Could this be the poker and drinkin’ record?

poker-drinkin-record

poker-drinkin-recordWhen you put gamblin’, drinkin’, and New Years Eve together in a country where the gambling industry and alcohol industry are very popular it’s the kind of mix that’s sure to go off. That’s what appears to have happened in the land Down Under on Friday night.

Whilst the rest of the world was either asleep or dreaming of what might be ahead of them this New Years Eve, there was an Australian man who was taking the boundaries of gamblin’ and drinkin’, at the same time, to a new level.

If you thought Phil Laak’s world record poker playing feat was unbeatable, he probably didn’t do it whilst drinking two beers per hour for the duration. One Aussie’s playing didn’t last for 115 hours, but for the duration of his 17-hour binge, the player managed 42 beers. Scrub that earlier projection of two per hour; he’s even beaten that.

According to Covers.com Star City in Sydney, the casino where the feat took place, have been fined $10,000 as the rules implicitly state that this level of drinkin’ and gamblin’ are not allowed to work in tandem.

“The nature of poker is that players tend to be . . . very controlled in their facial expressions and body movements. This level of control means that many of the visible signs that a person . . . is affected by alcohol may be minimized,” Star City’s leaked letter to the Casino Liquor and Gaming Control Authority said.

Since the incident the authorities have backed down and reduced the fine. How about breathalyzers at table games in future? It would get those crazy Aussies closer to stopping gamblers from having fun.