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 release of the 2013 World Series of Poker Schedule, the latest additions of the PartyPoker Premier League lineup, and more.

Poker Tournaments

2013 World Series of Poker Schedule Unveiled

On Thursday, Caesars Interactive Entertainment revealed the official schedule for the 2013 World Series of Poker. Beginning Wednesday, May 29, at the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, the 44th Annual World Series of Poker will feature 62 bracelet events, ending with the flagship $10,000 Main Event beginning on July 7.

The 2013 WSOP will feature several brand new events, including two bracelet tournaments benefiting the ONE DROP Foundation. The “Little One for ONE DROP” offers an $1,1111 buy-in with unlimited re-entries over two starting days, giving it the potential to be one of the largest events at the 2013 WSOP. For those with bigger bankrolls, there will also be an $111,111 buy-in high roller from June 26 through 28. As the WSOP’s charity partner, ONE DROP will receive a percentage of each buy-in from both events.

To kick off this year’s WSOP opening weekend festivities, a new “Millionaire Maker” (Event #6) will see one person turn a $1,500 buy-in into a cool $1 million. The event begins on Saturday, June 1, featuring a one-day start, two-flight, single re-entry, no-limit hold’em event. The prize pool will be changed from the usual WSOP pay structure into one in which one winner will take home a seven-figure payday.

“Bring your bankroll, whatever it is, and come have the time of your life,” said WSOP Tournament Director Jack Effel. “We think this is the most diverse schedule we’ve ever had and we’ll be ready for an all-time turn-out at the 44th annual WSOP.”

For more info, including the full schedule of events, check out the article here at PokerNews.com.

FTOPS XXII Schedule

It’s only been three months since Full Tilt Poker reopened its doors, but the site has already announced its second Full Tilt Poker Online Poker Series (FTOPS) since relaunch. On Friday, FTP announced that FTOPS XXII will run from March 17 through 31, featuring 38 tournaments and millions in guarantees.

The series gets under way March 17 with a $216 buy-in event with an $850,000 guarantee and culminates March 31 with the flagship $640 buy-in re-entry Main Event with a $2 million guarantee. In December’s FTOPS XXI Main Event, Yann “yadio1111″ Dion outlasted a field of 4,766 entries to claim the $453,229 top prize. It was the first FTOPS Main Event since Full Tilt June 2011, when Full Tilt closed its doors to customers all over the world. Now, the site operates under PokerStars’ management.

Other key events on the FTOPS XXII schedule include a $1,060 re-entry six-max event on March 18, a $1,050 no-limit hold’em double-chance event on March 25, and a $2,100 no-limit hold’em event with antes from the start on March 30-31.

Check out FullTiltPoker.com for the full schedule of events.

$7 Million Sunday at PokerStars

PokerStars is set to celebrate the seventh anniversary of the Sunday Million on March 3, 2013, and for that day only the site has increased the guaranteed prize pool from $1 million to $7 million, with $1 million going to the champion.

The event will kick off at 14:30 ET with the usual buy-in of $215. Players can also qualify for a seat through a variety of satellites, including a 1,000-seat guaranteed satellite starting Feb. 24, with feeder satellites starting at just $1.

“I remember playing in previous Sunday Million Anniversary tournaments well,” said Team PokerStars Pro Lex Veldhuis. “The gigantic prize pools make them so memorable and I’m sure this one will be no different with $1 million for the winner! I’m going to stock up on food and drink so I’m ready to grind this one! It’s so big that it’s like playing an EPT online.”

Last year’s Sixth Anniversary Sunday Million celebration attracted 33,732 players, with the top prize of $480,761 going to “slyfox151″ after an eight-way deal at the final table.

The biggest Sunday Million ever was in December 2011 for PokerStars’ 10th Anniversary. The tournament saw 62,116 players create a record prize pool of $12,423,200, with first place and $1,146,574 eventually going to Kyle “First-Eagle” Weir.

For more information on satellite details, check out PokerStars.com.

Poker Players

Hellmuth and Esfandiari Join Premier League

Let the needling begin.

