The first U.S. Army hold 'em poker champion has taken a bit of ribbing from his buddies since winning the title a year ago in a worldwide online showdown.

"But it's all in fun," said James Morris, 26, just days before transferring this month to Korea for his next duty assignment.

Morris advanced to the online finals last June by winning a qualifying tournament while stationed at Fort Lee, Va., one of 50 Army installations that held first-round events in the United States and at Army installations in the Pacific, Korean and European regions.

The Army's Family and Morale, Welfare & Recreation Command (FMWRC) conducted the tournaments.

"People give me crap about being the Army champ," said Morris, who grew up in Port Chester, N.Y., and recently completed training at Fort Gordon, Ga., for promotion to warrant officer as an electronics maintenance technician. "I occasionally show them my hands to prove that I'm not just stealing the pots away from them." Quickly he added, "I also show some bluffs to let them know I'll do that, too."

The inaugural 2007 tournament attracted about 2,000 players and went so well that the FMWRC has launched a second round of competition this year. Players battle for donated prizes instead of cash, along with the inevitable bragging rights that go to the champion. Competitors must be an authorized MWR patron or have a sponsor.

For last year's event, FMWRC coordinating consultant Doriann Fengler of Alexandria, Va., noted there was a waiting list of Army installations wanting to participate. "There is great interest in this. This type of tournament is exactly what our soldiers are demanding," she said.

Morris agreed: "I like the fact that the Army is now planning events relevant to what is presently popular. Poker has risen substantially in the past few years, and I think it's great that the Army wants to do something that people take interest in," said the soldier, who plans a 20-year career in the Army.

Morris had played poker growing up and after joining the military but had competed in only one tournament prior to claiming the Army title. Those who play this year might benefit from the champion's successful tactics last year.

"My strategy for the qualifying event at Fort Lee was to start off playing tight until I got a good feel for the other players," he said. "I also like to talk a lot, so I slowly began getting the other players into conversations to make them more comfortable, which would hopefully make them easier to read."

Morris said that once he got the chip lead, he "took advantage of the scared players by putting them all-in, and I check-raised the more confident players when they represented good hands. At the final table, I started third in chips (out of 10). Everybody was playing really tight, and I probably won my first six pots on nothing but bluffs. I quickly gained the chip lead and just stuck to my strategy."

The championship final brought together 50 worldwide qualifiers on a dedicated online site. Using a shootout format, six players advanced to the final table by defeating all opponents at their first table. Final-table players were then re-chipped with starting stacks of 1,500, and blinds reverted back to the first level.

"It was a lot harder to read people, and I started off playing too many hands, as I usually do online," Morris said. "But I settled down quickly and controlled most of the game at both the first and final tables."

The champ urged players in this year's event not to be "that dorky guy who sits at the table with the hat, headphones and sunglasses on, and doesn't say anything. Have fun with the game. It's all for MWR, and the proceeds help out soldiers."

E-mail your poker questions and comments to [email protected] for use in future columns. To find out more about Russ Scott and read previous LuckyDog Poker columns, visit www.creators.com or www.luckydogpoker.com.