[voice-over]

Harlan's got a boat, nines full. Brad's got nothing, but his pre-flop betting made it look, entirely accidentally, like there was a chance he had pocket kings.

[pushes a few stacks of chips towards the center of the table]

Twenty thousand.

[voice-over]

Which, if true, would give him the better full house. Brad's counting off twenty thousand, which means he's gonna call, and Harlan knows that if Brad's gonna call and not raise, it means he didn't have the boat, and he's betting a high two-pair, probably kings and queens. But then, instead of calling the bet, Brad pushes seventy-two thousand dollars into the pot.

[pushes all of his chips towards the center of the table, Harlan frowns]

I'm all in.

[voice-over]

Harlan looks at Brad. Every tell Harlan knows about—carotid artery pumping, stiff hands—Brad’s doing the opposite. Brad's bet had represented a huge hand by calling on the flop, check-raising the turn and bombing the river. Of course Harlan didn’t know that Brad didn’t know what any of that meant. So Harlan, always a good sport, said:

[smiles]

Nice bet. I'm laying this down. [tosses in his cards]

[voice-over]

As he tossed in what he didn’t realize was the winning hand. Brad tosses in his cards too and one of them flips over and Harlan sees:

[frowns]

You didn't have pocket kings?

[smiles]

I didn't have any kings, except the one in the middle.

[some of the spectators start laughing]

You had two-pair?

I had one-pair, the nines in the middle.
[Everyone starts laughing raucously at Harlan and patting Brad on the back, with one bystander exclaiming, "Harlan, what were you thinking?!" Brad laughs joyfully while Harlan is frozen in shock]