According to UK’s fastest growing poker website, Victor Chandler Poker (http://www.vcpoker.com), it’s no longer just a man’s game. One in six new players joining Victor Chandler Poker is female – up from virtually zero just 2 years ago. The typical female player tends to be between 24 and 25, internet savvy, shops online and has a professional business career.

Why women are taking up online poker

There are 5 main reasons why women are taking up online poker:

•Poker is gaining a lot of media attention. TV games shows, high-profile tournaments and traditional portrayal of poker in film and TV gives game a glamorous, exciting image.

•More and more women are playing game professionally. The success of women players listed on Women’s Poker Hall of Fame has created some powerful role models.

•The web creates a safe environment. Logging on to a poker website is nowhere near as intimidating as walking into a male-dominated casino. Good online poker rooms are moderated, mostly by women.

•Online poker caters for novice player in a way that was not possible before web. First, anonymity means no-one has to worry about looking stupid. Second, there are extensive tips, articles and tutorials online that rapidly educate novice player.

•Games can be played just for fun or for small stakes. One fear is getting into a game where stakes are continually rising. But fixed cost games mean that if women want to bet, they know exactly how much they stand to win or lose.

Anecdotal evidence from gambling industry suggests that traditional female traits such as assessing difficult situations, taking in information from multiple sources, make women ideal poker players.

But do women really make good poker players?