Category Archives: Online Poker

With Apologies to Douglas Adams, Nassim Taleb and Every Major Religion: Why Investors Should Learn Poker in 2012

“It is not that there are no certainties, it is that it is an absolute certainty that there are no certainties.” Christopher Hitchens (1949-2011) from Hitch-22: A Memoir In Douglas Adams’ book Life, the Universe and Everything, the computer Deep Thought comes up with the Ultimate Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, The Universe […]

Complicit Regulators: The US Federal Reserve and the Alderney Gambling Control Commission

Thirteen years ago today, James G. Rickards received a phone call: “Jim, we just lost 500 million; you’d better get back to Greenwich.” Soon after, he would be called upon to broker a $3.6 billion bailout of the hedge fund Long Term Capital Management (LTCM). It was paid for by big banks and orchestrated by […]

Pokerboyz Minus One: RIP rggator

When we all met 10 years ago – first on the internet, soon after in “real life” – it was clear we collectively had fewer years ahead of us than behind us. We weren’t young. And poker, after all, wasn’t the only vice we shared. But in an unofficial poll, Randy didn’t make anyone’s top […]

What Poker Could Have Taught This Harvard Professor Re: Social Capital

Harvard Professor Robert Putnam has been recognized for his contribution to political science. According to Wikipedia, he “has been elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (1980), the Council on Foreign Relations (1981), the National Academy of Sciences (2001), and the American Philosophical Society (2005). He was the President of the American Political […]

The Poker Players Alliance is a Lobby – Not Online Poker’s Personal Savior

I’ve seen some bashing of the Poker Players Alliance (PPA) in the wake of DOJ indictments involving three online poker sites. I’m not a particular fan of the PPA. But I dislike lobbying organizations in general. If online poker sites were engaged in bank fraud as alleged, I’m not sure how the PPA is to […]

They Paved Paradise Part I: The Dawn

There is really no need to interview Perry as the spewage is constant. If I took notes in shorthand on speed, it would be hard to keep up with the banter — Amy Calistri I wrote that about Perry Friedman in April 2003 – later quoted in Tales from the Tiltboys. I had played online […]

Show One, Show All: Or Why it’s “Game Over” Without Information Regulation in Poker and Investing

Before Stuey Ungar went on to win three World Series of Poker Championships, he was a world class gin player – maybe the best that ever lived. Ungar was so good he had trouble getting action, which is why he eventually took on a suspected cheat. During the match, Ungar’s bodyguard informed him that his […]

Poker Alienation (and the Perfect Dress)

The World Poker Tour hit it out of the park when they hired one of the best tournament directors in the business. Matt Savage is a poker player’s TD. He’s known for his consistency, accuracy and fabulous structures. But the WPT lost it in extra innings for me with the “Royal Flush Girls.” The question […]

Investing and Poker a la Fargis

The Pokershrink took this picture of Chris Fargis in January 2006. Fargis was on his way to winning the Triple Draw Lowball event at the WSOP Circuit at the Grand in Tunica. For the win, he pocketed $22 grand. Through 2006, Fargis amassed over $137K in recorded live tournament events. As mostly an online player, […]

Bye Bye Birdie and PokerPages

I sat on the steps of my back deck, talking on the phone to Michael Casselli in the UK. He was part of the effort to start up a new poker magazine. It was 2004 and the post-Moneymaker poker boom was in full swing. They were looking for a “gossip” column — sigh. Lou Krieger […]