Bovada Poker

I’ve known about Bovada’s poker section for a long time, so I finally decided to give it a go and share my thoughts about the platform. Therefore, I made an account on Bovada and used one of the available payment methods to deposit real money and explore the available poker option.

To be honest, I spent most of my time at Bovada playing the Jackpot Sit & Go tournaments, which grabbed my attention the longest. However, I also thoroughly checked the entire platform, and the results were rather exciting. Keep reading to learn more about Bovada poker and what to expect from it if you decide to join.

Bovada Poker Summary

Bovada is the younger brother to Bodog Poker, a platform operating successfully since 2004 (even though Bodog was established in 1994, according to some sources). You should first understand this — Bovada isn’t just a poker platform. Instead, it’s a comprehensive online gambling platform offering a casino, a live casino, horse races, and sports betting.

The platform has been operating since 2011 and immediately enjoyed great success among US poker players. Truth be told, it never lived up to the popularity of some industry-leading poker platforms, but it always had decent traffic, with most of the popular cash games and tournaments having enough players round the clock.

Bovada has a pretty simple design. There are no shiny animations all over the place, which is a good thing, at least for me, who likes to keep things simple. On top of that, the registration process is fairly straightforward, and players are also eligible for a lucrative welcome bonus after making their first deposit, but we’ll get to that later.

When it comes to the selection of poker games, Bovada has a pretty decent offer, as it features a wide array of cash games and tournaments, in addition to some different formats, such as Sit & Gos. Texas Hold’em is the most popular option on the site, but you’ll also find Omaha and Omaha Hi/Lo among available types of poker.

Bovada is definitely the best for anyone looking for exciting one-off or ongoing tournaments, as there are plenty of options, some of them having lucrative prizes, such as Monthly Milly, Knockout Tournaments, Jackpot Sit & Gos, Turbo Tournaments, Guaranteed High Roller Tournament, and a set of other tournaments with guaranteed prizes. 

To play poker, you need to register and open an account. I used Visa to make a deposit but was later surprised to learn that Bovada really wants their players to make deposits and withdrawals in cryptocurrencies. Apart from Bitcoin, you’ll find several other crypto payment options, and they usually have much looser transaction limits. Therefore, it’s safe to say that Bovada is transitioning towards being a crypto-first site.

Is Bovada Poker Legit?

Yes, Bovada is a legitimate online gambling site. It operates under a Curacao eGaming license, meaning it’s an offshore platform. Nevertheless, it’s safe to say that Bovada’s reputation is good — the site is completely safe, secure, and trustworthy. On top of that, no one recorded any major incidents on Bovada, as the platform tries its best to make gaming as fair and transparent as possible on the site.

Bovada Poker Bonuses and Promotions

Bonuses and promotions for new and regular customers are an inseparable part of Bovada, so let’s check out what you can get as.

Bovada Poker Welcome Bonus

The platform offers a 100% welcome bonus of up to $500, meaning the casino will match your deposited amount in bonus money, but no more than the indicated amount. The bonus money will be locked in your bonus balance, and you’ll have to unlock it in increments of $5 by collecting Reward Points. We’ll get to what those are when we talk about the loyalty program. 

For now, you need to know that you must collect 150 RPs for every $5 increment. There are no rollover requirements once you collect and unlock your bonus funds, meaning you can withdraw them using one of the available withdrawal options.

Bovada Poker No Deposit Bonus

Unfortunately, Bovada doesn’t offer a no deposit bonus at the moment. Then again, this type of offer isn’t that common in the online poker industry, and the welcome bonus is good enough that there’s actually no point in getting a no deposit bonus.

Loyalty Program

Essentially, Bovada offers a Reward Point system, where you need to collect RPs and then exchange them for various benefits and rewards on the platform. You can even redeem points for cash.

Players can also progress through levels and lower the redemption rate from the starting 2,500 points for $1 to 1,000 for $1 when they reach the highest level.

You can collect points by playing casino games, betting on sports and horses, and playing poker. We’ll only focus on poker in this review, and here’s how you can get RPs.

• 15 RPs for $1 spend on cash games
• 15 RPs for $1 spent on tournament fees
• 1.5 RPs for every $1 spent on buy-ins for Sit & Gos 

Other Promotions

The platform offers several promotions that apply to other gambling verticals featured. However, besides the welcome bonus, just one other promo applies to poker, and that’s a Refer-a-Friend bonus, where you can earn up to $125 in bonuses once your friends join the platform and make a deposit.

