Georgina ‘GJ Reggie’ James is a former PokerStars Team Pro and mixed-game poker enthusiast from the UK who regularly streams poker and video games on her Twitch channel. This month, she’s been back on the road and playing some interesting variants of poker…
I’ve just arrived home after a whirlwind three weeks away and I’ve barely recovered from the late nights, social gatherings, poker playing and the wounds to my wallet.
The poker results were woeful, to say the least, nevertheless I had a great time catching up with friends, meeting new people and playing at some of my favorite stops of the year.
Back to the Norwegian Championships
It’s my third year attending the series in Bratislava and, while the only event I managed to cash was a single PLO tournament, I enjoyed being back on the live felt for the first time since EPT Prague.
I am incredibly fond of this series and the Norwegian poker community has always been friendly and welcoming. They know how to put on a series, have fun and have a lot of strong competitors too.
The series always hosts a plethora of mixed games, including some very, very niche formats like pot-limit Badugi double draw as well as a 6-Game Mystery Bounty. The Norwegians have a well known love for mixed games, of course, so it seemed only fitting that this was the event at which some very promising news was shared…
iPoker is getting mixed games!
An announcement was made during the series that the iPoker network is aiming to complete the development of mixed games by the end of this year. The offering would then be rolled out to the various operators thereafter, pending regulatory approvals, in the hopes that it would be available across the network a few months into 2026.
There are not that many options when it comes to playing mixed games online, with PokerStars being the main port of call. However, more recently — seeing the likes of Phenom Poker getting involved and now iPoker looking to join the fray — it's clear there are operators investing in this space.
I look forward to being able to jump in the games and excited to see how it all turns out.
I love mixed games (and apparently so does everyone else!)
The mixed events at the Irish Open were booming and it was really great to be a part of that. They created the perfect storm for their success, putting the events at exactly the right price point to entice new players and mixed fans alike. The schedule timing meant you could play all the games over a few days and there weren’t any clashes with other side events, while the well-structured tournaments allowed for plenty of play, even if you max-late-regged.
The turnouts for the mixed events surpassed even the most optimistic of expectations and proved that, when done right, there is a big appetite for these events during a series schedule.
I’ve always said that mixed events are more fun, friendly and welcoming than any other and in Dublin I feel I was proved right. Sharing tables with plenty of familiar faces, as well as getting to know some new people, by the end of my series everyone — players, dealers and live reporters alike — were all asking ‘Do you have any more of those stickers?’ (see below!).
Shoutout to my Brazilian friends Pedro Barossi and José ‘Rádio’ Heraldo for building such a strong mixed games community in Brazil and spreading that love internationally with their ‘I <3 Mixed Games’ patches!
I’m incredibly hopeful that these formats are going to continue to grow within the poker world, both in the live and online sphere, and look forward to more operators and tournament organisers adding these games. Everyone loves mixed games, you just have to give it a chance!
SCOOP is closing in
As for now though, I’m home to rest and prepare for the upcoming SCOOP shenanigans.
It’s at the same time every year and somehow always manages to come at me sooner than expected. It’s less than a month until online championship season and I’m still chasing that first illustrious ‘COOP’ title.
My plan is to stick to the low and medium buy-in tiers, perhaps trying to satellite into the events at the top of that range too. I will be playing mostly just the mixed games and trying my hand at the PLO. I’ll aim to have a good routine throughout the series, making sure I get some exercise, eat and sleep well, so I’m going to start working on that now.
Before that, though, there’s the chance to dabble in the SCOOP Warm-Up Series to get myself back into the online grind too. Playing mixed games on the road is great fun, but so is playing online. And hopefully soon with a few more options!
You can follow GJ Reggie on Instagram and X, watch her streams on Twitch and more video content on her YouTube channel.
Images courtesy of Rational Intellectual Holdings Ltd/Danny Maxwell Photography/Mickey May/Norwegian Poker Championship/Vojta Kubec.
