Does Phil Ivey have a gambling Problem?

[eMarkM]

Oh, I don't know, why is their betting so hard to believe? Not like he was making these bets against the real Tiger Woods. Many pro poker players are notorious prop bettors and I believe Ivey also has this rep. And some of the amounts he was wagering were like one BB in the big games Ivey supposedly destroys.

[Slacker13]

IMO it was just staged for TV.

[ohgeetee]

I think his only problem is his inability to blink.

I'd take Ivey vs. anyone in a staring contest.

[Smasharoo]

that tv segment was totally staged. do you really think ivey is dumb enough to bet 10K on a golf shot?

You're talking about someone who plays in games where you win or loose $1,000,000 a day. It's like you or I betting $10 on a golf shot.

Doesn't strike me as a big deal.

[B Dids]

Ivey plays in games where the B is 8K. He wagered less than two bets.

This thread falls into the "saw something on TV, and new that there would be gross overreaction on the forums the next day" catagory.

[rdu $teve]

The prop bets, on random stuff at the tables, are fairly common. Im sure anyone whos been in a casino regularly, sees people doing some of it, I even do it in my home game to keep busy during my off hands. (a favorite: red vs black on the flop, double pay-off if it's 3 of your color)

Im sure some of you have read in Super System, about Doyle losing plenty on his golf game. But I doubt he does that anymore.

From the looks of it, that whole Nuts bit was staged though.

[berya]

Lol. Looked like it was an even match indeed.

That whole golf piece was entertaining.

[Officer Farva]

For anyone who is interested, I suggest reading "Who's Your Caddy" by Rick Reily. There is a chapter about Dewey Tomko where it basically describes a day in the life of a professional gambler. They can't go a minute without the action. Dewey and co went out to the golf course and were betting hundreds of thousands of dollars on skins games and the like, not to mention all of the rediculous "I bet you can't lose 30 pounds in 6 months" type bets.

That said, "The Nuts" segment was clearly set up, though I'd "bet" that the stakes were actually legitimate. The "Devilfish" sucked just as bad as Ivey and Lederer.

On a side note, doesn't it seem strange that Lederer is a compulsive gambler like the rest of them (like the rest of "us", actually). He seems like the responsible Joey Knish grinder type who never makes unreasonable bets...

[jwvdcw]

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Or is he just too rich for his own good?

I know at the live Fox Sports Net Tourney he was placing prop bets on just about anything he could.

Last night on the nuts, he's betting thousands of dollars per hole on a sport he has never played? He also doubled whatever bet was mentioned.

I know he is a great poker player, and richer than I'll ever be, but he almost seems a bit compuslive.

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I'm not convinced that whole golf episode was legit. I'm thinking it was a staged for TV. But if it was legit and he was betting that much on a hole of golf when he totally sucks then that's pretty sick.

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I totally agree. Seemed forced to me.

[ohgeetee]

I don't think that was devilfish, it was willamson.