You may have heard of poker agents before.
Online poker agents help connect players with tables that suit their needs. Agents also take care of other aspects of playing poker online like protecting player funds and helping players get into tournaments or cash games.
Many players think being able to find a good agent helps improve their chances of winning.
Here are the top 5 things that players tend to miss when they do not have an online poker agent.
1. You spend time on the wrong aspect of poker.
Actors hire agents to help manage non-acting parts of their career.
While actors could certainly read contracts and make calls, they don’t need to. Every single hour they spend on that, is an hour they’re not using to perform which is the source of their income.
A poor performance at an audition can cost them a movie role. A bad negotiation can cost them some money.
Obviously, their priorities should be focused on getting the highest-paying roles as quickly as possible.
Similarly, for players, the goal is to be at the table and earning money.
Managing pressure, reading opponents’ hands, and maintaining a high level of alertness throughout a long session are skills that are essential for a player’s success. These tasks are critical to a player’s performance.
However, these types of tasks are far removed from the type of activities that a typical online poker agent handles (finding new tables, reviewing different rooms, etc.)
When a player has an agent to assist him/her, he/she can focus solely on playing while the handler spends their time searching for optimal gaming situations.
As soon as you’ve connected with a legitimate online poker agent, the process is much simpler.
If you decide you want to play again the next day, you don’t have to start all over again. You simply send a quick message to the same online poker agent, who knows what type of games you’re looking for, and you’ll be ready to roll.
2. You miss the softest games.
One of the main reasons players seek out an agent for assistance with finding games is due to “game selection”.
Not all games are created equally. Some games are extremely tough with a large number of aggressive regulars making it difficult to be profitable over time. Other games are softer, contain fewer aggressive players, and overall represent a better environment for skilled players.
However, most players can only identify games based upon their exposure to public information (e.g., popular rooms).
Games are available beyond the realm of public knowledge and can vary widely in terms of difficulty and aggression. A reputable online poker agent can identify both popular rooms providing stable, quality games in addition to identifying those hidden spots within various niches that contain softer opponents.
Having access to this type of knowledge can greatly impact your bottom-line results over time.
In poker, regardless of how skilled you are, your ability is only half of your potential equation. Where you apply your skill sets plays the second-largest factor in determining your overall profitability.
Choosing the correct games can limit mistakes made by inexperienced opponents (and even more-experienced opponents) allowing you to gain leverage and maximize your potential profits.
3. You lose your main barrier of protection.
An honest and trusted online poker agent can provide another layer of protection for your bankroll(s), and give you peace-of-mind.
This area represents a huge difference between a novice agent who is only looking for short-term gains versus a seasoned veteran who has built a solid reputation.
As stated earlier, an agent’s livelihood depends heavily on building trust, respect, and lasting relationships. If they were to disappoint anyone, particularly a customer with whom they have developed trust with, they would put their livelihood at risk.
An experienced online poker agent therefore protects customers’ interests, as it is mutually beneficial for both parties for the agent’s customer base to remain healthy and growing.
For example, if Eddie Hearn were to scam Anthony Joshua, his business would essentially shut down immediately. Why? Because Anthony Joshua relies on Eddie Hearn’s credibility and reputation to attract promoters willing to pay millions for fights.
Similarly, if an established agent scams a customer (or worse yet – multiple customers), their business will suffer significantly. Therefore, an agent has ample reason to treat customers fairly.
4. You are easier to scam when you go in alone.
When you sign-up for any given club/site/private tournament by yourself; it is entirely likely that the person running the event is either dishonest/irresponsible/careless/untrustworthy/etc.
The problem lies in that when you sign-up by yourself, you hold little-to-no bargaining power.
If there is an issue with the payout/drugs/behavior/etc.; where do you turn? Generally speaking, there isn’t anywhere to go. Typically you are left sitting around waiting/hoping that whatever issue develops resolves itself eventually.
However, this dynamic changes dramatically when you utilize the services of a known reputable agent.
Even though the person running the questionable operation may not care about hurting a customer who doesn’t have an established presence in the community; they generally wouldn’t want to jeopardize their standing with other professionals in the field — especially if the customer has connections within the field.
This creates two major issues for the operator: First, there is now a clear and direct threat to their reputation. Second, it opens them up to increased scrutiny from other professionals in their field.
While utilizing an agent does not guarantee that operators won’t act poorly towards their clients; it does create a level of accountability — namely, operators will weigh their decision much more carefully before engaging in any sort of wrongdoing.
5. You miss someone who is pulling for you.
Players often overlook how helpful it is to have someone who genuinely cares about their success and wants nothing more than for you to succeed in your poker endeavors.
After your family members and possibly even your friends who support your poker endeavors; your agent will probably be next in line cheering for you to win.
Why? Well, let me ask you this — Which type of player do you believe will continue to grow your business (i.e., keep playing and referring new customers)? The winner or the loser?
Of course it is the winner! Thusly, a successful agent recognizes that when one of their customers wins regularly; it benefits everybody involved!
It is truly a win-win situation.
Ultimately, this creates a positive environment for both sides of the relationship — i.e., your continued success is good for everyone involved.
Also noteworthy; in a lot of industries (particularly those involving finance); people claim they are on your team. In this industry however; there is actual evidence supporting the fact that your success can lead to a symbiotic relationship — i.e., when you win; so does your agent!
Overall; this creates a sense of continuity/trust among partners which goes above-and-beyond mere accessibility.
Online Poker Agents Summary
Many players believe that handling all aspects of online poker individually provides them with greater control over their poker experience.
Additionally; going it alone typically does not save players time — rather it generates additional time spent on guessing/trying to find viable alternatives/dealing with unnecessary risk.
Players who have been in the poker world long enough ultimately conclude: Do what you are naturally inclined toward (play poker), and find an online poker agent to handle the remainder of the responsibilities associated with playing poker online (find suitable rooms/tournaments/games).
This is not necessarily cheating — rather it is simply choosing to operate in a manner that allows you to achieve maximum efficiency.
It is not all roses and candies in the online poker agents’ world, however. There are many scammers and cheatersposing as experienced handlers who are just looking to cheat players. Open your eyes, ears and think carefully who to trust. This list of cheaters can help you identify some popular con artists.
In our telegram news channel, we expose some of the game-oranizers and/or agents who are known to be dishonest.
Therefore; the primary benefit offered by an online poker agent is that you will have more time to devote toward improving your poker abilities while someone else takes care of finding better conditions/sweeter games/better access/safer environments.
Ultimately; this can result in achieving significant financial rewards that most players do not anticipate.
So; yes — technically-speaking; it is possible to accomplish everything yourself.
Nonetheless; I firmly believe that this is not always the best utilization of your time/energy/proficiency.
