The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-06-03

body's char Q " or anybody's betting in any
other deal. excepting IA Il may be Influenced
or be indicative OF a run Of luck. twas pointed
out In q previous Taper that runs Of luck. while
they unQuestionably do occur, and while they
may very properly influence the player who
enjoys, them, or the player who Is contestlns
with them. are expllcable by no known rules
Of any sort. and therefore constitute one OF
the most puzzling and one OF the most fascinat-
Ing features Of the game. Mat, .,o,
Is really the subject under consideration II
is OF the last importance for every player to
learn, and thoroughly to understand. how
him IN his own play. and at the same time cur
tails his chance OF being able TO calculate the
chances from his opponents play, II the limit
a majority Of players is TO bet the limit each
time. Thus, In a iO-cent limit game, where
the white chips are. valued at one cent. the
bets a white chip is usually either putting out
e e f issafsl %, Of t 4 ra hSps and d S ss'l,,GlFt e rs 1o venture ST RE
more than he Is forced TO on his hand. Ths
bet of u blue chip Is no more than he would
naturally. venture on n hand with any fair
chance Of success, and is therefore no indica-
ton OF either. a BLUM or a good hand. When
a comparatively small bet Is more COM
mon and as the game has more OF what may
be called elasticity. there is a better oppor-
nents, ard also a better opportunity of
varying ones own play in accordance with the
cards actually held or according to the theory
Speaking broadly. therefore. il may be said
for his pile whenever he sees At 10 venture
IL all and demand, a showdown. is the one re-
s~triction that makes poker practicable as q
game among any but multi-millionaires and
that without that restriction no one would
ever be likely TO play il. And further. that
the rule. Of table. stakes down to the tive-cent
limit. which Is the smallest game played un-
less the chips are valued at less than a cent
apiece serves to eliminate some Of the charm
OF the game but at the same time renders
II possible for more people TO play II. Thus
there are thousands who can play and enjoy
the game With 2 sm ma limit w who y oS SaIf,r not 0t
more. Even with O small limit. however. il
is possible not only to learn the game well.
but also to become spfiiciently expert TO- mas
to the. value Of the bluff, That, as wa ex-
planned, cannot be brought into play, with any
effect if the limit be small. and the player who
Is accustomed only to the limit game is there
fore obliged to do considerable study when
he begins to play table stakes, While the
rules OF the game. remain unchanged In. any
table stake game Is apt to confuse and even
TO terrify the player who has never before
played excepting with a bet limit. A greater
S samIHn. al are e0 salisd for az and Il the W involves the
necessity for a greater degree OF skill. -.
A discussion OF the limit in poker would
not be complete without a reference to what
Is called progressive poker. This. Is d. game
not often played in this country. though. II Is
said TO be comparatively common in England.
1t is not played anywhere excepting among
play, and il seems well adapted 10 produce
that excitement. for the play cannot by any
degree of caution be made small, while at the
same time II can be made as high as the most
enthusiastic player can possibly desire.
The limit In this game IL not n restriction
OF the bet to a given amount. but a rule against
betting less than a given amount. To Illus
age. He antes, say 81. b looks at his cards
and II he desires TO play. he must put up s.:
Up TO this point the game is the regular one. &
however. cannot come in by. paying e.. II
he thinks his cards justify a play he must put
up 81. ID in turn must put up -, y SIC, and
+ ss2. then A desires TO play II costs him
500 in addition to the one he put up originally.
and each player in turn must make his ante
good TO the extent Of s64 before he can draw
cards. In that case. 81 being the original ante
he made beyond the compulsory doubling
each time. there would BE- 1854 on the table be-
fore the draw.
IL must be remembered. however. that each
PLAYER, when IL comes to be his turn TO bet,
may raise II he chooses. though not less than
the amount ne is called upon by the rules to bet
If he bets at all. Thus {. when he comes in.
raise he may do so but his raise must be at least
81. If he does not raise, but simply comes In, and
2 wishes TO raise he must raise not less than
o ~ Was Nv ONI'f '""s .. tH as
the players make good. each raise made by any
one OF. them means that the pot is at least
doubled Even II some drop out. as some
played IN Bedlam or some extraordinary hands
had been dealt, the geometrical progression in
the betting makes important money TO be played
for, even II only three or four or the players
When the betting begins after the draw the
same rule obtains as TO a raise. a player may
either see the amount put up by the bettor be-
fore him, or he may raise, but il he raise he
must raise the full amount Of the bet.or in other
words double, This would seem to be sufl-
GENTLY hard play to satisfy the most desperate
gambler. and IL is as a matter OF fact much more
desperate play than is often seen on this side of
the Atlantic, but there IA a way OF play ing II
that makes the game even more exciting and
This last variation is to make 1t compulsory
on each PLAYER, instead Of merely seeing the bet
out. Thus if after the draw b should bet 81.
c must either lay down his cards or bet 81.
D has also. Of course. the privilege Of resigning.
but + he stays ys IT hn cost Is, nun hny -, ros h gnad ih h., d9 'w6
Then. when a player has only one antagonist
left, he has the privilege Of calling.
II, will be readily seen that no such game
as this would ever become popular excepting
among the most desperate gamblers. As a
| matter of fact the writer has never known
Of It's being PLAYED excepting in two or three
cliQues OF the fastest men IN London, to whom
| money was as nearly valueless as money ever
can be-. II Is possible that II Is, played else
where, but the only way IN winch the average
man could ever hope to be able to play It would
be BY making the chips of almost inttnitosimal
! value, or by the exercise OF such self-control
az would lead him to stay out Of every. pot
unless he had an extraordinary hand. Thai
method OF play would. however, tend 10 make
the play monotonous instead OF exciting and
the game would thereby defeat itself and nullify
| the very object of increasing the excitement
| Progressive poker may therefore be properly
omitted in commenting on the limit, and the
word limit may be taken in its ordinary sense
! as a rule forbiddlng the player to bet more than
a specified amount. not n rule competing nm
TO increase a bet or stay out.
The limit, then, while { unauestioaably seems
TO restrict the game OF poker In many ways,
! not merely by confirming the probable losses
and gains OF the play, but by eliminating much
| of the tlerceness OF that struggl OF wits which
makes the game so fascinating. has also served
TO place poker within the reach Of multitudcs
of PLAYERS who would not be able TO enjoy 1t II
IL were play ed according to the original scope
| Of the game. The privilege Of the call being,
rs IL is, within the reach OF the. player at any
time enables him to determine his play with
| out being forced TO a heavier bet than he con-
siders iustifable. IL is true that II he. sit, be-
tween two play ers who raise in turn he Is likely
when he does not reckon his own hand to bc
worth a raise, but that Is one Of the position,
in which he needs to exercise that sclf-contro
which leads a PLAYER to lay down any hand
however good, rather than bet, more than HI
| really believes II to be worth. That self-contro
is one of the first things TO cultivate, for without
1t no one can hope to be a good poker player.
- c-s-A "a G,NI