Part One: On the edge of the world of professional poker

Five years ago, I had no idea this world exists.  Now, it's a planet I visit regularly

My best friend is a professional poker player.  I will only refer to him as my best friend in order to protect his privacy.  Any other names I use will also be pseudonyms, in order to protect the strategies, companies, and public images of the people involved.

This is the only way my best friend would allow to be a source for writing about professional poker.  There's much secrecy in the world, more than I would expect.  But there's also good reason for it.  I hear rumors about what one would expect to hear---mob ties, cheating scandals, theft of backing funds---things no one would want to come out.

I'll begin with my best friend.  He's a professional poker player in Las Vegas, living within easy walking distance of the Strip.  He plays in live tournaments, especially the World Series of Poker every summer.  Now that online poker is available in Nevada, he plays online tournaments when he has time on the weekends.  He has private poker students he coaches; he's coached people in the Netherlands, England, France, Greece, Turkey, Sweden, and Norway.  And he also works for two private poker training companies; for them, he creates curriculum for students and teaches seminars.  These seminars last three or four days and cost upward of $5000.  They always fill up fast.

I think that's the most shocking thing about professional poker---the money.  It's everywhere.

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