Bovada...I'm loving it, how about you?

Michael Paler

Michael Paler

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I just played my first Bovada game, and I really liked it. Especially since I took 70th place in the 5K facebook freeroll, for $13.50

For one thing, I didn't feel like everyone has a bead on me with tracking software, like on Merge (I'm constantly being told what some stupid computer program thinks of my play, like I really give a rats patooty).

I also noticed we have free roll games there. How do you guys like it? Do you prefer the "anonymous" format, or do you prefer the sites that allow you to keep a log full of player notes over time? What's the fish level like? I heard the triple up games are soft, anyone ever play any of these?
 
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poudie

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I have been playing Bovada for last three years. I love the anonymous. I was doing great in triple pay for a long time. My last month was bad because of being too tight I got advice here today to loosen up in late stages today and feel good again. I just qualified for quarterfinals on the Main event today and currently playing he $10 (previously qualified) and in 3rd place. there is a software to load the hand history but I have not figured it out yet. Good luck.
 
otari

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Not a big fan of the anonymous system. I used to love jet set poker, if anyone remembers.
 
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Blue_Fossil

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Wait until you get "Bovada'd" a few times.... :)
 
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millertime

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bovada isnt a bad program. i have been a member since ~04 when it was bodog and i was looking for alternative to getting "pokerstarred" all the time. i have had a couple big tourney wins ~$700 each but i always squandered it away after getting bodogged a few times and not playing within my bankroll. you will get your money if/when u cash out.
 
Poker Orifice

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How do you guys like it? Do you prefer the "anonymous" format, or do you prefer the sites that allow you to keep a log full of player notes over time? What's the fish level like?
Hate it. Have a real hard time bringing myself to play on there (I currently have a few hundred worth of tourney tickets on there & can't even bring myself to using them up... & I'm a micro/low buyin recreational player)

Main reason I detest it is the 'anonymous format'. I think it's ridiculous that you can't keep track of the players on there (& I'm talking about 'without tracking software'.... just with notes/reads). Don't even really care much for the priv. games on Bodonk because of the anonymous format (some idiots chat like jerkwads, taking advantage of the feature.... & I haven't been able to figure out how to turn off the chat on that site).
I feel that making it anonymous removes a big part of the game. It'd be like holding track&field hurdle races but making everyone do it blindfolded (without giving them enough trial runs to count the steps taken between hurdles). I can see how it might appeal to some fish.... which brings up the best part about Bodonka > it does seem to be alot fishier than the other sites.

OP, if you do a thread search here on CC you'll find a bunch of stuff on this.
 
rubyboy

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I think bovada is an awesome poker site, but I think they should give more freerolls like the one they gave yesterday the "5k facebook freeroll,"
 
barracuuuda

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haha nice i lost my first hand... stupid bad beat flopped a straight with the hand J 10 suited and next think you know J shows up on the board and this kid hits a higher straight with Queen Nine on the damn river. Lol bovada ****ing hates me.
 
SyKoChiller

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Not a big fan on the Anonymous part. I do love Bovada & do quite well there, I just wish as another poster said you could at the least keep your player notes from game to game. Other than that its awesome; great customer service, quick payouts and one free PO per month, plus tons of great promos and Free Rolls.
 
rubyboy

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BOVADA

[I personally think bovada is an awesome poker site for players that like to gamble with real money, I think its the best poker site for players in the US right now, but the only thing that sucks is that if you want to register for a freeroll you need to have poker points or whatever they are called, because if you don't have any, you cant register in any freeroll tournament and that sucks because it supposed to be free!!! lol ... I think they should give more freerolls like the one they gave yesterday the "5k facebook freeroll," that was an awesome tournament, and everyone had a good time playing and they didn't have to pay or change poker points to register in the tournament. I really like playing in bovada, but there´s another bad thing and you know what it is ?... I lost all my money and I don't have enough poker points to register for more freerolls, concluding bovada poker is one of the best poker sites, (for me is the better one tho´) but the only bad thing is the one that I said before, they don't give freerolls, I mean they give freerolls but they´re not really freerolls for me lol, I remember when I used to play at pokerstars they always gave a bunch of freerolls every single day and it was lots of fun"];) [/quote]
 
soncheebs

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I used to play on bovada, before I had an issue with one of my visa deposits because they accidentally charged me twice, which tipped off my banks fraud dept...and ended up screwing me over because even after it was resolved the option to deposit via that option was removed. I would still play there if I didn't have to do WU or Moneygram to deposit, but since I do I just play over at BlackChipPoker because there support has been awesome with me over the years. As far as the anonymous players aspect, I'm indifferent to it, don't hate it but don't love it neither.
 
