Player Tips

Macau

Macau: “Vegas” of the East?

Hi there everyone, it’s been a while! Summer is winding down and school is back in session. Some of you may have a bit more free time now, and others may have a bit less. As for myself, I have had more free time recently and took advantage of that by taking a trip to Asia to visit Hong Kong and Macau. Prior to this I had only been to one other Asian country (Japan) so I was very excited to see another part of the world up close and get to experience the different food and culture firsthand!

As some of you may know, Macau is a small nation off the coast of China best known for its new, elaborate, and gigantic casinos. After spending a great deal of time in Macau, I can tell you that these casinos are indeed beautiful and enormous! I’ve spent my fair share of time in Vegas and the casinos there simply can’t compete with the ones in Macau when it comes to size and style. This revelation shouldn’t come as a surprise when you consider all of the factors involved.

Macau is the only major location in that part of the world where gambling and casinos are legal, basically giving them a geographic monopoly on the gaming industry. Gambling is a very central and well known aspect of Chinese (as well as other Asian nations’) culture. Macau’s proximity to China allows people from mainland China to simply take a quick flight or even an hour ferry ride to reach the casinos. Combine all of those factors along with the fact that the Chinese economy has been booming in recent years, and it is no wonder that both American and Asian companies have been rushing to build casinos in Macau.

Companies and brands familiar to the Vegas regular such as Wynn, Sands, MGM, and Venetian already have thriving casinos in Macau, and most of them are looking to expand and open new casinos and double down on their investments there. With a bridge connecting Hong Kong to Macau scheduled to be completed in 2016 and gaming revenues beating Las Vegas returns five times over, it is likely that these multi-billion dollar bets will yield more blackjacks than busts! Just in case you were wondering, no, the California Grand Casino will not be expanding its operations to Macau…well, not yet anyway!

Many have dubbed Macau “The Las Vegas of the Far East” or “Asian Vegas.”  While this is true on some levels, it couldn’t be further from the truth in others. The fact that Macau has so many similarities and yet still so many differences is quite simply staggering. Don’t let the similar glitz, glamour, and bright lights fool you, there is a stark contrast once you set foot inside these monstrous gaming meccas!

I’ll start with the similarities. The casinos are lavish, beautiful, and designed to amaze and impress. Once you are out on the gaming floor, you’ll hear the familiar sounds of slot machines ringing and gaming chips clinking together. The hustle and bustle will feel all too familiar to the Vegas regular, while all of the gaming options use their lights and sounds to vie for your attention. Groups of players gather around tables two and three people deep, craning their necks to get a view of the action taking place on the felt. Cocktail ladies saunter around offering drinks to patrons…and that’s where the parallels end…

The cocktail ladies are sometimes pushing around a drink cart, and that drink cart is loaded full of…tea. Coffee is also available as is bottled water, which can also be found simply sitting out on various gaming tables throughout the casino floor. Take a closer look around the gaming pit and you’ll notice a distinct lack of a couple things: alcohol and happy noise. The excited yelling, screaming, celebrating, and high-fiving that is so synonymous with Las Vegas excitement is nowhere to be found. Neither are the various cocktails and beers that you’re accustomed to seeing scattered about a casino pit. Sure you’ll find an occasional gambler with a drink, as they are indeed offered, but they are not complimentary. If you want alcohol, you must pay. There simply isn’t the demand for it like there is in American gambling culture.

Asian gambling culture is starkly different. The patrons take their gaming very seriously. They don’t come to the casino to have a good time, leave their stresses behind, let loose and party…they come to win. Their game of choice: Baccarat. While there are several other gaming options offered such as Sic Bo (High Low), Blackjack, Roulette, and Slots, I would estimate that nearly half of all the gaming tables and certainly half of all the gaming space is dedicated to baccarat. Players get to handle the cards and they make the most out of it, squeezing, bending, folding, and peeking at each of the cards that they get. The result is that cards are thrown out and are only used once, disposed of in a large box on the table. New cards are constantly being shuttled over to the tables to replace their mangled predecessors. All of this creates a very serious and fervent vibe; quite the juxtaposition to the Las Vegas party atmosphere.

Having experienced this culture clash first hand I must admit I was both amazed and yet not totally surprised. One culture is not necessarily better than the other, they are simply different. Ironically it is the fact that they are so different that makes the casinos the same. These casino environments are simply functions of the cultures that the casinos reside in. Ultimately it is you, the gambler that creates the environment; the only thing the casino wants to do is to cater to you.

