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ACR Poker Review
“The new rebranding of ACR Poker makes this site no less a staple in US online poker. Since 2000, the flagship site of the Winning Poker Network has provided a reliable and exciting place for Americans to play poker online.”
Jennifer Newell, Author
Overview
In 2023, WPN decided to rebrand Americas Cardroom as ACR Poker. The site is the flagship of WPN and continues to lead the way in American poker player traffic during a time when the market is fragmented in its laws and painfully slow in its direction and progress. Tens of thousands of poker players flock to the virtual ACR Poker tables every day.
In this review, we take a look at what ACR has to offer, covering aspects such as competition levels, banking options, promotions, and the extensive array of poker games available.
Whether you’re a seasoned player or new to the game, our review endeavors to provide invaluable insights to aid in your decision-making process regarding your online poker venue. Join us as we navigate through the intricacies of ACR, uncovering its strengths, weaknesses, and everything in between.
What We Cover in This Review
The Pros and Cons
We wouldn’t be doing our jobs properly if we didn’t give you all the information about ACR – positive and negative, so here is a list of the pros and cons we were able to find.
Pros
- One of the largest schedules of daily and weekly tournaments in the world
- Regularly-scheduled multi-million dollar tournament series
- Fast and dependable withdrawal process
- Daily freerolls available to any players
- More than 60 cryptocurrency deposit and withdrawal options
Cons
- Recreational players struggle with reentries and long late registration options
- Few withdrawal options besides crypto
- Occasional bot farms detected
Promotions and Bonuses at ACR
There are always a range of promotions and bonuses available for ACR players. There is at least one option for a deposit and one for a reload bonus available, and promotions provide other options.
- Welcome Bonus: The welcome offer to new players at ACR Poker is a 100% match bonus for any deposit of $25 up to $2,000. Players don’t need to use a code. They can simply make a deposit and start playing. Regular play earns rewards points, and every 27.5 points earned releases $1 of the bonus money. ACR automatically puts it into the player’s account as earned.
- Crypto Reload Bonus: When a player looks to reload their poker account, using a reload bonus is beneficial. Sometimes, the reload bonus can be a 50% match, other times it’s a crypto-only reload bonus of 50% up to $2,000 to encourage players to use any of the cryptocurrencies available for deposits. (The appropriate reload bonus code must be used.)
- Sit & Crush: As an ongoing promotion, players can register for any SNG, Jackpot, or On Demand tournament and earn points no matter the outcome. Points go toward leaderboard competitions, and prizes are paid out each Saturday, with payouts offered in cash or tournament tickets.
- The Beast: The Beast is a weekly leaderboard contest, with accumulating points for every cash game played (one point for every $0.02 in rake). The weekly races run from Saturday at midnight to Friday at 11:59pm. Payouts take place every Monday in the form of cash or tournament entries.
- 7-Day No Rathole: This is an interesting form of protection from ratholing and a unique opportunity at the same time. Ratholing is winning a big pot and then leaving the table with the profit, only to return with a smaller stack. It takes chips out of the game and is frowned upon in cash games. The 7-Day No Rathole feature allows players to buy in for as little as 10 big blinds, but their stack is locked. If a player buys in for $100, for example, and leaves the table with $200, the player cannot sit at that table again unless they buy in for $200.
Elite Benefits at ACR Poker
The name of the rewards program at ACR and its sister sites on the Winning Poker Network is Elite Benefits. Players can carry points across the network and build on the same points scale. They earn points through regular play, with 5.5 points accumulated for every $1 in rake or tournament entry fees paid.
There are tiered loyalty levels:
- Level 1 (Lieutenant): starting as a new player
- Level 2 (Captain): earning 750 points per month
- Level 3 (Major): earning 3,000 points per month
- Level 4 (Colonel): earning 7,500 points per month
- Level 5 (General): earning 100,000 points in one calendar year
- Level 6 (5-Star General): earning one million points in a calendar year
In addition to rank points (RPs) for the above levels, players also earn “combat points” or CPs. These are points that are exchanged for cash. Players can cash their rank points into CPs at a rate dictated by their level.
Players also receive medals of achievement for cash bonuses. For the total number of RPs earned per year, the rewards start at $10 and increase to $200 for 100,000 points. From that stage, the player becomes a VIP and can earn rewards of $2,600 to $19,200 per year, based on points earned.
