After Doug Polk defended poker players in a City Council meeting, we ask are they treated unfairly by the wider public?
This week Doug Polk’s plans to open a second card room in Texas were scuppered after a City Council voted 4-1 against it.
As a poker player and a capitalist, I am very much on Doug’s side here. The Lodge looks like an absolutely brilliant poker room with lots of unique features that we need to see more of in the game. If he could open a second club, and beyond, others may emulate what he does globally. It also looks like they are about to pay out a $500,000 overlay this week, which they have done in the past, so kudos to them on many fronts.
I did raise an eyebrow when Polk took the stand to speak out for the poker world at the meeting:
This attack on poker players in general like they are bad people. I’ll tell you what, some of the best people I have met in my life are poker players. I started my career with ten dollars and I turned it into millions of dollars by becoming one of the best in the world. And poker gave me that opportunity, and I’m tired of of people attacking poker players like they’re some kind of lowlifes
👊🏻 @DougPolkVids pic.twitter.com/NFz2THyMuB
— Matt Clark (@MattClarkPoker) May 8, 2024
If you watched the clip you would see a rare moment where Polk struggled to hold back the tears (while also bragging about his wealth). I’m sure we need this sort of passion in poker, but I’m not buying it.
The game is mainstream
I just don’t think we can really say that poker players are discriminated against. Poker is very much a mainstream game these days. It’s on TV, nobody acts disgusted when you say you play it and we even have famous people endorse or play the game like Mr Beast, Ronaldo and Kim Kardashian.
In the early days of the Texas road gamblers like Doyle Brunson, poker players were very much discriminated against. Poker was seen as a slimey profession and there was a regular risk of being shot.
Maybe things are different in the US, or at least in places like Texas where religion still influences a lot of political decisions. The only person I know here in the UK who was disowned by a family member for playing poker was mostly done so on religious grounds. The only other ‘discrimination’ of sorts I see poker players endure is from financial institutions. Poker players often struggle to get mortgages, for example. This I would argue is less about discrimination and more simply because it is a very niche profession where it is difficult to prove income.
Again, I fully support Polk’s endeavour here. It’s good for the game and I personally think that a poker venue is good for a small town’s economy. I’d just argue that if a City Council or the local community disagree, that’s not a sign of discrimination.
Have you felt discriminated against? Let us know in the comments:
