February 05 2012, Brett Collson
Miss any of the top poker news stories this week? We’re here to get you caught up on everything from Full Tilt lending millions to well-known poker players, to the release of the 2012 World Series of Poker schedule, and much more.
Poker Business
Poker Pros Holding up Full Tilt Poker Deal?
The debts of poker players like Phil Ivey, David Benyamine, Erick Lindgren and others are holding up the deal between Full Tilt Poker and Groupe Bernard Tapie, according to GBT attorney Behnam Dayanim.
On Thursday, Dayanim told Gaming Intelligence that between $10 million and $20 million in loans is still owed to Full Tilt Poker. That amount was discovered while GBT was conducting due diligence to learn more about Full Tilt Poker’s financial situation.
When asked about the investigation, Dayanim told the following to PokerNews: “The due diligence process has indicated to us, or resulted in us understanding that the financial situation of the company is worse than we had anticipated, and there are a few significant obstacles that we need to sort out in order to get to closure.”
Read the full story at PokerNews.com.
888, Caesars Extend Partnership into U.S.
Last March, Caesars Interactive Entertainment and 888 announced a partnership that would see 888 provide Caesars with the equipment, software, and security measures to operate online gaming websites in the United Kingdom. At the time, Caesars said the relationship was meant to build the World Series of Poker brand overseas, but it also had plans to extend the agreement into other markets like the United States when online poker was legalized.
Those plans moved a step closer to completion Tuesday as Caesars and 888 announced they were extending their U.K. licensing agreement to the U.S. Dragonfish, the business-to-business division of 888, will power a selection of Caesars’ poker brands once online gaming is legalized and regulated in the U.S.
“Utilizing 888′s state of the art poker platform, the agreement will allow the launch of a real money offering immediately as either Federal or state based regulation is finalized and upon licensing by gaming authorities,” 888 said in a statement.
Read more at PokerNews.com.
The Generous Alan Meltzer
Who said being a limo driver or a doorman wasn’t lucrative?
According to a report in the New York Post, former music mogul and recreational high-stakes poker player Alan Meltzer left $1.5 million to his chauffeur and doorman when he passed away last October. Meltzer, who lived in a luxury apartment building on New York’s Upper East Side, left $1 million to his chauffeur, Jean Laborde, and $500,000 to his doorman, Chamil Demiraj.
“I appreciate it,” Demiraj told the Post. “He was a generous guy. He was a really good friend of mine, and I was a good friend of his. It’s a surprise. Peace and rest to him. That’s all I can say.”
“I don’t know what to do exactly with the money, but one thing I know for sure – every year, I’m going to bring the guy some flowers at his grave,” Laborde said.
Meltzer was a wealthy music executive who made regular trips to Las Vegas to compete in some of the toughest cash games in the world. In 2009, Meltzer made an appearance on High Stakes Poker and played against the likes of Tom Dwan, Phil Laak, Eli Elezra and Doyle Brunson.
Read more about Meltzer’s generous gift at the New York Post.
Florida Casino Bill Withdrawn
An effort to build three Las Vegas-style casinos in Florida was put on hold Friday as a bill that could have brought 100,000 jobs to the state was withdrawn by its sponsor. Miami Republican Representative Erik Fresen asked that the bill be withdrawn from consideration by the House Business and Consumer Affairs Subcommittee panel.
Now, because the Florida House of Representatives prohibits the chamber from taking further action on a bill that has failed to pass at least one committee, the measure will have to wait at least a year before it can be revisited.
Most affected by the news was Malaysia-based developer Genting Group, which paid $236 million in cash for the Miami Herald building last year and had since acquired the surrounding property to use as the site for its $3.8 billion Resorts World Miami. The developer planned to build 5,200 hotel rooms and projected to raise gaming revenues that would equal the Las Vegas Strip.
“Resorts World Miami remains committed to the vision of world-class destination resorts in South Florida, and will continue to work with the state Legislature and the South Florida community to bring this vision into a reality,” said a statement issued by Genting on Friday.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal has more.
Fertitta Interactive Applies for Nevada License
Fertitta Interactive, the company that owns the UFC and Las Vegas-based Station Casinos, announced Thursday that it has submitted an application to the Nevada Gaming Control Board to expand its gaming licenses to include online poker in Nevada.
