(piano playing "As Time Goes By")
(orchestra joins in, music swells)
(song concludes with a flourish)
(sparkling notes play)
RADIO DJ: This is New Country, 95.5, country from the heart,
sending out a big welcome to all the hopefuls in town
for the 2003 World Series of Poker.
Here's a George Jones classic for all you players
in the game of cards... or the game of love.
(country ballad playing)
* I've had good luck *
(entry bell jingling)
* Bad luck *
* And no luck, it's true *
* But I always get lucky with you... *
Evening.
150.
Brand-new, never been used.
I got three of them. 150.
It costs 500.
150.
I need three.
Sorry.
* But I always get lucky with you *
You have three digital cameras,
all the same.
Pretty much.
Well, here's what you can do with four cameras
that you can't do with three.
You take two of the cameras, you price them identically.
The third camera you price a little less.
The fourth camera you price a little higher.
Customer comes in wanting to buy a camera.
Figures the least expensive camera is either a bargain
or there's something wrong with it.
But it gets him thinking.
It gets him talking to you.
In other words, you've got him in the game.
Odds are he doesn't take camera number three
'cause he reads it as defective.
But it pushes him towards cameras one and two,
which he already thinks are a good deal,
because of the higher price of camera number four.
Or maybe he's drawn to camera number four.
I mean, why is this camera more expensive?
You tell him it's never been used.
You point out that cameras one and two
have never been used either, the only difference is,
camera number four is still in the box.
Now he does one of two things.
He either buys one of your cameras at the regular price,
which he now thinks is a bargain,
or he springs for the one in the box,
because he plans to give it to someone
as a present and he needs the box so it looks new
and not like some camera he just picked up at a pawn shop.
You're good.
So, by purchasing this camera in its box,
you increase the value of the three cameras you already have.
You work this hard at your day job?
(chuckles)
Only problem is, my cameras all have boxes.
* I've been turned on *
* Turned down... *
What?
I'll tell you what.
If you can show me your boxes,
I'll give you my camera for nothing.
But if you can't, you pay three bills for mine.
You're pretty sure of yourself.
You don't have the boxes, do you?
I'll give you the 150...
plus 50 for the entertainment, but that's as high as I go.
Done.
* I've had two strikes against me *
* Most all of the time *
What about this?
What's it worth?
To me or to you?
Well, it's worth a lot to me. It was my mother's.
She used to take it off when she was doing the dishes,
and then, one day, my dad took off with it to get some cash.
How'd you get it?
I won it off him in a poker game.
It was too late to do my mom any good, though.
Sorry to hear that.
Plain band, nothing special.
I could give you 100 for it, you'll have your three.
He told me it was worth a lot more than that.
So sell it back to him.
I'm not selling it to you.
I'll be back for it.
What's your name?
Huck.
Well, Huck...
I'll give you another buck and a half for the ring.
And you have 120 days to come back and see me.
(engine rumbling)
("Lucky Town" by Bruce Springsteen plays)
* Well, house got too crowded *
* Clothes got too tight *
* And I don't know just where I'm going tonight *
* Out where the sky's been cleared by a good hard rain *
* There's somebody calling my secret name *
* I'm going down to Lucky Town *
* Going down to Lucky Town *
* I want to lose these blues I've found *
* Down in Lucky Town *
* Baby, down in Lucky Town *
* Well, here's to your good looks, baby *
* Now here's to my health *
* Here's to the loaded places that we take ourselves *
* When it comes to luck you make your own *
* Tonight I got dirt on my hands but I'm building me a new home *
* Baby, down in Lucky Town... *
("Lucky Town" fading out)
WOMAN: * Dance me through the panic *
* Till I'm gathered safely in *
* Lift me like an olive branch *
* And be my homeless dove *
* Dance me to the end of love... *
Hey, Huck.
* Dance me to the end of love. *
(coins, machines clinking) (indistinct talking, laughing)
(slot machines beeping, dinging)
WOMAN: There's a seat available at table #4
in just a few minutes for you. MAN: Thank you.
Sir, can I get you a cocktail? Uh, what's I'd like is...
What time can you have it here then?
All right. Best you can do.
Get it here soon as you can.
(overlapping, indistinct conversations)
Beating up on a whale.
Some real estate guy from Florida.
I guess you could call that a tell.
He's stuck a quarter mil and change.
I'm down with the little fish tonight, Tommy.
Swim with the guppies for a while.
Okay, kid, good luck.
(indistinct conversations) Get some good cards, dealer.
350.
Small blind, big blind.
Sir, you want to post? Yeah.
WAITRESS: Water, Huck?
Yeah, thanks.
I raise.
MAN: Hmm.
Let's raise it up then.
Oh, that's a good decision. You, too.
All very good decisions,
especially you, Water Boy.
How do you like that River, Water Boy?
16's the bet.
It'll only hurt for a little while.
Really.
You're betting like you have the eight
for the belly straight.
Or you might have caught a third seven.
Hmm...
No matter how I look at it, you probably got me beat.
But then again...
maybe you don't.
He's raised to 32.
Thank you.
(chuckles)
Screw it.
Never touch another player's cards.
Nothing.
You raised me with nothing?
Sometimes nothing's enough.
(laughing)
(mocking laughter) Let's blind 'em up, boys.
Show cards, please.
Pair of queens.
Maverick, jacks and queens.
Two pair is good, sir.
A winner.
Thank you.
Gentlemen.
It's great to be alive, isn't it?
(chips clacking)
Raise.
Sometime today, sunshine.
You in a hurry?
Places to go, people to see?
Maybe.
See if we can get you there a little faster, cowboy.
Raise.
Back at you.
HOSTESS: I'll take care of it right away.
Giddyap.
Okay, that's eight...
ten thousand...
two hundred and twenty-eight.
Do you want that in cash or chips?
Give me the ten in chips, Lorena.
Robin, grab Huck's box for me, please.
(quietly): What time's your shift end?
Oh, not for another three hours.
Ah, my first bad beat tonight.
(island-style music playing)
Get it over! (spectators shouting)
(all groaning)
What was that? Here you go. Here you go.
All right, the over/under is three.
All right, I got the under. Who's got over?
Hey, Huck, how you doing?
Hey, three times over the net pays off, five pays double.
You want some of the action?
No, no thanks, Eddie. Okay.
All right, all right, who's got points on the side?
That's payday. That's payday.
Come on. You can do better than that!
Smell it: it's new.
Smells good, right?
Yes.
(chuckles)
But it's not cologne or deodorant or anything.
It's just me.
(chuckling): It's just like my natural...
I know, it's weird, but I...
Sorry, time got away from me.
It happens.
I know, but I keep saying it won't happen again.
But it does.
And I'm late.
S-So you guys are...
Yeah.
Nice to have met you.
Do you always intrude on private conversations?
Well, it seemed like an intrusion might be welcome.
