How profitable are Spin & Go /Jackpot tournaments 2023?

With various versions of the so-called Spin & Go (spins) and Jackpot tournaments becoming increasingly popular among online poker fans, many will wonder if these games offer genuine prospects of profitability. Below you’ll find a detailed investigation into this hot topic, which should serve to throw some light on the matter and help players navigate their way around this exciting and potentially lucrative game.

As well as looking at the games themselves, we’ll also compare different online poker providers.

While it’s true these days that Spin & Go/Jackpot tournaments can no longer be described as ‘new’ games, the fact nevertheless remains that a large number of players who favour them in 2023 tend to be recreational, weaker poker enthusiasts who are attracted in the main by the prospect of winning massive prizes (literally) within minutes. This situation is bound to lend itself to creating a player pool that we could justifiably categorize as weaker than average. It stands to reason, then, that such an environment should be a fertile hunting ground, and that juicy profits can be made.

Of course, there is not a sure-fire recipe for success, and we also need to factor in the luck aspect in the shape of the random number generator that determines the prize. But, due to the high number of beginners, we’re not necessarily reliant on luck to ultimately play these Sit & Go games profitably.

The tournaments are now offered by every major online poker provider, and the format is essentially identical, despite the names being different. Only the payouts and the rake may differ from one poker room to another, but the principle and the game itself remain the same. A table opens as soon as all three players are registered. Since this variant is played in the super turbo format, with blinds increasing every 1-2 minutes, the playing time tends to be no more than 10 minutes.

Given that the Spin & Go format lends itself to having a very short playing time, this makes it possible to generate a lot more rake/fees than usual (note that another feature is the increased variance, so don’t forget to bear that in mind…). Accordingly, a proper Rakeback deal is, of course, very helpful, and you will get exactly that rakeback deal from us!

Spin & Go/Jackpot tournaments are the new fashion in online poker, enjoying increasing popularity that shows little sign of waning. Having first been rolled out on Poker Stars, these are now available at many online poker rooms, with essentially the same format and various differences in terms of names and prize distributions.

These are three players, and the prize pool is determined at random once all the players have registered. Because the prizes are not fixed, it’s possible to win literally life-changing amounts of money or hit a jackpot, and it’s all over in minutes! Not surprisingly, the prospect of winning a prize that’s thousands of times the size of the buy-in attracts a large number of inexperienced and poor players who are in the mood for a bit more excitement than they might experience playing standard Sit & Go games or tournaments.

With such a short turnaround, this format lends itself ideally to playing ‘on the go’ via iPhones or Android devices, for example, and this is another reason why so many less experienced and lesser skilled players find themselves drawn to the virtual Spin & Go tables. And herein lies an additional attraction for the more serious players looking to make a profit from the new game on the block.

Jackpot Sit & Go tournaments are available with buy-ins as low as $1 and as high as $100, so every bankroll is catered for. These 3-player super turbo tournaments have only one winner, so although the randomly generated prize might be numerous times the buy-in, two of the three participants will not receive a prize. Note, however, that this changes should the prize reach a certain value (every online poker provider offers enormous prizes, with some bigger than others).

It should be mentioned that the maximum payout is very, very seldom achieved, although it is not by any means unusual to see high multiplier payouts. For example, you can win several thousand euros with a mere €1 stake. That’s a prospect worth playing for, even from a newcomer’s perspective, especially when the fact that there are only two other players to beat means that everyone has a chance of big wins. There’s little wonder that this game sees such a high level of traffic.

But if you want to play these tournaments with a view to achieving a long-term profit, there’s more to it than relying on Lady Luck to bestow on you juicy prizes. There is some effort involved… The main problem with this type of Sit & Go is the extremely fast structure – there’s very little time during which to outplay your opponents. Meanwhile, the rake of 5%-8% doesn’t make the task any easier. However, making a profit playing this format is absolutely doable, and there those who approach Jackpot Sit & Go tournaments purely for genuine, long-term profit.

Examples of Variance

An important factor to be aware of is the high(er) level of variance. Let’s take a player who beats $15 buy-in tournaments over the long term with a 5% ROI. This player wins an average of $0.75 per tournament, which means he has to win 36.86% of all games played. We can calculate the variance at 7,666, and the standard deviation (the square root of the variance) at $88 in this case.

In the first diagram, below, a calculation was made with 10 players who all have an ROI of 5%, with 10,000 tournaments at a $15 buy-in (6% rake) used as the basis for calculation. As you can see, these are all very different. No player made a loss, but the winnings varied widely, between $760 and $9,400, so the variance is very noticeable over a period of 10,000 tournaments.

After 100,000 tournaments have been played, things look much different (see below). The extreme jumps of three players are due to each having big wins at a Jackpot Sit & Go – calculated at $45,000. But even without such a jackpot, all 10 simulated players make a profit of at least $40,000. That’s very good. However, we don’t typically play 100,000 tournaments in a week or two. Serious grinders who routinely multi-table need about 2,500 hours to play 100,000 tournaments.

Due to the high variance, a very solid bankroll management is recommended. For buy-ins of $1-$5 we suggest a bankroll of at least 100 buy-ins, while at the $10 level at least 150 buy-ins is prudent. Of course these are not et in stone, and different players will have different levels at which they feel comfortable, but it makes sense to err on the side of caution.

As with any game, a good rakeback deal can turn a break-even player into a comfortably winning player. Making sure you have a good rakeback deal is essential if you are going to play Super Turbo Sit & Go tournaments. In our example, we assumed an ROI of + 5%. This is, of course, the high level of success achieved by top players. A ROI of + 1%-3% for a typical winning player is much more realistic. A good rakeback deal is a key contributor to overall profit here.

Get your YourPokerDream VIP rakeback deal now!

We have listed (below) all our partner providers where you can find Spin & Go/Jackpot tournaments. So that you can have the best chance of boosting your bankroll, you have an opportunity to receive extra rakeback by creating a new player account with one of our poker partners through YourPokerdream. Choose one of the providers, register, make sure you get your hands on the YPD goodies, then hit the virtual tables – Spin & Go tournaments run 24/7, and at all limits!

The best Spin & Go poker sites and Rakeback deals for 2021

1. GGPoker (Spin & Gold)

The Spin & Go tournaments on the GG network are called Spin & Gold, and give players the chance to win massive multiples of their buy-in, up to 12,000 times, in fact. There are numerous great promotions and rake races, and you’ll find 24/7 action at all limits.

You can find a detailed description of the Spin & Gold tournaments at GGPoker by clicking on the following button:

4. Unibet (Hexa Pro)

Unibet also offers a Spin & Go variant called Hexa Pro SNG. Again, the prizes can be sizeable indeed, and it’s possible to pocket up to 1,000 times your buy-in, which can range from €1 to €100.

The games have three players, and the rake is 7%