Federal legislation introduced earlier this month to ban online poker and gambling is putting the heat on California tribes.

Rep. Jason Chaffetz again introduced the Restoration of America’s Wire Act (RAWA) this year, aimed at getting rid of igaming in the U.S., including the Internet poker and gambling regimes already operating in Nevada, Delaware and New Jersey since 2013.

As the nation’s most populous state, an approved online poker bill in California would go a long way toward putting the kibosh on any approval of RAWA by federal lawmakers. California tribes, seven of whom are split into three factions that remain at odds over the inclusion of PokerStars and racetracks in the state’s possible ipoker scheme, continue to hold up progress in advancing online poker legislation.

Confer and compromise

The 2015 World Series of Poker promises to be one of the best in history. Thanks to key changes and additions to the schedule, this year’s WSOP will shatter records and help to grow the game of poker as a whole.

There are years that I look at the upcoming WSOP schedule and find it difficult to build excitement. This is not one of those years. Poker players of all skill levels and disciplines will find something to get excited about on this schedule. Below are three reasons why the 2015 WSOP will be the best ever.

Here a Gimmick, There a Gimmick

I never thought I’d be an advocate for “gimmick” poker tournaments but I’ll give credit where it’s due. This year’s schedule has several tournaments that are a bit gimmicky but are perfect to draw in players of all skill levels.

“Slow down you move too fast, you have to make the morning last.”

Those are the first two lines of the first stanza of the Simon & Garfunkel classic: ‘The 59th Street Bridge Song.’ It’s one of those lines that likes to emerge from my memory and fill my conscious mind with melody.

I think we learned to sing it whilst I was in school. I wasn’t a good kid in school. I never listened, always had too much to say and I had this Road Runner type energy bursting to get out. Now that’s fine if you have to escape from a Wily Coyote, but it isn’t conducive to impressive feats of learning.

I guess there was a reason the line kept popping up. I was too busy to understand why – until now.

Anyone interested in buying a $2 billion casino resort for 5 percent? If so, head up to Atlantic City as the Revel Casino will be back on the market effective Tuesday morning. According to CBS New York, Revel lawyers will file a motion in bankruptcy court on Tuesday to cancel a deal with Glenn Straub after he was unable to close on the property by midnight Monday.

Straub had been seeking an extension on the closing date to February 28 after a U.S. District Court judge refused to terminate the rights of Revel tenants. He had wanted to purchase the property without any restrictions, which meant that he had the right to immediately kick former tenants out of the property. This would have cost millions in investments by these tenants.

Straub Didn’t Close By Midnight So Revel Walked

When former tenants went to a federal appeals court to fight for their rights, Straub attorneys hinted that he might walk away from the sale entirely. On Friday, an appeals court reversed a previous ruling that the property could continue without consideration of property leases.

I think some people are destined for fame from the moment they are born. They hold their rattle like Mick Jagger holds his microphone, they kick their feet with the fluidity of a David Beckham free kick, and they look so damn cute.

I think Sam Trickett is one of those people.

Even the name sounds famous.

He is the most successful live tournament player in the history of European poker – and by quite some margin. He is technically gifted. But his success is not one-dimensional. He is lucky; but he creates his own luck through his unmovable determination that he will succeed. In his golden years he knew his card was going to hit the deck harder than Butterbean.

In 2014 the online gaming operators in New Jersey generated $122 million in Gross Gaming Revenue, just 1/10th of the foolhardy estimates Governor Chris Christie forecasted, and less than 1/2 of several more conservative estimates.

Of that $122 million, New Jersey’s cut (online gaming is taxed at 15%) was $18.4 million. Not a large amount, but it’s $18.4 million New Jersey’s budget didn’t possess before online gaming came to the state. Still, in the grand scheme of a state’s budget this is a near insignificant amount.

However, this number doesn’t tell the entire story of online gambling’s economic impact on the Garden State. The tax revenue garnered from iGaming operators is just a piece of the pie, and doesn’t take into account the taxable income on the players’ end, the jobs created and marketing dollars spent by iGaming companies, or the licensing fees paid by iGaming operators and their vendors.

