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The New Jersey Gaming Enforcement Division announced on Friday that it would be going live with online gambling in a five day trial period from November 21st. The soft-play period will be accessible to invited guests only and will allow the authorities to test drive the much awaited for online gambling framework which is set to go live on November 26th in the Garden State.

Atlantic City casinos will take part in the trial period and, if their systems meet all their demands set out by the division, they will be authorized to go live. Nine out of Atlantic City’s twelve casinos have publicly announced that they have signed deals with software operators that will allow them to offer online poker and gambling.

Robert Griffin, the Chief Executive Officer of Trump Entertainment Resorts, which operates two casinos in Atlantic City said about the move to online gambling in New Jersey: “I think this is going to be a significant revenue stream. It has the potential to make up 20 percent of our revenue.”

The Taj Mahal Casino Resort will work with Ultimate Gaming, (the same group which brought the first live online poker site to Nevada), while the Trump Plaza is rumored to be working with Betfair online software provider, although neither of the groups have confirmed this report.

To enjoy New Jersey’s new online poker offering, players will need to be physically located in the state’s boundaries. Visitors to the state may also play, and their location will be confirmed by GPS technology.

New Jersey is one of three states (the other two being Nevada and Delaware) to introduce online gambling on an intrastate base in the United States. It is believed that New Jersey will become a dominant online gambling jurisdiction, especially as other states move to benefit from introducing internet gaming to their own residents.




New Jersey Set to Launch Online Poker Trial Period

For U. S. online poker players since 2011’s “Black Friday,” the last couple of years have been some tough times. There are few options for players to take part in, although there are a handful of offshore sites that still cater to players. This has led to the rise of “free play” sites (especially on Facebook) and subscription based services. One of the latter is the recent focus of an article in a prominent California newspaper.

The San Francisco Examiner’s Tom Somach journeyed to the headquarters for PurePlay, located in downtown San Francisco, to find out the secret to their success. “What we’re doing is legal,” Jason Kellerman, the Chief Executive Officer and owner of PurePlay, said to Somach in an interview today. “We’re not a gambling site; we are a subscription-based poker site.”

In Kellerman’s viewpoint, PurePlay doesn’t violate laws against gambling because all of the tournaments offered by the site are free to enter. Players have two options to be eligible for play on the site: a player can pay a flat $25 per month fee or they can send in a special postcard that will allow them to access the site each month. Kellerman likens it to what the burger chain McDonald’s does with its popular Monopoly game; in that situation, customers aren’t bound to getting a prize piece through a meal purchase, they can also get one by request through the mail.

With that said, Kellerman admits that many players are paying the $25 per month rather than going through the postcard route. “It’s a matter of convenience,” he stated to Somach. “People don’t want to send in a postcard each month. Most of our customers give us a credit card number and we bill them every month.” Kellerman also noted that those players that pay for their subscriptions enjoy an ad-free game where those that go the free route have ads to contend with.

PurePlay doesn’t have access to the entirety of the U. S. due to certain states’ gaming laws (for example, most recently Florida made it illegal to use an electronic device for gaming; this resulted in sites such as PurePlay and ClubWPT pulling out of the state). PurePlay has also had its issues with complaints against the company. According to Somach, the Better Business Bureau reports of 33 different complaints between August 2010 and February 2013; of those 33 complaints, 30 have been satisfactorily resolved.

Somach states that the business of subscription poker sites is still a grey area because there is still money lost by those players who don’t cash. I. Nelson Rose, the gaming law expert, is a consultant for PurePlay and says that these sites fail to reach the legal threshold of what constitutes gambling. Rose notes the three components that must be present for something to be considered gambling (consideration, chance and a prize) don’t’ exist with subscription sites because the games are free (consideration).

Legal authorities contacted by Somach aren’t commenting one way or the other on the situation, however. Somach contacted the U. S. Department of Justice, who declined comment, while the California Justice Department’s Office of Gambling Control would not comment on the “legality or illegality” of PurePlay.

The subscription based gaming industry has had its ups and downs over the last decade, with such operations as CardPlayer’s SpadeClub and Duplicate Poker having long faded from the scene. While that has happened, ClubWPT and PurePlay have been able to have some success (PurePlay, which has been in existence since 2005, signed up its 1.5 millionth member in 2008, although Kellerman won’t comment on how many subscribers the site has today), especially after the “Black Friday” indictments closed several of the larger sites in the online poker industry.

