Introducing PokerStars Women October 24, 2010
Posted by Jennifer in : feminism,poker,travel , 8 comments
I’m excited to announce that I am part a brand new team of writers for PokerStars Women! My first article covered Lauren Nakhoneinh Pottmeyer’s (pictured below) big win at the US Ladies Poker Championship. Lauren’s successful but risky road to immigration really put into perspective the vast difference between fortune in life and poker. To be clear, it’s more important to be lucky in the former 
My second piece for PokerStars Women will detail how to qualify for the Ladies PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA) Weekend (January 14-16) and provide basic satellite strategy tips. I’m really psyched to be part of this unique initiative to bring more women into poker via live events, the Women’s Poker League and an online community. Rebekah Mercer, who wrote a profile of me earlier this year in her Examiner column is the Senior Editor while my Women’s Poker Hour co-host Amy Zupko is also a contributing writer.
Speaking of Amy, listen to our latest Women’s Poker Hour shows (also available for free download on itunes!), with Team PokerStars Pros Maria “maridu” Mayrinck, Celina Lin and entrepreneur Ellen Leikind, author of PokerWoman.
Going Deep in Guggenheim YouTube Play and WCOOP September 25, 2010
Posted by Jennifer in : art,chess,feminism,hooping,poker , 5 commentsI’m happy to report here that Hulachess has been shortlisted for the 1st Guggenheim YouTube Play biennial! 125 videos made the cut out of over 23,000 entries from 91 countries. Browse the shortlist at YouTube.com/Play and find hulachess either by my username (Superjenium) or in the “Non-Narrative” Category. Now an art and filmstar jury including Shirn Neshat and Takashi Murakami will whittle the field down to 20 videos to be installed at the Guggenheim Museum in New York (as well as the Bilbao, Venice and Berlin institutions) from October 21-24.
Because I play in so many Multi-table poker tournaments (MTTs) I have a good sense of the luck and skill required to go deep in a field with thousands of contestants. Funnily enough, the day prior to the shortlist announcement I made the money at a NL Hold Em World Championship of Online Poker event (WCOOP) on pokerstars. I grinded the Sunday away, sadly missing a South Philly street fair outside my house, with drinks, dancing, sausage sandwiches and lemonade and carnival games. But when the bubble burst, I was happy to be indoors on a gorgeous day. Out of almost 10,000 players I ended in 514th place for a decent cash. Still, the 280K first prize was many dreams and coinflips away.
If only the Guggenheim gallery morphed into a cardroom to determine the YouTube Play finalists! I could I face my artist, musician and game designer opponents in either six max Sit and Gos (the winner of each six person poker tournament would advance to the top 20), a regular Multi-Table satellite or even a Heads-up Knockout. To be honest, I don’t think the Guggenheim jury intends to decide it heads-up, since they only picked 125 videos, and the round one heads-up brackets would need 128 artists. Well… a few videos, such as hulachess, could be seeded into round two
See a few of my other favorites below. In other words, I hope these aren’t seated to my left.
Congrats also to co-creator Daniel Meirom, dancer & choreographer Gabrielle Revlock and Director of Photography Blake Eichenseer. For more press on the 1st Guggenheim YouTube Play Biennial, see mashable, flavorwire, the Huffington Post, and Alexandra Kosteniuk’s chessblog.com. Also thanks to Samara O’Shea for letting me and Daniel know about the contest, and for a nice post about hulachess on letterlover.net.
Hula Chess Spins on in 2010 July 27, 2010
Posted by Jennifer in : chess,feminism,hooping , add a commentThe US Women’s and US Junior Champs are a wrap in Saint Louis! In the middle of the event, Channel 5 Show Me Saint Louis host Dana Hendrickson came to the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis to learn chess and hooping moves.
The final cut included footage both from the original video art (often left out of hula chess press) and my hulachess stint on ESPN2′s First Take.
Additionally, at the two-year anniversary of the CCSCSL, Iryna Zenyuk and I hulachessed, which Suzy Gorman captured beautifully in photographs. I also added additional photographs to my hulachess gallery.
Dr. Kamikaze and Cookie Cooks on Women’s Poker Hour July 4, 2010
Posted by Jennifer in : feminism,poker , 3 commentsWomen’s Poker Hour featured two fascinating guests on our last two shows.
