Poker is known to have its variables in almost all aspects of the game, and poker rakeback is an example of one such factor. This is a reflection of how poker is not entirely a gamble and that the player involved can leave with something worth holding onto. If we take poker as it was played in the olden days, you will barely come across any such angles. However, today with the growing popularity of the game courtesy of its introduction to the digital platform; poker has been seen as a game of skill where the players need some assurance, and that is where websites have come up with such policies.
In order to understand this system, let us first get a basic idea of what rake means. Rake is the amount that the poker room collects from the players for its services. This amount is taken directly from the pot. Naturally, this means bigger the pot, bigger the rake amount even though the actual percentage may not be significantly higher. Whether you play poker tournaments, cash games or even Sit and Go variations, you will be contributing to the rake one way if not the other. Sometimes poker rooms charge a fee while registering, and that amount is equivalent to the rake.
What is Rakeback?
Now that we have established what rake means in poker let us look at rake paybacks. As a dedicated player to a particular poker room, you will be contributing a considerable amount to the website over a period of time through rake amounts given the time you spend and the number of hands you play. Therefore, casual players who visit every once a while do not feel the burden of raking as much as you do. In order to tilt the balance, rake payback is offered.
Through this, the poker room might decide to give you a certain percentage of your online poker rakeback on a weekly basis. This obviously depends on whether or not you fulfil the terms and conditions required. If you fit the criteria, you get a certain amount of money regularly regardless of winning or losing, which works as a significant risk coverage to an extent for committed poker players. Therefore, rakeback meaning is nothing but a refund of the rake value you contribute to the poker room you play at.
Online Poker Rakeback and Adverts
Have you come across pages while surfing on the internet that guarantees you with a specific additional bonus of sorts for joining a poker website through them? This is a brilliant marketing strategy that is devised by the poker platform and its affiliates. Poker websites understand the audience that they have for themselves. The popularity of poker is at an all-time high, and the game’s recognition has been at its peak courtesy of all the hype poker has been receiving in the last few years. Ever since the game has gone online, its fanbase has been gradually rising. People from across the world have shown interest in poker before who may not have even considered this game of cards before.
Understanding this opportunity, poker websites collaborate with these affiliates that are your typical advertisement pages. They guide you to the original poker room and offer you benefits for signing-up under them. Online poker rakeback is generally what you will be getting in return. Instead of paying them based on the clicks on their advertisements and other such ways, poker rooms go for the safer route. They keep track of the new users signed-up to their website via these affiliates and then calculate the rake generated by these players and pay that amount to the affiliates which are also a form of online poker rakeback. This may or may not get to the user depending on the perks offered by the advertisement to begin with.
Back in the day when Full Tilt Poker was what everyone played, poker rooms were famous for employing such third-party sources to try and bring in new players. This would also result in a kind of online poker rakeback. It worked in a simple way. Once you join the poker room through these third-party sources, the rake you paid would go to them as a fee for their service, and a certain cut from that would come back to you. Eventually, poker rooms found it best for themselves to be giving online poker rakebacks than relying on other sources. Either way, the introduction of this concept has turned into a great benefit for regular poker players.
Strategies in Rake paybacks
You would now have understood the importance of such a refund policy towards diligent poker players and how valuable it is. Naturally, just like with anything else; when you find something profitable in poker, players use their tactics to exploit it. Sit and Go tournaments are famous for those who wish to play poker quickly and get away with maximum hands within the least amount of time. This allows them to cut their losses, play more, and manage their time during a busy schedule outside poker. These tournaments are mainly popular among those who have a fixed time in a week dedicated to poker.
Refunds on rake are applicable on Sit and Go tournaments as well as cash games. Keeping this in mind, you must also know that playing over 24 tables at one time is possible only through online poker. Now, when you put two and two together, you’ll get why pro poker players are taking paybacks on raking to their fullest potential and reaping the maximum rewards. These players play a crazy number of hands within a short span, and their performance is not their concern for the most part. Sit and Go tournaments are generally known for how much freedom they can offer, but this takes it to another level.
If they book a small loss, it does not bother them much. If they break-even, things are good, and if they end up with a profit it is even better. This is because their major income is generated through the rakes they pay and how much they’re paid back. By playing such a high number of games, they subject themselves to more refunding because the more you contribute to the room, the more you receive in return. This provides them with an excellent income which is nearly fixed while also building their bankroll because that is how this scheme works.
Getting a refund on the rake, you contribute towards can be summed up as a complete cycle of productive funds that are channelled between the dedicated players and the poker room where casual players only up the ante. That being said, not all websites provide such a facility, and the terms and conditions need to be taken into account before making any long-term plan. We hope we have given you much-needed insights on another fundamental topic that all you beginners should know. If you have any more doubts about poker and certain aspects, you can always head over to the official Spartan Poker website and learn how to play poker. Practice the game through our freeroll tournaments and put your skills to test when you feel you are ready to go.
