Jennifer Newell

Honestly, in all the time I've been involved in the poker industry, I've never played in a real home game where money and skilled players were involved. There have been fun games with my girlfriends, but those were more for instructional purposes than anything, as most of them barely knew how to play poker at all. And the people I know in the poker biz who are involved in home games play for much more money that I'm comfortable with.

For many months, I have been on the lookout for a game, and I may have found one. It's not a regular thing at this point. In fact, the one that took place last Friday night was the first time this group tried a co-ed poker night. Typically, the men get together regularly, but they finally decided to invite the ladies. And the group consists of all Lion's Gate company employees (or former employees). I got invited through my close friend, Evelyn, who used to be an attorney for Lion's Gate Films. She pushed for my inclusion in the event because she knew that I'd love to go, and the host, Nonaka, and I hit it off when we met on a previous occasion.

There were about 12 or 13 of us at Nonaka's house, which was perfectly set up for parties and such. Good food and drink, and the folks were very welcoming and friendly. Some participants weren't very familiar with the game, so everyone was divided into two tables - those of us who are fairly experienced, and those who weren't.

My table was definitely experienced but not overly serious. We had a good time, though we all knew what we were doing - no explanations, no questions about hand rankings. Yeah!

Something happened that is really sticking with me. Two people were involved in a hand, and with strong betting, the pot was pretty sizable. After max bets on the river, Player #2 showed her cards for a straight, and Player #1 folded, commenting that all she had was a decent pocket pair in her hand. She mucked, not realizing that the trips on the board gave her a full house. Another player pointed that out, and she was just sick about it. She certainly knows how to play poker; it was simply an oversight, and a big one that cost her a ton of chips.

Player #1 was tilted. She was so upset about not seeing the full house that she went on a bit of tilt, losing the rest of her chips, rebuying once, and not ever really gaining enough confidence to play significant hands during the rest of the night.

This reminds me of a situation on the NBC Heads-Up Poker Championship when Kristy Gazes was up against Chad Brown. Quad sixes came on the board, and Kristy bet into it strong, not realizing that the kicker would matter. Her kicker was weak, and Chad had the ace for the best kicker with the quads. She was obviously frustrated with herself and went on to lose the match.

Everyone is entitled to mistakes. It just comes with the territory, and sometimes, a player might misread a hand or forget the most basic of rules.

My suggestion is to show the cards if you're involved in a big pot. When it's all said and done, turn over those hole cards, unless you're fully aware that you bluffed it all the way. In the case of Player #1, the other players would have seen the full house, and she would have been awarded the pot.

In addition, if something happens that puts you on full-blown tilt, walk away. Get up and walk around the tables, get something to drink, get some fresh air outside... whatever. Just take a breather and try to come back fresh. Obviously, Kristy Gazes couldn't have done that in a heads-up match being filmed for TV, but most situations allow you to take your tilt away from the table. To remain seated and try to laugh it off simply doesn't work in most cases.

All in all, I had a great time at the home game and walked away with more than double my original buy-in. I hope this game is a regular one, at least after the two months I'll be in Vegas for the WSOP!