A Veteran's Take on Two Decades of Change
Poker historian and longtime industry voice Lee Jones has penned a thoughtful retrospective asking whether the game is genuinely better today than it was during the mid-2000s explosion in popularity — and his answer leans toward yes, though with important nuances.
What's Improved
Jones points to several meaningful shifts in the poker landscape since the boom era:
- Cheating and integrity — The community's awareness of angle-shooting and collusion has grown substantially, and platforms have invested more heavily in detection tools and enforcement.
- Training and education — Resources for improving at the game have never been more accessible, from solver software to coaching marketplaces, leveling the playing field for serious students.
- Culture and inclusivity — The table atmosphere has trended toward being safer and more welcoming, with greater representation across gender and background than the game historically offered.
A Useful Reality Check
What makes Jones's piece worth reading is that it resists pure nostalgia on both ends. The boom years brought an enormous wave of enthusiasm and new faces to the felt, but they also came bundled with loose norms around conduct and a Wild West feel that wasn't always healthy for the community long-term.
From a FeltIQ perspective, this is a conversation the poker world benefits from having openly. Progress in culture, integrity infrastructure, and education doesn't happen by accident — it reflects sustained pressure from players, operators, and commentators willing to hold the game to a higher standard. Jones, who has been around long enough to remember what before looked like, is a credible voice to make that case.
Whether you lived through the boom or discovered poker more recently, this retrospective offers a grounded framework for thinking about where the game has been — and where it still has room to grow.