Crossword Clue Solver is operated and owned by Ash Young at Evoluted Web Design. Optimisation by SEO Sheffield. The Crossword Solver is designed to help users to find the missing answers to their crossword puzzles. Two aces is the best Hold'em poker hand you can hope to have. It's the best of the best, and it will win you more than any other hand. It's also known as American Airlines, pocket rockets, and bullets.

• Poker bet - Find potential answers to this crossword clue at crosswordnexus.com.
• At any time feel free to visit our page where you will find all the answers to the daily word games that you are playing. Are you a fan of “7 Little Words”, “Daily Jumble”, “Wordscapes” or any other daily word games?
• This clue was last seen on Eugene Sheffer Crossword November 19 2020 Answers In case the clue doesn’t fit or there’s something wrong please contact us. Did you find the solution of Roulette bet crossword clue? Check the other crossword clues of Eugene Sheffer Crossword November 19 2020 Answers.

Poker is a popular card game that combines elements of chance and strategy. There are various styles of poker, all of which share an objective of presenting the least probable or highest-scoring hand. A poker hand is usually a configuration of five cards depending on the variant, either held entirely by a player or drawn partly from a number of shared, community cards. Players bet on their hands in a number of rounds as cards are drawn, employing various mathematical and intuitive strategies in an attempt to better opponents.

Given the game's many different forms and various dynamics, poker strategy becomes a complex subject. This article attempts to introduce only the basic strategy concepts.

The fundamental theorem of poker[edit]

The fundamental theorem of poker, introduced by David Sklansky, states: Every time you play your hand the way you would if you could see your opponents' cards, you gain, and every time your opponents play their cards differently from the way they would play them if they could see your cards, you gain.^[1] This theorem is the foundation for many poker strategy topics. For example, bluffing and slow-playing (explained below) are examples of using deception to induce your opponents to play differently from how they would if they could see your cards. There are some exceptions to the fundamental theorem in certain multi-way pot situations, as described in Morton's theorem.

Pot odds, implied odds and poker probabilities[edit]

The relationship between pot odds and odds of winning is one of the most important concepts in poker strategy. Pot odds are the ratio of the size of the pot to the size of the bet required to stay in the pot.^[1] For example, if a player must call $10 for a chance to win a $40 pot (not including their $10 call), their pot odds are 4-to-1. To have a positive expectation, a player's odds of winning must be better than their pot odds. If the player's odds of winning are also 4-to-1 (20% chance of winning), their expected return is to break even (on average, losing four times and winning once for every five times they play such a pot).

Implied odds is a more complicated concept, though related to pot odds. The implied odds on a hand are based not on the money currently in the pot, but on the expected size of the pot at the end of the hand. When facing an even money situation (like the one described in the previous paragraph) and holding a strong drawing hand (say a Four flush) a skilled player will consider calling a bet or even opening based on their implied odds. This is particularly true in multi-way pots, where it is likely that one or more opponents will call all the way to showdown.

Deception[edit]

By employing deception, a poker player hopes to induce their opponent(s) to act differently from how they would if they could see their cards. David Sklansky has argued that winning at poker is often decided by how much one player can force another to change his/her style while successfully maintaining their own strategy.^[2]Bluffing is a form of deception where players bet strongly on a weak hand to induce opponents to fold superior hands. Related is the semi-bluff, in which a player who does not have a strong hand, but has a chance to improve it to a strong hand in later rounds, bets strongly on the hand in the hopes of inducing other players with weaker 'made' hands to fold. Slow-playing is deceptive play in poker that is roughly the opposite of bluffing: checking or betting weakly with a strong holding, attempting to induce other players with weaker hands to call or raise the bet instead of folding, to increase the payout.

