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Figures released by the Danish Gambling Authority (DGA) have revealed that online poker numbers have fallen in the second quarter of the year. Revenues for Q2 2013 dropped from $9.8 million in the same quarter last year to $8.9 million – a 9% crash.
All in all, the Danish Gambling Authority believes that poker revenues in 2013 will total $36.3 million – less than last year’s total.
The main reason for this decline seems to be the growing popularity of other forms of online gambling in this Scandinavian country, with gross online casino revenues climbing from around $41.5 million to $44.3 million in the second quarter. Online sports betting also spiked in popularity, with revenues climbing from $46.9 million to $59.2 million in Q2, a 26% year-on-year increase.
Denmark is one of several European countries where this downward trend has been marked. France and Italy also reported on a drop in online poker revenue over the past year.
The Danish Gambling Authority has said that it expects online sports betting and casino revenues to exceed expectations, while online poker revenues will be more subdued.
The online gambling industry in Denmark is mainly dominated by Danske Spil, the state controlled group which saw a 16% increase in total GGR for the first half of 2013 to €308 million.
In late August, the French gambling authority on internet gambling, ARJEL, published similar numbers, showing that online poker is slowing in growth, and may even be on the decline. According to ARJEL, the number of real money players dropped 7% to 273,000 players within a year at licensed French poker sites, leading analysts to believe that players are heading to offshore sites to get better returns for their bankrolls.
France has an extremely competitive online gambling market, with high tax rates and tough restrictions for operators, making it very difficult for companies to turn a profit.
Danish Online Poker Numbers Fall
All in all, the Danish Gambling Authority believes that poker revenues in 2013 will total $36.3 million – less than last year’s total.
The main reason for this decline seems to be the growing popularity of other forms of online gambling in this Scandinavian country, with gross online casino revenues climbing from around $41.5 million to $44.3 million in the second quarter. Online sports betting also spiked in popularity, with revenues climbing from $46.9 million to $59.2 million in Q2, a 26% year-on-year increase.
Denmark is one of several European countries where this downward trend has been marked. France and Italy also reported on a drop in online poker revenue over the past year.
The Danish Gambling Authority has said that it expects online sports betting and casino revenues to exceed expectations, while online poker revenues will be more subdued.
The online gambling industry in Denmark is mainly dominated by Danske Spil, the state controlled group which saw a 16% increase in total GGR for the first half of 2013 to €308 million.
In late August, the French gambling authority on internet gambling, ARJEL, published similar numbers, showing that online poker is slowing in growth, and may even be on the decline. According to ARJEL, the number of real money players dropped 7% to 273,000 players within a year at licensed French poker sites, leading analysts to believe that players are heading to offshore sites to get better returns for their bankrolls.
France has an extremely competitive online gambling market, with high tax rates and tough restrictions for operators, making it very difficult for companies to turn a profit.
Danish Online Poker Numbers Fall
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The top French site Winamax has added Frenchman Sylvain Loosli to Team Winamax. Loosli has the sixth largest chip stack of the nine players who are due to reconvene in November to play out the WSOP Main Event Final Table.
CEO Canel Frichet enthused about the new signing: “When we see his results online at the Winamax tables, we realise that reaching the final table of the world championships is not down to chance. We will all be completely behind him this November in Las Vegas.”
If the 26 year-old player from Toulon brings the Main Event bracelet back to France, Canel Frichet will be even more enthusiastic. Winamax is the top ranked site in France, even ahead of PokerStars’ French site, though poker is declining significantly in the country as a whole.
High taxes have seen a substantial fall in player numbers, especially In the critical younger age groups. Sylvain Loosli with a WSOP bracelet and over $8,300,000 in winnings could give a huge boost to the game’s popularity.
JC Tran has the chip lead, and will be a formidable opponent. Loosli is also a cash game specialist, regularly playing at stakes up to $25/$50 online.
His poker skills are sharp enough to take the title, but his live tournament experience—especially at big money final tables—may count against him. He is doing his best to rectify that with plenty of practice in the run up to November.
This week, in his first event as a Winamax Tem Pro, he is playing the EPT in Barcelona—a large field big prize money tournament which has attracted a lot of the top tournament professionals.
Other Winamax Team Pros include Gaëlle Baumann who finished in 10th place at the 2012 WSOP Main Event as the highest finishing female player. Triple Crown winner Davidi Kitai and Ludovic Lacay can also be certain of showing a full measure of team spirit in helping Sylvain prepare for November.
Loosli sounds very pleased to have the backing: “Joining the Team gives me the best possible chance of becoming world champion. With help from the rest of the team, I will be fully prepared and have the best possible chance at the final table.” He added, “I just need to remind myself that I only need to beat 8 out of the original 6,352!”
Winamax Signs November Niner Sylvain Loosli | Pokerfuse Online Poker News
CEO Canel Frichet enthused about the new signing: “When we see his results online at the Winamax tables, we realise that reaching the final table of the world championships is not down to chance. We will all be completely behind him this November in Las Vegas.”
If the 26 year-old player from Toulon brings the Main Event bracelet back to France, Canel Frichet will be even more enthusiastic. Winamax is the top ranked site in France, even ahead of PokerStars’ French site, though poker is declining significantly in the country as a whole.
High taxes have seen a substantial fall in player numbers, especially In the critical younger age groups. Sylvain Loosli with a WSOP bracelet and over $8,300,000 in winnings could give a huge boost to the game’s popularity.
JC Tran has the chip lead, and will be a formidable opponent. Loosli is also a cash game specialist, regularly playing at stakes up to $25/$50 online.
His poker skills are sharp enough to take the title, but his live tournament experience—especially at big money final tables—may count against him. He is doing his best to rectify that with plenty of practice in the run up to November.
This week, in his first event as a Winamax Tem Pro, he is playing the EPT in Barcelona—a large field big prize money tournament which has attracted a lot of the top tournament professionals.
Other Winamax Team Pros include Gaëlle Baumann who finished in 10th place at the 2012 WSOP Main Event as the highest finishing female player. Triple Crown winner Davidi Kitai and Ludovic Lacay can also be certain of showing a full measure of team spirit in helping Sylvain prepare for November.
Loosli sounds very pleased to have the backing: “Joining the Team gives me the best possible chance of becoming world champion. With help from the rest of the team, I will be fully prepared and have the best possible chance at the final table.” He added, “I just need to remind myself that I only need to beat 8 out of the original 6,352!”
Winamax Signs November Niner Sylvain Loosli | Pokerfuse Online Poker News
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While the U.S. Senate debates on whether to give President Barack Obama the authority to bomb Syria (which some in the Administration say the President doesn't need anyway), one Senator was caught by a New York Daily News reporter finding a little distraction on his iPhone.
Arizona Republican Senator John McCain later told CNN's Wolf Blitzer that, while he gives his colleagues rapt attention when debating issues of importance like the situation in Syria, sometimes he gets a little bored. He dealt with his boredom by playing some online poker.
He later joked that he lost "thousands of dollars" in that game, which Blitzer thought was "real money," but McCain said that it was a hit to his in-game virtual fortune...
A video of the Senator playing an unidentified online poker game can be seen to your left.
Go Down Gambling: Senator Plays Online Poker While Senate Debates Bombing Syria | GamePolitics
Arizona Republican Senator John McCain later told CNN's Wolf Blitzer that, while he gives his colleagues rapt attention when debating issues of importance like the situation in Syria, sometimes he gets a little bored. He dealt with his boredom by playing some online poker.
He later joked that he lost "thousands of dollars" in that game, which Blitzer thought was "real money," but McCain said that it was a hit to his in-game virtual fortune...
A video of the Senator playing an unidentified online poker game can be seen to your left.
Go Down Gambling: Senator Plays Online Poker While Senate Debates Bombing Syria | GamePolitics
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Sen. John McCain, who was caught by a Washington Post photographer playing online poker during the Syria debate, once sought to ban online gambling — and gambling proponents are accusing the Arizona Republican of dealing from the bottom of the deck.
“John McCain not only opposed online gambling, he might have been the strongest critic of gambling in Congress,” Wayne Allyn Root, a successful Las Vegas odds maker, 2008 Libertarian vice presidential candidate, and prominent Mitt Romney supporter during the 2012 presidential campaign, told The Daily Caller.
