In this week’s Calling the Clock, Lee Davy brings you news of a brand new game from PokerStars, a right royal cock up with the registration process at the Super High Roller Bowl, and much more.
We begin this week’s odyssey into the heart of poker’s biggest news stories with a peek behind the American poker curtain and the news that New York Senator John Bonacic’s online poker bill galloped through the Racing, Gaming and Wagering Committee by an 11-0 vote. The bill’s next stop on its route to inevitable failure is the Senate Finance Committee.
New York wasn’t the only state poring over political poker paperwork this week. A new bill (HB.799) was introduced by Floridian Republican Elizabeth Porter, that if passed, would allow establishments in the Sunshine State to host charity tournaments with buy-ins less than $200 and a host of other stipulations.
Nevadians don’t have to deal with such trivialities. You can do what the hell you like in that state. And this week there was a lot of poker stories coming out of Las Vegas.
The Monte Carlo Poker Room is closing. The hotel located on the Las Vegas Strip is due to a facelift, and the poker room won’t be a part of the new decor. The eight-table poker room closes on April 25.
The closure means only 19 poker rooms remain in Las Vegas. The ARIA Resort & Casino contains one of the best and representatives of the ARIA made a right howler of things at the registration process for the Super High Roller Bowl.
The $300,000 buy-in event had a cap of 50-players, but the SHRB allowed 54 to register. Realising they had a problem, they decided to hold a live draw for the first 35 seats and reneged on their opening statement that 15 seats would be reserved for non-professional players. Rather than be accused of a type of nepotism, SHRB organisers decided to increase the cap to 56 players so everyone is happy as Larry.
One person, you would expect to take a seat in that game is Kansas businessman, Brandon Steven, but that might not happen. Steven, who bubbled the most recent $1m buy-in One Drop event, is currently under investigation by the FBI for matters unknown.
PokerStars News
PokerStars is set to change the face of the entire industry after it announced plans to launch a brand new game called PokerStars Power Up. The new game, currently in Alpha Test phase, is a hybrid of poker and the likes of Hearthstone and Magic the Gathering and the first images of the game look great.
One player who will be promoting the shit out of that game is High Stakes reg, Igor Kurganov. This week, PokerStars signed him to be their newest member of Team Pro and I aired my thoughts on the signing in an article titled: Igor Kurganov, PokerStars and the 48 Laws of Power.
Partypoker News
Partypoker was also in the news this week after they decided to withdraw their real money offering from the market in the Czech Republic. The online poker room made the temporary decision while it continues the application process for a new license.
888Poker & WSOP News
888Poker and the World Series of Poker (WSOP) have decided to continue their courtship for the foreseeable future. This week the two giants of the gambling world announced that 888Poker would continue to sponsor the WSOP and be the exclusive online satellite avenue for the next few years, with an option for a two-year extension beyond 2018.
And international players looking forward to spending their summer at the WSOP suffered a little shock this week when a well-known poker tax expert claimed they might have to leave some of their winnings behind.
Russell Fox stated that casinos in the US would be barred from issuing Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITIN) to international players leaving a complicated and convoluted process for people to obtain one. The WSOP responded by stating they still had the ability to issue ITINs. Fox responded by stating the order probably hadn’t reached WSOP Towers yet.
A Great Week for Women in Poker
At last, a female poker player has won a World Poker Tour (WPT) Main Event title. After 15-years in the making, Ema Zajmovic, a cash game grinder, won the WPT Playground Poker Main Event in her hometown of Montreal. Zajmovic also made the final table – finishing fifth – when Mike Sexton won his title a few months ago. Sexton told the press that Zajmovic was a mixture of Phil Ivey and Vanessa Selbst.
And Zajmovic wasn’t the only lady kicking ass this week. Loni Harwood won her third World Series of Poker Circuit (WSOPC) gold ring in Florida, and Naday Magnus won the High Roller at WSOPC Potawatomi.
Time ladies and gentlemen, please.
Someone has just called the clock.
