Online Poker Gambling Sees Tremendous GrowthWritten by Tom Howze
Online poker gambling at casinos and poker rooms is one of fastest growing forms of wagering on Internet. Fueled by televised tournaments seen on Travel Channel's World Poker Tour, ESPN with 2004 World Series of Poker (WSOP), and Bravo's Celebrity Poker, popularity of game is seen everywhere. A huge number of qualifiers for 2004 WSOP gained their entries from playing in online satellite tournaments for a fraction of large entry fees paid by others. Look for more players to enter 2005 world series of poker satellite tournaments for this reason.Tournaments at land based casinos are becoming so popular that people are being turned away, with waits at some lasting two hours to get a table on weekends. Smaller land based casinos are promoting poker tournaments in order to capitalize on growing trend of game. Even though cut for house is pretty slim, they report increasing revenues by number of patrons who play other games, buy drinks and food. It is also allowing them to attract new players which are mostly twentysomethings and women which expands their customer base. It seems that most of upcoming poker stars are a lot younger than in past. This is because years of experience formally gained at brick and mortar poker rooms is compressed into months when playing online. College students watching Texas Hold'Em poker on TV have taken to playing at crowded tables on campus or online where they can take advantage of 24/7 availability of other players when they can. One college student stated that "Being able to lie (bluff) and get away with it is exciting when you know hand you have is inferior to one your opponents have." Plus being able to play for free is also a nice way to learn game which is a feature that most poker rooms on Net offer.
| | World Poker Tour -- The Beginning of a PhenomenonWritten by Tom Howze
World Poker Tour high stakes poker tournaments started a revolution in way game is viewed, enjoyed, followed and played. Even though World Series of Poker had been televised for years before World Poker Tour (WPT), game of poker was elevated when "WPT cams" were placed around table so that world could experience seeing what hand players were playing and become emotionally involved in decisions that were being made. When you add fact that hundreds of thousands of dollars are laid out on table with watching a few "instant millionaires" being made at these events, world was hooked. But when word got out that anyone could challenge planet's top poker player for six to seven-figure piles of money, individuals from all over came out to take up challenge.The WPT is made up of a number of high stakes poker tournaments held in different locations all over globe. They are open to anyone willing to pay entry fee, sometimes as high as $25,000 per seat. A person who wishes to enter any of these events can simply contact casino hosting event to do so. WPT CEO Steven Lipscomb started idea of televised poker events with WPT cams on cable back in February 2002. The breakaway success of this idea spawned many similar ideas and has inspired numerous land based casinos that had closed their poker rooms after dismissing poker as financially not worth effort, to reopen them. Today, on top of seeing best of best in poker you can see millionaires, CEO's, rocket scientists , software kings, mathematicians, women and actors at tables shoulder to shoulder competing to see who is best. And on occasion, you can see an amateur beating a seasoned professional which sends out a resounding message that anyone can win.
|
