Chapter 4 EP. 9 Rabbit Hunting and Tee Times

Summary

Ante Up Poker Magazine Podcast

Chapter 4, Episode 9: Rabbit Hunting and Tee Times

Host: Joe Scales
Guests: Elle, Patrick, Elliot
Date: March 14, 2026

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Overview

In this lively, strategy-packed edition of Ante Up Poker Magazine’s long-running podcast, host Joe Scales welcomes regulars Elle and Patrick for a relaxed, humor-filled “table talk” that covers home game triumphs, upcoming poker events, the realities of fame and mental health in poker, and a spotlight on controversial moments in the Texas poker scene. Main segments include Hand of the Week (a deep dive into a Crazy Pineapple hand), Call the Floor with Elliot (exploring procedural mishaps at the table), and Joe’s One Outer (a mindset mini-rant on “rabbit hunting”). This episode is especially engaging for everyday players, with relatable anecdotes, clear strategic insights, and a genuine look at poker's mental demands.

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Table Talk with Patrick: Home Game Brags & Pineapple Dreams

[02:20–05:50]

• Patrick’s Victory Lap
  Patrick stops by to bask in the glow of making his first final table, notably knocking out both Joe and Elle and claiming the evening’s bounty. He humorously recounts juggling poker with parenting, playing with his 4-year-old on his lap in an astronaut costume.

  “Took the bounty. Took both of you out. Had a 4 year old on my lap in an astronaut costume for a little while.”
  — Patrick [04:26]

• Final Table Banter
  Elle asserts her own skill, boasting about her final table finish; Joe ribbing himself about his early bust-out.

• Game Variety: Pineapple Love
  Patrick and Elle riff on their growing appreciation for Pineapple and its variants, particularly double bomb pot formats.

  “Next time pineapple comes up, you know, I’m off hold ‘em week. I can hop into pineapple. I’m getting behind pineapple.”
  — Patrick [03:51]

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Community & Upcoming Events: Shirts, Tour Stops & The Arizona Heat

[07:31–09:01]

• Getting Ready for Gila River, Lone Butte Tour Stop
  Joe and Elle express excitement about custom shirts provided for the Arizona event and shout-out the local poker staff.

  “We have our main event shirts cleaned and ready…they're super soft. We can't wait to keep wearing them while we're out there next week.”
  — Elle [07:36]

• Weather Complaints & Travel Vibes
  A running joke about the Arizona heat and traveling from cold climates.

• Women’s Poker Wins
  Celebration of a record-breaking women’s event and the growing energy in the community.

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Social Pressure & Mental Health in Modern Poker

[09:02–17:16]

• Brad Owen’s Candid Post
  Joe and Elle break down Brad Owen’s recent admission of feeling like a failure despite being up over a million dollars in his poker career, facing a $400,000 downswing, and struggling with the weight of community expectations as a content creator.

  “He talks about how he still feels like a failure because of this downswing...we never talk about...when you're on these downswings, you feel even more alone, you know?”
  — Joe Scales [09:47]

• The Solitude of Poker Fame
  Elle reflects on her own experience in the poker community, sharing how public identity and perceived expectations raise the pressure compared to anonymous play.

• The Content Grind
  Both hosts discuss how the new era of poker forces players into multidimensional roles—competitor, ambassador, content creator—and how this endless feedback loop can overwhelm.

• Advice & Support
  Encouragement for Brad and all listeners to remember no one is alone in poker struggles; it’s healthy to share, reflect, and not buy into the myth that “everything should be good all the time.”

  “Poker is a solo sport...but that doesn't mean you have to go it alone. The majority of [players] have struggled with...where they are mentally in the game.”
  — Joe Scales [17:17]

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Controversy in Texas: The Lodge Raid & Cardroom Safety

[17:18–22:05]

• Texas Poker Ecosystem & The Lodge Situation
  Discussion of the recent law enforcement raid at The Lodge poker club (co-owned by Brad Owen, Doug Polk, and Andrew Neeme), the uncertainty surrounding it, and what it could mean for the Texas poker scene.

  “The room is closed. The WPT festival scheduled at that venue has been postponed. They're giving them space to get regrouped, investigation’s ongoing.”
  — Elle [19:48]

• Don’t Panic, Do Your Homework
  Advice for Texas poker players to remain calm, trust in safe venues, and reference the next magazine issue for a guide to reputable cardrooms and red flags.

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Poker Community, Magazine Updates & Women’s Events

[22:06–23:33]

• Magazine Release & Email List
  Reminder to sign up for Ante Up’s email distribution for the next (free) issue.

• Celebrating Women in Poker
  Highlighting Michelle Wells’ victory in the Talking Stick Women's National Poker Championship, continuing growth in ladies’ events, and the upcoming LIPS Spring Event.

  “They set a new record with 329 entries. Michelle Wells took it down. What? Way to go, Michelle!”
  — Elle [22:31]

• Cruise Event Teasers & Alaska Excursions
  Excitement about the upcoming Ante Up Poker Cruise, including Alaskan port activities and inside jokes about bucket-list trips.

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Call the Floor with Elliot: New Player, New Dealer, New Problem

[28:53–39:59]

Segment Introduction

[28:53–29:57]
Elliot returns as the resident floor expert, ready to weigh in on listener-submitted poker room conundrums.

The Situation

• A new player with a new dealer is mistakenly dealt into the small blind, only posting $4 instead of properly buying the button.
• The hand proceeds, and only after it's over does the dealer call for the floor.
• Floor rules no correction possible; the player gives $3 to the winner to “rectify” the situation—incorrectly.

Key Insights

• Action was accepted and significant (multiple players acted), so hand stands — can’t be ruled a misdeal.

• Shared responsibility between players and dealer.

• The $3 make-up payment should’ve gone to the big blind if anywhere, but even then, it was already accounted for in the pot structure.

  “The hand was played. It's a poker room. Hands are supposed to get played. So again, decision was correct.”
  — Elliot [32:17]

House Procedures Tips

• Use reserve/New Player buttons to avoid ambiguity over seat status.

• Both floors and players must stay alert to seating responsibilities.

  “Houses that just give out missed blinds and that's it... really gotta think about having the reserved/new player button. It would make things like this disappear.”
  — Elliot [35:00]

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Hand of the Week: Crazy Pineapple Home Game Deep Dive

[40:09–63:34]

Setup & Pre-Flop

• Listener Richard Fry submits a Crazy Pineapple hand from $1/$2 home game (8-handed, holding A♠ K♠ Q♦ in the hijack).
• Patrick and Joe recommend raising to $12 (punish limpers); Richard actually raises to $10, gets four callers (5 to the flop).

Flop

• Board: J♠ 10♠ 4♣
• Strategy: Patrick & Joe advocate betting ~half the pot to thin the field; Richard bets $25. Folds down to heads-up.
• Discard decision: Both agree—ditch Q♦, keep A♠ K♠ for nut flush and royal draw.

Turn

• 9♦ hits, making straight possible. (Would have made turned straight if Q♦ kept, but vital to keep nut flush draw.)

Line Analysis

• Patrick prefers a significant turn bet ($55–$60); Joe suggests potentially shoving to maximize fold equity.
• Richard checks—button bets $55; Richard just calls.
  Both hosts discuss merits of call vs. aggressive raise.

River

• Q♥ rivers, giving Richard the nut straight.

• Strategic consensus: Check to induce, or shove for value; in either case, money goes in.

• Button shoves, Richard snap-calls.

  “Have you ever been crab fishing?...I’m checking here. I’m setting the bait. Let them do whatever they need to.”
  — Patrick [56:19]

Results

• Button shows K♦ Q♠ Q♣ (turned broadway), outdrawn by river.
• Richard asks if calling on the turn was correct.

