Poker pros want title back

LAS VEGAS – Watch out, online poker whizzes and leisure players with deep pockets. The pros are coming, and they want their top crown back.

The World Series of Poker was once a series for those who make a career out of card playing, but amateurs flooding the tables have made it tougher for professional rounders to come out on top – especially in the main event and other no-limit Texas Hold ‘em tournaments.

But things seem to be swinging the other way, with pros winning 38 of the first 53 series events, more than seven of every 10.

“It’s the year of the pro, and I just got a feeling. I just got a gut feeling,” said three-time bracelet winner Mike “The Mouth” Matusow.

Matusow said he’s been talking about the main event with his friends who also play for a living, and they feel like a slower tournament structure this year will reward better players, giving professionals more of a chance to shine and end up on top.

“Who knows, it could be nine stiffs at the (final) table, but I think you’re going to see something different this year,” he said.

Tournament director Jack Effel said the structure changes in the tournament aren’t tailor-made for professional players, but they are meant to reward the best play over time and temper the effects of bad luck.

“It’s geared so that if a player plays correctly, and makes the right decisions at the right times and catches the right cards, well, then, obviously they can make it far in the tournament,” Effel said.