Jim Lahey

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Bovada is my honey hole right now, but i hate the anonymous BS.
 
Michael Paler

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Poker Orifice replied:
"Main reason I detest it is the 'anonymous format'. I think it's ridiculous that you can't keep track of the players on there (& I'm talking about 'without tracking software'.... just with notes/reads)."

This has actually improved my game some. By not having notes, I am forced to pay more attention and watch for tells, which is sharping my skill at this. Plus, by doing that, I'm not likely to get surprised by someone who is playing differently or has "shifted gears" against what I have in my notes. This will also make my live game play better, as I can more easily pick up betting tells and ADD those to the physical ones!

This could well be why I'm better there than other places, which tells me I should shift gears on sites which have usernames and notes!!!
 
Michael Paler

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I almost forgot....

You can make notes on players! It's only good while there, of course. Again, I don't think I will, in order to improve my live games.

Live, for some reason, they won't let you put notes into your ipad, or even have one at the table, the bums!:D
 
Poker Orifice

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You can make notes on players! It's only good while there, of course. Again, I don't think I will, in order to improve my live games.

Live, for some reason, they won't let you put notes into your IPAD, or even have one at the table, the bums!:D
In live games don't you find it easy to remember people's faces? (& recall their style of play... ie. how they play certain hands; what they're capable of; their 3bet frequency; etc. etc. etc. etc.

Taking notes from observation will improve your game in both formats, live & online. It forces you to pay attention/make close observations.
 
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the_bub

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Bovada, it sucks...

The light 3-betting at Bovada is completely out of control. There's often some anonymous a-hole compulsively 3-betting light on the button or in the blind in the $100 9-max table, which forces me to either be a total nit or play short-stacked. In the $50 6-max table there is some jerk/jerks who compulsively re-raises me after the flop. For example, last night some half-stack chucklehead reraised my post flop bet 2.5x times. Some jerk had been doing this to me all night. I had an over pair [AA]. I re-raised him all-in. He didn't even have top pair. He had middle pair -- a lousy 9. What kind of a retard calls an all-in raise of his re-raise holding a lousy 9, when there was already a Q on the board? Did this retard think I was going to re-raise all-in holding AK? All this bluff re-raising at Bovada goes on because these jokers know that they can get away with it, because they can -- they're ANONYMOUS. Bovada is the land of the donkey, where donkeys are free to run wild, unchecked. I decided last not to quit playing cash games at Bovada. Perhaps a better player can do better at Bovada, but it is too much for me to handle. Bovada has very reliable cashouts and I appreciated their grinder bonuses. I'll continue to play their $14.40 triple-up SNG's there when I can't find action at Seals (which is often). It's too bad Bovada doesn't regularly run higher stakes triple-up SNG's. Right now I'm thinking about going to another poker site, but none other seem like a safe place to keep my money.

I just played my first Bovada game, and I really liked it. Especially since I took 70th place in the 5K facebook freeroll, for $13.50

For one thing, I didn't feel like everyone has a bead on me with tracking software, like on Merge (I'm constantly being told what some stupid computer program thinks of my play, like I really give a rats patooty).

I also noticed we have free roll games there. How do you guys like it? Do you prefer the "anonymous" format, or do you prefer the sites that allow you to keep a log full of player notes over time? What's the fish level like? I heard the triple up games are soft, anyone ever play any of these?
 
dudemanstan

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I just lost all my bank on there so crap right now i think it sucks. I wish i could play at poker stars but, i live in the land of the "free" where they prohibit everything.
 
Michael Paler

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So, what's your problem, exactly?

The light 3-betting at Bovada is completely out of control. There's often some anonymous a-hole compulsively 3-betting light on the button or in the blind in the $100 9-max table, which forces me to either be a total nit or play short-stacked. In the $50 6-max table there is some jerk/jerks who compulsively re-raises me after the flop.
This sounds a lot like either a strong player or a bully. I highly recommend checking out Mike Caro's site and his incredible method of dealing with poker bullies. It could be you are just getting outplayed as well. It happens. I wrote a 4-part posting (Don't fear the bully, by MPALER) with some tricks and tips to use against bullies and how to trap them into bluffing you with an all in. It's a killer!

For example, last night some half-stack chucklehead reraised my post flop bet 2.5x times. Some jerk had been doing this to me all night. I had an over pair [AA]. I re-raised him all-in. He didn't even have top pair. He had middle pair -- a lousy 9. What kind of a retard calls an all-in raise of his re-raise holding a lousy 9, when there was already a Q on the board? Did this retard think I was going to re-raise all-in holding AK?
Could be a donkey, could be a gambler. Either way, isn't this what you want? You wouldn't have liked it if he had shown up with pocket queens, now would you? I'm amazed at your harsh words to someone who gave you all their chips. You should have told the guy "great play, I just got lucky. I had your same hand and a similar flop yesterday and won with it, so I think we are onto something!" In other words, a: don't wise up a chump and b: Never insult a bad player, as it encourages them to play better!

