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Good/Bad Comments, Sayings, and Cliches you've heard at the Poker Table.


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"You've got to give action to get action"

Eli Elezra has been known to say this.

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Comment by an angry loser:

"You played that hand like a little girl"

Comeback comment:

Thank You, I guess I did play it somewhat like Jennifer Harman would of.

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"Check to the Raiser"

Usually said by someone with a weak hand.

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Must not be very many live players in here, but if you did play live for any considerable amount of time, you undoubtedly heard someone at the table say:

"I'd rather be Lucky than Good"

This is usually said as they are scooping in a big pot when a longshot card came on the river.  But there's one thing you can be sure of, the person most likely would rather be good than lucky.

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One famous comment was made by Sammy Farha during the 2003 WSOP to Chris Moneymaker after MM went all in on the river.

"You must have missed your flush, huh?"

 Oh, how right he was, but unfortunately for him he just couldn't believe an amateur like MM could make such a play at such a moment.  If he had called with his top pair, Farha probably would have won the tournament and the poker boom might never have gotten as big as it did.'

 

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Famous old time gambler Nick the Greek (who had won and lost millions in his career) was near the end of his life and playing in a low limit poker game at a California card room.  Someone was razzing him about being in such a low limit game.  Nick said to him:

"It's action ain't it."

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Some of you might have seen the Youtube video showing Phil Hellmuth in a televised game with Tony G. and some other players.   Phil bet with (Ace Jack) and Tony G raised.  Tony G then started saying he didn't even look at his cards.   He kept insisting he didn't look at his cards.   Of course this was a lie as we had seen Tony G look at his Ace King.   

I've got to admit Tony G is a good liar and he convinced Hellmuth that he indeed did not look at his cards.  Phil took the bait and went all in with his Ace Jack thinking Tony just had a random unseen hand.  Tony called and turned over his Ace King.

Hellmuth: "You lied!!"

Tony G: "Of course I lied, it's poker".

Hellmuth: "Why would you lie, it's considered totally uncool".

The heavily favored Tony G won the hand.  The suckered Phil kept going on about how Tony G had exhibited very bad etiquette.  Tony G then said to Hellmuth:

"I think you should retire.  It's over.  I think you should take your coach, get a tandem bike, and get the hell out of here!"

Later an upset Hellmuth told the announcers:

(Tony G) crossed the line. That's the worse one ever!

__________

Did Tony G indeed cross the line or did he just exhibit slick gamesmanship to sucker Hellmuth?

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On 5/21/2021 at 4:30 AM, FCP Bob said:

"You Smell"

Usually said to the player who has been at the table for the last 36 hours straight.

i just say this to ko8e34

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  • 2 weeks later...

Another comment I've heard more than once at the table is:

"I'll show it to ya."

This is usually said on the final round of betting when a player bets and another player is considering whether or not to call.  The betting player is telling the other player that he will reveal his hand if they fold.  There can be several reasons for doing this such as:

1) The betting person has a good hand, doesn't need the money, and is just playing to have a good time.  They want to save the other player (usually one that's losing) some money, and to keep the atmosphere at the table relatively friendly.

2) The betting player might have top pair (or even 2nd pair) with a lousy kicker e.g. a pair of Kings with a 3 kicker and they want the other player (who might have a slightly better kicker) to fold.

3) The betting player is bluffing and feels their opponent is weak but can tell their opponent is curious about what they might have, so saying they will show their cards might be the difference that causes their curious opponent to fold.

 

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Another saying I've heard several times at the table is:

"The book says:"

For example they might say "The book says to raise this hand" and then they raise.  They never do say what book they are talking about.  i guess it refers to some imaginary composite book of all the famous books that are out there.

But nowadays I guess we are headed to more people saying "Well, the solver says:".

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On 6/8/2021 at 11:16 AM, FCP Bob said:

I'm old. The book is always Super System

Yeah, probably for most players, but I would think a Limit Holdem Dinosaur like yourself might have considered "Hold'em Poker" by Sklansky as being "the book".

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How could we have forgotten one of the all time poker room cliches:

"Show one, show all."

This is usually said by a person at the table who takes the game very seriously, and can't bear the fact that they are being denied any spec of information that someone else has.  This is of course is said after a player shows their hand to another player in a manner that not everyone can see; usually after the hand is over.  I have a feeling some players do this just to annoy other players.

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"I check blind."

Usually said by a player in early position just before the dealer deals the flop.  I guess the purpose is to try to discourage players in later positions from trying to steal the pot since you might have hit something on the flop, thus increasing the chances that you (with your bad position) will see the turn card for free.

Phil Hellmuth does this a lot and I seem to remember Daniel doing this.  Since some of the best players in the world do this, I'm surprised more players don't do it. Checking blind can also be done before the turn and river cards are dealt.

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Everybody loves to make a successful "Hero Call" (a call with a lousy hand because you think your opponent is bluffing)   Probably the greatest hero call of all time was when Stu Ungar called a player in a big pot with just 10 high when he rightly figured the other player missed their draw to a low straight. 

