Carbon Poker is a site with a wide reach, currently being one of the largest US-facing poker sites available. However, payouts for players at this site have been sporadic at best. Jan 21, 2021 Usually, the best poker sites with the highest traffic are the more established brands like Bovada, JuicyStakes and partypoker. On these sites, you can easily find an open seat during peak hours, and there are plenty of tables to play at during the off time. Do Any US Poker Sites Accept PayPal?

Here I Compare the Options for Real-Money Online Poker Tournaments Available to US Players

Poker Tournaments For US Players

This article will not cover the regulated in-State sites – which (WSOP bracelets aside) are struggling to gain any real momentum.

Below you will find a site by site summary, using the most popular individual sites where a network is involved. After that I have gone through the US online tournaments by size (buy-in). At the end of this page you will find my overall recommendation.

US Online Poker Tournaments 2021 – The Contenders (Sites)

#1 – Bovada Poker Tournaments

There is no doubting that Bovada (who pool players with Ignition Poker / Bodog) are the biggest US room.

What many people do not know before they play there, is that the games are anonymous. Instead of playing with a nickname, you are assigned a new number for each tournament. This stops the tracking software which gives pro players an edge - leveling the playing field for casual players. Bovada proved the skeptics wrong, their 'recreational poker model' was a big factor in their growth.

This is the biggest US poker room (only players from the US and selected Latin American countries can join). There is a solid regular schedule, with a ton of guarantees in the $1k to $5k range (buy-ins up to $22). While for the big 'headline events' America's Cardroom are ahead, for the 'bread and butter' tournaments, I rate Bovada as the number #1. The focus is 98% on No-Limit Holdem, with Omaha the minority game type

There are already some notable highlights for tournament fans. Note that the anonymous play model is still in use. You do not get a screen name at this site – instead when you play a tournament you are assigned a number, and cash games just use the seat numbers.

• $2 Million in Guarantees every week… that’s a lot of guarantees. This is not skewed by a couple of huge games either. When you see the listing you will quickly see that most of the tournaments have some kind of guaranteed prize pool.
• $100k Sunday Major… This always beats the guarantee, there are plenty of satellites too, entry costs $162.
• Mad Monday Tournaments:... This has been a very successful promo, a lot of extra tournaments, often with big guarantees spread each Monday. The total seems to vary (holiday weekends and seasonality affect this) though expect $300,000+ in extra games and again plenty of satellites.

Bovada were good for events and for satellites to live tournaments, for example ‘Vegas Weekends’ during the World Series. I hope to bring you news on this area soon.

With easy deposits, and plenty of poker variations to choose from, I do not see Bovada losing their number one spot any time soon. Check out their busy nightly tournament schedule, and find out how much more fun those anonymous games can be for yourself now at – though I do have a feeling that it will be one of (at least) the top contenders by the end of the year! Check out www.bovada.lv to see the latest deals and tournament events for yourself.

#2 – Chico Network / BetOnline Poker

BetOnline has been looking after sports bettors from their HQ in Panama for the best part of a decade. Last year, they joined the Chico poker network, and have grown this part of their brand to become the 2^nd largest US friendly poker site.

Guarantees are not yet at the level that you might expect (a lot of their players hit the cash game tables instead). Though they are already up to $250,000 a month in prize pools. If you like your tournaments with smaller fields and smaller buy-ins – then you will not find softer games than these at any US site. The secret is that a lot of the field are sports fans who have crossed over into the poker room – and not the experienced ‘pro grinders’ you might find elsewhere.

At the moment the BetOnline weekly flagship event has a guarantee of just $25,000. This does go up to $150k approximately once every month (usually on the last Sunday of the month) as part of a special promotion. BetOnline also recently introduced knockout bounty tournaments each day, these are entertaining (though lower buy-in) alternatives to the regular games.While it does not seem that the recent increase in players at Bet Online has fed through to an improved tournament schedule - there are still some good reasons to play here. The main one is that the fields are very soft, with a lot of players crossing over from the huge sportsbook part of the site.

