ACR poker review

ACR, or America’s Card Room, was the first iteration of the Winning Poker Network way back in 2001. At the time, it was one of only a handful of real money poker sites due to the mainstream popularity of poker only being in its infancy. After four years with its initial Dobrosoft software platform, ACR moved to the larger OnGame network. This partnership only lasted 2 years before they jumped ship to the Yatahay Network.

Upon joining the Yatahay Network, the “America’s Card Room” name was shelved in favor of the already-established True Poker. This was a relatively small network until the events of Black Friday hit in 2011, forcing the closure of many of the big-name sites. Rather than pull out of the US market, the decision was made to rebrand back to the Winning Poker Network and have America’s Card Room as its flagship site – bringing us to where we are today.

PROS AND CONS

While it would be nice to find an online poker room that only had positives, that’ll never happen. Therefore, it’s important to recognize that sites aren’t perfect and to consider any potential flaws when choosing whether or not to deposit on a site. This is why we’re open and transparent with our readers about each site’s pros and cons.

POKER GAME SELECTION

Due to its high level of traffic, there are plenty of games to choose from on ACR. There are tournaments and sit and gos starting all the time and plenty of cash tables running 24/7. There’s also a large variety of games to go along with the action at ACR. Different types of tournaments and SNGs and a selection of mixed-game cash games are available. I’m the kind of player that likes to dabble in a lot of different games as the mood strikes me, so having the range of options was nice.

CASH GAMES

While ACR is often touted for its incredible tournament schedule, it’s no slouch in the cash game streets. Hold’em players will find stakes running from $0.01/$0.02 all the way up to $200/$400 for both 9max and 6max tables, so whatever your bankroll situation, you’ll be able to play.

There are tables with special game features for you to try, such as CAP games, short buy-in games, and a product unique to ACR: 7-day no rathole tables. These tables do not let you take money off the table and rejoin if you’re winning for a whole week. Many online poker players like to hit-and-run tables and then go back to 100bb poker once their stacks get too big; these tables are designed to combat that and let players battle it out with deep stacks.

ACR is also one of the first sites to introduce bomb pots and live straddles into their online cash games. These games were a hell of a lot of fun to play and reminded me of playing live poker. They create a lot of action, which I love, and bring an extra dimension to the game that’s often missing from online cash games.

There is a version of fast-fold poker called Blitz Poker, where players are grouped into a pool and randomly assigned seats at a table when a hand starts; as soon as they fold, they’re taken from that table and moved to a new one. These games run from $0.05/$0.10 up to $5/$10 limits.

If you’re more of a fan of mixed games, ACR has you covered with a choice of Omaha, Omaha Hi-Lo, Stud, and Stud Hi-Lo. The Omaha games run from $0.01/$0.02 up to $200/$400 and have the same features as the Hold’em games, including the CAP and 7-day no rathole tables. The stud games have a narrower stake range as they are offered between $0.04/$0.08 and $40/$80.

SIT AND GOS

For players looking for a large selection of sit and gos to choose from, ACR is the site for you. It has SNGs running from $0.55 to $215 in 6max and 9max formats. Unfortunately, the heads-up sit and gos have been removed from the site, which I found disappointing. Even without those, though, there are still lots of game types to choose from, like satellite SNGs, Steps SNGs, multi-table SNGs, PLO, and Omaha Hi-Lo SNGs,

as well as a choice of blind lengths (regular, turbo, and hyper). For fans of KO tournament poker, there is even a range of Knockout SNGs to play.

Sit and gos have evolved a lot since their inception. One of the most significant leaps forward has been the Jackpot SNG. In this sit-and-go, the tables are made up of three players, and the prize on offer is chosen randomly. Sometimes the prize will be as low as 2x the buy-in, with the possibility of 2500x your buy-in. The buy-ins for these jackpot SNGs range from $2 all the way up to $60, with the jackpot prize pool for the $60 buy-in being $150,000! However, there are three special buy-in levels that give players the chance of a $1,000,000 prize pool!

Play any of the $5, $15, or $50 jackpot sit and gos, and give yourself a chance to walk away with life-changing money. These were the ones I played the most–who can resist the shot at a cool million? The default prize breakdown of these jackpots is 75% for first, 15% for second, and 10% for third; however, if all players agree to a deal, then it can be split 40/30/30 instead. There is even a feature on the site that will keep buying you into these SNGs if you’re trying to grind them, saving time in tournament lobbies.

POKER TOURNAMENTS

Arguably the best part of ACR’s game selection is its tournament schedule. I couldn’t spend time playing on ACR without jumping into their tournament lobby, and let me tell you, it does not disappoint. With $12 million in guarantees every week and a $1 million guaranteed tournament every Sunday to rival the Sunday Million. Not content with offering insanely large guarantees every week, ACR also hosts tournament series throughout the year and some of the largest guarantee tournaments in online poker history.

