It seemed like a good idea at the time. Purchase a bunch of tickets to the 2017 Super Bowl and sell them at a higher price. Unfortunately for his investors, however, Ali Fazeli never lived up to the promise. He took the money and ran, all the way to the closest poker table. Being a high-profile poker player, the odds of him escaping the long arm of the law were pretty slim, and he was arrested over the scam. Fazeli has now reached a plea deal that could potentially see him avoid a lengthy stay at the local pen.

Fazeli was able to attract $6.2 million in the scam, which some have likened to a Ponzi scheme. Of the total, over $1 million collectively came from three poker greats – Zach Clark, John Juanda and Erik Seidel. When he failed to use any of the money to purchase tickets, they launched a lawsuit against Fazeli, which has still not been decided. However, as part of his deal, Fazeli will have to make full restitution of the funds, which could result in the suit being dismissed.

Fazeli was indicted this past March over the scam. He admitted to the charges, saying that he used around $1.8 million to gamble at the Aria Casino. The Aria also filed a lawsuit against the player, alleging an outstanding debt on poker notes worth $1.1 million. The casino extended him $2.1 million in credit across 34 separate transactions between December 2016 and January 2017, of which he only repaid $1 million.

The disgraced poker player used the funds to play in cash games, as well as tournaments. In 2016, he entered 10 tournaments, all of which had a minimum buy-in of $25,000 and were held at the Aria. That year, he ended up winning over $1.82 million, all from misappropriated funds.

Another round-up from the World Series of Poker focusing on Longshen Tan’s impressive performance in Event #66: $1,500 No-Limit Hold’em earning him his first bracelet. 

The first thing I killed was Virginia Woolf’s moth. As the Executioner caught the little bugger in flight, there was a brief blue spark, and when I looked the little brown corpse had stuck rigidly on the metal strings.

Then in flew a Bluebottle.

It was a big bastard.

Another round-up from the World Series of Poker focusing on Andrew Ireland winning Event #67: $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha Bounty in his first-ever appearance at the festival.

The first time I played in a World Series of Poker (WSOP) event I didn’t reach the break. I had spent the previous night, sitting in a hot tub, surrounded by the dead skin and piss of strangers, listening to a chorus of poker advice from some of British poker’s elite.

Unlike the dead skin and piss, nothing sunk in.

Ever the hero, I went for it early doors, made the call, looked like the spunk stain I was, and then crept away into the daylight like a hyena in the presence of a pack of lions.

A run through the highlights of Day 5 of the World Series of Poker Main Event after a storm brings the action to an early halt with Michael Dyer leading the final 109 players.

Las Vegas is under siege.

40 mph winds.

0.31” of rain.

The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has released a report that it claims will help measure the social cost of gambling-related harms.

On Tuesday, the UKGC released its Measuring Gambling-Related Harms: A Framework for Action, representing the combined input of the regulator, its independent advisors at the Responsible Gambling Strategy Board (RSGB) and the UK gaming industry’s self-funded GambleAware charity.

The UKGC has put consumer protection at the heart of its new regulatory approach, which aims to ensure a “fairer and safer” gambling environment. Neil McArthur, who was appointed CEO of the UKGC in April, says the new report will help the regulator and the industry “understand where best to target our resources” to achieve its consumer protection goals.

The report proposes to define gambling-related harm as “the adverse impacts from gambling on the health and wellbeing of individuals, families, communities and society.” These impacts on resources, relationships and health can be both short-lived and persistent.

The current international trade war between China and the United States could impact US casino operators’ ability to renew their Macau concessions, according to a new security report.

The report by political and corporate risk consultancy Steve Vickers & Associates (SVA) describes Macau’s gaming sectors as “highly exposed” to fallout from the trade spat, which has seen the two nations hike tariffs on a wide variety of products in a rapidly escalating game of political brinksmanship that could leave both countries bleeding.

SVA says Macau casino operators could experience a “dampening” of gaming revenue should the trade war lead to “any significant slowdown or fall in the yuan’s value” from Beijing’s “further curbing of capital outflows.”

Such a scenario could benefit local junket operators, whose entire business model revolves around circumventing China’s capital controls. However, SVA estimated that this gain could be modest due to the junket industry now being “more closely monitored’ by Beijing authorities than in years past.

Ohio’s seven racetrack casinos reported record slot machine revenue in their most recent fiscal year, while the state’s four brick-and-mortar casinos reported only modest gains through the first half of 2018.

Figures released Monday by the Ohio Lottery Commission show the state’s seven ‘racinos’ generated slots revenue of $987m in the 12 months ending June 30, up 6.1% from their fiscal 2017 result. The racino slots figure has undergone steady growth in recent years, having risen more than one-third since fiscal 2015.

All seven racinos reported year-on-year slots revenue gains, led by Hard Rock Rocksino, which grew 6% to claim the lion’s share ($246.5m) of the fiscal 2018 slots take. Scioto Downs ranked second at $163.8m, while the JACK Thistledown venue placed third with $121.4m.

Monday also saw the Ohio Casino Control Commission release a report card on the state’s four brick-and-mortar casinos through the first half of 2018. The four casinos earned combined slots and table revenue of $420.5m, up 2% from the same period last year.

A major World Cup and cricket betting bookmaker has been (literally) run to ground in India following a police car chase.

On Monday, Indian media outlets reported that infamous bookmaker Shyam Bohra had been arrested in Delhi after being recognized on the street. Bohra reportedly attempted to mow down a police sub-inspector with his SUV before fleeing the scene, only to be chased and arrested a few kilometers down the road.

Bohra was out on bail after being arrested in April by police in Noida, a satellite city of Delhi, for illegal betting activity. However, as with other bookmakers who find themselves in Indian police stations, he was somehow able to avoid a more permanent detention.

Local media reported that when Bohra was arrested this week, he had in his possession account books detailing his 2018 FIFA World Cup betting records. Bohra’s betting operation, which involved around 100 local agents, allegedly handled daily wagers of Rs40m (US$582k) on the World Cup and the England-India cricket series.