Friendly poker tourney adds new dimension to American Music Fest

The American Music Festival for the Lake is known for mixing it up. Past line-ups have included chart-topping national acts, classic rock icons, vocalists with TV-star status, Grand Ole Opry alumni; bluegrass/Americana and jam bands,regulars on the festival scene, along with local and regional favorites that draw crowds to area pubs. It wasn’t much of a surprise when organizers announced the addition of a charity Texas Hold’Em poker tournament to Day One (Sept. 24) of the festival. Why not?

Intrigued by the concept, and curious about the logistics (how do you place a bid over the sounds of wailing guitars?) The Lake George Examiner entered one of its own into the tournament. Eric, who provides Lake George Examiner with a continuous stream of scenic Lake George photos, watches Texas Hold’Em tournaments on TV but has never played. He entered with the goal of not being the first one out.

Dubbed the Autumn Poker Fiesta, the tourney was staged by Free4All Poker. There was no charge to play, but a donation to the Festival’s beneficiary, SAVE Lake George Partnership, was encouraged. Cash prizes for first through fifth place came from sponsors. Registered players did not have to pay for admission to the Festival.

By game time Saturday, 42 players had registered, short of the 80 organizers were seeking, but the tourney went on. Eric surpassed his goal, making it to the final table and finishing in 7th place. “Novices often do well,” says Pat Putaski, who was helping with Saturday’s event, “because they are so cautious.”

Unlike the too-cool-to-school players in the televised World Series of Poker tour, veteran players in the Autumn Poker Fiesta tourney were friendly and helpful, Eric says. He enjoyed playing, maybe a little too much, and looks forward to next year. Festival organizer Robert Millis says the “poker was good…we will try to expand that into a standalone yearly event.”