09 3rd, 2010
Twenty year-old Toby Lewis triumphed over the field in the European Poker Tour’s (EPT) stop in Vilamoura, Portugal. Lewis banked a hearty €467,000 for his efforts in the €5,350 buy-in tournament, the largest ever held in the European nation.
The final pot of the night was a dramatic one. Facing off against fellow young gun Martin Jacobson, who is just 23 years old, Lewis raised pre-flop and received a call to see the first three cards come A-9-10. The action slowed down and both players checked to a five on the turn. Jacobson bet out for 180,000 and Lewis made it 525,000. Not to be outdone, Jacobson 3bet to 1.025 million and Lewis added another million on top of that. Jacobson tanked before 5betting all-in and Lewis made the call.
When the cards were revealed, Jacobson held 9-5 for bottom two pair, while Lewis held pocket fives for a turned set. Jacobson was drawing thin to a nine and whiffed on the river when another 10 came. Lewis held a boat and took down the EPT Vilamoura title. Don’t feel sorry for Jacobson, however, who pulled down €298,000 for his runner-up performance in the record-breaking Portuguese poker tournament.
American Jason Lee was EPT Vilamoura’s third place finisher. Lee shoved all-in pre-flop with A-5 of hearts, but ran into Jacobson’s A-10. No hearts came on the board and Jacobson turned a 10 to boot, bringing a 3:2 chip lead into heads-up play against Lewis. U.K. poker pro Sam Trickett, a former winner of the Grosvenor U.K. Poker Tour Luton Main Event, nabbed fourth place for €139,000.
Following his title, Lewis told EPT officials, “I’m pretty happy at the moment. This title means a lot to me. I was disappointed not to win IPT Venice, but this means even more. It wasn’t easy – Martin was a very hard player to beat.” Lewis finished seventh in the -backed Italian Poker Tour (IPT) stop in Venice in July. Italian Tamas Lendavi took down the €2,000 buy-in tournament to the tune of €235,000.
World-renowned footballer Teddy Sheringham took fifth in EPT Vilamoura. The Friend of PokerStars 3bet all-in on a board of K-9-10-9 with K-Q for kings-up, but Jacobson tabled Q-J for the nut straight. No miracle card came on the river and Sheringham was sent into the streets of Vilamoura €93,000 richer for his wear. According to the HendonMob database, it was Sheringham’s largest live tournament cash ever. He finished 14th in the () Europe Main Event last year for £40,000.
Others who made the money included Luca Pagano, J.P. Kelly, and Rob Hollink. Here’s how the final table shook out. Six nations were represented among its eight participants:
1. Toby Lewis (U.K.) – € 467,836
2. Martin Jacobson (Sweden) – €297,985
3. Jason Lee (USA) €186,241
4. Sam Trickett (U.K.) – €139,681
5. Teddy Sheringham (U.K.) – €93,121
6. Frederik Jensen (Denmark) – €74,496
7. Rob Hollink (Netherlands) – €55,872
8. Sergio Coutinho (Portugal) – €37,248
The EPT is now on hiatus until September 28th, when EPT London kicks off. The London festival of poker plays out until October 4th at the Hilton London Metropole. The Main Event begins on September 29th with the first of two starting days and a massive crowd is expected for the £5,250 buy-in event. Last year, 730 players entered EPT London, forming the largest tournament ever held in the U.K. 2008 WSOP Main Event champ , now on a break from poker, finished second in the EPT London feature tournament.
Visit PokerStars for more details.
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In November, voters in the United States will head to the polls for general elections. On Capitol Hill, the entire House of Representatives and one-third of the Senate will be determined. If Republicans were to gain control of the House, then Congressman Barney Frank’s (D-MA) tenure as Financial Services Committee Chairman may come to an end.
A recent discussed the future of the lower Congressional body: “Polls show control of the House of Representatives is too close to call while the Democrats are expected to retain control of the Senate, albeit with a reduced majority.” Frank has been in the House since 1980 and served as the Financial Services Committee Chairman since 2007. Democrats currently control nearly 60% of the seats in the House and Senate.
Congressman Spencer Bachus (R-AL) serves as the Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, although he apparently seems far from a lock to take over the Chair should the opportunity arise. However, the Financial Times revealed, “Mr. Bachus said, ‘I will be the chairman if we’re in the majority.’ [Congressman Jeb Hensarling (R-TX)] said, ‘My expectation is that Spencer Bachus will be the next Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee and I support him.’”