“Obama and McCain are masters of that politicians’ art form — ‘Do as I say, not as I do,’” Root added. “That’s a nice way of saying they are liars, cheats, frauds and hypocrites.”
McCain was photographed by the Washington Post’s Melina Mara playing the popular iPhone poker game VIP Poker, which doesn’t use real money. But Root pointed out that he could hardly have done otherwise. “It doesn’t matter that it is free play, because it would have had to be free play or he would have to go to jail,” Root told TheDC.
Although McCain made light of playing the game on his iPhone on the Senate floor, he voted in favor of the 1998 Internet Gambling Amendment.
Had it passed, the bill would have criminalized placing, receiving, or otherwise making a bet or wager on the Internet. The penalties for knowingly gambling over the Internet were fines of up to $500, 3 months imprisonment, or both. Those who set up Internet gambling businesses faced fines up to $20,000, or four months imprisonment.
“McCain supported prison terms for making a bet on your own computer, with your own money, in your own home. He also supported banning betting on college games in Las Vegas, even though it has been legal and popular in Nevada for half a century,” says Root.
Backed by Indian casinos worried that Internet gambling would cut into their bottom line, the bill exempted Indian gaming, which was a major contributor to McCain’s political campaigns.
Nor was this McCain’s only attempt to quash gambling. “Sen. John McCain has added boxing reform to campaign finance reform and Internet gambling on his list of problems to be solved,” wrote the Washington Times in 2000.
McCain also voted for the SAFE Port Act of 2006, which, in the words of The Economist, had a provision in it “hastily tacked onto the end of unrelated legislation,” that “prohibits gambling businesses from knowingly accepting payments in connection with the participation of another person in a bet or wager that involves the use of the Internet and that is unlawful under any federal or state law.”
McCain’s positions so disgusted Doyle Brunson, a professional poker player and lifelong Republican, that he refused to back McCain for president in 2008.
“Poker players have to support Obama,” Brunson said. “God help the internet gambling business if McCain does happen to win.”
Brunson ultimately reversed himself and voted for McCain, but not because of any perceived change in McCain’s internet gambling career. “And if I go to hell, it won’t be because I voted McCain,” Brunson wrote on his now-defunct blog.
McCain’s office did not return a request for comment.
Read more: Poker fans irate at McCain's double-dealing on gambling | The Daily Caller
“John McCain not only opposed online gambling, he might have been the strongest critic of gambling in Congress,” Wayne Allyn Root, a successful Las Vegas odds maker, 2008 Libertarian vice presidential candidate, and prominent Mitt Romney supporter during the 2012 presidential campaign, told The Daily Caller.
“Obama and McCain are masters of that politicians’ art form — ‘Do as I say, not as I do,’” Root added. “That’s a nice way of saying they are liars, cheats, frauds and hypocrites.”
McCain was photographed by the Washington Post’s Melina Mara playing the popular iPhone poker game VIP Poker, which doesn’t use real money. But Root pointed out that he could hardly have done otherwise. “It doesn’t matter that it is free play, because it would have had to be free play or he would have to go to jail,” Root told TheDC.
Although McCain made light of playing the game on his iPhone on the Senate floor, he voted in favor of the 1998 Internet Gambling Amendment.
Had it passed, the bill would have criminalized placing, receiving, or otherwise making a bet or wager on the Internet. The penalties for knowingly gambling over the Internet were fines of up to $500, 3 months imprisonment, or both. Those who set up Internet gambling businesses faced fines up to $20,000, or four months imprisonment.
“McCain supported prison terms for making a bet on your own computer, with your own money, in your own home. He also supported banning betting on college games in Las Vegas, even though it has been legal and popular in Nevada for half a century,” says Root.
Backed by Indian casinos worried that Internet gambling would cut into their bottom line, the bill exempted Indian gaming, which was a major contributor to McCain’s political campaigns.
Nor was this McCain’s only attempt to quash gambling. “Sen. John McCain has added boxing reform to campaign finance reform and Internet gambling on his list of problems to be solved,” wrote the Washington Times in 2000.
McCain also voted for the SAFE Port Act of 2006, which, in the words of The Economist, had a provision in it “hastily tacked onto the end of unrelated legislation,” that “prohibits gambling businesses from knowingly accepting payments in connection with the participation of another person in a bet or wager that involves the use of the Internet and that is unlawful under any federal or state law.”
McCain’s positions so disgusted Doyle Brunson, a professional poker player and lifelong Republican, that he refused to back McCain for president in 2008.
“Poker players have to support Obama,” Brunson said. “God help the internet gambling business if McCain does happen to win.”
Brunson ultimately reversed himself and voted for McCain, but not because of any perceived change in McCain’s internet gambling career. “And if I go to hell, it won’t be because I voted McCain,” Brunson wrote on his now-defunct blog.
McCain’s office did not return a request for comment.
Read more: Poker fans irate at McCain's double-dealing on gambling | The Daily Caller
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Former sporting stars continue to embrace the world of online poker and gambling, with Brazilian football legend Ronaldo and German tennis hero Boris Becker featuring at gala evens.
Ronaldo Plays Poker
Ronaldo, who recently became a PokerStars brand ambassador, participated in an invitational tournament at the PokerStars European Poker Tour event in Spain. He played at the €5k "Phenomenon Table" free roll (Mesa de "el Fenómeno") against Spanish online poker stars and other Team PokerStars pros.
Team PokerStars representatives include Spanish tennis star Rafael Nadal, Dutch Olympic hockey player Fatima Moreira de Melo and Swedish Winter Olympics gold medal skier Marcus Hellner. Like Ronaldo, they often participate in tournaments at which the winnings go to charity.
Becker to Open Conference
Six-time Grand Slam Champion, Olympic gold medallist and YouWin ambassador Becker has been active in the world of online gambling, and is set to continue that involvement when he opens the upcoming three-day European iGaming (EiG) Congress and Expo in Barcelona on October 8.
This annual event, which is being held for the 12th time, features more than 100 industry leaders and 80 exhibitors, along with a busy program of events that includes specialist workshops, networking opportunities, tutorials, poker talks and CEO debates.
Sporting Legends Embrace Online Poker, Gaming - Entertainment - Onlinecasinoreports-com
Ronaldo Plays Poker
Ronaldo, who recently became a PokerStars brand ambassador, participated in an invitational tournament at the PokerStars European Poker Tour event in Spain. He played at the €5k "Phenomenon Table" free roll (Mesa de "el Fenómeno") against Spanish online poker stars and other Team PokerStars pros.
Team PokerStars representatives include Spanish tennis star Rafael Nadal, Dutch Olympic hockey player Fatima Moreira de Melo and Swedish Winter Olympics gold medal skier Marcus Hellner. Like Ronaldo, they often participate in tournaments at which the winnings go to charity.
Becker to Open Conference
Six-time Grand Slam Champion, Olympic gold medallist and YouWin ambassador Becker has been active in the world of online gambling, and is set to continue that involvement when he opens the upcoming three-day European iGaming (EiG) Congress and Expo in Barcelona on October 8.
This annual event, which is being held for the 12th time, features more than 100 industry leaders and 80 exhibitors, along with a busy program of events that includes specialist workshops, networking opportunities, tutorials, poker talks and CEO debates.
Sporting Legends Embrace Online Poker, Gaming - Entertainment - Onlinecasinoreports-com
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Outspoken Team PokerStars Pro Daniel Negreanu made quite the scene at the EPT Barcelona €10k High Roller event when he became a casualty of the controversial “first card off the deck” rule he so vehemently speaks out against.
The referred to rule states that players need to be at their seats by the time that the very first card is dealt off the deck and if they are not the hand is dead.
The incident, as reported by PokerNews, has Negreanu posting his small blind, in level 2 of the event, while standing just behind his chair talking with fellow participant Philipp Gruissem with his back to the table. Not being in his seat, as soon as the cards hit the table they were mucked by the dealer.
Negreanu, as he turned back to the table, immediately protested, claiming he was in compliance with the rule and he snap called the tournament staff to the table to hash things out. When the tournament director ruled that his dealer was correct, according to EPT rules, and said that Daniel’s hand was a dead one, Negreanu went on tilt.
Negreanu, in a show of protest decided to make a move to quit the tournament as he took his entire stack and declared he was all in blind, dropping a couple F-bombs along the way.