Position[edit]

Position refers to the order in which players are seated around the table and the strategic consequences of this. Generally, players in earlier position (who have to act first) need stronger hands to bet/raise or call than players in later position. For example, if there are five opponents yet to act behind a player, there is a greater chance one of the yet to act opponents will have a better hand than if there were only one opponent yet to act. Being in late position is an advantage because a player gets to see how their opponents in earlier position act (which provides the player more information about their hands than they have about his). This information, coupled with a low bet to a late player, may allow the player to 'limp in' with a weaker hand when they would have folded the same hand if they'd had to act earlier. Position is one of the most vital elements to understand in order to be a long-term winning player. As a player's position improves, so too does the range of cards with which they can profitably enter a hand. Conversely this commonly held knowledge can be used to an intelligent poker player's advantage. If playing against observant opponents, then a raise with any two cards can 'steal the blinds,' if executed against passive players at the right time.

Reasons to raise[edit]

Unlike calling, raising has an extra way to win: opponents may fold. An opening bet may be considered a raise from a strategy perspective. David Sklansky gives seven reasons for raising, summarized below.^[1]

• To get more money in the pot when a player has the best hand: If a player has the best hand, raising for value enables them to win a bigger pot.
• To drive out opponents when a player has the best hand: If a player has a made hand, raising may protect their hand by driving out opponents with drawing hands who may otherwise improve to a better hand.
• To bluff A player raises with an inferior or 'trash' hand attempts to deceive other players about the strength of their hand, and hopefully induce a better hand to fold.
• To semi-bluff A player with a drawing hand may raise both to bluff and for value. While technically still a bluff, as the player may not end up with a made hand and is primarily trying to drive out players, the player still has the opportunity to make his or her hand and win the pot if the bluff is called.
• To block Players on drawing hands may put out a 'blocking bet' against players who are likely to bet when checked to, but unlikely to raise when bet into. This is a small bet made on a drawing hand to lessen the likelihood of having to call a larger bet from a player in late position.
• To get a free card: If a player raises with a drawing hand, their opponent may call the bet and check to them on the next betting round, giving them a chance to get a free card to improve their hand.
• To gain information: If a player raises with an uncertain hand, they gain information about the strength of their opponent's hand if they are called. Players may use an opening bet on a later betting round (probe or continuation bets) to gain information by being called or raised (or may win the pot immediately).
• To drive out worse hands when a player's own hand may be second best: A combination protection and probe raise, a player with a strong hand but not the 'nuts' (the hole cards that make the best possible hand given the current face-up cards) may raise, both to induce drawing hands that may improve to the 'nut hand' to fold, while also testing to see if another player has the 'nuts'.
• To drive out better hands when a drawing hand bets: If an opponent with an apparent drawing hand has bet before the player to act, if the player raises, opponents behind them who may have a better hand may fold rather than call two bets 'cold'. This is a form of isolation play, and has elements of blocking and protection.

Reasons to call[edit]

There are several reasons for calling a bet or raise, summarized below.

• To see more cards: With a drawing hand, a player may be receiving the correct pot odds with the call to see more cards.
• To limit loss in equity: Calling may be appropriate when a player has adequate pot odds to call but will lose equity on additional money contributed to the pot with a raise.
• To avoid a re-raise: Only calling (and not raising) denies the original bettor the option of re-raising. However, this is only completely safe in case the player is last to act (i.e. 'closing the action').
• To conceal the strength of a player's hand: If a player has a very strong hand, they might smooth call on an early betting round to avoid giving away the strength of their hand on the hope of getting more money into the pot in later betting rounds.
• To manipulate pot odds: By calling (not raising), a player offers any opponents yet to act behind them more favorable pot odds to also call. For example, if a player has a very strong hand, a smooth call may encourage opponents behind them to overcall or even raise, building the pot. Particularly in limit games, building the pot in an earlier betting round may induce opponents to call future bets in later betting rounds because of the pot odds they will be receiving.
• To set up a bluff on a later betting round: Sometimes referred to as a long-ball bluff, calling on an earlier betting round can set up a bluff (or semi-bluff) on a later betting round. For instance, a player with a strong initial hand may call instead of raise to see the flop cheaply. That flop may not benefit the player, but the player may still have many 'outs' (cards left to deal that could make a strong hand), or even if the odds are slim they can try to bluff. By raising, this scenario may appear to an opponent like a player who has 'limped in' with a weak initial hand, but after the flop now has a strong made or drawing hand. A recent online term for 'long-ball bluffing' is floating.^[3]

