Aren’t there enough online poker tournaments on the Internet already?

Apparently not.

Online poker room Full Tilt Poker (www.fulltiltpoker.com) has announced that it has invented a new kind of online poker tournament.

Dubbed the “matrix tournament,” the confusing new poker tourney is explained on the Full Tilt website thusly:

“In a nine-player sit & go, you face eight opponents and play down to the final player. It’s the same in a nine-player matrix tournament, except that you’ll face the exact same eight opponents on four different tables simultaneously. Each individual table will play down to the last player, with the final three places at each table paying out just like a sit & go. In a matrix tournament, the standard prize pool will be broken down to include payment for overall performance as well.”

The explanation then goes on: “In the case of a nine-person, $10 + $1 matrix tournament, the total prize pool will be $90. This is divided evenly into a prize pool for each of the four tables and the overall matrix prize pool. Each individual table will pay out for the final three positions, just like a normal sit & go. In the case of a nine-player, $10 + $1 matrix tournament, each individual table will have an $18 prize pool, paying out $9, $5.40 and $3.60 for 1st through 3rd places, respectively. Players will earn one matrix point for each opponent they outlast (survival points) and two points for every player they knockout at each table (knockout points). Each player’s points for individual tables will be listed by match.”

Is that clear?

About as clear as a smoggy day in Los Angeles.

No matter.

The matrix tournament is a dumb idea.

Any tourney that can’t be easily explained in a couple of sentences is doomed to failure.

Poker players–and gamblers in general–are lazy.

They want to earn money without having to do much work.

Or much thinking.

(E-mail Tom Somach at tomsomach@yahoo.com.)