When you are in a position like I am, you’re often presented with opportunities – a lot of different opportunities. I am in an odd position. Not only am I a known player, but I am involved in many things on the business side of poker, which means I probably listen to as many proposals as anyone.
A few months ago, I was approached by a new company called T6 poker. They said all the right things and were terrific people to deal with. I consider myself a bit of a salesman, and as the old saying goes, the easiest person to sell is a salesman.
I really felt T6 could make an impact, and I am always a fan of healthy competition in any business. As the time went on, it grew more clear to me that maybe the impact wasn’t coming, and maybe I had made a mistake.
I love online poker. I think it gives everyone a chance to play the game that has meant so much to me. I want to do everything I can to promote the game, and promote legal regulation of the game all over the world. What I felt was an opportunity to help improve online poker turned out to be something I can’t be involved in.
With this T6 thing, I feel that I saw the cheese, but I didn’t see the trap. By the time I realized the bar may have been set a bit unrealistically, it was too late. I want to believe the best of people and their dealings in business and in life, I fell short here.
I’ve been playing a lot on Full Tilt and PokerStars lately, and it has made me remember how much I love playing against the best in the world. I recently made the final table of the FTOPS main event, and it was the most fun I had in a long time. I’ve also played $10k events at Stars, and the $25k Heads Up PLO event at Full Tilt, where I did well to win my first two matches, only to lose a tough match to David Benefield in the round of 16. I wasn’t happy with my play in the match with David and I felt sick when I got knocked out.
Playing so much at Full Tilt and PokerStars has made me realize how much I like playing at those sites. It’s very different at those sites now – not like when I started playing on them, and in my early days on Party Poker. Now, there is a culture around online poker, and in these big events I have been playing in recently, you know most of the people playing in these events. If I haven’t met them personally, I’ve at least heard of them. To me, this is just like playing the pro tournament circuit – I know many of the faces, and that helps keep it fun for me. I am a social person by nature, and I like that I know many of the names I have been playing with recently.
So, I am going to part ways with T6, and play more at the big boys, and get back to working on TonyGPoker, something my affiliation with T6 had led me away from. I’ll miss the CyberArts software on T6, which is as good as any in the world of online poker, smooth and stable, great to play on. As hard as anyone might try, I think the best bigger games are going to stay at the big sites. But, I’ll continue to work on TonyGPoker, and make it a fun place for people to play, which was always my goal. I love playing poker and even though the game gets me down at times, I can’t imagine playing online poker not being a big part of my life.
As all of you that follow my blog know, I like to keep you all very aware of my feelings and dealings with my poker play. It’s the comments, the e-mails, and the chats I have with you at live tournaments that keep me going. Its fun, and I want to keep the fun going. Come find me in a big game at one of the big boys, or having fun at TonyGPoker, and I’ll see you there.
Thanks for your support and understanding of my position.
