When Black Friday happened in April of 2011, poker players from the United States were suddenly cut off from large poker sites like PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker.

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It was a big blow for many players, but especially for those who made a living playing the game. They were left wondering what to do and where to go next. America’s Cardrom has helped to fill that need.

One of the few US poker sites remaining

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Some moved out of the States, relocating to more poker-friendly countries. Unfortunately, not all were able to do this for a number of reasons. So, they were left in the dark, hoping one day things would get better.

In the months and years that followed, a few online poker sites extended their hands to the US players, and America’s Cardroom has become one of the leaders in this regard. For more in-depth coverage of US poker sites have a look at https://www.beatthefish.com/us-poker-sites/. Today, ACR is arguably one of the best online poker sites for players.

General America’ Cardroom Poker Site Information

America’s Cardroom, better known by its acronym ACR, was established back in 2001. It started its life as a part of Betcris, a large and influential sports betting site.

Later on, it moved to the Ongame network and, finally, became a part of the Winning Poker Network (WPN). Today, America’s Cardroom is the flagship site for the WPN.

Game Selection at ACR

Although the selection of games at ACR isn’t as big as with some other online poker sites, the room manages to hold its own and offers players access to most popular variations, which are Texas Hold’em and Omaha. For those looking something a bit more exotic, there are also Stud tables.

A majority of the action takes place at cash game tables, where stakes go from as low as $0.01/$0.02 to as high as $5/$10. The number of players isn’t huge, but the WPN and ACR, as its flagship site, manage to constantly have around 1,200 active cash players, peaking at around 1,500.

Tournaments

Regarding tournaments, the available schedule is fairly decent but might not be enough for players playing tournaments exclusively. Usually, these players combine America’s Cardroom with another smaller site or two to maximize their time efficiency. Buy-ins start as low as $1, and for more serious players there is the flagship Sunday Special, featuring $215 buy-in and $115,000 guarantee.

Jackpot Poker

One of the new additions to the America’s Cardroom offer is their Jackpot Poker. Similar to Spin & Go’s on PokerStars or Twisters on the iPoker Network, Jackpot Poker sit and go’s feature random prizes that can go as high as 2,500 times the buy-in.

With buy-ins between $2 and $40, Jackpot Poker offers a chance to win big for a relatively small investment. Although it heavily relies on luck, this format found great reception on other rooms and networks, so America’s Cardroom decided to give it a go as well.

A Generous Deposit Welcome Package

Aside from the fact it accepts players from the US, America’s Cardroom stands out because of its very generous welcome offer. All new players, regardless of their place of residence, are eligible for this great bonus equally attractive to serious and casual players.

The America’s Cardroom welcome bonus offers astonishing 100% up to $1,000, making it one of the best deals in the industry right now. The bonus is not instant, but it is released as you accumulate points.

For every 27.5 points gathered, $1 in bonus money is released. You’ll need to pay $5 in cash game rake or tournament fees to gather 27.5 points, so it’s effectively a 20% bonus.

Not a great offer for casual players

While this first deposit offer may seem great for big time players, not that many casual players have $1,000 to deposit. That’s way America’s Cardroom has more to offer to newcomers.

As soon as a player deposits $25 or more, aside from the 100% bonus, they’ll also become eligible for 20 Jackpot Poker cards (tickets). These tickets are worth between $2 and $6, and one is awarded each day a player logs in, for the first 20 days.

You can use your cards for smaller sit and go’s or save all of them and take a shot at one or two bigger events. That’s entirely a player’s choice. This offer is particularly appealing to players just getting their feet wet, as they’ll get to boost their bankroll without having to make a big deposit.

Competition Level at America’s Cardroom

Back in a day, America’s Cardroom used to be a very soft site. With so much choice available, the room didn’t attract too many sharks. However, since it’s become the number one site for players from the States, the quality of play on America’s Cardroom has improved significantly.

While there is still money to be made, especially thanks to generous bonuses and their VIP rewards, there are some very decent players out there as well. Luckily for new players, most of them hang out at higher limits, so if you are just starting up this shouldn’t worry you. Additionally, tournament fields are still quite soft.

Last Sunday, the Winning Poker Network (WPN), a non-US regulated offshore internet poker site, held the first $1 million guaranteed tournament open to US players since Black Friday—fittingly, it was won by “ForTheNguyen” who comes from Oregon.

