The Positive Benefits of Playing Regular Poker

What images does the game of poker throw up for you?

Is it high stakes, big losses and immorality? Could it be the Hollywood stereotypes of cheating dealers, shady players and overriding distrust? You might even be drawn to the Black Friday poker saga of 2011 when major internet providers were closed down amidst worries over conduct. None of those images are particularly positive, are they?

Even in today’s world, where poker is once again an accepted norm, it isn’t hard to find a negative angle to ponder upon. Take Dan Bilzerian, for example; an ostentatious and decadent individual with a lifestyle few would consider wholesome. He is reported to have made his money playing poker, and by association, the game gets associated with his worst traits. Is that entirely fair?

Poker? That bad?

The answer is no. For all of its’ negative reputation, poker is a game that challenges individuals whilst retaining a degree of integrity and equality. For instance, how many other major competitions around the world treat male and female competitors equally? Very few, but you are just as likely to see a female poker player doing well as you are a male player. Consider Vanessa Selbst for a moment; she is a Yale-educated hedge fund manager who also happens to play poker to a very high standard. She made $11m from her poker career and ploughed much of that back into a charitable foundation called Venture Justice, a vehicle for investing money in nonprofit causes and organizations. Whilst that is an example of one player, it shows the other side of poker, attracting intelligent individuals who understand the core concepts.

The Smart Poker Player

Poker is a game of chance, to a degree, but it is one that tests your maths skills to the limit. One important aspect of the game is calculating poker odds, giving you the probability of winning any given hand. A player will play each hand based on those probabilities, which doesn’t always work in the short term, but it does in the long term. Think of it like this: a coin toss gives you a fifty-fifty outcome, so your probability of winning is 50%. If you were to place a wager on 10 coin tosses, you might win six or seven, but over time, they’d even out. Poker is the same; you might have a hand likely to win but end up losing as the element of chance sees the other player with a better hand. However, the strategy would pay off over more hands. Understanding that takes a strong math background and the ability to think quickly and react; another positive trait poker promotes.

Social Poker

We’ve demonstrated poker can be used for good, is a beacon for equality and tests cognitive ability and reaction, but what else can it do for an individual. In recent times, online poker has experienced a boom, especially through the pandemic. By playing online whilst restricted to their homes, poker players worldwide could stay connected, chatting to friends or like-minded individuals and feeling a part of a community. Just because we’re out the other side doesn’t take that benefit away from players. Indeed, small community games are a great way to meet people, stay connected and avoid feelings of isolation and loneliness.

Additionally, one of the few things that have made it possible for poker lovers to enjoy online social poker is game localization. Game developers are now taking advantage of this feature to reach a bigger audience and break linguistic barriers that make it difficult for different players to enjoy the same poker game while in different countries. For example, because of game localization, English players can play poker games developed in Japan with the help of Japanese to English game translation. 

There are many other benefits to playing poker; the excitement of a well-managed game can replace some other less wholesome activities. The potential for a big win is always there, although when you’re chasing that and in over your head, you stray into dangerous territory. However, just because there are some less attractive elements to the game, it shouldn’t be discounted as a challenging and beneficial pastime.