First we interviewed Kami Chisholm aka “Dr.Kamikaze”, a gender studies professor and feminist film-maker turned poker pro. Although a HORSE specialist, Chisholm placed fifth in her first No Limit Hold Em 2010 World Series bid, the Ladies event. She was adamantly against men playing in the ladies event and even called out Shaun Deeb when he sat at her table. My co-host Amy Zupko and I asked her about being a woman in a male-dominated field, and whether people treated her differently and she responded matter of factly, “I am a butch lesbian, so my experience is different than a lot of women.” Dr. Kamikaze explained that she felt her image worked to her advantage in the Ladies Event, in that she was able to bond with the other ladies at the table, but also had a more intimidating, aggressive image. Kami also talked about the acceptance of gays and lesbians in poker, and the lack of sponsorships for openly gay players. I’m sure Dr.Chisholm was thrilled when she found out shortly after our chat that Vanessa Selbst signed with pokerstars!
We also interviewed player and promoter Zeljka Penzinger aka Cookie Cooks from Croatia. Cookie is a member of the Ladies Pokerica team and organizer of an upcoming poker tournament series in Croatia. Her favorite hand is queen nine suited, an inadvertent plug for 9queens. Unfortunately for me, Cookie has my header dominated. Speaking of which, I added a gallery by photographer extraordinaire Suzy Gorman to my photo page.
The next Women’s Poker Hour will feature Amanda Musumeci, the new bodog girl. Amanda was born and raised in Philly, and was featured in a recent Inquirer article. Amanda was insightful on bankroll management, game selection and the ladies event, so be sure to look for that show soon on womanpokerplayer.com.
Also join our facebook page!
2010 Ladies World Series of Poker Redux June 20, 2010
Posted by Jennifer in : chess,feminism,poker,travel , add a commentI’m back from Las Vegas, where I played in the Ladies World Series of Poker and covered the National Open for Chess Life Online. I also made a quick stop in Saint Louis for meetings related to the 2010 US Women’s and US Junior’s Championship (July 9-19)and to give a group of Saint Louis women a sneak preview into “Play Like a Girl”, the 9queens/Mongoose Press collaboration that will be coming out later this year. It was all a blast, though predictably, I came back with a serious case of the Vegas/airplane flu.
I reported on the Ladies World Series of Poker on the second episode of Women’s Poker Hour and in an article on WomanPokerPlayer.com, which begins thus:
At the Ladies Event of the World Series of Poker, Vanessa Hellebuyck of France won her first bracelet and a prize of $192,000. Despite the uproarious applause of what seemed liked every French man or woman in Las Vegas, Vanessa’s win barely registered a peep compared to the media coverage of the dozen men who took their legal right to play in the “Ladies’ Event” seriously.
About ten minutes into the event, Seth Palansky made it clear that Harrah’s was not happy about the men who infiltrated the Event #22 of the World Series. A woman, who I later found out was Joy Miller representing Bluff Magazine, also announced soon after the tournament started that online poker legend Shaun Deeb was playing (in drag) because he lost a prop bet.
Women’s poker tournaments have a great atmosphere. Daniel Negreanu called it “electric!” We compliment each other’s clothes and handbags, offer each other gum and lip-balm, and spend the first three levels set-mining and waiting for aces. Except of course if Shaun Deeb is on our right in which case we three-bet him until his mascara, applied by none other than Liv Boeree, drips and he changes his mind, decides that drag is uncool and women’s poker tournaments are just wrong.
Some more salient points from my reportage:
1. I was eliminated from the Ladies WSOP shoving A3o from the Cutoff in an unenviable but inevitable spot. My opponent called with AQo and I was busto minutes before the dinner break.
2. I cashed in my private lesson with pokerstars pro Vanessa Rousso of Big Slick Bootcamp. Vanessa is really passionate about poker and teaching, and I will write a full article on my lesson with her. One tidbit: she is not a big fan of three-bet shoving, which was comforting cause there were a few such spots in the WSOP that I wisely chickened out on. Rousso is currently in the Elite Eight of the 10K Heads-Up competition, which started with 256 players. Good luck!!
