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Stakes are high for teen gambling
Forget Atlantic City. Forget Charlestown. Forget the
proposed slot machines for the District and
Maryland. For all the not-so-high rolling, card
playing junkies out there, the SAC is the place to
be. Instead of pulling levers on brightly lit slot
machines, Blazers can press buttons on brightly lit
soda machines. Instead of sipping cocktails,
players, here, chug milk. Instead of sporting
bowties, dealers wear IDs around their necks.
Shortcoming aside, Blair stages a genuine
casino-like experience with several tables
showcasing multiple card games.
Everyday during 5A lunch, eight male Blazers crowd
around a table littered with red, white and blue
chips and a stack of playing cards. In an organized
chaos, the boys carry on several different
conversations all while shifting their eyes from the
cards in their hands to those that have been flipped
over in the center, and finally, to the faces of
their opponents.
Today, freshman Jason Salazar flips his cards to
expose a pair of kings and a pair of fives. Ridding
himself of a poker face, his friend grins, reveals
his cards and swipes the chips away. It seems like
the SAC isn't the only one with a full house.
Salazar collects the cards, disappointingly shuffles
the deck and deals another round.
From high school cafeterias to college dorm rooms,
poker has quickly been gaining popularity among
teens and young adults. The explosion of television
shows such as The Bravo Channel's Celebrity Poker,
The Travel Channel's World Poker Tour, and
especially ESPN's coverage of the World Series of
Poker (WSOP) has helped spark the card playing
craze.
The WSOP attracts audiences by representing a more
realistic group of players. "You know, Moneymaker, a
regular fat guy won the tournament; it just shows
anyone can win at poker. It's like, if he can do it,
I can do it," says senior Tom Meyer.
Not only do these television programs offer an
appealing picture of Texas Holdem poker playing,
they also glamorize gambling, an unhealthy habit to
start at a young age, according to experts. The
National Council on Problem Gambling reports that,
"Age of exposure plays a part in that adults who
seek treatment for problem gambling report having
started gambling at an early age." In a different
study, the Connecticut Council on Problem Gambling
finds that 87 percent of teens have gambled for
money at some time.
Research also shows that teenage boys seem more
affected by the activity than girls. According to a
2003 survey conducted by University of Pennsylvania
Annenberg Public Policy Center, half of 14-18
year-old males said they've gambled for money, while
only 16 percent of adolescent females admit having
ever gambled.
However, the popularity of poker is also on the rise
among teenage girls. Junior Eleanor Seavey learned
the game of poker at age nine, and just recently,
she's begun to play more often. Seavey recognizes
the male dominance the more she plays. "If you win,
it's a huge deal. If you lose, it's, like, ‘You're a
girl. Who cares?'" she says rolling her eyes.
By nature, both male and female adolescents are
drawn to high-risk activities that boost adrenaline
levels. Poker and gambling meet both criteria. It's
been almost ten years since senior Neil Hofman
learned the game of poker. Since then, the wood
chips and marbles he used to gamble with have turned
into five, ten, and even $20 bills. Hofman spends
his weekends hosting or attending poker parties and
tournaments—over the summer, he admitted playing
three to four times a week, making $60 on average.
Hofman has experienced the extreme highs and lows of
playing
Texas
Holdem
poker.
"Once I had $700 in twenties. I threw it up in the
air and showered myself with it," Hoffman joyfully
recollects as he rubs his hands together in
excitement. Since October of last year, he has saved
over $1000 from winnings, only splurging on items
like a $120 chip set. Nevertheless, Hofman also
remembers an especially dark occasion where he lost
$50. "I remember I was driving home, and I was so
incredibly mad. I was screaming, yelling, and
cursing all over the place, saying ‘How could you be
so stupid?'"
Since gambling is nearly as impossible to restrict
in school as out of school, some Blazers take
advantage of the opportunity to play during lunches.
George and his friends have played Texas Hold ‘Em,
one of the most popular types of poker, with $1
buy-ins at lunch since last year. Despite the fact
that they've never tried to conceal their games,
these students have never been caught gambling. "I
enjoy playing for money. It adds another dimension
to the game, but I don't know what I would do if I
got caught. I've never really thought about it,"
admits George.
Still, Blair administrators and security don't find
gambling to be a prevalent issue. "I don't think
it's a problem. If we are made aware of it, we'd try
to fix it, but it's hard to control what happens in
dark corners around the school. We can't be
everywhere," says Principal Philip Gainous.
Salazar and his lunch group don't gamble with real
money at school, but like other Blazers who play,
the competition is what really draws them to the
game. "It's the chance of winning and the fact that
I like thinking that I can beat all my friends,"
says senior Matthew Fritz-Mauer.
For others,
Texas
Holdem
poker
is just another recreational pastime. "You can't
make a steady income from playing. Poker is just one
of the few social outlets from school and work,"
Meyer confesses. Like Meyer, his poker buddy, senior
Nathan Barrymore plays leisurely. "It's not for the
money. It's a way to be competitive that's not a
sport," he says just before resuming in a
conversation about the coverage on the WSOP he saw
the previous night. Turning to his friend he adds,
"Oh, and I found a couple more guys who want to
play." There's a chance for anything; those who
begin as amateurs on Blair Boulevard may just end up
playing professionally on The Vegas Strip.
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