Why you should play on smaller sites

In today’s poker climate, games can be very difficult to beat. All the biggest sites are crowded with the best players, and most of the time, every player at your table is very competent, making it difficult to find the fish. And you know what they say...If you can’t find the fish, well...then you are the fish! Even if you are the 6th best poker player in the world, by playing against the top 5,  you're going to be losing money. On the other hand, if you are bad at poker, playing against players even worse than you, you are likely to profit.

Since everyone prefers to play in famous poker rooms with killer software, the smaller sites are left alone, but they can be a great goldmine for those looking, as they often offer a much better fish-to-reg ratio. 

Why you should avoid Reg wars

There is no reason to play against other regulars. Even if you are better than another reg, you may still end up losing massively because the rake collected on these poker sites is huge! For example, if a poker room is taking 8bb/100 off you and you are beating a reg by 2bb/100, by the end of the day you’ll have lost 6bb/100hands. That means that if you play 500 hands per hour at 200NL, you’ll be losing $60 per hour! That’s a lot!

In order to combat this rake, it is essential we play against worse players and that we get good Rakeback rewards. I know sometimes we really want to compete and measure our skills against the best, but if you are trying to make money, stay away from these players.

Why play with fish and donkeys

As poker players we love Fish so much! These guys play so poor that it’s like taking cash from an ATM, that’s who we should target. They are the reason we can play poker for a living! Typically, these players are losing at a massive 30bb/100 and there is no way we can possible lose money to them in the long term. On smaller online poker rooms, you can find a lot of fish and even expect them to be occupying more than a half of these tables. Consequently, this translates into more money in our pocket. In poker you keep score by the amount of money you make, there is no point trying to prove yourself against tougher opponents, but instead try to rack up the highest score. There is no reason to be making $8 an hour when you could easily be making $50 against weaker players.

Better Rewards

One great reason to play on smaller sites is that they can offer way better rewards! Typically, these rooms have much lower traffic, so in order to compete with the bigger names, they must offer rewards to bring players in. The great news is that it translates into more money for everyone! The fish have more money to lose, therefore you have more money to win! These sites generally give you a great starting deposit bonus to go along with a high Rakeback deal. You can easily get 30% or more as a bonus for your deposits on these rooms.

How to take advantage of these rewards

The best way to significantly increase your bankroll, and have an easier time doing it, is to take advantage of signing up for bonuses. Many small poker rooms will give you an extra Rakeback bonus of up to 20%. Once you reach the end of this promotion, you can repeat the process in another poker room and take advantage of a new signup bonus. Rinse and repeat. And there is more, many of these rooms also offer to reload bonuses, which means more promotions opportunities for you! By using this method, you’re not only guaranteed to make money, but you will also have the opportunity to try out all the poker rooms before deciding which one you prefer.

Finding the best poker site for you

Now, if you are willing to transition over to a smaller site and need some assistance, look no further, we are here to help! We work very closely with the poker rooms in order to guarantee you the best deal. Just remember that some poker sites may be unavailable to certain regions, so be sure to verify that. If you have any questions, please contact us and we will gladly help!

Here are a few recommended smaller sites to get you started: