Chips Off the Old Bloch
The board read . A player in middle position had bet 5,000 -- about a pot-sized bet -- and Andy Bloch, without his characteristic black cowboy hat today, was contemplating what to do. Finally he announced a raise, and pushed out a bet of 13,000. Bloch's young opponent thought just a couple of seconds, then said he was all in. A count revealed his push was for 5,500 more, and Bloch called.
Bloch held for an up-and-down straight draw, while his opponent had . The river was the , and Bloch's opponent survived.
Some friends of Bloch's arrived at the rail during that hand, and so despite the hit he was smiling as he got up from the table to say hello to them. He'd built up a decent stack before the break, and now still sits with about 47,000.