August 22 2012, Matthew Kredell

A federal court in New York ruled Tuesday that poker is a game of skill and is not illegal under the Illegal Gambling Business Act.

In conjunction with the Justice Department’s opinion last November that The Wire Act does not apply to poker, Tuesday’s decision backs up what poker players have been saying for the past decade – that there is no federal law that makes poker illegal.

Judge Jack Weinstein of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York made the ruling in a case against defendant Lawrence Dicristina, a New York resident who had previously been convicted of running an illegal gambling business for operating a live no-limit hold’em game. The ruling overturns his conviction.

The 120-page opinion included the following statement: “Contrary to the government’s argument, chance (as compared to skill) has traditionally been thought to be a defining element of gambling and is included in dictionary, common law, and other federal statutory definitions of it. The influence of skill on the outcome of poker games is far greater than that on the outcomes of the games enumerated in the IGBA’s illustrations of gambling. While a gambler with an encyclopedic knowledge of sports may perform better than others when wagering on the outcome of sporting events, unlike in poker, his skill does not influence game play. A sports bettor is better able to pick a winning team, but cannot make them win.

“In poker, by contrast, increased proficiency boosts a player’s chance of winning and affects the outcome of individual hands as well as a series of hands. Expert poker players draw on an array of talents, including facility with numbers, knowledge of human psychology, and powers of observation and deception. Players can use these skills to win even if chance has not dealt them the better hand. And as the defendant’s evidence demonstrates, these abilities permit the best poker players to prevail over the less-skilled players over a series of hands.”

Lawyers representing the Poker Players Alliance wrote the principal briefs and presented the principal oral arguments for the case in coordination with the defendant’s lawyer.

“As we worked for years defending players against vague gambling laws, we have patiently waited for the right opportunity to raise the issue in federal court,” said John Pappas, executive director of the PPA. “Today’s federal court ruling is a major victory for the game of poker and the millions of Americans who enjoy playing it. Judge Weinstein’s thoughtful decision recognizes what we have consistently argued for years: poker is not a crime, it is a game of skill. As the judge’s opinion aptly notes, poker is an American pastime that is deeply embedded in the history and fabric of our nation and his decision sets aside the notion that the vague laws render the game criminal.”

A ruling from one judge will not necessarily be adopted nationally. Tom Goldstein, a lawyer who came in on behalf of the PPA to argue the issue that poker was a game of skill and shouldn’t be considered gambling under IGBA, said that the district attorneys prosecuting the case indicated to the judge that they would appeal.

A judge in another district could also make a ruling contrary to Weinstein’s at any time. However, Weinstein is a well-respected senior judge. He is 92 years old, appointed by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1967. The opinion also has to be respected for its thoroughness in covering 120 pages.

“The process he went through and detail he used in issuing the decision hopefully will make this a precedent-setting decision,” Goldstein said.

The case finally provided the PPA an opportunity to argue on the federal level that poker is a skill game, an opinion that has been made at the state level on several occasions. It was the perfect case because it didn’t involve any other criminal charges, such as the Black Friday indictments with their bank fraud and money laundering charges, that would encourage a defendant to settle. Dicristina still originally pleaded guilty before taking back his plea and bringing the case to trial.

“It was a really gutsy call,” Goldstein said. “Everyone else in the same position in other cases has pleaded guilty. He said he thought poker was a game of skill and he was going to go for it. He stuck it out, decided to fight and got rewarded.”

The entire poker community will reap the benefits. The ruling will serve as justification for why online poker should be separated from other forms of Internet gambling to be licensed and regulated, which should help with a bill many expect to be offered by Sens. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) during the lame-duck session at the end of the year.

“Part of our push for legislation has always been that poker should be separate from other forms of gambling games, and this opinion reinforces that,” said Patrick Fleming, litigation support director for the PPA. “It also gives congressional representatives one more sign that the current system is too ambiguous and unclear and needs to be replaced with something simple.”

Eric Hollreiser, head of corporate communications at PokerStars, issued the following statement to PokerNews regarding the ruling: “The ruling in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York that poker is a game of skill and not illegal gambling under the Illegal Gambling Businesses Act (IGBA) confirms the position that PokerStars has long supported. We are gratified that this is the outcome from the first time a U.S. federal court has decided whether poker is a game of skill.”

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August 21 2012, Brett Collson

A U.S. federal judge provided some great news for poker advocates on Tuesday. We’ll bring you that story, plus a massive event coming to the World Series of Poker Europe, in this edition of the Nightly Turbo.

In Case You Missed It

Kyle Cartwright made history Monday at the World Series of Poker Circuit IP Biloxi Main Event. Read about Cartwright’s record-tying fifth WSOPC ring in our recap of the event.

Day 1b of the PokerStars.com European Poker Tour Barcelona Main Event saw more than 600 players post the “5,000 buy-in. For details from the flight, check out our daily EPT recap.

Dan Smith is destroying live tournaments this year. But is his run as good as Erik Seidel’s heater in 2011? Rich Ryan discusses that topic and more in his latest Five Thoughts piece.

Kathy Raymond was recently selected to be inducted into the Women in Poker Hall of Fame. Raymond spoke with Chad Holloway about the honor and her contributions to the industry.

The PokerNews Podcast crew is in Barcelona, Spain covering the European Poker Tour. This week, the team added some girl power and also spoke with EPT High Roller champ Dan Smith.

Jennifer Harman is the latest poker pro to make the jump into reality television. Read about her upcoming show in The Muck.

