Locations
I doubt it’s an unwelcome spoiler if I tell you that as of Tuesday at around noon, Grand Prix Las Vegas was approaching 3,100 preregistered attendees, making it the largest Grand Prix in history already. Projections have the event exceeding four thousand attendees, which is mind-boggling. [Editor's Note: Preregistration crossed 3,500 by publication time, and Preregistration closes at the end of the day June 20,2013.]
What’s the reason for the appeal of this event? I believe it’s twofold. The first is obviously the appeal of playing Modern Masters Limited. Might I submit that the second reason deals with the appeal of the city of Las Vegas as the venue?
Americans tend to romanticize this country’s past, and to that end, they romanticize Las Vegas as the second coming of the Wild West. Whether they want to win big at a casino, party their asses off in the desert, or just sit around quoting The Hangover and high-fiving each other, everyone has an idea of how his or her perfect Las Vegas vacation would go. Most of the Magic personalities I follow on Twitter who plan to attend GP: Las Vegas are already there—having headed straight there after Providence or Houston to spend a few weeks hanging out. And why not? Which would you prefer—the high-stakes room at the Bellagio or lingering a few extra days in Rhode Island? Seems like a relatively easy decision, simple to measure in the arbitrary terms that this community of ours refers to simply as “value.” A lot of those who aren’t planning on showing up weeks early are at least showing up a few days early.
Who epitomizes the Las Vegas gamer more than a poker pro? With a lot of the skills we’ve learned in Magic translatable to card games such as poker and with the tournament prizes exponentially more generous, it’s no surprise we see some crossover between the Magic and poker communities. I’ve found some poker players who haven’t forgotten their Magic roots and who I think are well worth following.
Dave Williams
Where you know him from: the Pro Tour or the World Series of Poker
Current title: Poker Professional
Social media: Twitter
This draft went well. pic.twitter.com/E5zcVcmY3w
— David Williams (@dwpoker) June 14, 2013
When he’s not crushing the World Series of Poker and rolling around on a water bed covered in hundred dollar bills and Beta Lotuses, he’s opening boosters that have both a ’Goyf and a foil ’Goyf in them. There is a part of you that wants to be a little envious of Dave, but he’s not going to let that happen. When Dave isn’t donating his Magic winnings to Gamers Helping Gamers, he’s tweeting about the game. Stop trying to hate Dave Williams. It’s not going to happen.
Eric Froehlich
Where you know him from: the Pro Tour or the WSOP
Current title: Poker Professional
Social media:
If you’re a fan of bad-beats stories, E-Fro has them in spades. (See what I did there? “Spades” is a suit in poker. Like that? You can use that one if you want.) He is a good source of good-beats stories as well (which I guess aren’t really beats at all), having earned a staggering five Grand Prix Top 8 finishes this year. He’s also had some recent success in poker, and his Twitter feed reflects that as well. If you’re interested in either game—or better yet, both—this is a great follow.
Gary Wise
Where you know him from: The Magic Hall of Fame and ESPN
Current title: Hall of Fame is for life.
Social media:
Despite his high degree of success in the early- to mid-2000s, Gary Wise was also succeeding at poker at the same time, quitting Magic in 2004 to play poker full time. Using his clout within the Magic community to bring some high-profile Magic players, such as the ones in this article, over to competitive poker with him, he also used his column on ESPN.com to make sure the Magic players having success in the poker circuit did not go unnoticed. Gary has done a lot for both communities, and an article about the two overlapping just wouldn’t be complete without him.
Gabriel Nassif
Where you know him from: the Pro Tour or the WSOP
Current title: Card Gaming Professional
Social media:
Another Hall of Famer on the list, Nassif was inducted in 2010 and has been called the third-best Magic player ever—not by me, but I am not going to even argue because his finishes speak for themselves. With lifetime WSOP winnings in excess of $400,000, he is equally adept at poker, and he is a font of strategic information about both games.
There you have it: four players who bridge the gap between Magic and poker that may be a smaller gap than you think. With a lot of skills transferable between the two and the way already paved, poker is ready for the next generation of Magic’s best and brightest to make the transition to playing both. With poker, especially Texas Hold ’Em (despite its ridiculous name), insanely popular and growing more so daily, expect these guys to make headlines in both games. These are all quality follows, and there is a lot you can learn from them about both games they all have mastered.
