Rated amongst the top 3 sportsbooks globally, Pinnacle Sportsbook has been a haven for new and seasoned punters for ages. Established in 1988 as Pinnacle Sports, they introduced the first sportsbook in October of that year and have never looked back since. Licensed in Curacao under the license number 8048/JAZ2013-013, Pinnacle is completing its 20th year in the business this year. The ability to stay in the game for so long is definitely a statement in itself. But Pinnacle has upped the ante by constantly evolving and staying one of the major betting destinations for bettors from across geographies.
However, no matter how many accolades Pinnacle has won, when it comes to a betting operation and your hard earned money, a long hard look is always warranted. Today we are trying to investigate all aspects of Pinnacle’s offerings to its clientele. Nothing will be spared the scrutiny and starting with the odds we will take a critical look at sports offered, events covered, payment methods, website quality and speed, customer support and online casino services.
The Pinnacle website is accessible directly and can be navigated thoroughly if you want to take a quick tour of their services. This is always a great sign for any sportsbook to be open to its potential customers and giving them a look and feel of what to expect. Registration is easy and can be completed within a couple of minutes. Once you get the client id in email and activate your account, you are set.
Unlike certain sportsbooks, Pinnacle does not make adding money before going through the website sections mandatory. That is a huge plus if you just want to learn the website properly before diving into the bets. With all relevant information and options neatly organized at your disposal, it is nothing short of a joy to use the Pinnacle website for betting.
Pinnacle offers a comprehensive list of over 16 popular sports with entertainment betting and esports thrown in for good measure. This much uncluttered selection offers the bettors’ favorites such as soccer, football, tennis, basketball and baseball for betting. But you can get a slice of the obscure with options on cycling and MMA. On the entertainment front, there is nothing better than to bet on the events of the already unpredictable Game of Thrones. Each sport selected comes up with a large list of events taking place across the globe.
At Pinnacle you get a lot of betting options such as Asian Handicap, total, over/under and 1X2. With sports like soccer, options to bet on yellow/red cards, corners, goals and other aspects of the game is exciting. For all the sports on Pinnacle, you are offered the best leagues in the world and the best men’s and women’s fixtures internationally. However, the lack of live broadcast during in-game betting is definitely a key disadvantage. The esports section has events taking place on popular titles such as League of Legends, FIFA, DOTA2 and Counter Strike: GO. But the options are fairly limited and may not appease the new generation of bettors who prefer to go big on esporting events.
Despite offering a large sports listing and offering juicy events, a lot of sportsbooks turn their customers away due to unprofitable odds. Pinnacle is generally lauded in the betting industry for
Another major benefit with Pinnacle is the extremely high maximum betting limits on the betting lines. Placing the bet itself is extremely easy. As you choose a sport from the list and scroll through the list of events, all current betting options and odds are displayed nicely. Just click on the bet and the odds you like and a place to put your wager appears on the right, that’s it! The ability to quickly scroll between live events and upcoming events is a boon.
A final neat little touch is the perfectly sorted futures betting section where all bets related to the outcome of the event are tucked away. The odds, as expected are great. The website allows you to switch between classic and new beta view. Choose the layout you are most comfortable with and bet away. At Pinnacle there are no maximum winning limits and winners are not punished. This policy makes it a happy hunting ground for seasoned heavy bettors.
Pinnacle provides another shock when it comes to its casino and slots offering. There are no live casinos and live slots which is not what is expected from a sportsbook as big as this. While most of the competition is providing a comprehensive selection of live casino games, here you will have slim pickings if you are a casino aficionado.
The classic casino game are all there including Bingo, Keno, Roulette, BlackJack, Baccarat and Craps. A dedicated video poker section is good news for poker players. The virtual slots section offers 56 virtual slot games but there is no demo system. Until and unless you cough up the dough, you cannot even gain an access to the game and see they are played.
Perhaps one of the biggest let downs of Pinnacle is the nonexistent of any promotions or offers except for a 0.3% rebate on featured casinos. There is absolutely no sign in bonus, first deposit bonus, loyalty bonus, winning bonus or any other bonus. The Pinnacle way of doing things is to take away the bonuses and leverage the money saved thus to give bettors the best juice.
