Happy Birthday Ms. Duck!

Today is Ms. Duck's birthday. I would mention her age, but it's too close to mine, so I think that info is best kept secret : )

We're heading to Vegas on Saturday to celebrate. Good times!

Anyhoo, join me in wishing my lovely redhead a Happy Birthday!

Easy Come, Easy Go

Bobby Sherman

We only had five runners show for Tin Man's $5 NLHE Tourney last Friday. Big Daddy was back from his trip to the Winstar Casino in Oklahoma where he dropped five benjamins playing three card poker. Philly Phanatic, Lil' Annie Okie, Tin Man, and I rounded out the field.

Philly was hot early, knocking out Big Daddy and winning the bounty side pot right off the bat. Lil' Annie Okie was his next victim, and he felted me shortly thereafter. At that point he and Tin Man chopped the prize money and we were off to play the $2 cash game.

Big Daddy was sitting on a horseshoe and sucked out time after time, mostly against Philly. I had him all-in twice and drawing to two outs only to see him hit his miracle card, twice. By the time we were finished, Big Daddy had won $12, Tin Man $6, with Philly dropping $14, and me $4.

So, after winning $10 at J-Dawg's on Thursday, I dropped ten on Friday. As Bobby Sherman once sang, "Easy Come, Easy Go!"

Bubblegum rock at it's best!

Till next time, win the flips.

J-Dawgs Poker Extravaganza Coming To An End

Well folks, it looks like the days are numbered for J-Dawg's Poker Extravaganza. He has had his house on the market for a few months and has accepted an offer. Unless the deal falls thru, he and his girlfriend will have to be out by the end of next month. That means we'll have to move the game to one of our other player's homes. There's three of us that are centrally located, Dealer Larry, Ollie the Accountant and yours truly, so once we decide who will host, I'll need to come up with a new name for our weekly get togethers.

We had a light turnout last night, with only seven pulling up chairs to do battle in this $20 buy-in, dealer's choice limit game. Stamps smoked a brisket, which was tasty as always. A few chips on the side and homemade cookies for dessert made for a good meal.

Dealer Larry started fast, winning two of the first three hands, which were Mexican Sweat and Pai Gow. I was his victim in the Sweat hand, losing with fives full of fours to his aces full of jacks, both huge hands for this game. He managed to hold on to his winnings and finished with a $16 profit. Stamps won the High Hand Jackpot with quad kings in a hand of Omaha High, which saved him from being a loser for the evening. Ray-Ray took the hardest hit, dropping a little north of $20 on the night, with Bobby Dee and J-Dawg both losing around $15 each. I walked away with an extra Hamilton added to my bankroll.

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On the home front, it looks like Ms. Duck and I are going to have to shell out a few bucks and replace the garage doors at our house. We still have the original ones, which are circa mid 70s. They are the solid doors, meaning they don't "break" like the newer models, but swing straight out from the wall when opened. One of the spring attachments broke (for the second time), and because of noticeable metal fatigue, I'm concerned someone might get hurt if it was to let go of the spring again and hit someone.

One issue with having the old doors removed, is lead. Apparently, any door made before 1978 may have lead in it. So, we'll have them tested and if the test is positive (which would be a negative), they will need to be removed by a specialist. I'm sure that won't be too expensive, huh? But, I guess there's always pain involved when you have to "get the lead out!"

On the other hand, I guess if garage doors are my biggest problem, that means things are rolling along pretty smoothly at the Duck palace : )

Till next time, win the flips.

Mutual Orgasms

Ms. Duck and I were looking at greeting cards last week and one stuck out.

There was an older couple on the outside of the card, much like the one you see in the picture to the right.

The wife asks, "Honey, do we have mutual orgasms?"

Open the card and the husband answers, "No dear, we have State Farm." 

We both got a giggle out of it (mutual giggles?), but since Ms. Duck has worked for the aforementioned company for 30+ years, she was particularly amused : )

Carry on!

