Lights, Camera, Antics

"I am mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore!" Remember that line? It's from the 1976 movie Network. I thought I would borrow the line to lead into this column because it sort of fits some of my feelings that have surfaced lately.



What it is that I will not take anymore is poker being manipulated by television. When I say I won't take it any longer, what I really mean is, I won't take it any longer without voicing my opinion about what they are doing.



What "they" are doing is leading the poker industry into a code of conduct that has in the past been unacceptable. The last tournament I played had more than 300 players. That large number was great, and it made me happy and proud that poker has grown so much.



What disturbed me, which I blame primarily on television, was the way many of the players were acting. But what got to me even more was that I realized it has come to the point that certain antics are not only accepted on the television broadcasts, but encouraged. These antics lead new players and viewers to consider these actions acceptable behavior while playing poker. I saw or heard several players jumping up and shouting loudly, "Yes," or "Yeah," after winning a pot. It seemed that every two minutes someone was shouting to let everyone in the room know that he had just won a pot. I heard trash-talking that made me sick, and incessant criticism of other players' play.



I realized that the excessive celebrations were a result of the newer players mimicking what they have seen on television broadcasts of poker tournaments. Even some veteran players have gotten into "playing to the cameras."



Before I go on, I must say that we in the poker world owe much to television. It is the primary reason for the poker boom. It has brought tens of thousands of new players into the world of poker. It has made celebrities of many of the established players. It has given a countless number of players the opportunity to tell their friends and family, "Watch for me on TV tonight."



So, all in all, we are much better off since the television industry got involved with our game.



But, having said how much television has helped poker and so many of us players, it seems to me that it also has created some misconceptions about what is the proper way to conduct ourselves.



Is it really in our best interests for the television cameras to feature players who have just won a pot and are jumping up and down? Doesn't this just encourage others to do the same, knowing that if they do, the cameras will be coming to their table to cover them? And even worse is the cameras focusing on the trash-talkers. It's great television, but isn't it also encouraging many players to do the same thing so that they can see themselves on television?



So, to cut to the chase, I am saying that many of the new players have been introduced to poker by watching it on television, and they not only accept the victory celebrations and trash-talking, but consider them to be proper conduct in a poker tournament.



You will notice that most of the older, more experienced players do very little, if any, celebrating after winning a pot. Can you imagine Doyle or Johnny Chan winning a hand and then jumping up and down as if he had just scored the winning touchdown in the Super Bowl? We were taught that it is poor poker etiquette to do that. In fact, in the "old" days, you might have had someone jump across the table and punch you in the nose for such victory celebrations or trash-talking.



Do I think my writing this column will change anything? Not really, because as the old saying goes, "He who has the gold makes the rules."



Television is one of the two big reasons for the great explosion in poker's popularity. The other, of course, is the Internet. Brick-and-mortar casinos have benefited tremendously from the influx of the huge number of new players, so they would be the last to try to change the code of conduct in their tournaments.



One side note that occurs to me, which leads me to believe I am on the right track, is to picture these celebrations and trash-talking occurring in live games at The Bicycle Casino, Commerce Casino, Bellagio, or Foxwoods. If you are an Internet player and are not familiar with play in brick-and-mortar casinos, trust me – you might get away with it once, but the second time you stand up and shout, "Yeah, yeah, all right," the floorman will be over telling you that your behavior is unacceptable, as it is a bother and distraction to other players.



And as far as talking-trash is concerned, let me assure you that players in side-action games will not accept or condone it. It might even be dangerous to your health. To me, the question that begs to be asked is, "Why is it not acceptable to display these antics in side games, yet in tournaments it is?" I think the answer, quite simply, is because it's good for televised poker tournaments, and it has carried over from televised events to all tournaments, televised or not.



So, if I had my way, would I make rules banning the things I have just discussed? No, of course not. There are plenty of tournament rules already. But, I would advise any newcomer to poker that as elated as he may be about winning a big pot, he should show the guy who just lost the pot some consideration. Plus, you look a lot cooler if you just rake in the pot and quietly stack your newly acquired chips.



I might add that for as long as I have been playing tournaments, which is quite a while, it has been almost unheard of (and certainly not acceptable) to jump up every time you win a big pot or catch that miracle card on the river.



Before I conclude, let me add a disclaimer. That is, I do not think a player is out of line by jumping up and throwing his arms in the air when he wins a tournament and wants to celebrate his victory. It has always been acceptable, and even customary, to stand up and celebrate your win. After all, winning a tournament is not an easy thing to do, and it is a very special time for anyone. Go ahead – jump, shout, and tell the world you are the champ. I must conclude by saying that as much as I am not into posturing for television, it has become too much a part of tournament play to see it disappearing. Perhaps this column is my way of publicly hoping that we can confine the "antics" to just televised tournament poker.



For what it's worth …



Vince Burgio maintains a website, http://www.pokervince.com/, and is the author of a new autobiography titled Pizza, Pasta and Poker.