Many times the player seriously considering a hero call will say something like "This might be the worse call ever" before acting. They're letting everyone know they think something is fishy in the hand and also they might be trying to get a read on their opponent.   

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"I've got the Nuts."

Probably the worse phrase you will hear your opponent say at the poker table.  Most of you know it means that they have the best possible hand.  I've heard several players say the phrase a second or two before they show their hand at showdown.  I don't know why they choose to say it.  Maybe, if they are a player who bluffs a lot,  it's to reinforce the idea in their opponents mind that yes sometimes even they wake up with a great hand.

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  • 4 weeks later...

And then of course there’s the sayings:

ON A RUSH” and “PLAY THE RUSH”

Yes, the almighty Rush;  you know, that period of time within a session when the world revolves around you.  The chips just keep coming your way, with you winning pot after pot after pot.  True rushes don’t happen often but when they do there’s nothing like it.

What’s even scarier to the other players at the table is a player who knows how to take full advantage of a rush.  The rushee often become looser and more aggressive at just the time the other players are starting to tighten up as their stacks dwindle.  This allows the rushee to be able to steal more pots and thus feed the rush even more.  Yes, the rushee will then often play bad hands like 4 7 offsuit that they would never play outside of the rush.  If cards like those start winning then the rushee now has complete control of the table and everyone is now focused on them and what they will do next. It’s a great feeling those rare times they occur.

Some mathematicians don’t believe in rushes but they are the type of players that don’t adjust their style of play to the dynamics of the rush.  They just don’t have the feel and savior-faire to be able to take full advantage of the rush phenomenon. 

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3 hours ago, Vegas Knights said:

And then of course there’s the:

“ON A RUSH” and “PLAY THE RUSH”

Yes, the almighty Rush;  you know, that period of time within a session when the world revolves around you.  The chips just keep coming your way, with you winning pot after pot after pot.  True rushes don’t happen often but when they do there’s nothing like it.

What’s even scarier to the other players at the table is a player who knows how to take full advantage of a rush.  The rushee often become looser and more aggressive at just the time the other players are starting to tighten up as their stacks dwindle.  This allows the rushee to be able to steal more pots and thus feed the rush even more.  Yes, the rushee will often play bad hands like 4 7 offsuit that they would never play outside of a rush.  If cards like those start winning then the rushee now has complete control of the table and everyone is now focused on them and what they will do next. It’s a great feeling those rare times they occur.

Some mathematicians don’t believe in rushes but they are the type of players that don’t adjust their style of play to the dynamics of the rush.  They just don’t have the feel and savior-faire to be able to take full advantage of the rush phenomenon. 

 

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  • 3 weeks later...
On 7/19/2021 at 5:25 AM, FCP Bob said:

 

Well I did say "Play the Rush".

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And then there's the poker term "bad beat".  Here's a real bad bad beat!!

Neil Peart Drum Solo - Rush Live in Frankfurt - YouTube

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  • 1 month later...

"Bill Smith is the greatest player in the world after 2 beers, and one of the worse after 4. "

I can't remember the exact quote but T J Cloutier (aka T J Cookier) said something similar to the above about former world champion Bill Smith who is now deceased.  Cloutier also said Smith had great reading ability when he was halfway drunk.

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  • 3 months later...

Doyle Brunson quotes from past High Stakes Poker shows:

He called a huge reraise on 4th street with just a pair of Aces and a 10 kicker.  Later, as a way to justify the call, he said:

"When you don't make a pair for 8 hours, you go crazy."

Comment he made to the other players after a very long time of being card dead:

"I would kill if I could get two Jacks."

 

 

 

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  • 2 months later...

Trivia question:

This comment/challenge wasn't made at the poker table but I've seen it in print.  Both people involved are well known.  One player challenged the other person to play a poker match for a considerable amount of money.  Who was the famous person who challenged the other famous person to a heads up poker match and wrote this:

"We both talk a good game, it's time now that we put up or shut up.  I am throwing you the challenge. Are you man enough to meet it?"

And for the record I'm not talking about the Doug Polk challenge or the Daniel challenge of Hellmuth.  I'm referring to another person who put out a challenge to a famous person and also wrote the above  bolded quote.

 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

I'm not surprised that no one could answer the above trivia question, because the poker challenge mentioned occurred over 20 years ago...   

Some of you know that I wrote a poker themed screenplay.  There is even a thread about it right here on Full Contact Poker.   Here is the url to that thread: An Inside Peek At The Award Winning Poker Themed Screenplay “Vegas Knights" - General Poker Forum - FCP Poker Forum (fullcontactpoker.com)

I bring up the script because the famous person who made the poker match challenge and actually wrote these words to the person he challenged-

"We both talk a good game, it's time now that we put up or shut up.  I am throwing you the challenge. Are you man enough to meet it?"

-is mentioned in the screenplay's story.

Since about 1/4 of the screenplay takes place at the World Series of Poker Main Event, I will reveal who the two famous people are who were involved in the above challenge on the 1st day of this years WSOP Main Event.

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