All this bluff re-raising at Bovada goes on because these jokers know that they can get away with it, because they can -- they're ANONYMOUS.
They can only get away with it if you become so attached to notes and tracking software it actually cripples your game without it. You must not play live unless you know all the players. That's cool, but if you might like to go to the big show someday, you will be playing just like this. Use Bovada as a way to improve picking up betting tells, etc. You will be a better player on and off line! It's poker, so bluffing is a big part of it. Hardest thing for me to learn was accepting getting bluffed. Sounds like you despise it, so I can assume you never do it? Of course you do; you don't like being a nit, so you must bluff. Can't get mad at someone doing unto you before you do unto them!

Bovada is the land of the donkey, where donkeys are free to run wild, unchecked. I decided last not to quit playing cash games at Bovada. Perhaps a better player can do better at Bovada, but it is too much for me to handle.
So, would you rather sit and play with world class, incredibly tough players? I used to curse donks as well, but lets face it...most of your wins/$$ will come from bad players. Again, is this not what you want?I mean, dude, that better player could be you! Use it to improve your game!

I'm telling you, for me, my game is getting better and better after not being able to rely on notes and software. After all, what if they improve or shift gears unexpectedly? Your tracking software and notes won't save you. Even worse, you will think they are just getting lucky, when, in fact, they are simply getting better. Look at this as the glass is half full. Don't let these a-holes get you down man, let it inspire you to improve!!:D
 
Michael Paler

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Mental notes rule.

In live games don't you find it easy to remember people's faces? (& recall their style of play... ie. how they play certain hands; what they're capable of; their 3bet frequency; etc. etc. etc. etc.

Taking notes from observation will improve your game in both formats, live & online. It forces you to pay attention/make close observations.

I do, but mental notes mostly. I just do not want to rely on notes, as when/if they shift gears, I might mistake it for luck. So, if I can pick them out as someone who does this without any hard-notes, then I am better able to defeat them as it tells me I can put a play on them, for example.
 
Michael Paler

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Right!

[I personally think bovada is an awesome poker site for players that like to gamble with real money, I think its the best poker site for players in the US right now, but the only thing that sucks is that if you want to register for a freeroll you need to have poker points or whatever they are called, because if you don't have any, you cant register in any freeroll tournament and that sucks because it supposed to be free!!! lol ... I think they should give more freerolls like the one they gave yesterday the "5k facebook freeroll," that was an awesome tournament, and everyone had a good time playing and they didn't have to pay or change poker points to register in the tournament. I really like playing in bovada, but there´s another bad thing and you know what it is ?... I lost all my money and I don't have enough poker points to register for more freerolls, concluding bovada poker is one of the best poker sites, (for me is the better one tho´) but the only bad thing is the one that I said before, they don't give freerolls, I mean they give freerolls but they´re not really freerolls for me lol, I remember when I used to play at pokerstars they always gave a bunch of freerolls every single day and it was lots of fun"];)
[/QUOTE]

Now I remember...I couldn't play but play money until I made a deposit...or entered that facebook game! So, now I have a small bankroll there and 6 tics to satellite games! Well, that's not to bad. Now that we are in, we can hit 0 $$ and still play those freerolls!
 
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swingro

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Never played there and never will. There PS, FT, Merge, Ipoker with serious software.
BTW. It is not much of a difference if you can take notes or not. With a simple Excel file you can keep track of all the players you meet. Problem is with multitabling. You can keep track on 3-4 table max. More than this it is horror.
 
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xCipx

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im actually hating it, cause for some reason more then half the US can play, but me being from NY i cant play??? that some BS
 
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the_bub

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Bovada, it sucks

I wasn't clear when I wrote my original comment. The guy hit trips on the turn (this was after he called my all-in reraise), and I lost half my stack. I always shut the chat off when I play. I don't want to communicate while playing. I get re raised constantly in Bovada. Because it is anonymous, I have no idea whether it is bullshit or not. A better player than I would probably have a better read on the bluff factor. The problem with Bovada is that there is no good way of knowing who the maniacs are. A player can play 6 hands and hop on to another table. How does one know if the guy reraising you has hit mid pair or set? I simply don't have the nerve nor the money to call big reraises with good but not great cards, unless I have some idea who the better is. In live poker, the maniacs can be identified pretty easily, as they cannot so easily hop from one table to another.

Thank you for the article! I'll definitely check it out.
 
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