Online Poker

Last Friday a Pennsylvania judge ruled that Texas Hold'em is a game 'where skill predominates', therefore removing it from the definition of illegal gambling in the state.

Judge Thomas A James Jr of Columbia County made the ruling that sets an important precedent for poker players of the United States.

In his ruling, the judge examined the relative merits of the skill vs luck argument, summarizing the decision as: 'Simply, if chance predominates, Texas Hold’em is gambling. If skill predominates, it is not gambling.'

He also referred to the extensive literature on winning strategies for the game, and quoted a well known poker author's words that 'the money flows from the bad players to the strong players.'

He reached the conclusion that in Texas Hold 'Em, 'It is apparent that skill predominates over chance.'

The case in question involved one Walter Watkins, who was charged with running a $1-$2 no limit holdem game out of his garage, with no rake, and only dealer tips taken. Watkins and his dealer were arrested after an undercover Pennsylvania State Trooper took part in the game as a "sting" or entrapment operation.

Watkins subsequently told Associated Press reporters: 'It’s unfortunate we had to go through all this. We were arrested, taken out of our home. Shackled and spent a night in prison. All for playing poker.'

It's good to see that common sense has prevailed in a US court case for a change. I always said that the easiest way to determine if the game is based on chance or skill is to have a judge play Phil Ivey Heads up 20+ times. If the results are close to 50/50 then it's chance. But if Ivey kicks his ass, it's definitely skill!

But that might not be needed now that Judge Thomas has declared the game based on skill as it should be. Now all you US citizens playing at Players Only and Full Tilt can tell your friends to join you in a game of skill - online poker!