Online games of chance have created a whole new wave of gamblers, even in Utah, where all forms of gambling are against the law. Law enforcement spends virtually no time tracking down individual online bettors.

The federal government maintains Internet gambling is illegal, but the law is fuzzy.

McBride turned to cyberspace because he'd heard police were trying to shut down home poker games. A friend pointed him toward online poker a few years ago, and he downloaded a Web site program. He played for fun at first to hone his skills -- and because he wasn't 21.

"When I turned of age, I deposited real money in there to give it a shot," he said. "I figured it was a lot better than having to drive to Wendover if I wanted to play cards."

A new Deseret Morning News/KSL-TV poll by Dan Jones & Associates finds Utahns apparently aren't much for driving the information highway to gamble.

Only 9 percent have visited a gambling Web site in the past year, according to the survey of 413 residents statewide. Even fewer -- a mere 3 percent -- admit to placing a bet online.

Still, the poll shows 91 percent of respondents believe people are more likely to wager on the Internet because they can do it from their homes.

Doing just that has turned some players into household names.

A handful of online gamblers like the appropriately named 2003 World Series of Poker champ Chris Moneymaker played their way into the wildly popular televised poker tournaments, winning millions and becoming celebrities along the way. Many more are unsophisticated players who have lost thousands of dollars.

"Poker to me is just a calculated risk like stocks," McBride said.

But he also understands the pitfalls of Internet gambling. Online poker players, he said, often make careless decisions. Others can't hold them accountable for stupid plays. No one can ridicule them for mistakes at a cyber table. And then there is the cashless aspect.

"Your money becomes less tangible online. It is just a number on a screen. Many people don't realize that they're actually gambling with real money, money they worked hard for. It's easy for people to click the mouse and not realize they're actually risking their own hard-earned money," he said.

The social component

University of Utah English professor David Kranes has written several novels and plays set in the gaming culture. He moonlights as a casino design consultant and enjoys blackjack and video poker. "I also love a good dice game for the crazed community it briefly creates," he said.

But he is not a fan of online casinos.

"Because Internet gambling has no social component, it scares me. It seems a breeding ground for problem gamblers. I would be happy if Internet gaming were made illegal. It's hard to police, and it's done in solitude."

Psychologists at the University of Connecticut found in a 2002 study that online gamblers are more likely to have a serious gambling problem than those who play casino slot machines or the lottery.

Although playing on the Internet was the least common gambling activity among the study's 389 participants, the majority of those with online experience had the most serious problems.

"The availability of Internet gambling may draw individuals who seek out isolated and anonymous contexts for their gambling behaviors," according to the study published in an American Psychological Association journal. "Accessibility and use of Internet gambling opportunities are likely to increase with the explosive growth of the Internet."

The first online casino made its debut in August 1995, according to the American Gaming Association. Five years later, some 300 companies worldwide operated more than 1,800 Web sites offering sports betting, casino games, lotteries and bingo.

Some Internet gambling sites now advertise on television. Like most, the flashy sites offer promotions, bonus money and easy payment options to entice new players.

Popular Bodog.com in Costa Rica launched an aggressive multimillion-dollar TV campaign in the United States in May with commercials on networks such as ESPN, Discovery and MTV.

Also last month, a CoolCatCasino.com ad hit local television.

"The cat wants to ensure that your experience with Cool Cat Casino is First Class. For your convenience, he has provided you with a quick download link. . . . After this final download is complete, you are ready to play and Win Thousands Within Seconds!"

Hard lessons

That's what initially happened to Shaun and Pamela Rich. They had previously enjoyed occasional trips to Las Vegas, where they discovered roulette. The twentysomething Utah County couple decided to spin the wheel online.

"It was wonderful at first," stay-at-home mom Pamela Rich said, noting they parlayed $200 into $1,000 in two days. They considered it a part-time job and set a $30-a-day limit. But it didn't last.

Shaun Rich said his wife constantly called him at a local Wal- Mart where he works in the optometry department. "I just won $50. I just won $100. And then, I just lost $500."

Roulette soon consumed the couple. "The computer would just be staring at me," Pamela said. Shaun watched the clock at work. They thought about the spinning wheel all day and dreamed about it at night. They would lie in bed devising ways to win.

"It sucked us right in," said Pamela, who is pregnant with the couple's second child. "When you play online you just click so it doesn't feel like real money."

Before long, the Riches clicked away all but 15 cents in their online account, money that would have gone toward rent. They put their three nickels into an Internet slot machine, and lost. It was their last online bet -- for now.

"We learned our lesson," Shaun said, figuring total losses at about $1,300. They even blew a few hundred dollars playing the children's card game War.

But the urge to log on again persists. "I've thought of playing again. It would be fun, but we don't have the money right now."

Cyberspace citadel

Internet gambling revenue in 2003 was estimated at $5.7 billion and is expected to triple by 2009, according to Christiansen Capital Advisors, a gaming industry consulting firm.

Christiansen Capital estimates nearly 12 million people gambled online in 2003, including 4.5 million in the United States.

"Enthusiasts are playing on mobile phones now," said Dennis Boyko, who tracks industry statistics at PokerPulse.com in Vancouver, B.C.

How many online gamblers are Utahns isn't known. Neither Christiansen Capital nor Boyko get into demographics and don't know anyone who does.

"If someone had that, it would be worth a lot of money," Boyko said. "A lot of marketing firms would want to purchase that."

Though Internet casinos offering a variety of games remain popular, it is poker that has taken the world by storm.

Television has driven much of the poker craze. ESPN, The Travel Channel and even NBC broadcast poker tournaments.

"It is unbelievable how it has struck a popular nerve with the American public," said Tony Cabot, a Las Vegas attorney and Internet gambling industry expert.

Getting into a game is as easy as logging on to a computer.

Boyko has identified 53 networks and at least 280 poker Web sites with more popping up all the time. According to his estimates, there were 1.8 million active players in May, nearly triple that of a year ago.

"I wouldn't be surprised to see 100 percent growth in 2005," he said.

And nowhere is it growing faster than on the Internet.

"Poker seems to fit the Web extremely well," he said. "It's a really good match of technology."

Free vs. real money

McBride likes the quicker pace and the ability to play at three or more tables at a time. Live poker bores him now. "It's difficult playing 30 hands an hour when you are used to 100 or more," he said.

Seven-card stud and seven-card stud high/low are his games of choice.