Poker Stars and New Jersey Resort Sign Contract

Poker Stars, the world’s largest online poker room, is hoping to enter the gambling market inNew Jerseyand has recently signed a contract with Resorts Casino Club inAtlantic Citywhich will see it providing the casino club with online poker and games software.

Poker Stars is owned by the Rational Group which is based in the Isle of Man and the contract signed with Resorts is subject to approval of theNew Jerseygambling authorities. Atlantic Citycasinos are required to submit all the names of the software companies with which they intend partnering to theNew Jerseygambling authorities prior to the introduction of internet gambling which is scheduled for November, 2013.

Mark Scheinberg, the Chief Executive Officer of Poker Stars, said that Resorts is a perfect partner for them and that they are eagerly looking forward to launching Poker Stars in theUnited Statesin association with all the other quality brands that Resorts has brought toAtlantic City.  Scheinberg added that they are absolutely thrilled to be investing inNew Jerseyand are very excited about building a successful relationship with Resorts.

Morris Baily, Resorts’ Company Chairman, also commented on the deal by saying that this is yet another blue chip partner for them to complete a marvelous series of brands – Margaritaville, Mohegan Sun and now Poker Stars.

Rational Group has been “keeping their eyes open” for an Atlantic City terrestrial casino with which to partner in order to gets its foot into the door of this newly regulated online gambling industry.  The group had previously partnered with the Atlantic Club Casino but the deal fell through when the deadline to complete the deal was not met as they had not yet received final permission from the authorities.   Atlantic Club immediately proceeded to terminate the deal which resulted in Poker Stars losing millions of dollars in fighting to retain the contract.  The Judge, however, ruled against Poker Star’s requests.

In 2012 a multi million dollar settlement was reached between Rational Group and Poker Stars in return for Poker Stars being given an opportunity to re-enter the online gambling market in theUSwith a clean slate.

Online Poker Boycotters Target Las Vegas Sands Boss

Following the unprecedented attack by Sheldon Adelson, the Chief Executive Officer of popular US gambling group, Las Vegas Sands, on internet gambling, when he called it dangerous and immoral and added that as an industry leader, father, grandfather, citizen and patriot of the country, he was totally opposed to the legalization and proliferation of online gambling, online poker players are planning a consumer boycott against Adelson’s poker room, The Venetian Casino and Resort, that is frequented by top poker pros.

Adelson referred to internet gambling as dangerous and immoral and stated that its grown comes at the expense of revenues that could otherwise be directed to terrestrial casinos and the loss of many jobs.  Adelson also alleged that according to European research, the growth of online gambling in regulated countries resulted in a drop of 20% in land casino revenue and cities that host casinos across theUnited Statescould experience a loss of 400,000 jobs.

According to a specialist in online gambling law, Martin D. Owens, online gambling is reality in 32 states in one form or another and that the global revenues generated by the industry has reached over $30 billion.  Owens added that half of the revenue is generated by online poker at the leadingUSpoker sites and others located around the world.

Owens also said that the decrease of revenues in European casinos is due to the fact that the younger generation is doing more things online, which includes gambling.

John Pappas, the President of the Poker Players Alliance, objected to Adelson’s comments and said that licensed and regulated internet poker is taking place all over the world, including inAmericaand in Adelson’s back yard ofNevada.

Pappas added that although no boycott has officially been organized by the Poker Players Alliance, they have heard from many outraged players, several of who are saying that they will never play in The Venetian Casino and Resort again.

Atlantic City Casinos in Rush to find Online Gambling Partners

Atlantic Citycasinos have received instructions from the New Jersey Gaming Enforcement Division to the effect that they are required to find partners for their potential online gambling operations by the end of the current month.  The Enforcement Division has told 12 local casinos that they must arrange internet poker and gambling deals on or before the cut off date of 30^th June, 2013.

The reason behind the short period of time given to the casinos is due to the fact that the authorities want to make certain that they are left with sufficient time in which to study the backgrounds and qualifications of these partners.  Many casinos, however, feel that this is a relatively short period of time to get organized.  Several of the casinos have let it be known that they would like to sign up with offshore based companies and this will necessitate more in depth investigation.

