Now that the World Series is over; oh, sorry it really isn't over...
After the World Series of Poker is put on hold, there is a pause in the poker world. We had a Latin American Poker Tour event and a Asian Poker Tour event and several regional tournaments, one in London and another in East Orangegrove; but basically it has been quiet in the poker world. Which means that poker writers have been pulling out all those old ideas they came up with one drunken night during the WSOP. Here are some fairly good examples of what late nights, alcohol, sleep deprivation and the need for content will produce:
-A two part series by Short Stack Shamus on how Rolling Stone magazine has or has not covered poker over the last 40 years.
-B.J. Nemeth somehow links poker and the Olympics, which one has to guess is simply a way of admitting that since there is nothing going on in poker right now, B.J. is trapped in front of his TV watching team handball at 3 A.M. But the conversation in the comments section are usually interesting at Pokerati where B.J. is writing these days.
-It would seem the Doctor of Poker Darkness has also had some time to decompress from the long, hot summer in Las Vegas. But pitch black or only shades of grey... Dr. Pauly is always interesting to read on poker and life in general.
-If you have rumbling around in the back of your brain that coming to Las Vegas to play poker for a living might be a good idea... Well there are lots of books and articles I could point you to or you could just google: "I lost my ass in a Las Vegas poker room" but for truthful look at poker in the desert from a knowledgeable player... try reading the Poker Grump.
-If you have been watching the ESPN telecasts of the 2008 WSOP then you definitely want to read an August 7th post on Up for Poker by Otis. He talks about how ESPN has looked at their televised commentary and might actually be improving the depth of their coverage.
When the Latin America Poker Tour was first announced it was hard not to notice that about half of the tournaments were going to be played in South America. Now if I remember correctly the term "Latin America" refers to a particular portion of the geography of the Americas and some residents of South America are a bit touchy about being included under the designation of "Latin" America. Well now that has all been remedied because the promoters of the LAPT have announced they will be adding tournaments in the United States and Canada. Apparently Mexico has been left out because the tour directors couldn't find it. Hint: Look in the southern portion of North America, just north of Latin America but do not use the map provided above. Oh nevermind. Here is the official sounding announcement.
