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Editorial
- Duplicate Poker – Is Poker Finally Out of Luck?15-May-2008
- Titan Poker Counts Down to Billionth Hand07-May-2008
- World Poker Tour Season 6 Finale – Part II30-Apr-2008
- Poker: Luck or Skill?26-Apr-2008
- World Poker Tour Season 6 Championship – Part I23-Apr-2008
- Strategy Spotlight: Bluffing16-Apr-2008
- Strategy Spotlight: Fundamental Theorem of Poker08-Apr-2008
- ‘The Grand’ – The First Poker Mocumentary02-Apr-2008
- Hold'em Hand Odds Shortcut18-Mar-2008
- 2008 NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championship04-Mar-2008
- Poker Fashion26-Feb-2008
- Freerolls vs. Real Money Poker Tournaments19-Feb-2008
Boris Becker: The Future of Pro Poker?
Ok, he’s probably not exactly the future of pro poker, but that hasn’t stopped Pokerstars from making Boris Becker their new poster boy. Professional poker and celebrity culture have been inextricably linked in the US for a number of years, so it was likely only a matter of time before the trend swept through Europe.
Although unproven at the poker table, Becker certainly has the reputation of a man accustomed to taking risks. Once the world’s #1 ranked men’s tennis player, Becker’s star power has been significantly dimmed by countless misadventures, including a financially crippling divorce ($14 million!), a lost paternity suit ($5 million!), a tax evasion conviction ($3 million!) and serious drug and alcohol addiction.
But is this sponsorship just another indication of the poker community’s misguided obsession with celebrity status? After all, just because you’re good at one thing – or infamously bad at another - it doesn’t necessarily make you an authority on poker. Or does it?
In a PR statement, Becker claimed that poker’s something he’s been at for a while. “I started to play casually in-between games because it helped me to improve my concentration,” he said. “Now I want to develop my poker skills and challenge myself to become really competitive at the highest levels in poker.”
One thing is for sure, the comically vocal and some might argue increasingly camp tennis legend is sure draw a crowd at any event he attends. Just think back to his early days at Wimbledon and the way he used to berate himself with hilarious German expletives. We can only hope this part of his competitive drive extends to poker as well.
Becker’s new place among the ranks of pro poker players will undoubtedly turn a few heads possibly for all the wrong reasons, just as his entertainingly frank 2004 autobiography did. Entitled “The Player”, the book’s cover photo - him staring seductively back at the camera with what appears to be a giant pineapple on his head – is heart-breakingly funny. But really though, we wish “Boom Boom” the best of luck in his poker career.