A
Poker Player Is Created
By
Deb Wallace
We
were in the Sahara, my daughter, Starla
and I. I had been playing blackjack and
had won 155 dollars. All from a lone twenty.
A good win indeed.
We
were on our way out to the side door to
the parking garage when suddenly fate
stepped in. A most charming man took a
few small steps from the poker room area
and said " Good evening ladies, how
about a little poker tonight? I have seats
open."
Well
now, I had never played poker in a casino,
had never even thought about it. At Thanksgiving
we always had a fun poker game with pennies
and nickels. I couldn't play a lick, didn't
hardly know what beat what.
But
here I was in one of my manic the-world-is-my-oyster
states. So I thought "Why not?"
Before I knew it I was in a plush poker
chair, Starla in the same sitting behind
me. The game is 3 to 6 dollars 7 card
stud. I had to have been crazy.
The
cards were in the air. I was in the game.
Wow!
A
cocktail waitress appeared and I ordered
a whisky and water, Starla a coke with
lots of ice. Drinking at the poker table
is something you should never do. Not
ever. I can imagine today how happy the
"sharks" were to see me drinking.
They had a real "fish" with
a 100 dollars on the green felt. And brand-new
to the game, a "fish" ready
to be eaten alive. Happy days were here
again.
The
drinks kept coming. The cards were in
the air, I played every hand, every card
clear to the river. I was riding' high.
I won hand after hand: two pairs, straights,
flushes, full houses. I could do no wrong.
The Jacks and Kings were smiling and winking
at me. Some of the pros ceased to be so
friendly and they started cussing and
throwing cards at the dealer. One man
was laughing his head off.
That
fantastic night I won 365 dollars at that
poker table. Old Sahara dealers still
talk about it. I was hooked for life.
Some say the "Poker God" wanted
to create another player that night. He
made two. Starla went on to become a professional
player and holds two world titles.
Sometimes
fate "deals out strange cards"
into our lives.
Las
Vegas 1976
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