The Thrill of Playing Poker For Real Money
Make no mistake, every true poker player loves the thrill that comes from taking down a huge pot. It seems like only playing in real money online poker rooms is it possible to get the adrenaline flowing so fast. Perhaps even more than the money is the fact that you know you're better than everyone else, maybe even the best, at least for that hand.
Most of these sites offering online poker will offer both a fun and a real cash mode. The idea is that online poker sites can encourage players to try it out for free before putting their real cash at risk. Playing in a game for real money at online poker sites is also excellent training, especially if you think that in the future you might like to try a live event or play in offline poker rooms.
There are also a number of other reasons to play real money poker online. More than likely, you will be able to find a table with your desired number of additional players, up to six or seven, so you can practice for specific situations. Online poker rooms are also not going to impose any start or end times on you, so there will be no pressure to leave; play as much or as little as you like. Some poker sites have a feature called fast forward, which allows you to speed through a poor hand very quickly. Plus, you can choose your desired bankroll, rather than having this dictated by the room or online poker establishment.
Playing Real Money Poker Online In The USA
Although legality is still a gray area in many parts of the world, including the United States, you will be able to play at real money online poker sites. Almost all of the online poker rooms available to American players will have some form of real cash playing options. This certainly includes all of the best and top rated websites. Honestly, though, finding a place to play is not a problem. The problem with most poker rooms is that you need to learn how to play well enough to make money.
Under the theory of always starting with the end in mind, take the following online poker sites' playing tips to heart. First, start slowly. Good bankroll management can help and by setting loss limits and win goals, you keep your risk spread out. The best actual real money online poker room betting strategy is to play a tight conservative type of game. This means no betting unless you've got the cards. Also, pay attention to your position (betting position) at the tables, being more conservative when seated early in the betting.
Learning how to put pressure on your real money online poker site opponents is also a great skill to have. In a real money online poker room’s typical games, you can do this by raising before the flop and then betting again on the flop. This will likely scare out most of the players who don't have the cards but do have a bit of common sense. Unfortunately, it won't do much to frighten away the true action junkies who are unskilled and want to play every hand. It always helps to know your opponent.
Is It Difficult To Find A Good Real Cash Poker Online Game?
The main question is after finding some good online poker sites that offer real cash games, can you find a good game itself? Before even attempting to answer this question, you need to understand exactly what it means to find a 'good game' at real money poker sites. You are NOT looking for a game with players who are all equally as skilled as yourself (or more skilled). That would actually be a recipe for disaster in any online poker room.
A good game means one where you find a lot of newer or less skilled online poker players. Perhaps these are people just giving these websites an initial try or who have never even played poker before. Players coming into the poker rooms from the website's sports book or even online casino, who might not be too happy after losing some money are also the type of competition you want when searching for a 'good' game.
In other words, you want to find some fish, players who are very easy to beat by a more skilled player who has a bit of online poker technique and understands how to capitalize on various styles of play typically associated with new players at online poker rooms. The main criteria for finding such a site will be one that has a lot of traffic. Search out those online poker sites that have lots of strong bonuses and promotional offers, since they are likely to be attracting a steady supply of new players. Also look for sites that have sports books and casinos in addition to their poker rooms.
The Importance Of Avoiding Conversion Fees
One of the more interesting and unusual facts about online poker sites is that most of them are run with the United States dollar as the primary currency. While that sounds great for US based players, it can be a slight problem for international players at online poker rooms. Generally speaking, this will mean you deposit in your home currency, Rands for example, and then it ends up getting transferred into US dollars before the money shows up in your account.
Believe it or not there are some online poker sites, even top sites, which end up charging players a conversion fee for this 'service.' Then, another is charged when their dollars are ready for withdrawal and must be changed back into Rands. You do not want to be charged fees simply to convert your money into different currencies. So, there are really two choices. You could find and only use poker rooms that do not have this fee. Another option is to use what is known as an online wallet to make your deposits and take payouts at these online poker sites. These are payment services that make it easy to transfer funds. Just make sure they don't charge any type of conversion fee (most do not).
Real Cash vs Free Sites—How They Play Differently
When you are looking at any real money potential online poker sites, most will probably have an option to play for free. This sounds like a great idea. After all, you can give it a try without any risk, get to know the system and even how the software works, and maybe even meet a few people while you're at it.
Unfortunately, this is all a lie. Playing online poker for free is nothing like real money poker sites. For starters, they change the software so that it will give you the better cards a much higher percentage of the time. Additionally, those 'people' you think you are playing against? Fake, simply computer enhanced graphics to give you the illusion of a real game. The whole thing is manipulated and made much easier to hook you in. Remember that these online poker rooms simply want to entice you into making a deposit and getting started on their websites.
Playing at real cash online poker sites is an incredibly different experience. You will need to recognize different playing styles and be able to gauge differing skill and experience levels, and the quicker the better. Just like learning to play poker in the beginning, this is also a skill that can be learned and mastered. But playing for free does very little to help develop any real skills, so you might want to avoid all that and use either your own poker training software or just play on your own.
HOW DO WE RATE REAL MONEY POKER SITES?
The best real money poker sites are really the top of the industry and so we put a lot of time and effort into making sure that each of them is rated properly across multiple categories. We certainly consider a lot of things and we want to mention some so that you can make a better decision when choosing a new poker site.
Top poker rooms have a lot of options when it comes to real money play and we rate based on the range. The blinds for cash tables can be as small as $0.01/$0.02 and they can easily go up to tens of dollars or even more. This variety makes it very attractive for different types of players and their different bankrolls.
On the subject of money, fast payouts provide a great advantage nowadays. Online poker players can withdraw real cash from their accounts in less than 24 hours and they can do so through an entire list of banking methods. Not to mention that deposits are instant and often times come with a bonus, which is considered for the rating as well.
Having soft competition is one of the most important factors for players and we like to make sure that our best online poker sites meet this requirement. Finally, having everything delivered in a nice looking package is always a plus.
