Georgia, otherwise known as the Peach State, and its 10 million residents could support a thriving real money online poker community. Unfortunately, due to its deeply rooted aversion to gambling, GA likely never will be the legal real cash Internet poker haven its citizens want it to be – at least not until the Federal government gets involved.

With that said, the entire United States is in a state of flux with regards to gambling and lawful poker betting websites in 2020. Over a dozen states that once opposed the erection of casino resorts that included real money poker gambling tables have either approved legislature allowing for their construction or are weighing in on the issue. Others, like Nevada, New Jersey and Delaware have already regulated online real money betting and gambling.

And yes, even Georgia is at least musing about the potential benefits of opening a commercial casino with a legit poker room for Texas Hold’em poker and other real cash poker gambling. That doesn’t mean they’ll ever pass a bill regulating online gambling and Internet poker, but it’s a small step in the right direction for GA poker betting fans. But as of the time of this writing, Georgia’s anti-gambling and anti-legal poker website stance is among the strictest of any state in the Union.

The Interstate Poker Club is the largest free Texas Hold'em Poker League in the Southeast! Well you've found your newest club, we have all of the above and more! We run poker games (No Limit Hold'em and Omaha) all over the northern part of Metro Atlanta (from Norcross to Kennesaw, and in between) throughout the week. Meet local Poker faces to test your hand against in games and tournaments of Texas Hold 'em, seven-card stud and other popular variants.

It’s not all peachy in Georgia when it comes to clearly defined gambling laws. Even so, Georgia residents will be able to try their luck at some of2020‘s best real money US poker websites.

Past Georgia Gambling Headlines

Quick Jump

  • 1 Past Georgia Gambling Headlines
  • 2 The Facts
In 2012, Republican voters in GA narrowly voted in favor of using revenues from casino and real money poker gaming to fund education [1]. It marked the first time in state history that Georgia voiced its support of legal real cash poker and gambling in any way.

Unfortunately, the vote would have little influence on state legislators thinking about making Internet poker legal and letting GA residents enjoy real money poker betting. In a statement recorded shortly after the results of the vote were tallied, Governor Nathan Deal reminded Georgia’s citizens that he would not support the construction of casinos or poker gambling rooms within The Peach State, and that a much larger approval margin would be required among legislators before a bill relating to real money offline and Internet gambling could take root.

Several months earlier, developer Dan O’Leary unveiled his plans to build an entertainment facility in Norcross [2]. The $1 billion poker betting and casino gambling hub would feature a staggering 7,500 video lottery terminals.

While some believe that a real money legal poker room and casino would have a degenerative effect on Georgia’s citizens, there are others who see them as a means of righting the state’s economic woes. This could be a good sign of things to come because if GA want to use real money poker and gambling to make money for the state, then opening a lawful Internet poker website regulated by GA would be a great way to boost the budget. O’Leary falls into the latter category and agrees that legal betting on casino games like Texas Hold’em poker could help Georgia out of their money trouble. He argued that his real cash betting casino could generate $350 million a year for the state’s fledgling college scholarship program.

As of 2020, no legislation has been passed that validates the existence of a land-based casino or legal poker room. If anything, Georgia has spent more attention on enforcing laws that regulate existing real money video poker terminals than it has to the whole casino gambling debate [3].

Can Players From Georgia Play Online Poker?

Surprisingly, most if not all US facing poker sites accept real money poker players from the Peach State in 2020.

Someday there might be Federal legislation in place that regulates online poker and makes US Internet poker websites legal. But until then, residents of Georgia will have no problem creating an Internet poker account, depositing funds to play real money poker with and finding a juicy cash game of Texas Hold’em poker or any of the other popular Internet poker variants. And while we can’t guarantee that you’ll always win when you’re gambling at the poker website tables, we can ensure that we’ve personally analyzed each and every 2020 Internet poker betting site, and are confident that the ones on our recommended list are among the very best for real money poker fans in GA to play at.