Hosts’ Summary

• Can’t be results-oriented; folding would be a massive mistake holding premium draws.

• Discuss “survivorship bias” and how poker psychology can be warped by memorable losses rather than correct long-term play.

  "You remember the times when you miss where villain has a straight...but you forget the times that you stack two pair…You can't just focus on the times you missed."
  — Joe Scales [61:03]

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Joe’s One Outer: The Pitfalls of Rabbit Hunting

[63:57–68:21]

• Joe launches into an energetic critique of “rabbit hunting,” explaining why it’s toxic for your mindset.

• Emphasizes how rabbit hunting lets players stew in fantasy timelines, warping their view of the game and leading to tilt.

  “Rabbit hunting is like voluntarily watching highlight reels of all the ways the universe could annoy you. It serves absolutely no strategic purpose whatsoever.”
  — Joe Scales [64:16]

• Advice: Don’t rabbit hunt, don’t watch if others do, and keep your focus on process—not hypotheticals.

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Memorable Quotes & Moments

• Patrick’s Humble Brag: “I'm not gonna lie, the bragging rights are going to be good.” [03:46]
• Elle on Social Poker: "Part of what drew me to poker is the social aspect. However, most of the time it's still just me." [10:40]
• Joe on the New Era: "The modern poker player has a lot of those hats to wear... they didn’t have to worry about, 'am I playing this hand in a way that's going to get me views?'" [13:10]
• Elliot on Responsibility: "Players are supposed to pay attention to it, and it's not all on the dealer. So, yeah, this is a shared responsibility." [32:17]
• Joe on Mindset: "Protect your mindset the same way you protect your chips…You don't need to torture yourself with the ones that never mattered in the first place." [67:18]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [02:20] Table Talk with Patrick
• [09:02] Brad Owen & Poker Mental Health
• [17:18] The Lodge, Texas Cardrooms & Magazine Preview
• [22:28] Women’s Poker Event Highlights
• [28:53] Call the Floor with Elliot
• [40:09] Hand of the Week: Crazy Pineapple
• [63:57] Joe’s One Outer — "Rabbit Hunting"

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Tone and Takeaways

The episode maintains the Ante Up signature style: casual, supportive, self-deprecating humor, and an inclusive vibe. It’s packed with specific strategy insight, relatable home-game stories, wellness wisdom for the poker mind, and advocacy for safer, more supportive poker venues. Regular listeners and newcomers alike will come away better equipped—technically and mentally—for their next poker session.

Transcript

[Elle]

Take

[Joe Scales]

your seat.

[Podcast Narrator]

The cards are flying high. Shuffle up and deal at the aces Lie Longest running show. Yeah, we've seen it all. From the river to the rail, we answer the call.

[Joe Scales]

Hello, a team. And welcome back to another episode of the Antiette Poker podcast where every hand is an opportunity, every player is a friend, every. And every episode is a winning experience. I'm your host, Joe Scales, and this week Patrick is stopping by for some table talk before he heads out to play a little golf. We actually recorded Hand of the week earlier to make sure he could make his tea time. So things were recorded a little out of order today, but it's all right. I'll put them in order, I promise. I already know this episode is going to run a little long, so I'm going to keep this part short and sweet. Actually, before we get to table talk, I have to change shirts because Gila River, Lone Butte, they sent us some cool shirts to get ready for the Antioch Poker Tour stop out there. And Ellen, I thought it would be fun to throw those on. So put those on. And then you see the table behind me that is actually the. The new table tops that they have out there at Lone Butte. So I'm excited to see those in person. Also, it's another Friday the 13th. I feel like we just had one of those. Not. Not that long ago, but here we are again. But don't worry, there's. There's nothing scary about this episode. Keep doing what you're doing. Keep talking at the show, keep listening, keep leaving those reviews and keep sending in those hands of the week and call the floor situations. That's what keeps the show fun. That's what keeps it entertaining. Short and sweet like I promised. That's all I have. So let's get on with the show.

[Podcast Narrator]

Welcome to the show. You're on the A team. Stack your chips and chase the.

[Joe Scales]

Elle and I are back around the poker table.

[Elle]

Patrick, we. We, Patrick, might know why you're here on a Friday afternoon, but tell these lovely folks.

[Patrick]

Just wanted to stop by to say hey to two of my favorite people that did not make it. Well, Elle made a little long last night.

[Elle]

I made it to the final table. Thank you.

[Patrick]

You did. That's a good point. You were there. Were you there? Joe wasn't there. For anyone else that didn't play last night, Joe did not make final table.

[Joe Scales]

Why was I not there?

[Patrick]

And neither one of them won because of me. Oh, and I also took out the Downey.

[Joe Scales]

You did.

[Patrick]

And I made my first final table. So I Listen, first final table, I own it. It's been a rough, rough go of it, but we played good last night. I played good last night.

[Joe Scales]

I was just saying there wasn't a we there. You played well.

[Patrick]

I played well last night. I felt very good about it, you know, and I don't want to shout him out because he's a Yankees fan, but, you know, well played, well played, good win and what up, Doc? Thanks for the flush. Yeah, but otherwise, yeah, it was, it

[Elle]

was a lot of fun last night.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, it's. It's a lot more fun winning than

[Patrick]

losing, I got to tell you. Especially when, you know, you're not 12 minutes in, it's like, all right, see you guys next month. So, as I've learned from the master, I'm getting better at this. So life's good.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Elle]

Well, that's a way to go into the weekend.

[Patrick]

That's a very good way to go on the weekend.

[Joe Scales]

An extra 15 in your pocket and this bragging rights for a while.

[Patrick]

I'm not gonna lie this. The bragging rights are going to be good. But I will say we had a hand of the week that we played Pineapple.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Patrick]

So next time pineapple comes up, you know, I'm off hold them week. I can hop into pineapple. I'm getting behind pineapple.

[Elle]

We're trying.

[Joe Scales]

I like that pineapple.

[Patrick]

Pineapple is a good one. It is.

[Elle]

It's one of my favorites.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Patrick]

And it's, you know, it's not that hard either. It's, you know, so it's fun.

[Elle]

Well, wait till you play a double bomb pot on a pineapple game.

[Patrick]

See, and that's where my head goes into.

[Elle]

Well, we are really glad that you stopped by. We're most proud of you. We did invite you on because we thought, you know what, you guys are

[Patrick]

a good spouse on that.

[Elle]

Well deserved to knock both of us out.

[Patrick]

Took the bounty. Took both of you out. Had a 4 year old on my lap in an astronaut costume for a little while. Yeah. So the distractions were there. So it was a great, very good evening.

[Elle]

Well played. Thanks for popping by and we hope you enjoy your afternoon on the golf course.

[Patrick]

Sounds good. Appreciate it, guys.

[Joe Scales]

Cheers.

[Elle]

Well, that was fun.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, it's good to have him drop by. You know, we used to record in this studio on that corner over there. Hand of the week. He would come into studio and we would do it and now I totally forgot. Yeah. Yeah. So that's how far we've come.

[Elle]

Well, and it's just so fun that he's nearby and he can just pop over. And then he has his flexible schedule and he had a golf game. Everything just aligned.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah. That's why he had to take off, because he had a. A golf game to get to. Yeah, but we invited him last night. You invited him last night?

[Elle]

Yeah. Much deserved. He's gonna knock you out, then he's gonna get the bounty and he knocks me out at the final table. I finally was like, do you just want to be on the podcast tomorrow? You've earned that at this point, resident fish.

[Joe Scales]

And I was like, oh, on. On one condition. You have to come in studio. And I did not expect him to be like, okay. But he jumped at it.