I kept that thought in mind when I returned home and walked back inside the friendly confines of the Cal Grand Casino. I really did miss this place and seeing the familiar faces that populate the room brought a smile to my face. There really is no place like home. Until next time, see you at the tables!

learning the game

Poker Table Etiquette – Part Two

Poker Table Etiquette – Part Two
I hope you have all been enjoying the summer and the hot weather that comes with it! It is by far my favorite season with all of the fun activities that can be done. When I need a break from the heat there’s nothing better than playing some poker in our nicely air conditioned cardroom here at the California Grand Casino. Relaxing. joking with familiar faces and dragging some pots always puts me in a great mood. You just can’t duplicate that feeling that you get at the poker table anywhere else; it’s why we play the game.

What doesn’t put me in a good mood is seeing players chastise and berate one another over perceived poor play. In my last blog posting Table Etiquette: The Flow Is Good For the Game we talked about appropriate etiquette at the tables,basic good manners and self-awareness. Today’s article takes that a step further.

It’s completely understandable to feel upset after suffering a bad beat but it’s not OK to verbally attack the player that put the beat on you. It makes that person uncomfortable and kills the mood at the table. We’re all here to have fun and win some pots but taking your frustrations out on another player accomplishes neither of those things. In fact it actually hurts your ability to do both. If you find yourself feeling the urge to let someone else know that they made a bad play at the poker table I have two techniques that will help you let go of that hostility and get your head back in the game where it belongs. I use these techniques all the time and have found them to be quite effective. Hopefully they will work for you too.

Inject Logic

Technique One: Inject logic. I use this phrase all the time. I use it at the poker table as well as in my everyday life outside the cardroom. There’s no hidden meaning here. The phrase means exactly what it says. When you encounter a situation at the table where your emotions seem to be getting the best of you use your mind to inject logic into the situation. Ask yourself What will I be accomplishing by giving this player a hard time? Don’t just stop at the question, answer it! One correct answer is you will be making the player feel bad and killing the mood at the table for everyone else. Another correct answer is that you are pointing out a mistake (or so you think) that your opponent made which may help him avoid making that same mistake in the future thereby improving his or her game and making it harder for you to win money off of them.

When you simply look at the facts it’s easy to see what the right decision is: Keep your thoughts to yourself and do your best to let it go. Not only does this help keep the game fun for everyone but it also keeps your head in the game and doesn’t help to improve your opponent’s play. I understand that this course of action is much easier said than done which brings me to my other point:

Know Thyself

Technique Two: Know Thyself. No one knows how you react at the poker table better than you. You know what triggers frustration and anger for you. You know how well or poorly you deal with it. You know what makes you tilt and play less than you’re A-game. I can give you all the advice in the world but it may not be perfect for you. Find out what is. If taking a break from the table for a bit helps you get back on track do it. If you feel you need to stay at the table and muscle through it do it. If you need to vent to feel better do it-but not AT the table!

The bottom line is: the only person that knows how you tick and what truly works for you is you. Understand where your strengths and weaknesses lie and manage them accordingly. By keeping your emotions in check everyone will have a friendlier game and your own poker game will improve.

Until next time see you at the tables!

learning the game

Poker Table Etiquette

Poker Table Etiquette: The Flow Is Good For The Game

I’m sure you’ve all experienced playing at a poker table where everyone is having a great time. People are in good spirits cracking jokes (okay not all are funny) and enjoying each other’s company (and money) all while playing the game that we love to play. Not every player gets dealt a winning hand on each draw but everyone is enjoying good times. The personalities the mutual enthusiasm and some good cards help make poker great for all involved. Yes ALL of us even the dealers enjoy Good Flow.

From the casual low limit player to the serious player looking to pay his or her rent a lively table full of good vibes is good for everyone and helps create the flow. It’s easy to see why a full table of players enjoying themselves is good for the recreational mindset. It may not be as apparent why it’s good for a serious player looking to make a profit. The serious and winning poker player relies on the flow to consistently achieve positive end-results. If players are getting nothing else out of the game won’t they eventually lose interest and look for better flow elsewhere? It’s a collective effort. Nobody is here to play solitaire. We all have it in us. With that in mind knowing and exercising good poker etiquette and bringing your best flow to the table is something everyone can strive to do. Here are a few common situations I’ve come across at the tables that relate. They may seem obvious to some but being aware of these situations and knowing how to act accordingly makes for Good Flow.

