Monthly Archives: December 2015

The Top UK Poker Stories of 2015

Lee Davy casts his mind back through 2015 to pull out the greatest stories from UK poker including the likes of Liv Boeree, Niall Farrell and Dave ‘Devilfish’ Ulliott.

Ok.

So it’s true.

Team UK were abysmal at the inaugural Global Poker Index (GPI) World Cup exiting in the first round. Sam Trickett, Simon Deadman, Oliver Price and the Salter brothers failing to make an impact in Malta.

Macau junkets close out 2015 with two more entries in criminal scrapbook

Macau casino junket operators capped off their annis horriblis with a couple more incidents for the 2015 criminal scrapbook.

Last week, Macau’s Judiciary Police arrested a man who stole $157k from his junket partner in October 2013. The Macau Daily Times reported that the suspect admitted his guilt in the theft, which he said was motivated by greed.

The theft occurred after a gambling client of the junket pair won HKD 1.22m at a casino on Cotai. That same day, the client deposited his winnings in the junket operators’ bank account. The following day, the client asked the junket for his money, but the suspect decided to take the money and run, leaving his partner holding the bag and looking for justice.

Last Wednesday, the subject attempted to return to Macau from the mainland, leading to his arrest by border security. The suspect said he’d lost the stolen funds on his own gambling spree shortly after the theft, so while a jail sentence appears inevitable, restitution appears doubtful.

Here's a Sure Bet: Merger Mania Won't Abate in Gaming Industry

It’s been the busiest year for gaming-industry consolidation in a decade, and the wave of mergers and acquisitions isn’t over yet. As governments ratchet up the tax burden at a time when companies are competing harder than ever for new customers, oddsmakers are finding the best way to combat the squeeze on profitability is to join forces.

IPC releases February schedule

The India Poker Championship (IPC) kicks off its first edition of the 2016 season from 24-28 February at the Deltin Royale Poker Lounge in Panjim, Goa. With the official schedule now in place, players can look forward to yet another action packed series at India’s biggest poker event.

This February edition goes back to a 5-day format beginning from Wednesday and ending on Sunday. The recently concluded December edition, being the season-ender, was the longest in IPC history held over 8 days. The organisers have now reverted back to the regular schedule but there are quite a few changes as compared to the editions held in 2015. The first and most marked change is the absence of a couple of events. The Mega Satellite has typically been the opening event in past IPCs where players will try and win seat packages for the rest of the events in the schedule. This satellite is not a part of the upcoming schedule. The other notable absence is the 5k Warm Up which has traditionally been the first side event of the series. The February edition now opens with the 10k Kickoff, this time a one day event, unlike its multiple starting flight avatar in December. Thursday evening has the 15k Bounty tournament which is a very popular format with players where 5,000 from every buyin is the bounty amount one gets on knocking out an opponent. Both events mentioned will carry a minimum guaranteed prizepool of INR 10 lacs.

There are two big ticket tournaments in the schedule – the 60k Highroller and the 30k Big Game (Main Event). After the phenomenal success of their first ever Highroller event in August, the IPC decided to skip it in the October edition and doubled the buyin to 100k for its grand finale December edition. More than 100 players participated in this highest ever buyin event at the IPC in its 6 year history! So the Highroller makes it return and is expected to be a more regular part of the schedule going ahead. The Big Game is the highlight event of the series and a much sought after title among players attending the IPC. Another common thing between the two big tournaments is a 30 lac guarantee prizepool on each and both tournaments are 2 day events. The final event of the schedule is a 10k Turbo event which is expected to be a whole lot of action packed fun as it’s one final chance for players to score a title in this February edition.

2015 was a tremendous year for the IPC and their continued success through the season has drawn eyes from across the Asian region showcasing this brand and as a result the Indian poker market as a destination for tournament poker lovers across Asia. “2015 will be remembered as the year the poker boom started in India. We are proud and humbled by the love and support we received from the poker community and we hope to build on this in 2016!”, said Sameer Rattonsey, co-Founder of the IPC.

IPC releases February schedule

The India Poker Championship (IPC) kicks off its first edition of the 2016 season from 24-28 February at the Deltin Royale Poker Lounge in Panjim, Goa. With the official schedule now in place, players can look forward to yet another action packed series at India’s biggest poker event.

