General: Bodog is an ever expanding gambling empire offering a highly regarded sports book, an online casino with over 50 Vegas style games and a poker room that is quickly earning a reputation as being full of crazily loose and soft play. It has been suggested that the Bodog Poker tables are packed with gamblers playing poker with their sports betting and casino winnings (and thus more willing to gamble their money away) and based on what I've seen, I believe it. A patient, solid player could come in here and really clean up.

I've heard it excitedly exclaimed numerous times on various poker forums that Bodog is the home of the absolute softest, loosest play on the internet. It would take a lot to convince me that it is significantly softer than Pacific Poker or Party Poker, and I haven't played there enough to be certain, but from what I've seen so far it is marshmallow soft and twice as delish.

Games: Hold �Em, Omaha , Stud, Omaha H/L, Stud H/L

The Bodog ring games are what people on poker forums are raving about. The high action Hold �Em tables range from $0.10/$0.25 up to $15/30 plus pot and no limit tables. The Stud and Omaha limit tables range from $0.25/$0.50 up to $5/$10.

Keep in mind that like I've said the ring games here are notoriously loose and while that is exactly what you want, there will be times when bad players making horrible plays will out draw you and win some pots. Don't get discouraged if you lose in some sessions. If you continue to play with patience the chasers will pay you off every time you make a big hand, and over time you will come out way ahead.

The tournaments at Bodog have just as many options and seemingly more traffic, (the sit-n-goes are very popular), but somewhat inexplicably don't have the same glowing endorsement from the forum communities that the ring games do. The single table tournaments range from $5 + $0.50 up to $100 +$9, and as I mentioned there is a lot of action at every level.

There are also tons of options in terms of multi-table tournaments. The cheapest MTT's are $5 + $0.50 and the Bodog tournament with the highest stakes is the upcoming Poker Bowl with a guaranteed prize pool of at least $250,000. That one costs $2000 + $200 to buy in directly, but satellites start as cheaply as $5 + $0.50. They also offer satellites into World Poker Tour events starting as cheap as $5.50 + $0.50.

In addition, Bodog Poker offers many $100 and $500 freerolls most of which start at midnight EST. Check the freeroll schedule for more details. There are also daily frequent player point freerolls to reward loyal players.

Software/Servers: The Bodog software looks a little different (click here to look at a screen shot) than most but is otherwise normal. The animation is very smooth and the sound effects are adequate. The software keeps the typical stats concerning your play. All in all the software works out to be either a non-factor or a plus depending on your point of view. It is pretty standard in every way, which you will either be pleased with or barely notice. As far as I'm concerned that makes it great software, but it seems a lot of people are quite a bit pickier than I am.

The servers have always been fast and satisfactory in my experience.

Bonus: Bodog offers a 20% first deposit bonus plus a 20% reload bonus as long as you deposit over $20. On top of that there is a 40% refer a friend bonus up to $200. (As of September 22 the deposit bonus will be reduced to 10% so deposit now for twice the bonus!)

Conclusion: The bottom line here is that right now at Bodog there is a great opportunity to take advantage of the tables freshly stocked with dead money. The traffic is suitable and growing every day, and more importantly that traffic is primarily comprised of people that aren't serious poker players. Play tight and aggressive, stay focused and patient and collect the chips every time your opponent makes a mistake. Based on the hype I would strongly suggest this one to people that want to play at limit tables, but from what I've seen the tournaments are great, too.

8.25 out of 10

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