Lipstick CAMS!!!! They're all using them now, those hidden cameras that show the player's hole cards. Watching one on tv the other night, and one of the players actually moved his cards away from the camera. Was kinda weird really, like I was playing the one hand in an actual game. The guy folded, so I really don't know what he had. I'm convinced that those wee little cameras are the sole reason for the boom today.
It's the hole card cam that did it imo. The hole card cam made poker markettable to the public because without the average viewer couldn't apreciate wtf is going on. A misconception of the poker boom I think is the idea that millions of people just suddenly started playing poker, I believe poker was already quite a popular passtime but it was the immergence of Texas Hold'Em that is the boom we are seeing.Â
An option you are missing that is a huge oversight imo is the releasing of Rounders, which I believe was the first catalyst, I believe it came out in what 1999? It's what made me begin to convert to Hold'Em after seing the movie.
Edit: Rounders came out in 1998. And to elaborate on my point a bit, I really think rounders pushed poker, specifically Hold'Em into a more glamourous light. Poker kind of went from underground thing you do with the guys to some pipedream of becoming a millionaire.
Oooohhh don't worry, I didn't forget rounders..that's why the question was the MOST RECENT boom...yes, there was a huge boom after Rounders, but it became stagant again after a period, then another boom did take place around the "moneymaker era"
I think "most recent boom" refers to the 2003-2004 time period. I'd agree that poker went through a fundamental change (and increase in popularity) around 1998-2000 with the movie Rounders coming out and the first (real money) online poker sites opening.
I agree with the hole card cam being the key. Was WPT the first poker show to use hole card cams?
"I agree with the hole card cam being the key. Was WPT the first poker show to use hole card cams?"
No no no, it was definately used at least a solid year before WPT, just don't have a source for that yet...except my brain. I for one really think it was WPT forcing poker into the living rooms of millions of people. Not since survivor had I overheard random watercooler conversations about a show "hey, did you see that poker show last night?" people that don't even know how to play have been drawn to watch for the drama, $$ and smoke and light show.
My reason for thinking this...of course, my circle of "non poker friends" always knew I played but never took an interest...it wasn't until WPT started airing that allllll these questions popped up. It also triggered a huge swell in sales for pokerstore of course.
I attribute it to WSOP airing on TV. I don’t 100% buy that fact that since Moneymaker was a Internet poker qualifier that it made a huge difference. I have always been a big fan of poker, however, I was never able to play with any frequency before WSOP started airing on TV. One of my biggest memories was when I was travelling with a colleague of mine in August 2003. I don’t remember where we were (I did a lot of travelling then) but when we returned to our hotel rooms I watched the WSOP on TV for an hour or so. When we rejoined for Dinner he was late, he reason….WSOP. He had never really played poker before and since then he couldn’t stop talking about it. To him it didn’t matter that Moneymaker won (since this particular episode Moneymaker wasn’t a real factor, if I recall correctly this was the episode that Hellmuth was eliminated) all that matter was how enjoyable it was to watch.
Also a close friend of mine and I had been talking about having a regular poker game for many years, but our friends were never interested. Now I have a regular game and the people change all the time. We are never short players. Everyone talks about the game but no one really mentions player names, they just like the action. I seem to be the only one who knows the difference between Texas Dolly and Amarillo Slim. However, they do know who Phil Gordon and Daniel Negranu are. And why is that? They are the ones on TV.
So although Moneymaker helped, I really think it comes down to the amount of TV coverage.
I think watching guys come out of nowhere and win big events helped, but it was the camera on the hole cards that made the biggest impact I think. It's nice to know that the pros don't always get the great hands we think they do sometimes.
I would have to say that a large part of the boost in Canada, especially were I live in the Maritimes, is the hockey strike. Here in the East we only get two sports channels (TSN and Sportsnet), three if you include The Score. If these channels were showing their 3 or 4 games a weeks I'm sure that they would be hard pressed to slot in the volume of poker that they were showing earlier in the year. Although as of late the poker seems to have dried up a little on these channels. I do agree that the card cameras make it more enjoyable to watch than if you didn't know what the player's are holding but getting the product on the air to the masses is the biggest boost. Thanks NHL, something good has come out of the strike.
Comments
I agree.
*MoneyMaker's win &*WSOP airing on TV
and then,
*WPT airing on TV &*Raymer's win
Watching poker on TV and seeing "average Joes" winning the WSOP back to back is what did it imo.
An option you are missing that is a huge oversight imo is the releasing of Rounders, which I believe was the first catalyst, I believe it came out in what 1999? It's what made me begin to convert to Hold'Em after seing the movie.
Edit: Rounders came out in 1998. And to elaborate on my point a bit, I really think rounders pushed poker, specifically Hold'Em into a more glamourous light. Poker kind of went from underground thing you do with the guys to some pipedream of becoming a millionaire.
I agree with the hole card cam being the key. Was WPT the first poker show to use hole card cams?
ScottyZ
No no no, it was definately used at least a solid year before WPT, just don't have a source for that yet...except my brain. I for one really think it was WPT forcing poker into the living rooms of millions of people. Not since survivor had I overheard random watercooler conversations about a show "hey, did you see that poker show last night?" people that don't even know how to play have been drawn to watch for the drama, $$ and smoke and light show.
My reason for thinking this...of course, my circle of "non poker friends" always knew I played but never took an interest...it wasn't until WPT started airing that allllll these questions popped up. It also triggered a huge swell in sales for pokerstore of course.
Also a close friend of mine and I had been talking about having a regular poker game for many years, but our friends were never interested. Now I have a regular game and the people change all the time. We are never short players. Everyone talks about the game but no one really mentions player names, they just like the action. I seem to be the only one who knows the difference between Texas Dolly and Amarillo Slim. However, they do know who Phil Gordon and Daniel Negranu are. And why is that? They are the ones on TV.
So although Moneymaker helped, I really think it comes down to the amount of TV coverage.