AK Poker Club – Basic Information
AK Poker Club is an Italian online room that recruits most of its players in offline poker clubs, like other rooms of the network. EnetPoker is basically a kind of cooperation between the Italian rooms, aiming to provide their regulars with the option to play online as well. Consequently, the player pool is entirely different from that of the most of the other rooms, so you should adjust your game accordingly, as well as note that you will be unable to use Hold'em Manager or any other software.
Cash in Options
You can cash in rather similarly to any other poker room: VISA and MasterCard can be used in addition to Moneybookers and Neteller accounts.
Cash out Options
Cashing out is just as easy as cashing in; most popular options include VISA cards and Moneybookers as well as Neteller accounts.
Cash out Limits
This is where extra attention is needed. AK applies an unusually strict cash out limit policy, which may especially concern high stakes players transferring greater amounts of money. No more than €250 can be drawn out of the room at once and no more than €750 a week. Even though three consecutive transfers of €250 can be ordered, meaning you can withdraw €750 in three portions, you can only access €2,000 per month, provided you meet the regulations described below. Unfortunately, cash out limits cannot be raised on any request.
In case you are a high stakes player and you comply with the 1:1 profit:rake rule detailed below, there is a special way to enable cashing out higher amounts. For details, please contact us at info@rakerace.com.
Cash out Requirements and Additional Regulations
General rules of cashing out:
The policy of both the network and AK Poker Club is that each player has to generate rake of at least 30% worth of their withdrawn profit (or, in other words, they cannot cash out more than 3.33 times their generated rake). For instance, if you cashed in €1,000 and won €1,200 while generating “only” €270 in rake, you are allowed to draw out €1,900 (€1,000 cash in + €270x3.33=€900); in order to be able to access the rest of your winnings (€300), you need to generate an additional €90 rake.
Rules applying to major players
First of all, let us define “major players.” AK considers every player “major” who plays at NL400 and higher tables or generates more profit than detailed in the table below. The rule is applied every month and at every cashout, so if you do not want to be considered a "major" player, pay attention to the rules, since once you become one, there is no downgrade.
0 - €1,000 monthly rake = monthly rake+€500 monthly profit,
€1,000 - €3,000 monthly rake = monthly rake+€750 monthly profit,
€3,000 - €10,000 monthly rake = monthly rake+€1,000 monthly profit,
€10,000+ rake+€500 monthly profit is available for "non-major" players.
If a player wins substantially more than the amount of rake they generate, the profit:rake ratio must be 1:1 as regards cashing out.
The room’s intention with this regulation is to protect its weaker player pool that makes it so popular; to defend the fish coming from their clubs and keep the sharks away, to whom this rule is unfavourable. This way, players may draw out only the amount they paid plus a portion of their profit worth their generated rake (in the case mentioned above, for example, this amount would be €4,000 + €1,500). The remainder of their profit becomes accessible only if they generate more rake, according to the 1:1 rule. Although there are some alternatives offered, all of them mean losing some portion of the profit.
The 1:1 rule may consider NL400+ players in the first place, as it is possible to profit much more than the generated rake primarily at these levels. Players complying with the 1:1 rule are allowed to cash out greater amounts than normal.
Whom May the Cash out Regulations Affect Negatively?
Generally speaking, there is no need to pay too much attention to the “penal” 1:1 rule up to NL200 (and especially up to NL100) as you need to have an exceptionally good series to beat the rake so much at these levels in the long run. Although extremely hard to exactly predict and also depending on your individual player style, you generate around 5-7 ptBB/100 in rake at NL100 and under, but even if you are good enough to make it 10 ptBB/100, there is still nothing to worry about.
The 1:1 rule may affect NL400+ players above all. In case you planned to play at this level, be prepared to accept that in exchange for the weaker player pool, you might encounter certain cash out limits and there is a good chance you will need to rake some of your profit.
Why does Rakerace.com still recommend AK Poker Club?
Although problems might come up in certain cases, we firmly believe that the weaker player pool compensates you enormously for these. Moreover, most people are unlikely to encounter either cash out issues or the 1:1 rule so they can play with the weaker Italian players and need not to worry.
For major players, we suggest that you give it a try and decide whether it is worth playing at the room despite the 1:1 rule. According to earlier feedback, many consider it an option to choose AK Poker Club for the long term, even with the regulations. Of course, we have also heard contrary opinions; we do suggest you try and decide for yourself.
If you have any questions, feel free to contact us at info@rakerace.com
AK Poker Club Room Review