“These f***ing rules are so stupid they make me want to shoot myself in the face!”, Negreanu is quoted as saying as he shoved his remaining chips in the center, subsequently losing them all to Timothy Adams who called, and won, the hand.
Negreanu Erupts At EPT Over "First Card" Rule | Pokerfuse Online Poker News
The referred to rule states that players need to be at their seats by the time that the very first card is dealt off the deck and if they are not the hand is dead.
The incident, as reported by PokerNews, has Negreanu posting his small blind, in level 2 of the event, while standing just behind his chair talking with fellow participant Philipp Gruissem with his back to the table. Not being in his seat, as soon as the cards hit the table they were mucked by the dealer.
Negreanu, as he turned back to the table, immediately protested, claiming he was in compliance with the rule and he snap called the tournament staff to the table to hash things out. When the tournament director ruled that his dealer was correct, according to EPT rules, and said that Daniel’s hand was a dead one, Negreanu went on tilt.
Negreanu, in a show of protest decided to make a move to quit the tournament as he took his entire stack and declared he was all in blind, dropping a couple F-bombs along the way.
“These f***ing rules are so stupid they make me want to shoot myself in the face!”, Negreanu is quoted as saying as he shoved his remaining chips in the center, subsequently losing them all to Timothy Adams who called, and won, the hand.
Negreanu Erupts At EPT Over "First Card" Rule | Pokerfuse Online Poker News
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Mark Liparelli, the former chairman of the Nevada Gaming Control Board spoke to Card Player about how he views the future of online gambling in the United States, and Nevada in particular. Liparelli served on the board of one of the United States’ most liberal gambling authority since 2009 and only ended his role in September last year when he decided to not continue for another term.
Speaking about Nevada’s entry into the world of online poker, Liparelli said that it was clear that the state is “ready for the next chapter” and the policymakers now need to concentrate on expanding to additional markets in order to make the industry viable.
Liparelli predicted that “state-to-state, multiple-market initiatives” (such as compacts between Nevada and New Jersey) would begin in 2014. The former authority head that Nevada’s online gambling laws were crafted to give opportunity to the creation of such compacts, however he admitted that he wasn’t a great fan of far-reaching agreements or compacts. “That becomes too complex,” he said, “and I think it will lead to long gaps of time. The more the policymakers can remain flexible the better off they’ll be.”
Asked about his views about the chances of federal online poker laws, Liparelli said: “I don’t anticipate that there’s much hope for any federal progress, which for me is a change in position. I think that the time for federal legislation is probably behind us.”
Liparelli said that the window of opportunity to introduce federal online poker and gambling laws was closing fast since several markets were in the process of opening, bringing with them a commitment to commercial entities.
“The time to act was during the last 24 months,” said Liparelli. “The complexity associated with unwinding now is probably too great.”
His message to the states who were in the process of introducing online poker was to keep things simple. “The state-to-state regime is going to be a very complex animal,” he predicted.
Ex Nevada Gaming Authority Head Views Online Poker Future
Speaking about Nevada’s entry into the world of online poker, Liparelli said that it was clear that the state is “ready for the next chapter” and the policymakers now need to concentrate on expanding to additional markets in order to make the industry viable.
Liparelli predicted that “state-to-state, multiple-market initiatives” (such as compacts between Nevada and New Jersey) would begin in 2014. The former authority head that Nevada’s online gambling laws were crafted to give opportunity to the creation of such compacts, however he admitted that he wasn’t a great fan of far-reaching agreements or compacts. “That becomes too complex,” he said, “and I think it will lead to long gaps of time. The more the policymakers can remain flexible the better off they’ll be.”
Asked about his views about the chances of federal online poker laws, Liparelli said: “I don’t anticipate that there’s much hope for any federal progress, which for me is a change in position. I think that the time for federal legislation is probably behind us.”
Liparelli said that the window of opportunity to introduce federal online poker and gambling laws was closing fast since several markets were in the process of opening, bringing with them a commitment to commercial entities.
“The time to act was during the last 24 months,” said Liparelli. “The complexity associated with unwinding now is probably too great.”
His message to the states who were in the process of introducing online poker was to keep things simple. “The state-to-state regime is going to be a very complex animal,” he predicted.
Ex Nevada Gaming Authority Head Views Online Poker Future
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The famed PokerStars WCOOP - World Championships of Online Poker is set to start on September 8th until September 29th and encompasses 65 events including the main event. There was an uproar regarding the main event when PokerStars announced that they would be raising the entry fee from $5,200 to $10,300. This was quickly changed back to $5,200 upon mass protests from players worldwide that are now satisfied with the change back to last years fee.
For players looking to play in a cheaper event, the one for you is definitely the 18th event on September 14th starting at 4pm BST for $109. For you high rollers out there, the most expensive event is the day following the cheap one on September 15th with a $25,000 buy in which is a High Roller no-limit hold'em event.
PokerStars offers many different kinds of Poker games and each one they offer will be covered during the 2013 series. There are also a few re-entry tournaments which is not yet a standard at PokerStars. Satellites for the events will run all throughout August giving players a chance to win free entry into some of the more expensive events.
2013 World Championship of Online Poker - The Headlines - Onlinecasinoreports-com
For players looking to play in a cheaper event, the one for you is definitely the 18th event on September 14th starting at 4pm BST for $109. For you high rollers out there, the most expensive event is the day following the cheap one on September 15th with a $25,000 buy in which is a High Roller no-limit hold'em event.
PokerStars offers many different kinds of Poker games and each one they offer will be covered during the 2013 series. There are also a few re-entry tournaments which is not yet a standard at PokerStars. Satellites for the events will run all throughout August giving players a chance to win free entry into some of the more expensive events.
2013 World Championship of Online Poker - The Headlines - Onlinecasinoreports-com
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The changes in online gambling policies in some of the American states has brought about a new content format for those looking for legal online poker sites available now in the American market.
Legal American poker sites web page publishes information about online poker and has revealed that Carbon Poker announced that it has launched real-money mobile poker application.
Carbon published a heads up about its mobile launch saying, “Those playing Carbon Mobile can look forward to both No-Limit Hold’em and Pot-Limit Hold’em cash games. At the moment, tournament play isn’t available, but this is likely to change in the future. We’d also like to add other variants to the mix such as Omaha and Pot-Limit Omaha,” explaining the limit on the games available just now.
Currently the Carbon Poker site is having some technical challenges presented by the Android platform. The poker room responded to the posts on various information sites, advising that the site has yet to be fully optimized for use on Android and that they are aware of the issues being reported by players and are working on them. For the time being, users of iPhones and iPads will have the best opportunity to play Carbon Poker via their mobile devices, as Carbon’s mobile client is only fully optimized for iOS5+ for now.
Carbon Poker’s home the Merge Poker Network has been seeing significant reductions in player activity. The competition is perhaps the cause but there has also been a reduction of the total player activity of late. Policy decisions taken by Merge that created a move away from their site included the doing away with player-to-player transfers and the increasing amount of player segregation the network employs from skin to skin.
Players from NY, KY, DC, MD, MI, WA, or LA are not be able to access the real-money mobile client at Carbon as the site does not accept poker clients for real-money play from those states.
Carbon Launches Mobile Online Poker in the USA
Legal American poker sites web page publishes information about online poker and has revealed that Carbon Poker announced that it has launched real-money mobile poker application.
Carbon published a heads up about its mobile launch saying, “Those playing Carbon Mobile can look forward to both No-Limit Hold’em and Pot-Limit Hold’em cash games. At the moment, tournament play isn’t available, but this is likely to change in the future. We’d also like to add other variants to the mix such as Omaha and Pot-Limit Omaha,” explaining the limit on the games available just now.
Currently the Carbon Poker site is having some technical challenges presented by the Android platform. The poker room responded to the posts on various information sites, advising that the site has yet to be fully optimized for use on Android and that they are aware of the issues being reported by players and are working on them. For the time being, users of iPhones and iPads will have the best opportunity to play Carbon Poker via their mobile devices, as Carbon’s mobile client is only fully optimized for iOS5+ for now.
Carbon Poker’s home the Merge Poker Network has been seeing significant reductions in player activity. The competition is perhaps the cause but there has also been a reduction of the total player activity of late. Policy decisions taken by Merge that created a move away from their site included the doing away with player-to-player transfers and the increasing amount of player segregation the network employs from skin to skin.
