Poker!!

I have to admit that I have got caught up in the craze for Texas Hold'em poker. Back in 2003 when Chris Moneymaker won the World Series of Poker I was caught up in the excitement (well ok, I didnt REALLY notice until about 2004). Soon I found a free online site to play and had parlayed my initial 1000 chips into well over a million. My softball buddies also had caught the bug and we began to play hold'em tourneys when softball was rained out or between seasons. It is a very enjoyable way to spend time with friends, as long as we are playing for negligable amounts. We play tournament style each time, buy in and that is the most you can lose, no one getting to toss the keys on the table and bet their car(I dont want to take them home). We get braggin rights, 40 bucks and that is about it for a poker night. I like this a lot but there s a part of me that wants more.

I stayed up until 2am last night watching a replay of the 2007 World Series of Poker. Through most of the night I am sitting there, watching them play and thinking, "I could do that well" or "GEEZ, that was a stupid play". In between hands I am trying to frame the perfect way to let my wife know that I have a new profession calling to me because THIS IS EASY MONEY. I mean all you gotta do is finish in the top 140 or so and you get over 10k. I think top 50 was good for 6 figures even. Sounds like the poker world needs the Big Tea. I even watched a supposed 'poker pro' win huge and gaurantee himself a spot on the final table if he just plays super conservative for the next 30 minutes or so. He then proceeds to lose the next 3 hands and has to leave, in fact his last hand where he lost 16million in chips was him going all in on a flush draw!!!!!! I was beside myself, how do you bet everything on a draw, how do you put the whole of your poker life on a draw, how stupid is that?? Who would EVER leave such an important decison to fate, to the luck of the cards, to the flip of two cards??? NOT ME, I think the pros are gonna have to do without me.