Question List

Answers: General

What is PokerStake.com?

PokerStake.com is a site dedicated to online poker. Our goal is to expand and enhance the online poker community through our poker rankings and poker articles.

You have ads for gaming sites. Does that mean they are legal?

When you gamble online, including playing poker and making sports bets, you are subject to the laws of the jurisdiction where you are located. This may include the country, state, county, city or tribe from which you make a bet. Operators and advertisers do not know the laws of all jurisdictions. Therefore, it is your responsibility to determine the law that applies to you and to only make a bet where it is legal to do so.

The advertisements you find on PokerStake.com are designed only for jurisdictions where such advertising is legal. An advertisement or hyperlink does not constitute an offer, solicitation or invitation for the use of any service in any jurisdiction in which such activities are prohibited or restricted – they are void where prohibited or restricted by law. Advertisements and hyperlinks are designed to be used only where such gaming is legal. They are not to be used if you are in a jurisdiction where gambling on the Internet may be illegal.

How do I make an account?

Although you don’t need to have a user account to read the content on PokerStake.com, creating a username allows you to post your own threads and questions. In addition, being registered allows you to participate in the PokerStake Rankings and purchase staking.

To create an account, please follow the instructions on our Registration Page. You will be asked to enter a preferred username and your email address. Your email address will not be compromised, shared in any way, or displayed on this site, but is necessary for important information concerning prizes, site events and awards.

If your preferred username is available, you will be sent an email verification notice to your registered email address which you will need to use to verify your account with PokerStake.com. You will then be able to start posting after verification. If your requested username is not available, you will be taken back to the Registration Page and asked to choose another name.

Are there any restrictions on usernames?

PokerStake.com asks that you follow a few rules when choosing a username. Taking a few minutes to choose a good username is worthwhile, since it will be one of the first things other registered users will know about you. PokerStake.com recommends that you choose the same name that you use on your main online poker site, although this is certainly not required. In general, you may select any unique name of your choosing.

We do ask, however, that you avoid impersonating both online poker players and live poker professionals when choosing a username. Choosing a taken online poker name is frowned upon, and taking the name of an online or live celebrity is strictly prohibited and may result in the removal of your PokerStake.com account.

How do I change my password?

Click here to go to the page where you can edit your password. We recommend the use of a strong password. You should not use the same password as you use at online poker sites. While passwords in the PokerStake database are encrypted and thus less likely to be used should the database be stolen somehow, the transmission between your computer and our server is not encrypted which means someone with access to your internet traffic could, in theory, intercept your PokerStake password. While this scenario is unlikely, you should not jeopardize your real money online poker account passwords via plain text transmission.

How do I login to PokerStake?

If you have cookies enabled, your login information will be saved every time you log on to PokerStake.com and you will only have to login again when your cookie expires or when you have logged out. If you are currently logged out and need to log back in, simple use the login boxes on the right side of the top navigation bar at the top of this page.

How do I recover my password?

Just head over to our password recovery page and you will be able to reset your password as long as you have access to your account’s registered email.

Can I change my username?

You cannot change your username directly. You must email support@PokerStake.com to do it for you. Even though it can be done, however, it is officially “discouraged.” You must have a good reason to have your username changed (e.g., you want your PokerStake.com username to be associated with the name you use on a particular online site).

Even if you provide a good reason for the change, your request may not be granted if: you have a significant reputation on PokerStake.com associated with your current name or other users will fail to recognize the requested new name as the same person as your current name. Note that requests will be unconditionally denied if the requested username is already in use.

My account is locked! What do I do?

If you have attempted to log into the site several times with an incorrect password, your account will be locked and you will be unable to log in. Over time, the site will eventually unlock your account again. Just be patient and try again later, this time with the correct password. If you can’t remember your password, please make use of our password recovery page. If you’ve given your account a day or two to unlock and you haven’t been able to reset your password, please email support@PokerStake.com.

How do I search PokerStake.com?

In the upper right-hand corner of every page is the PokerStake.com search button. Hover over it and click in the search box. Enter some text and click on the search button next to the text field or simply hit enter/return. Search results are automatically sorted to list the most recent posts first. In addition, up to 50 matching usernames will be shown, if available.

What is your Privacy Policy?

View our Privacy Policy for more details.

Answers: Staking

What is Staking?

