|
|
 |
|
|
|
For Poker, Spain’s a “Must Go”
Poker In Europe
by Nic Szeremeta
Poker as we know it is in its infancy in Spain. A couple of years ago there were a few private games and that was about it. One of these in Madrid was where former waiter Carlos Mortenssen served his apprenticeship. It was a useful stepping stone on his way to becoming the first Spaniard to win the WSOP Championship event at the start of the Millennium. But his win did more than add a seven figure sum to his bankroll.
His victory was splashed in the newspapers and he became something of a celebrity for a while – something which drew attention to the country’s patriotic citizens that a game called poker existed and you could win money playing it. So providing public poker moved up the gaming industry’s agenda.
The first region where casinos introduced the game was Catalunya on the Mediterranean coast followed by Madrid the country’s capital. A small tournament was held at the Gran Casino, Barcelona in November of last year as a trial run for an international event in September of this year. This turned out to be a major success.
Players pitched up from over 20 countries, the fields for four of the five events were between 110 and 120 and the prize pool totalled almost EURO 350,000 ($385,000). Not bad for a first effort.
The Barcelona event had a lot going for it. The city is widely regarded as one of the “cool” cities in Europe, the weather is warm, the atmosphere vibrant and it is easily accessible from almost anywhere. Add to this a commitment by the management to provide the most player-friendly environment they could create and the ingredients for success were all in place.
Not that the players knew this before they turned up.
The casino had taken the sensible precaution of importing expert help in the form of tournament director Austrian Thomas Kremser, former manager of the Concord Card Casino, Vienna. As a result there were none of the usual hitches which often afflict card rooms new to the tournament scene.
With such a big influx of peripatetic pros in town it was no surprise that the locals had a hard time hanging on to their money. “Flying Dutchman” Marcel Luske from Amsterdam won the main event, a EURO 1,000 no limit hold’em affair and also the EURO 200 pot limit Omaha. Despite the fact that there was a bit of dealing in the later stages of the hold’em he earned around EURO 50,000 for his visit.
There was also the unusual sight of a woman player winning – a somewhat rare occurrence this side of the pond due to the relative shortage of lady players. Marion Flock from Germany picked up EURO 18,000 for her win in the EURO 200 limit hold’em with the most successful of the Spaniards Antonio Coll, collecting almost EURO 10,000 in runner-up spot.
The other events also went to the have-bankroll-will-travel brigade. Fari Bademansour of England won the EURO 200 pot limit hold’em and Florian Bergauer of Austria the EURO 100 no limit hold’em.
Meanwhile over in the cash games there was a little surprise for the poker purists. Due to a quirk in the local law the dealers have to deal anti-clockwise! In the tournaments the deal is “the right way round” but for money it is the opposite.
This came as a bit of a culture shock to those not used to it.
And while one may imagine it would take time to become accustomed to it this turned out not to be true. In fact it took most players about two hands to adapt… their focus no doubt being sharpened by the fact that the smallest game on offer was EURO 20-40, somewhat bigger than the equivalent in US dollars.
Overall the Gran Casino did itself a big favour as glowing reports of how well it all went, the fabulous food and the buzz of Barcelona will no doubt be spreading across the continent.
In one step it has put itself in the “must-go-there” bracket.
 Nic Szeremeta is Managing Editor of Poker Europa magazine. He has also won several events across Europe and was the first non-American winner of the WSOP Media crapshoot (1996). You can e-mail Nic at: NicSz@bigfoot.com
This story was first published in the Sep 22nd issue of Poker Player.
More
Nic Szeremeta Columns | Mail
this Article to a Friend
|
|
|
|
|
© 1977 - 2004 Gambling Times Inc. & Green Room Media Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited.
|
|
