Best site for small entry S&Gs ($1-3)?

Hi, everyone--I'm new around here.

I've been studying poker and casually playing online play-money hold 'em off and on for a few years now. I'm not at the point where I feel very confident with my game (I still have a lot of reading to do), but I often find myself thinking critically without having to force myself to, and from my performance in freerolls and the like, I can tell that I'm at least above average.

I know many will say that play-money games are a horrible guage of ability, but I avoid ring games like the plague and have spent the majority of my time playing tournaments in which minor contest entries are on the line (e.g. ScorePoker.com), etc. I can't quite murder the things, but I'd say that when I'm on my game, I finish in the top 10% 4/5ths of the time.

Well, I'd like to start playing for small amounts of money online, recreationally. But I have no bankroll. I fired up PKR.com's client last week, discovering that I had $5.00 in my account. I imagine as a reward for beta testing for them a couple of years ago. At this point the $5 is squandered, but not before I did quite well in a few Sit-and-Gos.

This was obviously much more fun than playing in a freeroll. And I got to thinking, if I'm only spending $5 or so a week, isn't that a heck of lot better of an investment than a lottery ticket? I'll finally be learning against valid (albeit online) competition, and will possibly win enough to stay in the black.

PKR.com is one of those neat but gimmicky 3D sites. The avatar customization is a ton of fun, but it's probably more of a distraction to a serious player than anything else. That said, PKR.com is probably also great at drawing fish for that reason. I like PKR.com, but I know you guys will be able to tell me there's a better place for me out there.

I only play S&Gs and tournaments, generally no limit hold 'em exclusively. Ring games have never been my forte, and as I find that I'm as below average there as I am above average in tournament play, I pretty much avoid them at all costs. (But then, that might be because I've only ever played in play-money ring games.)

As my bankroll is virtually nonexistent, and I'm in many ways still a student of the game, I've been wondering if I should explore limit hold' em in greater detail. But I've honestly found the betting limitations to hinder any strategic advantage I've acquired. The few occassions on which I've played pot limit, on the other hand, I've enjoyed. Most hands seem to be played the same way as under their no limit counterpart, with obvious exceptions. And it seems to keep a lid on the suicidal-aggressive players ruining play. (Though again, that's probably far less common in real-money games.)

PKR.com has $1-2, NL, six-to-fifty-player S&Gs starting almost constantly, which is great for the kinds of games I can afford to get involved in. But other than the odd Omaha S&G, that's about all they've got. Even the ring games are dominated by NL, where it's a little too easy for me to lose my money. .02/.04 limit or pot limit games are where I'd go in between S&Gs if they had any running. So I'd kind of like a site that offers both.

As I'm only going to be investing small amounts (at this point, no more than $15 at a time), deposit bonuses don't really factor into where I choose to play. Where do you guys suggest I go? I know people used to say PartyPoker.com was great for fish, but I don't know if that holds true to this day. I guess I'm just looking for the best micro-limit site out there.

Your advice is appreciated! Thank you.

Welcome

Bodog have $2 dollar beginner SnG tournies where 10 people play and 5 people win money, that's quite a good place to start off...

I think, by far, the best site for SnG's is Pokerstars. I personally don't play their MTT's, but it is the only place I play SnG's because the volume of players is 5 times that of other sites. You never have to wait for a tourney to start and the players are marginal at best. GL

I would agree. The $2 beginner SnG tournies have turned my freeroll winnings into a manageable bankroll on more than one occasion. Too bad I am right back to where I started with $0.48.

UltimateBet has $0.50+.05 10 person SnGs, the lowest ever. They go to $1, $2, $5, and so on. Great for the super-casual or noob.

yeah i was gunna say ultimatebet too

While trying to sign up at Bodog:
What is that? Disappointing. Those beginner's S&Gs sounded like a good place to start.

Edit: I realized Bodog was a UK site, but I didn't know there were limitations on foreign players. Has it always been like this, or is this a new thing? Is it because Bodog is located in the UK proper, or something? Took a look at the S&G structures, and really liked them. Too bad I won't be able to play there.

Actually Bodog is a Canadian site, they are protecting you from yourself.

To bad. I like bodog the best, pokerstars 2nd, fulltilt & ultimate bet suk.

Yeah, I did some research and... Bodog doesn't accept Canadian registrations because the owner is based in Canada and doesn't want any trouble with the government. Oh well. Those payout structures looked pretty awesome for beginners.

Thinking I'm going to go with VC Poker for now for the free $10. (They actually have S&Gs as low as $.10+.02.) But as it takes up to 72 hours to be deposited, I was thinking of depositing my own $10 for now.

Anything I should know about depositing? I'm Canadian, is there any reason not to deposit directly from my credit card? If I actually win anything, I'll be reporting it on my taxes. Also, how long does it usually take for a deposit to show up?

Thanks again, guys.

ur canadian like me you will never have trouble using a creditcard

deposits are instant if you use that

Wound up depositing the minimum ($25) at PKR.com instead. Wanted to go with what I was familiar with after not caring for the Victor Chandler client, and not being able to use Bodog.

Won my first S&G! 10-person $1.00+.10. Won $5.

^^^this. UB hands down for SNGs-- lowest levels, 10% rake (try finding that on FT or PS), best structure.

and at those micro stakes, hopefully you won't have anyone looking at your hole cards, which is another added bonus.

Could you please elaborate? I've skimmed some threads mentioning the possibility of cheating. Is this something I need to worry about?

I'm told that it's nothing to worry about unless you're playing for big money there. There were allegations made, a reasonable amount of evidence came up to support those allegations, and Ultimatebet have spent an inordinate amount of time "investigating" - but have so far failed to reach a conclusion.

Super-users identified on Ultimate Bet

Please note that this is very different to the sore losers we have on here every day trying to make out that a site is rigged because they lost a few hands...

Finished first in a $2.00 + .20 50-person MTT. Won $30. Doubled my bankroll.