While much of the poker community is keeping an eye on the activities going on at the 2016 World Series of Poker, there is some other news making the rounds. In this edition of “ICYMI (In Case You Missed It),” for those of you who thought you had a shot with poker player Beth Shak…prepared… Read more »
Poker Gossip
Gossip, twitter, etc.
Daniel Negreanu Not Pleased With Chris Ferguson’s Presence at WSOP
After Howard Lederer issued an apology for his role in the Full Tilt Poker “Black Friday” scandal last month, it seemed like a foregone conclusion that he would make an appearance at the World Series of Poker. While we would all like to believe that the apology was completely heartfelt (and I’m not saying it… Read more »
And The Other Shoe Drops: Howard Lederer Returns to the WSOP
A little more than a week after alleged co-conspirator Chris Ferguson returned for the first time in six years to the 2016 World Series of Poker, former Full Tilt Poker front man Howard Lederer stepped up to the felt in the Rio in Las Vegas on Saturday. Lederer put down his ducats to enter Event… Read more »
Daniel Negreanu Documentary “KidPoker” Premieres on Netflix
A documentary that was a couple of years in the making, detailing the life of poker professional and Team PokerStars Pro Daniel Negreanu, is now seeing its premiere over a major streaming service. The documentary KidPoker, produced by PokerStars Original Films, premiered on the streaming service Netflix last week and has already generated some decent… Read more »
So What is The Summer Series? The Global Poker League Shows You Tomorrow
After taking a week off for players to travel to Las Vegas for the 2016 World Series of Poker, the Global Poker League will come back to life with their six-week Summer Series. So just what is entailed in this “Summer Series” that differentiates itself from what we’ve seen previously from the GPL? Over the… Read more »
Chris Ferguson Returns to Play at 2016 WSOP
After more than five years out of the tournament poker spotlight, one of the men involved in the demise of Full Tilt Poker and the “Black Friday” scandal returned to the World Series of Poker stage on Saturday. Former World Champion Chris Ferguson, the man formerly known as ‘Jesus,’ entered the $10,000 Seven Card Stud… Read more »
Israeli Software Company Creates Facial Recognition Program, Uses It To Identify Professional Poker Players
In this day and age, there are many things or people that we would like to be able to identify simply from their appearance. From judging whether someone has donned a disguise to more sinister implications, such identification would be critical for particular situations. A software company in Israel says it has developed a facial… Read more »
Victoria Coren-Mitchell, Debbie Burkhead Earn 2016 Induction into Women in Poker Hall of Fame
After a little glitch in their tabulating system negated their public vote (more on that in a moment), the Women in Poker Hall of Fame induction committee has named the two women who will join the hallowed halls of the organization during an induction ceremony this fall. For the first time earlier this month, the… Read more »
Five Years Too Late: Howard Lederer Apologizes for “Black Friday” – Through Daniel Negreanu
In the five years since “Black Friday” hit the online poker industry, poker professional Daniel Negreanu has been one of the more vocal critics of the people that were in charge of one of the rooms involved in that situation, Full Tilt Poker. Now, more than five years later, Negreanu is allowing one of the… Read more »
Justin Bonomo Responds to Critics of His Actions at EPT Grand Final
During the recent European Poker Tour Grand Final festival, poker professional Justin Bonomo was one of the fortunate individuals who was able to take some gold away from the proceedings. In the €2000 No Limit Hold’em preliminary event on May 2, he was able to defeat a field of 346 players to capture slightly more… Read more »
Actor Idris Elba Joins “Molly’s Game,” But Problems Arise
The directorial debut for screenwriter Aaron Sorkin – the poker-themed Molly’s Game, based on the book of the same name written by “The Poker Princess” Molly Bloom – is beginning to fill out as to its cast. While that is normally a good thing for a film, there are other problems that have arose for… Read more »
Trump Taj Mahal Reopens Poker Room with Murky Future
After a closure that lasted much longer than previously expected, the once-great poker room at the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City, NJ, is set to reopen at 11AM today, but its future is still a bit murky. The poker room was closed last February and, at that time, people were told that the iconic… Read more »
Women in Poker Hall of Fame Offering Public Vote in Selecting Next Members