So you're a mind reader.
Body.
Your body language indicated a certain lack of... enthusiasm.
You might have been wrong.
(laughs)
Huck.
Billie.
New in town?
No.
Really?
So you are wrong every once in a while.
Hey. Sorry I'm late.
That's what he just said.
Yeah, but he's a poker player, Billie,
so you can't believe anything he says.
Busted. Suzanne.
How you doing, Huck?
Great, now that I've met your friend.
My sister.
Your sister?
My little sister.
Little sister. Even better.
Ginger, hey.
Hey, Huck.
Ginger.
This is my sister Billie.
She just got in from Bakersfield.
This is Gary.
Hey, you work at the...
...at the Venetian. You're the gondola guy.
That was last year.
I'm a Nubian slave at the Luxor now.
We got to go. Nice to meet you.
See you Saturday at the party?
Yeah. Hope you enjoy your visit.
Suzanne.
That was a fast withdrawal.
Yeah, well, Huck's not one to waste any time.
You're my sister. There's no way I'm letting that happen.
Bad news?
There's quite a few who would say it's a good time.
Does that include you?
No, I had Huck's number pretty early on.
What number is that?
Hustle: 10, commitment: 0.
Maybe he hasn't found what he's looking for.
Billie...
No, don't even think about it.
Come on, we've been through this before.
Some people don't want to be fixed.
They like things just the way they are.
* Yeah, yeah, hey, I'm all shook up... *
MAN: French toast, bacon on the side,
fruit, strawberries only...
Uh, hang on a second, Lucy.
Why don't you just go rest up a little, Huck?
We never close.
No time like the present, Tommy.
WOMAN: Oh, I should have gotten away from that.
Hey, Huck. Hey.
How are things going, Huck? Okay, Sam.
Fasten your seat belts. Huck is here.
What's for breakfast?
Don't say "You are."
(laughter)
DEALER: 86 for low.
Eighty-seven.
Ace wins for high.
Whoo! You win the whole pot.
Nice game. Another one, Huck.
Look who's here, everybody. Good morning, gentlemen.
Oh, he's back. Hey, L.C.
What's going on? Good to see you.
How you doing? Sammy. Chow.
Hey, L.C., good to see you.
Michelle, my belle. Mm...
MICHELLE: You in town for the tournament?
L.C.: Yeah, well, someone's got to try
and stem the tide of those couch potatoes.
Is there an empty seat?
Yeah, right here, between me and Chow.
20,000.
Couldn't go another World Series without you, L.C.
So how was the South of France?
French--
they hate our politics, but they love our games.
I'm happy to say.
(laughter)
Yeah.
Looks like the kid
has got the jump on everybody.
What's new and different, kid?
Your hair, for one thing.
(players oohing)
Kid tries to bring out the worst in people.
As I get on in years, like all human beings,
I've become acquainted with... vanity.
(laughter)
How about you?
You still blasting away?
A thousand to go.
Re-raise.
Nice to play with you again, kid.
What do you say?
Not a spectator sport.
(chips clacking)
5,000.
How deep are you?
Oh, I've got about 18,000.
Okay.
I'm putting you all in.
Well, I'm going to have to call you, L.C.,
'cause my pretty ladies are just dying to step out.
Well, they'll be in good company.
(players gasp, groan) Three kings.
(chuckles): You son of a bitch.
You're the only man I enjoy losing money to.
Loan me 20, L.C.?
Is there anybody who doesn't owe you?
Just you, kid.
Just you.
DEALER: 8,000.
L.C.: It's an interesting situation.
I had you sitting with a medium
pocket pair, nines wired, perhaps,
which would you give a set.
You had me figured for a straight draw.
The question is,
am I four to a flush, too?
Now, with a pot this size,
I'll call you no matter what you raise.
The prudent thing would be to just call,
protect your chips, so you can play again another day.
No, Prudence, the question is,
are you talking 'cause you got the diamonds
or are you talking 'cause you don't?
You and I both know what the book says you should do, kid.
Is that what you do now?
Just play by the book?
You might as well play on-line.
Raise.
I'm all in.
You're sure? Now, you can pull it back if you want.
I'd bet more if I had it.
You would? Yeah.
I'll gladly let you throw in that charm of yours,
that wedding ring you're fond of carrying.
Although, I notice you don't have it with you.
You're right. I don't.
But I'll put up the pawn ticket that redeems it
against that wristwatch you're wearing.
Yeah?
Okay, may I?
Get out of here.
A buck and a half?
You must have been up against it, kid.
I know that ring's worth a lot more than that to you.
And my watch is worth a lot more than that to me.
My father's 1938 Bulova.
He wore it through the war.
But I'll take that bet.
Anybody mind?
MAN: Are you kidding?
Come on. This is between you two.
But we're happy to watch.
So insane.
I got you covered.
Possible flush,
open-ended straight draw.
How are you fixed?
L.C.: Pocket nines.
Imagine that.
(chuckling)
Let's see the River.
DEALER: Diamond flush the winner.
(scoffs)
This hurts. Too bad, Huckleberry.
Sometimes it pays to be prudent.
Hey, Huck, you know what your problem is?
You.
You're a great player. You know the math.
I think you read your opponents
as well as anybody I've ever seen.
The trouble is, you're a blaster.
You always have been.
Thanks for the analysis.
Listen, go for broke, you're going to wind up broke.
He drew lucky.
I caught a case of second best.
Yeah, yeah, you want sympathy?
You'll find it somewhere between "shit"
and "syphilis" in the dictionary.
I'm telling you, if you don't leave your volatility at home,
you're never going to be in the same league with these guys.
What do you want, Roy?
I want you to play with my money.
It'll even you out.
It'll make you a better player.
Your money's not involved.
Your emotions will be less involved.
I'll stake you the ten grand buy-in to the World Series,
we split the winnings: 60 me, 40 you.
Let me ask you something.
How much do you weigh?
150, give or take a little.
How much do you think I weigh?
185.
Now you tell me: how well do you think I'm going to play
with an additional 150 pounds on my back?
Give or take a little.
That is an arbitration clause,
but it may not be binding.
We may be in very good luck.
Why don't you read me paragraph two again,
one more time from the top, will you?
Hope this isn't about money.
It's good to see you, Huckster.
(phone ringing)
1-900-MENTAL. Is this a real psychologist?
Yes, all of our psychologists
are board-certified and credited.
That's a relief because... One moment, please.
Okay. (phone ringing)
I have a... 1-900-DEFEND, please hold.
Yes, this is Dr. Schuman. Uh, may I ask your name?
Yeah, Toby.
What seems to be the problem, Toby?
(phone beeps)
It's my girlfriend. I keep catching her in lies...
Come on, Jack. Turn into 1-900-LOANS,
spot me a thousand to get me going again.
What did I just tell you?
Dr. Schuman, are you there? Uh, sorry, Toby, yes.
