Poker Tourney director adding flair

World Series of Poker tournament director, Jack Effel, has been living out a lifelong ambition. When Jack was growing up he wanted to be a broadcaster or announcer. During his teenage years he would carry a tape recorder with him, play his favorite songs and add his own commentary.

"I always said I was going get into radio or television," Effel said.

Instead, Effel got into poker.

As tournament director of the World Series of Poker, it's Effel's responsibility to give the audience and players running commentary as to what's happening at an event's final table. At the Main Event, that audience is more than 1,200 poker fans jammed into the Rio's Penn & Teller Theater with players competing for millions of dollars.

Oftentimes, like at last year's final table, Effel is behind the microphone for almost 14 hours.

"The final table is the culmination, the world championship," Effel said. "I want to communicate that experience to viewers in the way portrayed when it is broadcast on ESPN."

As tournament director, Effel's duties reach far beyond just calling play-by-play.

The year-round job covers setting the schedule for the 57-event, seven-week tournament at the Rio. Effel also oversees format structure for each event, setting up satellite games or qualifiers, timing for competition, blinds structure, and rules. He is also involved with hiring some 1,100 employees, including dealers and game supervisors, who help stage the tournament.

Effel, 34, has played poker since he was a teenager. When he turned 21, he moved to Bossier City, La., to work in the poker room at the Horseshoe casino. He transferred to the Horseshoe casino in Tunica, Miss., for a similar position, but graduated from the University of Mississippi in 2004 with the idea of going into real estate and business.

But at the same time, Harrah's Entertainment acquired both the Horseshoe Casinos and World Series of Poker in separate deals. Effel was given the opportunity to increase his role as the tournament's circuit event director.

He became the World Series of Poker's tournament director in 2007 and the role is expected to increase this year following the departure of commissioner Jeffrey Pollack in November.

Effel has also undertaken the task of expanding the World Series of Poker's brand overseas beyond the 2-year-old World Series of Poker Europe.

News Added: 01 February, 2010

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