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Senator wants to legalize poker rooms
Published: 2005-04-20
 Web posted April 20, 2005
Senator wants to legalize poker rooms
Alaska Department of Revenue: Cards could be a $2.5 million industry
By ANDREW PETTY
JUNEAU EMPIRE
Behind closed doors, even at the Alaska Capitol, staffers and legislators play weekly rounds of poker.
One senator wants to make it legal for people to gather at public "card rooms" for fun and cash, and for businesses to profit from it.
The only catch is the house can't rake in a percentage or let the dealer win hands. Instead, it can charge a taxable fee per game.
Sen. John Cowdery, R-Anchorage, is eyeing a system set up in Washington and California that gives licenses to establishments to run poker, rummy, bridge and cribbage games.
Most forms of gambling in public are illegal in Alaska, yet it continues on a daily basis. Cowdery said about 15 underground poker games are played a night in Anchorage.
"There's so much being done anyway, (the state) should at least get a few bucks out of it," he said.
Senators listening to the bill did not express opposition but are withholding comments until a final draft of the proposal is complete.
"I think we can all acknowledge that there can be some social costs of gambling," said Sen. Con Bunde, R-Anchorage.
In Seattle, houses charge about $4 per hand and can make $90 an hour; establishments are allowed to have 15 tables in the room to run 24 hours.
Customers buy from the house a maximum amount of chips and play until they run out. The game is monitored by a house employee.
A manager at the Viking Lounge in downtown Juneau said he would be interested in setting up a few tables if the bill passed.
"Sounds like a lot of fun. Just like the millions of other games that people play - pool and darts - one more game to bring them out would definitely be exciting," said manager Justin Kanouse.
The popularity of the game has surged nationwide, sparking coverage of tournaments on ESPN and Fox Sports Network.
Perry Green, a former professional poker player from Anchorage, testified Tuesday at the Senate Labor and Commerce Committee on Senate Bill 165.
Green said Alaskans drive to Whitehorse, Canada to participate in the World Poker Tournament via satellite. Finalists compete for several million dollars in Las Vegas.
Some 140 players participated in a Matanuska-Susitna Borough tournament to win a finishing pole.
"That shows you how much people are interested out there," Green said.
If 13 card rooms open in the state, an official from the Alaska Department of Revenue said they could be a $2.5 million industry in Alaska. That number doesn't include money made from food and beverages served to customers.
The proposal says licenses will be given to one establishment per 30,000 people in a community. By the 2000 census figures, Anchorage could host eight, Fairbanks two and Juneau could service one.
Establishments would pay a $25,000 application fee, and taxes of $10,000 per table each year. Houses would have to host charity tournaments for education quarterly.
Applicants must have no felonies in their criminal records.
• Andrew Petty can be reached at andrew.petty@juneauempire.com
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UK News Good and bad celeb poker players identified
Published: 2005-04-20
 UK News
Good and bad celeb poker players identified
Wednesday, 20th April 2005, 16:01
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England's World Cup-winning rugby coach Sir Clive Woodward would make a world-class poker player while David Beckham would rank among the worst, according to a new study.
A gambling expert has uncovered various personality traits that make a successful professional poker player and Sir Clive came out on top thanks to his problem solving skills which proved key to England's success.
But Real Madrid ace David Beckham came bottom of the pile for an equally important quality - self control, or in his case, lack of it.
Professor of Gambling at Nottingham Trent University, Dr Mark Griffiths, identified ten key traits which determine whether you would make a good or bad poker player.
To ensure success at the gambling game you need to excel at problem solving, numeracy, self-control and be practical.
Flexibility, a strategic mind and the ability to deceive your opponents are also essential skills, but you also need to be self-critical, self-aware and willing to continually learn.
Ultimate celebrity poker player Clive Woodward would succeed because he can identify different strategies and approaches to problem-solving.
But David Blunkett's attempt to help his ex-lover's nanny obtain a visa, a decision he now regrets, puts him at the bottom of the problem solving category.
Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown would also play a good hand, coming out on top for his numeracy skills, and would easily beat failed investment banker Nick leeson, who lost over £1 billion in derivative futures.
Famous for his ice-cool demeanour, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger's ability to keep a clear head and make rational decisions would make him a good poker player.
If pitted against Real Madrid ace, David Beckham, who failed to exercise any self-control during his alleged "textual relations" with Rebecca Loos, he would win hands down.
Comic king of the jungle, high-pitched Joe Pasquale has a practical side that would see him beat off competition from pampered diva Jennifer Lopez.
Also among the elite bluffers is flexible Ben Elton, who can adapt to any situation and seizes opportunities that come his way, but football star Rio Ferdinand wouldn't stand a chance after his outright refusal to cancel a shopping trip to take a drugs test led to an eight-month ban.
Potential poker supremo Davina McCall, who has juggled her career and family with great strategic skill, would put Prime Minister Tony Blair to shame.
The report revealed the Prime Minister's lack of ability to formulate a gameplan quickly, as became evident when he came under increasing pressure over the war in Iraq, would see him lose his chips before he's begun.
Knowingly deceiving an opponent through good face management is also key to winning, an area of expertise for the infamous Lord Lucan, but quiet Chelsea footballer, Ashley Cole, would not fair as well.
But openly self-critical Cherie Blair, who admitted "I am not superwoman", would show up her husband and easily beat Gerald Ratner, whose jewellery empire collapsed after he went a step too far and declared his products were "crap".
Another female topping the lists is a lady who knows how to maximise her assets, reality TV star and glamour model, Jordan.
She came top in the self-awareness stakes, ahead of shamed Boris Johnson who caused offence in Liverpool by saying the city was "hooked in grief".
But when it comes to being open to learning Britney Spears takes the lead. Not one to rest on her laurels she has learnt from her first failed marriage, with a more successful second one.
A lesson Charlotte Church would do well to heed, curbing her passion for boys who kiss and tell.
Matt Robinson, marketing manager for gambling site 888.com, who commissioned the report, said: "This report shows that poker is a game of skill rather than luck.
"The report reveals that some celebrities just wouldn’t be able to hack it in the high-pressure atmosphere of a poker game."
All these techniques can easily be transferred to other areas of life, so if you are looking for a promotion you would do well to bear these points in mind
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