Why Online Poker is way too dangerous to play right now

Currently the state of the online poker world could best be described as fragile. To be more specific, the climate is murky for online poker players from the United States(the rest of the world seems to have no problem with regulating the activity). Right now, you’d have to say that it has never been a worse time to play poker online.

Consider the following:

* You can’t use your credit card.
The passage of the Kyl Bill made it illegal for credit card companies to process ANY transactions involving online gaming.That means if you want to play, you will have to fund your account using wire transfers to unknown individuals (NEVER a good idea), or potentially sketchy money transfer firms.


* There are cheaters afoot.
As a recent story on 60 Minutes found, several online poker sites have been overrun by cheaters – advanced mathand hacking gurus who have stacked the deck against online players.

* The whole thing could come down at any moment. President Bush is on his way out of the Oval Office, but it has been rumored that one of the things he is trying to pass into law before he leaves is an outright ban on gaming online for Americans. If that happens, getting your money in your online accounts back into the U.S could be next to impossible.

So what’s an honest poker player to do? Obviously, he or she can travel to one of the many legal poker rooms throughout the country, or visit Atlantic City or Las Vegas. We recommend calling up your friends and re-igniting your home game. After all, before online poker, that was how you enjoyed your game, right? Online poker is an entertaining pursuit, but you lose the deliberate pace of play and the social interaction that make the game so great.

So steer clear of online poker until further notice – but keep you love of the greatest card game ever invented burning bright!

This holiday season, the place to go for all your gambling gifts is www.pokerchest.com. Poker chest offers an incredible selection of chips, tables, cards and other must-have poker accessories for everyone on your list.

Tips for playing winning craps

Today, we continue our “man cannot live by poker alone” series with a look at some quick and easy strategies for playing winning craps. Many people are too intimidated by the craps table to walk up and play (“Where do I place my bets?”, “Why is everyone yelling at me? It’s not my fault I rolled a two!”) but following these leads will help you get in the flow of the game and decrease the odds that you’ll lose your shirt!

Tips for playing winning craps:

· Watch the other players at the table and find the person with the most chips. Make the same bets he does (although in smaller amounts) to get a feel for how a “pro” plays the game.

· To make the game last longer, stay away from the long-odds bets and stick with betting on “Pass/Don’t Pass” or “Come/Don’t Come”

· Don’t leave the table after you win. Craps is a game of streaks and while you need to bet responsibly, you must also be prepared to keep a winning streak going.

· Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Most dealers (the ones who want to get tipped anyway) will provide friendly, patient advice for the new player.

· Try and limit your betting to a Pass Line bet and two Come bets. This is enough action for most folks and will keep you in the game longer by limiting losses when the shooter craps out.

· Stay away from crazy long odds bets such as “Yo-Eleven”. There are plenty of smarter investments to make around the table where the odds against you are not as great.

Visit www.pokerchest.com for an incredible selection of chips, tables, cards and other must-have poker accessories. Plus, Pokerchest offers the BEST in Craps tables, dice and other tools of the game!

And now, a word on playing winning blackjack

Believe or not, man (or woman) does not live by poker alone. Sometimes, a little game of 21 sounds just too good to pass up! And if you’re going to play blackjack, we believe you might as well do it right! With that in mind, we hope you’ll enjoy the following super-terrific, 21-tastic tips for playing better blackjack.

Basic tips for playing winning blackjack:

• Never split 10’s, Jacks, Queens or Kings. Stick with your probable winning hand (and avoid a beating from everyone else sitting at the table).

• Always hit a soft 17 if the dealer is showing a 10. And by soft 17, we mean an Ace and a 6. Things can only get better…probably.

• If the dealer is showing a 10, keep hitting until you reach 17. A pretty obvious tip, but you would be amazed how many people “just have a feeling” that a 15 is going to do the job.

• Never say yes to insurance. Much like renting a car, the insurance is just a waste of money. Only the most skilled card-counters can gain any benefit from the act.

• Always split 7’s and 8’s. When you are dealt a pair you are given the option of splitting them into two separate hands (with two separate bets). Doing this with 7’s and 8’s gives you a chance to turn one crappy hand into two good ones!

• Always tip your dealer after a winning hand. There’s no mathematical formula behind this one, just good karma! And after all, these guys really don’t make much money, and they have to put up with people like YOU all day long.

