Is Poker Entertainment? By Bob Henry At Isnare.com Ezine Articles

The latest edition of the WSOP witnessed all sorts of dramatic changes to both the schedule of events and the way in which the dying moments of the final table were portrayed on television.

Spectator sport of the future?

The entertainment moguls have recognised the value of poker and have clearly earmarked it as a possible spectator sport of the future – but aren’t they simply hijacking the entire industry for the financial benefit of a few?

The genuine poker fraternity must be getting rather annoyed at the constant interference in the game simply because it has proved to be one of the most lucrative trends of the new century. Every Dick, Tom and Harry is jumping on the bandwagon to claim a slice of a sector that is worth billions every year.

In an effort to crank up the ratings, television stations are clambering over one another to claim the rights of any sport or game that is slightly different, but is poker really going to pull in the anticipated viewership?

Sure, it is, without a doubt, the fastest growing trend known to man but are we talking the number of poker players themselves or the number of ordinary people interested in the game purely because of its reputation of rewarding players with inordinate amounts of money?

Learn from the Masters

How many normal TV viewers will cross to the poker channel for entertainment? My guess is not many. The people who flock to watch poker on the box are probably poker players themselves who want to learn from the Masters.

Joe Soap may turn on the telly in the dying moments of the WSOP heads-up simply to see how the winner reacts when he bags the millions of dollars staked on the main event. This year’s winner, Peter Eastgate, who pocketed $9 million, must have been a huge disappointment for the American network covering the heads-up – he didn’t even crack a smile and the anticipated energy was definitely missing!

The bosses of the box have different ideas for the future of poker. They are clearly wanting to create a kind of hyped up vibe emulating the atmosphere of a NFL showdown or a T20 cricket match where buxom babes bounce up and down shrieking their alliance to a particular team and crowds of avid fans don outsized gloves to wiggle in the air every time someone scores.

Poker necessitates long periods of concentration

Poker players, however, will tell you that poker is a game of skill that necessitates long periods of intense concentration. Will the true professionals of poker be enamoured with the kind of rah-rah atmosphere the networks are trying so hard create?

It is unlikely poker will ever compete with the likes of a Wimbledon final or the newly conceived Indian Premier League – it is simply not a spectator sport for the masses, so the men in charge of creating entertainment on the small screen had better think again before they attempt to turn professional poker into a circus!

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