ACR Poker Game Selection
Players on ACR can find everything from cash games to tournaments, SNGs to fast-fold poker, at almost any stake or buy-in level. The sizeable traffic numbers ensure that there will almost always be the lowest and highest stakes that players seek.
Cash Games
No matter the stake, minimum buy-in, or poker variation, there is something for every cash game player at ACR. There are many tables available at the low end of stakes, with $0.01/$0.02 No Limit Hold’em, Pot Limit Omaha, Omaha/Hi-Lo, and 5-Card Omaha Hi/Lo on offer. From that point, the list moves up to $0.02/$0.05, $0.05/$0.10, $0.10/$0.25, $0.25/$0.50, and so on.
Options are open for stakes up to $5K/$10K, but the most frequent cash games at high stakes are $50/$100 or $100/$200. It depends on player demand.
The most popular cash games are Hold’em and Omaha, but there are varying formats to keep the action exciting and to feed the appetite of players wanting to learn new games. Many players enjoy bomb pots, a few choose all-in-or-fold games for speed, but most opt for the standard or high/low format.
Blitz Games
Many players like fast-fold poker, which is labeled as Blitz on WPN sites. This form of cash game poker increases the speed at which cash games play by moving players to a new table as soon as they fold a hand. Instead of waiting for blinds and the button to move, the six-handed tables put players on a new table immediately after folding.
These are more popular with low-stakes players, but Hold’em and Omaha games are often open at the $0.10/$0.25, $0.25/$0.50, and $.50/$1 levels. Stakes are available from $1/$2 to $5/$10 if enough players join.
Jackpots
Jackpot Poker games play as a form of a Sit & Go (SNG). Three players must be present to start a table, and the site then chooses the prize pool at random. Most often, there are Jackpot SNGs available for $5, $15, or $50, though it all depends on player demand. They can also choose how many SNGs they want to play to avoid delays between games. The prize pool can be double the buy-in at a minimum or as high as $1M, depending on the stake.
Sit & Gos
Poker players love SNGs because they are fast and offer some variety. There are on-demand sit-n-gos and satellites, and – as with tournaments – and players can search by the number of players, game type, structure, buy-in, or status, to name some of the options.
Most players choose common games in the SNG section like Hold’em and Omaha, but there are also some Hi/Lo tables. Turbos and regular structures are equally as popular, and buy-ins start at just $0.11 and top off at a few hundred dollars.
ACR Poker Tournaments
While many online gaming sites are considered casinos, ACR is strictly a poker website. The difference is that casino websites often offer a wide range of casino games, such as slots, card games, roulette, video poker, and more. At ACR, you get a simple selection of poker games. Still, you will find a lot of different types of poker to play on this website.
At ACR, players will find a suite of poker variants to play, such as; Texas Hold’Em, Omaha, Omaha Hi/Lo, 7 Card Stud, 7 Card Stud Hi/Lo, and 32 Card Draw. When you play at a large poker site like ACR, you can access every type of poker game available.
Our ACR review confirmed that the site offers a wide selection of types of games. You can play a simple online game for fake money to practice your skills, and when you’re confident, you can start playing for real money against other players at online tables. You can even try out some of the various tournaments offered by ACR.
They can access Satellite tournaments, where players can spend a bit to play for a shot at the big tables, and even land-based tournaments where you can meet up with other players from ACR and play head-to-head. ACR consistently has some of the best traffic of any card room out there.
There are many different types of poker tournaments at ACR. Like all Americas Card room poker software, these tournaments can be played via your computer or mobile phone. To play on your mobile phone, navigate the ACR website from your mobile browser.
Types of Tournaments
Here is a basic breakdown of some of the types of tournaments on offer at ACR:
- Sit & Go tournaments involve one table and start when the necessary amount of players have registered. These can be Hold’Em or Pot-Limit Omaha games and can be regular, turbo, or hyper turbo versions.
- On-Demand tournaments work best for busy players. They are similar to Sit & Go tournaments but provide larger prizes you’d typically see in multi-table tournaments.
- In a Rebuy tournament, you have a short period where you can buy back chips after you’ve lost them all. This period gives you a second chance and allows for bigger prize pools. The rebuy period generally lasts for the first hour of the tournament.
- Final Table Experiences are 9-man tournaments that give every player a shot at the deep stack, high-stakes final table play. In these tournaments, you start with $1,000,000 in chips.
