Poker, Sport or Game?

[AceLosesKing]

lol.

God Berri is going to be awesome.

[Bacon]

I'm bringing ALL my card covers.

B2
Billy Brownless
Reverend Timms

There won't be enough room for my cards

See, this proves poker is a sport.. cos it's got superstitions involved.

[rcon]

70%/20%

I do believe Phill H would disagree there... "Poker is 100% skill and 50% luck."

[BigPete33]

I think it's fair to say that the amount of skill required varies depending on many different factors.

A simple example would be <insert pro here> vs <insert horribly bad player here>. The pro is far less reliant on luck but for the horribly bad player they are much more reliant on luck.

If we then put some fairly comparable players together then it's perhaps much closer to 50/50 than the other example.

So the dilema as I see it is how can anyone make a ruling on the skill to luck ratio at all? We may as well be asking how long a piece of string is (twice as long from one end to the other as it is from the middle to one end only).

As for if it's a sport or not... that's also very hard to answer.

Is it competetive? yes, it certainly is.
Is there physical exertion? yes, there can be - but more from being drained than from straining.
Is hand/eye co-ordination required? no, not really (just don't let muzz deal)
Are there strategies or tactics involved? yes, absolutely.
Will the decisions you make affect the outcome or are you simply reliant on others? Your own decisions are absolutely crucial to the outcome especially when referenced to yourself.

Is that enough to have it constitute a sport? Well I think the answer is much closer to being yes than no. The definition of 'sport' seems to have widened considerably lately and the factors I've listed above I think could be considered as requirements for a sport, so why the heck not?

[muzzington]

I have good hand eye coordination, I just can't deal. (to myself)

[Bob B]

I feel it's a combination of both. One of the pros was saying that he does regular gym work, makes sure he takes his own food and drinks and any suppliments he needs to get through the 10 hour plus games.

He was saying the modern day pros are now using high tech prep work, food and drink suppliments etc as well as a daily massages to maintain their bodies.

So I guess when you look at the pros and the 10 hours or so that they put in over a 4 day tourney they are playing a game and a sport all in one.

Makes you wonder how Doyle Brunson and others of his generation managed to survive their all day all night cash sessions before No limit Holdem became a televised attraction.

[rcon]

I feel it's a combination of both. One of the pros was saying that he does regular gym work, makes sure he takes his own food and drinks and any suppliments he needs to get through the 10 hour plus games.

So do, even mid level, executives, lawyers etc etc.

I hear what you're saying Bob, but preparation doesn't make it a sport

edit: I should add "doesn't make it a sport, to my mind" getting a bit presumptuous there!

[bennymacca]

So do, even mid level, executives, lawyers etc etc.

what does this mean rcon? keeping fit and healthy is what most people try and do, so whats your point? in any profession, being fit and healthy makes you concentrate and perform better.

i think you are saying that training isn't necessarily a prerequisite for playing professional poker, as is obviously the case for something like football.

[David]

The thing is, the word sport can have "official" definitions, as well as vague ones.

Anything can be referred to as a sport. The term can be used when talking about a pastime, or anything that involves a challenge. "I ___ for sport", etc.

[Bacon]

My uncle used to call me sport.