Poker News

Johnny Grooms: 2005 WSOP TD

Johnny Grooms was born in Newport, Tennessee on December 15, 1973.

Upon graduation from high school, Johnny attended East Tennessee State University. A day of fun cost Johnny his degree when his golf teacher caught him playing flag football instead of attending golf class. Johnny came up one credit short of obtaining a BA degree after his golf teacher failed him. The funny part is that Johnny was a seven handicapper which was better than his teacher.

Johnny decided to move to Memphis to finish up his one credit of golf at the University of Memphis and then intended to follow that up with law school, but poker changed all that.

He had played poker a few times at the Horseshoe in Tunica where his best friend’s brother dealt poker and Johnny thought dealing would be a fun way to make money to pay his way through law school. He was hired on at Hollywood Casino in Tunica in 1999 as a poker dealer. Two months later a dealing position came up at the Horseshoe and having a reputation of being one of the best poker rooms in the country swayed Johnny to audition. His talent landed him the job.

2001 was the premier of the World Poker Open and Johnny signed on to deal. He thought it would be a fun experience with an added bonus of meeting all the well-known poker pros.

His skillful performance landed him a position in the line up to deal the final table of the main event. The following year was a repeat and that was the beginning of a career in the world of tournament poker.

The Tournament Director of the Horseshoe at the time was Jimmy Sommerfeld but he was spending a lot of time traveling the tournament circuit for other events. Johnny asked Jimmy to teach him every thing he knew about tournaments so he could fill in when Jimmy was on the road. Johnny wanted to learn from the best in the business and he believed Jimmy’s level of knowledge and professionalism was first-class. Jimmy agreed and taught Johnny every thing he knew about tournaments. What Johnny didn’t learn from Jimmy he learned from Ken Lambert. Ken has a reputation of being one of the best in the business in customer service and at getting things done.

In 2004 Johnny was Ken’s assistant at the WPO and admitted it was not only enjoyable but an eye opening experience. It was also Johnny’s first time on staff at a world class tournament. Johnny went on to assist Ken at the World Poker Challenge in Reno and the Mid-America Poker Classic in Tunica.

In December of 2004 Jimmy Sommerfeld left Tunica and the Horseshoe for a permanent position as Tournament Director for Bonnie Damiano on the Mardi Gras Queen in Tarpon Springs, Florida. This opened up theposition of tournament director at the Horseshoe and Johnny received the appointment. Prior to Jimmy leaving, Ken and Jimmy had spent a lot of time on the details of the WSOP Circuit Tour and when Jimmy had to decline the offer of tournament director, Ken recommended Johnny. Johnny accepted the position and has completed the circuit event in Atlantic City, San Diego, the Rio in Las Vegas, Lake Tahoe in late April and will finish up in New Orleans in May.

Johnny took a break between the Atlantic City circuit event and the San Diego event to wed his fiancee, Rebecca Swan, on February 4, 2004 in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. At present they are proud parents of two Jack Russell’s, named Sally and Charlie Brown. Johnny confessed that his wife is an avid Peanuts fan and that’s how Charlie Brown got his name.

It’s official, 31 year old Johnny Grooms was appointed Tournament Director of the 2005 World Series of Poker.

DB: You have been appointed tournament director of the most prestigious tournament in the world and you’re only 31, do you believe you have what it takes to handle the job?

JG: Yes, tournament procedures can be learned but I believe the most important necessity of a good tournament director is the ability tomake a logical decision that keeps with the spirit of the game. I want players to know when I’m directing a tournament that my interest doesn’t matter. The interest of all the players in the field is the most important factor. If a player does something unethical I want to make a decision that doesn’t allow him to manipulate the rules.

DB: How many entrants do you predict for the main event this year?

JG: This may sound like a funny answer, but it could be as few as 4,500 or as many as 6,500.

DB: Why such a large gap in your prediction?

JG: Predicting tournaments used to be almost a science but that has all changed last year. With the overwhelming population of poker we’re seeing an enormous increase in the numbers of players. It’s become such a wide spectrum event that virtually anyone can become a millionaire overnight.

DB: Do you believe we will ever see a well know pro win again?

JG: Yes, we all know there is a luck factor in poker but we also know that over the course of nine days the pros are going to give themselves more chances to win then the amateurs.

DB: We’ll we ever see arepeat winner?

JG: That’s very unlikely. The numbers alone indicate that even though the pros give themselves more chances to win, the amount of coin tosses you need to win and the bad beats you have to avoid become overwhelming over a nine day period. The number of times a pro gets his money all-in as a three- or four-to-one favorite is going to be on the high side and chances are he’s going to lose eventually.

DB: Do you believe the change of venue will have any negative effects on the WSOP?

JG: Poker has a lot of history and tradition and I respect that but over the last few years it’s basically undergone a facelift in the eyes of the public from the old days of backroom gamblers, so in my opinion moving the WSOP is a good thing. The Rio is a beautiful property, we will have 200 tables in one room and with the proximity to the strip it all makes for a good location.

DB: Why was the Ladies event changed to a no-limit event this year?

JG: No-limit used to be viewed as a man’s game and very few women had any experience playing the game. Now look around, we’ve had a no-limit ladies event at every circuit stop with no less than 150 entrants. Annie Duke won the Tournament of Champions playing against eight of thebest male poker players in the world, and the game was no-limit, that’s a milestone for women in poker.

DB: How many women do you predict will enter the ladies event this year?

JG: At least 300.

DB: How many women do you predict will enter the main event this year?

JG: Between 10 and 20 percent of the overall field.

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