Pay Attention!

Be aware of the flow. If the dealer has to remind you that it’s your turn to act take that as a friendly reminder to pay closer attention. You’re not only missing critical information that can help you win the hand but you’re slowing down the flow for the other players at the table. Be considerate and keep your focus on the game while you’re in the hand. Post your blinds when it’s your turn to do so. Improve your odds of play by keeping your mind on the game in addition to keeping up with the flow.

Playing poker from seats 1 and 10

The seats on either side of the dealer are generally not the most comfortable as they tend to afford the player less physical space. It can be more difficult to see everyone at the table especially the person directly across the table from you. Pay extra careful attention when you’re playing in either of these seats. We see players fold out-of-turn when you can’t see around the dealer however the end seats have tremendous advantages of seeing more cards turned before your play. If you cannot see the player that acts immediately before you watch the dealer to know when it’s your turn. Dealers will often let you know it’s your turn simply by turning and looking in your direction. Not sure if it’s your turn? Simply ask. Playing from seats 1 and 10 has a perceived challenge but good advantages so be aware of that when you take one of those seats and make great flow a part of your game.

The Phone

Phones are a tricky topic since many people use phones for different purposes at the table and many card clubs have different rules on what is and is not allowed at the table. The first thing you need to know before sitting down in any poker game is exactly what the cell phone rules are (if any) at that specific card club. Secondly and perhaps most importantly respect the rules. You may or may not agree with the cell phone rule at whatever club you play at but you’ve chosen to play there. Everyone else is required to play by the rules and you’re no exception. Trying to bend or get around the rules of the club makes other players feel uneasy and forces employees to police you which I can promise you kills the good flow. Even if cell phone conversations are allowed at the table none of us likes to hear another person’s phone conversations. Been there. Excuse yourself from the table when you get a chance and finish your call away from the table. If you simply must stay at the table while you’re on the phone keep your volume to a minimum so the flow is not disrupted.

Conversations

Table chat is a good part of the flow! The camaraderie and social aspects of poker are a big part of what makes it an enjoyable hobby and a large reason many people come to play regularly. That being said if you’re talking to your buddy a couple seats away and there’s a person in between the two of you that’s in a hand pause your conversation until he/she is done with their play. Poker is a challenging game and to play it well requires concentration. Be respectful of the other players around you and keep loud conversation to a minimum during play.

What constitutes a positive poker experience may vary from person to person but everyone wants to have an enjoyable experience when they take the seat at the table. Keeping some of these basic etiquette tips in mind will help to achieve Good Flow for everyone. Hopefully the next time you sit in a game it will be full of happy and respectful players looking to enjoy themselves!

Until next time see you at the tables and keep up the Good Flow.

 

Player Tips

The Information Game – Part Two

Welcome back poker fans! I’m hoping you enjoyed reading my last article on the Information Game. If not take a moment and read it now. Seriously it’s a keeper especially if you enjoy the game of poker.

All caught up? Good now we can address what we didn’t last time. In the previous article we talked about the information that we disclose to our opponents and why we shouldn’t do it. Now it’s time to look at the opposite end of the spectrum and how to take advantage of all the information our opponents give us. There is a vast amount of information available to us at the poker table. So pay attention observe” listen and focus. Every hand is an opportunity to learn something about our opponents and their game.

Here are three quick pointers to help you turn that knowledge into extra stacks of chips.

