How did you get started playing poker?

dariana Orasma · Feb 21, 2026

We all have our own stories about how we got into the world of poker, whether it was through family, friends, or simply curiosity. I started with friends at a gathering; they introduced me to the wonderful world of poker. Tell me about your experience—how did you get started?

villa1306 · Feb 21, 2026

Ever since I was a kid, I've even known the basics since adolescence, but I played Nunk or anything like that, I played more Ajiley, you're Venezuelan, you must know that it has something similar, even if I started to enter the world of poker and I realized that it was a totally different world, mostly I played only online, I don't feel like I'm ready to play live, I try to learn as much as possible first and I don't know if I open a casino where you can play here in Aragua a lot of country I didn't translate because you're from here 😂 success good luck

villa1306 · Feb 21, 2026

And the dictionary betrayed me too 😂 but well you must understand haha haha I am lazy to write all luck again a pleasure first Venezuelan that I see in the community greetings

ironduke11 · Feb 21, 2026

from a place determined to keep its population in the 30s and 40s....fortunately used to see it on tv and when i travelled used to sit down for $5 games in pubs...remember trembling as i put out my first bet...it was so crazy and juvenile as an adult...smh

frank174 · Feb 21, 2026

started in high school playing guts a 3 card poker game, gotta say went without lunch a lot of times back then

Cozmin · Feb 21, 2026

s.Alut,
c.u friends started classic poker

martinlgs · Feb 21, 2026

Hi Llanera 😊

A few years ago, in my world as a graphic designer, I spent at least 12 hours a day on a PC. When the internet boom started, I needed to unwind, so I started with tudomino.com, a very popular domino community in Venezuela in the 2000s. I even participated in several live tournaments in some cities. A friend 😅 told me about PokerStars, so I started watching the tournaments on TV and then downloaded the App.

Ten years ago, I came across this forum, the most serious of all poker communities: CARDSCHAT. The rest is history ♥️♠️♦️♣️♥️

harshu · Feb 22, 2026

I actually got started pretty casually — just home games with friends. $5 buy-ins, bad rules, terrible strategy… but a lot of fun. At first it was more about the social side than the money.

What hooked me wasn’t winning — it was realizing there was actual depth to the game. I remember losing a hand and thinking, “Wait… that wasn’t luck. I misplayed that.” That moment changed everything. I started watching videos, reading strategy posts, and trying to understand ranges instead of just my two cards.

My early misconceptions:

I thought tight = good, aggressive = reckless.
I overvalued big hands and undervalued position.
I had zero bankroll management.

Once I understood variance and expected value, poker stopped feeling random and started feeling strategic. That’s when it became addictive in a good way — constantly improving, reviewing hands, trying to plug leaks.

Now it’s less about “winning tonight” and more about making the best decision consistently.

Stringy · Feb 22, 2026

think i first played it as a built in game on my blackberry, later on watched the big game on youtube and the rest is history

moraeskvmi · Feb 22, 2026

Just like you.

Jyco · Feb 22, 2026

I think most of us start playing poker either because of friends or family, unless we maybe watched a big tournament and became interested because of that. I believe those are the most classic and practically the only ways to get into poker 🙂

podoloboq · Feb 22, 2026

Indeed, like almost everyone else, I started with freerolls))

rufininha14 · Feb 22, 2026

I started playing poker because of some friends and haven't stopped since. I fell in love with the game and the fact that I could earn extra income.
Traduzir

johnwat2 · Feb 22, 2026

When I was about 11, I had to learn to play a poker hand to determine who went first in the game Michigan rummy. My aunt tought me.

bodil19982 · Feb 22, 2026

I saw my uncle playing poker online and I got hooked. I started playing with friends in person and then tried playing online. That's how we live.

TulasMoreno · Feb 22, 2026

At 17 years, in zynga poker in facebook, great times with friends, then started playing in pokerstars, the point of no return.

Happy Bobi · Feb 22, 2026

dariana Orasma said:
We all have our own stories about how we got into the world of poker, whether it was through family, friends, or simply curiosity. I started with friends at a gathering; they introduced me to the wonderful world of poker. Tell me about your experience—how did you get started?

I have been playing poker for almost 12 years. I started around 2014, during the winter holidays. But for the last few years, I have only been playing on weekends. Unfortunately, I have almost no time to play on weekdays.

Dushka · Feb 22, 2026

My husband got me into poker. At first I watched him play, and then I started playing a little myself.

Kaiozitcho · Feb 22, 2026

My brother taught me five-card handball. Today, I'm learning Hold'em, Omaha, and Stud.

Dmitriy_rus7 · Feb 22, 2026

I was bored and remembered that I saw an ad for PokerStars somewhere and decided to download the application.😂

dompoker · Feb 22, 2026

My cousins taught me how to play poker, then I discovered the online game, until now I'm still playing.
Yes

Emily Trott · Feb 23, 2026

When I was growing up there were all sorts of westerns on television, and in saloon scenes there was usually a poker game going on. My mother had taught me to play gin rummy and cribbage when I was six or seven years old. I think that I inherited my love of cards from her. Not just playing the games but shuffling them, dealing them, and just feeling them in my hands. Skip forward about four or five years to when I was a "tween".

All of those westerns must have had an effect because one day I told mom and dad that I wanted to learn how to play poker. They were always supportive and encouraging of any activity that I or my big sister was interested in. So we began to play poker on Saturday nights. We'd begin at eight when the Lawrence Welk show ended, and play the last hand just before ten when Gunsmoke began. I have a lot of nice memories of those times.

boxwaxer · Feb 23, 2026

Was at a bachelor party in a restaurant. 30 young 20 somethings drinking ,smoking and laughing. Been playing ever since.

bermejoga · Feb 23, 2026

Learned with some friends back then when we were just kids, no money involved

john_entony · Feb 23, 2026

I loved card games since I was a child. It so happened that the first card game I learned was blackjack. I first saw Texas Hold'em on TV when I was 17. I liked the atmosphere. When I was 19, my friends at university invited me to participate in a mini-tournament for 8 players with a small prize pool. I won that tournament, after which I started playing poker every day.

How did you get started playing poker?

dariana Orasma

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villa1306

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villa1306

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ironduke11

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frank174

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Cozmin

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martinlgs

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harshu

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Stringy

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moraeskvmi

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Jyco

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