The 2017 World Series of Poker in Las Vegas, Nevada may as well have been called “The Summer of the Vlogger.”
Mar 18, 2019 Poker’s power couple Alex Foxen and Kristen Bicknell will receive the GPI Player of the Year awards during the ceremony and for Bicknell this means back-to-back Female Player of the Year honors. Here’s an overview of the categories with nominees in alphabetical order.
It was common to see popular (and not-so-popular) poker players holding cameras as they shot video in every corner of the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino.
If you are a poker fan, then you probably caught a vlog or two.
Will 2018 continue where 2017 left off? Time will tell.
The good news is that five of the most popular vloggers and streamers from last summer will be back. And they are bringing a fresh, new approach to the daily grind.
Daniel Negreanu promises fun for poker fans
Just last week, Daniel Negreanu tweeted:
May I just say, I am starting to feel the excitement for the summer build. So many massive buy ins and lots of money to be won or lost!
Plus, I have some fun things in store for poker fans. Stay tuned, likely released on Monday.
— Daniel Negreanu (@RealKidPoker) May 16, 2018
When Negreanu says “massive buy-ins,” he isn’t kidding. According to his yearly WSOP summer schedule blog post, Negreanu is “looking at about a $2 million investment this summer.”
He also talked about bringing his daily WSOP vlogs back.
“For those of you who enjoyed following the journey last year via my WSOP VLOGS, good news, they will be back and pop up on YouTube DAILY. We will also have them up at the same time each day, midday on this side of the pond, and late evening over in Europe. I plan to spend a bit more time breaking down hands and have found a really cool new way to deliver it that you will see when the VLOGS start churning out. The first day of the VLOG will be available June 2nd starting with the WSOP $100k and every day after that.”
Negreanu is continually embracing the challenge to do better. Whether it is on the felt or in front of the camera, he rarely settles for the status quo.
Follow Negreanu to see what a $2 million summer looks like.
Andrew Neeme continues to set the standard
Negreanu may be the vlogger poker fans follow, but Andrew Neeme is the vlogger poker players follow.
Many players credit Neeme with elevating the poker vlog. He combines entertainment, strategy and great production into a product the poker community embraces.
Neeme doesn’t vlog daily mainly because he doesn’t have a crew working for him as Negreanu does. What you get with Neeme though is a real honest look at a day in the life of a mid-stakes grinder.
The community appreciates Neeme’s insight so much he recently won two American Poker Awards:
- Video Blogger of the Year
- People’s Choice Award
Expect Neeme to vlog throughout the summer as he navigates cash games and tournaments.
Jeff Gross plans to vlog and stream during the WSOP
Jeff Gross is a PokerStars pro, and as such he has challenges streaming in Nevada where PokerStars isn’t available. He is trying to find a creative way to combine his stream and vlogging talents.
Gross plans of offering views into real-life situations at the WSOP on his stream this year.
“Before I play live, I am looking to discuss the events, strategy, and preparation,” Gross told USPoker. This could be a benefit and a cool thing to tackle.”
This is something entirely new for Gross, and he is excited to experiment and play to see what content resonates with his viewers. He is mainly targeting players and fans that want to improve their game and have some fun.
“My stream is high energy with interaction and in-depth explanations,” said Gross.
A new type of stream isn’t the only thing Gross plans to offer. He says he plans to create YouTube vlogs of highlights and hand reviews with some of the top poker minds in the game. “I will have special guests & do lots of giveaways as well!”
Players and fans can catch Gross on Twitch and YouTube.
Jaime Staples focusing more on a healthy routine
Jaime Staples may not be physically present at the WSOP, but that doesn’t mean he won’t be present.
Staples believes poker players that study live poker hands and online poker streams will improve their game.
“I think that a live poker player would really benefit from watching my stream,” Staples said to USPoker. “Online poker can seem a bit daunting if you’re used to only playing live poker. That said, I think it can be a fun change of pace and will uncover some new skills to help at the live poker tables.”
As a poker player, it can’t be easy to watch the WSOP go on without you. Staples shared his thoughts on grinding while players are competing for gold bracelets.
“Streaming during the WSOP is mentally difficult. Not only is there the most prestigious poker series going on while you are at home grinding, but the weather is also great and the nights are long. Everyone is down to do things and hang out. It’s not the most motivating time of the year to create long streams.”
Recently, Staples and his brother Matt Stapleswon $150,000 in a prop bet. The bet, proposed by Bill Perkins, required the brothers to weigh within one pound of each other after one year. Staples lost 115 pounds to secure the win.
The Staples brothers accepted another bet from Perkins to get back within one pound of their original weight. Staples would like to do it as healthfully as possible.
That is why a solid routine during the summer is on the agenda.
“Poker, health, and great streams and videos. I welcome anyone to come hang out and watch some cards,” said Staples. Staples can be found on Twitch.
Doug Polk returning to his roots
Doug Polk had a hugely popular vlog at last year’s WSOP, and his YouTube channel is a fan favorite. It didn’t hurt that he won the $111,111 One Drop early in the summer.
