how realistic is winning one of those?

[Wyvver]

Im playing lots and lots of freerolls because right now as a student I just dont have any money to start a poker BR...hoping to some day win one of the bigger ones to get my starting BR ^^

The most promising ones seem to be the 1000$ freerolls at the network with Intertops, Royal Vegas, Dream Poker and whatnot. However there register like 10k players each time, is it any realistic to win one of those some day?

Does anyone know other poker rooms with good freerolls that dont require you to deposit money at the site?

Right now Im playing:
- PokerStars freerolls (50$ + seat in 1000$ weekly round 2)
- the 1000$ freerolls of the network I mentioned
- Absolute poker 50$ freerolls
- Poker World freerolls (freerolls to wsop ^^)
- sometimes Pacific Poker freerolls (but I hate them because of the insane fast structure)

Are there any other sites with good freerolls and no deposit requirement? If you know any, please...I need to know :P

[biondino]

No, it's not realistic, really. Just see it as free practice that's (slightly) more useful than play money poker. Though even then you have to last at least the first hour before you come across a game that roughly resembles "poker"!

[jackvance]

When I started out, in the time it took to get my first deposit through, I used to play these $1000 and $200 freerolls that are daily on unibet. Then I ended up ITM and realized I had just played 3 hours for $3.. never played another one of em since.

You really can't find like $50 to start playing somewhere?

[Wyvver]

no, right now I just cant spend money on anything besides food, rent and college
But I'll keep playing those freerolls, if nothing else they are a decent practice. Btw Im still looking for other freerolls as well, if anyone knows any.

[Warpe]

Sign up at RoyalVegas, RiverBelle and PokerTime. They give you a free $10 welcome bonus which you can grind up to some real money on microstakes, although you still have to deposit and play some raked hands to withdraw. They also have regular freerolls.

[Wyvver]

Sadly I found out about those 10$ bonus sites when I just started playing poker and burned them all.

RiverBelle is the only one I didnt use, but for some reason they wont give me the 10$, or do I have to contact customer support for that?

[KingLizard]

No, it's not realistic, really. Just see it as free practice that's (slightly) more useful than play money poker. Though even then you have to last at least the first hour before you come across a game that roughly resembles "poker"!

This is the truth. Frankly I do the freerolls for fun and a diversion from my normal ring games. And as Biondino says, the play is only slightly better than play (not much tho). It took me awhile to figure that out but after seeing people push with oddball hands, it dawned on me ... IT'S A FREEROLL.

Good luck tho.

[Wyvver]

The first half is sick yeah, people push with anything, but the later in the tourney the better the play gets imho.

[Wyvver]

aww they are really a waste of time...56/6000 at stars freeroll...4 or 5 hours of play for..nothing ^^

[flomo]

you could also try the freerolls at pokerpages/bugsy's club
if you don't have money it is the only way to scratch that itch

good luck
flomo

[donnybaker]

Stars has $.02 bb NL ring. Deposit $20 and play those. I would play those before freerolls. I think you're hourly rate would be better. They seem to allow $5 buy-ins (?) but buying in for $2 would give you a 100bb stack, and 10 buy in's in your br. Play weak-tight and you'll be fine.

[biondino]

Isn't there some site that gives you $50 to start your Party roll? Play ABC poker at their lowest levels and hopefully, within 45 days, you'll have made enough to withdraw and move to, say, Stars' $10 tables.

[badandy519]

Pokersourceonline.com has an instant bankroll for party as far as I know.

[Wyvver]

Sadly it's only for US citizens (Im living in europe)...meh ^^

[Renton]

i played in one for fun last week on my roommates account and took 2nd place down for 33 bucks!!!11!

[Wyvver]

grats

[midas06]

I started my roll using freeroll money. I wouldn't recommend it to many people.

It'd be far easier to get$500 of your own money (or others') and start playing 25nl and bonus whoring straight off the bat.

