We are about 50 days into 2015, a good time to take a look at where poker players in the U.S. have been depositing and playing as of late.
The Winning Poker Network (WPN), headlined by top skins Americas Cardroom and Black Chip Poker, continues to be a popular choice among Americans. Cash game player traffic has increased 42% since the first of the year, from an average of 300 players to 425.
WPN is in the midst of its Online Super Series IV Rematch, which draws a number of regular cash players to the tournament tables. Excellent bonus offers and fast cashouts are a constant at ACR and Black Chip, making WPN an awesome choice for U.S. players who may be in search of a new online poker home.
Bovada remains the most popular U.S.-friendly site, and one that has also experienced increased action on the virtual felt in 2015. PokerScout reports that player traffic is up 29% since January 1, with a number of those new players likely located overseas who log on at Bodog.
Also seeing a spike in ring game action from 50 days ago is the Merge Gaming Network. Led by Carbon Poker, Merge’s increase was relatively mild at 4%, up to 600 players from 575.
The increase at Merge would have likely been greater were it not for the Carbon Online Poker Series that began on February 8 and will run through the 22nd. Expect to see cash game player traffic pick up once that 76-event online festival ends. With an industry-best 200% up to $5,000 first-time deposit bonus, Carbon remains an attractive choice for U.S. players.
The Equity Poker Network (EPN) featuring Full Flush Poker has neither gained nor lost players in 2015. Slow and steady wins the race may be FFP’s motto, as EPN has built up a loyal following of 190 cash players considering its launch occurred a mere 17 months ago.
Full Flush continues to Wow players with a multitude of promos. The poker room has advanced beyond the initial growing pains stage and looks to be an industry mainstay for years to come.
On the downside of our U.S. online poker player traffic review, players who have embraced Bitcoin as a payment processing alternative are likely sad to see that the industry’s top Bitcoin-only site, SealsWithClubs, has been down for a week. A hardware failure has been listed as the cause for the shutdown.
The cryptocurrency’s volatility and lack of mainstream acceptance has kept it on shaky ground to begin with. Mishaps at SWC certainly don’t bode well for player confidence. We continue to root for Bitcoin to become more popular in the online poker industry, but cannot recommend playing at a Bitcoin-only site until that time comes.
Lastly, the Revolution Network has seen an increase of 10% since 2014 made its exit. A total of 110 players can typically be found on the cash tables.
We expect that number to increase in coming months now that Intertops Poker, one of the network’s leading skins, has once again opened its doors to U.S. players. We encourage players to take a look at the benefits available at Intertops, the industry’s first-ever poker room.
