Online Poker South Africa News

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When you make the switch to online poker, you have two options: play for free or sign up to enjoy online poker sites' real money games.

Online poker is NOT only for foreign players and online poker CAN be enjoyed by South African players. One of the things that makes for a great online poker experience for South Africans is the fact that they can pay for their gaming sessions in South African Rands using banking systems with which they are familiar.

Both options have their pros and cons, but there's no doubt that everyone in SA should play for local currency if they want the best experience possible.

OK, so you've decided to play for cash. How can you win on poker sites' real money games? Where can you play legally and safely? Read on to find the answers to all of your online poker sites real money queries, straight from our team of South African experts!

Real Money Games Make All the Difference

A lot of players believe that real cash and free online poker games play the same. If you're one of these players, though, you need to think again.

Online poker sites' real money games are a world apart from their free cousins for one very big reason - the other players care. Any experience gained in the free game arena won't translate to websites offering a card game for real money, because free money players throw caution to the wind on every hand. You need opponents who have something to lose if you want to improve your game.

Real Cash Action is Loaded with Rewards

Online poker real money South Africa players in 2020 have always had more than just straight up cash to win! As part of your strategy, remember to take full advantages of offers such as these:

Welcome Bonuses - All legitimate online poker sites' real cash gaming options offer special bonuses to their newest players. You only get one chance to cash in, so don't waste it!

VIP Rewards - As you play, real cash poker sites will keep track of your action and give you VIP points to reward your loyalty. Cash these in for money, prizes, tournament entry, and much, much more.

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Free Entry to Real Cash Events - Keep an eye out for freerolls. These are Internet tournaments that have no buy-in! That's right; the top online poker real money sites sponsor these events all the time, and it's the only way to win real money without risking anything.

Top Five Tips for Real Money Poker Players

1. Protect Your Bankroll - This should come as no surprise but the second you become a real currency poker player, you have to be responsible for your bankroll. If your bet sizes get too large, you can very quickly find yourself in a hole that you can't dig yourself out of. Keep your ego in check and keep your bet sizes (and real money poker rooms' tourney buy-ins) at a reasonable level.

2. Learn Poker Strategy Fundamentals - All varieties of poker are skill games. If you want to win poekr sites' real money, you're going to have to beat the competition, and that takes more than just luck. Take advantage of the countless guides online and squeeze the most out of your next online poker real money site.

3. Grasp The Importance of Position - 'Position' describes where you are in the order of betting. Early position puts you in a tough spot because you have to act first and you won't know what the other players are going to do. Sitting in a late position, however, you are poised to act aggressively if everyone has checked to you, or raise to force weak bets out of a pot. Whether you're in your local card room or on the web at any of these real money poker sites, position is always a vital factor.

4. Practice Reading The Competition - The other players in online poker sites' real cash games want to win just as much as you do. They won't hesitate to bluff if they can get away with it. When they do, however, a prepared player that sees it coming will be able to turn the tables and walk away with some good, hard earned money.

5. Don't Play At A Site You Cannot Trust 100% - This is vital. All of the strategy in the world won't help you one bit if your poker site lets your credit card number fall into the wrong hands. Play it safe and only trust legit Internet poker sites' real money options - like the ones we have listed on these pages.

Start Winning Big Money!

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So, do you think you have what it takes to win at online poker sites' real money rooms? There's only one way to find out! Sign up on the net and put your skills to the ultimate test. Our South African reviewers already took a close look at every site recommended here and, if it makes our top ratings, you can be sure it's doing something right. Have a scan of our comparisons today - signing up takes a moment and it's the first step towards winning poker sites' real money prizes.

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There are lots of things us South Africans do really well but simplicity isn’t one of them! So it’s no surprise then that the laws and regulations about poker in ZA are a bit confusing.

When you’re trying to understand something that’s murky and complex, the beginning is always a good place to start. It’s also simpler if you look at the laws governing offline and online poker separately.

Carry on reading to find out about the start of South Africa’s poker laws, where they stand right now and most importantly, whether you’ll be arrested for playing a few hands down at the bar or at an online poker site.

Online Poker

It depends where you look for the facts but according to all the most trusted poker industry sources and public government information, (http://www.justice.gov.za/sca/judgments/sca_2011/sca2011-155.pdf) , gambling at online poker websites operating from South Africa is completely illegal for South Africans.

So why do some people talk about playing legal poker online from SA? Are they crazy? Hold tight, this is where it starts to get confusing.

While the South African government has now clarified its position on online poker, the reality is that the existing Internet gambling laws are aimed at frightening gambling operators out of the market, not at actual poker players. No real money Internet poker player in South Africa has ever been prosecuted and that’s why South African’s keep flocking to legal international online poker rooms.

The National Gambling Act: Reinvented

Until fairly recently the National Gambling Act of 2004 was literally the only piece of legislation crafted to deal with online gambling (or interactive gambling as the government calls it). It stated that it was illegal to offer or engage in online gambling games.

In 2008 online poker was still being played up and down the country, so the government decided they may as well get in on the revenues. The National Gambling Amendment Act of 2008 was then published with the aim of legalising and regulating the online poker market. Unfortunately, later in the year of 2008 many offline, land-based casinos in SA teamed up with anti-fraud protective agencies to argue against the introduction of the new, more relaxed rules.

The casinos did this because they didn’t want all their customers going to spend their gambling Rand online instead of at their poker tables and slot machines. The anti-fraud authorities opposed it because it would mean there would be a whole new arena for them to search through and the responsibility of overseeing all online poker transactions sounded a bit too much like hard work!

The final blow for legal online gambling in South Africa came in the summer of 2010. Online gambling at international gambling sites based outside of SA was banned too. This time they didn’t just aim the law at operators either, the government promised to punish the players themselves too.

Luckily for poker fans, the government did a terrible job of outlining what counts as ‘gambling’ and so poker is currently back and fighting fit. Online poker has returned to its good old grey home where no one has nailed down the law and no player has ever been fined.

But wait, there’s more! In mid January 2020 a member of the South African parliament called Geordin Hill Lewis brought the whole thing back up again. He wanted the government to take another look at regulating the online poker market by settling on a final version of the National Gambling Amendment of 2008 which had been left abandoned.

In February 2020 Hill Lewis introduced his Remote Gambling Act to parliament.

The Remote Gambling Act is still being discussed and poker players around SA are holding their breath. They could be holding it a long time though, because here’s what a Department of Trade and Industry representative had to say to South African Independent Online News, “In our view no amount of control will adequately curb the harm that may be caused to South African citizens by online gambling, hence we reiterate that it must remain a banned activity.”

Sabc Digital News

Legal Land-Based Poker In SA

There are around 40 land-based casinos or poker rooms with legal poker tables in South Africa and each offline gambling venue must have the correct licenses to operate in the province they are based in.

Online Poker South Africa News Today

Playing poker for real money, against friends, in the comfort of your own home or even on the beach is illegal but it is not heavily policed.

To Recap

Online Poker South Africa Newspaper

Online poker is not clearly illegal in South Africa, as long as you play at an international poker website. We can show you the best international poker websites for you to play at from South Africa, so make sure you check out our reviews page.

Online Poker South Africa News 2020

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