How It All Began
On a hot summer day in mid-July in the suburbs of Phoenix, the outside temperature was north of 110° and inside, dual air conditioners had a hard time keeping a house full of warm bodies cool, and it was easy to see why. This was the biggest tournament Big Slick Poker Circuit had ever hosted: Five tables, 48 players and a prize pool of nearly $5,000. Players weren't only sweating a two-outter on the river, they were just plain sweating! With a tournament of this size, the action was definitely as hot inside as it was outside. But the tournaments weren't always this big...
It's getting hot in here! You can't tell from the picture, but so many people are sweating!
In The Beginning
After I moved to Phoenix in 2003, I started playing poker with a few of my friends. Tournaments were sporadic and were usually no more than 7 or 8 guys sitting at a kitchen table or out on a patio. Guys with nicknames like 'D'Espo', 'Stats', 'Teddy KGB' and the like were running bluffs and stealing my chips as I learned the nuances of the game. As the tournaments continued, we would invite another guy to play. Then another, and another. Soon, the tournaments grew to two tables through simply word of mouth. After a few years of the tournaments slowly growing in size, the idea was brought up to have regular tournaments and create a league.
Shuffle Up and Deal
In 2011, Big Slick Poker Circuit was born. The deep stack tournaments are held every month and a free-roll championship tournament decides the league champion at the end of each season. In addition to the league Champion, we also give the players another title to covet: Player of the Year. To this day, that format has been very successful, and our tournaments have grown through only referrals from friends to three full tables every month. They say that a referral is the best form of advertising and the fact that we have grown so much is a true testament to that thought.
Staying Focused on Improvement
Big Slick Poker Circuit is ever changing. We don't change simply for the sake of change, but rather to follow the mantra of always seeking to improve. I believe that nothing is ever perfect, but we can always strive to make ourselves and what we do better. Through the years, one thing that hasn't changed with Big Slick Poker Circuit is our commitment to one main goal: To provide a good tournament structure with high quality, competitive players in a very friendly setting. And in our seventh year, I believe we've managed to stay true to that goal even as the group has grown.
How is it done? By setting expectations up front and constantly soliciting feedback from players. When a new player sits down for the first time, he knows what the format is, what the blinds and payouts are and how the league works which puts his mind at ease so he can focus on his cards. Through end-of-season surveys, round-table discussions with players before the Championship tournament and always keeping an open ear and mind, everyone has a forum to share their thoughts on how to make the league even better than it is. Every player brings his or her own experiences and preferences and I believe that hearing those ideas from every player is what helps keep Big Slick Poker Circuit as successful as it is.
Every season, the skill level and quality of players continues to improve. From just a few friends sitting around a kitchen table playing poker, to a five-table tournament with multiple players having previously cashed at the WSOP, Big Slick Poker Circuit is truly the Southeast Valley's Premier Home Poker League.
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