This seems to work pretty well in theory and practice but at the end of the day, punters cannot help but feel a bit disappointed, especially when most sportsbooks are throwing bonuses left and right. Pinnacle is universally praised for its low juices but a simple first deposit bonus and a small loyalty bonus for long time customers could only make the experience better.
The unlimited cashback offer on casino game lets users claim a 0.3% rebate on the featured casino section of Pinnacle. The offer is valid from every Monday through to every Saturday. Pinnacle claims a player can get unlimited cashback in the form of this rebate. Unfortunately, BlackJack and Craps, two of the most popular casino games, are excluded from this offer. But there are no deposit or rollover requirements which means even small bettors can take advantage of the offer.
With 28 deposit and withdrawal methods supporting 21 currencies, the Pinnacle payment methods are surely making the world a small place. Apart from support for traditional methods such as bank transfer, bank cards and cheque, they support a number of e-wallets, payment systems, cryptocurrencies, online banks and more. The support for Bitcoin, Neteller, ecoPayz, Skrill and Paysafecard will certainly help European customers but Pinnacle has support for Asian customers as well.
Certain payment methods such as Boleto, Oxxo and sofort are for deposits only. The ability to deposit and withdraw money in 21 currencies mean you can most definitely find the currency of your choice on the list and that should take away the whole pain of conversion. Bitcoin withdrawals are credited directly to your Bitcoin wallets.
One matter of concern is the time taken for cash-out. While all deposits are credited to your Pinnacle account within minutes, withdrawals tend to take their own sweet time. But perhaps the biggest concern is the withdrawal fees and limits imposed. Most deposits methods have zero fees but all withdrawals have a fee involved, sometimes as high as 15 USD. This could seriously hurt new bettors with limited bank balance. At the same time, the withdrawal limits of certain payment methods are as low as 1500 EUROs. This might impede the withdrawals of heavy bettors who love to bet big and win big.t.
The Pinnacle website is a joy to work with as they have significantly upgraded and updated their online presence keeping with the times. The website is available in 17 different languages and caters to both old punters who love the classic view and bettors who love the modern fresh look. It is extremely uncluttered and easy to navigate with all important sections of the website provided as top menus.
The website has its Pinnacle Lite mobile version with dynamic display making it perfect for betting on the go from any mobile device. Website loads extremely fast and color scheme is cutting edge. For bettors who want to take their betting experience to the next level, Pinnacle provides a smart app for iPhone and Android users. The app is designed to represent a stripped down view of the interface with live betting, funding and placing bets prioritized.
With all other pros and cons aside, Pinnacle absolutely takes the cake in terms of its knowledge base. Meticulously maintained, the knowledge base and blogs section offers great insights into important sporting events and the basics of sports betting. Starting from the fundamentals of betting, online betting and the betting strategies you need to adapt, the whole selection with chock full of learning material that should benefit new and seasoned bettors alike. Before any major match, you can simply head to the learning section and find in-depth analysis of the game ahead, what your strategies should be and how you should play in terms of betting. This is a substantial benefit from the point of view of Pinnacle’s clientele.
Pinnacle has an extensive knowledge base and FAQ section that should answer most of your queries. But the on-site customer support options only consist of the ability to send them a message with attachments (if any) or contacting them via phone. This could turn out to be inefficient if there are urgent issues regarding your bets or money. A live chat option is the staple at most premier bookmakers now-a-days and Pinnacle should follow suit. The phone support is available 24 X 7 X 365 which is a welcome relief. Email response times are good and you should get assistance within 24 hours of shooting your concern.
All in all, Pinnacle provides its bettors with a lean yet solid betting experience and cuts a lot of the frills to enhance winning opportunities. But in some cases, the cutting frills tends to look like cutting corners which is not a great advertisement for a sportsbook of this stature. No doubt punters love Pinnacle for its advantages and will continue to do so. However, it still has to identify and rectify certain shortcomings in order to rub shoulders with the best in the business.
| Great odds with the lowest possible juice in the market | Beating the bookie is encouraged and winners are not punished |
| Licensed and regulated properly | Existence of 20 years instills trust |
| Large options of currencies and payment methods | Tremendous knowledge base and FAQ sections |
| Withdrawal fees and limits are imposed | Almost no promotions and offers |
| No live broadcast for in-game betting events | Cash-out quite slow as compared to deposits |
| No live casino or slot | No live chat option for customer support |
The list of international bookmakers