What’s the significance of this story for online poker players, you ask? Frank is internet gambling’s number one supporter on Capitol Hill, having offered up a handful of bills to legalize the industry in the United States. His latest effort, HR 2267, the Internet Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection, and Enforcement Act, was marked up in the Financial Services Committee in late July and has received the support of 70 co-sponsors.
HR 2267 received about a dozen amendments during mark-up, ranging from ensuring that online sports betting would not be legalized to prohibiting existing sites that serve the U.S. market “illegally” from applying for a license. Now, the measure awaits its time on the House floor, although HR 2267 being attached to a must-pass bill later this year is a possibility. Ironically, the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act () was attached to an unrelated port security measure to become law in 2006.
Bachus remains one of the strongest opponents of legalized internet gambling. During HR 2267’s markup hearing on July 28th, Bachus opened the proceedings by arguing, “After all of the talk of the past year of shutting the casinos down on Wall Street, why would we take steps today to open casinos in every bedroom and every dorm room on iPods, Blackberrys, iPhones, and computers?”
In the meantime, HR 2267 has caused a rift of sorts in the poker community. The Commerce Casino’s Tom Malkasian was among those witnesses who spoke against the bill in a July 21st House Financial Services Committee hearing. In response, the (PPA), the industry’s main lobbying voice, issued an online petition to force the Commerce to change its position. The petition, found at , has received over 7,000 signatures.
The Commerce Casino then fired back, arguing in a press release distributed in Friday, “Nevada casinos, offshore companies, and Washington insiders don’t want California to benefit from its own market. Our economic future is not their concern. We support free enterprise, fair competition, and the principle that what plays in California, stays in California.” The Los Angeles casino also claimed support from the Bicycle Casino, Hawaiian Gardens Casino, and Hollywood Park Casino.
Several poker pros have suggested a boycott of the Commerce Casino, although one has not yet occurred. The Bicycle Casino is fresh off hosting the ’s Legends of Poker, which saw Andy Frankenberger walk away with the title and $750,000 top prize.
Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest headlines from Capitol Hill and beyond.
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08 28th, 2010
On Thursday, the poker world learned that Blanca Games, which features Chief Executive Officer Stuart Gordon, had . and both make their home on the USA-friendly network and the former features as a sponsored pro. Shortly after the acquisition announcement, Poker News Daily caught up to the former “Poker2Nite” host.
One year ago, Sebok signed on with UB.com and immediately became involved in the site’s investigation into the superuser scandal orchestrated by former () Main Event champ Russ Hamilton. He’s remained one of the more visible UB.com pros in a roster that also includes Poker News Daily Guest Columnist and 11-time bracelet winner .
Sebok gave us his reaction to the news that Blanca Games had taken control of CEREUS: “I couldn’t be more excited about it. It’s a further break from the past and fewer connections to the former owners of , not to mention my own excitement about bringing Blanca into the fold and beginning something new. Gordon has a proven track record and I think bringing them into the poker arena is only going to breathe some new excitement into our business.”
Who is Gordon, you ask? He’s the founder and operator of BingoMania.com and Helix Gaming International, both of which hold licenses from the nation of Antigua and the Kahnawake Gaming Commission. Blanca Games has its headquarters in Antigua and offices in Costa Rica. Sebok elaborated that despite the change in ownership, players should expect continued growth: “The player experience shouldn’t change one bit, except for all of the improvements that will come from us being bought by Blanca. I think we are really going to be able to do many more exciting things now.”
Text found on Blanca Games’ website does not shed much light on its identity, instead only offering up, “The operations of the Blanca Group are conducted by subsidiaries and associated companies.” According to whois.domaintools.com, BlancaGames.com was registered on July 15th, 2010.
Sebok explained that the timing of the sale with his one-year anniversary of joining UB.com is purely coincidental. That said, he is ready to put the past behind him and continue supporting the USA-friendly site and network: “I always knew that we needed to deal with the past, which we continue to do, but the really exciting period was always going to be growing the company and turning it into what we would like it to be. Soon, UB won’t be known for the scandals of the past, but rather for helping lead online poker into the future.”
Poker News Daily can independently confirm that no staffing or operational changes are expected in the new Blanca Games regime. Sebok added, “Blanca wanted, and needed, the entire operation and the offices and staff to remain largely the same.” In addition, Sebok revealed that no changes to the CEREUS Network’s or promotions would occur.
