At the beginning of March I went to Vienna to take part in the European World Series of Poker Trial. The somewhat strange name has the following background: The Concord Casino in Vienna initially was advertising the tournament with the title World Series of Poker. This, naturally, sparked some sharp criticism from Las Vegas and the Austrian casino was afraid of breaching copyright. So they were forced to change the name and that’s how the World European Series came into being. I went there together with some friends and had a terrific time if not because of the winnings.

 

The real World Series of Poker still took place in April/May at that time. We travelled that year to America as a small group full of anticipation and optimism. If you arrive at night at the glittering metropolis and see all its gloss and grandeur from the air you are quickly gripped by a very unique euphoria. Suddenly you are convinced that this visit will end in great success that this time you will really rake in the cash. So straight after arrival you jump in a taxi and head for the nearest casino so that you can join a table to play and win. But if we are being honest, over 90% of players lose and only very few per cent win and from those who do only a fraction make a real killing. You have to be very careful that one morning you don’t wake up to an empty wallet.

 

To relax afterwards first I flew to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates for a fortnight. For two whole weeks I just spoiled myself. Occasionally you really do have to see something different. Still, a leopard can’t change his spots. Even in Dubai I established business contacts with a number of European hotel directors to sound out whether there might be an opportunity to organize a GPPA tournament in their hotels, including the ones here.  In Islamic countries such a thing is very difficult for obvious reasons.

 

Back in Germany I set off a number of times to visit casinos in German-speaking areas. Amongst others I went to Feuchtwangen, Salzburg, Kufstein and Vienna. At the tournaments I was rather average but managed to recoup my losses at cash games and even save the entry fees for the next tournament.

 

I was one of the organizers at the 1^st Poker Championships at Kufstein, so, naturally I didn’t take part in the tournament but was only there as a spectator. Instead of doing that I joined a cash table and improved my holiday savings. At that time Limit Hold’em was becoming increasingly popular and I felt at home on the 20/40 and 30/60 tables. In contrast to No Limit, Limit is easier to calculate which suits my style better.