  • U. S. Poker Site
  • Compatibillity
  • Editor Rating
  • Deposit Bonus
  • Very player friendly
  • Generous cashback
  • Great mobile play

Is Online Poker Legal In Georgia?

Georgia’s gambling and poker betting laws as they stand now in 2020 are among the severest we’ve seen. And while there are no GA laws that specifically target online poker websites, there is speculation that Georgia will amend its gambling laws to criminalize online gambling and real cash Internet poker.

Listed below is a quick summary of Georgia’s most noteworthy gambling and poker betting laws. Please note that in order to fully understand Georgia’s gambling laws and how they pertain to online poker and real money Internet poker gambling, we recommend that you seek the consul of a legal professional well-versed in all such legal poker matters.

  • Georgia’s gambling statues do not provide a definition of gambling. However, one can be deduced by combining the definitions of bet, gambling device, and gambling place.
  • Bets are defined as an agreement that, dependent upon chance even though accompanied by some skill, one stands to win or lose something of value. The use of the word skill implies that games like Texas Hold’em poker and other poker variants both offline and on poker websites are covered under the definition. Section 16-12-20 (1).
  • Gambling devices are any contrivance which for a consideration affords the player the opportunity to obtain money or other thing of value, the award of which is determined by chance even though accompanied by some skill. Section 16-12-20 (2).
  • A Gambling place is any real estate, building, room…or other property whatsoever, one of the principal uses of which is the making or settling of bets. Essentially, any piece of owned property where a wager is made can be classified as a gambling place.
  • Gambling on any game that involves cards, dice or balls, including poker betting, is considered a criminal offense, and anyone who commits the offense of gambling shall be guilty of a misdemeanour.

Based on the gambling statues, playing poker in any capacity, whether at an underground club or a non-raked home game, is illegal in Georgia, as is online Internet poker in [grtYear]. For that matter, according to Georgia’s penal code playing just about any game where real money betting or gambling with anything of value is involved is considered a crime. And while we aren’t certain to what degree the laws are enforced, we can say with confidence that anyone caught gambling and betting on poker or casino games will have a difficult time finding loopholes in Georgia’s gambling statues.

For a more thorough look at Georgia’s gambling codes and GA’s stance on Internet poker and real cash poker offline games, please click on the following link [4].

The Facts

The History Of Gambling In Georgia

There was a time when gambling and betting ran rampant throughout Georgia. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, residents of the state gambled on a variety of card games including real money poker, athletic events and races. During that time, it became common practice for casino and poker room establishment owners to pay off law enforcement agents to look the other way because those poker games were far from legal.

In the early 20th century, Thomas Lee Bailey (1865-1945) – an influential and outspoken newspaper editor and local leader – used his widely read Cochran Journal as an outlet for his opinions. In it, he would frequently call for stricter controls on poker and casino gambling and alcohol. The state listened.

By the 1930s – a time when most other states were loosening their position against real money poker and gambling due to the Great Depression- Georgia became one of the most anti-gambling states in the Union.

Since then, not much has changed. In 1992, Georgia regulated the sale of lottery tickets. And while the lottery has remained popular among Georgia’s citizens, GA State has proven very hesitant to expand its gambling operations into popular areas like real cash Internet poker websites and legal gambling outlets.

In more recent headlines, authorities in GA have recently begun cracking down on Internet Cafes that allow patrons to play online poker and access Internet poker websites.

Regulated Gambling Options In Georgia

The only forms of regulated gambling in Georgia are charitable bingo, raffles and the lottery. Casino nights, pari-mutuel betting, commercial casinos and even home poker games are all considered illegal in Georgia, rendering the state’s gambling offerings unattractive to those who thrive on action. So, perhaps in 2020 GA isn’t the best place for real money poker gambling fans to settle down.

Locals have begun making noise over the lack of regulated gambling and lawful poker options in the Peach State, but until their whispers become a deafening roar, it’s doubtful the state will alter its position, or even take notice.

Georgia is not a very friendly state for US online poker players, which means you’ll want to be wary of engaging in real-money online poker.

