Friends From the Great White North

A few years ago, I met a group of poker players from Canada. They were not just any run-of-the-mill card players. They were some goofy, fun, smart, charismatic, witty, charming, and kind young men. They were dot-com guys, if you will, and they worked very closely with a huge company that had recently been sold, so they decided to celebrate by going to Las Vegas for a lavish "dream" weekend full of adventure. Their idea of fun might shock some of the more rowdy guys out there, but their agenda for the long weekend made me envious. They each booked a beautiful suite at the Venetian Hotel, took a helicopter flight to the Grand Canyon, went to the Richard Petty Drive Experience, saw their favorite performer Jay White (a Neil Diamond impersonator), and enlisted Linda Johnson to speak with them about poker and host a private poker tournament for their group. Some of the fellows didn't play much poker at the time, but were still interested in participating in the poker portion of the weekend. This was before the days of the World Poker Tour or any of the other TV shows or promotions that have contributed to the growth of the game lately. These guys wanted to learn the game and have a tournament just for fun and for bragging rights. Thus, the official MIF tournament was born. That is what they call their group now, MIF, and just recently, some of the original group members were in Las Vegas with a few new members.

Linda Johnson contacted Bellagio's Director of Poker Operations Doug Dalton and arranged for a private tournament, and Mark Tenner, Linda, Doug, and I challenged the MIF guys to a one-table freezeout. After the tourney, we had dinner at a fine local restaurant where the host of the group is the only person to get a menu with the prices on it. Wow, it was really something.

You are probably wondering how the name MIF was derived. As I got better acquainted with two of the group's members, Tim Jackson and Don Bent, I asked them. MIF is an acronym for "make it fo." What does that silly comment mean, and where did it come from? Well, they were playing at one of the local Las Vegas cardrooms a few years ago with some local rocks. It was a $2-$4 limit hold'em game. One of the regulars, who was dressed in casual attire, complete with suspenders and a hat, and who prided himself as an expert at the game, had an interesting tell in his game. First, you must realize that this "local pro" had a thick Southern drawl and some interesting pronunciations of many common, everyday words. Anytime he was faced with a $2 bet and was holding a monster hand, this character looked away from the table, appeared disinterested, and verbalized his raise with the now infamous (among the group, anyway), "Make it fo!" Then, he would "disinterestedly" toss $4 into the pot. They got such a kick out of his play, his nonchalant raise, and his pronunciation, that they adopted this saying as their mantra. When dining out, if for example there were three ice tea orders, it was sacrilegious not to "MIF," even if you hated ice tea. They adopted a policy of having to MIF (make it fo) anytime it came up. If the conversation went something like, "I'll have the catch of the day," "Oh, me, too," "OK, so will I," the next guy had to make it fo. If someone missed the opportunity to MIF, he had to pick up the tab! The group actually has five members, but it works well that way, too. When we played the one-table tourney with them, anytime you could raise to "make if fo," it was the chosen play, even if not the smartest play.

These guys have a lot of fun when visiting Las Vegas, or anywhere, for that matter. Not shy or timid about their images, they do some of the goofiest stuff – and they do it in matching outfits! Talk about confidence in your own skin! These guys are the best. See the photo.

It was a fun few days with these Canadians, and their ongoing utterances of "Eh?" and "Make it fo" never lost their humorous edge. Oh, what happened in the poker tourney? Well, Doug Dalton and Linda Johnson were the first two out, followed by Mark Tenner. All five of the MIF guys followed, and yours truly won! I got a trophy to commemorate my win, and was crowned the 2004 MIF champion. While there are more prestigious events with lots more prize money out there, I can't think of a time that I ever had more fun playing poker. Thanks for visiting, guys; we'll be looking for those vests next time! Class dismissed.

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