Poker Vince Home Page

July 20, 2010

It looks like the World Series of Poker ("WSOP") is over, at least till
November when the final nine come back to play for the almost
nine million dollars for first place.

As far as my WSOP went, it was not that good. I ended up playing
eleven preliminary events of which I cashed three times for a total
of $9,000. The buy-ins were $14,000, so I had a loss overall in
that part of the Series.

As far as the main event (the $10,000 buy-in), I had a very
frustrating time, as I made it to day four and ended coming in
about 1,000th -- about 250 players out of the money. My wife
consoled me and told me that in my whole poker career, I have
never before beat 6,300 players in a tournament. That was a very
funny line, but not too comforting.

I struggled through most of the main event tournament and was
only comfortable at one point, late day three, when I got up to
$165,000. But, by the end of the day, I was at $109,000 and the
average had gone up to about $200,000. Still, it wasn’t that bad
with about 400 players to lose before we would get to the money.
At least I knew I had to do some playing and take some chances
as my stack was far from comfortable.

Looking back, as always, I could say maybe I should have done
this, or not done that, but being truthful, I really can justify the
plays I made on day four. Having said that, it doesn’t mean they
were all the correct plays.

I have often heard players say they played perfect and, having
been at the same table with them as they played, I realized that it
was a matter of opinion. Having seen their play through out the
tournament, I thought they had played badly.

Anyway, only ten and a half months left till the WSOP starts back
up again and, hopefully, we players can all go through the agony
and the ecstasy again.

I think my next stop will be in Council Bluffs, Iowa, for a WSOP
circuit event. It just so happens that I will be with my wife,
daughter and granddaughter in Kansas City just before the
tournament in Iowa starts, so I will just drive up to Iowa when my
family goes back to California. Council Bluffs is just a little over a
two-hour drive, so it seems it will work out just right.

It has been about three years since I devoted a lot of time to
playing tournaments. I looked at my books and realized I have
only played three tournaments in Los Angeles in the last two
years. That’s pitiful for a professional tournament player who lives
in L.A., so for whatever reason is prompting me, I promise to
change that.

After some thought, I think the reasons for the cutback in playing
are, number one, the drive down to the casinos in L.A. is a traffic
nightmare -- it has become longer and longer. Another reason was
the Bike and Commerce cut out all of the Best All-Around contests.
I was fortunate enough to win quite a bit of money over the years
with those contests. Plus, sometimes you would get the cover of
CardPlayer magazine thrown in.

Another factor, and I rarely hear any players complain, is the juice
-- the money they charge you to play, which is above what goes
into the prize pool -- has gone up, up and up. Some of the
marginal winning tournament players have left the tournament trail
for that reason. Also thrown in is the flattened payout structure.
Believe me, a flattened payout structure does not help the better
players.

Lastly, I realized only the large tournaments (buy-ins with $5,000
to $10,000 or more) meant anything in the scheme of things. This
concept I have discussed with a few of my friends who are (or
were) tournament professionals. The television exposure, plus the
huge prize money, makes instant stars, while any tournaments
below that level are barely recognized. Some of the guys
understood and agreed with my point, while others seem not to be
bothered.

But, as in life, sometimes you realize you cannot beat city hall
and/or your boycott of this or that is not working, so you just give
up on trying to change anything.

So now, I will start taking that hour-and-a-half drive to the casinos
in L.A. and pony up the exorbitant juice. I will play like I don’t
notice there is no $50,000 best all-around player award money. I
will buy the added tax option, the “bonus chips,” and act like I am
dumb enough to believe it is anything other than more juice.

My wife often reminds me what I told her the first expression I
learned was when I got into the gambling business -- it was, “if
you’re gonna be a sucker, be a quiet one.” It fits the poker
business and so many other things in life. So, if you see me
playing in a tournament and I complain, be like my wife and remind
me if I am gonna be a sucker be a quiet one.

For What it’s Worth ...

Vince

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