Players from NY, KY, DC, MD, MI, WA, or LA are not be able to access the real-money mobile client at Carbon as the site does not accept poker clients for real-money play from those states.
Carbon Launches Mobile Online Poker in the USA
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Delaware is expecting to soon kick off casino games on the Internet, including poker. In the meantime, one of the state’s three casinos just held the state’s “Poker Championship.”
The Delaware Poker Championship III, which began Saturday morning, saw 206 participants and a total prize pool of $108,150. The final table played for two hours, and the winner came early Sunday morning. Dave Tarantino of Wilmington took down the title for more than $80,000, after the final three players agreed to a chop.
The event was held at Dover Downs Hotel & Casino.
Late last month, the state’s three casinos — Dover Downs, Delaware Park and Harrington Raceway & Casino — began to host links to web games that don’t require any deposit. The successful implementation of these free games is one of the final hurdles before the final product is underway. Real money is planned for late October.
Scientific Games and 888 Holdings will be behind the real-money product in Delaware.
The Delaware free games won’t disappear after real-money action starts. The state plans to continue with them as a marketing tool, as people anywhere can have access to such games.
Delaware is home to a population of around 917,000, and thus would likely need to partner up with another jurisdiction in order to create liquidity for online poker sites. Card Player recently spoke with a former Nevada regulator on what Delaware might do.
Delaware Hosts 'Poker Championship' As Real-Money Online Poker Draws Near
The Delaware Poker Championship III, which began Saturday morning, saw 206 participants and a total prize pool of $108,150. The final table played for two hours, and the winner came early Sunday morning. Dave Tarantino of Wilmington took down the title for more than $80,000, after the final three players agreed to a chop.
The event was held at Dover Downs Hotel & Casino.
Late last month, the state’s three casinos — Dover Downs, Delaware Park and Harrington Raceway & Casino — began to host links to web games that don’t require any deposit. The successful implementation of these free games is one of the final hurdles before the final product is underway. Real money is planned for late October.
Scientific Games and 888 Holdings will be behind the real-money product in Delaware.
The Delaware free games won’t disappear after real-money action starts. The state plans to continue with them as a marketing tool, as people anywhere can have access to such games.
Delaware is home to a population of around 917,000, and thus would likely need to partner up with another jurisdiction in order to create liquidity for online poker sites. Card Player recently spoke with a former Nevada regulator on what Delaware might do.
Delaware Hosts 'Poker Championship' As Real-Money Online Poker Draws Near
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2006/12/07
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Here's a new online poker tournament going off at bodog/bovada from 9th Sep for all you poker lovers. This new online poker series is dubbed GSPO - The golden spade poker open.
The Details:
The GSPO is the newest tournament series added to the Bodog Poker Network and boast a schedule that guarantees a massive 1.5 million dollars. This is the network’s largest tournament series to date so don’t miss out.
Here are the links to the sites:
Are you a european or canadian - click here for bodog poker
Are you a north american, south american or from central america - click here for bovada poker
Certain countries are excluded from playing due to local license terms.
The GSPO runs from September 9 to November 3 and offers over 2,000 satellites and 102 Contender and Championship Series events:
· Contender Series: 51 Low to Mid-Stakes events
· Championship Series: 51 Mid to High-Stakes events
· Main Event: $300,000 Guaranteed Prize Pool, running the final day of the GSPO series.
The Details:
The GSPO is the newest tournament series added to the Bodog Poker Network and boast a schedule that guarantees a massive 1.5 million dollars. This is the network’s largest tournament series to date so don’t miss out.
Here are the links to the sites:
Are you a european or canadian - click here for bodog poker
Are you a north american, south american or from central america - click here for bovada poker
Certain countries are excluded from playing due to local license terms.
The GSPO runs from September 9 to November 3 and offers over 2,000 satellites and 102 Contender and Championship Series events:
· Contender Series: 51 Low to Mid-Stakes events
· Championship Series: 51 Mid to High-Stakes events
· Main Event: $300,000 Guaranteed Prize Pool, running the final day of the GSPO series.
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Online poker traffic monitoring site PokerScout-com issued its Weekly Online Poker Traffic Update Monday, indicating that the summer doldrums are over, as cash game traffic was up for the third consecutive week. Last week specifically, traffic increased 2.9 percent, with only one of the top ten poker rooms and networks declining.
That one laggard was Full Tilt Poker as players moved on to other rooms after the conclusion of the Build Your Bonus promotion (as frequently happens with any room upon the end of the promo). As a result, Full Tilt dropped to third in the cash game rankings, while the iPoker Network ascended to second. Both are way behind PokerStars, which has a seven day average of 21,400 cash games players; iPoker has just 2,350 and Full Tilt Poker has 2,250.
Speaking of PokerStars, PokerScout showed in its report how the world’s largest online poker room has actually been hurt in one way by its insanely popular World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP). Because the focus of so many players on the site is tournament play, there is less activity at the cash game tables. The tournament draw is so strong, in fact, that it outweighs the post-summer boost, resulting in decreased cash game numbers over the course of the WCOOP. Compare that to other rooms – iPoker and PartyPoker were the ones displayed in the PokerScout report – that see their cash game numbers rise in September. So far, so good, though for PokerStars at the start of this year’s WCOOP; the site’s peak traffic on Sunday was higher than it was last Sunday.
The other focus of the weekly PokerScout report was PartyPoker, which released its long awaited new software on Thursday. Unfortunately for Party and its players, the software was buggy and unstable, creating extended downtime and repelling players from the site until things began to be ironed out. To illustrate the effect of the problematic new poker client, PartyPoker’s peak cash game traffic on Friday was 2,804, down 13 percent from the 3,237 of the previous Friday. Average traffic, according to PokerScout, was down 20 percent. The software has since improved (though not fully), as has PartyPoker’s traffic.
After PokerStars, iPoker, and Full Tilt Poker, 888Poker and PartyPoker round out the top five in PokerScout’s rankings. Two more PokerStars sites, PokerStars.it and PokerStars.es, are next with Winamax.fr, Bodog, and MPN (Microgaming), completing the top ten. Bodog is the largest U.S.-facing site, followed by the Revolution Gaming Network (19th overall), the Merge Gaming Network (24th), and the Winning Poker Network (25th). Ultimate Poker, still the lone regulated online poker site in the United States, is 31st with a seven day average of 193 cash game players.
PokerScout: Online Poker Cash Game Traffic Up for Third Straight Week
That one laggard was Full Tilt Poker as players moved on to other rooms after the conclusion of the Build Your Bonus promotion (as frequently happens with any room upon the end of the promo). As a result, Full Tilt dropped to third in the cash game rankings, while the iPoker Network ascended to second. Both are way behind PokerStars, which has a seven day average of 21,400 cash games players; iPoker has just 2,350 and Full Tilt Poker has 2,250.
Speaking of PokerStars, PokerScout showed in its report how the world’s largest online poker room has actually been hurt in one way by its insanely popular World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP). Because the focus of so many players on the site is tournament play, there is less activity at the cash game tables. The tournament draw is so strong, in fact, that it outweighs the post-summer boost, resulting in decreased cash game numbers over the course of the WCOOP. Compare that to other rooms – iPoker and PartyPoker were the ones displayed in the PokerScout report – that see their cash game numbers rise in September. So far, so good, though for PokerStars at the start of this year’s WCOOP; the site’s peak traffic on Sunday was higher than it was last Sunday.
The other focus of the weekly PokerScout report was PartyPoker, which released its long awaited new software on Thursday. Unfortunately for Party and its players, the software was buggy and unstable, creating extended downtime and repelling players from the site until things began to be ironed out. To illustrate the effect of the problematic new poker client, PartyPoker’s peak cash game traffic on Friday was 2,804, down 13 percent from the 3,237 of the previous Friday. Average traffic, according to PokerScout, was down 20 percent. The software has since improved (though not fully), as has PartyPoker’s traffic.
After PokerStars, iPoker, and Full Tilt Poker, 888Poker and PartyPoker round out the top five in PokerScout’s rankings. Two more PokerStars sites, PokerStars.it and PokerStars.es, are next with Winamax.fr, Bodog, and MPN (Microgaming), completing the top ten. Bodog is the largest U.S.-facing site, followed by the Revolution Gaming Network (19th overall), the Merge Gaming Network (24th), and the Winning Poker Network (25th). Ultimate Poker, still the lone regulated online poker site in the United States, is 31st with a seven day average of 193 cash game players.
