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Friday, October 01, 2004
Twelve-year innocence lost at Hustler
 by grubette
We’ve been on a little hiatus from poker, so Doug and I decided to go to meet a friend we haven’t seen in awhile that has recently taken up poker. She plays at Hustler Casino in Gardena. We’ve never been and a new place is always lucky! I was so excited to go I thought about it all day at work. I couldn’t wait! The whole place was impressive and classy, a huge contrast to the drabness of the city it was in. Cushiony velvet lined walls, framed plasmas everywhere. It was quiet and subdued. They had a sushi bar and a smoking room.
Doug went to sign up for $100-300 buy in no limit and I went to $4/8. I got a seat immediately and began winning and drinking. It’s nice to win at a new place, almost as if they let you win so you’ll return. I was having a great time. Still winning after an hour, Doug came over and sat at my table, not being able to secure a NL seat. Then I began to lose. I left him to play $6/12, back to winning again. Then my name is called for NL and I moved. My first or second hand was A 2. I was in the $5 blind, so I checked. Everyone else did too. The flop is A-A-2, the best I could hope for. I was first to act but really I had the strangest feeling about this hand, kinda like I should have folded. Odd. I pushed $200 all in. The guy next to me was pondering, a long time. After too long, I said, “Look guy, I have a full house.” He didn’t believe me. I said, “No really, I have a full house.” He said he would have to call me. We turned over our cards, his A-8 making him grimace when he saw my full boat on the flop. “Ah,” he said, “you got me! The only thing I could win with is an…” then the dealer dealt the turn, “eight,” and there the eight was, on the turn. He cheered, then immediately felt bad and apologized. I was so stunned I just sat there. Then went to the ATM.. and that was the start of my downfall.
 I saw a couple of guys from Hawaiian Gardens there. One guy of them, David, was sitting next to me and asked me if I saw the players in the corner. I said I didn’t, but I went over to Doug’s table, which is closer and checked them out. I immediately saw Gus Hansen, then Phil Ivey. I went back to my table and told David who I saw and he said, “Didn’t you see Johnny Chan?” Cool. Playing in a small casino corner in not-so-upscale Gardena, some of the best poker players in the world. Amazing.
Six light beers later and I’m still losing. Doug too. Last call came and went and it was 3am. I had $40 left on my NL table so I picked up and left rather than go all-in on a “I’ve gotta go anyway” hand. When I got up, I could barely walk. I was admittedly trashed. Bollocksed. On light beer? I drink light beer when I don’t want to get drunk and here I was, like a foo foo girl with no tolerance to carbonated water with a few hops in it.
Doug drove home and I fell asleep. I woke up when he passed the house on the way to a 24 hour Carl’s Jr. I protested and told him I was going to vomit. A dry 12 years without upchucking and I was going to hurl. We drove home, I ran in to hug the porcelain king and heaved (but it was just a little).
And that’s what I’ll always remember about my first Hustler Casino experience.
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