Woke up at 11:30pm. Hangover. Need breakfast.
The same old routine of Stretford end and pool. Everyone was waiting for the card school to start up. I wanted revenge against Rawdo. King on the river, lucky git. Like all the previous poker games most were active participants. The ones that weren't had turned up late or Lenny. Lenny was at every session. No matter how much we tried to persuade him to play, he was not for parting with his 5 euro. I even gave him a lesson in the game to build his confidence. Still he would not play.
Today was the biggest game yet with 6 players with a total pot of 30 euros. There were a few scares but in the end I took the pot down. Cream always rises to the top. Still, I couldn't get over the bitter taste of the bad beat by Rawdo and his Kings. I wanted more revenge.
To entice Lenny into playing I introduced a "All-in or Fold" tournament. Simple rules for 1 Euro. We played a game for fun to show Lenny how quick and easy it was. Bush won and was gutted there was no money riding on it. Lenny was hooked. 8 Players for a big 8 Euro pot. The luck of the draw meant that Bush and Lenny had no choice but to go all-in on the first hand. There were two more callers. Showdown. Lenny, with 2-4 Off-suit, had easily the worse hand. "I knew it! I should never have agreed to play". Before a flop came down that everyone missed except Lenny with his 2. He went on to stay in front and amazingly scooped the pot. He went on to win the game. "I like this game". Another convert to Poker made.
The aim of the day was to stay alcohol free. Early start in the morning and I didn't want any trace of alcohol in my body for the long trip home. Would I make it? The plans for the night where to go out to get something to eat. This normally entails the first beer of the day. Then it was to Churchill's for Pool. Obviously, more beers consumed here. To finish off, it was the hotel bar to watch England B v Albania. Football and beer usually go hand in hand. Chances of success were slim. But I was strong enough. Wasn't I? Motivation came with the sorry state of Paul H. He was looking a bit green around the gills. Not surprising after the amount he shifted last night. Beer monster.
The lads wanted to make it a hat-trick of Sherry's for Dinner. Thankfully, Lenny, Craig, Rawdo and Paul (Andy's Brother) saw the light and agreed to go to the chicken place. Bush wouldn't go "because the Jockey's are too greasy". Why he can't just say "Chips" is beyond me.
The meal was lovely and was washed down with a refreshing orange juice. Lenny ordered a sangria and it almost caught me with my guard down. I love a nice sangria. A quick taste of Lenny's proved that it was a nice one, as you would expect from a Spanish establishment, rather than the tacky Brit pubs we had been frequenting. But, I stood firm and resisted ordering one.
On to Churchill's for a pool lesson. I somehow managed to win the first game and then came up against Rawdo. I had a couple of chances to steal the game but messed up. Rawdo would probably have wrapped the cue around my neck if I stole that game. Rawdo went on to beat all in front of him. Things were going well. Zero alcohol consumed.
Off we went to the hotel for the football. England B did alright and won the match with little resistance. A good goal by Alan Smith and Owen got through the game without breaking down. It was only Albania though. Still Alcohol free. Game over and I had done it. Back to the room for the last poker session.
It wasn't as big a pot as earlier but better than nothing. The victory eased some of the pain caused by Rawdo's Kings but they will never be forgotten. Time for an early night. The only down side was as I was denied the usual waking of Craig up as he was still up. 12:30am. Cannot get to sleep at all. You must need to be drunk to sleep in Benidorm, Or my body clock needs re-adjusting. Oh, and Craig talks in his sleep. Probably he did
it deliberately, just payback.
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