In Defense of Dealer Choice Poker Games

A Weekend Reflection: Poker and Life's Stage

I spent the weekend with my girls. They were dancing and singing to music videos on YouTube when, at some point, my older daughter turned to her younger sister and said, “Now it’s your solo, take the stage!” But the younger one didn’t care—she was just having fun with her older sister. The eldest, like many girls her age who dream of stardom (whether on TikTok or as an actress), was surprised at her reaction and kept pushing her to take the stage. This moment made me think about poker and my business. Specifically, the roles of recreational players, poker pros, and where my business fits in within my target audience.

The Journey to PokerCircle: A Fusion of Passion and Business

When I launched PokerCircle – Design Studio, it was the culmination of several paths crossing. In my teens, poker was a big part of my life. By age 16, I was playing twice a week, with my dad and his friends. By the age of 21, I was playing four times a week with 4 different groups, and was working as a freelance writer for an Israeli Poker blog that behind the scenes was promoting an online poker room for the Israeli audience, which at that time wasn’t familiar with Texas Hold’em and Omaha poker. A few months after starting this side gig, I realized that people liked my writing and I had a nice following, so I launched my own poker blog, and some money doing affiliate marketing. However, when credit card companies were ordered to block deposits to poker sites, I decided to close shop—something I still regret, I think that beyond the financial benefits I had from affiliate marketing, writing about poker kept my game in a constant path to improvement.

When I left home to study Political Science and Philosophy at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, I quit playing poker seriously. Occasionally, I’d join a circle, but I no longer maintained a bankroll or viewed poker as a form of income. Online poker was no longer available to Israeli’s and honestly I didn’t have the mental bandwidth to work on my game as seriously as I was used to.

Fast forward to when I got divorced: I found myself with free time again and a dire need for extra income. With joint custody, I suddenly had two or three no-obligation evenings each week. So, I rejoined one of my poker groups, who welcomed me back. GOD, I LOVE the game of poker. I love the challenge, the night out with friends, the discipline the game requires, and—most of all—I love tracking my progress. I’ve been keeping score of my poker journey since day one, and for me, it’s a tool for motivation and analysis.

A Time for Reflection: Poker and Life After October 7th, 2023

On October 7th, 2023, Hamas, a Muslim terrorist group, invaded Israel, killing, raping, and kidnapping Israelis and people from around the world who attended the Nova music festival. The attack started at 6:29 am, and by noon, I was at the base with my platoon. In Israel, some people are required to perform reserve duty after completing their mandatory army service. The next six months of my life were spent at a military base near Gaza—a long time, which provided me ample opportunity to reflect on my life choices.

I work for an NGO that promotes vocational training and encourages employers to hire and train minorities for high-paying jobs. During my time at the base, I reflected on the skills I bring to the workforce. What if my skills became obsolete, or I was no longer needed? What would happen if I were to be laid off in ten years, when I approach fifty? I remembered reading Rich Dad Poor Dad at 16, and the idea of building assets and sources of income for freedom appealed to me then—and now, it seems mandatory, especially as technology progresses rapidly.

In April 2023, still at the base, I enrolled in a remote course on Digital Marketing and PPC. I knew that whatever business I’d develop, marketing was a must-have skill. The course required us to find a business to offer our services to for free, but after a month, I decided to dedicate my time, guidance I was receiving and newly acquired skills to my own project—thus, PokerCircle – Design Studio was born. It’s an asset I’m proud of, even if I’m still unsure what it will grow into.

PokerCircle: Repurposing Passion into Business

I wanted to create a business centered on something I’m passionate about. Having poker as a serious hobby can feel conflicting with the many responsibilities of life: being a father of two, a full-time worker, a partner in a new relationship, and a friend trying to keep in touch with my circle. I wanted to repurpose the time I spent playing and studying poker to align with my business goals.

PokerCircle is a journey. It’s my personal journey toward becoming a better player, a business venture to learn new skills and showcase them, and a way to grow personally. It involves practicing daily habits, mindfulness, time management, creativity, overcoming fears, and finding my unique voice in a noisy world.