Some in the online poker community have questioned whether the fleet of UB and Absolute Poker pros may be turned over. However, Sebok told us that he’s staying put: “I look to continue my role and am excited about possibly taking on more. Anyone that knows me knows I like to get involved and get my hands dirty, so whatever UB asks of me, I would love to get involved with.” Sebok finished 56th in the 2009 WSOP Main Event, catching a wealth of face time on ESPN and $108,000 in cash to boot.
Given Victory Poker’s move from the Everleaf Network to the Network on September 1st, one wonders whether the CEREUS family of sites will follow suit with consolidation. According to PokerScout.com, the CEREUS Network is the sixth largest worldwide, with a seven-day running average of 1,760 real money ring game players. It includes just two sites and accepts action from the United States.
On the prospects of the CEREUS Network taking on additional sites given new ownership, Sebok told Poker News Daily, “The company’s strategy is not to have network partners. But, I think that more acquisitions in the future are not out of the question.” Also merging in the first quarter of 2011 are Party Gaming and .
Tokwiro Enterprises, the former owners of UB.com and Absolute Poker, will issue a press release with more information about the transaction early next week.
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08 27th, 2010
The poker world watched in earnest late last night as the second installment of the Million Dollar Challenge kicked off on Poker. Although no official tracking page exists, Dwan got off to a quick $130,000 lead over Dan “JungleMan12” Cates after 1,651 hands, according to the High Stakes DB and Dwan’s Twitter.
Whereas the first Challenge, which has not yet been completed, pits Dwan against in $200/$400 Pot Limit Omaha, the newest installment will see $200/$400 No Limit Hold’em being played. A total of 50,000 hands will take place and Dwan outlined an important caveat on his blog: “Need to add on if below 75bb, can get up anytime effective stacks are >250bb.” In addition, the two have agreed to run it twice throughout the challenge, somewhat mitigating variance.
If Dwan is up $1 at the end of 50,000 No Limit Hold’em hands, then Cates will owe him $500,000 and he’s already escrowed the cash to pro . Contrastingly, if Cates is up $1 at the end of 50,000 hands, then Dwan will owe $1.5 million, as he laid 3:1 odds on his money. In either case, the victor will keep the spoils of the challenge.
In one hand, Cates made it $1,200 pre-flop and Dwan made the call to see a flop of 10-2-2 with two spades. Dwan checked, Cates led out for $2,000, and Dwan called to bring the nine of hearts on the turn. Dwan once again checked, Cates fired out a bet of $5,600 into a pot of $12,000, and Dwan made the call.
The river was the six of spades, putting three of the suit on the board, and Dwan continued to let Cates lead by checking. Cates bet $13,400, Dwan moved all-in for nearly $200,000, and Cates insta-called all-in for about $34,000. When the cards were revealed, Dwan showed Q-J for what ESPN poker commentator Norman Chad would dub “nuclear squadoosh” and Cates tabled K-8 of spades for the second nut flush. The pot was worth $86,000 after Dwan’s ill-timed bluff.
Over on the TwoPlusTwo poker forums, the railbirds were out in force watching the first day of action in the Dwan versus Cates Durrrr Challenge. A bevy of hands were posted, including one in which Dwan scooped a $104,000 pot with 10-8 for two pair after Cates’ flopped straight draw failed to hit. In a separate hand, Dwan’s A-J withstood pocket tens after the money went in a board of A-3-A-6. The river was run twice – both were kings – and Dwan collected a $119,000 payday.
On the official Durrrr Challenge stats page posted on Full Tilt Poker, a session at the challenge tables that began at 7:43am ET on Friday morning that lasted three hours saw 1,323 hands played. “Antonius” is listed as its winner to the tune of $234,000, which in all likelihood means that Cates mounted a comeback.
Dwan posted on his Twitter feed to confirm that he was up nearly $130,000 after 1,651 hands. In addition, he had received some tasty brain food from his girlfriend: “My gf made this tasty pasta n rice dish which I ate a bunch of the last few days. Just saw mushrooms in it which I thought I hate- sik life.” He’s fresh off a 35-hour online poker session, making his early success against Cates even more impressive.
Cates recently signed with CardRunners, one of the industry’s top poker training sites. Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest from the Tom Dwan Million Dollar Challenge.