Gap concept[edit]

The gap concept states that a player needs a better hand to play against someone who has already opened (or raised) the betting than he would need to open himself.^[4] The gap concept reflects that players prefer to avoid confrontations with other players who have already indicated strength, and that calling only has one way to win (by having the best hand), whereas opening may also win immediately if your opponent(s) fold.

Sandwich effect[edit]

Related to the gap effect, the sandwich effect states that a player needs a stronger hand to stay in a pot when there are opponents yet to act behind him.^[3] Because the player does not know how many opponents will be involved in the pot or whether he will have to call a re-raise, he does not know what his effective pot odds actually are. Therefore, a stronger hand is desired as compensation for this uncertainty. A squeeze play exploits this principle.

Loose/tight play[edit]

Loose players play relatively more hands and tend to continue with weaker hands; hence they do not often fold. Tight players play relatively fewer hands and tend not to continue with weaker hands; hence they often fold. The following concepts are applicable in loose games (and their inverse in tight games):^[1]

• Bluffs and semi-bluffs are less effective because loose opponents are less likely to fold.
• Requirements for continuing with made hands may be lower because loose players may also be playing lower value hands.
• Drawing to incomplete hands, like flushes, tends to be more valuable as draws will often get favorable pot odds and a stronger hand (rather than merely one pair) is often required to win in multi-way pots.

Aggressive/passive play[edit]

Aggressive play refers to betting and raising. Passive play refers to checking and calling. Unless passive play is being used deceptively as mentioned above, aggressive play is generally considered stronger than passive play because of the bluff value of bets and raises and because it offers more opportunities for your opponents to make mistakes.^[1]

Hand reading, tells and leveling[edit]

Hand reading is the process of making educated guesses about the possible cards an opponent may hold, based on the sequence of actions in the pot. The term 'hand reading' is actually a misnomer, as skilled players do not attempt to assign a player to an exact hand. Rather they attempt to narrow the possibilities down to a range of probable hands based on the past actions of their opponent, during both the current hand and previous hands played by this opponent.

Tells are detectable changes in opponents' behavior or demeanor which provide clues about their hands or their intentions. Educated guesses about opponents' cards and intentions can help a player avoid mistakes in his own play, induce mistakes by the opponents, or influence the opponents to take actions that they would not normally take under the circumstances. For example, a tell might suggest that an opponent has missed a draw, so a player seeing it may decide a bluff would be more effective than usual.

Leveling or multiple level thinking is accounting for what the other opponents think about the hands. This information can then be used to the player's advantage. Some players might be able to make educated guesses about opponents' hands; this could be seen as the first level. The second level could be thought of as the combination of the first level and deducing what the opponents think the player's hand may be. Skilled players can adjust their game play to be on a higher level than that of less skilled opponents.

Table image and opponent profiling[edit]

By observing the tendencies and patterns of one's opponents, one can make more educated guesses about others' potential holdings. For example, if a player has been playing extremely tightly (playing very few hands), then when he/she finally enters a pot, one may surmise that he/she has stronger than average cards. One's table image is the perception by one's opponents of one's own pattern of play. A player can leverage their table image by playing out of character, and thereby inducing his/her opponents to misjudge his/her hand and make a mistake.

In live poker, as opposed to internet, stereotypes are often used for initial 'reads'. For instance, people of retirement age are often witnessed to play tight. Players will often project this image on unknown people of retirement age. Young people wearing headphones and hoodies are often witnessed to play more aggressively and mathematically if they played a lot of winning internet poker. These stereotypes can often be good bases to start a profile.

Often, there is a rather small pool of players in a given card playing venue. People will carry their history of playing with them in these environments.