  1. Pay attention to the hands you’re not in! We all pay attention to the hands we play” but we’re often guilty of becoming distracted when we’re not in the hand. It’s easy to lose focus at the poker table. Sports on the screens chatting with friends at the table” and attractive waitresses are just a few examples of distractions that detract from you playing your best poker. Some of the best information can be gleaned from hands you’re not in.
  2. “Observe” listen and take note of other players at the table. Anytime there’s a showdown and cards are revealed at the end of a hand you should be monitoring the other players. Say at showdown your opponent reveals queen jack suited (QJs). You should immediately be asking yourself a few questions: What position was that person in when they played QJs? Did they open the pot with it? Did they raise or just call? Simply answering these three questions and making a mental note of your observations will give you a decent idea of your opponent’s style of play. Do this mental exercise with a few hands over the course of a session and you will have a much better sense of an opponent’s range and how they play” which allows you to make better decisions against them and ultimately make or save more money.
  3. Understand that your opponents will not play the same way throughout a session. So be aware of their moods” their actions their gestures and their demeanor. If you have an opponent at the table that is having a very unlucky session be aware of how that impacts their game and how it affects the other players. Keep in mind that players react differently to the same situation. Does this person tilt when they run bad? Do they play more or less hands when they are angry? Do they get more aggressive or tighter? If a person is doing well and getting lucky do they start to play more hands or get more aggressive? Being aware of these changing dynamics at the table will help you to strategically adjust your play against them

Taking advantage of all the information available to you at the poker table is a quick and simple way to improve your game. Notice that I didn’t say quick and easy because it most certainly isn’t easy. Most people are able to play their top game for the first hour or so at the poker table. After that they tend to fall back into their base game and go on autopilot for the rest of the session. Understand what your opponent’s autopilot game is while at the same time avoiding your own. This is an excellent way to improve your overall results and win the Information Game.

Until next time see you at the tables!

Promotions

High Hand Promotion

California Grand Casino is Blowing Up Sundays with our New High Hand Explosion poker promotion. Whether you play limit or no-limit you don’t want to miss this Texas Hold’em Showdown at the California Grand Casino in Pacheco; where we will be giving away a total of $1000 from 8a-8p every Sunday!

Here’s how it works: We’re going to pay off the first $100 high hand at 11am. Then kick the prize up to $200 from 11am to 1pm! After that we give away $100 EVERY HOUR from 1pm to 6 pm for the best qualifying high hand each period. Then we’ll cap it all off with a $200 high hand paid at 8pm! So if you make a high hand between 11am and 6pm it only has to hold up for an hour at most to win at least $100! And if you don’t win the first one there’s another chance to win the next hour. We’re paying EIGHT prizes over a twelve-hour period! We want you to win! If no one makes a qualifying high hand during any time period Cal Grand will add that money to the next time period making the high hand payout even bigger! Bottom line: someone is guaranteed to win that money so why not you?

And there’s way more fun happening this summer at the Grand. Be sure to check in early for our Sunday no-limit hold-em tournament. We add $500 to the prize pool. For a $50 buy-in (plus $5 entry fee) you can win up to $1500! The tournament maxes out at 50 entrants and pays the top 10 finishers so be sure to get there early to assure you get a seat. If you make the final table you’re getting paid! Sign-ups start at 8 am for cash game players and 8:30 am for everyone else. After the tournament be sure to check out the Hold?em action and see if you can pick up some quick cash during the High Hand Explosion.

Your table is waiting! Come on down. Learn more about Poker at the Cal Grand.

learning the game

Continuation Betting

Opening Pots and Continuation Betting

Something I’ve noticed while playing in our games here is the frequency of people opening pots by raising and continuation betting on the flop. I see a large number of people that make a continuation bet literally every time that they raise before the flop. Continuation betting is generally a good play but if you do not understand why you are making that bet or what situations call for a different decision then there”s a good chance you have a leak that you can plug.

If you are not familiar with the term a continuation (or C-bet for short) is when a person who raised before the flop makes the first bet after the flop either when the player is first to act or after everyone else checks to them. It is called a continuation bet because the player that is taking the aggressive action before the flop by raising continues that aggressive action on the flop by betting. The C-bet puts pressure on your opponent(s) and can cause tighter players to fold if they missed the flop allowing you to win the pot without having to actually make or have a good hand. Keep in mind that 65% of the time a player with a non-pair hand does not make a pair on the flop. At first glance it seems that you would always want to C-bet to get those players to fold but there are also situations where C-betting is virtually the same as taking money out of your pocket and handing it to the other players. Recognizing these situations will help you to improve your overall results.

