Blogger vs. Blogger

From the very outset, I have made it a policy of not playing poker online with my fellow bloggers. I make exceptions for special tournaments and have been known to sit in on the odd cash game when I recognize some names. I know I forego much camaraderie and good fun but if I cannot play my natural game then I feel it best not to play at all. When I sit down at a table, I want to win every player's buy-in. I expect everyone to rebuy after they have lost their stack to me, and then my goal is to win that new stack. Rinse and repeat till the player is broke. And that is why I never play poker with friends.

Sometimes the blogger camaraderie is challenged by the inevitable clashes of ego that poker is known to elicit. A recent example is SirFWalgman calling Weak Player a "fucking tool" over a particular hand in a $1-$2 NLHE cash game. Of course, Waffles apologized in the very next post. There have been other uncharacteristic "flareups" in the past, with Mattazuma vs. Hoyazo just one example coming to mind.

Perhaps the only cash game that I've played with any bloggers during the last 24 months occurred a few weeks ago when I spotted Joe Speaker and April in a NLHE game on FTP. I know I folded some reasonably good hands pre-flop when either Joe or April raised; hands that I certainly would have played against anyone else. We talked a bit, laughed some and then bade each other good night.