Hi guys. Just wanted to post a quick introduction. I'll be keeping tabs on the forums here, and hopefully I can make some useful contributions for PokerStars related questions or feedback that some of you might have. PokerStars has always tried to keep a close relationship with the players to be able to meet their needs, and I'm genuinely interested in hearing your input..

A bit about myself : I'm a former professional player (and forum lurker), based out of Canada where I'm now the PokerStars VIP Coordinator for mainly the East Coast.

I'll do my best to answer any other questions and I look forward to participating in the future.

Cheers,

Dylan
VIP Coordinator
P♠kerStars

Welcome to Cardschat Dylan, i always knew pokerstars was hands down the best site, this just backs it up!

Hey welcome, I play exclusively at PS.

And I have a complaint... sorry about bringing this publicly but PS gets more rake from the hands I play than the money I'm making according to PT3. People tell me it's because I play bad but I don't think so!

Quick Question, even though U.S.Players got kicked off your site, why cant we rail any of your money events. My connection to pokerstars.com gave me a message that forced me to delete and download pokerstars.net which is useless, and if the rumor is true that a bill will pass that allows us to play at your site again, will pokerstars even consider to enter our market again, and how soon if indeed the answer is yes?

Hi Dylan, welcome to CC!!

Are you the same Dylan used to be at Bodog??

Hi Dylan

Welcome to CC. Since FTP shut down I've spent alot more tiume on PS and in June acheived Silver Star for the 1st time, do I now get 1 and a 1/2 times FPP as well as VPP? When I did my calculations looked like my FPP's remained the same but I may be wrong.

Thanks

Oh can can you switch the doom switch off please

PokerStars Game #64174669978: Tournament #410070163, $5.00+$0.50 USD 5 Card Draw Pot Limit - Level V (60/120) - 2011/07/05 16:45:54 WET [2011/07/05 11:45:54 ET]
Table '410070163 15' 6-max Seat #6 is the button
Seat 1: Mol 19 (1185 in chips)
Seat 2: 5ilverf0x (3793 in chips)
Seat 3: 80easy80 (1376 in chips)
Seat 4: BoosterBX (5800 in chips)
Seat 5: sepeteusz (3180 in chips)
Seat 6: kimfroras (2540 in chips)
Mol 19: posts the ante 30
5ilverf0x: posts the ante 30
80easy80: posts the ante 30
BoosterBX: posts the ante 30
sepeteusz: posts the ante 30
kimfroras: posts the ante 30
Mol 19: posts small blind 60
5ilverf0x: posts big blind 120
*** DEALING HANDS ***
Dealt to 5ilverf0x
80easy80: folds
BoosterBX: raises 240 to 360
sepeteusz: folds
kimfroras: calls 360
Mol 19: folds
5ilverf0x: raises 1320 to 1680
BoosterBX: raises 1320 to 3000
kimfroras: calls 2150 and is all-in
5ilverf0x: raises 763 to 3763 and is all-in
BoosterBX: calls 763
5ilverf0x: discards 1 card
Dealt to 5ilverf0x
BoosterBX: discards 2 cards
kimfroras: stands pat
*** SHOW DOWN ***
5ilverf0x: shows (four of a kind, Deuces)
BoosterBX: shows (four of a kind, Aces)
5ilverf0x said, "lol"
BoosterBX collected 2506 from side pot
kimfroras: shows (a straight, Nine to King)
BoosterBX collected 7770 from main pot
5ilverf0x finished the tournament in 91st place
kimfroras finished the tournament in 92nd place
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 10276 Main pot 7770. Side pot 2506. | Rake 0
Seat 1: Mol 19 (small blind) folded before the Draw
Seat 2: 5ilverf0x (big blind) showed and lost with four of a kind, Deuces
Seat 3: 80easy80 folded before the Draw (didn't bet)
Seat 4: BoosterBX showed and won (10276) with four of a kind, Aces
Seat 5: sepeteusz folded before the Draw (didn't bet)
Seat 6: kimfroras (button) showed and lost with a straight, Nine to King

Thanks Dylan!! We are big fans of Pokerstars here and it is great to have somebody to turn to with our questions.

I am happy we have a thread like this, even though us Americans got banned from playing real money on stars, I still remain there to play for the fun of it, I still prefer that software over any other.

Hi Dylan,

I am playing on pokerstars atm, just have a question regarding the new reload bonus, now i have some spare cash lying around to deposit, but I would not want to keep that extra cash on there for long, incase its needed for bills etc.

