How did you get started playing poker?

[dariana Orasma]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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

 

[Cozmin]

s.Alut,
c.u friends started classic poker

 

[martinlgs]

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]

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]

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]

Just like you.

 

[Jyco]

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]

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

 

[rufininha14]

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]

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]

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]

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

 

[Happy Bobi]

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]

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

 

[Kaiozitcho]

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

 

[Dmitriy_rus7]

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

 

[dompoker]

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

 

[Emily Trott]

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]

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

 

[bermejoga]

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

 

[john_entony]

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.