What effect a “Black Friday” style legal action, federal regulation or the continuing state-by-state nature of current online gaming regulation would have on sites like PurePlay are difficult to ascertain. It is likely, however, that it wouldn’t serve them well to have a regulated industry anywhere lest they lose those customers they have worked so hard to get.



Subscription Online Poker Site PurePlay Subject of California Newspaper Story

Viktor “Isildur1″ Blom has had a monster week, winning over $1.9m on Full Tilt at high stakes cash games.

Full Tilt’s blog reports that he was Sunday’s “biggest Triple Draw and No Limit Hold’em winner, and also enjoyed smaller wins at the Pot Limit Omaha, and Limit Omaha Hi/Lo tables throughout the day.”

His opponents ranged from Phil “Polarizing” Ivey, and Gus “The Great Dane” Hansen at the Triple draw tables, to Alex “IReadYrSoul” Millar at the $400/$800 NLHE tables.

Blom has had a roller coaster year. In July he was up around $5m, but it all disappeared by the end of September.

This week’s winnings, therefore, put his cash game earnings this year at the same $1.9m—but another week could change everything for the 23 year old. Either way, the railbird will continue to flock around the virtual tables to see him play.



Blom Up $1.9m In A Week | Pokerfuse Online Poker News

Several U.S. states are looking to legitimize and legalize online gambling, with Nevada leading the pack. The launch of online poker services represent an opportunity for data centers that can meet the regulatory standards for housing gaming infrastructure. Last May colocation provider Switch announced that its SuperNAP data center has been approved as registered hosting center for online gaming, and now ViaWest says it has gained approved for its new facility at Lone Mountain, Nevada.

Nevada is breaking ground for online gaming nationally, with new laws allowing online poker passed in February of this year. The services are restricted to players at least 21 years old and physically located in Nevada. Station Gaming (Ultimate Poker) and Caesar’s (World Series of Poker) are the first companies to launch legal online poker operations in Nevada.

New Jersey and Delaware also have similar online gaming initiatives, but there haven’t been any announcements from data centers in those states.

Online gambling is projected to be a $7.4 billion business in the U.S. by 2017, according to researcher H2 Gaming Capital, which says Nevada will represent about $400 million of that total. After years of debate. the states adopting online gaming are tightly regulating early entries, and hosting in approved facilities means that players gain some assurance and providers like Switch and ViaWest stand to benefit.

The Nevada Online gaming commission conducted rigorous inspections of both Switch and ViaWest facilities and determined they met requirements necessary for mission critical gaming data. Gaining the new designation can assure licensed gaming entities of the highest availability and security for their outsourced critical data and disaster recovery.

The online poker scene imploded in 2011 when the biggest sites, Full Tilt Poker, Poker Stars, and Absolute Poker were charged with fraud, money laundering, and violating gambling laws. While most gambling is hosted offshore, a trusted in-state data center located within state goes a long way in legitimizing what has been a fringe, albeit huge industry.
Lone Mountain Approved

ViaWest’s Lone Mountain data center located in Las Vegas, was registered as a hosting center with the State of Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGC😎.

“As a registered hosting center, ViaWest can continue its positive contribution to the Las Vegas economy by housing business-critical operations for the gaming industry,” states Michael Vignato, Las Vegas General Manager and Regional Vice President for ViaWest. “Our newest Vegas facility, Lone Mountain, has ample space to serve this growing industry and offers the highest levels of fault tolerance, security and energy efficiency. We look forward to continuing to support and serve gaming organizations throughout Nevada.”

Lone Mountain is the first Tier IV Design-Certified multi-tenant facility in North America. The data center has over 70,000 square feet of raised floor (For a closer look, see our photo feature. The facility touts an expected Power Usage Effectiveness rating of 1.2, thanks to the inherent dry climate of Nevada and design of the facility.
Switch First Approved by NGCB

Switch made the announcement last May that it was the first approved online gaming hosting center by the NGCB.

“Online gaming is poised for dramatic growth given Nevada’s approval of the industry earlier this year,” said Switch Executive Vice President of Colocation Missy Young. “Switch’s SUPERNAP is the first data center in the world with the official seal of approval from the Nevada Gaming Commission.”

Switch has a big footprint in Nevada, unveiling a second SuperNAP there last April. The company is having no trouble growing out in the desert, selling a whopping 19 megawatts there in a single month last August. The facility,opened in April 2013 and is fueled by CEO and founder Rob Roy’s patents in data center design, systems, and related industry technologies.

While Nevada is leading the pack here, New Jersey and Delaware are moving towards legalizing. All three states will allow anyone within their borders and of age to gamble. Delaware is expected to offer online slots, poker, blackjack and roulette by the end of this month. Users will be able to gamble on their phones sometime in 2014. New Jersey says its online poker will kick off on Nov. 26.


Legalized Gaming a Potential Boost for Nevada Data Centers

The online gambling landscape in Canada is a patchwork quilt that has a few grey areas that leave government officials wondering what they should do.
A recent incident in the Atlantic province of New Brunswick had Atlantic Lottery officials crying foul when the online gambling operators Bet365 advertised their services at a Canadian Football League game.

Now on the other side of the country in British Columbia, advertizing has been seen for a grey area online betting operation. Those arriving at the B.C. Place Stadium for the Oct. 6 Vancouver Whitecaps' Major League Soccer game against the Portland Timbers were subject to advertizing for Pepsi, Telus, Optik TV, Choices Markets, Vancouver Home + Design Show, B.C. Children's Hospital Dream Lottery and Bodog-net. The Bodog-net site is a fun version with no money wagered or paid out, sports and poker gambling website that was created in 1994.

The Bodog campaign shows a dark-haired woman in a green bathing suit lying face-up on a green felt card table above the slogan "We Are What Happens in Vegas." There is a red poker chip, two black chips and the King of Hearts card arranged between the young lady’s midriff and the top of her left thigh. The dot net portion on the advert is small enough to almost go unnoticed.

The controversy lies in the fact that here is an ad promoting a website that is competition for the legal government gambling offering on British Columbia’s largest public building.
Bodog's website puts Rogers-owned Sportsnet, CTV and TSN, SN590 Radio and The Score on their media partners list and Bodog remains an official sponsor of the Canadian Football League and 101st Grey Cup. The Federal laws in Canada say the provincial governments along with their chosen private sector partners are the only legal gambling entities available in Canada.



Online Gambling Firm Bodog Advertizing in British Columbia

The online poker industry saw a rise in player traffic of 5% last week, the largest weekly increase since the "Road to 100 Billion" promotion at PokerStars in June.

All but one of the top ten poker rooms and networks on PokerScout's ranking of global poker sites saw a rise in cash game action for the week. Those 10 top sites retained their positions, except for Winamax grabbing the eighth slot and knocking Bodog into ninth.

Reasons for the overall market rise may be cool and damp weather throughout much of Europe, which typically has a tendency to prompt players to revisit their online poker accounts. But action in America also spiked, with the country's only two regulated poker sites currently engaged in a marketing battle for industry dominance.

WSOP-com seems to be gaining ground on its rival, Ultimate Poker. The newest Nevada poker site broke its own records for cash game traffic on Sunday, falling just eight players short of 200.

Another site on the rise is PartyPoker. After losing players in early September due to a number of glitches associated with a major software upgrade, those same players seem to be finding their way back to bwin.party's online poker offering. A cash game traffic increase of 10% last week has PartyPoker closing in on both fourth place Full Tilt and third place 888poker.

The online poker market shows a 9% decrease from the same time last year. Attracting more recreational players would likely put a dent in that decline from 2012 player traffic and an industry-wide trend is currently taking hold in an effort to do just that.




Online Poker Player Traffic Rises 5% | PokerUpdate

The organizers of the iGaming Legislative Symposium at the Sheraton Grand Sacramento Hotel in Sacramento, set to take place in California early next year, expect that the subject of online poker legislation in the state will be a hot topic among speakers. The inaugural symposium is set to attract gaming regulators, internet gaming specialist, tribal gaming operators, commercial gaming operators.

Anticipation is high that online poker is set to be introduced in California in the next few years, and the symposium will be a fertile ground for discussion between regulators and interest groups as they try to find a solution that is acceptable to all. Up until now, all efforts to introduce online poker in the state have failed precisely because a middle ground has not been found between tribal compacts, gaming operators, poker room operators and gambling authorities.

Victor Rocha, the owner and operator of Pechanga which is co-hosting the symposium said: “The importance of fair taxation and strict regulation in a new industry like online gaming cannot be overstated. The 2014 iGaming Legislative Symposium was created to look at these and other important issues facing California in the next legislative session. Our goal is to provide solutions to these complicated issues.”

The Executive Vice President of the second host of the symposium, Spectrum Gaming spoke about the struggle to introduce online poker to California.

“California has been a focal point for the implementation of internet gambling for many years,” said Joseph Weinert. “Considering the current size of its Native American gaming industry and its sheer market size, events in California could profoundly impact the size and structure of iGaming throughout the United States.”



California Online Poker Hot Topic at Upcoming Conference

In late September, poker pro Chris Moorman reached an unprecedented $10 million in lifetime cashes in online poker tournaments, according to data from tracking site PocketFives.

Over his years of play, the 28-year-old has cashed nearly 6,000 times across PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker, PartyPoker and the iPoker Network.

His largest score during that span was for $235,000.

In addition to his online success, the Brit has cashed for around $3 million in live events. It is worth noting that both massive figures do not include buy-ins.

According to PocketFives, the second most successful online tournament player ever is Jon “PearlJammer” Turner, with around $6.9 million in scores. Other players in the top 10 include Shyam “sdot111” Srinivasan ($6.8 million), Jeff “YoungSupremacy” Hakim ($6.5 million), Chris “Gettin Daize” Oliver ($6.4 million), Steve “gboro780” Gross ($6.3 million), Dan “djk123” Kelly ($6.1 million), Matt “ch0ppy” Kay ($6 million) and Thayer “THAY3R” Rasmussen ($5.9 million).

While Moorman’s $10 million makes him the most successful online tournament player in history, there are online cash game players who have fared better.

In ring games, Phil Ivey has won around $17 million and Patrik Antonius has scooped around $11.3 million, according to data from HighstakesDB. Phil “OMGClayAiken” Galfond is up around $9 million. (Those figures include buy-ins and are reportedly pure profits).

Online poker in the United States took a big hit after Black Friday in April 2011, when PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker were kicked out of American cyberspace. Many top pros relocated overseas to continue playing. Online tournament field sizes and cash game participation took hits as well.



Chris Moorman Reaches Historic $10-Million Mark From Playing Online Poker Tournaments

After Phil Ivey had a few rough years, he’s back and better than ever. He had a recent come up with $900K, giving him an upswing since May, though he is still down seven figures for 2013. Upon Ivey’s return to Full Tilt Poker, he changed his name to “Polarizing” and had in the past won more than $19 million on Full Tilt Poker over a five year-span, making him the biggest poker pro in the world both on and offline and even made the final table at the WSOP Main Event in 2009. With nine gold bracelets, Ivey faces a more challenging battle in court.


A London casino reportedly refused to pay Ivey the $12.1 million in winnings he was owed from last year. He was apparently betting large amounts at a baccarat game after recently admitting that due to a manufacturing defect in the deck, he was able to read the cards. Ivey stands firm that he was not cheating because he never touched the cards, and the casino allowed him to exploit the situation.




Ivey Still Stands

The DeepStacks Poker Tour (DSPT) announced that it has inked a three-year deal with the Dragonara Casino to bring the DSPT to the Mediterranean country of Malta through 2016.

The first event, the DSPT-Malta is set to take place in November of 2014 with the launch of the Dragonara’s casino expansion which will provide a brand new poker venue.

“As soon as we started looking at our 2014 international stops, I was focused on bringing DSPT to Malta,” commented DeepStacks CEO Chris Torina in the press release. “Looking at their beautiful resort, their amazing history, their expansion plans and in dealing with their incredible staff, I was immediately drawn to Dragonara.”

The DSPT cites itself as the fastest growing tournament circuit in the world as they continue to expand internationally. The DSPT-Malta Main Event is slated to have a €550 buyin and will be accompanied by a €2500 High Roller tournament as well as several side events.

“We are very excited to team up with DSPT and bring their series to our Casino,” said Johann Schembri, Managing Director of Dragonara Casino. The casino, which is a converted 19th century palace, marks their 50th anniversary next year and during the expansion officials plans on carving out a “purposely-built” venue for poker where the DSPT will be held.

In addition to the announcement of the new international stop, DeepStacks took to Twitter to also introduce a new trophy for the victor of all main events, high rollers and side events.



DeepStacks Poker Tour Inks 3-Year Deal in Malta | Pokerfuse Online Poker News

Tony G, real name Antanas Guoga, has announced his intention to run in next year’s elections for the European Parliament.

