Random Thoughts

The poker world recently lost one of its own – Andy Glazer. Andy was not only a great writer and poker player, he was also a great man. I was fortunate enough to spend some time with him over the years, and I will miss his unique writing style. I was able to attend Andy's funeral near New York City, and it was a touching tribute to a man who had led two different lives. Andy's family and close friends told stories of his past experiences outside of poker, and how he stumbled into the poker world. On the other hand, a handful of poker players told stories of Andy's passion as a poker writer and player. Phil Hellmuth gave a tribute to Andy, and explained that he was really the first person Andy got to meet in poker. Also there to represent the poker side of Andy were Matt Savage, John Juanda, Scott Byron, Ashley Adams, and Wendeen Eolis. Andy will be missed by many people.

As I write this, I am in Verona, New York, at the American Poker Championship at Turning Stone Casino. I must admit, I probably never would have ventured to Upstate New York to check out this casino if it had not been for this tournament. Turning Stone Casino is a beautiful place, located in the middle of a part of the country that is as far away from the hustle and bustle of Las Vegas as possible. The poker room is a class operation, and spreads lower-limit games in a friendly atmosphere.

This tournament was the first-ever live televised poker tournament. FoxSportsNet broadcast the final table live the day after baseball's all-star game. It will be interesting to see how well live poker catches on. The World Series of Poker and Championship Poker at The Plaza are also airing new shows. I was fortunate to be able to be involved in both of these tournaments, and both shows are great TV. World-class players are playing for large sums of money, and TV ratings are proving that poker is a viable option for major networks. Look for poker tournaments to break through to prime time TV in the future.

During the last five years, I have enjoyed being able to play lots of poker, travel to many exciting places, and work sparingly in major tournaments, with online poker sites, and in other poker-related areas. But my true passion has always been working in casino management, specifically in poker rooms. I enjoy dealing with poker players on a daily basis, and confronting the challenges that come with building and maintaining a successful poker room. Recently I made the decision to go back to work full time at what I believe will be one of the most prominent poker rooms in the world. Since I haven't officially started, I will leave the details for a future column, but going back to work in a poker room should provide me with lots of good material for my column. After all, this column is supposed to be about interesting decisions and rules at the poker tables, even though there is none of that this time.

I'm going to close with something to think about. Chris Ferguson recently told me this: "Show me the guy who everyone thinks is the luckiest person in poker, and I will show you the best poker player." If you think about it, Chris is right, and there is one person right now who everyone thinks is the luckiest person in poker. Personally, I think he is the best poker player there is right now. Do you know who he is?