Poker forum archive

Howard Lederer, Annie Duke, Tom Dwan, Phil Hellmuth and Huck Seed are all about to do something that I have to say that I admire the heck out of them fore: They're going to travel to the Middle East to visit US Soldiers as part of the first-ever USO/Armed Forced Entertainment poker tour. While they're their, they're going to visit troops, answer questions and spill trade secrets about the game. Of course, they're also going to sign autographs and pose for photos with our fighting forces as well as teach people over there how to play cards.

For everyone except Howard Lederer, this is their first USO experience. Back in 2008, he spent time at Walter Reed Army Medical Center with some of our troops that had just come back from battle with injuries. During this visit (which was also organized by the Poker Players Alliance,) Lederer and another group of poker pros hung out with the troops and entertained them.

It's easy to see why poker players would be a good diversion for our troops. Without access to online poker and with only a deck of cards needed to play the game, poker is a popular diversion among the barracks.

Back in November, selling your World Series of Poker* bracelet for Charity was the cool thing to do. Peter Eastgate's 2008 Main Event bracelet raised over $147,000 for UNICEF and Paul Clark's reward for winning the $1,500 Razz tournament soon followed it in the online auctions game. Things have actually been pretty quiet on that WSOP collectibles front until this week when a 2006 WSOP Circuit Event Ring found its way to eBay.

The ring's listing is pretty minimal and states the truth in bright red letters:

"World Series of Poker 2006 Circuit Event Ring !!
This was won in San Diego in 2006 at the WSOP Circuit Event !
Lifetime chance since these rings are not usually found.
Message me for more images or information or call me."

The buy it now price of $5,000 seemed a long shot, but the ring's already picked up its first bid at the starting price of $2,000 and there's four days left in the auction, meaning that it could well crawl upwards.

Get your own shot at the big event on the cheap with Bodog's newest poker promotion.

*World Series of Poker and WSOP are trademarks of Caesars Interactive Entertainment, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively Harrah's). HIE does not sponsor or endorse, and is not associated or affiliated with, Bodog Poker or its products, services, promotions or tournaments. Any promotion or tournament on this site will not guarantee your seat or ability to register for any WSOP event or any WSOP affiliated event which is at the sole discretion of Harrah's.

The USA is a land of diversity and it seems like it is a place where anything can happen. Now it may be the Capital District Washington D.C.to be the first to legalize internet poker. The irony is that this is a little state on it’s own where the laws are made and the rules created. The District of Columbia is a major area for international tourism and everything that goes along with a Capital city.

The State government is challenging the federal government's effective ban on the practice in its own backyard.
Efforts from gambling companies to legalize online poker was squashed in Congress last year after several key Republican representatives voiced loud concern about the practice, in part on moral grounds. Since then there have been calls to allow other States to legalize online gambling. Republican Governor Mr. Christie of New Jersey vetoed a bill that would have pulled Atlantic City out of its slump.

The Poker Players Alliance, which represents the interests of offshore poker sites that wouldn't be able to participate in the district's system, argues that the pool of poker players in the city of around 600,000 isn't big enough to create a viable business.
Yet John Pappas, executive director of the Poker Players Alliance, said that because it would be in Congress's backyard, the system might help the organization's goal of getting federal legislation passed allowing online poker.
The city council approved a budget last year allowing the district's lottery to operate a poker website accessible only inside district boundaries. City officials say the window for Congress to raise objections to the law was due to expire Thursday, which has allowed it to take effect.
Opening the district to online gambling could make the nation's capital the first test case for "intrastate" online poker, which allows only players within a state, or the district, to gamble on a site.

If all goes well, Washington D.C. could become the first place in the country to offer regulated online poker, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal on Friday.

Despite murky waters created by the federal government’s Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA), the district’s city council approved a budget in 2010 to allow its lottery system to offer internet poker to residents. According to the article, the window for Congress to nix the bill has likely been closed.

With about 600,000 people within Washington D.C., the district’s lottery could have a online poker system, albeit small in scope, within its boundaries by 2012, leap frogging other efforts across the country to legalize and regulate internet card playing. Online poker bills are still being debated and worked on in New Jersey, Iowa, California, Hawaii, and Nevada.

