Women in US Poker: How the Ind...

For years, poker in the US has been a male-dominated area. Stroll into nearly any poker site and the stats again it up: solely about 5% of gamers are girls. In accordance with World Collection of Poker (WSOP) knowledge, simply 350 out of 8,569 entrants within the 2019 Principal Occasion have been girls — a mere 4.1%. Much more placing, solely 44 of them have been beneath the age of 30. Regardless of this, the tides are slowly however steadily turning. In July 2025, Spanish poker pro Leonor “Leo” Margets made headlines by changing into the primary lady to achieve the WSOP Principal Occasion ultimate desk since Barbara Enright in 1995. Margets completed seventh in a record-breaking discipline of 9,735 gamers, securing $1.5 million in winnings and as soon as once more proving girls belong on the highest stage of play.

However Margets’ deep run wasn’t only a private milestone; it’s a sign to the broader poker world. The sport is shifting. Ladies have gotten extra seen, extra vocal, and extra victorious. From Hollywood stars who double as expert gamers to female-founded startups utilizing poker as a device for profession development, the panorama is evolving. And ultimately, the poker trade is starting to catch up.

A New Form of US Poker Room: Inclusivity On-line and Off

One of many clearest indicators that poker is embracing its feminine viewers comes from the digital world. US poker platform Americas Cardroom is enjoying a pivotal function on this transformation. The positioning has actively labored to create a extra inclusive surroundings, each by illustration and philanthropy. In October 2024, Americas Cardroom hosted a charity poker match that raised $20,000 for the United Breast Cancer Foundation. Led by ambassadors like Katie Lindsay, Ebony Kenney, and Svitlana Dryha, the occasion was streamed reside, permitting the gamers to share not simply methods, however tales of what it means to be a lady within the sport.

However past charity, Americas Cardroom invests in equity and security, with anti-cheat know-how, superior bot detection, and authorized random quantity era to make sure a stage enjoying discipline. That’s not simply good enterprise; it’s reassurance for ladies who is likely to be cautious of coming into a historically male-dominated area. The platform has change into a welcoming hub for poker newcomers and seasoned professionals alike by specializing in participant well-being and illustration. This dedication to group and ethics starkly contrasts with poker’s advertising historical past. 

As famous in Vice, poker has lengthy leaned into gendered promoting, typically showcasing girls as fashions or equipment relatively than gamers. That alienation has a price. “When folks discuss girls in poker, they’re imagining all of the 20-something engaging professionals whose faces they’ve seen, and so they’re not imagining the huge quantities of middle-aged and retirement-aged girls who play,” defined Kara Scott, broadcaster and poker participant. Americas Cardroom’s technique provides a brand new playbook, one which acknowledges the total spectrum of feminine gamers and treats them as equals on the desk.

Poker as a Energy Ability: From the Felt to the Boardroom

Past the chips and playing cards, poker is proving to be an sudden however highly effective device for ladies within the enterprise world. Chicago entrepreneur Jenny Simply, featured in CBS Information and Time, is spearheading a motion to show a million girls tips on how to play poker, not for high-stakes tournaments, however for high-stakes careers. Her female-founded agency, Poker Energy, believes that studying the sport equips girls with the boldness, threat evaluation, and negotiation abilities typically required in management roles.

With girls nonetheless holding solely 28% of administration positions in the US, initiatives like Poker Energy purpose to shut that hole. The concept is straightforward however revolutionary: By studying tips on how to learn opponents, handle sources, and make daring but calculated choices beneath stress, girls can translate these abilities immediately into the boardroom. Poker turns into much less in regards to the playing cards and extra about management over conditions, stakes, and the self.

This technique has gained traction throughout faculty campuses, company retreats, and digital school rooms. It’s redefining poker not simply as a passion or profession path however as a life talent. Maybe extra importantly, it’s fostering a brand new era of girls who received’t want permission to take a seat down at any desk, poker or in any other case.

From Silver Screens to Card Tables: Redefining Femininity in Poker

Hollywood, too, has performed a stunning function in reshaping perceptions of girls in poker. Movies like Molly’s Recreation, primarily based on the real-life story of Molly Bloom, gave audiences a cinematic take a look at what it means for a girl to dominate in a world of high-stakes video games and higher-stakes egos. However it’s not simply fictional characters bringing consideration to girls in poker.

Actress and longtime poker participant Jennifer Tilly embodies the right hybrid of glamour and grit. An everyday on the match circuit with a World Collection of Poker bracelet to her title, Tilly challenges outdated notions that poker is a sport for males in hoodies. Her latest style second for the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills reunion —a liquid gold costume by Michael Schmidt Studios, which turned heads on the star-studded occasion — was a daring assertion that femininity and poker prowess aren’t mutually unique. She’s not the one one. From pink carpets to reside streams, girls are proudly owning their picture, their technique, and their highlight.

This visibility issues. In a world the place poker has lengthy been marketed as a masculine pursuit, seeing girls who’re each trendy and formidable helps rewrite the narrative. Poker isn’t an unique boys’ membership anymore; it’s a sport for anybody who needs to study, play, and win.

Closing the Hole, Elevating the Stakes

Leo Margets’ historic WSOP ultimate desk run was a wake-up name. Regardless of comprising only a fraction of the poker-playing inhabitants, girls are making it additional, louder, and smarter into the highlight. Because of platforms like Americas Cardroom, power-forward initiatives like Jenny Simply’s Poker Energy, and the affect of popular culture icons like Jennifer Tilly, girls are staking their declare in an trade that’s lastly prepared to satisfy them midway. Poker is evolving, and the ladies who love the sport are main the cost.