Online poker is a game played in the privacy of your own home or wherever you have an internet connection. You can play for the smallest stakes imaginable or even win satellite entries into some of the world’s most amazing live tournaments. All you need is a computer, smartphone or tablet and a stable Internet connection.
Getting started is surprisingly easy. You can find a range of online poker sites that accept deposits and withdrawals from all major credit cards, debit cards, prepaid cards and third-party eWallets. Some sites are even able to accept wire transfers. Once you’ve funded your account with your preferred method you can start playing for real money.
Most of the best online poker sites have a large variety of games to choose from and you’ll probably find a good selection of tournaments, Sit & Go’s and Cash Games. Depending on the site you may also be able to play for free as most will offer free play games and/or freeroll tournaments.
Another great thing about online poker is that it’s highly regulated in the states that allow it. There are strict consumer protections in place as well as government and financial bodies that monitor the sites to ensure they’re operating fairly and with integrity.
Because online poker is so regulated, it’s difficult to cheat. Although there have been a few cases of disgruntled employees compromising the security of an online poker site, the industry as a whole is very vigilant and will quickly shut down any site that tries to take advantage of players.
There are also a lot of different software programs available that can help you improve your game. These programs typically save, sort and recall all of your hand history and can scan the active tables for known players and display previous statistics next to their name (known as a Heads Up Display or HUD). Some even have quizzes and odds, equity or variance calculators. Using these tools in addition to good studying and practice will help you become a better player much faster. Remember that you’ll only get out what you put in so make sure to spend at least 30 minutes per week studying if you want to see your results improve quickly.
