NJ online poker players now have more people to compete against

Online poker players in New Jersey now have more fellow gamblers to compete against.

On Jan. 1, the online platform PokerStars merged its operations in New Jersey and Michigan to allow the different player pools to combine.

The move is bound to mean bigger pots up for grabs through tournaments and perhaps cash games, and less time waiting around for games that require a certain number of players to start up.

"The addition of Michigan — that's a big deal," Roger Gros, publisher of Global Gaming Business Magazine, told New Jersey 101.5. "You want to see as many players as possible."

New Jersey is already part of an interstate online poker agreement with Nevada and Delaware, but those states offer nowhere near the size of the potential player pool offered by Michigan, Gros noted.

New Jersey is among just a handful of states that permit online gambling.

Dino Flammia is a reporter for New Jersey 101.5. You can reach him at dino.flammia@townsquaremedia.com

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