Staking is like crowd-funding for poker players. When a player enters a tournament they pay their buy-in and sometimes they will sell shares of that buy-in to backers (stakers) who put up some percentage of the buy-in in exchange for a percentage of any potential winnings. Staking has long been a part of the world of poker, now PokerStake Staking makes it easier and more convenient for anyone, anywhere to be a part of the action by staking their favorite players.

How do I make a deposit?

Once you have created a PokerStake Staking account, click the Deposit Button at the upper right hand side of the Staking Page. There you can make a deposit using PayPal, Nuvei or pay in Bitcoin using Coin Payments.

Is my transaction safe?

All transactions are automated and secure by Nuvei, Paypal and Coinpayments.

What is Markup?

Sometimes when a player sells action for a tournament, the decide to have Markup. Markup is a premium charge in order to purchase action, often added when a top-tier player believe they are bringing added value to the backer by having an edge on the rest of the players in the tournament. Markup is also sometimes charged when the player has some additional costs (travel, etc.) associated with a tournament.

An example of markup: With no markup 10% of a $1,000 buy-in would cost the backer $100. If a player were to charge 1.1 markup, 10% of the $1,000 buy-in would cost a backer $110.

Markup is solely determined by the player in the event.

What is Threshold?

Threshold is the minimum percentage that needs to be sold in order for the player to be able to play the event. If the threshold is set to 0%, that player will be playing that event whether they sell out or not. If there is a minimum percentage set and the Staking does not meet that minimum, the Staking will be refunded to the backers.

Can I cancel my purchase?

Once a Staking for a player is confirmed, that purchase is final.

Where can I see the result?

Click the Deposit Button at the upper right side of the Staking Page. There you move on to ‘TRANSACTION HISTORY’ tab, where you can see all your transactions including Staking result.

Click the Deposit Button at the upper right of the Staking Page. From there, select the Transaction History tab where you can see all of your previous transactions and results

What happens if a player doesn’t play an event?

If a player doesn’t play a staking event, or if that event is canceled, all staking purchases will be refunded back into your PokerStake Staking account.

When will I receive my winnings?

Once the event is completed both the player and PokerStake check the official result and input it to the system. Then you will be able to receive your winnings. It’ll take up to 10 working days.

Once the event is completed PokerStake will confirm the official result and apply and winnings it to the listing. Once applied, players will be credited with their share and can use those finds to stake additional players or withdraw.

How do I make a withdrawal?

Click the Deposit Button at the upper right side of the Staking Page. There you move on to ‘WITHDRAWAL’ tab, and make withdrawals using Nuvei or Coin Payments.

Once the event is completed PokerStake will confirm the official result and apply and winnings it to the listing. Once applied, players will be credited with their share and can use those finds to stake additional players or withdraw.

Answers: Rankings and Recent Scores

Which sites are being tracked for PokerStake.com rankings?

We are currently only tracking the following sites for the rankings. We will be adding more sites in the near future. Tournaments from the following sites that also satisfy the above criteria will be included in the leaderboard:

  • 888 Poker
  • 888 Poker NJ
  • Full Tilt
  • iPoker Network
  • iPoker.fr Network
  • MergeNetwork
  • Microgaming Network
  • PartyPoker
  • PartyPoker.es
  • PartyPoker.fr
  • PartyPoker NJ
  • PKR
  • PokerStars
  • PokerStars.es
  • PokerStars.fr
  • PokerStars.it
  • Revolution Network
  • Winamax
  • Winning Poker Network
  • WSOP.com Nevada
  • WSOP.com New Jersey

Only data from legal and regulated online poker rooms will appear on the Local pages and on the home page for players in New Jersey and Nevada.

Why is a specific tournament not listed as a result in my profile?

There may be several possible reasons why a result would not be listed in your profile:

  • The tournament had fewer than 100 entrants (20 entrants for regulated U.S. sites)
  • The tournament had a prizepool less than $100.
  • The tournament had a buy-in of less than $0.01.
  • The tournament occurred more than one year ago. Though the tournament may have been tracked, for server efficiency, we only list a year’s worth of results on the Recent Scores section of the profile. All scores are listed in the scores page linked at the bottom of the Recent Scores module on the profile.
  • The tournament was not a scheduled tournament. PokerStake does not track SNGs or satellites.
  • The tournament was a satellite tournament or a freeroll. Only non-satellite tournaments with a real money buy-in are tracked by PokerStake.com.
  • Note: These criteria became effective on October 1, 2013.

