Jump to content

Recommended Posts

I just posted this on my website, but I thought I'd post it here too. I will probably be flamed unmercifully for it (since that seems to be the specialty around here), but what the hell. Any comments would be appreciated.AN EDITORIALThe Masters, 2005. Tiger Woods and Chris DiMarco are coming down the homestretch at the greatest championship in golf. The two greatest players in the sport on this day are engaged in a battle. This is competition—a test of nerve, skill, and the will to win. This is the essence of sport. The best player should win. This has been the essence of sport since the Maya ball game and the Greek Olympiad through today’s Masters and Tour de France.Unfortunately, poker is not there yet. Imagine, if you will, Tiger Woods missing a two foot putt for par on the 16th hole to give DiMarco the lead in the championship. Instead of grimacing and holding his head in his hands in agony, Woods slaps hands with DiMarco and grins. “Don’t worry about it,” Woods says. “You can win it now, man.” Woods doesn’t care, because Woods paid DiMarco’s entry fee into the tournament. If DiMarco wins, Woods will take half of the prize. Imagine, if you will, Tiger Woods on the 18th green at Augusta, again dueling with Chris DiMarco for the greatest title in golf. Woods is facing a tricky 6 footer for the win. Woods motions to DiMarco. “Hey Chris,” he says. “How about giving me a read on this one?” DiMarco smiles and walks over. He tells Woods to keep the putt just outside the left edge of the cup. Woods thanks him, steps up to the putt, and drains it—winning The Masters. The two have worked together, consorted, if you will, to sink the putt; they will split the prize money equally.This is the state of poker today. I was reminded just how ugly it is as I watched a rerun this evening of the World Poker Tour Championship. It was three handed play, Tuan Le was heads up in a pot against Paul Maxwell. Le won the pot. Then something strange happened. Le tapped knuckles with the other player still left in the tournament, Hassan Habib. Habib seemed genuinely happy that Le had won the pot. Later, after Le had won the tournament, he embraced Habib and said, “We did it man.” Yes, that’s right, “We did it man.” I am not blaming or accusing Hassan Habib or Tuan Le of anything—they didn’t break any rules. That is the point: they didn’t break any rules. A few weeks ago, there was a rather large tournament on PokerStars.com. I believe the total prize pool was in the area of $700,000. The tournament was won by a player named “El Capitano”. I don’t know who “El Capitano” is. In fact, I don’t even know if it really was “El Capitano” who was playing. It could have been “El Capitano”’s friend, or it could have been “El Capitano” playing together with a friend, or it could have been World Champion Poker Player X talking on a cell phone with “El Capitano”, telling him how to play his cards while he sat at the same table, but playing on his own computer. But, again, nobody broke any rules. PokerStars.com maintains that no rules were broken.The question we must ask ourselves as poker fans and players is this: Do we want poker to remain as it is portrayed on “Tilt”, as it was back in the day of the Dead Man’s Hand, and as it was when Amarillo Slim and Doyle Brunson roamed the barren highways of Texas in the 1950’s? Or do we want poker to become what it truly should be: a legitimate competition, a test of skill and ability, and the greatest game that I have ever known?We have the power to make poker legitimate. Now is the time. The sport will be better for everyone when players don’t have pieces of each other, when collusion rules are enforced by large corporations, and when the best player wins. I envision a day when a World Series of Poker Bracelet is as revered in America as a Green Jacket. Today, however, it doesn’t seem like that will ever be the case.

Link to post
Share on other sites

yet another reason poker is not a sport...and in golf the entrants do not pay a fee to play, which is what make poker great. Anyone, good or bad, can sit down if the pony up the cash.

Link to post
Share on other sites

You make a good point.This type of activity was acceptable way back when,but with mainstream,it has to become legit for it to succeed and last for years to come.

