Poker: secret to a long life

In an incredible feel-good story, the AC Press this morning chronicled the life of Anne Kolmetsky, Brighton Towers resident and a daily poker player at the Tropicana. Kolmetsky, who plays seven-card stud, turns 95 on Saturday, and she says that poker helps her keep afloat financially and remain active:

"Social Security only goes up a little every year," said Kolmetsky, whose $720 monthly rent makes her reminisce about when it used to be $97. "So it's tough. But poker helps."

Kolmetsky, a former blackjack player, became hooked on poker by her niece, a professional poker player in Las Vegas.

"She called me when the casinos first started offering poker here, and she told me I had to try it," Kolmetsky said. "I went to Caesars and won $85 the first day. I said, 'I have to do this more often...'"

"When I sit down at the poker table and they start talking about illness, I say, 'I have to start hanging out with a younger crowd,'" Kolmetsky joked. "They get a kick out of that. But the truth is, I can't be in the house all day. When I sit around, I think about the aches and pains and all of that nonsense. I'm OK when I sleep and when I'm playing poker."

Getting to 95 isn't easy. Kolmetsky, a smoker until she was 40, eats healthy but cheats with sweets, particularly chocolate. She had open-heart surgery when she was 79, followed by gall bladder surgery, a hysterectomy and a bout with shingles.

Kolmetsky is a fixture in the Tropicana poker room, where she holds her own:

Kolmetsky also earned admiration. When Griffin enters the room, he kisses her hand. Everyone who knows her, from the cocktail waitresses to the dealers, greet her with a big smile. And on Friday, for the fifth straight year, the poker room staff will present her with a birthday cake that reads: "Annie: Our Queen of Hearts."

"She's a sweetheart," said cocktail server Lana Munn, who delivers Kolmetsky 7-Up or coffee, no booze, daily. "She is the nicest player we have in the room. We love her."

Rose Heegan, 72, of Margate, said she enjoys playing with Kolmetsky regularly.

"She's always pleasant and easy-going," Heegan said. "If I didn't know how old she was, I would never guess she was 95. She's a very good player. She is tight, but she is aggressive when she needs to be. She is not only physically unbelievable for her age, she's mentally unbelievable."

But she also shows some guts when she has to. On Thursday, she was getting tired of listening to chatty players.

"They won't stop talking," she whispered. "I've had enough."

And after a novice player won his first hand and got some ribbing, she told the rest of the table, "Just give him his money. He doesn't need a story."

On occasion, Kolmetsky has been known to mix it up with other players.

One time, after a player called her "tight" in front of the whole table and folded because he didn't believe she ever bluffed, Kolmetsky got the upper hand, winning with nothing.

"I wouldn't normally do this, but because he was talking about me in front of everyone and was being a smart aleck, I showed everyone the cards I had. He didn't know what to say. He was stammering and stuttering. I told him I didn't like him talking that way," she said.

And on another occasion, an innocent comment by Kolmetsky resulted in an angry man pointing his finger at her, telling her to shut up.

"The men get mad sometimes," she said. "They slam their cards, leave the table, blame the dealer. I never do that."

Those moments are few and far between for the usually quiet player.

Kolmetsky seems happy to be able to play cards as often as she does. She's happy to meet new people, and she's happy whether she wins or loses.

Atlantic County News: The Press of Atlantic City

Kolmetsky must have seen a great deal in the 88 years that she lived in Atlantic City. She was once a hostess at the Flamingo motel, and I can only imagine the things she saw in the coffee shop there, which used to be something of a city landmark. I wonder if she was there the fateful night that the Flamingo cocktail lounge became infamous (people not from AC will not get that, but longtime locals will).

This is a great story that puts a human face on the popularity of poker. Poker games around the country probably have similar stories, and they are all worth hearing.
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posted by Dave at 10:29 AM