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The poker world was abuzz recently when the chip leader at a World Series of Poker Circuit event in Atlantic City was disqualified for unruly behavior. Down to the final five players at a relatively noteworthy tournament, it is simply unheard of to have a tournament director make such a bold and decisive move at a critical juncture that late in the contest. Poker chat forums instantly debated the topic of the ousted player, with most of the comments supporting the tournament staff for the move. Without a doubt, it seems that most of the poker community is tired of the rude and inexcusably immature behavior that infests many poker tables.

Poker players have suffered through a decidedly negative social image for decades. Plagued by real and fictitious stories of cheaters and shoot-outs in the old Wild West, poker is a game that many conservative mothers try to shield their children from as if it were a disease.

It is clear that this negative social undertone played at least a part in some politicians moving toward ridding online poker from Americans. Although we have come a long way due to the surge in television popularity of our game, there is little doubt that we still have a long way to go until we are embraced and accepted. Why, then, do we plod along and accept boorish behavior from many of our tablemates? Collectively we know that it is not healthy for the future of our sport to passively accept it, as it only perpetuates that poor image of the game that we love.

Social psychologists tell us that deeply rooted beliefs are extremely difficult to alter, no matter how much evidence is presented to discount them. With many in our American culture are rooted in the belief that poker is essentially a seedy and dangerous contest, players must be focused on bombarding the world with positive images of our game. While antics of poor poker sportsmanship may garner the most attention from media and fans, it is efforts like charity poker tournaments and fair, well-fought contests that can lead to wider acceptance. Whether we are playing in the World Series main event or in a buddy's smoky basement, the millions of us playing poker each have a small hand in influencing popular opinion of our game. Although it is essentially an uphill battle, it is imperative that we climb towards wider social acceptance to assure poker's future health.

The stakes are as high as they come: legality of online and live action poker, TV ratings of the game, new players to the game, corporate sponsorship of tournaments, and myriad other key issues.

Perhaps, on some small scale, the ousting of this poorly-behaved player late in a WSOP-C event is a catalyst toward a brighter track for our game. We might hope that this move helps us raise the bar for behavioral expectations at the tables. One step at a time, we are attacking negative perceptions of our beloved game.

With that in mind, we should all endeavor to do what we can to improve the image of poker.

Written by John Carlisle

www.pokerplayernewspaper.com