Predictions and Wishes
Let’s imagine 2006 to be a hand of poker. How will your hand play out? The pre-flop action is everything leading up to the WSOP. The World Series of Poker is a flop, I mean…the flop; the fall season brings the turn; and we can call Jack McClelland’s Bellagio tournaments the river.
How will you play before the flop? On the flop? The turn card always brings someone into the hand, and offers hope to the ones left chasing. If you’re lucky, the river can be a refreshing relief, but for some, the freezing waters of winter will drag them down, never to be heard of again. While it will be a tough year for some, I believe it will be a great year for many.
Following are a few of my hopes and predictions for the coming year.
POKER PLAYERS UNITE!
Let’s hope that the wait for a unified effort
of players to establish a poker association will come
to fruition. Players will band together with common
interests in founding an association that will protect
the game with standardized rules and procedures. It
will shield the players from exploitation by companies
that look to make a profit without fair and equitable
compensation to the players. I believe the association
will draw players, casinos, and outside businesses together
to bring poker to the next level, so all can profit
mutually in a big way.
RANKING SYSTEMS
A new independent player ranking system will
become the premier worldwide ranking system, and will
find support throughout the poker community. Accurate
tracking of players is the main obstacle in finding
a solution to this problem. Perhaps a unified software
program could be developed that all the casinos would
use to link the data. My preference would be a ranking
system in which players would list their best 40 finishes
for the year, with only a select number of events, perhaps
50, known as the “Official Players’ tour” included for
the year. An unbiased selection committee could determine
the events.
PROFESSIONAL POKER TOUR ESTABLISHED!
Selected players who meet both performance
and marketability criteria will travel and play on an
organized tour, with buy-ins paid for by sponsors. After
the previous two standards are in place, the selection
process will eventually become less about marketability
and politics, and will be determined more by performance.
Until we reach that point, there will be much lobbying,
crying, and some hurt feelings from players who are
left on the sidelines.
WORLD SERIES OF POKER
This year will be the pinnacle of the WSOP.
I believe that this will be the last year we will see
the massive numbers participating in the WSOP. Other
popular tournaments will begin to compete and diversify
the prestige of this event. It will always have its
place in history, but look for dramatic changes in the
next couple of years, which will begin the curve of
the WSOP. This will be the first year I win a gold bracelet
but, even more interesting, is that it may be the last.
DANIEL NEGREANU IS THE COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR!
After a year of distractions and having to
handle so many business matters and opportunities, I
believe Daniel will come back strong in 2006 and will
finish third in a consensus of Player of the Year standings.
Second place will go to… drum roll… ME! I know, I know
what you’re saying, “Come on, Kenna, don’t be so modest;
you know you’re going to be number one. I’m kidding!
Geez, I sound like Phil Hellmuth.
PHIL IVEY WINS PLAYER OF THE YEAR
But really, seriously now, I see myself falling
just one spot short this year.
In the ranking system that I described previously, if Phil Ivey plays in at least 40, he is my choice as odds-on-favorite to win it.
The only question is, will he play enough events to give himself a shot to win?
EXPERIENCE VS. YOUTH
Many of the seasoned pros who took a back seat
to the “young guns” and their sudden rise to fame through
the excitement of television, will make a strong showing
this year. Experience will win out over youth in 2006.
Perhaps a new tournament event, a “battle of the ages,”
will be instituted to answer this question.
TEAM POKER WILL BECOME POPULAR.
Networks looking to spice up their poker shows
will experiment with team poker. Teams, representing
different countries and companies, will compete in dramatic
and innovative ways in a battle for television ratings,
all the while thinking they’re playing a game of cards.
SPEED POKER WILL ALSO MAKE BIG STRIDES IN 2006.
The fast paced action of this new facet of
poker will become very popular with the younger generation
especially, and will make a big name for itself in the
US in 2006.
Well, these are just a few of my predictions for the coming year. Regardless of what cards are dealt, it is my hope that you will make the best of what life has to offer. I love the quote, “Life is about 10% of what happens to you, and 90% of how you react to it.” So do yourself a favor: train, act, and walk like a champion this year, and it may just happen.
Good Flops and Happy Days, Kenna
