“It’s all in the cards” – What a load of baloney. As any devout keluaran hk player knows, the cards play a more minor role than most outsiders would ever believe. While the game’s practitioners and devotees have long been aware of this distinction, it seems as though the court of public opinion is finally beginning to swing our way. More than ever, individuals and entire nations are beginning to see that a winner’s edge comes not from the two pieces of paper in his or her hand, but from the quick computations and sharp observations made regarding their opponents.
Indeed, as David Sklansky, author of “The Theory of Poker” states, “expert players do not rely on luck. They are at war with luck. They use their skills to minimise luck as much as possible.”
Let’s be honest. The only reason that the United States government has shown reluctance to classify poker as a skill game is this – If poker is a game of skill, then it cannot be taxed and regulated as heavily as they want. Oddly enough, while the UIGEA legislation classifies poker as a game of chance, where the outcome is largely based on chance, it allows both horse racing and stock trading to go on unmolested.
Consider a study conducted in 2009 of more than 100,000,000 hands at PokerStars. Cigital, the company performing the test, found that 75% of the hands were decided before the players flipped over their cards. This is a strong argument that it is betting pattern and posture rather than hand strength which decides the outcome of any given match.
One of the game’s leading proponents, it happens, hails not from the felt, but from the chessboard. International grandmaster Garry Kasparov, widely recognized as the world’s best chess player, has spoken publicly about poker’s status as a skill game. Indeed, he has noted that poker may be a better teacher of risk/reward management, since players must base their decisions on incomplete information. In chess, he argues, players can see all the pieces. In poker, participants must pay more attention to the opponent and their actions, since the value of their hand is almost always hidden.
Thankfully for America’s poker populace, this movement seems to be gaining traction at a steady pace. It is up to each and every member of the playing community to nurture this new found acceptance. Play with pride and consideration. Take this as an opportunity to step up your game, and prove to the world that once and for all, poker is a game of skill.
