Poker, specifically Texas Hold Em, has taken the world by storm in the recent years. Its popularity rose rather quickly after 2003 with a mixture of three events contributing to a poker boom. Unfortunately, new online gaming laws have resulted in some poker rooms rejecting American players. Luckily, there are others that accept US-based poker players with open arms.
No Limit Hold Em has become the worlds most popular game. This success is attributed to a number of factors, all of which took place around 2003. The first and most important event that is attributed to the success of poker is the 2003 World Series of Poker. Chris Moneymaker, an amateur poker player at the time who worked as an accountant, won a seat to the 2003 World Series of Poker through a $39 poker satellite tournament on PokerStars, one of the top US poker rooms. Moneymaker went on to win the 2003 World Series of Poker. Players became intrigued by Moneymakers anybody can win story and looked to repeat the same success. Hundreds of thousands of new players joined the poker bandwagon. This effect ultimately became known as the Moneymaker Effect.
See below for the best USA online poker rooms today. These best US poker sites all accept US players and are waging the war against the UIGEA.
Around the time of the World Series of Poker, two other major changes to the poker frontier were taking place. Pocket cams were being used in the United Kingdom on poker television shows since 1999. They were not introduced to the United States until early 2003 when the World Poker Tour borrowed the idea. ESPN implemented the idea for their 2003 World Series of Poker broadcast and ratings skyrocketed. During the same broadcast, online poker rooms advertised their business to American consumers. Online poker, which was created in 1998, saw a huge influx of players after these series of advertisements. Players signed on to their favorite online poker rooms in mass looking to be the next Chris Moneymaker.
Unfortunately for Americans, a restraint on online gaming was created in 2006 which outlawed bank transactions with online gambling sites. Many poker sites saw this as an outlaw of online poker in America and turned their back on American players. Several poker rooms stayed in the American market since the new law did not explicitly outlaw online poker.
Poker has quickly become a favorite in casinos all over the world. It may be difficult for some to drive all the way to the casino just to play poker. Luckily, online poker erases the need to go to the casino. Players can now log into their favorite poker room to play some hands of poker. For new players to online poker, we recommend Luvin Poker or Intertops. They have set the industry standard high and remain the poker rooms to be beat. Good luck at the felt!