Why did my recent scores disappear from my profile, or why aren’t they there at all?

There are several reasons why your recent scores are not displayed in your profile:

First, if you change, add, or remove poker site names in your profile, your scores are temporarily removed to account for the changes you have made. Your scores will reappear in your profile and recent scores pages when the next results sweep occurs (typically several times a day), so if you changed your profile and see your scores have disappeared, relax, they will appear later in the day!!

Second, if your screen names on various sites have not been entered, were entered incorrectly, or have not been verified (verified meaning that they were entered correctly but are not tracking because you have edited the names on multiple occasions or the names are listed on an inactive account), your scores can not be attached to your PokerStake profile. If there is a mistake with one of your site names or if it simply hasn’t been entered, simply update your profile to correct any mistakes, and your scores will appear the following day. If your names are unverified, please contact us.

Third, some poker sites or networks are not tracked by PokerStake.com, and some tournaments on those sites do not meet our tracking criteria. For a full listing of tracking requirements, please see questions 1 & 2 above.

I have a missed score that meets the criteria, how do I get that entered and when will it appear?

If your result meets all of the above criteria and is still not listed or you are not sure if it does, please contact us with the missing tournament information (include the site on which it occurred, ID #, date, and place), and we will attempt to resolve the problem.

If the score was in fact missing, we will manually enter the score as soon as possible and send you an email response. This score will then appear in your profile the following day, our parsers run at 2 PM and 2 AM CT daily, and will be bound to your profile at 3 AM CT or at the next rankings update, whichever occurs first.

How often are my recent scores updated?

Scores shown in your profile are updated once a day in the middle of the night (typically around 3 AM U.S. Central Time). Each tournament score, however, is imported after a varying length of time for every site. Please wait up to 5 days for each room to see if your recent scores have been updated.

The fact that your PokerStars scores from yesterday are listed does not mean that your UB or AP scores from the same day should be listed as well (or vice versa).

I have a recent cash that doesn’t qualify for the PLB because of my location. How does this work?

The most likely reason for having one or more non-qualifying cashes is that you have an out-of-date location listed in your PokerStake account. You can probably remedy this situation by updating the location in your profile.

PokerStake is keeping an up-to-date list of countries that are allowed or not allowed on each poker site that we track for the Rankings. If a PokerStake member cashes on a poker site and that member’s location is a non-allowed country on that site, no PLB Points are awarded for the cash. The member will still receive credit toward profile badges and other lifetime accolades, but the cash will not count toward local, regional, or worldwide rankings or any other leaderboards.

This policy is in effect primarily to keep the playing field level in the Rankings. For example, the top ranked player in the United States should not be holding that spot simply because they’re playing on poker sites that other members in the USA are not eligible to play on. Generating a score on a non-allowed site for your jurisdiction will automatically opt you out of Local and Country Rankings. However, generating a score on a non-allowed site for your jurisdiction will keep you in the Worldwide Rankings. If you feel that this policy has been wrongly applied in your case or in another case you have noticed, please contact us at support@PokerStake.com.

If I just created an account, what tournaments will appear? Do you go back and find past scores?

When your results are added to your profile after creating an account or after editing the screen names in your profile, all tournaments we have tracked in the last year will be included for PLB points. Tournaments older than one year could be listed in your profile however respective points will not count.

Will my old scores count if I change site names in my profile or will I lose results?

Scores will only count from one screen name per site, per player. You should choose whichever site name you want to count going forward. If you’d like to change the site name in your profile, you can do that, but only scores from whichever name you currently have listed will count for your PLB total.

If you are forced to change names on a site for whatever reason, one thing that may give you comfort in losing your old scores is that old point values drop off over time based on how our Sliding PLB works.

Why aren’t my multi-table SNG results listed?

We do not currently have the ability to track multi-table SNG’s and the like, so we only track scheduled tournaments. The only exception is for 180-man sit-n-go’s on Full Tilt, which are included in the feed we receive. Again these must have at least 100 entrants and $1,000 in the prize pool to count.

Do satellite tournaments count for the rankings?

No. Satellite wins do not count for the player rankings.

Does PokerStake count tournament chops?

The ability to take into account chops varies by tournament feed. However, PokerStake’ PokerStars feed does not reflect chops. We are unable to edit a score manually to reflect a chop due to fairness to all users.

Why can’t I find my location in the country/region/city drop down lists?

