Thursday December 24, 2015 at 2:17 pm

Few random stories of note: Kentucky continues to shakedown PokerStars/Amaya… DFS illegal in Illinois… PokerStars to launch sportsbetting site with unique name: Bet StarsSheldon Adelson semi-secretly bought Las Vegas Review JournalPhil Ivey ending the year on a redonk downswing?

Tis Christmas week in America, but it has been a somewhat heavy news cycle considering we've reached the end of year holidays.

1. Kentucky vs. PokerStars

KFC-PS
Finger lickin' good!

The Commonwealth of Kentucky has been trying to use a 200+ year old law in order to shakedown PokerStars for $800 million. Amaya's savvy attorneys claimed that KY's ambulance chasing lawyers are jacking up the settlement figures to pad their own pockets. Lawyers calling out lawyers!

 

Only in Kentucky.

 

For more thorough coverage on the Kentucky vs. PokerStars case, you should read everything Haley Hintze reported about it by starting here.

2. Legal Scoreboard: Illinois 1, DFS 0

Daily Fantasy Sports has been a huge hot-button issue for states in the last couple of months. The state of Illinois recently joined the list of states (like New York) that deemed DFS as “illegal gambling.” The Illinois attorney general made the annoucement just 2 days before Christmas, but near the end of the lucrative NFL season. Funny because Illinois and specifically Chicago has been historically one of the most corrupt states in the country dating back to before the time Al Capone was the most feared gangster in all of North America.

3. BetStars!

PokerStars tried to get into the DFS arena earlier this year with StarsDraft, but has since bowed out until the environment is much more favorable for DFS. In the meantime, PokerStars will be launching BetStars – their newest venture into sports gambling. Of course, Americans will NOT be able to gamble on BetStars because of our countries hypocritical and arcane gambling laws.

4. Phil Ivey Down $3.7 Million?

Ivey/Tiger
Phil Ivey a.k.a. the Phil Ivey of Poker hanging with the Phil Ivey of Golf (a.k.a. Tiger Woods)

Phil Ivey ending the year on a $3.7 million downswing?

 

The Phil Ivey of Poker, Phil Ivey, had a rough time on the virtual tables in 2015.

 

Ivey reportedly dropped $2.5 million on PokerStars and another $1.2 million on Full Tilt.

 

Perhaps Ivey is distracted by his mounting legal troubles trying to chase down millions in owed baccarat winnings from a London casino?

 

No word on what Ivey's mysterious Chinese companion did at the tables this year...

5. Adelson's Not-So-Secret Purchase of Las Vegas Newspaper

Online poker biggest enemy, billionaire casino owner Sheldon Adelson, recently purchased the biggest newspaper in Las Vegas for a whopping sales price of $140 million. Newspapers have been struggling over the last two decades, so the high price tag for the Review Journal was extraordinary. However, what made everyone suspicious was that the new owner was actually a mystery until reporters followed the money trail back to Adelson. Even though Adelson tried to remain anonymous...it backfired. Best way to manipulate the mass media…is to own it. I expect a series of anti-online poker editorials to commence on the LVRJ in T-minus 3…2…1….

6. Lilou Agostini and Sabina Hiatullah Interview

Lastly, do you speak and read French? Head over to the original Club Poker site and read an excellent interview (en francais) by Gaëlle Jaudon. She sat down and talked with both Lilou Agostini and Sabina Hiatullah. They will be the European representatives on a new reality American TV show about 8 female poker players. Read the 'Girl Got Game' interview here.

Latest news
Friday December 1, 2023 at 4:49 pm
Hungary's Istvan Briski wins 2023 WPT Seminole Rock N Roll Poker Open

The World Poker Tour crowned a new champion during their latest stop in Hollywood, Florida at the 2023 WPT Seminole Rock N Roll Poker Open. When the dust settled, Istvan Briski from Hungary outlasted 1,447 runners to win the $3,500 Main Event for a score worth $647,300. Darryll Fish missed out on another title when he busted in sixth place.

Monday November 13, 2023 at 11:20 pm
Sami Bechahed wins 2023 NAPT Las Vegas Main Event

The PokerStars-branded North American Poker Tour made its triumphant return, and Sami Bechahed shipped the NAPT Las Vegas Main Event at Resorts World. The $1,650 buy-in NAPT Main Event attracted 1,095 runners and a prize pool worth $1.6 million. Bechahed -- a poker dealer -- banked $268,945 for first place when he outlasted a final table that included Jonathan Borenstein, David Coleman, Ping Liu, Sergio Aido, and Nick Schulman.

Saturday October 21, 2023 at 8:46 pm
Jared Bleznick ships $1.3 million at Super High Roller Bowl PLO

Jared Bleznick was the last player standing at the first-ever Super High Roller Bowl PLO $100,000 buy-in event at the Aria Casino in Las Vegas. Bleznick outlasted 38 runners and won $1,292,000 in the record-setting high roller PLO affair. Meanwhile, Isaac Haxton finished in second place but he moved into first place on the PokerGo Tour Leaderboard after his deep run.