You can check out the new bounty games, tournament leaderboard promos and date for the next $50k guaranteed over at www.betonline.ag

#3 – Winning Poker Network / America’s Cardroom

Since the last update to this page, America's Cardroom have improved their offering for tournament fans further. They regularly host events under the 'Online Super Series' name. There are bigger and smaller events, and some huge guaranteed prize pools. The most recent series ha guaranteed prizes of $4.5 million.

The Venom = ACR Poker's USA 'Sunday Million'

In 2021, ACR are guaranteeing $1,000,001 each week in a single million-and-one tournament. This is huge news for US tournament fans. If you prefer, you can hit the qualifier games and win your seat in one of the games. There continue until spring. In previous years, they did continue through the year, though were more spread out. If you want to see $1 million+ prize pools for US players continue, then do make sure that you support these events.

The video below gives you an intro to the Million Dollar Sundays, you can find the qualifiers and details over at www.americascardroom.eu

Even though this is only the 3rd largest player pool, the focus on tournaments makes the schedule here the busiest - especially when there is an event like the OSS coming up. Some of the bigger tournaments have relatively high entry prices, though there are plenty of satellite qualifiers running to give smaller bankroll players a shot at the big money. These can be entered for just $1.

In addition to this headline event, there is a 'Super Saturday' lineup, which itself has $750,000 in guarantees. There are also live tournament qualifiers. In addition to the qualifiers via regular tournaments, you can win big event entries via the Jackpot Poker (lottery SNGs). This year saw a lot of WSOP Main Event seats awarded in this way.

The regular schedule is growing, though not too packed at the moment. Again the focus is on the lower ($10 and under) end of the buy-ins. If you want to play several tournaments starting at around the same time, then you will need to mix and match those sites. A nice addition to their welcome bonus is up to $50 in 'Tournament Bucks' which are awarded semi-randomly using cards. These are a free extra and can be used to buy into any tournament with the equivalent value.

Find out when the next OSS (Online Super Series) and / or $1 million guaranteed event is on over at www.americascardroom.com

#4 – Merge Network / Carbon Poker

Carbon are now out of the picture. This is a shame as this was an excellent site not too long ago.

#5 - Other Networks

There are some smaller networks, the closest to being in contention is the Equity Poker Network. As of 2021, they are not big enough to make the list of recommendations for poker tournaments though. As I mentioned in the intro the Horizon poker network (Intertops Poker) is making some slow headway. While I am optimistic over time, it does not look like this network will cross the point where there are enough player numbers to run bigger tournaments this year!

US Online Poker Tournaments – By Buy-In Ranges

Most of us are reasonably fixed with the buy-ins we are comfortable playing. If you know what band you are looking for, here are my thoughts on how the different sites match up.

Biggest US Online Poker Tournaments 2021

Here we are talking about the Sunday Majors and special one-off events where you have a chance of winning enough money to really make a difference.

America’s Cardroom has the biggest buy-in, and by a long way with their regular $1,000,000 guaranteed. There are sub-qualifiers for this (the majority of the seats are won this way). This event happens every 3 months or so, and has already rewarded several players with 6-figure prizes. Keep an eye on America's Cardroom for the next running. More recently, there was a run of 5 Million guaranteed tournaments, which are well served by satellite qualifiers (ensuring big fields).

Bovada Poker have a weekly $100,000 guaranteed (and Mad Mondays often feature bigger games too), ACR has $50,000 (boosted around once per month to $100,000) and BetOnline chase the pack with a $25,000 guarantee. Intertops can not really be said to have a Sunday Major just yet - their bigger buy-in tournaments are still more like Multi-table Sit N Goes.

Million Dollar Sundays: As discussed above in the ACR section, from now until early March, we have a $1 million gtd tournament every Sunday at ACR. See www.americascardroom.eu for more.

Mid-Range US Poker Tournaments – the $22 to $55 Range

Players who were used to grinding this range before the big international sites left will really need to have accounts at several offshore sites to make up the volume of games needed. You’ll find 1 or 2 each evening at each site (though if you include $11 rebuys this does go up). The downside is that you will often be facing less than 100 opponents. It feels like the main sites have a plateau at $33, with the bigger games reserved for the weekend and special events.

