Stanley R. Sludikoff

An Editorial By Stanley R. Sludikoff, Publisher

 As many people know, I spent over 30 years in the United States Army Reserve, retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel. For roughly 50 years I have been a life member of the Reserve Officers Association. I keep up with military matters through publications sent to me by that organization. In a recent newsletter, an article revealed that the Command Surgeon for the US Army Central Command (includes Iraq and Afghanistan), Colonel Erin Edgar, along with researcher Doctor Pieter Cohen, an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School, have recommended that Energy Drinks be banned from sale from Army and Air Force installation stores, where they are currently the top selling cold beverages.

By Stanley R. Sludikoff

We first met Lou in Costa Rica. We had both been invited down by Casino Europa to a large tournament they had scheduled. During a break in play, while most of the players opted for jungle tours, Lou asked to join in on a San Jose city tour, led by a marketing department executive. We became great friends by the time the tour was over. Later, I invited Lou to become Editor of Poker Player newspaper, where he served for many years. We had communicated with him often when we heard of his illness. I had scheduled Lou for a Senior Editor position in our new electronic publishing venture, but his reluctance to make a commitment set off dire warnings to me. I knew all was not well, although Lou was very positive right to the end. My family and I, Poker Player newspaper, our staff, and, I am sure, our thousands of readers will miss his wisdom and advice. This issue contains the last column written by Lou. Below you will find just a few of the brief comments from some of our key writers and close friends of Lou.

By Stanley R. Sludikoff, Editor/Publisher

 Back when Mike Caro and I started this newspaper, November of 1982; Mike was the Editor, and we discussed the idea of ranking tournament players. After much discussion, we abandoned the idea as having too many flaws to get an accurate ranking. Further, at that time, getting card rooms to supply the information needed was, at best, unreliable.

 Over the years we have seen other publications and individuals create ranking systems, each one more flawed than the next, while some favored certain players (or events) over others. So we desisted from this task. We even came up with what would probably be the most accurate ranking, a sort of batting average, but, again, it required complete information from card rooms, all card rooms holding qualifying events, to be possible. This would include the identification of all people who played, even those who didn’t cash. As an example, who would you say is the better player: someone like Phil Hellmuth, who played in 2000 No Limit tournaments and won 12, or John Doe, who played in 20 tournaments and won 5? Since we don’t really know how many events they played in and lost, how can we tell?

An editorial by Stanley R. Sludikoff, Poker Player Newspaper Editor/Publisher

Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. —Georges Santayana

 Thanks to a very slow moving US Attorney, we are still in the midst of a major poker industry scandal. Do you remember how electronic cheating was found on the now bankrupt Ultimate Bet/Absolute Poker network? Do you remember how all the customers of those internet web sites did not get their deposit accounts back? Are you still waiting to get your Full Tilt Poker deposit back? Indeed, will you ever get it back? These questions, and their answers, should be at the forefront of your mind if you are contemplating playing internet poker in the future.

The first annual Poker  Player of the Year tournament concluded in the wee  hours of the morning on  July 5, 2012 at the Golden  Nugget casino in Las Vegas  with New Zealander, John Parker, 50, taking the championship and the symbolic  “Golden Nugget” ring. John  is a property developer in the  Auckland region of North  Island.  His home in the  Westmere suburb is about  half an hour’s drive to the  nearest poker room, where  he is often found playing  in a tournament. John is an  avid poker tournament player who takes in about 100  events a year, including most  major events in the Asia/ Pacific region.

by Stanley R. Sludikoff, Publisher

When Benny and Jack Binion created the Poker Hall of Fame in 1979, it was clearly oriented to rewarding famous players, and, unfortunately, it still is. There was also a matter of ignorance in naming at least one of the original members, Sir Edmund Hoyle.

Editorial By Stanley R. Sludikoff, Publisher

Read: Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3.

In this segment it is my intention to take up the issue of the alleged illegal activities of poker celebrities Chris Ferguson, Howard Lederer, et. al. I say “alleged” because no indictments have been handed down, and everyone should be granted the supposition of innocence until proven guilty.

by Stanley R. Sludikoff, Publisher
[Read Part 1 Read Part 2]
 
There is no doubt that the United States of America has unclean hands in this mess. First Congress failed to protect its citizens when they knew that millions were playing poker on the internet. Instead a small minority of senators and representatives, who were seeking to legislate morality as they saw it, looked for a simple way to stop people from gambling on the internet.

by Stanley R. Sludikoff, Publisher
 
 In the last issue, I explained that there are six different entities that bear responsibility for this sorry state of affairs [Read Part 1]. Because of their current actions, I will skip to Entity No. 2, Alderney. To their credit, Alderney heard the criticism and is now looking into its role in the matter through an investigation conducted by a distinguished English authority.

An Editorial: By Stanley R. Sludikoff

Six score years ago a vibrant American gaming industry was erased from the scene by a scandal.  It was the second time that happened in US history.  This one was due to a corrupt Louisiana Lottery that was national in scope.  The operators were a gang of crooks.  The result was a series of laws by Congress that pretty much killed gaming for nearly 5 decades in this country.

It took a long time for gaming to come back and it has now grown to massive proportions with the majority of states having lotteries and casinos.