PokerSwat Review

PokerSwat is one of the newest entries into the poker training scene. Already on its version 2.0 upgrade, Poker Swat is definitely determined to make their mark with an all-star lineup of the who's who in the online world. PokerSwat is also presenting an international feel to the training scene, with many European and non North American coaches, and with plans to introduce training videos in a variety of languages including German and French. With over 100 HD quality videos, Poker Swat is aiming to bringing in a new style of high definition poker training. PokerSwat is currently in process of being sold. No NEW Videos are being released and your account status has been frozen.

Membership Options

Platinum: €19.99/month & €39.99 Signup fee€
Gold: €15.99/month (No High Stakes Videos)
& €31.99 Signup fee
Silver: €10.99/month (Low Stakes Videos Only)
& €18.99 Signup fee
Guest Pass: Please contact us to
see how you can get a FREE guest pass

Payment Methods:

Credit Card, Boyle Poker Room signup

With 3 month prepaid signups you save an extra 10% on top. Save 15% off of 6 month signups. Save 20% off 12 month signups!

Videos	Streaming?	Downloadable?	Hand Replayer?	Forums?
170+		coming soon

Instructors

James "Andy McLEOD" Obst
Marty Smyth
Alec "Traheho" Torelli
Christoffer "-NoName-" Egemo
Terje "Terken89" Augdal
Aurangzeb "Ozzy87" Sheikh
Sjoerd "Pacuno" Stevens
Jean-Claude "JcMoussa" Moussa
Jason "UncleDap" Su
Stephen "PoorUser" Costello
Brian "Brianm15" England
Matt "Plattsburgh" Vengrin
Morten "Pokergirl1" Erlandson
Jaime "Xaston" Kaplan
James "jballer88" Ackerman
Jeff "Caviat_Emptor " Ferguson
Daragh "HectorJelly" Thomas
Andy "TheSpider" Ward
Jim "Van Dice" Fennell
David "Roundtower" Murray
David "Pok3rPlaya" Tuite
Jon "Bas" Spinks
Jaime "Xaston" Kaplan
James "jballer88" Ackerman
Jeff "caviat_emptor" Ferguson

Guest Pros

Video Variety

NL Holdem:	90 videos
Limit Holdem:	0 Videos
Tournaments:	35 Videos
Sit-N-Go:	4 Videos
Omaha:	40 Videos
Horse:	2 Videos
Other:	7 Videos
Release Schedule:	Set schedule with between 3-7 videos released each week. Video schedule is released on the forums

Notes:
Mostly a cash and tournament based training site at the moment, with a good diversity of pros instructing each field. Currently all streaming media, but there are plans to add DRM free downloadable .wmv videos in the very near future.

Rating:

Cash Games

NLHE - 6 Max

Pro: Ozzy87, Pok3rplaya, Hector Jelly, Traheho

Notes
Mostly midstakes here, but there is an overall good range of stakes including micros and high stakes.

NLHE - Full Ring

Pro:

Notes:
Lack of depth in the full ring cash game department

NLHE - Headsup

Pro: Ozzy87, Pooruser, Hector Jelly, Traheho, Pokergirl

Notes:
Good assortment of HU battles, including a classic Ozzy87 vs Prahlad playing 50/100 deepstacked.

LHE - 6 Max

Pro:

Notes:
None at the moment

Rating:

Multi Table Tournaments (MTT)

Pro: Andy Ward, Marty Smyth, Plattsburgh

Notes:
Though there is a wide assortment of MTT videos including freezeouts, rebuys, and various strategy videos, this section could be much better. It has been somewhat neglected with no recent videos, and a very qualified mtt player Andy McLeod has not made any mtt videos. Definitely a lot of room for improvement here, though the videos that are available are top notch quality. Great thought process and detailed explanations throughout the videos.

Rating:

Sit-N-Go's (SNG)

Pro: Kazor, Bas

Notes:
Only 4 videos right now. 3 of them are a 3part beginner's guide to sngs by Kazor. The other video is a mass multi-tabling session where Bas has 20+ sngs running at the same time!

Rating:

Other Games (Stud Omaha, Razz, etc)

Notes:
A very bright spot is the PokerSwat Omaha video selection. Here you have plenty of videos from PLO greats such as Ozzy87 and Andy Mcleod. Right now the videos are all mid stakes

Rating:

Weaknesses

As a site that is currently still in its revamping stage, there are plenty of holes which need to be fixed. A lack of direction in what type of training site they want to be, an overall provider or just cash games. The potential is there to provide all around, so hopefully this will be addressed. There is also a lack of a firm release schedule. Some weeks only 3 videos are released, other weeks there may be 7. Customers have also requested downloadable videos, so hopefully that will be implemented soon. The forums are not very active at the moment, but instructors do take the time and answer questions.

Strengths

The poker training videos on PokerSwat are all excellent quality. Many are recorded in HD quality, so both the audio and video are top notch. The cash games in both NLHE and Omaha are very well instructed and presented, and serve as the backbone of the training site. Site navigation is simple, and advanced enough to provide various filtering options to find your desired training video.

Expected Value: Is PokerSwat worth it?

Poker Swat is another growing training site in a heavily growing market. Like others to suceed they have to be able to provide something unique or just overall great content. PokerSwat has those structures in place, a great site layout, top quality instructors, and once they address their weaknesses, they should be able to advance amongst the top echelon of poker training sites. Having a EURO based site does have its advantages though, especially with the huge European poker market. The price point is also definitely affordable with a lower than average signup fee, so give it a shot without having to break out the bank for quality poker training.

Overall Rating:

7.5/10

Sample Video

Please follow the above link to the PokerSwat home page and choose from 1 of 3 free sample videos from the news section. While your there click join and become a registered guest for free access to the video library and forums.