Cool World #4

	It’s hard to get my head around the fact this poker lark is a job

It’s hard to get my head around the fact that this poker lark is actually a job. Take the last few weeks, for instance. The end of November saw the circus travel to Singapore for the Betfair Asian Poker Tour, where we got to stay in a top drawer hotel, were treated like royalty and couldn’t even spend any money as the conversion rate was three Singaporean dollars to the pound. A day at the races in the most expensive box cost the princely sum of £7. Try getting that at Ascot!

Tony G won the main event and, in a truly remarkable gesture, donated half his winnings (a little over $200k) to charity! Sheer class Mr G. As it happened the local lad who came second got immediate sponsorship off two major corporations and tons of media coverage. The other good news to come out of the tournament is that Singapore is about to legalise casinos – and when the changes go through it will become the new Mecca of poker.

Sad as it was to leave we were consoled by the fact that the next stop on the tour was St Kitts. Littlewoods was kind enough to sponsor me for another visit to paradise and one of the most picturesque golf courses you could possible wish for, with holes bordering both the Atlantic and Caribbean oceans. The temperature is 82F every day and the drink of the week is a Miami Vice – a combination of Pina Colada and strawberry daiquiri that would be considered a health hazard back home.

Drunken games of Chinese poker were interspersed with tournaments, one of which was a variation of Hold’em and blackjack, which is a game best played drunk anyway. Speaking of getting drunk the celebrations of the Scottish lads Boony and Flash, who both made the final table of the main event, had everyone cheering. Cigars, champagne, singing and skinny-dipping were the order of the day and the celebrations continued well into the next day. Those lads knew how to party and it was a joy to see how much poker meant to them.

Listening to them talking of returning to work brought back memories of my recent former life of actually doing something to earn money. And if I carry on playing as I have been recently, that day may be approaching fast.

If it wasn’t for the likes of Roland de Wolfe calling me from Vegas to ask if I wanted a share in a game of Chinese against Phil Ivey, the trip would have been a minus on the spreadsheet. As it happened $20k came winging its way across the Atlantic.

Next stop – Melbourne, for the Aussie Millions. I’m lovin’ life!

Marc Goodwin is one of UK’s finest poker players and MANSION Poker Ambassador