Lawrence Burns admitted he organized, advertised and profited from Texas holdem poker tournaments in Westmoreland County, his attorney said yesterday.

But Mr. Burns doesn't admit he was involved in an illegal gambling enterprise because he contends Texas holdem is a game of skill, not chance.

That is the essence of the defense Mr. Burns will pursue in his trial, which began yesterday in Greensburg.

Prosecutors say Mr. Burns, 65, of Derry Township, ran the games several times a week in Seward and Adamsburg.

David Millstein, the defense attorney, said his client is innocent of illegal gambling "because he was engaged in an enterprise that is not predominated by chance."

"The issue that is not resolved ... is whether or not this is a game predominated by chance or predominated by skill," he said.

He placed a stack of books about poker techniques on the defendant's table to make his point.

John Peck, the Westmoreland County district attorney, argued that in Texas holdem, players are given cards at random, therefore making it a game of chance.

Pennsylvania State Trooper Rebecca R. Fabich, who was involved in the investigation, testified she had participated in Mr. Burns' tournaments four times. She said her grandfather and uncle taught her to play poker when she was 10 and she's been playing for the past 25 years, including 12 to 15 times a year at casinos.

"I know how to fold 'em," she said.

Trooper Fabich said that Texas holdem is a game of chance.

"I believe the outcome of the game is determined by your cards," she testified.

Over the course of the four times she played at Mr. Burns' location, she estimated she lost $300 to $400.

One more prosecution witness is expected to testify today.

Mr. Millstein plans to present witnesses saying that a player can win significantly more than he loses if he learns certain techniques.

By the end of the trial, he told members of the jury, "you could, if you wanted to, go out and become an ace player if the commonwealth would let you."

Throughout the trial, both lawyers and all three witnesses familiarized the jury with the game, throwing out lingo like "showdown" and "the river."