Just my 0.02

[Wyvver]

Well the freerolls are kinda starting to annoy me. They take sooo long for so little reward and chance, and because of the odd times they start for me(since Im from europe) I often cant even finish them when its 3am and I gotta sleep at least some hours. Or I cant use seats I won because the target tourney starts at 2am and so on.

[T_Khan]

so do these sites like pokertime, royalvegas..etc actually just hand you 20/+ dollars? whats the catch?

[Wyvver]

Yes at some of those sites, you sign up, and about 1 day later you have 10 USD in your account. There is no catch other than that they dont offer stakes as low as for example PokerStars, so even if you play the lowest games you still dont have an adequate bankroll with that 10 usd.

Right now I know 2 sites that give you 10 USD and have no requirement at all (at some others you need to give your credit card number, or sign up a money account or whatever): Poker Time and Royal Vegas.

At those two you dont even have to contact customer support (at least I didnt) just wait up to 24 hours (can be less).
Edit: if you find any others, please tell me

[DaNutsInYoEye]

aww they are really a waste of time...56/6000 at stars freeroll...4 or 5 hours of play for..nothing ^^

Even if you're a college student on a budget there is no reason why you shouldn't be able to come up with $25 which is the minimum deposit on several sites that offer stakes as low as 0.01/0.02. I suggest saving your time and energy and just making a deposit. Several people on FTR, including myself, started by making a small deposit and worked their way up so it's certainly reasonable. Do yourself a favor and avoid the frustration of freerolls and skip a night of drinking with your friends or whatever so you can make a deposit.

[Wyvver]

ok I just found out about the million dollar freeroll at UB, to which you can qualify through some other freeroll tourneys. Why did no one tell me that? ^^
That one might be worth it

[Renton]

Why did no one tell me that? ^^

Because one tournament is meaningless.

Tournaments are at least 80% luck, so you can't just play one tournament, and expect a positive result. You have to play a large number of tourneys and you will EVENTUALLY do really well in one.

[chardrian]

Tournaments are at least 80% luck.

Then why do the same people consistently make it to FTs over and over?

[Renton]

Tournaments are at least 80% luck.

Then why do the same people consistently make it to FTs over and over?

Because they leverage that 20% skill as much as they can over and over until they hit a rush of cards. They outplay everyone along the way and that gives them an edge albeit a small one. This small edge translates to ROI.


I am not bashing tournaments. I am just saying you can't play in one tournament and EXPECT a positive result, no matter how skilled you are.

[chardrian]

Yeah I agree with that - I was just curious where you came up with the 80% figure.

[Renton]

i pulled it out my ass

[T_Khan]

ummm regarding royal vegas ... is there a promo code or something i put in to get the 10 bucks? do they just autoamtically deposit 10 bucks?


i went to the site, couldnt find anything. maybe not looking hard enough? haha

[Wyvver]

ummm regarding royal vegas ... is there a promo code or something i put in to get the 10 bucks? do they just autoamtically deposit 10 bucks?


i went to the site, couldnt find anything. maybe not looking hard enough? haha

This is the site where I found out about the 10$ bonus:
http://www.poker-strategy.org/default.aspx?tabid=109

I tried all 4 of the sites mentioned there, however only RoyalVegas and PokerTime worked for me and yes they just deposited the 10$ after a day when I created a new account. DreamPoker and CrazyPoker didnt, if you find out what I have to do to get the 10$ from those two please tell me

[jackvance]

Thx for the tip Wyver.. both these sites are prima, so I just registered there, let's see what happens

[Wyvver]

They still let you claim 10$ each even though they are from the same network. Btw I remembered again what the problem was with the other two sites: you need to give your cc number in order to get the 10$.

[jackvance]

What is that cc? Credit Card? If so.. damn..

Btw one of those sites gives a 120% signup bonus up to $500, anyone try that one?

