How did you become a Poker player?

meltedmark

With the growing number of poker events being broadcast, it has come to now surprise that the game has escalated with more and more players. Perhaps this is how you got started on playing Texas Hold-em. I 'd love to hear how you became interested.
I became interested in poker when I was quite young when my family would have Saturday Night Dealer's choice games.
I used to rail the table and watch family friend's, aunt's, uncle's and so on play.
I was often interested when the game was a poker variety. The betting structure and the reactions on the peoples faces is what I would study. Most often I would pay attention to my grandfather as it was usually him that would be in the final hands most of the times.
I really learnt allot about live games by railing.
I really haven't been to a live casino, and probably wont sometime soon, but I will tell you when I host home tournament's it comes to no surprise that I often make the money on account of the skills I acquired when I was a younger lad.
My friends often say are you gonna play a hand Mark? lol as I eventually win there chips.
I set my bluffs this way when they all fold because I'm in a hand. " He must have something now" I imagine them thinking.
My point is that I will often attribute my skills to my grandfather, who taught me this game and once again I would love to hear some of your back grounds leading you into this world of Poker.

ol-stone-face

I remember watching the final table of a tournament on TV quite a few years ago before hole card cams. I didn't realize that it was a tourney and thought they were playing with real dollars. I think they were playing 7stud. Something like player A bets 200,000 player B raises to 400,000 and I'm thinking "HOLY CRAP". Then in 2003 I watched some EPT telecasts or something with hole card cams (holdem). I was thinking, shit how easy is this? Only two cards and everyone bluffs every hand and they fall for it. I would clean up!!!!
TV just doesn't do it justice. <g>

Soup

In grade 8 (I'm now third yr of uni) I went to a buddies for lunch and we played for like $5 each. Funny story, the very first hand (playing 5 card draw) of poker I've ever played I put a royal flush on my lap and then switched my hands when noone was looking. Got some bets going and then went to showdown, then I told everyone it was fake and then we began the actual game.

T_Mac

Well I was a masochist for a long, long time...but after a while cutting myself wasn't enough.

So I started playing poker.

mrdeeds

2004 and no NHL. Loved watching the WSOP and got hooked.

TexLexus

1990, playing dealers choice for quarters. A good night would be winning 10 bucks. Oh the innocence of childhood.

smjkrj

well i hated poker with a passion after watching my hubby and his dad play 4 weekends in a row
i mean we was talking stop playing or divorce lol
then my hubby started playing online poker
i played a few and now i live on them lmao
go figure hey
i play more poker now than he does
love to watch games on tv too
:fish:

Spicol

Will you talk with my wife, please?

(She's cool with my poker. It would be great if she played as well though.

beanie42

Spicol wrote:

It would be great if she played as well though.

Except the few times she goes out and YOU get to stay home with the kids . Also, if you ever end up heads-up in a tourney, the bragging rights last forever (which sucks if you take 2nd ;( ). It's a pretty good trade-off compared to what I hear about wives who either dislike you playing, or ensure your bankroll stays low (by treating your winnings as an invitation to go shopping)!

Big E

Typical conversation between my wife and I, I'd love to get her turned on to the game....(I play mostly 0.50/1.00 limit)

me-I'm on a roll tonight, I just made $50 in half an hour!
her-great, get back down there and make me some money.

me-Oh man did I just take a couple bad beats, I lost $20 in a few hands
her-Hhonestly, I really don't know why you play that game?


But to answer the question...How did I become a poker player? It's all Wolffhounds fault, he started playing, it turned me on to the game and I'm so bloody competitive and always have to win I pushed myself to become better...still a long way from being as good as I want to be tho!

pkrfce9

To revive an old thread, How did you become a PLAYA? (caps mandatory)

STR82ACE

Allright, I say it, doesn't look like anyone else is going to admit...

Watch ROUNDERS. Didn't even KNOW about the World Series of Poker back then.

DAMN YOU MATT DAMON!! You've created a new obsession for my wife to nag about!

scotsrule

Every year we do a golf weekend up North - back at the cottage we always played Loo, Guts and in between for money - in 2003 one of my buddies introduced us to Hold em - and most of us got hooked and began playing regularly back home, then online and next...

blackmagicz

When you live in a neighborhood of card players..you get swept into it as soon as you start your first part time job....every night there is a game going at someone's house...and during the summer they are right on the driveways....5-8 hours of poker a night...its great!!!

Although they are only 5-10 dollar games, its great practice

BigChrisEl

I used to watch the Hold’em games in the roaming charity casinos back in the day, but I was broke and the game seem to be too costly (2-4 if I remember correctly)

Walk by a poker room in Vegas back in 2002 and got suckered in to playing 7 card stud.

Start watching lot's of poker in 2003, while having the occasional Friday night poker game.

Start playing on-line and the occasional trip to the casino in 2004.

Suckered in to playing a lot in 2005.

Nexus-Poker

I can't speak for my partners, so this story only relates to me. I'm 1 of those people who used to never gamble (still don't, except poker). A bunch of my friends wanted to try the new hot thing they were seeing on TV (WPT). I insisted I didn't want to play (since I never gamble), but it was a Saturday night & they were/are my closest friends. I had nothing else to do, so I reluctantly gave it a shot.

I was on a card rush all night despite not even knowing what I had sometimes (ie saying "I have a triple" at showdown, when I actually had a boat). Since then, I've been hooked on this game. I know a lot of people who weren't gamblers but fell in love with poker, to me, poker transcends typical gambling. It's much more than that.