Expert Consensus
We were thoroughly impressed by Black Chip Poker as they have a fantastic array of games and a great welcome bonus. We were excited to discover that new players can claim a 100% deposit match worth up to $2,000!
Black Chip Poker is the home of the Nano Online Super Series, too, which features $250,000 in guarantees over 200 micro tournaments with entries as low as $5.50. Elsewhere on the site, there are cash games for every bankroll. Having recently put on a $25 million guaranteed PKO event, big games are always taking place on BCP.
Black Chip Poker Information
About Black Chip Poker
We found that Black Chip Poker has been around since 2008 and was doing just fine for the first four years of its existence, rapidly making a name for itself as a reliable poker room with plenty of options in terms of payments, the types of online poker you can play, the format of tournaments and the stakes you’re playing for, while boasting some good bonuses and other rewards.
But a key date for them was December 2012, the month they moved from the decent but somewhat limited Merge Network to the Winning Poker Network. This has allowed it to enjoy what is the poker equivalent of an economy of scale.
We think this is great as it means that players at Black Chip Poker could be sitting at the same table as those who have accounts at some of Canada’s other biggest poker sites, meaning you’re never in a position where you can’t get a game.
It also meant that players could benefit from faster payouts and an improved level of customer service. Add in a fine welcome bonus, lucrative rake-back offers, and a few other benefits and you’ve got yourself a seriously good place to hit the tables. Despite that, we were disappointed that their software is only available for Windows devices at present.
For good measure, players at Black Chip Poker can also place bets on sports and in three different online casino sites (one for online slots, one for table games, and one live casino). The account is the same, but the wallets are separate, though you can easily transfer money from one wallet to another.
Pros
- Part of the popular and reputable Poker Winning Network.
- Endless types of Poker available to play.
- Huge variety of cash games and tournaments.
- The Beast promo is an excellent and profitable rake race.
- Always lots of other Black Chip poker players online and ready to play.
- Double up on welcome bonus when using Bitcoin.
Cons
- Only works on Windows computers, not Mac.
- No mobile version available.
Expert Testimonial
Black Chip Poker really impressed us with their selection of tournaments and fantastic welcome bonus.
Welcome Bonus and Promotions at Black Chip Poker
We were pleased to discover that they have a generous welcome casino bonus, Black Chip Poker offers you a 100% match bonus up to $2,000. For example, if your first deposit is $100, Black Chip will double it to $200, which will be paid out in $1 increments as you play. For every $1 USD you spend in poker games, you’ll receive 5.5 Award Points. Once you earn 27.5 APs ($5 USD), you’ll get $1 from your welcome bonus. This acts in place of a wagering requirement, where you’ll have to spend a certain amount multiplied by the amount of your bonus before you are able to cash out.
The minimum deposit to claim this bonus is $25, and you have 60 days from claiming to release your bonus money.
Promotions at Black Chip Poker
We were particularly impressed by the spread of promotions available to players at Black Chip Poker. These bonuses can really help to boost your bankroll when playing real money online poker in Canada:
Weekly Promotions
We should start with The Beast, arguably the best-known rake race in Canadian Poker. The best thing about it is that you don’t need to do absolutely anything in terms of taking part. No opt-in required, no need to fulfill certain requirements. If you’re playing poker at Black Chip Poker, you’re automatically signed up for it.
Then just carry on playing as per usual on whatever cash games you like, for whatever amounts you like. Every $0.02 CAD fed to the Beast gives you 1 point and all these points are added up together on the leaderboard, which is regularly updated. At the end of the week (each edition of The Beast runs from Friday at midnight to the following Friday at midnight) you’ll get paid out in cash and other prizes according to your position on the leaderboard before it’s reset and it all starts again.
Their ‘Sit and Crush’ promo is similar to the Beast in terms of structure but applies to Sit and Go tournaments, rather than cash games.
Going back to new players and they’ll be allowed to enter the New Depositor Freerolls of the month, where each one has a prize pool of $250 CAD.
But there’s plenty more going on and it’s constantly changing so just keep an eye on their Promotions page or sign up to their newsletter, so you never miss a thing.