[Elle]

I did, I did, I did. Patrick and I are very similar.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Elle]

If it give us a little bit of a push or a challenge and

[Joe Scales]

we're like, yeah, if he has the opportunity to give me a hard time too, I'm sure he will jump at it.

[Elle]

Same. What did I say? So anyhow, listen, big, huge props go out to Yankees fan. I have to rib you just a little bit because you didn't show up to discord until you won the game, but I appreciated that too. And we found out why. He had literally just flown home up the east coast. He was in Tampa watching three spring games of his favorite Yankees team, left beautiful, sunny Florida and flew back up to the northeast and got out and got to his ride share. And it was like snow.

[Joe Scales]

Right.

[Elle]

So mad props to flying home, trudging through snow, and then joining our Patreon game towards the end of your evening.

[Joe Scales]

100.

[Elle]

And then taking it down and then.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, 100. That's incredible. And then USC 1991.

[Elle]

Yeah. Just joining us, he was number one last week.

[Joe Scales]

He was the good karma seat last week, last month for the. The mix game.

[Elle]

Yeah. And.

[Joe Scales]

And then took it down. Takes. Takes that down and jumps into this one, gets second place, heads up with. With the Yankees fan and gave him a run like it was.

[Elle]

Yeah. Didn't give up easy.

[Joe Scales]

It was a overwhelming chip lead for Yankees fan. And then it got close and then in the end it ended up being Yankees fan that still took it down. But yeah, good.

[Elle]

Impressive.

[Joe Scales]

Good run for him as well.

[Elle]

Very impressive.

[Joe Scales]

And also we would talk about these shirts.

[Elle]

Oh, yeah, I was going to get to that. We're already ready for Arizona next week. We leave on Tuesday. We have our main event shirts cleaned and ready, so. Yes. Thank you so much to Jack out at Lone Beau and all the marketing team. We love them. They're super Soft. We can't wait to keep wearing them while we're out there next week. And then Tia running the poker room. To Tia and her team. Looking forward to it. Ready?

[Joe Scales]

Yeah. So ready. It was warm and I was like, well, that's weird. It's going to be warm. And then we go out to Arizona where it's warm, and then it's going to be hot. Yeah. But it got cold here. And then I was like, okay, now I feel better about going to Arizona. And then you're like, it's going to be 107.

[Elle]

Yeah, it really is. I'm not gonna. I'm not gonna harp on that other than I was not prepared. And Dustin Scara did call us and say, FYI, it's gonna be unseasonably warm.

[Patrick]

Yeah.

[Elle]

But, yeah, major props to the winners of the ladies event that was just finished up at Talking Stick.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Elle]

And so there's lots of excellent poker happening out there that we can't wait to be a part of in our first Tour stop of 2026. I also have my tattoo booked.

[Joe Scales]

You do? That is correct. Yeah. First ever tattoo.

[Elle]

Yeah.

[Joe Scales]

And we'll.

[Elle]

We'll report back.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Elle]

Because it's going to be there in the. In the.

[Joe Scales]

In the meantime, I did want to touch on Brad Owens post, which I. I'm sure a lot of us have seen it already because it's been a while since he put this out, but he touched on some. Some pretty big topics.

[Elle]

And you've been talking about this for a couple days.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Elle]

So I'd like you to share more about what's resonating with you or catching you.

[Joe Scales]

Well, first of all, he is up plenty of money. He's up over a million dollars overall in poker. Not in one year, but overall since he started this journey. But he talks about how he still feels like a failure because of this downswing that he's on, which, I mean, it's a big downswing, like $400,000 downswing.

[Elle]

Yeah.

[Joe Scales]

And so he feels like a failure because of that. Because. And that alone is huge. Because it's a thing we never talk about. Like poker. Poker seems like a social game because we're all at the table, we're having fun and whatever, but. But it really is us on an island kind of by ourselves, you know? And when you're on these downswings, you feel even more alone, you know?

[Elle]

Well, I also think Brad Owen has more eyes.

[Joe Scales]

Oh, yeah.

[Elle]

You feel alone anyway. And then you've got lots and lots of eyes from YouTube to social media to. I'm sure he has a website. Like, there's a lot of people, and that's pressure in itself.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Elle]

And I know something I've experienced, too, is that part of what drew me to poker is the social aspect.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Elle]

However, most of the time it's still just me. And I will say, when people know who, who I am or what business I'm with, if I lose money at the table, it feels way, way worse than if I just go in anonymously, which I like to do and play, because then no one really knows. I don't feel the pressure. I don't feel like I need to represent our brand. I don't feel like I need to know all the correct moves. I'm still learning. And so it becomes a completely different feel.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah. When you're representing your brand is what you're saying. And.

[Elle]

Yeah. Or an organization.

[Joe Scales]

And Brad Owen, same kind of thing. Right. He's. He's got to give this. This aura about himself. And, and he's talked. He also talks about how he feels like he has to play hands a certain way for the views. Right. Because people expect it. Yeah. You expect to have some wild stories and sometimes poker's boring.

[Elle]

I mean, what is, what, what does every producer say to Phil Hellmuth?

[Joe Scales]

They want him to have the blow.

[Elle]

We need. We need it. We. And he's like, it's me. I'm not faking. This is. If it's naturally going to happen, it's going to happen. Right?

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Elle]

But, yeah, I mean, there's. There's a lot of intense focus put on you when people are expecting to see a certain result. So I can also understand how that could, over time, create some wear and tear.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah. And it's hard because when you play poker long enough, too, you start defining who you think you are.

[Elle]

Sure.

[Joe Scales]

By your results.

[Elle]

Like, who doesn't.

[Joe Scales]

You have a good run. You feel like you're a genius, you're having a downswing. You feel like a fraud. Neither is really true. Right. But that's how we feel. And so you. You have a. We all have a hard time kind of keeping ourselves mentally strong through those kind of moments. And when all eyes are on you to your point, then that's even harder. And he talks about, you know, he's a. He's a dad, he's a partner, he's a poker player, he's content creator.

[Elle]

Right.

[Joe Scales]

An ambassador for wpt. You know, the. The modern poker player has a lot of those hats to wear where, you know, not to Take anything away from the legends of the game, because they are legends for a reason. Yeah, but they didn't, they, they played poker, you know, that's what they did. And, and they didn't have to worry about, oh, am I, am I playing this hand in a way that's going to get me views on, on my content?

[Elle]

Well, I just said to you the other day, sometimes I get overwhelmed of knowing there's so many voices. Now we're one of them. Yeah, I know that. However, there's so many now on any topic that you would like to study or become involved in or interested in that sometimes even just getting the news, like which. Which voice do I go to?

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Elle]

There is an insane amount of people sharing their opinions or studies or facts they're finding or conversations they want to have that sometimes I just get overwhelmed and I have to, like, take a break. I mean, I've even set a timer for my social media where it warns me, hey, you've already been on here this amount of time. Are you sure you want to continue? Yeah, it's got to be very difficult if you're not only just showing up to play the game you love to play, but you're also trying to somewhat compartmentalize yourself in need to be a creator. And I also need to do this. And none of it's bad. I bet that's one of the things that he could be struggling with, is none of these things are negative.

[Joe Scales]

Right.

[Elle]

Just a lot. It's a lot to juggle. And you get to a point where you gotta decide what's important. And maybe he's at that point.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah. And it's hard to put this kind of stuff out there when you're in a position like him, because everybody can look at you and go, oh, really? You're up a million dollars. You're, you're, you're getting, you know, hundreds of thousands of views and you're.

[Elle]

Yeah, but how to get there, you gotta, yeah. Work hard, sacrifice some things.