While the Nevada legislature has shown interest in pushing intrastate online gambling legislation, one powerful politician is not on board with the idea. Governor Brian Sandoval has indicated that he does not want Nevada to pursue online poker legislation, preferring instead to see a bill passed at the federal level instead.

The comments came during the governor’s appearance on Nevada Newsmakers. He said that while he would want the state to quickly take advantage of any federal laws passed, he doesn’t want Nevada to do anything that would conflict with federal law.

“If, indeed, the federal government legalizes online poker, the state of Nevada should be the one that sets up regulatory structure and the investigatory structure for those who seek licensing in that area," Sandoval said.

Currently, there is a bill in the Nevada Legislature that would open the state to online poker. Players from Nevada would be able to access such sites, as would players from other jurisdictions where online poker is legal. The bill is currently sitting in the Assembly Judiciary Committee, where it awaits a vote.

The governor seemed supportive of online gambling in general, even if he was against the current law. He was quoted as saying that Internet gambling is the future of the casino industry, which is the major driver for the Nevada economy. He suggested that if the state wishes to remain a leader in worldwide gambling, it will eventually need to adapt to the online market.

Powerful interests have lined up on both sides of the state vs. federal divide when it comes to online poker legislation. While many major casino corporations have come out in favor of a federal solution, PokerStars has said that they support the efforts in Nevada. The Poker Players Alliance, an interest group representing poker players in the United States, has had mixed reactions to state-level poker bills; while they show progress towards allowing Americans to play poker online, the PPA has preferred a comprehensive federal bill.

It isn’t legal for poker players in the USA to win and collect funds from online poker sites usually operating out of offshore locations. The Internal Revenue Service is trying it’s best to make sure if a player does win at online poker that they get their piece of the pie. This isn’t really all that unusual considering what everyone knows, the only sure things in life are death and taxes.

The latest round to legalize the skill testing game of poker H.R. 1174, the Internet Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection & Enforcement Act moves through the House of Representatives and the Senate hasn’t passed yet so players in America should look cautiously at how they play their tax cards. If those poker players have won and collected but not reported their winnings on their tax returns they should give serious thought to reporting the funds now, before the IRS looks at your earnings and finds out you didn’t. You may have until August 31 to take advantage of the current Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Initiative.
Although the prospect of legal online poker sounds wonderful to the avid card player the passing of the bill could spell trouble for those who played and won and didn’t report the income.

The new law will provide the IRS with a method to seek and obtain the names and account information of U.S. resident depositors with accounts in foreign branches of banks by bringing John Does Summons proceedings against the U.S. branch. A John Doe Summons is authorized under IRC Section 7609 (f) to obtain records from a third party of an ascertainable group or class of persons when there is reason to believe that the group class of persons may have failed to comply with the internal revenue laws. In plain language should online gambling be legalized in the USA the IRS will be given the authority to seek out all records, all player registration data, including deposits, sources of deposits, wire, checks or other sources total withdrawals, method of withdrawals, and much more. These records could go back as far as six years.

Just 27 players out of the original 97 are hitting the felt today at the World Poker Tour's Hollywood Poker Open stop at the Hollywood Casino in Indiana. While 97 players may not sound like a lot of people to sit down in a poker tournament, the high buy-in and competitive nature of the field ensures that the action is good and the top dozen players that hit the bubble are rewarded for their effort.

Right now, Andy Whetstone is the overnight chip leader with 344,400 and he's followed fairly closely by Shannon Shorr (250,900) and Steven Kelly (233,000.) Some big names hit the rail today, including Jason Koon, Mike Sexton, Raj Patel, Luke Staudenmaier and Jack McClelland among others.

Of course, it should be noted that among those 27 players going into day three is Bodog's own Amanda Musumeci. The 26-year-old poker tournament dynamo has been chowing down on the opposition and is right in the middle of the pack with 57,900 chips.

Today's action will see just ten remaining players for the final table and here's how the payout structure works for those that make it inside the bubble:

1: $273,664
2: $155,103
3: $110,788
4: $77,551
5: $62,041
6: $50,962
7: $44,315
8: $39,884
9: $31,021
10-12: $22,157

Want to play in online poker tournaments with big guaranteed prize pools for less? Check out what Bodog poker offers our players. It's about more than just a nice bonus and the best player support in the industry – it's about bringing fun back to the game!

