"Dusk till Dawn" Poker Club In Nottingham Diary (by Rob Yong)

[robyong]

Time seems to standing stilll as far as DTD is concerned at the moment. The phrase "when the club opens we will do x.........." is getting perfected by everyone, although I like to say "if the club opens we will....." The situation is we find ourselves in seems to be bigger that the actual event itself, and its a topic of discussion every day for the dtd people and those asking the questions. Everybody seems to want to give me advice, "do this, you should have done that, why don't you use so and so, why can't you try x, why did you not do.......blah blah blah". I know people mean well, but I've talked about it so much, my brain has switched off. It's just a poker club, not a NASA space station.

It would be easy to get frustrated by various people and organisations that probabaly havn't turned out to support us as much as we thought they would, if fact, it can seem that we have been let down a bit by certain people, but its a tough time at the moment, so everything that is negative is also magnified, this is particulary getting to some of the DTD people that are really pushing that extra mile for me every day, but, I can't be bothered with this sort of thing at the moment, I'll deal with all these loose ends if we are successful on the 24th.  I know, and always have known, who I can rely on, nothing as changed, and nothing surprises me, the main thing is to focus on my preparations for the hearing, get that out of the way, and then worry about details.

What is amazing is the attitude of some of the poker community, it is common knowledge that DTD is in a financial crisis, I have never hidden that, yet we get call after call, email after email, asking for money and people have the front to get the hump if we say no....."can you put me into this comp, I'll wear a dtd cap for £5k, can you sponsor this tournament, are you interested in this deal, why the hell not? blah blah". These people have no regard for our situation, and are just thinking of themselves and what they can get out of us, Nick deals with this rubbish everyday, and I know he must be finding it hard to be polite sometimes.   

Rebecca gave me yet another big bill from our lawyers the other day demanding immediate payment, my first reaction was to express my disapointment that they of all people should know what a costly decision the adjournment was, and that they should share in this pain (as our lawyers), but after reflecting on this, I paid it straight away, as the last thing we need is to turn up at the hearing without any legal representation. Thats what it feels like at the moment, 99% of people just want to take their piece of DTD, maybe they are worried that there is not much "cake" left, and they have to get "to the table first" before all of the crumbs are gone.

As we get closer to the hearing, its hard not to start thinking of what I will do if we lose. "Losing" is either being adjourned again or failing to get the licence, I know my legal team will advise me to appeal, but I'm not sure if I want to get into another long battle. DTD is not my core business, and I want to sort things out one way or another in 2008. DTD may be in a financial crisis, but Rob Yong is in good financial shape without DTD round his neck, after ploughing over £4m into this venture, I know I could have a lot more fun in 2008 spending £100k playing a few EPT's than putting a further £1m into this venture, hey, maybe Grovsvenor might lift my ban if we lose and I can play a few GUPT's.

I was in London yesterday, and someone asked me how it feels to lose so much money, I replied, "it doesn't really hurt, its just a bit annoying waiting for a result". He couldn't understand why I was was not jumping off a cliff, like some stockbroker after his share portfolio has crashed. I was thinking about this on the train on the way back, why I have a total disregard for my money, and I realised that its only like when I used to play fruit machines when I was 12........I would take £2.20 to town, £2 to play the fruit machines with, and 20p for bus fare there and back from the arcade, I would get on the bus, full of hope, end up losing every penny in my pocket in the arcade, and walking home from town, the walk back was not actually that bad, as I would normally think of some really good ideas to make back what I had lost that day. What I'm trying to say, if DTD loses the case, I'll come up with something else to make the money back on the way home from the court....as I'll be walking home of course

One good thing about all of this, is that I have not lost anyone else's money on DTD, I'm so glad I refused to accept money from any private investors and never asked the bank, imagine how much people would be on my back now, one person had offered to invest £500,000 of their own savings in DTD, wow, he would be really unhappy now lol That's the problem with using other peoples money - they expect a massive return on a "sure thing", and if you use the bank's money, they can "wind you up" when they start to get nervous, banks don't have "balls of steel", their balls are made of "egg shells", one little sqeeze, and they crack into little pieces.

This post may seem a bit negative, I seem to assuming that I have "done my money", but the more I work on this case, and the more I put myself in the casino objectors' position, the more I like their chances. Over the last few weeks I have been imagining I am a Barristor for Gala, what would my angles be, how can I win, how can I make the magistrates see my point of view, and I am developing a stronger case for them to win as each day goes by............not on the basis of "demand for DTD", but on how the casino laws could be interpreted by the court, and how this could be used to their advantage. In simple terms, I believe that the true odds of winning are now down to 50:50, even money, right down the middle, based on these "legal" edges that I have found that could help the objectors cases, if they use them.

Anyway, we keep plugging away, and can only do our best in adversity, Cheer Rob

[dik9]

It will be an absolute traversty, if you don't get the required result. Some of the Big Wigs surely have a brain??

Fingers and everything crossed Rob.

[bookiebasher]

Wish you and the team all the best.

Whatever the outcome you can be very proud , not only of your

achievements to date , but more importantly on how you have conducted yourself

throughout this difficult time.

It has been a true test of your character and for me , and I would guess most of the poker

community....you have passed with flying colours.

[TheChipPrince]

Pardon my ignorance, but when is the hearing and when will we know the outcome?