[Joe Scales]

They all, they all want to come at you. You know how the Internet is. People will come at you for, for the strangest things. And so he, he acknowledges he's living the dream. Right. He acknowledges that, that he has a lot of things in place that are great, but some days he just feels like a fraud.

[Elle]

Well, I think you cannot expect yourself, Brad, to show up every day the same way you were yesterday.

[Joe Scales]

It's a.

[Elle]

You have different competition, you have different pressures, there's different cards. There's so many things that are not going to repeat themselves that I think we have gotten too programmed to be like everything's got to be good all the time.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, you're right.

[Elle]

I mean it's just not possible.

[Joe Scales]

That's what social media does. Everybody posting all of the good things and none of the bad things. And then when somebody like Brad Elwin puts out some of the negative, then people tend to attack that. Like it's not, I don't even see

[Elle]

it as a negative. It's just reality.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Elle]

You're going to go through the mountains and the valleys and that is life. I mean that's doing life in general on your own, much less with alongside other people. So hang in there, Brad. We know that it's, it's tough when you get to this point in your career. It's also tough when you have this many eyes on you. It's also tough when you're involved in a poker room like the lodge that has, I mean like that's all a whole nother topic.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Elle]

That is hot and heavy. This week is all eyes are on the lodge and card playing in Texas and that kind of thing. So hang in there, Brad. We trust you to make the right decisions and yeah. Stay in the difficult and see.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Elle]

Where it takes you.

[Joe Scales]

But I mean the thing that I would want to end with on this topic is, is for people like Brad or, or anybody in poker that, that feels like, oh my gosh, I, I, I don't have people that I can talk to. Whatever. Poker is a solo sport in a sense that you're at the table by yourself but that doesn't mean you have to go it alone. There are other people that I, I, I would say the majority of the people have struggled with. Mental anguish is for the lack of a better word, but just struggling with, with where they are mentally in the game. And we talk about it a lot, especially in my one hour. You know, keeping yourself mentally strong is hard and so if it was easy

[Elle]

we would have already mastered it. Yeah, I mean, I hate to, it's just like seasons. We all have a winter. There are moments that are going to come up and stay the course.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, yeah, perfect. But you did touch on the lodge and Brad Owen is the, he is

[Elle]

a co owner with Doug Polk. And Andrew, is it Andrew? Yeah, yeah. I always mispronounce his name. Yeah, they're, they're in the hot seat right now. But I still think there's a lot more to unfold in this whole situation.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, we talked about this a little bit about on the discord during the Patreon game too. Like, so they were raided by the Texas Alcohol Beverage Commission, Right. Along with the, I guess local law enforcement. Right. But one, they waited until their big series was over to go in. So, you know, if they were trying to drag their name through the mud, they could have done that during the series. So I think it says something that they waited to do that and then we still don't know why they haven't really said, other than, you know, they put it under a muddy laundering, I guess title. Like, that's what they were looking at. Yeah, but like we said during the discord last night, like, Pasta made a good point where that could just mean, you know, maybe they didn't pay for the right kind of license for alcohol.

[Elle]

It can mean a lot of things. And I think there's so much speculation out there that we're gonna have to wait until we see what comes out. But no one was arrested. Everyone, I mean, had to show IDs to leave. It's probably a very scary experience if you were in there as a player. But what I will say is, you know, the room is closed. The WPT festival scheduled at that venue has been postponed. They're giving them space to get regrouped, investigations ongoing. And, you know, the lodge has released a statement acknowledging the situation. There's still confusion about what happened. But your money's safe, right? If it's there? I think that's the really important thing that everybody needs to know. And then of course, people are questioning like, oh, what is this going to do? The Texas ecosystem and da, da, da. Listen, we have a magazine coming out in two weeks and this is not to sell the magazine. I mean, it's free, but it, but our Texas ambassador, Vincent, has really addressed the Texas card rooms phenomenally and has really explained what should you look for? What are the red flags? What are the things that you need to be aware of? There are still lots and lots and lots of awesome safe places to play poker in Texas. And so 100%. Yeah, yeah, the headlines are hot. People are in the hot seat right now. We don't have enough information, but I think it's important to mention because it is in the news.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah. And I would discourage people from jumping to conclusions. Like, let this play out before you, you speculate too much. I mean, we're going to speculate some because that's just what we do as humans. But. But before you jump too far down those, those conspiracy. Let this play out. You mentioned the next issue of the magazine coming up soon. I just want to throw this little bit of, I guess, marketing in here. If you've signed up for the emails to have it, you know, come to you through your inbox, keep an eye out for that. But if you haven't sign up for that either, send me an [e-mail] and I can get you signed up. Or go to [e-mail] and on the right, there's a place for you to put in your email address and it will get sent to you that way.

[Elle]

Yeah, because we deliver it out as soon as it's ready.

[Joe Scales]

It'll be.

[Elle]

It'll be ready before. Before Arizona.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah. And if you're going out to that event, then it'll be out for you to be able to do some. Some light reading on the plane or something.

[Elle]

Yeah, you got it.

[Joe Scales]

You. You mentioned the women's. What was it? The, the national women's or the.

[Elle]

Yes.

[Joe Scales]

Huge National Poker Championship there in Talking Stick.

[Elle]

Huge women's event that happens every year. They set a new record with 329 entries. Michelle Wells took it down. What? Way to go, Michelle. And she earned $26,000.

[Joe Scales]

Nice.

[Elle]

For first place. So poker, women's poker events are gaining momentum, and I think it's great for the growth of the game.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, I love that they're breaking records like that. And I think next year they're going to shoot for breaking that one.

[Elle]

Of course. And then also the Ladies International Poker Series, the LIPS spring event is coming up very soon in April, so if that's something you're interested in going. But I know there was. She was giving away some seats on bluffers, so I think they were shooting to give away one seat and they gave away four because they had that many people turn out to play on that platform. So really excited to hear about that. Even sort of block some time. I don't know if I'm going to be able to make it, but we'll see. Another trip. Can't stop. Won't stop. Talking about the cruise.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Elle]

Bottom line is we did get an updated list. We get one every Friday and yes, cabins are going. We even know somebody who needs a roommate. So if you are willing to share a space. It's almost like a blind roommate college situation is what I keep thinking. Or camp. Like, if you're open to this. There is a gentleman who needs a roommate and is looking for a roommate. So if that's you, get in touch with us immediately and we'll be happy to let you know how to get

[Joe Scales]

registered let's talk about where we're going.

[Elle]

That's something we hadn't mentioned at all. The first technical stop is actually from the boat. We're going to see the glaciers and go up into Alaska. However, then we're going to stop in Skagway, which I want you to think gold rush. Like, this is where the gold rush happened. So there's this really cool railroad. You can go dog sledding. You can go horseback riding. I might go drink some beer flights, because I won't be playing poker at that time. So there's supposed to be a really cool brewery there. Maybe. Maybe we'll do the train tour, because I like trains.

[Joe Scales]

I heard some fun stories about that gold rush and, and with Yukon and everything. So it sounds fascinating.

[Elle]

That might even be where they have like a saloon, like a timey saloon that you can stop into. Next day we're headed to Sitka, Alaska, which used to be part of Russia.

[Joe Scales]

Okay.

[Elle]

And so there's some Russian architecture there that's supposed to be really stunning. There is a. There is a very specific raptor center, so. Raptor. Yeah. Birds. Think birds.

[Joe Scales]

Interesting.

[Elle]

So if you're interested in bird watching, there's also a wildlife cruise. And I believe this is where the salmon run is going to be.

[Joe Scales]

I want to see that.

