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Ladies’ poker in the league: players who stand out... 2010-07-23

Ladies’ poker in the league: players who stand out...
Portrait of Francine Tremblay

by Suzie Paris

At first glance, one can guess that under the guise of elegance, reserved and perhaps even slightly shy woman there is a warm and endearing woman.

She presents herself as having been married for thirty years and proudly mentions her two daughters and five grandchildren. She comes from a family where everyone played cards, her father, her mother and grandmother never said no to a little game of cards...

Now retired, she has previously enjoyed many trades. Hairdresser for many years, she later discovered by driving a school bus for disabled children, the pleasure of driving. She also organizes group travels, which leads her more than once to Las Vegas, Nevada. The year 2000 marked her last visit to the game capital. She used to play "Grand Prix", a popular game at the time.

To the unavoidable question: "Why do you play poker?", she answers candidly that poker allows her to get out of the house. Having undergone heart surgery two years ago and still living today with the effects arising from certain complications, poker has become her only hobby. That’s why she plays so much. Being very active, if she stays home, she will always find an excuse to work and won’t relax. She therefore prefers to play; it feels good to "see people." "Poker, it keeps the mind sharp", she says, "you always learn with poker, from the mistakes you make, you train yourself to make the right decision in the future". This game also allowed her to overcome her shyness, to come out of her shell. She is now more "direct", she says what she has to say and with a little smirk, admitted: "I am more "bad"!..."

It was at the Montreal Heart Center that Francine heard of the league for the first time. Her roommate was visited by a friend and her son, a tournament director who explained the operations of the league in detail. And hop! It piqued her curiosity! Shortly after, she began playing in Terrebonne, but it’s a finish in the top positions in a tournament in Deux-Montagnes which was really the kick-start to what would become a full-time hobby. "I thought it was fun!" she said, "I’ve known about Hold’em for 3 or 4 years. I played in casinos in the United States and Montreal. I also played cash tournaments in certain establishments in the city, but with the league what’s interesting is that you can play anywhere without going broke. I run around quite a bit!"

By daring to ask if, according to her, the male-dominated poker world seemed to be a more difficult environment for a woman, she answers quickly, without wanting to put the men on her back, that they are sometimes rougher towards women. The adrenaline helping, they can sometime try to play the tough guy or display their macho side. Then gently attempting to qualify her remarks, adding that we should not generalize, there may be aggressive men in poker, but women can be equally as aggressive when the situation demands it ... they don’t let themselves be pushed around!

To date, Francine Tremblay played a little more than 830 tournaments this season. If we make a quick calculation, this figure represents nearly three tournaments a day! Impressive! At our request, she explained that there was no mystery, she likes to play and she’s aiming for the player of the year title. Nothing can stop her. "I’ll relax once the year over," she says, "I really want to go to the top! Being the player of the year is my goal. It’s my objective!" Of course, this represents a challenge that requires a lot of tenacity. As she says: "It’s to win that I do all this. I want to finish first, play the Championship, make it to the money and why not wink at the players, show them that women know how to play, we can play!"

Currently, Francine Tremblay is first in the lifetime Canadian and Provincial rankings and is in a heated battle with her closest rivals for the seasonal ranking and the best average. Certainly a healthy rivalry, but with just a little spark in her eye, we can foresee that it will be a very enjoyable round won the day she takes the pole position over all...!

And catching her mischievous eyes, we find ourselves wishing it with all our hearts...

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