“However popular poker was in 2003, it’s only going to multiply considerably in 2004,” said author James McManus, whose poker book, “Positively Fifth Street,” reached The New York Times best-seller list last year.
McManus teaches poker literature and science at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
In 2000, he took an article advance from Harper’s magazine and entered the World Series of Poker. He finished fifth and had the basis for his book.
“[Poker’s popularity] is all really based on the romance our country has with free-market capitalism and democracy. But I also really think people are starting to get tired of investing all their emotions into professional athletes.
“In poker, you can root for yourself, and you can play at a serious level. People really seem to buy into that.”
