[CountDuckula]

[ QUOTE ]
I can't understand why some people seem to think that bad players somehow make the game harder to beat. Study some poker theory.

[/ QUOTE ]

Bad players don't make the game harder to beat, but they do have an effect on variance. In order to lay a bad beat on someone, one has to be playing sub-optimal cards by definition. Sometimes, the fish just get lucky.

Another thing to look at, with respect to tournaments, is that the field has become much larger. There are more players to play against, so the pros have to play more hands than they did before. That translates to more opportunities for bad luck to rear its ugly head. Skill will win out over the long haul, but bad luck can hit even the best players in the short run. Pros will still be winning and placing in most of the tournaments, but a few fish will get lucky enough to join them.

-Mike