Editor’s note: I did not make it to the European Poker Tour event in Dublin, a fact that was more than a little disappointing. I have several friends in Ireland and even more on the EPT circuit. Missing out on the fun was unfortunate. Late last night, as the sun was about to rise in Ireland, Lee Jones got in touch with me. He was sitting in the poker room in Dublin. The EPT event was long over, but Lee still had to host the final table of the PokerStars Sunday Million. While he waited, he caught sight of another game–this one live in more than one sense of the word–still going on in the poker room. Rather than try to sell the scene myself, I’ll offer you Lee’s first-hand description. Enjoy.
The Load-Out
by Lee Jones
Let the roadies take the stage
Pack it up and tear it down
Theyre the first to come and last to leave
Working for that minimum wage
–Jackson Browne
The EPT Dublin event is over. Roland De Wolfe has been crowned king–taking down (essentially) the 550K Euro first prize. The press has bunked off, to reconvene in Copenhagen. The EPT crew is crash-bang disassembling the TV set, and even John Duthie has gone to bed.
Hotel staffers are stacking up the chairs that, just 12 hours ago, were filled with the butts of poker players from all over the world. This is the “Load Out” scene that Jackson Browne sings about. But in one corner of the room, the quiet buzz of chips continues. And in the midst of that buzz sit two world-famous poker players: Greg Raymer and Chris Moneymaker.
The interviews are over, the overhead lights and video cameras are off. But sometimes, even for world champion poker players, it comes down to 7-8 guys sitting around a table playing pot-limit Omaha. Nobody is asking for autographs; our Team PokerStars guys are just two players at the PLO table competing with everybody else for the money.
