I’m coming to L. A. soon and I wondered how the games are going at the new Hustler Casino? I know they opened strong but wondered how they are doing now.

It’s located on the corner of Pornography Ave and Smut Peddler Way.

Answer 2:

That’s nothing.  His daughter has accused him of molesting her when she was a kid. Would you lie about that when you stood to inherit millions? I know many poker players think porn is just free speech, but child-molestation is a criminal perversion and Flynt calls himself “The Pervert.”  Of course, there couldn’t possibly be any connection between porn and child-molestation.   Think about that next time you are going to play poker in his club.

Answer 3:

Without (hopefully) starting yet another “who owns the Hustler” thread, it is NOT Mr. Flynt’s club.  He built the building and is the landlord, but he has no official affiliation with the casino (he can’t get licensed) and as far as any of us who play there are concerned, he’s just another customer.

Need some tactical advice on playing Anaconda (or ‘pass the garbage’) - anybody play this variation who can offer some advice? Or perhaps point me to a web site?  Someone has introduced this variation into my regular Thursday night game and I’m losing a lot of money playing it!

If you’re playing hi-low and 54 is the perfect, never go in with less than a boat or a 6 low after the pass. If there’s much pre pass betting never go in with less than two pair, trips (keep a medium kicker not an Ace) and only try to pull one for a low, but never bet on getting a 5 or 6.

Answer 2:

Definitely be prepared to fold a lot…I only play low if i have low nuts, or a very close proximity. As for high, its anyone’s guess what it’s going to be. This is where knowing your competitors come in handy. The one thing I always try and do, though, is constantly screw the person who is after me. I give him high cards, then low cards, then high cards again (or vice versa). This way you know at least he’s screwed, and if he gets screwed hopefully it will affect the whole table.

Answer 3:

Draw to a lot of flushes.

-Expect to miss them all

-passing 3 of one suit lessens the odds of giving up a flush believe it or not.

-a *lot* of hands go to flushes so consider you high card very carefully.

-Anytime you opponent gives you pretty cards is as good as having high cards showing, since the prick will more than likely advertise the fact for you.

-straights are worthless can be tough because if an opponent gives you a pair then he has very good cards and your boat may be no good.

-Put a lot more emphasis on what you hold than what you give up-you have no idea what he wants.

-I saw AAAA lose once

-since one hand may go to two pair, and the next to a straight-flush: consider your relative position and use it!

-You must learn to fold.

-ONLY bluff heads up!

-bluff a lot heads up.

-Take all of this advice and bend it to fit your opponents.

We had a bit of a dispute in a home game last night about this situation.  Game is 5-stud, high/low, no qualifiers.  One player has  two aces showing; one has two sixes showing.  Our house rule has always been that in this situation the aces can be played as “13′s” for high and as “1′s” for low, thus the aces could scoop.  The victim was a newer player in the game and insisted that it was an oddball rule.  The rest of us see it as clear-cut.  What do you think?

Answer 1:

Unless you’re playing seven duece rules, an ace is always a potential scoop card or a potential scoop pair in 5 card stud hi/lo and 5 card draw hi/lo. Because of that scoop potential, which still exists even if it pairs, Ace is a critical card in those games and you pretty much just shouldn’t play without one.

Answer 2:

It’s not that odd ball of a game. Sklanksy talks about it in TOP with replace on the end. Aces usually go both ways in hi-lo games. That said, it is a strange enough concept (particularly to those who haven’t play hi-lo before) so that you should inform a newcomer about it, because you can surely see why he might be ticked off. If you’re playing a “low card in the hold wild” game, it’s also nice to let the guy know if aces can be used for low.

Answer 3:

In home games, the rules can be whatever you decide them to be. Just make sure all new players are made aware of all your rules. (When new situations come up, we usually let the dealer decide what to do during the hand and then vote for future reference when the hand is over.) In my game you can’t go both with only five cards. (You have to win both if you go both.)