The poker table can be a wonderful leveler. One of the great things about the game is that the worst player at the table can beat the best player at the table on their day: sometimes all the ability in the world can’t overcome a run of poor fortune.
Likewise, poker is also a game that opens its arms to all and sundry. We like bad players to have a go because it gives us an opportunity to take their money, but those players then have the opportunity to learn, to improve and to perhaps become great one day.
The game is open to anyone that wants to have a go. Take Jonathan Bredin for example. The 23-year-old Australian has Cerebral Palsy, which means he is confined to a wheelchair and communicates with the use of an iPad due to his limited speech.
But Bredin loves his poker. So, with the aid of a helper to handle his chips and cards, he decided to try his hand at some live poker last week and traveled to Queenstown in New Zealand for the APPT Snowfest.
Incredibly, the youngster outlasted a field of 126 players to win the event and its NZ$96,300 first prize. It was one of the great feel good stories of the year and the reaction of the huge crowd on hand to witness his run was proof of what can be achieved against the odds.
Life might throw up some hurdles from time to time, but no such barriers exist at the poker table.