Internet poker players can use large databases of hand histories to get a more precise player profile. Statistical information about opponents is displayed on the tables in the form of a heads up display. The most commonly used software is PokerTracker and Hold'em Manager.

Equity[edit]

Players' equity in a pot is their expected share of the pot, expressed either as a percentage (probability of winning) or expected value (amount of pot * probability of winning). Negative equity, or loss in equity, occurs when contributing to a pot with a probability of winning less than 1 / (number of opponents matching the contribution+1).

Example

Alice contributes $12 to a pot and is matched by two other opponents. Alice's $12 contribution 'bought' the chance to win $36. If Alice's probability of winning is 50%, her equity in the $36 pot is $18 (a gain in equity because her $12 is now 'worth' $18). If her probability of winning is only 10%, Alice loses equity because her $12 is now only 'worth' $3.60 (amount of pot * probability of winning).

Texas hold 'em example

Alice holds J♦8♠. Bob holds K♥7♠. After the flop, the board is 5♥6♥7♦. If both hands are played to a showdown, Alice has a 45% chance to win (which she is unaware of, because she does not know what hand Bob holds), Bob has a 53% chance to win and there is a 2% chance to split the pot. The pot currently has $51. Alice goes all-in for $45 reasoning that she can take the pot immediately if Bob folds or that Bob calls with a worse hand. Bob's simple pot odds for the call are also 32%; since his equity of 53% is greater than the pot odds he has to call, Bob has a positive expected value for the call (if he knew Alice's hole cards).

Short-handed considerations[edit]

When playing short-handed (at a table with 3-6 players), players must loosen up their play (play more hands) for several reasons:^[1]

• There is less likelihood of another player having a strong hand because there are fewer players.
• Each player's share of the forced bets increases because there are fewer players contributing to the forced bets, thus waiting for premium hands becomes more expensive.

This type of situation comes up most often in tournament style play. In a cash game, the adjustments are very similar, but not quite as drastic as the table can ask for what is known as a 'rake break.' A rake break occurs when the floor-man, who represents the casino, agrees to take a smaller portion than usual for the hand. For example, a random casino might normally receive 10% of the pot up to 5 dollars for a 'rake.' In this case the table would only owe 10% up to 3 dollars until there are a sufficient number of players again. In online poker rake breaks are determined automatically.

Structure considerations[edit]

The blinds and antes and limit structure of the game have a significant influence on poker strategy. For example, it is easier to manipulate pot odds in no-limit and pot-limit games than in limit games. In tournaments, as the size of the forced bets relative to the chip stacks grows, pressure is placed on players to play pots to avoid being anted/blinded away.^[5]

Mindset considerations[edit]

In 2014, Bwin conducted a study to see what makes a professional poker player. The brain activity of poker players, of varying degrees, was monitored using EEG headsets and visualised into brain maps.^[6] Leading sports psychologist, James Hazlett, then interpreted the findings:

• More experienced players showed higher levels of focus and concentration throughout the game.
• The amateur players had less control over their emotions, and were prone to allowing negative emotions, such as frustration, distract them.
• Whilst opponents were taking their turn, the expert players opened up another table or watched replays of hands they had played poorly to improve.
• The brain maps showed that the professional players were led more by logic and intuition.

The conclusions of the study suggest that poker players can improve their strategy by considering their mindset. Mental training techniques, commonly used by athletes, could therefore help to improve performance by working on elements such as self-control and concentration.

