March 25 2012, Brett Collson

Did you miss any of the top poker news stories this week? Well you’ve come to the right place to get caught up. We’re covering the new innovative tournament series iSeriesLive, Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier joining the loaded Premier League V lineup, and much more.

Poker Tournaments

Introducing iSeriesLIVE

Degens are in for a real treat as Poker Royalty has announced its new poker series: iSeriesLIVE.

iSeriesLIVE will be a groundbreaking new concept whereby fans will be able to bet on the action as it’s happening. The series will include some of the game’s top pros, including Daniel Negreanu, Phil Hellmuth, Maria Ho and Carlos Mortensen, facing off in a number of different tournament formats.

Viewers will be able to follow live hole-cam feeds online while they bet on the action. The real gamblers out there will even be able to bet on red or black flops. All betting will be done online through sportsbook giant PaddyPower.

For the entire series, the pros will be without cell phones or outside access to Internet, so there will be no way for them to check out the feeds themselves. The first event is set to take place on April 5 at 1700 GMT (1300 EST).

For a closer look at iSeriesLIVE, check out our article at PokerNews.com.

Premier League Gets French Flavor

Didn’t think the lineup for the upcoming PartyPoker Premier League V could get any stronger? Think again.

Triple Crown winner Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier added his name to the mix on Wednesday. The no-limit hold’em specialist with more than $8.7 million in live tournament earnings joins superstars like Tom Dwan, Patrik Antonius, Vanessa Selbst, Sam Trickett, Tony G, Luke “FullFlush” Schwartz, and Erik Seidel who are putting up the $125,000 buy-in when the event kicks off on April 4 in Vienna, Austria.

“This will be the first time I have taken part in the Premier League and I’m super excited to compete with all those great players in such a unique and interesting format,” Grospellier told the PartyPoker Blog on Wednesday.

Read more at PokerNews.com.

Poker Legislation

Another One Bites the Dust

On Tuesday, Hawaii Representatives Joseph Souki and Angus McKelvey told PokerNews that a group of bills aimed at legalizing online gambling in Hawaii have been put to rest, temporarily ending the state’s hopes for an online poker platform.

Earlier this year, House Bill 2422 was introduced in the Hawaii state legislature. The bill intended to create an Internet lottery and gaming corporation, and the state-run lottery would then be authorized to offer games of chance and games of skill, including poker and casino games, on the Internet.

The bill, which was co-sponsored by Representatives Souki, McKelvey, and Faye Hanohano, failed to advance in the legislature.

Hawaii and Utah remain the only two states without any form of gambling. While Hawaii has made efforts to legalize the activity, Utah has been strongly opposed to any gambling measure. Rep. Stephen Sandstrom recently introduced a bill intended to prevent online gaming in Utah if and when the U.S. Congress legalizes online gaming.

Hawaii, Mississippi, Iowa and the District of Columbia have failed to pass online gaming measures this year. Washington, D.C. was the first U.S. jurisdiction to approve and operate a Web wagering system, but the legislation was repealed last month.

U.K. Changes Gambling Tax

In an attempt to encourage offshore operators to return to the United Kingdom, chancellor George Osborne announced Wednesday that online betting operators around the world will be forced to pay taxes on gross profits generated from customers based in the U.K.

The U.K. tax regime currently in place allows offshore gambling operators like Ladbrokes and William Hill to avoid paying duties. The new system will enforce taxes on a point of consumption, meaning operators will no longer benefit from their offshore locations.

“Ninety percent of online gambling consumed by our citizens is now supplied from outside the UK, and the remaining UK operations are under pressure to leave,” the chancellor said. “This is clearly not fair – and not a sensible way to support jobs in Britain.”

It’s important to note that the new tax regime will not affect online poker players in the U.K. who do not pay any tax on winnings.

The Financial Times has more.

Poker Business

Tzvetkoff to Testify

The Australian entrepreneur accused of bringing down online poker in the U.S. is set to testify in the trial of two Black Friday principals.