Poker as the Great Equalizer

One of the things I love about poker is that the felt is the great equalizer. Around the felt table, everyone has an equal chance of winning. But over time, skill—not luck—determines success. Poker is the perfect meritocracy. I’ve met people from all walks of life—business owners, lawyers, journalists, athletes, bus drivers, programmers, and more. Once seated at the poker table, it becomes a battle of skill and mental fortitude. Observing players, understanding what motivates them, what makes them tilt, and what helps them bounce back fascinates me. The more I play, the more I realize how much more I have to learn.

The Future of PokerCircle: Giving Back to the Poker Community

As I debate the future of PokerCircle, I keep asking myself: how can I give back to the poker community? My poker journey today evolves in two paths today – a weekly cash game and lately online poker. The reason to add online poker into my journey has several reasons. First, I want to diversify. I want to able to play 5 more hours a week profitably. Secondly, I want to learn more game theory. Unlike my weekly dealer choice, online poker has a lot of content and studying tools that can really upgrade my skill level. Be it books, podcasts, solvers, courses, blogs and what not… I believe that with daily dedication and constant improvement I can become a much more profitable player. Thirdly, though the math might be different poker theory remains the same, a lot of concepts that I learn in my research for the content I create here, serves me in my weekly game.

Giving back. Like my two daughters at beginning of this blog post, different folks want different things out of poker. Some want to become the players in the world or poker pros, and some just want to limit their losses at their weekly game with friends or just like dabbling with poker when they have a free evening. Poker has room for all types. In fact, poker wouldn’t be profitable if they weren’t recreational players. Poker as a business or a source of income would dry out and die.

So, in order to give back to the poker community and to players who might be in the start of their journey, I’ve started recording and uploading my online poker sessions to my YouTube channel, hoping they’ll be useful to those just beginning their poker journey.

After each session, I review my hand history and analyze it in blog posts. These are low-stakes MTTs, not high roller events, but it’s the start of a new chapter for me, and hopefully will add value to other players.

Lessons from University: Video for Growth

In university, I had a girlfriend working on her master’s in physiotherapy. Her thesis focused on using video recordings for rehabilitation. Her study divided participants into three groups, each exposed to different videos, and the group that showed the most improvement was the one that watched videos of people six months ahead in the rehab process. I found this concept fascinating.

Though we broke up before her research concluded, I find it valuable to post my own journey online, through videos and blog posts. Maybe, like in her study, seeing someone a few steps ahead can motivate someone else to embark on their own journey.

Dealer Choice Poker: A Defense

I recently posted on Reddit’s poker community about dealer choice games and my interest in studying MTTs. The response to dealer choice was overwhelmingly negative. People said it wasn’t "real poker" and lacked skill. I disagree.

What Is Poker?

What separates poker from gambling is decision-making based on partial information—your opponent's hidden cards and future cards to come. It’s a turn-based game that often includes an ante or forced bet, forcing players to wager with imperfect odds.

Dealer Choice Poker Requires Real Skill

Dealer choice games share the same skill set as more popular forms of poker, including calculating EV (expected value), card odds, implied odds, pot odds, mental toughness, bet sizing, and positional play. Unlike more standardized versions of poker, dealer choice players must figure things out themselves, which adds excitement and challenge.

The Drawbacks of Dealer Choice Games

Dealer choice games can be overwhelming for newcomers. Because the games are so varied and unstandardized, you must learn on the fly. And while many skills are transferable across poker variants, the learning curve can be steep. Another downside is availability—dealer choice games are hard to find compared to regular casino poker, making it tough to find a consistent group or stakes.

What’s Next for PokerCircle?

My vision for PokerCircle is to be home and community to people who love poker. To provide educational content tailored to both the recreational poker player and the player who wishes to elevate their game. I’ll be offering poker themed apparel and accessories and hopefully in the future collaborate with others in poker industry to provide more value in different ways.

Since dealer choice is the main form of poker I play, and there’s so little information available on it, I will be discussing this topic across my various channels: YouTube, Instagram, and here on the blog. Stay tuned as we explore the depths of this exciting niche in the poker world. But, I’ll also be sharing my online poker journey that will be helpful to players at the start of their journey.

Thanks for reading and I’ll meet you at the tables.

Alon Marcus