But when I drive by her house, she's out.
Well, what do you think she's telling you
with this chronic behavior?
I don't know.
I'm wondering if I shouldn't put you on
with our relationship and commitment therapist,
Okay. Dr. Gregory.
You're playing a losing hand. Sorry to keep you on hold.
Really? You think so? This is a classic case
of throwing good money after bad.
You should just get out, Toby.
Thanks. Uh, hold on one moment.
Our contract specialist will be with you presently.
What are you doing? What?
Rule #1: be a listener.
Listen.
I can't help you, Huck. I want to, but I can't.
Jack, come on, you know I'm good for it.
WOMAN (on phone): Why does everyone try to take advantage of me?
Cheryl, I am hearing you
express your pain and I'm feeling empathy.
You understand, don't you, Doctor?
Yes, from my own experience.
I know how disheartening it is
to feel that you're being taken advantage of by friends.
All they do is take from me.
Exactly, Sheryl.
When the motives become monetary,
it's parasitic.
It is parasitic.
(phone beeps) Julie split and took the kids.
I think she means it this time.
She always means it. No, I'm telling you.
She does not even want to talk about talking about it.
You might have to dial 1-900-IT'S OVER.
Thanks.
SHERYL: I don't have anyone to go to movies with.
I don't even go to restaurants.
You okay?
SHERYL: I don't have anybody to talk to.
I'm never going to be happy. No.
I just have to face it. Don't you ever get lonely?
I don't know what I'm going to do with myself.
I feel as though I'm stuck here, waiting for my life to start.
If I could just hit a button...
With friends like you?
Never.
Still not getting nickel one. Damn.
(Sheryl continues indistinctly) (chuckling)
That's not fair to you, Sheryl.
Are you going to accept that?
(quietly humming country melody)
You locked out?
Either that, or I just enjoy sitting on staircases.
How long before Suzanne will be back?
I don't know.
She was going to loan me some money.
Oh, yeah?
Well...
I've got...
$19, is that enough?
That's all you brought with you?
And $1,000 in traveler's checks.
(cell phone ringing)
Excuse me.
Hello.
Yes, this is she.
Yes, hello.
Tonight? Yes.
All right, thank you very much.
I got a job!
Singing at Dean's.
Dino's?
You know the place. Sure.
It's my first job singing professionally.
Well, we should celebrate.
This is an occasion.
You're right. It is.
Well, let's go.
(music playing) WOMAN: Good luck to you.
Thank you.
Discipline's the key.
We have serious celebrating to do.
So we only play until we double our money.
Okay.
Do you know how to play poker?
I know that three of a kind beats two pair.
Very good.
ANNOUNCER: Binion's Horseshoe Casino in Downtown Las Vegas,
the proud home of the World Series of Poker.
The 2003 Omaha Event will commence in two hours
in Benny's Bullpen.
DEALER: Lines, please.
Okay, in Texas Hold 'Em,
each player gets two cards that no one else sees.
Okay.
And five cards are dealt face up on the table.
Now these are cards that everybody can use.
So if you think you have the best two cards,
or two cards you'd like to draw to, you bet.
And if you don't, you fold.
Raise.
Call.
Four players.
Check. Check.
If, for instance,
someone had a king in the hall,
they'd now have two pair,
kings and fours.
One more heart, and you've got a flush.
(gasps)
(laughs) That's right.
Of course, the trick is to not let the other players know
when you've got something good.
Okay.
Hence the expression "poker face."
DEALER: Three players.
Check. DEALER: Check it.
40.
Raise it to 80.
I call.
Call 80.
Check.
Check it.
What are you doing?
DEALER: 40.
I'll raise.
Raise it to 80.
I give her a king and a queen in the hole
for an ace-high straight.
DEALER: Fold. Yeah?
I call. I've got Broderick Crawford.
Tens and fours, two pair.
A straight.
Ace-high straight, the winner.
MAN: Nice hand.
MAN 2: Over and out.
How'd you know?
It was the way she bet before the Flop,
and the way she bet after the Flop.
A good fold is as important as a win,
sometimes more important.
Pair of kings. Kings are the winner.
(sighs, sputters)
(laughs): This is fun.
DEALER: Lines, please.
Hey, Huck, how they falling?
Lester.
Billie Offer.
Nice to meet you.
Hey, Huck, Ready Eddie just bet me 20 large
I couldn't live in the bathroom at the Aladdin for a month.
You going to take him up on it?
I'm thinking about it.
Hey, you want a piece of my action if I do?
30 days in the bathroom-- how hard can it be?
Maybe I can even get him to give us odds.
I'm kind of financially handicapped right now.
So, Billie.
A hundred bucks says
I can make it from here to the end of the room
without touching the ground.
Uh... Bet.
Fold.
Call 40.
20 to call.
(laughing)
Three players.
Send the hundred over.
You still owe me a thousand dollars
from miniature golf, remember?
Shovel against the rake?
Then put it on my account.
Did that man have breasts or is he physically challenged?
DEALER: Call is 40.
Well, someone said he'd bet him 50 grand
he wouldn't get breast implants and keep them for six months.
A guy named Zenbick did it for 12 months a couple years ago.
He said the women went wild for the breasts,
so Lester took the bet.
DEALER: Raise. Play for 80.
Well, he should wear a more flattering blouse.
Hey, Huck, can I get you anything?
No, thanks, Sherry.
You must play a lot.
You know so many people.
This is what I do.
What, like a job?
You don't work; you just gamble?
Well, who said it's not work?
It's the work this city is all about.
I'm all in.
Raise, all in.
Playing for 35.
It's 35 to play.
Call.
Why did you turn your cards over?
Well, he's out of chips.
So there's no more betting.
Two players. BILLIE: Oh.
Pair of queens.
Unless he gets another nine,
we've got him.
Come on, nine.
* Come on, nine. *
Come on, nine.
Yes! Yes!
DEALER: Three nines the winner.
(laughing)
DEALER: Thank you.
Well, you beat him once.
It doesn't work like that.
Well, maybe it should.
MAN: L.C.! Great to see you. How you doing?
It's been a while. Yes, it has.
DEALER: Lines, please.
Hello, Huck.
Hey. Hey.
You remember Isabel.
Beautiful as ever.
Mm, thank you.
I hear that your left pocket is empty.
Really?
(chuckling)
How you hitting 'em?
Down the middle.
Well, we should tee it up. It's been a long time.
Ooh... I, uh, went and got this out of hock.
It's nice to have it back.
I have a feeling it's going to bring me luck.
I'm L.C.
Hi, I'm Billie Offer.
Nice to meet you.
DEALER: Thank you very much.
Is he related to you?
Why do you say that?
'Cause your eyes went all quiet.
DEALER: Lines, please.
In poker, we call that a tell.
He's my father.
Dr. Laura says
if you live your life angry at your parents,
you're only hurting yourself.
