Is playing poker considered gambling ? serious answers please?

Question

the situation is my husband (no children involved) plays poker in different casinos. he says he wants to play for a living, todate he already lost thousands and thousands of dollars. he is unemployed. he's moody, snappy, unhappy if he doesn't get to play (if he's short of money) and refused to socialize with family or friends. he even thought and planned of leaving me but then he stays because he has no one else and he's scared too. he literally stole money from me (but returned them back i'm guessing because of guilt). he seldom expresses himself and seldom talks. i offered to seek counselling for him and i but he refuses. he says playing poker is not gambling. he wants to play poker for a living and this is what he does. he dreams to win a tournament. i'm confused, fearful and lost. i love him so much that i want him to understand that his playing poker is becoming to be an addiction and it is gambling addiction. please help.

Answer 1

Poker is most definitely gambling. Even professional poker players would agree to that.

And yes if he is continually losing large amounts of money and stealing to make up for the losses he has a gambling addiction. Try to get some help for him, but don't let his addiction ruin your life.

Answer 2

It would be different if he were winning.  However, being that he's lost thousands and can't recognize that perhaps playing for a living isn't his forte, then he needs help to recognize that he has a problem.  Poker is a game of skill and luck so there is some level of gambling involved.  I would think that he needs to hit rock bottom to realize he has a problem before he will do anything about it.

I feel for you and I'm so sorry that you have to go thru this.

Answer 3

Playing poker is more of a skill game than anything else in a casino, but it ultimately relies on odds, statistics and the random order in a deck of cards to win consistently and is therefore still a game of chance.  If money is being wagered on the game then it is gambling.  Judging by the way you described your husband, you need to go to Gamblers' Anonymous website and look at their 20 Q's.  You husband sounds like he has a serious issue that needs to be dealt with.

Answer 4

You are so right, poker is gambling.  He is in a state of denial right now, and the best thing you could do is to find a local "Gamblers Anonymous" group and ask about the part where family members can join.  They may have ideas that can help you.  Right now, it is like alcoholism and not much you can do to help him until he sees he is addicted.  Good luck.  :=(

Answer 5

Everyone is saying yes so I'm going to change that up and say "maybe."  In a sense any act which involves risk and reward can be termed "gambling."  You gamble with your life every time you get behind the wheel of a car for instance - the reward is you'll get where you're going, and the risk is of course you could get killed along the way.  However we're talking about gambling for money here, but all business ventures can be seen as this sort of gambling.

So gambling can certainly be beneficial and necessary, but when gambling is used in the derogatory sense it means gambling that is on balance harmful, or "problem" gambling.  Now gambling in order to be done "properly" involves decisions which are to one's benefit, broadly defined of course, and problem gambling are those where the decision isn't rational and is to one's detriment.  

Now some folks enjoy casino gambling, for instance, and although it's a negative sum event, where they are guaranteed to lose over time, they may enjoy the experience and consider it a wise investment of their entertainment dollar, and thus the decision may be rational.  The thrill of the big win and risking a small amount to play continues to inspire the imaginations of hundreds of millions of people around the world which is why lotteries are so popular.

However when these decisions do not yield such a "profit" whether that be monetary or otherwise we have a problem.  Now with the guy in question here there's little doubt that his gambling thus far has caused plenty of problems but the difference here is that he is at least considering going from a negative sum game to one that is at least potentially a positive sum.  So we have 2 different games here - one that will lose over time and one that may win over time if you have the skill.  So it's not fair at all to lump these 2 together.

Having said that though, while there are plenty of people, and probably a lot more than the average person imagines, who play poker for a living, and do very well at it I might add, just because someone fancies himself as a poker player doesn't mean that he will be successful at it.  Most fail, and most must fail given the way that the game is set up.  This could be a step in the right direction though as if someone has enough desire and at least some natural ability then it's possible to turn this harmful addiction to something at least less harmful and possibly even beneficial.  

My feeling here though is that he is just plain addicted to the thrill of risk which isn't the mindset you need to be successful at poker and the focus needs to work on becoming a good player which is far more boring than the average thrill seeker desires or even can tolerate.

My advice would be to tell him fine if you want to learn to be a professional player then you need to start small and work your way up, and this is going to take some real time so be real patient, and at least with this his losses can be a lot smaller which is the first necessary step to addressing this.  

King Cobra Poker

Answer 6

It sounds like he is fighting an addiction. You could go to counseling by yourself and then tell him how it helps you. Maybe you can say he can talk about being unemployed, moody, and unhappy. People get very defensive about addiction. Good luck.

Answer 7

It definitely sounds like he has a gambling problem.  Just because poker is a game that requires more skill does not make it different than other casino games.

Answer 8

Yes

Poker = gambling

Answer 9

if u bet money yes, i suggest u take him to some kind of rehab

Answer 10

You need to plan an intervention with a counselor. Your whole family needs to get involved. You both are destroying your marriage. You by supporting his habit and him by not seeking help.

Answer 11

yes that is definitely gambling he is in denial and u shouldnt let him drag u down. ask him why they have advertisements for gambling responsibly during commercial for these texas hold em tournaments on TV

Answer 12

Poker is absolutly gambling.  There is no rational reason to say otherwise.

Your husband is behaving irrationally.  He sounds like he has developed a gambling addiction.  He needs to get help before he loses all of your money.