Ultimate Bet Poker Review

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The Quick Summary

UltimateBet has undergone a tremendous renovation since the merge with Absolute Poker to form the Cereus Network. All new graphics, bigger tournaments, better cash game table selection, and improved security has players coming back to UltimateBet to check out this overhauled poker room. Their first time deposit bonus of 111% up to $1,100 is easily the best deal being offered, and currently their 75% reload bonus up to $650 is amongst the most aggressive in the online poker industry.

Popularity: 7 of 10 - Good

According to PokerScout.com the Cereus Network averages approximately 2,300 players at any given time, making it the 7th rated network in the world and the 3rd highest rated amongst those that accept players from the United States. UltimateBet puts a good amount of money into print and online advertising which has helped keep the site's traffic fairly stable. SNG and MTT players will be really happy with the wide variety of tournaments available, and cash game players will have no trouble finding a ton of $50 NL tables (which is where the bad beat jackpot starts).

Security: 4 of 10 - Fair

If I could give this score an incomplete I would, but the facts remain that both UltimateBet and Absolute Poker, which make up the Cereus Network, both are the center of the biggest poker scandal in history. Sources from around the industry have hailed the changes within both organizations as being extremely positive, however a recent scandal of pots going in the wrong direction (specifically one involving Phil Hellmuth) was uncovered at the 2+2 forums. Are the days of superusers and glitches in software over at Ultimatebet? Time will only tell.

Player Competition: 8 of 10 - Good

It's funny how different the competition can be from site to site. UltimateBet's competition is easily some of the softest around amongst the non-regulars whether you play SNGs or if you play cash game poker at $100 NL and below. Specifically if you really want to see a lot of fish at cash game pokers, hit up the $50 games because people will simply play those tables (well outside of their bankroll's limits) to get a chance at the bad beat jackpot.

Site Software: 7 of 10 - Good

The recent upgrades to the software at UltimateBet software have improved the experience at the table. There's a new traditional top-down view that users can choose, as well as have the ability to upload your own avatar picture similar to what Pokerstars allows you to do. The lobby has been improved and allows some good filters, although I was not happy that $100NL cash game tables were mashed together with $2NL tables in the same "low stakes filter" which made it very hard to sort through tables at specific level of play by a figure such as number of players to the flop. That being said the software is improved from where it was about a year ago.

Customer Support: 7 of 10 - Good

I sent in a couple of emails to test out the response time of UltimateBet's customer service. My first email regarding my account status and cashier question was answered well within a 24-hour period, so I was rather impressed that the matter and question was handled quickly and professionally. The second email I sent in wasn't in direct regard to my account, and I still haven't gotten a response back regarding that email (a span of 72 hours).

Company Ethics: 5 of 10 - OK

Again this goes back to the realm of security and with UltimateBet their history is definitely tainted. There's no denying that with internal sources hacking their own software for the purpose of revealing hole cards is about as low on the ethnical totem pole as you can get. In defense of UltimateBet, once their internal review was completed, they were forthcoming about the incident and worked to resolve the holes in their software and security process.

Site Promotions: 9 of 10 - Excellent

UltimateBet offers the best first time deposit going (110%) as well as the best reload deposit available (75%) meaning you bonus whores out there will love UB's promotions. In addition they have a bad beat jackpot that's the most aggressive in the industry that has given away as much as $170,000 for one single bad beat to the winner (the giver of the beat, people at the table, as well as everyone playing at that cash game level all receive a prize as well).

Overall Review: 6.7 of 10 - Good

The main negative points about UltimateBet are all in its past, and if you believe the company has done everything they needed to do to make the site trustworthy again, then UltimateBet's positives make it a viable alternative for US players against Pokerstars and FullTilt Poker. There's a decent amount of traffic at the site now that it's merged into the Cereus Network, and the recent software upgrades make the site a little more fun to interface with. Given the amazing bonuses they offer it's not a bad place to start off and build a bankroll off of the bonuses.