Al Montero didn’t know a lot about poker when he started playing regularly in 2014. “I was familiar with Texas Hold ’Em and nothing else,” the political science professor recalls. He then joined a group of Carleton faculty and staff members—and, on occasion, their spouses—who gather off campus once a month to play a few hands. The stakes are low ($20 or less), and shop talk is discouraged.
“Imagine playing with economists, psychologists, physicists, mathematicians, and sociologists—everyone brings a different approach to the table,” says Montero, noting that some members of the group have been playing poker with Carleton colleagues since the 1970s. But no one’s academic discipline ensures a winning hand. “Poker is the great equalizer,” Montero observes with evident delight.
Psychology professor Neil Lutsky, who has played with the group for decades, says the character and nature of the groups and rivalries have changed over the years. “But the games we tend to play repeatedly—People’s Choice, Pass the Trash, Pushy Pushy—are steadfast.”
This spring, COVID-19 forced players to convene online. “I find it differently enjoyable [to play] online,” says Lutsky. “It’s a nice opportunity to see folks I don’t get to see around campus or town these days. However, the game itself is played at a snail’s pace due to challenges of managing the software commands.”
Montero notes that tells and bluffs are hard to discern online. But the game provides a respite from everyday worries—or yet another Net ix night. “The game takes your focus,” he says, “and that’s a tonic in itself.”