Bovada is your best bet here by a long way – though I am hopeful the increasing number of players on the WPN network will see some expansion in this buy-in range for BetOnline in the near future. At the weekends you will find some bigger tournaments in this range at ACR too.

Small Buy-in US Online Poker Tournaments – The $11 and Under Range

Once you get to the $11 and under games, you’ll have enough opportunities that you can afford to be a little selective. Since the 150 to 250 player games at the $3 , $5 and $10 level are common, my preference is to go for those sites where your average opponents are likely to be the least experienced.

Betting giant BetOnline fits the bill for me here too. They have been building their sports betting brand for many years, and you are more likely to find an average person that enjoys the occasional poker game here, compared to other sites which have more ‘small stakes pros’. The software is pretty basic, then again, I’ll swap flashy graphics for a better chance of making the final table any day of the week.

Best Site for US Poker Tournaments – Mark’s Overall Choice

This is a genuinely tough one, all of the sites have their positive aspects.

If I had to pick one and only one place to play, then it would be America's Cardroom. The reason is that this site really appears to want to move forward with their tournament schedule. There are regular events (the Online Super Series + the $1 million guaranteed games), monthly leader board contests and plenty of action every night at the lower end of the buy-in spectrum... I'm happy that Ignition have now come into the picture to provide ACR with some stiff competition, though as of 2021, ACR are still my strong top recommendation.

Check out www.americascardroom.eu for yourself now!

Here are my reviews of the leading US facing sites in 2021

• SNG Tournaments For US Players (compares the Sit N Goes at the US biggest sites)

Don't forget to bookmark this page now - I'll update on the US scene as soon as any news comes in - especially with one-off tournaments or special promotions.

Sweepstakes poker sites offer a legal online poker experience to players across the United States.

The games at a sweepstakes poker site operate as mini sweepstakes games and are available to poker players in virtually every US state. In states without legalized real-money poker, sweepstakes sites like Global Poker are the best option available to US players.

The sweepstakes gaming model offers players the opportunity to play poker for cash prizes. Sweepstakes poker sites offer both play money games, as well as sweepstakes games, using “Sweeps Coins” for gameplay.

Most Popular Sweepstakes Poker Site: Global Poker

stands at the front of the pack among US-facing sweepstakes poker sites. Launched in 2016, Global Poker operates under the banner of VGW Holdings. This is the same company that introduced sweepstakes casino sites like Chumba Casino and LuckyLand Slots.

Global Poker’s popularity is backed by a prominent presence on Facebook and other social media platforms. That social media presence powers Global Poker’s status as one of the highest-traffic online poker sites in the US.

Players can access the full gamut of online poker options at Global Poker. Ring games, multi-table tournaments, Sit N Gos, and Jackpot Sit N Gos all run around the clock at the biggest sweepstakes poker site in the US.

With the sweepstakes model in place, Global Poker is a great alternative to real money online sites. Global Poker legally operates in 49 states. This gives US players in just about every jurisdiction the opportunity to compete in the online poker realm.

The games at Global Poker are separated into two categories: play money games and sweepstakes games. Play money games, played with “Gold Coins”, run on the social poker side of the site.

Global Poker’s sweepstakes poker games allow players to compete for “Sweeps Coins,” which are redeemable for cash prizes.

Can I Win Real Money Playing Sweepstakes Online Poker?

How Does The Coin System Work At Sweepstakes Poker Sites?

Global Poker operates as both a social gaming site and a sweepstakes poker platform.

The games at Global Poker are divided into “Gold Coins” games and “Sweeps Coins” games. The Gold Coins side of the site offers play money games, using Gold Coins.

Gold Coins packages are available for purchase. With the purchase of a Gold Coins package, Global Poker also awards an amount of bonus Sweeps Coins.

The Sweeps Coins can be used to play in the sweepstakes games, aka Sweeps Coins games. Sweeps Coins are used on that side of the site and can be used to play in ring games and tournaments.

Sweeps Coins carry no cash value but can be redeemed for cash prizes. As such, the Sweeps Coins games at Global Poker operate legally as mini sweepstakes games and give players across the US a chance to play poker for cash prizes.