PokerScout: Online Poker Cash Game Traffic Up for Third Straight Week
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The International Stadium Poker Tour's (ISPT) second event was recently unveiled and this time, as opposed to being held in one of the world’s largest sporting venues, it’s being held in an actual casino.
The tournament, given the under-title of “Silver,” presumably to designate it’s definitive non-Stadium location, is set to take place at the Casino de Tanger in Morocco from October 30 to November 3, 2013.
Dubbed the Tanger Millionaire Maker, the event promises a first place prize of 1,000,000 Moroccan Dirhams (which converts to roughly $118,000). The Main Event, currently the only one being promoted, comes with a €900 buy-in and three flights of Day 1s. As is the popular trend, players can re-enter should they play and bust out of Day 1A or 1B (or both).
There’s no mention yet of an online partnership or feeder satellites with the exception of the two that will be offered on-site. It looks as though the ISPT is looking to better manage expectations of their next event, as well as limit the potential overlay damage should the event run into a similar problem: it’s inaugural event ended up with a €589,000 overlay times the guarantee of this event alone.
ISPT Drops the "S" for Morocco Stop | Pokerfuse Online Poker News
The tournament, given the under-title of “Silver,” presumably to designate it’s definitive non-Stadium location, is set to take place at the Casino de Tanger in Morocco from October 30 to November 3, 2013.
Dubbed the Tanger Millionaire Maker, the event promises a first place prize of 1,000,000 Moroccan Dirhams (which converts to roughly $118,000). The Main Event, currently the only one being promoted, comes with a €900 buy-in and three flights of Day 1s. As is the popular trend, players can re-enter should they play and bust out of Day 1A or 1B (or both).
There’s no mention yet of an online partnership or feeder satellites with the exception of the two that will be offered on-site. It looks as though the ISPT is looking to better manage expectations of their next event, as well as limit the potential overlay damage should the event run into a similar problem: it’s inaugural event ended up with a €589,000 overlay times the guarantee of this event alone.
ISPT Drops the "S" for Morocco Stop | Pokerfuse Online Poker News
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In recent times, Spain has constantly been featured on the news in Europe and the world due to its continuing economic woes. One thing that has gained less coverage is the decline of online gaming revenues in the southern European country, something shown by the recent release of second quarter figures.
Gross gaming revenues for licenced Spanish online gaming sites decreased by 10 percent in the second quarter of this year to total €55.4 million (around $73.6 million). Online poker, with all the forms combined, had the second highest share of total gross gaming revenues in Spain. Online cash poker accounted for 20 percent in Spanish revenues in the second quarter, while online poker tournaments accounted for 9.6 percent.
While Spain’s economy has been underperforming in recent years, it would be unfair to fully attribute that as the cause for the gross gaming revenue decline, which has occurred in both quarters of 2013. That is especially the case given that other European nations, such as France and Italy, have also experienced gross gaming revenue declines this year.
There is a more realistic possibility that online gaming may be seeing the beginning of a plateau in Spain, as well as other countries. The relative lack of a competitive atmosphere in the Spanish online poker market, something seen by the closure of Ongame’s Spanish service in June, may also be a factor in the fact online poker revenues have not grown.
PokerStars.es service continues to be head and shoulders above the other licenced sites in Spain. According to Pokerscout, the site has a seven-day average of 1,580 players, which also makes it the seventh most popular online poker service in the world.
888’s Spanish site was the second largest poker service, with a seven-day average of 395 players. That makes it the 20th largest overall online poker operator and the only other significant poker site in Spain.
A distinct possibility to pool online poker liquidity with those of France and Italy does exist, and is an idea that has been expressed by the Spanish gaming regulator. As all countries have experienced online poker revenue falls, the idea may benefit the markets of all three countries, but it remains to be seen whether or not the idea will get off the ground.
Online Gaming Falls in Spain ... Again | PokerUpdate
Gross gaming revenues for licenced Spanish online gaming sites decreased by 10 percent in the second quarter of this year to total €55.4 million (around $73.6 million). Online poker, with all the forms combined, had the second highest share of total gross gaming revenues in Spain. Online cash poker accounted for 20 percent in Spanish revenues in the second quarter, while online poker tournaments accounted for 9.6 percent.
While Spain’s economy has been underperforming in recent years, it would be unfair to fully attribute that as the cause for the gross gaming revenue decline, which has occurred in both quarters of 2013. That is especially the case given that other European nations, such as France and Italy, have also experienced gross gaming revenue declines this year.
There is a more realistic possibility that online gaming may be seeing the beginning of a plateau in Spain, as well as other countries. The relative lack of a competitive atmosphere in the Spanish online poker market, something seen by the closure of Ongame’s Spanish service in June, may also be a factor in the fact online poker revenues have not grown.
PokerStars.es service continues to be head and shoulders above the other licenced sites in Spain. According to Pokerscout, the site has a seven-day average of 1,580 players, which also makes it the seventh most popular online poker service in the world.
888’s Spanish site was the second largest poker service, with a seven-day average of 395 players. That makes it the 20th largest overall online poker operator and the only other significant poker site in Spain.
A distinct possibility to pool online poker liquidity with those of France and Italy does exist, and is an idea that has been expressed by the Spanish gaming regulator. As all countries have experienced online poker revenue falls, the idea may benefit the markets of all three countries, but it remains to be seen whether or not the idea will get off the ground.
Online Gaming Falls in Spain ... Again | PokerUpdate
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Canadian poker pro Daniel Negreanu is running the table on one of his most successful years playing poker this season. But Negreanu is also painting himself as a controversial figure due to his passionate opposition to the “first card off the deck rule” in poker tournaments.
The first card off the deck rule was implemented by the Tournament Directors Association (TDA), the official association representing managers of the world’s largest poker tournaments, casinos, and online gambling domains alike.
The first card off the deck rule, known as TDA #29, was passed earlier this year and requires players to be at or near their seats when the first card of a hand is dealt. If a player is not within close proximity to his or her seat, the hand is declared dead and all posted blinds are forfeited to the dealer.
During the EPT High Roller tournament in Barcelona earlier this month, Negreanu was subjected to the rule in a very controversial experience. As the small blind in that particular round, Negreanu anted up while standing behind his chair talking to a fellow tournament participant, though he was facing away from the table as the cards were dealt.
The dealer then declared the hand dead, took away the cards as well as the blinds, and left Negreanu outraged. On the following hand, he went all in without even looking at his cards as a form of protest, and was subsequently eliminated when his cards failed to catch anything on the flop, the turn, or the river.
The Canadian immediately went to Twitter to express his hostility with the TDA and its first card off the deck rule. After a series of angry tweets, Negreanu stated his intention to post a second €10,000 ($13,700) buy-in and reenter the tournament to “make a deep run.”
Negreanu backed up his tough words with a successful second run, and finished the EPT Barcelona as the runner-up to victor Thomas Muhlocker. As a result of his second place finish, Negreanu won €263,800 ($362,000) and jumped back to the top position on the Player of the Year leaderboard, a goal the Canadian set out for himself at the beginning of the poker season.
Despite his second place finish in Barcelona, Negreanu refused to let go of his animosity towards TDA #29. On his official Twitter account, he suggested other successful players agree with his opposition to the rule.
“Reading some very powerful arguments against the First card off the deck rule from well respected players/media. Will lay them out in a video.”
- See more at: Daniel Negreanu Backs Up Tough Talk With Successful
The first card off the deck rule was implemented by the Tournament Directors Association (TDA), the official association representing managers of the world’s largest poker tournaments, casinos, and online gambling domains alike.
The first card off the deck rule, known as TDA #29, was passed earlier this year and requires players to be at or near their seats when the first card of a hand is dealt. If a player is not within close proximity to his or her seat, the hand is declared dead and all posted blinds are forfeited to the dealer.
During the EPT High Roller tournament in Barcelona earlier this month, Negreanu was subjected to the rule in a very controversial experience. As the small blind in that particular round, Negreanu anted up while standing behind his chair talking to a fellow tournament participant, though he was facing away from the table as the cards were dealt.
