How to Play Poker Online

Poker online takes the concept of playing cards for real money and cranks it up a few notches. Whether you want to play for pennies or satellite entries into the biggest live tournaments around, you can do it from your PC, laptop or smartphone. Online poker is highly regulated in states that allow it and provides a safe, secure environment for players with their information and funds protected by stringent rules and regulations.

Getting started with online poker is fairly simple. Most sites offer downloadable software that can be installed on your computer or mobile device in a matter of minutes. Once you’ve done that, it’s time to create an account with a screen name. This is the point where you’ll need to decide on a moniker and make sure it’s something that you won’t mind not being able to change later on since multi-accounting is illegal in most poker rooms.

After that, it’s time to deposit some cash and enter a game. Most poker sites accept a variety of credit and debit cards along with e-checks, prepaid cards, third party eWallets or wire transfers. It’s worth remembering that some poker sites will request additional documentation before paying out winnings. This is usually a scan of an ID and a utility bill showing that you’re living at the address shown on your document. The reason for this is to help them fight fraud and verify that players are who they say they are.