[ekillian]

I started my roll from the $10 free. And crazypoker.com had the offere as well. I don't remember River Belle having it and I jsut Bonus Whored there. Absolute Poker had it if you did a BR10 bonus code for awhile. You can get money at CDPoker for free also

[Wyvver]

Jop cc means credit card.

[Greedo017]

you don't need to give anything for the free 10 at royal vegas, just wait 24 hours. i also started playing using royal vegas's free 10 bucks.

[Wyvver]

Yeah sorry if I was unclear, thats what I was trying to say:
For RoyalVegas and PokerTime you dont need anything, for DreamPoker and CrazyPoker you need a credit card.

[T_Khan]

my question basically was that for royal vegas, did you guys do anything special to get the 10 bucks in that , as soon as you registered...boom 24 hours later the 10 bucks was in your account? or was there a bonus code you had to type in while registering. thanks.


all these sites dont say HOW you get the 10 bucks from rv, just that you get a 10 dollar bonus.

[Wyvver]

At RoyalVegas and PokerTime, you just have to create an account, then you will automatically get the 10$ after about 24 hours. You dont have to do anything else.

If you dont get the money you can still write an email to their customer support asking for it, but it wasnt necessary for me. I just downloaded their software, created a new account with my information, and after some hours I checked the 'banking' tab and saw 10$

[Warpe]

At RoyalVegas and PokerTime, you just have to create an account, then you will automatically get the 10$ after about 24 hours. You dont have to do anything else.

If you dont get the money you can still write an email to their customer support asking for it, but it wasnt necessary for me. I just downloaded their software, created a new account with my information, and after some hours I checked the 'banking' tab and saw 10$

FYI, remember that you still have to make a deposit at some point and play some raked hands to withdraw any winnings from that original $10.

I managed to grind it up to over $600

http://www.flopturnriver.com/phpBB2/...+fun+challenge

[T_Khan]

thats my goal. i'm a super noob for "enlightened" poker (what i like to call playing poker in a state of mind where y0u've actually read about it alot and know what you're doing versus being a fish) and i busted out 3 buyins for 25nl. This is my chance..and this week i'm going to to grind this 10 bucks into at least a good 200 bucks or so by the beginning of august. Any suggestions? tips? schedules for what stakes to play? thanks. hopefully this works out. i'm gonna try and grind out to the .5/.10 nl and see how that goes! (i'm not terrible at poker either, i was able to be up a hundred or so bucks before losing it on pp)

[Warpe]

thats my goal. i'm a super noob for "enlightened" poker (what i like to call playing poker in a state of mind where y0u've actually read about it alot and know what you're doing versus being a fish) and i busted out 3 buyins for 25nl. This is my chance..and this week i'm going to to grind this 10 bucks into at least a good 200 bucks or so by the beginning of august. Any suggestions? tips? schedules for what stakes to play? thanks. hopefully this works out. i'm gonna try and grind out to the .5/.10 nl and see how that goes! (i'm not terrible at poker either, i was able to be up a hundred or so bucks before losing it on pp)

The lowest NL stakes you can play are the .02/.05 beginner tables, for which your $10 gives you 2 buy-ins. You have no cushion for downswings so you have to play tighter than a bee's behind and grind it up until you have at least 20 buy-ins, and preferably twice that. I didn't do that because I was doing it for fun, but this is your whole bankroll so that's my advice for a beginner. THEN make the move up to .05/.10 and do the same thing.

What's good about it is that NOTHING teaches you to play tighter than playing with scared money. Once you've got enough buy-ins behind you absorb some swings then you can loosen up your play a little bit, but in the beginning you HAVE to nutcamp - don't play any suited junk and don't chase draws, limp low and medium pockets up to TT and maybe even JJ for sets but don't call any raises with them because you don't have the roll to top-up, and use position to steal small pots nobody seems interested in, but don't overdo it. Don't get married to AK/AQ/KQ either. If you don't hit the flop hard with them, fold them, period.