The elections use a party list system, and Tony G has made it to the number two spot for the Liberal Party. The Liberal’s only have one member (MEP) at the moment, so Tony has to get the vote out if he’s going to make it.

“I believe that Lithuanian politics needs new people and new blood and I want to be in a position to change policy and I qualify as ‘new blood,’” Tony stated in a blog post Monday.

Guoga is a well known figure in Lithuania. Even though he left the country at the age of eleven when his parents moved to Australia, he has made a point of supporting his native country.

Guoga has had considerable success in poker related businesses. He is a founding owner of PokerNews, and after leaving his contract with bwin.party, he has devoted himself to building his new poker site tonybet-com.

The addition of a high profile poker player to the European Parliament must be considered good news for the industry and players. He may not be able to sway entrenched attitudes, but he can bring a wealth of poker knowledge to any MEPs disposed to listen.



Tony G Running for European Parliament | Pokerfuse Online Poker News

Speculation that “Runner Runner” has renewed interest by Hollywood insiders in a sequel to the 1998 film “Rounders” has started, as the first week of the Justin Timberlake/Ben Affleck poker movie takes in $30m at the box office.

In an interview with PokerNews, the writers, David Levien and Brian Koppelman, who also wrote Rounders, and Ocean’s 13 said: “We [...] have the story for “Rounders II” worked out, and all the actors and the director of the first film are ready to come do it. It’s a matter of the companies who control the rights getting behind it and allowing it to happen.”

Hollywood is nothing if not consistent on repeating profitable themes so prospects for Rounders 2 might well depend on how profitable Runner Runner is at the box office. If Runner Runner does badly, the chances of a Rounders sequel could fade.

Though it later became a cult classic that went on to gross $70m from its DVD distribution, Rounders itself was not a great success at the ticket window. However, the film that cost $12m to produce did at least make a profit. Its first weekend receipts of nearly $8.5m outperformed the $7.7m for Runner Runner collected in its opening weekend the US.

Its weak opening performance at the box office coupled with its $30m price tag leaves Runner Runner well short of the necessary earnings to impress cynical Hollywood investors.

Reviews from moviegoers and critics aren’t helping. Movie rating site Rotten Tomatoes states: “It has an impressive cast and an intriguing premise, but Runner Runner wastes them on a bland, haphazardly assembled thriller with very little payoff.” Only 8% of the site’s approved critics gave the film a positive review.

To raise the money for a new version of Rounders, the writers will need a solid sales pitch. The pitch for the Sigourney Weaver blockbuster, “Alien” was famously short; “It’s Jaws … in space.” If Runner Runner fails to make big investment returns, similar lines won’t come off as convincingly, and, “it’s Casino Royale, without Bond” probably won’t swing the deal.

Rounders, along with Chris MoneyMaker’s WSOP Main Event win in 2003 were contributing factors in the creation of the US poker boom; since that boom has faded, poker operators have been dreaming of some equivalent event which could give the market a boost.


Rounders Sequel May Depend on Runner Runner Success | Pokerfuse Online Poker News

Those that were registered with Full Tilt Poker as affiliates are now able to submit a claim to be considered for remission, according to the Garden City Group.

Until now, affiliates were among those groups that were excluded from participating in the remissions process put in place by the US Department of Justice to reimburse victims of Full Tilt Poker after it was discovered that the site did not have sufficient funds to cover player deposits. Other groups that remain ineligible include, past or present employees and members of Team Full Tilt.

Affiliates that meet the standard eligibility requirements will be entitled to claim “the portion of [their] account balance that relates to poker transactions.

Many affiliates were paid through their online poker accounts. Only the portion of their balance that was related to actual poker play can be claimed.

Once the GCG receives the required information from Full Tilt regarding affiliate accounts, it will email the owners of those accounts with the appropriate credentials and instructions for filling a petition. After which, affiliates will have 30 days to submit the petition.

According to the GCG website: “The filing process for Affiliates will not delay the processing or payment of other Petitions for Remission.”

Non-affiliate petitioners should have received their credentials and instructions via email and have until November 16 to file their petitions. Following that deadline, the GCG will review all “confirmed, disputed and new” petitions using criteria provided by the Department of Justice.


