That Newbie Really Pissed Me Off

I like to play poker tournaments at the Pensacola Dog Track. I’ve actually had good results so far in 2026. Those of you who don’t know me, let me introduce myself. I’m retired physician, Dr. Mark Burtman. I used to be obsessed with tournament poker. Now,  I write books. Since I retired, I have no need to go to the office, so I try to write something every day. I moved to Pensacola, Florida last June. I was drawn to the area, because it was a short drive to fish, bowl, or play poker. In 2005, I won $63,000 at The World Series of Poker by finishing 3^rd in the $1500 7 Car Stud event. In 2008, I won $33,000 in a World Series of Poker Circuit event in New Orleans  in the $1,000  No- limit Hold’em event. I wrote about my adventures on the tournament trail for www.pokerpages.com. I even wrote a poker novel called  A Girl in the game that I released in 2005.

            For nearly 20 years I quit playing major tournaments until 2024 when the consequences of my stroke in 2021 forced me into retirement. I’ve been reluctant to divulge my poker resume at the local poker room, because I want my competitors to think I suck at poker. Having won three tournaments and having cashed in several other tournaments at Pensacola Dog Track this year, playing stupid might come across as a bluff. I’m pushing my new ghost comedy about ghosts who play poker and drink beer to the point that players and staff are avoiding me. I’ve decided to start writing about poker in my blog on my website, www.markburtman.com.

            It’s not my intention to give too many details on how I play poker, lest everyone learns to read me like a book. I want players to read my books instead of me. It was Friday the 13^th of March and it was a $120 weekly No-Limit Hold’Em event. I was nursing a 15,000 chip stack with the blinds at 600-600-300 with 15 players left. They were paying 4 places. I had A-Q suited. I made it 3,000 to go from mid-position. A late position player smooth-called, and a guy they call Doc, who is a solid player went all-in from the small blind for 7,500. So, for 4,500 more I called. The late position player had more chips than I did. He was a friendly, young guy with a big beard who had amassed a decent stack of chips despite several misplays like limping in with pocket jacks from late position only to lose to the big blind’s 6-8 off-suit when he flopped 2 pair. Now, Doc was all-in against the apparent newbie and myself. The flop came K-K-K. The newbie bet an additional 4,000 into a dry side-pot, which means there was no extra money in the pot besides the 22,500 plus blinds. I folded. The newbie showed a 10-7 of clubs. I threw my A-Q into the muck face-down. Doc showed a pair of 8’s. The river was an  Ace. I was pissed off. Had we checked it down, we would have eliminated another player. I would have won the hand. I voiced my contempt. “We could have knocked him out if you didn’t push me out of the pot,” I said.

            “Hey, I’m just here to gamble,” he said.

            “Nah, you’re here to lose,” I said in disgust.

            I was left with a small stack with rising blinds. It wasn’t long before I was forced to go all in with pocket deuces. However, the newbie was knocked out a few hands before I was.

            As I spent my night contemplating the newbie’s misplay, I realized I, myself, also misplayed the hand on several levels. I want to emphasize you won’t get better by focusing on someone else’s mistakes. So I’m going to focus on what I did wrong.

            First, I ignored the fact that the newbie was still in the hand when Doc moved all-in. I got so focused on Doc, that I neglected to notice that the newbie was still in the hand. With the newbie still to act, I should have moved all-in. If I would have moved all-in, there would have been no opportunity for the newbie to bet the dry side-pot and force me out of the hand. I would have won a bigger pot or the newbie would have folded.

            Second, while I don’t yell, I still scolded the guy. We need players with his attitude to keep playing. I Don’t need to discourage newbies. I need to encourage them. If I ever see that guy again, I will apologize and buy him a drink. I’m afraid he won’t come back. If he does, I’ll roll out the red carpet for him. I’ll even offer him some advice. When I described my reaction on Sunday to another dealer. The dealer said I was only acting human. However, the point is that we want to get better. We need to overcome so many bad habits to improve, especially our emotional follies. That’s how we develop poker faces, resist our obsessive tendencies, and control unbridled desires. Thank you for reading I hope to see you back. I encourage you to share your feedback and buy my books.