Online poker WAS huge 10-15 years ago. For the website (the casino always wins) the money is in the haircut, not in cheating. Until the real casinos got most of online plays banned. Anyhow, let's go back to the original topic of player backing players. What if the final 10 has a player who also backed 2 other players? That is a clear collusion, because the backer has a 30% chance of getting eventually some money compared to the others at the table. Once the backer realizes he is not going to make it he can lose his small stack to one of his backed players. Other funky plays are also possible...
If a player is backed 300% in a 10k buy-in, that means he gets 30k upfront. Then pays 10k to the buy-in... crashes out within a few hands... player walks away with 20k. I don't know if it happens a lot... but I do know it does happen... especially when you're not well known in the higher stakes poker circuit and it's knot known whether players are backed or not.
Are you talking about the US? Because online in Europe and Asia is still huge. From what I know about staking/backing, it's not illegal and basically it's an agreement between player/financier. So casino's wouldn't know... and therefore you can't possibly check. In high stakes poker the top guys don't need backing since they have millions as bankroll anyways, so I don't think there will be a lot of problems realistically. Theoretically yes, but that's no different than 2 or 3 friend playing a cash-game on one table with 5 others....
Not necessary. If I am backing someone, I don't just give him the entry fee, I PAY the entry fee for him. Players with less morals could just not even enter the series and just keep the fee. Now when I try to pay the fee and it turns out he is already registered, well, then he was already backed by someone else... Also, there is the issue of Make up, when the backed player eventually has to make up and pay back all his losses before he can take a big pay off...
A safer plan, certainly. But he can still have other backers who don't do that, which effectively leaves you in the same position, perhaps?
Sure but it is basicly maxing out debit cards, where the debt doesn't go away. And when the big win happens the player is left with nothing....
But also you will be left hanging, since you will have to divide the winnings with the other backers... or, and I'm inclined to think this could very well happen, the other backer isn't someone to be messed with and there is the risk of some bones meeting some bats... and not just of the poker player who screwed everyone this way. I mean, it is poker... it is gambling... it's not like it is fully regulated with a clearing agency and central exchange. Funding gambling usually involves some kind of Soprano-type person... But maybe I'm overreacting and everything will be A-okay and the Soprano-types stay on TV and not in real life.
There's no need for backing. One can profit from poker. Here's the first and foremost site novomatic casinos.
OP, thanks for sharing, this is useful information. By the way, where you, people, play poker at? I'm trying to find a good poker room, but so far I didn't succeed.