3. Phil Ivey is better looking in person than on TV poker tables because a. he is much taller than you’d expect (often obscured by slumping over the poker table), and b. he dresses well (often obscured by full tilt gear).
4. Of the dozen men who crashed the Ladies WSOP, one used a tampon as a card-protector. While this may be a rude, I don’t think it merits a penalty. The same sort of male tournament director who gives a penalty to someone for that is the type of boyfriend who would think it’s “gross” to run out to the CVS and buy a pack of Tampax for his girlfriend. It’s a tampon, not an illicit device!
5. Two more stories coming on my aforementioned lesson with Rousso and a pokerchess match that I contested against a chessplayer turned poker pro.
Women’s Poker Hour and the $20 Headphones Rebuy June 5, 2010
Posted by Jennifer in : feminism,poker , 6 comments
I’m proud to co-host with Amy Zupko, Women’s Poker Hour, a radio show sponsored by womanpokerplayer.com. On our first show (check it out here) , we interviewed the lovely Danielle Benham from Australia, who recently signed with Felt Stars. Danielle is also a blogger and edits Women’s Poker News.
In the next edition of Woman’s Poker Hour, I’ll talk about my go around at the 2010 Ladies World Series of Poker (coming up in just a week!) and my lesson with professional poker player and entreprenuer Vanessa Rousso. One of Vanessa’s pet projects, Big Slick Bootcamps, donated a private Rousso lesson to a freeroll I won on womanpokerplayer.com.
A Tale of Two Headsets
About four years ago, I went to a RadioShack and bought the cheapest skype headset in the store. With that headset, I commented on chess.fm shows from the World Championships to the US Chess League. The sound was OK, but I’d often pop an advil or four during the broadcasts, cause the headphones smashed my ears together and gave me wicked headaches.
This April, I lost a 10:1 chip lead in a heads-up match which would qualify me directly to a tournament I really wanted to play in Monte Carlo. The value of first was around $4500 while second was just $600. Afterwards, I ripped a glossy art magazine and a New Yorker to shreds, but it wasn’t enough. I needed to destroy a heavier item. Keyboard and monitors were too dear to my blogger’s survival instinct and NO WAY was I hurting googie (my pet name for my google phone.) So the target of my rage was bound to be those headphones of many headaches. On the other side of the Atlantic, the villain, Atheanna from Oslo was probably popping champagne as I smashed plastic. It was the first time I ever broke something after losing in poker (or chess for that matter), and hopefully the last.
I’ve moved up in the World, so when the time came that I needed a headset, I went to Staples and picked the most expensive one in the store. Could I win back the love of my ears, which had endured so many years of helix abuse? “Yes,” said the soft fabric of the new headset, massaging my ears. Unfortunately, the new headphones distance the sound of my voice on the receiving end, reducing the pleasure of the listeners. Well for most listeners at least. People seem to either love or hate my voice. The majority like me, but detractors are vocal and graphic, like one ICC troll who said I reminded him of a strangled cat. It alarms me that anyone would know how that sounds–I’m clasping my hands around my neck now to try it: meogwghwgh.
So after a much anticipated week in the City of Sin, I’ll rebuy those earphones of frugal days. Then armed with a bottle of Motrin, I’ll call Amy, and the stories from Las Vegas will flow.
Leveling Victory Poker May 4, 2010
Posted by Jennifer in : feminism,poker , add a commentVictory Poker is hosting a contest, or to be more precise, reality TV show auditions, for a grand prize of $100,000 in tournament entries and a high-rolling Las Vegas life. The contest is explicitly geared toward males. Take this excerpt from the rules:
After testing your abilities and going through some fun challenges (taking a playmate out on a date, getting hunted by Blitz in paintball, going heads up against Paul Wasicka in poker, or being able to hang with Antonio at the club), it finalizes down to one person who’s (sic) life will be changed.
