The summer in Las Vegas was an interesting one for me. I started off by taking a very bad beat before the
World Series of Poker even got under way. On May 31, some friends and I had just returned to our house from a nightclub at Treasure Island. We'd had some drinks and were very loud upon entering the house. Our sober roommate woke up from the noise and brought his video camera out to capture the hilarity that would ensue.
For whatever reason, we decided that it would be a good idea to do some stunts for him to record on the camera. We had a 3-foot-high inflatable air bed in our living room. My roommate Cody jumped off a 14-foot-high overhang in our house onto the mattress. Not to be outdone, I decided that I would do it, as well. Unbeknownst to me, however, he had created a hole in the bed, and it was deflating fast despite holding its shape. I jumped off the overhang and landed on the airless mattress and smacked the floor. I felt the pain instantly shoot through my body. I was lucky that neither my face nor head hit the ground; however, my back and left heel were in a world of hurt. My roommates sat there with me for probably 15 minutes, as I was unable to move.
Eventually, I got all of them to help me up the two flights of stairs to my bedroom, and I fell asleep at 6 a.m., hoping that it was just a stinger that would go away soon. I woke up early at noon, still in pain, and it wasn't until 9 p.m. that I realized that I really, really needed to go to the emergency room. I still could barely bend my back, and it was very painful getting back down the stairs, even with Cody's help. I finally got into his car and we drove down the mountain to Sunrise Hospital. I sat in a wheelchair in the emergency room for five painful hours before finally hearing the magic words, "Shannon Shorr, the doctor is ready for you." At around 4 a.m., I was informed by the doctor that I had fractured two vertebrae in my back and had broken my left heel.
It wasn't until I heard those words that I was convinced that I wouldn't be able to play in the
WSOP event No. 1, mixed hold'em, which started in eight hours. I was crushed, because I really wanted to play in this event. They arranged for me to have a room in the hospital, and my incredible parents, sister, and girlfriend all flew out from Alabama and were in the room almost before I awoke later that day. For two or three days, I sat in the hospital taking medications and having tests run before I finally was released on Sunday, June 3. I was given crutches and a wheelchair to make my way around. The doctors recommended that I stay in bed for at least a week, but I just could not miss the
World Series of Poker.
The next day, I arrived at the Rio in my wheelchair and played in the $1,500 limit hold'em event. I busted out of that tournament, but cashed the next day in the $1,000 rebuy tournament and two more of the 21
WSOP events I played, including a finish in the round of eight in the $5,000 heads-up championship. If you had told me I was going to cash three out of 21 times in the
WSOP before it started, I would have said, "Lock it up." To be able to do that in the physical and mental condition I was in makes me that much prouder. I have since gotten rid of the crutches and wheelchair, and completed a few weeks of physical therapy. I also have begun a workout routine at the gym, and am probably back to around 95 percent healthy.
From here, I plan on traveling the
World Poker Tour circuit for the rest of the calendar year. There is an exciting list of events, including overseas trips to Barcelona and Turks and Caicos. I look forward to traveling, and, needless to say, I will not be jumping off another balcony anytime soon.
Shannon Shorr is a professional poker player from Tuscaloosa, Alabama. He finished fourth in the Card Player 2006 Player of the Year race. You can follow his progress at shannonshorr.com, or e-mail him with questions and comments at [email protected].