[Elle]

I do too. And they say the salmon brings bear.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Elle]

So fingers crossed about that. Then we're getting to Ketchikan. Lumberjack show, fishing experiences, crab feast, oyster farm. Think like super fun. Super, super fun. Last stop is going to be. Our last port is going to be Prince Rupert, British Columbia. And that is where you can do all the things. Whale watching.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah. That's what I'm just getting ready to say is the whale watching.

[Elle]

Yeah.

[Joe Scales]

Excited about that.

[Elle]

Trolley rides, golf e. Bike tours, and then there's some really cool chef experiences. You can do like a mezze experience, which I'm looking into, or feast by trolley. I don't know because we're gonna eat so much anyway on the cruise. We'll see. But long story short, I think that's one thing that we hadn't said already is, is we're stopping in those spots and some fun things to do along the way. Because, yes, we're gonna play poker, but we also wanna travel.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah. I, you know, and I've. I've said it on here before. I keep saying this. So many people keep saying, oh, my God, that's a destination. That is our bucket list trip.

[Patrick]

Yeah.

[Joe Scales]

Then join us because. Because this, this is, from what I understand One of the most beautiful places in the world. So I, I'm, I'm excited with the wildlife, with the northern lights, with the, the almost said geysers, with the glaciers. Glaciers, Glaciers.

[Elle]

There better not be any geysers. We'll go to Yellowstone for guys.

[Joe Scales]

Okay.

[Elle]

I think that would be okay.

[Joe Scales]

Fair enough.

[Elle]

Well, and last but not least, I gotta mention octopi poker. Alas, last time.

[Joe Scales]

Not the last time.

[Elle]

Last time for this deal. It ends on Monday. I am just letting you know because I'm participating and I think it's important. That is the only reason we're mentioning it. It is $90 for 90 days. You cannot beat that 100% getting you prepped and ready for the beginning of the WSOP series. I'm doing it just to prep for my play. Throughout the year, there's daily study challenges. There is a ton of chatter in a discord that I can't even keep up with it. But there's lots and lots of people helping out each other. There's a leaderboard if you're into leaderboards, which we are. I'm excited about that. There's weekly sessions with Matt Hunt because he is the one leading the way for us for the 12 week study. And then you have full access to the professional plan.

[Joe Scales]

So I mean, you can't beat $90 for 90 days.

[Elle]

That's especially when it's cheaper than just the professional plan alone.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Elle]

And you're working with other people and you're studying and you're getting direct training and advice from Matt Hunt who is a professional poker player for 14 years. So can't beat it. Last day to sign up is going to be Monday, March 16th. It officially closes and join me.

[Joe Scales]

Other than that, we've got, I think good weather. So I need to get some stuff done before we get out of here. On Tuesday we have birthday parties, we have home game.

[Elle]

Yeah, not our game, but another game around town and dog sitters coming by.

[Joe Scales]

Oh, yeah.

[Elle]

So exciting. The weekend is so exciting. But as always, Joe, it's a pleasure being around the table with you.

[Joe Scales]

Likewise.

[Podcast Narrator]

Wisdom cuts like a blade Dropping true bombs with a poker parade. Big blinds, big STs, raise it up. Let's make no mistake.

[Joe Scales]

La Sheer joins us each week to say how he would rule on situations that come up in your games. And he's with us again this week. Elliot, how's it going?

[Elliot]

Things are going very nicely. Doing well. How are you doing today?

[Joe Scales]

Good. We get down here and I start working on podcasts and magazine and things like that and So I just dress for whatever and then I go outside and I realized I'm not appropriately dressed for the warmth of today, but, you know, unseasonably warm outside. So that's. That's not something I'm going to complain about. But we do have a call the floor this week. It's sent in by Brannon Huff. And Brannon says that a new player sat down at their 13 table. It's also a new dealer, so he didn't realize right away that the new player had come in. He deals the new player into the small blind with him just posting a $4. Players limp in and the small blind and the. Yeah, the small blind then completes as the hand plays out. The dealer realizes what has happened and calls the floor. While the hand continues going on without pause, button wins the pot. Dealer asks floor if there is anything that can be done to rectify the issue. Floor says no. Both the dealer and the floor are pretty nonchalant about the whole thing. After the floor leaves, the player who got mistakenly dealt in gives $3 to the player who won the pot. During the fiasco of his own volition, he just decided, I guess, that, oh, I think you probably deserve this. He was trying to make the whole situation right in his own way, I guess, because he was supposed to wait that hand. Then I guess he thought if I were to come in, I would have had to bought the blinds. So here you go, I guess. But Brandon says, what should have happened here? Should the floor have done something? Should the dealer have let the hand play out while the floor was on the way? And he says, I can see all the action being offered and accepted as preventing a total redo, but this was a weird one. So, yeah, that. It definitely is a weird one. What do you think about this one, Elliot?

[Elliot]

Well, the dealers need to communicate a little better when they're pushing in and out of the table. Incoming Dealer needs to know certain things like who's missed the blind, who's a new player, who's waiting. Yeah, all that kind of good stuff if chips are on the way. Also, it looks like several players had already acted before the floor was even called, let alone got there. So already there's enough action to solidify the hand and prevent a misdeal.

[Joe Scales]

Right.

[Elliot]

So apparently, I mean, the decision was right regardless of their nonchalance. But, yeah, way too many people acted. Cards are in order. Everybody has the right cards. Money was in the pot, so, yeah, there's not a whole lot to be done there. Action was offered and accepted and it was significant and substantial. So again, there's no taking the cards back. There's no misdealing it. The players are supposed to pay attention to it, and it's not all on the dealer. So, yeah, this is a shared responsibility. And everybody whiffed the hand was played. It's a poker room. Hands are supposed to get played. So again, decision was correct. As for the player giving $3 to the person who won the pot, I'm assuming there was already a big blind in the pot. When you're buying the button, nobody else is paying a blind, so there would only been two blinds in the pot anyway. So there was no point in giving this guy an extra $3. That $3 was already represented in the pot by a big blind.

[Patrick]

I.

[Elliot]

If a. If for some reason they didn't have a big blind, which wouldn't make a whole lot of sense in any way, shape, or form, I would understand slightly. But, yeah, this just doesn't make a whole lot of sense. I mean, I appreciate him being nice, but that money was already in the pot.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, I mean, he did mention that he completed, so, you know, he. He did put the money in.

[Elliot]

Well, the point he was trying to make was that if he had correctly bought the button in the place where he was right next to the button, if he had bought it, he would have posted the big blind and the small blind. The player on his left would not have posted another blind. I'm assuming that since he posted merely a small blind, the player on his left did in fact post the big blind, therefore still having the correct amount of money in the pot.

[Joe Scales]

So if he was going to give money to somebody, I guess it should have been.

[Elliot]

That'd be correct.

[Joe Scales]

The big blind.

[Elliot]

Yes. In fact, that would absolutely have been correct because then he would have officially bought the button, because this way there can be no objection to the button actually landing in his seat after his not having paid a big blind at all at that table and not starting a new game. So, yeah, yeah, the $3 went in the wrong direction. It should have gone to the left, not to the right. That's a good catch. And yeah, it certainly passes the sniff test. I think this is a good opportunity to talk about house procedures and house policies. In a lot of places, empty seats are usually marked with a. A reserve button or a new player button, something equivalent that lets people know that, number one, the seat is not available. People just can't sit down unless they're sent by the. The person working the board. And additionally, when a new player Sits down. You still have the new player button in front of them to let anybody know, including an uninformed dealer, that that person is in fact a new player. Because anybody who's active in the game would not have any buttons in front of them. So houses that just give out missed blinds and that's it. You really gotta think about having the. The reserved slash new player button. It would make things like this disappear. It makes the game a lot smoother. And you certainly don't want people being dealt in in the wrong spot. You don't want people. People just claiming seats that are not on the board. You don't want people just sitting down and taking hands for no apparent reason unless they're absolutely sent to the game and should be receiving hands. So, yeah, pretty important stuff. It seems nominal and marginal. It really isn't.