The Future Of Regulated Online Gambling In Georgia

The odds of legit Internet poker and real cash online poker betting making its way to Georgia, either in 2020 or at a later date, are almost as bad as winning its state lottery. In fact, it’s more likely that GA will prohibit online gambling and poker websites altogether than it is to regulate the Internet gambling market in Georgia.

However, due to GA State’s poor economy and suffering HOPE scholarship program [5], government officials may eventually decide to brush their issues with gambling and real cash poker like Texas Hold’em aside, and allow for the construction of a land-based casino and real money poker gambling room. But that’s a big “if”.

Fun Fact

Seasoned mixed-games real cash poker specialist David Bach hails from Athens, Georgia [6]. After playing on the WSOP and WPT poker gambling circuits for over a decade without a win, Bach would score his first major title in grand fashion when he took down the 2009 WSOP $50,000 H.O.R.S.E World Championship. For his monumental legal poker achievement, Bach received $1.277 million and an exclusive gold bracelet.

Since then, Bach has made it to final table at three other WSOP events, none of which were decided over NLHE poker betting.

The Bottom Line

A slim majority of Georgia’s residents are in favor of gambling expansion and a move towards legal poker websites where GA residents can do their real money poker betting in a regulated Internet poker environment, but that doesn’t change the fact that the current Governor and most state officials are not keen on lawful Internet poker in the Peach State. Georgia’s economic woes offer gamblers and poker betting fans a glimmer of hope, but given the state’s gambling laws, general position and history, it appears significantly unlikely that it will ever regulate online poker and make real money Internet poker legal.

In a more likely scenario, GA’s real cash poker players will travel to nearby Florida to get their online Internet poker fix at their legit poker websites because the possibility of regulated poker websites and legal real money poker gambling in the iGaming market in the future is very real there.

References

[1] ↑Conservatives fear gambling vote heralds culture shift

[2] ↑Dan O’Leary Plans $1B Gambling Complex near Atlanta

[3] ↑Video Poker Bill Now Law

[4] ↑Official Code of Georgia

[5] ↑HOPE Scholarship

[6] ↑A Poker Life – David Bach

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Poker League Software (PLS) is an online service that allows you to quickly and easily manage your poker league results. It’s completely free. PLS allows you to display your poker league points and poker tournament results on any website. Post one of several of the provided poker leaderboards for your poker league website. Use the hosted version if you don’t have a website. All of this for free and it will save you so much time, money and resources while it also manages all of your poker league information.

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How Poker League Software Works

PLS started as a software program and is now an online service. All the poker league information is stored in a highly secured environment. All the information is backed up daily. All your information is available for you to download at any time.

So, once your account is setup and you have setup your poker league admin website customized to fit your league, do the following:

  • STEP 1: Play your poker league tournament or game
  • STEP 2: Login to Poker-Leaderboard.com to enter and save your results
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In a nutshell, Poker League Software is a points management tool designed to make the tedious process of points tracking, tallying and leaderboard creation into a quick and efficient process. Ditch Excel and use Poker League Software 100% Free.

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What Poker League Software Is Not

Poker League Software is NOT like other poker tournament managers you may have seen. PLS is NOT a blind timer; it’s not going to tell you when to raise your blinds. Nor is it not a poker clock, blind creator or a seating chart (although those features may soon be available).

Atlanta

Those other tournament managers are certainly useful on their own, but they do not solve one key problem. Quickly and efficiently managing all the data, stats and information that you will accumulate when running a successful poker league. PLS makes poker league points management quick, easy and efficient.

Successful Poker Leagues know one little secret that makes their league popular and keeps players coming back to their website time and time (and time) again.

That one little secret? Poker Leagues know one secret….

This one little secret is so valuable that it can can make you or break you in operating a poker league?

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The secret:

Keep Score how you want to keep score!Poker Leagues with a widely visible and updated points race is a huge motivator for league members!

