Poker Site Reviews
Nowadays poker players have a huge choice of poker sites to sign up to (in fact there are over 500 poker sites currently operating on the internet!). However, this didn’t always use to be the case.
Back in the 1990s there were really only one or two poker sites where you could play for real money games. Planet Poker was one of the most well known and early start up rooms back in the day. Soon Planet Poker rebranded themselves to Paradise Poker, and towards the 21st century a number of other major poker sites started cropping up including PokerStars and UB (Ultimate Bet).
It wasn’t until 2003 however, when Chris Moneymaker won the 2003 WSOP Main Event, that online poker really took off. The impact of Moneymaker’s win soon spread across the tabloids like wild fire. Qualifying from a $40 satellite at PokerStars to earning over $5 million winning the $1,500 Texas Holdem WSOP Main Event, Moneymaker’s success was the epitome of the American dream. Afterwards, hundreds of more poker sites started appearing thick and fast, and now over 100,000 new poker players play poker free online every month. Annual online tournament series such as the WCOOP and UBOC have become set in stone, and there are massive guaranteed tournaments registering every week.
Unfortunately when the UIGEA was passed in 2006, it effectively made online poker and gambling illegal in the States. This subsequently led to many rooms especially the then largest poker site PartyPoker losing its entire US player based. Nonetheless, there are still a number of poker sites that players from the US can play at legally.
Best Poker Site for US Players: PlayersOnly: $1,000 + 10% Instant Deposit Bonus
PlayersOnly might be considered late in the game having only been around since 2006, but they are now the fastest growing US-friendly poker site and one of my favourites ever to play at.
Along with their sportsbook and casino games which poker players can hop over to with a joint wallet, PlayersOnly contain millions of dollars worth of guaranteed tournaments every week. The PlayersOnly VIP Rewards system includes monthly reload bonuses worth up to $1,000 along with cash back deals.
A major reason why PlayersOnly is our top choice for US players is their ease of depositing and withdrawals. Since US players are often limited in terms of depositing, you’ll be happy to hear that PlayersOnly has the highest credit card acceptance rate in the industry. You can make speedy deposits and withdrawals without any difficulties or delays. New players will particularly enjoy the daily $500 freerolls, gorgeous sleek software and the massive selection of low stakes ring games and easy competition. Ring games range from $0.02/$0.04 up to $50/$100 in bothTexas Holdem, Omaha and Razz format. With over 10,000 players including US traffic, you won’t have any problems finding a spare game or table.