The fantasy: An online poker millionaire may have zits and an imperfect body but with a large enough bankroll and a propensity toward sunk costs & good times, he can be transported to a land of silicon, luxury watches and high stakes sushi. For instance, a quote from the very visible CEO, Dan Fleyshman in a Victory promo vid, “Nobody is going to go out there and do what we do. They’re not going to coin flip for dinner every time, they’re not going to go Tao and spend $10,000.” is complemented by a quote from playmate Sara Jean Underwood in another video “I think poker players are absolutely sexy. It involves money and what about money isn’t sexy?”, and then we see Antonio Esfandiari draped in bikini clad models insisting, “I”m on the clock.”
Victory Poker’s sole female pro is the aforementioned Sara Jean Underwood, 2007 Playmate of the Year.
The two leading American online cardrooms, pokerstars and fulltilt sponsor female players with proven poker successes. For instance, pokerstars female pros include Vanessa Rousso and Katja Thater. Jennifer Harman is on Team fulltilt while the ink is still wet on sweet-faced but lethal Internet phenom Annette Obrestad’s FT contract. Obviously, looks and style factor somewhat into any site’s sponsored players but for stars and tilt, it’s clearly not the primary criteria.
Although I have no intention of trying out, I had to find out if this VP reality show was a dudes only affair, and if not, if they were primarily seeking out those with hot measurements or hot poker stats.
I was in luck. There is a sponsored victory poker forum on 2+2 so I got rapid responses from members of the VP team to both of my questions below.
Question #1-
Do you have any plans to market to women? I noticed the video contest link today and it doesn’t seem geared toward ladies. Maybe you could sub the watch for a handbag if a woman wins? Also, a woman will obv crush the date with a playmate challenge so you’d probably have to figure out a way to even the playing field there- Jenium
Response from Victory Poker CEO Dan Fleyshman:
Jenium: I do market to women in different ways. I sponsor ladies events and actively support the LIPS Poker Tour for women. If a woman wins, she would still receive a watch, just a ladies edition instead! There are 18 male poker players on my team that a lady can choose for the date challenge : )
I agree with you, we’ve thought about it many times and there will be easy adjustments made to suit the ladies that make it as one of the final 25 contestants.
It’s great that Fleyshman sponsors women’s poker tournaments but not sure about the parallels here. A watch for poker players is obviously not to tell time, but to display your bankroll and inspire envy. A better corollary for women would be a collection of Louboutins. As for the men to choose from, nothing against Team VP members but if you want a male answer to Underwood, wouldn’t this be more appropriate?
Not that he’s my type or anything, just making a point
Question #2
Does a woman need a certain cup size to apply or is that something that she could work on improving during the competition?-Jenium
Response from Victory Poker sponsored pro, Keith Gipson:
We’re looking for a good poker player who gels with us. You’re gonna have to be smart and cool. Cup size is not gonna play a role as far as I’m concerned. But, Executive Producer is, in fact, the executive producer. So, a lot of what goes down will rest with him.
So there you go, cup sizes are not relevant to at least one member of the VP team.
But seriously, if Victory pros are so good at poker, why are they so simple to level? Eassssy game.
New Poker Rule: Queens Outrank Kings April 23, 2010
Posted by Jennifer in : feminism,poker , 3 comments
Women have won two major mixed poker titles in a row, which should be a boon to attracting more women to the male dominated game. Vanessa Selbst won the North American Poker Tour Mohegan Sun event, good for a $750,000 cash. Meanwhile, Liv Boeree won EPT San Remo for €1.25 million. I watched the San Remo final three on the live webcast and Liv’s staredowns were incredible. Freeze frame from one to the left. I rarely stare at people intentionally in poker or in life, but this got me wondering if I should start.
Vanessa Selbst’s blog entry on NAPT with her hand analysis was great, the kind of thing that inspires me to improve in poker. I also listened to an interview with Vanessa on pokercast where she talked about how important it was for her to be a role model to young girls, who rarely see openly gay figures in the media–great thing to say. I voted for Selbst to make it into the WSOP tournament of champions event and will definitely be checking her blog out regularly, in spite of gray text on black background.
I played next to Vanessa Selbst in the 2007 Ladies World Series of Poker–we had just broke down to the final two tables, I was super-short and she was seated to my left. I was not happy about having to shove with almost any two into her monstrous stack but met an even worse fate getting all my money in preflop a few hands later. I had AQo in the Big Blind against JJ (who raised two off the button) and AA (who re-raised in the Small Blind). The woman with aces was upset that JJ sucked out on the river to knock her out, and had some nasty words about my play. I remember being consoled by the fact that Selbst said I was right to go in (assuming I lacked major reads on the first two raisers).