See also[edit]

Poker plays[edit]

Specific games[edit]

Notes[edit]

1. ^ ^abcdefDavid Sklansky (1987). The Theory of Poker. Two Plus Two Publications. ISBN1-880685-00-0.
2. ^Milovsky, Nicholas. 'The Basics of Game Theory and Associated Games'. Retrieved 11 February 2014.
3. ^ ^abDan Harrington and Bill Robertie (2004). Harrington on Hold'em: Expert Strategy For No-Limit Tournaments; Volume I: Strategic Play. Two Plus Two Publications. ISBN1-880685-33-7.
4. ^David Sklansky (2001). Tournament Poker for Advanced Players. Two Plus Two Publications. ISBN1-880685-28-0.
5. ^Dan Harrington and Bill Robertie (2005). Harrington on Hold'em: Expert Strategy For No-Limit Tournaments; Volume II: The Endgame. Two Plus Two Publications. ISBN1-880685-35-3.
6. ^Your Brain on Poker

The Hustler (1961) is the realistic adult story of a small-time, ambitious, struggling, self-destructive pool shark, commenting on winning/success and losing, life and love, loyalty, greed, self-respect, selling out and ultimate redemption. The film's poster taglines emphasized:

• It delves without compromise into the hungers that lie deep within us all!
• A searching look into the innermost depths of a woman's heart...and a man's desires!
• '...maybe it's better for both of us to leave each other alone.'

Writer/producer/director Robert Rossen, also known for his earlier contributions to the screenplays of The Roaring Twenties (1939) and The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948), Body and Soul (1947), Best Picture winner All the King's Men (1949), and his last film Lilith (1964), based this harsh, poignant, intensely dramatic film (with co-writer Sydney Carroll), a morality play, upon the novel of the same name by Walter Tevis. Rossen's shattering experience of naming names in the 1950s HUAC hearings (after being blacklisted and then recanting two years later) influenced his writing for this film - the low-life, bruised film hero is both self-hating and cowardly.

Opening Poker Bet Crossword Clue Expert

Paul Newman in the lead role (in arguably his penultimate and accomplished screen appearance) as a brash, contending pool hustler ('They called him 'Fast Eddie') became a leading man with this film, but he was wrongly denied his first Oscar - although twenty-five years later, the Academy honored Newman with his first (and sole) Best Acting Award for reprising the role in director Martin Scorsese's sequel, The Color of Money (1986).

The self-conscious movie, filmed in black and white - and Cinemascope, received a total of nine Academy Award nominations (with only two wins). There were four acting categories: Best Actor (Paul Newman - his second nomination), Best Actress (Piper Laurie), Best Supporting Actor (television comedian Jackie Gleason), and Best Supporting Actor (George C. Scott in his third screen appearance, and his second supporting nomination after his first nomination received in 1960 for Anatomy of a Murder (1959)), a nomination for Best Picture (that it lost to West Side Story (1961)), and nominations for Best Director and Best Screenplay. Out of its nine nominations, the exceptional film won only two Academy Awards: Best Cinematography (for veteran German cinematographer Eugene Schufftan) and Best Art Direction.

George C. Scott became the first actor to decline his Oscar nomination for the film - in protest of fellow actors' practice of campaigning for awards, calling the awards demeaning and self-serving. Expert pocket billiards champ Willie Mosconi, listed in the credits as Technical Advisor, provided some of the trick pool shots for Newman - Jackie Gleason shot his own games. Vincent Gardenia and Jake LaMotta (the Raging Bull boxer) appear in bit cameo roles as bartenders.

Opening Poker Bet Crossword Clue Puzzle

Before the credits, the film opens with existential anti-hero 'Fast' Eddie Felson (Paul Newman) and his elderly manager Charlie Burns (Myron McCormick) entering a local pool hall - the Homestead Bar and Grill, located two or three hours drive from Pittsburgh. He is a pool hustler, posing as a traveling salesman, who enjoys his favorite drink - J.T.S. Brown bourbon - while playing and losing a mediocre game of pool with his buddy. As a cigarette dangles limply from his lips, tricky Eddie feigns poor shooting and drunkenness as a 'lucky lush' to lure other hotshot players/marks into betting against him. When he makes an almost-impossible shot ('you couldn't make that shot again in a million years'), he repeats the spectacular shot with higher stakes, and misses. The bartender (Vincent Gardenia) and other patrons see an opportunity to win and they enter the contest ('I'll try you'), challenging the pool player to another attempt and matching his $105 dollar bet ('one week's commission') - they fail to notice that they are being conned and swindled.