Atlantic City’s Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa has revealed that it has struck a deal with Bwin.Party Digital Entertainment that was made possible due to the privately owned company’s tremendous platform and huge market share.

Other casinos, which include Harrah’s Resort Atlantic City, the Showboat Casino Hotel, Bally’sAtlantic Cityand Caesars Atlantic City are still in the process of weighing up their options.

Although the group has not yet made a final decision, Trump Entertainment Resorts, the owner of two casinos inAtlantic City, has revealed that the Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort and the Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino will each sign up with a different online poker software provider.

Robert Griffin, the Chief Executive Officer of Trump Entertainment, said that their choices are solid and that it will come down to who gives them the best deal for all their shareholders, and who has the strongest brand in gaming.

According to the authorities, unless casinos give the names of their potential online gambling partners, there is no guarantee that they will be permitted to start offering internet poker and casino games to their customers on the first day that online gambling is allowed in the state, which is hoped to be around Thanksgiving this year.

Poker Stars Chief Executive Officer to Pay $50 million to US Government

Marc Scheinberg, the Chief Executive Officer of Poker Stars Online Poker Room and son of Poker Star’s founder, Isai Scheinberg,  has reportedly struck a deal with the United States Department of Justice with regard to charges that were brought against him following Black Friday in April, 2011.

In terms of the agreement, Scheinberg will agree to pay $50 million to the United States Government and in return he will not be required to admit any wrongdoing nor face any seizure or forfeiture of property that stems from his role at Poker Stars.

Scheinberg will also not be required to face any civil charge against him related to Black Friday.

The deal will also have no impact on the pre-existing deal between the Department of Justice and Poker Stars when a settlement was reached for the online poker room to pay an amount of $731 million to the authorities in order to settle a money laundering suite that also stems from Black Friday.  As part of this deal, Poker Stars had agreed to acquire its chief rival, Full Tilt Poker and to reimburse all players who had had their funds frozen because of Full Tilt Poker.  Although non-US players have had their money reimbursed to them, US players still do not know when they will be refunded.

Scheinberg was never charged by the Department of Justice with any crime nor did he appear in any of the civil indictments connected to Black Friday.

Commenting on Scheinberg’s deal with the authorities, Poker Stars issued an official statement saying  “Chief Executive Officer of Poker Stars Agrees to Pay $50mm to United States Government “This forfeiture settles potential claims against Mark’s assets based on the allegations contained in the April 15th 2011 US Government complaint against Poker Stars. The agreement is not in response to any action that had been brought against Mark and contains no admission of wrongdoing”

PokerStars to Celebrate 100 Billionth Hand with Big Wins

Just a few short months after PokerStars gave away hundreds of thousands of dollars to its customers in celebration of having dealt its 90 billionth hand of real- money poker, it is once again preparing to give away even more money as it expects to deal its 100 billionth hand round about the 14^th June, 2013.

PokerStars has dealt almost 100,000,000,000 real- money hands since opening its doors to the poker public, thus achieving what no other site in the industry has achieved and has announced that it intends throwing a stunning party when it deals its 100 billionth hand of real money poker that will see players win some lucrative prizes.

During the celebration PokerStars will be awarding cash prizes to players every millionth hand as from hand No. 99,700,000,000 onwards.  Those players who are dealt into a milestone hand will be awarded a prize of at least $75 although prizes could be even higher than that due to the fact that PokerStars uses a special formula, as shown below, to generate the prize.

     Dealt into a milestone hand: (No. of VPPs in last 50 hands x $675) +$75

• Win milestone hand: (No. VPPs in last 50 hands x $75+$75) x2

Players who will be playing at a $1/$2 table and were dealt into a milestone hand having generated 31VPPs in the last 50 hands will win a prize of $2,400 (31*$75+$75).  The prize will be doubled if the player wins the milestone hand.

PokerStars will be giving away some amazing prizes once the 100 billionth hand of real money has been reached with everyone dealt into that hand winning at least $10,000 and the winner of the famous hand winning a minimum of $100,000 which will be deposited into their PokerStars account.

