Poker Sponsored Pro Benefits

Poker sponsorship can be the holy grail for many players. This can be the main aim and the reason for playing. Becoming a sponsored pro for a site generally means you are a great player, won a major title or are good for the game. Such as a sports or TV personality. So getting there means you have done something great and you are now getting the recognition you deserve.

Poker Sponsorships will vary but could include:  

• Signing on fee
• Monthly payments
• Tournament entry
• 100% Rakeback
• Bonuses
• Travelling expenses
• Fun team experiences.
• TV appearances
• Becoming a voice for the site.

Poker Sponsorship Benefits Explained:

Here we explain each of the possible benefits of being a sponsored professional. 

Signing on Fee

Rumours of previous Full Tilt Poker signings Tom Dwan & Viktor Blom stated they received $2million to become a face of the site. This was just to get them on board. In sports this is pretty normal but for a poker player just representing a site it is a huge amount and shows what you can aim for. Obviously this happens close to never and is only for the elite.

Monthly Payments

Some players will receive a salary to be part of the team. Phil Ivey declared a $980k monthly payment from Full Tilt pre black Friday! This is the highest amount paid for a player per month in the history of poker. Many other players will receive $5-100k per month. The top paid will be players such as Gus Hansen, Daniel Negreanu and Liv Boeree. Some of which will be getting 6 figures per month.' 

Tournament Entry

This is where you will see pros wearing the sites patches in big live tournaments. The sites want their players to be seen so the live arena is the best place for this. From this the patch is seen on TV, player interviews can be done and it all round looks good for the site to have the best players in the world branded to them! The amounts will vary per player. A small deal would see $20000 per year spent on tournament entries whereas a big deal could see up to $1million!!!

100% Rakeback

If you are representing the site you will not have to pay to play there. Also the more the player plays on the site the better it looks. Many players dream of playing the best so seeing them in the same games is a big deal! 100% rakeback could add up to $250k+ per year for the bigger grinders. For others it could amount to around $25k. For online grinders this is what we dream of and would be well worth locking yourself in your house during your sponsorship term and just grinding! 

Bonuses

Full Tilt once ran a promo where if a patched player finalled an event or won it they would receive more money. I think this was $100k for a final table and $500k if you won. A huge boost to say the least! Other bonuses may include extra rake back, more tournament entries or a bonus like you would receive from a normal job. If you excel in your job you will receive more money!!!

Travelling Expenses

If you are a live tournament [term=grinder]grinder[/grinder] this could be the best money maker/saver ever! The cost of travelling the circuit is astronomical. If you are sponsored you will get all of this for free and probably stay in a much nicer play to normal. Also your flights will be paid for by the site. To a site this all equals tiny amounts and is part of their budget. So a $2500 weekend trip could end up costing you $0. If it is a sponsored event by the site you are representing you will also receive all food and drink for free!!!

Fun experiences

The new Full Tilt Pros got to spend a day racing Ferraris around a race track with David Haye. Also this could mean playing in celebrity poker games on TV or going to nice events such as film premiers!

TV Appearances:

Local news and national news will want to interview big winners and sponsored pros. This may not be your thing but it is great for your profile! Also the more coverage you receive the more the site will want to keep you as part of the team! Also many sites will run their own tv tournaments or cash games which you will be first in line for. Such as high stakes poker and late night poker.

Becoming a voice for the poker room

If you are a true fan of poker you will have the chance to voice your opinions on how to move forward in the poker world and also how to improve the poker room you play on. This could be software changes, new tournaments or bonus systems.