The Poker Hobby

Lillian was bugging me about getting a part time job or taking a class or something. She thought I might be happier in my "early retirement" if I was working toward something rather than just maintaining the house, cooking dinners for us and spending all my spare time playing golf and poker. The problem with early retirement is having been successful, potential employers assume they can't afford you. One needs to be willing to start over in a new field.

I thought it might be fun to try Poker Dealer School. Around here, Dealers work four days a week and often on swing shift (6 PM to 2 AM or so). This is a good fit for one who wants to have time to play golf when the sun is shining. I went through the Ivy League Dealer School in Tampa, however, rather than getting a job here, I found myself auditioning for the World Series of Poker at the Rio in Las Vegas! It seems that Tampa is the only place outside of Vegas where one can get hired for the Series.

WSOP is actually a series of over fifty Poker tournaments played over two months. To satisfy the recent demand, the Rio (owned by Harrah's) needs to temporarily hire 900 dealers. Seeing that there are not 900 out of work, experienced poker dealers available in Vegas, Harrah's gets a little creative and taps this school in Tampa for 30 or 40 of them.

From May 25 to July 17 I will be in Vegas, working swing at the Rio's convention center dealing both the tournaments and the cash/side games and living at a bed-n-breakfast just off the Strip.

My hobbies are Golf and Poker. Seeing that I am not good enough at either one to play them professionally, the best I can do is be a fan. A few years ago I had the opportunity to caddy at a PGA Tour event and more recently at Ladies' Futures Tour event. This dealer job will give me the opportunity to be at the tables and be part of the action while the best in the world battle it out for millions of dollars. I'll be able to have experienced my hobbies at the highest levels of play from inside the ropes. As a fan, it doesn't get much better than that.