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What age do you start teaching someone poker?
Hi all,
My wife and I are having a bit of a struggle trying to decide what to do regarding our seven year old son.
We were on holiday in Scotland a few weeks ago and we took a poker set with us to play in the evenings when the kids (we also have a nine year old daughter) were in bed.
They've both been pestering (for want of a better word) for a while for my wife and I to show them how to play poker. I honestly thought that they'd play for a bit, get bored and move on to something else.
How wrong was I?
To our amazement, my son got hold of the basics very quickly (he's S.E.N. G.A.T.* which explains a lot anyway) and soon had a firm grasp of the hand ranking etc. He's also now started to get his head around bet sizing etc. He's thouroghly enjoying playing poker.
Now there is no way on God's green earth that we'd let either of the kids play on-line or for real money (at home or on-line) but is seven years old too young?
I'm not just saying it for the sake of saying it but my son has a real talent for this. We've been playing a couple of times a week for around an hour and every time he's finished chip leader! He's even started trying to suss out what other people might have in there hands.
Like I say, is seven too young? Should we move away from poker for a while then come back to it in a few years? Should we carry on encouraging his learning?
He's good at chess as well and has given me some stern thrashings in the past, not that I'm any good.
Your thoughts and comments would be very much appreciated. Please let me know if you need any more detail etc.
Thanks,
Richard
* = Special Educational Needs, Gifted And Talented (exceptional maths and reading skills for a seven year old, reading age of around 12).
My wife and I are having a bit of a struggle trying to decide what to do regarding our seven year old son.
We were on holiday in Scotland a few weeks ago and we took a poker set with us to play in the evenings when the kids (we also have a nine year old daughter) were in bed.
They've both been pestering (for want of a better word) for a while for my wife and I to show them how to play poker. I honestly thought that they'd play for a bit, get bored and move on to something else.
How wrong was I?
To our amazement, my son got hold of the basics very quickly (he's S.E.N. G.A.T.* which explains a lot anyway) and soon had a firm grasp of the hand ranking etc. He's also now started to get his head around bet sizing etc. He's thouroghly enjoying playing poker.
Now there is no way on God's green earth that we'd let either of the kids play on-line or for real money (at home or on-line) but is seven years old too young?
I'm not just saying it for the sake of saying it but my son has a real talent for this. We've been playing a couple of times a week for around an hour and every time he's finished chip leader! He's even started trying to suss out what other people might have in there hands.
Like I say, is seven too young? Should we move away from poker for a while then come back to it in a few years? Should we carry on encouraging his learning?
He's good at chess as well and has given me some stern thrashings in the past, not that I'm any good.
Your thoughts and comments would be very much appreciated. Please let me know if you need any more detail etc.
Thanks,
Richard
* = Special Educational Needs, Gifted And Talented (exceptional maths and reading skills for a seven year old, reading age of around 12).
Comments
If your only playing for fun then i see no harm in teaching your seven year old !!!! why not teach him early so when he hits 18 with the right gambling knowledge good and bad points drilled home early he could enjoy the game as much as you , my little girl is six and although she hasn't ever played she enjoys watching me online and has picked up some of the hands all by herself !!!
good luck
monkey123
I think its fine if your child is interested to play now and again as i used to play solitaire when i was younger and done me no harm. just when he gets a bit older and wants to play for money you will have to give him some advice re: dont play with what you cant afford to lose also not to play for money at school as i've heard of someone who has and get in big trouble(dont get caught if he does :P)
So yeah, get them into it early.
The kids have always watch me play both on Sky Poker and another poker site that I use. I've had hands shown on Sky Poker TV before and the kids have got very excited about Daddy being on the TV (even if it is only my avatar). None the less, the hands that have been shown were winning ones so they now think I'm some sort of poker god! If only they knew ha ha.
What do other people think?
Richard
Maybe when a bit older you can play for sweets (or something) to get him used to the idea of losing something and so to play within your means.
Sounds like you've got your hands full! Good luck.
We're not going to let him play on a PC for cash (or even play money) until he's legally old enough to do so. We're not even going to play for money at home, just chips.
I'm pretty sure though that if he sticks at it, he could do well. You'd have to see him in action to know what I mean. I think it's his bet sizing that's impressed me most. There were a couple of times when I last played him when he looked at me and I could just tell that he was trying to work out what he had in my hand. Because we always show our cards at the end of each hand I think he's been able to build up a grasp of my range. He's made a couple of very good folds and a whole bunch of very well timed and placed raises.
Maybe I should film some hands and put them on you-tube? You'll be able to see what I'm banging on about then
She's 8.
If he is still into poker by the time he is in his teens then thats when BRM should be drilled into them, a good player doesn't need to spend much money on poker as they can start a bankroll from a small deposit. Tell them the story of TJ Cloutier (or what ever his name is) Won a WSOP bracelet and still had to sell it to afford to keep playing (although most of that was due to casino games).
He clearly has a talent for the game and in the future could be a great player, but as long as he realises the downside of the game, that nobody is invinsible then I can't see why you shouldn't encourage him to play.
I could of been rich by now (maybe)