Well, who said I was angry at anybody?
Raise.
Call.
You know what? I should get going.
Call. Five players.
I don't want to be late for my first night of work.
Anybody mind...?
Nah, nobody cares.
Your stake plus a 20% return.
You don't have to do that.
No, fair is fair.
But do you mind cashing it in yourself?
It's just that I've got the best of it right now,
and I really shouldn't leave the table.
And I'm sorry we didn't get around to celebrating.
No, don't be.
I haven't had this much fun since junior high.
You okay? Thanks, Sherry.
DEALER: Raise.
DEALER: Re-raise.
(tires squealing)
(engine turns off)
Here we go, Adelaide. Here we go!
What are you watching?
Australian games. Not bad.
It helps with the March Madness withdrawal.
You got any money?
I don't loan money to gamblers. You know that.
I got to get up a ten for the World Series.
Save your money.
That's a sucker bet.
You against a thousand computer geeks.
Hey, foul! He's fouling him.
That's a foul. How about advancing the rent?
I'm paid up till the NCAA Finals 2008.
You want to buy the house?
You grew up in this house.
Plus, the bank already owns it.
30 seconds.
All right, just dribble out the clock.
Come on.
Okay, pick it up. Get it back.
Get it back! Oh!
(crowd cheering on TV)
I'm heading back East tonight.
Hey.
You haven't seen my digital camera, have you?
* You think that you're a real man *
* But you're nothing but a fool *
* The way you run away from love *
* The way you try to play it cool *
* I'm gonna say this just one time *
* Time is running out on you *
* You'd best remember me, my friend *
* I am the cold hard truth... *
I was so nervous.
Didn't show.
(sighs)
I didn't expect to see you so soon.
You're not trying to rustle me, are you?
(chuckles)
What about that celebration?
It's kind of late, isn't it?
This is Las Vegas.
I don't know.
(engine starts, idles)
(revs engine)
(laughs)
Can it be Chinese?
Let's go.
(quiet, slow country theme plays)
Thanks.
Vroom, vroom.
WOMAN: Much, much better than last time.
MAN: Really?
Yeah. Wow.
(conversation continues in background)
Can I get you something to drink, sir?
Billie?
Do you mind if I get my fortune cookie first?
I like to think about it during the meal.
Can you bring her
a fortune cookie before we order?
What about you?
Don't you want to read your fortune?
I can't afford to be superstitious.
Don't you believe in luck?
I believe in skill.
Although, it did seem as though the cards
ran a little better for me when you were around.
(laughs)
What happened to the best of it?
Turned into a little bit of the worst of it.
Mm.
Maybe after dinner... Buenos noches, Huck!
Hey! Como estas?
Billie Offer, Chico Banh.
My pleasure. Hello.
Mi familia esta aqui para ver me play in the World Series, huh?
(laughs): You get a seat yet?
I'm working on it.
(clicks tongue)
Mucho gusto.
He doesn't look Mexican.
Vietnamese.
Grew up in Texas.
Speaks Spanish better than he does English
and plays tournament poker better than just about anybody.
Really? Mm-hmm.
What?
What's it say?
"Big contest is yours to win, and riches, too."
Let me see that.
"He who thinks too much is thinking too much."
Gotcha, Mr. I-Can't-Afford- to-Be-Superstitious.
(laughs)
Okay.
When someone says "left pocket," what does that mean?
It's where you keep your important money.
Like the money you need to enter the tournament.
Mm-hmm.
And the winner of the World Series
is the best there is?
Tournaments are for the public-- you know,
perception of who's best.
To determine who's really
the best, you'd have to play head to head,
no limit, with your own money.
Then why do you want to play in it?
Did your father win it?
Twice.
Was he always a gambler?
He was an English professor when he married my mother.
She stuck by him
until he left her, after he stole everything he could.
The leaf doesn't fall far from the tree.
Hmm?
You hate him, but you still play poker.
He taught me to play.
Pennies, nickels and dimes on the kitchen table.
I could never beat him, and he never let me win.
Mama was a piano teacher,
and she taught her students Brahms and Chopin,
but her real love was Nashville.
We used to sing together,
all around the house and in the car.
I always wanted to try it for real.
So your mother must be proud of you.
She died last October.
But tonight, I almost felt like she was listening.
* Maybe this time *
* I'll be lucky *
* Maybe this time, he'll stay *
* Maybe this time *
* For the first time *
* Love won't hurry *
* Away *
* He will hold me fast... *
You know what I think?
I think everybody's just trying not to be lonely.
* ...Be home at last *
* Not a loser *
* Anymore... *
You cold?
A little.
* Like the last time and the time before *
* Everybody *
* Loves a winner * Thank you.
* So nobody loves me... *
* *
(fountains whooshing)
Where's all the furniture?
I'm redecorating.
(laughs)
Come on, let me show you what I've done
with the rest of the place.
* *
All in. How much you got?
12,200.
WAITRESS: Coffee? Please.
You've been running over everybody all morning.
Don't chase what you can't catch.
No matter what's prudent,
sometimes you got to play your gut.
I think I got him.
I think he knows it, too.
Don't let your ego get involved.
If you're so sure...
want a side bet?
Yeah. For the ring?
Against 500.
The price of poker's gone up.
(whispers): You're on.
Which one of you am I playing?
Or is this a team?
Call.
Stuck on deuces.
Deuces?
All you got is deuces?
And you called me with this shit?
(sighing)
DEALER: Deuces the winner.
That was a great call.
Thanks, Robin.
Thanks, Huck.
WOMAN: How'd you do? Not bad.
Where you going, Huck?
That real estate guy just walked in.
We're starting the big game.
(engine rumbling)
You stole from me!
Borrowed. I... I had it way up.
Borrowing is when you ask!
I needed that money. I've got responsibilities and bills.
I'm trying to get a place on my own.
If I'd have won, you'd have had a share, just like before.
You think that the only person that matters is you!
What you need, when you need it!
You're a sick pony!
Puppy.
Billie, look, it was wrong,
but I'm gonna pay you back. I'm not a bank.
You can't make deposits and withdrawals
whenever you feel like it. Wait, just let me...
Don't say it.
You say whatever you think somebody wants to hear.
It's dangerous to be around you.
That's why you came to the club, isn't it?
You knew I had the money.
Decided why not get some put-out at the same time.
It wasn't like that. Here, you missed some.
(door slams)
ANNOUNCER (on P.A.): We're a couple of minutes away
from starting the Super Satellite.
Hey, Bill.
Hey. You entering the Super Satellite, huh?
How many entries you have? Well, let's see.
Slug your way through 44 wannabes,
you got yourself a seat in the big one.
Two and a quarter if you want to try it.
WOMAN: I call.
(crowd groans) And then there were three.
Mr. Ray Zumbro, Mr. Huck Cheever,
and the current chip leader, Miss Shannon Kincaid.