Players want to see points, they want to see them right away, and they want to know that everyone else see’s them, too. An active points race is key to consistently bringing in a large number of players time and time again.

Most players enjoy the individual challenge of a poker tournament and the prize for 1st place, but if you are operating a poker league, players are much more likely to come out and play on a night where they might not have normally done so if there is an active points race!

So how to you cultivate an active points race?

Answer: Have a widely visible leaderboard that is accurate and up to date.

Poker League here on Monday Nights!For example,
You start a bar poker league in your local town.

You visit three pub managers at a few local bars and talk to them about the extra customers that will visit their location to play in a poker tournament that you put on.

The manager each agree to to hold one tournament per week for four weeks each and they agree to pay you similarly to the trivia night karaoke DJ.

Atlanta Poker Club Online

Your job is to bring in a bunch of players who wouldn’t normally be there and allow the establishment sell food and drinks to patrons who are there to enjoy the poker tournament.

Your venues are “Bud’s Bar and Grill” on Mondays, Wild Willy’s on Wednesdays and Uncle Buck’s Barbeque on Saturdays.

Remembering that the one secret that successful poker leagues know is that an active points race is a huge motivating factor for league members, want a points race for each venue as well as an overall points race.

You have 3 venue points races and one overall points race to promote to your league members.

You need the following leaderboards:

1. Individual venue leaderboard for Bud’s on Mondays
2. Individual venue leaderboard for Wild Willy’s on Wednesday
3. Individual venue leaderboard for Bucks on Saturday
4. Combined overall leaderboard tallying points across all venues.

The individual leaderboards track the results at each venue. The overall leaderboard is the combined total points for each player at all of your venues.

Poker League Software automatically saves and tallys your league results and creates all of your leaderboards in one step! Play your tournament, enter results and hit save.

Results are saved, points are tallied and the leaderboard is updated all at once.

An interactive leaderboard for your poker league is created and updated to your website. Your scores are automatically tallied and results posted in a widely visiable league resource.

The same thing is true for poker affiliates who are running an online poker league and trying to recruit players to join. If you are running a poker league at Bodog Life then you are going to have to have a leaderboard to keep your players interested!

You might be saying – Doesn’t EXCEL do all of that?

“I can track points myself using Excel or Word, right?”

You are absolutely 100% correct. — You can manually track your points by entering everything into an excel spreadsheet, using formulas and good old fashioned addition to update your points.

It is possible, but it isn’t efficient.

The Atlanta Poker Club, tracked their poker league points manually using excel for over two years. Here is what they have to say about the software and they were instrumental in the development of the software into what it is today.

Atlanta Poker Club online, free

Poker League Software saves you time and money!

“For the past two and a half years I’ve literally wasted 8-10 hours every week managing our poker league points and leaderboard.

Now updating points takes less than 2 minutes per day…I can access everything online from the easy to use PLS admin console – which helps greatly when I’m on the road.

Plus, our players absolutely love having the leaderboard updated immediately following a tournament, instead of days after the fact.

Before, we would already be 3 to 4 days behind whenever I updated the points… today we’re up to date.

We’ve wanted this software since we started our league, but before now it simply wasn’t available.

If you run a poker league you should order PLS right now.

Brad F.
co-founder
Atlanta Poker Club

So yes, you can do all of this the old fashioned way but we believe that you will agree that your time is better spent promoting and growing your league rather than “doing the points.”

Poker League Software grows with you as you grow, add venues, seasons, events etc… as you need.

Poker League Software handles it all, all in one step. You only enter a tournament result one time and the PLS database does the rest. A dynamic and interactive leaderboard is created and automatically displayed on your website.

League members visit your website to check the leaderboard and your sponsors and advertisers get exposure to your league, and you have a great medium to communicate to league members.

SAY GOODBYE TO EXCEL!

This is a MUST HAVE for any poker affiliate running an online league.
Jeremy E, Poker Affiliate World.

Poker League Software Features

Custom and Flexible Scoring Solutions
Flexible league structure
Leaderboard displays on your website
Individualized player stats
Venues, Seasons, Players, Regions and Sub-Regions available
Easy error correction, player merging etc..

