I hear Roy Durucher's backing you.
You know I'd have backed you if you'd asked me.
If I'd asked.
Hello? Yes.
Excuse me. Yes, it is available.
This is the second time I've seen you with her. Must be some kind of record.
- She thinks I'm compulsive. - Are you?
If I am, I'm not hurting anyone but myself.
Touché.
It was good when I figured out how to play poker and have a life too. I recommend it.
The Grecian Formula's in aisle three. Or did you come for the waffles?
Not a bad idea.
Well, good to see there's something of the old town left.
Now, humor me a minute.
How would you have played this?
Okay, here's how it went. Seat three, he bets. Seat four, he raises.
Seats five and six fold. Seat seven calls. Seat eight folds.
Seat one raises over the top. Seats two and three fold.
Seats four and seven call. Only three players left to see the flop.
You're seat four. The raise and the call. You're sitting on something.
Yeah.
The flop comes. King of spades, four of clubs, jack of hearts.
Hand one checks. I bet. Hand seven folds.
Hand one...
...raises.
Sandbag. Probably two pair or three of a kind.
Most likely. To be certain, I make a small raise and he...
Calls.
- Why do you say that? - He reads you for pocket aces.
Wants to drag you along, get another bet in before he puts the hammer down.
Risky. I might improve.
Well, if he's two pair, he's 74 percent favorite. Three of a kind makes him 90.
- Yeah. - Okay.
Two of us left. On the turn, six of clubs. No help. I check.
- He bets. - I call.
Okay, on the river what should show up?
Another ace.
Makes me the man and a half, three aces.
So I bet. He says:
"I don't think you had aces going in. I think you got stubborn with a bully ace.
I think my hand is still tall."
And he raises. Big.
Something doesn't feel right. Like...
...I'm about to walk into Hydra with his nine heads, so I just...
I call and I turn over my pocket aces.
And he rolls over...
Two clubs. One of them a king.
You got it.
A club flush. On the come-all-along.
That was a $267,000 lesson.
I should have gotten away from it.
I had such a hard-on for my aces, I never looked beyond the obvious. So...
What's the worst thing can happen to a poker player?
Lose his nerve.
What else?
Nobody's better than anybody else at the big tables.
They have different styles. Different ways of doing things...
...but everybody knows how to play.
The key to winning is watching and understanding.
There's things I don't see anymore.
A blind spot.
It's just a hand. Could have happened to anybody.
You saw it.
Okay. Guts. Head to head. A nickel a pop.
- Why not a dime? - Let's go.
Two thousand dollar burn.
I'm in.
- I'm with you. - Queen, seven.
Queen, ten.
It's coming.
- Check. - I'm in.
Re-ante.
I'm in.
Call.
King, ten.
Beat you, slick.
Check.
- I'm in. - Call.
Pair of tens.
I'm in.
- I've improved. - You needed to.
- Call. - Caught the cowboy, kings and tens.
Caught the bullet and his little friend, aces and threes.
You might want to think about quitting, because I've got the best of it.
- Re-ante. Four thousand dollar burn. - I don't wanna clean you out.
You playing or not?
You're not gonna be happy till you have nothing left.
I'm in.
Call. Jack, four.
Nice read.
I'm weak, but not quite that weak. Jack, five.
I'm in.
It's yours.
This was your stake for the big one. Take it.
I don't want it.
Pick it up.
Pick it up!
I could have played it safe. That's not who I am.
You got it backwards, kid.
You play cards the way you should lead your life...
...and lead your life the way you should play cards.
Maybe everybody has a blind spot.
Maybe everybody has to learn from their mistakes.
I sure learned from mine.
Fun game?
Yeah.
You've come a long way since pennies, nickels and dimes on the kitchen table.
Excuse me a minute.
Boys will be boys.
Fathers will be fathers.
I tried to give it back to him.
You could leave it on the table.
Then the waitress would get a $10,000 tip.
Well, if he's gonna take anything from me, he's gonna have to win it, all right?
And that's not likely to happen.
Maybe giving and receiving are more complicated than winning and losing.
Maybe so.
Good day, Miss Offer.
Right. Right. Right. Okay, Eddie.
He'll go for it. He'll go for the ten.
Want to come along? As moral support?
Sure. I'm getting an education on what it's like not to be compulsive.
Come on.
Just so we're straight. You have to run five miles...
...shoot 18 holes of golf, 78 strokes or under, in less than three hours.