Last October, Fertitta purchased online gaming provider CyberArts Licensing LLC ahead of the approval of an intrastate online poker law in Nevada. It joins companies like 888 Holdings, Ball Technologies Inc., Cantor Gaming, and International Game Technology in the race for an online poker space within state lines.
“Nevada has always been the leader in gaming regulation and we’re pleased to file our application here,” he continued. “Our goal is to provide customers with the best online gaming experience in a safe and well-regulated online environment.”
PokerNews.com has more.
Poker Legislation
Romney, Paul Talk Online Gaming
In an interview with 8 News Now in Las Vegas this week, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney made it clear that he does not support the idea of online gambling in the United States.
Romney, who was visiting Nevada ahead of this weekend’s state caucus, said he’s opposed to online gaming because of the “social costs and people’s addictive gambling habits.”
Last October, Romney vowed he would take a serious look into online gambling, telling the Las Vegas Sun that he would have his mind made up on the issue before the caucuses came around.
Romney’s view opposes that of rival candidate Ron Paul, who told Face to Face’s Jim Ralston this week that “people should be free and they should make their own decisions and there should be no regulation of the Internet.” Paul has long been a supporter of the right to gamble online, a position that should help him in the Nevada caucuses.
For an in-depth look Romney’s and Paul’s views, check out Jen Newell’s piece at EpicPoker.com.
Washington, D.C. Moves Closer Toward Gambling Repeal
Poker players in Washington, D.C., received discouraging news Wednesday: the Finance and Revenue Committee voted 3-2 to send the jurisdiction’s Internet gambling legislation to a full council vote for repeal.
“It gives [council members] an opportunity to vote up or down with full knowledge of what they’re voting for,” Council member Jack Evans told The Washington Post. Evans, who has long opposed online gambling legislation, voted to repeal on Wednesday.
The full council vote could happen as early as next week. The council remains divided on the issue, but nine of the 12 council members have reportedly told The Washington Post that they will vote or are leaning toward voting for the repeal.
Check out PokerNews.com for more.
Utah Stands Alone
Utah could soon be the only state opposed to any form of gambling within its borders. While Hawaii, the only other state without gambling, is considering a bill to legalize it, Utah Rep. Stephen Sandstrom has introduced H.B. 108 Internet Gambling, which is intended to prevent online gaming in the state.
The bill would not only prevent Internet gambling on computers and handheld devices, but it would also prohibit Indian casinos from entering the Utah market.
“Utah is only one of two states that prohibit any form of gambling, Hawaii being the other,” Sandstrom said. “Unfortunately, this could change soon because Hawaii is currently considering legalizing gaming, leaving Utah to fight the principled fight against legalized gambling on its own.”
Read more at PokerNews.com.
Live Poker Could Hit North Carolina
Last November, North Carolina Gov. Beverly Perdue and the state’s Cherokee Indians signed an agreement that would allow for live poker and blackjack to be played in the tribe’s casino. Now, after two months of negotiations regarding concerns raised by some state officials, the governor’s office said this week it is close to a resolution.
The agreement would sanction Las Vegas-style card games and send a percentage of the money from Harrah’s Cherokee Casino to the North Carolina education department. The proposal could bring up to 400 additional jobs to the Harrah’s Cherokee Casino and Hotel – a point that legislative leaders hope can win over concerned lawmakers when they return to Raleigh for a mini-session next month.
The Charlotte Observer has more.
Poker Tournaments
November Nine Still On … Sort of
On Tuesday, the World Series of Poker hinted on Twitter that there wouldn’t be a November Nine in 2012. We took that as meaning the November Nine format would be scrapped completely. Well, we were duped.
The WSOP released the 2012 schedule on Wednesday, and with it came the news that the final table of the Main Event will be moved up a week to accommodate the U.S. presidential election. Rather than taking place in November, as it has in each of the past four years, the final table will be held on Oct. 28 and Oct. 30.
The 2012 WSOP will feature 61 events from May 27 through July 16, 2012, at the Rio All-Suite Hotel in Las Vegas. In addition to the highly anticipated $10,000 Main Event and $50,000 Poker Players Championship, the WSOP will unveil the $1 million buy-in One Drop event on July 1, as well as some other new tournaments to the schedule.
For more on the 2012 WSOP schedule, check out the article at PokerNews.com.
