What is live poker?
Online poker with live dealers has become increasingly popular because playing this game of chance against real croupiers is exciting. Playing live online poker, players sit at virtual tables and receive the same virtual cards but watch the actions of a real croupier in real time.
The role of the dealer is played by a beautiful girl or a well-groomed young man who can chat, joke with the players and cheer them up in every possible way. The gameplay of such poker games is broadcast from land-based gambling establishments, which creates the feeling of being in a real casino.
How to play poker with live dealers?
Guided by these simple recommendations, the player will be able to make playing online poker with a live dealer interesting and profitable for himself.
Choose a live dealer poker site.
There are many different live dealer poker sites to choose from, so it's important to do your research and find one that's right for you. Consider factors such as the games offered, the stakes, the software, and the bonuses.
Create an account and make a deposit.
Once you've chosen a live dealer poker site, you'll need to create an account and make a deposit. This can usually be done with a credit card, debit card, or e-wallet.
Choose a game and table.
Once you've funded your account, you can start playing! There are many different live dealer poker games to choose from, such as Texas Hold'em, Omaha, and Seven Card Stud. You can also choose from different tables, each with its own stakes and limits.
Place your bets.
Once you've chosen a game and table, you can start placing your bets. The amount you can bet will vary depending on the game and the table you're playing at.
Deal the cards.
Once all the bets have been placed, the live dealer will deal the cards. The game will then proceed according to the standard rules of poker.
Make your decisions.
After the cards have been dealt, you'll need to make your decisions. This may involve folding, calling, raising, or betting.
Show your cards.
Once all the betting has been completed, the players will show their cards. The player with the best hand will win the pot.
Collect your winnings.
If you win the hand, you'll collect your winnings from the pot. You can then continue playing or cash out your winnings.
Tips for playing poker with live dealers
Practice before you play for real money
There are many different ways to practice poker before you play for real money. You can play against the computer, watch live streams of poker games, or read books and articles about poker strategy.
- Manage your bankroll
It’s important to manage your bankroll carefully when you’re playing poker. Only bet money that you can afford to lose. - Set a budget and stick to it
Before you start playing, set a budget and stick to it. This will help you to avoid overspending. - Take breaks
It’s important to take breaks when playing poker. This will help you stay focused and avoid mistakes. - Have fun!
Poker is a game, so make sure to have fun. If you’re not enjoying yourself, then you’re less likely to be successful. - Read your opponents
Contrary to popular belief, there are also so-called “tells” in online poker, i.e., signs or behavior of a player that allows conclusions to be drawn about his playing style or his hand. But the tells in live poker are, of course, much more varied and easier to recognize and can also include things like appearance, style of clothing, or way of speaking.
Both game variants have advantages and disadvantages. Each player must decide for himself what he prefers. However, offline play does not exclude online play and vice versa. Every player should alternate between playing live and online poker.
Live poker game speed
Online poker is much faster than live poker because chip organizing and card shuffling are automated. In live poker, the dealer handles these tasks, and shuffling the playing cards takes much more time.
Also, there is more distraction in the poker room with live poker than online poker, which wastes time. A hand in live poker can last up to 10 minutes, while in online tournaments, you play about four times as many hands simultaneously.
Setting differences
Many new players to live poker have trouble betting. While only one button is pressed online, live poker gives you a realistic impression of the game. Many new live players make a mistake when betting chips: online “bet” is just a button click, whereas in live poker you have to count your raised size and play all your chips to the betting line.
It would help if you also ensured that the chips in live poker must be placed in one fluid movement. A so-called “string bet” is prohibited in many casinos. These are split bets where you go back to the stack.
Important in live poker
- Observe the course of the game
Live poker doesn’t have a beep like online poker to let you know it’s your turn. Therefore, it’s important to stay alert throughout the game and know when it’s your turn. You don’t want to be the player who holds up the whole game, do you? It is also important that you play without being asked to do so by the dealer so that you do not unnecessarily slow down the game. Remember: blinds and antes are your responsibility in live poker. - Protect poker cards
Always keep an eye on your cards in live poker! You are responsible for ensuring the dealer does not accidentally collect your hand and the dead cards. And as always, don’t let anyone look at your cards! Remember that in live poker, other players sit right next to you and would like to get a glimpse of your current hand to use it to their advantage and disadvantage. - Learning by doing
The best way to learn live poker is to play. The only way to learn the intricacies of live poker is to jump straight into the game. Live poker offers a completely different experience than usual gambling at online casinos. Only with live poker experience and a willingness to learn can you become a good live player too.
Strategies for live poker tournaments
With live poker, you also have to think about the amount of your buy-in, the blind strategy and the tournament mode. Your advantage is that live poker is much slower than online poker, so you have more time to think and develop a good strategy.
Fewer hands are played in the same amount of time, which you can use to your advantage. If you are playing a live tournament, you should have a bankroll of 100x the buy-in if possible to stay in the game and be able to cushion emerging swings without problems.
Live Poker bankroll management
It would be best to become aware of which playing style you are most comfortable with and which poker variants you are most successful at. Where are your strengths? What are your goals? What limit are you comfortable with? Answer these questions and adapt your bankroll management accordingly. Of course, your ultimate goal in a poker tournament is to make a profit. However, not every hand has to win; the important thing is that you win in the end.
