Unbelievable!

I know this is way late but Budoy didn't post about the poker game two Saturdays ago. Hmmph! So that leaves me to do this...

A pretty mixed bunch showed up at Budoy's house that night. Throwing in their 50 bucks a pot per game were: Budoy, myself, [identity-protected] and her brother TJ, Rjay and Leslie, Dino, Ching, Bob, Elena (with TC), Miko and Baguio Club member Sly. As usual, Rjay took over dealing the cards and let Leslie play. (Overheard: "Daddy, daddy! Where's Mommy! When is she coming home?" "Mommy's playing cards, Annika." Ehek.)

This was one of the longest game nights around: the group played four games with the first game going to Budoy and racheting his wins to three in the overall lead. (There were only eight of us playing as Elena and TC, Miko, Rjay and Leslie came in late.)

Swearing revenge, I took the next round (woot!), my first win ever since we started playing last year. Ironically, despite trying hard to keep a poker face in the last stretch of the game, I had a hard time playing as outed-players Sly, Ching and Leslie kept peeking at my cards. Do you know how difficult it is to strategize when someone's cheering at your good hand? Aaaagh.

Third game went to [identity-protected] despite the fact that she was constantly on chikka mode with Elena. My one and only win broke my nerve so I stayed out of it and that left nine people playing. Dino and Ching started the fun with their all-in move on the first few hands. Unfortunately, the tactic didn't work for Budoy and he got kicked out early. One of the longest games that night, [identity-protected] tied with Budoy after this with three wins in the overall lead.

The fourth game-- ah, now that was kicker of the night. A number of people had decided to go home during the middle of the game (Ching, Rjay and Leslie) so Dino (who had been outed of the game early on) took over Ching's chips while TJ took over dealing. Suddenly, it was as if there was an unseen force overseeing the game: Dino kept betting like there was no tomorrow and he KEPT WINNING! Also, to make it more exciting, he NEVER LOOKED AT HIS CARDS!

As the game progressed, you could see Budoy getting more nervous as it became a showdown between him and Dino. He used every trick in the book, including copying Dino's style, but to no avail. With panache and flair, Dino smashed the opposition and took home the award of "Best Player of the Night" while Budoy was the "Got Played of the Night" awardee.

Unbelievable!

Shut Up and Deal Saturday

The boys congregated for another Texas Hold-em session last Saturday at my place. Dino, Belle, Bob, Joey and TC were the first to arrive. While Belle settled down to watch Pinoy Big Brother, the boys went ahead and held a P20 buy-in practice game. Bob got things rolling by opening a bottle of wine and winning the first game.

R-Jay, Leslie, Ching and Elena arrived next and the game shifted to a P50 per pop session. The drinking also went up a notch. Bob led the way with glass after glass of wine. Joey and R-Jay attacked a bottle of tequila. As everyone else fell by the wayside, it came down to a showdown between newbies Bob and Leslie, with Leslie taking the game on a winner-take-all last hand.

The Javiers then had to leave to tend to their baby at home and Miko arrived, fresh from being with his kid. Another P50 session took place. As did more drinking. Bob became mean. Joey giggled. Dino took the game in a head-to-head with Miko.

After a little more drinking and F1 talk, we parted ways. Apparently, Bob took the loss to Leslie really hard. At 330 in the morning, he texted..."Swinerte si Leslie...hmph!"

Oh, and speaking of swerte, Philip texted earlier in the night, begging off from the game. Apparently, Anna's pregnant. Congrats to the Pichays!