Tuesday, the 27th, the Butterflies and Turtles were on deck at 11:15 a.m. to set up and get ready to deal flight two – day one. That was us, me and the Kid Across the Hall, Turtles Extraordinaire. We met for a meal – down where the iguanas hang out – watched a few members of our group trip by, and all in all enjoyed lazing in the shade, staring at the tranquil peace of the beach and merging of the ocean and skyline. The meal was great, so was the company, but eventually we had to move our butts down to the Radisson. We did.

Jim and me were starting in the main tournament area and Wayne was starting in the satellite area – just a big damn ballroom with divider walls, lots of poker tables, and soon to be filled with players eager to test their skills. We had a meeting a few minutes before we picked up our chips and headed for our individual tables and before we knew it, we were greeting players, checking their receipts for table and seats, and getting ready to crank out the cards. Truthfully, the cards sucked. They were some type of paper with the Ultimate Bet logo on them and after one round of the table, immediately bonded to each other with the humidity. Ugh!!!

I was starting at the last table in rotation, then on break, and head for Table 1. After I got to Table 3 or 4, the missing player in the 1s showed up…he’d been missing since the beginning of the tournament. Layne! He sat down and started kibitzing with me. I miss counted a player’s bet a few hands later and Layne peered intently into the side of my head, tapped my head, and asked, “Are you blonde in there?”

I laughed, “No but a little gray. Mother Nature just won’t cooperate.”

He asked, “Can you feel gray?”

I looked at his hair, “Where’s your gray at?”

“No. I mean…can you feel it? Because I feel like I have gray hair.”

Guess he’s feeling life but I couldn’t help but laugh.

He flirted around with a few pots and won them. Chip Jett was in the 8s and they started their own conversation. I got pushed out.

Much later, and further down the line, the blinds went to $150-$300. The 3s, a woman, said, “Raise,” and put out two $100 chips, then reached back and put out two $1,000 chips. The 4s folded, the question was posed, “Can she do that?”

Where was my brain? I don’t know. I was still on holidays. I said I thought she could. The 5s said he was sure she could only raise it to double the BB but to call for a decision just in case. I did.

When Jack walked up to make the decision, before I could open my mouth, the 5s blurted out something like, “She said raise and then only threw in $200. What can she raise to?”

I said, “Next time I’d like to ask the question…”

The 5s jumped in, “Some people just like to hear themselves talk.”

He was looking at me. I think he was implying that I liked to hear myself talk…umnhhhhh! Guess he showed me.

A few tables later and the players were on a short break. Erik Siedel came over to visit with me for a moment, asking about my website and mentioning that he’d been by and noticed a lot of changes. Don’t think for one half of a second that that isn’t pretty sweet. Nice! I did deal to him a few hours later.

Almost as soon as the players came back from break, I had to get another decision. Heads-up action, BB player threw out five $500 chips at the same time the Button Player threw in $1,500. When I told the Button that the bet was $2,500, he grabbed his bet back. I told him he couldn’t do that either, the chips had to stay, so he tried to push all of his chips in at that point. “DECISION!”

The decision? He could either forfeit the $1,500 or complete the call, but he sure as hell couldn’t raise at that point.

I ended up on break. I headed upstairs to the gift shop to pick up a double Red Bull and as I started across the foyer, I could see Phil Helmuth blasting out of the stairwell I’d just come from. I knew he was busted out just from the way he charged across the foyer.

Back into the Box. A few tables later, Phil came up to the player in the 1s at my table and apologized, asking if the 1s thought Phil swore at him. The 1s said, “No. I thought you were just swearing about poker.”

Phil, “Good. I didn’t think I swore at you but they said I did.”

They shook hands, a minute more of small talk, and Phil left. The 1s kind of chuckled and said something like, “Now I don’t have to have security escort me out.”

I started laughing.

Apparently Phil had flopped a set of fives and the 1s Rivered a set of Queens. Phil is just damn good press. I can’t help but get a kick out of his temperament and how intricately it twists itself into his poker play. Did I say intricately?

At one point I pushed a six ball. After 11 or 12 tables, me and the Kids Across the Hall were out of the line-up. We decided on Gilligans for dinner…a small bar/eatery on the beach that is part of the Radisson. As we stood in line, waiting to be seated, Erik S. appeared right behind us. I asked him if he’d like to join us and he did. Another super treat! What a great guy. He left before we finished because he was on a ‘player’s dinner break’.

Wayne and I ordered a bucket of beer each, that would be four in a bucket of ice, and it was less expensive to buy it that way. But of course we knew we were going to drink it too. I kept drinking. We cruised the poker rooms. The Kids Across the Hall had much more stamina for the fine of art of poker than I did. I was ready to be a lazy dog, swimming, more beer, and writing…what else is there?

This is part of the Bad Beat Rules at the Wyndham.

And in case you can’t read it:

12: Only English, Spanish or Papiamento spoken during hands.
13: Players may ask dealers for translations at anytime.

Can’t help but chuckle over the simplicity of it. Maybe it should be adopted in the States.