This February edition goes back to a 5-day format beginning from Wednesday and ending on Sunday. The recently concluded December edition, being the season-ender, was the longest in IPC history held over 8 days. The organisers have now reverted back to the regular schedule but there are quite a few changes as compared to the editions held in 2015. The first and most marked change is the absence of a couple of events. The Mega Satellite has typically been the opening event in past IPCs where players will try and win seat packages for the rest of the events in the schedule. This satellite is not a part of the upcoming schedule. The other notable absence is the 5k Warm Up which has traditionally been the first side event of the series. The February edition now opens with the 10k Kickoff, this time a one day event, unlike its multiple starting flight avatar in December. Thursday evening has the 15k Bounty tournament which is a very popular format with players where 5,000 from every buyin is the bounty amount one gets on knocking out an opponent. Both events mentioned will carry a minimum guaranteed prizepool of INR 10 lacs.

There are two big ticket tournaments in the schedule – the 60k Highroller and the 30k Big Game (Main Event). After the phenomenal success of their first ever Highroller event in August, the IPC decided to skip it in the October edition and doubled the buyin to 100k for its grand finale December edition. More than 100 players participated in this highest ever buyin event at the IPC in its 6 year history! So the Highroller makes it return and is expected to be a more regular part of the schedule going ahead. The Big Game is the highlight event of the series and a much sought after title among players attending the IPC. Another common thing between the two big tournaments is a 30 lac guarantee prizepool on each and both tournaments are 2 day events. The final event of the schedule is a 10k Turbo event which is expected to be a whole lot of action packed fun as it’s one final chance for players to score a title in this February edition.

2015 was a tremendous year for the IPC and their continued success through the season has drawn eyes from across the Asian region showcasing this brand and as a result the Indian poker market as a destination for tournament poker lovers across Asia. “2015 will be remembered as the year the poker boom started in India. We are proud and humbled by the love and support we received from the poker community and we hope to build on this in 2016!”, said Sameer Rattonsey, co-Founder of the IPC.

Woman who won lottery during divorce can keep it all – Dutch court

A woman who won a 2.1 million euro lottery prize during a divorce has no obligation to share it with her ex-husband, according to a Dutch court decision published on Tuesday. The Amsterdam District Court ruling said the couple had listed the shared assets they wished to divide at the time they filed for divorce on Oct. 20, 2014, though the divorce was not formally granted until June 2015.

Woman who won lottery during divorce can keep it all – Dutch court

A woman who won a 2.1 million euro lottery prize during a divorce has no obligation to share it with her ex-husband, according to a Dutch court decision published on Tuesday. The Amsterdam District Court ruling said the couple had listed the shared assets they wished to divide at the time they filed for divorce on Oct. 20, 2014, though the divorce was not formally granted until June 2015.

Daily fantasy sports operators, Illinois attorney general reach ceasefire deal

Daily fantasy sports operators will continue to operate in Illinois after negotiating a legal cease fire with the state’s attorney general.

Two days before Christmas, Illinois AG Lisa Madigan released an opinion that DFS was a gambling activity and thus illegal under state law. Madigan’s opinion said she expected both DraftKings and FanDuel to cease operating in her state but both operators filed legal papers in a bid to block Madigan’s efforts.

On Tuesday, Madigan’s office announced that it had reached a deal with DraftKings on an expedited court schedule of their legal fight. Madigan’s office has until Jan. 22 to file its response to DraftKing’s legal complaint, while both parties will have until April 28 to complete the discovery phase and a trial (if necessary) will commence on June 27. (In the court system, six months is an ‘expedited’ timeline.)

More importantly, at least in the short term, is that both parties agreed “not to pursue any other action against the other party” concerning the legality of DFS in the state “except before this court.” DraftKings will therefore be able to continue to operate in Illinois in the interim, while hoping that state legislators can get busy on amending the necessary statutes to declare DFS a legal activity.

Daily fantasy sports operators, Illinois attorney general reach ceasefire deal

Daily fantasy sports operators will continue to operate in Illinois after negotiating a legal cease fire with the state’s attorney general.

Two days before Christmas, Illinois AG Lisa Madigan released an opinion that DFS was a gambling activity and thus illegal under state law. Madigan’s opinion said she expected both DraftKings and FanDuel to cease operating in her state but both operators filed legal papers in a bid to block Madigan’s efforts.

On Tuesday, Madigan’s office announced that it had reached a deal with DraftKings on an expedited court schedule of their legal fight. Madigan’s office has until Jan. 22 to file its response to DraftKing’s legal complaint, while both parties will have until April 28 to complete the discovery phase and a trial (if necessary) will commence on June 27. (In the court system, six months is an ‘expedited’ timeline.)

More importantly, at least in the short term, is that both parties agreed “not to pursue any other action against the other party” concerning the legality of DFS in the state “except before this court.” DraftKings will therefore be able to continue to operate in Illinois in the interim, while hoping that state legislators can get busy on amending the necessary statutes to declare DFS a legal activity.