Most online casinos regularly offer promotions to its players to enable them to win additional prizes. The most interesting of these promotions are online tournaments. There are broadly two types of events both of which are referred to as tournaments in the promotion pages of online casino web sites. These are diverse events suited to different types of online players. Therefore players need to have a complete and correct understanding of these events before they participate. In order to maintain the differentiation one will be referred to as online tournament and the other as wagering contest.
Players have to pay a fee to enter an online tournament and themost of they can lose is the amount of the fee. The fee may be a onetime payment or in rebuy online tournaments players can pay the fee multiple times to enhance their performance. The chip stack to be used in the online tournament is provided by the casino. It the remains the property of the online casino and can be used for wagering in the tournament only. The balance chips left with the players at the end of the tournament have to be returned to the online casino. The players are not allowed to wager with their own bankroll in the online tournament.In order to maintain as much of a level playing field as possible the online casinos try and maintain identical conditions for the players. They start with the same chip stack and play for the same duration and often on the same online casino game. The winners of the online tournament are the players who end up with the largest chip stacks. It does not matter if the chip stack is less than what day started with, what is important is that it must be greater than that of the other players. Players who end up in the designated number of top players share the prize pool. Usually the prize pool consists of the sum total of the entry fees received by the online casino less a small amount for administrative costs. These prizes are usually credited to the winners’ cash accounts and can be withdrawn by them.
There is no entry fee charged for wagering contests, though some online casinos require players to register for the event. The players wager with their own funds. The funds left with the players after the wagering contest, including the amounts won, are the property of the player. If the player loses funds during the wagering contest then he is not compensated by the online casino. The deciding criterion is the amount wagered by the player and not the amount won. Some online casinos specify a list of games for the wagering contest, whereas others leave the choice completely to the player. In wagering contests the prize pool is always provided by the online casinos. The players who wager the most and finish on top of the leader board share the prize pool. The prizes are usually treated as bonuses and wagering requirements could apply.
Players participating in wagering competitions should realize that in the excitement of topping the leader board it is very easy to wager much more than one can afford. High rollers should not wager more than their usual bankrolls. If they win the wagering competition then it is a bonus otherwise they have enjoyed the wagering. Low rollers should avoid wagering contests altogether. For them online tournaments is the better option.
