PARTY POKER REVIEW - G-index.net

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Party Poker is by far the world's largest poker site in terms of number of players online. Its strength really lies in that there are always tables in action at all limits. Although many report that the quality of players have improved lately, there still are a number of loose and juicy games. Lots of calling stations and fishes who definitely base their calling decisions on the lady luck factor rather than pot odds. And having the highest number of players, there is always a nice juicy game going on.

PARTY POKER - FEATURES

POSITIVE FEATURES	NEGATIVE FEATURES
World's largest poker room PartyPoker.com Million tournaments European televised poker championship Tons of tournaments, also in fixed limit "Easy-to-beat" games Great promotions, especially for loyal customers Note taking support Live 24-hours support and toll-free support number (for US customers) Fast software Absolutely huge bad beat jackpot	Poor user interface and graphics Very slow to answer emails and slow telephone support No lobby information on view flop percentage etc Limited statistics functions Mainly 10 player tables No NL tables for Omaha, Omaha Hi/Lo Amongst the worst Customer Supports

Being the largest poker room in the world in terms of players online at any time, it makes Party Poker the choice for anyone who is looking for action at any time of the day. With so many loose games, it is no wonder why it is so popular amongst players. However, as they are the largest, many of our members have complained about an arrogant attitude by their Customer Support who are less than helpful. As Party Poker has now been listed on the London Stock Exchange for more than £4.2 billion, the credibility and security of Party Poker is top notch. So you can play safely with the knowledge that your money is safe, unless you have a complaint and have to contact Customer Support.

PARTY POKER - POKER VARIANTS

Party Poker supports the following forms of poker:

Texas Hold Em
Omaha
Omaha Hi/Lo
Seven Card Stud
Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo

PARTY POKER - INTERFACE

Party Poker's software works well but the graphics is substandard. With its phenomenal growth, Party Poker has added servers and increased bandwidth in order to secure full relability at +70,000 simultaneous players. However, a few players have complained over delays and disconnections at certain tournaments. Overall though, Party Poker has very good quality nowadays in line with or better than most competitors. 3 simultaneous tables per player are allowed. Unfortunately, the view flop percentages are not presented, neither are hands per hour rate. (This has the benefit though, that the looser games are "protected"). You see the average pot size of the last 20 hands. The personal playing statistics function is somewhat rudimentary, but works well. Player notes function is included. In sum, the software is good today after improvements to support the record-braking traffic.

The lobby can be a bit confusing at first, especially if you are used to other poker room lobbies. Takes a bit of time to get used to, but after that initial confusion, it is quite user friendly.

PARTY POKER - PLAYER TABLES

The graphics of the player tables could definitely be improved upon. Compared to some other poker rooms, the graphics could be called sub-standard with poor resolution. There is a chat function which can be completely turned off. However, the space for the chat is extremely small and if you blink, you might miss what other people have said. One of the few negatives associated with this poker room.

party poker

PARTY POKER - RING GAMES

Party Poker is the world's largest poker room in terms of ring game traffic with consistently over 40,000 players at the tables at any given moment far exceeding any other poker room. At peak times, it can reach in excess of 70,000 players. This ensures that there is always a game at your limits available. If you are looking for ring game action at any time of the day, Party Poker is your best bet. It is disappointing, however, that there only No Limit available for Texas Holdem, as well as no micro limit games. The number of forms of poker is also very limited to three poker variants.


POKER VARIANT	FORM	STAKE IN US$	MAX NO. PLAYER
Texas Hold Em	Limit	0.50/1.00 to 50/100	6 or 10
Texas Hold Em	Pot Limit	0.25/0.50 to 10/20	6 or 10
Texas Hold Em	No Limit	0.25/0.50 to 10/20	6 or 10
Omaha	Limit	0.50/1.00 to 15/30	2 or 10
Omaha	Pot Limit	0.25/0.50 to 10/20	2 or 10
Omaha Hi Lo	Limit	0.50/1.00 to 20/40	2, 6 or 10
Omaha Hi Lo	Pot Limit	0.25/0.50 to 10/20	2, 6 or 10
Seven Card Stud	Limit	0.50/1.00 to 20/40	2, 6 or 10
Seven Card Stud Hi Lo	Limit	0.50/1.00 to 10/20	2, 6 or 10

PARTY POKER - TOURNAMENT

Party Poker is also the leader in terms of tournament traffic. Absolutely huge volumes with often over 25,000 players online at any time. Beside no-limit and limit Texas Holdem, there are lots of tournaments in both 7-card stud and Omaha, far more than any other poker room. If you are looking for high value tournaments, Party Poker is one of your best bets with regular Million $ tournaments. There are qualifiers for all the big tournaments as well as special Party Poker events. Please note that the list below is merely a highlight of some of the regularly scheduled Guaranteed events. If we listed all the tournaments, the page would just go on forever. There are several tournaments at all times of the day.