[Joe Scales]

I do feel like that the small blind should have known this as well. There's a whole lot of onus that goes to the small blind. Because you walked up to the table, you're the new player at the table. You know that you can't get away with only posting a dollar. I would assume so.

[Elliot]

One would assume. I mean, if it's the smallest game in the room, it's entirely possible that it's a very neophyte beginner. But yeah, it's quite reasonable to assume that a player sitting down in a game knows the. The obligations of the various spots at the table.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, I think that

[Elliot]

he.

[Joe Scales]

Brandon sums this up the best. He says it's a weird one and it really is. There's just no way that you can back this up and make the blinds right after. What did he say? Four people, I think, had limped in at that point. You can't say, okay, actually, you have to pull your money back and you post this. And yeah, then. Then it would be a complete mess. At least. At least the way it was. Everybody obviously had. Had either not noticed or accepted it and moved on. So it, I guess in most ways, no harm, no foul here. Pretty much a learning opportunity for the. For the dealer.

[Elliot]

Yeah. And you got to communicate. You got to observe. Yeah, it's definitely an opportunity to see things as the way they should be and as they are not being done. I mean, yeah, communicating new information is important. If you're not gonna be using buttons and placing them out on the table, you gotta let the people know what's going on.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Elliot]

And it's entirely possible that the new player waited for the new dealer to sit down before he sat down. So it's entirely possible that the previous dealer didn't know there was a player going into that scene. So yeah, I mean, things can happen. Yet another reason to actually have reserved and no player or new player buttons. So again, they're. They come in handy more often than you think.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, I would imagine that would be a good thing to have. So Brandon, this, I appreciate you sending this in. It's. It's a good discussion because it's, it really as, as Elliot said, you know, this is really conversation. Procedural. Yes. Topic. And, and that's the side that we don't, as the players, we don't get to see a lot of but when. Except for when they don't run smoothly. So it's a good thing if we don't see it. But yeah. Brandon, I appreciate you sending that in. If anyone has a call the floor that they would like to know how elite would rule, send it to podcastyupmagazine.com Elliot, thanks for doing this another week.

[Elliot]

You're welcome. Glad to do it.

[Joe Scales]

We'll see you next week.

[Elliot]

All right, looking forward to it.

[Podcast Narrator]

His last

[Joe Scales]

welcome to Hand of the week, where Patrick, our resident fish and I dive into listener submitted hands each week. We tackle everything from questionable bluffs to hero calls and the hands that make you scratch your head. Whether you're looking for strategy tips or you just want to see if you would have played it any better, we've got you covered. Patrick, how's it going?

[Patrick]

Pretty good, my friend. We are back.

[Joe Scales]

We are back. We are back. Though the weather has turned nice. The. The people are in better moods. You know, it's amazing how that happens when the weather is warm again.

[Patrick]

Seasonal depression is gone. Yeah, life is good. You can get back out and play golf.

[Joe Scales]

Oh, oh. Have you, have you had a chance to do anything?

[Patrick]

Oh, absolutely. We've been out multiple times. Got the little guy out this week. It's gonna. Yeah. It's baseball season. I have officially started my official coaching career. I'm signed up for the assistant Coach for my 4 year old T ball team.

[Joe Scales]

All right.

[Patrick]

They asked though if they wanted to. We had a couple of, you know, options as far as names go. One got nixed real quick. That's, you know, the Yankees. Oh. And then it came down to the, you know, Red Sox or Orioles. And the Red Sox seemed to me have snagged. I have sent a message in a group chat amongst other coaches that I would offer significant amount of money for that, which I think is silly, but, you know, I. I'm silly, man.

[Joe Scales]

So at Least you can admit it's. It's ridiculous.

[Patrick]

Absolutely. So, you know, if not, we'll be the Orioles. Yeah. So it'll be fine. But yeah, we're looking forward to it. My little man. I mean, he's a lefty, so, you know, let's put a baseball in his hand, golf club in his hand.

[Joe Scales]

He's loving life, so, gosh, he will make so much money. If he can learn to throw a

[Patrick]

curveball, I can, I can start slowing down the retirement savings.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, well, while he's. While he's learning to throw a curve, we do have a hand of the week sent in by Richard Fry.

[Patrick]

All right. Oh, my gosh.

[Joe Scales]

Why are you laughing? I know we've said this. I know we've said this before, but. But we don't look at these beforehand.

[Patrick]

No.

[Joe Scales]

This is a crazy pineapple hand.

[Patrick]

Oh, man, Richard. For about three and a half seconds, I really liked you.

[Joe Scales]

All right, so for anyone, including Patrick, who doesn't know what crazy pineapple is, it's played like Texas hold', Em, except you start with three hole cards. After the flop, you have to discard one card and then the rest of it plays like normal.

[Patrick]

Hold them. Yeah, it's really not as bad as I made it out to be or me not liking you, Richard. So I take that back again. You get. Correct me if I'm wrong. The novice out here, you get dealt three whole cards. Like you just said, you get them. You gotta choose after the flop, after

[Joe Scales]

you make your bets. After you make the betting.

[Patrick]

Okay.

[Joe Scales]

And then you discard before the flop.

[Patrick]

After a round of betting. Before the flop, you're discarding.

[Joe Scales]

No, no, no. The. There's the flop and then there's a round of betting, and then you discard the card.

[Patrick]

Okay, I had it right in my head. All right, all right.

[Joe Scales]

So this one is a $1, $2 home game. They're at an eight handed table. We're going to be in the hijack. Two players limp to us, and we have a pretty darn good starting hand with Pineapple. Ace of spades, king of spades, queen of diamonds.

[Patrick]

So the benefit of crazy pineapple is I can go a lot of different ways with this right out the gate.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Patrick]

But I'm also going to be pissed if it comes up 10, Jack, 2, and I got to get rid of one of those. Okay. Yeah, well, we're for sure betting. I correct me if I'm wrong, Joe, but there's some nuances to it. But you know, betting is. Betting is still pretty Similar. As far as you know, that goes.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, it's. It's the same really, except we've got some. Some big options here. So I definitely want to punish these limpers a little bit. So what do. What do you think? In number one, I've got 12. That's exactly my number. I think this is. This is a few weeks in a row now that you've had exactly my pre flop number. So you know why?

[Patrick]

Because I'm sitting there playing online poker, and I am starting to realize that the people that I'm playing against were me and they annoy me. So for everyone that I have played over the last two years of getting back into this, my sincerest apologies and thank you. Yeah, no, I, I'm. You start to get it. You still have those nights, you know, and for everyone that played in the home game, thanks. You know, thanks for taking my chips. But, yeah, I. You start to get a little bit of. Okay, you got a couple limpers, you want to make them pay. Where are we at? 1, 2. Home game. You know, it's. You're starting to get a little bit of confidence, Joe.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, well, normally if there weren't those limpers, it would be like $8. Eight. That's what I said. Bet. And then you add those few for the. For the limpers. And so that's how we get to 12. Hopefully we can narrow down the field, get one or maybe just two callers. Richard raises to $10. So he's in our realm, but not quite where we were. The button calls, both blinds fold, and both of the limpers call. So not ideal. We've got five players to the flop, but it's all right. We've got a strong hand. The pot is what, $53? What did you say? You would be disappointed if the flop

[Patrick]

was 10, jack, two.