Poker is a Skill Game

Poker players in the U.S. received some uplifting news on Tuesday after a federal judge in New York declared that poker is a game of skill and does not fall under the Illegal Gambling Business Act (IGBA).

In a 120-page opinion, Judge Jack Weinstein ruled that poker is not gambling under federal law because it is not a game of chance. Last month, Weinstein heard the testimony of defense expert Dr. Randal Heeb, a professor at Yale who analyzed poker hands from on Internet poker site to show that poker is a skill game. Heeb’s defense testimony was meant to help dismiss the trial of Lawrence DiChristina, who was charged with helping run an illegal gambling ring on Staten Island.

Weinstein’s ruling on Tuesday freed DiChristina from the charges.

Tuesday’s ruling is a big win for poker advocates in the U.S. The following statement was issued by Executive Director John Pappas of the Poker Player’s Alliance after Weinstein’s decision was made public:

“As we worked for years defending players against vague gambling laws, we have patiently waited for the right opportunity to raise the issue in federal court. Today’s federal court ruling is a major victory for the game of poker and the millions of Americans who enjoy playing it. Judge Weinstein’s thoughtful decision recognizes what we have consistently argued for years: poker is not a crime, it is a game of skill. As the judge’s opinion aptly notes, poker is an American pastime that is deeply embedded in the history and fabric of our nation and his decision sets aside the notion that the vague laws render the game criminal.”

We’ll have more on Weinstein’s ruling and what it means later this week. In the meantime, check out the story at the Wall Street Journal.

WSOPE High Roller

When the World Series of Poker Europe Presented by BarrièrePoker.fr returns to Cannes, France next month, there will be seven gold bracelet events plus an additional 69 side events and cash games for players to feast on during the two-week poker festival.

On Tuesday, the WSOP announced the addition of a “50,000 Re-entry No-Limit Hold’em High Rollers event to the schedule. While the High Rollers tournament won’t award a bracelet to the winner, it is sure to attract many of the game’s top players already in town for the festivities.

The event will begin on Oct. 2 and run for three days, with registration open until the second level of play on Day 2. Asian businessmen Richard Yong and Paul Phua are the first players confirmed for the event.

“We can’t wait to get back to Cannes for WSOP Europe, where the stars of poker come to shine,” said WSOP Executive Director Ty Stewart. “We truly believe 2012 is the year we accomplish our goal to make WSOPE the richest and most prestigious event on the European calendar.”

The seven bracelet events up for grabs in Cannes include two six-handed events, a mixed-max event, a shootout event, two pot-limit Omaha events, and the “10,000 buy-in WSOP Europe Main Event beginning on Sept. 30. Last year, Elio Fox bested a talented final table to win the Main Event and “1,400,000.

For a look at the schedule of WSOPE events, check out WSOP.com.

Run It Twice!

PokerStars is always looking for innovate features to enhance its industry-leading software, and it appears the site is preparing to unveil a “run it twice” option for cash games.

The concept is a popular one among high-stakes pros as it reduces variance in a single hand (you’ve probably seen it done in television shows like the PokerStars Big Game). When two players agree to “run it twice” in a heads-up situation, the remaining community cards are dealt twice. This is can be agreed to pre-flop or post-flop. The winner of each board will win 50 percent of the pot.

PokerStars is beta testing the “run it twice” option, but a poker room manager for the site said at TwoPlusTwo that there is no timetable for the release date: “We actually expect a prototype on test PokerStars to be available later in August for player testing (subject to changes). Based on stability of the feature it might be released soon to main clients or might stay on Test PokerStars only for a longer period of time.”

PokerFuse has more.

DeepStacks Heads to Los Angeles

The DeepStacks Poker Tour has again teamed up with the Breeders’ Cup to form the 2nd Annual DeepStacks Poker Tour Breeders’ Cup Celebrity Invitational. The event will be held at the Commerce Casino near Los Angeles, Calif., on Oct. 30, 2012.

Among the DeepStacks Pros taking part in the charity tournament will be Mike Matusow, Tristan Wade, Randal Flowers, Robert Mizrachi, and Michael Mizrachi, who will host the event. Last year’s DeepStacks Poker Tour Breeders’ Cup Celebrity Invitational raised more than $15,000 for the Jimmy V Foundation.

“The Breeders’ Cup is a world class organization that has made our partnership a pleasure to be a part of,” said DeepStacks CEO Chris Torina. “Having the opportunity to work with Breeders’ Cup for a second year in a row on an event of this magnitude is truly an honor for our company.”

The DeepStacks Poker Tour Breeders’ Cup Celebrity Invitational will feature a $200 buy-in with unlimited $100 rebuys for the first three levels. All proceeds from the event will go to the California Retirement Agency (CARMA). The winner will earn an automatic $10,000 entry into the 2012 Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge held during the Breeders Cup World Championships at Santa Anita Park from Nov. 2 through 3, 2012.

Read more about the event at PokerNews.com.

WSOP on ESPN

ESPN’s coverage of the 2012 World Series of Poker returns Tuesday night with more action from Day 3 of the Main Event. The broadcast begins at 8:00 p.m. ET with commentary from Lon McEachern and Norman Chad. Tuesday’s show will highlight the athletes and celebrities still alive and making their way toward the money bubble.

If you happened to miss any of the action during our Day 3 coverage last month (spoiler), here’s a teaser of tonight’s broadcast:

The Girls Confess Their Pet Peeves

What are some of the worst things about interviewing poker players? The ladies of the European Poker Tour revealed some of their pet peeves, with a little help from EPT commentator Joe Stapleton.

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