Huy Nguyen took his second WSOP* Circuit Event Ring victory this weekend at the World Series of Poker Circuit stop at Harrah's St. Louis in the $555 no-limit hold 'em six-handed tournament. Back in January, he beat out 807 players at the main event at the Choctaw WSOPC stop and earned $232,706. After that financial windfall, Nguyen took a break from the WSOPC and instead focused in online poker games and improving his skill set. Event #6 at Harrah's featured a 205-player field and the six-handed format meant that the action was fast and furious.

The total prize pool was $97,081 and 21 players would take home cash from their play. Day one ended with two tables of six players each remaining and with the elimination of Drazen Llich (who has 2 WSOP rings of his own,) final table play started with blinds at 6,000/12,000 and Cory Drury way ahead of the pack, having over twice as many chips as his closest competitor Jim Mink. Eventually, though, patience took the day as Nguyen strategically played his way up from the middle of the pack to take the ring.

While Nguyen earned his second ring, Keith Woernle of Montgomery, AL won his first ever piece of WSOPC jewelry as he won the $555 buy-in No Limit Hold 'Em tournament that served as Event #7.

*World Series of Poker and WSOP are trademarks of Caesars Interactive Entertainment, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively Harrah's). HIE does not sponsor or endorse, and is not associated or affiliated with, Bodog Poker or its products, services, promotions or tournaments. Any promotion or tournament on this site will not guarantee your seat or ability to register for any WSOP event or any WSOP affiliated event which is at the sole discretion of Harrah's.

Each and every Sunday, Bodog's online poker room hosts a weekly $100,000 guaranteed tournament and you can get on the action for as little as $1 thanks to our aggressive satellite schedule. These huge tournaments take place at 4pm EST on Sundays.

Who won during came out on top in Sunday, April 3rd's Tournament? koke took first place this week, earning $25,000. They were followed by czarcaesarxx ($15,000) and DrDankRx23 , who rounded out the top three spots while taking away $9,500. Here's the rest of the final table results: crumper
($7,000); marceloamaro ($5,500); Daddyo11 ($4,500); CYBEROUND ($3,500); dbrick12 ($2,200); cmoney71 ($1,700);

In addition to our show-stopping Sunday events, Bodog hosts its regular weekly tournaments to players, and here's the winners of last week's events!

* April 4 • $10k Guaranteed Double-Stack: snl ($2,750.00)
* April 5 • $10k Guaranteed Double-Stack: Paldon ($3,000.00)
* April 6 • $10k Guaranteed Double-Stack: johall111 ($3,000.00)
* April 7 • $10k Guaranteed Double-Stack: BennyCrane ($2,750)
* April 10 • $10k Guaranteed Double-Stack: Keetz ($3,000)
* April 10 • $10k Guaranteed Turbo Double-Stack dhackett ($3,000)

Bodog's guaranteed tournaments mean that there's always a big cash pool. Play poker online at Bodog and get your share!

Old school poker cheating is rare in this day and age as more and more people choose to play online poker or hit the tabled in well-managed poker rooms and in tournaments, but it turns out one New Jersey man went WAY back to the cheating book. Sefula Seji, a 43 year old man from Oak Ridge, allegedly used sand paper to mark cards while playing poker on Saturday at the Sands Casino in Atlantic City. While handling the cards, he would mark the back of them to identify their value.

Authorities didn't say whether or not this helped Seji win.

According to court records from the booking of Seji, here's how they identified that he was the card-marker:

"Several marked cards were located Friday in a room where gaming officials inspect the cards and dice used on the casino floor. The markings corresponded to the value of the cards. For example, ace cards displayed marks on the upper left corner and the marks descended depending on the value of the card.

The marked cards had been used earlier that day. State police and Sands security reviewed surveillance footage and spotted a man who appeared to be rubbing his finger across the back of the cards to mark them."

The next day, the same man returned to the scene where the cards were originally marked and after observing him for 45 minutes, state police and security removed him from the poker room. While he was in the process of being trotted out, Seji dropped a small piece of sandpaper. Once they were inside the gaming enforcement office, the troopers found another container of sandpaper on Seji and found that 39 of the 52 cards in the deck he'd been playing at were marked.