And the ball has to be in the cup before time expires...
...for $10,000. Bet?
She holds the stopwatch.
She holds it where I can see it. Bet?
Bet.
- You ready? - Ready.
Get set.
Go!
Nineteen seconds, 20, 21, 22...
Billie. Every couple of minutes will do it just fine.
Twenty minutes.
You've gone three miles.
There it is! Thirty-nine minutes, ten seconds.
- Pop the trunk! - Pop the trunk, pop the trunk.
Hit a duck and it's two strokes.
All right, you get the golf cart. We'll meet you on the green.
Great shot!
Forty minutes, 10 seconds.
- How many shots? - Four. Damn it.
Here. Move over, I'll drive.
Forty-six minutes and 50 seconds.
Fore!
- Playing through. - Hey. What? Who is this?
Yes!
Two hours and 13 minutes, and you're two shots ahead.
You're in the rough, Huckster!
This is the last hole, Huckey-baby.
You only have seven minutes and 45 seconds.
You bogey this, you're toast.
That's 75.
Only three more.
Wow! They should have put some hazards on this hole.
- Yes! - Shit!
- Seventy-six shots. - All right, all right!
Two hours, 57 minutes and 40 seconds.
You shank this, it's all over.
- Get in the hole. - Stay out of the hole.
Go ball, go.
Yes, baby. Legs, Legs, Legs!
Good boy. Good boy. Yes, yes, yes, yes.
All right.
It's not an impossible putt. I think Jack Nicklaus made it once.
Two hours, 59 minutes, and 46 seconds.
Forty-seven, 48.
- Your dick's beginning to sweat. - Forty-nine, 50, 51, 52...
Your arms are heavy. ... Fifty-three, 54, 55...
...fifty-six, 57, 58.
Yeah!
Three hours and two seconds.
You lost.
Yes!
Yes! Yes! I win! I win!
I win. I win.
Yes!
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Three hours and two seconds.
Two seconds, baby! Yeah!
- Hey, where you going? - I'll catch up with you.
Where's my money?
Come back here.
How come you couldn't have helped me out a little?
Helped you out?
Yeah, just a couple of seconds.
You mean, cheated?
Is that what you mean by moral support?
I'm stuck 20,000 and I still got no entry fee.
I don't lie, cheat, or steal for anything or anyone.
All you had to do was give me a little edge.
Call it what you like, it's cheating.
It was two seconds! Anybody would have done that.
Well, I don't believe that.
It's the way it is.
You always have the hard answers, don't you?
How do you live with yourself?
- You mean the easy answers, Billie. - No, I mean the hard ones.
I don't wanna see you anymore. Just stop this thing.
Billie, what are you doing?
Making a good fold.
- Dude, what happened to your furniture? - Who are you?
Mr. Durucher was upset to hear you lost his ten grand to Ready Eddie.
Tell Mr. Durucher he's got nothing to worry about.
We'll get a seat in the big show.
Nice pool.
Shame there's no water.
Hey.
You got 24 hours to return Mr. Durucher his money...
...or get a seat in the tournament.
What happened to you?
Is Billie here?
Do you believe in karma?
Is this a trick question?
Everyone over 21 gets what they deserve.
Come on, Suzanne. Give me a little more than that.
I'm sorry, Suzanne, about everything.
Her seeing me wasn't her fault. It was mine.
I know you, and I know Billie.
What are you doing here? This isn't your style, going out on a limb.
Some people think I spend my whole life out on a limb.
Maybe at the poker table. But in real life you play it pretty tight.
More power to Billie.
She got through to you.
She went back to Bakersfield for a couple days.
So this thing, safe to assume it's about money?
I got a day to clear it up.
Oh, what's that old poker saying about a chip and a chair?
If anyone could turn nothing into something, it's you, Huck.
Trouble is, you always throw it away.
Night, Huck.
- I can almost predict these cards. - Déjà vu.
I have something you said you valued.
Buck and a half, just like the pawn shop.
Five. Fair's fair.
Thanks.
Huck.
Good skill.
I got a seat in the tournament.
You came all the way out here to tell me that?
You're the only one I wanted to tell.
You were right not to cheat.
You've been right about a lot.
Hard answers...
...my telling people what they wanna hear.
Ever since I was a kid, I've always been able to talk my way out of things.
But when I told you we had a chance at something special, I meant it.
I just wanted you to know that.