One of the most common C-bet mistakes I see being made is when the preflop raiser gets many callers and the flop comes out very coordinated or what is known as a wet board. A dry or uncoordinated board is one that has no reasonable straight draws or flush draws. An example of this would be if the flop came queen seven deuce all different suits (rainbow). A board of Q72 with no flush draws is a very dry board with no apparent draws. Boards like these are great boards to C-bet as most drawing hands missed and will throw away their hands. A wet board would be something like 987 with a flush draw (two-tone) or even cards of all of the same suit (monotone). Those are boards that if you missed with your hand you do not want to C-bet into multiple opponents. I have seen players raise with AK or AQ and then C-bet wet boards such as 987 all of the same suit despite them not having even a flush draw. Against one opponent this might be worth a C-bet but if you have been called by more than one your C-bet is unlikely to win the pot and your opponents are very likely to be going all the way to the river. Situations like these call for some discretion as the negatives far outweigh the positives. With a wet board and multiple opponents it is unlikely that they will all fold. Making a C-bet in this situation is practically giving money away when you consider the following:
You are at risk of being outdrawn on the rare occasions that you still have the best hand. Even if making a pair will give you the best hand two of those cards that pair your hand also make a 4 card flush on the board. You’re basically drawing at 4 outs. There’s also the possibility that you’re already drawing dead. For you to win this hand all of your opponents need to have missed all their pairs and all their draws. I have seen people make the argument for C-betting the flop and then seeing how their opponents react to the bet and evaluating the situation again on the turn. While this might be a decent strategy against one opponent it simply does not work often enough in this type of situation against multiple opponents to be profitable. You are much better off checking and folding when faced with a bet.

If everyone checks the flop and the turn card is a brick or a scare card and if there are only a couple of other players you might choose to bet the turn. With only one card to come anyone without a made hand or with only a marginal hand may fold. Some of the draws may fold if the pot odds are wrong the scare card may discourage others (for example an Ace comes and they have KQ) and players with middle or under pairs may fold.

If you find yourself in a situation that is similar to the one I described take an extra few seconds to weigh the pros and cons of your options and don’t just keep betting because you raised earlier. You will see your bottom line improve and your opponents will take notice and give your C-bets more respect winning you more pots without going to a showdown! Be aware of the texture of the board and give some thought before you fire out your C-bet and I promise your game and bottom line will improve.

Until next time see you at the tables!

Promotions

$100 Free Match Play!

$100 Free Match Play Promotion Rocks!

I’ve been in marketing and advertising for over 20 years here in the San Francisco Bay Area. During this time I have conceptualized created and launched many ad campaigns and promotions for various clients including Safeway, Pepsi, Macy’s, the Fairmont Hotel, the San Francisco Ballet, and the San Francisco Port Authority to name a few. None of these previous promotions quite captured the excitement and enthusiasm that surrounds California Grand Casino’s recently launched Match Play promotion. Why? Simple. We are giving away a $100 in Match Play and Food to NEW PLAYERS just for stepping through the doors of California Grand Casino. Customers simply need to be a new player (over 21 of course!) bring their poker face to the table and get ready to get their game on.

New customers receive 4 FREE $10 Match Play Chips and $10 for food on each of their first two visits.  With our Match Play chips, we match your bets and you get the winnings.

California Grand Casino’s Match Play promotion is a hit! In the week since we’ve launched Match Play we’ve had players from all over the East Bay venture in and check out California Grand Casino for the first time. Little did they know Cal Grand Casino (as we are affectionately known) opened its doors back in 1854. We are the oldest continuously operating cardroom west of the Mississippi River. So if you like to play cards if $100 in FREE Match Play Chips and Food sounds good to you then pay us a visit.

Jack Straus 1982 poker champion has said he’d bust his own grandmother if she were in a pot with him. Some Cal Grand players can be intense like Jack Straus but not everyone takes poker quite so seriously. We have all levels of poker playing at Cal Grand-from novice to intermediate to advanced. The good news: There is money to be made here. Just three weeks ago one of our Cal Grand players won the Regular Bad Beat Jackpot of $96,200. It’s anyone’s pot! Including yours.

Come pay us a visit and be sure to ask the front desk about our Match Play new player promotion.

David Okimoto

David Okimoto (or “Oki” as his friends call him) is a semi professional poker player living in the East Bay and currently works in many different capacities for the California Grand Casino. His interests are many, but his passions are sports, sports, and sports! Oki is a long suffering San Jose Sharks fan and season ticket holder, as well as a big fan and supporter of the Oakland A’s, Golden State Warriors, San Francisco 49ers, and San Jose Earthquakes. A self proclaimed jack of all trades and master of none, he spends a great deal of his spare time with his athletic hobbies. On any given evening you are likely to find this sports junkie competing on one of his three softball teams, his soccer team, or his bowling team. His most recent athletic pursuit is now rock climbing, though he admits heights are not his forte. No stranger to injury, he proudly bears multiple scars, fake teeth, and healed bones, and is more than happy to share the related stories that come with them!