Seji was charged with 39 counts of committing a prohibited act related to gaming. He was arraigned before District Judge Jacqueline Taschner and sent to Northampton County Prison under $75,000 bail.

Havent played at bodog in awhile but looks like i may need to go and check it out.heard with all the new upgrades its running much smoother too. thx.

The Senate Criminal Justice Committee in Florida USA has squashed efforts to bring online poker into the legal and taxable world. Florida has been attempting to make legal internet poker for a long time, recognizing the online gambling trend is something that is not going away and is indeed growing at a mammoth rate.

The tied vote of 2 against 2 for brought down the bill introduced by Sen. Miguel Diaz de la Portilla, Republican rep from Miami. The bill would have regulated online poker games through an intranet system operated out of the pari-mutuel card rooms already existing.
Diaz de la Portilla explained to the Senate Criminal Justice Committee, "What we're trying to do here is create Florida intrastate poker network and do it with Florida companies with regulations here, protecting from identify theft and protecting the consumer, and having revenue go to the state,"

If the bill had been adopted an approximate $10.5 million dollars would have been generated from a tax of ten percent on gross receipts from the wagering. An additional four percent of gross profits from betting on poker games would go to help purse sizes offered at dog and horse racing tracks in the Sunshine State. The move would have curtailed offshore operators from gaining revenues currently leaving the country.

The Florida Sheriff's Association lobbied against the legalization of internet poker in Florida. The Poker Players Alliance were also against the Floridian move for legal online poker.
Frank Messersmith, a lobbyist for the Florida Sheriff's Association commented, “This is really the ultimate convenience gambling,'' adding, "It provides anonymity in your home with no peer pressure, no social interaction." Messersmith was very critical of online poker calling it "internet crack" that appealed most to young men adding that the move would do nothing to counter the use of offshore gambling sites. Messersmith continued to explain to the committee his point of view, "This is a form of digital escape to the anti-social people and it just opens all types of doors that we think is too opportune for people to be caught up in gambling,'' .

The main event at the World Series of Poker* Circuit stop at Harrah's St. Louis crowned a victor yesterday. Kyle Cartwright took the top spot in the $1500 no-limit hold 'em main tournament that served as the jewel in the crown in the lineup at the St. Louis stop. This is the third ring for the 23-year-old online poker player that's recently made the shift to live games. How recent was this transition? Cartwright won two consecutive WSOPC gold rings back to back in only his third and fourth ever live tournaments back in February.

He started off day two of this WSOPC stop's main event near the bottom of the leaderboard, but he rallied well, outplaying others while hitting the right cards and he made it the final table with the largest chipstack. With 449 players total in the tournament and a total prize pool of $642,762, Cartwright was competing for a chunk of the biggest tournament prize ever in Missouri state history. In the end, the University of Memphis graduate walked away from the tables at Harrah's St. Louis with an impressive score: $142,290. For only his twelfth-ever live tournament, that's a healthy bankroll that he's built.

*World Series of Poker and WSOP are trademarks of Caesars Interactive Entertainment, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively Harrah's). HIE does not sponsor or endorse, and is not associated or affiliated with, Bodog Poker or its products, services, promotions or tournaments. Any promotion or tournament on this site will not guarantee your seat or ability to register for any WSOP event or any WSOP affiliated event which is at the sole discretion of Harrah's.

Want to make it to the World Series of Poker* Main Event for as little as $1? Get started today at Bodog Poker! If you play your cards right and win a seat to the Main Event with us, you get access to a prize package worth over $12,000. Not only do you get your $10,000 buy-in to the main event, you'll receive $2,000 in spending cash and be taken care of by Bodog's staff every step of the way.

With $1 cheap seats tournaments, quarterfinals with buy-ins ranging from $5 to $15 and seats in semifinals going for as low as $35, it's easy to see how we give players more ways to get in on the action! Of course, if you've got the skills and know your way around the felt, you can dive directly into the action for $470 on this Sunday, April 17th at 4:35pm and compete for one of two main event prize packages.

Want to know more? Find out all the ways you can qualify for the main event at Bodog Poker!

