I play Texas Hold'em with my friends from time to time but besides that I'm pretty inexperienced. Can anyone recommend a good poker room that isn't full of sharks? Ideally there should be some play-for-free games too
Choice of poker room ultimately comes down to personal preference but these are the two bitcoin poker sites that I would recommend for beginners.... BETCOIN POKER - BETCOIN.AG (CLOSED) Play money tables are available for beginners to try out the software. There is a busy freeroll tournament schedule where you can hone your skill without risking any money. They share tournaments with major fiat currency poker sites like Americas Cardroom so plenty of traffic and big prize pools. Rake is a little high (2% - 4%) for a BTC poker room but they do they do have a very generous rakeback program. Plenty of traffic at the micro limits and competition is soft. >> Betcoin BTC Poker Review. NITROGEN POKER - CLOSED Both mBTC and Play Money tables available. Play on your tablet, smartphone or from your desktop. Daily Texas Hold'em and Omaha freeroll tournaments where you can practice for free. Many of the players have come from the sportsbook so there are plenty of other inexperience players to play against. Low rake starting at just 1% at some tables. Start playing instantly. There's no software to install. >> Nitrogen BTC Poker Review. BETONLINE POKER - BETONLINE.AG Available anywhere in the world, including the United States. Awesome app for Android and iOS that offers exactly the same features as the main client for Windows and Mac. You can create private rooms that are a great place for beginners to practice with their mates. They are part of a major poker network so you'll find thousands of players online at any one time. Deposit or withdraw with bitcoin, ethereum and litecoin for free. Practice playing ring games, tournaments or SNG's. >> BetOnline Crypto Poker Review
Fortune Jack poker allow you to create private poker tables. These private tables are great for beginners because they allow you to learn the game while playing against friends. Here is our Fortune Jack poker review for full details.
I don't think Nitrogen Sports offer private poker games but if you send an email to Betcoin support they will create a private poker table for you.
What about Bovada poker? Don't they accept bitcoin now also and there is plenty of action at the lower stakes tables for beginners.
Bovada were forced to close their poker site, for legal reason we presume, but don't despair. Ignition Casino acquired Bovada's player pool and software and they also accept bitcoin so check them out http://www.bitcoingambling.io/ignition-poker.html Like Bovada, they only accept real-money poker players from the United States of America.
I'm pretty sure every bitcoin-friendly poker site allows you to play for real-money or at practice tables. It's pretty standard at this stage.
BetOnline (bitcoin-friendly) have recently launched a new mobile poker client that allows United States poker players to play on any Android, iOS or Windows Phone device. The BetOnline poker app also allows you to create private tables where you can practice playing against friends on your phone or tablet.
In my experience, BetOnline poker has pretty weak players so it's worth checking out - http://www.bitcoingambling.io/betonline-poker.html It might also interest some of you that Bovada Poker has reopened in Latin America and the USA. They were the largest U.S. facing poker room until they close in early 2016 so we're glad to here they have relaunched since there were always plenty of poker fish there at the lower stakes tables.
Bovada Poker has reopened and they're a pretty good option for beginners. They accept players from the USA and Latin America, have excellent promotions, process bitcoin transactions for free and their cash games are compatible with iPhone and Android. https://forum.bitcoingambling.io/threads/bovada-poker-relaunches-in-the-usa-mexico-and-brazil.262/
i'm gutted that betcoin poker shutdown. what is the best alternative now for someone who wants to play at a crypto-only poker room?
There are very few anonymous poker rooms that exclusively accept cryptocurrencies. You have Seal With Clubs but they have no traffic and their software doesn't work on Mac, iOS or Android. The best bitcoin-one poker room in our opinion is Nitrogen Sports Poker. Traffic is still a bit low but it's the best option we have right now until some other sites open.
i think they only accept their own token which always sounds like a scam to me. why can't i just deposit using bitcoin or ethereum . they also ran an ICO which makes me weary of a particular site.
has anyone played at betcoin poker since it reopened. they screwed some of their players when they closed last time so i'm a little wary even if they claim it's completely new management. once bitten...
We've heard a few fishy stories so we haven't reinstated them in our crypto poker recommendations page. It's best to keep your distance until we find out a little more about this new management team and owners.
Personally I think Americas Cardroom is a pretty good place to start playing. You can deposit using dozens of cryptocurrencies, including Ethereum, Litecoin, DASH, Bitcoin etc. They offer some poker games on iOS or Android which is great for newbies. Make your first deposit with any of their 60 cryptocurrencies and they'll double your deposit bonus. New depositors get access to freerolls, which are a great way to practice without any risk. They welcome players from the USA, Europe, Asia, Latin America and just about everywhere except Australia. There are tons of tournaments to choose from to suit all levels of experience. They've been around since 2001 so they are not going to disappear with your crypto.