Tuesday October 10, 2023 at 3:09 am
RIP Anthony Holden, ‘Big Deal' poker author passes away at 76

The poker world lost one of its finest authors when Anthony Holden passed away at age 76. Holden penned, translated, and edited nearly 40 books during his illustrious career as a journalist and writer. “Big Deal: A Year as a Professional Poker Player” is considered one of the best books ever written about poker, and it chronicled Holden's journey into the gambling underworld in Las Vegas in the late 1980s.

Tuesday September 19, 2023 at 12:27 am
2023 Poker Masters: Darren Elias, Vladas Tamasauskas early winners

The 2023 Poker Masters is underway at the Aria Casino in Las Vegas and two events are in the books. Lithuania's Vladas Tamasauskas outlasted a record-setting field of 114 entries to win Event #1 $10K NL for a score worth $239,400. American pro Darren Elias was the last player standing in Event #2 $10K NL and he banked $223,100 and his second PGT title.

Wednesday September 6, 2023 at 1:52 am
Simon Wiciak wins 2023 EPT Barcelona Main Event for €1.1 million

France's Simon Wiciak was the last player standing at the 2023 EPT Barcelona €5,300 buy-in Main Event, and he outlasted 2,120 runners to win €1,134,375 at a rowdy final table that included a pair of Brazilians. The final three players cut a money deal with Wiciak besting Brazil's Joao Sydenstricker and British pro Carl Shaw. The final table in Barcelona also included Canada's Santiago Plante, Brazil's Andre Akkari, and Argentina's Ezequiel Waigel.

Thursday August 24, 2023 at 7:19 pm
Daniel Negreanu and Doug Polk meet in High Stakes Duel 4

The next big matchup in PokerGo's High Stakes Duel will feature Daniel Negreanu and Doug Polk. The two pros will meet once again in the latest installment of HSD 4 Round 2. Polk defeated Negreanu in their own High Stakes Feud than ended in early 2021 with Negreanu losing $1.2 million after logging 25,000 hands of heads-up NL.

Friday August 18, 2023 at 5:35 pm
PokerStars releases 2023 WCOOP schedule

PokerStars released the schedule for the upcoming 2023 World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP). This year's epic and popular online series features 110 tournaments with three different tiered buy-ins and $80 million in guaranteed prize pools starting on Sunday, September 10 and running for 25 days through October 4. There are 12 championship events on the docket at the 2023 WCOOP.

Wednesday August 16, 2023 at 8:16 pm
Billy Kopp and Tobias Schwecht win WSOP Circuit Main Events

The World Series of Poker Circuit handed out gold rings to a pair of Main Event champions. German pro Tobias Schwecht was the last player standing at the World Series of Poker International Super Circuit London in the UK, and he banked £480K or approximately $610K USD for winning the Main Event. American pro and WSOP bracelet winner Billy Kopp locked up a third-career ring when he shipped 2023 WSOP Circuit Harrah's Cherokee Main Event in North Carolina for $376,154.

Tuesday August 15, 2023 at 12:13 am
2023 WSOP Paradise releases schedule

The WSOP released an official schedule of events for the inaugural WSOP Paradise at the Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas. The WSOP Paradise kicks off on December 3 and final event begins on December 14 with 15 bracelets events up for grabs. There's two online events and cards go in the air for the Main Event on December 9. The $25K GGMillion$ High Rollers Championship is slated for December 5.

Tuesday July 18, 2023 at 1:46 am
Breaking News
Dan Weinman wins 2023 WSOP Main Event for $12.1 million

The 2023 World Series of Poker Main Event finally played down from 10,043 entrants to the last player standing in Las Vegas. Atlanta-based pro Daniel Weinman is the 2023 WSOP Main Event champion and he earned a first-place payday worth $12.1 million. He also snagged a second-career bracelet. Americans finished 1-2-3 in this year's Main Event. Steven Jones was the runner up and he won $6.5 million for second place. Adam Walton won $4 million for a third-place finish.

Saturday July 15, 2023 at 10:46 pm
2023 WSOP: Adam Walton leads Main Event Final Table

The 2023 World Series of Poker Main Event in Las Vegas reached a final table with nine players remaining in the hunt for $12.1 million and the coveted special bracelet. Adam Walton from Los Angeles leads the final table with 143.8M in chips. Also still alive are Americans Steven Jones and Dan Weinman, Toby Lewis and Dean Hutchison from the UK, Germany's Jan-Peter Jachtmann, Ukraine's Ruslan Prydryk, Juan Maceiras from Spain, and Daniel Holzner from Italy. The final table resumes on Sunday.

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Thursday December 7, 2023 at 8:04 pm
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