Poker, a game of skill?

Question

Is it a game of skill or purely luck? The debate about poker as a skill or luck has been ongoing for years. I want to know your opinions.

Answer 1

both.

Answer 2

There's a good amount of luck factored into the game, but people who know how to play poker will absolutely play better than people who don't, especially over a long period of time.

It requires skill to detect lying, to calculate odds, to examine betting patterns, and to disguise their own play. These factors will always outplay luck in the long run. It requires a lot of skill.

Answer 3

Both, mostly luck.

Answer 4

in one night it is a game of luck... over time every person has just the same odds as everyone else. then it is when the game of skill matters. i can considder myself an average player since i have only made $17 in... i guess 50 games. luck just falls on nights where i would win close to 20 or the one night i lost over 30. in the end it is a game of skill, learning to respect the game, and self control.

Answer 5

all of those who think its mostly luck come to my home games and bring lots of cash with you...luck is for the weakminded...skill and odds is for the true poker players.

Answer 6

Chance for the cards you get, and skills for what you do with them. I consider it a skill because you need to use your mind to psyche out your opponents, to read your cards. But like any game or sport, there is a bit of chance, or luck, involved.  So I say it is both skill and chance.   If you are into poker, you may visit this site http://www.best-poker-site-reviews.com/ They provide information and resources on Poker.

Answer 7

It depends what you are talking about. Luck is purely about getting the winning cards. This is about 70% of all hands played to the showdown.

Skill is about:

a) winning hands when you don't have the winning cards by either bluffing or playing people

b) maximizing chips won

c) minimizing chips lost

Imho, a) accounts for less than 10% of the hands played to showdown, but about 50% of the hands pre-flop or pre-turn. b and c are the difference in long term winning or losing.

So, imho, I would say that if you play about 10% of the best hands, you should have around a 65-90% chance of winning the hand preflop, but will only do so about 40% of the time after the river because of luck. Playing people or bluffing will raise this about 10%, so if you play the top 10% of hands and bet skillfully, you should win around 55% of the best hands.

In terms of amount won, skillfull betting will increase your return anywhere from 25-1000% when you have the winning hand.

However, if the cards come badly for you, skill will also account for the amount lost. A skillfull fold will result in losses of anywhere from 1-4X the blind.

Therefore, while skill will not change the cards for you, it can increase the amount won and lower the amount loss, thus resulting in a positive gain. A truly skillfull player can make this % huge. So, while you cannot overcome luck with skill, you can definitely become a consistent winner.

Therefore, to answer your question: poker is purely a game of luck where skillfull players can win consistently in the long term by producing a consistent positive gain of the chips won vs chips lost.

Answer 8

like they say in Rounders, if it's luck, why do the same people make it to the final table every year in a row?