Check out our extensive ClubWPT Gold review and discover all the pros and cons of this fresh sweepstakes poker operator.
Backed by one of the largest brands in all of poker, the World Poker Tour, the site caters to US players from 45+ states at the moment, offering opportunities to win real money prizes in ring games and tournaments.
ClubWPT Gold is one of the freshest additions to the sweepstakes poker scene. Backed by one of the largest brands in all of poker, the World Poker Tour, the site caters to US players from 45+ states at the moment, offering opportunities to win real money prizes in ring games and tournaments.
Despite the major brand behind the platform, the site uses very basic software with very few functionalities and many restrictions, the biggest one being the lack of multi-tabling. Players can only join one table at the time, a serious detriment for even the most casual player. This, combined with the fact ClubWPT Gold only offers Hold’em and doesn’t have features like run it twice and bomb pots, means that most players will be better served at other sweepstakes sites, most notably Clubs Poker.
ClubWPT Gold uses the tried and tested sweepstakes model, where players never make direct deposits or withdrawals. Instead, they use Sweeps Coins (SC) that are given to players as free gifts for different types of actions, including purchases of Gold Coins (GC). Unlike SC, Gold Coins cannot be exchanged for real prizes.
In this detailed ClubWPT Gold review, we dive into all important details, including bonuses and promotions, game selection, software quality, banking, and more, to give you a full and well-rounded picture.
ClubWPT Gold: Key Facts | |
---|---|
💰 Redeemable Tokens | Sweeps Coins (1 SC for $1) |
🏆 Non-reedemable Tokens | Gold Coins (GC) |
🎁 Welcome Bonus | Depends on a bonus code used |
🎮 Available Games | NLHE ring games & tournaments |
📱 Apps | Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android |
🌎 Restricted In | ID, MI, WA, MT |
🔦 Main Highlight | Very soft games |
📅 Age Restriction | 18+ |
Unlike most sweepstakes poker sites out there, ClubWPT Gold doesn’t have a general welcome bonus. Instead, players can pick up different types of incentives by signing up with different ClubWPT Gold bonus codes. This approach complicates things quite a bit and makes the welcome bonus unnecessarily difficult to acquire.
Bonus codes are provided by the operator’s affiliates, most of whom are poker vloggers and streamers. The site is promoted by some big names, like Brad Owen, Ethan “Rampage” Yau, and Doug Polk. However, those coming straight to the site will not be able to claim the bonus and may not even be aware the one is available.
Welcome incentives can differ quite a bit, but they usually include access to special freeroll tournaments, participation in SC giveaways, and more. While some of them are decent value, all the unnecessary seriously reduces the appeal of the welcome bonus and makes it straight up worse than what other sweepstakes operators have to offer.
Just like the welcome bonus, a majority of ClubWPT Gold promotions revolve around their ambassadors and affiliates. The best way to access these promos is by following the operator on its social media channels and also keeping up with posts from their representatives.
Once again, this approach to promotions isn’t very good as it requires additional efforts from players to locate the promos and figure out how to get involved. There is very little info about ongoing offers on the actual site, which means that it’s very easy to miss out on things.
Players can also obtain some free Sweeps Coins by logging into their accounts and claiming daily rewards. However, these are available only for the first seven days after signing up. This is straight up worse than what most other sweepstakes poker sites have to offer, as many of them provide daily SC rewards for all players, not just the newcomers.
Finally, like all other sweepstakes operators, ClubWPT Gold gives players a chance to acquire free SCs by sending in a physical postcard with their details and the unique code generated by the site. For every received and processed postcard, the site will add 5 Sweeps Coins to the player’s balance.
The tournament schedule at ClubWPT Gold is still being developed, but fans of MTTs have a fair few options to choose from every day. That said, the only game on offer is No Limit Texas Hold’em, so if you happen to be a fan of PLO or any other format, you’ll have no options whatsoever.
At the moment, the operator’s main tournament is the Sunday Deepstack. The tournament has an entry fee of SC 110 and offers a guarantee of SC 200,000. So far, the event has had no problems meeting and exceeding that guarantee.
There is also a weekly freeroll with a solid SC 10,000 guarantee. The tournament is open to all players who make a Gold Coin purchase, but not everyone starts with the same stack. Namely, for every 1,000 hands played at SC ring game tables, 5,000 chips are added to the starting stack, giving those who play a bigger volume a better starting position.
Beyond this, there are several tournaments taking place every day, with guarantees between SC 10,000 — 50,000, which is a solid accomplishment for a site that has only been around for a few months.
If Texas Hold’em is your game, the ClubWPT Gold MTT schedule is decent enough, but the lack of other game variations is a major downside, especially when you compare the site with an operator like Clubs Poker that goes out of its way to provide an extensive and colorful schedule filled with all sorts of formats, from Hold’em and PLO to Stud, 2-7, and even Badugi.
At the moment, ClubWPT Gold offers only No Limit Texas Hold’em. Ring game players will find a wide range of stakes on the site, starting with just SC 0.02/0.05 and going all the way up to SC 25/50.
Many tables offer the straddle option, which helps generate action. However, other features, such as the ability to run it twice, are currently not available.
