Back in 2005, I wrote about the often debated "F-Bomb" rule. As I stated then, and still believe, a rule to help clean up the language in poker tournaments is good. In that column, I said:
"Many high-profile players have questioned the use of the rule because they believe it is selectively enforced. If all players were to help enforce it (the only way to make it really effective), there would be no debate about who should receive the penalties. As a player, you are responsible for adhering to rules and pointing out rules infractions, and this one should be no exception."
The problem that I am seeing more and more is that poker rooms are still selectively enforcing the rule. Dealers are not calling a floorperson over when a player uses foul language, and other players aren't, either. Floorpersons are also being selective regarding whom they give penalties and whom they don't. If this doesn't change, I will likely reverse my stance on this rule.
In addition to selective enforcement of the rule, I have seen/heard of cases in which the rule is being applied at times when it is debatable as to whether it should be. Many years ago at the Orleans, John Bonetti received a penalty for using the F-word while on break. Dave "Devilfish" Ulliott received a penalty as he was busting out of a tournament and walking away from the table. When did the penalty get applied? You guessed it, for the tournament that was taking place the next day!
In a column on the front page of
USA Today in 2005, the author addressed the state of poker and why the foul language needs to be cleaned up:
"This is 2005; poker is different and the World Series of Poker is way different than it used to be. Cameras are running. Reporters are taking notes. Blogs are awaiting updates. Websites are refreshing. Books and DVDs, T-shirts and hats, cards and chips, and assorted accessories are waiting to be sold."
It is almost two years later, and rules that were designed to clean up poker had better start working and being improved or they will turn out to be rules that shouldn't be in place at all.
During the 2006
WSOP, I was involved in a troubling incident during a $1,500 pot-limit Omaha tournament.
Early in the tournament, there had been a controversy surrounding some missing chips. A player on another table had returned from a break to find out that $1,500 in chips was missing from his stack. The floor staff double-checked their bank, called surveillance, and tried to figure out if they could find a problem, but they never could. If the guy really was missing the chips, he never got them back.
Toward the end of the day in the same tournament, we were approaching a break. I had $8,200 in black chips ($100) and seven yellow ($1,000) chips. Since we would be racing off the black chips during the break, I put them in a rack and set my seven yellow chips behind them. I waited for the floorperson who was doing the color-up to come to the table, then left for a break. I had in the back of my mind the alleged missing chips from earlier in the tournament, but with my chips, it would be almost impossible to screw up, or so I thought.
I came back from the break and immediately noticed that I had nine yellow chips, for a total of $9,000. I should have had $15,000. I called the floorperson over and he immediately said, "My bank is right, no chips are missing."
The good news for me was that I was able to get the chips back by pushing the issue. I do believe that had I been just some random player, I probably would not have gotten them back. That's bad, and I think that a simple solution could be implemented to protect players who want protection.
When players go on break, give them the option of recording their chip counts on a sheet and have the dealer sign it. Players who opt not to do this have no recourse, but players who do use it obviously have the protection that they need. I am sure that there are other more brilliant ideas, but something must be done to protect players' chips when they are away from the table. There is just too much at stake, and no way to protect yourself when you are forced to leave the area during a break.
Michael O'Malley is the poker room manager for www.Partygaming.com, and can be reached at [email protected]. His website is updated regularly at www.rzitup.com.