*World Series of Poker and WSOP are trademarks of Caesars Interactive Entertainment, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively Harrah's). HIE does not sponsor or endorse, and is not associated or affiliated with, Bodog Poker or its products, services, promotions or tournaments. Any promotion or tournament on this site will not guarantee your seat or ability to register for any WSOP event or any WSOP affiliated event which is at the sole discretion of Harrah's.

Fans of live poker tournaments in Atlantic City will be happy to know that the Borgata Spring Poker Open is now underway and the first event, the $350+50 Deepstack tournament saw over 720 players hitting the felt, covering the $100,000 guarantee quite easily. While the numbers are a bit lower than last year's open, it should be remembered that the 2010 event kicked off over a weekend and a midweek-one day launch launching with as many players as this one did is really remarkable. Another $300+50 event kicked off today at 11am.

The schedule for this year's event is quite different than last year's inaugural Open. First of all, it's four days shorter, as many felt that last year's event just dragged on a bit long. The Borgata has olso livened up the competition by offering a Leaderboard Promotion for the open, matching what many online poker sites do to keep their audience interested. The casino will award points to players based on tournament buy-in amount, total event entries and final placements and the winning player gets a seat at the $2,500+200 open championship.

You don't have to be in Atlantic City to play in huge poker tournaments! Every weekend, Bodog Poker hosts our massive $100,000 guaranteed events and gives players ways to get in on the action for as little as buck!

This week, a Nevada Assembly panel passed an amended version of AB 258, which was introduced by Nevada Assembly Majority Whip William Horne and discussed in the Nevada Assembly Committee on Judiciary in late March.

According to the Associated Press, the amendments will put Nevada’s intrastate internet gaming interests on the sideline until the Federal Government creates guidelines for the industry: “The amended version of AB 258 directs the Nevada Gaming Commission to begin drafting rules to regulate online poker, but stipulates that internet gambling would not be implemented until sanctioned by Congress or the Justice Department.”

The Nevada Resort Association’s Pete Ernaut told the AP, “We believe online poker is inevitable. We wanted a bill that made sense … for the existing gaming industry and the online poker industry.” The measure will essentially set Nevada up should internet gambling and/or online poker become legalized and regulated by Congress or rubber-stamped by the Department of Justice, but when that will happen is anyone’s guess.

The passage of the amended version of AB 258 comes on the heels of Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval telling the Las Vegas Sun that he doesn’t want to be in conflict with Federal law. Sandoval told the desert news outlet, “I don’t want the state to be in contravention of the Federal law.”

However, Sandoval wished for his state to take the lead should the industry move completely above board nationwide: “If, indeed, the Federal Government legalizes online poker, the state of Nevada should be the one that sets up regulatory structure and the investigatory structure for those who seek licensing in that area.”

According to the Wall Street Journal and other major media outlets, PokerStars, the world’s largest online poker site, is one of the major proponents of AB 258. Its original draft stated that the licensing commission could not discriminate based on whether a site continued to serve the market following the passage of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, or UIGEA, in 2006.

However, it doesn’t appear that PokerStars could set up shop in Nevada and start taking rake. Instead, according to the AP, “Under the Nevada bill, online sites would need to have a partnership with an existing non-restricted license holder or an affiliate that has been in business for at least five years.” PokerStars has already forged a partnership with Wynn Resorts for internet gaming on a Federal level.

On the future of AB 258, Horne told CardPlayer Magazine earlier this week, “My meeting with the Governor in his office yesterday afternoon showed me that he is supportive of the poker bill. He recognizes that we need the bill, and he just has concerns about us coming in conflict with Federal law. Today we passed out an amended version of the bill, and I am confident that the Governor will sign when it reaches his desk.”

PokerStars’ partnership with Wynn Resorts was one of three relationships formed last month. Caesars Entertainment and 888 teamed up to develop the World Series of Poker brand in the U.K., while the owners of Station Casinos separately partnered with Full Tilt Poker should Federally-endorsed online poker come to pass.

Meanwhile, Washington DC became the first jurisdiction in the United States to green light online poker as part of a 2011 budget proposal. The DC Lottery will head up the District’s internet gaming efforts and a series of 20 to 30 internet gambling “hotspots” could be coming to the area as early as June. Meanwhile, internet gaming bills in Iowa, New Jersey, and Florida appear to be dead in the water.

