Most players will tell you that poker is a difficult game that takes years to master but last night's €100 Freezeout went a long way to proving that wrong.
Lalit, a German-based Indian, visiting Galway for the first time wandered into the Club at about 8. He asked what game everyone was playing and, on hearing it was poker, wanted to know how to play. Ten minutes tuition later, he was in the tournament, carrying a little card showing the poker ladder.
Lalit sat back for the first few levels and observed, then he began to play. Cagey old-timers and flashy young guns came and went and soon our hero was down to a heavyweight three-hander with Manus Burke and Fintan Gavin.
A classic battle ensued with chips going back and forth but Lalit refused to be bullied and was never outplayed by the darts-loving duo. Eventually, Manus got lucky and hit a set of nines against Lalit's pair of aces to knock out the new man after a two hour marathon. The larger-than-life pair quickly agreed to split having avoided total humiliation.
Lalit collected his money and quietly opined "that game is easy, they should try bridge".