The whole family is gathered in the car, looking forward to visiting Grandma. The best waffles in the world awaits, but not today. To everyone’s surprise the doors are locked. Grandma is playing poker.
Although people still use the classic card of decks when meeting family and friends, poker online has become extremely popular. There is hardly a person who has never heard of poker, and it is strangely enough a game that is appealing and played by people of all ages.
Several surveys and figures from the gambling industry show that over one million people around the globe play poker in one form or another. This means that poker is as popular as golf and tennis. Why poker has gained such immense popularity remains a mystery to many.
Easy to Play
As a card game, poker was also a very popular game, similar popularity as bridge and other famous games. As a money game poker was also in the past the go-to game instead of bridge.
The fact that online games are so similar to playing the games physically, led to a rapid adaption to the online market. People did not need to learn anything new but could go straight into the online games and play their beloved games as they would normally do. Poker variants online, such as Texas Hold’em and Omaha therefore quickly became popular because they are exactly the same as in real life.
Exciting
Previously, the disadvantages of online poker were that you did not get the same excitement as at a physical table. It is difficult to get a faint whiff of perfume or cigar, unless you make it yourself.
Relevant aspects of poker, such as bluffing and body language, has so far been absent in online poker, even though there are a lot of indications that artificial intelligence and better technology soon will rectify this.
Luck
Almost all people think that poker is just based on luck, and of course it is important to be lucky, but poker is much more than just luck. Everyone who has played a lot of poker knows that you must have a good set of skills, and in the long run, those with the greatest skills are the winners.
There are many professional players who study poker strategies. They all agree that it is the players who master the strategies and skills that are most likely to win the most championships.
In other words, the best poker players are those who study mathematics and odds. The essence of the knowledge is that you have to bet more when you have the statistical advantage of winning and bet less when the odds are against you. Of course, poker strategies contain much more than this is a core factor.
Winner Culture
As in all other games, the desire to win is strong. Of course, people are interested in money, but the best poker players are also concerned with the honour and the feeling you get by winning a tournament.
Last but not least, poker is a social game, and unlike many other games of chance, poker is played against and with other people. In blackjack, for example, you do not play against other people, but against the dealer.
That’s why poker is so popular among groups of friends and everywhere people like to organise tournaments.