The Scoop on Poker

Recently, I’ve gotten into online poker (with play money, of course).

What’s so appealing about Poker?

Ahh…Poker…where should I start? The popularity of Texas Hold’em to most is baffling. Why Hold’em? I have no idea - maybe it’s the room you get for stringing people along, maybe it’s the element of suspense, I’m not sure. Most people consider poker to be a complete waste of time, sort of like Solitaire, yet they wonder why people play them nonetheless. I’m willing to say that in a few years, Poker will have more popularity than NASCAR, golf, soccer, hockey, curling, basketball, and baseball. Wait, what?! Baseball?!? That’s ridiculous. Well, strangely enough, it’s not. In 2000, the prize money for the champion of the “World Series of Poker” Main Event was $1,500,000. The total prize money in the Main Event was 5.12M. Two years ago, the WSOP reached an all-time high, and online gambling went through the roof. There was a slight reduction in 2007, due to a legal document passed making online betting in the US much more difficult. However, that being said, the prize money to the champ in 2007 was 8.25M,

and the total prize money was nearly 60M for the main event. This year, it’s set to be even higher due to the large revival of online poker services. Texas Hold’em is experiencing a DRASTIC growth in viewer ratings, passing the NHL and College Football for the majority of the year according to the Nielsen ratings. Get started now, and you won’t regret it. Remember playing football or basketball with your friends? Well, soon enough it’s going to be Hold’em Poker. It will take over your activity in the PC, and it’ll be worth it. Why online? It’s just by far the most convenient way of playing - if you can get together with a group of friends, GREAT. But for those of us who can’t…here’s a review of some FREE online places.

Where should I play?
I’ve tested 3 websites, and here are my reviews for them based on PLAYING FOR FREE;

1. PokerStars.com

I saw an advertisement for PokerStars on the internet, and I decided to check it out. I was not disappointment. There was an exceptional amount of variety, with games ranging from the basic Hold’em to Omaha, Stud, H.O.R.S.E., and Razz just to name a few. Another great feature is the comprehensiveness. Without ever reading a manual or guide to ONLINE Poker, I caught on very easily (everything is described for you during the game). The random-card-generator worked very well for me on this site. A few disappointments were no All-in Probability markers which are fun to look at, as well as no “people” around the table, just a bunch of circles with a name. You were allowed to customize your image, but…it wasn’t really fun, since most people didn’t. Sit’n'Go tournaments worked great for me, it was easy to register, and I loved the tournaments with many players. Another excellent feature that no other site I tried had was an automatic “Pop-up when your turn” signal that allowed me to work on, for example, this blog or anything else on the computer, and when it was my turn the window popped up on it’s own from the minimized position. The table chat also worked great. I even spotted WSOP champ Chris Moneymaker at one of the high-stakes Sit’n'Go Tables, which was really cool (many top players are sponsored by PokerStars. The Random Card Generator this site has was fine - however, I noticed that the flop tends to be either 3 high cards or 3 low cards, and rarely is it well mixed on the flop. The turn and river seemed to be pretty random.

Variety: 10/10

Easiness to Use: 9/10

Graphics: 4/10

RNG: 5/10

Overall: 7.5/10 (not an average)

For people who understand Poker a bit (what beats what, etc.), PokerStars is a great selection.

2. PokerRoom.com

I was referred to PokerRoom by a friend of mine who told me he found a great site for online poker. I enjoyed how I did not have to download any software, I could play directly from my browser. However, it was relatively laggy this way, but it was manageable. For testing purposes, I chose to download it anyways. The first thing I noticed was the abundance of Sit ‘n Go tournaments, which are great for having fun and killing time for an extended period of time, but what if I just want a few quick chips? There wasn’t as much opportunity for table games. Also, there was enough variety for me to play any game I liked, but there were significantly less than at PokerStars. The comprehensiveness is pretty much there, but I will admit I clicked Check instead of Bet because it’s a bit confusing since the bet meter is next to the check button. The graphics were great, with a large table (up to 10 players) with each player having a different “outfit” or whatever you want to call it - there were high-res models for every player. The only (very significant) downfall to this website which draws me away from it is the Random Number Generator.

It’s really, really bad. I got pocket King’s and Ace’s probably around 3 or 4 times, and only won 1 of those hands. There is a ridiculous amount of straights, flushes, and random full houses. One time, the community cards were a 5-9 straight. Another time, there were 3 10’s on the table. This gamestyle was too luck-oriented for me, as there was absolutely no predictible outcome to any hand, from what I observed. A positive for this site is the “All-in Probability Percentages” which were actually complete bullshit. Just for fun, I went all-in pre-flop 3 times just to see what happened. One time, I was 97% to win after the flop, and I lost the hand to a flush. Another time, I was 11% of winning and won the hand. It’s just completely unreliable, the card generator. Another bad feature is that you have to deposit to the site prior to using the table or lobby chat, which bugged me a lot (I don’t want to pay money to be able to chat with my opponents).

Variety: 8/10

Easiness to Use: 9/10

Graphics: 10/10

RNG: 3/10

Overall: 5.5/10 (not an average)

Although there is a lot of eye-candy, I really would not recommend PokerRoom for anyone serious about building an online poker reputation. You could lose it all with pocket aces on all sites, but the probability of losing it all here is sadly very high. Lots of potential, but a poor engine is a very significant downfall.

3. ijji Rounders

I knew about ijji previously from a game called GunZ Online. When I found out they had Rounders Poker, I was inclined to try it out. To be fully honest, in my book it’s better than PokerRoom, PokerStars, and anything else. The graphics are the same as PokerRoom if not better, and there is enough Sit ‘n Go and Round Table games to make it very quick to find a game. It’s not like it really matters if there are 10,000 players playing simultaneously or 250 players, as long as you can get a table. I had no difficulty finding a table to play at using Rounders from ijji. While there is no variety in games outside of Hold’em you can still choose to play Pot Limit or No Limit, which is enough for us. There were no flaws with the Random Number Generator, it worked very well for me. Table chat was great, and overall I was really impressed with the gameplay and presentation. If it ended here, I would give it a 6.5/10, leaving PokerStars as the winner. BUT WAIT!! How many websites let you win REAL prizes using PLAY money?!?! This is the only high-quality site I found, and the reliability is definitely there as I have heard from many of my fellow players that they have won stuff. Sure, obtaining the chips needed might take a while, but it’s still a nice boost over the big free online Poker companies.

Variety: 5/10

Easiness to Use: 10/10

Graphics: 10/10

RNG: 7/10

BOOSTER AUCTION FACTOR: ∞

Overall: 9/10

For free online competition, this is my favorite choice. Great graphics, smooth gameplay, decent cards randomness…the only complaint is the lack of games other than Hold ‘em, but that’s not a big deal. If you’ve never heard of ijji Rounders before…DEFINITELY check it out.

You might be thinking; why don’t more people use ijji if it’s so great? The answer is quite simple. ijji has never and will never allow “real money” betting - the only opportunity to win real stuff is through auctions. The largest online poker companies, like PokerRoom, PokerStars, FullTilt, etc., all allow one form of real cash betting. And how do these companies get more users? Mostly referrals and advertisements. ijji does not advertise much, other companies do. Until a few years ago, who used to play online poker? Adults looking for a cheap way of making money through betting online - these people referred their friends or other people online as sites offer a referral bonus, and the chain continues. But for free play, IJJI IS SUPERIOR.