Robbie Strazynski

On the latest episode of the Top Pair Home Game Poker Podcast (#270), together with my co-host Bruce Briggs, I interviewed Eric Danis, Head of Poker Content for the Global Poker League/Global Poker Index.

Listen to the entirety of Episode 270 of the podcast, which includes the interview with Eric starting at the 14-minute mark. You can also read the transcript.

In this post I reflect back on one year in front of the cameras as a PokerUpdate video presenter.

Sadly, the videos that Shimi “the Fish” Weiss and I produced have been discontinued. I let fans and followers in on some behind-the-scenes information, and more importantly, give thanks for the opportunity to have had a shot in the first place.

Next up in our ongoing “Get to Know the Poker Media” series is Lance Bradley, former Editor-in-Chief of BLUFF Magazine and current President and Editor-in-Chief of PocketFives.com.

A staple of the poker media for the last decade-plus, Lance takes us on a journey through his career as a poker writer and opens up a bit about his personal life.

Lance has plenty of interesting stories to tell and I’m sure you’ll enjoy getting to know him a little better.

More than just a review of two books written by George “the Engineer” Epstein, namely “Hold’em or Fold’em?” and “The Art of Bluffing”, this post tells the story of how to engineer success at the poker tables, as well as away from them. Here’s hoping you enjoy the read as much as I enjoyed writing it up.

Mention the phrase “home game” to any recreational poker player and you’re sure to bring a smile to their face. Each and every poker fan has visions of fun poker nights with their buddies. But what table are you envisioning in that picture?

Depending on the stakes you play for, and how far along you are in your “home game journey”, you want to be sure you have the appropriate setting, and playing surface, on which to create those fun memories.

We’re happy to bring you an exclusive, very special interview with Traci Szymanski, the world’s #1 celebrity poker liaison. She’s done a tremendous job helping to promote poker to the mainstream over the years via exposing celebrities to the game, mainly at charity poker events. BIG celebrities!

Yet, Traci’s work has all been done behind the scenes, with the celebrities, charities, and big name poker players naturally taking the spotlight. Now, finally, it’s time for Traci to get some much deserved spotlight of her own.

Next up in our ongoing “Get to Know the Poker Media” series is Alex Weldon, a Canadian poker writer whose work people are most familiar with on PartTimePoker.com. Known for being one of the more open poker writers in the industry, Alex rarely, if ever, holds back from voicing his opinion.

Alex’s openness extended into this interview as well, where he revealed a unique and eclectic job history as well as a very detailed account of his dealing with depression.

Poker is a universally appreciated game played all over the world. As such, the media coverage it gets is in numerous languages, not just English. When it comes to Spanish-language coverage, Brian Saslavchik has it covered, as he’s the General Coordinator of CardPlayer Latin America.

Brian is the latest interviewee in our “Get to Know the Poker Media” series. Once you read his story, you’ll certainly have a deeper appreciation of his work as well as of Spanish-language poker coverage in Latin America in general.

While poker will always be an American game, our neighbors up in the Great White North have plenty to contribute at and away from the felt. One such contributor is Lane Anderson, best known as the Editor of PokerNews Canada.

Let’s learn more about him and what brought him to the game we all know and love, and keep in mind the important message about women in poker that he wants all poker players to be more aware of.

One of poker’s great writers, Steve Ruddock, is the subject of our next “Get to Know the Poker Media” interview. Learn all about the man who has excelled in producing top poker content on every subject including poker history, legal and regulatory developments in the online poker world, and much more.

As with all great poker writer’s, Steve’s backstory is an interesting one, and I’m sure you’ll enjoy reading about him and his pursuits aside from poker writing.

Next time you sit down to play a long poker session, be sure you have your poker song playlist ready. Arguably, there’s no better forum in which to listen to these songs.

Beyond that, though, perhaps you want to know more about some of the most popular poker songs ever created? We’ve got you covered in this blog post.

Along with my Top Pair Home Game Poker Podcast co-host Bruce Briggs, I recently interviewed Lee Jones, the Director of Poker Communications at PokerStars. Lee is also a publisher poker book author and, of course, a home game enthusiast. He tells us some home game tales, as well as all about his role as a “Poker Evangelist” in Episode 267 of our podcast. Listen to the whole episode, which includes the interview with Lee starting at the 18-minute mark. You can also read the summarized transcript.