Pacific Poker Bluffing

Even though James Woods is a newcomer to the world of poker, he knows all about the “bluff.” When he left MIT, he moved to New York to pursue his pacific poker dream of becoming an actor. When doors were not opening, he “bluffed” his way in.

His first important part was in Brendan Behan’s Borstal Boy in 1971. “I waited until the stage manager went to the bathroom and then just walked out on stage. I said, ‘I’m next,’ and auditioned. They wanted only resident British actors with real British accents. I said I was from Liverpool, and they said, ‘Great: and hired me.” Jimmy continues to work on his pacific poker bluffing techniques, and proudly recalled a bluff he put on Mike Sexton in Vince Van Pat- ten’s home game. He used his acting skills to dramatically overbet the pot, knowing Mike had the better hand, but believing Mike would be too conservative to call. The first time Mike learned he had been bluffed was in the Card Player cover story featuring Mike Sexton.

Jimmy explained that poker players think he’s a doofus, and he exploits that image by pretending to play a simplistic game. There was a hand against Men Nguyen in which Men bet $2,500 and Jimmy pacific poker quickly went all in. Men thought and thought, and mumbled that Jimmy must have hit his hand. This was another successful bluff for Jimmy, which Men will learn when he reads this story!

Hollywood Poker

James Woods has shown himself to be a part of the poker world, not just an actor playing poker. He sits and jokes with us and tries his best to take our money. He wants to be respected for being a great pacific poker player, and he is constantly working on his game.

During the PartyPoker cruise earlier this year, he was asked to speak to a room full of delighted poker dealers and players. He joked with the cheering crowd: “Well, you can all stop clamoring and cheering for me now. I know what you’re really thinking about pacific poker. Be nice to the sucker. Well, you’ve already busted me!”

How fitting it is that an accomplished actor, a trusted and known face, and a poker player would start a poker site. Jimmy, Vince Van Patten, and other celebrities recently launched their new site.

“Many intelligent people do not feel comfortable giving their credit card number to someone they don’t know from a third- world country. People will see that James Woods is sponsoring it, and I gotta believe that pacific poker people will trust me. You can go to a movie and spend $100 on bad popcorn to see a guy with his hat on backwards. Or, you can come have fun and try to win my money. I play there often, as do my brother, Michael, Vince Van Patten, and plenty of others, I want to play poker with my fans and hopefully beat the - - - - out of my celebrity friends!”

World Poker Tour commentator Vince Van Patten is in on the fun, as well. “Poker is taking Hollywood by storm, and there’s nothing better pacific poker than bluffing a major actor.” He promises to be thr ftn r1 rh1pnapc nvow to come loin the fun.

Maurice MerleauPonty

Jimmy has the uncanny ability to take a complicated concept, boil it down to its least common denominator, and discuss it simplistically, yet accurately.

He spoke about the famous French philosopher Merleau-Ponty (1908—61), who believed that our beings pass on a long physical and biological history of preconceived notions. With those subconscious pacific poker notions, we view and understand the world. We don’t consciously do this, it just happens before our eyes. Because our notions and the world are constantly changing, this causes a state of chaos.

“As an actor, one day there is a defining moment. The philosopher Maurice Merleau-Ponty said the universe is a place of chaos. Yet, there is a wonderful moment when there is a contingency of things where it seems pacfic poker that everything comes together. That happened to me as an actor, and I see it in poker, as well. In poker, there is a moment when there seems to be a harmony of perfection where everything is working.” Jimmy is on the path to experience that “perfect” poker moment.

Humor and Wite His humor is dry and his incisive wit is so sharp that he should host a talk show. I mentioned to him that I did two long interviews that day — his and John Juanda’s in the VIP lounge at Fox- woods pacfic poker earlier that day. I told Jimmy that John asked me to point out to him that John’s interview was first. With a mischievous grin, Jimmy laughed and didn’t miss a beat: “I loved the great dinner. How did John Juanda like the food in the VIP lounge that was probably sitting there for days?”

When All is Said and Done

When all is said and done, James Woods is an intense, accomplished, vivacious individual who loves the game of poker as much as everyone reading this article. There is no doubt that with his natural skills and pacific poker drive to be the best, he will one day win a big tournament. The only question is when.

Jimmy said, “I took up hold’em a year ago and said I am going to become the best I can and play every day, read about it every day, and speak to people about it every day.” How many players work this hard to be a winner? Probably, only the best.