You must enter your full location in your profile in order to be included in our rankings by country, state/region, and city. Many of the smaller cities and towns, however, are not listed in our system. If you fall into this category, we generally recommend that you name the nearest city to you that is listed.

To change the region and city you will need to edit your profile under “My Settings” and select from the drop down menus. Make sure you scroll to the bottom of the edit profile page and click on “Save Changes” so your new location will be saved and populated within 24 hours.

What are the Sortable Rankings and how are they calculated?

The Sortable Rankings are rankings by location and they are calculated using the Sliding PLB. Sortable rankings simply filter the sliding leaderboard to include only members of a certain state, country or city.

What determines the PokerStake.com World Wide Rankings?

The PokerStake.com World Wide Rankings are an attempt to accurately rank online tournament players. Every Wednesday afternoon, rankings are updated automatically. Your World Wide Ranking is based solely on your recent results. PokerStake.com tracks tournament results for members who have listed the appropriate screen names in their profiles. These results are used to compile a Sliding PokerStake.com Leaderboard (PLB), the specifics of which (how points are accumulated and how they gradually drop off) are answered by “How does the Sliding Leaderboard work?

The Rankings use collected results from the latest 12-month period, ending with the most recent Sunday. This means, for instance, that when the rankings are compiled on Wednesday 7/18/2012, the most recent results included are from the previous Sunday, 7/ 15/2012.

If my account on a certain site (i.e. Full Tilt) becomes inaccessible at some point or has been compromised, can I acquire points using another name on that site?

Typically, the answer is no, but there are exceptions. If you’ve been the victim of a hacking incident and are forced to play on a different account for a short time, you will need to contact us ahead of time so we can manually add cashes from that time into your rankings profile. We will need to know specifically what the cause of the issue is, as well as how long you will be playing on a different name. Except in extreme situations, we will not allow scores from multiple names on the same site to count for the rankings.

Why is my PLB score for a specific tournament off by a fraction of a point or does not add up to what I see in my recent scores page?

If you have a recent win posted in your account, sometimes it will take a day or so for your overall PLB points to update and include the recent win(s).

Sometimes, cashes in a tournament will be listed in whole dollar amounts, omitting the cents that were paid out by the site on which the tournament was played. This rounding may result in a small difference between the score you calculate in our PLB calculator and the score you receive in the recent scores section of your profile, but will never affect any score by more than half a point of what you’ll determine in our PLB Calculator.

Why is the PLB score in my profile different than the one on the rankings and PLB standings pages?

When the rankings and PLB standings pages are updated, they grab information up through the previous Sunday (in the case of the rankings) and up through the previous two days (in the case of the monthly, yearly, and sliding PLBs). Scores in your profile and scores on your recent scores page are updated nearly twice a day every day. As such, since leaderboard pages are not updated on the same schedule as profile pages, there is sometimes a discrepancy between the two, particularly if someone has had scores in the last few days that qualify for the PLB.

Answers: PokerStake Leaderboards

Who is considered for PLB races?

All registered members of PokerStake.com are considered for the monthly and yearly PLB races and ranking consideration. Scores are only counted for those screen names which are in red on the registered user’s profile and play tournaments that satisfy our ranking criteria (see the Rankings and Recent Scores section of this FAQ).

If your screen names on the various sites are not entered, have been entered incorrectly, or are showing up as “unranked” sites on your profile, results for those names will not be considered for the rankings. If a name or names in your profile are unverified, please contact us.

Tournaments from the following sites that also satisfy the above criteria will be included in the leaderboard:

888 Poker (started tracking on 6/30/2011)
888 Poker NJ (started tracking on 9/1/2014)
Full Tilt: (started tracking on 7/12/2006)
iPoker Network: (started tracking on 06/16/2008)
iPoker.fr Network: (started tracking on 01/15/2014)
Merge Network: (started tracking on 3/01/2009)
Microgaming Network (started tracking on 11/16/2011)
PartyPoker: (started tracking on 7/12/2006)
PartyPoker.es: (started tracking on 8/24/14)
PartyPoker.fr (started tracking on 8/20/2012)
PartyPoker NJ Network: (started tracking on 11/23/2013)
PKR (started tracking on 2/27/2012)
PokerStars: (started tracking on 7/12/2006)
PokerStars.es (started tracking on 6/16/2012)
PokerStars.fr (started tracking on 11/4/2011)
PokerStars.it (started tracking on 11/13/2011)
Revolution Network: (started tracking on 8/17/2009)
Winamax (started tracking on 4/30/2013)
Winning Poker Network (started tracking on 8/1/2012)
WSOP.com Nevada (started tracking on 3/30/2014)
WSOP.com New Jersey (started tracking on 3/30/2014)

