First off, I just happened to find a blog that deals exclusively with tv poker. And I hate to say it, but it blows joepro away for content and accuracy. (But hey, I have better opinions!) Check it out, it's really good, and updated often.

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I feel like this is the "weekly wpt/steven lipscomb roast," but I am just constantly amazed about what comes out of this guy's mouth. In a recent article in cardplayer magazine, Lipscomb explains changes being made at WPT.

The move to GSN from the Travel Channel has both its positives and minuses, the biggest minus being that GSN reaches 26 million fewer subscribers than the Travel Channel. Lipscomb shrugs at the figure. He says GSN has about the same number of viewers that the Travel Channel did when the WPT first was aired there at the end of 2004. He feels confident that WPTE will help grow GSN just as it did for the Travel Channel.

Lipscomb shrugs? WPTE will help grow GSN? I will believe it when I see it. Although I think it's a good fit, and they are doing many things right, the poker boom is not where it was in 2004. Wishful thinking and more spin-doctoring if you ask me.

When asked about WPT's decision to broadcast fewer events this year, going from 20 to 14, Lipscomb's response is great:

“Well, I can say that mostly what went into that decision has lots to do with the market. Players let us know [where they prefer to play] verbally, and they also vote with their tournament dollars,” Lipscomb said. “I think we’re trying to be mindful of places that people really want to go, where they want to play, and the properties that really have the resources and the dedication to be able to grow substantial events over time.”

Anyone who saw the movie "This is Spinal Tap" should recall the scene in which Rob Reiner is interviewing the band, and asks why they don't do stadium tours and play large venues any more. The response is like Lipscomb's, (with a fake british accent) "we are playing to a more selective audience."

Perhaps my favorite part of the article is when Lipscomb blames the online poker rooms for taking away a key source of revenue for his company; baseball caps and dvd's:

Lipscomb says online poker decimated its consumer product revenue stream because it flooded the market with freebies that came with playing on the site, schwag that the WPTE had for sale in malls across America. It forced the WPTE to change its ways. Lipscomb believes it’s inevitable that online poker will become regulated in the U.S. When that happens, he says WPTE will have a very different profit experience.

“But, until then, we’ve had to really reinvent our company where we had to refocus on areas where we could make money,” Lipscomb said. “We no longer look at consumer products as something that’s going to be a huge growing market for us because online gaming sites will give hats away, they’ll give DVDs away, they’ll give all of those things away, which completely undercuts and destroys the market.”

Ok, that's just comical, stop, you're killing me. Note that Lipscomb predicted WPT will make lots of profit when online poker becomes regulated. (Because they are so good at making money.)

Among other comedic quotes, Lipscomb compares the failures of his company with bad beats a poker player may suffer. I kid you not.

“I guess my optimism, the reason I still get up every day and come in and believe that the World Poker Tour has an awful lot to offer — not just to the poker community, but the shareholders — is that we had a challenging experience of having the market that we really helped create develop in such a way that we couldn’t participate in the most lucrative form,” he said. “I would say that every poker player who has gone through a bad streak, they go back to the table because they know the luck has to turn.

I can't imagine any other CEO saying such a thing, but that's what makes him so unique!

I am a big fan of poker and game shows. That is basically what this blog was intended for, I wanted to have a record of some of my thoughts on these topics. Naturally, poker tv shows are a big deal for me, since they combine both poker and game shows. I have thought up 3 scenarios for new poker shows, which I hope to present to a tv executive some day. However, one that I do not intend to present involves something called, "duplicate poker."

Taking a cue from the popular game of duplicate bridge, Zajac suggests a single-elimination, bracket-style poker tournament like the National Heads-Up event — but in a "duplicate poker" format.

"Don't you think it would be more watchable if with 64, 32 or 16 players left, every table received the same cards by suit and rank?" Zajac wrote.

Using a duplicate poker format would eliminate some of the luck factor that's all too prevalent in heads-up tournaments, which typically employ a quickly escalating blind-and-ante structure, Zajac said.

In duplicate Texas hold 'em poker, players in a particular seat position at each table would receive the same two starting cards from identically arranged decks. The five community cards also would be the same, and winners would be determined by how many chips players have in relation to their opponents who were dealt the same cards.

Duplicate poker is played online, usually for small stakes, and most players seem to view it as primarily an intellectual exercise.

This just doesn't do it for me. I could be wrong, but it seems weird, complicated, and unnecessary. If you ask me, you can eliminate/decrease the "luck factor" by raising the blinds less frequently, more editing, and/or having a smaller bracket, but they seem determined to stick with their luckbox formula. I actually have a format for a heads up poker show that I think could be amazing, but I can't get into that right now.

Here's the best poker tv clip of the last 2+ years...

The Rounders show opened with this quote the other day. This has to be one of the funniest poker quotes of the past few years. If you can identify the person who said this, I will laugh along with you. Video to follow.

I listened to more of the poker archives of the Rounders show on twoplustwo, there is some great stuff in there. One of the things that always fascinates me about poker is the fact there are so many different styles of play, and there are successful players utilizing each style. Otherwise, how could Dan Harrington and Gus Hansen both put out huge-selling books? (Actually, I'm not sure if Gus' book has been put out yet, but I know he's working on one.) Even within a book, you have players with contrasting styles, i.e. Doyle Brunson's Super System. You read Doyle's chapters on No limit tournaments, and then you read Harrington on Holdem, and you realize these styles are night and day. Harrington looks with disdain upon small suited connectors, while Doyle will tell you these are the best. Although, there are some who claim Doyle's style is a little outdated, I'm not sure I totally disagree, but in the right setting, I think it can work.

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I did mention the debut of the WPT on GSN will be Monday March 24th. What I did not mention is the fact this is supposed to be a star-studded final table. I will try not to "spoil" it by looking up the tournament, so hopefully the ending will be a surprise to me. Since I don't follow each tournament that closely any more, I have no idea who won. As far as I know, it's the Mirage event, so please don't reply with a spoiler! Final table includes Ivey, Gigabet, and Jonathan Little, I believe. Can this new setting save the WPT?

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Doyle Brunson has a blog. Aside from the fact I hate people telling me who to vote for, it's pretty entertaining. Here's a sample:

I called a friend of mine and asked him to come to Bobby’s Room and start a two-thousand/four-thousand limit poker game. There were two out-of-town high rollers wanting to play. “I can’t, my wife wants to go see a movie,” my friend told me. I understand a man who has to get along with his family but if you are a professional poker player as my friend was, you have to play when the opportunity presents itself. I’ve been with the same woman for forty-five years and she has never tried to keep me from going to play.

Also, here's a review of HSP by the godfather himself...

I accidentally tuned in on High Stakes Poker on GSN and I was absolutely fascinated by what I saw. This show isn’t a tournament; it is a real cash game where the players can buy more chips when they want and quit when they want. Also, the ante and blinds never go up. I sometimes wonder how I came off a cotton farm in Texas to where I am today. After watching that show every night for the past month, I can understand it. Most of these so-called poker stars can’t play a lick! It is almost embarrassing to watch how badly they play. There are a few that I would call winning players but the bad players far outnumber them. Tournaments don’t really teach you fundamental concepts and that is all most of them do – never playing what I call real poker. I think I have played eleven times since HSP started and have yet to have a losing session.

For more gems, go visit Doyle's blog over at Doylesroom.com.

Have a great weekend.