Bad Beat Jackpot: A Complete Guide to GGPoker’s Rebirth of Bad Beats

What Is the GGPoker Bad Beat Jackpot?

The Bad Beat Jackpot is a promotion designed to reward players who experience significant “bad beats.” A bad beat occurs when a player loses a hand with a very strong combination, such as four of a kind, due to an even stronger hand held by their opponent. In this scenario, the player who suffers the loss receives the largest portion of the jackpot, but the winner and other players at the table also share in the prize.

This jackpot applies only to cash games, including Hold’em, Omaha, Omaha5, Omaha6, Short Deck, and their Rush & Cash variants. However, it is not available in tournaments or specific formats like All-In or Fold (AoF), Battle Royale, or Spin & Gold.

How Does the Bad Beat Jackpot Work?

To trigger the Bad Beat Jackpot, certain criteria must be met. The losing hand must meet the minimum requirements for its game type, and the hand must go to showdown. Both the winner and loser must use their hole cards to complete their hands, ensuring that the game is played fairly and transparently.

Qualifying Hands

Each cash game variant has its own minimum hand requirements for the Bad Beat Jackpot:

• In Hold’em and Rush & Cash Hold’em, the losing hand must be at least a full house of Aces full of Tens (AAATT) or better. If the losing or winning hand is four of a kind, the player must hold a pocket pair corresponding to the quads.
• For Omaha and Rush & Cash Omaha, the losing hand must be four of a kind Twos (2222) or better, with a pocket pair required for quads.
• Omaha5 (PLO5) requires a losing hand of four of a kind Eights (8888) or better, again with the pocket pair requirement for quads.
• In Omaha6 (PLO6), the losing hand must be four of a kind Jacks (JJJJ) or better, using a pocket pair to form quads.
• For Short Deck (6+), the losing hand must be four of a kind Sixes (6666) or better, and quads must involve a pocket pair.

Only the first run of the board is considered if the “Run It Twice” feature is active, ensuring consistency in jackpot eligibility.

Jackpot Fund Accumulation

The Bad Beat Jackpot fund grows through contributions taken from pots in eligible games. In Hold’em, Omaha, PLO5, and PLO6, any pot that reaches or exceeds 30 big blinds contributes 1 big blind to the jackpot fund. For 9-max tables, this contribution is reduced to 0.8 big blinds.

In Short Deck games, contributions are taken from pots exceeding 100 antes, with 1 ante allocated to the jackpot fund. These contributions are not part of the rake, and 100% of the collected funds are distributed as jackpot prizes.

Payout Distribution

When the jackpot is triggered, the prize pool is divided among players involved in the hand. The losing player, often called the “bad beat victim,” receives the largest share, while the winning player and others at the table also receive portions of the jackpot.

The distribution is as follows:

• The losing player receives 10% of the jackpot.
• The winning player takes 3%.
• All other players dealt into the hand each receive 0.8%.

Players who folded before the hand concluded or were sitting out are not eligible for any portion of the prize.

For example, in a $10,000 jackpot:

• The bad beat victim would receive $1,000.
• The winner of the hand would take $300.
• Each remaining player at the table would earn $80.

Additional Rules and Considerations

There are a few additional rules that players should be aware of:

• Disconnected Players: If a player disconnects or leaves the table after going all-in, they are still eligible for the jackpot payout as long as the hand qualifies.
• Multiple Qualifiers: If multiple players meet the qualifying criteria in the same hand, the jackpot is awarded to the player with the second-best losing hand. The others will receive smaller payouts as part of the “Rest of Players” reward.
• Rush & Cash Games: The jackpot applies only to tables where six players are dealt cards.

Players cannot opt out of contributing to the jackpot fund while playing at eligible tables.

How to Check the Jackpot and Claim Rewards

The current jackpot total can be viewed directly in the GGPoker client. If you believe you qualified for the jackpot but did not receive your payout, you can contact GGPoker support with the relevant Hand ID for verification. Payouts are typically awarded automatically at the conclusion of the hand.