If i made a deposit today for example, when would I be able to withdraw that deposit and still be clearing a valid bonus?

Thanks

Originally Posted by RVladimiro

Hey welcome, I play exclusively at PS.

And I have a complaint... sorry about bringing this publicly but PS gets more rake from the hands I play than the money I'm making according to PT3. People tell me it's because I play bad but I don't think so!

If you're winning over a substantial sample then it's quite likely you are playing well.

PokerStars does take rake from real money games. Some of this money is used to pay for the operation of the site. Standard-setting security, payment processing fees, support and software reliability do cost money. Additional money is used to pay for marketing the site to make players worldwide aware of the PokerStars brand. This marketing helps keep PokerStars the world's largest poker room by a substantial margin so that you can have a choice of many different game types with tables readily available to play.

All players at PokerStars are also rewarded through the VIP Club. These rewards could be considered extra winnings are they're earned through your play, and they also come directly from the rake paid so they represent reduced income for the site. You might find that the balance between your winnings and the rake paid are different if you adjust both numbers for your VIP rewards.

Finally, PokerStars is a business. Like other businesses, PokerStars intends to make a profit on operations.

I invite you to compare PokerStars rake figures to the rest of the industry. While there are cases where you will find lower rake elsewhere at a particular game and level, you will find that in general PokerStars rake compares extremely well to industry standards. Considering this rake level alongside world class security, support, and software I think that PokerStars offers players exceptional value.

Originally Posted by jinglebomb

Quick Question, even though U.S.Players got kicked off your site, why cant we rail any of your money events. My connection to pokerstars.com gave me a message that forced me to delete and download pokerstars.net which is useless, and if the rumor is true that a bill will pass that allows us to play at your site again, will pokerstars even consider to enter our market again, and how soon if indeed the answer is yes?

PokerStars is currently unable to allow this access to US Residents due to agreements made with the US Department of Justice. PokerStars would prefer to allow this access to US Residents and will make it available in the future if circumstances change.

Originally Posted by Makwa

Hi Dylan, welcome to CC!!

Are you the same Dylan used to be at Bodog??

Hi Makwa, thanks for the warm welcome. PokerStars is the only site I've ever worked for, so that wasn't me!

Originally Posted by silverfox432

Hi Dylan

Welcome to CC. Since FTP shut down I've spent alot more tiume on PS and in June acheived Silver Star for the 1st time, do I now get 1 and a 1/2 times FPP as well as VPP? When I did my calculations looked like my FPP's remained the same but I may be wrong.

Thanks

Oh can can you switch the doom switch off please

Congratulations on obtaining SilverStar. The method of tracking VPPs doesn't change as you rise up the VIP Club ladder, but the speed taht you gain FPPs does. As a SilverStar, you earn 1.5 FPPs for ever VPP earned, but you're earning VPPs at the same rate.

In regards to your last question, while I can appreciate the humor, PokerStars takes its game integrity and security very seriously . I can hopefully put your mind at ease and confirm that there is no "doomswitch", although variance can be pretty frustrating. All the best at the tables.

Originally Posted by dakota-xx

Thanks Dylan!! We are big fans of Pokerstars here and it is great to have somebody to turn to with our questions.

Thanks for having me Dakota, and I appreciate all the kind words.

Dylan

@Dylan: I was kidding. I cannot be taken seriously most of the time.

Hi Dylan, welcome to CC. I'm working my way back upto supernova but was just wondering.

Why has there been a sudden explosion of Russian/eastern European players on Stars since black friday? Literally every cash table has/ 50-75% russian players. Have you had a mega advertising campaign over there

Originally Posted by Jagsti

Why has there been a sudden explosion of Russian/eastern European players on Stars since black friday? Literally every cash table has/ 50-75% russian players. Have you had a mega advertising campaign over there

True, even at Pacific time zone playing times.

Originally Posted by Jagsti

Hi Dylan, welcome to CC. I'm working my way back upto supernova but was just wondering.

Why has there been a sudden explosion of Russian/eastern European players on Stars since black friday? Literally every cash table has/ 50-75% russian players. Have you had a mega advertising campaign over there

True dat, i think someones made a thread somewhere on a russian forum about playing 40bb stacks terribly, wouldnt mind except theres bloody millions of them and its ruining the table selection completely.

Also, Pokerstars rep, why no answer my post, I wanna start possibly clearing a deposit!

Originally Posted by orangepeeleo

Hi Dylan,

I am playing on pokerstars atm, just have a question regarding the new reload bonus, now i have some spare cash lying around to deposit, but I would not want to keep that extra cash on there for long, incase its needed for bills etc.

