WSOP Stories - One Tight Player

While playing cash games at Rio, I mostly divided my time between $5/10 NLHE and $2/5 PL Omaha 8. I tried to play at whatever game looked the juiciest. Although I was at a couple tight O8 tables, the action was mostly fast and loose (like Dean after a wine cooler).

I had been playing at one fairly loose table for a couple hours, when a new player sat down on my immediate right. It became evident pretty quickly that this guy was a tight player. Most hands we had a straddle from either UTG or from the button (a Mississippi Straddle), with mostly the entire table limping and seeing a flop, but this guy never played a hand for the first hour or so. Now, when I say he never played a hand, I mean that he folded his small blind even if it was only $3 to complete, and folded his big blind if there was a raise or straddle. On those rare occasions he got "stuck" in the hand from the big blind, he folded to any bet. The entire table was giving this guy a good-natured ribbing. He would just smile and tell us that once he did play a hand, then we should get out, because he’ll have the goods. I don’t think any of us needed convincing.

And then it finally happened. He limps into the pot - and from early position no less! The sirens are so loud that players from across the room start lining up single-file to evacuate the building. Although we had a few $1,000+ pots up to this point, my interest is piqued like never before. I have some kind of crap hand that I would normally limp in with, but I fold instead. A couple others fold, and of course everyone is teasing him, saying he must have A-A-2-3 double-suited.

The flop brings all Broadway cards, with a couple spades. His tightness makes a small bet, and gets two callers. I suspect they’re more curious than anything. Another big spade comes on the turn, and it checks around. Now there’s a possible flush and straight out there. The river pairs the board with a queen, and our hero bets $50 into a pot of about $90. After he gets one caller (a guy who apparently has no regard for money), the guys turns over his hand and states matter-of-factly “I got the royal.”

The guy turns over a royal flush! The entire table erupts in laughter. The guy who called him turns over kings-full (the third nut) and to his credit, says he didn’t think for more than a few seconds about raising. He got out pretty cheaply considering. The tight player’s starting hand was As-Ad-Js-10d. He flopped the Broadway straight, turned the royal flush, and probably got paid the least amount possible.

I thought maybe this might be the beginning of a nice little rush for the guy, or at the very least it might loosen him up a bit. Nope. He played for another 30 minutes or so, folding every hand until cashing out up enough to maybe buy a cup of coffee and a bagel. This guy will be one of the lasting memories from my first WSOP – the tightest player I’ve ever seen.

See ya at the tables…
Rick