History of Women in Poker – The Rising Trend of Women in Poker

Ten years ago, very few women played poker, but the trend is increasing with a number of women poker players winning major poker titles today.

Women in Poker Ten Years Ago

Ten years ago, there were very few women who played poker. Poker could only be played in land-based poker rooms and these were not places that encouraged female visitors. Women were expected to have other interests that did not involve gambling, whereas gambling was considered to be a male sport. Women who did venture into poker rooms, were generally met with disparaging comments and inappropriate behavior. Let's face it – men and women are different and women's minds are just not made for a game like poker, right? Wrong!

Women and Online Poker

The advent of the Internet and its increasing accessibility to people around the globe, as well as the changing roles of women in society has created an interesting phenomenon in gambling circles. As more women are taking on corporate roles, they are finding that they need an outlet – one that is convenient and can be done from home. Many women are finding this outlet in the form of online gambling. And in fact, many of these women are finding that not only do they enjoy gambling, but they are very good at it.

Online poker provides many advantages to women. Firstly it is convenient in that it can be played from home at any time of the night or day. In fact, more recently with mobile poker rooms, women can play poker from wherever they happen to be. This allows corporate women who have families the flexibility to enjoy poker whenever they have the time. Secondly, many women who were otherwise intimidated by the male-dominated land-based poker rooms can make use of the anonymity of online poker sites to play without feeling self-conscious. The statistics vary, but anywhere between 30% and 60% of online poker players are now women.

Women Participating in Poker Tournaments

Women can play online poker for as long as it takes for them to learn the game and improve their game strategy to the same level as their male counterparts who may have been playing for years. There are many online poker sites that are dedicated to female poker players in that they offer resources such as rules, articles and strategy tips to help women learn the game. There are also many women-only poker tournaments available that allow women to participate in a comfortable environment.

Many women have now become professional poker players and they participate in the open live poker events against men. Not only are these professional women poker players participating in the events, but they are also winning them. Some of the biggest poker tournaments and titles are starting to be won by women poker players and the trend appears to getting stronger. Women appear as part of professional poker teams on the online poker sites and they play alongside men as equals. As more of these women are successful, the profile of women in poker is improving so that more women are becoming involved in the game and deciding to try out the major events that are available.