If i made a deposit today for example, when would I be able to withdraw that deposit and still be clearing a valid bonus?

Thanks

There's a 48 hour time period after you make a deposit in which you can't withdraw for security reasons, but beyond that you shouldn't have any problems withdrawing and still being able to clear your reload bonus.

Happy Reload!


Dylan C
PokerStars

Will you write haiku (or other forms of poetry/short story) as some of your colleagues have done in the past?

Hi Dylan, nice to see a PS Coordinator around.

Today see that schedulle is going to change tomorrow, more turbos/Hiper, at least that is what read in the S&G tab when enter today.

Any info on this?, Is about MTT´s only or S&G´s too? i hope S&G´s not change again.

Originally Posted by /Logan/

Hi Dylan, nice to see a PS Coordinator around.

Today see that schedulle is going to change tomorrow, more turbos/Hiper, at least that is what read in the S&G tab when enter today.

Any info on this?, Is about MTT´s only or S&G´s too? i hope S&G´s not change again.

Its turbo night, as the servers re-start.

I think one reason you guys might be seeing more Russian players is because the country spans ELEVEN time zones....

Can you let us know where the passwords for the Facebook Freerolls are being posted now, as they haven't been in the usual place since Wednesday, even though the lobby still sends you there?

Thanks

Hey Dylan Welcome to CC

Originally Posted by F4STFORW4RD

Can you let us know where the passwords for the Facebook Freerolls are being posted now, as they haven't been in the usual place since Wednesday, even though the lobby still sends you there?

Thanks

You should be able to access the Facebook league and accompanying passwords by going to: http://www.facebook.com/PokerStarsLeague

Originally Posted by onemorechance

Will you write haiku (or other forms of poetry/short story) as some of your colleagues have done in the past?

I doubt I can live up to the precedent set, but no harm in trying:

Sunday Mill one time
Sleep in, oh no, what to do
Late registration

Originally Posted by RVladimiro

@Dylan: I was kidding. I cannot be taken seriously most of the time.

Noted

Originally Posted by the lab man

Hey Dylan Welcome to CC

Thanks guys.

Dylan C

Hi Dylan,

Thanks very much for the haiku, made my day

I just have a small complaint sorry. I am playing the UKIPT Main Event next week at Brighton, and registered for the tournament online, paying £550. I then sold action to 6 players.

I received an email today stating that due to a "human error" the buyin was £560. I had been a little confused because the top of the UKIPT page said £560, but the actual event listing itself on the webpage and in the client both said £550 so I wasn't too worried and figured it might have been a mistype once.

This has caused me a fair bit of hassle given I now have to contact 6 players and ask them to send me between 50p and £2, which is going to be a hassle again too.

I was just hoping you could ensure this mistake doesn't happen again?

Thanks

Originally Posted by PokerStars VIP

There's a 48 hour time period after you make a deposit in which you can't withdraw for security reasons, but beyond that you shouldn't have any problems withdrawing and still being able to clear your reload bonus.

Happy Reload!


Dylan C
PokerStars

Re: this, you also have to clear a certain number of VPPs - you can't deposit and then attempt to withdraw straight away without playing I believe? It happened to a friend who deposited for the reload bonus a few days ago.

Originally Posted by Pascal LeFiscal

Re: this, you also have to clear a certain number of VPPs - you can't deposit and then attempt to withdraw straight away without playing I believe? It happened to a friend who deposited for the reload bonus a few days ago.

There's no official requirement, although quick deposits followed by withdrawals do sometimes get pegged by security to make sure everything's on the up and up.

Originally Posted by PokerStars VIP

I doubt I can live up to the precedent set, but no harm in trying:

Sunday Mill one time
Sleep in, oh no, what to do
Late registration

haha excellent

Hi all, below is an announcement about recent changes to the game speed. I'll be happy to discuss any of these changes in this thread and pass along any input.

After listening to player feedback, we have enacted changes in the PokerStars software to speed up dealing in certain situations. A few other related changes have been made as well, though in most cases the time a player has to act on their hand has not been affected. Read below for more details.

Non-Satellite Sit & Go Tournaments

Hyper Turbo Sit & Go Tournaments are most affected by the changes. Players in these tournaments will have 12 seconds to act on their hand instead of 16. Several other dealing speed improvements including time taken between hands and speed of dealing cards once players are all-in have also been made.

