After reading the article below, I can hear the Gopher Rouser with a hats off to thee in the background as University of Minnesota college students fling cards at each other during pick up games across the campus. Probably a hundred times more fun then watching their football team right now on Saturday afternoons.

As a lifelong resident of Minnesota, its great to see that poker still isn't "just a fad" and the internet poker boom despite the sneaky acts of Congress, haven't slowed down players love for the game. Matt Wehner wrote recently about the sprawling poker action across Dinkytown and also gave some great tips on where to find a game for yourself even off campus.

Outside of the CPN, students throughout the Twin Cities and St. Paul campuses have many poker options available to them, some of which are new this year and already seeing great success. The Sportsman Bar and Grill holds two free tournaments on Sundays and Mondays, with the first session starting at 7pm and the second at 10pm. The tournaments are free to enter, though you must be at least 21 years old to be admitted. These tournaments mostly serve as a great time for friends to get together, drink, and play poker, but they do offer up bar tabs as prizes for the top finishers.

Students should also make sure to check out www.twincitiespoker.com for regularly scheduled events and tournaments. The site features schedules for weekly tournaments at bars located around the Twin Cities, plus forums where players can find ring games and tournaments and discuss events. The site has a massive amount of information on freerolls, so if you're a student just trying to find a fun, cheap way to play or learn, this site has an event for you.

I definitely fall into the "looking for a game" category in the Twin Cities, as I've been searching for a nice home game which would be high enough stakes to keep me interested, yet low enough so I don't have to tell the wife her new kitchen will have to wait until 2011 when I've finally paid off my marker.

Check out Matt's article here at Pokernews.com