Overall: 4.5
To sum it up, I don’t think that this poker site gets as
much attention as it deserves. They’re a strong site
overall, and probably has some of the worst competition
and loosest tables you’ll find online.
Bodog is also one of the few online poker
sites remaining that gives players an instant cash bonus
on their first deposit. We also give them high rankings
for strong customer service and extremely fast software.
Personally, this is also my favorite site in terms of
deposits and withdrawals. They’re building their player
base through a number of promotions, so ring game
traffic is also increasing quickly. Playing a
tight-aggressive style, you can usually expect a much
higher than normal hourly win rate against wild
opponents. If you’re looking for loose-aggressive (i.e.
maniacal) tables, this site is a good choice.
Bonus: 4.5 (10%
instant cash)
The actual amount of the deposit bonus from
Bodog is modest in 10 or 20%. However, what I
really like about this bonus is that you’ll see it in
your account immediately. This is one of the few instant
cash bonuses that you can get for depositing with a new
site. I give kudos to Bodog for their “No BS” deposit
bonus offer: you deposit… you get a bonus. That’s all
there is to it. You'll need to play some minimum
requirements before you actually cash it out, but the
point is that you'll be able to use the bonus right away
instead of waiting around. They’re also pretty generous
for larger depositors in terms of earning the maximum.
Promotions: 4
Bodog offers a number of revolving
promotions, and their staple is the $100,000 guaranteed
tournament event every Sunday evening. This is one of
the best weekly tournaments for serious players, since
they often fall short of the 1,000 players necessary to
break even with the prize pool. Thus, thousands of extra
dollars is added without having a super-massive number
of players. Their main form of player rewards is through
“Bodog Points”, which you earn from playing in ring
games and tournaments. You can then use these for
special tournament entries or other promotions. If
you’re like me and collect a lot of these that you don’t
use, you’ll appreciate the new option to convert these
into cash. It isn’t a huge amount, but it’s nice to get
a little unexpected bonus. Other promotions include $1
WSOP qualifier tourneys and WPT satellites.
Fish: 5
This is probably the best reason to play at
Bodog… the fish. The tables are extremely
wild and rampant with terrible players, even up to the
$5/10 level. I think that this mainly stems from their
sportsbook/casino affiliation. You’ll find a lot of
sports bettors trying out the poker room, and they are
inherent gamblers. You’ll run into players who regularly
draw to inside-straights and stay in with bottom pair
regardless of how much you bet at them. So long as they
don’t catch their miracle card by the river, you’ll love
the action. Flop percentages reach ridiculously high
levels and typically range from 50-60%, even at the high
stakes. If you’re a naturally tight-aggressive player
and you can be patient enough to play your premium cards
strongly, you’ll find these tables very beatable.
Tournaments: 4
The
Bodog Poker Room is still young and has
typically had low tournament traffic, but it has been
substantially improving over the past few months. They
hold multiple tournaments per hour during peak times,
and they’re pretty good about accommodating a range in
bankrolls. Most events are between $10-50, which is good
for the mid-stakes tournament player. They do have a
good number of $5 events and even the occasional $1 or
50 cent multi-table tournaments for micro-limit players.
The weekly $100K guaranteed event is their best
tournament offering. Overall, I give
Bodog a solid score for a good assortment of
events and a typical draw of 200-300 entrants for
mid-stakes tournaments. They also have some new features
like beginner's sit 'n gos that pay out half the field
and have a $4 buy-in. Also, top tournament winners for
the month now receive prizes like WPT tournament
entries.
Software: 4
I give the software package at
Bodog a good score, if only for game speed.
You can probably get one of the highest hourly hand
rates here so both players who like a quick game and
multi-table players will appreciate this. Their new
software look has received mixed ratings from players,
but I don't see much of a difference besides the table
visuals. An advantage of the upgrade is a
picture-in-picture type view for multi-table players. While they
don’t provide a hands/hour analysis in the lobby, I
would guess that most full tables run at 60-70
hands/hour. While the graphics aren’t extremely
detailed, they are original, and while the card images
are small they are still fairly easy to read. The player
statistics feature is pretty detailed, and hand
histories are comprehensive and easy to read. By using
the hand history, you’ll be able to see all opponents’
hole cards at the showdown even if they didn’t show
their hand. This is useful if you’re trying to gain
information on your opponents’ playing styles. Also, the
software will show you your best possible hand at any
given point in case you overlooked anything.
Best Features
-Instant cash bonus on your first deposit. No waiting
around to see your bonus - it's in your account right
away.
-Some of the loosest tables online. These are some of
the loosest tables onlines.
-A good amount of guaranteed tournaments. They often
fall short in players so money is added to the prize
pool.
-Fast software. Not a lot of frills and fast game speed.
-Easy deposits and withdrawals. Direct checking account
access.
Cashouts: 5
As I mentioned in the overview, this site is my favorite
in terms of banking. Instead of having to deal with
Firepay, Neteller, or another deposit service,
Bodog offers a system that processes checking
account deposits directly through their site. Your
account gets credited immediately, and you won’t pay any
deposit fees. Of course, you can still use any other
popular deposit method, but I’ve always just gone with
the direct deposit option. The biggest advantage to this
is when you want to cash out, since it will be credited
right back to your checking account within a couple of
days. This way, you’ll avoid the extra step of cashing
out from your Neteller account.
Customer Service: 5
I give high scores to poker sites that offer telephone
support, which
Bodog does. You’ll find the telephone number
from within the software, or at their homepage. They are
also quick at responding to e-mails, and you’ll probably
receive a response within 30 minutes or so.
Game Selection: Hold'em, Omaha, Stud (7 and 5
card)
Limits: Fixed Limit: .05/.10 - $20/40
No Limit: .05/.10 - $5/10
Tips
With so many loose opponents at this site, you need to
protect yourself against potential draws. Preflop, you
should consider your premium hands even more to thin the
competition. Since players at
Bodog are so willing to gamble, you shouldn’t
rely on a standard raise preflop of 3 or 4 times the big
blind to get them to drop trash hands. Great starting
hands like pocket Aces, Kings, or A-K don’t win nearly
as often against several opponents as they do against 1
or 2. You should almost always raise your premium hands
strongly to thin the field. After the flop, you need to
be aware of any potential draws. Don’t let these players
have a free or cheap card if you see two (or three)
suited and/or connected cards on the flop. Make your
loose opponents go against the odds to draw to their
straight and flushes by betting at least the size of the
pot.
Click
here to visit Bodog Poker.
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