All other Sit & Go tournaments have had dealing speed reduced, but not quite as much. Cards dealt after all action is complete due to players being all-in are now dealt twice as fast. The time between all hands being shown or mucked and the next hand being dealt has also been reduced by one second per hand.

Players in regular speed Sit & Go’s will now have 16 seconds to act on their hand, reduced from 18 seconds.

The time taken to start dealing after all players have registered and been seated has been reduced for many popular Sit & Go tournaments. Many Heads-up and Hyper speed tournaments now start after only a 10 second delay. Other popular tournaments start after 20 seconds.

Scheduled Tournaments, Satellites, and Step Tournaments

Dealing speed has been increased in these tournaments similar to the changes made in Sit & Go’s. Cards dealt after all action is complete due to players being all-in are now dealt twice as fast. The time between all hands being shown or mucked and the next hand being dealt has also been reduced by one second per hand.

Players in some tournaments will experience slightly different amounts of time to act on their hand. This is as a result of standardizing this setting across all tournaments.

Hyper-turbo satellites have been sped up drastically. These satellites will run at the same speed as hyper-turbo cash S&Gs.

These changes will not take place for all future tournaments, but will instead filter their way into the tournament schedule over the next few weeks.

Ring Games

As with all tournaments, cards dealt after all action is complete due to players being all-in are now dealt twice as fast. The time between all hands being shown or mucked and the next hand being dealt has also been reduced by one second per hand.

The delay prior to dealing the first hand of a session at a table has been reduced from 15 seconds to 10 seconds.

The changes to ring games will not have a significant impact on the number of hands played per hour at this point in time. PokerStars is considering further changes that may include changes to the amount of time players have to act on their hand.

Comments about playing experience at ring game tables are appreciated. In particular, if there is anything about the ring game experience other than players’ time to act that seems too slow or too fast we’d love to know.

Request for Comments

While PokerStars never stops considering player feedback, in this case we are particularly interested in response to these changes. Additional tweaks are possible if desired by players as a whole. Thanks in advance for any constructive suggestions.

Thanks to all players who have already provided input that helped us make this round of changes. Special thanks to all of those who helped test these settings on PokerStars.test and provided helpful input.


Dylan C

Just discovered this thread.

Thanks for this Dylan!!

The Poker School League!?

I am very excited about the new format of the poker school (premier) legue.
However, you guys just changed the text on the info page and now it is confusing for this transfer month of july.

Atm I am qualifying for the new premier league, but I am also battling for prizes in this month's open league.
I believe 20 VPP and top-1500 is what is needed to enter the premier league of August, but the 20 VPP rule is now nowhere to be seen?

I believe the VPP earned in JUNE is what decides the prizes I can win in July, but this info is now also not found on the page? This would mean that it is of no imprtance whether I earn 150 VPP in July or just 20 VPP.

Please help me out on these questions.

Still pondering about VPPs. Elsewhere on the pokerschool league pages I found this:

"Once you earn the required amount of VPP for a certain level and our data is updated (up to 48 hours), you will unlock the content in that level for the remainder of the current month and the following month."

So, if I read this correctly, then if I make 150 VPP in JULY, I should be eligible for top prizes in both JULY and AUGUST.
Is that correct?

Originally Posted by PokerStars VIP

Hi all, below is an announcement about recent changes to the game speed. I'll be happy to discuss any of these changes in this thread and pass along any input.

After listening to player feedback, we have enacted changes in the PokerStars software to speed up dealing in certain situations. A few other related changes have been made as well, though in most cases the time a player has to act on their hand has not been affected. Read below for more details.

Non-Satellite Sit & Go Tournaments

Hyper Turbo Sit & Go Tournaments are most affected by the changes. Players in these tournaments will have 12 seconds to act on their hand instead of 16. Several other dealing speed improvements including time taken between hands and speed of dealing cards once players are all-in have also been made.

All other Sit & Go tournaments have had dealing speed reduced, but not quite as much. Cards dealt after all action is complete due to players being all-in are now dealt twice as fast. The time between all hands being shown or mucked and the next hand being dealt has also been reduced by one second per hand.

Players in regular speed Sit & Go’s will now have 16 seconds to act on their hand, reduced from 18 seconds.

The time taken to start dealing after all players have registered and been seated has been reduced for many popular Sit & Go tournaments. Many Heads-up and Hyper speed tournaments now start after only a 10 second delay. Other popular tournaments start after 20 seconds.

