I see a lot of blog posts about poker gifts that randomly throw in poker chips and all that stuff. This is not the way. Most poker players don’t even use poker chips, and if they do, they already have a set. Don’t bother.
What poker gifts do poker players want now? They want poker training, cool apparel (that isn’t cheesy), tools for playing better online, poker software, lessons, or even a bigger bankroll to their favorite poker sites.
Don’t fall into the trap of getting your person a garbage poker gift. Follow this guide for the best of the best poker stuff, and maybe even what to get a poker player for Christmas this 2022.
Here is what I would want as a poker player.
Poker Training / Membership Site Subscription
These poker training sites can be expensive but look, your person probably wants to improve at poker and crush the competition for lots of money. In fact, you probably want the same thing. This is a win-win situation.
You can and should consider this as the best possible option. Very often these sites have monthly memberships, but sometimes they offer a one-time payment or even an annual option.
Depending on your poker player’s skill level, you will want to look for basic, intermediate, or advanced course/sites as the differentiator. One of the intermediate or advanced ones that I suggest is the Pokercode training by Fedor Holz for tournament players.
Mouse for Poker
When I posed this question in my private poker chat group, I got 4 answers giving me the same mouse to use for poker.
The Logitech G502 HERO High-Performance Wired Gaming Mouse. You can get it from Amazon for a pretty good price, to be honest and I’ve heard really good things. https://www.amazon.com/Logitech-G502-Performance-Gaming-Mouse/dp/B07GBZ4Q68/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?keywords=logitech+g502&qid=1656733109&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEzT0I4VDdXNlNMMFRYJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwOTc1NTk0MVZBRkdUUUVUWDgwMyZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUExMDM3MzUxMldZR1Q3V0FKUks4UCZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=
But you can also go with a higher-tech gaming mouse to aid with the online poker player’s needs. To be honest I don’t think you need anything crazy from a mouse to help you with online poker but it would be cool to set a couple of hotkeys to the mouse for ease of use.
Dual Monitor Attachment for Laptops
One of the biggest pains is multi-tabling poker on a tiny 15” laptop screen monitor. Honestly, this is one of the best poker gifts you could get them if they play on a laptop. This not only comes in handy as a poker gift but as a super-handy accessory in general.
Some of these have got way better over the last couple years so check this one out and get your person a dope attachment they actually love.
This is one of the ones I saw on Amazon, no affiliate link I just wanted to show you what I meant.
Poker Database Software
This might be something that your poker player already has. This might also be something that they can’t use where they play poker online. For example, GGPoker doesn’t allow Poker HUDs (Heads up displays).
You might need to do a little digging. Using the word HUD and asking if your person uses a HUD is great lingo and they will likely know what you are talking about. There are generally 3 to choose from so I’ll keep it simple from best to worst:
- PokerTracker 4
- Holdem Manager 2
- Jivarro
GTO Solver
This is the ultimate poker gift. While some are expensive one-time purchases, there are some other decent monthly options available these days that do about the same job.
Essentially a GTO Poker Solver is a program on your computer that will run through millions of calculations for a given situation and tell you exactly what the correct play is based on Game Theory Optimal play. If both players are playing perfectly then this would be the correct move.
Using a solver to study a given spot and understanding why the solver chose this action is imperative to growing as a player in 2022. People will often use it as a baseline in order to figure out how to deviate from that spot if the other player is playing a different type of way.
Check out Piosolver as the most popular option, or my favorite GTOWizard as an alternative.
Poker Training App
There are a few poker training apps out on the market that either use GTO-based information or AI to help you learn to play poker better and more profitably. Some you can use on your phone like the DTO Poker App by Dom Nitsche.
You also have options like Poker Snowie or WPT Trainer which use AI to train their app to be more profitable and you can learn some cool things from those apps as well.
Poker Site Deposit / Straight Cash
This one might seem a bit more obvious but is probably the least given for poker players. I bet you the average poker player would want to add money to their bankroll or have a little money extra to take a shot at a tournament they wouldn’t normally play.
This has got to be the most obvious. But it’s also the one with the least amount of gift-giving potential because you would have to either give cash or a prepaid gift card that is eligible to be deposited into their site of choice.
Poker Shirts
I see a lot of really cheesy poker shirts these days all over the web. It seems that the people who make these types of shirts are extremely out of touch with what poker players find cool or edgy. A lot of the sayings are super cringe like “Know when to hold em” type garbage.
When I think of a dope poker shirt, I think of how I would wear it away from the poker table to represent my hobby in a public environment. Something subtle but cool enough so that another ACTUAL poker player would notice and strike up a conversation potentially.
One of my favorite brands that have cool poker shirts and poker apparel is Raiser Clothing. They aren’t all cheesy which is a bonus.
Poker Hoodies
The same can be said for poker sweatshirts as well, to be honest.
