With the blinds at 100-200, and after another 5 way limped pot, I looked down at AQ in the BB. I had about $4000 in my stack at the time and after sensing no real strength from any of the limpers, I raised to $1,200. Clearly, I hoped to win the pot right then and there but, at the very least, I hoped to get action from a dominated hand like AJ, A10 or KQ. The action folded around to the button who, after a minute of agonizing, decided to make the call. The flop came out 8 high, rainbow. I was sure that I had the best hand at this point, but could not pinpoint which two cards my opponent really held. So I decided to push the $2,800 I had left in front of me. Well, to my surprise, my opponent did not muck instantly. Instead, he deliberated for quite some time. Finally, after going through some type of bizarro math and x-ray player reading abilities, he opted to call the $2800 (90% of his stack) with K10. After tabling our cards he blurted out, "ah ha, I knew he didn't have a pair!". Now that fact that he rivered a 10 and knocked me out was really irrelevant at this point. At that moment, for the first time, I figured out what a donkey really is.

A donkey is not someone who just get's there money into the pot with negative expectation alone. I can recall at least five different times when I have imploded and donked off huge stacks of chips in the name of the Holy Donkey. I realize now that donkeys are truly the people that not only play bad, but have no clue how badly they play. I think the above player's commentary illustrates this point very well.

Finally, there is the issue of the more astute player's (in this case me) audible crying after they suffer the horrific injustice. If you were there, however, you would have not heard a peep from me. After years of playing now, I guess I realize that when I sign-on for these types of tournaments, I need to be prepared for this stuff. Sure it is easier said than done, but after plenty of practice getting out-flopped, turned, and rivered, and the subsequent, "I am one of the better players out there, why is this happening to me?" phone calls home, I now know that I was just being a sore loser, nothing more.

So, if you ever find yourself in one of these situations, consider biting your tongue and taking the high-ground. You will save yourself a lot of aggravation in the end, trust me. There will always be donkeys and cryers- The idea is not to be either one!



I read that and I knew the situation really well.  I play against those players all the time, that really have no clue to what they're doing.  When I'm playing, I notice everything going on around me and there's actual sense to my madness.  I have reasons for everything, why I raise, call, reraise, hesitate, etc.  Some people just really have no clue or don't care.  I hear people say all the time "Did you see what TK raised with" or "so and so raised with this and that" (meaning junk cards and non raising hands).  The real question is, did you see what you called with?  Then proceeded to play weak poker post flop.  That's your issue, not mine.  I'll raise with any 2, I don't care.  But you're the one calling me with your junk.  Its funny, people were giving Wil a hard time a few weeks ago because he PUSHED with 45.  Ignoring the fact that he had about 7 bb left in the tournament, on the button, and it was a limped pot.  Hell, I'd do it too.  On top of that, the person that called him had 22, risking 1/3 of her stack and was mad because Wil "sucked out".  LOL.

Side note:  I'm a little bugged today.  With work, poker, the league, just everything.  I can go on and on but I'm trying to get through it and not worry about it.

Until next time....

TK