49 replies to this topic

[clashcityrocker]

Since I started playing poker about six months ago most of my time has been spent on Full Tilt. I have also played a little on Party Poker, but haven't played on any other sites. I lost my first few deposits on Full Tilt very quickly, but I feel I have improved considerably and I probably now break even. I haven't read any poker literature and I don't use any software to analyse my play. Playing on Full Tilt has really improved my game, even though it has cost me a few hundred dollars to get to where I am.In addition to this, the past month I have spent reading posts in this forum has enlightened me on many aspects of poker I had never even considered. It has shown me that even though I feel I have come a long way in six months, there is much more to for me to learn. I am very grateful to many of you for this.Now for the topic of discussion. Which site do you feel is the best? Please give as many reasons as possible for your choices as I am considering setting up accounts at other sites. Here is a list of what I'm looking for in particular, but please include anything that you think may be helpful:Ease of usePresentation/LayoutImprovement of gameSkill levels of players (good or bad)ProfitabilityRange and structure of tournaments/SNGs/satellites/free rollsBonus incentivesThanksChristian

[TS Clark]

I'm not a Full Tilt fan. Played there, but just didn't care for it -- mostly because there just aren't enough games running (especially if you play games other than HE). And unless you play higher limits, the bonus clearing there is ridiculous.In Full Tilt's defense, though, it's the only place I've found that I can play Razz. And it can be kind of fun to watch the pros play (though the chatter from the railbirds is ridiculous -- I don't know how the pros don't just freak out).Party Poker is the best site if you want to make money. Hands down. I mean, it's 10:30am on a Monday here and there are almost 30K players on that site -- you just know (statistically speaking) that a TON of bad players are waiting.Stars is a tighter site and has better players (which appeals to some people) and also has a large range of games (owing to size).That's the extent of my experience to this point. Good luck. I'm sure others will have more to say, as this is a frequent post topic.

[vaglvr]

Yeah i totally agree TS the railbirds are insane. How can you deal with so much chatter and weirdness? People wanting to email you and talk to you on instant messanger. Its so weird how these poker websites give access to poker players that is so unheard of in other sports. At least most of these players are so down to earth to give responses that are so nice. I would seriously freak out. Its amazing after someone shouting their name like 50 times they will say hello and be cordial about it. Very cool!

[econ_tim]

clashcityrocker said:

Ease of usePresentation/LayoutImprovement of gameSkill levels of players (good or bad)ProfitabilityRange and structure of tournaments/SNGs/satellites/free rollsBonus incentivesThanksChristian

When I was scanning this, I thought "Christian" was one of the things you were looking for in a site. I thought, what the hell? How does this guy expect to find a religious poker site?!? I did think of some good names, though: Pentecostal Poker, Catholic Carribean Stud, Holy Hold'em.

[chips_bjg]

Im a big fan of either Ultimate Bet or Party Poker. I think Full Tilt is horrible, I personally just don't care at all for the graphics, or the layout of the site, as its like playing cartoon poker. I have also played at a site called sportingbetusa.com, they have a poker download. Downside is there are only like 1500 players on at peak time, upside is they deal 5 handed sit-n-gos which have been profitable to me, as there ar ejust some terrible players, mostly from Europe and stuff like that. Also, pretty easy to find a game there.Just some food for thought.

[Dirtydutch]

econ_tim said:

clashcityrocker said:

Ease of usePresentation/LayoutImprovement of gameSkill levels of players (good or bad)ProfitabilityRange and structure of tournaments/SNGs/satellites/free rollsBonus incentivesThanksChristian

When I was scanning this, I thought "Christian" was one of the things you were looking for in a site. I thought, what the hell? How does this guy expect to find a religious poker site?!? I did think of some good names, though: Pentecostal Poker, Catholic Carribean Stud, Holy Hold'em.

LOL. I had the same problem.But to answer your Question Clash; I'm starting to like PokerStars. Party is a little looser, but harder to navigate, and has the worst tournament structure one could imagine. Also, UB is a lot tighter then most people think. Absolute is okay, and only getting better(I think they will give you $10 with no deposit). I’m told Pacific is looser then Party but you can’t multi-table there, so I’ve never tried it. Hope I’ve helped.