[Robert HM]

Pardon my ignorance, but when is the hearing and when will we know the outcome?

24th September I believe, if no adjournments granted. Magistrates' usually give their decision on the same day.

[da_poker_monkey]

Is it 2 late to ask if I can wear some DTD socks to the weekly £20 games I play in?  My rates are reasonable £1.50 a month or £10 for the whole year.  I may miss a few weeks though if they are in the wash!

[Longy]

Is it 2 late to ask if I can wear some DTD socks to the weekly £20 games I play in?  My rates are reasonable £1.50 a month or £10 for the whole year.  I may miss a few weeks though if they are in the wash!

What you haven't received your socks yet, Rob clearly doesn't rate your game, we all wear them in my 1p/2p 5 card draw with deuces and treys wild.

[da_poker_monkey]

 

[Thappers]

Long-time lurker here, I play in a couple of small-stakes pub leagues around Notts and just want to say that we all read this thread and wish you all the best for DTD. Been following the saga pretty much from the start, and will be totally devastated if you lose in September - there is definitely a 'silent majority' of people from around here who all support you and who want to play 'proper poker' rather than the casino rebuy crapshoots. And I'm doing my best to get them signed up pre-opening!

[robyong]

Is it 2 late to ask if I can wear some DTD socks to the weekly £20 games I play in?  My rates are reasonable £1.50 a month or £10 for the whole year.  I may miss a few weeks though if they are in the wash!

Depends if you wear shorts and if so, how you intend to get the logo exposed above the poker table

Long-time lurker here, I play in a couple of small-stakes pub leagues around Notts and just want to say that we all read this thread and wish you all the best for DTD. Been following the saga pretty much from the start, and will be totally devastated if you lose in September - there is definitely a 'silent majority' of people from around here who all support you and who want to play 'proper poker' rather than the casino rebuy crapshoots. And I'm doing my best to get them signed up pre-opening!

Cool, everyone in Nottingham seems to be looking forward to the club, its amazing how many people play poker outside of casinos

Pardon my ignorance, but when is the hearing and when will we know the outcome?

It's a 4 day hearing, giving each objector 1 day to put forward there opposition of Dusk Till Dawn and us 1 day to state our case

Wish you and the team all the best.

Whatever the outcome you can be very proud , not only of your

achievements to date , but more importantly on how you have conducted yourself

throughout this difficult time.

It has been a true test of your character and for me , and I would guess most of the poker

community....you have passed with flying colours.

Thanks Jim, price on Liverpool to win and finish in top 3 this premiership season please

Cheers guys, I know there is a lot of support out there from people that I do not even know, its much appreciated. I wish I could tell you that DTD will definatley win the case, as I know what a cool place its gonna be for genuine poker people accross the UK, but I can't.

Its so sick how these casinos are using poker to try and get new customers playing their house games, it makes me laugh when I hear poker people saying "how much so and so casino has done for poker etc", not long ago they closed their card rooms and replaced the floorspace with machines and roulette tables, now competition for customers in the casino industy is very fierce, so they make out they are "supporting poker", when really its just an casino player aquisition cost to these companies. What has caused more gambling problems for the public in London  - The Gutshot or The Vic? - and who has the blessing of the government?

Its so sik the power these large companies have over us and what lengths they will go to to prevent genuine poker clubs operating. I have even been contacted by employees working within these casino companies, trying to tip me off with "inside information" on the case, the only group of people that are against DTD is the "casino executives", and the poker companies and poker people that are in bed with them continue to act like lap dogs, spreading the casinos goodwill at every opportunity.

Nevermind, if they do fail to crush DTD, I'm gonna have the biggest smile inside since I busted Phil Ivey out of the $25k Bellagio event by slowplaying AA. The Gutshot tried to stand up to them and failed, but they had broken the law in the eyes of The Gambling Commission, DTD has been whiter that white, jumping tough every hoop and acted with total respect for UK gambling laws, you have to ask the question if we lose - what have we done wrong?

[Bainn]

Indeed, I was seeing my consultant and while I was getting blood drawn for my tests, the Nurse spotted my P'Stars cap and asked where I played locally as her and her husband were wanting somewhere to play live.

I told them all about DTD and the club openning, hopefully, in Otober.  She took down the web address and said they would check out the online cardroom too, seemed really excited about DTD.

And Harmony has been extolling DTD to interested people she runs into through work and poker.

The interest alone in Nottingham is indeed, huge.

[boldie]

I got my wife to apply for a job in Nottingham!!!!...she has not yet put two and two together as to why I'd want to move there but if I had applied for a job there she definetly would have.

here's hoping she gets it ....and never reads this post

[bookiebasher]

PM sent Rob regarding liverpool.

As for DTD....to have the best poker club in europe in little ol nottingham

is hopefully going to be a dream come true for a lot of us.

All things being equal ( not always the case in legal matters ) october the

5th is going to be one hell of a night. Ive already booked saturday the 6th off work.

[Pab]

Rob,

If the case goes against you and the casino groups win, will you continue to run the online cardroom?

[FlyingPig]

I really hope it DTD get the go ahead. I cannot wait to play there and I live in Liverpool.

It looks that good of a place that I am willing to travel there. Best of luck Mr.Yong