After the credits play, the scene is set in the stylized interior of the second-story Ames Billiard Hall as it is being opened for business in New York City [the renowned Ames Billiard Academy on 44th St. near Broadway]. Known for where the country's top pool player rules the underground, it appears as a seedy, tarnished, shadowy, urban downtown pool hall. When Eddie (with his own pool cue case under his arm) and Burns enter reverentially, they speak of the holy, religious atmosphere of the place, where high-stakes pool games are decided and destinies are often made or destroyed upon the green-felted tables:

Burns: It's quiet.
Eddie: Yeah, like a church. Church of the Good Hustler.
Burns: It looks more like a morgue to me. Those tables are the slabs they lay the stiffs (on).
Eddie: I'll be alive when I get out, Charlie.

The cashier/pool hall manager emphasizes the main attraction of the renowned joint: 'No bar, no pinball machines, no bowling alleys, just pool, nothing else. This is Ames, Mister.' Felson sizes up a table, its cushions, surface, and drop pockets. [A poster tacked on the wall behind Charlie advertises a pool exhibition featuring WILLIE MOSCONI - 'Co-Holder World's Best Game.'] As he chalks the end of his cue, Felson rhetorically bemuses: 'How much am I gonna win tonight? Ten grand, I'm gonna win ten grand in one night. Well, who's gonna beat me?...I mean, what other pool room is there in the country where a guy can walk out with ten grand in one night?'

One of the bystanders/hoods, who knows Eddie's hustling reputation and anticipates his impatient desire to shoot 'straight pool...the expensive kind' with the unbeatable acknowledged master 'Minnesota Fats' (Jackie Gleason), advises Charlie (derisively labeling him as Eddie's 'manager, his friend, his stooge') to forget about winning: 'Take your boy and go home. Fats don't need your money. There's no way you can beat him. Nobody's beat him in fifteen years. He's the best in the country.' Unheeding the warning, the two play pool and wait for the prompt arrival of Fats at 8 pm: 'He comes in this pool room every night at 8 o'clock on the nose. Just stay where you are. He'll find you.'

At eight o'clock sharp, the dapper, rotund, reigning championship player makes his dramatic entrance, cued by his cronies that there's a competitor waiting to play. After watching Eddie play for a few moments, he compliments the talented player from Oakland, California: 'You shoot a good stick.' Felson returns the accolade: 'They say Minnesota Fats is the best in the country out where I come from...They say that old Fats just shoots the eyes right off them balls.' Fats, the best hustler in the land, makes a side comment to one of his pals, Big John (Michael Constantine): 'Big John? Do you think this boy is a hustler?' And then he offers to accept the poolshark's challenge - at a higher wager of $200 per game:

Fats: Do you like to gamble, Eddie? Gamble money on pool games?
Eddie: Fats, let's you and I shoot a game of straight pool.
Fats: A hundred dollars.
Eddie: Well, you shoot big-time pool, Fats. I mean, that's what everybody says, 'You shoot big-time pool.' Let's make it two hundred dollars a game.
Fats: Now I know why they call you 'Fast' Eddie. Eddie, you talk my kind of talk.

Before the high-stakes exciting pool game before a large audience, in the seamy, smoky, sleazy, and boozy atmosphere of the pool hall, Fats ritualistically washes his hands in a side-room and sprinkles talcum powder on them. In his gut, Eddie feels 'tight but good.' During the game, the wagered bills are held by Willie (Willie Mosconi himself). The tension begins to mount between the two players even after the first shot:

Eddie: Didn't leave you much.
Fats: You left enough.

Eddie can't help but admire the skill with which Fats dispatches shot after shot:

He is great! Geez, that old Fat Man. Look at the way he moves, like a dancer...And those fingers, them chubby fingers. And that stroke, it's like he's uh, like he's playin' a violin or somethin'.

