When we created Fearless River, our goal was to help improve the games of poker players who love the game as much as we do.

We hear from students all the time about their progress at the tables, and some stories stay with us. Tazo and Shirley from Las Vegas wrote to tell us how studying poker together had changed their lives.

In Their Own Words

"My wife, Shirley, and I have more than 150 years combined. I am in my 71st year as a retired entrepreneur and Shirley is in her 81st year as a retired nurse and long-time Vegas resident.

I have dabbled at poker for a number of years. A few years ago Shirley asked me to teach her. I told her that poker takes a lot of work, and like the piano, not many take it up late in life… she took my casual comment as “fighting words” and immediately responded to the challenge! You need to know, Shirley helped her first husband host small family poker games in their basement more than forty years ago…she did the food and snacks…she never played…only the guys…some notable names...

I had books, some old DVDs, poker notes from over the years, but nothing coherent and certainly nothing presented in short digestible lessons. That’s when I tried your training on a weekly then monthly basis and for the last half year, I have subscribed for a year. The bottom line, playing and learning how to actually have a winning tournament poker "game" at our age has changed our lives dramatically!

We play at lower levels in Vegas, buy-ins in $80 to $250 ranges, but both cash consistently, in 30-35% range, and played 300+ tournaments last year. Since we both have some medical constraints…only occasionally do we attempt deeper stack tournaments. We have done quite well early last year at Binion’s when they had their $10,000 guaranteed for $160 buy-in. In the past few months, while Shirley has been recovering from a knee replacement, I have played deeper stack tournaments a few times a month at The Mirage, Aria, and The Venetian…but again in the $150 to $250 buy-in range.

We find that our elderly ailments and old age pains completely disappear when we are at a poker table focusing on Nick Binger's fundamental approach to understanding what is going on and how we can exploit situations.

Poker definitely keeps our mental game engaged and focused, not only do we love it, but clearly it is extremely healthy!

We thought that since most of your members are younger, you should know that there is a need for two old new revitalized poker players!

Thanks, Tazo and Shirley."

Why This Story Stands Out

Tazo and Shirley approached poker the right way: steady, modest study away from the table, consistent play and a lot of fun along the way. Their story is proof that it’s never too late to learn something new or to get better at it.

Congratulations, Tazo and Shirley! Thank you for sharing your story and keep on studying.