US Full Tilt Affiliates Can Now Claim Poker Money | Pokerfuse Online Poker News

Free-to-play online poker website acePLAYpoker-com announced the signing of Christina Lindley to become their first official team pro. Lindley, who calls herself a “world-renowned poker pro and news correspondent” on her website, was recently named to the World Poker Tour's “Ones To Watch” list for the current season. With the new sponsorship, Lindley can be found participating in poker tournaments held at the Stratosphere Casino, Hotel and Tower in Las Vegas as well as representing acePLAYpoker-com at all of her upcoming appearances on the felt.

“I’m absolutely thrilled to be playing on acePLAYpoker-com in Nevada and to begin to further promote the reemergence of online poker on the U. S. scene with such a renowned website in Las Vegas,” Lindley commented in the press release.

Lindley’s first duty for the site is to offer a free poker lesson on acePLAYpoker-com this Monday, October 14, branded National Poker Day.

“Online poker will soon be reintegrated in to the lives of Americans everywhere, and I am proud to be at the forefront of this movement.”

Lindley’s poker resume includes multiple six-figure online scores as well as surviving the bubble in events for the World Poker Tour and the World Series of Poker. According to The Hendon Mob database, Lindley is approaching $250k in live scores in addition to her online success, pushing her lifetime earnings up over $1m, according to her website.

The new sponsorship isn’t the first for Lindley, who earlier this year was one of many signed to the extensive Team Ivey roster. No longer featured on the Team Ivey roster of pros, it’s unclear if the new sponsorship supercedes her previous Team Ivey affiliation.

Either way, it’s clear that acePLAYpoker-com is happy she’s on board.

“We’re delighted that a poker player of Christina Lindley’s caliber, in both online and live poker arenas, has chosen to become one of the inaugural members of acePLAYpoker-com,” said Alec Driscoll, Director of Gaming Development at ACEP. “She brings a great deal of poker-playing experience and technique that is renowned across the poker world.”

While the official announcement came this week, fans and followers of Lindley have known the deal was in place for some time.




Christina Lindley Signs With acePLAYpoker-com | Pokerfuse Online Poker News

The team at PokerStars Macau never sit still. There’s always something cooking in the PokerStars LIVE at the City of Dreams poker room and this week they revealed the launch of six brand new PokerPro cash game tables.

Melbourne locals would be familiar with the electronic PokerPro machines which proved very popular for a period of time in the Crown Poker Room. Players at the table each have their own electronic touch screen where they can peek at their hole cards, enter bet amounts and look at statistics, much like an online poker game, but in a live environment. The fast game play, no dealer mistakes and low limits make the PokerPro machines a really attractive option to attract new players to the game in Macau.

We spoke with the PokerStars Macau team to get some more details about the launch and they informed us that six PokerPro tables have been installed, offering 60 seats spread across HK$5/10 or HK$10/20 Pot Limit Omaha (based on demand) as well as HK$10/20 and HK$20/40 No Limit Holdem (with higher stakes available on demand).

The games will run just like normal live cash tables. There’s a wait list with players able to register at the registration desk or they can register themselves manually using their City Club card. Players can fund their poker account attached to the City Club card (which is a prerequisite for tournament players in Macau) or alternatively, prepaid PokerPro cards can be purchased from the cashier.

To celebrate the launch of the PokerPro tables, PokerStars Macau are giving away over HK$30,000 in prizes to players who try out the new machines. Simply play five hours at any stakes on the PokerPro machines before midnight on October 17th and you’ll receive a PokerPro Freeroll entry ticket. The Freeroll will run on October 20th at 3pm where the winner will receive an ACOP Warm-up seat valued at HK$25,000. The runner-up will receive an ACOP Warm-up Mega satellite ticket valued at HK$4,000, while those who finish third, fourth and fifth won’t go home empty-handed as they will receive a brand new ACOP hoodie.

The PokerPro machines bring the total number of cash game tables available at the City of Dreams to eight with these new tables to be treated the same way as regular cash games. It’s an exciting time to be part of the buzz at PokerStars Macau and we think the PokerPro tables are going to be a hit as they attract even more new players to the game of poker.


PokerPro cash tables open at PokerStars Macau | pokerasiapacific-com

Here are 10 things you should know about SOHE before you sit down to play the game.

10. What is SOHE?
SOHE stands for Simultaneous Omaha and Hold'em. The game is a split-pot game, with half the pot going to the player with the best Hold'em hand and the other half going to the player with the best Omaha hand.