Liv, the ultimate modern Renaissance woman, seems to have enthralled the entire 2+2 community. Well you gotta be either enamored or intimidated by an astrophysicist/guitar-playing/model/journalist/poker champion. Seems made up right? Check out the following clip of Liv interviewing Ron Jeremy, which shows that she thinks a level ahead of the porn star– in his own game:
Ladies Poker Tournaments are Awesome March 6, 2010
Posted by Jennifer in : feminism,poker , 9 commentsI qualified for a Satellite tomorrow into the EPT Ladies Monte Carlo event. I almost won on my first try, got heads-up with a 2x chip lead but we were very deep and I eventually lost the battle. In heads-up it can be hard to tell if you’re getting owned or unlucky–still not sure. The next day, I ran better, played better, avenged my loss and qualified. There is one 3500 Euro package for every 18 players in the tournament, so I’ll have to run really well to win.
Time to explain the merits of ladies poker tournaments, and to contradict some of the criticism (see the Black Widow of Poker blog for a detailed example and some fiery comments.)
Before my thoughts, let’s hear what famous female poker players think about segregated poker tournaments.
Nay
Annie Duke “Poker is one of the few sports where a woman can compete on a totally equal footing with a man, so I don’t understand why there’s a ladies only tournament.”
Vicky Koren “I don’t think I will play the Ladies’ Event again. A special women’s competition sends out the wrong message, as if we’re admitting we need some kind of help. I want to get better at poker and take my chances in an open field. Of course I want to win a tournament one day, but I don’t want it to be a handicapped one. I want to win a real one.”- From For Richer, For Poorer: A Love Affair With Poker
Tiffany Michelle : “If we’re sitting here and talking about equality, and wanting to play with the boys, then obviously it’s not fair to have a ladies only event…I mean, I would be pissed off if they ever did a men-only event, so how in the world can we sit here and do this?” –From cardplayer.com
Yay
Kathy Liebert- “Ladies events are usually weaker fields.” (In response to my tweet to her asking why she plays in ladies tournaments. Interestingly Kathy is considered by many to be the best female tournament poker player, but she is not sponsored. See an interesting article about this here..)
Annette Obrestad : “I haven’t played in any (women’s tournaments). They’re just haven’t been any – I can’t play in Vegas. I guess one day I will play one in Vegas – I think the field will be really soft. It’s a good chance to win a bracelet! (laughs) It wouldn’t be as good as winning a normal event, but it’s still money, it’s still good.”- Poker Player Interview
Mixed, Mostly Positive
Vanessa Rousso- I don’t often play in ladies events because they usually have a fast structure and I gamble a bit too much in the beginning. But I plan to play the PCA (the Pokerstars Caribbean Adventure, which she ended up winning) which has a great structure so I’m excited about that. Paraphrased from a pokercast interview, January 4, 2010
Evelyn Ng: “Even though there is no apparent gender bias inherent in poker tournaments, there is no doubt that women-only events have a totally different feel than open events… it was so wonderful that almost 1,200 women came out to play this year’s Ladies Championship (2008). Many of them were playing their first poker tournament, and perhaps, their experiences at the WSOP will be their gateway into open events in the future. For what it’s worth though, I think that the term ‘Women’s Event’ is much more appropriate than ‘Ladies Event,’” From her bodog blog.
Maria Ho: “I see the ladies events as a very good platform. Some women don’t feel comfortable playing at the same table as men. They feel more comfortable learning with other women. This just gives them the option and I don’t see a problem with that. It’s great for women, which will only be good for the game. The bad thing is that these tournaments are usually crapshoots. The structure is pretty poor. I’m not sure if they don’t feel the need to create a good structure, since we’re just females.” From a pokerpages interview.
