Once the domain of pioneering Texan card sharks seeking out high-stakes games across the United States, the time-honored classic game of poker has now grown into a truly global sport with a devoted following that spans different countries and time zones. Ever since the explosion of the poker boom that occurred in the early part of the 21st century, a younger and technologically savvier talent pool has taken to online poker as both a valid supplementary training tool and a suitable platform for qualifying satellite tournaments.
World Poker Tour (WPT) and World Series of Poker (WSOP) events enjoy international broadcast coverage; the invention of the hole card camera (which displayed a player’s face-down cards) enabled television viewers to easily follow the inherent drama and tension of the game. Hole card cameras quickly became standard practice for televised poker tournaments around the world, essentially legitimizing poker as a credible spectator sport.
All of this is to say that poker games these days are now recognized as a perfectly exciting form of entertainment, much like any other mainstream sport. The rising prominence of party nights held at casinos and special poker tournaments for holidays and charity outings has resulted in the evolution of poker from a pure card game into the centerpiece of a fun event. Indeed, full-service casino event providers not only provide the requisite poker chips and cards, tables, dealers, and a trusted tournament director; it’s not uncommon for DJs to be hired for the after parties that are increasingly turning into an integral part of the casino party experience.
Vanessa Rousso is pretty much the most high-profile example of an accomplished professional poker player who also happens to have an equally thriving career as DJ Lady Maverick. The French-American poker pro, who has earned nearly $3.5 million playing live tournaments, studied sound design, lyrics and songwriting, music theory and composition, and digital production over the last five year as a student of
Berkelee Online, which serves as the Berklee College of Music’s online extension school. As a matter of fact, Rousso received a master certificate in Electronic Music Production from Berkelee Online back in 2012.
Impressively, Rousso managed to juggle a full-time school schedule with a flourishing poker career. A few of her more notable highlights include four consecutive top 10 finishes at the 2010 Partypoker Premier League IV series, another top 10 finish at the 2013 NBC Heads-Up Championship, a $120,000 win at the 2009 Poker After Dark V tournament, and a $700,160 win at the 2009 European Poker Tour (EPT) Grand Final at Monte Carlo. All told, Rousso ranks among the top five women in poker history in terms of all-time money winnings, in addition to having 15 WSOP in-the-money finishes.
If nothing else, Rousso’s tremendously successful DJ career proves that a high-quality musical education can be earned online. By the same token, the growing popularity of online poker has carried over to social media outlets.
PartyPoker on Twitter gives poker pros and amateurs alike the opportunity to win exclusive promotions and live event packages through the latest online satellite qualifiers. {John Gudger} made the most out of his paltry $3 investment into a seat at the World Poker Tour (WPT) National UK Milton Keynes Main Event, where he then proceeded to win the grand prize of £12,750.