Each player is dealt six cards, and each player must then separate their cards into two hands, a two-card Hold'em hand and a four-card Omaha hand. The game is then played just like Hold'em or Omaha, with a pre-flop betting round, a three-card flop followed by a betting round, a turn card and betting round and the river card followed by a betting round.

9. The most important decision you will make is the first one
The key to SOHE is setting your hand correctly. Some hands are easy; get dealt Ah-Ac-6d-7d-8s-9s, and put the aces in the Hold'em hand and the rest in the Omaha hand. Other hands are a bit tricky. Ah-Jc-10d-10c-3h-3d, for instance, presents a difficult choice. Do you put the 10s in the Omaha hand and give up the suited ace? Or do you put the 10s in the Hold'em hand and give up more straight possibilities?

Personally, I'd put the 10s in the Hold'em hand here. If the game you're playing in is a tight one and not many people are seeing flops, the 10s may be good enough to win, depending on how the board runs out. If you're playing in a loose game where a lot of people are seeing flops, you're probably going to need to hit a set to win, so 10s vs. 3s may not make that big a difference, but having a suited ace is more powerful than having a Broadway draw (see number five on this list for the reason why).

I don't claim to be an expert on the best way to set a hand in SOHE, but realizing that it’s the most important decision you're going to make is the first step to learning the game.

8. Keep those cards capped
Once you set your hand, you'll need to keep a card protector on both hands and keep them separate. Moving cards from one hand to another is prohibited, and anyone that mixes their cards after they have been set will have their hand declared dead.

7. Go for the scoop
Like every split-pot game, the goal of the game is to scoop the whole pot. As a result, you should try to set your hand in such a way that you either hit a monster on the flop, or you get out of the way. That might mean splitting up a pair of aces so you have a suited ace in both hands with the possibility of big wrap draw in Omaha.

6. But be ready to adjust
While the goal of the game is to scoop, most of the time you're going to be facing more than one opponent on the flop. The board may coordinate well with one hand and completely miss the other. If you've got the nuts on one hand and you're facing multiple opponents, you need to make everyone pay to outdraw you. If you get heads up, you can slow down if your hand is one-dimensional and vulnerable to being outdrawn.

5. Be prepared to dump your straight
The problem with hitting a straight – even a nut straight – is that it often won't be the nuts at the end of the hand. If there's three of a suit on the board or the board is paired, your straight is incredibly weak, even on the Hold'em side. You'll see a lot of players throw two suited cards that don't otherwise fit in well with their hand in their Hold'em hand, so don't be surprised when an opponent turns over 9-3 suited in Hold'em and takes down that half of the pot with a flush.

If you hit a straight and it's the nuts, you should play it accordingly. But be aware that you might need to abandon ship if the board gets a little scary. And it might be worth setting your hand in such a way that you're playing for flushes and full houses instead of straights, just to make your decision-making process easier later in the hand.

4. Know when to fold'em
Don't fool yourself into thinking that you're probably going to win at least half the pot. If there are more than two people remaining in the hand and both of them are being very aggressive, there's a good chance that you're facing the nuts on both sides. Unless you have powerful draws in both of your hands that can beat the best possible holdings at the moment, let it go.

If you're heads up and your opponent is jamming the pot and you have two medium-strength hands, you might think you're probably good on one of them. He's probably got the nuts for one hand, but you could be okay on the other. Trust me, it's not worth it. Let the hand go. It's like calling down with a pair of kings in Stud High-Low against a player with an ace and two low cards showing. It's a long-term losing strategy.

3. Think about running it twice
Think PLO is a high variance game? Wait until you play SOHE. You're going to have some massive swings. If you want to even out those swings, think about running it twice or even three times once players are all in. All players have to agree to this arrangement, of course, and it can make for some complicated chip breakdowns at the end of the hand, but it will even out the swings a bit and keep people in the game longer.

2. Be okay with playing 8-10 hands an hour
SOHE is slow. Unbearably slow. But it's a tradeoff. When you have an action game where everyone wants to see the flop, it's going to take awhile to play. Add in complicated chops with tons of chips and you're going to do a lot of waiting. But those long hands are a good opportunity to study your opponents, take a restroom break on the off chance you fold preflop, or talk to your fellow players that have also managed to find a way to fold.