A gambling bill on Thursday cleared the Senate Ways and Means Committee 9-6, but the bill would no longer make Iowa one of the first states in the nation to legalize Internet poker.

Instead, Senate File 458 would now have the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission produce a report that would look further into the issue and what it would mean in terms of state regulation, additional gaming and underage gaming.

"It does not legalize online poker play," said Sen. Bill Dotzler, D-Waterloo, the bill's floor manager. "It just asks for a report."

Backers of legalizing Internet poker said about 150,000 Iowans are taking part in Internet poker illegally every day and the revenue is currently benefiting offshore Internet gambling companies.

"It is not going away. Every time you turn on ESPN, you can see the advertisement for Poker Stars, Full Tilt poker - wearing them on their hats, their shirts," Dotzler said. "That is an illegal website everywhere in the United States and they're advertising to Iowans every time they watch that. That's what the real problem is, they're playing online poker illegally and we really don't have any control over it."

Overall, gaming lobbyists said Thursday they are pleased that the bill is moving forward, despite the action coming just two weeks before the projected end of the legislative session.

"We're happy it's moving. Obviously, a work in progress. We have a long ways to go and not a long time to do it," said former state Rep. Frank Chiodo, a lobbyist for Riverside Casino and Golf Resort, The Rasmussen Group and U.S. Digital Gaming. "Yeah, we're happy. We live to fight another day."

Chiodo and his father, Ned Chiodo, along with Scott Newhard and Kirk Uhler are key lobbyists who have pushed for legalizing Internet poker. The gaming lobbyists huddled around Dotzler in the Capitol rotunda following the vote, and IowaPolitics.com observed Newhard speaking passionately and pointing a finger at Dotzler.

However, Frank Chiodo said they were taking the changes to the bill in stride, even though it now calls for a report and puts the issue of legalizing Internet poker off for another year.

"I think it's a good thing," Frank Chiodo said. "I think it's something that needs to happen. All the information needs to be gathered. We need to look at what's happening in the state and find out how to address that. This is an activity that exists today, it's going to exist tomorrow. The question is, are we going to regulate this existing activity or are we going to turn our head and let somebody else take care of it like the federal government?"

Frank Chiodo said he believes Iowa can do a better job than the federal government in regulating Internet poker in the state and spending the dollars generated from that regulation.

But Sen. Matt McCoy, D-Des Moines, who voted in favor of the bill Thursday, said he still has concerns.

"I want to make sure that consumer protection is a major part of this bill and I also want to ensure that we collect our fair share of taxes as it relates to what's being wagered," McCoy said.

Also under the bill, a casino that has established itself for at least eight years and has successfully passed two referendums would no longer be subject to an automatic county referendum on its gambling license in the future. That part of the bill would be retroactive to 1994.

Yet another part of the bill would allow direct deposit wagering on horse racing as it's done in 20 other states.

"Through direct deposit wagering, it allows us to capture money that is being lost across the country because currently, if you want to bet on the Kentucky Derby, you have to do it through Kentucky or 20 other states' program," Dotzler said. "This way, we create one here in Iowa and they can bet on Iowa horses right here instead of using some other state."

Initial proposals to end live greyhound racing in Iowa or subject Iowa's casino floors to the state smoking ban did not have the votes and were not offered as amendments Thursday.

"Smoking, it became a major problem for moving anything forward with the bill," McCoy said. "They just essentially got people to lock up on it and so when we discussed it in caucus, we didn't have the votes to move it forward."

The Iowa Conference of United Methodist Church, the Iowa Catholic Conference, the Iowa Faith & Freedom Coalition and The Family Leader are among those registered against the bill. At least a dozen other lobbyists, many representing gambling interests, have registered as "undecided" and have yet to take a public position on the bill.

Female hedge-fund executives that have united to form a nonprofit known as the High Water Women Foundation have discovered a new way to get more money into the hands of charities that need them: by offering up Texas Hold 'Em games. Tonight sees the group organizing another event in New York City, this time at the Gotham Hall on 36th street. The group's mission is "to empower women and youth in need by creating powerful volunteer opportunities that leverage the talents and aspirations of professional women" and they've gotten a lot of support by putting their money where their mouth is.

