OK, I've calmed down a little bit.
I thought it might be fun to give you guys a full translation of the article, as per my memory of the conversation:
Title: "There's danger in online gambling but I know how to stop when I need to"
Actually, she asked "What about the dangers of online gambling? Do you feel protected?" and I replied "I don't feel that I need any protection. I have enough self discipline to stop when I know I'm playing badly"
"He's not a professional gambler" actually, I said "I consider myself to be semi-professional."
"I never used to gamble at all" actually..."The only poker I had played before playing online was at school"
"I now average a stake of around $20 per hour" actually..... "I make an average of $20 profit per hour online."
"The first time I played I did find it very easy" To clarify, I was talking about learning how to play poker - not how to win.
"For the initial few weeks, I regularly lost quite badly" actually......"I took me about 3 1/2 months before I started making a profit" I didn't lose much because I only played very low stakes.
"You learn that what you lose one month you will make back in the next". Entirely her words. I was talking about the swings and that if you know you are a winning player you don't mind if you have a losing month because your profits will average out in the long run.
"I play by volume - perhaps 8 tables at a time...." this bit was correct. Then, "....so that if one hand goes badly, I have, quite literally spread my bets" Entirely made up. My intention is definitely not to spread my bets. I multi-table to make more per hour, it has nothing to do with risk.
"Mark has one golden rule when he plays poker online - never drink alcohol." OK, this one is a bit pedantic but I never said it was a golden rule. I suppose that I actually have several golden rules.
"There is potential danger in online gambling for those who are vulnerable to such an open forum" This is part of the made up title quote. I never said any of this but she ask me several times if I thought on-line gambling was dangerous. Eventually, I conceded that "perhaps it was dangerous to some people but I think everyone has to take responsibility for their own actions"
"If you really get into trouble you can only lose around £300 in one day" This is a more reasonable misunderstanding. We were talking about 'protection' and I said that "you could only deposit around £300 in one day on any one site." Again though, it shows how little she was actually listening to me.
"I can't see a reason for me to ever stop playing online, unless the government legislate against it. But I do think it is an individual pursuit and should be left as a person choice" F**k me! She got one right! OK, so these weren't my exact words but at least this time she got my meaning across accurately.
"I factor in a failure rate of about 60%" What a little
I am! I was talking about variance and was explaining how tournaments work. Actually, I said "If I cash in 40% of my tournaments and lose in the other 60% then I make a good profit"
"...my gambling income..." Actually I don't consider myself to be a gambler and never described myself in that way. I win because other people gamble. That doesn't mean I have never gambled - it's just that I'm more professional in my attitude to playing poker.
So there we have it. Let this be a warning to any of you that might agree to do interviews in the future. Find out the agenda first. I was told by my friend that they wanted my opinions on gambling and I happily agreed. It is very evident to me now that my opinions didn't matter to them one jot. Instead the reporter got her opinions across using my name and photograph as a front.
If I ever do an interview in the future, I will be recording the conversation.
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