Daniel Tzvetkoff, whose company InstaBill processed more than $1 billion in illegal online poker transactions in the U.S., is set to appear as a witness in the trial of John Campos and Chad Elie on April 9 in New York. The 29-year-old businessman was facing up to 75 years in prison after his arrest in Las Vegas in 2010, but he struck a plea bargain with prosecutors and provided vital evidence incriminating PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker. He has since been living in hiding under FBI protection as the star informant in the case.

According to the Australian Associated Press, Tzvetkoff has handed more than 90,000 documents over to prosecutors, including confidential emails to and from Elie, a former business partner. Elie is facing up to 85 years in prison on nine charges, including conspiracy to commit bank fraud, money laundering and violating the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA). Campos, meanwhile, could spend 35 years in jail on six charges.

Get the full story at PokerNews.com.

FTP, PokerStars and AP Given More Time to Respond

While the world continued waiting for the pending deal between Groupe Bernard Tapie and Full Tilt Poker to be completed this week, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York granted another extension to FTP and other respondents of an amended civil complaint regarding last April’s Black Friday indictments.

After the previous deadline of March 19 passed, PokerStars, Absolute Poker, Howard Lederer, Ray Bitar, Rafe Furst and payment processor Chad Elie were given until May 14, 2012, file a response. The extension is another on a growing list since the respondents’ original response date of the indictment passed on Nov. 30, 2011.

Read more at PokerNews.com.

Adios, Bodog

Bodog was back in the news this week after announcing that it is exiting the Spanish market ahead of the country’s new gambling market. The company released a statement to players in Spain about the decision:

“We would like to inform you that due to recent regulatory changes, we are no longer able to offer our betting or wagering services to residents of Spain or Spanish territories. Your account will be disabled on the 31st of March 2012 and as of today; you are no longer able to make any further deposits to your account.”

The new gambling regulations in Spain are expected to go into effect later this year. More than 60 companies have applied for operating licenses. Among the online poker rooms interested in the space include PokerStars, bwin.party, 888 and Ladbrokes. Groupe Bernard Tapie also reportedly submitted an application before the Dec. 14, 2011, deadline.

Poker Players

Doyle’s Tales of the “Old Days”

It’s no surprise that Doyle Brunson gets a lot of requests to tell tales of the “old days” of poker. Back in the 1950s and 1960s, most card games were held in back rooms and smoky pool halls where armed guards protected the players from intruders. The illegal games were often run by members of organized crime, and rules weren’t always enforced. Obviously, poker has come a long way since then.

Brunson took to his blog on Thursday to recount the first of five times he was robbed at gunpoint. Brunson said he was 24 years old and playing games on a dangerous street in Fort Worth, Texas, when four gunmen posing as cops busted into the room and began pocketing his money.

“We were used to being arrested, taken down to the police station and paying a fine for gambling, then being released,” Brunson recalls. “It was part of the risk of illegal poker, but when these guys started taking our money from the table and searching us for more, we realized those ‘policemen’ were really robbers.”

According to Brunson, the armed guard protecting the game was thrown off by the police uniforms and dropped his gun, allowing the gunmen to escape with all of the money. “The robbers left and we never heard any more about them,” he said. “On Exchange Avenue those type of things never got reported to the real police. We accepted it as part of the price of our lifestyle.”

You can read the whole story at doylebrunson.com.

Another Viktim

Five days after blowing a massive lead against Isaac “philivey2694″ Haxton, Viktor “Isildur1″ Blom faced off against high-stakes regular Alex “Kanu7” Millar in the PokerStars SuperStar Showdown last Sunday.

Millar isn’t well known outside of the high-stakes online realm but has fared well against some of the toughest competition in the game. Millar accepted Blom’s challenge to play 2,500 hands of $100/200 no-limit hold’em on Sunday, but he handed over $37,687 to the Swede when the match was all over.

In the biggest (and sickest) hand of the match, Blom raised to $600 preflop and called Millar’s $2,600 three-bet. The flop brought and Millar fired 4,000 into the pot. Blom called, and the fell on the turn. Millar led out again, this time for $11,500, and Blom put in a call. The hit the river and Millar moved all in for his last $32,350. Blom decide to call and showed a meager for bottom pair, but Millar tabled just . The $100,900 pot gave Blom a lead he would never relinquish despite a late surge from Millar.

