The Community Feel

If you're looking for friends in online poker rooms, some will give you more of a poker community than others. Know what to look for in poker chat rooms.

Poker Avatars: Getting to Know Poker Friends

When it comes to avatars, the vast majority of poker sites use one of two methods. Either they allow you to select an avatar from their pre-made gallery, or they allow you to upload a photo or icon of your own. If you're looking for a poker community, the latter is better. It's simply easier to remember the girl who uses a tree frog as her icon than to remember her as treefrog08, for example. If you're looking for a social experience, you'll probably do better on a site where you have a unique icon. Moreover, you should make your particular icon unique. Use a flattering picture of yourself or use something memorable. If you use a picture of a golden retriever, chances are, you'll be one of many many players with that sort of icon.

How to be Social in a Poker Room

The first time you go into a poker room, you can say hi, and some people will respond, but you won't instantly make friends with people. You'll want to make yourself stand out, so asking people where they're located, how old they are, and whether they're male or female is probably useless. Instead, try telling the room something interesting about yourself. Talk about the game, but don't give away your hand. Don't flirt with women, as many of them find it unpleasant. Instead, be friendly, and assume that your opponents are not there to play the dating game – rather they're there to play poker.

Making a Poker Acquaintance into a Poker Friend

You'll need to frequent the same room on a regular basis to start becoming friendly with people. Share a little information about yourself, and take an interest when others talk about themselves. When you see a person who you've seen before, ask about something mentioned in the previous conversation. This will both remind them who you are and let them know that you're looking to make friends. You shouldn't ask anything too personal in the beginning. A lot of players are very cautious about releasing personal information, especially about their location, their families, or their real name. If you're not careful about these things, you'll make your opponents wary of you. It's okay to say the name of the state or even the city if it's a big one like Chicago or Boston, but you shouldn't mention the name of a smaller town or a neighborhood in the city until you've talked to someone quite a bit.

Keeping it Friendly

Not everyone will want to be your friend, and some people will be downright rude. As you play longer in the same rooms and talked to the same people over and over, they will form a small community of players who will support you. Not everyone will join that community, so just be friendly to those who want to join your group of friends and polite to everyone else.