At midnight, the game proceeds between the two virtuoso players, shown in a montage of sideviews of intent onlookers, called-shots, the clicking sounds of the shiny balls, scorekeeping (by Alexander Rose), and wagered wads of bills - deceptively calm, Fats appears to be winning. Charlie cautions Eddie at 1:30 am: 'Quit, he's too good.' Eddie is confident that he can beat the famous player in the cut-throat game: 'Charlie, I'm gonna take him.'

Eddie: Well, you don't leave much when you miss, do ya Fat Man?
Fats: That's what the game's all about.

As he shoots and the night progresses, the tide turns in Eddie's favor and he boasts: 'You know, I gotta hunch, Fat Man. I've gotta hunch it's me from here-on in...I mean, did that ever happen to you? When all of a sudden, you feel like you can't miss? 'Cause I dreamed about this game, Fat Man. And I dreamed about this game every night on the road...You know, this is my table, man, I own it...' By four am, Eddie is ahead 'approximately one thousand bucks.' At that point, Eddie raises the wager to a thousand dollars a game - and mimics Fats in his drink order to the Preacher (Stefan Gierasch) by asking for his favorite bourbon. In a parallel move, they both strip off their outer coats for the real match. On his return to the game, the Preacher notifies the shrewd, expensively-dressed, big-time gambler Bert Gordon (George C. Scott), whose drink of choice at a poker game is milk, of the hustler in town. Gordon, who is Fats' backer and bankrolls his games, watches soundlessly from the sidelines and pays up when Fats loses.

After the clock spins from 3:40 am [an obvious discontinuity problem] to 8:00 am, the pool attendant opens the venetian blinds and floods the room with bright sunlight - Fats winces and orders: 'Will you cut that sunshine out?' By breakfast time, Eddie is ahead - they have accumulated 'eleven thousand, four hundred cash, here and in my pocket' according to Charlie, who insists: 'The pool game is over.' But Eddie is persistent, doesn't know when to quit, and arrogantly wants Fats to admit defeat and acknowledge his superiority in the marathon contest:

Eddie: The pool game is over when Fats says it's over...I came after him and I'm gonna get him. I'm goin' with him all the way. The pool game is not over until Minnesota Fats says it's over. Is it over, Fats? (Fats turns to Gordon for the answer.) (To Gordon) I'm gonna beat him, Mister. I beat him all night and I'm gonna beat him all day. I'm, I'm the best you ever seen, Fats. I'm the best there is. Now even if you beat me, I'm still the best.
Gordon: (To Fats) Stay with this kid. He's a loser.
Eddie: (To Charlie) What did he say?

After 25 hours of straight play in the epic match - it's nine pm the next day - Eddie is slowly losing his edge by becoming intoxicated. He has been drinking straight from the bourbon bottle and succumbing to the stress and pressure, but they are ahead 'eighteen thousand.' To no avail, Charlie encourages the determined, macho, self-destructive Eddie to bow out. After Fats freshens up by combing his hair, methodically washing his hands in the side bathroom, rubbing his hands with powder, donning his coat and straightening his clothes, he is readied to overwhelm his opponent. Fats appears as fresh as he did at the start of their struggle:

Fats: Fast Eddie, let's play some pool.
Eddie: (unsteadily) You look beautiful, Fats, just like a baby, all pink and powdered up. (In contrast, he looks down at his own ragged, wrinkled shirt.)
Charlie: What are ya tryin' to do Eddie? Beat him? You beat him bad. Do you want to kill yourself?
Eddie: What are ya, chicken, Charlie?
Charlie: Yeah, maybe that's it, I'm chicken.