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08 26th, 2010
On September 1st, Victory Poker, which currently makes its home on the Everleaf Network, will make the jump to the Network. The site, which features pros like , Andrew “good2cu” Robl, and former Player of the Year Jonathan “FieryJustice” Little, has become a major force in the online poker world and happily accepts USA players. Poker News Daily sat down with Victory Poker CEO Dan Fleyshman to get the inside scoop on the move to Cake.
Poker News Daily: Thanks for joining us on the eve of your move to the Cake Poker Network. Why move to Cake?
Dan Fleyshman: I’ve always liked Cake. It’s a great network and I met with their guys back in January at the London convention, but I had made my decision prior to that. I wanted to be a premiere site on a network when we launched and felt I’d be second or third at Cake. When I signed with Everleaf, they had so much passion, knew I’d bring players, and they worked hard. I’m happy with the way it all turned out.
PND: Tell us about working with Everleaf.
Dan Fleyshman: Everleaf was working their butts off, but it was a whirlwind for them. They went from having 100 to 200 active players at any time to 500 or 600 now. It was a big change for them.
PND: What about the Cake Poker Network makes it appealing?
Dan Fleyshman: There were only two networks we really considered, Cake and Merge. The other networks are more international like Entraction and Ongame. The Merge Gaming Network’s software is amazing, they have a great backend, and they have great management.
However, I decided on Cake because they have a Malta gaming license. Merge is going to have that also, but I didn’t want to wait for it. Cake also has the Gold Stacks rewards program, which I like a lot. They also have and Phil “” Laak and with us coming in, all of the pros will be at one network. Marketing-wise, we fit well there and I like what they’ve done over the years.
PND: How has the growth of Victory Poker compared to your expectations when you launched earlier this year?
Dan Fleyshman: It has been way better than I expected, which is another reason we had to move. We’re not going to stop growing. I’ve signed double the number of pros I had planned to and the boys are on television getting us exposure.
PND: How do you think the Everleaf Network will fare following the departure of Victory Poker?
Dan Fleyshman: They gained 50 skins during the time we were on the network. It puts them at around 80 or 90 skins total, so I think they’ll be fine. Even though they’re smaller skins, it doesn’t matter if there are that many. They’ll keep improving, fixing things, and moving in the right direction.
PND: Is Victory Poker trying to bring additional pros onboard?
Dan Fleyshman: I was happy when we had six or seven pros, but I was surprised that I was able to get some of the household names to come over. People were actually asking to come over because of the original guys we had like Antonio and Andrew. Then, international players started joining. I have certain characters I want, but am looking for international players at this point.
PND: We’re surprised we didn’t see more Victory Poker patches during the ().
Dan Fleyshman: If I’m going to put a patch on someone, it’s because they’re part of my team. We’re getting the right exposure now. I went to the Amazon Room on the play down day of the Main Event and has to release (or at least not patch) four players for the final table. There are a few guys that we’ve been talking to and we don’t have a lot of competition for signing people.
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08 24th, 2010
In September, , an independent online poker site, will hold the Snowball promotion, dishing out up to $5,000 in cash and $100,000 in freeroll entries per person. Why is it called the Snowball, you ask, when winter in many parts of the globe has not yet set in? Text found on PartyPoker’s website explains the wintry name: “The Snowball gives you the chance to pick up a huge amount of prizes as you gather momentum.”
PartyPoker officials have established 15 different points levels for play between September 1st and 30th. As PartyPoker players move up in levels, they’ll keep everything they’ve earned in previous levels, making for a potentially lucrative payday. The minimum point level is five, which will earn its achievers a $5,000 freeroll entry. When a player hits 25 Party Points, they’ll leap to a $10,000 freeroll entry; plus, they’ll still be able to vie for $5,000.
Point levels exist at five, 25, 50, 100, 200, 500, 1,000, 2,000, 5,000, 10,000, 15,000, 20,000, 30,000, 40,000, and 50,000. The granddaddy of prizes – given out to players who can accrue 50,000 Party Points in September – is $5,000 in cash plus entries into $100,000 worth of freerolls. Cash prizes kick in at the 500-point level, with a minimum payout of $20 up for grabs. Palladium Lounge players are more than welcome to participate in the Snowball promotion.
The $5,000 Snowball freeroll will take place on October 4th. The next day, a $10,000 freebie will play out. On October 6th, a $15,000 freeroll will be held, while on October 7th, the prize pool will jump to $20,000. The largest freeroll, totaling $50,000, will take place on October 8th. Each freeroll will issue its starting command at 14:30 ET.
