Columnist Jeff Haney: On veteran tournament poker player T.J. Cloutier and his significant insight into the game

Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2006 | 8:16 a.m.

Jeff Haney's sports betting column appears Monday, Friday (gaming) and Wednesday (poker). Reach him at (702) 259-4041 or haney@lasvegassun.com.

A highlight from the recent World Poker Tour Boot Camp at the Mirage was having the opportunity to hear veteran tournament professional T.J. Cloutier speak about the game -- especially because he spiked his presentation with vivid examples from his long and colorful career as a professional gambler.

Cloutier, who has won 58 major poker tournaments, including six at the World Series of Poker (although never the main event), gave a seminar called "Tips for Winning."

I like that title. It's broad and inclusive, a refreshing change from the subjects poker geeks too often delve into at their get-togethers. Those usually sound something like "Tips on using implied pot equity to semibluff a post-oak Montana banana, but only if fourth street is uncoordinated."

In the hands of a craftsman such as Cloutier, "Tips for Winning" can be a lot more powerful.

Cloutier certainly qualifies as a master of the game.

Named player of the year by Card Player magazine in 1998 and 2002, Cloutier was the first person to earn $1 million at the World Series of Poker without winning the championship event.

He is the only player to have won tournament titles in all three forms of Omaha, and is still the only player to win the same major tournament title three years in a row -- the $10,000 buy-in Diamond Jim Brady Tournament at the Bicycle Casino in Bell Gardens, Calif. (1990-92).

Before becoming a full-time poker pro, Cloutier played for the University of California in the 1959 Rose Bowl and later started at tight end for the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League.

He also played for the Pittsburgh Pirates organization in a California rookie baseball league, hitting cleanup in the batting order. A fellow named Willie Stargell hit fifth.

Befitting an old-time Texas road gambler, Cloutier addressed his audience in a no-nonsense, matter-of-fact tone.

He acknowledged he lacks polished showmanship -- "I don't give a damn about bein' on TV" -- which only made his presentation more entertaining, as well as genuine.

Take it away, T.J. ...

* A pair of kings in the pocket is the most difficult hand to play in no-limit Texas hold 'em, Cloutier said. That's a little surprising, given kings are the second-most powerful hand. "With aces, you know where you are," Cloutier said. "And you can get away from queens (if you sense you're beat). But with kings, how do you get away from them? The answer is, you usually don't."

Also, kings "seem to be magnetized. They seem to bring an ace right to the board every time."

* Most players place too much value on a pair of queens. "I played in Dallas for years and years," Cloutier said. "I'd say, I got beat (with) one small pair. They'd say, what pair? I'd say queens. Queens were a small pair in Texas."

* Hold 'em is generally played with eight, nine or 10 people at the table. The more players, the better hands you need to win. "We used to play 11-handed in Dallas, and it took the Holy City to win a pot," Cloutier said.

* If you're going to try a bluff after the flop, you better commit to it. "If you're not prepared to fire all three barrels, don't fire the first," Cloutier said.

* Picking off bluffs is at least as important as bluffing. Cloutier detailed how he once called down a bluffer with nothing but a lone king, admitting he was taking a chance. "Hey, Columbus took a chance," he said.

* Know your opponents; study their style of play. "Poker players are like leopards; they can't change their spots," Cloutier said. "They can change their game for a little while, but they're still the same player."

* Avoid chasing draws in no-limit hold 'em. "If I'm drawing, it's a monster draw," Cloutier said. "Two overcards, the nut flush -- the World's Fair."

* Fold when you're beaten. At the final table of a limit hold 'em tournament at the Four Queens, Cloutier once folded ace-king after a conservative player raised and an even tighter player reraised. Cloutier flashed his hand to the dealer before mucking it. "The dealer almost fell out of his chair," Cloutier said.

Then his opponents turned over pocket queens and pocket aces. The ace-king would have been a big underdog.

"After that," Cloutier said, "I told the dealer, that's why you're doing what you're doing and I'm doing what I'm doing."

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At least 19 World Poker Tour Boot Camps -- which include lectures, video and live play, all devoted to poker -- will be held this year at sites in New Jersey, California, and the Foxwoods in Connecticut as well as Nevada. A camp at the Reno Hilton is scheduled for Feb. 11-12, with Las Vegas camps set for March 18-19, April 8-9, May 13-14 and Aug. 12-13. Details are available online at wptbootcamp.com.

Jeff Haney can be reached at 259-4041 or at haney@lasvegassun.com.