I never thought that poker could be a venue to push women's advocacies. But as Annie Duke has proven, it is a good battle ground for women who are struggling for equality. Much of the world is gender biased, but Annie Duke sees poker as a great equalizer. She believes that in poker, gender should never be a factor. Poker is a mind's game, not a test of physical strength. Women, like men have brains too, contrary to what chauvinists would like to think. And that is all you need in poker; you've got to have brains. Annie Duke sure has a lot of it.
Aside from brains, Annie Duke sure has dreams. She dreams that one day, the poker world wouldn't be seen as a man's world. To be able to do that, she refuses to play at women's division in tournaments, except for rare occasions. She aims to play poker with the best poker players, men and women alike.
When people see women as weak poker players, then, they are terribly wrong. This is a case of underestimating your opponents, which is a common mistake in poker. Players who commit this mistake usually lose, because they are not putting their game levels up. Somehow, Annie Duke has changed this. She has made male poker players respect her, and many of them are even scared of her. When they play against her, they give their best because they know they cannot underestimate Annie Duke.
Annie Duke is a winner of multiple bracelets at the World Series of Poker. She was also the one who taught the actor Ben Affleck how to be a good poker player. Trivia: Ben Affleck won in a prestigious poker tournament and came home $356,000 richer, and much credit was given to his mentor Annie Duke.
Annie Duke writes articles for magazines, and is also a member of ultimatebet.com. She plays online poker with amateur players to help them get better. What I like most about her is that she's not into poker just for herself but for all the women in the world, whose rights she is fighting for.