As poker gains its popularity among people, it has also been an issue if it is a form of gambling or not? Before we go on arguing whether it is a form of gamble or not, let us first describe gambling or to gamble for that matter, to gamble is to put out an amount of money to gain even more of what you initially shell out. It is done with a risk, not knowing if the money one shelled out would be gained back or be lost. It can also be a venture that one takes with the hopes of having more.
So is poker a form of gambling? Having been described what gambling is, poker is not a form of gambling if it is played for fun or without the factor of money. This can happen when a group of friends decided to play poker for fun just to see if they have already master the skill they needed to play. As the players keep on playing, their skill would start to develop and sooner this would build their confident to play in games that involve money. As for the new players, some may opt to play the game without the factor of money and only for the purpose of learning the different hands, the different strategies and the different tricks to succeed in different types of poker. Some may try to master the probability of the cards and check if the strategies they formulated will work. Some may even play it just to get or learn from the strategies of the other players who are playing with them. There could be endless reason for playing it as long as it does not involve money it is not a form of gambling.
So when can we call poker as a form of gambling? It is when there is already money involved. When one starts to bet with the idea of winning equal or even more of what is initially shelled out. This usually happens when people are playing in casinos. This is when people who play poker combine their skills with money involved. It can also happen in poker parties or even at home as long as there is money and risk involve, in the hope to gain even more money then what is invested can be called gambling.
Let us get back to the main question which is, is poker a form of gambling? It all depends on how you play it, and for what reason do you play it? Is it to learn new tricks? To have new strategies? To learn a new skill? To have fun? Is it your way of socializing? Or is it to gain more money? To earn from it? Do you treat it as if it were a venture wherein you take in risk that you may not even afford for the possibility to have more? It all depends on you, every time you play poker you can ask yourself if you are gambling.