[Joe Scales]

Well, we've got jack, 10, four, jack of spades, 10 of spades, four of clubs. Okay, we're holding again, the ace of spades, king of spades, queen of diamonds.

[Patrick]

So the queen is dead to us. At least the queen of diamonds. I would love to see another queen more in the spades realm down the road, but we'll get to that. Yeah. All right.

[Joe Scales]

So massive hand, Right? We block a lot of hands that we would be afraid of.

[Patrick]

Yeah.

[Joe Scales]

First, let's deal with what we're gonna bet, and then we'll. Then we'll worry about what, How. How the discard is gonna look.

[Patrick]

Does it check to us, I'm assuming.

[Joe Scales]

Oh, yeah, it does check to us. I missed that.

[Patrick]

I'm sorry. You're good. Okay. Well, tops top draws in spades. And, you know, straight. Five handed. I feel like you got to go pretty big. And when I say pretty big, like right at or more than half a pot. So I've got, I've got 40 to 45 in my head.

[Joe Scales]

I can see that. Okay. I don't hate that. I was thinking 35, so same realm, but yeah. And then I assume. Well, we can talk about the discard when we get to that part. Richard bets $25. The button calls and both limpers fold. So my initial thought was 25 is not enough, but he did get it to heads up. So.

[Patrick]

So yeah, I didn't think half pot was going to be enough either, but that, that works out. That's. That's ultimately what we wanted. Um, yeah, well, I think it's a no brainer. But I'll just say it out loud. We've got the ace of spades, the king of spades, the queen of diamonds. And on the board it flopped. Jack of spades, 10 of spades, four of clubs. So. Yes. Would we love another queen? Absolutely. But she's got to go right now.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, we've got a. I mean, we've got the royal flush draw.

[Patrick]

Right.

[Joe Scales]

We've got just a. The nut flush draw. We can still make the straight with a queen.

[Patrick]

Yep.

[Joe Scales]

Once we throw that one away. So, yeah, it's pretty much a no brainer. Like you said. Richard says. Now comes the twist of crazy Pineapple. We have to discard one. And these are the decisions that make crazy pineapple so tough. If we discard the queen of diamonds, we keep the flush draw. But if we keep that one, we have an open ender. But lose the flush draw. Yes. You're not wrong about those things, but I don't think it's a tough.

[Patrick]

Tell me Richard did something crazy.

[Joe Scales]

Well, he's. He says. Oh, he. He does go ahead and discard the queen of diamonds. Keeping spades.

[Patrick]

King spade perfect.

[Joe Scales]

All right.

[Patrick]

Crisis of crisis subverted so far.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah. The pot is $13 and the turn is the nine of diamonds. So the board now is.

[Patrick]

I stand by what I did.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, me too. Me too. But that is funny. Jack of spades, 10 of spades, four of clubs, nine of diamonds. We still have the ace of spades, king of spades. If we would have kept the. The king queen, then we would have the straight right now. But that would have meant we would have thrown away the ace of spades, which makes sense.

[Patrick]

Yeah, you're throwing away a nut flush draw. That absolutely. No, no, no. That never makes sense. This is one of those where, you know, you fold, you know, eight, ten suited. And it comes up, you know, nine, jack, queen, and you're like, oh, do I do that? Well, no, you did the right thing.

[Joe Scales]

Exactly.

[Patrick]

Yeah. I've learned that.

[Joe Scales]

How many times have we had that conversation?

[Patrick]

A lot. We continue to. And if you haven't noticed the fact that it came into my head that I tell myself that on a regular

[Joe Scales]

basis, I'm like, yeah, yeah, we're first to act. Do we keep the pressure on here or do we check?

[Patrick]

Okay, you're not gonna like this. You're not gonna like it at all. I'm keeping the pressure on, and I don't mind. I. I don't need to find. In my humble opinion, I don't need to find anything out here. I'm. I'm playing for what I'm playing for. And, you know, when the. The two of spades comes out, it's a winner, winner, chicken dinner. So. But that's. That being said, I. I don't know where you stand. I. I'm continuing to lean in. He went, you know, Richard went just less than half pot. I think you're probably still there, maybe even, you know, right at it. Call it 50, 55. Ish. If. If they fold, then they fold. You know, we. It's. We've still taken it down. And, you know, if they fold, then so be it, because technically, we're still on a draw. But if not, I. I'm. That's where I'm at. So I may even go a little bit higher, to be honest with you. I'm. I'm probably going 55 to 60.

[Joe Scales]

So I'm also keeping the pressure on.

[Patrick]

Okay, that's a good start.

[Joe Scales]

Again. Again. We're blocking a lot of the hands that we would be afraid of.

[Patrick]

Yeah.

[Joe Scales]

So we're actually going to get more information to your point about needing information or whatever. Not that we need a lot of information, but we're going to get more information if we put the pressure on here and they call than we are by checking. So the number in my head, 65. So that's where I'm going to go. I think we only get called by hands, like top pair or some. Some strong draws that we block maybe.

[Patrick]

Yeah.

[Joe Scales]

I don't think they're floating here with air. They're not just calling us with nothing. With a bet like 65, Richard checks. And now the button bets $55.

[Patrick]

That's fine. We're still getting our 55 in. That does tell me that they're probably on a. You know, they could have a draw. I.

[Joe Scales]

They.

[Patrick]

I mean, they could have gotten there. You've got nine, ten, jack on the board. I mean, they could have, you know, queen, king, which is, you know, there. I mean, they definitely could have seven, eight, too, you know, after seeing the 10 jack, you know, flop. So, yeah, I mean, they. They could have gotten there. We've got a lot of thinking to do if another spade doesn't come and. Or, you know, so anyway, I'm calling, so.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, you're right. They could have King, queen. They could. They. They could be pushing us because they're. They're already there. But I want to get control of this hand back.

[Patrick]

You're going back over top.

[Joe Scales]

I think I want to raise here. The problem that we run into now is Richard didn't say how much we actually started the hand with, but it's 1, 2. So let's just assume that it's 200 if we call. Yeah, I think I have to, because if we call here, a call here is what, 55 plus the 10 is 65, plus the 25 is 90, right?

[Patrick]

Yep.

[Joe Scales]

So that would leave us 110 left. So, yeah, I think I'm leaning a shove here. If we just. If we just call, then I feel like we give them control on the river. If they only have top pair or something like that, then they have to let theirs go. If they call, we still have, like, 24% to win the hand.

[Patrick]

So, yeah, I'm not there, and you can tell me if I'm wrong on this one. I have no problem, you know, lending an ear to it, But I think I'm just calling with the idea that if nothing hits and we're sitting on ace high, then I don't want to risk all my chips right now. Yeah, just.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, you're saving $110.

[Patrick]

Yeah, I want to keep playing.

[Joe Scales]

I don't think it's. It's necessarily wrong. I just think by putting the pressure on them, then we get a little bit of an advantage here because they may fold with top pair.

[Patrick]

Yeah, you're. You're right. The only call you're going to catch is if they're there. Most likely. I don't see them calling on a. On a draw as well, but maybe

[Joe Scales]

Richard just calls as well. Okay, so the pot's 213, and the. And the river is the queen of hearts. So the board is jack of spades. 10 of spades, four clubs, nine of diamonds, queen of hearts. Our street got there. Do we go ahead?

[Patrick]

Have you ever been. Have you ever been crab fishing?

[Joe Scales]

I've been fishing. Fishing.

[Patrick]

One of. It's one of my. It's one of my favorite things to do. You get. You get the crab trap and throw some bait in there. You let set. You're going on about your day, and you come back and guess what? There's crabs in there to eat. I'm. I'm checking here. I'm. I'm setting the bait. Let them do whatever they need to. I highly. You may lose a little bit of value because you obviously risk getting checked back.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Patrick]

But I don't think with that queen, we catch a call on a bet. So that's why I'm checking.

