Being tabbed as the face of PokerStars’ Twitch streaming efforts might seem like quite a hurdle for most poker players. But Nick Walsh is ready for the challenge.
The site recently named Walsh as a new ambassador, zeroing in on his role as a streamer for the company. He takes over the PokerStars Twitch channel and has promised plenty of new ideas for poker fans.
“I feel honored,” Walsh told PokerScout about his new role. “I’m also very excited at what this opportunity allows me to accomplish alongside the poker community. I’ve got some really cool ideas that I think the viewers are going to enjoy, and now working with PokerStars I’ve got the resources to try some of them out.”
Big plans for PokerStars streaming
For the last two years, Walsh streamed as a member of OP-Poker, but now takes the microphone on the main Stars channel. PokerStars describe his personality as charismatic and he hopes to let his passion for the game come out.
Poker fans can look for traditional poker fare on the channel and he plans to stream and offer advice for events like:
- Neymar Jr Kick-Off tournaments
- Spin & Go’s
- Multi-table tournaments
Viewers can also look for more non-traditional poker content as well from Walsh.
“I am also very keen to get more guests into the weekly schedule, adding more variety to the already successful stream content,” he says. “These ‘weekly’ streams will take place most Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, and we’ve already started getting guests in which the community seem to really enjoy.
“Additionally, we will be using the occasional Friday streams to experiment with larger, more complex stream formats, some of which the community may not have seen before.
Adding his own spin to Twitch
Although he’s bringing new ideas to the platform and offering different content, Walsh isn’t trying to completely reinvent the wheel.
“While I do think we’ve got a few ideas that might be completely unique to Twitch in the pipeline,” he says, “I’m more interested in taking existing ideas and improving them or perhaps tailoring them to the Twitch environment.”
For example, dual streams have become a regular part of poker streaming. Two hosts play poker and talk strategy, but one of the two hosts has his cards hidden. Walsh says that may be changing soon, allowing viewers to observe the pay of both.
“Using a new capture method we developed, this year we are now able to host very stable, high-quality, fully cards-up dual streams which immediately improves the viewer’s experience,” he says,
“While this is only one example, the same methodology invites a host of other applications for more complex and never-before-seen stream formats which we are going to implement later this year.”
Thanks all for supporting the stream today!
Reminder: no stream tomorrow because I'm on my way to UKIPT London!
CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?
LIVE MTTs, ME!?
Wish me luck gang! pic.twitter.com/mlmJCI2SHO
— Nicholas Walsh (@NickWalshTV) April 6, 2022
Working on his game, poker commentary, and hitting the live poker tables
Much of Walsh’s early streams involve his new “back to school”’effort. He lets viewers follow along as he sharpens his online poker skills.
Some live poker is also in his future as part of the PokerStars team. He’ll attend all European Poker Tour events, serving as a commentator alongside James Hartigan, Joe Stapleton, and other PokerStars Team Pros.
Walsh, from Brighton in the United Kingdom, is also excited to see the return of Stars’ United Kingdom and Ireland Poker Tour (UKIPT). The tour is currently running a series in London and Walsh is pleased to be back at the live tables.
“I’m looking forward to getting back on the felt at these events,” he says. “Just really excited to see live poker back in the UK.”
Beyond poker, the newest PokerStars ambassador considers himself a “nerd at heart.” He enjoys gaming, photography, videography, and film. Many of his interests outside poker involve visual media, which may help in his role on the PokerStars Twitch channel.
While he plans on bringing many of his own ideas to the new role, Walsh sees streaming as a two-way street. Viewers’ ideas will definitely be considered and taken into account, he says.
For Walsh, there’s a real sense of community when battling it out on the poker tables via Twitch. And he’s hoping that comes out when the camera is on.
“I’m really passionate about this project but I really need the community to help me make this really great,” he says.
“Your feedback on the content we create will not only help us to improve our offering on the PokerStars channel, but could shape the content we create in the future too. Get in touch with me on social media and become part of the development process.”
* Photos courtesy PokerStars