Reply to comment

SAN MANUEL RESERVATION - There may be no better example that gambling continues to grow as a leading recreation for adults than the poker boot camp on Wednesday at the San Manuel Indian Bingo & Casino.

That's right, a camp for adults to spend $500 for a day of learning from esteemed poker pro Annie Duke.

It was a bill to pay for Josh Woods, a 25-year-old San Bernardino man who has been playing poker in casinos for about a year.

"I was losing a lot of money at poker so I thought, `Why not spend some money to learn that I'd just lose instead,"' Woods said.

It was only a few hours into the camp and Duke had already filled the heads of Woods and 15 others with a dizzying amount of game theories and mathematical concepts - and they all loved it.

"She's looking at it from angles that I didn't even know were relevant," Woods said.

It might seem that $500 is a lot to spend on a poker education, but poker clearly has come a long way.

Duke said she is raising her price for private lessons to $25,000 because she already has too many students.

Each of the campers hoped to cull all they could from Duke, whose skills on "the felt," coupled with her idyllic smile and amicable disposition, has become one of the biggest stars in the poker community.

"I have good instincts but I don't have the knowledge behind it," said Kerri Tyler, 53, of Sun Valley. "But I'm a little lost realizing how much I've been playing on instinct."

Duke is becoming a true selling point for the San Manuel casino. She has hosted a handful of tournaments, including the most recent last week, "Ante Up For Africa," a fundraiser for Darfur that brought in $500,000 thanks to the San Manuel tribe.

Throughout the class, Duke spoke passionately about the theories of the game, while mixing in the critical need to understand the math. At the end of the session, during a practice game she had no problem pointing out a mistake. It might have seemed harsh, but she was trying to make sure that mistake didn't get repeated, thereby giving away money.

"This is a game that has given me a lot of enjoyment in life," said Duke as she explained why she glows when teaching. "I've made a lot of money, but it's been intellectually full, by the way."

The campers' skills ranged from beginning to those who have logged many hours in casino poker rooms.

Pat Nichols, 47, of Victorville paid for the class after a good day at the casino last week.

"I've only been playing for about a year," Nichols said. "I've learned a lot but I can't say what, because I don't want to give away secrets to the competition."

Written by George Watson

sbsun.com