When it comes to playing free online poker, it goes without saying that you’re getting something for nothing, but just how much you’re getting depends on a few key choices. Believe it or not, not all free poker was created equal, so it’s up to you to find the true value in playing poker online for free. Below are a few of my personal tips for optimizing your free online poker play.
Choose the Best Room
Even when the poker is free, time is money, so don’t waste your time playing at a lesser site. Sure, all the big game sites offer their own free beta poker programs, but once you see what the real poker rooms are offering you’ll never want to play anywhere else. Determining which poker room offers the best free online poker is all about personal preference. For example, if you’re a Texas Hold’em player then you shouldn’t have trouble finding consistent action at any of the top rooms, but if you’re an Omaha or Stud player you might have to do some hunting to find tables that aren’t an absolute ghost town. Also, not every poker room is available to every player. U.S. players may not have access to some of Europe’s hottest poker rooms, but there are still plenty of good sites that offer free online poker to their American friends.
Take It Seriously
Well…not too seriously. I’m just suggesting that you actually think about the game. Just because you’re playing poker online for free doesn’t mean you can’t get something from the experience. If you ever aspire to play cash poker, then it’s important that you work the kinks out of your strategy now. Also, even at the points-only tables you’re sure to run into some skilled players. Unless you want to constantly have the smallest stack at the table, you’re going to have to bone up on your skills.
Try Everything
A lot of people that play poker online for free just sit at the first available table for their entire session. It’s free! That means you’ve got nothing to lose by trying a new variation, increasing your stakes level or testing your multi-tabling skills.
Make Free Poker Valuable
A lot of really solid cash poker players started with free online poker. Granted, the competition gets even stiffer when you’re playing for real money, but you save yourself a lot of grief by learning the hard lessons at the free tables. As with any other sport, the best poker players have put in the time necessary to get to the top. Consider your free play an internship.
Another way to add value when playing poker online for free is to try some freerolls. Because their fields tend to number in the thousands, you can expect to make a large time investment for just one tournament, but the experience – and the possible prize – is going to be much more significant than what you’ll get at the regular points-only tables.
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