MAN: Cheever?
L.C. Cheever's son?
And you play cards?
That takes balls.
DEALER: Heads up.
(sighs)
I'm all in.
(spectators murmuring) Wow!
Call.
(spectators murmuring) Oh!
(gasping, chuckling)
Two pair, kings and deuces.
Kings and eights-- the winner.
(spectators gasp, groan)
WOMAN: She didn't play well.
Must be tough playing in the shadow of your father.
Little coffee-housing for distraction?
No, you wouldn't be bothered by anything like that.
I mean, you wouldn't have gotten this far
if you couldn't stand on your own two feet.
I'm all in.
(spectators murmuring)
You're not trying to steal the blinds, are you?
How much does he have?
Oh, Jesus, old man, where'd you learn to count, huh?
It's 20 a stack. See?
5,100, sir.
Call.
(spectators gasp, murmur)
Pair of eights.
Tens to eights. (crowd gasps, laughs)
Tens to eights still stand.
Pair of tens are still tall. Last card.
The tens stand up-- Mr. Cheever
wins a seat in the World Series!
Sorry I won't be seeing you at the big dance.
(sucks teeth)
Hey, wait a minute. There's only two burn cards.
What?
MAN: There are only two burn cards.
(murmuring)
Mr. Cheever. Mr. Cheever.
MAN: They gotta burn three, see...
HOST: I'm afraid...
we've had a misdeal.
What do you mean, you've had a misdeal?
No card was burned.
The... dealer neglected to burn a card before the River.
Yeah, well, that's not my problem.
A card laid is a card played.
No, I'm sorry, Huck, but house rules require
a card to be burned before any cards are turned.
And in the event of this situation,
the card is put back, it's used as a burn card,
and then a new River is dealt.
(spectators murmuring)
HOST: Take back the six.
Burn it.
Deal the River.
Yeah!
(spectators groaning) Yeah, baby!
HOST: A set.
Three eights-- the winner.
Guess you won't be needing
to press your dress quite yet, Cinderella.
("Like A Rolling Stone" by Bob Dylan playing)
I heard about the misdeal.
Boy, talk about a bad beat, huh?
Okay, so you put up the ten,
we split anything I win 50-50.
70-30.
What happened to 60-40?
Went away
when your tens went down to a set of eights.
Okay, 65-35.
Fine, 70-30.
I need an extra $1,200.
It's that or no deal.
* *
* You said you never compromise *
* With the mystery tramp, but now you realize... *
You took the bet.
It's like stealing money.
Look at him,
checking up on me.
He's so hoping I'm gonna sneak out.
(chuckles)
He's having a party now, three days into it.
In a week,
he'll begging to get out of here.
You play any golf lately?
A little. A little.
Four handicap and he says a little.
Six from the black tees.
I tell you what.
I'll bet you $5,000 that you can't run five miles,
shoot 18 holes of golf, 78 or under,
in three hours or less.
Forget it.
Room service. Oh, yeah.
Put it right here, boss.
Hey, Paulie's right outside that door
just in case you're thinking of trying anything.
Think about that bet, huh?!
Comfort food.
(birds chirping)
(engine starts)
(engine shuts off)
Hi.
I'm truly sorry, Billie.
I want you to give me another chance.
Why should I?
You know what you said before
about everybody trying not to be lonely?
I feel like we have a chance at something special here.
And if you cut it off now...
we'll never know.
Why don't you just come have breakfast with me,
see how it goes?
Thanks.
Don't you ever sleep?
I don't need much sleep.
So you play poker instead.
Why do you like it so much?
Is it the money?
Money's just the way of keeping score.
Poker is competition in the purest sense.
Doesn't matter who you are or what you are,
everybody's equal at the table.
But you can't have sympathy and win.
In order for you to win, someone else has to lose.
It seems so cruel.
So you just gamble all the time?
I never bet on sports.
I never play against the house, and I only bet on my skills
against the skills of other people.
That sounds like an alcoholic saying,
"I only drink tequila."
What about Festus, or whatever his name is,
jumping across the floor?
You bet on that.
Chair thing's an old gag, and I did it for you,
'cause I thought you'd think it was funny.
Ms. Offer.
Mr. Cheever.
L.C.: I thought you might be here.
I hear Roy DeRuscher's backing you.
You know I'd have backed you, if you asked me.
If I'd asked.
(ringtone playing)
Hello.
Yes.
Excuse me.
Yes, it is available.
That's 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.
Ooh. TouchÄ‚Å .
It was a good day 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?
(chuckles)
Not a bad idea.
Good to see there's something of the old town left.
Now, humor me a minute.
How would you have played this?
Here's how it went.
Seat three, he bet, 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.
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.
He's certain to make a small raise and he...
...calls.
Why do you say that?
He reads you for pocket aces.
Wants to drag you along, get at least another bet in
before he puts the hammer down.
Risky. I might improve.
Well, if he's two pair, he's 74% favored
and three of a kind makes him 90.
Ooh.
Yeah.
Okay.
Two of us left.
I turn six of clubs.
No help, I check.
He bets.
I call.
Okay, on the River, what should show up?
Another ace.
Makes me a 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, uh...
I'm about to walk into Hydra with his nine heads.
So I just...
I call and I turn over my pocket aces.
(scoffs)
And he rolls over...
...two clubs.
One of them a king.
You got it.
Club flush, on the come all along.
That was a $267,000 lesson.
I should have gotten away from him.
I hatched a hard-on for my aces,
I never looked beyond the obvious.
(chuckles)
What's the worst thing could happen to a poker player?
Lose his nerve.
What else?
Nobody's that much 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.
$2,000 burn.
(cards shuffling)
I'm in.
I'm with you.
Queen-seven.
Queen-ten.
It's coming.
Check.
I'm in.
Re-ante.
(currency shuffling)
(cards shuffling)
I'm in.
Call.
King-ten.
Big slick.
Check.
(sighs)
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
'cause I've got the best of it.
Re-ante.
$4,000 burn.
I don't want to clean you out, Huckleberry.
You playing or not?
Won't be happy till you have nothing left.
(cards shuffling)
I'm in.
Call.
Jack-four.
Nice read.
I'm weak, but not quite that weak.
Jack-five.
I'm in.
(flips cards)
Ooh.
It's yours.
(sighs)
This was your stake for the big one.
Take it.
(scoffs) 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 you 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.
(chuckles)
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 will get a... a $10,000 tip.
Yeah, well, if he's gonna take anything from me,
he's gonna have to win it.
And that's not likely to happen.
(register rings)
Maybe... giving and receiving
are more complicated than winning and losing.
Maybe so.
Good day, Ms. Offer.
Right.
Right, right.
Yeah, okay, Eddie.
(cell phone beeps)
He'll go for it. He'll go for the ten.
Want to come along? Some 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 the time expires, for $10,000.
