Doping (use of performance-enhancing drugs) in Poker

[Crazy Porto]

Beta blockers, which are on the WADA banned list for certain sports (particularly archery and shooting) because they slow down heart rates.

this [censored] will get you in the zone [img]/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img]

[pocketpared]

"It was also around this time that Ungar began using cocaine. He noted in his biography that at first he used it on the advice of fellow poker players because of the drug's ability to keep someone up and energized for a long period of time, something that would come in handy during marathon poker sessions. However, recreational use soon led to addiction.

Ungar's drug problem escalated to such a point that during the WSOP main event in 1990, to which close friend and poker pro Billy Baxter had staked him, Ungar was found on the third day of the tournament unconscious on the floor of his hotel room from a drug overdose. However, he had such a chip lead that even when the dealers kept taking his blinds out every time around the table Ungar still finished 9th and pocketed $20,500.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stu_Unger

[y_burro]

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WELL ACCORDING TO MY PERSONELL STUDIES ALCOHOL MAKES ME TAKE SHOTS AND TRY TO BLUFF PEOPLE OFF OF MADE HANDS.

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I have a similar experience. For some reason after a night of drinking last night, my friends and I thought it'd be a good idea to drive down to commerce where I proceeded to drop 4 hundred dollars at a 2/3 table in less than 2 hours. Fortunately I was too drunk to care.

[betgo]

I take smart pills you can buy at the health food store that are supposed to make you think better.

In tournaments, I play much better with some alcohol, which makes me play more fearlessly.

For 15-hour tournament days, I use some caffeine to keep awake and alert.

[shaniac]

if poker was a sport, this thread might be relevant. But it's not. It's gambling, with cards, where we put up our own money and therefore can consume whatever [censored] substances we want. Oliver, what is your agenda here?

[worthless]

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i think the vast majority of drugs in sports are used during training. steroids help people recover from injuries faster, and also train harder, and become bigger off the playing field. stimulants are still widely used in many sports during gametime. the fact remains, that there is very little edge to be gained by taking drugs to help "train" at poker. you can't juice and get a sick edge for your next tournament. For this reason, there is no real risk involved with drugs and poker. there just isn't a very large edge to be gained from using the drugs.

Also, the paul phillips issue with adderall is comical. He has ADHD. Thats like saying, so and so admitted to taking lithium before the main event. He openly admitted it and it helped him play better. (well, he is bipolar, but that lithium [censored] enhanced his performance 100%)

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The performance-enhancing drugs in poker are all "game day" drugs, not "training" drugs.

The "game day" drugs in poker generally fall into two categories:

1. Stimulants, including caffeine and Sudafed (which are no longer on the WADA banned list even though they were in the past), and stronger stuff such as Modafinil and Ephedrine (which are on the WADA banned list).

2. Beta blockers, which are on the WADA banned list for certain sports (particularly archery and shooting) because they slow down heart rates.

Sleeping pills, which enhance performance by allowing a player to get rested, are not on the WADA banned list.

Paul Phillips openly admitted that he was going to take Modafinil to gain an edge at the 2005 WSOP, after he had learned about the Kelli White case which went down 2 years prior to Phillips' article in Slate.com

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What in this post wasn't in your original post that made this worth posting?

[vixticator]

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if poker was a sport, this thread might be relevant. But it's not. The end

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[jah7_fsu1]

I imagine many poker players will take steroids in hopes of getting bigger hands at the table.

[fraac]

lol

[Lurker.]

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who cares what the IOC thinks? poker isn't a sport.

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wow i agree with you. [img]/images/graemlins/confused.gif[/img]