 | looking for new games? |
With the explosion of poker in the US, it probably isn't too hard to find new games for anyone with a bit of initiative. I've previously mentioned meetup as a pretty good option.
One of the downsides to meetup is that it is fairly labor-intensive; meetups are only once a month, at which you go out to some bar or restaurant to meet folks, and hopefully find some games you can play in at a later date.
To get a sense of meetup's success in aggregating poker players, the Austin meetup is now #3 in the nation, with 530 members. That's way up from the 10 members it had in July 2003, to the 70 it had in August 2003, to 250 in December 2004.
A lower-effort option that has also exploded is Yahoo! Groups -- I hadn't searched around for a while and found that now just about any city in the US has at least one, reasonably-sized Yahoo! Group around poker. So, if you are looking to find games, Yahoo! Groups may be a good low-rent alternative to meetup for your city. Just do a search for "boston poker" or whatever city you are looking for. Link
The advice I give to anybody linking up with strangers to play poker is: ask questions up front about structure, etiquette, buyins, etc. Make sure you're specific, and that you understand what you are looking for in a game. If you haven't played in person before, ask the host if it's OK for you to come by and check out the game before you buy in, if that makes you more comfortable. If you don't like the vibe of the host or the game, just don't play -- there are TONS of games in any city in the US these days so you have plenty of choice.
Another thing to bear in mind is that open forums for poker games like meetup and Yahoo! Groups tend to have an overrepresentation of folks who are running raked games -- many people do it for a living or semi-living. So decide if you are willing to play in a raked game (besides the obvious consideration that money is being taken from the game, raked games are illegal in many states). Ask the host about the rake, and if they don't give you a straight answer that's also probably a red flag.
Games have wildly different character depending on the personalities of the host and the players, so the most important thing is to find a group that's compatible with what you want out of a game.
Well... we just had a player robbed at gunpoint at a game he found on meetup. So lets not get too excited.
Posted by: chuck on January 24, 2005 11:29 AMWell... we just had a player robbed at gunpoint at a game he found on meetup. So lets not get too excited.
Posted by: chuck on January 24, 2005 11:29 AMIf you search for "dallas poker" on Yahoo groups, you don't find the group I run, even though there are over 250 members and it's one of the 20 biggest Yahoo poker groups. Very odd.
Posted by: Brian on January 26, 2005 05:41 PMThat's a little scary.
Posted by: name on February 4, 2005 03:40 PMi've heard only negative comments about those games in meetups... there too many robbet and cheated people..really scary
Posted by: poker on March 13, 2005 04:20 PMUsing forums like BayouCityPoker.com would be a better way to go... At least you can get a feel for the game hosts by the number and quality of posts... It's more of a local community than an anonymous meetup.....
Posted by: Tom on May 17, 2005 09:48 AM
hmm..this is quite interesting
mortgage rates http://www.mortgagerates-x.com
Posted by: mortgage rates on October 28, 2005 10:43 PMhome equity loan http://www.homeequityloan-x.com
Posted by: home equity loan on October 28, 2005 10:43 PMLIPOVARIN - Lipovarin - 150 Caps
Lipovarin weight loss pills that the best prices on the net!!! Just lcik on the link that says lipovarin for more info!
All is great guys, but I belive vortelucius is much better.
Posted by: Kamurangous on November 22, 2005 12:43 PMlose fat fast
Posted by: weight loss on December 1, 2005 02:22 AMhehe
Posted by: vig-rx on December 1, 2005 07:41 AMnever do this
Posted by: vigrx on December 1, 2005 09:39 AMbrilliant site! happy to be here. Collective Plane becomes Astonishing Circle in final: http://www.saw2.com/ , when Chair Hedge Pair Kill right Gnome will Roll Pair without any questions , Faithful is feature of Greedy Gnome Tremendous, Memorizing, Big nothing comparative to Astonishing
Posted by: Carlos Baumann on December 4, 2005 07:01 AMYou can still try the product absolutely risk-free for 60 days.
Posted by: magna rx on December 5, 2005 04:56 AMbest of the best
Posted by: cialis on December 5, 2005 07:54 AMmaxaman
Posted by: maxaman on December 5, 2005 09:38 AMdid it ?
Posted by: levitra on December 5, 2005 03:56 PMThree phrases should be among the most common in our daily usage. They are: Thank you, I am grateful and I appreciate.
Posted by: penis on December 6, 2005 05:11 AM- penis enlargement -
prosolution -
- vig rx -
Posted by: vigrx on December 15, 2005 05:05 PM Posted by: penis enlargement on December 26, 2005 06:37 AM Posted by: penis enlargement on December 26, 2005 08:17 PM Posted by: penis enlargement on December 27, 2005 09:16 AM- vimax -
Posted by: vimax on December 28, 2005 08:18 PM- vimax -
Posted by: vimax on December 29, 2005 05:23 AM- male enhancement -
Posted by: male enhancement on December 31, 2005 11:44 AM- prosolution -
Posted by: pro solution on January 2, 2006 08:59 PM- prosolution -
Posted by: prosolution on January 3, 2006 09:05 AM Posted by: prosolution pills on January 3, 2006 05:10 PM- prosolution -
Posted by: prosolution on January 4, 2006 08:25 AMThree phrases should be among the most common in our daily usage. They are: Thank you, I am grateful and I appreciate.
Posted by: sizegenetics on January 8, 2006 02:54 AMasdasdasdasdasd
Posted by: asdasdasd on January 11, 2006 08:53 AMThree phrases should be among the most common in our daily usage. They are: Thank you, I am grateful and I appreciate.
Posted by: sizegenetics on January 14, 2006 02:42 AMIt is a powerful natural herbal male enlargement formula that increases penis length and girth, sexual desire, sexual health and helps to achieve stronger erections.
Posted by: vimax on January 17, 2006 11:33 PM