[RainDog]

Here's a selection of "random" hands from poker tracker. As I'm typing this, I don't really know what the results are going to be. Some folks have claimed that for 5/10+ PokerRoom's new rake deal might not be that bad. UglyOwl and others have demonstrated that it's horrible at 2/4 and below. It would be nice if we could determine where it becomes worthwhile to play there. If enough folks could post some data, we could come to a conclusion. I play shorthanded mostly (avg 4.1 players) and I don't play at PokerRoom or skins currently so I can't really apply good full table data or PokerRoom histories to this study. But I'm going to select one hand chosen randomly from 68 different sessions in PokerTracker to a few sites and PokerRoom.

Pot/Players/Absolute Rake/PartyRake/PokerRoomRake

125 6 3 3 3
75 5 2 2 2
4 9 0 0 0
107 7 3 3 2
12 3 0 0 0
22 6 1 1 .50
87 6 3 3 2
20 6 1 1 .50
20 5 1 1 .50
12 7 0 0 0
102 8 3 3 2
27 8 1 1 .50
12 5 0 0 0
102 8 3 3 2
4 5 0 0 0
112 9 3 3 2
12(f) 8 0 0 .50
52 9 2 2.50 2
20 8 1 1 .50
107 8 3 3 2
52 7 2 2.50 2
10 8 0 0 0
12 6 0 0 0
62 7 3 3 2
100 2 1 1 1
100 3 1 1 2
12(f) 5 0 0 .50
207 8 3 3 3
20 4 1 1 .50
49.84 2 1 1 .50
10 3 0 0 0
97 8 3 3 2
4 5 0 0 0
12 6 0 0 0
52 5 2 2 2
30 2 1 1 .50
32 6 1 1.50 .50
4 3 0 0 0
127 4 2 2 2
115 6 3 3 2
37 7 1 1.50 .50
72 4 2 2 2
97 6 3 3 2
70 7 3 3 2
32 7 1 1.50 .5
35 6 1 1.50 .5
12 4 0 0 0
15(f) 6 0 0 .5
45 3 1 1 2
30 2 1 1 .5
4 2 0 0 0
110 5 2 2 2
90 9 3 3 2
10 2 0 0 0
150 3 1 1 2
75 4 2 2 2
77 9 3 3 2
4 3 0 0 0
10(f) 2 0 0 .50
10(f) 3 0 0 .50
4 2 0 0 0
97 7 3 3 2
12 8 0 0 0
12 5 0 0 0
70 6 3 3 2
35 8 1 1.50 .50
4 2 0 0 0
30 5 1 1.50 .50

Total Rake: AP- $86 / Party- $90 / Poker Room- $69

So overall, PokerRoom is a clear winner over this meager sample of hands. Party has the highest rake here, but with the biggest player base. Absolute is in the middle, but with some the best bonuses in the biz. Up to you where to play. This sample is enough to suggest that not everyone should be running for the hills. Some low limit players are getting screwed, yes (run fast!), but not everyone. I imagine that results at PR are even better for higher limits. I'm curious where 3/6 falls, but I'm done. My results for 5/10 only suggest that the rake at PokerRoom is a good deal for 5+ players. I'm still inconclusive on heads up and 3-4 players. I meant to do several sites, but I'm tired.

Note: I without thinking took the last hand from each session. This is when tables start getting full and I leave. So this info is unintentionally better for full table players and not as helpful to me personally. I also didn't know that my spaces weren't showing up in the post. Oh well.