1. You'll either love it or hate it
I've never seen a poker game that simultaneously engendered so much love and hate as SOHE does. If you're an ABC Hold'em player that generally follows a set pattern of play, you're probably going to hate SOHE. If you like to gamble and be faced with a multitude of difficult decisions when you play poker, you're going to love it.

The next time you're at a home game, give

Last week, the Nevada Gaming Control Board heard requests from four online poker operators to give them more time to get their internet brands up and running. The board granted licenses to Boyd Interactive Gaming, Golden Nugget, MGM Resorts Online and Z4Poker six months ago, and the online poker rooms needed to have been launched by now. However, all four groups are asking for an extension on this time period.

It is not unusual for operators to request extensions of their licensing requirements since Nevada’s online gambling industry is still in diapers.

According to AG Burnett, the chairman of the Nevada State Gaming Control Board: “All three operators have been granted an extension, which is somewhat routine, we entertain such requests periodically in the land-based world as well. In this case the operators are understandably examining the market to see how it develops and grows over the coming months.”

A number of new players have entered the market as well, including the Reno and Hotel and Casino which applied for an interactive gaming license. Ditronics Financial Services also applied for a service provider’s license.

Nevada was the first state to legalize and regulate online poker on an intrastate level, but has been struggling to get its industry off the ground. So far, only two online poker rooms are up and running, including the latest WSOP-com site. Nevada’s player base is tiny in comparison to New Jersey, which is set to launch its own industry in November this year, and it may be that Nevada operators are waiting it out to see whether New Jersey will be entering into inter-state pacts, allowing them to expand the size of their own player bases significantly.

Delaware is the third state thus far to introduce online gambling laws.



Online Poker Groups Ask Nevada Authorities for More Time

World Poker Tour (WPT) President Adam Pliska addressed the growing concerns of players regarding the conflict between the dates of the WPT Championship event and the European Poker Tour Monte Carlo Championship event today.

Concerns began to surface when players noticed that the dates of both events overlapped as the WPT unveiled the schedule for the second half of its season last week.


According to the WPT Blog, World Poker Tour officials have been well aware of the overlapping schedules and have been in “close discussions” with officials from the EPT to hopefully allow those players who wish to play both events to be able to do so.

The televised WPT World Championship, a $15,000 +$400 event, is slated for April 22-26 2014 at the Borgata Hotel, Casino & Spa while, according to the EPT website, the EPT Monte Carlo stop, taking place at the Monte Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort in Monte Carlo, is slated from April 23-May 3 2014.

Though dates for the EPT Monte Carlo Main Event have yet to be announced, last year’s schedule shows that the Main Event kicked off the poker festival.

Pliska states that there is currently only a slight overlap and that only players that make the final table of the the WPT main event would potentially miss the EPT main event.

“The final table of the WPT Main event occurs on Saturday April 26, and Day 1A of the EPT Main Event occurs on the same day. Day 1B of the EPT Main Event takes place on Sunday April 27, and players are able to enter prior to the start of the EPT Day 2 on Monday April 28.” Pliska writes.

Pliska goes on to say that the WPT continues to work with other tours for the benefit of the players and, in this case, the scheduling was unavoidable.

The WPT recently annouced that for the first time ever, the WPT World Championship would take place on the East Coast instead of in Nevada. Last year, for Season XI, the WPT held this event from May 18-24, 2013 while EPT Monte Carlo Season 9 took place May 6-15 2013.



World Poker Tour Addresses Scheduling Conflict With EPT | Pokerfuse Online Poker News

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Online gambling in New Jersey is set to begin in late November, and a new study conducted shows poker players alone could spend between $39 million and $65 million in the first year, a report from Card Player said.

The industry could continue to grow as high as $92 million in year ten, the report said.

These figures are according to a study conducted by Academicon and PokerScout, the report said. The researchers analyzed data on 4.6 million real money online poker players in 2009 and 2010, when online poker playing was at its peak before it became illegal.

The state of Division of Gaming Enforcement said it would allow Atlantic City’s dozen casinos to begin offering online gambling at 9 a.m. on Nov. 26, following a five-day test period. New Jersey will be the third state to allow internet gambling along with Nevada and Delaware.

The study also showed that New Jersey players accounted for three percent of revenue in the United States and 0.8 percent of online poker revenue worldwide, the report said.



Poker players in NJ could spend up to $65 million online in first year, study says | NJ-com