2008 Woodie Awards
Poker is fun but not a sport
Daniel Congrave
Issue date: 10/22/04 Section: No Limits
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There are lots of things that aren't sports that are touted as sports. Golf and bowling are not sports. Basically, the general rule is, if the activity can be played easily with a beer or cigar readily available to the participant, then it's not a sport. (With the lone exception being Babe Ruth's baseball career.)
Unfortunately, this also means that poker is not a sport. I know ESPN wants you to think differently, but they're wrong. Poker is game, just like golf, bowling, and the WNBA. They're not real sports, but lesser forms of gaming, hence games.
Games are not as important as sports. Hell, games don't belong on TV. As fun as it is to play Texas Hold 'Em, watching people play it is about as exciting as this year's National League Championship Series. Proponents of poker try to tantalize people by talking about the mounting pressure of going all-in. Well, that does sound pretty exciting, except for the fact that in televised poker tournaments, players win money regardless of where they place. So when a player with $20,000 worth of chips bets the whole farm, if he loses, he still gets prize money. So when a player goes all-in, all their really risking is the amount of money they get, not exactly an all-in, maybe "prize-money in."
Regardless of whether it's a sport or not, poker is still a fun game to play. Any activity that can be played while drinking and smoking a cigar fun. But remember, just because it's fun, doesn't mean it's a sport.
Unfortunately, this also means that poker is not a sport. I know ESPN wants you to think differently, but they're wrong. Poker is game, just like golf, bowling, and the WNBA. They're not real sports, but lesser forms of gaming, hence games.
Games are not as important as sports. Hell, games don't belong on TV. As fun as it is to play Texas Hold 'Em, watching people play it is about as exciting as this year's National League Championship Series. Proponents of poker try to tantalize people by talking about the mounting pressure of going all-in. Well, that does sound pretty exciting, except for the fact that in televised poker tournaments, players win money regardless of where they place. So when a player with $20,000 worth of chips bets the whole farm, if he loses, he still gets prize money. So when a player goes all-in, all their really risking is the amount of money they get, not exactly an all-in, maybe "prize-money in."
Regardless of whether it's a sport or not, poker is still a fun game to play. Any activity that can be played while drinking and smoking a cigar fun. But remember, just because it's fun, doesn't mean it's a sport.