Poker Stories

Matt Savage got his start in the poker industry as a chip runner at Garden City Casino, and worked his way up the ranks to dealer at Bay 101, and eventually, tournament director. The San Jose-native saw a need in poker for a standardized set of rules, and with the help of Linda Johnson, Jan Fisher, and Dave Lamb, formed the Tournament Directors Association. Savage was named tournament director for the World Series of Poker when he was just 34 years old, and served in that position during the onset of the poker boom from 2002 to 2004. In the years since, Savage has continued to work tournaments at his home casino of Bay 101 and also at Commerce Casino in Los Angeles, which is currently hosting the L.A. Poker Classic. He's also seen his role with the World Poker Tour increase since he was named Executive Tour Director. Savage was heavily featured in the 2007 poker movie Lucky You, and also has a WSOP final-table score of his own, finishing fifth in the 2009 $1,500 stud eight-or-better event. He was the inaugura