Bet365 Poker
Bet365 Poker – Full Review
Bet365 is a world renown brand, mainly known for its popular sportsbook wing, however, it also has an extremely popular poker skin on the iPoker network. Bet365 poker is one of the top 5 skins on the iPoker network, offering maximum security and reliability on player deposits, along with a top notch software package and plenty of action on its poker tables.
Traffic is very good at Bet365, with other 7000 cash players playing at the tables at peak hours. This cash game traffic is mainly situated in the low-medium stakes, where there are more than enough games even for the best multi-tabling player. At higher stakes, there are fewer games available but there are always some running. For tournament players, Bet365 offers a great tournament schedule for the multi-table tournament player, and an endless supply of Sit and Gos for the single-table tournament player. Bet365 also offers the well liked “Double or Nothing” single-table tournaments, where 50% of the entrants all double their money.
Poker games available at Bet365 include Texas Hold’em, Omaha Hi-Lo, Omaha Hi, Five Card Stud, Seven Card Stud and Five Card Draw.
Poker Bonus and VIP Scheme – (8/10)
Sign up and deposit through a pokerbonus.org link and get an exclusive 100% up to $500 bonus.
Exclusive sign-up bonus code for pokerbonus.org players: THEGAME
Poker Bonus: Bet365 offers a generous $500 bonus on your first deposit at a 100% match. Therefore, it is best to deposit at least this amount to maximise the value of the bonus. The sign-up bonus is paid in $10 instalments, which is preferential over a bonus that releases as a lump sum.
Bonus clearing – $10 is released into your account for every 1200 merit points earned. For every $1 in tournament fees paid, you earn 15 merit points. Merit points are earned at a similar rate at cash tables. Therefore, it takes around $80 rake to release each $10 bonus, equivalent to 12.5% rakeback, which is less generous than the sign-up bonuses at a number of other poker sites. You have 60 days to clear as much of the bonus as possible.
VIP Scheme: Bet365 offers a competitive VIP scheme. There are 4 different VIP levels available to the standard player, from Bronze to Platinum. To improve your VIP level you simply need to earn more merit points:
- Bronze – 1 Merit Point required per month.
- Silver – 1,000 Merit Points required per month ($67 rake).
- Gold – 10,000 Merit Points required per month ($667 rake).
- Platinum – 25,000 Merit Points required per month ($1667 rake).
As you can see, it is fairly easy for the average player to reach the higher VIP levels of the Bet365 VIP scheme, compared to other VIP schemes which may require a player to rake $30,000 a month to reach the highest VIP levels. As you increase your VIP status, a wider range of reward are offered. To get the rewards that are available for each level, you simply need to maintain that level or higher for at least three months.
You can use your merit points to purchase cash rewards from the Bet365 VIP store. The Bet365 VIP scheme equivalent rakeback can be seen in the following table:
| Merit Points | Reward | VIP | Equivalent Rakeback |
| 7,500 | $50 | Bronze | 10% |
| 20,000 | $150 | Silver | 11.3% |
| 50,000 | $600 | Silver | 18% |
| 100,000 | $1,350 | Gold | 20.2% |
| 200,000 | $3,000 | Gold | 22.5% |
| 375,000 | $7,000 | Platinum | 28% |
| 700,000 | $15,000 | Platinum | 32% |
| 1,500,000 | $37,500 | Platinum | 37.5% |
| 2,500,000 | $70,000 | Platinum | 42% |
| 5,000,000 | $150,000 | Platinum | 45% |
Bet365 also offers an exclusive Diamond VIP level to the highest players on the site. This exclusive level is invite only and is rewarded with a range of special services and benefits.
Promotions – (9/10)
Bet365 offers regular promotions to players to keep happy at the poker tables, from freerolls to tournament leaderboards and rake races. One of the great promotions are Bet365 for new players are the Beginners Rake Races, where you compete to play the most raked hands to win your share of $2500. Raked hands will count as the same from the $0.01/$0.02 level up to $0.25/$0.50, giving all players an equal chance to win. Further promotions for beginners include a number of freerolls, although the freeroll schedule is not as great as some other iPoker sites.
For tournament players, there are a number of great promotions. The 2010 Tournament Leaderboard Challenge tests the skills of tournament players, with each month a new challenge beginning. The top 20 players each month will receive a cash prize of up to $750. Rankings are based on finishing position, the buy in for the tournament and the number of players in the tournament and so it is purely based on skill and not VIP level.
Bet365 also offers many of the other standard promotions on the iPoker network, such as the Sit’n'Go jackpots where you can win up to $50,000 by winning six jackpot tournaments (6-max sit and go tournaments) in a row.
Software – (9/10)
The unique Bet365 software is designed and maintained by Playtech, one of the leading gaming software companies. The software runs very smoothly and has clean and crisp graphics. Many of the typical features of online poker sites are available, such as detailed statistics of your play, an easy-to-use betting bar, displayed hand strength and much more.
Bet365 uses a “One Wallet” system, allowing you to transfer funds in your Bet365 account to any of their platforms: Poker, Casino, Sports or Bingo/Other Games.
For multi-tabling players, the Bet365 software allows you to play up to 16 tables at once. Bet365 also offers a mini-view to make multi-tabling easier and the active table alert system will make sure that you don’t miss the action at any of your tables.
For a direct download, click “Download Now” at the top of the page.
Easy Competition – (9/10)
Due to Bet365′s presence in the sports betting and casino industry, there are an abundant number of gamblers at the poker tables ready to play. The low and medium stakes have plenty of soft competition, while the higher stakes become a little harder. Recent changes to the rake structure on the iPoker network have greatly reduced the number of sharks (good poker players) and nits (tight poker players waiting for AA) which has made the tables a lot more enjoyable.
Low stakes cash games have a huge amount of action, with the average % of players calling to seeing a flop as high as 75%. Tournament players on Bet365 are also noticeably bad, but not as bad as some other sites. Becoming a successful tournament player at Bet365 shouldn’t be hard for the majority of players.
Support – (9/10)
Bet365 offers 24/7 support through a number of methods and in 14 separate languages. Staff are helpful and responses are typically fast. Support options include:
- E-mail (support@customerservices365.com)
- Telephone
- Call Back
- Fax
- Post
Deposit and Withdrawal Options – (8/10)
Bet365 offers a large number of deposit and withdrawal options, although not quite as many as other iPoker skins. A particular note is that it allows deposits and withdrawals via Paypal, being one of the few online poker sites to do so.
Deposit Options: Visa, Mastercard, Maestro, Visa Electron, Laser, Neteller, Moneybookers, Paypal, Click2pay, Ukash, Paysafecard, Entropay, Bankwire, Fast Bank Transfer, Cheque.
Withdrawal Options: Visa, Mastercard, Maestro, Visa Electron, Laser, Neteller, Moneybookers, Paypal, Click2pay, Bank Wire, FastBank Transfer, Cheque
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