Gaming Chair for More Comfortable Online Poker
This can also get expensive but I’ll never forget what I heard poker podcaster and professional PLO player say about the best chair for playing poker. This is coming from a guy who never left his chair and peed in a bottle because he was too buy grinding poker. He also bought 4 of these chairs for each place he lived around the world so he could have it there all the time.
It’s the Ikea Markus chair which runs about $200+. This is an extremely ergonomic and comfortable gaming chair and poker players seem to love it. While there are more pricey other gaming chairs available, I just remember Joe saying how much he loves this one, and I’ve never looked back after that.
PokerGo Subscription
PokerGo is like Netflix for poker, and they very often have the only live coverage for specific events. Meaning that if you want to watch the WSOP live for certain events then you need to have a subscription to PokerGo.
Luckily, it’s pretty cheap less than $10/month or something like that. You can get them a pretty cool gift and they will enjoy hours of poker content.
Poker Glasses
I don’t usually wear glasses at the table so this might be a little bit of a cop-out. But I know some players do like to wear their shades inside, and you might as well get a comfy pair if you’re person is going to wear them.
Also, keep in mind you don’t want to get glasses that have a mirror-like reflection on the outside as Kim Kardashian did at a poker tourney or the other players might be able to see the reflection of your cards via the glasses. (Mind blown).
Tattoo Gift Card
This one borders the cheesy line, and usually, poker tattoos can be extremely cringe. However, there are some minimal tattoos that can portray our interest in this competitive hobby without coming off tacky.
So make sure your person is not going to use this gift card for a giant ace of spades on his forearm and say he has an ace up his sleeve, or you should move on to a different option from this list.
Buy Them into a Local Poker Tournament
This is actually one of my favorite. This could range in price. Just do a quick search for poker tournaments in your area and see if there are any series coming up. If not, then there will often be daily poker tournaments at local casinos around your area.
If it’s a bit of a drive then you can consider getting them a cheap hotel room and a ticket to the tournament for the nice little vacay. This would be so appreciated by anyone in the poker world. This is the type of poker gift that would show that person you care. This is a thoughtful gift that requires a tiny bit of legwork.
Poker Coaching / Lessons 1-on-1
This would be an expensive one that would probably get up there in pricing. Although there are a few options you could go with in terms of getting a package of like 3 lessons to start or something like that.
Poker coaching is not few and far between, there are so many different options.
One of the main things you need to consider is whether or not your person plays tournaments or cash games. Usually, it’s one or the other. Whichever they play you want to find a coach that specializes in those areas.
Poker Card Cover
This one is one of the more popular options for crappy affiliate poker sites as they can just point you to an Amazon page and get paid out commissions on your click. But this is still a decent budget poker gift that doesn’t require much legwork and it’s still kinda cool.
The cool thing about a poker card cover is that they don’t actually need to be poker-related at all. You could use a tiny rock that holds special meaning to you. So I’m not going to point you in any direction. I see people with gems and things that hold sentimental value.
Sharkscope Subscription
Sharkscope is a website that gives you access to the other player’s profits and losses for their specific username on that poker site. You can choose to opt-in or out so this is not always available. But it’s a really cool site that also allows you to look at the players with the most profit and what type of tournaments they play, how their statistics look, and so on and so forth. This is a really cool subscription and it’s not very expensive either.
They also have a HUD option that attaches to the poker site they’re playing on so that can sometimes be integrated and used at the online tables as well.
A Trip to Vegas During the WSOP
You don’t need to buy them a 10k ticket to the main event, you could just opt for a flight to Las Vegas while the tournament is happening. This would allow them to decide if they want to play in a cheap tournament while they’re there, play some cash games, or just go and watch the pros play. Maybe get a few pictures with some of the greats and soak in the experience for a future trip to actually play the event. This is something you could join them for as well.
Poker Books
While poker books have taken a backseat to many of the video training sites available these days, there are still some super valuable books to be read or consumed through audio. When I first started playing in 2004, this is how I started learning. I read Doyle Brunson Super System and David Sklansky’s books and Harrington’s books as well.
There are now a lot of garbage books made by authors who don’t have a Hendon mob database, but there are some really good books made by professionals who do a deep dive into what it takes to be a professional poker player.
Poker Related Art
Most poker players would love some minima art in their house that represents their hobby of playing cards. This might not be the classic dogs playing poker type of art, but it might be some abstract or minimal type art of poker-related imagery.
A lot of the art I have in my house is just on canvas. I find cool pictures of super high-quality that I like and then I use something like Canvas Fly to get them printed onto Canvas for a budget. This is usually super easy and comes out extremely well.
If you are feeling optimistic you can even get a small pattern created for a few different options available.
Stress Ball
Any stress ball works really. Something squishy so that they can squeeze out their extreme frustration from getting sucked out on the river by some donkey right at the bubble of a major tournament.
