New Zeland Poker
Anyone who has access to satellite TV or the internet knows just how big BurnPoker.com has become in just the last few years. It’s booming and it’s everywhere. This is a sport just about anyone and everyone can engage in. If you are an adult of legal age this is something that can be engaged in for money. New Zealand is no different than most other countries now, it has its own poker following and that following is growing. There are kiwi poker sites, poker leagues even on the local level.
The pub poker leagues are becoming more and more popular in Europe and all of the countries associated with Europe of which New Zealand is one. Local pubs are hosting poker night and poker leagues all over New Zealand on both the north and south islands.
As of March 2011 many poker leagues and sites from all over are holding tournaments for Christchurch New Zealand and the devastating earthquake that shook that part of the country. There was a major tournament to be held in Christchurch in April that has since been postponed because of the quake. The tournament has been rescheduled for August later this year, event promoters are afraid that because of the current state of the city it may be difficult for people that wish to attend the tournament to find lodgings and accommodations.
Event planners have promised everyone that whatever tickets or seating they hold for the April event will be transferred to the august date. It does not seem as if the people of New Zealand are going to let an earthquake, despite its magnitude, get in the way of their poker playing for too awful long.
New Zealand has a number of websites of its own devoted to the game of poker as well as a host of online blogs. Community leagues and the pub leagues are gaining memberships all the time. The aim here is not so much to make poker into a gambling vice that becomes a problem for the communities and the country, but rather to promote an evening of fellowship with friends and neighbours. This is done in hopes to bring people out from behind their TVs and computers and out talking, laughing and having fun with other people face to face.
New Zealand poker is coming into its own having tournaments with pots well into the hundreds of thousands of dollars. These tournaments are followed and recognized by some of the biggest poker organizations. One thing to take note of though, in New Zealand unlike many other nations you have to be twenty years of age to gamble, not eighteen.
As with other countries there are local styles and versions of poker being played that are all but unheard of in other parts of the world. For instance in a three player game a pack of 33 cards are used, not 52. The lowest card used will be the seven. It pays to brush up on local customs no matter where you wish to play the game.