A Kinder, Gentler John Monnette
Since there is no forward motion rule here at the WPT, the floor person indicated that it was a legal bet, and that a player could bet any amount up to what they had in their hand once it crossed the betting line. Once their returned across the line though, they would not be allowed to add more chips to their bet.
"Okay," said Monnette, "because there's been some confusion among the dealers all day about that. Some of them are telling us it's only the first amount you release from your hand, and that you can't cut chips out across the line."
"Yes, I understand," said the floor person. "Please be patient with the dealers and just call us over to help."
Monnette backed down from his previous statement to drop a rare compliment to the card throwers. "On no," he said. "The dealers have been just fine. They're doing a great job, actually."
It must be true if Monnette's saying it; he's become more well-known for his poor treatment of the dealers than for his fine tournament play, unfortunately. It appears we've found a kinder, gentler John Monnette, and we hope he sticks around.