[tampapoker]

I am a huge fan of Full Tilt's ring games, but not a huge fan of the SNG's (in my opinion you cannot beat Pokerstars when it comes to SNG's). I have made an absolute killing playing John D'Agostino's 2-4 NL table and try to play there now about 8 hours a week. I also enjoy getting involved in the 5-10 nl game when Matasow and Quietlion are in the room. If you are new to the game I highly recommend spending some time watching some of the pros play in these ring games--while I consider myself to be a little above average as a player, by watching the pros play, I have learned some new techniques that I can utilize in different positions.

[justblaze]

Ease of usefull tilt/stars.Presentation/Layoutuseless.Improvement of gameuseless.Skill levels of players (good or bad)see below.Profitabilitypartypoker.Range and structure of tournaments/SNGs/satellites/free rollspokerroom.Bonus incentivesempire (26% rakeback - beats any bonus)

[tampapoker]

Hoyt Corkins is playing right now in the 5-10 nl game with Steve Brecher.

[JaysonWeber]

justblaze said:

empire (26% rakeback - beats any bonus)

Okay that's a joke right?

[justblaze]

JaysonWeber said:

justblaze said:

empire (26% rakeback - beats any bonus)

Okay that's a joke right?

if by 'joke' you mean 'completely true', then yes.

[SabaAba]

tampapoker said:

I am a huge fan of Full Tilt's ring games, but not a huge fan of the SNG's (in my opinion you cannot beat Pokerstars when it comes to SNG's). I have made an absolute killing playing John D'Agostino's 2-4 NL table and try to play there now about 8 hours a week. I also enjoy getting involved in the 5-10 nl game when Matasow and Quietlion are in the room. If you are new to the game I highly recommend spending some time watching some of the pros play in these ring games--while I consider myself to be a little above average as a player, by watching the pros play, I have learned some new techniques that I can utilize in different positions.

I agree, what's your screen name, I'm sure we've played against each other before, you probably took my money :-)And Full Tilt does have the best SnG structure, especially if you are playing heads up.

[rawl316]

justblaze said:

if by 'joke' you mean 'completely true', then yes.

Just like this post, it's really a waste of time when people think they are funny by twisting words. So by 'completely true' you mean 'joke' right?

[justblaze]

rawl316 said:

justblaze said:

if by 'joke' you mean 'completely true', then yes.

Just like this post, it's really a waste of time when people think they are funny by twisting words. So by 'completely true' you mean 'joke' right?

you are right. instead of typing 9 words, i should have posted the far simpler "no, its not a joke", which, at a mere 5 words, would have saved everyone valuable time.

[Busted Flush]

clashcityrocker said:

Now for the topic of discussion. Which site do you feel is the best? Please give as many reasons as possible for your choices as I am considering setting up accounts at other sites. Here is a list of what I'm looking for in particular, but please include anything that you think may be helpful:Ease of usePresentation/LayoutImprovement of gameSkill levels of players (good or bad)ProfitabilityRange and structure of tournaments/SNGs/satellites/free rollsBonus incentives

I'd rank Full Tilt higher than any site for the first three categories here. I think the site design is clean and navigable, the avatars and backgrounds are fun, and the access to the pros is a nice bonus. It may be a minor aesthetic thing, but I also like the sound of the chips-- none of the crude ka-chunk sounds of the other sites, and no "Congratulations" fireworks when you win a pot a la Party Poker. The skill level of the players is ridiculously high, which means you'll learn a lot while not making much money in the process. As for the tournaments, I think the blind structures at Full Tilt, Poker Stars, and especially Ultimate Bet are nice and slow (the dudes responsible for the SNGs at PP should be arrested IMHO). Full Tilt offers a tantalizing bounty for busting a pro (usu. the entry fee), and you can arrange private H.O.R.S.E. tourneys, which are fun. But since the site is still on the grow, there aren't quite as many opportunities as the giants. Give them time, though. Seems like traffic has increased enormously recently, and I expect it to grow given all the site's pluses. Scott

[rawl316]

justblaze said:

you are right. instead of typing 9 words, i should have posted the far simpler "no, its not a joke", which, at a mere 5 words, would have saved everyone valuable time.

or you can expand on how 26% rakeback is better than any bonus.