TOURNAMENT ENTRY	ENTRY FEE	FREQUENCY + START TIME	AVE. NO. OF PLAYERS	MAX. PLAYERS
$7,000 Guaranteed 7 Card Stud Limit	$20 + $2	Mon-Sun 00.20 EST/05.20 GMT	N/A	N/A
$10,000 Guaranteed No Limit Holdem	$20 + $2	Mon-Sun 03.20 EST/08.20 GMT	N/A	N/A
$5,000 Guaranteed Limit Holdem	$30 + $3	Mon-Sun 06.10 EST/11.10 GMT	N/A	N/A
$10,000 Guaranteed No Limit Holdem	$30 + $3	Mon-Sun 10.10 EST/15.10 GMT	N/A	N/A
$7,000 Guaranteed Omaha Hi/Lo Pot Limit	$30 + $3	Mon-Sun 12.10 EST/17.10 GMT	N/A	N/A
$10,000 Guaranteed No Limit Holdem	$5 + $1	Mon-Sun 14.40 EST/19.40 GMT	N/A	N/A
$35,000 Guaranteed No Limit Holdem	$30 + $3	Mon-Sat 16.30 EST/21.30 GMT	N/A	N/A
$35,000 Guaranteed No Limit Holdem	$100 + $9	Mon-Sun 19.00 EST/24.00 GMT	N/A	N/A
$40,000 Guaranteed No Limit Holdem	$20 + $2	Mon-Sun 22.20 EST/03.20 GMT	N/A	N/A

The list could go and on. Party Poker definitely has the widest choice of both single and multi-table tournaments and with some of the largest regular guaranteed prize pools on offer anywhere. Party Poker also holds its own $500k and $1 million (yes, you read it rightly) guaranteed tournament as well as entries into other high stakes tournaments where seats can cost $5,000 and upwards. Several satellite tournaments to qualify for these high roller tournaments. So if you are into multi-table tournaments, Party Poker is for you as some major tournament happens at all times of the day.

PARTY POKER - DEPOSIT & WITHDRAWL OPTIONS

DEPOSIT OPTIONS:
VISA, MasterCard, NETeller, FirePay, Western Union, Citadel (US only), eChecks (by iGM-Pay), bank draft, cashier's check, money order, check

CASH OUT OPTIONS:
NETeller, wire transfer, check, eChecks (by iGM-Pay)

PARTY POKER - SUPPORT

The live 24-hours floor person support has worked reasonably well during our testing, as has the e-mail support although response times can be too slow. However, Party Poker is really let down by one of the poorest telephone support services and numerous complaints by G-index members (see postings in our forum). It has not gotten any better since they moved the customer support to India. Irrespective where it is located, we believe that players deserve better Customer Support. Lousy, terrible etc. is our verdict.

PARTY POKER - LOYALTY PROGRAMME

It gets betterand better, with frequent re-deposit promotions in which you get 15%-25% up to $100 maximum. Also, there are many freerolls and promotions for frequent players based on raked hands during certain periods. Player points can also be redeemed for exciting merchandise at promotional prices.

PARTY POKER - MISCELLANEOUS

Party Poker is famous for its enormous large Bad Beat Jackpots; over $150,000 Bad Beat Jackpot has been paid out by Party Poker. Even after it has been won, it grows quickly due to the huge volume of ring games taking place.

If you are not satisfied with poker, you can always try a hand at their Black Jack. We just wonder why play a casino game at a site that is focused primarily on poker.

PARTY POKER - MEMBER COMMENTS


MEMBER	DATE POSTED	COMMENTS
Eurobonus	2 Jan. 2005	Great games (hmmmm, meaning very loose). Definitely a site where "easy to make money" games are played. I just can't understand that such a popular poker room as Party Poker has amongst the worst user interfaces. Terrible. Otherwise, for fast and loose games in the three main poker variants, nothing beats Party Poker.
SGS	12 Jan. 2005	Party Poker varies in strength based on time of day and day of the week. I find that it is weakest after midnight (American Central Time), and especially on Friday and Sunday nights. The action tightens up considerably during the day (American Central Time). I like the large volume of players on party. Large numbers allow for game selection and multiple weak game opportunities. The variety of game choices and game types are optimal on Party. I like the interface because it is simple and the speed of bet delivery is one of the fastest online. Other interface dynamics are relatively unimportant in my opinion. Payouts are also quick and reliable. I only use NETeller. The 1/2 and 2/4 games on party are quite weak to me. What I mean by weak is: If you play carefully with premium hand selections you need no special skills to win consistently. Above the 2/4 level aperson must be a strong player to win consistently. The 3/6 and 5/10 games are player dependent and may be very tight or very loose. If one picks and chooses carefully--it is possible to make 300-600 in a day on 3/6, or 400-900 in a day on 5/10. This assumes the ability to perceive that one has the best hand--whether that be a pair of 8s or a fullhouse. One must regularly be able to laydown an overpair or two pair versus resistance. Anything less than a set is normally not winable if there is resistance. One of the weakest games online is the 15/30 on party poker, however, I do not recommend playing it unless you watch it several hours a day, learn to characterize the games, and then go on hit and run missions. Going into the game lightheartedly will result in a serious spanking. Sit and goes (sngs) are my bread and butter on party. I can play them without pressure cause they cost almost nothing to play. Also they are very weak. This is just opinion, but I feel many players who get spanked in the ring games end up in the sngs. Therefore, the players with the most liberal hand evaluations end up there, so this can be a real cash cow. I have gone into long days play 10, 10+1s and winning 8 of those 10, finishing out of the money twice. The 5 1s are ridiculous in terms of play quality. These are to be played understanding that opps will and often do play any two cards to the river. If you can't modify your game accordingly, the 5+1s are unbeatable. The 10+1s are much more predictable and weak tight. If you play well, and like to use deception--10+1s are the best game. The 20+2s are not played in a superior way to the 10+1s, just more cautiously. If you play with more aggression at the higher blind levels in the 20+2s, players will often laydown hands they shouldn't. I play 5+1s and 10+1s every day. I play 20+2s occasionally and my results are outstanding. Good luck on party! It's a good cite to play at for profit.