They Let Anyone In This Joint (cactus i.v.)

Everyone these days wants to be a poker player. Who can blame them? Watching poker players splash around chips like it was nothing has its appeal.

Former tennis champ Boris Becker is throwing himself into the mix. The 40-year-old international star has been training to become a tournament poker player. Either his training is paying off or PokerStars has a little too much many because the world's top online poker site has named Becker one of its ambassadors.

"When I was still playing tennis, I learned to play poker casually in between matches because it helped me to improve my concentration. Now I want to develop my poker skills," Becker told Gary Trask of the Casino City Times.

His first big competition will be the PokerStars European Poker Tour next January and the Grand Finale in Monte Carlo in April.

Becker is a six-time Grand Slam winner and became the youngest player to win Wimbledon when he was 17. His ruthless aggression should help him be a good poker player, especially in tournament play.

"Thanks to his commitment to fighting for every point on [the] court, he perfectly embodies the competitive spirit at the heart of all good poker players," said Tamar Yaniv, Director of Marketing for PokerStars to Trask. "And now PokerStars is giving their players who have always dreamed of facing Boris Becker at Wimbledon the opportunity to compete with him in Dortmund."

CHECK OUT MY OTHER cactus i.v. POKER COLUMNS HERE.

Getting to know the people

I love playing stud, which is no secret. I have found a pure joy in the game, but last night I found a better reason to enjoy the game -- the people.

When you play poker these days, you know you are on a table with a bunch of douche bags, and that's just me being nice. There are a million people who want to tell you how to play, what to play, even what to wear. But last night I was playing $1-$5 stud with a few interesting people. Granted, I was the youngest person there by at least 40 years, but that doesn't change the way I feel about them.

Many of these players come out because they have no one. It's sad but it's true. Many of them are so old that they are the last of their family. However, some of them have sad stories as well about how close young relatives have passed away. The people at the stud table become their new family.

It's probably not much different from when you gave money to your kids anyway.

These men and women find comfort in each other knowing that others have gone through the same thing. Last night, as I talked to them I learned they just wanted someone to talk to.

I haven't had a hard life. I haven't gone through nearly the amount of heartache they have gone through. But I love playing with them.

It's not a serious game with them. They have been through serious with everything else in life. Stud is a time for fun and a time for mingling.

Maybe playing with them isn't going to improve my game, but I don't care. When I am sitting there, it's never about the game.