Party, Stars, or FullTilt--Your Comments/Advice Please

[Kellon]

I've cleared my bonus on Paradise (thanks, Granny) playing .50/1 LHE. I even made some $$ in addition to the bonus. So I was thinking about trying another site, maybe some NLHE SNGs in the $5 or $10 range, and maybe move up to 1/2 LHE.

I know Stars doesn't have a deposit bonus and FullTilt's 100% is ridiculous to clear. I've also heard that the $5 SNGs on Party charge $1 rake and that the structure makes them more of a crap shoot, whereas they are better on Stars and FTP. Plus, I recently heard some folks say that the games on Party really aren't as soft as everyone says they are.

Anyway, I sure would appreciate any of your (up-to-date) comments about the sites, their tournament (SNG) structures, and the softness of the games (NLHE SNGs & LHE 1/2). I know this gets asked ad nauseum, but it's one of those things that can, and I would guess does, change from time to time.

BTW, if Party is the answer, is there any better bonus than the 20% listed in the classifieds? (I sincerely hope I'm not breaking a forum rule asking this. If I am, I apologize, and please disregard the question.)

Thanks, everyone.

Kellon

[AncientPC]

Stars and FTP is better for SNGs hands down.

Party 1/2 LHE may be a bit softer than Stars though, but I'm not sure.

There is no better signup bonus than the 20% up to $100 unless affiliates offer money on top of that.

[playersare]

for tourneys you want a site which will refund some or all of your entry fees via bonus. Poker stars is the only site that I know which gives a full 100% refund on their deposit reloads, unfortunately the last offer expired last week and it'll probably be another 6-8 weeks before another one pops up.

While the Full Tilt bonus is terrible for low limit ring players, it is worth a 42% discount on tourney fees which is better than some larger sites (including Party skins, UB, Paradise) which give little or nothing back to tourney players. The people who do play there regularly and tolerate the low bonuses, at least seem to do well in actual play.

Another underrated site for tourney play is pokerroom/hollywood. their bonus pays back 71% of SNG/MTT fees and there's plenty of action available at all times of the day. only complaint i've heard is that the software isn't as rock solid as others, so I guess try playing for some smaller stakes first and see what you think.

on the other hand, for 1/2 LHE bonus grinding it's still the Party network, Crypto, Paradise, Absolute, and a bunch of the Prima skins mixed in.

[MtSmalls]

I'm confused. Why is the FT bonus horrible for low limit players?

I like the first deposit bonus better than Party's, as you have 120 days to clear it, not 7. I don't play that often, and clearing 700 raked hands is too many for me.

Am I missing something?

[playersare]

the party initial deposit is 20% up to $100, cleared with 500 raked hands in 30 days (what you're describing is the monthly reload bonus). this works out to 20 cents for any raked hand at any limit.

in comparison, the Full Tilt bonus pays only 6 cents of bonus for each hand that is raked more than $1 ($20+ pot). So if you play $1/2 limits which typically rakes only 50-75 cents per hand, your bonus earnings would be only 3-4 cents. So at that level, Party Poker's signup bonus is worth at least 5 times more than Full Tilt (and essentially beats FTP at every possible limit in general).

The fact that Full Tilt gives 100% of the bonus for 4 months does not make up for the lower per-hand earnings rate. In the same amount of time at Party Poker, you can make the same bonus amount (probably more) in consecutive monthly reloads, and playing a lot less hands.

[Kellon]

Excellent, informative replies, guys. Thank you all! [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[Lurshy]

There is a 50$ free new account Party Poker offer in the 2+2 classified. I did it months ago. It is the real deal, with no deposit required. I think that is tops if you aren't going to set-up a rake back through an affiliate...

[MtSmalls]

Don't get me wrong, I think FT is purely for bonus whoring, but I don't think you have the numbers quite right.

FT credits your bonus for 6 cents for EVERY dollar out of the pot. I usually play 2-4 limits, which on Party (I've yet to actually play on FT) probably averages about 14cents per hand (most hands are max raked).

Assuming it 12 cents per hand, I'd play just over 4000 hands to collect $500. For party (if you could get that large of a bonus) it would take 3500, and you would still have to do it in a week. FT offers four months, and releases the bonus in $20 increments.

I figure I can clear the bonus in about a month or six weeks (I really don't play THAT much), then go back to the next Party bonus...

[Pokeraddict]

[ QUOTE ]
Don't get me wrong, I think FT is purely for bonus whoring, but I don't think you have the numbers quite right.

FT credits your bonus for 6 cents for EVERY dollar out of the pot. I usually play 2-4 limits, which on Party (I've yet to actually play on FT) probably averages about 14cents per hand (most hands are max raked).

Assuming it 12 cents per hand, I'd play just over 4000 hands to collect $500. For party (if you could get that large of a bonus) it would take 3500, and you would still have to do it in a week. FT offers four months, and releases the bonus in $20 increments.

I figure I can clear the bonus in about a month or six weeks (I really don't play THAT much), then go back to the next Party bonus...

[/ QUOTE ]

No way you're playing in 2/4 with $40+ average pots like you would have to have to get 12-14 cents a hand. Like most have said the Full Tilt bonus is about 25-40 raked hands per dollar at lower limits, at 2/4+ its about 15x. It is more lilely your average pot is just over $20 making every other pot raked and probably every 8-10 hands getting another $1 out to make a $.12 instead of 6.

I dont see how anyone can say this bonus is better to clear then a Party bonus unless you were playing 10/20+ where virtually any pot is going to clear the $3 rake cap.

[deception5]

I just cleared the paradise bonus as well and as soon as it hits neteller will be going to party. I had a free account there and noticed when logging in that there is a link in the lobby which offers 30% up to $150 instead of the usual 20%. They send you an email with a unique code which you have to click on to open your account.

Hope this helps!
D5