Bet?
She holds the stopwatch.
She holds where I can see it. Bet?
Bet.
You ready? Ready.
Get set.
Go!
(engine starts)
(tires squealing)
19 seconds, 20,
21, 22.
Billie, every couple of minutes will do just fine.
BILLIE: 20 minutes.
You've gone three miles.
There it is!
39 minutes, ten seconds.
Pop the trunk!
Pop the trunk, pop the trunk.
READY EDDIE: Hit a duck and it's two strokes.
All right, you get the golf cart.
We'll meet you on the green.
Great shot!
40 minutes, ten seconds!
(whispers): Get in there.
(groans)
How many shots?
Four. Damn it.
Here, move over. I'll drive.
BILLIE: 46 minutes and 50 seconds!
HUCK: Fore!
Playing through.
Hey, what, who is that?
(panting)
BILLIE: Yes!
Two hours and 13 minutes, and you're two shots ahead!
READY EDDIE: You're in the rough, Huckster!
(groans)
READY EDDIE: This is the last hole, Hucky baby!
BILLIE: You only have seven minutes and 45 seconds!
You bogey this, you're toast.
BILLIE: That's 75.
READY EDDIE: * Only three more! *
READY EDDIE: Ah...
Should've put some hazards on this hole.
Yes! Shit!
BILLIE: 76 shots.
READY EDDIE: All right, all right.
BILLIE: Two hours, 57 minutes and 40 seconds!
READY EDDIE: You shank this, it's all over.
BILLIE: Get in the hole!
READY EDDIE: 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!
47, 48...
Your dick's beginning to sweat.
BILLIE: 50, 51, 52...
READY EDDIE: Your arms are heavy.
BILLIE: 54, 55, 56,
57, 58...
Yes!
(Huck whooping)
(groaning)
(chuckles) Woo-hoo!
Three hours and two seconds.
You lost.
READY EDDIE: Yes!
Yes! Yes!
I win! I win!
(laughing): I win!
(laughing)
Woo-hoo!
(cell phone ringing)
Yes!
(laughing): 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.
I don't believe that.
That'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 want to see you anymore.
Just stop this thing.
Billie, what are you doing?
Making a good fold.
(footsteps approaching)
Hey, what happened to your furniture?
Who are you?
Mr. DeRuscher was upset to hear
you lost his ten grand to Ready Eddie.
Tell Mr. DeRuscher he's got nothing to worry about.
We'll get a seat in the big show.
Nice pool.
Shame there's no water.
Hey.
(screams)
(groaning quietly)
(dogs barking in distance)
You got 24 hours to return Mr. DeRuscher 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 spent 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.
Mmm.
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.
Good night, Huck.
(men laughing, talking, poker chips rattling)
MAN: I can almost predict these cards.
(quietly): I'm out.
I have something you said you valued.
Buck and a half, just like the pawn shop.
Five-- fair is fair.
Thanks.
Huck...
Good skill.
("Let It Ride" by Ryan Adams playing)
* 27 years of nothing but failures *
* And promises that I couldn't keep *
* Oh, Lord, I wasn't ready to go *
* I'm never ready to go *
* Let it ride *
* Let it ride easy down the road *
* Let it ride *
* Let it take away all of the darkness *
* Let it ride *
* Let it rock me in the arms *
* Of stranger's angels *
* Until it brings me home *
* Let it ride *
* Let it roll *
* Let it go *
* I want to see you tonight *
* Dancing in the endless moonlight *
* In the parking lot in the headlights of cars *
* Someplace on the moon *
* Where they moved the drive-in theater *
* Where I left the car that I can't find *
* But I still got the keys to *
* Let it ride *
* Let it ride easy down the road *
* Let it ride *
* Let it take away all of this darkness *
* Let it ride *
* Let it rock me in the arms of stranger's angels *
* Until it brings me home *
* Let it ride *
* Let it roll, let it go. *
(song ends)
(knocking)
(sighs)
Got a seat in the tournament.
You came...
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 want to 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.
Just wanted you to know that.
(laughs softly)
ANNOUNCER: We will high card
for the button on Table #58.
That's my ace.
The button starts in seat #5.
Button starts here, boys.
All right, dealers.
Put the button at seat #5.
Dealers, make sure you're checking receipts
and seat cards.
Make sure everybody's at the correct table and seat.
Two minutes till we start
the World Series of Poker main event.
ANNOUNCER 2: Here at the featured table, the hole-card cam
is being used for the first time
at the World Series of Poker.
And even though no one will see
what the camera sees until the tournament is broadcast
months from now, the camera is getting mixed reviews
from the players.
Two-time world champion, L.C. Cheever,
your thoughts on the hole-card cam?
(chuckles)
I made a good living
for a long time because people don't know how I play.
I'd rather keep it that way.
ANNOUNCER 2: And there you have it.
Like it or not,
poker as a spectator sport
is about to undergo an enormous change.
DIRECTOR: Ladies and gentlemen,
welcome to the World Series of Poker.
Dealers, shuffle up and deal.
Let's get those cards in the air.
ANNOUNCER: 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--
the richest individual prize in sports.
We're down to 320 players.
Halfway through day #2.
(chips rattling)
Good luck.
ANNOUNCER: Ladies and gentlemen,
Doyle Brunson has just been eliminated.
(cheering, applause)
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.
(hangers rattling)
So I hear Huck's doing really well in the tournament.
Good.
That's nice.
ANNOUNCER: We're breaking another table.
Only 135 players remain.
Dealers, please check all incoming player's seat cards.
Look who's here.
I managed to get my dress pressed after all.
DEALER: Heads up.
DEALER: $30,000.
(chips rattling)
All in.
Whoa.
(chips rattling)
Do I really like these cards
or is it just the irresistible lure of sending you home?
(players chuckling quietly)
How much to call?
It's about 150.
I mean, do you need an exact count?
Call.
DEALER: Ace, king high.
Pair of fives the winner.
(groans)
(sighs, grumbles)
Nice hand.
ANNOUNCER: Michelle has aces and jacks, two pair, and wins the pot.
(scattered applause)
It's 3:00 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 Kesai.
All in.
ANNOUNCER: Karim Kesai is all in.
(crowd murmurs)
Josh is out.
The action's to Huck Cheever.
(chips rattling)
Huck folds and the action's back to Jason Keyes.
KEYES: How much?
ANNOUNCER: He's asked for a count.
ANNOUNCER: I'm somewhat surprised at the play of Huck Cheever.
He has the reputation of being a blaster.
He's playing very patiently here.
52 to call.
52,000 more.
Call.
And he's called. (crowd murmurs)
Action's complete. Let's see them, please.
Ace-queen.
ANNOUNCER: Karim Kesai has ace-queen.
Jason Keyes, two kings!
(crowd murmurs)
Two kings verse ace-queen.
And the Flop.
It's a three... and two queens!
