I don’t need to tell the readers of this magazine that when you’re deep into the poker world, you are going to hear, and use, the term “poker community” a lot. It is very common in poker forum parlance. We often express positions or ideas in terms of what effect we think they will have on “the poker community.”

I think the worst you can say about this term is that it sometimes comes off as a little too generic or all-inclusive. After all, the poker community is very diverse. But it’s also not an inaccurate term to use. The poker community that we all consider ourselves part of does behave like a community. We get together and talk about poker. We share stories and opinions. We relate to one another. In other words, our affinity for poker goes beyond merely playing it.

Two Plus Two is a core component of today’s poker community. In fact, when I think “poker community,” I usually think of Two Plus Two as if they’re synonymous. Other highly-trafficked forums, like PokerStrategy, are also important elements that deserve mention.

However, the poker community is just one segment of the broader poker public in America and in the rest of the world. This is an important distinction to make, and the community generally realizes this. We often acknowledge that there are poker-playing folk out there who are outside of our cultural herd, but we don’t always have a quick term to describe them (except occasionally “fish,” which I think is crude and unfair). Well, I think the poker public is a good term for it.

I like public versus community because I think “public” fittingly describes a large group of consumers without carrying the connotation of solidarity or collective self-awareness that community does.

I used to prefer the term poker-playing public, but I ended up dropping the playing because I thought it was too specific, and shut out what might be a large segment of people who don’t habitually play poker for whatever reason (can’t afford it, can’t find a game, don’t think they’re good enough, etc.) but still enjoy consuming poker in some form – say, watching it on TV.

The poker public therefore encompasses both poker players and non-poker-playing poker fans as well.

It may seem like I’m being nitty, but this stuff matters on a macro level when evaluating the poker economy and the poker industry. Since the poker public is probably much larger than the poker community, it is important that the poker public’s influence in shaping the culture and the business of poker at large be recognized and studied by anyone who has an interest.

Often times, the poker community is derisive or critical of the poker public. See for example the famous “lol Zynga” thread on Two Plus Two. I won’t deny that it’s hard not to find some of those comments amusing when you have an above average understanding of poker strategy. But still, it comes off as very elitist, and the poker community acts that way sometimes.

I recently saw the poker community be more respectful to the poker public over the minor controversy surrounding the name Ultimate Poker. Many people within the poker community seem genuinely appalled that the Fertitta-run online poker newcomer would name itself anything “Ultimate.” After all, doesn’t Ultimate Poker sound just like Ultimate Bet, the site that cheated us all?

The other side of this argument points out, correctly I believe, that most players outside of the poker community, are not as familiar with the scandals that Ultimate Bet was marred by, and therefore they will not be as put off by the sound of Ultimate Poker. Being annoyed by the name choice is a poker community problem. The poker public doesn’t care.

Dividing poker players into community and public is extremely important if you work in the online poker space, for example. I just came from an online gaming conference in San Francisco called GiGse (Global iGaming Summit & Expo). There are many such conferences year round where a bunch of people in the gambling industry get together and, as you would expect from any commercial trade show, try to figure out how to best monetize customers.

In the case of online poker, most of the time, these companies are valuing issues pertaining to the poker public more than they are valuing issues affecting the poker community. This is because the poker community is typically viewed as the better skilled poker playing contingent that beats fish off rooms and is basically pretty unwelcome because of it. Online poker rooms, it is said, would much rather listen to the needs of the recreational poker public.

I tried to interrupt this trend earlier this year, or at least introduce an alternative, when I assembled a panel of professional poker players to speak at the 2013 iGaming North America (iGNA) conference in Las Vegas, for a session specifically centered on the educated poker player’s point of view on the game and on the industry. My belief is that nobody knows online poker better than the players. When it’s not being dismissed as a hotbed of trolls, a forum like Two Plus Two is actually an enormously rich reservoir of highly sophisticated online poker insight. Any company that is aiming to develop an online poker product nowadays neglects the poker community’s precious perspective at its own risk.

While the poker players’ panel at iGNA was appreciated by many, some believed that the pros’ view was overrepresented, and that I had failed to sufficiently include the voice of the recreational player. Here we saw a manifestation of the “regs vs. recs” player model debate that pervades many iGaming industry circles.

While the poker ecology issues are sometimes a little complex for me to discuss, I don’t believe that the interests of the poker community must always be contradictory to those of the poker public, although that is occasionally the case. In addition, regular or skilled poker players should not be disqualified from opining on what they think makes a good, sustainable game. Quite the contrary, their experiences as gamers are unequaled, and they almost always start as recreational.

Conversely, it would be nice to see the educated poker community take better steps to respect the poker public, considering the well-being of the industry as a whole rests on as many players as possible continuing to play the game and having a good time doing it.

February 25 2012, Lee Davy

A total of 299 players participated at the Copenhagen stop of the PokerStars.com European Poker Tour and after six days of pulsating play, two members of Team PokerStars found themselves seated across the table playing heads-up for a first-place prize of DKK2,515,00 (“338,133).

