My Opinion...
A lot has been written about the explosion of "regular" poker players this WSOP and over the course of the last year I have found through my reading. Now, albeit that my opinion is a little biased being one of these "regular" players who has just started coming into his own as a player and learning my trade from books/internet/ and basically new age media that wasn't readily available as easy as it was 10 years ago according to a lot of pros.
Let me first say that as a new player, it's not very comforting knowning that there isn't a lot of receptive arms waiting from what I'll call old-timers that don't like seeing entrances at the World Series Of Poker triple in a year.
I know a few people have written published work on an plausible argument for both sides, and bring up good points. But here's a point I'd like to make,
In 1990 the sport of Golf, the Money Winner of the PGA took home approximently $1,165,477 USD (Greg Norman). Now, the conception with a lot of people at this time was that excitement of the 60's and 70's with Nicklus and Palmer going head to head, those days were done and now Golf was a sport on the decline, you had your refined gentlemen of the Sport, nobody really stood out from the crowd.
Six short years later, a skinny Southern Californian named Tiger Woods burst on to the PGA Tour scene. He took away from the old adage of "Fat Men in funny pants" and brought a sense of atheticsim to the Sport.
Now Tiger didn't win the Money title that year in '96, however he did the next year. Tiger began to bring younger people to the game, change the way American's and the rest of the World view the sport of golf with his dominating play. Televison Network's and other sponser's who were so distant and far from the Tour just a mere six year earlier saw what Tiger was doing to golf in not just America but the world.
Last year in 2003, the leading money winner on the PGA tour netted a nice cool $7,573,907, and more players then ever setting records in minor tours like the Nationwide Tour and a mass of young talent beginning to Emerge in Europe.
I'm comparing what "regular" poker players will do for the game of Poker rather than hide on-line and win a bit of money, Poker is becoming a game for younger, talented players who are "new" like a Tiger Woods. Did the rest of the PGA Tour complain when their purses for events nearly triple due to the fact that public was once again interested in golf and developing young talent? No, they embarced it because they knew it was the best for them and the game of golf, and if they didn't, it would happen anyway with or without their support.
You see, Poker may never be as important to the World as the sport of Golf, but a lot of quality people play Poker, through my experinces anyway, and like anything else there are bad apples. If I was a top "pro" and was sitting at a table with pocket A's seeing a A-K-A flop (I wish) and I knew I was going to be crowned the champion after this next hand is completed, I want to know that I played against and beat the best.
You don't want to look up and know that there is someone out there that should have been at your table, that too me would be worse than anything, knowning that you beat a sub-par field for the victory, you cheated your-self and the game.
Anyway, I'm also very inexperinced and shouldn't have such an out-spoken issue on the matter.
But one thing I'd like to say to people who are against this "new age" poker player......
Were coming!
H. 8)
Let me first say that as a new player, it's not very comforting knowning that there isn't a lot of receptive arms waiting from what I'll call old-timers that don't like seeing entrances at the World Series Of Poker triple in a year.
I know a few people have written published work on an plausible argument for both sides, and bring up good points. But here's a point I'd like to make,
In 1990 the sport of Golf, the Money Winner of the PGA took home approximently $1,165,477 USD (Greg Norman). Now, the conception with a lot of people at this time was that excitement of the 60's and 70's with Nicklus and Palmer going head to head, those days were done and now Golf was a sport on the decline, you had your refined gentlemen of the Sport, nobody really stood out from the crowd.
Six short years later, a skinny Southern Californian named Tiger Woods burst on to the PGA Tour scene. He took away from the old adage of "Fat Men in funny pants" and brought a sense of atheticsim to the Sport.
Now Tiger didn't win the Money title that year in '96, however he did the next year. Tiger began to bring younger people to the game, change the way American's and the rest of the World view the sport of golf with his dominating play. Televison Network's and other sponser's who were so distant and far from the Tour just a mere six year earlier saw what Tiger was doing to golf in not just America but the world.
Last year in 2003, the leading money winner on the PGA tour netted a nice cool $7,573,907, and more players then ever setting records in minor tours like the Nationwide Tour and a mass of young talent beginning to Emerge in Europe.
I'm comparing what "regular" poker players will do for the game of Poker rather than hide on-line and win a bit of money, Poker is becoming a game for younger, talented players who are "new" like a Tiger Woods. Did the rest of the PGA Tour complain when their purses for events nearly triple due to the fact that public was once again interested in golf and developing young talent? No, they embarced it because they knew it was the best for them and the game of golf, and if they didn't, it would happen anyway with or without their support.
You see, Poker may never be as important to the World as the sport of Golf, but a lot of quality people play Poker, through my experinces anyway, and like anything else there are bad apples. If I was a top "pro" and was sitting at a table with pocket A's seeing a A-K-A flop (I wish) and I knew I was going to be crowned the champion after this next hand is completed, I want to know that I played against and beat the best.
You don't want to look up and know that there is someone out there that should have been at your table, that too me would be worse than anything, knowning that you beat a sub-par field for the victory, you cheated your-self and the game.
Anyway, I'm also very inexperinced and shouldn't have such an out-spoken issue on the matter.
But one thing I'd like to say to people who are against this "new age" poker player......
Were coming!
H. 8)
Comments
I find that it's really funny how frequently poker and golf are compared...it's a pretty cool analogue.
Ultimately good for this sports growth though. And yes I called it a sport! lol I think the old crowd will have deeper waters to wade through each year now too. Should make for better TV though.
I don't want to see any one pro win tourney after tourney, from a small group of regulars. No different than when Montreal used to keep winning Stanley Cups all the time, many years ago. lol Dynasties are bad for any televised events.
Another way to look at it is, they don't have much of a choice. It's here now. And it's not going away.
That's the only part of your post I disagree with.
If Freddy Couples back hadn't gone south on him, he had the talent to be another one of the greats. He was awesome to watch, before his back screwed up. imho of course