Poker Bots

Perhaps you’ve heard of the term “bot” during your online poker play. Someone in the chat window mentions that a bot was playing for 40 hours straight. Maybe you’ve seen an advertisement that claims, “Win big money while you relax on the couch! Our poker bot is only $39.95”…

You’ve probably heard about the human-bot match up with Phil Laak facing off against a state of the art bot. Phil won the match but the bot did better than most expected during the limit hold’em match. The reality is that bots are real and yes, they can play online poker. However, there are many myths about bots as well. In this article, we’ll try to explain exactly what a bot is and what a bot can and can’t do.

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Can A Bot Play No Limit Poker?

While most bots that have been observed are only capable of playing limit poker, due to the mechanical/mathematic nature of the game, some have claimed to have seen No Limit bots as well. Most experts agree that a No Limit bot would have a tough time beating almost any human player that understands the game. The high level processes that take place in ones mind during a No Limit session is vastly different from limit poker. Of course, processors are very powerful nowadays and technology has come a long way. However, we’re still a long way away from having No Limit robots or even robots in our house that can make, say, a sandwich while you play poker.

Am I Playing A Poker Bot Right Now?

Odds are likely that you’ve played a limit bot at one point or another. It’s a fact of life, if your life involves online poker. You likely didn’t lose much money to this bot so don’t get upset. Even the best bots are only truly effective at playing standard hands that hit the flop or turn. Our research indicates that most bots that have been publicly discovered rarely play a non-winning hand to the river. In fact, they often fold on the river unless they have the proper pot-odds to call. It’s also relatively easy to spot a bot, as their actions are very regimented and well, robotic. While humans often pause to think about a hand, bots have already made the calculation and execute their move.

Can Poker Bots Be Stopped?

Almost every poker room on the Internet claims to have a policy against bots. The larger rooms such as Poker Stars have technology to detect bots. That said, there will always be players out there who try to deploy bots and win money. The reality is that they often are used at the lower limit levels. The reason here is that most people who buy a bot are afraid to let it lose at high limits and risk their bankroll. Beyond that, anyone who ever builds a true winning bot isn’t going to sell it for $39.95 like so many spam email and advertisements that we see today - instead you would be much better off investing in one of the many poker training sites available.