GGPoker USA: How to play?

Disclaimer: This blog post is purely informative. We are not promoting or suggesting to follow this process. We are merely showing how people do it.

Regulations in USA do not allow international rooms to offer their services in this country without applying a series of very severe restrictions.

The Asian giant GGPoker (one of the rooms with more international traffic, if not the most), does not offer its services in USA in any easily accessible way.

So, can we play at GGPoker from USA? Yes, in fact, there are players today doing just that.

How to play at GGPoker from USA?

Well, for this, we would need a number of tools:

• An agent to take care of the account creation.
• A cryptocurrency wallet.
• A VPN software.

What is an agent?

An agent is a person who decides to affiliate with a poker room by marketing and driving new users to the room. In return, they receive commissions based on the rake produced by the player who signs up on behalf of the affiliate. Sometimes these agents have special privileges in the room that allow them to manage user accounts in a way that a normal user could not, for example, by making deposits and withdrawals into your account without incurring commissions and without the room asking you for identification documents to do so.

This person would assist you in setting up the account, give you instructions on how to access it and ensure that your funds are secure. Some agents in some rooms also offer "rakeback deals", which can add up to 25% on top of the rakeback the room itself gives (think of it as someone offering you a discount for buying a product using their affiliate code).

It is important to clarify that the agent is essential to create the account safely. Without them, you would most likely be asked for identity verification on your first deposit, and your account would be restricted.

To find out where these agents are located, read on to the end of this post.

The cryptocurrency wallet

A cryptocurrency is a digital currency that relies on cryptography to maintain the security and efficiency of its transactions. The most widespread is Bitcoin.

The main reason for using this type of wallet is that GGPoker accepts Bitcoin and other altcoins, and this method maintains our privacy much better than normal currencies for deposits and withdrawals.

To create a Bitcoin wallet we need a couple of things:

• A Bitcoin wallet software. I recommend Electrum. It is totally free and has all the necessary functions.
• An exchange, this is a kind of "bank" that exchanges your Euros for Bitcoins.

How do I create a Bitcoin wallet?

Broadly speaking, a Bitcoin wallet is a software in which Bitcoins are stored (please, cryptographers, don't kill me, it's a simplification). In that wallet, there is a private key that corresponds to the wallet's address.

First of all, you must go to the Electrum website, download it and install it. When you start it, you will see a menu where you can create your first wallet.

Once you have followed all the steps and have written down in a safe place (outside your computer) all the keys and codes needed to access and retrieve the wallet, you are ready to receive Bitcoins.

The wallet does not have an IBAN like a bank account would have, but it has Addresses. All receiving addresses in the same wallet are valid to receive coins in it.

VPN Software in Poker

VPN stands for "Virtual Private Network" and describes a process by which a protected connection is established. VPNs encrypt your connection and mask your identity on the Internet.

A VPN hides your address, redirecting the connection through remote servers. This means that the poker room will interpret your location as being in a country where it is allowed to offer its services, if you set it up.

The installation and use of one of these applications is extremely simple, you would need to:

1. purchase the subscription and download the VPN software onto your PC, my personal recommendation is Shurfshark, I am not currently affiliated with them, I just found it to be the best one I have tried. Another decent option is ExpressVPN.
2. Once downloaded, you would just need to install it. You should open it, select Canada, and connect. This will cause all connections from your computer to be interpreted as coming from Canada.

How does GGPoker feel about VPNs?

GGPoker explicitly mentions in its Terms of Use, under section 15, that it is not allowed to connect to the room from restricted countries. However, when it comes to applying these rules, the room is quite lax, i.e. there are a lot of players playing with VPN at GGPoker, and they are not banned even if the room detects their real country, e.g. if they forget to turn on the VPN before playing. Even if you were to get caught (which I haven't ever seen yet), they would first send you a warning for a minor breach of their Terms of Use, after which you could decide to withdraw your funds and go to another room. In other words, your funds would not be at risk in any case.

Daniel Negreanu himself, the room's ambassador, has reiterated on multiple occasions that he has no problem with these practices.

The last time he spoke about it, he said he didn't understand why PokerStars put so much emphasis and money into catching people with VPNs playing from countries they shouldn't be.

"I said this. I personally don't give a crap where you play from as long as it's you. It doesn't bother me. "

On another occasion, he talked about a hypothetical case in which Senegal banned Apple products, and whether or not it would make sense for Apple to enforce these policies by not allowing its citizens to use an iPhone.

"I don't think it makes sense for companies to regulate cases where the law is stupid in the first place. It doesn't make sense for us to invest resources enforcing this."

The player clarified that the Terms of Use of most rooms do not allow it, but that he still has nothing against it.

"Do I think it makes sense for me personally to spend a lot of resources trying to catch these people? No. I don't have a problem with it. "

As you can imagine, if GGPoker wanted to, it could terminate its contract with Daniel Negreanu as an ambassador after one of these multiple statements. The fact that they didn't can be interpreted as a reaffirmation of the softness with which they intend to enforce these rules.

Would my funds be safe?

Yes, as already explained in the section "How does GGPoker feel about VPNs? ", enforcement is soft, and as a last resort, you could always withdraw your funds if GGPoker sends you a warning, and that is extremely unlikely to happen.

Some agents also ensure the safety of your funds with a guarantee to return them to you personally if anything should happen to them.

Where can I find an agent?

As already explained, to be able to play in international rooms from USA you would need an agent, and preferably one that would provide you with additional rakeback.

Contact an agent https://t.me/playggvpn.

Summary

The steps required to play at GGPoker from USA are:

1. Find an agent (See section "Where can I find an agent? ").

2. Create and deposit in your Cryptocurrency Wallet.

3. Download and install a VPN Software.

4. Play!