The Savannah morning news., 1901-08-22
LUCK AND SKILL AT POKER.
OLD MAN GREENHUT TELLS OF
SOME GAMES HE SAW.

to an End by the Deuce of Clubs.
Another Case I'm which n SkiIful
Dealer Beat Man Who Played
the Game on Luck-UnIucISy Play
err Drew to and Filled N Straight
Flush.
From the New York Sun.
Luck is sure a queer thing" said
old man Greenhut, as he leaned his
elbows on the bar and looked medita-
lively after a prosperous appearing
man who had just strolled in with
friend, and after taking a drink had
walked out, absent mindedly neglect
ing to pick up the change for the sill
yer dollar he had thrown down in pay
ment.
There goes a man." he continued,
after musing a few moment, that
was one O. the unluckiest fellers that
ever rifiled a deck o. CARDS for the
first thirty-f five years or so that he
was meandering along the dusty high
way o life. There didn't seem to be no
kind o trouble handed out nowhere
within a hundred mile o where Sam
Sanger was but what he'd get there In
time to take good big hunk of II
| afore twas all gone. Then all of sud
den he drawed the deuce O. clubs, set
tin into a game o. poker one night,
an the whole tide changed, right on
the minute, an since then l don't
reckon he's ever knowed what twas to
have things go agin him like they used
! to.
Nov, I've heer'd fellers say that
there was more luck than anything else
about poker an when / hear 'em say
IL / arays feel like tellin em that SIGH
talk is sinful. There was a Teller FIN
up the river come an settled in Arkan-
sas City some ten year ago that useter
play poker on that principle, an I must
say, he done very we'll at it for time.
Feared like he had all the luck there
| was some nights, an other times he
| couldn't win a pot, no matter what
cards he might hold. I've seen him
win a hundred dollars on a pair O.
sevens. an I've seen him lose four hun
| bred on an ace full. That amt moth
In very strange when it's took by
itself o. course, but the funny part of
| 1t was that them sevens come on one
o his lucky nights when he win every
thing in sight. no matter how poor his
cards was, an the ace full come one
night when he didn't take in a pot.
There amt no denyin' but what there
is such a thing as luck, an IL does
have a heap to do with the game o
poker, but the man as plays luck
against skill is goin' to lose in the long
run. This here Teller FIN up the river.
his name was Bill Dobson, used to say
that if he on'y had luck it didn't make
no difference to him who he was play
in against, but he got come up with,
| very slick, one night when Jim APP
pleby set into the game. Jim was just
| the other kind o. player. He useter
say t he didn't care how good any
mans luck might be, if he on'y had his
| reg lar turn at the deal.
This here night Dobson, he'd been a
winnin' right along for more n an
hour when Appleby come into the
game. Appleby he came in an looked
on while afore he offered to play.
! Feared like he was a watchin' how the
other fellers all seemed to be losin'
| their nerve against Dobson's luck, so
s. t they wa MT maxim no sort of
play even when they had him beat.
which want often. After he'd looked
for awhile, though he spoke up sudden
an says he'll take a little of it if there
amt no objections.
Nobody made none, an he flashed a
hundred right at the start. I see
there's one man got that much in front
| of him., he says, AN / always likes to
have as many chips on the table as any
other man has. Just naturally there
want nobody made no objections 10
| that, neither.
They hadn't played long afore they
all seed that Appleby was playin a
pikin' game, too. Feared like he hadn't
nerve to come in when anybody else
opened the pot, or else he want hold
| in nothin. for about all he did for
the first half hour was to ante when
IT came to his turn. an chip in for
all the jackpots without ever gettin'
| none of them
"'Twa'n't like Appleby to play that
| way, an / made up my mind that he
was layin' for Dobson, an It looked
to me as though there'd be some fun
when he lit on him, which was more n
| likely to be on his own deal.
| Sure enough 1t came. Dobson had
been film Pushes in a most outrage
Gus lucky way. Feared like he couldn't
catch the wrong suit when he drawed
one card, so | reckoned he were likely
to get a pretty good high flush on APP
| plebys deal Sure enough he did. II
| was a Jackpot an it had been sweet
| ened two or three times, no RELY good
| dealin' havin' been did till it came APP
| pleby's deal. Dobson sat on his right.
so he had most the last say, an when
he saw an ace, king. jack flush in his
| hand, pat, he opened 1t for the size o.
the pot, and the others but Appleby
havin' passed.
"Appleby studied his hand for long
! time before he comes up. Feared like
| he was studyin' whether to raise or
not, but finally he did raise IL twenty,
| Dobson havin' opened for twelve. Just
naturally the other four laid down.
| None of 'em havin' openers 'twa'n't no
time to be playin' for monkey
Pushes nor DRAWN to ace, king,
| against openers an a raise.
after they'd passed, Dobson made
! IL twenty more to play, and Appleby
made good after another long study.
| He soon did look like a man that had
a chanst for a good hand. but was
| afraid to bank on IL to no great extent
An Dobson. bein' a man as played on
| his luck always, an was havin' a par
| ticular good run that night, was cock
| sure o. winnin' the pot.
when Appleby picked up the deck
to serve the draw, he says How manyY
an Dobson never says nothin' but
| pushes up a stack o. reds bein' ten