[Jelly-Filled Ace]

why someone would take a 5-digit stack and sit down with a bunch of known pros is beyond me. this site has P.T. Barnum written all over it.even more hilarious is knowing that people put money on their account to ask Jen or Clonie to fall in love with them (or worse) or to tell Ivey or Flack that they suck.the only use I have for this site is birding the pros to drop names and stories about other pros and an occasional hand of razz.

[justblaze]

rawl316 said:

justblaze said:

you are right. instead of typing 9 words, i should have posted the far simpler "no, its not a joke", which, at a mere 5 words, would have saved everyone valuable time.

or you can expand on how 26% rakeback is better than any bonus.

its not obvious? i put about 80$ into the rake for every 1k hands played at 3-6 (LHE). im playing ~30k hands per month, which gives me almost 600$ back every month. show me a site offering 600$ worth of reload bonuses every month.

[Potomophobia]

Ok...here are my opinions. Just let me say up front that I am not a high stakes player. I never keep more than 200 in any on-line account. If it gets above that I take it out and spend it on whatever.Poker Room:Used to be my favorite site. But after some tourny changes and 2 months of horrible beats I pulled all of my money out.Nicest graphics around.SNGs have good structure...1500 starting chips, 10 per table, blinds go up every 10 hands. The competition varies from very loose to very tight, but they are beatableRing games..... no micro limits. I just started playing the $25 NL tables and broke even.MTTs are good, lots of buy-in levels . they have recently changed the format of my favorite weekly tournaments to re-buys and I hate that.Bonuses are easy to clear.Poker Stars:Quickly becoming my favorite site.Graphics are OK. SNGs are very nice. Good variety, 9 per table, 1500 starting chips. I like their 3 table 5.50 SNGs. Top 5 get paid and if you get one decent hand early, you can pretty much fold your way to the final table.MTTs are also good. Wide variety of games and buy-ins.Ring Games...... I like these because of the micro limits. They go as low as 0.01/0.02 NL. (It can get a little crazy there, but it's a cheap way to get some experience at cash games.)Bonuses.... From what I hear they don't offer them very often, so I don'y know how hard they are to clear. But you earn Frequent player points at a reasonable level and you can quickly use them to play in tournys.Full Tilt:I still have an account here, but have been mostly playing on Poker Stars lately.Graphics are a little cartoonish, but tolerable.SNGs are OK. Nothing to get excited about, but fairly beatable. 1500 starting chips, blinds are timed, 9 per table.MTTs are decent, not as frequent as I'd like tho.RIng Games.... They have some smaller limits as well (0.05/0.10 NL). They are not too bad. I've had some success at them.Bonuses..... The main reason I joined Full Tilt was their 100% initial deposit bonus. But at the limits I play it will be impossible to clear. They do dole it out in $10 increments, but it took me a week of playing to get my 1st $10. Party Poker:I had an account here but I haven't played the site in a while. I just didn't like it.Graphics are kinda cheesy.SNGs are a little different. 800 starting chips which I really don't like. At my lower limits there are a lot of maniacs and fish, so its a double edged sword. You can do well, or get your head handed to you.MTTs are so so as well.Ring Games.....No micro limits, so I never even played them.Bonuses...I was one of the knuckleheads that didn't check into any before starting my account. They sent me an e-mail when I enrolled with a link to click for a bonus, but it wouldn't work. Just an other reason why I don't play there. SO I don't know about clearing them.Pacific Poker:Forget about it. Worst damn site out there.I hope this helps.

[rawl316]

justblaze said:

its not obvious? i put about 80$ into the rake for every 1k hands played at 3-6 (LHE). im playing ~30k hands per month, which gives me almost 600$ back every month. show me a site offering 600$ worth of reload bonuses every month.

sorry, wasn't that obvious to me. I don't play limits that high and actually, most of my play is on sit n' go's. but yes, I see how for someone like you, 26% rakeback is much better than a bonus. do you get the rakeback the rest of your life? did you need a code?