Annie Duke

Just last week in a post on the WPT, I mentioned the long running and lingering lawsuit between the World Poker Tour and five professional players. My observations was: "the WPT could have and should have settled several years ago." Well now the announcement has been made that the dispute has been settled.

The entire issue was centered on the wording of the WPT player release document and just how much control that gave the WPT to the use of player's images for the promotion of the WPT. Several different wordings had been proposed by both sides and now, finally, there has been an agreement reached.

According to Steve Lipscomb, CEO of the WPT:

“We are happy to have come to an agreement that is fair to all players, and to have put in place a new release that clears up ambiguities in how players’ images may be used.”

Chris Ferguson, speaking for the players, said:

“We are especially happy that this new release will apply to all poker players who wish to participate in WPT tournaments and events. WPTE has created some of the best poker events in the world, and we are excited to participate in them once again.”

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It will interesting to see if Annie Duke, Howard Lederer, Chris Ferguson, Andy Bloch and Phil Gordon are in the field at the WPT Championship today.

[Note: Chris Ferguson, Andy Bloch and Howard Lederer were in the field at the Bellagio today.]

I like bizarre stories and I like bizarre poker stories even more. This one comes from the Seattle Post Intelligence newspaper and I first have to congratulate the reporter from Seattle who somehow got himself a gig going to Melbourne, Australia for the Aussie Millions tournament. While he was down there, he landed an interview with Annie Duke about how poker and child rearing are similar. You know just like all those other well reasoned poker analogies and metaphors: Investing and Poker; Dating and Poker; Global Warming and Poker; Embezzlement and Poker.

Here are some tasty excerpts:

Duke rarely goes all in with her kids. She says too many parents go all in by resorting to the ultimate punishment too quickly. 'If you don't stop biting your sister we are not going to Disneyland' is essentially going all in. You will either lose big or win big on the threat, and that means it is not usually a good move. The kid might be holding pocket aces or the hot-line number for Child Welfare.

Question: Honestly, what can you learn about parenting sitting across from a bunch of sleep deprived, loudly dressed men in ugly hats?

"One thing you learn is that you don't want your children to turn out like them."

Didn't Doyle say that about fifteen years ago?

Question: Are there any parallels to the check-raise in parenting?

"Check-raising is a way you let people know what you have. You certainly do this with your kid sometimes."

OK, I have no idea what that means but I think it is something like when my dad would look at me and say: 'Either do what I say or sleep somewhere else.'

Question: Do you take your kids into the casinos with you?

"No."

OK, so maybe getting the trip to Australia was not the best move this guy made. The few dollars to buy the book: "How Not to Ask Really Stupid Interview Questions" would have been a better career investment.

Annie did disclose she is writing two books right now. We can only hope she actually edits them this time around, as opposed to her previous ventures into the world of writing. Gee, maybe one of the books will be: What I Learned About Writing While Playing Poker. Chapter One: Not Everyone is a Poker Player or a Writer!

Annie Duke testified in front of the US Congress this past week. My comments will follow in a few days; for now here are some excerpts of Ms. Duke's comments that I think should inform the current legislative discussion. Her entire testimony can be found in pdf.format here.

"Having the right to continue to pursue my profession, wherever I might choose to pursue it, is very important to me from both a financial standpoint but also from the broader perspective of freedom, personal responsibility and civil liberties."

Yes, if you read Annie's entire testimony you will hear parts of the "luck versus skill" arugment, however, I find the personal freedom argument more compelling and more essential to the rights of poker players everywhere.

There was a very interesting poker article in the Wall Street Journal today. I have excerpted some of it here and added some comments.

CAMBRIDGE , Mass. -- Four-time poker champion Howard Lederer makes a plush living playing cards. His scholarly calm at the table has earned him the title "The Professor," along with $3.3 million in tournament prize money.

Just don't call him lucky. To describe poker as anything but a game of skill, he says,

"...is just wrong."

[Notice that the article begins on the theme of poker as Skill vs. Luck]

Now poker fans in academe are jumping in to help prove that point, most recently with a daylong "strategy session" at the Harvard Faculty Club bringing together poker pros like Mr. Lederer, game theorists, statisticians, law students and gambling lobbyists.

"The purpose of this meeting is to legitimate poker."

said Harvard University Law School professor Charles Nesson.

To do that, Prof. Nesson and his fellows hope to show, statistically, philosophically, legally and otherwise, that poker is a game in which skill predominates over chance.