Over the past several weeks, though, two of the three best Texas No Limit Hold'em poker players at Bono's Pub in Lisle have been women: Dawn Sapp of Lisle and Andrea Connors of Wheaton.
Whether it's their skill - or simply that they play more than others - Sapp and Connors are among the top practitioners of a style of poker that has captured the attention of large television audiences and soon could be coming to a bar near you.
The Amateur Poker League, a Wichita, Kan.-based company, already has brought its tournament to Lisle and to Goose Island Wrigleyville in Chicago. And it's in negotiations with bars in Bartlett, Mount Prospect and Crystal Lake to have card players share space with pool sharks.
Every Sunday afternoon and Monday night at Bono's Pub, players gather to compete for league points and build their skills.
No money changes hands, but the players who rack up the most points will be invited to a regional tournament, where they will compete for a shot at the national tournament in Kansas. The winner there advances to the Poker Millionaire Challenge, where the final prize is $1 million.
Yet, for many, the ultimate goal is to get ready for a different set of tournaments and win a much larger pot of money.
Starting in January, there will be another series of regional tournaments in which each player begins with zero points. If they keep winning, they could reach gaming's Holy Grail: The World Series of Poker at Binion's Horseshoe Casino in Las Vegas and a shot at more than $5 million in prize money.
The top 200 to 400 point-getters in northern Illinois would participate in a regional championship. The winner of the region would then play in a national championship. That winner would bypass the $10,000 entry fee for a seat in the World Series of Poker.
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Trust no one at poker; it is a game for blood. If you want to play a good game you must forget friendship and bet your hand for what it's worth. Top-money winners do.