• If you feel uncomfortable, get up and leave. If you start to register heavy losses at a table, or are seated around people who are throwing off your game, get up, take a break, walk around, and find another table. A clear head will help you make better decisions…and it just feels right to start anew.

Visit www.pokerchest.com for an incredible selection of chips, tables, cards and other must-have poker accessories.

Great poker quotes – Volume I

With all the creative, literary, politically-astute minds that have enjoyed our great game throughout history, it’s no wonder that there’s so many great poker quotes out there.

Here are some of our favorites:

“It never hurts for potential opponents to think you’re more than a little stupid and can hardly count all the money in your hip pocket, much less hold on to it.” - Amarillo Slim

“When we play, we must realize, before anything else, that we are out to make money.” - David Slansky

“If, after the first twenty minutes, you don't know who the sucker at the table is, it's you.” – Unknown

“The commonest mistake in history is underestimating your opponent; it happens at the poker table all the time.” - David Shoup

“I must complain the cards are ill shuffled till I have a good hand.” - Jonathan Swift

“Poker's a day to learn and a lifetime to master.” - Robert Williamson III

Visit www.pokerchest.com for an incredible selection of chips, tables, cards and other must-have poker accessories.

Five things that make the Hollywood Park Casino a place to visit before you die.

Ah, glorious Inglewood, California. A stone’s throw from Los Angles proper has never felt so far away. When in Inglewood, you absolutely must visit the epitome of class and style, The Hollywood Park Casino. It’s got poker, right smack dab in the middle of Southern California.

Need more reasons? Let me count the ways.

1. A poker room 5 minutes from LAX! Got a long layover? Have the cabbie shoot up the Imperial Highway and he’ll have you sitting down at a $3/$6 table in minutes. Just make sure he’s there to pick you up. Cab service around this neighborhood? Not so much.

2. Pink’s! There’s a real live Pink’s Hot Dogs inside the Hollywood Park Casino. Not a landmark like the one off of La Cienaga, but then again, the line is shorter.

3. The ponies! Hollywood Park is actually one of the pre-eminent horse racing venues in the country. In between hands, you can play via simulcast from your seat, or walk over and see the horses run live.

4. The delightful people! You can play poker with the patrons of Hollywood for hours and never have a problem. Just don’t make eye contact. On second thought, go ahead and stare, they’re going to be oblivious to you anyway…frankly, they’ve got their own problems.

5. The celebs! Yes, celebrities do play there. This author has seen Ben Affleck, Chris Moneymaker and Gary Coleman playing poker at Hollywood Park…all in the same month!

For more information about this Inglewood institution, visit www.hollywoodpark.com.

At for the greatest home game accessories online, visit www.pokerchest.com where you’ll find an incredible selection of chips, tables, cards and other must-have poker accessories!

Incredible cheating scandal at Absolute Poker

While the charges of fraud and cheating that are swirling around the world of online poker this month will come as a shock to many, those who knew about the comings and goings at www.absolutepoker.com in 2007 probably won’t find it all that surprising.

In a little-reported story, captured exceptionally well in this article by Freakonomics author Steven D. Levitt, it seems that there was some serious cheating going on at the high-trafficked site.

The story went like this: last year, a group of observant individuals noticed some odd behavior coming out of one of their fellow players. In fact, he was making ridiculous bets that seemed to indicate he knew what everyone’s hole cards were. They asked for the player’s hand history, but instead got a data file filled with private information about other players – the kind of data the Absolute Poker would never release to the public.

Whether or not that information was sent accidentally, or by a concerned whistle-blower from within the company remains to be seen. But what quickly became clear from the data was that whoever had that information knew, in real-time, all the other players’ hole cards!

An even bigger shock came when the IP address where the information originated was traced back to one of the founders of Absolute Poker. It was a complete violation of the trust between house and player, but yet the site carried on, and only a select few knew of the incident.

So while many will continue to gamble millions at the offshore facilities, these recent stories should provide a measure of caution for anyone who puts their faith (and bankroll) in a “House” they can’t see.

Read the full story here

Visit www.pokerchest.com where you’ll find an incredible selection of chips, tables, cards and other must-have poker accessories!