CHAPTER 10
WHY IS ONLINE TEXAS HOLD'EM POKER SO DIFFERENT???
Online gambling is increasing at a staggering rate worldwide. Total revenues for online gambling worldwide in 2003 were an estimated $6 Billion – over 4.3% of all worldwide ecommerce.
The world’s first virtual online casino, Internet Casinos, Inc. commenced operation on August 18, 1995 with 18 different casino games and is now publicly traded on NASDAQ. Most of these online gambling companies are located outside of the U.S. to avoid governmental prosecution. ICI operates out of the Turks and Cayucos Islands and WagerNet is based in Belize. Site users can either send cash through one of the companies offering secure payment systems for the Internet or open an offshore account, a requirement for Americans to use ICI’s site. A number of foreign governments have entered the business of online casinos holding their sites out to people worldwide. For instance, the government of Liechtenstein is operating an online internationally lottery in six different languages, including Chinese. According to Rolling Good Times Online gambling magazine, there are over 1300 gambling related sites on the net and more are up and running everyday.
The economics of the industry are amazing. While it may cost up to $300 million to build a new bricks and mortar resort casino, most virtual casinos can be developed for between $1 to 2 million and will employ only 10 – 20 people as opposed to thousands for a traditional casino. The industry averages about a twenty five (25%) profit margin, versus the typical U.S. casino, which ranges between eight (8%) to sixteen (16%) of each dollar wagered. Interactive Gaming & Communications International handled 48 million dollars in its first year of operations and has made a staggering profit ever since.
In sum, an estimated twenty million people are currently on line with a projected 160 million online by the year 2020. The major casinos register over 7,000,000 visits per month.
According to surveys conducted by the US government, the majority of gamblers, 83%, play online, however, only a third of that group plays for real money. In other words, the major attraction for online players are casinos that offer free games. In all, 28% of those who gamble do so online for real money.
According to a recent study 73% of those who play for real money both online and offline lost money in the past month, while 80% of land based only players lost money. Online gamblers, however, lose more money per game. Those who gamble for real money both online and offline lost in the past month more than double what those who gamble exclusively off line lost. Further, there are more than four times more high rollers (percentage wise) among the online players than there are among land based only players.
If you’re wondering how safe your money is at an online casino, there are a number of things to consider. Over the past few years there have been a number of cases of winners at internet poker casinos being denied payment. Remember, as online gambling is not allowed in the U.S., you have no legal recourse to recover funds. Our advice is to stay with well established online casinos with an extensive track record and a reputation for paying out winners. We list ten of the largest, best known in this section. All have excellent track records, use well established software to deliver the gaming experience and offer a wide range of tables to select from.
You will be tempted sometimes by very generous offers of large player bonuses from online casinos you’ve never heard of. Think about it – if you started a new casino in a very crowded market, how would you get the attention of potential new players? Our suggestion is to avoid these casinos. What good would it do to win $10,000 and then find you can never claim the money? There are numerous ‘systems’ being promoted that suggest you can use these bonuses to multiply your winnings – even play for free. That’s nonsense. Bonuses, if they are based on the number of hands, will be returned to the house through the rake. Pick your casino based on play quality and the volume of table options. That’s the real key to winning.
I often get questions about how fair certain casinos are. One author has written a book claiming that there are dealing errors in one large casino that gives players in the know a decided advantage. This writer does not understand the technology behind the card dealing process at reputable online casinos. Electronic games of all types use random number generator (RNG) software algorithm to determine card outcome, the RNG algorithm is called into play hundreds of times per second. The RNG has approximately 16,000,000,000,000,000,000 possible outcomes and, depending of course on the type of game, there will be billions and billions of outcomes that map into any set of cards. This ensures that all game outcomes are completely random. There are no ‘hiccups’ in the process you can use to beat the virtual dealer. The science of random number generation is well established and impossible to beat.
Here are a number of factors you can use to choose the best internet poker room.
