Gambling Blog

Gary Kaplan, co-founder of internet betting site BetOnSports has been refused bail by a St Louis court, it has been reported.

Mr Kaplan, who is being charged with racketeering and fraud, is facing harsher conditions than his former chief executive David Carruthersm, who is currently under house arrest.

The trial against BetOnSports is being watched carefully by the online gaming industry as, if it results in a conviction, it will be the first major conviction made under the new gambling laws introduced in the US last year.

Mr Kaplan has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The credibility of the US’ anti-gambling law has already been weakened abroad, after Antigua successfully challenged the US following its attempts to ban the country providing gambling to US residents.

The World Trade Organisation declared that the US cannot have legal gambling in its own country (such as in Vegas) and yet ban other countries from providing the same service.

Representative Barney Frank has upped the stakes of his current appeal against last year’s gambling restrictions.

Appearing on television throughout the country rep Frank has been asking Americans to “call your representative and your senators and tell them to get out of your life”.

The campaign comes as the representative and hero of the gamblers across the nation ups his attempts at enforcing his new bill, which would see gambling legalised in a regulated way, so that government can offer help to the minority of those at risk of developing a gambling habit.

Largely seen as the best hope for overturning the draconian law, rep Frank has reminded citizens that he is not the only one with any power: “It really depends on the citizens,” he said.

“As the average American understands what’s happened, my colleagues are going to be told, ‘listen you made a mistake and you butt out of my business’ and at that point I think we may be able to change it.”

God bless Barney Frank!

Well I never - can Full Tilt Poker get ANY better?
 

A few weeks ago you may remember reading about a new sign up bonus system from Full Tilt which meant players could get a hefty bonus when they put down their initial deposit.
 

However they’ve only gone and bettered things again…
 

Players wishing to sign up at the web’s most rock ‘n’ roll poker website are now being encouraged by a $600 matching bonus, as well as free sign up and training from new site The University of Poker.
 

The match up bonus means that for every dollar you put down when you join, you receive another dollar: absolutely free!
 

So how do you claim your $600? Simply add the code 4KINGS when you sign up, and hey presto, you’ve got up to $600 in your account, free.
 

Full Tilt Poker has always hung around to offer players from the States a cash game since the introduction of the gambling restrictions and now, even as another site closed yesterday, Full Tilt shows everyone that nobody’s gonna stop these guys!
 

Phil Hellmuth has broke out of the stalemate and won his 11^th World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet.

Hellmuth looked ecstatic, and reportedly looked more concerned about the bracelet than of the cash he had won.

He also broke out of the stalemate shared with Jonny “The Orient Express” Chan and Doyle “Texas Dolly” Bunson, who had also all won ten WSOP bracelets each.
 

“We are so thrilled to be a part of Phil’s unprecedented ride to the top of his game,” Kipp Marcus, VP of Creative & Content Acquisition said.
 

To celebrate the win, players who sign up to Phil’s Blackbelt Poker Course at iAmplifyVegas.com will be able to take part in a live telephone master class with the greatest Texas Hold ‘Em player in history.
 

iAmplify CEO, Murray Hidary, added: “Now, players of all levels can learn the secrets of Phil’s poker prowess and download his game winning strategies.
 

“Phil’s vision was to elevate the game by bringing his lessons to the world, now through our technology platform, his vision has become reality.”

On the same day it is announced that PKR.com is to include posters in its poker rooms to raise revenue, Full Contact Poker (FCP) announces its complete withdrawal from the community.

It’s a shame that the company announced such measures just as other websites such as PKR.com are finding new and innovative ways to provide poker to players across the globe.

Nevertheless, it was reported that FCP have transferred all customer accounts PokerStars.com, with immediate effect.

The FCP site is now solely the reserve of those wishing to view Daniel Negreanu’s blog, the forum, and training videos.

The news arrives in the middle of a debate over whether the USA has the power to prevent foreign-based gambling sites from offering gambling services to US customers.

So far Antigua has challenged and beaten the USA on World Trading rules, so it is certainly a disappointment to this blogger that FCP couldn’t find a way around the closure.

A poker site has made another leap towards free poker gaming this week as it announced in-gaming advertising.

I know, I know, advertising is nothing new. But this is different.
PKR.com poker has always gone for a ‘real-life’ scenario in its games, and has been compared to a computer game due to its efforts to make the poker room come alive.

But now it’s gone one step further, and announced the introduction of posters to the poker room.

PKR.com have trumpeted that the poster will be seen by around ten per cent (60,000) of their membership base daily, which could really mean big bucks.

There will also be TV-style, 15 to 30 second long adverts between matches.

This may come as a drag to many who think the net is already too weighed down with ads but if it means more free poker and - maybe - free cash prizes without the need to buy-in then hey - bring on the ads, I say!

The online gaming site Full Contact Poker (FCP) has announced that it is to close down its gaming operations, confirming that existing players will have the opportunity to move their accounts to fellow site PokerStars.

The initiative comes soon after the two firms agreed to a merger deal.

In addition to the expected influx of new players, PokerStars has also revealed that poker pro Daniel Negreneau, formerly front-man of FCP, will be joining their team alongside the leading players Grey Raymer, Joe Hachem and Chris Moneymaker, all previous WSOP Main Event champions.

Commenting on this latest move, Team PokerStars member Barry  Greenstein said: “Daniel embodies what poker and PokerStars are all about: enjoying the excitement and the challenge of poker.

