The Rec Poker Podcast

Ho Ho Ho! This week Jim Reid and the RecPoker RECing Crew interview Sky Matsuhashi, and he has a fantastic gift for all RecPoker members to enjoy! If you want to set SMART goals, you have to know where you need the most help, and what areas you can work on to immediately improve your poker skills. To do that, you need to know your own game and its weaknesses. Join The Poker Forge between December...

Merry Christmas! This week, Jim Reid leads the RecPoker RECing Crew through a forum post by Keith “MonkieSystem” Brandt about a tricky multiway spot where we turn the nut flush draw. While battling it out against each other in the nightly home game, the panel discusses the virtues of checking versus betting in multiway pots, choosing streets of value, postflop player tendencies, protecting your ch...

This week Jim Reid and the RecPoker RECing Crew interview former TV-reporter-turned-retirement-advisor Louie Hillman! Louie is a serious recreational player who travels down to Las Vegas very summer to play in the World Series of Poker - and has had some great success recently! We talk about playing for big stakes in the WSOP - as a recreational player, Louie talks about his love of mixed games, t...

This week, Jim Reid and John Somsky are joined by some exciting guests to kick off a year of Mixed Games podcast episodes, featuring the “Mixed Game of the Month” in our free home game club! This month, we are practicing No Limit 5-Card Draw - and the first practice game is tomorrow night! John and Jim start with a basic explainer about the mechanics of the game, and then we are joined by several...

This week Joe Kulas and the RecPoker RECing Crew interview Brian Winter! Brian talks about his lead in the RunGood Player of the Year competition, traveling as a pro with his amazing photographer wife Rachel, the top four WORST places to finish in a tournament, the problem of finishing final tables in the wee hours of the morning, one way that many recreational players can improve their game immed...

This week, Jim Reid leads the RecPoker RECing Crew through a forum post by Taylor Maas picking up from last week’s conversation about final table play. While battling it out against each other in the nightly home game, the panel discusses a hand Taylor played as the chip leader with 8 players left, and only one other player with a stack threatening ours. What are the factors that Taylor considers...

This week Sasha Sutton and the RecPoker RECing Crew interviewed Rebbecca Scales! Rebbecca and the gang discussed a slew of topics, including the lack of marketing to women in the World Series of Poker and the resistance to change in the industry. Rebbecca also talked about the three main barriers that women face in poker: harassment, social norms, and daily responsibilities. Sasha and Rebecca shar...

This week, Jim Reid leads the RecPoker RECing Crew through a forum post by Taylor Maas about his recent deep run in a daily tournament, and the factors we should all be considering when approaching the final table. While battling it out against each other in the nightly home game, the panel discusses short-handed play, ICM considerations, player types, mistakes to avoid, applying pressure the righ...

This week Jim Reid and the RecPoker RECing Crew interview DGAF about his poker journey and his famous Sessions podcast series. Billy talks about his various roles in the poker industry and what it takes to succeed in the ‘soft hustle’ of the poker environment. They discuss whales, assholes, and what kind of behaviour will ensure you are NEVER invited to a home game or stream - and DGAF even shares...

This week, Jim Reid leads the RecPoker RECing Crew through a forum post by Ben “Bejammin” Enslow about ICM considerations in large-field tournaments. While battling it out against each other in the nightly home game, the panel discusses stack sizes, relative position, bubble factors, field size, opening and continuing ranges, and more! Come sign up for a free account at https://rec.poker/ today to...

This week Jim Reid and the RecPoker RECing Crew interview Max Havlish and Wesley Cannon from the Suited Kings Poker podcast! To start, Max shares some details about his own poker journey, and what makes him and Wes good friends and partners. If you want to learn more about Wes’s poker story, check out episode 469 from earlier this year. The group discusses cash vs. tournament play, competing with...

This week, Jim Reid leads the RecPoker RECing Crew through a forum post by Chris Jones about a tournament spot where he rivered the second nuts. While battling it out against each other in the nightly home game, the panel discusses ICM factors, post-flop betting lines, minimum defense frequencies, field sizes, ‘demoting actions’, GTO vs. exploitative play, and more! Come sign up for a free account...

With Jim away this week, Sasha Sutton and the RecPoker RECing Crew interview Matt Savage from the World Poker Tour! They have an exciting series coming up in Las Vegas in December, but that’s not all! Matt talks about his role with the WPT, how he got into the business, the importance of standardizing tournament rules, the challenges live poker faces from phones and technology, some experiences he...

