The always-controversial WSOP Ladies event got underway this weekend … with 1,055 players, up from last year\’s total of 1,054. At least 10 entrants were men, one of whom showed up in drag. While the WSOP can\’t legally require players to show their vaginas to the dealer before receiving a hand, the presence of Y-chromosomes in the field suggests that with Shaun Deeb\’s breaking through the gender barrier in 2010, it may well become WSOP tradition for this special tournament to appeal to dudes who clearly have issues with their mothers and/or painful memories of oppression at the hands of East German Olympic coaches during the Cold War.
Click here for BJ\’s photo gallery from the 2011 WSOP Ladies event … and here for WhoJedi\’s … and here for coverage from Wicked Chops … and here to follow the actual tournament, which is currently at the final table and streaming live with only women left and a $192k first prize up for grabs. (The \”last man standing\” finished 9th.)
![\"annie](\"http://old.pokerati.com/wp-content/uploads/annie-marie-ladies-backing.jpg\" "\\"annie-marie-ladies-backing\\"")
But beyond the inevitable spotlight stealing by a flash mob of penis-wielding hooligans … the WSOP Ladies No-Limit Hold\’em Championship is also where many players experience their first shot at being backed in a bracelet event. The low buy-in ($1k) and proportion of men who believe putting a woman in a tournament might some day help them get in her pants makes the hustle for support another ubiquitous part of the ladies event every year … and to that extent, I wanted to know, from the ladies, how they handle it when a guy wanting to give them money might have a different expectation about what it means to book a big score by going deep.
(Men can be so crass and dumb.)
Have a listen as I sit down with Mike Matusow\’s girlfriend Annie LePage and Pokerati editrix Marie-Lizette (at the Peppermill in Reno last month, at the party for Jen Harman\’s charity event before the HPT\’s $1,600 Nevada State Championship) … to learn how it works for women who may want backing but have to be sure all involved — including themselves? — understand that the benefactor really is interested in their potential skills on the table, not under it.
Part 1: Inappropriate Offers
Part 2: Business Women
[audio:http://old.pokerati.com/podcast/pokerati-raw/Pokerati-Raw-ladies-buyin.mp3, http://old.pokerati.com/podcast/pokerati-raw/PokeratiRaw-Ladies-buyin2.mp3]
It\’s apparently all about not sending the wrong message for less than a $10k buy-in. While some may believe everyone has a price … I\’m not sure if the service this audio really provides is essential listening for up-and-coming women players — on how to draw proper lines when dealing with a potentially horny backer — or more for men, on how to minimize the creepiness factor to be a better big-swinging-dick.