- Knock Out tournaments work similarly to regular tournaments but give you a cash prize each time you knock a player out of the tournament. This means you can still win money even when you don’t win the tournament.
- Time-Based tournaments are another excellent way for busy players to enjoy some poker. These tournaments allow you to see exactly how long you’ll be playing, so you don’t buy into a tournament you can’t finish.
- Multi-Table tournaments are everything you love about Las Vegas in the form of an online tournament. These tournaments offer huge payouts but require a lot more of your time than some of the others do.
- All-In-Or-Fold tournaments play like regular poker, except you aren’t allowed to check or call. Instead, you will have to go all-in or fold on every hand.
Breaking Down the ACR Poker Software
Unlike other poker platforms, ACR requires you to use their downloadable poker software instead of playing directly in your web browser. But don’t worry, they do offer a downloadable client that you can install on your computer. Let’s dive into what it’s like to play on this platform.
Playing Experience The first thing you’ll notice about ACR’s poker software is how clean and stylish it looks. I personally love the dark theme of the ACR lobby—it’s a nice touch. Beyond its good looks, the software is easy to use. Whether you’re joining tournaments or cashing out your winnings, navigating the site is a breeze.
When you’re at the poker table, you’ll find it sleek and modern. The layout is clear, the cards are easy to see, and there are handy features to make playing smoother. I really like the “Run It Twice” option right on the table. Usually, you have to dig into settings to find this, but having it accessible makes decision-making easier during a hand.
Another cool feature is the ability to customize your bet buttons. As someone who plays a lot of cash games, being able to adjust these buttons for faster betting is a big plus. It might seem small, but it adds up over time. You can tweak various settings in the ACR poker client, like the table theme and where you prefer to sit.
One unique thing about ACR is their poker staking section. Here, you can buy or sell shares of tournament action. It’s a neat way to get into higher-stakes games without risking too much.
Overall, if you’re into playing a lot of poker, ACR’s client is top-notch. It’s designed to make grinding easier and less stressful—so you can focus on the game!
Features of the Site
- All-In or Fold: This takes some of the skill part of poker out of the game, but it makes for fast poker. Players can either move all-in or fold every hand. It takes a little strategy but mostly helps move some qualifiers and freerolls along more quickly.
- Bankroll Beneficiaries: A very unique feature offered by ACR is Bankroll Beneficiaries. It allows players to designate a person to inherit the funds of their account upon their death or decision to quit playing. It serves as a will of sorts, no matter the amount in play, and can be distributed after a certain period of inactivity.
- Double or Nothing: This software feature is a risky maneuver and ill-advised for players with good bankroll management. It is fun, though, to flip a virtual coin for cash game or tournament winnings – to double up or lose it all with a single flip.
- Play It Safe: Players who are all-in in a hand can choose this feature before the river card hits. They can opt to be paid based on the probability of winning the pot and the pre-assigned cashout value. There is a fee to use the feature, but it can alleviate some of the sweat and chances of bad beats.
- Progressive Payouts: This is a feature unique to ACR Poker in which a player in a tournament can cash out before they bust. Once a player makes it into the money, they can opt for an immediate min-cash payout and then subsequent payouts at each pay jump.
- Reshuffle: As one of the latest security measures to be implemented, ACR Poker uses the latest technology available to increase game security. When a player folds, their cards are shuffled back into the deck, so players can only see their hole cards when the action is on them. This feature is still in testing mode and only used at PLO4 and PLO5 games thus far.
- Run It Twice: When an all-in happens, both players have the option to hit the “Run It Twice” button to show two runouts of the board. Each runout is worth half the pot, as if it is two separate hands but with the same hole cards.
- Stats Display: Players can use the stats display at the upper right-hand side of the screen during any multi-table tournament to see their data, such as position in the tournament, reentry information, late registration times, etc.
How Tough is the Competition at ACR?
Thanks to generous promotions such as the rakeback program and rake races that reward players for high-volume play, you’re going to find a lot of regulars playing on ACR. This isn’t ideal if you’re looking for a soft game, as you’d rather be on a table full of fish than a table with four other regs all fighting over one recreational player.
However, due to the high amounts of traffic that ACR gets, there’s certainly no shortage of recreational players, so don’t think it’s just a reg-fest. There are plenty of soft games to be found at the microstakes level, but as you move up, you may encounter the games getting tougher and tougher.
