Why Poker is so popular

The recent years have shown that Poker has gone a long way since the days when it was regarded as a game for thieves and thugs. Nowadays, Poker tournaments are being broadcast on TV and playing the game has become mainstream entertainment. The reasons for this are simple.

Easy to learn…

Learning how to play Poker does not take a very long time. In fact, it should be possible to learn the basics and complete a few games of Poker after just five minutes. Every round follows the same pattern. The only thing that might take a little bit longer to remember, are the various combinations of cards.

…hard to master

However, becoming a professional Poker player takes years of practice. This is also one of the reasons why the game is so appealing. The soft learning curve makes it easy for beginners to get started while the complexity of the game when it is being played at a high level keeps even the veterans interested in the game.

It’s not all about cards

Poker does not rely on chance as much as other games do. You will spend a large portion of the game trying to figure out whether your opponents are bluffing or not. Bluffing essentially means that they are trying to make you believe that they do have a really strong hand – while, in fact, they do not have anything at all. This is an exciting component of Poker, as it allows players to always win a round, independent of what they actually bring to the showdown. This is also why expert players always say that you play the player, not the cards.

A slow start

You might have followed a few tournaments on TV, thinking that people earn a huge amount of money every day by playing Poker. Yes, this is true, for a select few out of millions of players. Do not make the mistake and invest all your savings in playing Poker. You should start out by playing Poker for free at an online casino. This is an easy way of learning how to play the game while simultaneously not losing any money on it. If you do not see it as a way of earning money, but as a fun way of entertainment instead, winning a few rounds will happen naturally – and eventually lead to making a little bit of extra cash every now and then.