Nice hand....?

What does that really mean? I hear people say "Nice hand" all the time to people who just won a big pot. And in most cases, it really wasn't a nice hand, it seems to me that they just had a big hand run all over them. Most of the time, when someone says that to me, I'll comment, "thanks, but I just ran into some cards"...

Here's what it means to me. Value. It's one thing to run into cards but it is entirely different to get a big hand and extract the most chips from the pot possible with that hand. Yes, it can be dangerous. Sometimes your willingness to let them "catch up" doesn't always work out. Sometimes they not only catch up, but surpass your hand and take the pot down and away from you. If you read back through my blog history, you'll see several instances where someone flopped the nuts only to get outdrawn "slow playing" when an opponent hits their one or two outer. I still believe that it's worth it in the long run to go for the value in the hand. I play with several guys who'll get monster pocket cards and bet out 10X the blinds and take down $30. To me, that just doesn't make sense. I'd rather let the flop come, and if my pocket rockets and no low is looking at 4,5,6 and get raised, I'm perfectly ok with folding them and trying again later.

And don't talk to me about being "snake bitten".... you know, when you go through what seems like a lifetime where everyone and their brother are hitting those one or two outers on you and you feel obligated to overbet to take down the small pots, you just have to play through it. When you get in that mode, it seems that everytime you get a big hand, you bet, they fold. You're winning small pots and they're taking down the all-ins. I overheard a guy on the phone a while back, he was apparently asked on his mobile how it was going at the poker table, his response, "I feel like I'm walking through land mines." I like it when my style of play forces my opponents to evaluate whether they want to raise me or not. I recently pushed all-in pre-flop with Aces and clubs in Omaha Hi-Only and was called by Cho sporting Kings and clubs... of course, bone-head hits-what turned out to be a one-outer, because a King was the first burn card. And he say... "I just knew the king was coming..." LOL. Love the call --- hate the card! Of course, 2 clubs come on the flop as well, but the third doesn't come at all.

You tell me... what hands do you remember? The ones that you raised with monster down cards pre-flop and stole the blinds? or the ones that your opponent says "All in!" and you call and flip over the nuts?

If it was the latter, I'd be willing to bet that someone at the table said.... Nice Hand!

Late Show - A Monkey Sneezing

The Juice's Recommeded Deer Hunting Hat for the wife...

Full Tilt Poker - From M.I.T. to the World Series of Poker

Famous Poker Quotes...

"At gambling, the deadly sin is to mistake bad play for bad luck."

-----------------Ian Fleming Casino Royale - 1953