We will high-card for the button on table number 58.
That's my ace.
The button starts on seat number five.
- The button starts here, boys. - All right, dealers.
Put the button at seat number five.
Dealers, make sure you're checking receipts.
Make sure everybody's at the correct table and seat.
Two minutes till we start the World Series main event.
Here at the featured table, the hole card cam...
...is being used for the first time at the World Series...
...even though no one will see what the camera sees...
...until the tournament is broadcast...
...the camera's getting mixed reviews.
Two-time world champion L.C. Cheever, your thoughts on the hole card cam.
I made a good living for a long time because people don't know how I play.
I'd rather keep it that way.
There you have it. Like it or not...
...poker as a spectator sport is about to undergo an enormous change.
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the World Series of Poker.
Dealers, shuffle up and deal.
Let's get those cards in the air.
Jack Binion's father, Benny Binion, started the World Series in 1970.
Today, there are over 800 players.
Five days from now, the winner will receive 2.5 million dollars...
...the richest individual prize in sports.
We're down to 320 players.
We're halfway through day number two.
Good luck.
Ladies and gentlemen, Doyle Brunson has just been eliminated.
Sam. You're out?
This guy over there, he never played a live tournament in his life.
And he beat me. I don't know if this makes me feel better or worse.
So, I hear Huck's doing really well in the tournament.
Good.
That's nice.
We're breaking another table.
Only 135 players remain.
Dealers, please check all incoming players' seat cards.
Look who's here.
I managed to get my dress pressed, after all.
Heads up.
Thirty thousand.
All-in.
Do I really like these cards...
...or is it just the irresistible lure of sending you home?
- How much to call? - It's about 150.
I mean, do you need an exact count?
Call.
Ace, king high.
Pair of fives, the winner.
Nice hand.
Michelle has aces and jacks, two pair, and wins the pot.
It's three a.m. We'll stay until we eliminate one more player.
Then the final table will be set.
The action is to Huck Cheever.
And Huck raises it to 40,000. And Frank folds.
Jason re-raises to 100,000. Michelle folds.
And L.C. folds. Chico folds. The action is to Karim Kasai.
- All-in. - Karim Kasai is all-in.
Josh is out. The action's to Huck Cheever.
Huck folds. And the action's back to Jason Keyes.
- How much? - He's asked for a count.
I'm somewhat surprised at the play of Huck Cheever.
He has the reputation of being a blaster. He's playing very patiently here.
- Fifty-two to call. - Fifty-two thousand more.
- Call. - And he's called.
Action's complete. Let's see them.
Ace, queen.
Karim Kasai has Ace, Queen. Jason Keyes, two kings.
Two kings versus ace, queen.
And the flop...
...is a three and two queens. - Yes! Beautiful!
Karim Kasai has made trip Queens.
Beautiful! You like?
The women, they love me.
The turn card coming up is a jack.
Karim Kasai looking to double up. One card left, and here it is.
Is a king.
A Full House for Jason and Karim Kasai has been eliminated.
Congratulations, everybody.
That's it. We've reached our final table. See you in the morning.
- Bad beat. - Now let's get some sleep.
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome.
We have reached the final table of the World Series of Poker main event.
That's tournament director, Gil Edwards...
...about to introduce the players at the final table.
And the players are, in seat number one, from Toronto, Canada...
...680,000 in chips, Mr. Josh Cohen.
In seat number two, from Tucson, Arizona, 551,000 in chips, Jason Keyes.
Jason Keyes, the amateur internet player from Tucson, Arizona...
...playing in his first live tournament.
In seat number three, 664,000 in chips, from Detroit, Michigan, Frank Belando.
The retired owner of a tire dealership is living his life's dream.
In seat number four, from Las Vegas, Nevada, 790,000 in chips, Huck Cheever.
In seat five, from Houston, Texas, he's a former world champion...
...420,000 in chips, Chico Banh.
In seat number six, also from Las Vegas, 1,344,000, Michelle Carson.
Michelle Carson, the second woman player in 33 years to make it to the final table.
In seat number seven, with 753,000 in chips...
...from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Ralph Kaczynski.
In seat number nine, from Monterey Park, California...
...1,072,000 in chips, David Chen.
Hey, guys.
And our chip leader, in seat number eight...
...most recently from the south of France, two-time world champion...
...2,116,000, L.C. Cheever.
L.C. and Huck Cheever.
The first time ever a father and son have competed against each other...