Poker League Software is flexible and easy to use with virtually any league structure. It is easy to add new venues, create seasons, create tournaments entries, manage players, modify players, change results, add results, search through results and just very easy to use.

You can create a scoring system that does what YOU want it to do, be it add a certain % of points to each finish position, add a flat points award based on how many players, or a combination thereof.

You can award bonus points, bounty points, attendance points, points for whatever you want, whenever you want. You can enter results but not have the tally if you do a special event that doesn’t track points for one reason or another…

The bottom line is that you can set your league up however you need to set your league up, quick and easy.

Poker League Software vs other Poker League Managers

You’ve probably looked around at some of the other poker league management tools on the net. We certainly did. They didn’t look very user friendly and they didn’t really do what we wanted anyway (manage points / display leaderboard).

Most of those poker league managers were really tournament managers, telling you how to seat players and when to raise blinds. The APC had virtually no use for that, but they did need something to manage points and display a leaderboard for players to see. They needed a points management solution. Poker League Software requires no downloads, all it requires is access to the internet and a login / password..

Once you log in, it is easy to both create your initial league set up / points system as well as enter your event results. It takes a one step process to get the leaderboard to display on your website.

Atlanta Poker Club Online Login

PLS saves huge amounts of time if you operate a poker league. Hit ‘save’ once you enter your results and you are done.

Atlanta Poker Club Online Games

League setup is a one time thing (you can make adjustments) but once you set up your league settings and your scoring systems it is a breeze to enter tournament results.

Once you enter the results, your leaderboard is updated instantly on your website.

League members can instantly visit your website and view the updated leaderboard as well as look through detailed results from previous league events. The current points race is displayed and history for your league is created.

Examples of how Poker League Software Works

Screenshots of the PLS administrator (league manager)

Here are a handful of screenshots of what it looks like to log in as an administrator and enter event results.

Screenshot of Scoring System

Screenshot of Tourney Results

Here are more Poker League Software Screenshots.

Poker League Software – a no brainer.

“Now that we use Poker League Software, our tournament directors fill out one simple online form. It takes about a minute to complete per venue. When all the information is input, they hit a buttton and points are tracked, tallied and the leaderboard is updated automatically on our website.

When we were using excel, we had to get the results from the tournament director, type the results into excel, sort the results, update the results, merge the files and fix any errors like a player name mispelling or typo, save the new file and re-upload the results to the web and change any necessary links.

We had to do that for every venue, every tournament, every week. Then we had to combine every venue for an overall points race where we gave away our big prize. It took forever and our leaderboards were never up to date in real time.

Now, it takes minutes! Which would you prefer?

Atlanta Poker Club Online

It’s one of the best investments we’ve made for improving and growing our Texas Holdem Poker league and website participation.

Atlanta Poker Club Online Betting

PLS is so easy to use and it saves so much time and money that it pays for itself time & time again. Plus, the leaderboard page is one of the most heavily visited pages on our website and an excellent opportunity for advertising and promoting our sponsors.”

Jason S
co-founder
Atlanta Poker Club

P.S. We will not talk about the time the points got really screwed up using excel and we had to just start it over from scratch because it was easier than trying to straighten out the mess we created in excel. No, we won’t mention that at all, because thats not good, not good at all.

Click here for more on the development and history of poker league software with the Atlanta Poker Club.

Start using Poker League Software today and give your poker league the competitive edge. Your players will thank you for it!

Sign up for your account today and take your league to the next level, your players will love that you have an up to date leaderboard! If you don’t like it, you can cancel service at any time for any reason.

Here are more features of the poker league software.

Atlanta Poker Club Online Game

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Enjoy the software and good luck with your poker league!

The Poker League Software Team

p.s. Almost everyone wants to know why this is a free service that you can use on your own website. The answer is because we now have a sponsor who advertises two small and unobtrusive text links wherever the leaderboard is displayed.