Blom is 9-4 in 13 SuperStar Showdown matches and boasts winnings of $534,090. Here’s a look at his results since last December:

SuperStar Showdown Breakdown

Total SuperStar Showdown Profit to Date: $534,090

For a detailed recap of Sunday’s SuperStar Showdown, check out the PokerStars Blog.

Daniel’s Weekly Rant

This week, Daniel Negreanu opens his video blog with an explanation of iSeriesLIVE, a new project he’s involved with. Something in this video blog was apparently enough to get Negreanu temporarily banned from the popular poker forum, TwoPlusTwo.

Follow PokerNews on Twitter for up-to-the-minute news.

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February 22 2012, Brett Collson

Are you looking for the day’s biggest poker stories? Well, you’ve come to the right place. In this edition of the Nightly Turbo, we bring you comments from MGM and Boyd game about the future of federal online gaming in the U.S., a big celebration coming from PokerStars next month, and more.

In Case You Missed It

Melanie Weisner leads the field after Day 2 of the PokerStars.com European Poker Tour Copenhagen Main Event. Michael Tureniec is also still alive and looking to become the first double winner in EPT history.

Which poker tournaments should you have on your bucket list? Take a look at our top 10 can’t miss tournaments during the year.

Matthew Weber won the World Series of Poker Circuit event in Tunica last week. Chad Holloway caught up with Weber to talk about his road to the title and how he got his start in poker.

Just like the rest of our body, our ears are not invincible. Lynn Gilmartin explains why players should be careful with headphones at the poker table.

MGM’s Murren Optimistic About Federal Online Poker in 2012

Despite reports that federal online poker has more than likely been shelved until at least 2013, MGM CEO Jim Murren said in a conference call on Wednesday that he believes it will still be legalized at some point this year.

“It’s not easy, not because it’s a complicated issue,” Murren said on the call, according to Reuters. “It’s becoming a clearer issue. It’s because Washington is becoming more complicated.

“We’ll be one of the first horses out of the gate when it’s approved.”

Meanwhile, MGM’s partner, Boyd Gaming, stated during a Q4 earnings call on Wednesday that federal online gaming in the U.S. appears “further off than we hoped,” hinting that the joint venture between MGM, Boyd and bwin.party would have to enter the market at a state level first.

“We believe the best approach is for Congress to enact legislation that creates a national, well-regulated environment for Internet gaming,” said Boyd Gaming CEO Keith Smart. “And while we believe federal legislation is profitable, we will consider entering the market on a state-by-state basis if that’s how the issue plays out. We’ve already applied for an interactive gaming license in Nevada.”

Where does the third component in this joint venture, bwin.party, stand on the issue? We’ll be speaking with bwin.party CEO Jim Ryan in the coming days, so stay locked in to PokerNews.com.

Happy Birthday, Sunday Million!

PokerStars is celebrating the sixth anniversary of the Sunday Million on March 11, 2012, and for one-week-only the site has increased the guarantee of its flagship event from $1 million to $6 million, with at least $1 million going to the champion.

The event will kick off at its regular time of 1430 EST (1930 GMT) with a direct buy-in of $215. As always, players can qualify for a seat by using their Frequent Player Points or through a wide variety of reasonably priced satellites. There will also be a special 1,000-seat guaranteed satellite running just before the big Sunday Million kicks off, with feeder satellites starting from only $1.

You can expect to see all of your favorite Team PokerStars Pros participating in the event, including Liv Boeree, Johnny Lodden, Lev Velduis, Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier and Jason Mercier.

“When I think of the Sunday Million, I think back to being a 19- to 21-year-old kid, grinding mid-stakes, looking for that big tournament score,” Mercier said. “I would get excited every week to play the Sunday Million, hoping that would be the day that I would have my first six-figure score.”

For more information, check out our story at PokerNews.com.

Duhamel Leads Global Poker Index Player of the Year

Team PokerStars Pro Jonathan Duhamel held the top spot in the Global Poker Index Player of the Year standings again this week. The award, which is presented by PokerNews, honors the player who has the strongest performance in live tournaments during the calendar year, according to the USA Today Global Poker Index point system.

