Poker has quickly become one of the world’s most beloved card games, enjoyed by millions around the globe in countless forms ranging from playing at home with family and friends to visiting casinos or playing it online on various platforms. Yet, its legal classification as gambling remains controversial among scholars.
The Oxford Dictionary defines games as activities which combine physical exertion with competition against other players in a zero-sum contest with rules and customs, often played using zero-sum rules. Games often entail luck but more often involve human skill; although luck plays some part in playing poker successfully there’s no denying its demand of skill which has seen thousands of professional poker players achieve long-term winning results.
Federal Judge Brian McNulty recently made an impressive ruling that poker should not be prosecuted as illegal gambling under the Illegal Gambling Business Act. This decision represents a major victory for those advocating legalization of poker; his decision was based on an expert defense analysis concluding that poker is more of a skill game and therefore does not violate UIGEA.
Though many perceive poker as being a game of skill, its true essence lies in elements of chance. Even the world’s finest poker players rely on some degree of luck for victory – although skill does play an essential part. Successful players typically possess an edge over their competition that helps make winning more likely.
Studies have also demonstrated that experienced players outshone novice ones both in simulations and real-life play – demonstrating the fact that poker is truly a game of skill which should be reflected in its regulations.
Poker can be seen as gambling because it involves risking something of value (in this case money), often on an event with unknown outcomes. As such, some may feel uneasy with gambling their hard-earned cash; but most who enjoy poker don’t consider themselves gamblers in the traditional sense; rather they simply enjoy winning big hands and possibly becoming pros, and competing against friends or colleagues to keep enjoying this timeless game.
