Online Poker vs Live Poker

Having been in and around poker for 10 years I always thought I preferred live play over playing on the internet as that’s how I learned the game before there ever was internet poker. However, I’ve been playing quite a lot of poker recently, both live and online, and I have to say I now think I prefer to play online. Let me tell you why:

• The speed of the game. With Online Poker you can play a minimum of 60 hands per hour on a 10 handed No Limit Hold’em table. Compare this with about 30 hands per hour in a live game. And that’s with a good dealer.

• Live you can only play one table, although I have on occasions seen players try and play two! Online you can play up to 8 tables at once.

• There are no dealer errors online. No misdeals, no exposed cards and you always know exactly how much is in the pot and how much the other players have in front of them. And you don’t have to tip the dealer!

• The rake is a lot lower online. Land Based Casinos have to charge more because they have more costs and not as many tables.

• Tournaments start every 10 minutes as opposed to only one or two per day in a real casino.

• You can play naked if you want! And if you haven’t done this you really should try it!

• The online poker room is always open and in a very convenient location. You don’t have to worry about driving to your local casino or trying to get even before they close at 4am.

• Lastly, and most importantly, is the amount of players in an online cardroom compared to a real cardroom. How many players can your local cardroom accommodate? 100, 200 or even 500, it's nothing when you have online rooms with 50,000+ players. What this means is that you can always get a game at the time you want and at the limits you want. There are always new players to keep the games going and fill the empty seats.
   

In fact the only thing I miss about playing online are the hot cocktail waitresses in skimpy outfits! (I hope my wife isn’t reading this) Seriously though, although you may not be able to look your opponents in the eye, I think it’s a small price to pay for all the obvious advantages of playing online. So until next time check the auto post blinds box and move the raising bar all the way to the end.

David Tarbet