Lead Story

And wins...sort of.

He's been known as "The Big Fish" or "El Grande Pescera" but perhaps no more. Last night, with a little help from his friends, Doc G unfolded his quaking fist at the end of long round of "follow-the-queen" to reveal two chips and his intentions of going both ways to win the entire pot.

He was up against a confident Hank, who, looking to steal the pot, slyly figured the neophyte would muff the call. What followed next would enter the annals of poker lore as the "Kibitz that saved Gr0dberg."

Confused, scared and anxious, Doc G turned his cards over and presented his hand to the board with nary a clue of what he had. "I got a perfect low!" he said with pride. Of course, no one had challenged him in that direction. Hank was going high, but he seemed pleased with himself that he had it anyway.

The best Hank could muster from his pathetic hand was a queen-high straight as Doc G struggled to piece together a winner from the seven cards before him. Tension filled the air. "I've got three aces! does that beat a straight?, he blurted as he wrote himself a prescription for Zoloft. The terrifying possibility of miscalling his hand now climaxed as he felt all eyes fixed on him and the miasma of plastic coated colored-paper he called his hand. At this point full blown "poker aphasia" had set in as Doc G randomly re-organized his cards around in front of him hoping a winning hand would somehow materialize.

Other players, sensing the delicacy of the moment, stepped in. "You got a straight, G" said Dano "But its only to the 5": a losing hand. Mitch began to gather up the pot. "Wait a minute...you have a flush!" came a voice from the crowd. It was Redcard. "That beats a straight...doesn't it?" asked the desperate psychiatrist.

Scooping up the wealth of chips on the table, Doc G seemed oblivious to Hank's ballistic assault on the kibitzers. A proud smile worked its way onto face. The pot was a respectable $37.50: a nice haul--and it nearly covered his $40.25 deficit for the night. And sensing that a $2.75 loss is as close to a winning night as he has ever been, Doc G quietly left the table and the game for the evening. (Feltman reporting)

Doc-G Goes Both Ways!