ACR Poker Traffic and Network
Not only is the Winning Poker Network one of the largest online poker networks in the world, ACR Poker is the flagship site on the network. This means that the majority of the network’s players log on through ACR. Quite a few people play from Black Chip Poker as well, but ACR is the most popular.
At any given time, there may be several thousand players on ACR, but at peak time on a Sunday – the busiest poker day of the week – there can easily be 20,000 players logged in.
The good thing about high traffic on the site and network is that the masses of players demand more cash games, which translates into a greater variety of games and stakes. There are more satellites into tournaments – both live and online events – than ever before. And the growth rate of the network has prompted WPN to add more freerolls than it ever offered in the past. There are multiple freeroll tournaments every day of the week.
Some players prefer smaller sites, as they believe that the fields will be softer and easier to profit from. However, the larger poker platforms present many more opportunities to find the soft games, to weave through tournaments and find the casual players. Of course, sites like ACR Poker bring many pros and semi-pro players to the tables as well, but that is a part of the overall environment that benefits the greatest number of players.
It is sometimes difficult to determine exactly how many players are on the Winning Poker Network at any given time, as WPN does not allow its sites to be tracked by systems that compare poker traffic. However, ACR and its sister sites do display the number of players online at all times with a counter at the bottom of the lobby.
Deposit and Withdrawal Options
Payment options are essential to any online gambling site, and ACR offers plenty of different choices. All of your transactions are secure thanks to the encryption used by ACR, and players can report all suspicious activity via the security form on their website. Here are the payment methods you have at your disposal for depositing and withdrawing money from ACR:
Person to Person:
This is the simplest form of depositing and withdrawing money with ACR. You will need to contact the ACR support team to get a confirmation number and figure out where to send your funds. This is the only withdrawal option for certain US players.
Credit/Debit Card:
If you don’t want to go through the trouble of doing a person-to-person deposit or withdrawal at ACR, you can use your Visa credit or debit card. For added protection, you can use their Entropay system to provide a layer of security between your card and the site.
Bitcoin and Other Cryptocurrencies:
With cryptocurrencies and crypto poker becoming so popular, ACR now accepts more than 60 different coins. The main one is Bitcoin, but you can use others as well. Most players use these cryptocurrencies as a withdrawal or deposit method.
Electronic Wallets:
Electronic wallet services like Skrill, Neteller, and EcoPayz are also available for some people on ACR. These options may not be available for everyone, and PayPal is not supported for direct deposits. Instead, you can use PayPal to buy BTC and deposit that.
Below, we’ve posted a full breakdown of the payment methods at ACR, including the minimum and maximum deposit/withdrawal limits and withdrawal times.
| Payment Method | Min Deposit | Min Withdrawal | Max Deposit | Max Withdrawal | Withdrawal Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EcoPayz, Skrill and Neteller | $10 | $50 | $25,000 | $10,000 | 1-24 hours |
| Visa, MasterCard, Amex, and Discover | $10 | N/A | Varies by card type and location. | N/A | N/A |
| Player Transfer | $50 | N/A | $500 | N/A | N/A |
| Bitcoin / Crypto Transfer | $10 | $50 | $25,000 | $10,000 | 1-8 hours |
| Checks | N/A | $50 | N/A | $3000 | Up to 8 weeks |
| MoneyGram | N/A | $50 | N/A | $350 | 3-7 business days |
Security
Our ACR review determined that security is the site’s top priority, which is why they had an independent company called iTech Labs look closely at their random number generator (RNG). This RNG is what ACR uses to randomize each table you play at; it determines how the cards are shuffled and distributed.
There have been some accusations that ACR is a rigged poker site. Still, the investigation by iTech Labs concluded that the random number generator is working fine and is reliable and secure.
In addition, ACR has a strict policy against sharing players’ personal information. It has a security team who closely guards all money and information and monitors the tables. If their team suspects any players of colluding, they will investigate the situation and deal with offenders swiftly. To further protect the game’s integrity, players using the same IP address won’t be able to sit at the same table.
If you notice anything suspicious or unusual, you can always contact customer support and let them know.
What is Missing from ACR Poker?
While the WPN manifesto claims transparency is a part of its promise, ACR Poker and its sister sites are sometimes non-responsive to player complaints and concerns. When players reach out with concerns about bots and unethical play, or tournament cancellations due to site maintenance or hacking, ACR representatives could be more forthcoming with apologies and information. Better yet, there should be follow-up with the entire poker community.
