| Play started out with conservative bets, $100 and $200. At about hand 7 or 8, I risked $400 and was dealt a blackjack for a $600 profit. This made me the table leader, a position I held for most of the round. Both Haru and Nolan were having miserable luck, busting on stiff after stiff. Harbec wasn't doing well either. During the first four of the last five hands, Darnell had some great luck and moved into first place, moving me to second. Here was the last hand. There were three of us in contention: Daniel Darnell was first, I was second, and Bill Haru was a distant third. Haru bet $2500. I don't recall Darnell's bet, but it was over $1000 and presumably enough to cover a win by Haru. I bet $2500 since a win by both Darnell and Haru with doubles, splits, or blackjacks would leave me in third place unless I went for it. The cards came out and all three of us were dealt stiffs. I had 13, Haru had 15, and Darnell had 12. The dealer showed a 10. Not good. Haru could not win by surrendering since if he did both Darnell and I would surrender, leaving us in first and second place. He hit and -- kapow! -- pulled a 5 for a total of 20. All of a sudden, luck had drastically changed the situation. Haru looked like a winner. Darnell thought about surrendering but finally decided to go for it. He caught an Ace and then busted on the next card. The last bet in the game came to me. I seriously thought of surrendering. The decision depended upon whether or not $1250 added to my table stack comprised a higher total than Daniel's stack (I figured Haru for a sure winner); if so I could surrender and take second place. The trouble was the totals were too close and I just couldn't determine if that decision would hold up. I hit! The next card out of the shoe was - miraculously - an 8. I had 21. The dealer ended up with 20, so Haru pushed. I came in first and Darnell was second. Had I surrendered the dealer would have ended up with 18, Haru would have won, and either Darnell or I would have come in second -- to this day I don't know who would have held that slot. Nolan told me later that he thought for sure that I was going to surrender. What's luck got to do with it? A whole lot! My second round, in my opinion, had a much less interesting ending. There were six of us competing: Robert Updike, George Long, Oriente Esposo, Albert Schuenke, John Grubb, and myself. Although I had led the table for about half the round, late in the round George Long and Oriente Esposo in seats two and three had made some good plays and were in first and second place. By the last hand John Grubb, to my right in seat five, was in third place and I was in fourth place. I wagered $2500 and hoped for a lucky break. John Grubb had also wagered $2500. When the cards were dealt, I -- mercifully -- received an eleven meaning that I could double, get up to $5000 in play, and hope for the ten. Oh no! John to my right had been dealt a blackjack and the dealer showed an Ace. John took even money. Smart move. Surrender was not an option for me. Insurance might have been a reasonable decision since if I lost it I could still double half of my original wager and be in the game. The trouble was it wasn't clear to me that winning such a bet would give me second place. And if the dealer did have a blackjack, I would lose anyway. Besides, I thought the KO count was at -14, so a dealer blackjack wasn't probable. I refused the insurance, as did everyone except John, hoping that I could double my $2500 and get lucky. Doubling against an Ace is normally not a correct play but in a tournament setting, in fourth place, it was the only choice. Guess what? The dealer had the improbable blackjack. That's what luck has to do with it. John was the table winner; either Long or Esposo took second. You see that the usual Poker hierarchy is drastically changed when four-card hands are used. Three of a Kind beats a Straight and Two Pair beats a Flush. What is more, the frequencies for Flush through Three of a Kind are very close. It was my contention that Poker players would be uncomfortable with these rankings. I still believe that. Nevertheless, in the past couple of months two different four-card Poker games have come to my attention, one of which, I understand, has been playing for over a year now. So do I have to eat crow on this? |
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