The $3 million that High Water Women has raised so far from donations and its poker tournaments has been distributed to nonprofits like Women in Need Inc., which provides shelter to homeless women in New York, and Harlem’s Iris House Inc, both of which are dedicated to helping less-fortunate women in the city. Kathleen Kelley, High Water Women’s co-founder (and portfolio manager for global macro investments at Kingdon Capital Management LLC) said she hopes the poker tournament will continue to expand its ranks of patrons.

"If I want to make the world a better place, the causes that need funding will have the face of a woman or a child,” Kelley said. “Those are the scenarios where there’s real suffering and real inequality."

Further proof that the poker community has heart.

Just a quick reminder that Bodog's giving you a shot at the World Series of Poker* Main Event for as little as $1! We're giving players three paths to getg in on the action with cheap seats, mid-range events and direct buy-ins that save the savvy player time and energy. Every day, we're running multiple Cheap Seat tournaments that are just $1+.10. Winning in these tournaments gets you into the quarter finals, then the semi finals and finally a main event satellites.

Mid-range players can greatly shorten their path by buying directly into a semi-final game for as little as $35+3 and take a shot at one of hundreds of guaranteed seats in our Main Event Satellites. Of course, if you've got the skills that pay the bills, our weekly $470+30 Main Event satellites take place on a regular basis. Take a look at our qualifying schedule for more info and get started on your path to the WSOP today at Bodog Poker!

*World Series of Poker and WSOP are trademarks of Caesars Interactive Entertainment, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively Harrah's). HIE does not sponsor or endorse, and is not associated or affiliated with, Bodog Poker or its products, services, promotions or tournaments. Any promotion or tournament on this site will not guarantee your seat or ability to register for any WSOP event or any WSOP affiliated event which is at the sole discretion of Harrah's.

The US Attorney in Manhattan has filed fraud charges against Full Tilt Poker and two other online companies. The move is roiling the US poker community, and it plays into a larger debate about the legal status of online betting.


Criminal fraud charges against three large Internet poker companies have stirred an uproar in the world of online poker, and are reviving a broader debate about the future of online gambling in the US.

On Friday the US Attorney in Manhattan, Preet Bharara, filed charges against Full Tilt Poker, PokerStars, and Absolute Poker, alleging that they have been violating a US law that bans companies from knowingly accepting payments that relate to illegal online gambling.

The move comes as some congressional lawmakers have been pushing to legalize online gambling in the US.

Critics of online gambling argue that legalization could make problems like compulsive and underage gambling an even bigger social challenge in America.

Proponents of the concept say legalization would support consumer choice and steer traffic toward licensed and regulated businesses. It would include provisions designed to prevent underage or compulsive gambling.

Boosters of poker, moreover, say it's a game of skill, where betting is different from betting on games of chance.

Former Sen. Alfonse D’Amato of New York, who chairs an advocacy group called Poker Players Alliance, issued a statement following the legal action Friday.

“On behalf of the millions of poker players across the country, we are shocked at the action taken by the U.S. Department of Justice today against online poker companies and will continue to fight for Americans’ right to participate in the game they enjoy," he said. "Online poker is not a crime and should not be treated as such."

Mr. D'Amato said the group would offer "detailed analysis when the full facts become available.”

The indictments unsealed on Friday allege massive fraud and money laundering totaling in the billions of dollars, involving companies that operate offshore.

"These defendants, knowing full well that their business with U.S. customers and U.S. banks was illegal, tried to stack the deck," Janice Fedarcyk of the FBI said in a statement. "They lied to banks about the true nature of their business. Then, some of the defendants found banks willing to flout the law for a fee."

The case revolves around current US laws, but the broader debate is over the future of betting activity on the Internet -- one of gambling's most easily accessible venues.

Rep. Barney Frank (D) of Massachusetts, a leading backer of a bipartisan bill to allow licensing of online gambling companies, has argued his case by quoting John Stuart Mill on the virtues of letting citizens pursue "our own good in our own way, so long as we do not attempt to deprive others of theirs."

But others in Congress oppose the bill. Critics say that allowing online gambling to flourish could cause great harm, including to people who don't have lots of money to burn.

University of Illinois professor John Kindt has called online betting "the crack cocaine of gambling, putting it in every living room, on every school desk and work desk, and on every iPhone and BlackBerry."