The Jewel in the crown of ACR’s weekly tournament schedule is its Sunday tournament, Million Dollar Sunday, a $215 straight freezeout tournament with a $1,000,000 guarantee. Tournaments like this are why people love multi-table tournament poker. With the chance of winning over $100,000 in one night from as little as $2, if you’re able to satellite in, it’s the stuff that dreams are made of. In addition, satellites run for this tournament throughout the week, giving you ample opportunity to earn a seat in this tourney.

For players with a slightly smaller bankroll, consider the Double Deuce. Running alongside the Million Dollar Sunday tournament, the Double Deuce is a $22 buy-in tournament with a $100,000 guaranteed prize pool. There are thousands of runners in this event every week, and the prize pool often exceeds the guarantee, giving you even more to play for.

I can’t talk about tournament poker at ACR without mentioning the Venom Series. These tournaments run four times a year (January, April, July, and October), with two being Progressive KO tournaments and the others regular tournaments. The PKO tournaments this year (2022) are posting a $5 million guarantee, whereas the regular format Venom tournaments have a whopping $10 million guarantee with at least $1 million guaranteed for first place. No other site runs tournaments like this as often as this.

The one criticism levied at ACR tournaments is their very long late registration times. Most players can’t commit 10+ hours to a tournament, with the late registration periods alone going longer than tournaments on other sites! However, ACR seems to be addressing this issue in some of its marquee events, such as the Double Deuce, by removing late registration altogether.

WHAT’S IT LIKE TO PLAY?

Now that you’re a little more familiar with the types of games on offer at ACR, let’s take a look at its software. Unlike other poker sites, ACR only allows you to play on a downloadable poker client and does not offer players the ability to play directly in their browser.

However, it does have a downloadable poker client that you can install on your computer, so let’s take a closer look at what it’s like to play on it.

POKER CLIENT

One of the first things you notice about the ACR poker software is how clean and sleek it looks. Anyone who’s read my other reviews knows how much I love a dark theme, so the black ACR lobby gets extra marks from me.

As well as looking great, it’s also really easy to use, which is a great plus. Whether you’re looking to play one of ACR’s famous MTTs or withdraw some of your winnings, you’ll have no problem navigating the site.

When it comes to playing poker, you’ll find that the table is just as sleek and modern as the poker lobby. There’s no other way to say it – the table looks fantastic; everything is clearly laid out, the cards are a good size, and there are plenty of features that make grinding much easier.

Having the “Run It Twice” option right there on the side of the table is particularly useful, as that option is usually tucked away deep in the settings, meaning you have to manually change it depending on your situation. Having it right there means you can easily decide to run it twice in one hand, and then run it once the next.

One thing that I also love is the ability to change your bet buttons, which you can do so from the site settings. As someone who likes to play a lot of cash games, the ability to edit my bet buttons to make raising and betting that much quick is a God-send, it may seem like a small thing, but it really adds up over time.

As you can see from the image above, there are a number of different settings you can change in the ACR poker client, including the table theme, your preferred seat at the table, and a host of other gameplay-related settings.

Another interesting feature that you don’t often see is a dedicated poker staking section. Here you can buy pieces of players who are selling action in tournaments, and even sell pieces of yourself. Players are free to charge whatever markup they feel appropriate, and any winnings you earn from staking will be directly deposited into your account.

Even though I’m not much of a tournament player, I think this is a great feature, as it allows players to take shots in tournaments that would otherwise be outside of their bankroll. Plus, it allows you to make money by backing players you believe to be winning players, letting you reap the benefits of their good play.

In short, if you’re looking to play a lot of volume, it’s hard to find a better poker client than ACR. They have a number of features that make allow you to make the grinding experience as stress-free as possible – allowing you to save all your stress for the game!

FEATURES OF THE SITE

I think there are a number of features that make ACR stand out from its competitors, so let’s take a look at what those are.

• Restricted Table Names – One of the ways that ACR is combating bum-hunting is by implementing nameless tables until you take a seat and add your stack to the table. This means that sharks can’t load up tables until they find the fish, they need to actually sit down at the table beforehand.
• Large Variety Of Settings – One of the things I love the most about the ACR software is the huge variety of settings available. You can change the table design, your preferred seat at the table, and much more – you can even remove the annoying side games from the table! All of these settings make playing at ACR that much more enjoyable, as you can truly customize your online poker experience.
• Grinder-Friendly Options – Another positive that comes with playing at ACR is the number of grinder-friendly features that make playing long sessions that much easier. The ability to edit your betting buttons, the existence of hotkeys, and the easily accessibly run it twice option makes it a breeze to play multiple tables for a significant amount of time.
• Great Looking Software – Arguably, the best part about the ACR software is how good it looks. You underestimate the effect that a poker client’s design has on your impression of it until you find one that looks terrible. No matter how good the game is, it’s hard to grind on a site that looks awful, which is why it’s such a relief that ACR has such good-looking software.

