Tonight at The Old Inn, Dunfermline, the draw will take place for the ‘World Cup’ Poker Shoot Out, scheduled as a Christmas Special for this coming Sunday, 11th December, at 6pm. This ‘World Cup’ competition will be based on Argentina ’78 and I’m hoping to draw the host nation. Not just because Argentina won the actual football tournament, but also because the ‘hosts’ will be located at everyone’s favourite table… yes, Table One will be our equivalent of the Estadio Monumental, Buenos Aires (pictured above). Unfortunately, despite being a fully tanked-up card-carrying member of the Tartan Army, Bloo won’t be drawing his beloved Scotland tonight. Just like a real World Cup, controversial seeding systems will be used to fix the draw. Hopefully, someone will be offended when they become “IRAN”. After all, the moaners need something to moan about and the usual complaints about “bingo” won’t apply ‘cos you’ll be well warned about the timing and quicker blinds (see point 3 below).
Here are the details of tonight’s draw.
| Group 1 Table 1 | Group 2 Table 2 | ||
| Seat 1 | Argentina | Seat 1 | West Germany |
| Seat 2 | Italy | Seat 2 | Mexico |
| Seat 3 | Hungary | Seat 3 | Poland |
| Seat 4 | France | Seat 4 | Tunisia |
| Group 3 Table 3 | Group 4 Table 4 | ||
| Seat 1 | Brazil | Seat 1 | Netherlands |
| Seat 2 | Sweden | Seat 2 | Peru |
| Seat 3 | Spain | Seat 3 | Scotland |
| Seat 4 | Austria | Seat 4 | Iran |
| Pot 1 Seats 1 | Pot 2 Seats 2 | ||
| Joe | Mark | ||
| Stephen | James | ||
| Sean | Bloo | ||
| Tiger | Ralph | ||
| Pot 3 Seats 3 | Pot 4 Seats 4 | ||
| Marie | Stuart | ||
| Ross | Andy Mc. | ||
| Simon | John T. | ||
| Andy H. | Trudi | ||
Please remember that in addition to the ‘World Cup’ the Christmas Special will also feature a proper ‘cash’ side-game running for surplus or eliminated players to dip in and out of as they see fit. This side-game will not be a tournament; you simply buy chips, you play when you feel like it, and you can cash them in at any time. The advantage of a proper ‘cash’ side-game like this is that there’s poker for all, all night long, and as much or as little poker as you fancy.
‘World Cup’ Shoot Out Format
1. Entrance Fee – It’ll be the equivalent of a Big Sunday game but paid in full up-front to Stevie. The first 16 players to hand Stevie the money will be given a place. Entrance fees will not be refundable, but they will be transferable, so you can sell your place on to someone else should you find yourself double-booked or whatever.
2. Rounds – It’s often forgotten that the 1978 World Cup in Argentina had two group phases and then a final, with no semis. Our ‘World Cup’ Shoot Out will be similar. Four groups of four players will play short-handed until the bottom two are eliminated on each table. Then all chips will be reset to 5,000 again before the second group phase of two tables of four players gets under way. Again two players per table will be eliminated with the four remaining players qualifying for the final table of four. Again, all chips will be reset to 5,000 before the final table play begins.
3. Chips and Blinds – Chips will be reset to 5,000 at the start of each and every round. Blinds will be quicker than usual, starting at 10 minutes, and each round should last no more than two hours including breaks. The Tournament Director will adjust blinds as the tournament progresses to give players optimum playing time and will warn tables of impending time limits. Any table not resolved in time will be decided by a chip count or one deciding hand (if chips are tied).