The byproducts of regulation

Brad Pitt needs a break.

The man God chiseled out of the same stone as Patrik Antonious has a hard life. The Golden Globe winner is also a busy film producer, he owns an Oscar winning production company, is husband to one of the most beautiful women in the world, and has to look after six kids.

Six kids!

So when the Ravishing Rick Rude of Hollywood wants to chill out and play a few hands of poker with the lads, then mikasa sukasa.

Internet poker regulation in California remains stalled by seven powerful Indian tribes who make up three separate factions.

The issues being debated are more than familiar to those who have been keeping abreast of the lack of ipoker legislative progress in the Golden State – the inclusion or exclusion of racetracks and bad actors. It appears that some sort of compromise must be reached in order for California to join the regulated online poker party, but just which groups or tribes will do the bending remains to be seen.

Group no. 1

The Rincon Band of Luiseño Indians, Pala Band of Luiseño Mission Indians and United Auburn Indian Community make up one group. The latter two tribes have partned with Bwin.Party Digital Entertainment, while Rincon has made a friend in Caesars Entertainment.

I hated the first few months of being a parent.

I hated the lack of sleep; the loss of closeness I had with my wife as she devoted all her time to this plump pink thing; the screaming; the crying; the lack of synergy with the plump pink thing because I had no milk in my tiny man breasts; and the boring one-way conversations I would hold in the dead of night.

Then the little plump pink thing started talking; then crawling (albeit backwards); and then walking. This was getting interesting. So this is what parenting was all about. With the dark days behind me, I was heading beyond infinity with my mate Buzz.

Then he hit 13.

The anonymous player format at Bodog/Bovada continues to be a favorite of online poker players who have flocked to the site in droves since January 1, creating a rise in player traffic of 35%.

The year began with Bodog averaging 1,400 ring game players. About a month and a half later, that average has reached 1,900, according to the latest numbers provided by PokerScout.com.

The Recreational Poker Model (RPM) employed at Bodog was introduced in late 2011. At first ridiculed, the concept is now seen as containing at least some elements crucial to the growth of online poker.

No Shark Tank

A day after the reintroduction of RAWA, a pair of online poker bills are officially dead. Bills in both Mississippi and Washington were introduced earlier this year but neither really had much of a chance of progressing. They now have become the first bills of 2015 to fail at the state level.

The first bill, the Mississippi Lawful Internet Gaming Act of 2015, never had a chance from the onset and its author even stated as much. When Representative Bobby Moak initially filed the bill, he admitted that the odds were long that the bill would pass but he still filed it in order to keep dialogue open on the matter.

The other bill, HB 114 in Washington State, also died a quick death due to overall lack of interest. Washington is the only state that makes playing online poker a felony and few believed that the bill would gain any traction.

What Was the Purpose of Filing When Defeat Was Certain?

The reintroduction of HR 707, Restoration of America’s Wire Act, also known as RAWA, by Representative Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) marks the arbitrary starting point for what will almost certainly be another year of debate between people pushing for the legalization and regulation of online gaming and the people hoping to outlaw online gaming.

2014 saw the poker community reacting to a myriad of attacks by Sheldon Adelson and his lobby group the Coalition to Stop Internet Gambling, along with his political allies. At first our responses were akin to a game of whack-a-mole, but by late 2014 our arguments started to become more focused and better resonated.

So my suggestion is to continue this focused approach, and use the following tactics during this fight, particularly when we contact our elected representatives.

Issue #1: Crony capitalism

The legendary Doyle Brunson has always been a fighter. After a freak injury took away his ability to play sports, he moved on to poker and soon found himself in the toughest and potentially deadliest high stakes games in the country. Later, he became an icon of the game and continued to dominate players one-third his age. Now at 81, Doyle is facing his 12th major surgery and third cancer surgery.

Brunson confirmed the surgery late last night via Twitter: “Got my 3rd melanoma confirmed today. Early stages, should be simple operation. Fortunately, it’s on my head and everybody knows I’m hardheaded.”

Brunson later recognized the seriousness of his surgery despite it being relatively minor. He then decided to deal with it the way he has for over 60 years, by playing poker: “Simple or not, this will be my 12th major operation. Gonna play poker now because i always heard u get lucky right before u die.”