Link to post
Share on other sites
yet another reason poker is not a sport...and in golf the entrants do not pay a fee to play, which is what make poker great. Anyone, good or bad, can sit down if the pony up the cash.
Anyone can play their way into the U.S. Open.I never said the format for buying into, or playing your way into events, was wrong. Golf has the PGA, so there are no entry fees. This is what poker needs. I just feel rules need to be implemented. It might be impossible to prevent people "backing" each other, be it for buy-ins, or travel expenses. But someone needs to sure as hell try. Come on. Let's see the best players playing to win. If I had $25,000 to drop on a WPT Championship seat, I would drop it. I wouldn't want anyone paying for me. If I didn't have $25,000, I wouldn't play. The best pros don't have anyone spotting them cash to get in tournaments. These are the pros who should be representing the sport.Let me ask you a question: would you rather see a final table with 9 nobody's, or would you rather see a final table with Negreanu, Ivey, Scotty Baby, etc.? I wouldn't watch the PGA Tour if Tiger, Phil, and those guys weren't playing. Let's face it--the majority of us aren't going to be playing golf in the U.S. Open, and we won't be playing the WPT Championship either. Would you like to watch the NBA Finals if anybody who had $100,000 could get a team together and play? NO, you wouldn't. So let's see the best players play.
Link to post
Share on other sites

The two greatest players in their sport? Come on. Woods? Yes. DiMarco? No.As far as your soapbox rant goes, what you need to understand is that there is no way regulate such a thing. Many people are upfront about who is staking who. It is the ones who are not up front that you have to worry about. I have no idea what you are getting at when you say collusion rules should be enforced by large corporations. How exactly would they do this?What you fail to understand is that poker is not a sport. You are trying to glorify it into something it is not. The tournament poker you see on TV is another form of reality TV. It is a compleyely different game from the poker that the majority of the world plays (i.e. low limit cash games). If your solution to the "problem" is for staking players to be illegal, you will find very little support. I don't want to speculate as to the %of major tourney entrants who are staked but I would imagine the number is significant, and reducing the number of tourney entrants benefits no one. Another thing you need to understand is, poker is so appealing because the best player doesn't always win. Therefore it gives everyone hope that they can be the next "great one"I hope this didn't come off as a flame. You obviously care about the GAME of poker. You also have a vision of where you would like to see the GAME headed. Unfortunately I think it is an unrealistic pipe dream that can never be accomplished.

Link to post
Share on other sites

"I have no idea what you are getting at when you say collusion rules should be enforced by large corporations. How exactly would they do this? "So, you would be stoked if you were down to the final table at a WSOOP Event, and lost to El Capitano and "his friends?"These corporations are large enough to make millions of dollars hand over fist. There is a way to stop collusion. BAN THESE PLAYERS.

Link to post
Share on other sites

I didn't take the time to read most of this because I cannot decide If I agree with a point when it is shrouded by so much incoherence, but I think one thing he is saying is that Hassan Habib staked Tuan Le and had an interest in him winning the tournament? But Tuan won a previous tournament of that WPT season and therefore won his seat for free, so presumably he wasn't going to have to split with anyone.

Link to post
Share on other sites
I'll leave it to you to guess whether this is me, or someone posting on my account saying this:Shut... the censored... up.
Umm****, I'm pretty sure thats the real spademan.
Link to post
Share on other sites

There is no honor among thieves..lest you forget what we are doing. These are the same guys that will look at your cards if you expose them *just* enough..set up multiple monitors to play sng's with their buddies, or lead your drunk as.s to the atm to play just another round of 1/2 nl for the fun of it. Dudes that will put that little crease in the ace of spades just so they can tell if the other guy is holding it. Playing poker is a vice just inches above stealing sh..it or dealing. It's all about the cash you can get in your hand, winning the race at whatever cost. Fuck all the "anyone can sit down by their own free will"..there is no honor in the game, it's all about the money..getting it however you must. I'm ok with that, just don't be naive enough to think it will ever be sanctioned to the point of having poker moms bringing the juice and snacks after the game.

Link to post
Share on other sites
I didn't take the time to read most of this because I cannot decide If I agree with a point when it is shrouded by so much incoherence, but I think one thing he is saying is that Hassan Habib staked Tuan Le and had an interest in him winning the tournament? But Tuan won a previous tournament of that WPT season and therefore won his seat for free, so presumably he wasn't going to have to split with anyone.
Well, to be fair, that isn't an argument against his theory.Because Hassan staked staked him in the first tourney, to my understanding, and by default had a piece of him in the one he got in as a result of winning that one.
Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...