Letting his ego overtake the better part of his judgment, Eddie reprimands his long-time partner. Charlie reluctantly hands over their betting cash: 'OK. Here, be a damn fool.' Disheveled, exhausted and drunk, Eddie puts on his coat - his collar is unattractively folded up - a sharp contrast to the professional-looking slickness of his opponent: 'You really look beautiful, Fats.' Eventually in the game, Fats gains the upper-hand and there's only a few hundred dollars left of Eddie's original bankroll in his pocket. The victorious champion declares the match over: 'Game's over, Eddie.' Fats places his stake money, a percentage of his winnings, into the hand of his dark glasses-wearing sponsor Gordon, sitting on a barstool. When the blinds are opened, the light sears Eddie's eyes, exposing his defeat, and he winces in pain. He piteously begs for a continuation of the game, but collapses: 'Fats, Come on. Come on. Hey, Fats.'

The next morning, Eddie is woken up and reminded of his monumental destruction in the pool hall. His confidence shattered, he stirs with the sound of an opening pool break in a flea-bitten hotel room (across the street from Ames Billiards) which he shares with Charlie. Eddie decides to desert his manager and hustle on his own: 'I'm sorry, Charlie,' he whispers as he leaves. In a bus station in the dead hours of the early morning, with his only possessions - a suitcase, cue case and garment bag, he enters a rest room, containing a horoscope machine, asking: 'Is This Your Lucky Day?' After shaving, he deposits and locks his entire life's savings into a bus locker. In the station's cafe, he sits down at a table next to a forlorn traveler [later revealed as Sarah Packard (Piper Laurie)], who is supposedly waiting for an 8 o'clock bus, without enough time to get better acquainted with him: 'That wouldn't give us much time, would it?' He toasts her with a cup of coffee: 'Hello and goodbye. Have a nice trip.'

After awakening from a nap at the table, he realizes that she has left, but paid for his coffee. At a nearby tavern where he orders bourbon, he spots the same woman at a booth, amused that she lied to him earlier. Still mutually attracted to each other, she invites him to sit down: 'We already know each other's secrets.' She is world-weary, insecure and mysteriously afflicted - a lost soul like he is: 'Two ships that pass in the night should always buy each other breakfast.' According to her, she 'wasn't waiting for a bus' but passing time until the bars open at eight o'clock: 'I only live three blocks from there.' He admits being a drifter without roots, and as an alcoholic, she reveals a jaded outlook on life:

Sarah: Where do you live?
Eddie: Around.
Sarah: I know where you live. In a locker in the bus station. What's it like living in a locker?
Eddie: Cramped. Do you always drink like this so early in the morning?

According to the middle-aged tramp, she was an actress, but now attends college as a part-time student: 'I'm a college girl, two days a week, Tuesdays and Thursdays, I go to college...I'm the emancipated type, real emancipated...I've got nothing else to do on Tuesdays and Thursdays.' They exchange names:

Eddie: The name's Eddie.
Sarah: The name should be Eddie. What should my name be?
Eddie: I don't know. Whatever you'd like it to be?
Sarah: I'd like it to be what it is, Sarah. That's a Biblical name. You wanna know it's meaning?

After introductions and the promise of 'a fifth of scotch,' he proposes accompanying her home - believing her to be a willing prostitute. She stumbles, admitting that she is not drunk but malformed and 'lame' with a crippled leg. On their way to her apartment, he purchases some whiskey at a corner liquor store, and they pass under the awning of an expensive French eatery, the Parisien Restaurant. At her door as she searches for her key, he hustles her unexpectedly and quickly. She knows she will eventually be seduced into suffering again:

Why me? (Without answering, he hungrily kisses her. She pushes him back.) Please, please, you're too hungry.

Opening Poker Bet Crossword Clue Puzzle Answers

Enigmatically, she rejects him and turns away - for the time being. He rents a slummy apartment for a buck and a half a night, retrieves his belongings from the bus locker, and buys another fifth of alcohol for himself. Thinking that he can hustle alone at a local bar and pool hall, he is immediately recognized as Eddie Felson - an expert: 'Oh man, you're way out of our league.' At another bar, he does succeed in pretending to be a 'lucky' novice and cons some players into losing: 'You shoot good, but you also shoot lucky.'