The Story of the Poker Hand Played Entirely Face-Up

Is having a “poker face” overrated?

Maybe so.  Perhaps it’s better to throw caution to the wind.

How about this?  Just play your entire hand face-up, from start to finish.  That’s right, FACE UP! In other words, let your opponents see your cards.

Sounds crazy, right?

Well, consider the incredible hand that took place a few months ago (I just heard about) at the Bicycle Casino in Los Angeles.

First, let’s meet our hero.

Michael Souza is either one of the finest people that you’ll ever meet or a complete scumbag.  Call him a polarizing figure.  I know lots of people registered in both camps.  Sort of like Democrats and Republicans.  There’s the “Souza is a Great Guy” party.  Then, there’s the “Souza is a Jerkoff” party.  If an election were held today, I’m not sure who’d win.  Either way, Souza wouldn’t give a shit.

So, our superhero was playing in The Bike’s $500 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em tournament, which pretty much puts Souza into a nest of fellow wasps.  You know exactly what I’m talking about if you’ve ever played in the LA-are cardrooms.  Somewhat deep into the event but just shy of the money, Souza was dealt a hand that simply must be recorded and retold.

Souza sat waiting for his next hand just as the dealer started pitching cards.  The first card accidentally hit Souza’s hand and then flipped over. It was a 7 exposed. Souza was then dealt his second card, and oddly enough, that card landed face up, too when it bounced off his thumb.  It was also a 7. So, Souza had a pair of sevens.

And everyone knew it.

So what in the hell do you do with your hand in that spot?  Think about it.  Can you even play pocket aces with confidence in that spot if everyone at the table knows your cards?  Discuss amongst yourselves, people.  Meanwhile, I’ll continue with the story.

Souza, who is always exhibiting a flair for drama, stood up from the table and said loudly, “well, I think I have the best hand. So, I’m going to raise here.”

It was folded all the way around to the player sitting on the button.  He saw all this and announced a re-raise.

Folded around with the action back again to Souza, he simply called.  Both players were about 12,000 deep in chips, although Souza had his opponent covered slightly.

The flop came Q-T-4 with two diamonds.  This was at best an average flop for Souza’s hand.  He checked.  The player on the button announced a bet of 1,200.  Souza didn’t think very long and called.

At this point, the rest of the table was utterly baffled.  “What in the fuck is he doing,” someone shouted.

The turn card paired the 4.  Now, there were still two over-cards to Souza’s middle pair.  Souza checked again.  His opponent bet out 2,800.   Souza tanked for about two minutes, then finally announced,    “I call.”

The table nearly exploded.  Players from other tables began running over to see what the commotion was about. Souza was standing up, playing his hand completely exposed, making one of the most ballsy plays you’ll ever see.

The river card came.  It was another Q.  But it was also a diamond.  Now, the board showed Q-Q-T-4-4, with a flush possible.  Souza checked.

The opponent had about 8,500 left in chips and announced, “all in.”

Now, Souza had a really tough decision to make.  Would his opponent be willing to risk his entire stack against a player who showed such unorthodox tendencies? Why not just check the hand down, save the chips, and avoid potential humiliation.  Right?

This time, Souza tanked for five full minutes.  He walked around and talked openly about what he was thinking.  What really bothered him was the third diamond.  Everyone at the table and those who were still in the tournament was on edge wondering what would happen next.  If Souza called the “all-in” shove and then the opponent turned over the best hand, Souza was going to make the ultimate walk of humiliation towards the exit.  He risked looking like the biggest moron in the room, and since the target was the often vilified Michael Souza, more than a few people relished the notion of that prospect.

Finally, Souza realized this was his golden moment to carve out a tiny little moment of history for himself for one of the strangest and funniest hands ever played out in some time.

“Okay — I call,” Souza announced.

With that, his opponent’s face turned white.  His two cards tumbled out of his crumpled hand like an expired coupon for a free oil change.  He got up slowly from his seat and slinked forward.  Next, it was time to make about the most demeaning walk since OJ got thrown into jail.

Players began laughing.  Souza, no stranger to dishing out torment, raised his hands in the air, fists pumped and did his king-of-the-world pose.  Next, he cock walked across the tournament floor. Gotta’ hand it to Souza – he sure earned that right.  Takes real balls or iron to raise there, and then makes three straight calls.

As Souza was peacocking me with his retelling of the story, I couldn’t help but note that his cards not been accidentally exposed, the unfortunate player who ran into a buzz saw would never have gone broke on that hand.  In essence, a bizarre incident ended up giving Souza a huge pot that he otherwise would never have won.

What this all means is, if you ever run into Souza at a poker table, remember:  Don’t try to bluff that man.  Especially if he shows his hand face up.