Tony G

[simonow]

Just a passing thought, could it be the drink that gets him to the final tables. and the antics that keep him so fresh in our minds is doing what it is  planned to do, just a thought

[The Baron]

Watching Tony this week, it appears to me to be emphaised when the cameras are around, which gives me the impression that perhaps it's merely a form of self marketing. He's probably more intelligent than we give him credit for...

I agree 100% with this.

Tony G has these threads still going years after the incident, with people still talking about what happened. He's a smart guy.

I for one wont be giving my opinion on him because I find it nothing more than a PR stunt in the most ungentlemanly fashion.

Talking about his character on internet forums (fora?) means he has achieved his objective IMO.

[bolt pp]

 IF the behaviour he shows when pissed is classed as "unacceptable" by himself.

I agree with this point.



got you discussing it though didn't i!

[Lee]

Good heated discussion is always good, keeps the mind working anyway.

Good debate started.

[matt674]

Oooo Goodie a debate, well here's my 2 cents: One poker player who isn't a gent at the poker table, never has been and never will be....................

Victoria Coren

Now there's someone this monkey wouldnt mind sharing his soft pirelli tyre with!!  0:-)

[RED-DOG]

Sorry to upset you Guys but I have Played Poker with Tony G ,numerous times and he has always been a Gent but if you want to get nasty and horrible then dont do it to Tony, the same about Stephen Pearce, very nice people but if you want to mix up the verbal then you are outmatched.

Personally every player has there game plan and thieir's is the verbal game to get into your head, some players are rock and some play loose but everyone is entitled to there game plan.
Chubbs

p.s  just what i have seen

Sorry to upset you, but that didn't upset me 

[dino1980]

Watching Tony this week, it appears to me to be emphaised when the cameras are around, which gives me the impression that perhaps it's merely a form of self marketing. He's probably more intelligent than we give him credit for...

Although i've never played poker with him i've interviewed him at length and his image at the table is just that, an image. It's good old Aussie sledging brought from the cricket pitch to the poker table. Whether this is good or bad is for another thread, another time.
The Surinder incident whilst out of line was just his way of shooting angles. He has said numerous times that the better player won that night and that he and Surindar are friends away from the table.
He's also stated that he believes once poker is on tv it's a sport and should be entertaining, and for me poker is more entertaining with Tony G at the table. Can anyone think of a better WPT episode than the Season Three final from Paris?

Also he takes everything with good humour if you look at his blog you'll see he got duped into turning up in the Rio poker room in just his bathrobe. Instead of throwing a hissy fit, he posed for pictures and responded to threads on other forums and took it in good grace. can you imagine Hellmuth or Matusow or even Negreanu taking such an incident in such a gentle manner?
And yes this man is smart, he co-owns pokernews.com, which is now bigger than cardplayer.

[ifm]

Can anyone think of a better WPT episode than the Season Three final from Paris?

 

I think that is the most aweful bit of poker telly i have ever seen, even more cringeworthy than celebrity poker, so yes, pick any othet WPT final and it was better.

[RED-DOG]

Can anyone think of a better WPT episode than the Season Three final from Paris?

 

I think that is the most aweful bit of poker telly i have ever seen, even more cringeworthy than celebrity poker, so yes, pick any othet WPT final and it was better.

I agree. I have watched WPT's over and over, but I wouldn't watch that one again.

[mikkyT]

Why has know one mentioned that he was absolougtly p**ssed out of his nut that night?

Because, unless he was force fed the alcohol, he is responsible for his acts and the consequences of it.

If alcohol was an excuse for doing anything in this life, we could have far worse people on the street who are released on a "iwaspissedmelord" plea.

i wasn't proposing that his being drunk was an excuse for his behaviour, just wondering as to why such an integral part of the cause of his actions that night had been omitted from discussion.

Because whether he was legless or not makes no difference at all?
Being pissed won't excuse anything, so pointless having in the equation.

Actually, it does. Being pissed makes courts more lenient. Being constantly pissed makes courts send you on an alcohol programme instead of being punished.

[action man]

tony G, helmuth and mike matusow are probably the most controversial players in the world while sat at a table but these are 3 guys that i would give up an online game to watch on t.v 100% entertainment. It is very different watching a competition on t.v obv than playing at the table but as viewers how can we moan at the entertainment given by these guys.

I think Tony G over stepped the mark in paris for sure, but who are we to say he was wrong. Did we pay his buy in? its up to the players around the table and the aviation management to enforce order. Its his money why can't he play how he likes, if players don't like this behaviour don't enter the comp!

I believe when tony G plays he is having fun. It wouldn't be the same for him to sit quietly, he enjoys winding people up and having a good craic. shouldn't this be allowed? Poker is about strengths and weaknesses, and if tony's strength is getting information and tells from talking to people then good luck to him, if it is personally offensive though a line must be drawn!  the question is however by whom?

[Lee]

Its his money why can't he play how he likes, if players don't like this behaviour don't enter the comp!

Surely you don't believe this. Anyone can act however they like and rather than the "single" person causing the trouble being removed, others should leave or not join? So basically if he threw a left over sandwich at you and management didn't think he should be thrown out for it, you should get up and leave to minimise the risk of another one landing on your head? And if he is at any future tornies where you want to play, you should stay away, as should many others.

Poker is about strengths and weaknesses, and if tony's strength is getting information and tells from talking to people then good luck to him.

Acting like a decent human being is one of the biggest strengths you can show in life.

[action man]

Its his money why can't he play how he likes, if players don't like this behaviour don't enter the comp!

Surely you don't believe this. Anyone can act however they like and rather than the "single" person causing the trouble being removed, others should leave or not join? So basically if he threw a left over sandwich at you and management didn't think he should be thrown out for it, you should get up and leave to minimise the risk of another one landing on your head? And if he is at any future tornies where you want to play, you should stay away, as should many others.

of course not, my main point is who is it up to to a) decide unacceptable behaviour and 2) enforce punishment

[mikkyT]

I'm with the action man and many other posters on this thread. Whilst there should be a code of conduct to which every player should conduct themselves, its players like Hellmuth, Matusow and Tony G who make poker on the TV entertaining to watch. Personally I'm fed up of the run of the mill 6 man "made for TV" tournaments that you get where the commentators talk all over what little table talk makes it into the show, and it becomes a case of how many all-ins can we fit into todays episode?

Players like this give the game another edge, and like it or not, bad boys get TV time and not without reason.

Can football fans think of anything Bryan Robson ever did? But mention the name Cantona and one of the first things that gets brought up is the Kung Fu kick. Yes, it was out of order and he got punished. But it gets remembered. Whilst that might not have been a marketing gimick, it certainly didnt harm his cause in the long run.

My two penneth anyway.

[Gryff]

Players like Hellmuth, Matusow and Tony G do not make poker entertaining.

They DO make the bingo like final tables of WPTs where you each get half a big blind each slightly less likely to make me poke myself in the eye with a fork to endure the boredom though.

Watch high stakes poker, thats how it should be done - lots of table banter broadcast, not just formulaic crap showing bluffs and allins of which TV poker is mostly about sadly.