Yes, there is free money out there, at least almost free - and I'm not talking about the infamous freerolls. In fact there are several sites giving away starting bankrolls of up to $50 on numerous platforms. PokerStrategy and the BankrollMob are the most prominent ones - and yes, you can use both, though not for the same poker room. Just register and follow the instructions if you're interested.

So what's the cash? Yes there is one. Free cash without a catch tend to be scams of different kinds. The catch here is two-fold. First you need to upload a photo of your ID to whichever site you chose to get your bankroll from, so that they don't get scammed. Duh. The second catch is that you cannot withdraw your money from the poker room until you've payed enough rake to reimburse your bankroll provider - you would have payed that rake anyway, so you aren't losing cash here - but it might take some time.

One of the strategies of an online player is the socalled "bonus whoring", meaning that you invest money, play for some time and eventually get those bonuses that CAN be very nice at the higher levels. They help you build your bankroll, thus allowing you to try out higher stakes sooner.

I really like the various offers out there, but personally I'm not too focused on the bonuses. They are nice, but the playing itself is always gonna be the primary manner of income. Besides, $50 to someone who's probably already got a $2000 bankroll? or $500 to someone with a $20000 bankroll? Not exactly the lotteries.