- The million Kroner freeroll match between Norwegian politician Erlan Wiborg and PLO pro Ola “Odd Oddsen” Amundsrud has started badly for the pro-poker politico. After the first 1,000 hands at $0.5/$1 PLO, the pro is up $2,666.
- There is 1m Kr ($170k) of Amundsrud’s money at stake in the match which he proposed in order to prove that poker is a game of skill.
- It really doesn’t matter who wins, both players will have made their point: online poker is a skill game which should be legal in Norway.
The million Kroner challenge match between Norwegian politician Erlan Wiborg and PLO pro Ola “Odd Oddsen” Amundsrud has started badly for the pro-poker politico. After the first 1,000 hands at $0.5/$1 PLO, the pro is up $2,666.
There is 1m Kr ($170k) of Amundsrud’s money at stake should he lose the match he proposed in order to prove that poker is a game of skill. Currently, Norway bans online poker. The Norwegian gambling regulator, Lottstift, states on its site: ”Poker is considered a lottery in Norway and is therefore not legal. This means that it is not legal to arrange poker clubs or poker tournaments.”
Before the match, Wiborg said: “I may smile when I have really bad cards, or look disappointed when I have good cards.” When asked by a Norwegian newspaper if he thought that would be sufficient, he answered: “No …. In recent years, I’ve only played poker once and that was yesterday against a former world champion.”
2+2 observers of the action are united in a pessimistic view of Wiborg’s chances: “Sick: the guy said he already played poker and he is checking back the nuts river.” And, “Folding every hand preflop would be a better strategy for Wiborg, lol.”
The two players agreed to play a minimum of 10k hands or 120 hours before May 7 next year. Each player starts with 300 buyins at $0.5/$1, and if Wiborg ends up with the most chips, he will be paid $170k by Amundsrud. Wiborg has already promised to donate the money to charity if he wins.
If Wiborg is not yet ready to accept defeat, the match will continue on PokerStars. It really does not matter who wins, both players will have made their point: online poker is a skill game which should be legal in Norway.
One 2+2 poster did raise an alternative view: “In before Wiborg bans all forms of poker effectively immediately due to complete tilt rage.”
