H1 – PokerStars review
P1 – PokerStars has been operating under a license by the Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission, since it went live in 2001. It is the most renowned poker site in the world and it rose to prominence as early as 2003. It masterfully became a famous site, by hosting champions from the World Series of Poker.
Being the top site in terms of player traffic for over a decade now, it will be interesting to explore its offerings through this PokerStars review.
H1.1 – Pros and cons
P1.1 – First off, let us begin by summarizing the main strengths of PokerStars, as well as some of its weaknesses.
Pros
- Variety of poker games
- Tables with different limits
- Best poker mobile app
- Promotions catering to various types of players
Cons
- Recent scandals
- No 24/7 live chat
- Not enough limits on HUDs
H1.2 – PokerStars Bonuses
P1.2 – There are various deposit bonuses on PokerStars, with some applying to new and others to existing players. The traditional welcome bonus available on PokerStars is a first time deposit bonus of 100%, which is quite standard across most poker sites.
Nevertheless, PokerStars went further to draw all new players (as well as reward its existing customer base) with its new PokerStars instant bonus. Players can claim this offer after making any $20 deposit, by entering the bonus code ‘THIRTY’. After a few minutes, players will receive 20 free $1 Spin & Go tickets, as well as $10 in the form of free cash. The whole bonus is released over a 6 day period and there are no tricky Terms & Conditions attached to it.
The reason we are so enthusiastic about the Instant PokerStars bonus is because it applies to all types of players and the playthrough requirements stand at 100%.
H2 – History of PokerStars
P2 -Wondering how PokerStars has come so far in 2021? The company was founded by a programmer for IBM Canada, who is none other than Isai Scheinberg. If his name is not familiar to you, it probably should be as he built the software that was the cornerstone of PokerStars and to be frank, all modern day online poker platforms.
The company began operations in Costa Rica, but it soon moved to the Isle of Man to enjoy a 0% corporate tax rate and be able to accept US players. What really made PokerStars stand out from all its competitors was the victory of Chris Moneymaker in the WSOP of 2003. He managed to do what would become the dream of any aspiring poker player; Moneymaker entered his first live tournament and ended up winning the top prize of $2.5 million, earning worldwide respect and managing to break the myth that online poker is inferior to live tournaments.
PokerStars kept booming since that day, while it was one of the few poker sites that was able to continue catering to US players thanks to its status as a private company. This, however, stopped in 2011, when PokerStars was shut down by the US Government. Till this day, PokerStars remains the global market leader. It still caters to US players based in New Jersey, which is the only state where online gambling is legal.
H2.1 – StarsGroup now
P2.1 – The Amaya Inc., now known as The StarsGroup, purchased PokerStars back in 2014. Since then, PokerStars expanded its offerings to incorporate online and mobile casino games too on its platform; partnerships with NetEnt and Microgaming in 2016 and 2017 highlighted the shift of this online casino. Today, the StarsGroup is the largest gambling and betting company bringing under the same roof PokerStars, Paddy Power, Betfair, Sky and other gambling companies.
H3 – How to play Poker on PokerStars
P3 – It is easy for new players to start off on PokerStars. Before we get into the step by step guide, it is important to remind you to use the above bonus code upon your registration. Also, it would be good to decide early on whether you want to play on PokerStars through desktop, mobile device or mobile app. For the latter, download the PokerStars app from the Google Play or App Store and then proceed with the following steps:
- Click on the top right of the page to start creating your account
- Pick a username and create a password linked to a valid email
- Enter the Marketing code for the bonus
- Enter your email address to confirm your registration
- Sign in through your new email and perform a deposit
If you prefer to play for free on PokerStars, you should visit the ‘Play Money’ section and skip the 3rd step.
H3.1 – Payment methods and Processing
P3.1 – If, on the other hand, you prefer to play poker for real money, then you can use any of the following payment methods:
- NETELLER
- Visa Cards
- MasterCard
- Maestro
- PayPal
Further options are available on the site, but the above can be used for both deposits and withdrawals. Minimum amount is 10$ and there are no fees applicable when using one of the above options. Withdrawal times vary across different methods, but they require about 2-5 business days to appear on your personal account.
H3.2 – Playing with friends on PokerStars
P3.2 – A great feature available on the desktop PokerStars site is the Home Games Club. It allows people to play online poker with their friends and compete for real money.
To play with your friends on PokerStars, you will need to click on the Home Games tab and create your personal club. You will then receive a registration code to share with those who you would like to join. Players are allowed to create 2x clubs, while they can join up to 10x clubs. At the minute, this feature is only available online, but it shouldn’t be long until it is also optimised for mobile.
H4 – PokerStars VIP club
P4 – All registered players at PokerStars are part of its VIP club, who are rewarded Frequent Players Points (FPPs) for real money tournaments and games. The benefits of this VIP feature is that players can win free tournament buy-ins and bonuses based on the points they have earned.
After a certain VIP level, players can also get invited to take part for free on a monthly tournament with real cash prizes.
Last but not least, the top two VIP tiers can also win free cash prizes and entry to some of the best land-based poker tournaments in the world. The VIP tiers are:
- SilverStar
- GoldStar
- PlatinumStar
- Supernova
- Supernova Elite
H5 – Final tips to playing on PokerStars
P5 – This PokerStars review has hopefully shed some light into the main aspects of this top-rated poker site. New players should take advantage of one of the available bonuses, while they would be better off by sticking with the free tables or play with their friends until they get used to how the site operates. There are many real money poker games available at PokerStars, so it would be wise to employ some of the bonuses to try them out, rather than using only your real money.
