The Definitive Answer: Is Online Poker Still Beatable?

Hang around the game long enough and you're bound to hear whispers of the many conversations about the downfall of online poker. Search the popular online forms if you want to see concrete evidence of this phenomenon firsthand. No matter what the latest situation that has occurred and is causing panic in the poker community, the answer will always be the same: poker is not dead. Winning players have survived an influx of sophisticated training tools and materials that have leveled the playing field, as well as increasing rate and legal regulations on the poker industry. Let's take a look at why poker just won't die. online poker 468x60 There will Always be Fish in the Sea While the overall player pool online may be getting more skilled, there are always going to be recreational players and new players simply don't know how to play well, or do not care enough to play well. Most winning players do not make the majority of their money from other winning players or even break even players. The majority of their winnings come from the bad players on the site. What this means is that table choice is one of the most important skills that you can cultivate if you want to be a successful poker player. In the distant past you may have been able to get away with subpar table choices, but if you really want a strong winrate in the present poker climate and in the future, do not ignore this valuable skill. Tools are only as Effective as Their Users When the first versions of hand tracking software came out, the regular players who took became seriously and became early adopters had a massive advantage. After the first few years, however, more and more players began using and tracking software on and off the table, which decreased that advantage that other winning players used to have. On a similar note, more and more players also have access to training videos from some of the top poker players in the world; some video training sites are even advertise on major online poker sites so that most players have a chance become aware of them at one point or another. While you may think this automatically levels the playing field and takes away a lot of your advantage, you should realize that most players do not use these tools, or do not use them effectively. Watching training videos is only useful if you can apply the lessons learned into your own personal game, which many players lacked the patience and work ethic to do. The bottom line is that over time, the quality of training materials continue to increase, which helps the best winning players they had the competition that do not use tools effectively. Remember that a tool can only be effectively utilized when the user understands how and when to use it. Take time to stay on top of the latest training resources and you will stay on top of the game. Keep the Bell Distribution in Mind A general bell shaped distribution, otherwise known as a gaussian or normal distribution, can describe many things in our world. The basic premise is that there will always be some people near the top of the curve, some people near the bottom, and most people will be in between. The results of poker players fall into a normal distribution if you have enough data. What this means is that no matter how the game changes in the future, there will always be a certain percentage of players are simply better than others and fall on the upper portion of the bell curve. So while players may improve and try to overtake your position as a winning player, up to you continually work on your game if you want to stay ahead of the curve. The Future is Bright Online poker players had to suffer through a lot in the early stages of the industry, especially Americans. However, even at the worst points in online poker history, winning players always found a way to prevail. Currently, the future of poker is looking a lot brighter. There have been major improvements to poker regulation some US states, and poker tournaments and events are as popular as ever on television. Poker sites know that they need to attract new players to keep existing players happy, and they spend a considerable amount of money on advertising other customer acquisition channels to ensure the game remain viable. No one said that poker was always going to be easy. If you're not yet a winning player or have been going through some recent challenges, use your setbacks as motivation to improve. Being a winning player is always going to be possible if you are willing to put the work in and not make excuses.