Breeders’ Cup Sponsors DeepStacks Poker Tour
On Thursday, DeepStacks Poker Tour announced that the Breeders’ Cup signed on as the presenting sponsor of Season 1.
“It is truly a great honor to be partnered with such a well respected brand and world class event in the Breeders’ Cup World Championships. We feel this partnership aligns our mutual interests while offering our players the very best in televised poker,” said DeepStacks Poker Tour CEO Chris Torina.
Breeders’ Cup World Championships is one of the most influential events in Thoroughbred racing. As the presenting sponsor, the Breeders’ Cup brand will be integrated throughout the DeepStacks platform and will be featured prominently through signage, have its logos on the poker tables, and have sponsored television segments.
“We were pleased with our initial foray into poker during this past year’s event and this partnership with DeepStacks is the next logical step in progression as we continue to strive to reach the poker audience” said Peter Rotondo, vice president of Media and Entertainment for the Breeders’ Cup World Championships.
DeepStacks kicks off its inaugural season with a $1,500 buy-in event on Feb. 17 at the Seneca Niagara Casino and Hotel.
Check out the press release for more.
Macau Millions Postponed
On Thursday, PokerStars Macau announced that the 2012 Macau Millions has been postponed indefinitely.
“Our current agreement to operate PokerStars Macau events and tournaments at Casino Grand Lisboa will expire in March. As a result, the Macau Millions will be postponed for a later date,” said Danny McDonagh, PokerStars director of live operations in Asia-Pacific.
McDonaugh added that the Macau Poker Cup:Red Dragon event scheduled for Feb. 18 through 26 will take place as planned, and the status of future events will be updated in the near future.
Last year, a record-setting 1,329 entrants took part in the HK$2,200 buy-in Macau Millions, with Hung-sheng Lin taking it down for HK$400,000. Justin Chan won the event in 2010.
Read the announcement at the PokerStars Blog.
Follow PokerNews on Twitter for up-to-the-minute news.
Follow Brett Collson on
February 10 2011, Chad Holloway
On Wednesday morning, the poker world was shocked by the announcement that the World Series of Poker Europe was leaving the Casino At The Empire in London for a new venue in France — the Casino Barrière de Cannes Croisette. It was also revealed that Caesars Interactive Entertainment had entered into a three-year agreement with Lucien Barrière Hôtels & Casinos and BarrierePoker.fr that would see some new changes to the WSOPE. You can read about those changes in the breaking news story from Wednesday.
PokerNews had the opportunity to sit down with Ty Stewart, a five-year veteran of Caesars Entertainment, who oversees marketing, event management, television, sponsorship and licensing for the WSOP and WSOPE, and ask him some questions about the recent changes to the WSOPE.
The announcement that the WSOPE was leaving the U.K. for France came as a surprise to the poker world. Was this something that has been in the works for quite some time or did it come together just recently?
It’s something that has been in the works for a while. The brand is always WSOP Europe, not WSOP UK. I’ve always been on recording saying the goal was to bring the WSOP experience to different venues throughout Europe. We’ve been working for some time to find the best formula to support the tournament because we know while WSOPE can and should get a lot better. So we’ve been wanting to bring that formula to the market.
Why move the WSOPE from the U.K., which has some of the most liberal gaming laws in the world, to France, which is known for its strict regulation?
I think it’s a combination of factors. First of all, France is just absolutely white-hot for poker right now, so we’re very confident the turnout in participation is going to go up. For us it was a lot about the venue and the partnership. We’re talking about an unbelievable set of partners as far as the type of system they’ll put behind the WSOPE including relaunching the Barrière Poker Tour to be a qualification series. They also have a large number of casinos and a big database that they’re going to be able to market to bring new customers to the event. We’re even going to have a scratch-off lottery ticket for the WSOPE to qualify folks for the event. We really have a comprehensive marketing system behind the event now which we really didn’t have in London that will more than compensate for some of the issues as it relates to the regulatory environment.
How big is the venue?
From a venue standpoint, Cannes is one of the great destinations in the world, and we’re talking about a group that owns both the hotel and casino and will have the ability to offer a truly comprehensive experience including discounted hotel room rates, real hospitality when it comes to restaurants, parties, and the casino itself. We have the ability now to be at 80+ tables, which is two to three times what we had in London. So the space and the facilities are a significant improvement and allows us to offer the kind of nonstop action and diversification of games that we’ve always wanted to do.
