Games of my life

All these years, there have been three games that I have delighted in and supported – chess, golf and poker. These have been wellsprings of long friendships, and have helped shape my values and views about a lot of things in my career as a corporate executive, and today as a businessman and journalist.

In chess, I learned the basic moves and rudiments of the game from my father. I remember how he would belt a good laugh when my King would be trapped and I would have to surrender to a checkmate just after he executed a couple of deft opening moves.

Soon, however, I saw the trickery he employed and would be able to avoid being mated early. By the time I was 12 years old, I was beating him regularly. It was my turn to hide a smile when my father found excuses not to play with me. He eventually gave up the game, and I had to look for opponents outside home.

During my high school days, vacation time was chance to seek out different chess clubs, and meet and play with then chess icons – the late Art Borjal, long-time president of Philippine Chess Federation, Ramon Lontok, another respected chess club guru and, of course, the internationally know Florencio Compomanes, former president of FIDE, the chess international body.

My affair with chess continued even when I was in the corporate world. Fourteen years ago, with the prodding of Art Borjal, I convinced Pilipinas Shell to provide funding and support for the development of chess among students with the launching of Shell National Youth Active Chess Championship.

Shell’s active (or rapid) chess program is still ongoing, and has survived to become the longest running grassroots-based chess development program in the country for students today, thanks to the current crop of Shell management people headed by Ed Chua.

Useful business tool

As I moved up the corporate ladder, I developed a liking for golf. I saw the game as a very useful business tool. For at least four to five hours, I’m with a client or person that I need to do business with or regard as a prospective business partner.

In golf, I was able to learn how to gauge the character of the person or people I played with. It is interesting how golf can allow you rare insights on how a person thinks, i.e., his strategies and tactics when playing the game. Golf also can bring out the worst and the best in a person.

In golf, as in life, the opportunity to cut corners, to shave strokes, even to misunderstand rules is very tempting. If you’re playing with someone who cheats on his score, more often than not, you can expect him to do the same when he’s in a business deal with you.

Golf is likewise a humbling game. At some point in time, you may feel as if you’ve mastered the perfect swing, but would immediately be humbled when you score a 10 on a par 3.

Just the same, I have stuck to the habit of playing 18 holes of golf on a fairly regular basis, occasionally reading a new golf book or buying the latest driver or putter. And oh yes, I still visit the driving range, especially during those depressing periods when I start scoring more than 100.

I continue to encourage other people to play golf, just as I had always been persuasive and supportive of my children when they showed interest in picking up the game. They now handily beat me during our regular friendly father-sons-daughter games.

Lessons in life

Just like the game of chess, the rudiments of poker play had been passed on to me by my Dad. He had, however, immutable laws that he repeated tirelessly to his children: Never gamble using money that is intended to pay for the rent, food or your children’s education. My father, he had very strong moral views about messing around with money allocated for basic necessities.

Needless to say, I have never deviated from my Dad’s preaching. I have managed to keep a running tab of my take from those weekly poker sessions with several friends, and rarely has the overall tally shown a negative figure, even after several bad runs of the cards or mistakes in judgment often made when one plays without focus.

Poker games, either home games with colleagues or formal tournaments, provide a very solid training tool for developing discipline. In fact, it is said that good poker players take calculated and studied risks; they do not gamble. Many professional poker players in the US are known for their prowess in managing their poker "careers."

A good number of poker players are attracted to tournament games because these merely involve paying a tournament fee, just like in a golf tournament, and give weight to skill rather than the money. I also consider tournament poker games as another solid arena for honing business day-to-day decision making as well as providing a good grounding for improving individual interpersonal skills.

It did not come as a surprise to many of my friends, especially members of the Poker Club of the Philippines, when I initiated the running of the Poker King Challenge Series and recently the Philippine Poker Tour. Both were successfully concluded last December 2005 and April 2006, respectively.

Today, I see many young professionals in the Philippines who studiously learn how to play poker, specifically Hold’em. It’s a great way to fast-track the learning curve in business management in your own entrepreneurial venture or as an aspiring executive in a dynamic company.

As I always say, Filipinos have a greater chance of excelling in games such as chess and poker, even in golf. The former two are really more in the mold of mind games where height and weight do not factor much. Winning relies mainly on having the stamina, right attitude and lots of discipline.

Best, all three are games that can keep your mind and heart young. Truly.

Hold’em challenge at Tagaytay City

Philippine Poker Tour, a proponent of non-wager poker tournament, is conducting – in partnership with Pagcor, the gaming authority – the biggest Hold’em Philippine Championship to date with a minimum guaranteed prize pot of P3 million.

The first leg/satellite competition for the P3-million Hold’em Philippine Championship will be played at Casino Filipino Tagaytay on 29th July 2006. Dubbed as "Tagaytay Challenge," the winner of the leg/satellite will get a guaranteed seat to the grand finals scheduled on 16th and 17th December 2006 at Casino Filipino Pavilion in UN Avenue, Manila.

Casino Filipino Tagaytay senior branch manager Alex Betita welcomes the forthcoming event as an added attraction for its regular weekend patrons. Poker tournaments are becoming regular features at CF Tagaytay, and Alex Betita is looking forward to the opening of a dedicated poker room in the Casino, where poker enthusiasts may enjoy their favorite game hosted by efficient, professional and friendly dealers.

The Philippine Poker Tour is working hand in hand with Pagcor as it elevates the quality of poker tournaments and provides recognition and reward to skillful and talented poker players. More leg/satellite competitions will be held in other Casino Filipino sites such as Angeles City, Cebu City, Davao City and many others to give players in these areas the opportunity to have a crack at the prizes being offered in the P3-million Hold’em Philippine Championship.

For more details, visit the PPT official website at www.PhilippinePokerTour.com <http://www.philippinepokertour.com> or call the Secretariat (c/o Cindy) at 817-9092 or 812-0153.

Should you wish to share any insights, write me at Link Edge, 4th Floor, 156 Valero Street, Salcedo Village, 1227 Makati City. Or e-mail me at [email protected] or at [email protected]. If you wish to view the previous columns, you may visit my website at http://bizlinks.linkedge.biz