Foxwoods - A Hidden Gem

The tournament trail featured a stop at Foxwoods again in November, and attendance was up across the board. Many players from the West Coast decided to make the trip after hearing rave reviews about the tournament and its structure. CardPlayer.com covered the final event live over the Internet, with professional radio personality Rick "DaVoice" Charles doing an outstanding job as the host.

I hadn't been back there since '97, but I've always had fond memories of Foxwoods. After all, it was the first place I'd ever had any real success in tournament poker. Walking back into the poker room in November gave me a warm feeling. It felt like I was back home where it all started. The people at Foxwoods are great, from the staff on down to the players. After just a few days there during his first visit, John Juanda agreed that the players and staff were very courteous and treated him well. That sentiment was echoed by a large majority of the players. Even though the many facilities Foxwoods has to offer and the hospitality they show their players are great, they still aren't the biggest drawing card for a tournament poker player. In my opinion, the structure that has been implemented at Foxwoods is the best on the planet!

The entire time I was there, there was never even the slightest complaint about the structure. Quite the contrary, many of the first-timers were in shock. They'd never played in a tournament with that much play to it – except, of course, the World Series of Poker. The man to thank for that great structure is Tournament Director Mike Ward. Mike is a poker player at heart, so he knows how important it is to the players to have a fair tournament structure. Over the years, he has listened to all the players' requests and has done everything he could to implement the changes necessary to make those requests a reality. My hat's off to you, Mike.

Let me first briefly explain why Mike Ward's structure is so player-friendly:

1. They give you approximately 30 percent more chips to start than most other tournaments on the circuit.

2. As is the case in most tournaments, you know how long the levels will be before you put up your buy-in. How frustrating it is to buy in to a tournament expecting hourlong levels, only to find that because there are "too many" entrants, you will get only 40-minute levels! (Such is the case with a system like TEARS; the amount of skill required in any given tournament is ultimately determined by the number of entrants. The more entrants, the shorter the rounds.) That should never be the case. More entrants in a tournament should simply mean that it will take longer to finish. You pay the same price for your buy-in regardless of how many players enter, so you should be given an equally fair structure! Actually, the more entrants there are, the more the players pay collectively. To repay them by shortening the rounds is silly.

3. They avoid the clumsy, annoyingly slow, red chip levels. Red chip levels are $15-$30, $20-$40, $30-$60, $40-$80, $60-$120, and so on, where $5 chips are still necessary. These levels create far too much work for the dealers and confusion for the players. The dealers are forced to make change for virtually every bet, thus increasing the likelihood of an error. At Foxwoods, they start at a practical limit – $25-$50. That's followed by $50-$100, and then $100-$200. After that, the limits never double! They put in virtually every single logical increment imaginable, all with practical, comfortable ante and blind structures: $150-$300, $200-$400, $300-$600, $400-$800, $600-$1,200, and then the key $800-$1,600 level, which is missing in many tournaments. It continues on slowly from there.

4. It gets better: At the final table, they go to two-hour levels for the bigger buy-in events! That makes for a lengthy tournament, but Foxwoods has it set up such that the bigger buy-in tournaments are two-day events. At the same time, there is no other tournament on the second day, so you don't have to worry about missing one.

If you are considering entering the "major" tournament arena, there are many reasons why Foxwoods should be one of your first stops. Of course, its structure is the key. You will definitely get your money's worth, whether you are actually playing the tournaments or are just getting your feet wet in the satellites, as the satellites also give you more than enough play for your money.

There is also another good reason. With the popularity of tournament poker being so rampant in the California area, it isn't a surprise that the players as a whole there are a little more skilled in the art of tournament play. Foxwoods will offer any competent player a legitimate chance of making a final table, or even winning an event! Of course, Foxwoods is no longer the secret that the likes of Jim Boyd and "Miami" John Cernuto were hoping it would be! They've known for years how much value there is in the satellites and tournaments at Foxwoods. Well, my friends, I'm afraid the word is out regarding what a wonderful tournament stop Foxwoods is, and more tough players will be coming in droves next year – and, hopefully, for years to come.

Note: If you are looking for more information concerning Foxwoods' tournament schedule, check the Tournament Trail for daily tournaments as well as upcoming major tournaments.