WSOP officials wisely listened to complaints about the poker tent in 2007. It was a flimsy structure, at best, and with the slightest wind gust, the walls shook and rafters rattled. Players were irritated, members of the media were amused/scared, and powers-that-be were embarrassed. When the 2008 WSOP was announced, one of the first pieces of news to be released was that the poker tent was history. All poker players would be housed in the Rio Convention Center, and another ballroom was opened to handle the players indoors.
At the same time, it was announced that the poker kitchen would be in the spot where the tent was last year. Uh-oh.
When I first saw it, I thought it looked like a more sound structure, more like a super sturdy shed than a tent. And then the wind came. Today, it is cloudy, and drops of water are falling from the sky. (I live in Los Angeles, and folklore says this is called rain. People assure me the sun will return.) And the poker kitchen is a-shakin\’ in the wind. Evidently, no matter how many bolts look to be holding this structure down, it still has the ability to terrify all who visit it. It could be just my luck that I\’m in the poker kitchen, paying $2 for a Krispy Kreme donut that I certainly don\’t need, and some flimsy light fixture will knock me out. Hey, if you know me, you know that\’s possible.