Also on the horizon for PartyPoker is the September running of the Monthly Million, which is slated to occur on the 5th. The tournament marks the first Monthly Million held since July 18th as part of a revamped schedule in July and August. Qualifiers for the Monthly Million start as low as $1 and the marquee PartyPoker event comes with a $640 price tag. You can find it in the site’s lobby on the first Sunday of every month.
Every day, PartyPoker hosts a $70 buy-in Monthly Million qualifier that offers up at least 19 seats. On Fridays, look for a $55 Mega Friday Satellite that guarantees 20 seats to the $640 spectacular. Two other qualifiers, each with a $35 buy-in, take place on Saturdays, one at 09:00 ET and the other 14:30 ET. Combined, the Saturday qualifiers guarantee 18 seats.
Daily points qualifiers and country-specific freerolls can also stamp your ticket to the Monthly Million on PartyPoker. The tournament offers a Championship blind structure and its field boasts some of the top players that Europe and other areas outside of the United States have to offer.
PartyPoker, once the largest site in the industry, features a team of sponsored pros that includes host and Poker Hall of Fame Class of 2009 inductee , bad boy Tony G, and “High Stakes Poker” hostess . Its parent company, Party Gaming, is publicly traded on the London Stock Exchange and will likely merge with rival site .
Snowball your way to $5,000 in cash plus $100,000 in freeroll entries in September. to learn more.
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08 22nd, 2010
After its buy-in was slashed from $10,000 to $5,000, the 2010 installment of the () Legends of Poker attracted 462 players. Last year, a total of 279 entered, meaning that the field grew by 66%. However, the total prize pool of the marquee WPT event dipped from $2.63 million to $2.15 million, a fall of 18%.
The top 45 poker players will finish in the money, with the top spot scheduled to pay out $750,000. Last year, poker rapper banked a little over $1 million after besting () Main Event November Niner heads-up. Todd Terry, Toto Leonidas, Sam “KingKobeMVP” Stein, and Mike Krescanko also made the final table in 2009.
Nearly 300 players – including 16 former WPT champs – took to the felts on Saturday for the second of two starting days in the Legends of Poker, which emanates from the Bicycle Casino in Los Angeles. The day began with WPT officials honoring , who was playing in her 100th WPT tournament. According to the WPT’s website, Liebert is the female record-holder for most final tables made with six, most cashes logged with 15, and most money won with $1.75 million. However, she lacks a WPT title.
Despite the fanfare, Liebert was eliminated late in the day, as was Lock Poker’s Matt “All In At 420” Stout. The internet player dropped his stack with A-J of diamonds against Shawn Buchanan’s pocket sevens to hit the rails. pro , meanwhile, took a three-hour dinner break on Saturday and returned to chat it up with fans rather than play cards. He finished the day with a stack of 66,850, or 167 big blinds, good for the 50th largest tally in the room entering Day 2.
pro lodged a particularly memorable Day 1B. Negreanu dropped to 10,000 in chips after running into a royal flush and eventually hit the rails after his A-J fell to 8-2. On the latter hand, the flop came A-2-3, giving his opponent bottom pair, but another deuce on the turn and an eight on the river didn’t help matters.
and stepfather have both made waves in the WPT Legends of Poker, entering Day 2 in 17th and 19th places, respectively. Also vaulting up the leaderboard on Saturday was , who tripled up to 90,000 after cracking pocket aces and pocket kings by flopping a boat. Cunningham candidly Tweeted following the monster pot, “Holy Macintosh, I just flopped a full house vs AA and KK to triple from 30K to 90K.”
Here are the top 10 players in the WPT Legends of Poker entering Day 2 on Sunday:
1. Manuel Reyes – 205,350
2. Vinny Vinh – 180,000
3. Raymond Dolan – 165,500
4. Justin Young – 138,950
5. Max Casal – 138,500
6. Micah Raskin – 135,000
7. Philip Stark – 132,575
8. Ari Goott – 129,000
9. Ken Michelman – 125,200
10. C. Zadfar – 125,000
Other players remaining in the top 50, including their chip counts, include:
17. Joe Sebok – 108,650
19. Barry Greenstein – 100,675
32. Jonathan “FatalError” Aguiar – 78,125
33. – 77,250
36. Allen Cunningham – 76,500
37. Tom “Kingsofcards” Marchese – 76,350
39. Marco “CrazyMarco” Johnson – 75,225
45. – 70,800
47. J.J. Liu – 70,700
50. Phil Hellmuth – 66,850
Day 2 kicks off at 1:00pm PT on Sunday from The Bike, with 241 players remaining in the hunt for the WPT title. The Legends of Poker will crown a winner on Wednesday.