We’re going to be playing at both the hotel and the casino itself, which are directly across the street from each other. We’ll be utilizing the hotel and the casino much like we do the Amazon and Pavilion Rooms in Vegas, such that while you’ll do your buy-ins at the casino cage, the Day Ones will start in the hotel property while the restarts will move over to the casino. Again, the venue is just unbelievable and one of the nicest lodging facilities that any WSOP event has ever been housed at.
The Main Event was previously £10,000 — will it be the equivalent to that, or will it be €10,000?
Ten thousand is sort of the magic number when it comes to the WSOP, so we’re going to keep it at €10,000.
How many events are you planning and can you elaborate on what those events are?
There are going to be seven events, but we’re not finalized with the schedule. We’re looking at a few innovative events that have never been played in France before, so we need to get some regulatory approval for those events, which is why we’ll wait to release the schedule, which should be available in the upcoming months.
Can players expect the same tournament staff and structures in France as previous WSOPEs, including Jack Effel as tournament director?
Jack Effel will be the tournament director. We plan to bring a contingent of American staff to work alongside those from Barrière. This is probably going to be analogous to how the EPT has worked in Deauville, a property owned by Barrière, where the tournament director works alongside the French-speaking, experienced Barrière staff. So we will have a combination of local staff and staff from the U.S. and many of the familiar faces from the WSOP. We’ll also use all our structures and rules that you’re accustomed to at the WSOP.
Will the final table be televised as it has in the past?
I’m glad you brought this up. Part of the agreement with Barrière is actually an increase in production support. We’re not only going to film the final table, but also we’re going to be able to expand the number of television hours. While I can’t tell you how many we’ll do this year, I can tell you that it will be at least double the amount that we shot in 2010. That was another huge component in the agreement.
Thanks for your time Ty, is there anything else you’d like to add?
One last thing, while it’s reported that this is a multiyear deal with Barrière, which it is, for various aspects of the online initiative, etc., it is not solidified 100% that we’re in Cannes all three years. We have the strategy that we want to move the WSOPE around, so it is possible we could do that sometime in the future; however, we excited about our relationship with Barrière and expect Cannes to be amazingly successful, so it very well could end up staying there all three years.
We’re really excited about this, and come October, there won’t be anyone that’s second-guessing or questioning the decision. There is a firm commitment for Barrière to qualify people to the tournament to the tune of about a 33 percent increase in the historical attendance. We know the prize pools are going to be bigger, we know the facilities are going to be superior, we know the marketing is going to be greater, so there is a bigger focus than ever. It is very exciting to know that the WSOPE is finally going to get the care that it deserves.
Photo courtesy of WSOP.com.
To be on top of all the latest poker news, be sure to follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook.
ROUND Pool Tables
Online Poker Training Center (Website)
Poker Master Mind (Book)
Lord Of Poker (Software)
Online Poker Strategies (Video Training)
Become A Poker Dealer (Books, Videos, photos, etc)
The Latest Poker News
- Two Plus Two Poker Strategy Magazine – October 2014 Publisher Note – by Mason Malmuth
- Two Plus Two Poker Strategy Magazine – June 2014 Publisher Note – by Mason Malmuth
- Two Plus Two Poker Strategy Magazine – April 2014 Publisher Note – by Mason Malmuth
- Two Plus Two Poker Strategy Magazine – March 2014 Publisher Note – by Mason Malmuth
- Two Plus Two Poker Strategy Magazine – February 2014 Publisher Note – by Mason Malmuth
- A Cautionary Tale for Prospective Small Stakes Poker Professionals – by Carlos Welch
- Two Plus Two Poker Strategy Magazine – January 2014 Publisher Note – by Mason Malmuth
- LiveAce – Competitive and Legal US Online Poker – by Adam Stein-Sapir
- Two Plus Two Poker Strategy Magazine – November 2013 Publisher Note – by Mason Malmuth
- World Series of Poker Trip Report, Part 4 – by Andrew Brokos
Poker Videos
Full Tilt Poker Exclusive Offers
Victory Poker Exclusive Offers
Victory Poker Model Videos
PokerStars Exclusive Offers
