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Poker Millionaires

While this article was going to be game agnostic, the increasing popularity of Poker makes this particular game worth discussing in a bit more detail. While I don’t have any poker games on BlazingGames.com at the time of this writing (unless you count video poker and poker square - which I don’t), I may do some poker games in the future. When I do, I will also write more detailed strategy guides for the games that I do release.

There are many variations on the game of poker. Most of them base their scoring on the basic five card poker hand. The most popular game is Texas Hold ’em. Other common variations include seven-card stud, Omaha hold ’em, and five card draw. Poker-like games are also quite common and include video poker, pai gow poker, Caribbean Stud, Let it Ride, and Three Card Poker. The poker-like games are played against the house, not other players so I don’t consider them poker games.

Poker games are different than other casino games for one big reason. In poker, you don’t play against the casino. Instead, you play against other players. The casino makes its money by means of either seat rental or a rake. A rake is a commission that the winner pays to the casino, and amounts to a certain percentage of the pot. One would think that this would be the ultimate money maker for a casino as there is no risk for them. Today this is probably true as poker on television has increased the games popularity. Still, poker tables take up space, while slot machines are just as guaranteed for profit while requiring fewer people.

The rake means that in a perfectly matched game of poker, you would still end up losing money to the casino. Poker, however, has an element of skill required to successfully play it. This means that the table will not be evenly balanced. If you have more skill than the other players, then in the long run you will win more money than the other players. If the money is greater than the rake, then you can end up a winner. This is why poker professionals exist. This is also why many professional poker players have a negative income (a fact seldom mentioned on the television poker shows). After all, anybody can call him or herself a professional poker player.

Poker also has a large element of luck involved. In fact, it is possible that a pathetic poker player could win a major tournament simply by being lucky. How much poker relies on skill, and how much it relies on luck is a very debatable topic. The winners say it relies on more skill than luck, while the losers say it relies more on luck than skill. The luck comes from having the necessary cards dealt to you, while the skill comes from being able to guess what your opponent has while being able to make your opponents think you have a better or worse hand than you do. Having a solid understanding of statistics and probability certainly can help, as you are able to better determine how strong of hand you do have while being able to better gage your opponents hand. Game theory also helps as you are able to take the historical play of a particular player and use that as a guide to determining his or her probable hand.

The big problem with seeing poker as a way of making money is the fact that, largely due to the numerous television poker shows that are on TV, too many people know how to play poker. Most of these players think that they are good players. Most of them are wrong. If you had trouble understanding my “Secret Weapon of the Casino” section, then you are probably wrong, though experience can compensate for a lack of mathematical skill.

When you get right down to it, most people are not going to make a fortune playing poker. The casino, however, will make its cut. The poor players will lose money, but win often enough to allow them to think that they are good or great players. The good players will make some money, but not millions. The great players will make lots of money and will make it look like poker is easy money. Is there a way of telling which type of player you are? Yes.

If you think you have the makings of a poker professional, then you should keep a log book. Every time you play poker, you should mark down how much you spent and the amount you took out of the game. If you ever go back to your purse or wallet for more money, you have already proven that you are not a professional as money management is important. Plug the numbers into the spread sheet and see your actual financial picture. Your winnings should offset your losses, and this should be the long term trend. A few big wins and a bunch of loses does not a good poker player make.

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