What Makes a Good Poker Provider?

The difference between a good and a bad experience when playing poker online boils down to one thing: finding the right platform to play at. The overall quality of your chosen online poker provider will be the make or break factor.

That is because it affects absolutely every aspect of the experience. Good poker sites offer a range of games and tournaments to challenge players of all abilities. By contrast, bad ones will have minimal gaming choice.

The superior sites also make it easy to deposit money and receive winnings, while guaranteeing your data security. Choosing a bad one can put that data at risk and leave you waiting for money you have won.

This article will outline all of the things that go into making a good online poker provider.

Licensing and Security

The presence of a gaming license is one solid indicator that you have found a good poker site. These licenses are not just cosmetic additions to gambling websites.

They are proof that a site has been evaluated by an official industry regulator and found to be up to scratch. This evaluation process takes in everything from the fairness of the games to the standard of the security protocols.

When it comes to data security, a good poker provider will have SSL encryption software installed. You should always take the time to look at the security page on the site, to see if that is the case.

Gaming fairness is achieved through the use of random number generators. This will not be a concern if you are playing live online poker, but it will matter if you prefer video poker.

Games Choice

The second element that goes into making a great poker provider is its choice of games. Ideally, the site should feature poker games that suit both experienced and beginner players.

For the first of those groupings, Pot Limit Omaha poker should be among the choices on offer. For the latter group, Texas Hold’em is a poker variant that is very popular and relatively easy to learn.

A decent selection of Texas Hold’em games will demonstrate that it is a site that is fine for people who are new to playing poker. Then there is the matter of the methods available for playing.

A good poker provider will allow people to play either live or video versions of the games. The first of those methods involves connecting to games with human opponents using live video streaming.

It is popular among people who believe that the game of poker must involve going head-to-head with other players. Live online poker leaves room for strategies like bluffing and gives skilled players the edge.

Video poker sees the player come up against the algorithms of the game. There are no other players involved; it is just you against the machine.

That makes it the simplest way to play poker and means that there is little need for strategy. You will win the round if your hand is sufficiently strong, with that being determined by the random number generator.

Bonus Schemes

Take a look at the bonus schemes offered by a poker provider. That is a third way to determine whether you have the right site or not.

These schemes should kick in from the moment that you sign up with the site. Any decent poker provider will have a welcome bonus to encourage new sign-ups.

Then there should be loyalty schemes that offer things like buy-in discounts and free cash to play with. These are designed to help the poker sites retain their users in a competitive industry.

Choosing a good site is not just about the initial terms of the bonuses though. You must also check the small print to make sure that the wagering requirements necessary to activate them are set at a reasonable level.

Payment methods

High quality poker providers are ones that offer more than one way to deposit and withdraw money. You should have the choice of using a bank transfer, but that should certainly not be your only option.

Other payment methods that you have a right to expect include e-wallets. These are a very safe way of carrying out online financial transactions, as long as you stick with established ones such as PayPal.

The time that it will take the site to transfer any winnings to your account is another indicator of quality. A reputable poker provider should be able to manage that within 10 days at the absolute most.

If the site does not offer any timescale for that process, this is a warning sign.

There is more than one thing that goes into the making of a good poker provider. In the end it is mostly about the gaming and the security though.