To win a game you’ve got to understand your opponent. Understanding your opponent requires the use of all five senses, and some will even argue a sixth – intuition.  Given that most of us rely heavily on sight to size people up, how do players of online casino games assess the competition when they can’t even see them? 

To start, let’s identify the majority of visitors to online casinos.  These are your casual players, most of whom are relaxing with a blackjack online game after (or during) work, practicing before a weekend in Las Vegas or playing in low-stakes poker tournaments as a hobby.  You won’t have to worry about most of these guys.  You may even be one of them. They’re not sharks or cut-throats and are generally good for a chat and a round or two.

There are, however, other types.  If you can identify them they can help your game.  Below is a list of five online gambling personalities the casual player is most likely to encounter. 

#1 The Professional Player

Whether commanding the Craps table, running the Roulette wheel or hitting all the right numbers on the online Keno board, almost every online gambler dreams of being a pro.  After all, who doesn’t want to be the coolest guy and the most likely winner in the virtual room?  However, real pros are rare, so if you’re lucky enough to play with one, pay attention.  Note the strategy, the etiquette, the calm and focus.  Picking up useful game strategies will improve your game.  The rest will improve your bluff and indicate that you are a force to be reckoned with.
 

#2 The Newbie

With little to no experience, the Newbie (aka Greenhorn, fish, beginner) is the opposite of the Pro and is an easy target for sharks on the hunt.  Playing with newbies slows your game down – they consult their hand rankings or bet types cheat sheet before each wager.  They will likely lose, which is good for your cash roll but bad for your conscience.  Beating a newbie can leave you feeling guilty.  Go easy on them.  Online games make for  good practice and, remember, we’ve all had a first game.
 

#3 The Chick

No offense, ladies.  We admit it’s sexist, but there is no denying that women play casino games differently than men.  They’ll likely not broadcast their gender via chat, but they’ll reveal it in other ways.  Avoiding raunchy comments and employing text-chat lite—lol versus lmao, for instance—are giveaways.  But don’t mistake being polite for being a loser.  Female players often outwit the males.  Vanessa Rousso, an American law student, claimed $1.6 million in her first two years of professional online poker play. 

#4) The “No-Rules Nutball”

This guy is the loose cannon, the powder keg, the one that bets his entire bankroll on impossible odds.  Take for example, Ashley Revell, the nuttiest nutball in gambling history.  He sold all his possessions and bet the profits plus his life savings on a single spin of the Roulette wheel in Vegas.  Fortunately for him – most are not so lucky – he won and walked away with $270,000, double his starting bet.  We suggest bets that are a bit more conservative, say somewhere between tight wad and totally insane. Risk can be fun, but this wager was off the rails.    
 

#5 The College Kid

This online gambling personality type is the toughest to crack.  He gives his identity away with young-ish chat comments and references to his friends on Facebook.  Most often, he’s one of two types:  the card-counting, borderline autistic math genius or the sports crazed football fan who knows every player stat ever documented.  But, be warned.  He’s serious, with deep pockets thanks to mum’s no limit credit card and the ability to sit in front of a computer for six days straight.

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