Would you be interested in a weekend workshop on poker theory?

[set57hike]

Would you be interested in an intense series of weekend workshops covering basic and intermediate concepts from probability, statistics, Monte Carlo simulation, and game theory using examples from poker with ample opportunities to ask questions? The purpose would be to learn or relearn fundamental theoretical concepts and *apply* them to your poker game. Theory of Poker by Sklansky could easily serve as one place to draw examples from, but I have lots of ideas about key concepts a good poker player should understand.
If so, how much would you value this type of experience?
I envision taking over a small hotel/motel with conference rooms for a weekend. When we aren't working on our blackbelts in probabilty, statistics, simulation, and game theory, we might be able to mix in a little poker playing as well, so I'm hoping it would be fun too.

I've been thinking about putting together something like this, but I'm not sure if the target audience actually places monetary value on studying these ideas. I also understand that 2+2 has plenty of people who are more than capable of learning these concepts on their own... please don't flame me if you are one of those people. It just seems to me that some people would benefit from this type of opportunity.

My background--- I have a PhD from a well respected university with a background in all of the topics I intend to cover, and I am a professor in a math department at a major university. I am a poker novice, having only played for a few months. However, I would partner with a poker professional to insure that the proper perspective is upheld during the workshop.

[Mike Haven]

Will it be in Northern Ireland?

[AnyTwoCanLose]

So we get to pay for what we get here for free... and we get to play poker against people that study the game religiously?

Fantastic!

[set57hike]

If there were enough interest... sure. I've never been across the Atlantic Ocean. But realistically, I'm located in the United States.

[set57hike]

It appears that the interest level is pretty low and/or people really don't value this type of education. Thanks to those who answered the poll.

[Hold'me]

Don't let the few individuals here who love to flame get you down. It's a good idea, but wouldn't it be funner if the seminar is free? I mean everyone could chip down to cover the renting of the hotel and you have open discussions about all the topics you want to cover. It's just most people would be skeptical to pay someone who isn't famous in the poker world for poker lessons.

[2ndGoat]

I gave a "no" because you mention "beginning" and "intermediate" concepts. If you pushed to the edge of the mathematical complexity we players can use at a table, I'd then be interested.

2nd

[pzhon]

As a poker player and a mathematician, I am skeptical that a poker novice would have the judgement to emphasize relevant and useful mathematics. Many players feel uncomfortable about their level of understanding of probability, statistics, and game theory, but I doubt a course on those topics will help them play better.

[jason1990]

Well there was a reply from the OP here a minute ago that I was replying to. But now it's gone. I suppose it was deleted out of tact, so I will refrain from commenting on its contents. But the rest of my post was this:

My take on your idea, and I am also a mathematician, is that it sounds wonderful in theory, but may not work out in practice. (Like communism? /images/graemlins/smile.gif) Seriously, though, who really is the target audience? Serious poker players would probably not attend in large numbers since the mathematics they need is fairly basic and can be learned without great effort. Serious mathematicians would probably not be interested. And while casual enthusiasts of poker and math might be interested in a community-college-style course on the subject, I doubt many would spend the time and money to attend a large-scale conference on the subject. Good luck in your endeavor, though. And I hope you are not so put off by the responses here that you will not keep us updated on the status of your program.