“Daniel is a true ambassador of the sport and we welcome him as well as all of his players and fans from Full Contact Poker. We know they will enjoy the PokerStars experience.”

However, FCP has confirmed that it shall continue to exist as an online poker community, with its gaming forum and advice columns currently making it one of the most popular poker sites in the world.

This year’s World Series of Poker saw a record number of players compete at the latest two day event.

The attendance of 3,009 at the 38th annual tournament broke the previous record of 2,998, achieved just seven days earlier, also at a WSOP event.

Despite such large numbers of competitors it has been the established names who have been making the headlines, with top players adding to their WSOP bracelet collections.

Allen Cunningham took the WSOP event number 13, the lucrative $5,000 Pot Limit Hold’em World Championship, adding to the three bracelets he has won over the past three years.

Cunningham now joins an all-star elite of players to have been awarded five or more bracelets, joining, amongst others, Phil Ivey and Lynne Flack, in joint tenth place on the list of all-time greats.

Phil “the Devilfish” Hellmuth claimed that he wished to be known as the “Record man” after this year’s WSOP, with his bid to become the top poker player of all-time going to plan with his strong position in the fifteenth event of this year’s WSOP, a $1,500 No Limit Hold’Em tournament, in which he entered the final table in second chip position. 

Fontainebleau Resorts has confirmed that it has secured around $4 billion in investment as it works to complete several projects in both Las Vegas and Miami.

A significant sum of the new funding will go towards the completion of the $2.9 billion Fontainebleau Las Vegas, currently under construction on the site of the old El Rancho venue on the north Strip. 

In addition to a 100,000 square foot casino, the 63-strory resort will house a 3,889 room hotel as well as several restaurants, bars and a performing arts theatre, with opening scheduled for the fall of 2009.

Though full details of the new sources of investment have yet to be made public, the firm has confirmed that various financial institutions are involved, including Bank of America, Merrill Lynch, Barclays, JP Morgan Chase and Bank of Scotland.

In addition, the company is also investing in its existing resort in Miami, partly financed by the billionaire James Packer, who recently acquired a 19.6 per cent stake in Fontainbleau Resorts.

“It was a question of getting the right strategic partner and he is that,” said Fontainbleau’s chairman and majority shareholder Jeffrey Soffer on Packer’s involvement.

“He brings more money to the table.”

The Poker Players Alliance (PPA) has publicly given its support to the proposed legislation being put forward by Congressman Robert Wexler aimed at clarifying the existing laws covering poker and skilled gaming.

According to the Florida-based politician, poker players need extra protection than that afforded to them by both the WIRE Act of 1961 as well as the more recent Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA).

The PPA, which represents the interests backs such a move, pointing out that the Wexler Bill will recognize that skill games are separate and distinct forms of gambling and should be recognised as such under law.

“Congressman Wexler’s bill is a positive development for the millions of American poker players who enjoy one of our nation’s great pastimes,” said Senator Alfonse D’Amato, PPA Chairman of the Board.

“Poker and other games of skill have fallen victim to bad public policy.

“Wexler’s plan will give skill games the rightful protection they deserve and it will require the proper safeguards to protect children and those prone to abuse.”

Given the continued bad publicity suffered by online gaming, the Bill also offers additional safeguards on top of the existing UIGEA legislation, including mandatory age verification technologies for websites.

Casino operator MGM Mirage has been recognised for its progressive employment policies, scooping the Global Diversity and Innovation Award ay the 2007 World Diversity Leadership Summit. 

MGM’s chairman, Terry Lanni, attended the ceremony at the United Nations headquarters in New York to accept the award on behalf of the firm’s 70,000 employees. 

The recognition comes soon after the company published its latest Annual Diversity Report, charting the progress it has made since 2000 in areas including human resources, strategic sourcing, construction and corporate philanthropy. 

Commenting on the award, Lanni said: “I am privileged to have a leading role among a cast of literally thousands in integrating diversity across our enterprise. 

“As our initiative has unfolded, we have seen the commitment to diversity grow stronger and deeper. 

“We are inspired and our resolve is renewed with every employee, supplier and community that takes a leap as a result of an opportunity we create.” 

Earlier this year, MGM Mirage was cited by Fortune Magazine as one of America’s Most Admired Companies, as well as being named one of the nation’s Top 50 Companies for Diversity by DiversityInc magazine. 

Nevada’s Burt Boutin has taken the second World Series of Poker bracelet of his career, once again at the expense of David ‘the Devil Fish’ Ulliot.
Boutin’s victory came at the star-studded $5,000 Pot Limit Omaha with Rebuys Event #7, the richest tournament in the state’s history with a prize pool of almost $3 million.
The 39 year-old faced tough opposition as he reached the final three, eventually escaping with a well-timed nine, forcing the Devil Fish out of the game and seeing off the youngster Eric Cajelas for the title.
Boutin took his first bracelet in 2001, also beating the Ulliot on that occasion, though the player has stated that this latest victory was all the more pleasing because of the strength of the opposition at the event.
“They are both special in their own way,” he said.
“But, to win this one versus such a strong field, well that is something that really will stay with me for a long time.
“I do not think I will be able to sleep tonight.”
With his victory, Boutin becomes the 77^th player to take their WSOP career earnings beyond the $1million, with the player taking home $825,986 from Omaha.