Yes! Beautiful!
ANNOUNCER: Karim Kesai has made trip queens.
Beautiful!
(laughter)
The women, they love me!
ANNOUNCER: Turn card coming up.
Its a jack.
Karim Kesai looking to double up.
One card left, and here it is.
It's a king!
(crowd murmuring, applause)
A full house for Jason, and Karim Kesai
has been eliminated. Unbelievable.
Gracias, muchacho. Congratulations, everybody.
That's it. Congratulations.
We've reached our final table.
See you in the morning.
Hey, it happens.
GIL EDWARDS: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome.
We've reached the final table
of the World Series of Poker Main Event.
(applause)
That's tournament director Gil Edwards
about to introduce the players at the final table.
EDWARDS: And the players are:
In seat #1, from Toronto, Canada,
680,000 in chips: Mr. Josh Cohen.
(applause)
In seat #2, from Tucson, Arizona,
551,000 in chips: Jason Keyes.
That a boy, son! (applause)
EDWARDS: Jason Keyes,
the amateur Internet player from Tucson, Arizona,
playing in his first live tournament.
EDWARDS: In seat #3, $664,000 in chips,
from Detroit, Michigan: Frank Belando.
EDWARDS: The retired owner of a tire dealership
who's living his life's dream.
EDWARDS: In seat #4, from Las Vegas, Nevada,
790,000 in chips: Huck Cheever.
(applause, whistling)
In seat five, from Houston, Texas,
he's a former world champion, 420,000 in chips: Chico Banh.
(cheering)
BOY: Chico! Good luck, Chico!
In seat #6, also from Las Vegas,
1,344,000: Michelle Carson.
(whistling) EDWARDS: Michelle Carson,
the second woman player in 33 years
to make it to the final table.
EDWARDS: In seat #7, with 753,000 in chips,
from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Ralph Kaczinski.
In seat #9, from Monterey Park, California,
1,072,000 in chips: David Chen.
MAN: Yeah, David! Hey, guys.
And our chip leader, in seat #8,
most recently from the South of France,
two-time world champion, 2,116,000: L.C. Cheever!
Go for three, L.C.! 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.
EDWARDS: The blinds are still 8,000 and 16,000,
and the button will start in seat #4
with Huck Cheever.
Good luck, players. Shuffle up and deal.
(whooping, whistling)
(applause, cheering quiets)
(chips clacking)
EDWARDS: The action will start with Ralph Kaczinski.
Ralph folds.
L.C. raises to $50,000.
David folds.
Josh is out.
Jason folds.
Frank folds.
Huck re-raises to 250,000.
(laughter)
(crowd murmuring)
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 want to be the first to go out.
EDWARDS: L.C. folds,
and Huck Cheever wins the first pot.
(applause)
EDWARDS: 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 cam.
Even Chico Banh and L.C. Cheever,
two former world champions, have acquiesced.
EDWARDS: The River...
is a five-- Chico Banh wins the pot.
(applause)
EDWARDS: Josh Cohen is our ninth-place finisher.
* When I get home from my job *
* I turn on the TV *
* But I can't keep my mind on the show *
* When I lay down at night *
* I don't get no sleep *
* So I turn on the radio *
EDWARDS: That's 250,000... * But, Lord *
* The only thing I hear *
* Is you whispering in my ear *
* The words that you used to say *
EDWARDS: And the River...
is a Jack-- Huck Cheever wins the pot.
David Chen finishes in eighth place.
* Every day... * I'm all in.
EDWARDS: Michelle Carson is all in.
I call. (applause)
EDWARDS: Frank calls. (excited shouts)
Frank Belando finishes in seventh place.
Nice playing with you.
(song ends)
How much does he have left?
About...
270.
Raise.
400.
EDWARDS: Ralph re-raises to 400,000.
(applause)
L.C. folds.
The action's back to Chico Banh.
BANH: Call. Chico's all in with two eights.
(applause)
Ralph Kaczinski has ace-king.
Two eights versus ace-king.
And the Flop.
Flop is a king, a seven and a deuce.
Two kings for Ralph Kaczinski, two eights for Chico Banh.
Unless the Spanish-speaking Vietnamese
catches another eight, it's hasta la vista for Chico Banh.
EDWARDS: And the turn.
It's a three.
Only an eight will save Chico Banh.
And the River...
is a jack! (crowd groans)
(applause) Next time, Chico!
EDWARDS: Chico Banh, our sixth-place finisher
takes home $200,000. (cheering, whistling)
Good luck, Huck.
(whistling, whooping)
Michelle. Chico.
(applause continues)
(crowd shouts, whoops, whistles)
EDWARDS: And the Flop.
Queen, nine, six, all clubs.
(indistinct, quiet chatter)
L.C. bets 200,000.
Huck folds.
Call. Michelle calls.
The turn card...
is a deuce of clubs. (groans, murmurs)
EDWARDS: You have to assume they both have flushes.
The question is, who has the highest club in the hole?
EDWARDS: L.C. checks.
Michelle bets 400,000.
(applause)
L.C. calls.
(applause)
And the River...
(murmuring, chuckling)
L.C. checks.
(sighs)
I'm all in. Michelle Carson is all in.
MAN: Yeah, get him, Michelle!
(applause, whistling)
Call. L.C. calls.
Michelle has a king of clubs
for a king-high flush.
Very nice.
But not nice enough?
(gasps): Geez!
EDWARDS: A straight flush! (gasping)
L.C. Cheever has eliminated Michelle Carson
with a straight flush. (applause)
(spectators whistling)
The last straight flush at the final table
in the World Series of Poker was 1994.
There were none before that.
(whistling)
WOMAN: Go, Michelle, go! And Michelle Carson,
our fifth-place finisher, wins $320,000.
Thank you. Thanks.
Nice hand.
(chuckles): Yeah.
It's usually not the big hands that do it, though.
28 years ago, I was head-to-head with Doyle Bronson
at the final table,
and he caught a ten on the River for three tens,
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 is gonna 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. See?
If I can win a third time,
it'll be in the book, on the first page.
(chuckles quietly)
One way or the other, we're...
we're making a kind of history here,
you and me, at the... the final table.
Yeah, that's one way to look at it.
How do you look at it?
Well, you can call it what you like.
What goes around comes around.
(exhales)
It'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 wedding 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.
Then why'd you gamble with it?
I won it from you, remember?
(voice breaks): Because she's your mother.
Hey, Eddie. Welcome back.
Yeah.
Mm.
Here you go.
Thank you.
He's the man.
EDWARDS: Huck raises to 90,000.
Raise.
EDWARDS: Ralph re-raises to 300,000.
L.C. folds.
Jason folds.
Having fun, Ralph?
(quiet chatter, chuckling)
Huck folds, and Ralph wins the pot.
Jason raises to 100,000.
Huck calls.
And Ralph calls.
