Poem for the Main Event

As I walked into the room
I saw 1000 people�s faces
Then I turned the corner
And saw 1000 more

Walking through the sea of people
Searching for my table
I realized this tournament
Had turned into a war

Finally I found my seat
And looked whom I was facing
No one in seat 1-5
Was anyone I knew

As I scanned seats 6-9
My heart began a racing
Chan and Brunson sitting there
This was not a dream come true

So here I was a sitting
With 20 golden bracelets
Luckily for me I thought
They were to my left

But as the dealing started
It became apparent
They seemed to win most any hand
With good cards or by theft

30 hands I folded
Waiting for a good one
Finally it stared at me
Now what should I do

Some call this hand Big Slick
Others call it Anna K
At this point all I knew
Was "Now I get to play"

I placed a chip upon my cards
And said "I'm gonna raise"
As I looked around at faces
2 it didn't faze

Now how much should the raise be
2 1/2 times or 4
With blinds at 25/50
Should I make it even more

I decided that old Anna
Was a strong hand, this I knew
So 6 times the big blind I raised
300 chips I threw

The cards started flying
All into the muck
Will I just steal the blinds
That would really suck

Suddenly I heard it
That terrible poker phrase
From over in seat 7
I heard him say, "I re-raise"

Like a freight train in the night
Without an ounce of stress
He tripled up the pot
It was the Orient Express

The others folded quickly
Giving Johnnie due respect
And I just thought to myself
I'm about to be wrecked

Now I have to think about
What I'm going to do
Call, fold or raise
My mind began to stew

I decided just to call
I had to see a flop
Would Anna K catch something
Or would I have to drop

Suddenly my eyes lit up
Did it show on my face
There in the middle of the table
I actually caught an Ace

Now I had to decide
What play should make
Check or bet the options
Which one should I take

I decided that I wanted
To take this pot down now
So I reached into my stack
And I came out with 2 thou

Then I looked at Johnnie
He didn't move an inch
He smooth called my 2 thousand
He didn't even flinch

And then I looked again
At the cards that had been dealt
3 hearts were sitting there
In the middle of the felt

Did Johnnie have the flush
Was he on a draw
I checked my cards again
The King of Clubs I saw

The dealer rapped the table
The next card was the turn
Make the card a black one
My mind began to yearn

My prayers had been answered
A club was on the board
But as I looked again
This card was no reward

Foe there upon the table
It was an ugly scene
Although the card was not a heart
Why did it have to be a Queen

Now I had to decide
Did Johnnie play Queen-Ace
I tried to pick up any tell
There was nothing on his face

I then decided to slow down
To see what he would do
I really hated saying it
But out came "Check to you"

He looked me over carefully
Could he read it on my face
It felt like it was written
'I'm sitting on King-Ace"

The next thing that I heard
I had to crick my neck
The next card was a freebie
As Johnnie said "I check"

Now my mind was reeling
Had I dropped my guard
If he was on a draw
Did I give him a free card

The river came a 10 of spades
Could he have played Jack-King
To call my pre-flop and my bet
Catching runner, runner, that would sting

I decided at this point
I had the better hand
I reached into my stack of chips
And stated "I bet 2 grand"

Well Johnnie looked over at me
Time came to a crawl
He took a sniff of his orange
And then he said, "I call"

I showed him I had Anna
His eyes gained a sudden sheen
To my horror and dismay
He showed me his Ace-Queen

As he gathered all his chips
I heard words unforgiving
Poker is a hard way
To make an easy living