Do you believe in the action flop theory?

Question

http://www.thedoverpro.com/poker-action-flop.htm

I'm extremely skeptical, because i've seen bad beats happen all the time. in fact, i'm beginning to believe that bad beats are the norm, not the exception.

Answer 1

Thanks for the reference to my site.

I am pretty convinced that some online poker rooms use this to affect tournament outcomes. We have seen a lot of chicanery in online rooms over the past several years, including sites that had biased RNG shuffle algorithims, and sites that simply had program loopholes which allowed certain super users to see all the hole cards at the table they were playing at. (Absolute and Ultimate Bet).

And I also believe that there are some "juiced" shuffles that result in premium hands being dealt more frequently than the odds would dictate. I am currently working on a blog about this subject and gathering some data and examples.

Right off hand I can think of several ways to "juiice up" the game without compromising a "certified RNG" shuffle. It could be that this is related to the Poker Action Flop, or is just a way to make the game more exciting, which of course would result in many more bad beats than are expected.

More to come.

Answer 2

nah, i reckon its a load of c**p. some guy, who thought he was great at poker but ended up losing alot probably wrote this, blaming the websites for his losses, not himself. i've taken PLENTY of terrible beats in the real world. and it happens alot.

Online you tend to get people LESS intimidated by players, as they can not physically see them. so they become calling stations, and every once in a while, they get the lucky cards. this seems to happen more often, because more hands are played per hour online, compared to the real world casino.

Answer 3

Yeah sure, online poker is rigged.  Pokerstars was behind the JFK assasination, FullTilt helped faked the Moon landing, and Bodog runs Area 51.  

Pardon my sarcasm, but I just don't buy it.  I have been playing online for years now and I have seen nothing to indicate things aren't on the up-and-up.  I just don't see the risk being worth any kind of reward to a reputable gaming site.  They are going to make their money regardless of who is winning at the tables, they have no motive to "rig" the game in anyway.  Sure, they could let a "dead money" player cash in a tourney that he wouldn't have otherwise, but unless they continue to rig things for him, that money is going back to experienced players in the long run anyway.  So maybe they could get a little more in entry fees or in the rake from the dead money guy, but I don't see that extra revenue adding up to enough to make it worth risking your site's reputation.  There is an practically endless pool of "donkeys" and "dead money" players just waiting to lose a couple hundred bucks trying their hands at online poker.  A site does not need to rig hands to lure these people in, they come in on their own.  A small percentage of them will cash in a tourney out of pure luck anyway, just based on pure unlaltered statistics.  The sites make all of their money in the entry fees and rake, I just don't see the need for them to even consider doing something as risky as rigging the cards.