Anyone who has ever played Texas Holdem poker online, in casinos or even at home with friends feels pressure when engaged in playing a big hand. Your heart beats a little faster and a knot forms in your stomach. Depending on the size of the wagers or the size of the pot, your muscles might tense up, hands may start to tremble and you may even begin to perspire. These physical symptoms occur in novice and intermediate players when involved in relatively small pots. Imagine the pressures that professional poker players experience while playing high stakes poker games where huge amounts of money are at stake. Add to this scenario television coverage or a large live audience where your every decision and move is being analyzed and second guessed by the audience and the commentators. At stake is not just a large amount of money, but also your reputation as a poker player. Now that's pressure!
In the early days of televised professional Texas Holdem poker, players were fitted with heart monitoring devices that allowed their heart rates to be displayed throughout a poker tournament. It was amazing to watch how heart rates of these professional players soared as the cards were turned and the players tried to maintain a calm and relaxed facade. It was not uncommon to see heart rates soar from the low 70's beats per minute to 140 beats per minute and higher. In the course of a high stakes or a high profile poker tournament, the professional poker player undergoes these types of stresses repeatedly throughout long days over the course of several days. The physical and mental pressures are enormous. Human beings cannot continue to experience these extreme pressures for a prolonged period of time without potential threats to their physical health. Poker players require down time between events to relax and get away from the pressure.
Like any other professional athlete, the professional poker player needs to continue to practice his or her trade even during down time to keep their skills sharp. Professional golfers may return to their home course and play some "friendly golf" with their friends. Pro basketball players take the opportunity to play a little one-on-one or three-on-three for "burgers" with their buddies at the school yard. Athletes in all sports have similar outlets that allow them to engage in their sport at a fun level but with sufficient motivation to work on their skills and to even try to develop something new.
A home poker game room offers professional poker players the same sort of fun and relaxed environment to play a little "fun" poker with friends. It provides the opportunity for face-to-face interaction buddies where the pro players can work on their poker persona and on controlling the physical manifestations of the stress that they encounter during high stake and high stress poker. Building a fun, comfortable home poker room with the necessary equipment and proper decor to create the right mood and atmosphere requires good planning and the best professional quality poker supplies.
The first major component of a first class poker room is the poker table. This table needs to be a full size, casino grade table with all the amenities that are necessary to ensure optimum player comfort. Padded arm rests and a padded table top with casino quality speed felt would be mandatory comfort considerations. Proper lighting is important to ensure that eye strain and eye fatigue do not become factors that will affect the comfort needs of players during prolonged periods of poker play. The chairs selected must also be capable of providing optimum support and comfort for extended periods of time.
Top quality clay poker chips and playing cards are required to ensure a professional mood and atmosphere. To keep the poker game running smoothly with blind and ante increases occurring automatically and on time, a quality timing system is required. Finally, the home poker room decor should have a decorative theme that creates a comfortable, inviting setting. In this environment the interaction can be fun and relaxed but with enough structure and atmosphere to provide good competition.
A well planned poker room with professional quality poker supplies can be a great environment for the professional poker players to relax and recharge their batteries between big events. It can be equally valuable to novice and intermediate poker players who may aspire to greater things, to improve their poker skills and strategies in a low-risk but professional quality environment.
In the early days of televised professional Texas Holdem poker, players were fitted with heart monitoring devices that allowed their heart rates to be displayed throughout a poker tournament. It was amazing to watch how heart rates of these professional players soared as the cards were turned and the players tried to maintain a calm and relaxed facade. It was not uncommon to see heart rates soar from the low 70's beats per minute to 140 beats per minute and higher. In the course of a high stakes or a high profile poker tournament, the professional poker player undergoes these types of stresses repeatedly throughout long days over the course of several days. The physical and mental pressures are enormous. Human beings cannot continue to experience these extreme pressures for a prolonged period of time without potential threats to their physical health. Poker players require down time between events to relax and get away from the pressure.
Like any other professional athlete, the professional poker player needs to continue to practice his or her trade even during down time to keep their skills sharp. Professional golfers may return to their home course and play some "friendly golf" with their friends. Pro basketball players take the opportunity to play a little one-on-one or three-on-three for "burgers" with their buddies at the school yard. Athletes in all sports have similar outlets that allow them to engage in their sport at a fun level but with sufficient motivation to work on their skills and to even try to develop something new.
A home poker game room offers professional poker players the same sort of fun and relaxed environment to play a little "fun" poker with friends. It provides the opportunity for face-to-face interaction buddies where the pro players can work on their poker persona and on controlling the physical manifestations of the stress that they encounter during high stake and high stress poker. Building a fun, comfortable home poker room with the necessary equipment and proper decor to create the right mood and atmosphere requires good planning and the best professional quality poker supplies.
The first major component of a first class poker room is the poker table. This table needs to be a full size, casino grade table with all the amenities that are necessary to ensure optimum player comfort. Padded arm rests and a padded table top with casino quality speed felt would be mandatory comfort considerations. Proper lighting is important to ensure that eye strain and eye fatigue do not become factors that will affect the comfort needs of players during prolonged periods of poker play. The chairs selected must also be capable of providing optimum support and comfort for extended periods of time.
Top quality clay poker chips and playing cards are required to ensure a professional mood and atmosphere. To keep the poker game running smoothly with blind and ante increases occurring automatically and on time, a quality timing system is required. Finally, the home poker room decor should have a decorative theme that creates a comfortable, inviting setting. In this environment the interaction can be fun and relaxed but with enough structure and atmosphere to provide good competition.
A well planned poker room with professional quality poker supplies can be a great environment for the professional poker players to relax and recharge their batteries between big events. It can be equally valuable to novice and intermediate poker players who may aspire to greater things, to improve their poker skills and strategies in a low-risk but professional quality environment.
