The Cincinnati Kid

"Most people know The Cincinnati Kid from the film but it was an original novel. It has a mistake in it. By which I mean it has this preposterous poker hand at the end like the hand in Casino Royale . Everyone has this enormous hand and it’s statistically impossible. A poker player watching Casino Royale assumes there’s going to be a plot twist about cheating because the cards are so unlikely, but it’s just to make it more exciting, of course. But if you can overlook that in The Cincinnati Kid the rest is incredibly authentic. The bitterness and fear of the players, the screwed-upness of the life, the difficulty of having normal relationships. And the fantastic thing is – I don’t want to ruin it for people who haven’t read it, but everyone’s seen the film – that he doesn’t win. It’s so sophisticated and complicated for an American novel. And the last chapter is philosophical, about people all over the world who are second best at something. It’s incredibly brave. He couldn’t resist giving everyone a straight flush at the end, but he did resist letting his hero win. And you have to remember that about poker – that even the best players in the world fail and go wrong, give money away, are often losing. It’s an important thing about the game. Well, now you can because of the internet, because of PokerStars. You can have a domestic life, friends, lovers, a job. The main difference is for women. It used to be you’d have to go out on your own to a casino in the middle of the night and it would be full of men. I do, but I’m a bit of a mad tomboy, I suppose. For most women though, the internet revolution is incredible. You can have a newborn baby and just sit down for 40 minutes in the middle of the day while the baby is asleep and win $100. Or lose $100. That’s the thing. I am happy to endorse poker but I also bang the drum of caution. Because of what I do I’m always being asked on to debates and they expect me to be pro-gambling, and then they have someone from Gamblers’ Anonymous who’s anti. But I’m not pro-gambling. I don’t want to see increased jackpots on slot machines and I think the National Lottery is evil and wrong. I wouldn’t tell someone to go out and play roulette. But poker is like bridge really. I’d say: “Now listen, it’s a game of cards. Don’t play for more than you can afford.” You need to know how to play the game and how to use your judgment."