Playing Poker for Real Money with Skill and Integrity

The popularity of Texas Hold `Em has sent poker enthusiasts running to online poker websites hoping to not only win cash, but their share of the fame that is involved with the skilled game. The truth is, people who like to play real money poker - even before the World Series of Poker began being televised - like to play poker with other people who know how to play fairly.

Certainly there is nothing wrong with bluffing your way to a pot takedown, or hanging around a little longer to see if you land that flush on the turn. Everyone does it, and it is part of the game. However, even Kenny Rogers knows that you have to know when to hold them, and know when to fold them. Hanging around a tournament table game with a two and seven, off suit, is painstakingly unfair and it takes away from the game`s integrity. Any professional player – which is what a lot of new poker players strive to be - will tell you that playing a trash hand will not only give you a bad reputation, but it will leave you uninvited to any serious games.

The dichotomy in this ideology is that online poker sites cannot weed out the folks you go all in with a terrible hand, simply to bully the collective pot from other players - or worse, just to steal blinds. Everyone who plays online - especially in tournaments where anyone can join - has to put up with the novice poker playing behavior. The goal should be - for everyone who plays online - not to be that guy or girl. Poker is a fantastic game, which requires skill, strategy and the wherewithal to fold your hand before a bet is made if it does not qualify for action.

When you play online poker, remain fair and play with integrity. Others will begin to recognize your screen name as someone they want to play with - or, by your own fault, the other way around.