[T_Khan]

I appreciate it, thanks.

I registered on RoyaleVegas...and i guess i'll wait until tomorrow this time to reap the 10 bucks and start the grind.


BTW, i thought it may be a good idea if I could probably watch you in action? or watch someone who is a big grinder to get a feel for the style of play and if i watch long enough maybe see the pattern of what hands to play and how to play them in such a tight/aggressive situation? thanks in advance.

[Warpe]

get a feel for the style of play

fold
fold
fold
fold
fold
fold
fold
fold
fold
fold
call
fold
fold
fold
all-in
fold
fold
fold
fold

etc.

[T_Khan]

lol fair enough, thanks.

[T_Khan]

alas, another quickie:

so i registered for both poker time and royalvegas....and it seems that they verified i was the same person with the alias thing..........i'll still get my 10 bucks each right?

[Warpe]

alas, another quickie:

so i registered for both poker time and royalvegas....and it seems that they verified i was the same person with the alias thing..........i'll still get my 10 bucks each right?

yes...but you're only allowed one alias on the network

[T_Khan]

score....thanks warpe...your a noobie's hero

[T_Khan]

I think they stopped the 10 dollar bonus. been 24 hours..and no sign of the 10 bucks....sucks.


i checked on the site, nowhere to be found (10 dollar bonus)


warpe/anyone else, how long ago did you retrieve your bonus

[Warpe]

I think they stopped the 10 dollar bonus. been 24 hours..and no sign of the 10 bucks....sucks.


i checked on the site, nowhere to be found (10 dollar bonus)


warpe/anyone else, how long ago did you retrieve your bonus

Wait...it should show up. I got my PokerTime one last month.

[T_Khan]

sucks, it's been exactly 24 hours as of like 51 minutes ago...i'll keep trying every couple hours or so, if i dont get it by monday, i'll email them.

warpe, when you were getting ur pokertime, were there messages saying that you would be getting the 10 bucks? because on the site there were no messages nor when i registered.

[Warpe]

What can I say...this is what I got via e-mail when I signed up:

"Welcome to the PokerTime Family.

Your account number is: XXXXXXXXXXX

Don’t forget to take up your free $10, which we will deposit into your PokerTime account within 24 hours."

[jackvance]

I think the offer is gone. I got emails from pokertime and royalvegaspoker and they didn't mention anything about a free $10. Not that it matters.. dunno why I was sweating over $10 lol

[jyms]

Keep in mind you used to have to set up your actual money account, not just register at the site. You need to go in and actually give all your info. Address, phone number, email (for verification), real name, age, birth date and the likes. I burned thru all of these before ever finding FTR.

[jackvance]

Yeah I provided all of that info. Maybe it's because I don't live in the US?..

[Wyvver]

yeah you need a full account with all the necessary information filled in, just log in and check, maybe you have an playmoney account with only nickname and email adress.

Edit: I dont live in the us either and I did get the 10$...weird :/

[Warpe]

Yeah I provided all of that info. Maybe it's because I don't live in the US?..

I'm in Canada. Link your neteller account?

[T_Khan]

I just got an email from pokertime and royal vegas...both part of prima network. They no longer offer the promotion. sucks. i guess i gotta wait before i get another shot at bringing up that BR.

[Wyvver]

Mh that really sucks, sorry :/
I didnt know these promotions change so fast.

[Lukie]

I started my poker career by placing in a pacific poker freeroll for $5. Over time, I turned that into $3,000 or so. I lost most of that, but so what.

[lfairban]

Try Party Poker, they have been running a bunch of freerolls, but you may need to establish a real money account first. You don't even need Club points, but you do need to sign up early.

However, they are about the silliest thing I have ever seen. A typical FR may max out at 7100 players and have 1500 people show up. The last time I did this, (and I mean THE last time) I was the only person at the table for most of the first hour. I played a whole round with my eyes closed! Just listen for the right sound and click the raise button, it goes pretty fast. If someone else is alive at your table during this period, try to knock them out because you are really playing for all the money at the table from the dead players.

