Title: Poker For The Beginner Word Count: 446 Summary: The game of poker, and especially Texas Hold’em have become very popular over the past few years. This is in part because of the online poker rooms that have sprung up on the Internet. ESPN televises poker tournaments all over the world and the shows have more viewers than a lot of the most popular shows. Take for example the World Series of Poker, held in Las Vegas each year, that tournament has grown from less than 100 players and a jackpot of less than a million to over... Keywords: online poker, poker, texas holdem, texas hold\\\\\\\'em Article Body: The game of poker, and especially Texas Hold’em have become very popular over the past few years. This is in part because of the online poker rooms that have sprung up on the Internet. ESPN televises poker tournaments all over the world and the shows have more viewers than a lot of the most popular shows. Take for example the World Series of Poker, held in Las Vegas each year, that tournament has grown from less than 100 players and a jackpot of less than a million to over 8000 players with a jackpot of $12.5 million in 2006. This is because the online poker rooms hold satellite games all year long and sponsor the winners of these tournaments to the WSOP. Online poker rooms give a person a place to practice their poker skills and strategies. You learn very quickly when to hold them and when to fold them. With the advent of the Internet and the online poker rooms a player has no problem finding a game seven days a week, 24 hours a day. I remember when I had to wait till Friday night to play poker and having to go out in the middle of a snowstorm to a friend’s house to play. Those days are over, now all I have to do is pull up my chair to computer and play with people from all over the world, how times have changed. Just about every online poker room has a site that you can play for free and for fun. These sites are a good place to practice your skills and learn the ins and outs of the poker world. This is one game where practice makes perfect. The more you play the better you will get at the game. Unlike other forms of gambling where you only have luck to win against the house, in poker your not playing against the house, your playing against the skill of your opponents. Very little luck is involved in the game of poker unless you need a card for a straight or flush and pull it on the river. Poker has the ability to bring together the people of the world, to have them site down at a table and enjoy ones ability to play poker. Think about it! Playing online poker has the ability to break down cultural boundaries that have existed for centuries. I have been at tables that have had Moslems and Jews, blacks and whites playing with no animosity toward each other. Sure they are trying to win, but they respect the other players ability, not his beliefs or color. Log on to your favorite poker room and have a wonderful time.