Unregulated online poker

Deposit money on ANY site at your own risk. There is no regulation, at any time they can cheat you. casinos are regulated, they wouldn't dare skewing the game. Online sites can do whatever they want. Who hasn't been screwed by a "reputable" site? Full Tilt, pokerstars, now Lock? No one can make them honor their debt. Your account may say it has $1K, and you may cash frequently without problems. Then they get behind and you are SOL. For all the online honks, yeah yeah "this site is good" " it would be stupid of them to cheat their customers" blah blah blah. Without oversight they WILL default, it's inevitable, there is no reason to payout when they are behind and there is no control. Stick to brick and mortar and push for legalized online gaming. When it's legal I will play online again.

I know many European sites 100% safe.

Me too, i have several poker account on UK bookmakers, like Ladbrokes, betfred, williamhill,bet365 etc... and i know my fund is afe and secure, cause if they will be under bankrupcy, my money is still safe : they are all in medium or hight protection regarding the gambling commission of united kingdom : http://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/Consumers/Protection-of-customer-funds.aspx

I appreciate the author's comments and point of view. Of course, we play on all poker sites at our own risk. Regulation will add a layer of control over an otherwise unmonitored industry in the USA, but it won't ensure safety of your money or promise clean play.

Internal fraud, bankruptcy, collusion. These possibilities will all combine to exist in a post-regulated poker world, albeit at a somewhat lower level of risk. This is true for dealings with any company or industry as history so often reveals to us. See Enron, Bernie Madoff, or the Savings & Loan scandal of the 1980's. Government regulated each of those industries and yet...?

Caveat Emptor, my friends. Play with your head (not over it) and use your best sensibilities in every transaction you enter into. online poker will be better for regulation in the USA, but please stop short of thinking it will be SAFE when that day comes.

Pokerstars and Full Tilt got frozen up by the DOJ. Pokerstars paid their US Customers right away, Full Tilt had no choice for payment, their funds went to the DOJ who paid the players, granted it was a couple years later.
Lock is just another whole story but that has been going on a couple years now.

100 percent does not happen anywhere else.

Like an owner....i accept the ideea that i like to do all i can inducing "luck"on my profit side , no? But like a player you may accept the "only" one out and loosing on river , right? .... that's why they are called games of luck. You also must profit on your side on that! Everything is possible man! Let's go to work if we don't like the EV+/-

PotluckXXI said:

Deposit money on ANY site at your own risk. There is no regulation, at any time they can cheat you. Casinos are regulated, they wouldn't dare skewing the game. Online sites can do whatever they want. Who hasn't been screwed by a "reputable" site? Full Tilt, Pokerstars, now Lock? No one can make them honor their debt. Your account may say it has $1K, and you may cash frequently without problems. Then they get behind and you are SOL. For all the online honks, yeah yeah "this site is good" " it would be stupid of them to cheat their customers" blah blah blah. Without oversight they WILL default, it's inevitable, there is no reason to payout when they are behind and there is no control. Stick to brick and mortar and push for legalized online gaming. When it's legal I will play online again.

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Go pay absurdly high rake at the casino. There are way more scandals in almost any other facet of life, but way to focus this. REGULATION is already killing the games. Online poker has been shrinking at 8% each year and it isn't going to get better. The poker boom is over and regulation will kill rewards even more, alot of things can be considered a risk, drive a car?

I actually agree anyone playing in Grey Market site, like I do all the time, are at risk for losing their entire balance and need to make the appropriate decisions on what to keep on the site as to mitigate the risk of loss.

For myself it is my main hobby and the main way I feel like I can get better/stay sharp in the game, so I am willingly putting X amount of money at risk in order to play online.

I would hope everyone playing on unregulated sites in the US felt the same/understood the same as I do.