Episode 1

The opening episode of the Fish to Final Table poker podcast has arrived! We meet host Nick Oakley, a terrible poker player who dreams of getting to the final table of a tournament. However, to do this Nick is going to need some serious help, preferably from someone who knows what they're doing. Thankfully, Nick is joined by poker professional Andy Hills from Grosvenor Casinos Online who is willing to offer this fish some guidance through the choppy waters of playing the game for his hard earned currency. In Part 1 Andy talks through how he was introduced to the game via poker TV programmes in the mid/late 2000s, picking up the rules and strategy behind the game simply by pausing and rewinding the commentary. Andy, now a tournament professional, also tells how he moved from being an online player to travelling the world entering multi-table tournaments for significant amounts of money. Part 2 sees host Nick Oakley chat about his relationship with the game and how an interest which emerged several years ago has resurfaced recently after playing free-roll games with friends during lockdown. However, Nick faces the same challenges with the game now as he did 15 years ago - his aversion to gambling! Can he really cope with gambling his real money rather than playing the free-role games? Andy and Nick discuss the 'loaded' term of gambling, its negative connotations and how the game of poker relates to other forms of socially acceptable gambling, like investing in business opportunities and playing the lottery. In the final part of this opening episode, Nick and Andy discuss how many players, Nick included, may find it difficult not to get caught up in looking for short term rewards from the game. Instead, Andy suggests that success in poker involves a lot of study, patience and discipline with results judged over a span of several thousands of hands rather than individual sessions. Nick decides to move on from playing the free-roll games he has been playing recently and start playing for money online instead. Andy offers some basic strategy advice of playing tight and being aware of the different hands to play from the different positions around the table. So, with his first cash deposit ready to go - how will Nick get on playing for real money? Tune in next time to find out! Like the podcast so far? The best way to support us is by subscribing to the podcast and even saying nice things about us on a review on iTunes. If you want to get in touch, discuss a hand you played, or have a question for either Nick or Andy, you can contact us through the podcast Facebook group, via twitter @fishtofinal or email [email protected]. The Fish to Final Table Poker Podcast is an AOATV podcast production. Music by D6Bass - https://soundcloud.com/d6bass Online Artwork by NicethingsbyBella - https://www.instagram.com/nicethingsbybella/ Sounds by Zapsplat