“You’ve got to really know what you’re doing, because there are loads of patient people on there for hours and hours, waiting to take your money.”

The old combo of booze and gambling may sound appealing for some, but Pheeney says he learned the hard way that coming home from the pub and playing a few hands could quickly relieve him of several hundred dollars.

“You’ve got to spend so many hours working out strategy and generally you will lose money,” he says. “At some of the bigger tables there are people losing $40K an hour.”

Others, however, are happy to play with only virtual money. Lesley Fernandez, 23, has been into online play-money poker for six months. Fernandez plays for three hours every weeknight and says she got into it because she spends a lot of time online and enjoys pitting herself against real opponents.

“I would play for real money if I had the disposable income to do so,” Fernandez says.

Poker is the real deal - Games - Technology - smh.com.au