Do I Need To Deposit Money To Play?

Sweeps Coins can be acquired without making a Gold Coins package purchase. Global Poker offers free Sweeps Coins through mail-in and social media offers, and these promotions are open to anyone 18 or over.

Global Poker regularly runs Facebook promotions that give away Sweeps Coins for free. These offers can be found on Global Poker’s Facebook page.

Mail-In Offers At Global Poker

In addition to social media offers, Global Poker also extends the opportunity to obtain free Sweeps Coins through mail-in offers. Any player 18 or over, and with a valid Global Poker account, can redeem this mail-in offer.

To qualify, players must send an envelope with name, address, and the phrase “Sweepstakes Credits” on the front, to the VGW Holdings Sweepstakes Department.

Once Global Poker verifies the details, the Sweeps Coins appear on the player’s Global Poker account.

More information on Global Poker’s free Sweeps Coins offers is found by navigating to the “Sweeps Rules” link under the “Help Center” menu at the bottom of the Global Poker homepage.

This information is also found by clicking the ‘Get Coins” link from the main lobby, and then clicking on the “Play For Free Tab” and navigating to the “Sweeps Rules” link.

Using these free offers, players can win cash prizes at Global Poker without making any kind of deposit.

How Do I Purchase At A Sweepstakes Poker Sites?

Sweepstakes poker sites don’t legally operate the same way as a real money poker site. There’s no way for players to deposit a USD amount of their choosing and play poker with those funds.

Sweeps Coins are available, however, as a gift that comes along with the purchase of a Gold Coins play money package.

For example, players can purchase a $100 USD package that comes with 500,000 Gold Coins for use in the play money games. That package also gives the player bonus SC 103. The SC 103 can then be used in the sweepstakes poker games.

Purchase Methods

Gold Coins packages can be purchased using online banking, with players able to use an account from virtually every bank in the US to make a purchase. Debit and credit cards issued by Visa, MasterCard, and American Express can also be used.

Other purchase options include Skrill eWallet and Instant ACH. Instant ACH purchases require a valid Skrill account.

How Do I Win Real Money At These Sites?

Sweeps Coins can be used to play Global Poker’s sweepstakes poker games. After meeting the site’s playthrough requirement, Sweeps Coins can be redeemed for cash prizes.

Cash-out methods include direct deposit into a valid bank account or Skrill account. Sweeps Coins can also be converted into a USD gift card.

To cash out, players must provide proof of identity, age, and location.

Sweepstakes Poker: Blocked And Allowed States

Global Poker is by far the most widely available legal online poker option in the US. The sweepstakes platform operates in 49 states, as well as Washington DC.

Players in these jurisdictions can access, play, and redeem Sweeps Coins for cash prizes 24 hours a day at Global Poker. This availability to US players makes Global Poker one of the highest traffic online poker sites in the US.

The exception to this availability is Washington state. By state law, sweepstakes gaming sites are outlawed in Washington. Players in the state are unable to purchase Gold Coins packages or redeem Sweeps Coins.

Comparing Sweepstakes Poker Sites To Traditional Poker Sites

What’s The Same?

Global Poker offers US players the full online poker experience. The sweepstakes poker games come in many of the same formats offered at other legal poker sites.

Cash games can be found at a variety of Sweeps Coins stakes. Both six-max and full ring games run around the clock, at stakes from SC .02/SC .04 up to SC 5/SC 10. Ring game variants include both No-Limit Hold’em and Pot-Limit Omaha.

Multi-Table Tournaments

Multi-table tournaments also run around the clock at Global Poker, giving players access to the biggest tournament player pool among US-facing poker sites.

Tournaments include both No-Limit Hold’em and Pot-Limit Omaha, and run from the micro stakes up to high buy-ins like SC 110 and SC 218.

The centerpiece tournament on the Global Poker schedule is the weekly Sunday Scrimmage. The Sunday Scrimmage offers a prize pool of at least SC 50,000, and at times that guarantee has gone all the way up to SC 500,000.

Global Poker also runs special tournament series like the annual Rattlesnake Open, which offers a total prize pool of SC 1,000,000 across numerous events.

