Delaware – The First State launched legal poker cardrooms online in 2015. In fact, Delaware is the most permissive state in America when it comes to online poker real money USA legal sites. New Jersey – The Garden State came a little late to the party, launching online poker for money. To ensure realistic game-play, top-ups are limited to 15,000 chips every 4 hours. If you’re new to online poker, we’re here to help you learn. From hand rankings to basic rules.
- Online Poker Real Money Arizona
- How To Play Online Poker In Arizona
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Over the last decade, the popularity of online poker has risen exponentially. Even after the US passed the UIGEA, ostensibly criminalizing the act of gambling over the internet, online poker remained immensely popular, albeit a little less accessible. For online poker players in Arizona and across the US, April 25, 2011 was a dark day, known throughout the community as the Black Friday of online poker. Low and Behold, in December of that same year, the US Department of Justice suddenly reversed its opinion of internet gambling, giving individual states the right to decide whether certain forms of online wagering should be permitted. And with that, a beam of hope spread as players looked forward to the possibility of new online poker laws in Arizona.
Legality of Online Poker Arizona
Arizona may be home to two dozen land-based gaming facilities state wide, but that doesn’t mean they are keen on the idea of gambling within the state. The fact is, 22 of those establishments are tribal casinos, thus Arizona’s state government has nothing to do with them, and sees no profit from the revenue they produce. The other two are dedicated horse racing tracks, the Turf Paradise Racetrack in Phoenix and Yavapai Downs in Prescott Valley. Arizona does offer its citizens a state lottery, which generates extra tax dollars.
Despite the abundance of tribal casinos across The Copper State, the government seems to prefer keeping its hands out of gambling issues as much as possible. In fact, public officials managed to prevent tribal casinos from invading their borders up until the 1990’s, when a huge legal battle burst the state’s anti-gambling fortifications right out of the water, resulting in the mass of tribal casinos found there today.
We know a little about Arizona’s gambling laws in general, but to truly determine the legalities of online poker in Arizona, let’s take a quick look at the state’s gaming statutes. We’ll also discuss whether online poker and other forms of internet gambling may be discussed around the congressional tables anytime in the near future.
Arizona Statutes – Gambling Laws
The Arizona Revised Statutes are fairly simple in regards to what is and is not illegal in terms of gambling in Arizona. The state prohibits all forms of gambling that are not following the tribal compacts of Arizona, conducted in accordance with and under control of the government and its taxation laws and/or is, by definition, ‘social gambling’.
The following definitions are taken directly from the Arizona Revised Statutes – Title 13, Chapter 33.
Gambling/Gamble: means one act of risking or giving something of value for the opportunity to obtain a benefit from a game or contest of chance or skill or a future contingent event…
Player: means a natural person who participates in gambling.
Social Gambling: means gambling that is not conducted as a business and that involves players who compete on equal terms with each other in a gamble if all of the following apply:
(a) No player receives, or becomes entitled to receive, any benefit, directly or indirectly, other than the player’s winnings from the gamble.
(b) No other person receives or becomes entitled to receive any benefit, directly or indirectly, from the gambling activity, including benefits of proprietorship, management or unequal advantage or odds in a series of gambles.
(c) …none of the players is under twenty-one years of age.
(d) Players “compete on equal terms with each other in a gamble” when no player enjoys an advantage over any other player in the gamble under the conditions or rules of the game or contest.
Online Poker Real Money Arizona
There is another interesting definition that we’ll take a closer look at, in part (because it’ very long and only certain parts apply to this document); Amusement Gambling. To cut to the chase, just read the red text.
Amusement Gambling: means gambling involving a device, game or contest which is played for entertainment if all of the following apply:
(a) The player or players actively participate in the game or contest or with the device.
(b) The outcome is not in the control to any material degree of any person other than the player or players.
(c) The prizes are not offered as a lure to separate the player or players from their money.
(d) Any of the following:
(i) No benefit is given to the player or players other than an immediate and unrecorded right to replay which is not exchangeable for value.
