Poker Face in Cyberspace
His palms are perspiring and his bosom is racing, but he smiles when he sees his cards.
"I can't lose this one", he says, with a large smile on his face.
Poker in cyberspace is perfect for anyone not having a poker face.
Johan Eriksson demoes me his hand. A full house, Queens full of jacks. There are 260 dollars in the pot. Jack from Buckeye State just folded his hand, but Hans from Kingdom Of Norway and Steven from Commonwealth Of Australia both called Johan's 20 dollar bet.
He demoes me his manus again. "Can't lose this one", he states for the 2nd time. A chink on the mouse and Johan is 320 dollar richer. He was right , he couldn't lose that one.
We are neither in Las Vegas or in Atlantic City , but in a little 1 sleeping room flat in Copenhagen, Denmark.
The conflict is fought on the internet, where cyberspace is lightening up Johan's computing machine screen.
The online poker room is called Poker Stars, the waiter is in Costa Rica somewhere, and the players are from all over the world.
When poker online started at the end of the nineties, it created mixed feelings amongst existent time casino poker players.
Some took the position that it would damage existent poker games in casinos by alluring regular clients to only play poker online.
Others were fascinated that they could stay at place and play poker (in the underwear) against existent people from the whole world.
Online poker was as sent from Heaven for those who felt uncomfortable in a casino poker room or had a difficult time determination a poker room near to home.
"You have got to be careful", Johan says, in the center of a new hand. "Internet poker is twice as fast as unrecorded poker, so the money come ups and travels just as quickly".
"Damn, he caught an Ace on the river", Johann shouts. "Lost 30 vaulting horses on that hand. Well, well, easy come, easy go"
Johan started off playing poker at high school, but unlike most of us, didn't discontinue playing this great game.
He have since the high school years dreamt of watching the "big boys" play, so he bought himself a airplane ticket to Las Vegas at the legal tender age of 21. In Las Vegas he discovered the poker game of Texas Holdem.
He introduced the game to his poker brothers in Danemark, and the game of Five Card Draw was dead and buried for ever.
Johan just returned from his 7th trip to The Sin City. "It's the same modus operandi every time", he says. Straight in to the Hotel Mirage, dumping off the suitcases, and heading consecutive to the poker room.
He never gambles in the casino. Just plays true poker, and passes the bulk of his holiday time playing tournament poker. To him, this is the best vacation any unmarried cat can have.
His end every time is to win the equivalent of aeroplane and hotel costs. He have got managed that the last four times, but haven't won a large tournament yet.

