Sports betting and casino giant DraftKings has launched a true player-vs-player online poker game called Electric Poker in Michigan. It could go down as one of the most important developments in US online poker in the last decade.
Players with an existing DraftKings Casino Michigan account can find the game in the casino lobby, on desktop or on mobile. Michigan online poker players who don’t yet have a DraftKings account can sign up today.
By signing up to play DraftKings Poker through our link, you can also claim a special Play $1, Get $100 Casino Credits instant bonus. However, at the time of writing, that $100 casino credits bonus cannot be used to play Electric Poker, however, any winnings derived from play using the bonus can be used at the Electric Poker tables.
And right now, we’re guessing these games are going to be very soft.
- True player-vs-player online poker game available today at DraftKings Casino Michigan.
- Electric Poker is a three-handed, winner-takes-all sit and go tournament.
- Plays like Spin and Go and Blast Poker, with random prize chosen at the start.
- “Electric Mode” forces all-in after 3 to 6 blind levels.
- Buy-ins of $1, $5, $10 and $25.
- Available on desktop and mobile, with four-table multi-tabling supported.
- Top 10,000 multiplier means a top prize of $250,000.
Don’t be put off by the fact that Electric Poker is in the casino lobby. This is not a casino game where you play against the house: it is a true real money online poker game, where you will play against two other real opponents and compete for a real money cash prize.
Electric Poker is a lottery or “jackpot” sit and go game, like PokerStars Spin and Go or WSOP’s Blast — a three-handed, winner-takes-all online poker tournament where the winning prize is randomized at the start of the tournament.
These have become one of the most popular formats of poker online because they are fast, fun, great for mobile play, and offer a chance of winning a big prize. But they are also competitive — smart players can win a profit long-term playing these games.
DraftKings’ take on the format looks like a great edition. There’s a good spread of buy-ins, the rake is reasonable, the multipliers look good, the payouts are well spread and the software appears to be very slick. You can multi-table up to four tables — even on mobile! — and there’s a hand history replayer.
And in the early days, DraftKings’ game is likely to be extremely soft as casino and sports players try it out for the first time.
How to Play Electric Poker
You can find Electric Poker in the DraftKings casino lobby on both desktop and mobile. There are four buy-in levels: $1, $5, $10 and $25. Once you buy-in, you’ll be seated at a table against two other real opponents.
A random prize will then be chosen. Just under 50% of the time, you’ll be competing for 2x the buy-in; around one third of the time, it will be 3x the buy-in. But sometimes, that prize can be a lot higher: 4x, 5x, 10x – all the way up to 10,000x the prize pool (this occurs 0.0001% of the time, or 1 in a million games).
You then play a fast-structure sit-and go to compete for that prize. For multipliers up to 4x, its winner-takes-all, but at higher multipliers, second place and sometimes third place also get a consolation prize.
Games don’t last long. Blinds go up every 2 minutes. And the Electric Poker twist is that after just a few blind levels, you go into Electric Mode — where all players are forced all-in every hand until just one player remains.
This idea has been seen before in lottery sit and gos, though no other Michigan online poker operator currently implements it. It does mean less online poker play for your money, but the advantage is that ensures games have a maximum play time — six minutes for low prize pool games, going up to 12 minutes for the highest multiplier games (plus any time for the “all in” portion to play out).
DraftKings Electric Poker Multiplier & Probability
| Prize Pool Multiplier | Probability | 1st Place | 2nd Place | 3rd Place |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2x | 47.78% | 100% | - | - |
| 3x | 35.9956% | 100% | - | - |
| 4x | 11.1133% | 100% | - | - |
| 5x | 4.60% | 80% | 20% | - |
| 10x | 0.50% | 75% | 25% | - |
| 100x | 0.01% | 70% | 25% | 5% |
| 1000x | 0.001% | 70% | 20% | 10% |
| 10,000x | 0.0001% | 70% | 20% | 10% |
This payout table equates to an effective rake of 7% — that is, 93% of the buy-in goes towards these prizes paid back to players over time, and 7% goes to DraftKings as a fee for operating the games.
This is pretty competitive for the Michigan online poker market, where all other regulated online poker sites offer a similar game type. The rake sits between 6% and 10% across the regulated operators.
How the $100 Sign-up Bonus for DraftKings Casino Works
As mentioned, Michigan players who sign up through us can get a $100 casino credits bonus by simply placing a $1 wager, and though this does not yet include Electric Poker, your winnings from the $100 bonus can be used to play Electric Poker. Here’s how it works.
- If you’re located in Michigan, aged 21+, and don’t have a DraftKings Casino account, you are eligible.
- Click this link to sign up
- Make a deposit — it can be the minimum. No signup or bonus code needed.
- Place a $1 wager in the casino — you get $100 in casino credits that last a week.
- Note that right now, these credits cannot be used to play Electric Poker, but they can be used for any other casino games except live dealer.
- Any winnings using casino credits can be used at the Electric Poker tables — no play through requirements!
What this Means for US Online Poker
This is just a small step for DraftKings online poker. It’s just one game, in one state, tucked away in their online casino lobby.
But this looks like the first step in what could be a major push by the operator into US online poker. It seems likely the operator will bring this game to other states, and that it will also expand its poker offerings.
This could be just a trial; and if that trial fails, Electric Poker might disappear as quickly as it came. But the level of investment from DraftKings suggests a long-term outlook: It has built its own poker platform, launched a learning center, built a fully-fledged online poker app into its software. This is not a quick bolt-on of a third-party platform.
DraftKings is active with its online casino in every US online poker state excluding Nevada. It means a launch in New Jersey and Pennsylvania is likely. Combining Electric Poker liquidity between NJ and MI via MSIGA could be on the cards. Connecticut and West Virginia could even be in play.
This is the biggest brand in US igaming making a major move into US online poker. Players in Michigan can try the game today and get in on the ground floor of what could be a major shift in the landscape for safe, regulated real money online poker in the United States.
DraftKings in US Online Poker States
| DK Casino | DK Sports | Electric Poker | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Connecticut | ✔️ | ✔️ | ❌ |
| Delaware | ❌ | ✔️ | ❌ |
| New Jersey | ✔️ | ✔️ | ❌ |
| Nevada | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Michigan | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Pennsylvania | ✔️ | ✔️ | ❌ |
| West Virginia | ✔️ | ✔️ | ❌ |
Note: An earlier version of this article stated that the signup bonus credits could be used on Electric Poker. DraftKings has since clarified that currently credits cannot be used for poker. We updated the article to reflect this change.
