Confessions of an Online Poker Player

The world of online poker leads down many roads that might not at first seem obvious. We know that a lust for competition fuels many players, and a large percentage are motivated by the chance to earn a big score right inside their home. The minimum requirements to play include a good online connection, a little cashola, and a lot of gumption. Oh – but there is so much more to being successful at online poker.
 

As the world of online poker continues to evolve, it has become more and more important to carefully select the best rooms to play. A premier place that I recommend for up-to-date information is http://www.pokersites.com/toplists/real-money. Looking for the best sites to play online poker in the United States? How about information on payment methods, places with the best bonuses or places that tend to have soft games? Which places have the fastest payouts and what are the top rated rooms? All these factors will ultimately affect one of the most important aspects of poker: your bottom line.

There are some interesting things to get used to when playing on the virtual felt. It was some time before I saw one of the unexpected results of many hours of poker play. I looked in the mirror and was surprised to see a white patchy spot on my elbow. My left elbow. The one I lean on when I play poker on my laptop computer on my bed. It never dawned on me that I leaned on my elbow so much. Surely I have not invented Poker Elbow!

Then there were the things my kids learned about me – how the stillness of a quiet evening could be shattered by a yell from an upstairs bedroom -- the kind of yell that could only be made by one who was approaching the final table in a big tournament, only to get all his chips in the middle well ahead and lose to a two-outer. In fact, after one such Tarzan yell, my son came into my bedroom and asked “Dad – why do you play a game where, even when you do everything right, sometimes you lose?” My reply: “Son, it is because your Dad is a moron!”

I was actually quite surprised to discover how social online poker could be. I became friends with a number of other poker bloggers and played in some great private tournaments. A huge group of bloggers met in Las Vegas in each December, and suddenly those online relationships took on a new meaning as real in-person friendships were forged. In fact, earlier today I traded text messages with a friend I had met while playing online poker. We both happened to be in Las Vegas at the same time and decided to play a little poker together and then have lunch. At lunch we discovered that we had a lot in common – just a couple of professional guys who were married to wonderful women, had great families and found a way to fit some recreational poker into our busy lifestyles. This spring he played in a home poker league and won a seat to a 2013 World Series of Poker event. Yowsa!

Oh yes – one last aspect of online poker that I have found to be extremely important: having a sense of humor. If you live and die on each showdown hand you will probably die many deaths in a short period of time. Even a 95% favorite going to the river in Hold em has a 1 in 20 chance of losing. However, I hope someone will someday explain to me why that 1 in 20 always seems to come up when I am the huge favorite!

Good luck on the virtual felt – and watch your elbow!