Then something changed. Polk’s videos took on a contentious tone, and he seemed to be more intent on attracting attention than providing useful content.
He also started focusing more on growing is Crypto channel. At times, it may have felt like he was thumbing nose at the poker community.
Earlier this year he took to video to address the issue and apologize.
“Now we have to try and do positive things for the community or move on,” said Polk in the video. “I’m sorry for the tone of my videos. I completely stand by things that I’ve said. But I also think there should be more of a direction of trying to create solutions and move forward rather than just hammer the negative aspects that I feel I got a little too focused on.”
He has been true to his word, and the tone of his videos has changed for the better. He has been posting content consistently which bodes well for fun, creative WSOP content.
“At least for the time being, I want to work into my videos good things that are going on to help the people at home who actually play poker,” Polk said.
Keep an eye out for new video content from Polk all summer long.
Lights, camera, action
There’s only one week until the 2018 World Series of Poker welcomes poker players from around the world. Thousands of players will have the tools to stream or vlog right in their back pocket.
It is hard to imagine the amount of streaming this year will match last year. However, it does sound like audiences are in for some new looks into the daily grind.
And who knows… maybe a new poker vlogging star will be born.
18:1322 Feb
It’s a wonderful world out there on YouTube for poker fans right now, with so much golden content that you might never even get round to playing the damn game itself! However, since we ARE all poker players as well, let’s try to narrow down the best of the YouTube vloggers with regard to how much they can help our own game…
Daniel Negreanu
Improving our poker skills
Of course, improving our play is one of the main reasons we watch a lot of the guys on YouTube, and picking just one is a tough task, but it’s hard to see past the all-time leading money-winner Dnegs when it comes to hand reading, analysis and tournament tips.
A natural in front of the camera, Negreanu has decided to take on the new breed of vloggers with a resurrection of his own channel – and it contains some mightily impressive fare already.
As with many viewers, ‘incredible poker hand’ videos are fun (quads vs Royal Flush! Who hasn’t watched this?) but what we really need are some specific pointers on how to play better, so one of his vlogs from last week caught my eye – value bet or check-call – which is a perennial problem for myself and no doubt countless others…
Pre-flop thoughts, bet-sizing on the flop, stack sizes – Negreanu rattles quickly through the lot, so it pays to pause the video and think for yourself at times. And the nuggets of wisdom are always worth noting down!
“In tournament poker, when we’re out of position, our goal is to avoid as many bad spots as we can!” says Negreanu on the turn, and if we could write a list of ‘important thoughts’ for our play, Negreanu’s nuggets would fill a book!
I won’t spoil the video for you all, but I’ll leave you with another gem:
'When you’re value-betting the river, you want to make sure that you actually beat some hands, so there’s VALUE in the bet!”
Alec Torelli
Lifestyle
Although Alec Torelli is also a high-class player with plenty of hand analysis on his YouTube channel, I tend to visit him for the non-playing aspects of poker – the lifestyle choices approach to the game which are almost as important as knowing heads-up theory or hand ranges!
His ‘Poker Life’ series sees the high-stakes expert answering viewers questions, and a couple of weeks ago he focused on the financial aspects of the game - how to avoid money-mistakes, how to build your bank balance, etc.
The ‘three things Torelli would tell his 18-year old self’ starting out in the game are invaluable - “spend less, save more, invest!” says Torelli – too simple, huh?
Well, everything is simple when an expert lays it out on the table for you, but that’s part of the reason why we’re watching these vlogs! We’re not really doing things right, and we want not only entertainment, but advice.
Toreli’s vlog is, like most of the best guys out there right now, well-produced and easy-to-watch. He’s a likeable and knowledgeable poker pro, and you can tell he believes what he’s saying and wants to help you too!
Truth be told, he could sometimes shorten his vlogs a little, but that’s a petty complaint as overall this guy is dynamite for getting you to think clearly about the wider approach to your poker life!
Andrew Neeme
List Of Youtube Vloggers
Enthusiasm
Meet The Vloggers
It might just be me, but somehow it’s the droller vloggers are the ones who get me wanting to visit the casino and actually play poker!
Jeff Boski with his slow, southern drawl almost made the cut for this top 3, but I eventually plumped for Andrew Neeme as his own adventures mirror my own a bit more closely – and this is a good way to choose your vloggers, find someone you can copy and learn from at the same time.
So why does Neeme make me want to play poker? Well, he plays at stakes I understand – no $million pots for Neeme, he’s usually found at $5-10 No Limit cash games, grinding out a good living – a place many of us would like to be at and can achieve with hard work.
Anyway, one of his vlogs this week – Revenge Poker at Ocean’s Eleven Casino – sees our man a bit chipper than usual, although be warned – the first hand of the night he messes up in ‘editing’, so read the comments!
Again, it’s important that we can relate to certain players and their lives in order to fully appreciate what they are doing and how we can improve our own enjoyment and poker skills.
The three I’ve chosen are only a handful from among the dozens out there in YouTube poker-vlogger land, so feel free to pick your own!