Author Archives: The Daily Payoff

Gambling industry welcomes US Prez Joe Biden

Inauguration day has how come and gone, and President Joe Biden now holds executive power in the U.S. That could mean change for the gambling world, and all corners of the industry have come out to give their opinion.

There’s not much comment from the industry leaders themselves. The major casinos have not made any statements, and the online operators are sticking to sports. That leaves us with a bunch of commentary from the lobbyists.

AGA President and CEO Bill Miller already voiced his hopes Biden will help the industry recover. “Gaming — an economic engine in communities across 44 states — has been decimated by COVID-19, but our industry has always strongly responded to adversity,” he said in a Wednesday statement. “Together, with our new leaders in Washington, we can get millions of American hospitality employees back to work, reinvigorate our industry, support our small businesses, and bring desperately-needed revenue to our communities.”

Congratulations to @POTUS Joe Biden and @VP Kamala Harris on today’s historic inauguration. @AmericanGaming looks forward to working with your administration to achieve policies that accelerate the recovery of the gaming industry and entire U.S. economy.

Becky’s Affiliated: Everything happens for a reason

On November 24th I went out for a run and out of the blue, felt a sudden, sharp pain in my left knee cap when going down a hill. I was able to walk home, but after I cooled down, even just puttering around the house was uncomfortable and I was devastated. 

For those who don’t know, I’ve been an avid runner for all my life, its my favorite activity on the planet. My modus operandi has always been to use gym equipment such as ellipticals, power mills, etc, when recovering from a running injury (or trying to prevent one) and this has always worked for me…until COVID hit and gyms were forced to close and are still closed here in the London area.

Today I wanted to share my story with our readers as I think the lessons I’ve learned since November 24th can be applied to all of us in our daily lives as we continue to battle COVID, with a great deal of uncertainty still ahead of us.

The first lesson I learned is there is a solution to every problem, you just have to find it. Once I realized I was not going to be able to run for a while and going to the gym was not an option due to lockdown-induced closure, I jumped on my bike to see if a cycling motion bothered my knee. I was delighted to learn it did not. 

Daniel Negreanu Now Down $1 Million Against Doug Polk

It took 30 sessions, but Doug Polk now has a $1 million lead against Daniel Negreanu in what has become a lopsided affair. After Wednesday’s beatdown on the virtual felt, it’s no longer a matter of if Polk will win, but by how much.

Daniel Negreanu is now down a cool milly to Doug Polk. (Image: YouTube)

Those who bet on Polk before this challenge began in October are looking pretty smart right about now. The tides have certainly turned over the past week. Although Polk has led ever since the second session, and was up by nearly $1 million 18 sessions in, “DNegs” had been rather competitive for quite some time — key-phrase, “had been.”

Those days are over and it’s become a one-sided match the past four sessions. Since Day 26, Polk has turned approximately a $520,000 profit, which includes a $299,000 win on Day 30 (Wednesday). So much for what was turning into an impressive comeback.

Could Joe Biden be the president who brings online poker back to America?

Today is the day that many Americans have waited on for the last four years. For poker players, however, the election of Joe Biden and, with equal importance, the removal of Donald Trump from office, may bring an end to a decade of pain.

That’s because, if the rumours are true, Biden might be the best chance poker has of seeing the online version of the game we all love returning to American computer screens in the near future.

The ink may not be dry on Joe Biden’s inauguration papers, but according to a report from PokerNews, the 46th United States President may look to rescind the 2018 decision made by the Department of Justice on the Wire Act. If so, then as was said on Online Poker Report, Biden said: “I would reverse the White House opinion that was then reversed and overruled by the court. The court is correct. That should be the prevailing position.” 

Trump, of course, reneged on the 2011 decision from the DOJ that said the Wire Act applied only to sports betting, but Biden would reinstate it according to insiders, bringing back the potential for online poker to return. Sheldon Adelson, one of the biggest advocates to banning online poker, recently died, prompting many calls for online poker to return. 

Poker Inauguration Day: Preparing to Step Back into Live Games

Today, Jan. 20, 2021, is Inauguration Day in the United States. It’s a time of hope and renewal. In addition to representing a powerful moment of transition, it comes with a highly orchestrated set of pomp and ceremony, each with its own set of rules and procedures. Before our new president can begin to govern – before he even takes his oath of office – he must learn the rules and procedures of our nation, so that he may be fully equipped to act.