...at the final table of the World Series.
The blinds are eight and 16,000...
...the button will start in seat four with Huck Cheever.
Good luck, players. Shuffle up and deal.
The action will start with Ralph Kaczynski.
Ralph folds.
L.C. raises to 50,000.
David folds.
Josh is out. Jason folds. Frank folds.
Huck re-raises to 250,000.
Chico folds.
Michelle folds. The action is back to L.C. Cheever.
You trying to steamroll us, kid?
Another 200,000, you can find out.
I know you're reckless, Huckleberry...
...but I also know you don't wanna be the first to go out.
L.C. folds, and Huck Cheever wins the first pot.
The action is still early here at the final table...
...but Huck Cheever remains consistent.
He's the only player refusing to show his cards to the hole card camera.
Even Chico Banh and L.C. Cheever, two former world champions, have acquiesced.
And the river is a five. Chico Banh wins the pot.
Nice hand.
Josh Cohen is our ninth place finisher.
David bets 250,000.
And the river is a jack.
Huck Cheever wins the pot.
David Chen finishes in eighth place.
I'm all-in.
Michelle Carson is all-in.
I call.
Frank calls.
Frank Belando finishes in seventh place.
- Nice playing with you. - Here, you take this.
Thanks.
How much does he have left?
About... 270.
Raise.
400.
Ralph re-raises to 400,000.
L.C. folds. The action's back to Chico Banh.
Call.
Chico's all-in with two eights.
Ralph Kaczynski has ace, king. Two eights versus ace, king.
And the flop.
Flop is a king, a seven and a deuce.
Two kings for Ralph Kaczynski. Two eights for Chico Banh.
Unless the Spanish-speaking Vietnamese catches another eight...
...it's hasta la vista for Chico Banh.
And the turn.
It's a three. Only an eight will save Chico Banh.
And the river...
...is a jack.
Chico Banh, our sixth place finisher. Takes home $200,000.
Good luck, Huck.
And the flop.
Queen, nine, six. All clubs.
L.C. bets 200,000.
Huck folds.
- Call. - Michelle calls.
The turn card is a deuce of clubs.
You have to assume they both have flushes.
The question is who has the highest club in the hole.
L.C. checks.
Michelle bets 400,000.
L.C. calls.
And the river...
...is an eight of clubs.
L.C. checks.
- I'm all-in. - Michelle Carson is all-in.
- Call. - L.C. calls.
Michelle has a king of clubs for a king high flush.
Very nice.
But not nice enough.
- Jeez. - A straight flush.
L.C. Cheever has eliminated Michelle Carson with a straight flush.
The last straight flush at the final table in the World Series of Poker...
...was 1994. There were none before that.
Go get him.
And Michelle Carson, our fifth place finisher, wins $320,000.
Nice hand.
Yeah. It's usually not the big hands that do it, though.
Twenty-eight years ago I was head to head with Doyle Brunson at the final table.
He caught a 10 on the river for three 10s, and he won the tournament.
It was his time.
Two years later, I knocked Bobby Baldwin out with a pair of jacks.
It was my time.
This could be my last chance to win this thing again.
Tournament's too big. Luck's too much of a factor now.
Why do you even care? You got nothing to prove.
You've already won it twice.
Legacy.
If I could win a third time, I'd be in the book.
On the first page.
Well, one way or the other...
...we're making a kind of history here. You and me at the final table.
Yeah, that's one way to look at it.
How do you look at it?
You can call it what you like. What goes around, comes around.
That's a long time ago, Huckleberry. Your mother forgave me.
Why can't you?
What makes you think she ever forgave you?
She told me so when she gave me back her ring.
You stole the ring.
That's right, I did.
Hocked it. Redeemed it. Gave it back to her.
She never wore it again.
Before she died, she gave it back to me.
I kept the ring because your mother's forgiveness meant a lot to me.
Well, then, why did you gamble with it? I won it from you, remember?
Because she's your mother.
- Hey, Eddie. - Welcome back.
- Here you go. - Thank you.
He's the man.
Huck raises to 90,000.
Raise.
Ralph re-raises to 300,000.
L.C. folds.
Jason folds.
Having fun, Ralph?
Huck folds, and Ralph wins the pot.
Jason raises to 100,000.
Huck calls.
And Ralph calls.
Three players in the pot. And the flop.
Jack, four, three. All different suits.
Huck checks.
