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POKER

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Poker recently became probably the most popular game on the planet, when online bookies and poker rooms started offering peer-to-peer play. Instantly, there were numerous "regular people" who became champions and millionaires; educative shows began to air on TV, the rewards on tournaments rose because of the sheer number of players, and the best players regularly secure a spot on one of the "real" tournaments where they are able to play against professionals, or / and against newborn champions like themselves.

Specialized poker rooms exist, but in this case bookies are at the top of the hill also, because they offer more generous promotions and freeroll tournaments. Expekt offers $1000 to each customer who wants to take that money. The sum is imaginary, but the eventual profit isn't and can be withdrawn. Besides that, Expekts also offers an amazing bonus of $600, doubling the initial deposit of the same amount. A player may deposit only $50 and get additional $50, but if we know that he'll be playing exclusively against other players like himself, and therefore play a game in which skill is the only merit, Expekt has really outdone himself with this offer.

Take note, Annette Obrestad from Norway, a famous young champion who earned millions never made an actual deposit. Everything she earned came from freeroll tournaments. Later she used the winnings to play the real tournaments. Truly, skill is the only merit. A lot of money is on the tables, waiting to be taken, and the risk is minimal as you can try to play without making a deposit. As we can see, you can also become a millionaire without making a deposit, if you're good enough. These are the reasons why online poker is getting even more popular every day.

Besides Expekt, Unibet is also trying hard. They offer a 100 € bonus to new customers, and they have dozens of tournaments, including freerolls.

Actually, in all online bookies advertised on Oklade.net you may find a poker room and a generous bonus which is always separate from the bonus you're getting for betting. That means you can get both bonuses, and if you want, a third bonus is waiting for you in the casino. My guess is that you'll also play poker there. The bonuses, when put together, are amazing and can climb up to several thousands €, so it's silly to miss them. Just make sure you have a good idea on what to do when you actually sit at a table. Learn first, play for fun or enter freeroll tournaments, and when you're confident enough you may deposit and double, triple or quadruple your money with the bonus alone. Nobody is that bad to lose it all. Annette Obrestad definitely visited each poker room on the market to take the bonuses, so can you.

Poker in general

Unlike the local casinos which don't promote poker because they can barely make a profit from it, online bookies, poker rooms and casinos have two advantages. The first one is that an online poker table is virtual, it takes no physical space and therefore it's almost free to maintain. The second advantage comes from the first one, and it's a vast number of players. Poker rooms are therefore able to offer an almost fair game, and still earn a lot. They take a small percenatage of the rake, or / and they take entry fees for tournaments. Basically, you won't even feel it. The house is happy, the players are happy. That's a very rare combination.

Texas Hold'em

By far the most popular version of poker on the internet. Just like in other versions, the players are fighting for the money on the table (rake) and are attempting to control it based on the cards they're holding. The goal of the game is long-term profit, meaning, it's not necesarry to win each hand, it's important to lose as little as possible when having weak cards, and earning as much as possible when having strong cards. Texas Hold'em allows folding without losing any money, so the best strategy, used by the professionals, is to fold often and to play high stakes when the cards are good enough to go all the way.

Poker is actually a pretty boring game, and it may take hours or even the whole day. So, it's good to be prepared. Make yourself a sandwich in advance, make a playlist on Winamp, get a couple of extra cushions and relax. It is wise to interrupt the game every 45 minutes, because that's how long an average person can stay concentrated. During the break, which should last 10-15 minutes, it's good to go outside for a walk, or at least go to the window and look at the sky. When you're back, you'll be ready for new wins. Don't attempt to play without taking a break, because it will seriously hurt your bank account.

The two players left of the dealer are making blind bets. Those bets are obligatory. After that, each dealer gets 2 cards, and those are the only ones he'll get. Then the first 3 cards are dealt on the table (flop) and they belong to all players. The bets can be raised. After that, a fourth card is dealt (turn), and after some more stake raising, the last one is dealt (river). It's followed by the last round of raising bets. Finally each player uses those 7 cards and the one with the best combination made of 5 cards wins. In online poker, it's done automatically, you can even see the strength of your current cards without having to examine the possible combinations.

Bluffing didn't disappear in online poker. Stakes are bluffs, and it's possible to lead the other players not to fold by making small bets, and later, when they realize you have four aces, it's too late for them to back down. Also, a player may trick the other players by making a high stake "after seeing the fourth card", which would make everyone believe the 4th card is the one you've waited for. The position of your seat is crucial for bluffing, as the seat further away from the dealer provides more information about the other players' cards. And stakes. Being on the right side of the dealer is the best possible position. Likewise, being on the left of the dealer is the worst, and that position suggests you should fold unless you have very good cards, because you have no knowledge of other players' cards before you make your bet.

On the table above, we're showing the best relative value of the first 2 cards you're getting. Down on the left are the combinations which are not suited, and up on the right are the combinations which are suited. That's why the combination 2A (bottom left) is worthless, and the combination A2 (top right), where A and 2 are suited, has a medium value. On this picture, combinations without color and number are worthless, and the others are sorted by value 1 (best) to 8 (worst) and the color which goes with the number only to make the table more readable.

The way to win

NThe best option is to choose one of the bookies advertised on Oklade.net and learn to play. Unibet has a good poker school where you can learn the basics step-by-step, and Expekt gives plenty of tips to the players. After that, you may play for fun, and later join one of the freeroll tournaments. When you're a bit more confident in your ability, you may make a real deposit and take all the bonuses, and earn money with your skill. There are plenty of tables with newbies who didn't learn to play yet, so low-stake tables are a good place to start.

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