Pros and Cons of Poker Bonuses

At first glance, poker bonuses seem fantastic.  Online poker rooms promise new players and even current members the opportunity to become eligible for hundreds and perhaps even thousands of dollars in free money. While poker bonuses have the potential to be really great, there are also disadvantages to utilizing them. Well, disadvantages may be too strong of a word. The main problem with poker bonuses is that they nearly always require something from the individual receiving them. They are in no way shape or form free. Player will have to be willing to make a deposit if they want to receive the bonus. Below, we will take a look at some of the pros and cons of poker bonuses.

The pros are pretty obvious. These extra monies allow individuals to play more and pay less. Bonuses can also be a really great way for persons to make some extra money.  The cons are that players will often have to match just about any available bonuses. This means that in order to receive them, individuals will have to hand over some money. Bonuses can also be a bit confusing. It can be difficult to understand what is required from the player and sometimes the terms can be a little cloudy. Poker bonuses may also require that a person spend a good deal of time at a particular casino. We will talk more about each of these below. 

The pros of poker bonuses

a. The opportunity to play more and pay less: This is a likely the biggest advantage to poker bonuses.  Individuals are able to receive extra money from the casino on top of the money that they have already deposited into their account. This gives persons more money to play with.  They are then able to participate in more games without having to pay for them.  This gives individuals more chances to win. Most people really appreciate this and get really excited about of the possibility of winning more without having to pay any more.

b. Bonuses can be a great way to make extra money:  This goes above and beyond the extra money they can be made from being able to participate in additional games. This pro is specifically concerning the refer-a-friend bonus.  Some casinos will pay their members, sometimes up to hundreds of dollars, if they refer someone to their casino who becomes a member and makes a deposit.  This can be an easy way to make some extra money.  Other casinos may not pay individuals in cash but will provide them with credits that they can use for free games.

The cons of poker bonuses

a. Players have to match the bonus:  If a casino is offering a sign-up bonus of up to $800, typically the individual who wants to receive that entire amount they will have to match it in full. They will have to deposit $800 into their account if they want to receive the entire $800.

b. Bonuses can be a bit confusing: Players may have a hard time understanding what is expected and required of them in order to receive a bonus. Fortunately, this is a pretty easy one to deal with. A simple phone call or e-mail to customer service should be all that one needs to get all of their questions answered.  It is important that a person figure this out prior to playing because an individuals will not want to have made a deposit or played games only to find out that they can not receive their winnings because they didn’t meet certain stipulations.

c. A player may have to spend a lot of time at a casino that they may or may not like:  Let’s go back to the prior example. If a poker web site is offering an $800 matching bonus, there will be rules in place that govern that bonus. For example, an individual may only be able to deposit up to $200, which the company will match, each month. This would mean that in order to collect the entire $800 bonus, a person would have to spend at least four months at the web site. If they like the website and are participating regularly, then this may not be a problem. However, if a person does not really like playing at the web site, they won't be able to collect their entire bonuses if they don't stick around. Now, if a person hates the poker room, then it may not really matter much to them at all if they are not be able to fully collect on the bonus.