Ralph bets 350,000.
Jason calls.
And Huck calls. This pot is now over one million dollars.
And the turn...
...is the king of hearts.
Huck checks.
I'm all-in. Nine-fifty.
Ralph Kaczynski's all-in for 950,000.
Jason folds.
Call.
Huck calls.
Ralph Kaczynski can't be feeling too good about this.
In fact, he probably feels a little like a bear who's walked into a trap.
Ralph Kaczynski has kings and jacks, two pair.
Huck has a set of threes.
Kaczynski needs a king or a jack.
Anything else, and Huck Cheever has knocked him out of this tournament.
And the river.
And the river is a queen.
And Huck Cheever has won the pot.
Ralph Kaczynski wins 440,000, with his fourth place finish.
We're down to our final three.
Yeah, that was smooth play, man.
Huck is first act on the button.
Huck calls 40,000.
L.C. raises to 100,000.
Jason folds.
- I'll just call. - Huck calls.
What do you mean, "just call"?
Take it any way you want. It's just a call.
And the flop.
The flop is seven, five, deuce, rainbow.
Let's play for three.
L.C. makes it 300,000.
Raise.
Your three, and three more.
Huck raises to 600,000.
Interesting raise, Huckleberry.
Just call.
L.C. calls.
Turn.
Turn is a deuce of spades.
Another five to go.
L.C. bets 500,000.
- Call. - Huck calls.
The pot is now two million dollars.
Now you smooth call.
The book says:
"If you're holding the bullets now would be the time to go over the top."
Go all-in.
The river.
River's the eight of hearts.
So, here we are.
Here we are.
How much do you have?
About 650.
I think I have you, Huckleberry. All-in.
L. C Cheever is all-in.
Huck calls.
And he'll double up, or be out.
- Call. - Huck calls.
L.C. has two kings.
Kings, nice hand.
They're good.
L.C. Cheever wins the pot.
Nice playing, Huck.
Huck Cheever, is our third place bencher, winning 650,000 dollars.
Huck.
This is it, we're down to the final two players for the world championship...
...L.C. Cheever and our chip leader, Jason Keyes.
Make way for the two point five million in cash.
Huck. I put you on queens, right.
Right, queens.
Huck, could we have a couple of words with you?
Knocked out by your own father. Kind of cold-blooded, huh?
L.C. re-raises to 620,000.
Jason raises one more...
Well, somebody who understands the game very well once said:
"Poker's cruel. You can't have sympathy and win."
L.C. Cheever is all-in.
Excuse me.
The action is for Jason Keyes. This could be it.
- Call. - Jason Keyes, calls.
L.C. has ace, king.
Jason Keyes has ace, queen of diamonds.
Jason Keyes needs a queen, and the river.
It's a queen.
Jason Keyes is a world champion of poker.
And L.C. Cheever, our runner-up, wins 1.3 million dollars.
Huck! Hey!
You had the bullets, didn't you?
Your kings were good.
No. You gave it to me. Why?
Let's just say I thought it was your time.
Well, you were wrong about that.
So, where to now? Back to France?
Tunica. Then Atlantic City.
- Tournaments? - Yeah.
They're flying a couple of us old-timers down, comping the entrance fees.
The game is being marketed now. They need celebrity gamblers.
Like everything else, they wanna pretend it's the way it used to be.
Let's play.
- Play? - Yeah.
Right now. You and me. Head to head. Come on. Like the old days.
Do us both good.
Clear the air.
As far as I'm concerned, the air is clear.
Then you'll play better.
Come on.
Cut for deal.
Angelina, we need some change over here.
Got you! Pennies, nickels and dimes.
- Night, Billie. - Night, Andy.
Can we talk?
Outside. I need some fresh air.
So, how did the tournament go?
- Win some, lose some. - Easy come, easy go?
Yeah, same old story.
And the money's just a way of keeping score.
Yeah.
Except for my left pocket winnings.
The important money.
Four dollars and 37 cents.
Pennies, nickels and dimes.
Like on the kitchen table.
You got it.
You let your father win in the tournament, didn't you?
You were there.
Am I that easy to read?
When you know the tells.
Guess what, buddy? You just lost 20,000 dollars.
Thirty days. It's a month. You lose.
Hate to tell you this, there's 31 days in May.
Well, how many days in August?
- August? - Yeah.
Thirty, I think.
- Double or nothing says there's 31. - Bet!
Yo, buddy!