High Stakes Poker

High Stakes Poker was back. The action was kind of boring. Not terrible but kind of boring. It was the tenth episode of this season. The players staring at each other after glancing at their cards included: The Professor; Howard Lederer, Kid Poker; Daniel Negreanu, Salty Joe; Joe Hachem, The Unabomber; Phil Laak, The Magician; Antonio Esfandiari, The Director; Nick Cassavetes, DURRRR; Tom Dwan, and the Swedish Bombshell; Patrik Anotnius.

As per usual, the blinds were $400/$800 with $200 antes. The players were still playing the winner had to show one card.

The first two pots were exchanges between Salty Joe and Antonius. Hachem took the first with middle pair and Antonius threw away bottom pair. In the next hand, Antonius got his chips back pushing Hachem off a hand.

Antonio Esfandiari and Patrik Antonius mixed it up next. Esfandiari limped with 9-9. Antonius raised to $4,800. The big Swede was sitting on suited A-J of clubs. The Magician after a little thought called.

The flop was very favorable to the former tennis player Antonius. A-6-10 with two clubs. Top pair with the nut flush draw elicited a bet from Patrik after Esfandiari checked. BTW, sidenote, how confusing would this action be if we refered to them as Antonio as Antonius.

After a nonthreatening turn card, the lowly the 5 of hearts, it again went check bet (19,000), call. The river was the Ace of spades which was a bit of trouble card for Esfandiari. It made it less likely that Antonius had an ace. He did though. Esfandiari checked yet again, Antonius bet $41,000, and Esfandiari folded.

In the next hand, holding absolutely nothing Nick Cassavetes had a moment of bad timing as he bluffed at Dwan. Perhaps it would have worked if the community cards weren't A-3-Q-Q-A and Dwan didn't hold an A. The full house of Dwan fired back and the Director folded.

Negreanu's bad luck in the television series continued. He had to fold his pair of aces on the river to Dwan's rivered straight. Phil Laak was the next to fall to Dwan's run of luck as Dwan made a full house, and Laak called him with a flush.

In the next hand, Negreanu fell to Laak when the Unabomber's two pair bested Negreanu's KJ (with a king on board). Hachem rode sidecar in the hand to see the flop with 4-4.

Negreanu's next hand again was a loser to Dwan. In a multi-way pot Negreanu held A8 of hearts. Flop was AQ2. Dwan of course held AQ. Dwan bet the flop and Kid Poker called. The turn was a brick. Dwan led out. Negreanu raised $50,000 on top and Dwan called. The river went check-check. And Dwan dragged Negreanu's chips again in the over 220k pot.

The episode ended with somebody finally beating Dwan in a pot. Dwan held J-J. Antonius a lowly 10-6. Dwan raised preflop, Esfandiari called, and Antonius re-raised. Dwan called, Esfandiari folded.

Flop came A high and Antonius c-bet. Dwan called. Turn brought a king and Antonius fired out a large bet, Dwan stewed and folded. When Antonius turned over the 6 as his one card he had to show, Dwan fumed, knowing he had been bluffed.

Next week looks like a lot of fun as Dario Minieri, online Texas Hold'em prodigy in a scarf of course, joins the action. Looks like Eli Elezra taks a couple of pots of the seemingly unbeatable Dwan too.