This week Jim Reid and the RecPoker RECing Crew interview Robby Strazynski about his upcoming Mixed Game Festival at Resorts World in Las Vegas starting on November 26th, and they also announce the upcoming Mixed Game schedule for RecPoker’s 2024 home game club! If you are curious about mixed games, get ready - you are in for a treat as John Somsky, Joseph Wills and Robbie share their thoughts on...

This week Jim Reid and the RecPoker RECing Crew interview Jeff Platt, a prominent poker broadcaster whose work has been featured on PokerGO, CBS Sports Network, and ESPN. Specifically he’s a sideline reporter for the World Series of Poker Main Event, a play-by-play commentator for PokerGO Tour events, and the co-host of PokerGO's "No Gamble, No Future” alongside Brent Hanks. Jeff shares s...

This week, Jim Reid leads the RecPoker RECing Crew through a forum post by Elizabeth Bennett-Martin about facing a raise from an “annoying player” while holding an overpair to the board. While battling it out against each other in the nightly home game, the panel discusses tournament variants, ICM pressure, player types, adjusting to different players, hand distribution, having a plan, and more! C...

This week Jim Reid and the RecPoker RECing Crew interview Alex “Assassinato” Fitzgerald! You might know Alex from PokerHeadRush, or his various training videos, or his award-winning books, or back in the day from the Oneouter podcast - wherever you know him from, you probably know that he’s made a career out of exploiting the other players at his poker table. Now based in Colorado, Alex spends mos...

Happy Halloween! This week, Jim Reid leads the RecPoker RECing Crew through the Spooky Theme of the Month at RecPoker: Middle Tournament Stages and Approaching the Bubble! While battling it out against each other in the nightly home game, the panel discusses their favourite Halloween candy, and also how to make the most out of the middle stages of poker tournaments. The group goes over the differe...

This week Jim Reid and the RecPoker RECing Crew welcome Tommy Angelo back on the show to talk about his book Waiting For Straighters - and if you are listening to this episode before the end of October, you can claim a free copy! Learn how at the end of the show. Tommy gets right into sharing how he came to write the book, and some immediate benefits to Hold’em and Omaha players that follow his gu...

This week, Jim Reid leads the RecPoker RECing Crew through a forum post by Chris Jones about holding an overpair when facing a check-raise. While battling it out against each other in the nightly home game, the panel discusses stack sizes, positional ranges, postflop betting lines, player types, and more! Come sign up for a free account at https://rec.poker/ today and join the fun! Find our free v...

This week Jim Reid and the RecPoker RECing Crew interview Mike “O8GRINDER” Serrano! Mike and the gang talk about his time streaming popular tournaments when no-one else was doing it, what it's like building a YouTube following from scratch, making a place in the poker world, balancing poker and life, and he also shares some personal details about some challenges in his life over the past year....

This week, Chris Jones leads the RecPoker RECing Crew through a forum post by Dingo about burnout from a recreational player perspective. If this is supposed to be a hobby we enjoy, why does it sometimes not feel like it? How do we address a sense of burnout or fatigue? What are some ways to recharge? The group looks at practices including meditation, taking breaks, building structure, and underst...

(EXPLICIT LANGUAGE) This week Jim Reid and the RecPoker RECing Crew interview Abe Limon, known among other reasons as the former owner of Live At The Bike and his popular Poker Sesh! Abe has been a fixture in the poker world for the last 25 years and shares his thoughts on a range of topics: from the history of poker learning on boards like 2+2 and rec.gambling.poker, to private games of yesteryea...

This week, Jim Reid leads the RecPoker RECing Crew through a forum post ARW about when we can consider flatting an open with a premium hand like KK. While battling it out against each other in the nightly home game, the panel discusses the different stages of the tournament, the stacks in play, how often we need the opponents behind us to squeeze to consider flatting, and they even break into a co...

This week Jim Reid and the RecPoker RECing Crew interviewed Caitlyn Arnwine! Caitlyn shared her experiences in the poker world, including her meteoric rise in earnings and her advocacy efforts for causes such as homelessness and representation in poker media, before continuing with a discussion of the challenges faced by women in the male-dominated world of poker. Caitlyn and Sasha Sutton shared t...