Ace Kicks King's Arse

We had a light turnout for Tin Man's $5 NLHE Tourney, with only six runners showing up. Each of us threw in our $6 ($1 for the bounty), and the cards were in the air a little after 8 o'clock.

Philly Phanatic's daughter, City Girl joined us for the first time in a year or more. She's a lot of fun to be around, has a great sense of humor, and is a damn fine poker player. It wasn't her night however, as her dad busted her in sixth place. Philly also felted Ranger Rick in fifth, and yours truly got toe-tagged in fourth by Lil' Annie Okie.

I made a couple of blunders that led to my early exit. Philly limped from UTG, as did Tin Man, and I raised 3x from the BB with K-Q. Philly mucked, but Tin Man called. We saw a Q high flop and Tin Man bet 1/3 pot and I called, thinking I was probably ahead in the hand. When he checked the turn, I was almost sure I had him. A harmless river card fell and I bet 1/2 pot, with Tin Man making the call.

"Queens," I said.

"Me too."

"King kicker."

"Not good enough," said Tin Man, exposing an ace.

That cost me over half my stack. When he called my river bet, I was afraid he had backed into two pair, but since he didn't raise preflop, I wasn't expecting A-Q.

My second mistake was open-pushing from the SB with 5 1/2 BB. My error was not knowing how few chips Ranger Rick had. Rick was the BB and had 3 BB in his stack, so obviously his calling range would be very wide. Sure enough, he called with K-4 and I timidly tabled my Q-2. I didn't improve and was severely short stacked (yeah, that's what she said), and was out a few minutes later.

Lil' Annie Okie and Tin Man chopped the prize money, and Tin Man won the bounty by knocking out Philly.

I did a little better in the $2 buy-in cash game, picking up pocket aces twice and getting paid both times. By the time we called it a night a little before midnight, I was up $5, netting me a $1 loss for the evening.

I guess that means my winning streak is over, but $1 is a bargain for an evening of poker with good friends : )

Till next time, win the flips.

Duck Rules The Roost

We had 10 runners at J-Dawg's Poker Extravaganza last night. The menu included chicken with cream gravy as the main course. Health food.

I arrived a few minutes late, but didn't miss any hands as they were still passing out chips when I got there. Wednesday evenings are reserved for our family night out every week. Usually Ms, Duck and I take our kids to dinner, sometimes a movie, bowling, or an occasional sporting event. We call it "Family Night" and have been doing it for eight years. The "pick" rotates each week, so we all have a say on where we go each week. Last night my daughter wanted to go to dinner at "Mama Baris." which is a good (not great) Italian Restaurant. Although a little pricey at times, I've found that it certainly worth it as we have a fun time and it keeps our relationship tight. Next week is my pick. WHEEEE!

Needless to say, I didn't eat any chicken since I was already full of spaghetti, so I was at J-Dawg's strictly for the poker and smack talk.

Gentleman Jim got off to a quick start, winning four of the first five hands, but managed to fritter most of it away by the end of the evening. He did manage to win the High Hand Jackpot, beating J-Dawg's quad fives with a straight flush to the eight. Even with the jackpot (Usually around $15) he still lost a couple of dollars overall.

The big hand of the night in our $20 buy-in, dealer's choice limit game, was between myself, Glass Man, and Stamps. I was the big blind in an Omaha High hand and checked my 6-6-5-J holding. I led out when another six showed on a rainbow flop, with Glass Man and Stamps coming along for the ride. I boated on the turn when a five hit and bet out again with both villains calling. The river looked harmless, so I once again pitched $1 into the pot. Glass Man raised me and Stamps called the three bet. Of course, I four bet them both, with Glass Man calling and Stamps finally waving the white flag. Glass Man had pocket fives, which was good for a silver metal and I pulled in a $22 pot. SAH-WEET!