Security and Privacy
You want as much reassurance that your credit info is safe, your identity and contact info won’t be sold and that game conditions are as safe and as fair as possible (e.g. that the software isn’t vulnerable to manipulation; players aren’t colluding because a system of checks is in place; etc.). Secure servers are a necessity. Sites should elaborate on the encryption system that they use. All good sites should address the above issues to your satisfaction. Do they discuss issues like their card shuffling algorithm? Also, what kind of RNG (random number generator) do they use? The best ones increase the level of unpredictability in the cards being played. What other safeguards do they have in place to prevent game rigging, collusion, hacker intrusions, etc.? You should always read a site’s privacy policy, including the small print.
Action
How many players log on to the games? Can you get action in the poker game of your choice anytime, day or night? Do they have diverse offerings with enough players to keep tables full? The larger the pool, the more action you’ll see in both game play and cash winnings. We visit the sites at different times to see what the overall action is like as well as the variety of players in all games offered.
Game Play
If your money and personal info are secure but the ease of game play and visuals stuck, then chances are you’re not going to come back. We look at the variety of poker games offered and keep a close eye on how well a site creates a good poker environment. How easy is it to play? Converse with other players (or mute them, if you wish)? Are the graphics and sounds fun? Interesting? Can I play even if my system doesn’t support the absolutely latest graphics, etc.? Is all the information needed to play easy to access and clearly stated? Some sites definitely have more appealing game play than others.
Connectivity
How often does the game crash due to server issues at the internet poker room’s end? How bad are the delays in transfer of info? What about disconnection’s? Are they repeated? Anything that disrupts game play on a regular basis is going to be an annoyance and a major problem (at the worst if the stakes are high and you’re on a streak). We realize problems can occur at the player’s end (with their computer and their particular ISP) but there’s no denying some sites are more reliable and offer less .downtime. and other such irritations than others.
Cash outs
How much money have players won at their poker games? How easy is it to cash out your winnings? Do they credit your credit card? What charges are applied? How long does it take to receive winnings? You shouldn’t have to be a rocket scientist to figure out how to cash out what you’ve won and whether extra charges, delays, etc. are worth it. Or have the patience of a saint. And we like features such as e-mail confirmations of the withdrawal transactions verifying request, dates, and amounts.
Free Play
Testing out poker game play, environment, percentage, etc. helps to familiarize yourself with what to do in the event of server crashes, how well you’ve understood the written rules of play at the particular internet poker room, and the mixed quality of other players you may encounter.
This is an important feature of any good poker site-playing first for free although we recognize that people play very differently when they’ve got real money on the line. Some sites make it easier than others to identify how to get in on the free play action without submitting heaps of personal information in advance.
Other Features
Some sites will let you choose a character image which becomes identified with you. Others will track your game play statistics for you. Some provide no charges for certain kinds of cash outs. Some track the top players. Some allow you to beta test new games or poker tournaments in development. Others offer good poker resources in terms of celebrity columns, advice, links, etc. We like both access to quality information that’s useful to us in playing poker as well as convenience.
Online casinos offer players bonus incentives to come play at their casinos. These are known as casino bonuses, casino promotion, free chip offers, and although there are several other terms used to describe the free money given to players by the casinos the bottom line is that it’s free money.
Online Poker Match Bonuses
With a casino match bonus the casino gives players additional cash to play at the casino upon making a first deposit. If a player deposits $50 in a 100% match bonus situation the player would get an additional $50 to play with at the casino.
Alternative Banking Bonuses
Since online gambling transactions made by players may encounter some rejections by credit card companies many casinos have resorted to alternative payment solutions. These include FirePay, PrePaidATM, phone cards and others. Some casinos offer players additional bonuses on top of their existing no deposit bonuses and match bonuses for deposits made through these alternative banking methods.
