Improving the WSOP in 3 easy steps Part 1: The Rail

I have to admit that the 2011 World Series of Poker coverage has made it near impossible for me to indulge in my cynical side and unlike in years past it took a great deal of thought to find three small faults in the ESPN coverage of the 2011 WSOP. But fear not, I have found faults, and here they are!

• It’s time to take control of the rail

At first I was in the camp that the excitement and rooting sections from the crowd would add to the overall product (poker being a fairly boring endeavor to watch) but the rail has gotten out of control in recent years.

What started with Joe Hachem’s happy-go-lucky contingent of Australians has morphed into some strange contest of one-upsmanship to see whose cheering section can look and act more ridiculous. I thought the 2010 “Grinder Family Branding Special” ESPN ran was bad enough, but in 2011 the impromptu Phil Collins concerts and people dressed as barnyard animals easily topped that.

Someone needs to explain to these people that this is not a college football game (even if they did pre-game and tailgate in the Rio parking lot) in an outdoor stadium. The chanting, and downright foolish celebrations have run their course, whether it’s serenading Phil Collins with his namesake’s songs or chanting Aussie, Aussie, Aussie. Do they really think chanting “Benba” while dressed as a lamb is going to do anything to raise the level of their friend’s play? My guess is that it simply embarrasses them, probably deteriorating their play.

Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against cheering after a big pot, but the rail has been erupting in joyous celebrations over “walks” in the Big Blind or a successful blind steal; it’s almost like they are the special teams’ player celebrating an uneventful tackle at the 40 yard-line while his team is getting thumped 45 to 7.

So how do we fix the problem? Here are my solutions that should be pretty easy to implement and won’t detract from anyone’s experience.

1.       First off, we need to disallow players at the table from going to the crowd after a win. Not only does this look like the Beer-League Softball Player’s version of the Lambeau Leap, but it also incites the crowd.

2.       Set some type of rule(s) against what is, and isn’t, acceptable behavior in a relatively small indoor arena.

3.       ESPN, stop cutting away to the crowd for girlfriend shots and to show people dressed in Lamb costumes or mop-top wigs! Stop making the rail a part of the telecast and they’ll stop acting out in an effort to get on TV. If you want to cut away to a player’s father or wife go ahead, but don’t get the whole cheering section involved.

4.       Filter out the rail for the broadcast. Technologically this has to be possible, so once again, let’s stop making the rail a part of the show.