The Editors Blog The WPTL Makes Its TV Debut

By Eric Raskin
Aug. 19, 2008

A few quick thoughts on the surprisingly entertaining first-ever televised WPTL (World Poker Tour Ladies) tournament that premiered on GSN last night:

It’s interesting to see the contrast in looks when six women have to earn their way to a WPT final table vs. when the WPT picks out who the six will be …

The broadcast included a WPT executive noting that women are the fastest growing segment of the poker population, which has become one of those oft-repeated statements that nobody ever seems to back up with facts. Just once, I want to hear someone say that, then provide some hard data to support it. But as far as I can tell, the entrance of women into poker is not currently moving at a faster rate than the entrance of men. Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t, I just want some proof. The estimation that only 3% of the WSOP Main Event field this year was female leaves it unclear at best.

Say what you want about Nancy Todd Tyner’s poker skills, but you have to give her credit for creating an image and using it to her advantage. Everything about the way she looks, dresses, and acts screams “donkey,” and when a talented, experienced player like Vanessa Selbst starts losing to someone whose game she doesn’t respect, the result can be serious tilt—which is exactly what Tyner produced. Selbst truly believed she couldn’t be outplayed, she could only be outrun, and that led her to make mistakes she wouldn’t have made if she’d ignored Tyner’s exterior and viewed her as a capable player.

In the end, Selbst embarrassed herself a bit with her utter disrespect for Tyner, including some snide comments. But there shouldn’t be a double-standard here; when a male player gets whiny and abusive, like Phil Hellmuth, Mike Matusow, etc., we criticize him but we also suggest that it’s good for TV. The same goes here. Maybe Selbst wasn’t ladylike, maybe it was uncomfortable at times, but the flying sparks made it a little more gripping to watch.