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08 19th, 2010
Daniel “Jungleman12” Cates is taking the online poker world by storm. Only 20 years old, he has already won more money than most people will see in a lifetime. His current winnings exceed $2.2 million.
In early 2008 he was playing heads up No Limit Hold’em with blinds of $.25/$.50. Within 10 months he had gone from micro stakes to high stakes, playing blinds of $25/$50. He admits his move into high stakes was very aggressive, as started playing $25/$50 with 40 Buy-ins. Jungleman12 has said that the two main factors to his success were a very aggressive bankroll management system and the willingness to play anyone.
It was Jungleman12’s openness to play and thirst for knowledge combined with natural talent that have made him soar through the stakes faster than almost any other player online.
One barrier that stops many players moving up in stakes is fear of having so much money on the table in a single seating. Jungleman12 has been able to condition his mind to detach himself from thinking of it as money and seeing it as numbers on a screen. Thanks to this ability he is able to play so objectively in some of the highest games online. Focus on the game, not the money
However his growth wasn’t all smooth sailing. Jungleman12 had one day after moving up to $25/$50 where he lost ¼ of his entire bankroll. It was then he decided to re-evaluate his bankroll strategy.
Another huge setback Jungleman12 had to face was his matches with the famous player “”. Jungleman12 has had his biggest losses to Isildur1, including a single day session where he lost almost $500,000.
On the positive side, some of Jungleman12’s best bankroll injections have come from players such as “fullflush1”, “aejones”, Tom “” Dwan and , just to name a few. Dwan is currently down over $775,000 to Jungleman12.
Jungleman12 has played the biggest names and stakes at for over two years and has fast become one of the most talked about players in today’s games. He is currently in 3rd place for top earners for 2010, just behind and Phil Ivey.
When he’s not playing, Jungleman12 can also be found at popular training site Card Runners, where he is one of the featured coaches, charging sometimes over $1000 for a single coaching session. Given his own results, it should be well worth it.
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08 19th, 2010
If you own a Mac, then your options for playing online poker on a Mac are growing quickly. Existing rooms are offering a variety of ways for you to fire up the virtual felts, ranging from a fully downloadable client similar to what your Windows counterparts use to a browser-based alternative. The latter – dubbed “Instant Play” by most sites – has become one of the most widely used ways for Mac online poker players to access the world’s top sites. It’s safe to say are more popular than ever.
Web-based clients have a lot of drawbacks, however. On , for example, only one cash game table can be opened at a time, cutting off Mac tournament players entirely and limiting the potential to “grind.” On and , several features are lacking and, although the web-based client receives upgrades, its capabilities are capped. , which does not accept real money action from the United States, was one of the first sites to offer an “Instant Play” option.
Despite its limitations, web-play clients are convenient. Most of them are compatible with Safari and Firefox; just make sure you have the latest version of each browser installed on your Mac. Many Windows and Linux users have even employed “Instant Play” to avoid having to download any software. If you’re away from your home computer or are in a situation where downloading UB.com, for example, may be frowned upon, web-based interfaces provide an easy way to access major sites.
Two online poker rooms, however, have gone well above their counterparts and offered a fully functional downloadable client, the best solution that a player can hope for. Surprisingly, the two sites to offer feature-packed downloads are the two largest in the industry and home to a variety of high-stakes pros.
PokerStars is the world’s largest online poker site and is home to tens of thousands of cash game players at any given moment. PokerStars is where Main Event champions play, including Tom McEvoy (1984), (2003), (2004), (2005), (2008), and (2009), all of whom are sponsored site pros.
PokerStars offers some of the industry’s richest promotions and runs two major tournament series annually, the Spring Championship of Online Poker (SCOOP) and World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP). Total prize pools for these have topped $50 million in the past, making for life-changing paydays and challenging competition. PokerStars also sports one of the top customer service teams in the business.
Another reason to play on PokerStars is access to major live poker tournaments. PokerStars sponsors roving tournament series in North America, Latin America, Asia, Australia and New Zealand, United Kingdom, Italy, Russia, and the entire European continent. Its signature event is the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure, held each January in the Bahamas. It’s a prime opportunity for cold weather poker players to make their way to one of the globe’s top tropical destinations and, with a legal gambling age of 18, the event attracts a variety of young guns from North America.