(ii) The gambling is an athletic event and no person other than the player or players derives a profit or chance of a profit from the money paid to gamble by the player or players.
(iii) The gambling is an intellectual contest or event, the money paid to gamble is part of an established purchase price for a product, no increment has been added to the price in connection with the gambling event and no drawing or lottery is held to determine the winner or winners.
(iv) Skill and not chance is clearly the predominant factor in the game and the odds of winning the game based upon chance cannot be altered, provided the game complies with any licensing or regulatory requirements by the jurisdiction in which it is operated, no benefit for a single win is given to the player or playersother than a merchandise prize which has a wholesale fair market value of less than four (4) dollars or coupons which are redeemable only at the place of play and only for a merchandise prize which has a fair market value of less than four (4) dollars and, regardless of the number of wins, no aggregate of coupons may be redeemed for a merchandise prize with a wholesale fair market value of greater than thirty-five (35) dollars.
I’ve highlighted these particular sections because it does seem feasible that one could bypass the majority of state laws and run a legitimate poker room if the right procedures were followed. The prizes would have to be redeemable vouchers or merchandise with restricted values, but it does seem that, if the proper licensing was received, a state regulated poker room isn’t out of the question for Arizona.
There are plenty more definitions I could list along with these, but they become increasingly less interesting and have little or no impact on the legalities of online poker in Arizona; or lack thereof. If you’d like to read them, please click the link provided at the beginning of this section.
What does it all mean? Is online poker illegal in Arizona?
Simply put, no, online poker is not legal in Arizona. If you while away the hours grinding over the text of Arizona’s complete gambling laws, you will find that the majority of them criminalize the operation of unlawful gambling, much more so than the act of committing a gamble. There isn’t a single known case against an Arizona citizen for playing online poker. As such, there are plenty of legitimate offshore poker sites that accept players from Arizona. But the fact remains, the laws are wide open to interpretation, and could easily be viewed as outlawing online poker in Arizona.
For some additional reading on the topic, you may also find this brief study on legal gambling activities in Arizona, conducted by the UNLV Center for Gaming Research, to be rather enlightening.
Is Arizona working to legalize online poker?
Unfortunately, the question of online poker is a dead one in Arizona. The Grand Canyon State has offered no news headlines or controversial debates in regards to internet gambling, and it isn’t one to likely pick up on it in the near future, either. On the other hand, let’s not forget that Arizona’s junior Senator, Jon Kyl, has been working diligently on the passage of federal online poker laws. Thus the possibility of internet card gaming in Arizona’s future is not entirely out of the question. It could just be that Kyl is determined to see federal regulation before he pushes for statewide acceptance.
Arizona has a love affair with poker. The state’sproximity to Las Vegas and all the poker riches that can be won there doesn’thurt, but residents can also partake in many big games in their own backyard. Thispage is going to look at poker in all forms in Arizona -from the land-basedcard rooms around the state to the current status of online poker, you willfind everything you need to be the most informed poker player in your group!
Online Poker in Arizona
When online poker sites launched in the late 1990s, noone could have possibly imagined the way they would change the gamblinglandscape across the world. This is especially true in the United States, asplayers from Arizona and other states joined online poker sites at a feverpitch for years. Sadly, it was all a bit too good to be true, and the sitesthat hosted many of the games had to abandon the American market in two wavesin 2006 and again in 2011. Since that time, a handful of states have found away to bring back legal online poker for real money, but most have sat on thesidelines on the topic. Arizona is one of the states that hasn’t yet passedonline poker legislation, but given the state’s adoption of poker in general,it is hoped that the wait won’t be too long to join the likes of New Jersey andneighboring Nevada in the online poker world once again.
Land Based Poker in Arizona
Despite all the drama surrounding real money online pokerin the U.S., Arizona residents have always had land-based poker rooms to fallback upon. Casinos are very popular in the state, and many of the licensedfacilities dotted across Arizona offer players a chance to sit down in a cashgame or a tournament. The size of each of the rooms varies based on location,but you will find some serious players in every one of these poker rooms. Locationslike Talking Stick Resort feature almost 50 tables and host major pokerfestivals each year.
