Imagine sitting at a poker table as an amateur, surrounded by professionals, television cameras and a crowd of onlookers. At stake is two and a half million dollars. You have never played in a high stakes tournament before, but now only a few others stand in your way of the pot. A few hands later, you are a millionaire, at the young age of 28. This is the story of Chris Moneymaker, who won the 2003 World Series of Poker in Las Vegas, Nevada. Poker has always been a popular game between friends, but recently it has grown into a full-fledged sport, fans and all. Nowadays, poker rooms are full and the cash up for grabs grows by the day. Hundreds of thousands of people play online and in casinos every day of the year, and more join them each day (Betchel 1). The most popular of the many types of poker is Texas no limit hold-em. The game is simple to learn and play, but takes many years to master. The sky is the limit as far as wagering goes. Anyone can step to a table and either win big or lose their shirt. Poker has become so popular recently because it has gained masses of media attention, and it offers intriguing risk factor as well as the chance to win big.

“The World Poker Tour”, which airs on The Travel Channel may have given the biggest boost to the “poker explosion.” It began airing weekly in 2003 and demonstrates poker with all the bells and whistles. “The World Poker Tour has set off a poker-playing frenzy across the country” (Creswell 1). The show travels around the world holding high stakes Texas no-limit hold-‘em poker tournaments. The tournaments draw in plenty of pros, along with anyone else that loves poker and can afford the $10,000 buy-in, the amount you must pay to enter (“Borgata” 1). The draw to amateurs is the hope “that anyone can win,” an often-used slogan in the game. The draw to the pros is all those amateurs who truly believe they can pull it off. In the end they both have their reasons and they are both valid. Several amateurs have won on the World Poker Tour. However, even if they can make it past the three or four hundred other players, at every final table they will usually find themselves a minnow among sharks. According to Julie Creswell, the most innovative part of the show compared to other televised poker events is the addition of the “lipstick” cameras showing the players hole cards. She also notes that poker revenues have almost doubled since the shows debut (1).

In addition to the World Poker Tour is its older cousin, The World Series of Poker. Founded in 1970 by Benny Binion, it is the largest and most prestigious tournament in the world (Mihailovich 1). The event draws in players, both pros and amateurs, from every corner of the world. Steve Mihailovich reported that the event is growing exponentially, and raking in big bucks for Harrah’s Entertainment, which now owns the event. He also states that this year’s WSOP was the biggest ever by a long shot. There were over 13,000 players in 33 events, and a total prize pool of almost $50 million, which dwarfs last years $20 million (1). This years champion won $5 million, a record for the game and double what Moneymaker won last year. The publicity generated by these televised events has created a buzz throughout the country. Even celebrities have gotten themselves into the mix, many appearing on Bravo Network’s “Celebrity Poker Challenge”.

Dustin Filloy, an avid amateur player, is drawn to the risk and adrenaline that poker offers. Even in the small town of Indiana the poker explosion is felt. He says that every night you can find at least one game to sit down and play. However, the term play is not popular among passionate poker players. “There is a lot less luck involved in poker than in other games, you pick and choose your hands and act when you think it is appropriate,” Filloy said. The risk comes when you decide you will play one of those hands. While you are busy throwing all of your chips in the pot, there can always be one other player thinking to himself, “I’ve got him now.” When talking to Filloy he told me about some of the “bad beats” he has taken, which happens when a clearly better hand is simply outdrawn and loses to a hand that had almost no chance. “I had two aces, one of the best starting hands you can have. The flop came out and I got my third ace, but little did I know that the only a person playing the hand got a full house on the last card. I went all in with about $80 left and lost it all.” Going “all in” is where the risk of hold-‘em comes in. At any time, during any hand, a player can decide to risk it all in hopes of doubling his chips. The drawback however, is that many times you will not double up. Instead, you end up going home with nothing but a bad taste in your mouth. The great thing about the game is the risk is not a very dangerous one to take. A smart player will not take more to the table than he can afford to lose (Filloy).

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