I built up a big stack but still didn't finish in the money.

BTW: Your point about it being good practice is not true. You get better by playing against good players. Playing clueless nuts will only teach you how to cope.

Did someone mention that your strategy will consume piles of time for little return?

gl

[Wyvver]

BTW: Your point about it being good practice is not true. You get better by playing against good players. Playing clueless nuts will only teach you how to cope.

Isnt playing against clueluess nuts what gets the money in poker? I have read several times that you need to know how to beat the maniacs and clueless players as they make the money. But Im not playing for real money yet so...

Edit: Dont get me wrong, I would rather play vs good players. But I still think it IS good practice...not the best but better than nothing

[jackvance]

If you're new, don't shed the harder tables. Otherwhile you'll never learn how to get above fish level. It may not maximize your win potential in the short run, but it's more than worth it in the long run. Learning expenses.

Wew, my head hurts.. 3 hours of 3-tabling 6max.. first time I ever managed that! I'm so proud of myself, cuz I also managed to maintain my normal winrate! Meaning my $$/hour could possibly have gone up by 50% if I can keep this up. In the past I'd always get a headache instantly and had to call it a day.

[lfairban]

There is nothing wrong with avoiding maniacs if you are at ring tables. I have lost a lot of money trying to learn how to beat them, I am starting to catch on. At tournaments, you can't avoid them because you can't switch tables. It is often better to wait until they get busted out or the tables are consolidated. If the tables are numbered consecutively like on PP not UB then you can tell when it is a good time to waite.

There are many flavors of clueless players, including clueless maniacs, all require different strategies. Identifying and adapting is a skill I need to keep developing.

[Wyvver]

I have found another site that offers free money, and I just got it so it still works. It's purple lounge, but only 3$.
So you need some luck to grind it up I guess because 3$ is extremly short stacked at the micro limits even. But Im trying anyways, maybe I got some luck and get to a healthier bankroll

You just create an account and get 3$ after a day.

[T_Khan]

hey thanks for sharing....! appreciate it. just signed up, hopefully i'll get the 3 bucks tomorra.

[Wyvver]

You could also write an email to their customer support, I think it often is the faster way.

[T_Khan]

Great, so I just got my 3 bucks, and i'm ready to see 30 hands for free! Joy.



I guess I'll start working on this br later today, just glad that there is actually a deal out there that works. (wish i had teh 10 bucks promotion but oh well)
Grinding this up to 50/60 bucks is gonna be challenging...has anyone played in purple lounge before ie knows how good the players are at the .05/.10 tables, a pattern in behavior, etc?

[SinkRox]

A year ago I was grinding 20nl and would sometimes play nightly raked hand freerolls at Ladbrokes.. think they would get like 600-1k players and payout ~ 500, 350, 200 etc. Not bad, once I hit 3rd and netted a nice win relative to my BR.

Id mainly look at freerolls as fun though, and never play in any that have lame value as they take soo long and may have too many entrants, making it quite a lottery.

[jyms]

Bump jsut cause it's around that time.

[Waterdick]

I registered for Purple Poker Lounge about 3 weeks ago and got a free $3.
Its wayyyy to small imo to build up unless you get rly lucky early.
So, I just deposited on Party

[Waterdick]

Tournaments are at least 80% luck

NO WAY is the luck percentage that high. I use a simple tourney strategy in smaller stakes tourneys and am able to get ITM more times than not.
Also, other (more winning) players on this site repeatedly make FTs and you are saying they are AT LEAST 80% luck... not even close to that high. I say > 40% luck

[FlopTurnThenRivered]

Hey, I started my roll by selling 500k worth of fake chips on Stars for 5$, I'm at 250$ now.. I learned a ton from that. But the switch from 2/5 6max to 5/10 full ring was deadly, I had to change my game drastically.