Talking the Talk in Poker

Winning at Internet Poker For Dummies

The colorful quotations you hear in poker can be based on real events or just made up from long ago. Here is a list of some popular quotations along with an explanation of what a person really means when he uses the quote.

Phrase	Translation
"I'd rather be lucky than good."	Typically said by a player who is neither lucky nor good. This player often believes that he should play more hands than reasonable and that he can get on a lucky streak by doing so. In the long haul, when all the luck is bled out of the equation, it's skill that separates winning players from losing players.
"You've got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em."	Typically said by a Kenny Rogers fan or someone who has no clue as to whether he should continue playing the hand or fold.
"Sheesh, what a bad beat."	This refers to when a player loses a hand where, mathematically, she was a big favorite. Most players have a bad beat story.
"If you can't spot the fish at the poker table, then it's you."	This refers to the fact that, if you can't read players or their abilities very well, you will probably be the sucker at the table.
"Hey Joe, bring us a live one."	Often said by a player at a card club, asking for a new sucker player to be brought to the table.
"I'm down a little."	I'm down a lot.
"Boy, he is a tight player."	Boy, is he anal-retentive and conservative.
"Read 'em and weep."	Look at my big hand that beats all of your puny hands, suckers.
"I was drawing to a double belly buster."	This is a draw to two different straights, such as 3-5-6-7-9. A single belly buster is drawing to an inside straight.
"Sheesh, things can't get any worse."	Usually said by a poker player who has gone on a losing streak, and the streak is about to get worse.
"Trust everyone, but cut the cards."	Means trust no one, and cut the cards as a way to try to prevent cheating.
"Any two will do."	Refers to the concept that any two cards in Hold'em can theoretically win the hand. Used as a justification to play truly wretched starting cards. However, we all know that good starting hands are the key to winning at poker in the long run.

About This Article

About the book author:

Richard D. Harroch is an attorney with over 20 years of experience in representing start-up and emerging companies, entrepreneurs, and venture capitalists. He is listed in Who’s Who in American Law and is a corporate partner in a major law firm in San Francisco. He is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of U.C. Berkeley and graduated from UCLA Law School, where he was managing editor of the Law Review. He has edited or co-authored a number of legal/business books, including Start-Up and Emerging Companies: Planning, Financing and Operating the Successful Business and Partnership and Joint Venture Agreements.
Richard was the chairman and co-founder of AllBusiness.com, one of the premier Web sites for small businesses. He was also the founder, CEO, and chairman of LawCommerce, Inc., an Internet company dedicated to providing products and sources to the legal profession.
He has lectured extensively before various legal and business organizations, including the American Electronics Association, the Venture Capital Institute, the California Continuing Education of the Bar, Law Journal Seminars-Press, the California State Bar Business Section, the Corporate Counsel Institute, the San Francisco Bar, and the Practicing Law Institute (PLI).
Richard has served as the chairman of the California State Bar Committee on Partnerships, the co-chairman of the Corporations Committee of the San Francisco Bar (Barristers), a member of the Executive Committee of the Business Law Section of the California State Bar, and co-chair of the Law Journal seminar in New York on “Joint Ventures and Strategic Alliances.”
Richard has experience in the following areas: start-up and emerging companies, corporate financings, joint ventures, strategic alliances, venture capital financings, employment agreements, IPOs, leases, loans, online and Internet matters, license agreements, partnerships, preferred stock, confidentiality agreements, stock options, sales contracts, securities laws, and mergers and acquisitions.