In addition to that, Bovada offers a range of special tournaments where the best players can claim lucrative rewards, so make sure to check them out after joining the site.

Bovada Poker Wagering Requirements

As already stated above, there aren’t standard wagering requirements. Instead, you have to collect 150 Reward Points to unlock an increment of $5 from your bonus balance and make it withdrawable.  

Bovada Poker Payment Methods for Deposits and Withdrawals

Bovada offers a decent selection of deposit and withdrawal methods. Even though it started as a fiat gambling platform, it slowly shifted to cryptocurrencies and now accepts both. Let’s take a look at the available deposit and withdrawal options. 

Deposit Options, Fees, Limits

Bovada offers a range of deposit methods. As a US player, you’re most likely to use either one of the card brands or cryptocurrencies. The platform charges a 5.9% deposit fee for credit card deposits, so your best bet is to go with cryptos if possible.

Method	Minimum Deposit	Maximum Deposit	Speed
Visa	$20	$1,500	Instant
Mastercard	$20	$1,500	Instant
Amex	$20	$1,500	Instant
Bitcoin	$10	$5,000	Instant
Zelle	$10	$5,000	Instant
Voucher	$20	$3,000	Instant
Bitcoin Cash	$10	$5,000	Instant
Litecoin	$10	$5,000	Instant

Withdrawal Options, Fees, Limits

Bovada hasn’t experienced any major withdrawal scandal, which is not quite common nowadays in the online gambling industry, so that’s a big plus. Once again, using cryptos to cash out your winnings is the fastest option and has the best limits. Other options are much slower compared to it.

Method	Minimum Withdrawal	Maximum Withdrawal	Speed	Fees
Bitcoin	$10	$20,000	Up to 24 hours	None
Bitcoin Cash	$10	$20,000	Up to 24 hours	None
Check by Courier	$100	$3,000	Up to 15 business days	One withdrawal monthly is free, every next is $100
Wire Transfer	$1,500	$9,500	Up to 15 business days	One withdrawal monthly is free, every next is $50
Voucher	$10	$3,000	Up to 15 business days	None

Available Poker Games

Texas Hold’em is the most popular poker variation played by the majority of players on Bovada Poker. In addition to that, you’ll find Omaha and Omaha Hi-Lo, although you might come across an occasional lack of traffic for some of the Omaha games.

Speaking of traffic, it’s the highest sometime around 7 p.m. and midnight Eastern time. It’s not uncommon to see traffic increase on Friday and Saturday. 

Cash Games

You’ll find all three poker variations as cash games, and they are suitable for everyone’s bankroll. They start at 5NL ($0.02/$0.05) and go up to 2,000NL ($10/$20). The good news is that most Texas Hold’em games at all stake levels have players 24/7, meaning you can always find some poker action going on.

Tournaments

Tournaments are Bovada’s specialty. They offer a chance to win big if you’re a skillful poker player, and Bovada tends to avoid stuff like playing for free spins in casinos and similar stuff. More than 90% of all tournaments offered on the platform are guarantees or satellites that lead to guarantees.

Sit & Go tournaments are an important part of the offer, with buy-ins ranging from $1 to $214. The platform offers Double Ups, Triple Ups, Regular, 6-Max, Heads-up, and Turbo Sit & Gos, so there’s something for everyone.

I particularly liked Jackpot Sit & Gos, introduced in 2017, as they are quick, easy to play, and offer you a chance to earn up to 1,200x your initial stake in a very short period. However, it also means that you have to rely on the element of luck a little bore compared to standard tournaments. 

Bovada Poker Mobile App

Bovada offers an opportunity to play poker on your mobile device. It doesn’t have a stand-alone mobile app, but you can load the platform’s mobile version via your mobile browser and start your online poker adventure that well. I gave it a go and was pretty happy with the mobile software. Still, I prefer the good old desktop PC for my poker ventures.

Bovada Poker Customer Support

Bovada offers a searchable help section where you can find answers to many popular questions regarding the site. If you fail to get your questions answered this way, you can contact customer support using the live chat feature or send an email. Alternatively, you can get assistance from other players via Bovada’s community platform.

• Live chat: On the site
• Email: Fill in the in-site form   

Conclusion — Should I Play at Bovada Poker?

I definitely recommend playing poker at Bovada, as it’s a platform with a long history and tradition. It has great cash games and even greater tournaments, in addition to a lucrative welcome bonus for new players. Even if you get bored playing poker, you can always check out other gambling verticals available on the site.

About the Author