Scheduled Tournaments, Satellites, and Step Tournaments

Dealing speed has been increased in these tournaments similar to the changes made in Sit & Go’s. Cards dealt after all action is complete due to players being all-in are now dealt twice as fast. The time between all hands being shown or mucked and the next hand being dealt has also been reduced by one second per hand.

Players in some tournaments will experience slightly different amounts of time to act on their hand. This is as a result of standardizing this setting across all tournaments.

Hyper-turbo satellites have been sped up drastically. These satellites will run at the same speed as hyper-turbo cash S&Gs.

These changes will not take place for all future tournaments, but will instead filter their way into the tournament schedule over the next few weeks.

Ring Games

As with all tournaments, cards dealt after all action is complete due to players being all-in are now dealt twice as fast. The time between all hands being shown or mucked and the next hand being dealt has also been reduced by one second per hand.

The delay prior to dealing the first hand of a session at a table has been reduced from 15 seconds to 10 seconds.

The changes to ring games will not have a significant impact on the number of hands played per hour at this point in time. PokerStars is considering further changes that may include changes to the amount of time players have to act on their hand.

Comments about playing experience at ring game tables are appreciated. In particular, if there is anything about the ring game experience other than players’ time to act that seems too slow or too fast we’d love to know.

Request for Comments

While PokerStars never stops considering player feedback, in this case we are particularly interested in response to these changes. Additional tweaks are possible if desired by players as a whole. Thanks in advance for any constructive suggestions.

Thanks to all players who have already provided input that helped us make this round of changes. Special thanks to all of those who helped test these settings on PokerStars.test and provided helpful input.


Dylan C

Hey Dylan, I love all of the changes made to the ring games, they sound way better than the old ways. And being an old SNG reg, I like the fact that as soon as all players have registered you start sooner, these changes are very positive.

One question, do PokerStars have any plans to offer a system like FTP's Iron Man for people who can't make supernova or supernova elite, but can still be rewarded, like I have been silverstar for about 5/7 months this year, but if we can achieve silverstar for 6 months in a row, you could offer double FPP's instead of 1.5x for the next month, or half-price on all store items for a day? I know there are already the silverstar+ special freerolls and some silverstar+ only items in the store, but just a thought.

Originally Posted by CistaCista

The Poker School League!?

I am very excited about the new format of the poker school (premier) legue.
However, you guys just changed the text on the info page and now it is confusing for this transfer month of july.

Atm I am qualifying for the new premier league, but I am also battling for prizes in this month's open league.
I believe 20 VPP and top-1500 is what is needed to enter the premier league of August, but the 20 VPP rule is now nowhere to be seen?

I believe the VPP earned in JUNE is what decides the prizes I can win in July, but this info is now also not found on the page? This would mean that it is of no imprtance whether I earn 150 VPP in July or just 20 VPP.

Please help me out on these questions.

Entry into the August Premier League goes to the top 1500 on July's leaderboard who have earned 20 VPP+.

Originally Posted by CistaCista

Still pondering about VPPs. Elsewhere on the pokerschool league pages I found this:

"Once you earn the required amount of VPP for a certain level and our data is updated (up to 48 hours), you will unlock the content in that level for the remainder of the current month and the following month."

So, if I read this correctly, then if I make 150 VPP in JULY, I should be eligible for top prizes in both JULY and AUGUST.
Is that correct?

That's correct.

Let me know if you still have questions.

Hi all,

I was hoping you guys could help me with some suggestions or feedback on the Billionth hand promotions. We're trying to make them more effective and easier to understand for all players.

During the promotion, would something like adding a VPPs counter to each table to let you know how many VPPs you've accrued on each table help?

Also under consideration is slowing down the dealing during an actual Milestone hand.

Thoughts on this? Love it, hate it, indifference? I'm open to hearing any other suggestions as well.

Cheers,

Dylan C

I've never been on when one was dealt, but I think slowing down the deal for any of the winning tables would be fun, make it more dramatic.


On another line, has it ever been considered to make it optional to see all bets and stack sizes in terms of blind sizes rather than dollars or tournament dollars? It could even go fractional, but if I could have that then I'd be less confused the few times that I multitable different buyin cash tables, and I'd really like it for tournaments.

The danger would be accidentally sitting down at a $5/$10 table instead of a $10 table and not noticing ...

Not a fan of the above idea sorry NineLions - HUDs will tell you the same info but it seems like a good way to make things easier for fish which seems foolish

As for Billionth Hand, I really enjoy the promo even though I don't play cash, it seems like a really fun thing. Maybe a special background for the table for that one hand could be cool?