There’s a new game being played in America. Make sure you know what you’re stepping into when you get back to the table. (Image: Jon McNaughton)

Similarly, many of us, at the beginning of 2021, are on the precipice of a new start in poker. With prospects for a coronavirus vaccine coming and with many of our old haunts still closed, many of us will be stepping into games we haven’t played in before.

Inauguration Day may be a time for optimism, but there is also much work ahead, which is why now may be a great time for our own poker renewal.

Polk, Negreanu Spar Over Who is Getting Luckier, So Show Us the Cards (Op-Ed)

Doug Polk and Daniel Negreanu both claim the other is getting ridiculously lucky during their heads-up challenge, but neither can prove it. That’s because viewers only see hands that make it to showdown. So, perhaps they should start letting the fans view the cards (on delay, of course).

Hey, Daniel Negreanu and Doug Polk, let us see your cards. (Image: YouTube)

The poker stars have now completed more than 17,000 hands of a 25,000-hand heads-up No-Limit Hold’em poker challenge. Polk, as expected, holds a sizable lead of $703,000, but Negreanu has been more competitive recently than most anticipated.

I’ve watched somewhere around 75% of the hands played. From my perspective, Polk’s clearly been the superior player in terms of skill. But, I must say, his edge hasn’t been as great as I predicted before the match began in October. I still give Negreanu very little, if any, chance to win, even if he runs hot. But, I’m highly impressed with his play against arguably the top heads-up NLH player ever.

Pascal Hartmann wins Super MILLION$ title for $454,908

The latest Super MILLION$ final table kicked off with Dario Sammartino in the lead, as we reported yesterday, but the Italian would not be able to see it out and claim the win. In fact, he would finish outside the podium places.

How did this happen? Let’s take a look back at the 32nd Super MILLION$ final table and how it played out.

It took a long time for the first elimination, and it was Cypriot player Aliaksei Boika busted in 9th place for the first prize of $56,864. Boika was all-in with pocket sevens and was up against ‘RRomashka’, who made a better flush on the river with pocket tens.

It was the start of the eliminations, but there was no let up from that moment onwards, with players dropping left, right and centre. Next to depart was Canadian Ami Barer, his stack eventually dwindling to 12 big blinds. Barer must have thought he’d waited for the perfect moment, moving all-in with pocket queens, but he was called by Argentina’s ‘on the Flow’ with ace-king and an ace on the flop saw the chips disappear from in front of Barer.

Which Premier League team provides the most goals per game?

The 2020/21 Premier League has been not just entertaining but life-affirming for many football fans affected by lockdown in terms of national restrictions.

When we watch the 20 teams in action, however, which are the ones who bring goals? With the Premier League season at the halfway stage for most clubs, we’ve compiled the average goals per game ratio for all of the teams. From the big hitters to the low lights, which sides provide the most goals and entertainment in the Premier League might surprise you.

Let’s take a look at the full table and each clubs’ goal per game.

Premier League Goals Per Game Table

15 Bigs – David Lappin

As co-host of the Global Poker Award-winning podcast The Chip Race with Irish poker legend Dara O’Kearney, David Lappin is jovial, witty and above all else entertaining. The Unibet Poker player brings a light-hearted air to many subjects, but is equally happy getting into the deeper topics that rise to the surface in the game we all love.  

How will Lappin cope with 15 questions that are bound to test his mental acuity and funny bone at the same time? It’s time to push ‘15 Bigs’ over the line and see how he copes as we stare him down.  

If you were to be shot at dawn, what would be your last meal/drink?  

Steak y Foie Gras from Vaso De Oro in Barcelona washed down with a Viña Tondonia Gran Reserva. 

US federal appeals court rules Wire Act applies only to sports betting

America’s online gambling market caught a break Wednesday as a federal appeals court upheld the view that the 1961 Wire Act applies only to sports betting. 

On Wednesday, a two-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit sided with the New Hampshire Lottery Commission against the Department of Justice by ruling that the Wire Act’s prohibition on communicating wagering information across state lines applies solely to sports betting, not to other forms of gambling. 

The ruling opens the door for states that have legalized online poker to share player liquidity with other states that have enacted similar laws. To date, only Delaware, Nevada and New Jersey have entered into such arrangements, but the path now appears open to states such as Michigan and Pennsylvania to consider adding their players to the pool. 

To recap how we got here, the DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) issued an opinion in 2011 in response to queries by state lotteries asking if they could sell tickets online if the data was temporarily routed across state lines. The OLC concluded that the Wire Act applied only to a ‘sporting event or contest,’ thus paving the way for the launch of intrastate online gambling markets in New Jersey and elsewhere.