On Monday, PartyPoker announced that Phil Hellmuth and Antonio Esfandiari will participate in the $125,000 buy-in PartyPoker.com Premier League Poker VI at Aspers Casino in London from March 17 through 23. They will also compete at the World Poker Tour Venice Main Event from March 25 through 30.

Esfandiari, who’s taken every chance to provoke the temperamental Hellmuth in the past, will be participating in the Premier League for the first time. Hellmuth has been a regular fixture in the popular event, but returns in 2013 after missing Premier League V in Vienna last year.

Said Esfandiari, “For years I have been hearing about Premier League Poker – it’s nice to finally make it over there to play in it!”

“I am looking forward to competing in the Premier League: 16 players, one winner,” Hellmuth added.

Esfandiari and Hellmuth join Daniel Negreanu, Tony G, Phil Laak and Scott Seiver on the Premier League VI lineup. The 16-player tournament will award the winner with a top prize of $450,000.

According to a press release, “the event will feature 16 players split up into two groups of eight in the Main Event, each competing in four league matches showcasing the famous point system ($2,000 per point). The top three from each group will automatically go through to the final table, while the fourth and fifth seeds will square off in a series of heads-up matches (best of three) for spots in the eight-handed finale.”

The PartyPoker Blog has more.

Stealing from the “Robin Hood” of Poker?

Open-Face Chinese Poker has become the latest craze in the poker community. The game continues to grow in popularity by the day, sparked greatly by the constant Twitter interchange between many of poker’s most renowned professionals. But a recent finding by Team PokerStars Pro Barry Greenstein could put a slight damper on the mobile-based versions of the game.

On Friday, in his latest entry at the PokerStars Blog, Greenstein pointed out a major flaw in a popular iPad app, “Chinese Open Face Poker Pass N’ Play,” which allows players to select which cards they receive at any point in the game. Although the app itself is free to play, a lot of money is being exchanged on the side between players. Greenstein became wary of the app after allegedly being hustled by an unnamed player.

Greenstein’s suspicion began when, after beating his opponent out of about 100 points at $50 per point, the stakes were doubled. From there, he realized something was wrong – that perhaps his opponent could have been cheating.

“It seemed like after being in trouble he kept getting saved on the river over and over and over,” Greenstein wrote. “I decided I wanted to start keeping track of when he needed to get outs in these situations. When he had to get an out on the river to beat me, I wanted to see what his percentage was.”

Greenstein found that his opponent was saved on the river seven out of 14 times. It was enough to force Greenstein to quit and seek out the advice of his nephew, a computer programmer, to figure out if cheating was possible.

The verdict: Yes.

“My nephew downloaded the app and once he had a chance to start looking at it he called me back within 30 minutes,” Greenstein said. “He said anyone who’s a programmer who knows how to hook up an iPad to another computer could easily cheat using the app.

“He said he could see all the cards and do whatever he wanted. I asked him if he could give me a demo, and we played a game and he sent me three kings on top, a flush in the middle, and a straight flush in the back. He explained that anyone who was a programmer or who had a friend who was a programmer could cheat me at the game, no problem.”

Greenstein’s blog quickly generated discussion among poker players on Friday. In response, the creators of “Chinese Open Face Poker Pass N’ Play” went to work to fix the issue.

To read Greenstein’s full blog entry, check out the PokerStars Blog.

Online Poker

ACEP Launches Ongame-Powered Poker Site

On Tuesday, American Casino & Entertainment Properties (ACEP) Interactive officially launched its free-to-play poker website, acePLAYpoker.com. The site will use the Ongame poker software recently acquired by Bally Technologies.

The new website allows players the opportunity to play free online poker 24-hours a day, seven days a week. The site provides online players with exclusive promotions, including show tickets to critically acclaimed shows at the iconic Stratosphere Casino, which is owned by ACEP. Other prizes include opportunities to experience Stratosphere’s thrill rides at the top of the Tower, including SkyJump, a controlled free fall from 108 floors above the Las Vegas Strip.

