http://139.180.219.121/ is a game of skill, and every decision you make is approximately maximizing your Expected Value or EV for short. The term “EV” will be used throughout this article and will be seen in two ways. A player can have +EV, which is positive Expected Value or – EV, that is negative Expected Value. Poker is not gambling and the next explains why.
Most gambling games have a poor EV for you, and a positive EV (5.49% in this case) for the casino. In the short run you can win, but in the long term, in the event that you played typical gambling games 1000 times, the casino would always find yourself winning by about 5.49%. As you can plainly see these types of gambling games come in favor of the house. Poker pits you against other players and not the house. In a complete ring game (9 players) or shorthanded game (6 players), the target is to make the best EV decisions against the many other players playing worse (making -EV decisions) than you.
A simple example would be in the event that you were dealt KK before the flop came (preflop), which everyone understands is a great hand preflop. This hand has a high possiblity to win against all other hands preflop. In the event that you played and raised “all in” with this particular hand against a new player who played and called every all in, you would have an enormous advantage as you’ll be a favorite every time, making it a +EV decision. This is an exaggerated example and playing one hand would not be the smartest idea. What you would do is play say the top 20% of hands because against someone who plays maybe 70% of their hands, you again, will be making a +EV decision each time you play with him. It’s likely that your starting hands will have a lot higher probability to win. This is just scraping the surface, and there is an EV attached to every decision and every situation. Many internet poker sites provide starting hand charts for novices to use, which would be the simplest way to enhance your EV.
In addition, there’s always variance and for a while weaker players might get lucky, but that’s also what attracts them another and keep playing. Over time, a good player who makes +EV decisions will always find yourself a winner. This is exactly why poker isn’t gambling but a casino game of skill and understanding how to exploit your opponent’s mistakes.
Is it safe to play internet poker?
Absolutely, some sites have over 50,000 people playing at once. Major sites like Full Tilt Poker run advertisements on it and the web and are even listed on the stock market. They enable you to play poker online for free or real cash. Any negative publicity would affect their business so these sites often provide the best customer service. Keeping your password secure can be your responsibility and if you do that, your money will be safe. Online poker sites have no incentive to cheat when dealing hands since they desire to be extremely fair so you continue to play, which allows them to earn their income by means of “rake.” This is usually a very small percent of the pot (usually less than 1%). In poker, you are playing against the other players, and not the house.
Obviously if the poker site seems shady, you haven’t heard of it, they don’t advertise on TV or the net and there aren’t members playing on a regular basis – you wouldn’t be depositing your cash there!!! With that said, most of the major poker sites are very safe and reputable.
What are the best online poker rooms?
There are three major sites for playing internet poker. Full Tilt Poker, Pokerstars and Party Poker have plenty of traffic, play money tables, a lot of freeroll tournaments and have excellent customer support. If you are a beginner you should play at Full Tilt Poker or Pokerstars when you begin. Other sites like Party Poker call you up after you sign up and require some type of id verification to activate your account. Some individuals may such as this extra security, and will certainly go that route. Full Tilt Poker and Pokerstars usually do not require this. Overall, all three sites are incredibly safe and well known.
Many sites state “Deposit and get another $600!” Do they really double your deposit amount after depositing?
That depends on the website. Some sites offer you a very small portion (around 10%) of your deposit instantly, but that is rare. What typically happens is you deposit $600, and after you accumulate some player points, they will give you the full $600. This is to ensure depositing players are also active. With internet poker sites such as Full Tilt Poker these points are achieved rapidly.
Websites on the internet will publish poker bonus codes which should be entered upon account creation. After that, the amount you earn depends on the time you may spend playing and the stakes you play at. When a player reaches 400NL limit, this means 2 to 4 dollar blinds and have an excellent percent of wins, they can make up to 5K a month. This is of course in the event that you treat playing like a job and dedicate several hours each day to playing. Ultimately job freedom and the lure of easy money that’s just a click away, is what draws so many people to online poker.