Odd_Oddsen v The Politian - Wiborg Hits the Wall in First Session

Ola ‘Odd_Oddsen’ Amundsgard and Norwegian parliament member Erlend Wiborg are past their first session in the challenge to prove poker is a game of skill. The high stakes pro walked away with $2,666 in profits after 1,000 hands on $0.5/$1 PLO tables.

One of today’s best PLO players, Ola ‘Odd_Oddsen’ Amundsgard, has challenged the members of the Norwegian legislation to a 10,000 hands heads-up poker game. His move had been provoked by poker being regarded a game of luck and therefore banned in his home country.

One of the politicians in support of legalizing the game, Erlend Wiborg, accepted the challenge, saying it would earn some publicity for the matter, potentially furthering their agenda. Member of the Norwegian parliament, Wiborg is a recreational player at best; ha has admittedly not played at all for years, has no idea about PLO and “may smile when [he has] really bad cards, or look disappointed when [he has] good cards.” Of course, as long as the Norwegian legislation is right, it does not really matter what he does or does not know, it is up to luck.

The first session of the 10,000 hands game took place this weekend. They played 1,000 hands of $0.5/$1 PLO and ‘Odd_Oddsen’ finished with $2,666 in profits or over 26 buy-ins.

Wiborg showed off some interesting play, including checking behind with nuts on the river. The majority of the international forum members feel sorry for the politician and some suggest he had better fold each hand preflop as the most profitable strategy. Others argue the challenge must be stopped, or Wiborg will sooner or later go on such a tilt that he becomes an advocate of banning all forms of poker, effective immediately.

The stake is one million Norwegian kroner ($170,000), which the high stakes pro would pay from his own money to Wiborg, should the latter win. If Amundsgard emerges victorious, Wiborg does not have to pay a cent. Both players start with 100 buy-ins and if they reach this limit before the last of the 10,000 hands, the challenge is over.