Poker is a dangerously attractive game for hapless types....

Haplessly Turning the Tables on a Poker Ace

By MAX GROSSNovember 11, 2005

The Hapless Jewish Writer once lost $50 in less than five minutes, playing Texas Hold'em.
The loss occurred at a somewhat sketchy underground poker room that was run by Orthodox Jews in the Park Slope section of Brooklyn and featured free punch and Hydrox cookies. The HJW asked for $50 in poker chips (the lowest amount they were willing to give him), sat down and played two hands before another player put all his chips on the table and declared, "I'm going all in."
The HJW looked at his king and queen — of the same suit — and decided they were worth matching the insanely large bet. (He was feeling lucky.) His opponent threw down two aces, and in a matter of minutes the HJW was wandering the streets of Brooklyn in a daze.
The loss — happening as swiftly and coldly as it did — scared him enough to abstain from playing poker again for months.
Poker is a dangerously attractive game for hapless types....