As mentioned, the site has gotten off to a great start, and the player traffic is really good. This means that you’ll have no problems finding a few games running around the clock across almost all stakes. The highest stakes games don’t run all the time, but they are not a ghost town, either.
ClubWPT Gold charges a 4% rake across the board, which is pretty solid. Their rake caps, however, are still somewhat high at certain stakes, although the operator has shown a willingness to work on this issue and make changes that are favorable to players.
Stakes | HU Cap | 5+ Players Cap |
---|---|---|
SC 0.02/0.05 | SC 0.15 | SC 0.30 |
SC 0.05/0.1 | SC 0.30 | SC 0.60 |
SC 0.1/0.2 | SC 0.60 | SC 1.20 |
SC 0.2/0.5 | SC 1 | SC 2 |
SC 0.5/1 | SC 2 | SC 4 |
SC 1/2 | SC 3 | SC 8 |
SC 2/4 | SC 3 | SC 8 |
SC 3/6 | SC 3 | SC 12 |
SC 5/10 | SC 3 | SC 15 |
The software is arguably the weakest link of ClubWPT Gold. The operator has a web-based platform that caters to PC and mobile players alike. That fact alone wouldn’t be a big issue in this day and age, with more and more poker sites turning towards web-based solutions.
However, the platform is very basic and lacks any advanced or even typical features, which is really disappointing for a WPT-branded site. With all the resources behind it, one would expect much more. The platform leaves a lot to be desired and, in many ways, fails to provide an enjoyable experience whether you’re a serious grinder or a recreational player.
The list of missing things is a long one, but there are some that we simply have to mention. First of all, you are only allowed to play one table at the time, so multi-tabling, which is one of the main draws of online poker, is currently not available. Even for recreational players, this is too restrictive.
Furthermore, there is no chat on the tables, so players can’t communicate with each other. This not only takes away from the experience – it also makes it very hard for heads-up players to set up matches or take breaks, as their opponent is left guessing as to what’s happening when they sit out.
There is no built-in HUD that’s almost become a standard feature of poker sites these days, but that one we could perhaps let slide. However, the software doesn’t allow for any type of note taking or tagging, which means you have no way of keeping tabs of the players you encounter (other than doing it manually and using a different program, which is far from ideal).
As mentioned earlier, ring game tables have straddles, but that’s pretty much all in terms of extra features. Unlike Clubs Poker, ClubWPT Gold doesn’t have features like run it twice or bomb pots. These features help drive the action so ClubWPT Gold not having any of them is both surprising and disappointing.
At this time, the software also suffers from some other issues, like long delays between hands and a lack of customization options for betting buttons.
All in all, ClubWPT Gold has some way to go to bring its software up to modern standards. As it is now, the platform looks more like a beta version, and this is one of the most important issues the operator needs to address sooner rather than later. Until that happens, we seriously recommend you stick to the alternatives.
As mentioned at the beginning of this ClubWPT Gold review, the site doesn’t have traditional deposits or withdrawals. Instead, they offer players a chance to buy Gold Coins (play money), and every such purchase is rewarded by an allotment of free Sweeps Coins.
For example, a player buying 203 Gold Coins for $19.99 will receive a free prize of 20 SC. Purchasing 510 Gold Coins for $49.99 is rewarded with 50 SC free. The value of each SC at the prize redemption stage (explained further down) is $1.
ClubWPT Gold supports a solid number of options you can use to buy Gold Coins, including Visa, MasterCard, Discover, Amex, Google Pay, and Apple Pay.
For newly created accounts, there are certain purchasing limits in place, namely:
These limits can be increased once your account is fully verified, but to do so, you’ll need to contact customer support via email and put in a request.
The biggest appeal of playing at ClubWPT Gold is that you can exchange your Sweeps Coins for real money prizes. Doing this is quite easy, and every SC you have equates to $1 in cash prizes.
The minimum exchange amount is 20 SC for $20, which is one of the lowest minimums we’ve seen on sweepstakes sites. The process to redeem prizes is as follows:
All redemptions are subject to security reviews, which can take up to 72 hours. Once the security team approves your request, it can take up to five business days for the money to reflect in your account. You can submit only one redemption request at a time.
Right now, ClubsWPT Gold is open to players from 46 states, not accepting users from Michigan, Idaho, Washington, and Montana. However, with sweepstakes poker regulations constantly changing, more states will likely be restricted in the near future.
Yes, you can! You can win Sweeps Coins at ring game tables and in online tournaments, and these coins can be exchanged for real money prizes at the rate of 1 SC for $1.
No. At this point in time, we can’t really recommend the site due to many issues, the poor software and Texas Hold’em being the only game on offer being the main ones. Until things change, there are much better alternatives, with Clubs Poker being the best one out there.
ClubWPT Gold accepts credit and debit cards like Visa, Amex, MasterCard, and Discover, as well as Apple Pay and Google Pay.
The security verification process can take up to 72 hours. Once your request is approved, you should receive your cash prize within five business days.
New accounts have a limit of $2,500 per day, but this limit can be increased once your account is fully verified. You’ll just need to email the customer support with the request.