Before poker vlogs were everywhere, Andrew Neeme was setting the standard—turning the daily grind of live cash games into a digital movement that reshaped poker media.
In this edition of Inside the Poker Circles—a series spotlighting the personalities, strategies, and stories behind some of the game’s most compelling players, drawn from the upcoming book Between the Blinds: Interviewing Poker Professionals by Sara O’Connor (arriving this fall)—we reconnect with the original poker vlogger whose creative vision put a new face on the modern game.
From navigating the swings of Las Vegas poker rooms to building a loyal global following, Neeme has done more than document hands—he’s captured the heartbeat of poker and inspired a new generation of players and creators.
In this interview, Andrew shares the roots of his journey, the evolution of poker content, and what keeps his passion alive for both the camera and the cards.
Do you remember your first time playing? If so, what was it like?
I don’t remember the exact first time I ever played poker. But I remember returning back to Michigan in 2004 from London, where I had been working for the previous year. My little brother Jonathan had gotten into play-money online poker, which was booming at the time (alongside the real cash version).
He showed me the platform and I thought it was hilariously fun, playing a card game against other people. I was intrigued by the fact that people were playing this for dollars, from the comfort of their couch, and winning.
It would take me a while to figure out the winning part. But a lot of fun was had, splashing around as a fish along the way.
Where is your favorite place to play and why?
I’ll sound like a shill when I give the obvious answer, but it’s an honest one: I’ve never played in a friendlier poker room than the Lodge in Austin, TX.
On top of that, the action is awesome, both in the stream room and on the main floor. I had heard from so many people before becoming a part of the ownership group that it was their favorite place to play. It truly is a special place.
If I have to give another answer, it becomes a bit tougher to answer. The Wynn in Las Vegas is unbeatable for its mix of professionalism and personability. But a lot of rooms offer very similar things: poker tables, cards, chips, and dealers.
Traveling around to different locations and enjoying the cities where these rooms feel like home is one of the best things about poker.
What’s your personality like on the felt?
Despite broadcasting myself to hundreds of thousands of people via my YouTube channel, I’m actually an introvert. On top of that, I’m really not competitive at all. This is a tough combo to overcome at the poker table, because poker can be extremely competitive, and also a social game.
I think I also picked up a lot of bad habits coming up as a poker pro in Las Vegas.
There are so many visitors who come through Vegas; they hang out for a couple of days and have some laughs, before leaving to go back home, never to be seen again. Rotate and repeat every single week of the year.
For a long time, there was very little reason to feel the need to “entertain” the non-pros at the table. This was especially true for me at the lower stakes games, where the player churn was the highest. So, you could very easily get away with essentially being mute–a little grinder robot, grinding out a win rate.
This is, probably, still true at the lower stakes, up to $5/$5. Beyond that, I would strongly suggest trying one’s best to be accommodating to the recreational players. And it has become absolutely mandatory if you want to be able to play in the best games, all of which are private now.
I’ve learned about how different of a scene mid-stakes levels are in Texas, compared to what I was doing (or not doing) in Las Vegas. And I’m very much working on being a better host at the table.
Do you ever drink or smoke when playing? If so, how, if at all, does it affect your game?
If there was a mistake that one could make at the table when I was starting my “professional poker career”, then I was there to make it. In the early days, I indulged in the free cocktails too many times.
Nowadays, I usually won’t, but if we’re playing on stream at the Lodge, then, again, I’m happy to host and partake.
If you’re trying to play your best, you probably shouldn’t. If you want to play your B- game and be a good host, then it’s not the worst idea, to a point, especially if you’re an introvert like me.
How do you not let past successes affect your current play?
Winner’s tilt is a real thing. It’s easy to assume that poker will be easy, and the correct cards will fall when you’ve just come off of a big score. The best thing to do is to rely on what studying and theory has taught you. Discipline is important.
When you go on a losing period, do you begin to question if you still have an edge? What do you do to re-prepare yourself for next time?
I think one would have to be a very special breed of human to never question themselves when things are going wrong Those types of questions have come up countless times for me over the years.
In fact, even though I think I have access to fairly good games a large amount of the time, I still think there’s a decent chance I could go on either a horrendous downswing and/or just get my clock cleaned by good poker players in the near future.
Again, the only thing that will keep you on the right path is studying and poker theory. The game is ever-evolving, particularly in the way that your opponents are thinking.
Information continues to become more accessible to more and more people. You have to make sure that you’re taking some level of that information in, that you’re coming in to play each day with a clear and rested head, and with a bankroll that can sustain the standard deviations.
Any favorite moments when playing?
So many hours blended together, it’s tough to pick out individual moments. But I would say my recent favorite moments have come from the Lodge.
When we launched the partnership and had a “Monster Meet Up Week,” the room was completely packed with every table in use, and it was absolutely buzzing. Just an incredible vibe.
Another instance was when we relaunched the stream with a sparkling brand-new studio, and I played the biggest poker games of my life so far. Winning in those games certainly helps, as far as the memories go.
I also got to sit next to Doyle Brunson at a Meet Up Game at the Wynn. To have him in attendance at a poker event concept that I had created was absolutely surreal and incredible. To sit next to him, introduce myself, and get dealt into some poker hands together… just a dream.
What’s something you wish you were told when you started playing?
Um, everything? Have I mentioned that I made basically every mistake in the book?? Here’s a list, for starters:
- Don’t spend too much money while grinding the low stakes
- Play a lot, and also study a lot
- Build a network of fellow poker players to share hands with, discuss poker life, etc.
- Don’t have drinks at the table
- Don’t play casino games in the pit
The thing is, I probably knew a lot, if not all of these things, without anybody standing next to me and telling me so. But until you’re ready to really put in the work that success requires, it won’t matter.
What is the most valuable thing you’ve learned in life as a whole and since becoming a celebrity card player?
Other people are everything. Everyone from your network of fellow players, to your loved ones rooting you on, to the ones you celebrate the good times with. This is just a card game. It is completely meaningless without having people around you, away from the tables, along the way.
If you were starting now from scratch (nobody knew who you were and you had the knowledge of when you started), do you think you could get to where you’re at now? If so, how would you do it?
No. When I first started, I was playing online, which was infinitely easier back then. It also gave me the delusion that just because I somewhat easily won about $40,000 in online cash games, that I would somewhat easily be able to do that playing live, low-stakes poker, and not have to take it all that seriously.
It would be much tougher to do that and eventually break through without the delusional experience of having already done it online.
Where do you see yourself in five to ten years?
If you asked me this ten years ago, there would be zero chance I’d have been able to predict where we are today–a YouTube channel of ~200k subs, and two card clubs in Texas.
Hopefully in five to ten years we’ll have a few additional clubs under the Lodge brand, my wife and I will have a child, and we’ll all have our health.