I finished with the biggest stack, booking a $45 win, with Bobby Dee on my heels with a $40 profit. Farmer Harry, Glass Man, and Ollie the Accountant all lost between $30-40 each, with J-Dawg and Stamps both winning a little. Ray-Ray broke even.

It looks like we'll get together again Thursday week. I hope my "run good" continues!

Till next time, win the flips.

The Wonderlic Test

Are you familiar with the Wonderlic test? It's basically an IQ test for football players who are likely draft choices in the upcoming NFL draft. You'll hear it referenced often as draft day approaches.

Have you ever wondered how you stack up against current NFL players, and more importantly, Lucki Duck?

Well, this is your lucky day!

Click here to take an abbreviated version of the Wonderlic. After you complete the test you will instantly receive your score and also find out which players scored below you.

Of course, there's no way you can beat me!

You can also estimate your IQ by multiplying your Wonderlic score by two and then add 60 points. If you are unable to do this, you probably don't want to know anyway : )

Give it a shot and leave a comment with your score.

Who's the smartest blogger on the block?

Vegas Or Bust Poker League Update

The ten members of the Vegas Or Bust Poker League met Friday night for the February tournament. For those of you who haven't been following along, you can "read all about it" here.

I had a third place finish in the inaugural tournament last month, so I was shooting for another top three finish in order to stay within striking distance of the top two spots in the league standings.

I got involved early when I was able to limp into a multi-way pot from the cut off position with 7-7. A 7-9-T flop hit me hard, but the 9 and tan were suited, so I bet a little over a pot sized bet in order to take down the pot . . . now! It worked, as everyone folded and I was off to a good start.

Just a few hands later I was able to limp into a three way pot with Josie's favorite hand (J-T) and hit Yahtzee with a 7-8-9 rainbow flop. I bet a little over 1/2 pot and gat a call from Dealer Larry, but he folded to another 1/2 pot bet after the turn.

I took another pot from Larry, who from out of position, called my 2.2x preflop bet. I was holding A-K and liked the king high flop. Larry slid out two black chips ($200) and I three bet to $450. Larry surprised me little when he called, and I was afraid he might have hit two pair. But he tabled K-T when the hand was over and my ace had him out kicked and I pulled in another nice pot.

With the blinds continuing to rise, we were down to four players after two hours of play, but the "final four" hung on for a long time. It seemed like each time a player was all-in, whether ahead or behind, they would come out on top and we would continue. I was finally able to felt Ollie the Accountant when my A-9 held up and beat his K-J.

Interestingly, the last three players for the second straight tourney were Philly Phanatic, J-Dawg, and yours truly, Lucki Duck. I had reached my goal of a top three finish, and now my goal was to win it outright.

Blinds were up to $400-800, and with only $15k chips in play, none of us had many big blinds left. After 20 minutes of passing chips around the table, and with blinds at $500-1000, I open raised to $2,200 with A-T. Both Philly and J-Dawg called and we saw a flop of A-5-T rainbow. Philly was down to $1,600 and I thought he would probably push any flop that was checked to him, so that's what I did. Both Philly and J-Dawg checked behind. Oops! The turn was an 8 and I checked again, thinking surely he'll bet. This time he didn't disappoint, pushing his remaining chips into the center. JD folded and I insta-called with my top two pair. Philly threw his A-2 on their backs and was drawing dead.

Down to heads-up play, I held a 2-1 chip advantage over J-Dawg, but with the blinds so high it was anyones tournament to win. I open raised with A-J and JD three bet me with 9-T when he pitched his remaining chips into play. I called and we saw a flop of K-Q-6. J-Dawg thought he had a bingo when he hit his 10 on the turn, but then realized it had given me the broadway straight.

Game over!

After our first two league tournaments, J-Dawg, Philly, and I are all tied for first with 18 points each and have built a little bit of a lead over the rest of the field. Lil' Okie Annie, Stamps, and Ollie the Accountant are the closest players, all with 11 points. Click here for the complete standings.