Sit N Gos and Jackpot Sit N Gos are also on the menu of games at Global Poker.

What Sets Sweepstakes Poker Apart?

Best Online Poker Tournament Sites For Us Players Freerolls

With a wide array of tournaments and cash game options, Global Poker’s game selection is on par with any US-facing online poker site.

The availability of Global Poker across virtually the entire US, however, puts the site in a category of its own. While legal online poker is only available in a few states, Global Poker’s ability to operate in so many jurisdictions makes it a viable option for poker players around the country.

Accessibility To US Players

Global Poker’s legal status as a sweepstakes gaming site makes it possible for the platform to operate just about anywhere in the US.

The future looks bright for state-regulated, legal online poker in states like New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Those states, along with a handful of others, have legislation in place allowing state casinos to legally offer online poker.

Most of the US, however, has yet to legalize online poker. For the majority of US poker players, Global Poker is the best legal option to enjoy online poker for cash prizes.

Global Poker also offers the easiest barrier to entry of any US-facing online poker site. With no download required, players can register for an account and play the sweepstakes poker games within minutes.

How Sweepstakes Games Work

The sweepstakes games on the Sweeps Coins side of Global Poker run around the clock. Starting with the smallest limits at SC .05/SC .10., players can find games at a variety of stakes.

Cash games for both No-Limit Hold’em and Pot-Limit Omaha run from the micro stakes up to SC 5/SC 10. The No-Limit Hold’em games offer six-max and full ring formats.

Even during the slower traffic hours of the day, players can find multiple games running at all stakes. Like most poker sites, most of the full tables are micro and low stakes at and given time, but plenty of action awaits for mid-stakes players as well.

No-Limit Hold’em

There’s never a bad time to get into a No-Limit Hold’em cash game at Global Poker. Players looking for micro and low stakes game will always find plenty of games running.

Multiple tables for both six-max and full ring cash games run throughout the day at these stakes. From the micro stakes at SC .05/SC .10, up to SC .25/SC .50, No-Limit Hold’em players will have no trouble finding a seat.

The player pool at stakes from SC 1/SC 2 up to SC 2/SC 5 isn’t as large as the micro stakes pool, but players at those stakes can still find multiple games at most times. The highest-stakes cash games at Global Poker run at SC 5/SC 10, as well as short-stacked buy-in games at SC 10/SC 20.

Peak hours for traffic for Global Poker’s No-Limit Hold’em games occur from 5 pm to midnight eastern time on weekdays, and throughout most of the day on weekends.

Pot-Limit Omaha

Six-max cash games for Pot-Limit Omaha offer plenty of opportunity for PLO players at Global Poker. Games can usually be found running all day at stakes from SC .05/SC .10 up to SC 1/SC 2.

The highest-stakes Pot-Limit Omaha games at Global Poker run at SC 2/SC 5 up to SC 10/SC 20. Games at these stakes run multiple tables at peak hours, which are generally on weekday evenings and throughout the weekend.

How Sweepstakes Tournaments Work

The multi-table tournament schedule at Global Poker presents one of the largest selections of poker tournaments available to US players.

More than 100 different tournaments run daily. This includes traditional structure tournaments, as well as rebuy, bounty, and satellites. Deep stack, regular, turbo, and hyper-turbo tournaments can be found throughout the day.

From buy-ins as low as SC 1 up to the highest-stakes events at SC 218, the tournament menu at Global Poker offers plenty of options for players at a variety of levels. No-Limit Hold’em tournaments make up most of the schedule, with a few Pot Limit Omaha events offered as well.

All of Global Poker’s tournaments run with guaranteed prize pools. The biggest guarantee on the schedule is the weekly Sunday Scrimmage, with a guarantee of at least SC 50,000.

Global Poker often raises the guarantee on the Sunday Scrimmage, sometimes as high as SC 500,000. Special tournament series events, like the annual Rattlesnake Open, attract big player numbers as well.

How Do Bonuses Work At Sweepstakes Poker Sites?

Global Poker offers a free sign-up bonus for new players upon submission of verification documents. This free SC 20 is easy to collect and requires no purchase.

