French Court Rules That Poker Is A Game Of Skill
Poker is a Game of Skill
It’s Official Now – Poker is a Game of Skill
The latest pokernews has put a smile on many poker players faces.
Online poker is not legal in many jurisdictions including United States. One of the foremost arguments in legalizing online poker has been whether poker is a game of skill or luck. In an attempt to answer this question, a new paper has been presented by Steven Levitt along with Professor Thomas Miles, titled “The Role of Skill Versus Luck in Poker: Evidence from the World Series of Poker.” Data used in the analysis for the paper consists of data from the 57 tournaments of World Series of Poker 2010. In the statistical analysis, some players have been classified as ‘skilled’ players based on their previous results and these have been compared to the other players.
The study found that the skilled poker players fared distinctly better than the rest. They earned thirty percent return on their investment while the rest of the players suffered a fifteen percent loss on their investments. The paper draws attention to the fact that even the difference in the return on investment at the Wall Street is not so wide, proving that skill is a major factor in the game of poker.
Poker was also compared to other sports in the study and Steven Levitt and Professor Miles found that a skilled player is 54.9% likely to come out ahead of an unskilled player. This is almost the same edge that you’d find at Major League Basketball which is 55.7% – and basketball is a game of skill. The paper therefore concludes that poker is also a game of skill in view of the available data – something that poker players have always been saying.
In a recent development that will warm the hearts of poker aficionados, a French court has ruled that poker is a game of skill and not based purely on luck. A French citizen Jean Pierre Gleizes was charged with organizing poker events in public venues without obtaining the necessary permissions to do so. In France, gambling without proper licenses is considered illegal. So, in order to refute the charges of illegal gambling, the defense attorneys attempted to show that poker was a game of skill. To demonstrate the fact, professional poker players, mathematics professors as well as top chess and bridge players were presented to the court.
The French Criminal Court of First Instance accepted the arguments and ruled that the game of poker is one of skill and not of chance. This ruling will definitely have a positive impact on poker not only in France but elsewhere as well. In France itself, individuals could host poker games without the fear of flouting rules and regulations or without it being deemed illegal gambling. However, taxation issues still need to be addressed, especially since the online gambling regulations are in effect in France.
Ultimately, the government will also earn revenue since professional poker players will be required to pay taxes on poker winnings which will be considered as income rather than winnings from gambling. But this may not sit well with professional French poker players who currently don’t pay any taxes on poker winnings. It is also possible that the ruling may be overturned by the Conseil d’Etat, the Supreme Court of France when the case comes up for hearing.
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