Years ago, when Martina Navritolova was No.1 in women's tennis, a reporter asked her who she thought she compared equally with on the men's tour.  Somewhat to the reporter's surprise, she replied (paraphrasing) "I know exactly who I'm equal to," and named a man who was ranked somewhere around 180th in the world.  When asked how she could be so sure, she reminded the reporter that all the players play the same tournaments and practice together.  So she'd practiced against a lot of male players and had a very precise notion of who was her equal.

A few years ago, when Anika Sorenstam was the best women's golfer, she was allowed to compete in a men's tournament.  She didn't make the cut.

That's why there are male and female sports.  If the sexes weren't segregated, women athletes would pretty much cease to exist.  They'd be unable to compete against the men and so, as kids, would steer away from sports that they knew to be a dead end for them.  With segregation, there are exciting, well played women's sporting events at which the players can make a good living if they're good enough. 

But poker?  Poker is not what you'd call physical competition.  Strength, speed and leaping ability don't win poker hands.  Calculating the odds and the ability to read your opponent do.  In my experience, good cards help as well.

So why are there women-only poker competitions?  Well, it seems that there aren't, at least not legally.  It seems it's illegal to segregate poker tournaments on the basis of sex.  This man challenged a women-only competition, was allowed to play and won first place (Gaming Today, 9/16/09).  Another filed a lawsuit against the casino sponsoring the event demanding to be allowed in.  But the ladies keep trying to keep the men out.  As Phyllis Caro of Hollywood Park Casino said,

"These events are designed to allow women to play against women if they choose to, without having to play against men," Caro said. "It’s just a level playing field for mostly newcomers to the game."

So what's unlevel about a male-female poker field?  Players of equal experience should be allowed to compete against each other regardless of sex, right?  I mean, why is it OK to put the prize money out of reach of one sex but not the other?

More to the point, look at the mindset that believes that (a) segregation on the basis of sex should be a matter of women's "choice," and (b) in some way, women are at a disadvantage when a man, presumably any man, is in the game.  Where'd they get that idea? 

Tennis?  Golf?  Basketball?  Segregation there is necessary.  But poker?

This entry was posted on Sunday, September 20th, 2009 at 10:18 pm and is filed under Gender Issues (Misc.). You can trackback from your own site.