Okay, i know a lot of you, like myself probably love the movie rounders. Here's my question.

At the end of the confrontation between Teddy KGB and Mike McD, Mike claims that he won $60,000 from the showdown ($15,000 to pay back grandma, $10,000 back to the professor and $6,000 to the Chesterfield, which left him back where he was with about $30,000.

How does he have that much, though. As far as it shows, he only played KGB twice. He went head-to-head 10K vs. 10K, won that. He's at $20,000. Then they had the rematch, 20K vs. 20K, so shouldn't he have only $40,000 when it's all said and done?

He won $60,00 cause Mike started off with $10,000 in chips when he first sat down. Fuck, i thought i had it figured out but i lost my train of thought. FUCK!!! I'll figure it out and get back to you

I think it is a mistake. I just threw in the DVD, and unless they played another game, it should only be 40'000 total. He had 10'000, won, then he should have had 20'000. Then he won again, so he should only have 40k. I just assume something was edited out, or the ending voice over was done before the last game was shot, and they somehow got confused. The only other thing I can think, is that kgb loaned him 5000 at the begining of the game, but that wouldn't really make sense.

On another note, did anyone ever figuire out what KGB's tell was? I know it has something to do with the cookies, but I could never exactly tell what it was.

KGB's tell is that if he has a good hand, he grabs an Oreo and twists it apart before eating it. I also don't think the $60,000 amount is wrong. I just can't articulate why. I suck at math!

That can't be it, but I think I figuired it out. When KGB didn't have a hand, when Damon had the two kings, he twisted the oreo and broke the center. When he had the good hand, he pulled the oreo apart, and didn't break the creamy center.

that always bothered me, its too obvious and simple a tell for such a good player to be committing.

Ok I watched it again. On the first game at the begining of the movie, when KGB wipes Damon out, he puts the oreo by his ear, and pulls it apart. During the second game at the end of the movie, when KGB is bluffing, he twists the oreo apart in front of his face. And the last time, when KGB is getting all pissed because he has the hand and Damon folds, he again puts the oreo to his ear and pulls it apart. So basically pulling the oreo apart means good hand, twisting means bluffing. Still seems like a very amateur tell for a pro.

i wish i played against people that folow a pattern and are that easy to read

that's hollywood for you, trying to simplify the game tremendously so people can better follow what's going on.

Yay, figuired out the 60K thing. Ok after Mike wins the 20 grand, they continue to play. Mike starts beating the shit out of KGB, and in one exchange, Mike says "feel free to reload at anytime." This meaning, when KGB would run low on chips, he would buy in with more money. So KGB obviously bought in for another 20 K plus during the course of that final game.

Found this regarding KGB's tell. From the Sports Guy on 2/18/05


By Bill Simmons
Page 2

Q: I'm right there with you regarding the greatness of "Rounders," but one thing always bothered me: Is there any way a cold-blooded, Russian mob guy who owns an underground poker place would have such an obvious tell as not eating Oreo cookies when he's bluffing? I say no. There is a greater likelihood of Doug Christie going Tony Montana on us.
-- Tee, Sao Paolo, Brazil



SG: I'm with you on this one, although it doesn't bother me nearly as much as Mike McD turning down a free night of sex with Famke Janssen. Every time I watch "Rounders" -- WRITTEN BY THE CREATORS OF THE NEW SMASH-HIT POKER DRAMA "TILT," WHICH YOU CAN SEE EVERY THURSDAY NIGHT ON ESPN!!!!! -- Teddy's tell bothers me a little bit more.



Then I started thinking about it. When the movie was released (1998), movie audiences weren't even remotely educated about poker, so maybe they had to play it that way. I remember not picking up Teddy KGB's tell until like the fourth time I watched the movie, and that was only because the movie inspired me to start learning about poker, which is when I learned about tells and all that stuff. If they released that movie now -- and by they, I'm referring to THE CREATORS OF THE NEW SMASH-HIT POKER DRAMA "TILT," WHICH YOU CAN SEE EVERY THURSDAY NIGHT ON ESPN!!!!! -- I think they would have written a less-obvious tell for Teddy.

I just don't think it has anything to do with eating the cookie. I think the reason he doesn't eat the cookie, is because he is folding at that point. If he had bluffed through with the rest of the hand, then he probably would have eaten the cookie. The main reason is, because the camera actually focuses on him twisting the cooke apart, not on him eating it. But the eating the cookie thing could be right also, because Mike says, "I could have gone on letting him eat those oreos all night long."

By the way, all this talk of cookies must sound pretty hilarious to people who haven't seen the movie.

Haha! Sports Guy is great. Yeah, turning down Famke is a lot worse than Teddy's lame tells. But you're right about the movie being from 1998 and poker not being as popular. I've been playing poker since i was 5 yet i never knew about Texas Hold'em til about 2 years before the movie came out. So the movie does have its faults and some annoying scenes but it is still a classic and one of my favorite movies. It could have been done a lot better though.

The tell was eating the cookie when he had a good hand. I'm kind of surprised that there's been that much debate over this.

What makes my theory any less credible? It is very obvious when you watch it.

yeah i'm pretty sure you're correct about the tell, and thanks for the part about reloading. That has to be it he had to buy back in before he lost even more to Meester Sonofbitch.

i'm about to watch this for the first time, thanks to netflix.

its an awsome movie, enjoy

that movie was sweet, i wish it had gone a bit longer though; on to vegas!