The explosion of Poker!!!!

Ste05

I'm not sure if I heard this right on the news last night (they were doing a piece about how poker is the new binge drinking for young people and how there is a lack of legislation in the area, ya de yada) , not sure if I heard it right but, apparently when they aired this years WSOP in America last week they got higher viewer figures than the superbowl!!!! :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

Did anyone else here this stat???

I did hear previously that it was the third most watched "sport" on US TV so this didn't take me by such a huge suprise!! Anyone know or guess the top two??

I suppose whether or not it's a sport probably needs it's own thread (at least!!! ) but hey!

willis

I think i heard poker is most played sport in US or most popular. I keep hearing people saying the poker bubble will burst in a couple of years however i just cant see it happening. Maybe a few sites will close down as theres too many and maybe poker on tv will become more selective, however i simply cant see why i would,or for that fact milllions of people, would stop playing the game in the future.

Dub13

Poker has always being huge in the states,its just getting organized now.

Lafortezza

There was a discussion on 2+2 about this. Ed Miller (I think) who has written several poker books, seems to think that the amount of good/winning players will increase due to all the poker books/software/websites that are out there. The amount of fish will dry up because consistant losers will lose interest as they can't win.
Eventually the good players will all be playing against each other at the higher limits, newer bad players will still play at the lower limits but it'll be difficult for the sharks to earn a living there.

Ste05

To put you out of your misery - :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

Apparently the top three watched Sports on US TV are:
1. American Football
2. NASCAR :eek:
3. Poker

ionapaul

I knew American Football was first - it has to be streets ahead of everything else in terms of viewers over there. Great sport, IMHO, really got into it in college over there and still watch whenever I can. NASCAR is famous for being a redneck 'southern' sport - it isn't as exciting as Indycar or as skilled as F1, but those good 'ol boys love it!

I think poker's popularity will definitely decline at some stage, but who knows when or by how much. I do think its a bit of a fad in college campuses over there at the minute, and fads always fade. Bowling at one stage was phenomenally (sic?) popular in the States, but now is only a shadow of its former self.

kincsem

Some fat Americans (oops: tautology) on the Discovery Channel said barbecuing was the fastest growing "sport" in America. It's true. It is! Don't laugh. Where's my gun?

Ste05

kincsem wrote:

Some fat Americans (oops: tautology) on the Discovery Channel said barbecuing was the fastest growing "sport" in America. It's true. It is! Don't laugh. Where's my gun?

Now there's a debate - Is Barbecuing a sport?
LMFAO

I suppose you could imagine a BBQ tourney, most amount of sausages cooked in levels of 20 minutes, you could also have a turbo tourney, and cut the levels down to 5 minutes. I suppose you could even have a re-buy tourney, just in case you burn a couple of them. Replace the calls for "chips" down in the Merrion, with "Sausages" out on Bray Seafront!! LOL

super_furry

I think that (in Ireland at least), the televised events have a lot to do with it. The ammount of people that I talk to that got interested in playing through watching Late Night Poker when it was originally on Channel 4 is astounding.

Ste05

That's how I first got into it, back when the first Late Night Poker was on Discovery Home and Leisure about 3 or 4 years ago now I think.

BigDragon

Have you lost money live? Yes How much? Not Much

Have you lost money online? No How much are you up? Not much

Have you saved money since giving up serious boozing last year and taking up poker for something else to do on a Friday night? A fortune that would astound you!

I love poker and I will continue as I want and can. Are there addicts out there? Bet your ass.

When the do-gooders shut pubs because there are alcoholics in Ireland then they can shut poker rooms, betting shops, chemists, religious groups, fast food gaffs, etc...

In other words, poker prohibition is not going to happen. It is hard to see poker lumped in with some other 'addiction' but it is an easy target.

However Doc has, many times, made good points about poker spending here but I think he's talking to the converted.

I still think we need an Irish Poker Players Association to front informed debate. The addicition side have plenty of clout. Dont get me started on the the fecking church's high moral ground when they get their teeth into this.

Feck it, off to AUL to see if I can do better than my playerless stack did last week...it final tabled and won a 3 way all-in.

Unlike Doc, I can be sober and talk ****e.....