To welcome new players, ACR could use more poker education tools. From poker hand rankings to game fundamentals like bet sizing and position play, ACR could provide help to bring new players in and keep them there.
ACR Poker Network and License Information
ACR Poker operates under parent company WPN and on the Winning Poker Network platform. ACR, formerly Americas Cardroom, is the flagship (main) site on the network.
The Winning Poker Network does not show evidence of a current gambling or igaming license certification in Costa Rica or other gaming jurisdiction. ACR’s terms and conditions document states that the company operates “in accordance with the laws of Costa Rica” and under “the license issued under Curacao law International Processor Services, S.A.” However, there is no record of a current license in Curacao.
WPN does have a certification from iTech Labs for maintaining a viable and tested random number generator (RNG). The RNG generates random numbers for online games and virtual shuffling for card games. “iTech Labs has found that the card sequences are unpredictable, non-repeatable and uniformly distributed.” This certificate pertains to SJH Studio software, operated by WPN, and is dated April 24, 2023.
Are 3rd Party Programs Supported?
In 2021, ACR Poker included some player protections in a substantial software update, protections that included the ban of External Assistance Tools (EATs). It bans software that gives some players an unfair advantage by way of scraping data and helping their users take advantage of weaker players. The prohibition is built into the software client.
The list of prohibited tools is in the Winning Poker Network security policy, and it includes:
- Bots and automatic players
- Any program that gives advice on how to play in real time or provides automatic pot odds, outs, or hand strength
- Any tool or software that offers real-time advice (RTA) on how to play that reduces or eliminates the player’s own decision-making process
- Programs that calculate ICM, Nash Equilibrium, expected value (EV), and game theory-optimal (GTO) actions and used in real time
- Auto or semi-auto hand-action-chart retrieval software for preflop or post-flop play
- Services that allow users to navigate extensive preflop and post-flop charts
- Hole-card-sharing tools
- Any software that collects, scrapes, or observes data-mined hands without a player’s permission
- Software that reserves or secures seats or nicknames or labels players as targets
- Any third-party tool, piece of software, or source material not developed by ACR that “allows players to gain an unfair advantage”
The security policy of WPN continues to evolve as technology evolves.
Customer Service
ARC Poker offers a virtual assistant the live chat function, which starts as an automated assistant but can direct queries to live customer service representatives for complicated matters. The FAQ page is also a resource for answering many questions.
Conclusion
Players have come to see and depend on ACR Poker as a staple of US online poker. In a world where operators are expected to be licensed in every state, country, and jurisdiction, poker players are left with few options, which is where ACR steps in.
The sites on the Winning Poker Network have been trusted by players for decades, but ACR has grown as the flagship site, always payout out its players and listening to feedback. While there are concerns about the lack of a license from a global poker regulator, ACR continues to do right by its players.
As with any poker site or company, there are areas that need improvement, such as the aforementioned transparency about bots and security concerns. However, ACR is also one of the few sites that does communicate with players, does listen to feedback, and puts its CEO in front of issues.
When online poker companies – most with good reason – deserted US players, ACR Poker and its sister sites of WPN stepped in and have held the line ever since. It is a dependable poker option for American players and many others across the world.
Is ACR not for you? Here’s what other users recommended:
WHAT DO OTHER PLAYERS SAY ABOUT ACR POKER
FAQs
As of 2014, rakeback can be collected once per day.
The site does not accept players from Delaware, Maryland, Nevada, Louisiana, Kentucky, Washington State and New Jersey.
ACR offers reload bonuses a few times a year – the terms are the same as your first deposit, however, the amounts will vary.
There are several noteworthy pro poker players that both play at and endorse ACR. The list includes:
- Chris Moneymaker
- Ana Marquez
- Chris Moorman
- Katie Lindsay
- Jon Van Fleet
- Robert Kuhn
The level of play at ACR is quite competitive. As we mentioned above, there are poker professionals that play at ACR and there are some aspiring professionals as well. Inexperienced players should be wary that the level of competition will be quite tough. Granted, this also depends what poker game you are playing, and what stakes you are playing for.
Bots have been an issue for all online poker operators, but ACR has implemented a couple systems to fight back against them. ACR has developed a Google Captcha, and a Transparent and Verifiable Banned Account Policy.
Absolutely! If you utilized your skills and were able to come out of a poker room a winner, take a look at the ACR withdrawal services to discover how you can collect your winnings.
