Reality Check After One Week of the 2021 World Series of Poker
What many may have considered very unlikely to happen is currently unfolding at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino, as the in-person World Seres of Poker has returned after a one-year hiatus. Now in the slightly colder fall window instead of the hot summer months, the festival has been enjoying a successful start.
Overall, the attendance numbers for the early events are down compared to previous editions and that was certainly to be expected. Whether or not some will try to spin that into the narrative of the required vaccination and whatever conspiracy theory comes to mind is totally up to them. The poker enthusiasts I have seen in the hallways and various rooms of the convention centre were certainly not “sheep” but simply wanted to have fun and play some live poker once again after an unexpected break.
The first week is now completed and it’s time for an overall and personal resume of what has happened thus far and how I dare judge my own performance.
Travel Shenanigans En Route to Las Vegas
As a European it actually wasn’t quite easy to get to the United States without making a stopover in a country outside of the Schengen area. Mexico was the first choice but at the last minute, we got a deal to cover the partypoker LIVE MILLIONS at the Merit Crystal Cove in North Cyprus. It was a good timing because that gave me some practice on the live poker circuit and the opportunity to meet friends after more than one and a half years.
More often than not I heard the words “oh wow, you look slim now, did you lose weight?” That was indeed the case even though I gotta admit that the free buffet at Merit made sure that some pounds found their ways back onto my hips. Being able to jump into the indoor and outdoor pool in the mornings without anyone around was a blessing for sure and helped to find some balance with long working hours during the festival.
Eventually it was time to make the trip to the US after spending 15 days on the island and once I reached my connection in Istanbul, Turkish Airlines submitted my details for the long flight to San Francisco. Out of nowhere, the system automatically canceled my already approved ESTA and all my proof for staying outside of Schengen was submitted by email. In the very last minute, the application was reinstated and I was the last person to board the plane.
Upon arrival in San Francisco, there was additional questioning and I scraped to make the final connection once more. As the saying in poker goes, it is sometimes better to be lucky than good and I may have already used up all my fortune during the first 24 hours.
From the Plane Straight to Mixed Games Coverage
After spending more than 22 hours from door to door en route to Las Vegas and arriving in the late evening, the next day promised to contain the first challenge of poker’s biggest annual festival. Day 2 of Event #2: $25,000 H.O.R.S.E. was a jump in the cold water as the last time I covered mixed games was more than two years ago at the very same location. The first few hours were certainly somewhat rusty but it didn’t take long to get back into the routine.
Phil Hellmuth made a run for his 16th WSOP gold bracelet but came up short in sixth place. One of his infamous blow-ups was against eventual winner Jesse Klein but Hellmuth showcased his consistency in the days to come thereafter with another two deep runs. He came up short of the record-extending victory while cementing his legacy among the peers and catching the attention of poker fans from near and far in the Amazon Room.
An even bigger challenge was Day 2 of the Event #7: $1,500 Dealers Choice 6-Handed with nearly two dozen different variants in the mix. Let’s just say, I had not been super familiar with some of the game types and that ensured a consistent headache throughout the day. However, at least based on what the players I spoke with told me, the coverage wasn’t too bad after all.
In between these two mixed game tournaments that can typically only be found and covered during the WSOP in Las Vegas was one of the starting days of Event #4: $500 The Reunion No-Limit Hold’em. Running shoes were certainly warranted as the largest of the three flights played across three different rooms. Despite the low buy-in I was still surprised to know very few players in the field but the reminder to my roots from back in 2014 as new member on the PokerNews team will hopefully keep me humble for the rest of the series.
Personal Score so far: Mediocre
Whenever I head into live reporting a big series, I put a lot of pressure on myself and set the bar very high for a specific reason: It’s the only way to maintain a consistently good coverage no matter what the buy-in level is. There should be no difference in the quality for the live reporting and I will always aim to provide as many details as possible.
During the current festival the role of senior reporter is even more important because there are a lot of new members on the team and I am considered as the most experienced member of the live reporting team for which I gotta lead by example. There is very little room for error based on my own specific and elevated standards, every small typo or missing detail is bugging me to a certain degree.
Based on the first week, I can’t help but admit a mediocre performance across the board. There is a ton of room for improvement and it shall take a while to reach a level of satisfaction that can be considered as acceptable from my point of view.
Impressions of the Atmosphere
One thing I can certainly tell — almost all players have been quite excited to get back into the live poker action. Most of them have also reached a different understanding of current circumstances and that many new dealers were hired for the events on rather short notice. Mistakes happen to all of us and the players seem to be better at pointing out and handling situations that go wrong in a high-pressure environment.
People are having fun at the tables, they are cracking jokes, hand out fist-bumps and hugs aplenty to friends and foes. In general, the atmosphere feels more like a family reunion for the most part and only gets serious once the final few tables of a tournament are reached.
What has and hasn’t changed
The most glaring and obvious change are the required face masks while roaming around indoors. Players can take off the masks when they are seated but have to put them back on when they move tables, speak with friends on the rail or walk from one room to the other. As far as staff, dealers and members of the media are concerned, they have to wear the masks in the tournament area as well and that may be the case for up to 12–14 hours per day.
The Amazon Room is still freezing cold especially when not filled with hundreds of poker enthusiasts and it comes in handy to have a scarf, jacket or hoodie readily available. Some of the vendors are missing, most notably the beloved charging case folks, and the live reporters are the next best source to charge the phone or tablet batteries as per usual.
As far as the food options are concerned, All American Dave may not park right around the corner anymore but still delivers healthy meals until the late evening hours to those who can afford it regularly. The dealer break room now contains prepared meals and there are a lot of healthy salads available, which is a big relief for sure and makes up for the missing hot breakfast.
Conclusion After Week One
There were too many small mistakes on my part to be happy with the overall performance and I need to pick up on the daily fitness to find more balance. Every second day, a quick morning run shall help to get things started and that will hopefully help to ease the transition into the usual crazy workaholic schedule that is certain to follow in the weeks to come. I will continue to set the expectations for my own live reporting performance very high because anything below that doesn’t seem like a wise choice.
This elevated level is also needed going forward because not only will that be required for the remainder of the WSOP in Las Vegas but also for the WSOP Europe at the King’s Resort in Rozvadov / Czech Republic and the EPT Prague festival. There won’t be many days off and it almost feels back to the same routine as Christmas awaits when these back-to-back festivals have wrapped up. And if travel restrictions permit, a vacation to start the new year may very well be on the agenda.
Let’s hope that the enthusiastic, encouraging and friendly atmosphere at the Rio is concerned, it would be very welcome if that was to stay for the entire series. It makes the entire experience more appealing and worthwhile for everyone involved. After all, we are one big poker family and want to grow the game for the foreseeable future.
P.S. Does anyone know who this person with the buttoned shirt is?
