Poker has been around in the United States for decades. In fact, the first online poker sites appeared around the late 1990s. Chris Moneymaker’s 2003 World Series of Poker win led to a boom in the industry. However, the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act banned many sites from operating in the U.S. Fortunately, PokerStars was among those that continued to accept US players for several years.
There are a lot of advantages to playing online poker. For one, it can be played for free or with very small stakes. There are also a number of online poker tournaments with high stakes. Moreover, you can play poker on your desktop computer, laptop, smartphone, or tablet. You can play online poker at anytime and anywhere, and you can compete with others from different locations.
To play poker online, you should be at least 18 years old. This is the minimum age required by law in your country. You may be required to provide additional documents to verify your age. Some sites may also request to see your social security number and utility bill. This is necessary to ensure that your name and address are registered with them.
Some states have also passed legislation to legalize online poker. Pennsylvania, for instance, made a significant push to legalize online gaming. This legislation is set to go into effect in early 2021. Other states are also considering legalizing online poker. Even though the federal government has succeeded in driving the largest international online poker site operators out of the US market, some offshore online poker operators are still accepting US players.
US residents can play online poker. As long as the site is operated by a licensed offshore operator, the federal law on online gambling does not apply to US players. Offshore sites continue to develop innovative solutions to circumvent the UIGEA. Currently, four states have passed bills legalizing online poker within their fenced-in markets. In addition, three more have entered agreements with offshore sites to share player pools. In December 2016, Global Poker opened its US website. It uses a sweepstakes and virtual currency online poker models.
Other options that are available to US players are BlackChip Poker and Americas Cardroom. Both of these online poker sites offer a variety of cash game variants, along with more than $1.5 million in weekly online poker tournament guarantees. Then there’s Zone Poker, a poker variant similar to Zoom Poker that moves players around the table with every fold. Additionally, both sites offer crypto benefits and mobile play.
Before playing online poker, you should have proof of your address. You’ll need to have a utility bill, bank statement, or driver’s license as proof of residence. After that, you can move onto playing real money games.