
The History of Online Poker
In 1998 the movie ‘Rounders’ was released, a film about the underground world of high-stakes poker starring Matt Damon as an experienced poker player. The card player profession became a dream job and especially in America the poker virus struck. The Americans turned to the Internet and started playing poker online. One of those Americans was Chris Moneymaker. His prophetic last name proved to be gold when he qualified for the world championship in Las Vegas in 2003 by playing poker online for $39; the $10,000 Main Event of the World Series Of Poker. Moneymaker won the world championship and $2.5 million. When television watching America saw this, poker became unstoppable.
Moneymaker’s chances of winning the tournament were slim as 839 experienced poker players surrounded him. Still, he managed to make it far. So much so that in the end he only had one opponent; the experienced professional gambler Sam Farha. The crucial pot that decided the Heads-Up battle and the world title was a successful bluff by Moneymaker. A few hands later it was over and the anonymous accountant from Tennessee was in one fell swoop world champion, world famous and millionaire thanks to the top prize of 2.5 million dollars. At the time, the prize was the largest cash prize ever paid out in a poker tournament. The whole of America was jealous: Moneymaker’s incredible run was the example of the American Dream. From nothing to a millionaire with minimal effort. Moneymaker also proved that anyone can become a world champion in poker. It was therefore no surprise that one year later almost three times as many people participated in the world championship. In 2006, the main prize had already risen to $12 million and millions of people were playing poker online. Nowadays, most money is no longer made in the casinos, but by people who mainly play online poker.
A few years after the craze started in the Netherlands, online poker is still very popular. It is not only played at home, in the pub or in the casino. A lot of Dutch people play poker online. Worldwide there are over 100 million people who play poker online.
Millions of dollars change hands on various poker websites every day. Tournaments with thousands of players and huge prize pools are a reality of the day. The possibilities are endless with this game. Whether you want to play for 1 cent or $100,000, anything is possible when you choose to play poker online. You can choose from dozens of poker variants such as Omaha, Stud and Drawpoker, but the best known and most common form of play is No Limit Texas Hold’em. Do you want to play poker against thousands of poker players in a tournament or do you prefer to play a cash game? For those who play poker online, every form of poker is available.
With so much poker action in the world sometimes you can’t see the wood for the trees. Luckily there is OnlinePoker.nl; your guide to the poker world. Whether you are someone who has just started playing poker online and looking for the right poker room and the latest poker tips or you are an experienced player looking for the best deals and the latest news. On this site you will find what you are looking for.