All of Alex Jacob’s chips were pushed to the center of the table. His tournament life and deep run in yet another WSOP event hung in the balance after he re-raised a button raise from an amateur in the $1500 No Limit tournament.
Did Jacob want a call or did he want his opponent to fold? These are the questions players, reporters, and observers try to solve when a bet of this magnitude is made No-Limit.
With about 100 players left, all of whom had made the money out of an initial field of 2,778 players, the tournament was in that critical juncture where some players were trying to chip up for a final table run while others waited for their hour glass to expire while safely moving up in the money.
After a series of probing questions, almost folds, and darting glances toward Jacob, the amateur finally made a reluctant call. After watching the hand develop for the past few minutes, the players and reporters anxiously awaiting the showdown inched toward the table as the hands were turned.
Jacob sheepishly turned over Q-3 offsuit, the amateur revealing A-K. After an ace hit the turn, Jacob’s hopes of making his fourth WSOP final table and donning his first bracelet were crushed, flushed away on a bluff gone bad.
As he stepped away from the table, the man who just busted Jacob approached him for an autograph, not exactly the best time for such a request given the circumstance. It was one of those moments where a variety of responses could have been justified from the 22-year-old professional with over two million in tournament winnings. It was one of those times where a blow-up or blow-off seemed possible if not likely.
In a moment that can bring out the worst in some poker players, Jacob was about to show his mettle.
With the class and charisma expected from someone who’d just won a tournament, Jacob grabbed a Sharpie and scribbled a message on a napkin the amateur is sure not to take on his next picnic.

Andrew,
Good Call. Q-3 never wins.
Alex Jacob

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Adam Johnson is a 23-year-old graduate from the University of Missouri covering the WSOP.