Donal’s Corner – A Week At The Races

Galway Raceweek is one of the high points of the summer for many people across Ireland and further afield. They travel annually to the Western Capital trying to find the youthful spark now missing from their lives or, more likely, just to get pissed and have a good time.

Horses, betting, drinking, dancing, fashion, freedom. They’re all available in the last week of July every year in Ballybrit and in the city and everyone should give it a try at least once.

Another aspect of Raceweek that I’m much more interested in is poker. For as long as anyone can remember there have been high stakes games aplenty during Raceweek. Originally, it was always Draw Poker held in the Warwick or the Jameson Hotels in Salthill or the Ardilaun on Taylor’s Hill or in the back parlours and snugs of the pubs. Huge piles of cash with stories of farms and houses being won and lost.

A Guard from Roscommon used to take the week off every year to host the games in whichever hotel was in fashion. He would collect £20 from you the first time that you sat down and that was your table charges paid for the week. Being a Guard he was supposed to help with security though he looked like he’d be much more help assisting you with eating your breakfast. At least his presence kept the other Guards away.

When I first went around 1995 there were a few games of Texas and Omaha beginning to break out and you’d see the odd familiar face from the regular poker scene; Padraig Parkinson, legend then as now, holding court in the bar, Scottie Gray talking GAA and baseball with the farmers, Big Al on a six day bender, and, above all, Denis Winters, undisputed king of Draw Poker. It was never called Omaha, of course, some liked “2 from the hand” but that was reckoned to give too much help to the inexpert, so “Burny – Turny” was the name of choice. Believe me, these were definitely not games for bluffing, just always have it and you were getting paid.

All the games were played “from the pocket”. In other words, there were no table stakes or All-In. If you couldn’t match a bet or borrow from a friend, you’d lose the pot. Modern players think that they understand Pot Control, but they’ve no idea. Every night you would see car keys being thrown into pots as collateral, but I’m not sure how many cars actually changed hands.

Well the Warwick and the Jameson are long gone and the Ardilaun has suffered from gentrification so the poker has moved to the Eglinton and the 4 Aces. The action is still amazing but it’s all run by professionals and TDA rules hold sway. There’s chips and tournaments and reg desks and I’m sure that it’s better in many ways but something special and unique has disappeared and that is always to be regretted.

By
Donal MacAonghusa