Here is a list of all the locations of poker rooms in Arizona:
Bucky’s Yavapai Casino (Prescott, AZ)
Casino Del Sol (Tucson, AZ)
Cliff Castle Poker Room (Camp Verde, AZ)
Desert Diamond Casino (Tucson, AZ)
Desert Diamond Casino West Valley (Glendale, AZ)
Fort McDowell Casino (Ft. Mcdowell, AZ)
Gila River Casino Vee Quiva (Laveen, AZ)
Gila River Casino Wild Horse Pass (Chandler, AZ)
Harrah’s Ak-Chin (Maricopa, AZ)
Hon-Dah Casino (Pinetop, AZ)
Mazatzal Casino (Payson, AZ)
Talking Stick Resort (Scottsdale, AZ)
Social Poker in Arizona
For those who have been living under a rock for the last decade,playing games on a social media platform like Facebook has become one of themost popular pastimes on the planet. Arizona residents contribute to amulti-billion dollar industry when they play social poker games like Big Fishor Zynga Poker. But are they real poker?
The games you find on social media sites are played bythe same rules as real money poker, but there are no cash prizes to be won, andthere is no need to purchase chips. However, as there is some incentive toreach the top of the social ladder and leaderboard, players do have the optionof purchasing chips to take to these play money tables. This is how these sitesmake money, and based on the fact that they have made billions off selling freechips to players who will never be able to cash them out, we think social pokerhas become a great way for players in Arizona to practice their skills whenthey are away from the land-based poker room.
Subscription Poker in Arizona
Subscription gaming models allow a company to offer theirgames under a sweepstakes model, as there is technically no entry fee to enterthe games themselves. This loophole in the law allowed for severalsubscription-based poker sites to emerge in the early 2010s. These sites, whichinvite players from Arizona and 35 other states to register and pay a monthlymembership fee, offer daily and weekly tournaments which award prizes but noactual cash. Some, like Club WPT, combine the land-based poker world with thesubscription model by giving players a chance to qualify for a WPT event viathe subscription site.
These sites are open and available to Arizona residentsand offer yet another way for players to enjoy real poker action even if theycan’t play online for cash at the present time.
Mobile Poker in Arizona
Both the types of poker listed above, along with manyplay money poker products, are available as native apps for iOS and Androiddevices. Playing from a phone or a tablet provides poker enthusiasts with anextra layer of convenience as the game moves along with you! Real money onlinepoker sites around the world and in many of the regulated states in the U.S.also offer native games for mobile devices, so when poker is finally legal inArizona, there will be even more selection to choose from. For now, aspiringpoker professionals in Arizona can head to the app store and look through allthe choices available.
How To Play Online Poker In Arizona
Online Poker in Arizona FAQ
Can I play online poker if I travel across the borderto Nevada?
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Absolutely! You can play legal online poker in any U.S.state that has regulated the market. All you have to do when you travel insidethe state’s border is look for the available sites (our pages can help you navigatewhat sites are available in each state), then register for an account and startplaying! One thing to keep in mind is that these sites can only be accessedwhen you are physically inside the borders of the licensing state, so if youtravel to Nevada and play, be prepared to lose access to your account as youcross back into Arizona. Your balance will still be active, but you are boundto the Terms and Conditions of the site regarding inactivity, so please do theresearch before you make a decision to play.
What about offshore poker sites? Are those legal toplay from Arizona?
Online Poker Arizona Real Money No Deposit
All the sites that were incredibly popular in Arizona inthe 2000s were based outside the country, and today there are still a handfulof rogue operators that thumb their noses to the U.S. government and acceptplay from residents of Arizona and elsewhere. These sites are very difficult todeal with and with no regulations to adhere to, can simply close their doors oryour account with no legal ramifications. We think you should stay away andstick to the online and land-based options that are legal and available inArizona.