Everybody has to start somewhere. This is true in all things, and the world of poker is no different. I can remember playing friendly poker games with my brothers and sisters as far back as when I was a young boy. We also played other games like "Go Fish", "Crazy 8's", "War", "Uno", and everyone's favorite, "Old Maid". Back then, I barely knew that a flush beats a straight. These days, most people play their first hands of poker in free, fake, or play money games on the internet (mostly on PartyPoker.com) or in local poker nights. Sometimes people have played their first hands of poker in casual home games with family and friends. These games are usually very low stakes (pennies, nickels, or quarters if anything), and are a far cry from what you'd expect to find in real cash games with strangers like the ones found in casinos, card rooms, and internet poker sites. Like anything, poker has a bit of a learning curve, so you should definitely start out playing the game for fun and for free. There are a million places you can play free poker these days, especially online. That said, the most common misconception is that a person can actually learn how to play winning poker while playing in play/fake money games. The primary benefit of playing in fake money games is to learn the basic procedures of the game and to gain familiarity with the basic rules and hand rankings. On internet sites, play money games also allow you to get a feel for the interface and software of any particular site before depositing a few bucks of real money and playing for keeps. Even if playing for keeps means a $5, $10, or $50 dollar bankroll and low stakes games, playing for real money is much different than playing for fake chips. It is very difficult to learn proper strategy when playing for fake money. It is not that rare to see the entire table in a play money no limit Texas Hold'em tournament go all-in pre-flop on the first hand of the tournament. And there's always at least one or two who do it. Needless to say, you don't see crazy betting like that when real money, even as low as a $1 buy-in, is on the table. All sense of strategy and proper playing styles is missing in fake money poker games. By all means, play some fake money poker before you play for real cash. If you're looking for an understanding of how to actually play the game, however, there is really no substitute for putting up a few dollars and playing for real. If you want to be fully ready when you do jump into your first real games, it helps to have at least read some magazine articles, websites, or books on the game you want to play. Of course, you can learn to play poker by just starting out in real money games. You might even get lucky and win right away, especially in lower stakes games. Trust me on this, you will learn fast when playing for real. If you're not careful, however, your first lesson in poker could be very costly. My advice is this: start out at the lowest stakes tables, try to learn one type of poker game at a time (limit Texas Hold'em is the easiest to learn and to play), and do a bit of homework before you start. Most importantly, forget just about everything you saw while playing for play money chips.

Source: Poker In The Hole