All-Time Great Still Grinding High Stakes Cash Games

It was a bit of bad news/good news/bad news in Washington State this past week, as a grassroots effort that sought to legalize online poker in Washington State was declared dead, while a hearing was scheduled for a separate bill seeking to legalize fantasy sports, but at the same time might make Daily Fantasy Sports illegal.

Washington State is no stranger to online gaming legislation, as it is one of the only locales that has passed an online gaming law, which it did way back in 2006. Unfortunately, it’s a law that inexplicably makes playing online poker and gambling online a felony in the state.

Washington State Senator Margarita Prentice (now retired, thank goodness) was the driving force behind the 2006 law, which was later upheld in 2010 by the state’s Supreme Court. Prentice not only made playing online poker in Washington State a felony (law enforcement in the state has never arrested or charged anyone with this crime), but further angered the poker-playing community in an interview with ESPN where she dismissed the game and its practitioners as losers [paraphrasing]:

“I just think some of these arguments are utter nonsense. You mean you’re going to move so you can play poker? Gee, lots of luck in your life… I have nothing against card playing. That’s fine. If you want to do that, but I’m sure not going to worry about someone… you know. Let them go pump gas.”

Some of you may remember that former Full Tilt Poker pro Erick Lindgren supposedly owed the company approximately $2.5 million. That amount stemmed from a combination of loans given to him by the company and an accidental deposit of $2 million made into his account. When Full Tilt went under, many assumed that his debt would vanish as well.

Apparently not. Full Tilt’s new owners are suing the pro in federal court and looking to recover the debt plus damages. According to Courthouse News Service, Rational FT Enterprises (aka PokerStars) is looking to recover $531,807 in loans made by Full Tilt to Lindgren, as well as a $2 million accidental deposit.

Bankruptcy Filing Didn’t Save Lindgren

After the collapse of Full Tilt and the subsequent purchase of the company by PokerStars, the $2.5 million debt was transferred to PokerStars and they began collection processes in 2012. Lindgren then filed for bankruptcy; a move prompted after losing massive sums of money due to his gambling addiction.

Do you love poker?

I’m not talking about the kind of love you have for your Aunt. I’m talking about special love. Tingly love. Thought-consuming love. Take over your life love.

There is a widely held belief that the most invigorating route through life is to find something that you love to do, figure out a way to get paid doing it, and – to borrow a Nike slogan – just do it.

In 2009, I quit drinking alcohol. It was ruining my life. Either the booze went or I did. The booze went. Poker saved my life back then. Had I not fallen in love with the game, I could have easily fallen back into alcohol’s clutches.

Super Bowl XLIX was certainly one for the ages, and depending on which side you were on it either ended in heartbreak or elation.

The final drive of the game was not all that dissimilar from flopping a set with Pocket 6’s only to find out your opponent flopped a set holding Pocket Aces, but then you caught the miracle 6 on the turn only to see the case Ace turned over on the river – yeah, it was that wild.

With so many close calls and game-changing plays I thought it would be fun (fun for me because I’m from Boston and a lifelong Patriots fan) to examine the game and all of its controversial situations from a poker mindset – so that means some stats and some risk/reward analysis.

Always leave yourself an out

BIG:A;bout 3,500 U.S. online poker players are expected to receive roughly $3 million by the end of next month in the ongoing Full Tilt remission process.

Approximately 3,100 of those players previously provided inaccurate information to claims administrator Garden City Group (GCG), according to a 2 + 2 post by Poker Players Alliance executive director John Pappas. The remaining 400 will be the first wave of players to receive reimbursement from the “disputed balances” category.

That’s only about 1/4 of the players whose balances did not jibe with the GCG and DOJ, leaving roughly 1,200 more to wait for the next wave of payments, whenever that may be. The 400 “disputed balances” players set to be reunited with their cash next month are those whose conflicts consisted of lesser amounts – under $500, or disputes that amounted to 20% or less of the total balances.

Apparently, the GCG still need to review the majority of disputed claims, likely a tedious task considering the phantom deposits and mismanagement discovered at Full Tilt.