In defence of Football - The scummiest game on earth...Poker!
All this talk of match-fixing in football and how the game
is in disrepute has prompted me to write a defence…or at least point the finger
at other sports. There is no question match-fixing exists in football as it
exists in many other sports. But is it the sport most corrupted? This blog has detailed match-fixing in other sports such as horse racing but I’ve never
covered Poker apart from a small section in Off The Chest (where the hero gets
cheated).
Some will argue that Poker is not a sport. Well, it has
prize money, it is competitive, there are professionals, it is televised, the
playing field is not equal with some possessing skills over another and it has
spectators. That sounds like a sport to me.
I could write a book on scams, skulduggery, organised and
unorganised crime, drugs and violence in poker but this blog with suffice for
now. Also, its main audience don’t want to hear it. But this is a defence of
football. I am about to show the level INDIVIDUALS will sink to to profit.
The first ‘cheat’ in the modern day era (old school scams
are simply stories of legend with no proof whatsoever) goes by the online name
‘Zee Justin’ aka Justin Bonomo. Essentially what he did went against the rules
of the game but was not ‘illegal’ just as match-fixing isn’t in some countries.
He worked out a scam that if he registered multiple entries in an online
tournament he could ‘dump’ stacks and therefore have the best chance of
reaching the top end of the prize ladder. At the time he defended himself with
some rather suspect reasoning but I
believe has later apologised. Now he is a respectable member of the community
and is a large winner on the live scene where you can’t cheat….or so you’d
think…
Men ‘The Master’ Nguyen’s name is mud in the live poker
world. In fact, it’s worse than that. It is believed he is one of the worst
scammers in the history of live poker. The most frequent accusation is him
using other Vietnamese players (whom he stakes) to dump their stacks to each
other or him, to gain an edge. Then there is the story of him starting a fire
as a distraction. This then allowed an opportunity to steal stacks of chips to
add to other stacks in more high buy in events. There is no hard evidence for
this other than extremely well respected people saying they ‘saw it’ or know
something about that proves it. Daniel Negreanu for instance.
Erick Lindgren is also known as scum. In fact, people now
tell him to his face. His crime? Welching. There is proof of the fact that
Erick Lindgren, at one time respected as an excellent professional and Full
Tilt Poker representative, scammed many bettors of online high stakes fantasy
league competitions, tournament staking deals, loans and more. His excuse?
Gambling. Incredibly, he sits at poker tables now with the very money that he
owes people and even against those he owes! There are numerous testimonies and
even admissions by Lindgren himself of his practices.
One of the classic scams that people do is selling over 100%
of themselves in a tournament. A poker player is playing the World Series of
Poker for $10,000. He/she sells 200% equity to different colleagues, friends,
associates and even to unknowns online. He/she then loses on purpose, pocketing
half of the total stake collected. I heard the story of someone doing this, winning
the tournament and then running! Amazing if true.
Highstakes poker player Jens Kyllönen had his
hotel room broken into and his laptop tampered with for scamming purposes. Only
a poker player would know what to do with the information garnered. There are
also rumours of cameras being placed in poker players’ hotels/houses so someone
can see their cards. This has happened to many, many others. Even if organised
criminals use poker players to commit fraud, how is that different from
match-fixers using footballers?
Let’s take it to the companies. Many are aware of Ultimate
Bet and Absolute Poker cheating or covering it up (depending on what you like
to call it). Then there is the story of Full Tilt Poker essentially engaging in
major fraud (illegal payments from restricted countries). Many poker websites
have or currently are engaging in intricate Ponzi schemes (some good hearted,
i.e. they intend to pay back when liquid, and some not so). A poker website
holds a pool of money and, like a bank, upon mass withdrawals, should be able
to pay their players. But if the site has been stealing money, they cannot do
this. Lock Poker cannot pay their players. They have an excuse of course but
it’s been going for far too long for anyone to believe them. Some sites don’t
even communicate – they just run away, pockets full of cash.
There is a strong rumour of something quite incredible
happening in China. I’m hearing that there are warehouses of poker players
(online poker is illegal in China), registering with fake bank accounts from
Europe and playing together – colluding. Players think they are playing against
a Swede, a Brit or an Aussie but really it’s 5 players sharing cards and
crushing you. It’s almost impossible to beat 5 players due to card removal and
the ‘sandwich’ effect when you have a semi-weak hand.
Serial scammers have ‘cheated’ more times than games have
been fixed in football (though of course there have been more poker 'games'/players). And they will continue to do it. There is no regulatory
body in charge and no prison time has been given to those involved in specific
poker (player) fraud (someone please correct me).
Heard enough? I’ll reel off a list.
Man in Casino keeps cards up his sleeves to use for later
occasions; ‘ghosting’ and invention of new screen names to defraud opponents; sharing
of accounts to win rake races; looking at people’s cards (come on it’s against
the rules!); money-laundering; cheating with proposition bets; lying about
tournament entries and pocketing the cash; robbing players on the way home from
poker rooms knowing they’ve won; robbery of cardrooms where there is an inside
man and much more.
My point is that people are people. If there’s an edge to be
had, people will take it (some legally so). But many go further. Where’s
there’s money, there’s crime and the stakes in poker are massive. But the
stakes in football are even bigger. I’d say football is doing well not to be
wholly corrupt! But to be fair, millions is spent on education, monitoring
systems, police and of course the wages are higher. A would-be scammer in poker
has no need to scam if he’s winning large amounts. I don’t want to give poker a
horrendous reputation. There are many honest players playing the game. But if
you think for one second there isn’t major corruption in poker, you’re very
naïve. Match-fixers have resorted to bribery, coercion and violence to achieve
their goals. It’s what you don’t know that’s happened in the poker world that
should scare you. No one’s had any reason to check.
