Poker players' group welcomes US research findings.
New research has suggested that the established debate over whether poker is primarily a game of skill or chance could soon come to an end.Conducted by a computer scientist at Delaware's Ohio Wesleyan University and software firm Cigital, the study analysed 103 million hands of Texas hold'em played at online portal PokerStars.
According to the New Scientist, the researchers calculated the percentage of hands that ended in a "showdown" - when the winner's cards actually beat their opponents - and those that were won because all the other players folded.
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The study found that 76 per cent of the hands did not finish with a showdown, indicating that skill is the main factor when winning a poker hand.
Alfonse D'Amato, chairman of the Poker Players Alliance, welcomed the findings.
"This study provides the raw data to back up the compelling arguments made by poker players around the world that it's skill, not pure luck, that determines the outcome of this game," he said.
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