There has been an ongoing debate in poker for some time. It rages around whether or not poker is a game of luck or skill. Most people believe that it is a little bit of both. However, what many persons do not agree on is how much luck versus how much skill is involved. Poker players in the United States have a major stake in whether or not poker is deemed a game of skill. If it can be proven as such, then the possibility that Federal laws which make online poker illegal, might be overturned. Games of chance are illegal, games of skill aren’t.
As stated above, depending on whom you talk to, whether poker is a game mostly dependent on skill or luck is up for debate. My contention is that it primarily requires skill, though luck definitely has its place in the game. The cards that a person is dealt has nothing to do with their particular skill level. Whether or not their opponent has a melt down does not either. Ones seat at the table may be viewed as luck, as might the skill level of their competition.
What has nothing to do with luck, are the decisions that a person makes during the course of the game. If it were, there wouldn’t be such small number of players that are extremely dominant on the circuit. When Phil Ivey is competing in a tournament, no one thinks to themselves, “The only way that Phil has a shot is if he gets really lucky.” No, people expect him to compete well because he is extremely skilled. That doesn’t mean that some things won’t have to go his way so that he is able to beat equally talented players (which could be referred to as luck). However, most people recognize that his skill would be most responsible for how he finishes.