Player's Stories

Tagged With a New On-Line Name
By Al Spath

I received an interesting email the other day from a student at the pokerschoolonline site where I now teach. He had read most of my archived articles @ pokerpages.com and decided to give me an on-line handle (not knowing I use Teach everywhere else), so he calls me "Phrasemaker." I guess some folks have been watching too much WPT with players being called "the magician," "the professor" and of course "the loose cannon," no offense Gus Hansen.

When I asked him how he came to such a conclusion, the conversation went a little like this: "Al, I started reading your articles and I found a trend (oops, a tell) and it was pretty blatant, that even one of your students could pick up on. You see, you're one of those writers that needs a hook, a snappy title to snare your reader from the get go and then as you paint a picture as you write, you capitalize on your ability to weave "a lesson" into the story. I learned a great deal about poker, without realizing you were simply telling a story that intrigued me, all the while, you were making a stamp on my brain, that playing a particular way would result in predictable outcome, either good or bad."

He went on to illustrate his point. "Let's take a look at just some titles of your work and see if I make any sense whatsoever: "Dumb Luck or Lady Luck," "Cry Me a River," "Aces Wired," "Poker Skills or People Skills," "That Sinking Feeling-Online Miscues Getting You Down," "Getting Clocked," "Winning Just Before Dinner," "Revenge or Redemption." "A Chip, A Chair and a Prayer," "Raise All-In," and "Under-the-Gun" are perfect examples of my point. Still other articles by you tend to send a less specific, more generalized, but clear message to your readership before they read one word from the story: "Successful Players Eliminate Complaining," "Tournament Strategy," "Cheater in a Red Dress," "The Wizard of Oz," "It All Adds Up To a Story" and "Playing On-Line is a Snap - So They Think."

I replied to his post the following way: "I find you to be a very perceptive student and indeed you have unveiled the truth that I am nothing more than a commercial billboard for poker terms and phrases. As you stated I do attempt to "get inside" the readers mind and convince them to imagine the scenario as it would unfold for them in live game, using a cast of characters we've all come across, and situations we all seem to get ourselves into. Every writer has their own style and "hook," and mine just happens to be one where the title is more than just slogan, it's a message to the targeted audience for which I write.

I'm convinced that with all the great material floating around the internet and flying off the bookstore shelves, this explosion going on in the poker world will "double-up" and soon be as rampant as video games are to teenagers and palm pilots were for mom or dad last Christmas. Just think, with Java poker sites establishing themselves to accommodate all sorts of portable hand held devices you might find yourself sitting at 32,000 feet above Colorado and the guy seated right next to you is playing in a Texas hold em' tournament while crossing the country and you are stuck watching some lousy 2-bit movie (the likes of a Gigli).

As for story telling, I think everyone of you has or will have an experience to share with the rest of the poker community as you sit and play on-line or in a brick and mortar casino setting. I'm waiting for just one of you to invent a new poker term that I can "blend" into an upcoming article and deliver a new message to a host of avid poker readers. Heck, even if you overhear a good story while at the tables, get the details and spin your own tale, it certainly might net you a few more bucks to add to your on-line bankroll if you can put pen to paper.

Having said what I wanted in this piece, I guess I don't have to tell you that my last article fell right into the "message in phrase" category, and was called: "The Game is Called Texas No-Limit Hold em'." In this story I took a look at the World Poker Tour (WPT), in particular it's most outspoken color commenter, Vince Van Patten. If you haven't heard, he's the newest "phrasemaker" on the show, who seems to make em' up as he goes. What a character, but what the heck, we all need a "hook!"