The Women in Poker Hall of Fame is set to induct a new class of members to their rolls this fall. In the past, they have traditionally kept their voting “in the house,” meaning that a select committee and the past inductees were the only ones who were voting on new members. For the 2016… Read more »
Normandie Casino in California to Temporarily Shut Down, New Ownership Sought
According to reports from local news sources, the Normandie Casino – one of the original casinos in California which spread poker upon its legalization in the 1930s – will be temporarily shut down until new ownership can be found for the casino. DailyBreeze.com writer Sandy Mazza reports that the Normandie will be closing temporarily due… Read more »
Las Vegas Review-Journal Writer Leaves Paper Following Restrictions on Sheldon Adelson Content
I got into the poker industry and the writing part of it, specifically, by a happy accident back in 2005. In the eleven years since, I have generally been able to write what I want on my own terms. There have been those rare times, however, when I have been told to stay away from… Read more »
Adelson, Amaya Hire Lobbying Firms
According to a brief report by TheHill.com, major players on both sides of the online gambling battle in the United States have acquired more troops. Both Sheldon Adelson’s Coalition to Stop Internet Gambling (CSIG) and Amaya Services Ltd., a division of PokerStars parent Amaya, have hired new lobbyists. The CSIG, funded by Las Vegas Sands… Read more »
Petition Calls for Removal of Rake at WSOP Championship Event, Revenue Sharing for Additional Money in Prize Pools
In an ingenious move that might not gain any traction – but it doesn’t hurt to try – a poker fan has started a petition asking officials at the World Series of Poker to eliminate the rake on the WSOP Championship Event. In addition to this elimination of rake, the petition is also asking for… Read more »
Petition to Eliminate WSOP Main Event Rake Interesting, Pointless
In what will certainly prove to be a fruitless effort, a petition has been started on the website change.org to try to get World Series of Poker officials to make substantive changes to the WSOP Main Event in order to reward players with more spoils. The petition, posted by David Bass, creator of Any Two… Read more »
Aaron Sorkin Won’t Use “Actual” Names in Movie Adaptation of “Molly’s Game”
For those that were looking for a big blockbuster expose of the A-listers from Hollywood that frequented the biggest poker games around in the early Ought’s, you’re going to be disappointed. According to the screenwriter and director, he’s not going to “name names,” so to speak. According to several outlets, screenwriter Aaron Sorkin is hard… Read more »
World Champion Joe McKeehen Speaks Up On Tournament Start Times
When a player wins the World Series of Poker Championship Event and becomes the de facto World Champion of the game of poker, he (or perhaps one day she) also becomes an ambassador of sorts for the sport. Not only for the year following but pretty much for the rest of their involvement in the… Read more »
Two Game Developers Look to Merge Role Playing Games and Poker with “Lord of Poker”
In the world of poker, many of its best players have been able to develop their talents – or transfer their abilities – from the world of role playing games, or RPGs, to the green baize. Through playing such games as Magic: The Gathering, Dungeons & Dragons, Hearthstone and a litany of other strategic endeavors,… Read more »
David Baazov to Take Leave from Amaya
Less than a week after being slapped with insider trading charges, Amaya CEO David Baazov is taking an indefinite leave of absence from the company, so says a statement from Amaya Tuesday morning. While the reason Amaya leads with for Baazov’s break is “to focus on preparing an offer to acquire Amaya,” it follows with… Read more »
NPR Delves into The World of Poker Staking
It’s one of the dirty little secrets that the casual poker fan knows little to nothing about but that veterans of the tournament poker world are well versed in. Staking, in which a person provides a portion of another player’s tournament buy-in (or, in some cases, a cash game stake) for a percentage return should… Read more »
A Tale of Two Cities: Atlantic City Blues and Las Vegas Changes
Once they were intricately linked as the only two “legal” areas to gamble in the United States. Since 1976, when the state of New Jersey joined Nevada as the only places which offered casino gaming in the U. S., the two have enjoyed a friendly rivalry as the years have gone by. Forty years later,… Read more »
Two Controversies Capturing Poker Community’s Attention
Never let it be said that there is a calm moment in the poker world. Over the past couple of days, discussion has emerged among those in the poker community on two issues, one that is fairly blatant (and has been around for some time) and one that is still veiled in mystery. Whether either… Read more »