Journal Record, The (Oklahoma City): Interest in all gambling-related items increases since the adve

The chips are stacking higher, interest is growing and prospective poker players have a head start on the game before they even sit down.

The business of poker is growing.

No bluffing.

A stroll through Lucky's Poker Shop at SW 89th Street and Western Avenue lends proof there's more to this game than just a $1 deck of cards and some chips taken out of a decrepit game box buried deep in the closet.

This is a big money game, in more ways than one.

In the year since Lucky's opened, poker players big time and small have found their way to the shop owned by Bob VanEtten.

Bobby VanEtten, manager of the store and son of the owner, said hot summer days don't make for the busiest of times. But once the weather turns cooler, the players will be out in full force looking for equipment.

Poker most definitely has gained in popularity, especially since they started showing a lot of it on ESPN, VanEtten said. It's been on television some since the 1970s, but it really got big in 2003.

It's the challenge and mind power that lure players into the game, he said.

It's a fun game, but it's hard, he said. There's a lot to learn before you can play.

The customers at Lucky's aren't just those with mustaches, stone- face looks and stogies.

We get everybody in here, he said. There are young kids that come in and look and we have had older women in here.

Lucky's sells all the components necessary for a poker game, including the basic knowledge.

The most popular book is Super Systems by Doyle Brunson, he said. It's really kind of the Bible of poker.

Lucky's has a series of books by Brunson, plus others, as well as a cadre of instructional videos.

Mike Caro's Pro Poker Tales is probably our more popular DVD, he said.

The DVD and book collection covers all the popular variances of poker, such as Texas Hold 'Em, Omaha, Seven-Card Stud and others.

Poker is not a game in which you just walk in cold.

It takes a lot of brain power, he said. It's a hard game because you have to know how to read your opponents. The cards actually don't matter that much.

The popularity of poker has been buoyed by television. The World Series of Poker last year on ESPN drew an average of 1.5 million households for each night of the 22-part series - an increase of 42 percent from the network's series in 2003. Only NASCAR and the NFL had better ratings last year on the network.

ESPN is not alone. Many cable networks, mostly notably The Travel Channel, have boosted their ratings by showing poker - even celebrity poker.

Like many hobbies, you can spend what you want when it comes to game readiness. Chip and card sets range from $75 to $600, and poker tables can go for more than $1,000. The stores also have a multitude of T-shirts and ball caps that scream out a customer's interest in the game.

Lucky's certainly doesn't corner the market on poker gear.

Every place has chip sets now, VanEtten said. I even saw some at an Ace Hardware when I was out one day.

Other major retailers have joined in the poker craze. Wal-Mart and Target stores have displays, as do grocery stores, gift shops and miscellaneous businesses in malls. Video shops and bookstores also have benefited from poker's popularity.

Sandy See, community relations director at Barnes & Noble Booksellers at May and Memorial, said poker is becoming a big player in the sales of books and other merchandise.

There has been more interest in all gambling-related items, especially since the advent of TV poker games, See said. Poker sets are very popular and we have rearranged part of the store for games. There has been an increase in sales, and it's the younger customers and families that are showing more interest. It has expanded beyond what you might consider the traditional card player.