It was nice to pick up the win, plus I also won $16 on a last longer bet, but gave back five of it in the cash game. I'm looking forward to next month's tourney already!

Till next time, win the flips.

J-Dawg And His Stack Of Many Colors

We had seven runners show at J-Dawgs for the poker extravaganza and a little barbecue.

Bobby Dee brought the food, chopped brisket sandwiches, with some deer sausage links and a few chips on the side. Good stuff!

J-Dawg started fast and never looked back, finishing the night as the big winner. Sporting a large and colorful  chip stack, he cashed out with a $43 profit in our $20 buy-in, dealer's choice limit game.

Due to my superior poker skills, I had managed to turn my $20 starting stack into $1 in the first 2 1/2 hours of play. Then I got hot! J-Dawg and I split a hand of Pai Gow, with JD winning the two card hand with ace high, and I won the five card hand with trip sixes. A couple hands later I won a nice pot in an Omaha High game, boating up on the turn (aces full of kings) and ended up winning the High Hand Jackpot, beating Bobby Dee's aces full of jacks. Nice.

I also split another hand of Pai Gow when I hit my flush to take down half the pot. Ray-Ray won the two card hand with a pair of threes.

Because of my rush of cards in the last half hour of play, I was able to get unstuck and walked away with a $1 profit, plus a piece of sausage for the road : ) I guess I'll need to get with the Neophyte for some advise on how to invest my windfall!

Ray-Ray won a little over $20, Stamps broke even, Ollie the Accountant lost about ten bucks, and both Bobby Dee and Dealer Larry took it on the chin for about $25 each.

Tonight is the second monthly tournament of our Vegas Or Bust Poker League, so expect a post on how it went this weekend.

Till next time, win the flips!

Vegas Trip Coming Together

Got the car rented for the week.

Made the reservation at Green Valley Ranch for Saturday night (the strip is too expensive on Fridays and Saturdays). Made reservations at the Venetian for Sunday thru Friday.

Still need to make plane reservations.

Just a little over three weeks till lift off!

Another Profitable Season

Another football season has come and gone and at the end of it I managed to add a little to the bankroll.

Once again, I was stronger with my college picks than with my NFL choices, but that's why I was willing to put a little more cash-ola on the NCAA games. There are simply bigger edges to take advantage of in the college game.

The Super Bowl was also profitable, winning both the over/under bet and the line bet for a $55 win. However, I gave $40 back on a prop bet (opening kickoff will be a touchback) for a $15 bump on the day, making my final net profit on the season $132.

Not enough to make a living, but I named this blog "Small Potatoes" for a reason : )

Super Bowl Thoughts

I didn't have a dog in this hunt, so I was rooting for an interesting game. It certainly was interesting, but I wish Brady had a little more time to work his magic on the last drive.

The ads were mostly disappointing, but I did enjoy both Doritos' ads and the Chevy pick up truck one. Also, the M&M's one was funny.

Being almost the same age as Madonna, I really appreciated all the dance moves. I got tired just watching her! I thought the act produced a lot of energy and the light show was excellent. And her exit off the stage was a nice touch. I give it a "thumbs up!"

 The Dead Zone

So now we enter what I call the sporting world's "dead zone," the few weeks between the end of football season and the beginning of baseball season, where all that is available is basketball and hockey, neither of which interests me.

But pitchers and catchers report to Florida and Arizona in a couple weeks. Spring training baby!

Super Bowl Picks

Super Bowl 46 kicks off from Indianapolis tomorrow evening with the Patriots favored by three. I think the Giants will not only cover, but will win the game outright. Plus, there's a teaser bet that I think has some value.