PokerStars has also revealed that they will be paying out a guaranteed sum of $1,000,000 during the 100 billionth hand and that any prize money that is left over after they have paid out the players who are dealt into hand number 100 billion will be awarded to all the players dealt into the same stake and betting structure as the 100 billionth hand.

New Book About Absolute Poker

There are few books about online gambling that will be of interest to those who are not involved with the industry itself, or those who are not avid gamblers. However, a new book to hit the shelves will have much broad appeal as it attempts to tell the story of the rise and fall of one of the most famous poker brands of all time – Absolute Poker.

The book, by author Ben Mezrich, follows the story of Absolute Poker. It all started in the small back room by six frat brothers – Brent Beckley and his step brother Scott Tom, Garin Gustafson, Pete Barovich, Shane Blackford and Oscar Hilt Tatum IV. As the poker room grew in size, it ultimately reached a net worth in the millions of dollars. It grew to such a large extent that at one point, Absolute Poker was generating close to one million dollars per day.

The book, entitled Straight Flush, is not all about the facts and figures. It goes on to explain the friends’ lavish lifestyle, rumored to be whatHollywood producers would only dream of getting their hands on. The story follows the friends’ startup inCosta Rica, and how they disregarded the 1961 legislation around gambling in theUSA, assuming that the law did not apply to poker, and only games of chance such as sports.

However, all started to become unraveled with the introduction of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006, resulting in what the gambling industry would dub Black Friday in April 2011.It was then that Absolute Poker, along with other poker giants Poker Stars and Full Tilt Poker, went into free fall when US Department of Justice agents seized all their domain names and billions of dollars.

Those who wish to find out the full story should consider buying the book, which should become available in most leading bookstores around the country. 

New Book About Absolute Poker

gambling that will be of interest to those who are not involved with the industry itself, or those who are not avid gamblers. However, a new book to hit the shelves will have much broad appeal as it attempts to tell the story of the rise and fall of one of the most famous poker brands of all time – Absolute Poker.

The book, by author Ben Mezrich, follows the story of Absolute Poker. It all started in the small back room by six frat brothers – Brent Beckley and his step brother Scott Tom, Garin Gustafson, Pete Barovich, Shane Blackford and Oscar Hilt Tatum IV. As the poker room grew in size, it ultimately reached a net worth in the millions of dollars. It grew to such a large extent that at one point, Absolute Poker was generating close to one million dollars per day.

The book, entitled Straight Flush, is not all about the facts and figures. It goes on to explain the friends’ lavish lifestyle, rumored to be whatHollywood producers would only dream of getting their hands on. The story follows the friends’ startup inCosta Rica, and how they disregarded the 1961 legislation around gambling in theUSA, assuming that the law did not apply to poker, and only games of chance such as sports.

However, all started to become unraveled with the introduction of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006, resulting in what the gambling industry would dub Black Friday in April 2011.It was then that Absolute Poker, along with other poker giants Poker Stars and Full Tilt Poker, went into free fall when US Department of Justice agents seized all their domain names and billions of dollars.

Those who wish to find out the full story should consider buying the book, which should become available in most leading bookstores around the country. 

Jamie Gold’s World Series of Poker Bracelet Up For Auction

Jamie Gold, the 2006 World Series of Poker Main Event champ, has revealed that he has put his championship bracelet on auction at the world’s largest collectibles Auctioneer, Heritage Auctions.

The date that has been scheduled for the bidding to begin on the bracelet will coincide with the 2013 World Series of Poker Main Event on 13^th July, 2013.  Gold’s bracelet, which is one of the most famous bracelets ever to be awarded in the World Series of Poker, is due to be auctioned on Thursday, 1^st August, 2013 at the Sports Signature Auction in Rosemont, Illinois.

Jamie Gold’s World Series of Poker Main Event bracelet was won by him after defeating a field of 8,773 in the $10,000 main event with the year’s event currently holding the record for the biggest tournament prize pool in the history of the World Series of Poker at $82,512.162.  The first place money reached a whopping $12 million after 8,773 players participated in the event.

The auction website has described Gold’s bracelet as featuring 259 stones including seven carats of diamonds as well as 120 grams of white and yellow gold with rubies inset in order to create the red of the heart and diamond suits with a sapphire representing the spade and three black diamonds representing the clubs.

