Whilst I was undertaking my updating duties of the final three tables of last week's opening EPT in Barcelona, a rather unnerving murmur sounded from one of the cash tables.
As I trundled over to see what was going on, I spotted Paul Zimbler and Ryan Fronda playing Omaha cash with a group of Spaniards and the odd foreigner.
You could cut the atmosphere with a knife. Whilst Ryan had a face like thunder, Paul was about to turn green with anger. It was then that Paul started to voice his concerns about what he was witnessing, saying something along the lines of...
"This is bull, they're cheating, I want the manager over here now!"
To which Ryan added, "I've been squeezed out of the pot, and now they're checking it down!"
If you haven't cottoned on to the accusation yet, then let me explain...
Ryan Fronda had been raised out of a pot pre-flop by two Spanish players. Once the two locals reached the pot, they decided to sit-back and merely check it down.
Although it is sometimes infuriatingly difficult to prove the presence of softplay, it does help when Paul Zimbler (often referred to as the Marbella Kid) can speak a spot of Spanish.
As a result, Paul overheard the two locals agreeing to check it down and, perhaps even worse, announcing what they held.
Although the two locals may see nothing wrong with this, we are now living in the 21st century in which such actions are (well, should be) totally unacceptable.
On losing his rag with the two players, Paul demanding that the game be stopped and the manager alerted. However, as you may expect, this did little good. I believe whilst the manager claimed that he didn't see the hand and couldn't prove anything, a supervisor merely asked Paul and Ryan to calm down, a tough task indeed, especially considering that one of the players had insulted Willie Tann.
At one point, I was convinced that a fight was going to break out. Ryan and Paul both had steam coming out of their ears and a menacing look that suggested that they were more than unhappy. To their credit, they kept their cool and refrained from becoming involved in any form of physical violence.
From what I understand, no punishment was dealt out and play continued as normal.
As my account is sketchy due to my not quite witnessing the incident in its fullest, I will refrain from confirming that the locals were cheating, but, from what Ryan said at a later point, there was definitely some soft-play occurring at the table.
I don't like to consider myself a snitch, but I feel that this incident is something I should be reporting, especially as I witnessed the aftermath first hand. Also, this isn't the first time that I have heard of soft-play at the cash tables. From what I hear, many 'name' players don't like to play at various European venues for that very reason, believing that not only does the softplay occur, but also that it is going unpunished by supervisors and managers who continue to support the local players, perhaps in fear of losing their custom.
In this day and age, surely these situations shouldn't still be rearing their ugly heads. How can we ever expect poker to fully enter the mainstream when incidents like these are occurring on such a regular basis? Perhaps it's about time the matter was addressed so players can't partake in cash games without having to worry about any unethical play.
As I trundled over to see what was going on, I spotted Paul Zimbler and Ryan Fronda playing Omaha cash with a group of Spaniards and the odd foreigner.
You could cut the atmosphere with a knife. Whilst Ryan had a face like thunder, Paul was about to turn green with anger. It was then that Paul started to voice his concerns about what he was witnessing, saying something along the lines of...
"This is bull, they're cheating, I want the manager over here now!"
To which Ryan added, "I've been squeezed out of the pot, and now they're checking it down!"
If you haven't cottoned on to the accusation yet, then let me explain...
Ryan Fronda had been raised out of a pot pre-flop by two Spanish players. Once the two locals reached the pot, they decided to sit-back and merely check it down.
Although it is sometimes infuriatingly difficult to prove the presence of softplay, it does help when Paul Zimbler (often referred to as the Marbella Kid) can speak a spot of Spanish.
As a result, Paul overheard the two locals agreeing to check it down and, perhaps even worse, announcing what they held.
Although the two locals may see nothing wrong with this, we are now living in the 21st century in which such actions are (well, should be) totally unacceptable.
On losing his rag with the two players, Paul demanding that the game be stopped and the manager alerted. However, as you may expect, this did little good. I believe whilst the manager claimed that he didn't see the hand and couldn't prove anything, a supervisor merely asked Paul and Ryan to calm down, a tough task indeed, especially considering that one of the players had insulted Willie Tann.
At one point, I was convinced that a fight was going to break out. Ryan and Paul both had steam coming out of their ears and a menacing look that suggested that they were more than unhappy. To their credit, they kept their cool and refrained from becoming involved in any form of physical violence.
From what I understand, no punishment was dealt out and play continued as normal.
As my account is sketchy due to my not quite witnessing the incident in its fullest, I will refrain from confirming that the locals were cheating, but, from what Ryan said at a later point, there was definitely some soft-play occurring at the table.
I don't like to consider myself a snitch, but I feel that this incident is something I should be reporting, especially as I witnessed the aftermath first hand. Also, this isn't the first time that I have heard of soft-play at the cash tables. From what I hear, many 'name' players don't like to play at various European venues for that very reason, believing that not only does the softplay occur, but also that it is going unpunished by supervisors and managers who continue to support the local players, perhaps in fear of losing their custom.
In this day and age, surely these situations shouldn't still be rearing their ugly heads. How can we ever expect poker to fully enter the mainstream when incidents like these are occurring on such a regular basis? Perhaps it's about time the matter was addressed so players can't partake in cash games without having to worry about any unethical play.
[Ed Note: If you have any comments on what I believe to be a troubling matter, then please feel free to share your thoughts on the blonde forum by clicking the 'discuss in forum' link below]
