Poker is a game of skill, and every decision you make is approximately maximizing your Expected Value or EV for short. The word “EV” will undoubtedly be used throughout this article and you will be seen in two ways. A new player can have +EV, which is positive Expected Value or – EV, which is negative Expected Value. Poker isn’t gambling and the following explains why.

Most gambling games have a negative EV for you, and a positive EV (5.49% in this case) for the casino. In the short run you could win, but in the long run, if you played typical gambling games 1000 times, the casino would always find yourself winning by about 5.49%. As you can plainly see these kind of gambling games come in favor of the home. Poker pits you against other players rather than the house. In a complete ring game (9 players) or shorthanded game (6 players), the goal is to make the very 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 an effective hand preflop. This hand includes a high possiblity to win against all the 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’ll have a huge advantage as you’ll be a favorite every time, rendering it a +EV decision. That is an exaggerated example and playing one hand wouldn’t normally be the smartest idea. What you would do is play say the top 20% of hands because against somebody who plays maybe 70% of their hands, you again, will be making a +EV decision every time you play with him. It’s likely your starting hands will have a whole lot higher probability to win. That is just scraping the top, and there’s an EV mounted on every decision and every situation. Many online poker sites provide starting hand charts for novices to use, which would function as simplest way to improve your EV.

In addition, there is always variance and for a while weaker players could easily 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 why poker is not gambling but a game of skill and understanding how to exploit your opponent’s mistakes.

Could it be safe to play internet poker?

Absolutely, some sites have over 50,000 people playing at one time. Major sites like Full Tilt Poker run advertisements on the TV and the web and so are even listed on the currency markets. They permit you to play poker online for free or real money. Any negative publicity would affect their business so these sites often supply the best customer service. Keeping your password secure is your responsibility and if you do this, your money will undoubtedly be safe. Online poker sites haven’t any incentive to cheat when dealing hands given that they wish to be extremely fair so you continue to play, that allows them to earn their income in the form of “rake.” This can be a really small percent of the pot (usually significantly 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 web 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 internet poker rooms?
There are three major sites for playing online poker. Full Tilt Poker, Pokerstars and Party Poker have plenty of traffic, play money tables, plenty of freeroll tournaments and have excellent customer support. If poker88 ‘re a beginner you should play at Full Tilt Poker or Pokerstars when you begin. Other sites like Party Poker call you up once you sign up and require some form of id verification to activate your account. Some individuals may like this extra security, and will certainly go that route. Full Tilt Poker and Pokerstars do not require this. Overall, all three sites are incredibly safe and popular.

Many sites state “Deposit and get another $600!” Do they really double your deposit amount after depositing?

That depends on the website. Some sites give you a really 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 provide you with the full $600. This is to ensure depositing players may also be active. With internet poker sites such as Full Tilt Poker these points are achieved rapidly.

Online sites will publish poker bonus codes which must be entered upon account creation. From then on, the amount you earn depends on the time you spend playing and the stakes you play at. Whenever a player reaches 400NL limit, this means 2 to 4 dollar blinds and also have a good percent of wins, they are able to make up to 5K per month. This is of course in the event that you treat playing just like a job and dedicate a long time each day to playing. Ultimately job freedom and the lure of easy money that’s only a click away, is what draws so many people to online poker.