The reason for Jamie Gold auctioning off his bracelet is unknown as he does not appear to be in need of any money.  However, the fact that Gold has helped to raise in excess of $175 million for charitable causes worldwide as a host, emcee or donator at 125 events in the past few years makes one wonder if the proceeds of this auction will find its way into Gold’s pocket at all.

Since winning the World Series of Poker Main Event, Gold has managed to cash for more than $100,000 but has refrained from participating in big buy-in tournament poker.  Gold has also spent a short period as ambassador of the Tropicana poker room inLas Vegas.

UK Casino Accuses Phil Ivey of Cheating

It was recently reported that one of the world’s leading professional poker players, American Phil Ivey, had issued a lawsuit in London’s High Court against the Genting Group for payment of an amount of approximately 7.8 million pounds ($11.9 million) which he claimed was due to him in respect of winnings racked up last summer playing baccarat at Crockfords Casino, which is part of the Genting Group.

However, the Malaysiabased Genting Group, which is a major casino operator, has since filed court papers in Britain’s High Court.  The papers state that Ivey, together with an accomplice, successfully used a scam to rack up the winnings of about 7.8 million pounds between 20^th and 21^st August, 2012 at Crockfords, one ofLondon’s oldest and most respected casinos.

The Genting Group is refusing to pay Ivey the money as they accuse him of cheating and that his winnings were invalid due to the fact that it was “based upon illegal acts”.

Thirty seven year old Ivey issued a statement via his lawyers saying that any misconduct is denied by him and also said “The fact that I have issued a lawsuit in the face of what they are alleging says everything about how comfortable I am with my conduct and the validity of my win. Any allegations of wrongdoing by Crockfords are denied by me in the very strongest of terms.”

The casino group claims that Ivey’s “illegal acts” void any winnings that he claims is due to him as he had a huge advantage over the casino by using improper means to determine whether the first card being dealt in the baccarat hands would be a powerful or weak card.

It is also alleged that Ivey and his accomplice found a “shoe” containing decks of cards with an asymmetrical design and convinced the dealer to turn the card either sideways or end over end after the cards were revealed.  Ivey’s accomplice told the dealer in Cantonese that she was superstitious and that changing the way the cards lay was for good luck.  This resulted in the dealer inadvertently sorting the cards making 7, 8 and 9 cards distinguishable from others.  The court papers also claimed that Ivey asked that the cards be shuffled automatically by a machine, which meant the way the cards were arranged was not altered during the game.

Crockfords Casino Sued by Poker Pro Phil Ivey

One of the best poker players in history, known as “the Tiger Woods of Poker” has issued a writ against Crockfords Casino in London’s High Court as he claims that the Mayfair casino owes him almost £7.3 million that he won playing Punto Banco (a variant of Baccarat).

Ivey claims that Crockfords,London’s oldest gambling club which is owned by the Malaysian Genting Group, is withholding money won by him during a private gaming session of Punto Banco when he visited the club with a female companion in August 2012.

Phil Ivey has been recorded to be the world’s sixth highest earner in Punto Banco tournaments and has already won an amount of £9 million in payouts from this game alone.

Although Ivey is “saddened” that it has reached the point where he has to file a claim against Crockfords Casino he has been left with no alternative but to do so.

Ivey made a statement in which he said “Over the years, I have won and lost substantial sums at Crockfords and I have always honored my commitments.  At the time, I was given a receipt for my winnings, but Crockfords subsequently withheld payment. I therefore feel I have no alternative but to take legal action.”

During a visit to the casino last year Ivey amassed winnings of over £7.3 million after hitting a winning streak at Punto Banco.  According to Ivey, although he was given a receipt for his winnings, Crockfords subsequently withheld payment giving him no alternative but to take legal action.

Instead of handing over his winnings to Ivey, Genting decided to open an investigation and flew investigators in from Kuala Lampur to review surveillance video footage, examine the cards used and interview croupiers and staff.

Genting confirmed that they will be filing their defense in the near future.

Crockfords was founded in 1828 and was sold to Genting gaming corporation in later years.