$33 @ 11/10 on NY Giants (+3) over New England

New England had a pretty easy schedule this season, while the Giants had one of the toughest and have fought injuries most of the year. The Pats have no pass defense and Manning has had a solid year. Manning has been a road underdog in seven playoff games and is 7-0 against the spread, winning six of them straight up. The Giants were fighting injuries (Nicks and Bradshaw were out) and were a big underdog in week 9, but beat the Pats in New England. The G-Men are healthy now. How are the Pats going to stop the stellar New York receiving corps? But, the Pats do have Tom Terrific!

$20 on the UNDER (55 pts)

The Giants front four should put enough pressure on Brady to disrupt the timing patterns of the Pats. Plus, Gronkowski will not be at 100% with his bum ankle. New England will be able to score in the twenties, but I just don't see 55 points between these two teams. I'm thinking 48-51 range.

 $40 @ -$200 that the opening kickoff will be a touchback.

If the Giants win the toss they will elect to receive, but the Pats quite often will defer. This means that the odds are that New England will kickoff to start the game and Stephen Gostkowski has a strong leg. Combine this with the fact that the game is indoors, in a stadium where 3 of every 4 kickoffs has resulted in a touchback,  plus the adrenaline will be flowing and I think we have a +EV situation.

Starting Bankroll         $2,000.00
Profit/Loss                     $117.00
Current Bankroll         $2,117.00

All picks are for entertainment purposes only with no guarantees implied. Any money wagered is at you own risk.

Good luck!

Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner!

We had another light turnout for Tin Man's $5 NLHE Tourney, with only five runners making an appearance. The small field is getting to be a concern.

Big Daddy and Philly Phanatic got into a big hand early, which ended when Philly pushed all-in on the river with his pocket 10s. Big Daddy had hit top pair (jacks) on the turn and made the call, crippling Philly, who got felted by Tin Man shortly thereafter.

As the blinds increased, Tin Man became short stacked and pushed all-in for 2 BB and got calls from both Big Daddy and myself. Big Daddy turned a straight and bet out. I mucked immediately and Tin Man tabled pocket 9s and was drawing dead.

Not much later I felted Big Daddy when I turned a straight and was called by his second pair, and I was heads-up with Lil' Annie Okie. The very first hand I looked down at QQ and min raised. Annie three bet me by pushing all-in with QJ and was drawing thin. The flop brought three spades and Annie's J was a spade. I had her covered however, because one of my Q was a spade. The turn was a blank, but the river completed the flush for both of us and I took down the first place prize plus the bounty. Nice.

In the $2 buy-in cash game I was on fire. It was one of those times when it seemed like I was hitting every flop and all my draws were hitting. I felted Big Daddy on three occasions and walked away with a $16 profit. Added to my tourney win, I walked away with a $32 win. Gotta love that!

Next Friday is round two of our Vegas Or Bust Poker League and I think we are all looking forward to it. Hopefully, I'll have a post explaining how I won the tourney this month : )

Till next time, win the flips.

You Can Tell Your Team Sucks When . . .

ESPN doesn't even mention them in their poll, but classifies them as "other".

Looks like it may be the "Lastros" again this year. Unless we can finish ahead of that "other" team!

Ducks Fly High

We had eight runners show at J-Dawgs for pizza and cards. We actually started with seven because Dealer Larry got caught at work and arrived late.

From left to right in this $20 buy-in, dealer's choice limit game were J-Dawg, Ray-Ray, Stamps, Ollie the Accountant, Dealer Larry, Farmer Harry, Bobby Dee, and yours truly, Lucki Duck.

I lost the first hand I was involved in to Bobby Dee when he hit a full house on the river, beating my straight. Things improved for me later and I walked away a $6 winner on the night.

Bobby was the big winner for the evening, winning $23, including the High Hand Jackpot that he won with quad ducks. Seems like I'm the one who should win with the ducks :)

Although Dealer Larry was late to the dance, he managed to lose $27, more than anyone else at the table. Ray-Ray dropped $17, and Stamps lost $7. J-Dawg won $13 and Farmer Harry $10. The rest of the table was about even.

Till next time, win the flips.