The Poker Players - My Favorite Gamblers
Welcome to ThePokerPlayers.ws. I'm so happy you found your way to my web site. I've been working like a madman trying to make this a fun site for poker players and poker lovers like myself to visit, read and share. I can't stress enough how much I love the game of poker and my respect for the best professional players out there. In the sidebar to the right, I'll gladly introduce my favorite gamblers in the world today...
Why I love the game of Poker
When I was younger my father never had poker nights in the garage, so I didn't learn of the comforting silkiness of green felt or the slick snap of the cards as you lay down a winning hand or the thunderous racing of your heart when you catch an inside straight until much later in life. Poker and it's mysteries were revealed to me over the course of several years, culminating in a passion that has lasted a lifetime. The most mysterious thing about why I love poker is the fact that it has nothing to do with cards.
On it's face poker is a game of chance. But within moments of the first bet, it swiftly becomes a battle of guile, betrayal, and misdirection. Anyone who tells you that it's a game of pure luck or that it's simple gambling has never truly studied the game. Poker is more like a chess game crossed with a street fight. The pieces move on their own and instead of one opponent, you must defend yourself from a group of adversaries all at the same time. It's productive chaos that has the uncanny potential to draw you in and captivate you. It holds your attention, not with the gleam of riches, but with often unmentioned fringe benefits.
Often, one finds a regular card game to be a part of. Playing consistently with a group will most likely provide for two things. First, you will become friends with those around the table with you. The first time I walked in to my regular group I did not know a single face at the table, but within a month they had become some of my closest friends. We invite each other to parties and cookouts or sometimes just to the corner bar to have a few. Inevitably those get togethers become a stage for theatrical retellings of famous moments in our weekly skirmishes.
"You remember the time..." becomes the opening line of a story that includes outrageous bets, even more outrageous bluffs, and the tension-filled climax in which someone invariably pulls an amazingly impossible card off the deck to turn the hand in their favor.
The second thing that consistent card play provides is the chance to learn your friends habits, ticks, and tells. For example, I know that I never call my friend Mike when he starts betting big. Mike plays solid, no-frills poker. Anyone that calls him is likely to hand him a large chunk of their chips. My friend Dan, on the other hand, is just as likely to be bluffing as not. He's always waiting for that miracle card to come. Usually it doesn't.
When you read a book on poker you will most likely get the facts on card probabilities and pot odds. If you pick up a good book on poker you'll begin to learn that the people sitting across from you are what you should be paying attention to. But even the greatest books won't discuss the fact that poker can be an open window into the psychology of a person you're playing against. I have seen full grown men flip card tables over fifty cents worth of chips and I have seen women lose hundreds of dollars in a single play, smile politely, and deal the next hand. In the heat of winning and losing people's true selves are revealed and It's often a fascinating show to watch.
Finally, the biggest reason that I love the game of poker is what is can teach you about yourself. Are you the type of person that will never back down, even when you KNOW you are beaten? Will you throw good money after bad in a vain attempt to save face? These are the types of questions you can begin to answer if you never have before. More importantly, you can discover the answer to the questions: Can I change these habits? Can I change myself?
I don't love poker because of the gambling. For me, it's not the excitement of a big bet or a big win. It's not walking home a bunch of money in my pockets (although that never hurts). It's the psychology of the game. The ability peek into another's soul for a small price. The ability to peek into mine in a real-world situation. That's entertainment that's too big to be ignored.