The dealer then declared the hand dead, took away the cards as well as the blinds, and left Negreanu outraged. On the following hand, he went all in without even looking at his cards as a form of protest, and was subsequently eliminated when his cards failed to catch anything on the flop, the turn, or the river.
The Canadian immediately went to Twitter to express his hostility with the TDA and its first card off the deck rule. After a series of angry tweets, Negreanu stated his intention to post a second €10,000 ($13,700) buy-in and reenter the tournament to “make a deep run.”
Negreanu backed up his tough words with a successful second run, and finished the EPT Barcelona as the runner-up to victor Thomas Muhlocker. As a result of his second place finish, Negreanu won €263,800 ($362,000) and jumped back to the top position on the Player of the Year leaderboard, a goal the Canadian set out for himself at the beginning of the poker season.
Despite his second place finish in Barcelona, Negreanu refused to let go of his animosity towards TDA #29. On his official Twitter account, he suggested other successful players agree with his opposition to the rule.
“Reading some very powerful arguments against the First card off the deck rule from well respected players/media. Will lay them out in a video.”
- See more at: Daniel Negreanu Backs Up Tough Talk With Successful
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Nevada gaming regulators have given preliminary approval to an agreement between Las Vegas-based Golden Gaming and offshore online poker operator 888 Holdings. The marketing agreement between the two companies would allow Golden Gaming to customers sign up for online poker play through Treasure Island, which plans to launch a Nevada-only real-money online poker room operated by 888.
According to Golden Gaming attorney Michael Alsonso, the company will serve as a marketing vehicle to direct players to Treasure Island's online poker website. It will not have any role in the online poker operation itself. Golden Gaming owns 40 taverns in Las Vegas as well as three casinos in Pahrump, located 60 miles outside of Sin City.
“It’s unique and allows Golden Gaming to market 888’s platform to its customers,” Alonso told the Gaming Control Board, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
If and when the deal is given final approval by the Nevada Gaming Commission (NGC) on Sept. 26, the gaming revenues will be shared between 888 Holdings, Treasure Island, and Golden Gaming. The revenue share will go into effect as soon as Treasure Island launches its online poker site.
888 and Treasure Island were approved for interactive gaming licenses by the NGC in March. 888, which owns and operates 888poker outside of the U.S., will provide the software for Treasure Island's online poker room when the site is up and running in Nevada.
888 will also provide an online poker platform for Caesars Interactive Entertainment and slot machine manufacturer WMS Industries in Nevada. 888 has nonexclusive business-to-business deals with each of the companies.
Online Poker Deal Between 888 and Golden Gaming Receives Preliminary Approval | PokerNews
According to Golden Gaming attorney Michael Alsonso, the company will serve as a marketing vehicle to direct players to Treasure Island's online poker website. It will not have any role in the online poker operation itself. Golden Gaming owns 40 taverns in Las Vegas as well as three casinos in Pahrump, located 60 miles outside of Sin City.
“It’s unique and allows Golden Gaming to market 888’s platform to its customers,” Alonso told the Gaming Control Board, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
If and when the deal is given final approval by the Nevada Gaming Commission (NGC) on Sept. 26, the gaming revenues will be shared between 888 Holdings, Treasure Island, and Golden Gaming. The revenue share will go into effect as soon as Treasure Island launches its online poker site.
888 and Treasure Island were approved for interactive gaming licenses by the NGC in March. 888, which owns and operates 888poker outside of the U.S., will provide the software for Treasure Island's online poker room when the site is up and running in Nevada.
888 will also provide an online poker platform for Caesars Interactive Entertainment and slot machine manufacturer WMS Industries in Nevada. 888 has nonexclusive business-to-business deals with each of the companies.
Online Poker Deal Between 888 and Golden Gaming Receives Preliminary Approval | PokerNews
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It has been speculated that Nevada and New Jersey could share their respective populations for online gambling starting sometime next year, and on Wednesday Nevada regulators discussed some of the changes that would need to occur to the rules currently on the books in order to make something like that possible.
The Internet gaming regulations in the Silver State, which were first adopted in December 2011, would need to be amended in order to allow for such deals to be brokered.
“I can’t enter into any compacts or agreements with other states until the Gaming Control Board and Gaming Commission adopt regulations to allow me to do so,” Sandoval told Vegas Inc Tuesday. “We have had preliminary conversations with other states, but there is nothing I can do until the regulations are adopted, which I understand may happen next month.”
Earlier this year, Sandoval signed legislation that allows for such partnerships. Online poker was legalized in Nevada’s borders in the summer of 2011. Since then, only one firm – Station Casinos – has offered such a product. Though, more are expected soon, including games from the World Series of Poker, a Caesars Entertainment entity.
Bally and IGT are two tech firms that have explicitly expressed interest to gaming regulators about the desire to offer progressive jackpots across state lines in the online gambling realm. A lawyer for the two firms presented a petition to the Control Board during the workshop.
As Sandoval alluded to, more hearings on the proposals are scheduled for next month.
Card Player recently spoke to former Nevada Gaming Control Board Chairman Mark Lipparelli about how state deals might look. He said that “far-reaching” compacts would not be ideal.
“I would say that it’s likely that state-to-state, multiple-market initiatives will begin in 2014,” he said. “It’s a little more challenging to peg which states. I’m a believer that we’re going to see states begin to compact with each other or even allow cross-border access to markets, and maybe it wouldn’t even require a compact of any kind. That’s a likely thing to occur.”
When asked about such a Nevada-New Jersey deal, Nevada lawmaker William Horne told Card Player, “There’s a desire in both jurisdictions to get something done.” He added that it would be a “wonderful collaboration.”
While the process might seem complex to the casual observer, hashing out the rules to make Nevada fully capable of a deal with New Jersey, or any other jurisdiction, is actually quite straightforward, according to Horne.
“I wouldn’t anticipate it being too difficult because both [Nevada and New Jersey] have a strong track record with gaming regulation.” Horne said. “It shouldn’t take too long.”
To put it simply, Nevada’s gambling firms having access to populations outside of the state is inevitable. Officials just have to hammer out the specifics, which shouldn’t be too far away. Online poker run in and from the Silver State should soon get a strong boost, not only from more operators in the market but also more players.
Nevada Inching Closer To Larger Player Pools For Online Poker
The Internet gaming regulations in the Silver State, which were first adopted in December 2011, would need to be amended in order to allow for such deals to be brokered.
“I can’t enter into any compacts or agreements with other states until the Gaming Control Board and Gaming Commission adopt regulations to allow me to do so,” Sandoval told Vegas Inc Tuesday. “We have had preliminary conversations with other states, but there is nothing I can do until the regulations are adopted, which I understand may happen next month.”
Earlier this year, Sandoval signed legislation that allows for such partnerships. Online poker was legalized in Nevada’s borders in the summer of 2011. Since then, only one firm – Station Casinos – has offered such a product. Though, more are expected soon, including games from the World Series of Poker, a Caesars Entertainment entity.
Bally and IGT are two tech firms that have explicitly expressed interest to gaming regulators about the desire to offer progressive jackpots across state lines in the online gambling realm. A lawyer for the two firms presented a petition to the Control Board during the workshop.
As Sandoval alluded to, more hearings on the proposals are scheduled for next month.
Card Player recently spoke to former Nevada Gaming Control Board Chairman Mark Lipparelli about how state deals might look. He said that “far-reaching” compacts would not be ideal.
“I would say that it’s likely that state-to-state, multiple-market initiatives will begin in 2014,” he said. “It’s a little more challenging to peg which states. I’m a believer that we’re going to see states begin to compact with each other or even allow cross-border access to markets, and maybe it wouldn’t even require a compact of any kind. That’s a likely thing to occur.”
When asked about such a Nevada-New Jersey deal, Nevada lawmaker William Horne told Card Player, “There’s a desire in both jurisdictions to get something done.” He added that it would be a “wonderful collaboration.”
While the process might seem complex to the casual observer, hashing out the rules to make Nevada fully capable of a deal with New Jersey, or any other jurisdiction, is actually quite straightforward, according to Horne.
“I wouldn’t anticipate it being too difficult because both [Nevada and New Jersey] have a strong track record with gaming regulation.” Horne said. “It shouldn’t take too long.”
To put it simply, Nevada’s gambling firms having access to populations outside of the state is inevitable. Officials just have to hammer out the specifics, which shouldn’t be too far away. Online poker run in and from the Silver State should soon get a strong boost, not only from more operators in the market but also more players.
