. I thought Phil had a medium ace (good read, Erik, I did have a medium ace), but I was also concerned that he may have K-Q; however, I decided to bet it strongly, since I thought he would call me with a medium ace."

Erik continued, "The last card seemed pretty harmless, as well (a 6), so I wanted to bet an amount of money that Phil would call. I felt that if I bet too much here, he would fold his hand. I bet $200,000, hoping for a call, trying to 'price him in,' knowing that he was capable of making a good laydown."

I (Phil) did make a good laydown, but not before losing $280,000 on the hand. What can I say? Erik played the hand extremely well, and I did have a medium ace. One small consolation is that Johnny has to pay me $1,000, and believe me when I say that Johnny does not lose too many bets. I must say in Johnny's defense that he wasn't there to watch the hand!

Both Erik and Johnny have my utmost respect as great players who have withstood the test of time. They both have been around poker since the mid-'80s, and both have been winning consistently since then. In fact, the World Series of Poker scene from the movie Rounders features Johnny and Erik as the 1988 WSOP's final two players. Carry on, men!

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

Editor's note: Phil's book, Play Poker Like the Pros, is available through Card Player. At philhellmuth.com, you can learn more about Phil and read more Hand of the Week columns. Play poker with Phil, or chat with him, at UltimateBet.com's low-stakes tables.