On line poker....is it fixed? NF

[bucktail]

Wondering how many people play for money on the site and what they think of it.

I have been playing for maybe a year and consider myself an above average player.

After 9 months I am still up in money but keep seeing more and more improbable plays that have made me think things are not on the up and up.

I calculated a hands odds of 1 in 45000 that 4 pocket pairs from the ten up would be possible. Saw it the other night.

Also I was beat 3 hands in a row where I was a 95% favourite. Not whining but it seems there is NO way for these hands to happen let alone being called if it was another person on the other end.

I almost allways try to talk to the other person after bizarre beats and have had no response

Is there any agency that looks at the code of these sights?

I have many freinds that have quit playing online after being BINGOED or Internet pokered.

Am I being paranoid??

[fliptheslop]

ever give any thought as to why these sites are in places like gebralta and suchplaces that have no laws,they have you believe that things like you are just bad luck,yes they can happen, but as often as they do give me a break, many sites have players who use robots.

[Roy]

No Bucktail. You're not paranoid. I'm amazed that folks still think they could make money gambling. It's a pastime. A pleasant one for lotsa folks. A killer for some families. But, hey, the Provincial lotteries are government run so they must be on the up and up right? The suicides in the casino parking lots will never make the front pages of the paper. And that's where we stand today.....

[pikehunter]

Never gambled on line, guess I must be paranoid too then because I have never had trust in it. At least in a brick and mortar casino the gaming commission keeps tabs on the activities. Ontario's gaming rules and regulations for licensed facilities are among the strictest. The licensing background check of staff is second if not higher than that of the nuclear industry.

 

Your fear probably has some merit.

[irishfield]

If they can use "slight of hand" in an Island casino...right in front of you....of course you're getting screwed on line.

[fliptheslop]

and dont be fooled some will say oh ya I have won, well of course there will be some ( and I mean very few that win) its good advertising

[Terry]

if it is one of main sites around and you are playing against other players not the house then no...

there would be no reason for the house to cheat

[Big Cliff]

Unless the house had a player involved Terry.

 

I made over $10,000.00 playing Black Jack on line for real money (and got paid). I have played in tournments for nearly 25 years and would say I am an above average player, I've won my share. All of a sudden, I couldn't win a hand or at least nothing that mattered. Every time there was any real money on the line I would get excellent hands against dealer's bust hands but the dealer would always make the hand and I would loose. I quit playing before I lost it all back.

 

If you want to play, go to a casino. Play against real people with real dealers, your odds will at least be real!

[love2fishhave2work]

Having lost a small fortune in online poker, I have the following take.

 

First, I don't believe it is rigged. They make money from hands played and the more hands people play the more they make. Hence they want to keep you there as long as possible playing. These sites make money because they rely on the poker players ego. Every one of us thinks we know what we are doing and are better then the other guy. That is what makes us poker players. However it does not make us good.

 

Look at your own statement. "I have been playing for maybe a year and consider myself an above average player." So you think you are good and above average, you say you are up yet you are also complaining that it is rigged. That is very inconsistent. Fact is, if in fact you were up after a year you would not be complaining but bragging or most likely not saying anything because good players don't talk about their winnings. Especially on a fishing message board.

 

That is in fact what you are programmed to do as a gambler. It is to think you are good so that the "real poker players" take advantage of it. Maybe you should be asking the people you loose to what they think of your game. My guess is none of them will tell you the truth when they are taking your money.

 

What drives us "Weekend Players" is thinking that after reading a poker book by Brunson or Chan we suddenly decide that we can sit at the same table as Doyle Brunson or Johnny Chan. Do you honestly think that they will give their real secrets away. The reality is 5% of all the players win 95% of all the money.

 

Sounds very much like fishing. I used to think I knew how to fish. After spending the last couple of summers fishing with people who do, I realized I knew nothing. Sound familiar.

 

By the way, I still play poker online and in live games. I know that i will not win in the long run just like I know i will never be the next David Chong.

 

Use it as entertainment value and then the game will change for you. I no longer get frustrated when I loose.

 

Just my take and insight after loosing a small fortune.

[irishfield]

But Bucktail knows how to fish.... LOL

[GbayGiant]

All I know is that Danny Nagrado is the man, he pulls cards after he calls them out loud all the time, luckiest man alive.

[danc]

luckiest man alive.

 

You said it GbayGiant. I play (for fun) several times per week and I don't think that there's such a thing as a good poker player. Just a lucky one.

[Dutch]

On-line poker is not rigged.

 

As some earlier posts state, the money is passed around from player to player with the house taking a rake or getting a fee for tournament entry. Getting beat on 3 straight 95% favourite hands is a tough outcome to face, but the house did not win your money, another player did. Each play of the cards is random, no matter what it seems like.

