Sound Voices on the Wild, Wild Net

Being affiliated with PlanetPoker.com, an Internet poker room, has really opened my eyes to the potential for both good and bad on the Internet. I love the net and spend a lot of time there, although it is indeed a wild, wild place in many ways.

I have watched the growth of the Internet's poker discussion groups, forums, and bulletin boards, such as rec.gambling.poker (rgp), pretty much from the beginning of the web's popular growth 10 years ago. I've often lurked and sometimes contributed to the boards at rgp. I find that its greatest strength and greatest weakness are the same: It is totally unregulated; anybody can say anything he wants. While this incredible freedom fosters an amazing amount of open, honest discussion and makes previously unimagined quantities of information available to all, it also creates opportunities for the dishonest, the hateful, the scammers, and the hoaxers in society to try to pull a fast one. Abuse of the Internet ranges from the aggravating, like massive spam marketing campaigns, to the dishonest, like the fraudulent Nigerian get-rich-quick solicitations, to the merely deceptive, like the website named whitehouse.com, which directs you to a porn site. Furthermore, a lot of the info on the Internet is just stone-cold wrong, whether originated by the mean-spirited or the merely ignorant.

When it comes to poker information, both the good and the bad of the net become apparent. When it comes to poker advice, on the web or elsewhere, bad info can cost you. And as much as I sometimes enjoy the maverick feel of rgp, there are things about it and the other forums and boards that bother me. For one, the level of discourse sinks into the gutter from time to time, with people just being flat out rude and obnoxious. On some days, the board is consumed by flame wars that contribute nothing meaningful to any poker discussion, and would be X-rated by the movie-rating people.

Furthermore, and more important for a student of the game who's looking for helpful information, an awful lot of the advice and opinions presented there are just plain wrong. This is true of many of the other poker bulletin boards and forums, as well. I've visited many, and it has been my experience that the quality of discourse and information is generally low. And in addition to all of these factors, there are the all too common and annoying pop-ups that you find at so many websites.

Given all of this, I'm proud to be a part of a relatively new website, www.Unitedpokerforum.com. There are no pop-ups, and limited rudeness, because when a conversation gets down in the gutter, UPF moderators delete it when they see it. Most importantly, however, unitedpokerforum.com offers quality poker information from quality people.

The poker world has always been full of self-proclaimed "experts" who promote themselves to sell information and their "expertise." Some of them couldn't play their way out of a paper bag, and spout pure garbage about the game. Others present a single view of the game, without regard to its richness and complexity. The growth of the Internet has given these "experts" the opportunity to reach out to millions of players. Usually, the "experts" are hustling something. Some of them are very good writers and promoters, but in many cases, their poker ability is not of high enough quality to scratch out a bare survival playing poker. They tend to repeat basic info that is generally correct but almost always includes something that is conceptually flawed. And, to understate the issue, it doesn't take too many flawed concepts to separate a professional level of play from a losing level of play. A good many of these promoters could not survive the test of time as a real professional player.

So, Mike Caro and I have begun answering poker questions at the www.unitedpokerforum.com website. Two good poker voices are not enough, so the site sought other poker pros to create a gallery of real-time professional poker players who have actually been there, done that, proved their mettle, and made a good living at the game over a statistically meaningful period of time and at limits high enough to garner respect.

I'm pleased and proud that unitedpokerforum.com has added three top-notch professional poker players who can answer all players' questions. They are guys from whom you can learn and who will help you grow as a player. They are real pros who play real poker week in and week out, and have positive results to show for it. All of them meet my toughest test: They can play my chips anytime, and believe me, I'm very picky when it comes to that call! I consider them to be some of Las Vegas' best and brightest poker talents, and they are now regularly answering questions and posting their thoughts on the forum. They are three great ones, guys who consistently win at the higher limits in a variety of games.

Mark Gregorich learned poker in Olympia, Washington, about 50 miles south of Bellevue, Washington, where I first started my poker education and career. Mark taught high school upon graduating from Pacific Lutheran University. After three years, he was beating the hell out of the local games and took the plunge. He moved to Las Vegas in 1995 and started a new life as a professional poker player. Since then, he has shown nothing but talent, class, and poise. Widely respected throughout Las Vegas as both a person and player, Mark was voted the best live game Omaha-eight-or-better player in the world by a Card Player readers poll. Mark is also no slouch in the local high-limit seven-card stud eight-or-better games and $80-$160 hold'em games, and has numerous final-table tournament finishes (he finished second in this year's World Series of Poker $5,000 buy-in limit hold'em event, which I consider to have the toughest limit hold'em field). In short, he is a great player. Mark resides in Las Vegas with his wife, Mary, and three children.

Barry Tanenbaum moved to Las Vegas to play poker professionally after a career in computer education. Also an outstanding bridge player, Barry taught that game for seven years. Almost exclusively a cash game player, Barry has been pounding on the $30-$60 through $80-$160 hold'em, seven-card stud eight-or-better, and Omaha eight-or-better games for the last couple of years. Highly respected as both a player and teacher, Barry gives private lessons to select students. He recently was a featured speaker at the World Poker Players Conference and is also a columnist for Card Player (his columns appear in every other issue). I think you will find his insights both interesting and rewarding.

Canadian born and bred Grant Pittman began his professional poker career after a nine-year stint as a Toronto-area police officer. A graduate of Conastoga College with a degree in criminology, Grant learned a great deal about human psychology in his years on the beat. A great reader of people and hands, he started his poker career by playing in the charity casinos in the Toronto area, graduating to the Las Vegas scene about six years ago. Fearless in life and in poker, and mentally and emotionally as tough as nails, Grant plays all games, and as high as $300-$600, pot-limit, and no-limit. He is a consistent big winner in Bellagio's $80-$160 limit hold'em game. He has been a huge winner on the Internet poker scene, and understands its subtleties and differences from brick-and-mortar play. I have always recommended in my writings that all serious poker players should choose a player they highly respect to discuss their strategies and secrets with. Grant is that person in my life. We share our knowledge and wisdom with each other. I have learned a great deal from Grant, and know you will, too.

Over the course of developing my poker game, I found that interacting with other great players and sharing thoughts, wisdom, ideas, and concepts helped me improve my game in a huge way. Seize this opportunity to interact with these great professional players and improve your poker game. These guys are the real deal, and it's free to communicate with them. With the addition of these commentators, I believe www.UnitedPokerForum.com will be one of the best sites on the web. Log on and post your questions. You will learn a lot, and if you pay attention, you'll be able to take the wisdom, knowledge, and experiences of these guys to the bank.

Roy Cooke played winning professional poker for more than 16 years. He is a successful real estate broker/salesperson in Las Vegas. If you would like to ask Roy poker-related questions, you may do so online at www.UnitedPokerForum.com.