Play Poker for Free Online

To play poker for free online is one of the easiest and increasingly popular ways to learn the game, especially Texas No-Limit Hold'Em. Virtually all online poker rooms will let players come in at no cost because they would love to have you as a real money player in the future. It is less intimidating and far cheaper than going to a land based poker room. And if you live in an area where you cannot drive to a poker room, playing over the Internet becomes even more attractive. Combining the purchase of a couple of good books on Texas Hold'Em with the 24/7 online availability of a place to practice and learn will allow anyone to increase their knowledge and ability on the game of poker.

When selecting somewhere to begin playing at no cost, it pays to look into what benefits are offered to the player by the poker rooms. Some offer play money tournaments on top of regular table play which can help to learn and practice your tournament strategies. If you have never played before, make sure they have tutorials for the different types of poker, a "How to Play Poker Games" section in addition to a ranking of poker hands. It's also a good idea to go over the system requirements so that when you download their software it will work on your computer.

Also look into sign up bonuses, real money account funding methods, player point programs and the variety of real money tournaments offered so that you are familiar with them when you are ready to begin playing for cash. Some poker rooms will offer extra real money sign up incentives to their fun players just to make sure their customers remain playing with them. "Bad Beat Jackpots" are being offered more and more, (A bad beat takes place when a player has a great hand like four 8's which was beaten by a even better hand like four Aces. The loser has received a bad beat.), but there are differences so take time to become knowledgeable on these as well. They can range from a flat amount of money for the person receiving the bad beat to others which have a progressive jackpot that can run into the tens of thousands.

For those who join a poker room and come to the point to where they want to play for real money, there are additional opportunities to play without cash. And these can be profitable. They are "Freeroll Tournaments" and "Player Point Programs". Freeroll tournaments are free entires into poker tournaments that cost nothing to get into. These pay cash or other awards to the player depending on how well they did during the tournament. You can either enter a freeroll when they are made available or you could receive an invitation from the online poker room itself. Player point programs are points awarded from the poker room to you based on your time at the tables.

Depending on the program, these points can be redeemed for cash, merchandise or entry fees into satellite tournaments. You could potentially enter a satellite tournament with prize seats to the World Poker Tour or World Series of Poker events and win huge amounts of cash. In 2004 Greg Raymer entered a satellite tournament through an online poker room, won a WSOP seat and eventually went on the win the World Series of Poker title and $5,000,000 in cash.

There are still other ways that will allow a person to play for free. When playing for fun at an online poker room, referring a real money player can result in actual cash for you to play with. And today charitable organizations, businesses or corporations offer online poker tournaments for promotion purposes. These are announced randomly, so keep your eyes and ears opened.

Finally, consider signing up for free online surveys and focus groups that pay cash for participation. Just search the Internet for online surveys or focus groups to get started. A person won't get rich or quit their job behind what they bring in, but the money can fund the entry fees for a number of low cost online poker tournaments.

Tom Howze is a webmaster for 9 sites that relate to the World Series of Poker and World Poker Tour events, updates and information to play poker for free online .

Latest News


PennLive.com

Oops: Casino sends free gambling offer to 55K customers
USA Today - 7 hours ago
Instead of offering free food and gambling to less than 1000 elite players, the casino sent a mailing with its generous offer to 55000 customers. ...
Pa. casino says offer of slots credits was mistake CNNMoney.com
Penn's costly casino boo-boo in Pa. Kansas City Star
Hollywood Casino players hit jackpot PennLive.com
Casino Gambling Web
all 174 news articles

Seneca Gaming lays off 210 employees, blames sinking economy
Buffalo News,  United States - 6 hours ago
Revenues have been down across the gambling industry this year. At a casino conference last week in Las Vegas, some of the country's biggest casinos said ...

Communists and downturn could shatter Packer's China dream
The Australian, Australia - 12 hours ago
... only outlet for legalised casino gambling adjacent to mainland China, where all forms of gambling were officially banned by the Communist Government. ...

Borgata CEO eager to transform Australia’s gambling
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA - 8 minutes ago
... convinced him that he could help transform that gaming market in much the same way that the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa brought change to Atlantic City. ...

Kan. Legislature not likely to reconsider gambling
Forbes, NY - 12 hours ago
Some gambling supporters also have talked about reducing a required $225 million minimum investment for the operator of a casino in southeast Kansas, ...

Senate GOP pushes casino-like games at race tracks
Staten Island Advance - SILive.com, NY - 3 hours ago
Developer Louis Cappelli plans a $1 billion resort at the old Borscht Belt resort with gambling, golf, shopping, a spa, a water park and horse racing. ...

Macau gaming revenue rises after two months of falling
Las Vegas Review - Journal, NV - 15 hours ago
... the Chinese government have curtailed tourism from residents of neighboring provinces into Macau, the only area in China where casino gambling is legal. ...

Irish Independent

Some Atlantic City casinos struggle to pay loans
BusinessWeek - Dec 1, 2008
And the head of the American Gaming Association said last month that smaller casino operators might be less likely to survive the current downturn. ...
Trump Entertainment Resorts Trading at Lowest Levels Ever Casino Gambling Web
UPDATE 2-Trump Entertainment to miss bond interest payment Reuters
Atlantic City Report: Casinos set for another dismal December GamingTodaySlotsToday
TopNews - PerezHilton.com
all 94 news articles

Times Online

Shun Tak Plans New Macau Hotel
Wall Street Journal - 12 hours ago
Ms. Ho already owns a 50% stake in a Macau casino with US operator MGM Mirage. David Green, director of the gaming practice at PricewaterhouseCoopers, ...
Michelin launches Hong Kong, Macau culinary guide IBTimes Australia
all 50 news articles

NECN

When Gambling Revenue Drops, Increase Alcohol Sales At Casinos
Casino Gambling Web, FL - Nov 27, 2008
At a time when the casino industry is booming in the United States and lawmakers have come around to the idea of casino gambling being a way of life, ...
State Casinos Seek To Extend Drinking Hours Hartford Courant
CT casinos: Push back last call, please NECN
Casinos debate changing drinking hours WTNH
all 30 news articles

Resources