The new card room at the Hippodrome, meanwhile, is clearly built for fun. The Hippodrome itself is a social space, and always has been. It is huge, with a spangly bar, a smart restaurant and a very good smoking terrace for those who like that sort of thing.
I was already aware that traditional poker was played by professionals - there are Poker World Tours for heaven's sake - but for a bloke to earn something akin to $4 million for a few hours play was almost too much for my small brain to process.