Tuesday, March 13, 2007

The First Couple of Poker

When it comes to professional poker players my dad is almost completely clueless. He knows a few names and even fewer faces but wanted to go with me to Bay 101 and check things out. Yesterday was a bit disappointing for him because Shannon Elizabeth didn't show up. I tried to make up for it by pointing out Liz Lieu, Cyndy Violette and Vanessa Ruosso. Today he was looking forward to seeing Jennifer Tilly and Phil Laak.

Jennifer and Phil both had bounties on their heads so they were at different tables. Since my dad couldn't get a good view of Jennifer I made sure to point out Isabelle Mercier and Evelyn Ng who were both in his view range. After player introductions we ate lunch at the Deli and by the time we finished both Jennifer and Phil had been eliminated from the tournament. I figured they would be long gone so I was pleasantly surprised to find them signing autographs and taking photos with anyone who asked. They were very gracious, signing for at least a half an hour, and didn't seem to care that they were both out of the tournament. My dad didn't get their autographs (I did!) but he did comment on how cool it was that they would do that. Especially since other players couldn't get out of there fast enough when they got beat. So I have now dubbed them the first couple of poker for their graciousness to their fans.

I didn't stay very long at the tournament today as I wasn't feeling very good. I don't know how they decide who to put bounties on though. Johnny Chan, Dan Harrington, and Ted Forrest were all there but not considered "stars" this year. How do you not make Johnny Chan a "shooting star"? Maybe it's better this way. Last I checked he was still in the tournament while a lot of the bounty players were gone.

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