Online poker is a great pastime, but did you know these interesting factoids about it? We’ve got you covered for the next time a conversation leads on to poker with these fascinating poker-related tidbits.
- The majority of online poker games aren’t strictly poker! People use the word poker to mean Texas Hold’em Poker. This isn’t limited to people, either. A lot of companies and online casinos make this reference, too. Historians of the game will know only too well that Texas Hold’em is a later derivative of the original poker game, and it’s why you see so many variations when you play on the best online poker sites that are legal in the US.
- Online poker might be a new activity for some, but the pastime stems back to 1998, when Planet Poker dealt the first-ever online hands of online poker on January 1st.
- Online poker experienced its first major venture into the mainstream between 2003 and 2006. This is often referred to as the Poker Boom. During this time, Chris Moneymaker, an average American, qualified for the 2003 Main Event by winning an online tournament and went on to win the entire competition.
- Before the poker boom, there were some early indicators that online poker and poker would increase in popularity, with Planet Poker launching before the new millennium and the release of the 1998 film, ‘Rounders’.
- Neymar Jr., Jay-Z, and Chris Eubank Jr. are some celebrities who love to play online poker in their free time. Whether or not they are any good at it is debatable!
- While Indonesia and Malaysia have some very tight laws on gambling in general, that doesn’t stop the locals from playing online poker, as the two countries are regularly listed in articles that name the countries with the most online poker players.
- While companies enter the marketplace all the time, the most popular ones are the sites with a decent stature and reputation. Therefore, platforms like PokerStars, GGPoker, and 888poker are typically known to be the most popular on a global status.
- Brazil might be more commonly associated with football (soccer to some), but online poker is also very popular there.
- ESPN broadcast a lot of WSOP tours and other poker events between 2004 and 2005 as the NHL at the time was on pause, creating a large void in their schedule.
- Black Friday (April 15th, 2011) changed the game in America. While maybe not a ‘fun fact’ for US poker players, this event changed online poker history. The FBI had seized the majority of poker websites and shut them down as they were outlawed by the central government.
- A lot of the effects of Black Friday are still present to this day (August 2023). Given the deconstructed state governments in the US get to determine their laws, a lot of which still outlaw online poker. Some have relaxed or made it legal, but not very many. However, the country is still rated as the most passionate for online poker.
- Patrik Antonius, a poker player from Finland, is one of the greatest online players, having won some obscene amounts of money while logged on to the virtual tables. It’s claimed that he’s won close to $12,000,000 on Full Tilt Poker alone. This includes winning one of the biggest online poker pots to date, where he picked up a considerable $1.3m+ prize.
- Malta is considered to be a great destination for online poker players. The country has relatively few laws on gambling and low tax rates and welcomes foreigners to settle in the country with very little paperwork or processes. Therefore, it is not uncommon to see or hear about online poker players moving to Malta to play with less aggravation. Also, Malta is popular with English speakers as the local population is famed for speaking the language due to friendly and historic ties with the United Kingdom.
- Some of the very best poker players on the WSOP tour events play online poker in their downtime. Daniel Negreanu can be spotted on some sites, such as DNegs. Phil Ivey likes to play online, too, but on WSOP.com, his desired username was snagged by an opportune online player. Meaning if you see ‘philivey’ on that platform, it’s not the real Phil Ivey.
- A user called Isildur (yep, the same as the Lord of the Rings character) is widely considered to be the best online poker player of all time. His real name is Viktor Blom and he famously won $1.7m in a single week on online poker. He has since transitioned to playing live poker, where he is also very successful.
