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Today in the 3-Bet we find the great Barry Greenstein recounting the hand that "did him in" on High Stakes Poker, Jean-Robert Bellande somehow gains weight and Indianapolis punter Pat McAfee takes pocket jacks and turns them into a spectacular NFL career.
1) Greenstein "Done In" on HSP
We loosely touched on this a couple of weeks ago when he tweeted about it but now we have a few more details on the High Stakes Poker hand that Barry Greenstein says changed his poker fortunes.
In a new post on the PokerStars blog Greenstein explains how his set of fours in a $600,000 pot didn't hold against Antonio Esfandiari's big draw and that sent the two in two vastly different directions:
"I haven't played a high roller event since I lost that pot, whereas it really turned Antonio around. He did really well that session and started playing high roller and super high roller events shortly thereafter.
"Antonio, of course, went on to win the largest tournament prize ever awarded at the inaugural One Drop event at the WSOP. I almost think the result of that pot ended up sending each of us in different directions."
Primarily, Greenstein says, he was playing 100% of his own money which meant maximum effect on his bankroll. He also says, of course, it's "just one hand" in a very long poker road but a costly one that did in fact have dramatic consequences.
Either way it's a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at one of the best poker shows ever and, as always, a pleasure to hear BG share his thoughts on the sometimes cruel twists of the game. Full post here.
2) JRB Somehow Gains Pound in Weight-Loss Homestretch
As we mentioned yesterday the unsinkable Jean-Robert Bellande is in the home stretch of a $70,000 weight-loss bet that necessitates hitting the scale at 245lbs on Nov. 1.
With four days to go he needed to drop about 4 lbs and, while tough, it seemed like there was still a sliver of hope. Somehow, however, ol' @BrokeLivingJRB managed to GAIN a pound yesterday:
Noooooo! I swear I did everything correctly yesterday but somehow gained 1 lb instead of losing 1or 2. #brokepumpkin pic.twitter.com/wmeAWDvSMa
— Jean-Robert Bellande (@BrokeLivingJRB) October 29, 2014We've always been perplexed by JRB's body chemistry but now even more so. Still it might be worth it for JRB to get in touch with former wrestler Ashton Griffin for some emergency weight-cutting tips. And there's always the trash bags.
Stay safe, Jean-Robert. Follow along here.
3) Pat McAfee Slingshots Pocket Jacks into Amazing NFL Career
So long, fishhooks. From now on Pocket Jacks will be called #Boomsticks by us and we have Indianapolis Colts punter Pat McAfee to thank for it.
If you've followed the NFL at all this year you'll know McAfee is off to the best start of his career and virtually redefining the role of special teams as a football weapon.
It almost, of course, might never have happened if not for one late-night poker game in the basement of a Pittsburgh restaurant.
In an awesome piece posted by Zak Keefer of the Indianapolis Star last week he explains how the unheralded high school senior, originally a soccer player, took a borrowed $100 and turned it into $1,400 in that poker game.
He used the money to fly to Miami for a kicker's showcase in front of college football coaches, turned that into a scholarship to the Univerity of West Virginia and now, years later, a likely spot in the Pro Bowl (and our now-adopted #Boomstick hashtag).
The hand that gave him his biggest take in that game? Pocket jacks.
If you ever needed something to feel better about being dealt the dastardly pocket jacks, there it is. Read Keefer's great feature here.
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