The newest player in Nevada’s online poker scheme is aiming to grab a chunk of the market with a promotion that will give away $100,000 in 12 months.
South Point Casino’s Real Gaming is dishing out $7,000 monthly to the top 50 players over the next year. Another $16,000 is set aside for 50 players who top the competition over the span of 12 months.
Known as “The Real 50,” the new promotion requires a deposit of only $50. And the real beauty is that separate categories for small stakes and medium stakes have been set, meaning that a player can land in-the-money on both stake levels.
The small stakes are cash games at the levels of 10c/20c, 20c/40c, and 50c/$1, while medium stakes are set at $1/$2, $2/$4, and $5/$10. The monthly awards will pay out 23% to the top player, 12% to the 2nd place finisher, and 6% to 3rd place. Places 4-10 will each receive 3%, 11-20 get 1.6%, with 21-30, 31-40, and 41-50 place finishers in line to earn 1.05%, .75%, and .4%, respectively.
The 12-month competition aims to find a Player of the Year (POY) and that winner will receive deserving accolades in addition to prize money. Of the $16,000 set aside for the POY, $6,000 goes to the top three small stakes finishers, while $10,000 will be distributed among three places at the medium stakes. The payout splits are 50%, 30%, and 20% for both categories.
Points for winning are determined by each player’s Loyalty Score that is calculated by the number of hands played, flops seen, and contribution to the rake. Naturally, online grinders who put in a lot of time on the cash tables will benefit most, as opposed to determining the top players by the amount of cash won.
In addition the the $100k giveaway, Real Gaming offers other unique promotions such as awarding prizes for the highest hand that goes to showdown during select hours. During four different hours of play each day, small stakes players with the best hand will receive $5, while their counterparts at the mid-level stakes and high stakes tables are awarded $30 and $100, respectively.
Players who are dealt four-of-a-kind will also see a cash prize credited to their accounts in Real Gaming’s “Quadzilla” promotion. There are four different stake levels in Quadzilla, with $5, $10, $25, and $50 the available prizes as long as minimum pot amounts are met.
Real Gaming soft-launched in mid-February and it was later revealed that the test period could last a full six months. The middle of August will be the site’s six-month anniversary and it’s obvious that Real Gaming is fixing to be a player in Nevada’s market by implementing the $100,000 Real 50 promo and others.
While Ultimate Poker and WSOP.com had quite the head start over their newest competitor in Nevada, Real Gaming is banking on its newly-created software that boasts of technology not yet seen at other sites. Real Gaming is aiming for the mobile market and allows access to the site without any installation or downloads.
Nevada’s market currently averages only about 165 cash players between UP and WSOP. It shouldn’t be too difficult for grinders at Real Gaming to make the top 50 players in the Real 50 promotion considering the small size of the market. More information can be found at the Real Gaming website.
