WSOP Academy in Atlantic City

You've finally committed to taking the plunge, and you have already bought your ticket. You sit down at a table full of strangers, at least one of which you could swear you saw on TV last year, and nervously fumble with your chips. You are sitting down at one of the biggest poker events of the year and the guy next to you, who looks even more normal than you, isn't breaking a sweat. "How do you do it?" you ask, "How are you so calm?"  He smiles and replies, "I went to WSOP school."

That is the general idea behind the World Series of Poker Academy, or WSOP Academy as they are more generally known. The WSOPA (yet a third name) is a clinic of sorts, run by some of the biggest names in the poker world, and their objective is to get YOU ready to win at a WSOP event. The first few, held in Las Vegas, were a big success, and now the brand is paying a visit to the "Las Vegas of the East Coast", Atlantic City.

Coming up in December is a World Series of Poker Circuit event at the Harrah's Atlantic City, and the WSOPA event is timed to coincide on December 1st and 2nd.

Participants pay a lot to attend (about $1,700) but they get a lot in return, including instruction by world class champions. Greg "Fossilman" Raymer will be leading the Atlantic City event, joined by Alex "the Insider" Outhred and Joe Navarro, a former FBI profiler who has become a sought after instructor in the art of reading people.

Check out the official site, at WSOPAcadey.com, for details and to sign up.

(Editor's Note: If you want to face Greg Raymer at the poker table instead of the classroom, head for PokerStars.com.)