VIP Programs
Loyalty goes a long way and the more loyal you are when it comes to playing poker here, the more you get back here at BCP.
There are six levels to their Elite Benefits VIP program, ranging from Player (the lowest) to Icon (the highest). You get points awarded to you for any cash game (don’t worry, you’ll still be participating in The Beast promo in addition to getting Loyalty Points) or tournament you play in.
All the points you get can either be redeemed for entry tickets to tournaments, cash prizes, or purchases at their online store.
Special Promotions
We’ve mentioned The Beast and Sit and Crush already and to this list, we can add the High Five October Series where the 5-day tournament includes 25 events and a guaranteed $420,000 CAD in prize pools. Buy-ins can cost as little as $1 CAD (+0.10) to $500 CAD (+0.50).
If you’re looking for a little bit of a boost to your bank, you’re best off depositing at the beginning of the month or somewhere in the middle rather than at the end as that’s when they offer reload bonuses.
Game Types at Black Chip Poker
As we touched on right at the very beginning, being part of such a popular and active network as the Winning Poker Network means there are no shortage of players out there looking for a game. So, you’d have to be very unlucky if there was a type of poker games you wanted to play where you had to wait around for players to come and sit down at your table.
We found that most of the poker available here is Texas Hold’em as you’d expect, but there are plenty of other options available as well, including 7 Card Stud, Omaha and 3 Card Draw.
Cash Games
If you’re on a shoestring budget, we think that you’ll still find more than enough low-stakes games available to meet your needs. At the higher end of the scale, you can play for 30 or 60 bucks, but this can still be considered more of a medium-stakes card house rather than a high-roller one.
Types of Texas Hold’em include No limit, Pot Limit, and Fixed Limit Hold’em, while there’s also Omaha and Omaha Hi, 7 Card Stud, and 7 Card Stud Hi-Lo.
Poker Tournaments / Sit ‘n’ Goes
There are far too many types of tournaments to cover in detail here but they include Sit and Go Satellites, Bounty Tournaments, Time-Based Tournaments, Double or Nothing SNGs (you double up if you’re in the top half among players), and Hand-Based Tournaments. Staying with the theme, all of these tournaments cater to all manner of budgets.
Mobile Gaming Options
We were disappointed to discover that Black Chip Poker isn’t available as a mobile poker site at all. Furthermore, we found that Black Chip Poker’s software doesn’t work on Mac OS computers. We hope Black Chip Poker will expand their availability in the near future.
Banking Methods at Black Chip Poker
We always believe that a range of deposit and withdrawal methods is crucial for the success of any poker site. Overall, we were pleased with their range of payment methods and the speed of deposits and withdrawals.
Deposits
There aren’t quite as many options available as at some other Canadian sites but there are still more than enough. We’ve mentioned Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies already but there’s also Visa, Mastercard, Amex and Discover in terms of credit/debit cards, checks and of course E-Wallets. It’s always best to check what the minimum and max deposits are per payment option and whether there are any fees associated with them. If in doubt, check the terms and conditions or ask customer service.
Withdrawals
We found that BCP does cover withdrawal charges if you’re using Western Union and MoneyGram deposits but not withdrawals using them. They do have a reputation for being super quick when it comes to giving you your money but bear in mind that if you want to be paid by check, it will still take a couple of weeks. Again, see which methods are quickest and incur fewer changes so you get the best experience.
Black Chip Poker Safety and Security
The random deal of cards is determined by Random Number Generator (RNG) software. We found that this has been audited by Technical Systems Testing, which is part of the respected Gaming Labs International. We do wish that Black Chip Poker held a license, but they are part of the Winning Poker Network which has a great reputation.
We were pleased to see that they have a detailed privacy policy, responsible gaming tools, and use SSL encryption for connections.
Customer Support Options
Got a problem? No problem. Contact customer service using a toll-free phone, by filling out a web form by e-mail or better still, get in touch via live chat, which is quick, efficient and of course, also free. We found that the customer support agents were quick to answer any and all questions we had.
They also have a good social media presence so there’s plenty of useful information on the likes of Twitter about updates, new promos or any ongoing issues with the site.