Please note that DoylesRoom scores were tracked on the Micrograming Network from 06/15/2008 to 01/24/2009. DoylesRoom resumed tracking upon moving to the Cake Network. We were also tracking scores only from Betfair on the Ongame Network from 8/14/2009 to 5/22/2010. We have been trying trying to get a feed for all poker sites on the Ongame Network. Any updates regarding new sites tracked will be posted in the Poker Advice and Strategy forum.

How do the monthly, yearly, sliding and customizable leaderboards work?

Only registered members of PokerStake.com are included in the PokerStake leaderboards, and only screen names that are in their profiles have their scores counted. The leaderboard awards points (based on this formula) for all “in the money” finishers in tournaments with at least 100 players (20 players for regulated U.S. sites) and a minimum prize pool of $100 that are tracked on PokerStake. Satellites, sit n go’s, and freerolls do not count for the PLB.

The leaderboard has a maximum number of tournaments that can count for a player for certain periods of time:

  • Monthly Leaderboard – Top 20 finishes in a month.
  • Yearly Leaderboard – Top 100 finishes in a year.
  • Sliding Leaderboard (Rankings Component) – This is the part of the Leaderboard that figures into the PokerStake.com Tournament Player Rankings.

How does the sliding leaderboard work?

The Sliding Leaderboard is the leaderboard that factors into the results portion of the PokerStake.com World Wide Rankings. The Sliding PLB is also the sole source of information for all Sortable Rankings (i.e. rankings by country, age, and other criteria). The Sliding Leaderboard combines a player’s top 40 finishes over the most recent 12 months for which PokerStake.com has data.

Scores that are 3-6 months old will retain 75% of their original PLB value. Scores that are 6-9 months old will retain 50% of their original value. Scores that are 9-12 months old will retain 25% of their original value.

For example, if a player wins a tournament and receives 200 PLB points for that win for the first 3 months, after 3 months that score will be worth 150 points, after 6 months it will be worth 100 points and after 9 months it will be worth 50 points. It will drop off entirely after a year. NOTE: This only applies to the sliding leaderboard, NOT the yearly leaderboard!

In contrast to the monthly and yearly leaderboards, the sliding leaderboard is not calendar-dependent; where a monthly leaderboard would be for January, May, etc. (one calendar month) and the yearly leaderboard would be for one calendar year from start to finish, the sliding leaderboard will simply be for the most recent one year period, regardless of what point in a month or year that period begins.

What does the percentile mean under my sliding PLB score and how is it calculated?

The percentile is based on a calculation of all players that have results in the current sliding year, and what position you are inside that whole population. Every night, the percentile is calculated for the entire site based on all the registered members that have a Sliding PLB total in the past year. The formula used to calculate the percentile is 100*(count of users with a PLB greater than or equal to your own)/Total players with a sliding PLB score. The reason some of the places have the same percentage, is because the decimal difference is too low to display and numbers are rounded to the nearest hundredth.

Answers: Two Factor Authentication

What is Two Factor Authentication(2FA)?

2FA is an extra layer of security to your account in addition to your password, designed to ensure that you are the only person who can access your account. This will significantly improves the security of your PokerStake account.

Where to use 2FA?

2FA will be necessary when you sign in, change password or request a withdrawal. Please note that only the email authentication is available to change your PokerStake account password.

What is Security Level?

Members’ accounts are safely protected, but the degree of protection varies depending on your choice. PokerStake provides a total of 4 levels of protection. The four security levels are as follows :

Off : No security settings
Low : Notification sent for suspicious attempt
Medium : 2FA required in suspicious attempt.
High : 2FA required in every login attempt.

Please note that if you have balance in your account, you can’t choose Off or Low for your Security Level.

What is Authentication Method?

PokerStake will provide two types of authentication methods. You may choose what method to use for your account, in the Security and Privacy menu; in the Account Settings page. Please Click here

I’ve lost my Google Authenticator. What should I do?

If you can’t access your Google Authenticator, please change the Authentication Method into Email, or regenerate your Google Authenticator.

Please Click here to change your Authentication Method
Please Click here to regenerate your Google Authenticator

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