 

As far as on-line poker, yes I do play. And I perceive my skill (yes, poker is a skill) to be above average. It takes brains and mathematics skill and an ability to read players (this can be done live, and on-line, by studying betting petterns, tendencies etc). You cannot judge a player's skill on how much they have won or lost in the short-term, less than 5-7 years IMO. Poker is a long-term investment, your bank-roll will fluctuate up and down depending on the run of the cards (luck, or lack thereof), and the skill of the people you play against. In the end the most skilled players will win in the long run.

 

Daniel Negreanu is a great poker player and ambassador to the game. He does get "lucky" and pull the odd card on the turn or river, but so does everyone else from time to time. What sets him a part from others is the way he can read people and their betting patterns. Watch a few episodes of a recurring poker game on TV, it is eerie the way he can call other's hands. When he calls and is beat, so be it, but the reason he calls is not generally because he "knew he had it" it's beacuse the pot is giving him the right odds to call. In the end if he keeps calling with the right odds, he will win in the long run.

[bigfish1965]

IS it possible for online casinos to cheat? Yes of course. There is no reason for the house to cheat in poker other than to drive up pot rakes. Most higher stakes games are maxed out on the rake by the flop, so giving out a bunch of good hands doesn't afford them any edge.

Being in gaming for 20 years I can say that there is no amount of cheating you can do that is worth the reputation of your casino.

You have to recognize the odds and also recognize that 95% winners still lose 5% of the time.

Don't call down all in bets with less than a set and never when facing four card flushes or straights.

AA is only a 35% favourite pre-flop against 9 players but 80% against 1. So even a 220 to 1 shot to get aces still only nets you about 60-80% chance of coming out on top.

I used to play online LOTS and used to pay my mortgage each month with the winnings. But I always knew that statistically really good days would result in really bad days down the line. The difference is good players know when to tighten up and make their decisions on bad days with their head..not with their emotions.

There are great players and these guys regularly take home lots of money...but there are days when even they lose. If your boat gets run over by a straight flush, there's nothing you can do. I see just as many bad beats in real life as I do online.

[charlesn]

I'm pretty sure it must be rigged. But don't worry, it's only rigged against me! lol

 

Like Rick said, there's not much benefit and HUGE risk for a massive reputable on-line site to rig anything and risk their company. Also consider the sheer speed of on-line. You probably see 4 times as many hands per minute playing 1 table, and most of us play at least 3 tables at a time. Due to this we see a ton of hands, and some brutal beats and crazy flops will happen.

 

I think a poker tournament involves more luck than a fishing tournament, but just as luck is a component in a fishing tournament, skill is VERY MUCH a component in a poker tournament.

 

Charles

[aplumma]

I love to play the games but I agree with Roy and that is only take as much money as you can afford to lose to the table. It seems to take the anxiety out of the game and leaves only the fun part. I go to the casino with a few of the family and score is kept by how long you are at the table, how many free drinks you had and if you are ahead of the game in that order. The amount of skill that you have only slows down the rate that you lose your money. The house does not put a game out their that loses money simple and plain. Think of gambling as a sine wave with peaks and valleys when you double your stake leave the table when you lose your limit leave the table thats how you enjoy the games of chance without losing more than you bargain for. If you feel or find that you want to make back what you have lost go to the con siere at the casino and ask for help they will get you in touch with a professional who can guide you to recovery before the hole is to deep.

 

 

Art

[Terry]

you are right Big Cliff, but that's why I say stick with the well known ones...I can see them having a player in high stakes game but not in smaller stakes game, but because they would be able to see all hands..it would be easy to beat everyone

[Abberz]

No its not fixed, but for excitement's sake online play does result in more exciting hands. I know its frustrating at times but in the end it all evens out. I have some friends that make a living from online and live play.....I know what your all thinking yeah right, but legit these guys are pulling in about a $1000/week US. Not a bad way to live in your early 20's.

[easton13th]

I would believe that they are NOT 100% legitimate. Gambling is just that, you have to be willing to lose to win. I don't believe there is any governing body for on-line gambling. The sites after all are making billions of dollars providing the excitement of winning, they want that one or two BIG winners. They advertise it as the dream, everything is possible. Our government does the same with 649...Imagine the Freedom, AND is that legitimate? It is overseen by the Federal Gov't. If they can have irregularities....you could not believe on-line gambling would not.

[rickster]

I think that you can be cheated in the online poker sites but it is usually done by other players.

You really have to pay attention to who is at your table.

Whose to say the five other guys at your table are not all in the same room somewhere watching each others screens.

When they see that one of them has the nuts the others drop out so that you can lose your shirt.

Thats just my take on it.

 

So who wants to go fishing?

[Terry]

in many cases you can't even sit at the same table with someone from the same internet server let alone the same IP