Nevada Inching Closer To Larger Player Pools For Online Poker
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You’re familiar with the name Daniel Negreanu, right? He’s Canada’s biggest poker player, with more than $18 million in winnings, a sponsorship from the world’s biggest poker site and a crazy-high amount of outspokenness (just look at how he berates Annie Duke).
But did you know that of his more than $18.3 million in poker tournament winnings, just $34,000 of that was made online?
The other big Canadian success story, Jonathan Duhamel, has close to $12 million in poker tournament winnings to his name, but nearly all of that was snagged in live tourneys, not online events.
It’s not just a Canadian story. The big names out of the U.S. are identical. Antonio Esfandiari, the world’s top poker player in terms of winnings with more than $25 million, has made most of it live. Phil Hellmuth, the American poker player who leads the world with the most World Series of Poker bracelets, has more than $17 million in casino poker winnings and just $11,825 in online tournament winnings.
So what’s the deal? Who’s making the big money online? Are they Swedish? Italian? Irish? No, actually. They’re all Canadian and American, or at least a good chunk of them are. But they live in the online world, so they don’t get the type of camera time that creates international celebrities out of a bunch of guys who just sit there holding cards, pushing stacks of chips towards the center of the table.
Here are the top Canadian and American online poker players you should pay attention to, along with a brief look at what they’ve won and when they won it.
Casey Jarzabek – St. Catherines, Canada
To call Jarzabek a ridiculously good multi-tabling powerhouse is an understatement. Just take a look at his online poker credentials for proof of what kind of poker player we’re dealing with here. A $277,930 payday for a first-place finish a $300 buy-in tourney back in 2009. A $165,338 win for a fourth-place finish in a Sunday Brawl online tournament in 2011. And dozens of five-figure wins sandwiched in between. He has also cashed in World Poker Tour and World Series of Poker events, pushing his collective wins at online tables and live to well more than $2.6 million.
Russell Carson – Powell River, Canada
You’d be hard-pressed to dig up a detailed biography on this Canadian poker player. But that’s the beauty of online players. They don’t have to live in the spotlight. Instead of talking smack in front of the camera, gracing the covers of major poker publications and shilling for poker sites, the online guys can hang out at their house and grind the tables in their PJs. They don’t need to give media interviews, but that doesn’t mean people aren’t interested in them. Carson, for example, has made quite the career playing online poker, collecting more than $2.3 million. And like a lot of other online guys, he’s done quite well live, too, winning over $650,000 playing poker in bricks-and-mortar poker rooms.
Steve Gross – Marlboro, NJ
With more than $3.4 million in online winnings, to call Steve Gross a juggernaut would be like calling the Grand Canyon a small hole in the ground. He’s the world’s top winning online poker player for tournament play. No other player comes close (actually, four other Americans edge pretty close to him, hovering in the low three-millions, but that’s a story for another day). And he hasn’t just made big gains online. He kills it live, too. At this year’s World Series of Poker, he took first place in Event #41, a $5,000 Pot Limit Omaha six-handed event, netting $488,817 for his efforts. And he few days after his win, he grabbed another $173,723 for finishing 24th in the One Drop High Rollers No Limit Hold’em event (though the buy-in for that was $111,111, so his net gain wasn’t too high).
TJ Ulmer – Montreal, Canada
With nearly $5.5 million in lifetime cashes, Ulmer is one of Canada’s top-ranked online poker players. He’s amassed nearly 5,000 cashes over the course of his career, including some recent big ones. In early 2013, he chopped the final table, collecting $232,000 for holding strong. He followed that up a few months later with a $40,000 third-place finish in a Sunday $100 rebuy tournament online. And two months after that, he collected a sweet $29,000 for a second-place finish in the big Sunday Brawl online poker tournament. His successes not only make him the top ranked Canadian online poker player, but he’s also respected worldwide.
We’re not going to sit here and pretend that the top online poker players are all Canadian. They aren’t. There are loads of American players in the top 10, and plenty more to talk about than just Steve Gross.
But that could change. On April 15th, 2011, the U.S. Department of Justice shut down the big three online poker sites in the US—Poker Stars, Full Tilt, and Absolute Poker/UltimateBet. It completely changed the landscape.
Those sites no longer serve the U.S. market, so American players are forced to play on smaller sites with lower guaranteed tournaments and lower limits at other online games. That means they have way less opportunity to land a big weekly payday than their Canadian counterparts, who have several sites they can play on, according to OnlineCasino.ca. By this time next year, don’t be surprised if you see the top 10 online poker players made up of exclusively Canadians.
Canadians can still play on PokerStars and Full Tilt (Absolute Poker is out of business). While the United States has tried to shut down offshore sites, Canada hasn’t gone after them, instead accepting them as part of the economy. Rather than try to shut them down, some provinces have opted to compete against the offshore sites by starting their own casinos and poker rooms.
Canada’s gambling-friendly attitude has meant that Canada has become somewhat of a safe haven for U.S. poker players looking to continue their online poker career, according to a CBC Sports article. And as U.S. poker players discover how great Canada is, many are opting
But did you know that of his more than $18.3 million in poker tournament winnings, just $34,000 of that was made online?
The other big Canadian success story, Jonathan Duhamel, has close to $12 million in poker tournament winnings to his name, but nearly all of that was snagged in live tourneys, not online events.
It’s not just a Canadian story. The big names out of the U.S. are identical. Antonio Esfandiari, the world’s top poker player in terms of winnings with more than $25 million, has made most of it live. Phil Hellmuth, the American poker player who leads the world with the most World Series of Poker bracelets, has more than $17 million in casino poker winnings and just $11,825 in online tournament winnings.
So what’s the deal? Who’s making the big money online? Are they Swedish? Italian? Irish? No, actually. They’re all Canadian and American, or at least a good chunk of them are. But they live in the online world, so they don’t get the type of camera time that creates international celebrities out of a bunch of guys who just sit there holding cards, pushing stacks of chips towards the center of the table.
Here are the top Canadian and American online poker players you should pay attention to, along with a brief look at what they’ve won and when they won it.
Casey Jarzabek – St. Catherines, Canada
To call Jarzabek a ridiculously good multi-tabling powerhouse is an understatement. Just take a look at his online poker credentials for proof of what kind of poker player we’re dealing with here. A $277,930 payday for a first-place finish a $300 buy-in tourney back in 2009. A $165,338 win for a fourth-place finish in a Sunday Brawl online tournament in 2011. And dozens of five-figure wins sandwiched in between. He has also cashed in World Poker Tour and World Series of Poker events, pushing his collective wins at online tables and live to well more than $2.6 million.
Russell Carson – Powell River, Canada
You’d be hard-pressed to dig up a detailed biography on this Canadian poker player. But that’s the beauty of online players. They don’t have to live in the spotlight. Instead of talking smack in front of the camera, gracing the covers of major poker publications and shilling for poker sites, the online guys can hang out at their house and grind the tables in their PJs. They don’t need to give media interviews, but that doesn’t mean people aren’t interested in them. Carson, for example, has made quite the career playing online poker, collecting more than $2.3 million. And like a lot of other online guys, he’s done quite well live, too, winning over $650,000 playing poker in bricks-and-mortar poker rooms.
Steve Gross – Marlboro, NJ
With more than $3.4 million in online winnings, to call Steve Gross a juggernaut would be like calling the Grand Canyon a small hole in the ground. He’s the world’s top winning online poker player for tournament play. No other player comes close (actually, four other Americans edge pretty close to him, hovering in the low three-millions, but that’s a story for another day). And he hasn’t just made big gains online. He kills it live, too. At this year’s World Series of Poker, he took first place in Event #41, a $5,000 Pot Limit Omaha six-handed event, netting $488,817 for his efforts. And he few days after his win, he grabbed another $173,723 for finishing 24th in the One Drop High Rollers No Limit Hold’em event (though the buy-in for that was $111,111, so his net gain wasn’t too high).
