Playing poker used to mean going to a casino or cardroom and sitting down with a bunch of grizzled regulars who looked like they were glued to the furniture. It meant enduring bad playing conditions, intimidation and the odd horrendous smell. More than that, though, it meant having to sit at a table exposed to the world – worrying about every bit of information you gave off, or desperately trying not to flinch as you stared down the local champ after making a big all-in bluff.

But then online poker came along and everything changed. Suddenly you could dance around the room when you hit the nuts and no one could tell, or close your eyes and plead with some guy on the other side of the world to fold, fold, fold…

The only problem with this revolution, of course, is that because a whole generation has been weaned on the online game, nowadays the vast majority of people – including many of you reading this – have rarely or never played live.
Elementary mistakes

In my poker career, however, it was the other way round.