A WSOP Report From Padraig Parkinson

Of course it's all a lot bigger now. The stakes are higher but so are the falls. For some, it's not about winning any more. It's about being perceived as being a winner. I'm not talking about the prestige of being rated by your fellow pros, it's way bigger than that now. Sponsorship deals, endorsements, stock prices, TV stuff… that's where it's all at now. You've got to talk the talk to get into this game but if you can't walk the walk, things can go horribly wrong. It's not like you can fall down, pick yourself up, go back to where you came from, and come back again next year for another shot. If you fall down now, you're liable to be trampled on.

I've been here from the start. I've heard the talk. I suppose one or two guys wish they'd promised less… they might have accomplished more. But that's the game now. Poker can be a cruel game. It can find out some of the jokers… you know, the guys whose self-promotional skills far exceed their genuine ability. I suppose that's fair. But they are often joined in the losers' enclosure by guys who just don't deserve to be there, even by some of the greatest players in the world. I suppose that's why they call it gambling.

For a competitive game, there's a lot of really genuine friendships between rivals. Maybe it's this camaraderie that makes the game what it is. I hate to see guys hurting, especially guys with heart. Nobody tries harder than Barny Boatman. His play may be a little unorthodox but there's often a method to the badness (so he tells me). He's played a zillion tournaments this trip and hasn't cashed once. The deck has been hitting some guys in the face and Barny can't catch a break. I doubt if he could catch a bus! He's gone really deep time after time, which means he must do something right. But like Cinderella, midnight, or bubble time as we call it here, is not his favourite time of the day. No ball for Barny. We had dinner with the Hendon Mob the other night. As the waiter offered Barny the dessert menu, I told him not to give it to him as Barny was due to be knocked out just before the end of the main course! It's a tribute to his great sense of humour that he managed to laugh.

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