That's three players in the pot. And the Flop.
Jack, four, three, all different suits.
Huck checks.
Ralph bets 350,000.
(excited chatter, whooping, applause)
(chips clacking)
Jason calls.
(applause)
And Huck calls.
This pot is now over $1 million.
(applause)
And the Turn...
is the king of hearts.
Huck checks.
I'm all in.
Nine-fifty.
EDWARDS: Ralph Kaczinski's all in for 950,000.
(applause)
(sighs)
(sharp exhale)
MAN: Oh, my God. Jason folds.
HUCK: Call. And Huck calls!
(excited shouts)
(applause) TV HOST: Ralph Kaczinski
can't be feeling too good about this-- in fact,
he probably feels a little like a bear
who's walked into a trap.
EDWARDS: Ralph Kaczinski has kings and jacks, two pair.
Huck has a set of threes! (gasps, applause)
TV HOST: Kaczinski needs a king or a jack.
Anything else,
and Huck Cheever has knocked him out of this tournament.
EDWARDS: And the River.
And the River is a queen!
(cheers, whistling) And Huck Cheever
has won the pot.
(cheering, whistling continue)
MAN: Great hand, Huck!
(whooping, whistling)
(chips rattling)
TV HOST: Ralph Kaczinski wins
440,000 with his fourth-place finish.
(whooping, whistling continue)
EDWARDS: Down to our final three.
Yeah, that was... smooth play, man.
EDWARDS: Huck is first to act on the button.
(chips clacking)
Huck calls 40,000.
L.C. raises to 100,000.
Jason folds.
Just call.
EDWARDS: Huck calls.
What do you mean "just" call?
Take it any way you want. It's just a call.
Yeah.
EDWARDS: And the Flop.
Flop is seven, five, deuce, rainbow.
Let's play for three.
L.C. makes it 300,000.
(crowd murmurs)
Raise.
Your three...
and three more.
(crowd murmurs)
EDWARDS: Huck re-raises to 600,000.
(scattered applause)
Interesting raise, Huckleberry.
(sighs softly)
Just call.
(scattered chuckling)
EDWARDS: L.C. calls.
Turn.
EDWARDS: Turn is a deuce of spades.
Another five to go.
EDWARDS: L.C. bets 500,000.
(applause)
Call.
EDWARDS: Huck calls.
(applause) Pot is now $2 million.
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.
DEALER: The River.
EDWARDS: River's the eight of hearts.
So here we are.
Here we are.
How much do you have?
About 650.
(laughs softly)
I think I have you, Huckleberry.
All in.
L.C. Cheever is all in. (crowd murmurs)
(applause, cheering)
EDWARDS: If Huck calls,
it would double up, he'll be out.
Call.
EDWARDS: Huck calls!
(applause, cheering)
L.C. has two kings.
Kings.
Nice hand.
EDWARDS: They're good.
(spectator whoops)
L.C. Cheever wins the pot.
(cheering)
Huck Cheever is our third place finisher,
winning $650,000.
Thank you.
Huck!
EDWARDS: This is it: we're down to the final two players
for the world championship:
L.C. Cheever and our chip leader, Jason Keyes.
(laughing hysterically)
Make way for the 2.5 million in cash!
(crowd cheering, applauding)
Huck.
I put you on queens, right?
Right, queens.
Huck, a couple of words with you?
Knocked out by your own father.
Kind of cold-blooded, huh?
EDWARDS: L.C. re-raises to 620,000.
Jason raises one more time...
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.
(applause)
The action is to Jason Keyes.
This could be it.
KEYES: Call.
EDWARDS: Jason Keyes calls!
(crowd murmuring, shouting)
L.C. has ace-king.
Jason Keyes has ace-queen of diamonds.
(crowd groans)
Jason Keyes needs a queen.
And the River.
It's a queen!
(cheering, applause)
Jason Keyes is the world champion of poker.
KEYES: Yeah!
EDWARDS: And L.C. Cheever, our runner-up, wins $1.3 million.
(crowd cheering, applauding)
Huck! Hey!
You had the bullets, didn't you?
Your kings were good.
No, no.
You gave it to me. Why?
Let's just say I thought it was your time.
Well...
(chuckles)
you were wrong about that.
(chuckles)
So where to now?
Back to France?
No.
Tunica, Atlantic City...
Tournaments.
Yeah.
They're flying a couple of us old-timers down,
comping the entrance fees.
The game's being marketed now; they need celebrity gamblers.
Like everything else,
they want to 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.
(laughing)
Gotcha.
Pennies, nickels and dimes.
* There are still places *
* Where people like me can hang out *
* With nothing at all in this old world *
* To worry about *
* They tore them all down, yeah *
* And said every man for himself *
* Or polish them up *
* Until nothin' worth keepin' is left... *
G'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.
(folk intro playing)
* Well, I wandered alone *
* Through a desert of stone *
* And I dreamt of my future wife *
* My son's in my hand *
* And I'm next in command *
* In this vision of death called life *
* My plate and my cup *
* I racked straight up *
* I took a rose from the hand of a child *
* When I kiss your lips *
* The honey drips *
* I'm gonna have to put you down for a while *
* Every day we meet *
* On any old street *
* And you're in your girlish prime *
* The short and the tall *
* Are coming to the ball *
* I go there all of the time *
* Behind every tree *
* There's something to see *
* The river is wider than a mile *
* I tried you twice *
* You can't be nice *
* I'm gonna have to put you down for a while *
* Here come the nurse *
* With money in her purse *
* Here come the ladies and men *
* You push it all in *
* And you have no chance to win *
* You play them on down to the end *
* I'm laying in the sand *
* Getting a sunshine tan *
* Moving along, riding in style *
* From my toes to my head *
* You knock me dead *
* I'm gonna have to put you down for a while *
* I count the years *
* And I shed no tears *
* I'm blinded to what might have been *
* Nature's voice makes my heart rejoice *
* Play me the wild song of the wind *
* I found hopeless love *
* In the room above *
* When the sun and the weather were mild *
* You're as fine as wine *
* I ain't handing you no line *
* I'm gonna have to put you down for a while *
* All the merry little elves *
* Can go hang themselves *
* My faith is as cold as can be *
* I'm stacked high to the roof *
* And I'm not without proof *
* If you don't believe me, come see *
* You think I'm blue *
* I think so, too *
* In my words, you'll find no doubt *
* The game's gotten old *
* The deck's gone cold *
* And I'm gonna have to put you down for a while *
* The game's gotten old *
* The deck's gone cold *
* I'm gonna have to put you down for a while. *
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!
(laughs)
Guess what, buddy.
You just lost $20,000.
30 days; it's a month. You lose.
Hate to tell you this: there's 31 days in May.
Oh.
Well, how many days in August?
August?
Yeah.
30, I think.
Double or nothing says there's 31.
Bet.
Yo, buddy.