you gotta sorta feel bad about this poker player...

[whiskeytown]

his name is Dr. Mark Burtman, and he writes several columns for pokerpages.com

http://www.pokerpages.com/articles/archives/index.htm#burtman -

I read his initial articles with zeal...being a new tourney player myself, it was very entertaining to read - he was happily up $35000 in tourney wins in 2002 - and he was writing about trying to be a successful amateur poker tourney player..

but then you keep reading...he took a mother of a beating in 2003 - sold his medical practice - lost his wife, lost his Girlfriend....(gave nearly all his friggen assets to the friggen ex-wife) and he hasn't had a lot of luck in tourneys... - I know he won a seat to the WPO main event, but from what I can tell, he was out after day 1 -

gawd...part of me just wants to take this guy aside and tell him not to throw it ALL away on poker tournry dreams... - it's like reading about the decline of an empire (anyone who's an Ob-Gyn should have Job Satisfaction anyways...LOL) -

I dunno...anyone else read his articles over the last year..?

RB

[Wyrm2]

I do feel bad for him... Pokerpages was the first site that I went to, and I got hooked on the free online tourneys they had (I was stuck at home for a week during last year's blizzard and my girlfriend was out of town). I always loved reading his tournament summaries. I hope he can turn it around.

[J.R.]

I have read most of his articles and really respect his brute frankness and ability to admit his own shortcomings.

[TimTimSalabim]

"I divorced my wife, broke up with my girlfriend..."

I don't know if this was unintended humor or what, but I was ROFL! I think that might be a key cause of divorce right there. But I do feel sorry for him, having to pay 10k a month to his ex-wives. That's a lifetime bad beat!

[Bignutz]

I thought I was the only one who caught the decline of the man's wife. Did you also notice he moved closer to a casino state. I love his column because we are both interested in touny poker, but I love it more for telling me to keep it all in perspective!