On the Road Again

Didn't Willie Nelson have it right? There just ain't nothin' finer than bein' on the road. Oh, I've gotten fat and happy living on the golf course here in Vegas. But, somewhere inside me still lives the nomadic poker player I was in the late 70's – the curly-haired, rangy, blue-jeaned rounder who lived out of the back of his car, rolling from a game with silver miners in the back of a sawdust saloon in Idaho to a private game in a gorgeous mansion overlooking the Cascades, where I was the only guy not wearing a Rolex, to tournaments in Reno against crusty old-timers. I loved being that guy on the road, drifting from game to game, staying when the action was good, and moving on when it slowed.

Last year a buddy of mine went to the inaugural World Poker Open in Tunica, Mississippi, and brought back tales of monstrous pots, plentiful food, and Southern hospitality. So, when the 2001 tourney rolled around, I hooked up with a few friends, packed my bags, and headed east to the Mississippi River.

I expected to find a few small casinos, like those that have sprung up all across the country. Instead, I found a bunch of 30-story-tall casino towers. It was kinda like home, if your home happens to be Las Vegas. I made an early excursion to the Horseshoe poker room. Everything there reminded me of the good old days in Vegas, before the bean counters took over. The place had an old-time gambling hall feel, and the food was hearty, plentiful, and completely comped – all of which was very nice. But what impressed me most was the poker games.

I'm not talking about action, although there was plenty of that. I'm talking about the people side of the game – how the folks who sit down across the felt treat each other, and the spirit and attitude of players and employees. These games were the friendliest public poker games I have ever played in my life, bar none. I mean, no public cardroom I have ever played in has come close, and I've put in more than 50,000 hours at the tables, so that's saying something.

You know how poker games can get. I've said before that the game brings out the worst sides of the best people, and what it does to the worst people is horrific. Whining and moaning, lecturing and snapping, and sullen card throwing – sometimes it seems that's the norm, but not in Tunica.

Why the difference? Why is that place so friendly? I believe a big part can be attributed to leadership. Quality starts at the top and trickles down. Kenny Lambert, the Horseshoe cardroom manager, is a man who has always commanded my respect both personally and professionally, and has done a great job of showing the way. But a big chunk of the difference is the players. They're a bunch of good old Southern fellas from neighboring states who wear their genteel manners as naturally and comfortably as their favorite pair of sneakers. They treat those around them with decency and respect. Whether you play good poker or bad poker, suck out or take beats, are a yakker or a silent type, these boys just make you feel at home. The respectful attitude also carries over to the dealers and employees, who do their jobs and serve their customers with the same level of regard. If a dealer made a mistake, the players genuinely made an effort to help him instead of belittling him, and I never saw an employee make a nasty comment to a customer the entire time I was there.

I kept waiting for the situation to change as players got stuck and started steaming. It never happened! Ten days went by and these guys were still as congenial as could be! It was just plain Southern – as down-home as barbecue, pork rinds, and stock cars – something you don't find on the coasts or in the big city. It would be great if such a social and pleasant atmosphere existed everywhere. It adds so much to the enjoyment of the game. When poker is fun and social, many more recreational players come to town – and you sure could see the results in Tunica! The games were great! Some players I hadn't seen in Vegas in a long time were just having a fine time in Mississippi, playing poker for fun and enjoying the atmosphere. Many didn't care too much about winning or losing – they were there just to have a good time.

When people throw cards, cuss out dealers or other players, whine, and create an ugly mood for the entire table, they hurt the freakin' game! I think the ones who complain about people taking their hands uphill and getting there are just about the worst, but there are innumerable negative characteristics that not only hurt poker badly, but are just plain lousy human behavior. The main reason we players tolerate the garbage is that, typically, the whiners, card-throwers, complainers, and abusers are pouring money into the game. And besides, we're usually in public places, and cardrooms tolerate a lot because they want to keep the rake going. There's an old joke that the cardroom rule used to be that if you hit a dealer, you were out of the game for 20 minutes, but if you hit a player, you were barred for a week. As players, we really shouldn't stand for any abuse. Life is too short to tolerate that kind of anger and stress. And it runs recreational players out of the game and hurts the entertainment side of gambling, thereby affecting the cash flow into the poker economy.

Professional and regular players of the game need to rise to the occasion and show leadership in this area. Police your own games with the support of casino management to make the environment a happier, healthier, and friendlier one for the good of all. Don't let the behavior of the jerks set the tone, creating a sour atmosphere and chasing good people from the game. Providing leadership in this area for the overall good of the game is the right thing to do on many different levels.

The young kid traveling the road back in the '70s didn't understand all of this on an abstract level, but he always tried to treat people the way he wanted to be treated. Yeah, it was (and still is) his job to separate players from their chips, but being polite serves the situation well. Among other things, he kept on being invited back to the games, and the games tended to be fun. A little old-fashioned respect and courtesy, Southern-style, would serve poker well today.

Editor's note: Roy Cooke played winning professional poker for 16 years. He is a successful real estate broker/salesperson in Las Vegas – please see his ad below.