HAVE you noticed how often the television poker hosts refer to players as amateurs?
Have you also noticed the negative connotation they give to the word? It's as if it is something dirty and needs to be washed off!
Well, I totally disagree with that attitude, and I would like to defend the so-called amateurs who entertain us just as much as the professionals do. They also win as much, if not more, as their exalted counterparts. Now don't get me wrong; I have the greatest respect for anyone that can play high stakes poker and major tournaments, especially when they do it year in and year out.
But this is the question. Who is it that decides who is an amateur and who is not? Does holding the microphone give them that authority? Is it based on who is in their circle of friends? I didn't like Steve Dannenman's act too much during the World Series, but he did take second. He was constantly being referred to as an amateur player, yet there he was, heads up for all the cash! He was also at another final table a few weeks later with the best of them! And who could forget all the kids that won bracelets last year despite being the youngest players there? Were they all amateurs also? Didn't they beat the established professionals soundly?
It has been said that in order to be considered a professional poker player, you have to make all your money at the tables, with no other source of income. Well, I propose to you that several of the top professionals make money with endorsements, selling video games and making personal appearances. Going by the foregoing definition, that would disqualify them from being pros.
But this is not about disqualifying anyone or taking any of their prestigious accomplishments away from them. This is about uplifting a group of people that are just as dedicated at winning in poker as those at the top. There are pros that have cattle ranches, business investments and the like, and should not be called amateurs because of it. There are also players out here that have similar investments and businesses but may never achieve the honor of winning, or even playing, in a major tournament.
I say they deserve a better name than "amateur"! I, for one, make all my money from poker. I'm a casino dealer, dealer instructor, poker coach, poker author and poker player, but I don't qualify myself as a professional because I don't follow the tournament circuit or play the top games in Las Vegas or other gambling centers. But by no means am I an amateur. I consider myself a semi-pro poker player. I believe semi-pro is an excellent choice to give players that are not at the top of the poker world but are seriously involved in it. It is a happy medium between pro and amateur, and does not sound demeaning. The poker phenomenon has grown too large for anybody to take an elitist attitude toward the masses. Do we want to welcome them in, or embarrass them on worldwide TV by belittling them? If they're at the final table, they deserve some respect, don't you agree?
Some of these players beat thousands of competitors online to win a seat at a major event. That was much tougher than plopping down cash to buy an entry! Believe me, that took a lot of discipline, knowledge, luck and time to accomplish. They are not absolute poker professionals, but by no stretch of the imagination are they amateurs either!
The Iveys, Lederers and Farhas have certainly earned their "professional" status. They deserve all the recognition that they and others in their category receive. I believe that title has to be earned by winning major tournaments, following the circuit, or playing in the high cash games. So how can we make the distinction between them and others moving up in the ranks?
I believe "semi-pro" solves that dilemma, and for the other millions that don't ever get past their local tables, I prefer "casual players". Neither title is offensive and both state exactly what they are. Some players have said that I am being controversial. If that is so, and it makes people everywhere think about this and make better choices, then it was worth it. I don't mind sticking my neck out for the little guys, because without them........ there would be no BIG guys!
