5 Tips for selecting an Online Poker Site
The decision of where to play online poker has never been more difficult. There are a plethora of options and even seasoned players struggle with this from time to time. With every online poker room, there are a few areas that should be focused on and researched to ensure the proper selection is made. 5 areas in general should be the focus of every player looking for the right room; bonuses, software, game selection, banking options and promotional offers. First and foremost, ensure that your country of residence is accepted at the poker room you are interested in. The key to finding the best fit for an online poker room is to conduct some basic research through generic web searches.
Bonuses
Most online poker sites will offer hefty sign-on bonuses. The bonus offers should be taken into consideration with the clearing requirements in mind. If you play at a slow pace or at extremely low stake levels, you most likely will not be able to clear the full bonus amount in the allotted time frame. That being said, it is a good idea to research the bonus clearing requirements. In addition to sign-on bonuses, poker rooms offer other types of bonuses for referring friends, reload bonuses and other various offers. If you are looking to sign-up through a third-party affiliate, veteran (regular) players should also highly consider the bonuses that are offered through rakeback percentage programs based on each particular online poker room.
Software
The software that is used by online poker sites can make a huge difference. Software provides players with various table options to include tiling and cascading, which is essential for multi-tabling. The versions of the software offered should also be a primary concern. Some poker sites offer Windows and a Mac version, others offer only a Windows version but have an instant-play option and some only offer a version for Windows. Before you fully decide on a poker room, download the software and play around with the options and observe the layout of the tables and the lobby.
Game Selection
Game selection is absolutely crucial. Depending on the notoriety of the site and the traffic they generate, they may not offer the stake levels and tournaments to suit your needs. Most poker rooms offer at least the standard games that include Texas Holdem, Omaha and 7 Card Stud. If you are a mixed game player or are interested in other formats of poker, you will want to ensure the poker room offers that particular format. Check out the tournament schedule and the traffic during peak hours and non-peak hours within the ring games and sit n go's for your format of choice and see if the action meets your needs.
Banking Options
Selecting a poker room that provides you with the necessary banking options to suit your needs can save you a lot of headaches. Research the accepted deposit methods and withdrawal methods along with the associated limitations. If you want to take it a step further, you can read player reviews by conducting a basic Internet search and find what other players had to say about that particular room. Some poker rooms have a history of processing withdrawal requests extremely slow and others are on top of the game. Again, the key to finding the best poker room is thorough research.
Promotional Offers
Promotional offers can be anything from freeroll opportunities to satellite tournaments for major live events, seasonal promotional offers and tournaments as well as a comprehensive player loyalty program. If you are an avid player, you may be quite interested in the loyalty program that is being offered. Loyalty programs can often earn you free tournament tickets, kickbacks for your points and some poker rooms even offer players the opportunity to turn in their player points for cash.
