The Art of the Deal

LAS VEGAS -- As reported by the New York Jounal-News: ``Matt Matros used to call it "a sucker's game." That was before he raked in $700,000 playing it. Last month, the 26-year-old Sarah Lawrence graduate student snagged third prize in the 2004 World Poker Tour Championship — "the biggest prize pool in poker history," he adds.

``But don't expect any major displays of emotion from this self-contained young man. After all, the ability to maintain an enigmatic facial expression is one of the skills that helped him outplay 340 other contestants in the Las Vegas tournament.

``…The World Poker Tour Championship, with a booty of $8.3 million, is one of the top two poker events in the world, bringing together winners of the World Poker Tour, who competed in more than a dozen locations, including Paris, Aruba, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Poker-fanciers who didn't participate in these events bought into the contest for a hefty $25,000.

``Matros, whose prize was actually $706,903, and other big winners are riding a poker tsunami. Fueled by online games and television coverage, increasing numbers of players are entering tournaments, ratcheting up prize pools.

``…Matros, who has been studying fiction-writing at Sarah Lawrence, and graduates later this month with a master's in fine arts, believes his mathematical acumen combined with the people skills required for writing novels and short stories are what bring him success at the poker table…"