Rick's Gambling Guide

Online Poker Gaming

Online poker websites allow gamblers to play the game from their homes. Unlike traditional casinos, where players are limited in what they can play due to geographical location and number of poker tables available, virtual poker rooms allow gamblers to play against people from around the world, in a number of poker variants that may not be available in a typical casino.

Online poker differs from real poker in a number of significant ways. Due to the odds of poker, traditional casinos don’t make large profits off of the game compared to other attractions, such as slot machines. They compensate for this by taking portions of each pot, known as the casino’s rake, and by encouraging players to tip the card dealers. Since the cost of running a virtual poker room is much lower than a casino room, online poker sites do not take a rake from the pot, resulting in larger winnings for players. Likewise, since the deals are entirely computerized, there is no need to spend money tipping the dealer online.

As a result of the lower operating cost, online poker rooms can also offer tables with much lower buy-ins. While a traditional casino may charge a $5 buy-in or more, most online rooms have penny and nickel tables, attracting players who may otherwise be turned off by the high cost of playing in a casino. Also, due to the virtual nature of online poker, skilled players can play at more than one table at a time, making more money than would be possible by playing a single table in a casino.

Like many other computer and online games, players have tried to exploit online poker rooms in order to win by cheating. The most common way is for players to secretly share their hands outside of the poker room, such as through instant messaging, in order to maximize their combined winnings. Poker sites counter this by keeping histories of every hand dealt on the server, which can be analyzed algorithmically to detect patterns of suspicious play.

Many online poker rooms offer games called satellite tournaments, whose winners qualify for real-life poker tournaments, such as the World Series of Poker. Chris Moneymaker, the winner of the 2003 World Series of Poker, gained entry into the tournament by winning an online satellite tournament on PokerStars.com. The opportunity for amateurs to play in these big money tournaments has greatly boosted the popularity of online poker.

The legality of online poker differs around the world. While it is fully legal in parts of Europe, its legality in the United States is disputed. The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA), signed into law in 2006, targets companies who run online gambling websites in the United States, by regulating the way they collect and pay out money to online players. As a result, many online poker sites have moved their servers outside of the country. In most states, it is still legal for citizens to play on these sites.