Poker is becoming a bigger phenomenon by the week and it is ready to draw its cards into a new era.
Gambier Poker has usually been held at Jens Hotel, but has just made the move to Mount Gambier RSL.
Games are held every Monday and Wednesday night as part of a wider 10-week tournament where the top-point players take home the big bucks.
A third of the series has already been completed and Gambier Poker tournament director Dale Fox said it was off to a flying start.
“We have already started with good numbers and each week they have increased,” he said.
“COVID has been a problem with people either being away or not being confident playing with others, but we have around 30 at the moment.
“We have had 50 on one Wednesday night which was our maximum, so we hope to get those numbers again.
“The reputation we have is it is a great series which is well received and welcomed.”
Fox said the series rewarded commitment with the players turning out week after week giving themselves the best shot at the lucrative prize pool.
“The more they play the better they get and the more lucrative it is,” he said.
“Every week we do a $5 rake which goes into a prize pool of around $3000 which is divvied around the top six players.
‘There is a ladder system which keeps the players interested and is always makes a great final.
“We do about four series and year and keep rolling them over.”
Fox said the beauty of the sport was how it was welcome to anyone, being so much more than the tense poker faces seen in James Bond films.
“We have players aged between 18 and 86, so the demographic of poker throughout the community is massive,” he said.
“It is available to anyone which is the beauty of it because it takes five minutes to learn, but a lifetime to master it.
“The current players love welcoming new faces and showing them the ropes.
“It’s a safe environment because it is actually a sport and is legal.
“It’s not a casino style because 100% of the money goes back to the players.”
The season builds up to the Gambier Poker Johnny Walker Classic which is held annually over the June long weekend.
The Classic is a massive event hosting more than 250 players with the numerous locals joined by travelers from all points of Victoria and South Australia.
Fox hopes the 2022 edition will be the biggest since the arrival of the pandemic as the sport reaches new heights.
“We are still looking at a minimum $20,000 guarantee for first place, which is based on a prediction of how many players we get,” he said.
“At our recent Little Blue Tournament we were predicting a $15,000 prize pool and got $24,000 which was a big increase.
“In Adelaide they have just had a series with the total amount of money entered in up to half a million.
“So poker is starting to get really big and fingers crossed there are no more restrictions, everything is looking pretty good with players busting to come out and play again.”
Every Monday and Wednesday registrations are taken by 6.30pm before cards are shuffled up at 7pm.