The event was considered a success with almost 1,800 players entering the tournament, producing a prize pool of $1,028,540. FortheNguyen’s first prize payment was a massive $200,000.

The tournament was widely promoted, and WPN even introduced a new way of satelliting into the event via “Spin To Get IN,” a slots game where players had the chance of winning tickets for the big event. Twenty one players won their seat this way, paying less than a $1 each to do so.

Legal Poker in the US

Apart from in a handful of states, there is little in the way of federal laws that prevent players from playing online poker from the US. However, offering online poker is less of a legal gray area. Since the events of Black Friday, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) has not prosecuted any offshore sites simply for offering online poker.

The acknowledgment that the Wire Act only applies to sports betting and not to online poker may have contributed to the lack of any such prosecutions. However, it has also led to billionaire Las Vegas Sands owner Sheldon Adelson’s lobbying efforts which have resulted in the proposed Restoration of the Wire Act (RAWA) which will get a Congressional hearing in March.

The main impediment to offshore sites offering online poker has been the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (UIGEA), which makes it illegal for financial institutions to process transactions involved with non-US regulated gambling sites.

Cashouts Are Slow at Offshore Poker Rooms

ForTheNguyen may well find WPNCEO Phil Payton knocking at his door with a suitcase full of cash in order to pay him his winnings.

Difficulties in receiving payouts from offshore poker rooms that continue to accept US players mean that players have to wait longer to receive their winnings, and pay more for the financial transaction processing than players in the rest of the world.

Journalist John Mehaffey issues a monthly Offshore Payment Processing Report which rates the WPN poker rooms Americas Cardroom, Black Chip Poker, and True Poker at an A- grade.

Players at these rooms have to wait around three weeks to receive a check for cashouts up to $2,995—faster payouts are available, but come with a steep fee. At that rate it would take more than a year for ForTheNguyen to collect his $200,000 in winnings.

Offshore Sites Further Obstruct Passage of Online Poker Laws in the US

Even with such restrictions on collecting money from these offshore sites, players are flocking to them in droves.

Data from Poker Industry PRO (provided by PokerScout) shows that US-facing offshore sites have out performed the global online poker market since Black Friday. What is more concerning for the US market is that while traffic in US regulated markets has dropped more than 20% in the last year, traffic at the non-US regulated sites has increased by almost 25%.

Dwindling revenues in markets that have regulated online poker serve as ammunition for online poker opponents who paint a picture with little upside to increasing the ways people can gamble in their state. This makes it increasingly difficult for proponents of regulating online poker to make a case for regulation.

While there are less impediments to registering and playing on these offshore sites—for example, there are no Know Your Customer requirements where players must provide Social Security numbers—other factors are in play that make these risky unregulated sites more attractive to players.

What makes Offshore Sites so Attractive to US Customers?

A large part of the reason that offshore operators are flourishing to the extent of being able to offer tournaments with a $1 million guaranteed prize pool is that such a large number of states have failed to agree to regulate their own online poker market, and Congress has failed to support federal legislation in this area.

The truth is that the vast majority of Americans have no regulated choices when it comes to playing online poker.

But offshore sites are popular even in the markets that have regulated online poker. A big reason these sites continue to attract players from markets that also offer regulated online poker games is liquidity.

The more players that are playing on a site, the more games are readily available and the bigger the prize pools grow in online poker tournaments. When players have to choose between a regulated online poker room that may not offer the the games or stakes they want to play, and an offshore room that boasts nearly 10 times the traffic and has bigger prize pools, the choice is not alwyas in favor of the regulated operators.

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The US Needs Regulated Online Poker

Poker players in Delaware, Nevada and New Jersey have access to state regulated internet poker. They can play at online poker rooms licensed in their home state, and know that their operator has had to undergo a through vetting process in order to get a license. They have a choice.

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Responsible gaming measures, security for the money in player accounts, and honest games are all incentives to play on the state regulated sites rather than risking playing with an offshore operator.

US players who deposited on Lock Poker know very well there is a risk when playing at unregulated sites—many have given up hope of ever seeing their money again.

Part of the solution must undoubtedly be to stop US players in search of online poker from sending their dollars offshore. Part of the way that could be accomplished is through regulation.

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Several recent bills have included provisions to fund law enforcement efforts to help curb the flow of American dollars to these offshore sites. Without proper regulation, regulated operators will struggle to compete for US online poker customers, and in turn make passing legislation less appealing.