Poker Perambulation

TIVO and the like did away with that for many. Poker players aren’t so lucky.

 The WSOP is over … almost over … or as Effel so interestingly put it, “See you in 117 days.”

 (Aside to Jack Effel: Did you calculate that all by yourself?  I imagine Hellmuth might have given him the math help.  Hellmuth has been  a ‘helping hand’ in the work Jack has tried to do as TD.)

The wait is supposed to be for the good of all. After all it was approved by Harrahs, Big Jeff, and the players committee. This is what we were told at the end. ESPN seems to have been left out of the mix. With the exception of the player’s committee who evidently didn’t rubber stamp but approached it with a glass half full attitude, I can’t see giving the suits that kind of power.

We live with table dynamics. Nowhere is that more cogent to the play than in a tournament. There was eleven days of fatigue, ambiance and agony that factor – and now possibly factored – into the last 9 standing. This reminds me of the Korean armistice. Play was suspended but the anguish and bad effects remained. That’s how Kim Il Jong and Jeffery Pollack wield such inordinate power for their position.

What you can bank is this is an accommodation to ESPN and Harrahs/Caesars. Players pay the same whorehouse rake to participate. The winnings don’t get juiced from all the lucrative branding. The same vagaries that infest card rooms is ever present behind the scenes as demonstrated in my last blog topic about the Hellmuth reversal.

Whether it is the Absolute-UltimateBet problem that just keeps growing or inventive programming around Harrah/ESPN/WSOP, there is one undeniable fact: Nothing benefited the players. You can do the lip service bit about ‘for the good of the game’ but that’s all it is … lip service.

We pay the rake in life and poker for a fair shot. Our founding fathers based their revolution on it being missing from their lives. But, in those days, most folks just went on living without much thought for all that. In the world of poker, we’ve been smacked by the UIGEA and ours isn’t a revolt; it is at the level of a few kooks picketing. So, why shouldn’t the H/E/W triumvirate use us too.

I am touching the tip of the iceberg. You can read Pauly’s gonzo stuff about how the world turns. You can see us trashed over on Rini’s blob. I have more to say about the latter.

Affiliate marketing is an asinine marketing tool. But, we’re (PokerNews etc.) one of those that gives value along with the graft. I have never been censored in my comments and they aren’t all loving. Rini – an industry insider – blasted Tony et al for not breaking up with UB until the Tiffiny bustup that Rini glories in. OK, fair shot. But, not panning UB made business sense while the investigation was on going. My old blogs already were saying you should look at UB and Absolute with a very jaundiced eye and give your business to others. We haven’t shoved it under a bushel basket. But, we did keep taking the affiliate fees. Duh!

Go read Rini and Pauly. They are viable looks at the world. But, like all of us, they come from their angle. Build your own angle by interpreting things to satisfy yourself. But, then espouse your views and don’t be our/their/his patsy.

This brief blog covers way too much to make a lot of sense. It could be a book and a thick one at that. It is a big world out there and we’re usually small parts of it. But, every once in a while something comes along that you just shouldn’t ignore. This is one of those moment and it is only beginning. I’m comfortable in the part I’m playing and have respect for those around me. I hope you can say the same when it has played out.

ADDENDUM:

Today’s blog covers too many (3) major areas. They do interrelate but it isn’t that apparent. You can see more about Absolute-Ultimate Bet here. Tiffany is little more than a passing moment but timely. The Harrahs/Caesars thing is here and now but will never go away.

Playing poker is the real world in fast forward. If you learn poker, you learn either better citizenship or deserve fingerprinting with a DNA test thrown in.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 15th, 2008 at 4:30 pm and is filed under Journal. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.