“With the launch of this free to play website, we can now bring the excitement of play found at our properties to anyone with Internet access, no matter their location,” said Alec Driscoll, director of gaming development for ACEP. “We are also positioning ACEP and acePLAYpoker.com for the potential approval of legalized online gaming.”

Last September, the Nevada Gaming Commission approved ACEP as an interactive gaming operator ahead of the state’s real-money online poker market. ACEP’s software platform is provided by Bally Technologies, which recently acquired Amaya Gaming and will incorporate Amaya’s Ongame software into Bally’s iGaming platform.

Bally was approved for a Nevada gaming license as a service provider last June. ACEP and Bally teamed up on Sept. 25, 2012, shortly after ACEP was approved for its license.

Visit acePLAYpoker.com for more information on the new site.

FullTiltPoker.eu Launches

If you were playing on Full Tilt Poker early Monday morning, you probably received this message:

Just days after announcing that FullTiltPoker.eu would launch “in the next few weeks,” the sister site of PokerStars is up and running in Malta. Players from Greece, Luxembourg and Slovenia have already been transitioned to the new site, while players in Finland, Germany, Netherlands, Poland, Romania and Sweden will most likely be switching soon.

The client is indistinguishable to FullTiltPoker.com. The tables, player pools, promotions, and features are identical. The difference is that, according to certain income tax laws in the EU, gambling winnings from sites based with the European Economic Area (EEA) are tax free. The Isle of Man, where both PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker operate their “.com” clients, is not a part of the EEA.

For players in Greece, Luxembourg and Slovenia, using the new client is mandatory. Players must agree to new terms and conditions, and download new software. Account balances will remain in USD.

Poker Legislation

New Jersey’s iGaming Efforts Moving Quickly

After an interstate online gambling bill (A2578/S1565) was conditionally vetoed by New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie last week, state legislators say they are planning to vote on amendments to the bill on Feb. 26 before putting it back on Christie’s desk for signature.

“The Senate will move forward to adopt the governor’s conditional veto on Feb. 26,” said Senate President Steve Sweeney on Monday. “The sooner we bring Internet gaming to New Jersey, the better off Atlantic City is going to be.”

State Sen. Ray Lesniak, the chief sponsor of the bill, said he will work on making the recommended changes to the measure and get it returned to the governor. Among Christie’s recommendations include a tax increase from 10 to 15 percent, with part of the additional proceeds going to compulsive gambling programs, and a time limit of 10 years for the authorization of Internet gaming unless re-established by law.

“The sooner we get Internet gaming in place, the sooner we will begin to see the economic benefits that will come with it,” Lesniak said.

Lesniak told PokerNews last week that he expects the assembly to have already passed the revisions during its voting session on Feb. 14 or Feb. 21. Then, following six months to finalize regulations and review casino applicants, Lesniak anticipates the first virtual hands to be dealt in New Jersey this fall.

New Jersey is attempting to become the third state to legalize online poker in the U.S. Nevada authorized Internet poker in December 2011, and Delaware passed legislation last June.

Read more in the press release at PolitickerNJ.

Clash in Nevada

A new online gambling bill in Nevada is creating some tension between Gov. Brian Sandoval and state legislators.

On Wednesday, Assembly Bill 114 was referred to the Judiciary Committee, seeking to double online gambling license fees from $500,000 to $1,000,000 and the renewal fees from $250,000 to $500,000. It also contains language that would prohibit companies from receiving a license for 10 years if they took real-money bets in the U.S. after the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act was passed in 2006. That would include companies like PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker.

Sandoval is pushing to remove much of the text from the revised bill. “Governor Sandoval does not support the increased fee and will work to resolve this issue before the legislation is passed into law,” Sandoval spokesperson Mary-Sarah Kinner said on Wednesday.

Last month, after Gov. Chris Christie showed his support of online gambling in New Jersey, Sandoval stressed to Nevada lawmakers that the state’s online gambling be passed within 30 days. Sandoval said it is “critical” that Nevada move quickly on the bill now that other states are making progress on the issue.

Read more at the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

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Check out the original source here! Originally from PokerNews.com

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.

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