It seemed as though you could not have written a more intriguing script, with the cherubic PokerStars Team Online player, Mickey “mement_mori” Petersen pitched into war against the more mature Team PokerStars Pro, Pierre “Zoutechamp” Neuville. Unfortunately, the script went out of the window, because the heads-up match was devoid of any of the razzmatazz that came before it.

Heads-up play lasted six hours and was dominated by the younger poker player. Neuville looked tired, weary and, like he had simply run out of ideas, while the time just seemed to go on, and on, and on. The action was stuck in a loop with Petersen raising Neuville out of the game until he would eventually find a premium hand, would move all-in, and find the double up. Neuville was so patient he would regularly go below the 10 big blind mark in order to wait for his premium hand to arrive.

Then finally, after six hours of nondescript activity Petersen finally managed to get Neuville to call an all-in showdown where Petersen was ahead. Petersen’s was up against Neuville’s , and everyone was expecting a split pot. The flop of increased the split-pot possibilities ten-fold, but the on the turn gave Peterson a ray of light, and then the secured the deal giving Mickey Petersen the distinction as 2012 EPT Copenhagen champion.

But it wasn’t always that formulaic.

When action began, former PokerStars Caribbean Adventure final tablist, Aage Ravn, was the favorite to win with 2,458,000 chips.

Play didn’t even breach the second level of the day before the first elimination occurred. Former Sunday Million winner, Spencer Hudson fount in a great spot against then chip leader Aage Ravn, who was holding . The flop was clear of any mines – – before the on the turn blew Hudson’s dream of a double up apart and sent him reeling to the rail. The first level ended with Hudson being the only confirmed casualty, and Ravn extending his lead at the top.

We waltzed into Level 24, with blinds at 12,000/24,000/3,000, and Steve O’Dwyer became the second person to leave the EPT Copenhagen final table. Once again Aage Ravn played the role of the conqueror, but this time he did not have to come from behind. Ravn’s dominated the of Ireland’s latest resident, O’Dwyer, and he was eliminated in seventh place.

While Americans were being deported left, right and center, there was a Dutchman who had developed a seemingly perfect strategy. Niels van Alphen found pocket aces and then pocket kings, and each time a willing partner to play all-in poker. But just when van Alphen was seemingly finding premium hands for fun, a Pierre Neuville found one with just a little bit more strength. Van Alphen found and Pierre Neuville found and the Dutchman was out in sixth place.

Steve O’Dwyer joined the commentary booth and told the viewers how impressed he was with the play of Jacob Rasmussen and then completely jinxed him! Rasmussen lost the majority of his chips to Bjarke Hansen after calling all-in on a board of , while holding . Hansen’s held up and as Hansen joined Petersen and Ravn at the top of the counts, Rasmussen was in deep trouble at the bottom.

With five big blinds and no choices left except to move all-in or fold, Rasmussen went about his business and went about it well. Ironically, it was the man who was responsible for his demise who became his chip benefactor. Hansen doubling Rasmussen up twice, first holding the mighty against , and then versus .

While Rasmussen was experiencing a renaissance, Mickey Petersen was finding a set against the experienced Neuville to take the chip lead for the first time in the day. Interestingly, as soon as Petersen took the lead, Ravn couldn’t win a pot, and he started to lose ground on the leaders in rapid fashion.

Then Rasmussen’s luck dissipated as Petersen called his all-in holding . Rasmussen had and a slight mathematical advantage, an advantage that would flip on its head after an flop. Rasmussen found himself in a minefield with nowhere to turn and the sealed his fate with a fifth place finish. After Rasmussen’s exit Petersen enjoyed a 2:1 chip advantage over Bjarke Hansen and Aage Ravn, while Pierre Neuville had a mere 12 big blinds.

Neuville had to move his 12 big blinds into the middle sooner rather than later, and when he did he could not have timed it more perfectly. Mickey Petersen was his all-in opponent holding and Neuville held a monster – . Not that he needed it, but the flop handed Neuville quads, and increased his stack to around 25 big blinds, giving him a little more room to play.

Despite the Neuville double up, he was still short-stacked, but the continuing spiral of Aage Ravn had other plans. Ravn got his chips into the middle holding against Hansen, who was holding . Ravn looked likely to double up as the hit the board but the on the river dashed his hopes and play was three-handed.

Pierre Neuville reminded his two younger counterparts that there was life in the old bones. The Team PokerStars Pro doubled up against his teammate Mickey Petersen, after Neuville’s survived a flip against Petersen’s . Neuville then went on a mini heater.

Level 27 was a great one for Neuville as he glided to the top of the chip counts after a series of huge pots involving another clash with Petersen. With all three players on an even par, Bjarke Hansen raised to 100,000 on the button, Petersen three-bet to 255,000, Hansen four-bet to 550,000, Petersen moved all-in and Hansen called. Neuville was licking his lips as Hansen tabled and Petersen tabled . The board changed nothing and Hansen was out and the intriguing heads-up encounter between Petersen and Neuville was set.

For his win, Mickey Petersen takes home the EPT Copenhagen trophy, a nice shiny Shamballa bracelet and DKK2,515,000.

2012 EPT Copenhagen Final Table Results

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