Poker night!

I have recently held another poker evening in London's financial district. A thoroughily enjoyable night observing work acquaintances doing battle as pride was up for grabs as well as winning the whole event... The one thing that becomes more and more apparent is that nobody wishes to be bluffed in a game of Texas Holdem no limit poker. I would presume it is a sense of pride and the thought of losing to one that is far inferior to yours is simply too much of an embarrassment to endure.

Whilst poker is a game played for huge amounts of cash around the world, it is also a fantastic social game. And whilst I am biased I believe it is a winner for team bonding as it is an unpredictable, but fun game. The basics are easy to learn and everyone feels part of the experience...

Teaching experienced players is easy, but I love the challenge of helping the beginner. My goodness the game looks complicated when you are not familiar with the order of the hands and how a hand is played out and what is a good betsize. The best way to learn is to play.

Poker has also been used as an icebreaker for dating events. I can see the merits of that, but I don't think it draws comparison to a works night out. Poker is the perfect night and provides a different form of entertainment from your generic quizzes and drink-ups.

It does challenge your mind, but more importantly it brings people together. A real fun way to spend an evening and to lift morale.