Three months ago, I was inspired to create Rufebert's PokerRoom after frequenting the poker blogs of Doug Poker and Mailman Greg for quite some time. Poker has been a passion of mine ever since I started playing in August 2003 and I figured - at the very least - writing a blog would be a fun way to relive my poker "glory days." If you've been reading, you'll know that by "glory days," I'm referring to my success playing poker "professionally" online and my experiences at the 2005 World Series of Poker Main Event and the PokerRoom.com "Become a Poker Pro" cruise. Now that I've told those stories, it's time to focus on the present, which begs the question...
Where does poker fit into my life today?
Well, a lot has changed since the "Become a Poker Pro" cruise back in March 2006. After the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (UIGEA) was passed, PokerRoom.com stopped accepting bets from US players (on 11/06/06, to be exact). I was so used to PokerRoom's interface, PokerRoom's tournaments, and playing against other PokerRoom loyalists that playing on PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker or Bodog just wasn't the same. I tried to give those sites a chance, but none compared to PokerRoom.com, which sadly ended up shutting down for good years later in April 2009.
The most notable change since the cruise, however, is that I no longer have the freedom that I had several years ago. First and foremost, I have a family now - a beautiful girlfriend of 5.5 years (who is the love of my life that I hope to marry someday), a wonderful 3-year old son who constantly challenges me and keeps me on my toes, and 2 awesome kiddos (my girlfriend's children from a previous relationship) that I'm blessed to share a home with for a couple of days each week. Obviously, my family is Priority #1, and between appointments, therapies, hockey practices/games, skating practices/recitals and my own softball obligations (during the summer and fall months), free time is often hard to come by. Not to mention, my job takes a good chunk of hours out of my week as well (about 52.5, including the time it takes me to travel to/from work). It's not the best paying job in the world, but the benefits are good and my income is steady, which is what matters most whilst trying to support a family of 5. That said, I don't want to be a legal plan account manager for the rest of my life. It's not exactly my "dream job," and I know I can make more money somewhere else doing something that actually interests me. While I dislike the whole job hunting/application/interview process, I recently applied to be a Poker Dealer/Supervisor at the Horseshoe Casino that will be opening here in Cleveland in March 2012. Two days after submitting my application, I received a call back from one of their recruiters, but I ended up missing the call since I was busy at work at the time. I left the woman that called me a return message, but I still have yet to hear back. I guess we'll see what happens, if anything. I'm not sure I would even take the job if it meant that I wouldn't be able to play in the casino (or any of the casinos in the state of Ohio). I guess I'll have to confirm that law/rule before giving any serious consideration to the opportunity.
Aside from work and family obligations, the devastating events of "Black Friday" prohibits me (and millions of others in the US) from playing online poker. Obviously, these events have had greater effect on others than they have had on me, but it still sucks that I can't play a quick SNG after the kids are in bed, or whenever I get an hour or two of free time. Most of the time, that is all I have, which makes hosting or attending live poker games a difficult alternative. I enjoy hosting games, but the earliest I can start them is usually 10 or 10:30pm. Finding full table of degens who are willing to start a game at that time (especially during the week when people have to be at work the next morning) is hard. Not to mention, I only have room for one table and have to compete with the other CPMG EOs (Event Organizers), all of whom have the flexibility to host larger (2 or more tables), higher buy-in games that are generally preferred among the group. It is what it is. Maybe one day, I'll have a bigger place and more free time that will allow me to host "premier" CPMG events.
Subscription poker? No thanks. I'd rather light fire to a 20 dollar bill and get more enjoyment without wasting any time.
So you see, as much as I'd love to play poker as often as I possibly can, I really just... can't. At my current rate, I make it to about one CPMG tournament per month. I guess that is better than none, but it doesn't bode well for if/when the POY starts back up and I want to make a run at it. I guess all I can do is try to make as many games as possible. As for the games I do attend, I'm sure you'll be reading about them in this blog.
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