WSEX = RAKE FREE!

[betadecay]

I assume the bigger reason they have to rake the pots is because they have skins. And all the skins have to play on the same platform.

[Crix]

Thanks Granny, I didn't think of that. It is a bit funny though that a few people all seem to be experiencing this sort of situation.

[ QUOTE ]
when it is 6 handed, people will many times sit out close together. it is caused by one person sitting out, and then a couple of more not wanting to play short handed.


[/ QUOTE ]

Another possiblity is that they were scared to play with me...They were like "Oh no, Crix is here. I'm taking my stack somewhere else so I don't get busted"....but then again probably not.

[thing85]

[ QUOTE ]
I assume the bigger reason they have to rake the pots is because they have skins. And all the skins have to play on the same platform.

[/ QUOTE ]

But the even bigger reason is that they want to make some money off it... [img]/images/graemlins/shocked.gif[/img]

[Mogobu The Fool]

A couple of comments on this thread.

1. For all the people who seem to think that a site running bots is cheating, why? Did you check their rules? Do they say they don't use bots? Most sites don't tell you they don't use prop players, either. It's not necessarily against the rules. If the bots and/or props play a legitimate game (no card sharing, etc.), then it's still a fair game of poker.

2. To all those saying they can't be bots because they're bad players. . . who says bots have to be good players? Besides the fact that it's hard to make a bot that plays well, remember, if they're being used by the site as props, they don't necessarily want super-great players. They're trying to fill the tables while they get started.

1. and 2. having been said, I'm not claiming there are bots. . I'm just saying that it isn't necessarily "wrong' and that they might be legitimately and fairly used in place of props when the games are short.

3. To those saying that the site is losing a ton of money by refunding the rake. . . bear in mind that the place was close to dead before. They weren't MAKING a ton of money, therefore they can't lose much by not taking rake. The capital cost of software & servers has been paid already. They run major web sites for sports betting, etc., so the bandwidth is also covered elsewhere. Running the poker room has a VERY low on-going overhead cost. If their existing servers can handle the extra traffic, they have very little to lose by offering total rake-rebates.

4. They don't just earn interest on the rake held back. Every good player who goes there will put 300 or more BB into a bankroll. They don't pay interest on the bankroll, but they sure as heck collect intrest on your bankroll money. Multiply ten thousand users times their bankrolls, and you're talking about a lot of money on deposit collecting interest for them. If this rake-rebate gets people to deposit, they will profit nicely, even before considering some overflow into the sportsbook.

5. If making the poker room totally rake-free allows them to pursue new legal avenues - i.e., get to make it a "legal" site in the US, it could be huge for them, considering the current legal environment for poker rooms. This could be a very smart move based on an uncertain future. As a sports book, they're into making such wagers, so it's no surprise.

Sorry if I'm re-stating; I tried to skim all of this thread, but it's ginormous.

[Trent]

At my local live 10/20 game, limp-re-raising and then check-folding the flop happens all the time. This usually occurs in multiway pots. I wonder if they were bots?

Trent

[betadecay]

[ QUOTE ]
At my local live 10/20 game, limp-re-raising and then check-folding the flop happen all the time. This usually occurs in multiway pots. I wonder if they were bots?

Trent

[/ QUOTE ]

I think alot of people are missing the point on the bots. There are bots on the site(at least they were there earlier this week). The bots seem to share the same AI as they play the same way. The bot issue is over a year old. No one is saying limp reraiser's are bots, they are saying the bots like to limp reraise. It's different.

I noticed this happen everytime with poole if it limped ep with a suited connector, and the pot became multi way with a raise behind it. Then if it missed the flop it would check fold. Did that make me think it was a bot? no. But when it played for 22 hours straight with out ever ever taking longer then 2 seconds to act or sitting out to take a dump, then I can safely say it's a bot. The thing with the bots is that they had already been profiled by the BW people a year ago. They were still playing the same when the site went rake free.

I tend to think the site was using the bots as prop players(wsex has denied this). But when the bots put down some crazy suckouts everyone starts speculating wether wsex was rigging the site.

[smartalecc5]

I 3bet the turn recently with an underpair. I thought he was bluffing me and I caught my 2-outer on the river. I bet I looked like a bot to him [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[jba]

[ QUOTE ]
At my local live 10/20 game, limp-re-raising and then check-folding the flop happens all the time. This usually occurs in multiway pots. I wonder if they were bots?

[/ QUOTE ]

[Sandra Bullett]

[ QUOTE ]
5. If making the poker room totally rake-free allows them to pursue new legal avenues - i.e., get to make it a "legal" site in the US, it could be huge for them, considering the current legal environment for poker rooms. This could be a very smart move based on an uncertain future. As a sports book, they're into making such wagers, so it's no surprise.

[/ QUOTE ]

VERY good point Mogobu, especially as these are the guys that took the WTO action against the US Gov't. Said Gov't didn't just lose the case (and were fined), they were ordered to change their legislation to be permissive of internet gambling, and given a deadline. This deadline was breached on exactly the same day WPX announced Rake Free.

Co-incidence - I think not.

[Gildwulf]

Is WSEX down for anyone else right now? Also, how often does this site go down in a given week cause this could be annoying if I end up keeping my whole roll here.