PokerStars players can thank the WA Supreme Court for their inability to play

Justice Richard B. Sanders felt that the legislature were within their powers to pan online gambling, stating that “balanced public policy concerns and determined the interests of Washington are best served by banning Internet gambling.”  “The Legislature chose the advantages and disadvantages of a ban over the advantages and disadvantages of regulation. The evidence is not conclusive.” “Many may disagree with the outcome. But the court has no authority to replace the Legislature’s choice with its own.”

PokerStars released their own statement regarding their decision to prohibit real money players in Washington from accessing their site.  They stated, “To date, PokerStars has operated in Washington on the basis of legal opinions where the central advice was that the state could not constitutionally regulate Internet poker, or at least could not discriminate in favor of local cardrooms and against online sites. Last week, however, the Washington Supreme Court for the first time rejected that position and upheld the state’s Internet gaming prohibition.” ” In light of this decision, following extensive consultation with our legal advisors, we believe that the right course of action is to now block real money play by Washington residents on the PokerStars.com site. This policy will remain in effect until the law changes or subsequent legal challenges succeed…”

The ban on Washington state will not affect players abilities to cash out their balance.  PokerStars reiterated,  ”Our decision to block real money play in Washington does not affect the balance of funds in customer accounts, which remain completely safe. Our payment services team continues to be available to Washington State residents to assist with cashout requests.”

PokerStars becomes one of the first sites that operates within the United States to enact a ban on states that have laws on the books against illegal gambling.  Several states have laws on the books banning illegal gambling including Nevada, Louisiana, Michigan and Illinois.  Most online poker sites have not taken the steps to outright ban users from states with these laws because they are of the opinion that poker is, or should be, exempt.

When you are making your choice whether to play at a site, you should look at a sites reputation and the traffic that they bring to the site. A good sign of a strong network is a solid player base and one that is very visible in the public. Sites such as the now defunct Pitbull Poker were using underhanded methods to cheat players out of money and it eventually drove out the user base. Eventually, they had to shut down.

Bwin poker is an example of a site that has been around for a long time and has been able to keep it’s nose clean in the online world. They are on the OnGame Network, a network that ranks fifth worldwide in traffic. The site has also been at the forefront of online gaming for years. They were one of the first to introduce a Mac client and one of the few that offers a high quality graphical interface.

PokerStars is another site that one should consider. They have been around almost since the beginning of online poker and with Full Tilt is one of the top two sites in the world. Unlike Full Tilt, Pokerstars is a different poker room and has not received any serious legislation against its site or its players. They have the largest tournaments on the planet and the biggest prize pools. They also have stakes at all levels and are definitely worth a look.

UltimateBet eventually went through an overhaul of their network and rebranded itself as UB.com. They are now part of the Cereus network, a network that prides itself in online security. They have also made great strides to try and improve the user experience and provide larger tournaments than in the past. The main downside to UB is that they are primarily a Holdem shop. If you like to play other games, don’t expect much of a selection outside of maybe Omaha. Personally, I will play there on occasion, but have a very small part of my bankroll there.

Another site with a great reputation like Bwin is Doyle’s Room. As the name implies, the main pro sponsored on the site is the Grandaddy of Poker, Doyle Brunson. Brunson would not put his name on a site if they were crooked. Of course, this is another site that will be dominated by Holdem. However, you will have a lot of chances to play with Doyle and other related pros. Now, I know you are probably thinking “Big deal. You play with pros on most sites.” This is true, but none of them are Doyle Brunson.

Being a player in the United States, I really miss playing on Party Poker. The reason is that the games are so soft. Yes, the site had some problems with the US government, but that was due to the UIGEA that was passed, not by any wrongdoing on their part. The site is great for those just starting out in poker or for those that want to increase their bankroll. They also offer most games, and the fields are usually soft. If the UIGEA ever gets reversed in the US, this is the first site I will reestablish and account at.

Of course, if you are not comfortable with putting up your own money, you can take the route of playing in free roll tournaments. A free roll tournament is an event that you enter for free that pays a very small pool real money. Typically you will have a free roll from $50 to $500 and the top 50 paid out of a gargantuan field of 10,000 players. However, if you cash, the money is real money and you can play with it on the site. There are many players, and even pros, that have taken advantage of playing this route to establish their bankroll.

Before you decide to play on an online website, do you research. Also, don’t rely on just one resource. There are many differing opinions out there, but getting more opinions will give you a clearer picture of how well a site is really run. Also, I recommend trying a couple of different sites for poker games online. You might find that the action in Holdem is great at one site, but Omaha games are better at another. Once you have decided on your sites, signup for an account and make a deposit, or register for your free roll. Then have fun as you try and build your bankroll playing the hottest form of poker on the planet.