Isn’t poker an amazing game? One where you can sit at a table with eight strangers, all from different backgrounds, sometimes backgrounds that you’d never guess in a million years.
One such player is 43-year-old Nigel Castle of Brighton, East Sussex. When we reached out of the partypoker UK Community Forum for people willing to chat with the partypoker blog, Nigel was one of the many people who put his hand up and stepped forward, offering his fellow partypoker players a glimpse of his life.
Aside from poker, which he has played for nine years, Nigel’s other passion is music. “I write songs and perform locally, mostly rap music. I used to be a DJ, so music is in my blood.”
A singer-songwriter, rapping poker player. See what I mean about poker giving you the opportunity to meet some interesting people?
Back to poker, and Nigel has been a regular feature at the partypoker tables for the best part of six years, citing the interaction between players, the variety of games and bonuses as the main reason for his lengthy stay. The Poker For The People project is something that sits well with Nigel, who says to improve the online poker experience he would “ban all of the HUDs, apps, and hand histories.”
It seems Nigel, your wishes are coming true.
Nigel spends most of his time at partypoker playing in multi-table tournaments, leaving sit & gos and cash games to others.
“I love lots of players to play against because it always varies the play on the table and just when you’re getting used to everyone’s style of play; you’re moved seats, so it keeps you on your toes at all times, which I believe makes me a sharper player.”
Citing Daniel Negreanu as his favourite player, Nigel tries to emulate the Canadian pro by being friendly and enjoying his time at the tables, engaging in banter with his fellow players. It is something that paid off recently when he finished third in a $10,000 guaranteed tournament at partypoker after winning the buy-in thanks to being chosen as the best answer in a caption competition on the partypoker Facebook page.
Banter and chatting aside, Nigel and his friends add a new dynamic to their home games in the form of a game they call Middle Cardzee. The brainchild of Nigel’s friend, Adam Benson, players choose a specific card at the start of their game. Say someone chooses the 
and a [3x] is the middle card on the flop, everyone at the table pays a small bonus to the player who chose that card. Should the middle card on the flop be the exact card chosen, in this example the , everyone pays the same bonus multiplied five times. While this feature isn’t available at partypoker, it seems like a fun twist to hold’em if you’re playing at home with friends.
You’ll be able to sit down with Nigel in the live poker world if you’re planning on heading to the Amex Stadium in Brighton in July 2016 when the Grand Prix Poker Tour heads there, as Nigel progressed to Day 2 via a Players Choice Day 1 and has opted to play on home soil. Be sure to check out the Players Choice satellites in the partypoker lobby if you want to head to Brighton, or the next leg at Stamford Bridge.
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