Nation goes 'all in' on poker trend

Do a Google search on "Texas Hold'em" and more than eight million links appear at your fingertips. Turn on the TV and see amateurs, professionals and celebrities alike all anteing up at the table.

It appears that everyone, including most college-aged males, have jumped on the poker bandwagon after Chris Moneymaker's 2003 World Series of Poker victory proved that even an average-joe accountant could transform himself into a multimillionaire.

"Anybody, regardless of how long they've played, can sign up and win a huge amount of money," says Steve Carman, a 19-year-old sophomore who is a regular player himself.

"Kids have always looked for the quickest and easiest way to make money as possible," he says.

A study by the National Annenberg Risk Survey of Youth showed a huge increase in card-playing among males ages 14 to 22. The number of youth saying they gambled in card games at least once a week jumped from 6.2 percent in 2003 to 11.4 percent last year.

Kevin Kruger, associate executive director of the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, says that for the most part, the game is fairly harmless and even can be a positive social experience for students.

But he does say there are a few issues to consider, such as if play negatively impacts students' academics, social life and personal finances.

"Like a lot of activities like this, I think it will peak, but there's nothing in the popular literature that suggests that it is slowing down at all," Kruger says. "I think we're looking at something that's going to continue for a number of years."

Carman says his parents, who are former professional bridge players, encourage him to play because they view poker as a safer alternative to other behaviors.

"I've had 20-plus-people tournaments at my house in Durham," he says. "It's kind of a thing that my parents would rather have me sit downstairs and play poker with friends than have me go out and drink and drive."

Although Carman says he's made a small amount of money playing, it's the competitive thrill of the game he likes.

"It's more just kind of a thing that I like to have a good time and hopefully make some money," he says.

Others treat poker more as a money-making skill. Reid Young, a 20-year-old sophomore at Wake Forest University, started playing Texas Hold'em online this summer because of his interest in other card games.

"Once I start playing a game like that, I do what I can do to get pretty good at it," he says.

Part of Young's strategy is reading the seven poker books he's bought.

"You can study and have more experience than someone, and it pays off," he says.

And for Young, it pays off in the thousands. Since he started playing this July, he has made about $5,000.

He says his poker playing doesn't impact his other activities at school. "I come back from the gym and I'll play for half an hour, or if I have some time off and there's nothing else to do."

Jeremy Wisuthseriwong, a junior business administration major at UNC, was inspired by old western movies and started playing five-card draw in his elementary and middle school days with chips from the game Connect Four.

Now he plays with his friends as a social occasion. "It's a good way to start conversation," he says. "When excitement does build up in one of those monster hands, it's a lot of fun for everybody."

Wisuthseriwong also started playing poker online last year by investing $200 he'd saved from various jobs. He says if he ever dips below that amount, he'll stop. But so far, he's made about $600 in profit.

At school, he typically plays on the weekends because he says it would take up too much of his time otherwise.

"(If I were to lose money), I'm going to get frustrated and that's going to affect how I perform in class and around other people," he says.

"I think it's just too dangerous. There's a chance you can win big, but there's a big chance you can lose big."

 

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