This is where bankroll management comes into play: If you always sit at the table with your complete bankroll, you will likely lose everything after 3-4 unlucky hands and the tournament will be over for you. Important: With well-thought-out bankroll management, you always have your stake under control and always base your choice of limit on your bankroll: the lower your bankroll, the lower your limit. The higher your bankroll, the higher the limit.
With clever bankroll management, you can stay in the game for a long time and survive a few bad hands without going bankrupt. If you sit at the table with the entire bankroll, you risk too much and bet everything on one session. Note: Poker is just a game of chance, even the best poker player cannot win like this. In addition to avoiding bankruptcy, good bankroll management should also ensure continuous growth of the bankroll, a higher limit means the possibility of larger profits.
It would be best if you didn’t exceed the limit to compensate for losses. It is not easy to descend a limit, but it is necessary to play sensibly and professionally. You will win smaller pots than at the higher limits, but the risk of going bankrupt is many times lower.
Live poker tournaments
There is nothing more exciting than a live poker tournament. Many poker players play live tournaments just for the casino’s spectacular flair and unique atmosphere.
- World Series of Poker (WSOP)
Probably the best-known and largest poker tournament in the world is the annual World Series of Poker ( WSOP ) in Las Vegas. The poker world champion is crowned here every year. The WSOP is the oldest poker tournament in the world and the highlight of every live poker player. The famous poker tournament attracts tens of thousands of players worldwide every year and has previously paid billions of dollars in prize money. At the WSOP, several live poker tournaments are played in parallel, around 70 per year. - European Poker Tour (EPT)
The European Poker Tour ( EPT ) is a poker tournament series since 2004. In 2011, PokerStars completely took over and marketed the EPT, which has since developed into one of the world’s most important live poker tournaments. Around 100 million euros in prize money is distributed annually. - World Poker Tour (WPT)
After the WSOP, the World Poker Tour ( WPT ) is the most important poker series in the USA. Most WPT tournaments are held in North America, with some tournaments also being held in Europe. - Battle of Malta (BoM)
The Battle of Malta ( BoM ) has been held at the Olympic Casino in Malta every October since 2012. Due to the low buy-ins, it is one of Europe’s most popular singles tournaments.
Poker rooms with live distributions
You can play online poker with live croupiers in all poker rooms with a live casino. Live online poker is also available at 888 Poker, PartyPoker, Pokerdom, PokerStars, and many other poker sites.
In addition, you can also play poker with live dealers in numerous online casinos; they almost always have a section for live casino games. Some online casinos offer players various welcome bonuses and weekly cashback for live casino games, including poker.
Features of live dealer poker
Live online poker is significantly different from poker against other players and has the following features:
- You can watch the full gameplay, from the distribution of cards to the announcement of the distribution result.
- The presence of one opponent, which is the dealer himself, who is playing live poker.
- Many poker disciplines include Texas Hold’em, Caribbean poker, 3-card poker and more.
- Without the usual random number generator, the results are determined by “physical” randomness.
- Fewer hands are played in live poker because the gameplay takes place live.
- The presence of a human factor, since dealer errors, although rare, do happen.
Some players love online live dealer poker because of these features, while others are put off. But still, a large part of the traffic in modern live casinos comes from poker.
Live poker pros and cons
- You can read your opponents more easily because you can observe their behavior such as gestures and facial expressions.
- You can unsettle your opponents or create pressure through the targeted use of gestures and facial expressions.
- Live poker is slower and you have more time to think, calculate and strategize than online poker.
- From a legal point of view, you are on the safe side, because online poker is still in a legal gray area. Due to the gambling monopoly, it is not allowed to gamble for real money on the Internet. In state casinos, you don’t have to worry about your money: Here, all winnings are paid out, and if in doubt, you can also assert your claim legally.
- Of course, live poker in the casino has a completely different atmosphere than online poker at home in the living room. For many poker players, this unique flair is the highlight of live poker. Your social contacts with your fellow players and the dealers in live poker do not exist in online poker. With live poker, you can make great contacts with like-minded people.
- Everything is going right live casino. Live poker has the advantage that you don’t have to worry about hackers logging in or someone manipulating the game. You also don’t have to worry about the random number generator working correctly when the cards are dealt; everything is done correctly.
- Live casinos are immune to technical issues such as PC or internet glitches.
- Opponents can see through you more easily because everyone can observe your behavior, such as gestures and facial expressions.
- You can easily feel pressured and nervous when your fellow players watch you at the table.
- Utilities such as B. Odds calculators cannot be used in live poker.
- There are often fewer tables, tournament formats, limits and poker variants to choose from in live poker in casinos than online.
Final thoughts on live poker
Every player who wants to play live online poker is interested in the game’s fairness in terms of the actual randomness of the outcomes and the absence of card juggling.
Playing online poker with a live dealer is fair and transparent since the gameplay occurs in real time in reputable gambling establishments. The latter, of course, does not make any sense to give preference to one or another player.
Another guarantee of playing live online poker safely is state-of-the-art software from leading game providers, including Evolution Gaming, Playtech, NetEnt and Pragmatic Play. The probability of any fraud when using this software tends to be zero.
