World Poker Tour Executive Director Matt Savage released the updated 2024 TDA rules last week on X. The rules prioritized during their biannual summit to clarify, amend, and or expand were the big blind ante first, player identifiability, face coverings, the use of solvers, apps, and all electronics, and the precise details of the enforcement of those rules.
PokerOrg’s Craig Tapscott tracked down Savage the day before he traveled to the WPT Montreal Playground event to share even further clarification regarding the rule updates at the recent Tournament Director Association Summit.
Watch the full interview above right now or read on for some highlights.
Let’s discuss the new Tournament Director Association rules and revisions. But first, tell us a little about the history of the TDA?
The TDA has been around since 2001. I founded it with Linda Johnson, Jan Fisher, and David Lamb. We now have a board of directors, including Jack Effel from the WSOP, Toby Stone from the EPT [below], and others.
It's been an organization that has been one of my passions. I started it in 2001 because I felt the tournament rules were different everywhere you went. I always thought it was unfair to the players that they go from casino to casino and have different rules wherever they go. Now, it's an international group of over 200 tournament directors and card room managers.
After the incident at the WSOP Main Event final table and solver poker apps on cell phones at the tables, do you plan on addressing any of the new rules toward solving those issues?
Yes. We know that solvers, charts, and graphs would not be used at the table. But we wanted a little stronger language on that topic addressed at our recent TDA Summit.
The game is constantly changing. People are trying to learn and become better at the game. We're in full support of that. We don't want people using them during the play of the hand or at the table. The language we came up with regarding that is now stronger. I feel an even stronger language will be needed in the near future.
Technological advances are growing so fast each year.
We are well aware. There are going to be some issues that will come out of it. I want to stay ahead of that with the TDA. I told our members we would discuss it this year and another in two years. Because who knows what's going to come up?
We need to protect the game. We must ensure that everybody plays on the same level playing field. So, we created stronger language regarding the use of solvers and charts.
We understand you are aware of the new rules PokerStars put in place regarding how the dealers deal the cards down and slide them to a player instead of tossing them through the air to protect them from small hidden cameras and cheating devices.
The use of those is much more prevalent in cash games than it is in tournaments. But of course, we want to look into those protections for everybody, too.
Would you ever consider removing all electronic devices from the table?
Having any kind of electronic device on the table is something that we're looking into removing entirely. I know that some casinos have already done so.
We ran into a backlog of getting the tournament rules out because I favored not having phones on the table. However, some of our casino partners have online rooms allowing people to play online poker while playing their live game.
But for now, there are no electronic devices on the table. Some players want to use their cell phones to watch movies, bet on sports, etc. As tournament directors and operators, we have to be vigilant so that we don't allow things to happen that could destroy our game if they get out of hand.
What are the updated rules regarding facial coverings?
I support people wearing masks, especially if they're not feeling well. I don't want to see players using masks as a weapon in the game, meaning that they're not wearing the mask until they're in a hand because we've seen that as well.
The rule is that you cannot be unidentifiable. It's no different than when you're playing any casino game where you can't walk into a casino wearing a full mask for obvious reasons. I just want to make sure that people are identifiable.
Some people have certain sensitivities to hearing things or to light sensitivity, as well. You must let the tournament director or floor person know if you have some of those things. However, most places that use TDA rules will not allow full facial coverings.
How about the use of those high-tech media sunglasses?
We don't allow those such as Google Glass or those with recording devices. We have caught people using those.
Were they cheating at the tables with them?
I don't think they're using them for cheating reasons, but I do feel like people sometimes may want to record a hand or something like that. But yeah, we are against using those at the table. In our rules already in the TDA, you cannot use electronic devices.
What about the vloggers' use of cameras at the poker tables?
Vloggers are a very important part of our ecosystem in the poker world. They have created a lot of great content. Brad Owen, one of the best in the world at doing so, is one of our ambassadors for the World Poker Tour. We would never want to stop it entirely. But I know that our partner casinos, certain ones, have rules that do not allow it whatsoever. Yet some do allow it. So, as long as it's pre-approved, I am OK with it.
I'm very nervous about headphone use myself. I know headphones can be used negatively as well. I'm very cognizant of the rules and how the industry and technology are changing the game daily. And so again, there may be a time when headphones are not allowed at the table, but for now, we are not at that stage.
One tweet in particular caught our eye this week - with your TD hat on, what's your reaction to this?
I think that pre-approved vloggers should be allowed because they help promote the game to a much wider audience, but what Frankie has there should definitely not be allowed because it’s too low to the table.
The same can be achieved by just using a phone at a different angle. Those that say there is nothing wrong with this are completely unaware of how camera technology has already been used as cheating devices, so not only is this a terrible look, but it won’t be allowed at the majority or properties around the world.
Can you please review rule 71 for us? Rule enforcement clarification.
The rule enforcement options include but are not limited to, verbal warnings, one or more missed hands or missed round penalties, and disqualification. For missed rounds, the offender will miss one hand for every player, including him or her, at the table when the penalty is given, multiplied by the number of penalty rounds. Repeated infractions are subject to escalating penalties. Players away from the table or on penalty may be ante'd or blinded out of a tournament.
That’s basically just our penalty rule for everything across the board. Not necessarily just for cell phone use. It's been that way for some time now. I'm happy with the way that rule reads right now because we have given penalties in multiple rounds for certain infractions in the past. I’ve been very lucky in my career not to have anything too out of hand or too out of line happen on my watch. But I definitely have given a two-round penalty before.
One last thing. Let’s talk about the big-blind-ante format during tournaments.
It's ante first versus big blind first. I was always in the camp of ante first, meaning that if you have less than a full big blind, the ante would come first before the big blind.
This means that if you had one chip, you could win one chip from everybody in the hand. The only thing you could win back was your ante. I was always in support of that. Because when you're out of the blind, you could win the entire ante without putting any extra additional chips into the pot and now you can win it both ways. That’s a little bit unfair, in my opinion. But in the interest of standardization, I feel all of us should do it the same way.
Before you take off, I’m curious. What do you love most about your job as Executive Director of the WPT?
The fact that I'm able to travel, see the world, and meet so many interesting people. I've been very fortunate in my career to not only be able to travel and see the world but also have my wife by my side.
I generally build a day in before and after each event to see the area we're going to. The World Poker Tour has become a very global company. Because of that, I can travel and see the world. I really enjoy that. I've made friends and acquaintances worldwide, which has greatly enriched my life.
Also, I've been very fortunate to have the respect of my peers I've worked with over the last 25 to 30 years. I wouldn't trade that for the world. And the fact that I have the support of my wife, Mary Ann, and the things that she's done and been able to be a part of has made it so much better for me.
Follow Matt Savage on X.
Additional images courtesy of Rational Intellectual Holdings, Ltd/Enrique Ivan Malfavon
