Author: Mar Part 1 As I sit in my chair to write this article, I pause to reflect on the many changes this wonderful game of cards full of skill, mental strategies, and art of bluffing came to be. At one point this game was associated with the men of the west sitting in saloons filled with smoke, liquor, and loud saloon music. Your poker life depended on whether or not you had the quickest gun to prove you had the best hand. From there, it eventually developed into a wealthy man's game, one that depended on your status, and name for the outcome. Through the centuries, poker has transcended and with each transformation, there have been new elements brought into the game. So here we are in 2008, and once more poker has transcended it's self into one of the largest markets available to mankind. Everyone plays poker these days. If you do not play poker, you are sure to get one of the many forms of " You don't play poker?!?" comments. One of the elements of the game that has changed, and where my primary focus will be, is women playing poker.  These women, who play what has always been known as "The Man's Game", have broken through the barriers, and are faced with a whole other set of challenges to their game. So what is it like to be a woman playing poker? Well since I can only speak for myself, that is exactly what I'll do. I love playing poker. I love the challenge of out witting someone off their hand, stealing that big pot, going to a showdown and winning. I am sure that every one who plays poker will say the same thing. So what is it that makes it extra special for me?  I am a woman playing poker, more often than not at a table of all males. I see it all the time when I am playing poker. When I sit at a table, I immediately get comments like "Easy Money", "Won't take long for me to get your chips", "Just give me your chips", and  "Make it easy on yourself". The respect level that is given to a woman poker player is undoubtedly much less, then to any man that sits in a poker chair, whether he is a good poker player or not. This forces me to be much better at my game then they are, as well as to remember that often their comments reflect the type of game they play. This type of attitude also forces me to work twice as hard to prove that I as a woman poker player deserve their respect just as any other man would. This huge task is next to impossible, unless you have played the same men over and over again with consistent good plays that take out other players (male or female), or plays that have taken a bite out of their chip stack again and again. So just how can we as women poker players earn the respect of men as being a great poker player? Well the first thing to understand is that some men out there will never regard a woman poker player as great poker players. They will always label you as a great "woman" poker player. For those types of men, that is the greatest level of respect you can earn, and they do regard you in the same select circle of great men poker players, they just choose to deem you a "great woman poker player".  I can live with that. That means they have come to realize that my game is as every bit as good and sometimes even better than theirs. There are other men that look at women poker players and say she's a good player, I'd watch out for her. These men have obviously played you before, and have either seen, or learned the hard way that we can be just as good as our male counter parts. They will always regards poker players as poker players with no differentiation between sexs.  A+ for them! Then there is the rest of the male poker world! These are the one's that just don't think we as women can play, or maybe they just think we shouldn't play. This is where you'll find it the hardest to gain respect as a woman poker player. Again I can not say it enough, we do this through good solid poker playing, taking out other players, consistently hitting the final table, and placing in the games we play. We work continually not only to better our own games, but to earn the mutual respect of our male counter parts. So can it be done?  After 4 years of playing poker I can say that for me YES it can be done! I have long ago come to the conclusion that there will always be men out there that will not give any respect to women poker players. They will always think that women poker players are stupid, and an easy target to get money. These types of men I have taken out of tournaments several times, and with great satisfaction given their comments to me. But the purest victory I get from playing poker is hearing a male counter part say, "She's a great player", "She's a great woman poker player", "Watch out, she'll take your money!" among others. These comments reflect to me that as a woman playing poker I have been accepted and regarded with the mutual respect that I have worked so very hard for, and have earned with every hand I play. Until next time, Mar