WSOP non-smokers beware

[kflop]

I should preface this by saying I’m a pretty strong anti-smoking guy, not crazy but somewhere in the 80 percentile.

I usually play in 3-4 poker tournaments a year. My preference is no limit re-buy hold-em. Monday night I made a late decision to try and play in Wednesdays WSOP $1,000 tournament(steep for me). My plan was to arrive Tuesday with $1400, sign-up for the tournament and then play in a side game with the $400 and hope to win a 2nd buy-in. After driving seven hours from Ca. I was told at the front desk that my room rate was predicated on my entering tomorrows tournament and that I needed to prove I entered or the rate would be $60 dollars higher. After a brisk 15 minute walk to the tournament area, a 15 minute wait to sign-up, a 15 minute walk back to the front desk, I was given my suite at the Rio Suites hotel at the promised rate. Trams from the hotel entrance to tournament area would not be a bad idea.

I took 15 minutes in the room, another 15 minute walk back to the tournament area and I was ready to win my re-buy or die of exhaustion, whichever came first. The players from Tuesdays tournament were on break and the smokers were puffing away in the halls outside the tournament room. There was no ventilation and the air quality in the halls was absolutely brutal. I realized that Wednesdays tournament would have at least twice as many people and leaving the tournament room for the bathroom breaks would be really uncomfortable. They have several free convention rooms across from the tournament area. Why not make one of them the smoking room and let people breathe in the halls

I decided to save my $400, I took the 15 min walk back to my suite took a shower and ordered room service. On Wednesday I lasted thru the first two hours without re-buying. The break was even worse then I'd imagine, the hallways just reaked of smoke. I got up to $4200 in the third hour when my Jacks lost all-in to AQ suited, queen on the river. I was almost happy. I have to whiz once in a while and don’t know how many breaks I could take in that atmosphere. There is a way to make the smokers and non-smokers happy. There is a way to accommodate people who don’t want to walk the long distance to the tournament area. The employees of the tournament and hotel staff were all friendly. The organizers will get away with whatever they can. I've been able to handle the smoking situation everywhere else.