DubTony

I bought a poker book about 20 years ago which concentrated on draw poker. With nobody to play with (my friends had no interest) I played very little, and any poker classics always seemed to be conflict with work.

Ten years ago I met a couple of guys who played draw every Saturday night in a home game. I went along to a couple of these and was shocked at the stakes these fellas played for. None of them could afford it but regularly a set of car keys was thrown into the pot and one guy even put up his house. (On the basis that he could win it back next week. It was a friendly game after all ). I remember thinking that the sky wasn't the limit, just everything you owned. Needless to say I didn't become a regular.

My interest was re-sparked by tv a couple of years ago, but again I didn't play as the only games I knew of were similar to the one I described earlier. (The internet ... you can play poker on the internet ??? )The recent flotation of PartyPoker and more tv coverage (I don't have satellite) brought me to the internet.

I think that with the huge numbers of people worldwide just getting internet access and the current popularity of poker, there will be plenty of fish to fry for a long time to come. There'd better be, my measly €25 a week is just enough to learn with at present. Next step for me is live games. My main challenge there will be not punching the air when I hit trips on the flop...

Ste05

Actually that's prety much the same with me, (except for the stakes) we used to play draw in my local pub, (an actual friendly game, just in the bar with a few of the regulars) and when I started to get into Hold 'Em about 3 or so years ago I tried to introduce it to that game, but just as you say there was no interest in learning this game, everyone thought it was too complicated. Then I discovered internet Poker and the rest is history.

However, now with the new explosion of poker, everyone in the pub is now into it and it's great ... cos I clean up whenever we play, basically I win my night out , they don't believe me that there's actual strategy involved in the game (the usual , and when they suck out on me on the river or whenever I fold they all take great pride in telling me it's all luck, and it's those times make me realise that this game is here to stay.

I doubt it will stay at the level it's currently at, but you have some good points about the rise of internet usage and with that Poker.

Another stat - "they" say that in 1 or 2 years time Poker will be the biggest on-line industry ahead of porn, which currently occupies number 1.

Better stop now, I've drank a bottle of wine by now so if this makes no sense I'll apologise tomorrow - Now I know how DocFarrell feels. Lets hope I still have a bank roll tomorrow

Happy days just hit trip 10's and got a guy to double me up for $120 with QQ So it should be OK.

Lafortezza

I should make a sticky and put all the drunken posts in it for posterity.

Ste05

Oh god it's not that bad is it???

Lafortezza

Not at all, but someday soon someone is going to post something they shouldn't and I want everyone to be able to point and laugh

Doc Farrell

Ste05 wrote:

Actually that's prety much the same with me, (except for the stakes) we used to play draw in my local pub, (an actual friendly game, just in the bar with a few of the regulars) and when I started to get into Hold 'Em about 3 or so years ago I tried to introduce it to that game, but just as you say there was no interest in learning this game, everyone thought it was too complicated. Then I discovered internet Poker and the rest is history.

However, now with the new explosion of poker, everyone in the pub is now into it and it's great ... cos I clean up whenever we play, basically I win my night out , they don't believe me that there's actual strategy involved in the game (the usual , and when they suck out on me on the river or whenever I fold they all take great pride in telling me it's all luck, and it's those times make me realise that this game is here to stay.

I doubt it will stay at the level it's currently at, but you have some good points about the rise of internet usage and with that Poker.

Another stat - "they" say that in 1 or 2 years time Poker will be the biggest on-line industry ahead of porn, which currently occupies number 1.

Better stop now, I've drank a bottle of wine by now so if this makes no sense I'll apologise tomorrow - Now I know how DocFarrell feels. Lets hope I still have a bank roll tomorrow

Happy days just hit trip 10's and got a guy to double me up for $120 with QQ So it should be OK.

how dare u sir, i've never had a drink in my life!

oh, hang on, i'm drunk right now....
dammit!

ionapaul

Who is the drunkest of all at this hour of the night / morning? I won't even attempt to impart any poker wisdom at this hour, 'tis too late!

Scotty #

Got in to it through Late Night Poker as well, problem now is the girlfriends been watching me play online and now I can't get her off the bloody thing!!!!!!!

Rodge

Exact same here, we have to get a laptop sometime soon as my Poker time is very limited these days.