The following discussion is an archived debate of the proposed deletion of the article below. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.

The result was Keep. Cbrown1023 talk 00:53, 25 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Brian Townsend[edit]

Professional poker player. Speedy deletions were overturned on review, so the discussion now moves here. Procedural nomination, I have no opinion. ~ trialsanderrors 06:50, 18 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Keep: Are you guys joking, this guy is at the forefront of one of the most popular games in the world. Just because some people do not consider someone or somthing important doesnt mean others dont. He is one of the biggest winners in online poker history and tons of people would love to know more about him due to his HSP appearance.

Delete Article doesn't say anything about him that would make him notable. JulesH 13:56, 18 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Keep I just went through and added references and more information about this guy. I disagree about your assertion of non-notability; he was selected to appear several times on a nationally broadcast poker program (GSN's High Stakes Poker). Further, he has had in-the-money finishes at both World Series of Poker and World Poker Tour events. Finally, he is an online sensation, playing high-stakes heads up poker against the likes of Phil Ivey on a regular basis. His online popularity is corroborated by an article in The Official World Poker Tour Magazine that I have referenced. I admit that I am an inclusionist at heart, but that certainly suffices to establish his notability in my book. --Romanempire 14:28, 18 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Keep He's more notable than the rest of us. Wikipedia is the greatest resource on the Internet BECAUSE we have articles like this. Xanucia 23:08, 18 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Weak keep - while I don't necessarily agree that simply playing on one or more episodes on HSP automatically takes one across the notability threshold and I strongly disagree that being an "online sensation" or playing heads up against Phil Ivey does (I'm sure Phil would be happy to play against anyone heads up if there were enough money in it for him), there is just enough in the way of sourcing for me to pass the article. I added another interview to the links section. Otto4711 06:15, 19 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Keep Also Phil Ivey can play Brian 300/600 NL HU whenever he wants. I'm sure that is enough money for Phil, so maybe he's not playing because Brian is good.

- Google searches. aba20 + poker: 39,900 hits. "Brian Townsend" + poker: 9,900 hits. Someone online is paying attention. --Romanempire 14:51, 19 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
"The rest of us" don't have wikipedia articles either, Xanucia. At least, I don't. Delete as posting on internet forums and appearing as a contestant on a cable tv show is not enough for WP:BIO. FiggyBee 09:34, 19 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
- High Stakes Poker is not a game show. He was not a "contestant." According to WP:BIO, "a person is notable if he or she has been the subject of secondary sources that are reliable, intellectually independent, and independent of the subject." This has been criterion has been met. What is your objection? --Romanempire 14:51, 19 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
  - Well, my general feeling is that playing poker (even televised poker) isn't in itself a particularly notable activity. Obviously though other people feel differently, as we have lots of articles about poker players. FiggyBee 16:13, 19 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Keep In response to Otto4711, he doesn't just play Phil Ivey heads-up, and it is not just "money in it" for Ivey. According to the WPT magazine article, Ivey got "taken to the cleaners" by Townsend. Some people in the media consider Phil Ivey to be the best poker player in the world, but Townsend regularly contends that notion. In response to FiggyBee, I could say that I feel like cooking food isn't a notable activity. But when someone is so skilled at the activity that a large audience watches him perform it (Iron Chef), it becomes notable. Bunzobunzo 17:04, 19 March 2007 (UTC)bunzobunzo — bunzobunzo (talk • contribs) has made few or no other edits outside this topic. [reply]
Weak Keep I personally would predicate notability on being noticed/mentioned in general interest as opposed to only trade publications. My weak keep recommendation is based on applying notability criteria for 'athletes' as opposed to 'entertainers' as I consider the 'athletic criteria' to be applicable across all sports and poker could be described as a sport as much as football can be when played professionally. --User:Ceyockey (talk to me) 13:20, 24 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Keep Also Otto Phil Ivey can play Brian HU for 60k on Full Tilt Poker whenever he wants, there is a reason he rarely does. If you delete Brian's entry there are several other entries that should be deleted.

Keep Whether I consider basketball or chess to be notable activities is not important, what is important is that a substantial number of people do. The online poker community is quite large, and Brian Townsend is one of the most well-known online poker pros.MikeThicke

Keep If you don't know that this is one of the biggest names in online poker, then you should not be voting. — Preceding unsigned comment added by DBS2007 (talk • contribs)

Note: User was just created, and only contribution was this vote. Nwwaew (Talk Page) (Contribs) (E-mail me) 23:49, 24 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Additional note: Lot of single use accounts here. I smell voting fraud. Nwwaew (Talk Page) (Contribs) (E-mail me) 23:51, 24 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]

The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.