The Betting Rules for Pot Limit Texas Hold’em
Minimum eligible raise: The raise amount must be at least as much as the previous bet or raise in the same round. As an example, if the first player to act bets $100 then the second player must raise a minimum of $100 (total bet of $200).
Maximum eligible raise: The size of the pot: The size of the pot is defined as the total of the active Pot (which can be either the main pot or the side pot depending on whether anyone has gone “all in”) plus all bets on the table plus the amount the active player must first call before raising.
As an example, if the active pot is $200 and the first player to act in the round bets $150 and the next player calls $150, the third player has a maximum eligible total bet of $800. The $800 total is made up of the $150 call and $650 raise.
The $650 max raise portion is equal to the pot of $200 + first player’s $150 + second player’s $150 + his own call of $150. Pot Limit and No Limit Games will be ranked according to the chart below:
WHICH CASINO DO YOU TRUST?
You can’t go wrong if you select a poker site that has been in business for several years, uses established and accredited gaming software interfaces and has a record of paying big winners in a timely manner. We are not affiliated with any casino or group of casinos but being objective can be difficult. There are thousands of casinos with new ones opening every day. Great player interfaces are a real attraction for players but in the end, if the casino doesn’t offer a multitude of tables and traffic and doesn’t pay off bets quickly, what’s the point?
Here is a list of casinos that have been in business for several years and are recognized widely as being fair and professional.
PokerStars is the largest internet poker room in the world, offering massive action at all stakes and skill levels. It's the place to go for tournaments, with the world's largest guarantees and an impressive 24/7 schedule. It has a great points program and fast, good-looking and extremely reliable software. PokerStars also sponsors some of the world’s most famous poker players, including Daniel Negreanu and WSOP Main Event champs Chris Moneymaker, Joe Hachem and Greg Raymer, who you can often find at the tables to rail, play or chat with. Click here to download.
Full Tilt Poker
One of the top traffic-volume poker rooms and boasting a team of over 40 world-class poker pros - including Phil Ivey, Mike Matusow, Allen Cunningham, Gus Hansen, Chris "Jesus" Ferguson and Erik Seidel - anybody who plays poker knows Full Tilt. And rightly so - there's great action to be found at any game and limit and it features the highest-stakes action available online where you can frequently find, chat and play against the pros themselves. It's also open to U.S. players and Mac compatible.
PlayersOnly Poker is one of the fastest-growing poker sites, thanks in large part to being on the Cake poker network - which, as opposed to most poker rooms, is actually available only to U.S. players. The software was designed and refined by a group of poker players and accordingly boasts a very functional lobby, nice graphics and an emphasis on a great playing experience. PlayersOnly Poker and the Cake network are also known for very loose and juicy games for the small-stakes player. Click here to download.
Always one of the more popular rooms, Bodog Poker is still growing quickly week to week and now offers at least $5 million in guaranteed prize money every month. The graphics are good, and are combined with a very functional lobby that has a quick and easy overview. Bodog Poker also offers very juicy and loose games for the small-stakes player. When you make your first deposit, 10% will be added within 30 minutes, so if you deposit $100, there'll be $110 in your account. Click here to download.
Sportsbook Poker is a fastest growing poker site on the popular Cake poker network. Sportsbook Poker, as opposed to most poker rooms, is actually available only to U.S. players. The software was designed by a group of poker players and boasts a very functional lobby, nice graphics and an emphasis on a great playing experience. Sportsbook Poker, like PlayersOnly Poker and the Cake network are known for very loose and juicy games for the small-stakes player. Click here to download.
UltimateBet Poker
UltimateBet Poker prides itself as being "the best poker experience found on the internet today". UltimateBet Poker sets itself apart from other internet poker sites' designs by hiring top poker pros and gaming authorities instead of technicians and software engineers. The software has stayed on the cutting edge of modern innovation and users will find the lobby, cashier and tables run quickly and seamlessly without problems. There is a big population here and the players are slightly tighter than in other rooms, such as Full Tilt Poker.
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