2009 WSOP Final Table Photo Album Part 3

2009 WSOP Final Table Photo Album Part 2

Media Row.
























Dr. Pauly making a speech.




















Phil Gordon.















New Poker Hall of Fame inductee Mike Sexton opening the action after the dinner break.















I get snuggly with the Poker Queen.

2009 WSOP Final Table Photo Album

Photos from the Rio, Las Vegas, on November 7, 2009.

The November Nine

In about 90 minutes nine millionaires will sit down at the WSOP Final Table and begin the process of determining this year's winner. ESPN will telecasts the results Tuesday night. The format which began last year is a ratings winner, so I'm betting the November Nine format will be around for years to come.

Now, if I can only figure out how to find my seat among the November Nine. Every poker player wants to be there. Sure the money is great if you make it. But the excitement surrounding the WSOP Final is hard to imagine. If you love this game then the WSOP Final is on your Bucket List. Poker is the only sport that allows the amateur to compete with the professional, offering a chance to actually win. (This years chip leader, Darvin Moon, is an amateur from Maryland and owns a logging company and Phil Ivey is the popular professional.)

I don't play many tournaments, choosing the cash game as my favorite venue. But I'll play more tournaments beginning next year as I prepare for the 2010 WSOP next summer. If a Maryland logger can make the Finals, then why can't a hack like me? Thus the reason we all play the game: the chance to find greatness.

I'll be keeping up with the action throughout the day with Pauly at http://taopoker.blogspot.com/ .

Living in Las Vegas

After a year of traveling around Indian casinos in the Southwest, I finally landed in Las Vegas a few months ago. My poker blog has been neglected, and placed on Hold, for months. But now I'm getting back to it. On a regular basis now I'll be posting my thoughts about the game and maybe share some stories of the people I meet.

For me, poker is more than a card game. It's a social experience, a composite of the lives of those who sit down and share their time. Each game is a painting, a work of art, with various colors and schemes evolving over time from the individuals who at that time are contributing to the tapestry of play.

I have few passions in my life: art, writing, photography, and studying people. What better place to study people than at a poker table? I do feel at home in a poker room.

I'm not here to teach poker. I'm here to share the world of poker playing, a game that is a part of the American experience. Thousands of web sites will teach the game. This blog is my experience, my life, my contribution to the game that has become a passion for millions of players around the world.

Las Vegas Area Writers

My search for a local writer's group in Las Vegas has turned up very little so far. From Google all I can find are these three groups:

• The Las Vegas Writers Group. www.meetup.com/Las-Vegas-Writers
• The Henderson Writers Group. http://www.hwg.mergentsquared.com/
• The Writer's Pen & Grill. http://www.penandgrill.com/

The Pen and Grill is really more of a social gathering. According to its website, "The Writer’s Pen & Grill is designed to get writers away from their computers—at least once a month. Come hang out, socialize, and...yes…have a cocktail."

My plan is to attend the meeting of the Las Vegas Writers Group in November and eventually the Henderson Writers Group. I'm also checking with UNLV to see what's available. I'm looking for some local contacts and a regular meeting with other writers. A Las Vegas Writer's Conference is also in the works.

I'm surprised I didn't find more here, but I'll keep looking.

Do Not Sit on Banister

I looked at the sign taped to the wall in the Theater at the Clark County Library yesterday and knew it was going to be a long day: "Do Not Sit on Banister." These signs dotted the arena-style theater where I was attending a conference hosted by the library for writers and published authors. I figured the warning sign was appropriate. It was another way of reminding me to be careful, like a voice speaking softly in the back of my head saying, "Don't take any unnecessary risk."

My life for the last two years, however, has been all about taking risk. But that's another story for another time.

The Clark County Library on East Flamingo is a large complex going under an expansion, thus I noticed black plastic sheeting, tools, construction equipment, and dust on my walk to the theater. When I entered the auditorium I encountered the first of many "Do Not Sit on Banister" signs. Thanks for the warning. I found my seat quickly, positioned left center of the podium at stage front.

In the middle of the two-story arena was the semi-circular stage, dark curtains pulled and pleated. Two items were there: a table with six water bottles lined up like toy soldiers and an old-style oak podium with a microphone. I was reminded of college days in East Texas and for a moment I was back in school waiting for an afternoon production of "On the Waterfront" to begin. Then Frank Sinatra's voice echoed throughout the theater jolting me back into reality--I'm two miles from the Las Vegas strip--about as far from a rural East Texas college town as one can get.

An estimated 300 persons attended the conference hosted by Carolyn Hayes Uber of Stephens Press. Among her first comments when taking the stage were to admire the large crowd and say how proud she was of the "literary scene in Las Vegas." Las Vegas is not readily admired for it's artists and literary talents, unless you consider Penn and Teller creative geniuses and Carrot Top a bookworm. The crowd this day was a mixture of men and women, almost evenly numbered. (I was surprised. Most writing conferences I've attended are dominated by women...not a bad thing since I'm single.)

Ms. Uber spoke of the publishing industry in session one. Then author Maralys Wills spoke in session two about preparing manuscripts for publication. She offered "Ten Ways to Upgrade Your Manuscript". Session three featured an editor. But I left after session two. My back was getting tired. Perhaps sitting on the banister would have been more comfortable.

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Things I Learned at the Writer's Conference

1. 400,000 individual book titles were published last year.
2. Only 10 of those 400,000 book titles sold more than a million copies. Most of the books sold less than 100 copies.
3. You won't get rich writing books.
4. 70 percent of all books published will not make enough money to pay for the author's advance.
5. 10 percent of all the books sent to an agent will actually get published...1 percent will make a profit.
6. Most Americans buy books from four places: Costco, Sams Club, WalMart, and Target.
7. Rejection slips are normal and to be expected. Big Tip (from Maralys Wills): "keep improving your manuscript and keep sending it out until it's published."
8. The average royalty paid to authors: 10.7 percent of net (no longer a percentage of gross). That means the publisher must make money before the author gets paid anything beyond the advance.