a. the participation of Australians in online poker
My name is and I’m a 28 year old from . I played online poker seriously from 2007 until 2013, and have since cut back down to playing once or twice every few months, though my enjoyment of the game has not suffered.
As a university student in 2007 I was contemplating getting a casual job to pay for my text books, food, nights out etc. I saved up a small amount of money from a birthday and deposited it to an online poker site as I enjoyed the game. I dedicated hours to studying and learning the game in order to improve and from that small investment I was able to forgo getting a casual job and pay for my books and beers. While some may argue that casual/retail work is an important part of growing up, I was able to forge relationships with fellow players in order to improve our abilities, and these are friendships that are ongoing even as I’ve largely stepped away from the game.
Through my playing of online poker I’ve met an incredible variety of different and interesting people, who largely had nothing in common other than their love of a card game. Poker is unlike other games in that it doesn’t discriminate based on perceived flaws, rather it is incredibly inclusive. I’ve played in free to enter tournaments to some of the highest available online, and even though the skill levels in each are radically different, we’re all playing the same game. b. the nature and extent of any personal or social harms and benefits arising from participating in online poker
Poker has not harmed my life in any way. Studying and playing poker has not only improved my poker game, it has impacted my thinking in other areas of life. I definitely take on and look at things in a more analytical way than I did before playing poker. It has given me a better understanding of mathematics and probability, which I use in many other aspects of life, whether that be making quick sums in my current job or looking at health insurance policies.
As previously mentioned I have also made multiple friends through our mutual appreciation of poker. These friendships allowed us to play the game at a higher level, but we’ve also made time to meet up at live events across Australia, and still catch up from time to time even though many of us are playing a lot less. Without online poker I wouldn’t have met these people, some of whom I consider my close friends.
These are areas that are truly lacking in games of chance found in casinos. While it is possible to study blackjack and get better, there is a cap to how far one can improve as the game has been solved mathematically. As of now poker is a largely unsolved game which is constantly evolving. The strategies used when I started playing in 2007 are considered ancient in the poker world today, and even the standard moves being used now will be improved upon in the near future as people study more and adjust. This can’t be said for any other game in a casino. c. whether the current regulatory approach, in particular, the recently amended Interactive Gambling Act 2001, is a reasonable and proportionate response to those harms and benefits.
Online poker was in its infancy in 2001, with the real poker boom coming after the aptly named Chris Moneymaker won the World Series of Poker main event in 2003. The IGA was passed with no regard for online poker, as clearly it was almost a non-factor due to the size of the player market plus the relative primitiveness of the internet compared to the present day.
While the bulk of the amended IGA has some merits, particularly when it comes to the vulnerability of exposure to children, a blanket ban is not the solution. The banning of online poker while I could walk two minutes down the road to the pub and gamble away thousands at the TAB or pokies is nonsensical and hypocritical. The losses at online poker for the average consumer amount to no more than a few dollars per session, with which that same consumer can receive hours of entertainment. The same can not be said for any other form of gambling, online or otherwise
Online poker is a game loved by tens of thousands of Australians, with a very low risk of losing more than they wish to but at the same time providing entertainment, intellectual stimulation and social interaction. Banning this activity could result in their money moving to other games of chance, which provides nothing more than the house earning their fees and eventually the rest. Thank you for your consideration in giving online poker the place it deserves.