One of the more perspicacious posts.

Unfortunately, if you put lipstick on a pig, it's still a pig. Or more to the point, if you put lipstick on a punk, he's still a punk.

So the difference between football, golf, and poker is how they dress? It has nothing to do with the fact that both are infinitely more entertaining to watch than poker especially without holecards showing? Do you think if chess players dressed up it would be all over TV too?

LOL@ a dress code for poker players. I can understand Sexton going there considering how awful the entire WPT coverage has become over the years. The entire article sounds way too self-serving IMO. How about turning the WPT back into a Poker show instead of using Tony Dunst as the WPT GQ poster boy.

This underlies the point I made before. Golf and tennis draw high end advertisers because it has world-wide viewership that dwarfs most sports. Add to it that the demographic for those sports are wealthy, country club members (where those sports are played), and you have the perfect storm for snobbery.

It doesn't have to do with attire. If it did, when John McEnroe played, a headband sponsor would have been front and center. It has to do with the fact that outside of soccer, golf and tennis worldwide have the most viewers. Look at the advertisers and you will see predominately International brands.

If poker had tons of viewers, they might attract a premium beef jerky company, or Stella Artois instead of Milwaukee's Best.

It is the audience, not the players.

Did you see the Shooting Stars S10E22-24 where Dunst had a commentary on the players' dress? One guy had his shirt open and the others were wearing t-shirts. I mean why would you dress that way on national/international TV? Contrast with how they dressed at WPT-Venice.

The image golf, tennis, and football present is authentic.

People who view golf and tennis tend to be people who hang around golf courses and tennis clubs. Certain advertisers want to reach those people, so they buy ads.

You can't force these things through pretending you are something you are not. The sponsors for poker are reflective of the audience, not the players.

Mike Sexton is a class act, liked him from the start!

Your opinions regarding golf and tennis seem to be based on stereotypes. These sports would not appear on national tv stations on a regular basis if they had as limited appeal as you suggest.

I do not play golf myself but I've met many people that do from all walks of life. There are many public non country club golf courses in the US. It is a sport enjoyed by many.

If I feel like wearing a hoodie, I want to wear a ****ing hoodie!

poker is so popular because it allows people to be themselves and anyone can play.

If I was playing in a really nice casino and on a stream then I might dress up but during the WPT or WSOP at crap casinos like the RIO there should be no dress code.

also one think I noticed, Durrr never ever dresses up even when he is on TV. During HSP many of the pro's wear button ups and nice clothes but Tom always wears casual.

I want Mike Sexton to wake up and smell what The Rock is cooking.

I have no idea what that means.

Yes you can, you make rules. If people don't want to follow the rules of a tournament such as a dress code, they don't play.

I dont think it should be a rule but definitely it should be a moral obligation.

When I say, "you can't force these things", I am speaking of authenticity and core audience. Not arbitrary rules.

Making players dress differently will not change the audience size and demographics.

Audience size and demographics are the most important factors that ad buyers consider. The programming and participants are further down the list.

I doubt there has been focus group studies on poker shows. But if there were, I further doubt any focus group participants would say they will not watch again because someone wears clothes they don't like. It is a made up problem by an old guy who is just speculating and trying to enforce his personal preferences.

Mike Sexton's dress sense is a disgrace to the poker community, and unless he immediately starts wearing flip flops and tee shirts at the poker table, he should be given a lifetime ban from Vegas!

And some stubble and less frequent hairwashing wouldnt go amiss either!

How wonderful it would be to be told how to dress. The stricter the dress code the better.

How wonderful it would be to have to pay buy-ins, the increasing vig (with very little being given back to the average player regardless of TV and advertising profits), AND to be told how to dress.

All by myself I figured out to wear shoes and a shirt. More dress code rules, please!

I think Mike is lamenting the lack of marketable people emerging into poker. They all dress the same, all interviews have the same answers. No one is really personable.

He's just pointing out that without extreme talent (Ivey, Woods, Jordan etc.) Personality, class and appearance are important to attract sponsors and more mainstream viewers.

Tony Dunst and Olivier Busquet didn't get their jobs because their results resonate with Joe Public. They are people who dressed differently and have more to say than the standard form interview answers from every other < 30 year old.

Busquet doesn't get commentating gigs because of how he dresses you ape

His commentary is great, but also looks, presentation, articulate. Same with Dunst, although his commentary is excellent but not brilliant.

Casual? LOL

People want to play poker against an "every man" like Chris Moneymaker, not some kid in a hoodie, who dropped out of college, might have a drug problem and is going to berate them for calling a raise with K5o. Big difference.

Does that mean that college dropouts should be banned from playing poker? Of course not.

But that's the idea behind dress codes for televised events. It makes people seem more respectable and inviting to play against.

what kind of dress code is he talking about. Does he want everybody in suits or collar shirts and slacks and some dress shoes. Or does he want people not to show up in there hoodies and tshirts. Didn't brian rast just start a clothing company call 3Bet they sells hoodies and t shirts.

It has been a while since I have seen a boxing match in suits (boxers or fans)

Who decides what proper attire should be? The World Poker Commission?

If the WPT feels that the final table should require appropriate clothing, they need to make it one of their rules - maybe they should supply WPT jackets.

Normally, I don't get involved in such discussions, but it is obvious that the most of you (usually younger generation) are missing the point. Mike's intention are to revitalize this industry bringing in more new money, not keep old money happy.

You must realize poker is somehwat frowned upon when spoken of as a job. Of course Mike is trying to make poker seem more professional and all the insiders knows this is a myth, but for the general sake of poker this would be better.

Every industry has some shadiness, it's just seems poker does not hide it as well. Wall street traders, look to get (stupid) money to buy up shares of propped up companies that aren't worth as much as they're hyped up to be. Real estate agents are each others' friends and could care less whether the buyer overpays, or the seller drops his pants on his property as long as they can orchestrate a sale between them to make comission payable.

I think he just wants people to dress up a little. Treat the final table like a special event because it is. While some people have made multiple final tables and won multiple WPT titles only about 70 people will make it to the TV final table each year out of the thousands that enter.

This is what a WPT tournament looks like in the early stages.


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This is what a WPT final table looks like.




Most tournaments follow the same theme of making the final table look special. Here's the EPT Barcelona main event final table



The people that run these tours probably gave it some thought and decided it's a good idea to spend extra money to make the final table look nicer. It's going to get more press coverage and more air time if it's a televised event.

They put a lot of money to try and make the event special for you and the people watching on TV. Lease people can do is dress somewhat nicely at the final table to match the rest of the set. Is that so much to ask? I'm curious.... Of all the whiners in this thread complaining about not wanting to dress a little better. How many have actually made a WPT final table? Or any televised final table for that matter?

It's just common sense. You dress appropriately for the circumstances. Take a cue from the Royal Flush girls.

This is how they dress on Day1B:


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This is how they dress for the final table.



This is how they dress in a pool: