In my last article, I discussed trials and tribulations of not making an online deposit. Now, I’ll discuss the alternative method of starting out on an online poker site. Making a deposit.

Now I’m sure that you already know that the poker sites want you to make a deposit. In fact, they prefer it. There’s nothing like injecting new money in the their poker cash cow. They entice you will first time deposit freerolls and deposit bonuses. Who can turn away an opportunity to get free money? The best part about making an initial deposit is that you don’t have to deal with spending hours and hours of playing freeroll poker in order to build up a bankroll. I think is safe to say the deposited is like ordering fast food instead of spending all of that time cooking a home cooked meal…

But wait; doesn’t a home cooked meal taste better than fast food? Overall, yes. Making a deposit does have its drawbacks and a nasty side, which I’ll discuss in a bit. Even though not making a deposit and trying to make a bankroll is extremely difficult and time consuming, it’s also a crucial step in developing your game. I know plenty of players that make deposits, forgo the freeroll process, lose all of their deposit, and have to make more deposits (reloads) time and time again. At some point, the player will eventually gain the stills necessary to sustain a bankroll without needing to make another deposit, but these skills have come at a cost. (Out of pocket loss). It’s like paying to get a college education, while freerolling your way to a bankroll is like going to college on a scholarship.

Then there’s that nasty side of not making a deposit. Some poker sites (I won’t mention their names, but you know who they are…) won’t activate their player points (points that you earn by playing real money games, which could then be used to for cash tournaments or items from their respective stores) unless you’ve made an initial deposit! Even worse, most sites wont let you cash out any winnings started from freerolls unless you make a deposit. The point I’m trying to make here is that there really isn’t a way out of making a deposit. The only question is WHEN you will deposit!

Saying all of that, I do believe the best way to handle this situation is to make an initial deposit when you first sign up for a poker site. That way you’ll get credit for all of the player point that you’ll earn, you’ll get to play in a nice deposit freeroll, and you’ll go though the process of validating your account. But, (here’s the catch in my strategy) you DO NOT touch your deposited money until you have created an equal amount of money through freerolls. Now once you’ve achieved this goal though freerolls and freeroll funds (again, a painful, but essential process), you’ll then make your very first withdrawal of your initial deposit! You’ll then have your freeroll bankroll, bonus deposit cash, and all of your player points! I consider this strategy the best of both worlds.