For more information about , please read our .
Poker
Play with the pros – literally – at . If you’re looking for the industry’s most recognized professionals, then look no further. Play alongside , , , Tom “” Dwan, , , , , and others at the world’s second largest online poker site.
Full Tilt is a tournament player’s haven four times a year during the Full Tilt Online Poker Series, or FTOPS as it’s commonly called. The quarterly tournament extravaganza attracts the top players in the industry and features a variety of games including Hold’em, Omaha, HORSE, Stud, and Razz.
Full Tilt also is a Mecca for high-stakes players. With , Dwan, Ivey, and Antonius headlining much of the action, Full Tilt has also had players like Justin “Boosted J” Smith and join its team to liven up the high-stakes scene. The only drawback to playing on Full Tilt Poker – and its fully downloadable Mac client – is a lax customer service team that falls well short of PokerStars’.
Nevertheless, if you’re a Mac online poker player, be sure to sign up for PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker. Both happily accept players from the United States and host games that will fit your bankroll and budget around-the-clock.
For more information about Full Tilt Poker, please read our .
Visit for more information about Mac computers or to buy your Mac today.
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According to , casino giant Harrah’s will register 9.9% of its stock with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The shares are currently in the hands of John Paulson, investor and hedge fund extraordinaire.
Reuters claims that the reason for the move is so Paulson can receive “registered, common voting stock.” noted that the process of filing with the SEC was similar to announcing an initial public offering, or IPO: “The SEC form used to register the shares, called an S-1, is the same one used as the first step toward an initial public offering, or IPO. However, the registration does not necessarily mean those shares will be sold on public markets.”
Reuters added that Apollo and TPG Capital hold around 89% of the casino company’s stock. The form S-1, given on Harrah’s corporate website, was filed on August 12th and seeks Common Stock valued at $0.01 per share. Harrah’s announced its second quarter financial figures at the beginning of the month, posting a $274 million loss. In a remarkable turn of events, the company recorded a profit of nearly $2.3 billion in the same quarter last year.
Despite the less-than-stellar financial figures, Harrah’s CEO Gary Loveman commented in the company’s financial release, “During the past two years, we’ve reduced expenses and debt substantially, increased our liquidity to about $3 billion, and acquired the Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino in Las Vegas and Thistledown racetrack in Cleveland. I believe we’re well-positioned for an eventual legalization of online gaming in the United States, and more capable of capitalizing on additional growth opportunities than at any time in the past two years.” Net revenues of $2.2 billion during Q2 2010 were about even year over year.
Revenues from its Las Vegas properties were up to $713 million in the second quarter of 2010. In Atlantic City, however, which has continued to struggle given economic pressures and nearby casino gaming options, revenues dipped to $488 million. The company owns five properties in the Eastern state: Bally’s Atlantic City, Caesars Atlantic City, Harrah’s Atlantic City, Harrah’s Chester, and Showboat Atlantic City.
In Louisiana and Mississippi, Harrah’s revenues dropped 5% to $299 million. In Iowa and Missouri, the company’s haul also slipped, as its $186 million in revenues in the second quarter fell short of last year’s tally of $191 million. Illinois and Indiana casinos – Harrah’s Joliet, Harrah’s Metropolis, Horseshoe Hammond, and Horseshoe Southern Indiana – saw their revenues fall 5.6% to $295 million.
Harrah’s acquisition of Planet Hollywood earlier this year led many in the poker world to believe that the annual (), which takes place at Harrah’s Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, was picking up shop. However, WSOP Vice President Ty Stewart told ESPN’s “Inside Deal” last week, “We can’t predict the future, but I can tell you that the November Nine will definitely be played at the Penn and Teller Theater, and big, large organizational meetings are already underway to host the 2011 WSOP at the Rio.”
Reuters added that Harrah’s will soon open casinos in Cleveland and Cincinnati, shelling out $600 million in the process: “Under their non-binding agreement, Harrah’s may eventually take a minority stake in the downtown casinos in the fall of 2010, but mange them day-to-day. Ohio voters approved casino gaming in November 2009.” The company operates 38 casinos across North America and one each worldwide in Egypt, the United Kingdom, South Africa, and Uruguay.
The 2010 WSOP Main Event resumes on November 6th at the Rio. Its final table will air on ESPN three days later. Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest stock headlines.
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