[Joe Scales]

It depends on what the reason was for raising us on the turn.

[Patrick]

True.

[Joe Scales]

If they raised on the turn because they were there.

[Patrick]

Yeah. Then you catch a call, but you're also going to catch a bet here.

[Joe Scales]

Also true. That's. That's fair.

[Patrick]

If they're on a draw, a spade

[Joe Scales]

draw, I want to go ahead and put the. The bet in camp. So if I'm putting a bet in, I have to shove. Because if we. If we. If we put chips in first and we do anything less than shove here, then I think that looks suspicious.

[Patrick]

It does. The kids call.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah. As the kids would say.

[Patrick]

As the kids would say. Sus. Yeah, I think you're absolutely right. I think if you're gonna put chips in here, you shove.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah. So that's what. That's where I'm going. Richard checks. So he's in your camp. Button bets enough to put us all in.

[Patrick]

Beautiful.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah. Richard snap calls. Oh, the button turns over. King of diamonds. Queen of spades. Queen of clubs. I'm sorry.

[Patrick]

So he.

[Joe Scales]

Diamonds.

[Patrick]

Queen of clubs. So he had. He had his king hot straight.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, he turned the straight, and we made the nuts on the river.

[Patrick]

Richard, I. I don't know what you're about to ask, but you know what? Well done, sir. Good hand.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I. So in this. This is one of those cases where it really doesn't matter. Check or bet on the. On the river, the money's going in no matter what, Right?

[Patrick]

Yeah.

[Joe Scales]

He's not folding with king, queen when I shove. And he's certainly going to put a bet in if we check. So Richard says the hand worked out, but should I have been calling the raise on the turn? I didn't even consider king, queen there. I was Thinking about two pair possibilities, I feel like I lose more times than I win in that spot. So should I have folded? What do you think?

[Patrick]

Folded?

[Joe Scales]

He feels like he should have folded. When? On the turn when they made that big bet.

[Patrick]

Oh,

[Joe Scales]

I won't say big bet. When they bet 55 on the turn.

[Patrick]

Yeah, they went, they went right at half. Half pot. No, I don't think so. I think, you know, I mean, you and I kind of hit on it already. You've got, I guess you've got three options, you know, there. Three. Good, good. You got three options. You could fold. I mean, I, I get where he's coming from, sort of. But in that instance, I mean, you're holding the nut flush draw, you're holding what will be the nut straight draw. And it's not that big of a bet as we kind of just alluded to. I mean, if they come into us for a pop bet, I mean, then maybe you're still thinking about it a little bit more. But I think if I don't have both of those nut draws, then maybe I think about folding. But I, I'm seeing that last card now. Again, I agree with what Richard did and, and in the sense that I would have checked or, Excuse me, just called. Excuse me. Listen, Internet, everyone out there, don't come at me. I said, I said call, not check. I, I, I definitely would have just called because I want to see it again. If it comes up as the, you know, three of diamonds, then, you know, I'm probably okay throwing that away. And in that instance, we would have been right.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, what I, the, the direction I chose was, was maybe on the aggressive

[Patrick]

side, we'll say just a wee bit there. The wee, a little bit.

[Joe Scales]

Right. But I also stand by that because we get some added by us putting the pressure on. We do fold out some hands that are ahead of us at that point. So, you know, by the river, it doesn't matter. But Richard, to your point, you don't really need to specifically consider king queen, though it's should obviously be in his calling range. Folding would be a massive mistake. Long term, what we've got is a premium draw and heads up pots. The idea that, you know, you lose more than you win, I feel like that's more of like the classic poker psychology. You remember the times when you miss where villain is a straight or, or a set and you brick, but you forget the times that you stack two pair or trips or you know, their draws or whatever. So you know, you, you can't just focus on the times that. That you missed. So what. What would you call that? We need to come up with a name for that, like something biased, like survivorship bias or something.

[Patrick]

Survivorship bias. I'll work on that. I'll get back to you next week.

[Joe Scales]

Okay. But it's definitely. It's definitely the. The mentality of. Of remembering the times that you miss and forgetting about the times that you stack somebody because you hit that hand at the end.

[Patrick]

Yeah. It's along the same lines as why I play deuces. No matter what, I have nothing but good memories. Until I don't, I'm going to continue. So, you know, if you see a 2 on the board and you're playing against me, run for the hills. Richard, I think you played it well. I think you played it really well. I. You know, congrats. I mean, that's a great takedown. And, you know.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah, I like these hands when we. When we win. So. Richard, thanks for sending that in. If anyone has a hand of the week that they would like to know how Patrick and I would play, send it to podcastymagazine.com Patrick, we'll see you next week.

[Patrick]

Sounds like a plan. Enjoy the March Madness start.

[Joe Scales]

Yeah.

[Podcast Narrator]

Diamonds never fold in the boots. We're dealing stories that clean poker legends rise on the 18.

[Joe Scales]

Some habits in poker seem harmless, but are actually terrible for your mindset. One of my least favorite is rabbit hunting. Now, for anyone that doesn't know what rabbit hunting is, it's when you ask the dealer to run out the next card, or maybe even the entire board after the hand is over so players can see what would have happened. Maybe you folded on the turn. Maybe you want to see if you would have hit your flush. Now everyone is forced to watch the river come out like we're watching deleted scenes from a movie. And almost every time somebody groans, oh, I would have hit a flush. Oh, I would have hit the straight. I would add three of a kind. I would add a full house. And I just sit there thinking, why would you do that to yourself? Rabbit hunting is like voluntarily watching highlight reels. Of all the ways the universe could annoy you, it serves absolutely no strategic purpose whatsoever.

[Patrick]

Zero.

[Joe Scales]

It doesn't improve your game. It doesn't help your decision making, and it certainly doesn't help your bankroll. What it does help, though, is put you on tilt. Because the moment that river card that would have saved you comes out, your brain starts rewriting history. Now, the fold you made, which might have been the correct decision, feels like a mistake. You start telling yourself a story about what should have happened. But poker isn't about should. It's only about the information you had at the time you made the decision. That's it. You didn't know that that particular river card would come out. You couldn't know. And even if you did, that doesn't mean your opponent would have played the hand the same way. When you rabbit hunt, you're seeing a future that never would have existed if the river had actually come. The bedding might have been different. Someone might have folded, someone might have raised. The entire path of the hand changes. So you're tilting yourself over a fantasy timeline. It's like folding pre flop, seeing the flop come 777 and saying, H, I would have had quads. No, you, you didn't have quads. You had two cards that never got to see the flop. Rabbit hunting feeds the worst part of a poker player's brain, the part that wants to believe we were robbed by fate instead of simply making decisions in an uncertain game. And the bigger the problem is, the more you focus on what would have happened, the less you focus on what actually matters. You should be asking questions like, did I have the right odds? Did I read the situation correctly? Did I manage my stack well? But rabbit hunting promotes things like, yeah, but my card was coming on the river. That's not analysis, that's therapy. And not very good therapy at that. So my advice? No rabbit hunting. And if someone else at the table asks the dealer to do it, look away, don't watch. Protect your mindset the same way you protect your chips. Because poker is hard enough when you're dealing with the cards that actually come out. You don't need to torture yourself with the ones that never mattered in the first place. That's today's one outer. And that's today's show. I'll see you next week. 18. And until then, I'll see you at the tables.

[Patrick]

The Antioch Podcast is a production of Antioupmagazine.com contact the show at podcastsnyupmagazine.com or call the show at 540339. If you'd like to advertise, send an email to editorneupmagazine.com

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