WHAT IT’S MISSING

While I truly believe that the ACR poker client is one of the best out there, it’s not without its faults. There are a couple of features I’d like to see to improve the software, so let’s take a look at what those are.

• Web Client – The ACR web client is notable by its absence, and while many players prefer to play poker from a downloadable poker client, it would be nice to have the option to play from your browser.
• Poker Options On Homepage – The homepage of the ACR poker client doesn’t allow you to immediately jump into the games and start playing. Instead, it’s used to advertise their current promotions, the ACR pros, and the ACR store. I think it would be better to add a quick play option from the homepage that allows players to jump right into the action.

BONUS AND PROMOTIONS

ACR is well known for its aggressive marketing campaign, which they’ve also brought into its bonuses and promotions. There is always a range of promotions available to new and existing players, with lots of ways to get something for nothing – who doesn’t love that?

DEPOSIT AND WITHDRAWAL OPTIONS

To take advantage of their fantastic promotions and take part in ACR’s impressive tournament schedule, you need to be able to deposit money onto the site–and then withdraw it when you’ve cleaned up. ACR focuses on modern banking methods, with their best options being cryptocurrency and eWallets. In fact, there are around 60 different cryptocurrency options for you when you go to deposit – way more than any other online poker site!

DEPOSITS

Only four deposit options may seem limited, but ACR covers all major deposit methods except bank transfers. I never had an issue getting my money onto the site. They’re really bringing depositing to a poker site into the 21st century, focusing on eWallets and cryptocurrencies.

These deposit options are the most attractive as they’re the quickest to use and do not cost fees. However, using debit/credit cards can cost you fees as high as 10% of your deposit total, so watch out if you’re planning on using them.

WITHDRAWALS

Again, the withdrawal options on ACR are geared more towards the modern format with a broader range of eWallets and crypto options than traditional banking methods. I found these withdrawal methods to be much better, as they’re substantially quicker and have no withdrawal fees.

On the other hand, if you were to withdraw your money by check, you get one free per month, but every check after that costs a $55 fee, and the stop payment fee for any stolen or lost checks is $250. If you want to withdraw your money using MoneyGram, you’ll face substantial fees of $60 for withdrawals between $100-$299 and $70 for withdrawals between $300-$350.

MOBILE GAMING

Following a trend that poker sites have been going down the past few years, ACR doesn’t have a dedicated mobile app that needs to be downloaded. Instead, they have a mobile-optimized website that can be accessed from any tablet or mobile device, no matter its operating system. Considering what some sites look like on your phone, I was pleasantly surprised by how nice the ACR site looked on my cell phone.

However, compared to other poker sites, the mobile version of ACR is very limited. They do not offer the full range of games that they do on the desktop platform. Instead, the focus of the mobile app seems to be on speedy games to match the on-the-go nature of mobile gaming. While I still had fun with the site on my phone, I felt slightly disappointed that there weren’t more options. They currently offer Blitz Poker, Jackpot Poker, and Venom Blitz Satellites.

CUSTOMER SERVICE OPTIONS

There are currently two ways to contact ACR customer service, email and via a virtual assistant. Despite being a bot, the virtual assistant is extremely helpful, and I found it could answer most of the queries I had. There is also an extensive FAQ section that has the answer to almost any question you could have. Suppose you need an answer to a question that hasn’t been covered or have a query about something related to your account. In that case, you can email the support team directly or fill in a form on the support page.

Virtual Assistant: Go to the ACR customer support page and interact with the bot.

Email: support@winningpokernetwork.com or fill out their support form.

WHAT MAKES THIS POKER SITE UNIQUE 

ACR is one of the biggest innovators in online poker right now, so much so that it’s hard to narrow down what makes this site unique! But, if I had to pick one highlight, I’d say their mega-tournaments. If you’re serious about playing tournament poker, you need to add ACR to your grind schedule. With some of the biggest tournaments online poker has ever seen, you have plenty of opportunities to win a life-changing score.

My final thoughts

I think America’s Card Room is a site that does a lot of things very well. For example, it has a wide range of cash game options, despite being best known for its tournaments. I’ve covered in some detail how outstanding their tournament and sit-and-go lineup is, but it’s worth reminding you there are $12 million in guarantees every week!

ACR has one of the best welcome bonuses in online poker, plus rewards for playing cash games and sit and gos – as if there wasn’t enough incentive to do that already!

In addition, there are plenty of options for getting your money on and off the site, with a helpful customer support team on hand if you need them. ACR is one of the most popular poker sites in the world and is one that I highly recommend.

Is ACR not for you? Check out how other poker sites compare: