WPT Amneville: The local hero has come home
Amneville Ahoy!
In many ways, poker players are the explorers of modern times. No need to wonder what Christopher Columbus, Vasco da Gama, and Hernando Cortes would be doing if they were around today.
Between grinding it out at six-max tables on the Internet, they’d show up at every new stop on the WPT, no matter where it was. Even in Amneville. And like those old fashioned explorers, there’s plenty of gold to be found if you make the effort to travel. Not to mention a whole lot of fun.
Show 18 (November 4) with Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier is online now! Click the play button to listen:
Prefer to download? Right click here and Save As.
Shockingly spiked bright yellow hair
The place is a big barn, really. A massive cavern of a room with forty-five foot ceilings, a red and purple carpet, and a few brightly hued partitions put here and there for dividers and form. But once they got the poker tables wheeled in, fancy décor doesn’t seem to matter. It’s some of the most vibrant poker action I’ve seen since they opened Foxwoods in 1992. The French, it seems, just want to play cards. And by the droves they’ve come, turning up from every nook, cranny, and orifice.
Of more than five hundred players, I only know about thirty names. As far as value is concerned, this is what the tournament player is looking for. And the few smart guys who have made the trek are patting themselves on the back because of it.
There’s a TV camera, an interviewer, a microphone, and a wide circle of lights. A few French poker players record the proceedings on their smart phones, and several photographers are furiously snapping away. A line of people wait to the side for autographs. In the center of it all stands a slight man in black jeans, a black suede jacket with silver eagles on the back, and shockingly spiked bright yellow hair. Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier has arrived to Amneville. The local hero has come home, and everybody is rooting for him.
Most foreign players flew into Luxembourg, but driving was an option. Dragan Galic had no problem covering half of the continent going 300 kph in his Aston Martin. That’s what it’s for. Bodo Sbrzesny, unfortunately, is slumming it in a Maserati and he paid the price. Next time, maybe he’ll let a mechanic have a crack at the engine. I don’t think Bodo would let his Maserati dealer play his chips while grinding eighteen tables.
The bar is full, the wine is flowing, and you can get a steak and fries any time of the day. What more could a poker player want. A WPT title, perhaps?
Show 18 (November 4) with Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier is online now! Click the play button to listen:
Prefer to download? Right click here and Save As.
