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Poker is a game of skill, and every decision you make is about 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 new player can have +EV, which is positive Expected Value or – EV, that is negative Expected Value. Poker isn’t gambling and the next explains why.

Most gambling games have a poor EV for you, and a confident EV (5.49% in cases like this) 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 see these types 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 target 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 excellent hand preflop. This hand includes a high chance to win against all other hands preflop. In the event that you played and raised “all in” with this hand against a player who played and called every all in, you’ll have a huge 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 most notable 20% of hands because against somebody who plays maybe 70% of their hands, you again, will undoubtedly be making a +EV decision each and every 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 top, and there is an EV attached to every decision and every situation. Many online poker sites provide starting hand charts for beginners to use, which would be the simplest way to enhance 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 end up a winner. This is the reason poker isn’t gambling but a casino game of skill and finding out 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 are even listed on the currency markets. They allow you to play poker online for free or real money. 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 undoubtedly be safe. Online poker sites have no incentive to cheat when dealing hands given that they want to be extremely fair so you continue to play, that allows them to earn their income by means of “rake.” It is a very small percent of the pot (usually less than 1%). In poker, you’re playing against the other players, and not the home.

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 money there!!! With that said, the majority of the major poker sites are very safe and reputable.

What are the best online poker rooms?
You can find three major sites for playing internet poker. Full Tilt Poker, Pokerstars and Party Poker have lots of traffic, play money tables, plenty of freeroll tournaments and have very good customer support. If you’re a beginner you need to 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 type of id verification to activate your account. Some people may like this extra security, and can certainly go that route. No Deposit Poker and Pokerstars usually do not require this. Overall, all three sites are incredibly safe and popular.

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

That depends on the site. Some sites offer you a really small portion (around 10%) of your deposit instantly, but that is rare. What typically happens is you deposit $600, and then after you accumulate some player points, they will provide you with the full $600. This is to ensure depositing players are also active. With internet poker sites such as for example Full Tilt Poker these points are achieved very quickly.

Online sites 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. Whenever a player reaches 400NL limit, which means 2 to 4 dollar blinds and also have a good percent of wins, they are able to make up to 5K a 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 is only a click away, is what draws so many people to online poker.