Promotions Story

[Mason Malmuth]

Hi Everyone:

Back in the mid 1980s there was this Las Vegas Cardroom that I thought was very poorly run. One day, shortly after Card Player Magazine had begun to publish, I was in their office when who should walk in but the cardroom manager of the place I didn't think so highly of, and with him was a high level casino executive.

So I went up to this manager, who left Las Vegas a long time ago, and told him that if he really wanted to fill his room, he should take all the money they were wasting on promotions and just give it to the ten worse players he could find with the stipulation that they must play in his room until they went broke.

Of course the hotel executive upon hearing this got very insuted and wanted to know who I was and who I thought I was, and told me in very blunt terms that their organization would never do anything unethical like that. But to my amazement, the cardroom manager spoke up and explained to the executive that when they hired props and/or hosts (which this room had a few at that time), that they tried to hired the worse players they could get.

So the moral of this is that just because a prop comes to your game, it doesn't mean that you are looking at a top notch professional. Sometimes you are, but frequently you'll now be against someone who can't win no matter what the game or limit.

Best wishes,
Mason

[bernie]

i played in a room long ago, that used to use props...

id be playing with 3-4 per table...

and youre right, they werent that good....some were, but most werent...

i think many may overestimate the skill of a prop...

b