TJ Ulmer – Montreal, Canada
With nearly $5.5 million in lifetime cashes, Ulmer is one of Canada’s top-ranked online poker players. He’s amassed nearly 5,000 cashes over the course of his career, including some recent big ones. In early 2013, he chopped the final table, collecting $232,000 for holding strong. He followed that up a few months later with a $40,000 third-place finish in a Sunday $100 rebuy tournament online. And two months after that, he collected a sweet $29,000 for a second-place finish in the big Sunday Brawl online poker tournament. His successes not only make him the top ranked Canadian online poker player, but he’s also respected worldwide.
We’re not going to sit here and pretend that the top online poker players are all Canadian. They aren’t. There are loads of American players in the top 10, and plenty more to talk about than just Steve Gross.
But that could change. On April 15th, 2011, the U.S. Department of Justice shut down the big three online poker sites in the US—Poker Stars, Full Tilt, and Absolute Poker/UltimateBet. It completely changed the landscape.
Those sites no longer serve the U.S. market, so American players are forced to play on smaller sites with lower guaranteed tournaments and lower limits at other online games. That means they have way less opportunity to land a big weekly payday than their Canadian counterparts, who have several sites they can play on, according to OnlineCasino.ca. By this time next year, don’t be surprised if you see the top 10 online poker players made up of exclusively Canadians.
Canadians can still play on PokerStars and Full Tilt (Absolute Poker is out of business). While the United States has tried to shut down offshore sites, Canada hasn’t gone after them, instead accepting them as part of the economy. Rather than try to shut them down, some provinces have opted to compete against the offshore sites by starting their own casinos and poker rooms.
Canada’s gambling-friendly attitude has meant that Canada has become somewhat of a safe haven for U.S. poker players looking to continue their online poker career, according to a CBC Sports article. And as U.S. poker players discover how great Canada is, many are opting
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2006/12/07
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Another week and more vicious swings for Viktor Blom.
Over the past seven days on Full Tilt Poker, the Swede dropped around $1.89 million, according to data from HighstakesDB. The plunge has him up just $1.2 million on the year. His high point was around $5.2 million, after the best upswing of his life occurred in January.
Between Monday (9/9) and Tuesday (9/10) he did manage to win about $330,000, but the rest of the week was just atrocious. Almost every session resulted in dropping six-figure sums.
His biggest action came at heads-up no-limit hold’em with stakes $400-$800. He played against the likes of “RookieNFL”, “SanIker” and Alex “IReadYrSoul” Millar.
No pot in these games exceeded $300,000 this week, but there were definitely some interesting ones. Blom and Millar played a fascinating one when the stacks were pretty deep.
Blom ($135,000) had the button and raised to $2,400 with the 2Spade Suit 2Heart Suit, and Millar ($266,000) called with the JDiamond Suit 8Heart Suit. Both hands are pretty strong heads-up against aggressive opponents.
The flop fell JClub Suit 10Spade Suit 4Heart Suit, and Millar checked. Blom checked as well. The turn brought the JHeart Suit.
Millar checked again, and this time Blom bet $4,000. Millar just called with his trips.
The river was the 2Diamond Suit, and Millar checked for a third time. Blom decided to bet $12,000 with his rivered full house. Millar check raised to $42,000. Blom thought about what to do.
He eventually decided to just call and raked in the nearly $100,000 pot.
The second biggest loser on the week was Gus Hansen. He dropped $611,339, which brings his losses on the year to $4.3 million.
Isaac “luvtheWNBA” Haxton was the top performer, earning $655,730.
Winners In 2013
cottonseed1: $3.14 million
Alexander “PostflopAction” Kostritsyn: $3.14 million
Ben “Bttech86” Tollerene: $3.01 million
Patrik “FiddaGrind” Antonius: $2.78 million
Rhje: $2.47 million
Losers In 2013
Gus Hansen: -$4.32 million
MalACEsia: -$3.77 million
samrostan: -$3.38 million
Phil “Polarizing” Ivey: -$2.94 million
punting-peddler: -$2.08 million
Online Poker: Viktor Blom Drops $1.89 Million
Over the past seven days on Full Tilt Poker, the Swede dropped around $1.89 million, according to data from HighstakesDB. The plunge has him up just $1.2 million on the year. His high point was around $5.2 million, after the best upswing of his life occurred in January.
Between Monday (9/9) and Tuesday (9/10) he did manage to win about $330,000, but the rest of the week was just atrocious. Almost every session resulted in dropping six-figure sums.
His biggest action came at heads-up no-limit hold’em with stakes $400-$800. He played against the likes of “RookieNFL”, “SanIker” and Alex “IReadYrSoul” Millar.
No pot in these games exceeded $300,000 this week, but there were definitely some interesting ones. Blom and Millar played a fascinating one when the stacks were pretty deep.
Blom ($135,000) had the button and raised to $2,400 with the 2Spade Suit 2Heart Suit, and Millar ($266,000) called with the JDiamond Suit 8Heart Suit. Both hands are pretty strong heads-up against aggressive opponents.
The flop fell JClub Suit 10Spade Suit 4Heart Suit, and Millar checked. Blom checked as well. The turn brought the JHeart Suit.
Millar checked again, and this time Blom bet $4,000. Millar just called with his trips.
The river was the 2Diamond Suit, and Millar checked for a third time. Blom decided to bet $12,000 with his rivered full house. Millar check raised to $42,000. Blom thought about what to do.
He eventually decided to just call and raked in the nearly $100,000 pot.
The second biggest loser on the week was Gus Hansen. He dropped $611,339, which brings his losses on the year to $4.3 million.
Isaac “luvtheWNBA” Haxton was the top performer, earning $655,730.
Winners In 2013
cottonseed1: $3.14 million
Alexander “PostflopAction” Kostritsyn: $3.14 million
Ben “Bttech86” Tollerene: $3.01 million
Patrik “FiddaGrind” Antonius: $2.78 million
Rhje: $2.47 million
Losers In 2013
Gus Hansen: -$4.32 million
MalACEsia: -$3.77 million
samrostan: -$3.38 million
Phil “Polarizing” Ivey: -$2.94 million
punting-peddler: -$2.08 million
Online Poker: Viktor Blom Drops $1.89 Million
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That is, unless your operations deal solely or mainly in the game of poker.
Figures released by the Danish Gambling Authority (DGA) have shown that gross gaming online poker revenues in the Scandinavian country have fallen in the second quarter of this year. Danish poker revenues in Q2 totalled around $8.9 million, a drop from the $9.8 million in poker revenues during the same time in 2012.
That does not seem like a huge decline at first glance – it is a little over 9 percent – but it is a major fall when put into the context of full year projections for gross poker revenue in Denmark.
The DGA has put forward its expectations that poker revenue for this year will total around $36.3 million. If that figure proves to be correct, it would be a drop of over two and a half million dollars from 2012 revenue totals.
The projected decline is even more significant given that other forms of online gaming in Denmark have increased over the same period. Gross online casino revenues in the country, for example, increased from around $41.5 million to $44.3 million in the second quarter of this year.
Online sports revenues, on the other hand, jumped from $46.9 million to $59.2 million in Q2, an increase of 26 percent year-on-year. Those figures helped contribute to a 17 percent increase in total online gaming revenues in Denmark in the last quarter, an obviously positive event for that country’s online gaming industry.
Still though, it does make one question why poker revenues have gone the other way while the country’s online gaming industry seems to be growing in strength. One possible reason could lie in the existence of an online gaming blacklist in the country, which contains a number of sites and operators.
The list is not exhaustive, however, especially when compared to those of other European countries such as Italy, Bulgaria, Belgium and Greece, and many online poker sites operate in the country.
Another possible - and more likely - reason for the declining poker fortunes in Denmark is that the country has been caught up in what seems to be a trend away from the game. Denmark is certainly not the only country to have had declining gross poker revenue in recent months; a number of other countries, including France and Italy, have also experienced falls in online poker revenue while other forms of online gaming have increased.
Such trends do not necessarily mean that the game of poker is in danger in countries such as Denmark. Poker has been extremely popular in many countries around the world for a number of years, having achieved mainstream success and having attracted huge numbers of followers along with it.
Now, for whatever reason, it appears that some of those casual followers are either steering away from poker or paying less attention to it. That is the case with most things that suddenly gain major amounts of attention; it becomes fashionable for some followers who stop playing the game almost as quickly as they’ve adopted it.
It is likely not a case of poker entering bad times, more that times are still good, but no longer fantastic, for poker in Denmark and beyond.
Online Poker Fortunes Fall in Denmark | PokerUpdate