There were no changes in the Top 10 from last week, but there was plenty of movement in the Top 100. Among the biggest climbers were Noah Schwartz (up 36 sports to No. 19), Marko Neumann (up 67 spots to No. 21), Harrison Gimbel (up 113 spots to No. 33) and Barry Greenstein (up 60 spots to No. 49). Gimbel’s huge rise came by way of a ninth-place finish at the World Poker Tour Lucky Hearts Poker Open. Schwartz took 18th in that same event.

Here’s a look at the Top 10 of the Global Poker Index Player of the Year standings:

Current GPI Player of the Year Top 10

For the full GPI Player of the Year standings, head on over to EpicPoker.com.

Keith Ferrera Wins Venetian DeepStacks Extravaganza I

Las Vegas poker pro Keith Ferrera took down the $2,500 Venetian DeepStack Extravaganza I Main Event on Tuesday, earning $139,720 for his three days of work. Ferrera, who was coming off a sixth-place finish at the World Poker Tour Lucky Hearts Poker Open for $42,185, continued his heater this week by besting 254 players at the Venetian, including a final table that featured Will “The Thrill” Failla, Francois Safiedinne and Paul Lieu.

Here’s a look at the final results from the Venetian:

Venetian Deepstack Extravaganza 1 Final Table Results

WPT Heads to Los Angeles

The World Poker Tour heads to the City of Angels this week for the Los Angeles Poker Classic at the renowned Commerce Casino. The $10,000 Main Event gets under way on Friday, Feb. 24, and will play down to a champion on Wednesday, Feb. 29.

Last year, Greg Brooks burst onto the live tournament scene by outlasting 681 players to win the LAPC Main Event for $1,654,120. Brooks bested a loaded final table that featured Carlos Mortensen, Steve Gross, Vivek Rajkumar, Amir Lehavot and Daryll Fish.

Other winners of the prestigious event include Phil Ivey, Alan Goehring, Michael Mizrachi, Antonio Esfandiari and Gus Hansen.

Stay tuned to PokerNews.com as we bring you recaps from each day of the LAPC. For more information about the event, check out the World Poker Tour Blog.

Get Hog Wild

If you live in the U.S. and are looking for a way to qualify online for the 2012 World Series of Poker Main Event, HogWildPokerLeagues.com is giving away a free $13,000 package at the end of May. And all you have to do is compete in Hog Wild’s Staking Series.

“Players in our leagues love the fact that their game improves rapidly when they compete in our league format,” says HogWild CEO Jeff Amrein. “Along the way almost every player has a dream to be staked as a pro and we wanted to give many players that experience, rewarding them for their demonstrated skill over multiple games. Nearly 50 players will live that chance in the next three months thanks to this series.”

Read more about Hog Wild Poker in the press release.

Atlantis Internet Group Launches First Legal Intranet Gaming Platform

On Wednesday, the Atlantis Internet Group Corp. (ATIG), a Nevada-based gaming innovator, announced the launch of the first form of legal Intranet gaming within the United States.

The Coushatta Casino Resort in Louisiana and Coyote Valley Casino in California became the first two Indian casinos to sign with ATIG’s Tribal Gaming Network, allowing ATIG to pioneer intrastate poker.

“We have a huge leg up on the competition, having mastered play-for-fun marketing sites since 2003,” said ATIG President and CEO Donald L. Bailey. “Now, based on the NIGC opinion, to date ATIG is the only gaming company that can legally offer online linking games other than bingo, nationwide for live cash, such as poker and progressive jackpots. This is a new technology that has never been offered in the gaming Industry before today.”

Read more at PokerNews.com.

Daniel’s Weekly Rant

You probably saw Daniel Negreanu’s first video blog about Jason Somerville and the Full Tilt Poker board members. If you haven’t you’ll definitely want to check it out.

On Wednesday, Daniel released his second video blog, discussing topics such as his deep run at the LAPT Grand Final, Doyle Brunson defending Howard Lederer, and more.

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