I'm sure you've noticed how many Texas Holdem online poker rooms there
are out there. I've counted literally hundreds if you count the really
tiny ones, but there are only about 20 texas holdem online poker rooms
worth playing at.
Alright, what makes a good online poker room? I'll show you how to
determine that by yourself if you follow my list of things to look for.
Traffic is an extremely important aspect to look for when you are
selecting a Texas Holdem poker room to play at. What you want to look
for is a lobby with tons of tables filled with players between the $25
to $1,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold'em Games. If there are times when the
room is completely dead, just avoid it.
Game Variety - Most players get sick of playing Texas Holdem all the
time, so another aspect of a well run online poker room is game
variety. The usual games spread are Holdem, Omaha, Stud, Single-Table
Tournaments (Sit & Go's) and Multi-Table Tournaments (MTTs). The
bigger rooms also spread games like Razz, HORSE, HOSE, 2-7 Triple Draw.
But if you're only looking for a solid Texas Holdem online poker room
then look no further than the Holdem tables :-)
Graphics - Are the graphics good? Does it run smoothly without
crashing? Most of the Texas Holdem Online poker rooms reveal their
flaws after about 15 minutes of playing. I can only play at about 5
poker rooms because most of them just drive me crazy. A few annoyings
details are: weird layout, bad graphics, slow software, crashing, only
allowing 3 tables at the same time and so on.
Rake - How much does the poker room take from the pot? The standard
rake is 5% up to $3. For example, a standard Texas Holdem online poker
room takes $0.05 per $1 that goes in the pot, usually there's a cap at
around $3. This is the industry standard, most big rooms have the same,
some have less. If you're going to try the smaller rooms, be sure to
check their rake so they aren't robbing you.
Banking - The biggest Texas Holdem online poker rooms keep your money
safe, that's why I stick to the ones with traffic, they have a lot more
to lose than the smaller online poker rooms. The big poker rooms like
Pokerstars, Full Tilt and Party Poker will take care of your money. I
have never had a money problem with the big poker sites. That's another
reason to choose one with a lot of traffic!
Deposit & Withdrawal - This is a non-issue if you go with the poker
rooms with the most traffic. They offer what everyone else offers and
you should be fine if you do not have special restrictions. Again, if
you decide to go with a smaller poker room you should do some detective
work and ask people what their experiences have been.
Bonuses - If you're thinking about going for that small Texas Holdem
online poker room that offers you a bonus of $2,000, think twice. Why?
Because you want to be sure that you can actually clear that bonus,
some poker sites offer big bonuses but have no traffic or they have
some traffic but the bonus takes 6 months to clear. Who want's to be
stuck for 6 months at a poker room? The big poker rooms usually offer a
bit less but are easier to clear and more safe.
That's all I have to say about Texas Holdem online poker rooms. I hope
this article helps you choose the right one and avoid the mistakes I've
done in my online poker career.