New players can register an account at Global Poker by simply signing in with an existing Facebook or Google account. If neither of these options is used, the sign-up process requires a simple fill out of first and last name details, and a valid email address.

Once registered, players can immediately begin the steps to earn the free sign-up bonus.

How To Get The Global Poker Sign-Up Bonus

To earn the SC 20 sign-up bonus, new players must provide documentation of age, address, and identity to the Global Poker support team. The verification process is rapid, and the SC 20 becomes available in the player’s account with 24 hours.

To verify a new account, players must click on the menu icon at the top left of the main lobby. From there, clicking on “Account” brings up the account verification menu.

The “Identity Verification” section of this menu needs to be completed to obtain the bonus. Clicking on that section will prompt the site to ask for an upload of a valid identification document, as well as a photo for facial recognition.

Once these documents are verified, the SC 20 bonus becomes available by clicking on the “Get Coins” button at the top right of the main lobby. The free SC 20 will appear in that menu.

How Does Rake Work At Sweepstakes Poker Sites?

The rake structure for cash games and tournaments at Global Poker is comparable to some of the world’s biggest legal online poker sites.

Multi-table tournaments are generally offered at around 10% rake per buy-in. For example, the SC 11 buy-in tournaments put SC 10 toward the prize pool and SC 1 toward rake. Rake as a percentage of buy-in goes down as the buy-ins increase.

Global Poker Cash Game Rake

The rake structure for cash games varies at different limits, becoming more player-friendly as the stakes go up. At all stakes, pots that go past the preflop betting round are raked at 5%.

Each stake level has a cap on the maximum amount of rake Global Poker takes in from the pot. The cap is based on the stake level and how many players are in the pot.

The rake structure for Global Poker’s cash games is as follows:

Online Sweepstakes Poker FAQ

No. PokerStars, the largest online poker site in the world, operates real money games around the world on its primary PokerStars.com client. PokerStars also operates legal, state-regulated platforms in select US states.

None of PokerStars’ platforms operate as sweepstakes poker sites. PokerStars.net is a play money site open to most of the US, but is strictly a social gaming site. Players on PokerStars.net cannot win real money prizes.

The minimum age to redeem Sweeps Coins for real US dollars at Global Poker is 18. This age applies in all US states in which Global Poker legally operates.

To cash out on Global Poker, players must provide proof of age, identity, and location. Once these documents are verified, players can redeem Sweeps Coins for cash prizes.

Players unable to provide these documents will not be able to redeem cash prizes at Global Poker.

Best Online Poker Tournament Sites For Us Players In Nevada

No. Global Poker is a poker-only platform, with no other casino games available to play on the site. The parent company to Global Poker, VGW Holdings, does operate a pair of sweepstakes casino sites separate from Global Poker.

Chumba Casino and LuckyLand Slots are sister sites to Global Poker, operated by VGW Holdings. These are both sweepstakes casino platforms, with a variety of slots and other casino games.

Yes. Global Poker’s software offers a simple, intuitive interface that online poker players will find familiar. New players will likely have no problems playing the games and following the action as well.

The software execution and presentation at Global Poker is comparable to other legal poker sites. Since debuting the product in 2016, Global Poker has continually updated the software to accommodate its growing player base.

Yes. Sweepstakes poker sites like Global Poker operate legally in 49 US states. The sweepstakes gaming model behind Global Poker has been used in the US for many years by other companies and promotions.

Global Poker is owned by VGW Holdings. VGW Holdings is a public company with a vested interest in providing legitimate sweepstakes poker games to US players.

The sweepstakes games at Global Poker use Sweeps Coins for gameplay. Sweeps Coins function as entry credits to the sweepstakes poker games at Global Poker.

Sweeps Coins can be redeemed for cash prizes at a redemption rate. Redemption options at Global Poker include direct deposit to a bank account, Skrill eWallet, and conversion of Sweeps Coins into a USD gift card.

Yes. Global Poker is legal in California, as well as a total of 49 US states. The only US state outlawing sweepstakes poker and casino sites is Washington state.

What's The Best Online Poker Site For Us Players

In California, as well as other states without state-regulated online poker, Global Poker is the best option for playing poker for real-money prizes.