How can you experience a bad beat in a no limit hold’em tournament before it starts?
MY experience today has taught me…By choosing an Eastern Poker Tour no limit hold’em tournament and by not standing in the exact spot you were suppose to be standing in – even though no one told you where to stand.
So, I planned my whole day around playing in an Eastern Poker Tour charity event tonight. Whole Day? Yeah – The plan was to win a seat into the 6:00pm charity event by playing in one of the satellites (two if I had to) that started at 2:00pm.
I arrived at the venue at 2:20. Walked right to Eastern Poker Tour’s desk and signed up for the next satellite table. I told the two women at the table that I was going to the bathoom. I did that and came back to the desk and the guy running it, Nicholas Faucher, was there beside the two women. I went to go into the poker area. It was so much hotter in there – like 8 degrees hotter than in the hallway – that I came back out and took a seat across from Eastern Poker Tour’s desk. Then I waited and waited and waited. Finally, after 45 minutes, I got up and checked how many spaces were needed to be filled in on the satellite table list and there were 2 left. So I watched every person come and go until finally, a tenth person signed it.
I got up and walked over toward the poker area. As I entered the room, I heard Nicholas say, “Everyone waiting for table 3 come up front here [where the table was].” Some players were already at the table. There was no chair in the seat that I wanted so I went and found one and dragged it over. Then another player was trying to fit at the table and no one had left room because they just sat down where there were seats. So that player went and shagged his own chair.
I had won a free pass into a satellite game [of my choosing] in early May. I placed the pass in front of my seat. Nicholas took the pass of the player to my left and processed that first. Then he takes mine and says [with an arrogant swag of the head and an attitude], “I need some ID over here.” So, I retrieve my license and hand it over to him. He checks it out, then the list, then tosses the pass back towards my seat and says [with even more disgust than when he requested my ID], ‘You are not on the list.” I respond, “What do you mean I’m not on the list. I signed it an hour. Where’d my name go?” I look at the list he is using and indeed my name is not on it. He said, “You were on that list.” as he points to a nearby table . So, I said, “What? I’ve been waiting for an hour. Why didn’t you call me?” He just ignores me and goes on processing the rest of the table.
So I go to the desk to wait for him and get some clarification. While waiting, I asked the the woman sitting at the desk for the sheet for the other table and she says that she can’t help me. “Hey, I only work for the organization. I don’t know how to play poker.” [Derrrrr. We weren’t talking about poker. We were talking tournament organization. Presumably, that is why there were three people manning the desk.]
Nicholas gets that table settled, comes out and I ask for an explanation about what happened. He told me “I waited TEN minutes for you.” [Okay, so, now we know he’s an outright liar. No one waits ten minutes in poker.] I told him, “That’s just not true. It doesn’t take ten minutes to walk across the floor and go to the bathroom and come back.” Nicholas said, he had looked for me every where…Waited several minutes…[Oh, so NOW the story changes. 30 seconds ago, he waited TEN minutes for me.] Even gone into the bar looking for me… Derrr, I was sitting right next to the desk near the entrance. I told him where I had been sitting and that I had been there for an hour. And he gives me that arrogant swag of the head again and says, ” Hey if you are not there when the table is called, you get bumped to the next list.” So, I responded, “but, you didn’t bump me to the next list.” Nick, “I thought you left.” Then he says, “What do you want me to do? There are players in there that want to play poker.” <– AM I EVEN SUPPOSE TO UNDERSTAND THAT? That’s why I arrived an hour ago!!!!!!!!!!!
Nicholas Faucher was rude and arrogant, and I didn’t deserve his attitude. The bottom line is that I was not standing exactly where he wanted me to stand, and, he bumped me to put someone else in – probably, one of his Rhode Island friends. Well, I say to the Eastern Poker Tour that I am not an F’N mind reader. If you want me to be in a certain spot – I’ll be there – just tell me where.
I am so disgusted with Nicholas Faucher’s attitude. I’ve already tweeted about my experience. I’ve vented here. Now, I’m going to share my experience with my family, friends and poker colleagues including my brother – who lives in North Kingstown – and his poker buddies.
What are your experiences? Is this typical behavior for regional poker organizations?