July 11th News

Non-Drinking at games

I am getting a bit tired at repeating this rant every six months or so, but hey ho, here we go again.

From time to time the league suffers an infestation of leeches turning up to play in our games. This is one of those times.

These leeches think it is somehow acceptable not only to turn up at one of our pubs and then sit there for four hours taking up space and not buying a single drink, but also think it is perfectly acceptable to use the league's tables, cards, chips which all have to be paid for, and play in a league that has a prize pool of over one thousand pounds a month whilst not helping to contribute anything towards it!

Well.

I'm afraid it is going to stop.

This week I have been told the same couple of players, hey, let's name names. 1671 - The Wolf and 1318 - Jamie Green have been thrown out of not one, but TWO venues because they have bought the sum total of ONE drink between them over two nights, and when asked if they would prefer to buy a drink or leave the game, promptly left. By the way, if anyone sees either of these players please tell them they are no longer welcome in the league. Thanks.

The problem is they are quite possibly not the only ones to hardly drink anything, but they are the only ones to get ejected, and be told not to come back because of their refusal to buy anything even when prompted.

The usual argument I get back is that "It's a FREE league to play in, I don't have to buy a drink!" and that's partly right. It is a free league for the players, but it isn't free for the pubs to host. It costs each pub on average just over 2.00 per player that sits down and plays poker and they aren't doing it for love. It's because they expect anyone who walks through the door, not to treat it like a communal meeting house, but to buy a drink or some food and put some money in their tills.
The thing is poker isn't like darts, or football where teams get players to pay subs, it is illegal for the venues or the league to take any sort of rake for a poker game. Neither the League or the Pub is allowed to take anything from players, and to be honest, we have never wanted to.

The initial idea behind the league was for people to play a social game of cards, with the edge of providing something to win, that doesn't cost anything to play. I have known lots and lots of players over the years start playing purely because it IS free to play.

BUT the league needs happy pubs to survive. Pubs stay happy when our players buy drinks and food and make the pubs money, but get VERY UNHAPPY when players sit all night NOT buying anything and therefore COST the pubs money by being there.

And that in turn makes me very unhappy because I am the one the Landlord's all come to, to express their anger surrounding the bizarre behaviour of people being in a pub not drinking! It makes me unhappy enough that if I have to cull a few more leeches I will. I would rather have a happy Landlord with 16 players, than an unhappy Landlord with 20 players, because the players the pub takes most notice of aren't the ones who buy 3 or 4 drinks a night, (thank you those that do) they concentrate, QUITE RIGHTLY, on the very very small minorty who COST THEM MONEY BY BEING THERE BECAUSE THEY DON'T BUY ANYTHING.

So here's what's going to happen. The league is going to bring in a new rule. Before the start of a game, everyone will have to have a drink if you want to play, and I dont mean a water with ice. I mean one that you bought at the bar. If there are two games in a night, then you will have to make at least two purchases in order to play both games.

NEW RULE - NO PURCHASE - NO PLAY.

Now as I say, the vast majority of players can disregard this rant. Most players don't need to be told to buy a drink when they are in a pub, they do it naturally. That's great and very much appreciated, and I need to stress I'm not asking everyone to get hammered every night of the week by buying 5 or 6 pints.

All I am trying to do is stop the leeches from ruining it for the majority, by pissing off pubs so much they kick the league out.

Simple.

BUY A DRINK OR DON'T BOTHER COMING TO PLAY.

Rant over. Thanks! :)