Player Tips

The Information Game

THE INFORMATION GAME … By Cardshark5

Happy New Year and welcome to 2014 everyone! I hope 2013 was a wonderful and prosperous year for you all. The New Year is a time when many people take the opportunity to make resolutions and fresh starts. I have never been one for resolutions myself but when it comes to poker and improving my game I make an exception. No matter how good we get and how much we learn as poker players we can always improve and we can always get better. People will naturally re-evaluate and analyze things when they are losing but you also can become complacent about your poker game when things are going well. A very good poker friend of mine once told me if you stop trying to improve your game the others that are working hard will surpass you. With that in mind one area that most everyone can improve across the board is what I like to call the Information Game.

Some players do it subconsciously and others do it with intention and purpose but I strongly believe that showing your hand as well as talking about your line of thinking after the conclusion of a hand is a huge mistake and a leak in one’s game. The most common times I see these mistakes are after winning pots. A player will bet on the flop or turn perhaps making what the rest of the table may perceive as a continuation bet causing their opponent(s) to fold. They will then flash or expose one card or both showing top pair or better as if to say to everyone: I had it! I’m not bluffing! I play solid! If you’re someone that finds yourself doing this ask yourself why. If it’s because you care what other players at the table think about you and your game you may want to adjust your priorities. You shouldn’t care how your opponents perceive your level of play; in fact you want them to think that you are worse than you actually are as that will earn you more money in the long run. I would much prefer to be known as the luckiest player at the table as opposed to the best player at the table…which one do you think is likely to get more action?

If on the other hand you’re showing cards with the intention of bluffing or playing a similar hand differently you’re still giving up more than you’re gaining. First of all the rest of the table gets to see your hand not just your opponents in that particular hand. They will all see what you played how you played it and in what position. Secondly the players that pay attention enough to take notice of what you played and how you played it will not be fooled by you when you attempt to mix it up and deviate from the style of play that you exposed. They know exactly what you are trying to do. The players that are not as sophisticated will not be changing how they play no matter what you do so it ends up being a waste of time on them as well. Not showing your cards is one of the easiest things you can correct to improve your game.

Another common mistake in the Information Game is someone at the table explaining their thought process of an entire hand or telling someone why they played something that at first glance appears that they should not. If you catch yourself doing this at the table again ask yourself why. If you’re looking to discuss lines of thinking and genuinely trying to solicit poker advice you shouldn’t do it at the table! Make a mental note of the hand and have one or two poker friends that you respect and trust talk with you about it away from the table. The players at the table are the people you are trying to beat; don’t share with them! Letting a good player know exactly how you think about a hand or a situation is one of the single worst things you can do. If you find yourself explaining why you played a certain hand or why you played it a certain way because you got lucky or are trying to save face you should stop. Maybe you made a mistake and got lucky maybe you didn’t. Maybe you were balancing your range or maybe you had a read on a situation. Whatever the reason is keep in mind that when your opponents think you play differently than you actually do it is profitable for you. They will be making decisions based on flawed or incomplete information which in turn means mistakes for them and more chips for you. This is another simple and quick fix for your poker game.

As I played my first session of 2014 I made the decision to eliminate these negative table behaviors from my poker game as I am just as guilty as anyone else of making these mistakes. In 2013 I would sometimes catch myself showing a card or discussing strategy at the table when I knew that I shouldn’t. I knew better and yet I still committed these poker sins occasionally. If you join me and adopt my poker resolutions you will become more self aware at the table and instantly become a better poker player. Until next time see you at the tables!

learning the game

Poker Lore ….The Nuts

Ever wonder why “the nuts” refers to the best possible hand? The phrase comes from the Old West when not only chips and cash were used at the poker table but any other good that could be valued. A player could end up betting his horse and wagon which were represented by the nuts and bolts of the wagon wheels. You wouldn’t want to put the wagon nuts in the pot with the second best hand. The stone cold nuts must have been the nuts taken off the wagon during a cold night or winter game. Walking home on a cold night was probably even more reason not to go all in with the second best hand.