I'm sitting on my veranda on a Card Player Cruises poker cruise to Australia and New Zealand, reflecting on how many wonderful people I have met playing poker over the years. There is one group of women in particular who stand out as being superstars when it comes to friendship - the Oklahoma Hold'em Hotties. I had the pleasure of meeting some of the Hotties a couple of years ago at Ocean's Eleven Casino, and then met the rest of the troupe during a visit to Cherokee Casino in Tulsa, Oklahoma, last year.
The Hotties are a group of 20 women (yes, membership is limited to 20, and there is a long waiting list) who have formed an incredible friendship through their shared love of poker. The group has evolved over the past few years, ever since a poker room was opened at Cherokee in January of 2005. Karen Fisher, one of the original Hotties, told me the details about how the group formed and their exploits: "Cherokee started a weekly ladies tournament, in which many of the local women got to hone their skills and get to know each other. In October of 2005, Diane Hughes invited several of us to a home poker game
that was incredibly fun. A few months after we started our home game, we went on a road trip together to Tunica to watch the pros play poker. It seemed only natural that we name our traveling poker group, so the name Hold'em Hotties originated. We had so much fun on that trip, and laughed until it hurt."
After the Hotties returned from that awesome trip, Karen proposed the idea of a weekly poker game as a means of winning entries, and travel and lodging expenses to ladies tournaments around the country. With the help of some of her new poker girlfriends, the "Hold'em Hotties" poker league was formed.
In case you are thinking of starting a similar group, here are the rules for the league:
It's purpose is to award the winner of each series a prize package consisting of poker tournament buy-in, and travel and lodging expenses. If for any reason a winner is unable to attend the predetermined destination tournament, she forfeits the prize package and the next winner in line receives the package. The series length, prize pool, destination, and any other issues are put to a vote by attending members, and the majority rules.
Each member pays $35 per tournament session. The weekly money is split as follows: $15 to the nightly prize pool, $15 to the destination prize fund, and $5 to the hostess. If a player cannot attend, she must notify someone, and is still responsible for making the $15 destination prize fund payment.
Members are divided into five groups for the purpose of providing food for the group each session. It is a player's responsibility to keep track of which group she is in, trade with someone if she is unable to attend (or make arrangements with another member of her group), and coordinate food items within her group. The hostess provides dessert, paper goods, and drinks.
Points for each session are awarded as follows: first place - 20 points, second place - 19 points, third place - 18 points, fourth place - 17 points, and so on. At the end of the series, the points leader wins the prize package. If a member drops out for one series, she may return for the following series and not lose her Hold'em Hotties membership. If two series are missed, she is dropped from the club and must wait for an opening in order to return to membership. A new member agrees that her membership is for one series.
Tournament Directors Association rules apply. The starting amount in chips is 3,000, with 15-minute rounds, and blinds starting at 25-25 and doubling at each level. Four places are paid in each session. Based on 20 players in attendance, fourth place pays $30, third place pays $55, second place is $85, and first place is $130. If there are fewer than 20 players in any given session, the prize pool for that session is adjusted.
The Hotties' "bond" goes much deeper than poker. These ladies truly are great friends. If one of them makes a final table in a casino tournament, they all go to root and cheer. They really enjoy the camaraderie, and travel the country together. Karen Fisher is a great seamstress, and has made matching apparel for the club … sort of a team uniform.
The Hotties invited Jan Fisher and me to give them a private seminar at a member's home, and when we showed up, each had prepared a home-cooked dish for the group. It was the best potluck luncheon I have ever eaten. They also made us honorary Hottie members, and I value this inclusion in the club.
I'm so lucky to have met so many great friends through poker, and I recommend getting some of your close friends together to take some poker road trips and perhaps hold some satellites to send someone to a big tournament.
Change of subject: If you are looking for a special holiday gift for a loved one, a poker cruise might be just the ticket. Call (888) 999-4880 to book a trip of a lifetime. Happy holidays.
Now, let's play poker.
Linda is available for seminars, corporate nights, and fundraisers. Contact her at [email protected].