If you haven’t guessed by the article title, I am in the Yay camp. Here are seven reasons why:
1. Women poker tournaments are NOT admitting we’re not good enough to play against men. One of the main poker skills is game selection, finding spots where you’re plus EV, accounting for the rake and expenses. You could be the second best poker player in the world, but if all you do is play the best poker player in the world, you’ll go broke eventually. Women’s fields are usually softer especially for equivalent buy-ins (not due to some inherent lack of female poker skill, but due to less exposure). Who would dare tell a man that he shouldn’t play in an event where he had a positive EV at? This line of argument would suggest a male pro who waits desperately for a spot at the table with the drunk businessman is actually admitting his inferiority? That women shouldn’t play in women’s tournaments because it’s degrading strikes me as so anti-poker it’s hard for me to believe that famous poker players espouse this idea. In chess, maximizing EV is not an integral part of the game’s skill, so the argument against segregated tournaments holds up much better. I grappled with the issue in Chess Bitch and went back and forth, but in poker this argument is in a roundabout way, sexist. Women should not be told how to manage their bankrolls in a moralistic, anti-money way—this is poker, not identity politics.
2. Variety of Opposition is a Good Learning Experience: In poker, unlike in chess, it’s good to play against as wide a variety of skill levels and styles as possible. Playing in ladies events may make women more capable of generalizing on how to play against females, which could give them an advantage in mixed competitions.
3. Women who play in Ladies’ Events, Once Knocked out, often play in other events- I always see more women at open events, sit n gos and tables before and after ladies’ events. Check out this hilarious but sad video from the EPT event in Copenhagen, which as far as I know, did not hold a ladies event.
Watch EPT Copenhagen 2010: Where Are The Women? on PokerStars.tv
4. Women's Poker Tournaments are Exciting and Fun- Poker tournaments can get repetitive to the media/boring to the players, so the more types of events you have, the better.
5. Lack of Intimidation for Newbies- Some women may find a ladies' event more fun and comfortable, and a good excuse to come to a major event. Therefore, hosting ladies events has the potential to make poker more balanced and popular. Ladies poker events also allow for targeted promotions.
6. Structures are Often Very Good Value- Contrary to Ho and Rousso's comments above, I've often found that the structures in Ladies' events are a very good deal for the buy-in. For instance, at the Borgata, generally Ladies' tournaments feature the lowest buy-ins of the event, and yet they usually have similar structures to more expensive tournaments. Surely I wouldn't object to even more time for our money, but we have to expect that to some extent, we'll get what we pay for. The Mancession may be reducing the lingering differences between American male and female salaries. Still, it seems like women are generally less likely to risk their life savings on poker. So if the goal is to lure women to major events and balance the male:female ratio, offering prestigious and deep tournaments for less money is a good strategy.
7. Men can Play a Ladies Event If They Really Want to- In the last year, men have won two major ladies' events in Lake Tahoe and Atlantic City. The casinos call the tournaments "ladies' events" and discourage men from participating but for legal reasons, they have no actual intention to prohibit insistent men. Even in these cases, I think it's rude for a dude to play in a women's event and probably not the best way to get a date. But the option is there- when I played last month at the Borgata Winter Ladies Open, there was raucous applause after each of five men were eliminated from the competition. So, at least in Vegas and AC women's tournaments are only segregated by the cultural construct/biological fact of gender (pick your percentages.) Men are free to ignore the gender label of the tournament if they don't mind getting booed.
The arguments above run the gamut from pragmatically self-interested to philosophical, but the antipathy over ladies events is so surprising to me that I had to rant out every reason I could think of. Hope I win tomorrow so in May, I can bring you more thoughts on women's poker tournaments from one of the most expensive places on earth
A Golden Rule of Homeownership January 20, 2010
Posted by Jennifer in : art,feminism,poker , 1 comment so farA golden rule of homeownership, right next to “no keg parties” is “don’t let a film crew into your house.” I learned the lesson the hard way when filming my latest video art project with DimMak Films. After five minutes of production, a doorknob broke. For the next 14 hours, the cast and crew squeezed between tripods to enter bathrooms, and I hoped not only for good shots, but that the equipment that took up every spare square inch of our house (but somehow never showed up in the shots, hooray!), wouldn’t damage the 100-year-old home I recently bought.
Well, rules are meant to be broken, and I’m really excited about editing and eventually showing this piece. Goldilocks vs. the three bears. Place your bets now.
