Ultimate Poker (UP), the first and still the only regulated online poker site to get up and running in Nevada, revealed a couple tidbits about its upcoming VIP program late last week. The highlight, as posted by Ultimate Poker representative Scott “Scottyy” Yeates on Two Plus Two, is that the site will use the “Winner Take All” (WTA) method of VIP point distribution.
WTA is a method not seen much in the online poker industry, so this simple announcement has drawn some interest in the poker community. To review, there have traditionally been two types of VIP point distribution methods used in online poker: the “dealt” method and the “weighted contributed” method. With the dealt method, each player who is dealt cards in a hand receives an equal share of the VIP points for that hand (the points are based off the rake taken from the pot), regardless of whether or not they placed bet. This method, which has been going by the wayside in recent years, is a favorite of tight, multi-tabling players, as they can still reap plenty of rewards without putting much money at risk.
The more popular method nowadays, weighted contributed, awards points to players in proportion of how much money they put into the pot. Thus, if Player A contributed $5, Player B contributed $3, and Player C contributed $2 to a $10 pot, Player A would receive half the VIP points for that hand, Player B would receive 30 percent, and Player C would receive 20 percent. This is generally seen as a fairly equitable way of chopping up the points, as it rewards those who actually created action.
As for Ultimate Poker’s method, it’s just what it sounds like. With Winner Take All, the player who wins the pot gets all the VIP points. To many, this makes perfect sense, as since the house takes rake from the winner’s pot, the winner should naturally get the VIP points relating to said rake.
Poker player and UP rep Terrance Chan said of the WTA method on Two Plus Two, “If you are a multitabler with an 8% VPIP, you’re not going to get rewarded as much simply because you won’t win very many pots.”
“When you ask people what makes a game good, they generally say a loose-passive game with people calling off stacks. The plan is to reward the weak players who go to showdown often and keep them in action. Nits need not apply,” he added.
In addition to the VIP point distribution method, Yeates also gave a small bit of insight as to how the VIP program would be structured. He said there will be ten VIP levels in total, comprised of two yearly and eight monthly levels. At the bottom level, a player will earn 10 points for winning a pot that had $1 in rake taken. When the player pays $2 in rake for the month, he will move up to the second level, upon which he will receive 20 points for the same raked hand.
The new VIP program is expected to be rolled out upon the release of the next version of Ultimate Poker’s software. The Nevada Gaming Control Board is scheduled to hold a meeting on Thursday, July 25th, during which it will consider final approval for UP’s software.
