Wednesday marks the second to last day of operations for ChanPoker.com, which is closing its doors permanently on Thursday, August 21st, according to a statement posted on the online poker room’s website. Despite the closure, the site affirms that its customers’ withdrawals will be processed properly: “If you have a cash balance with us, rest assured that all withdrawal requests will be honored and promptly processed.” Once a player withdraws funds from Chan Poker, his or her account will be automatically closed. It’s one of the first notable online poker rooms to shut down in recent memory and comes with one of the biggest names in the poker world behind it.
Chan Poker is a member of the Ongame Network. It launched in 2006 as the poker room bearing the name of ten-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner Johnny Chan. Promotions at the time of closure included a 100% up to $500 reload bonus and a 100% up to $1,000 first-time deposit bonus. Each day at 4:30pm ET (16:30pm ET), the site offered a $50 freeroll. The last daily freeroll was held on Tuesday.
The statement posted on ChanPoker.com also states, “For those that wish to continue playing online poker, know that we are actively seeking a partner to provide a new home that will honor your player point balances.” Customers that have any questions or concerns are urged to e-mail support@chanpoker.com. Support is also available by calling 866-721-7529. Chan Poker did not accept real-money players from the United States.
Other OnGame Network sites include Mansion Poker, PokerRoom, RedKings Poker, Eurobet, and BestPoker.com. The 12 million member poker network is based in Gibraltar and opened for business in 1999. Many OnGame Network rooms offer Java-based options for their players, which means that customers do not have to download any software in order to play. Moreover, having a Java interface means that Mac poker players are welcomed with open arms since no “.exe” file is needed.
Chan won the first of his 10 WSOP bracelets during the 1985 World Series. He defeated World Poker Tour founder Lyle Berman heads up in a $1,000 no limit tournament, pocketing $171,000. Chan defeated Frank Henderson to win the 1987 Main Event and then beat Erik Seidel one year later to take down his second World Championship in a row. Incredibly, he battled heads up against Phil Hellmuth in the 1989 WSOP Main Event, but eventually succumbed to the up-and-comer. Hellmuth became the youngest Main Event champion ever, winning it at age 24.
Chan won a seven-card stud tournament during the 1994 WSOP for bracelet number four. He defeated Berman again heads up in a $5,000 No Limit Deuce to Seven Lowball tournament in 1997 and followed that up with a win in a Pot Limit Omaha tournament during the 2000 WSOP. Since then, he’s been one of the most admired players ever in online poker and, along with Doyle Brunson, holds the second greatest number of WSOP bracelets; Hellmuth owns the most with 11.
Players on Chan Poker are encouraged to submit their withdrawal requests immediately. According to the site’s statement, “We will make every effort to accept withdrawal requests through our website for as long as necessary; however, we strongly advise submitting your request as soon as possible.”
