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Poker In The United States

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Questions and Answers

Which poker sites accept paypal payment (United States)?

All the ones i can find that accept paypal are Europe.

Posted by Phillip T.
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Poker sites no longer accept PayPal © from residents of the USA because PayPal © no longer allows it. Instead of that you can deposit with all access visa gift card into USA friendly poker sites which you can find more info about at GamblingSafe.Net. Also in the articles there is complete info how to deposit.

Is online poker with real money illegal in the United States?

If not, what are some good legit sites?

Posted by papadego
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It is perfectly legal to play poker online in the US, except for residents of Washington state. Poker players in the state of Washington have to contend with a legal state of affairs that is both quite restrictive and completely unique. For residents of Washington state the best option is to play for free (no cash) or play on subscription sites like PurePlay or ClubWPT.

Although it is legal (except for those residing in Washington state), the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) makes it illegal for banks to accept transactions with online gambling sites – making it difficult (but not impossible) to deposit or withdraw money from an online gambling account. After this law was enacted many poker sites (notably Absolute Poker, Full Tilt Poker, Party Poker, Paradise Poker, PokerStars, and many others) stopped accepting US players at all. However, there are still several existing and a few new sites that do accept players from the United States. This link is to another reference site listing Online Poker Rooms accepting US Players.

Why is poker so popular?

Posted by Anthony M.
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There are four main factors motivating the recent rise in popularity of not only online poker, but poker in general:

First and foremost, poker has recently made the evolutionary jump from being viewed as a game to being viewed as a sport in the United States. This mainstream acceptance is due to increased media coverage of high-stakes poker tournaments such as the 2003 World Series of Poker and various weekly tournaments on the World Poker Tour. While ESPN and The Travel Channel have provided the primary coverage of such events, other television stations have been quick to duplicate these efforts. For example, the BRAVO network began airing weekly celebrity poker tournaments near the end of 2003. And Fox Sports Net began airing episodes of its “Late Night Poker” program.

Second, although there are a wide variety of ways that poker can be played, the tournament format covered by all is Texas No Limit Hold’em (“NLHE”). This particular version of poker is more confrontational and explosive than traditionally accepted formats such as 5-card draw or 7-card stud. In high stakes games, NLHE is simply the most exciting format of poker for the players, but it was not always so exciting for those watching poker being played on television. In the past, television viewers were not given the opportunity to see the player’s “hole” cards (the two cards dealt face down to each player) during a live game for weeks and, sometimes months after the hands were played. But, that all changed in 2011 when ESPN started recording and then airing the WSOP Poker Tournaments on a 30-minute delay. The 30-minute delay afforded ESPN the opportunity to also show the player’s hole cards when the shows aired. Previously, viewers would watch one poker player on television betting then watching another player raising and a third player going all-in. Followed by all of the rest of the players folding their cards. That left the viewers guessing what each player had for their hole cards and often, never knowing. In 2011, that all changed and the viewer was able to see what each player held in their hands as their hole cards. The viewers could see that third player completely bluffing the others with a 7-2 off-suit and watching the other players folding much better hands, which made the game much more exciting to watch on television.

The third and fourth reasons behind the meteoric rise in poker’s popularity have much to do with the 2003 World Series of Poker Main Event. As the name indicates, this particular poker championship is the most sought after by poker players around the world. The tournament itself has a rich history, not to mention a rich payout. In 2003, the person who ended up winning the WSOP Main Event was a 27-year-old accountant named Chris Moneymaker, and his rise to the pinnacle of the poker world was nothing short of a Cinderella story.

The WSOP Main Event commands a $10,000 entrance fee. For the first time in history, the opportunity to win a chair in the tournament was also made available by several online poker rooms, including PokerStars. By playing in a “satellite” tournament for $40 at PokerStars, Moneymaker eventually earned entry into the WSOP Main Event tournament by virtue of his success online. Despite the fact that the 2003 WSOP Main Event was his first “live” tournament, Moneymaker went on to win the $2.5 million first prize and the respect of professional players worldwide. This accomplished two things – it legitimized the notion that online poker players are just as skilled at the game as those who play in casinos, and it truly illustrated that anyone can win. Said Chris Moneymaker, “I was a little underestimated because no one knew who I was. If I can win it, anybody can.”

The concept of “anybody” winning caught hold of the American public like wildfire and, almost overnight, the number of people trying to become that “anybody” like Chris Moneymaker exploded. The fact that ESPN (a nationally recognized cable television Sports Network) kept replaying the phases of the tournament that showed Moneymaker’s rise to the top simply added fuel to the proverbial fire. It wasn’t long before people who had a few dollars and a couple of free hours began trying their hands at a game that, with a little luck, could make them wealthy overnight. The Internet aided this rags-to-riches mentality immeasurably: users quickly realized that they could access a wide array of online poker games in a manner of seconds instead of having to drive to a B&M (“Brick and Mortar”) casino.

The above four factors helped Poker’s meteoric rise in popularity not only in the United States but all over the world!

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Interview with Chris MoneyMaker Nearly A Decade After Winning The 2003 WSOP Main Event

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