Poker Central and CakeWorks have joined forces to give PokerGO subscribers a fly on the wall view of Daniel Negreanu, Brandon Adams and Seth Davies’ preparations for the 2018 Super High Roller Bowl.

Two years ago, Las Vegas cash game pro, Matt Berkey, rounded up $300,000 in cash and took a shot at the Super High Roller Bowl (SHRB). The man sucked a lot of air into those gritty guts during those four days. It was worth every gulp. Berkey finished fifth for $1.1m, and fortunately for poker fans, Poker Central cameras were on hand to capture Berkey’s preparation.

Can they do it again?

Poker Central and CakeWorks have united to bring poker fans a glimpse of the preparatory work of three of the 2018 Super High Roller Bowl cast. Daniel Negreanu, Brandon Adams, and Seth Davies appear in INSIDERS: Super High Roller Bowl 2018, exclusive to PokerGO subscribers.

Veteran Tournament Director, Danny McDonagh, rejoins PokerStars as Executive Tournament Director, two years after leaving the company to focus on more important things in life.

I read recently that the human mind acts as an iPod, storing memories like the white flash of brilliance stores songs.

1000 songs in your pocket.

How many memories does a mind hold?

Norway’s politicians have made good on their threat to pass gambling reforms that include blocking the domains of internationally licensed online gambling sites.

In late April, a coalition of Norwegian opposition parties secured a favorable committee vote on a raft of new gambling rules, including new powers to punish companies or individuals that market unauthorized gambling products, as well as imposing domain name system (DNS) blocking of international sites that compete with local gambling monopolies Norsk Tipping and Norsk Rikstoto.

On Monday, Norway’s parliament approved these plans despite the government’s continued opposition. However, the vote is only an intermediate step that compels the government to put forward legislation that will achieve the coalition’s desired changes. Labor Party MP Kari Henriksen told the Dagbladet media outlet that the coalition wouldn’t let the government ignore the vote.

Queried as to what actual effect these measures will have once they are imposed, Henriksen acknowledged that unauthorized online gambling would likely continue, but “supervision and control are strengthened, making such illegalities more difficult,” which would in turn mean fewer Norwegians would patronize unapproved sites.

Tom Waterhouse, Australian online betting’s formerly inescapable face, has launched a new tip-selling service for Aussie race bettors, particularly those with money to burn.

Last week, Australian media reported that Tom Waterhouse had stepped down from his role as CEO of William Hill Australia, which was recently acquired by rival online betting operator CrownBet, which was itself recently acquired by Canadian gaming giant The Stars Group.

Waterhouse formerly ran his own eponymous online betting outfit, until he sold out to William Hill in 2013. Waterhouse was subsequently named CEO of Hills’ expanded Australian operations, but the latest round of acquisition-a-go-go reportedly tagged him as yesterday’s man, so out he goes.

Waterhouse reportedly signed a two-year non-compete clause before collecting his severance, but the deal apparently doesn’t preclude Waterhouse selling his alleged betting expertise to the great unwashed masses of Australian bettors.

In the day’s least surprising news, casino operator Hard Rock International (HRI) has been officially cleared to land in Atlantic City.

On Wednesday, the New Jersey Casino Control Commission (CCC) held a public meeting to discuss the likelihood of HRI being granted a gaming license before the scheduled June 28 opening of its AC property, Hard Rock Atlantic City (the former Trump Taj Mahal).

To virtually no one’s shock, the meeting was an anti-climactic affair, with the CCC commissioners wasting little time before lifting their rubber stamp and putting their seal of approval on HRI’s license application.

In pitching his company’s commitment to the market, HRI CEO James Allen told the CCC that the company “could have just re-carpeted” the Taj and slapped some music memorabilia on the wall, but instead opted for a $500m overhaul of the property because “we want to grow Atlantic City rather than just moving people from an existing facility.”

Casino operator Melco International Development has formally appointed Craig Ballantyne to oversee its City of Dreams Mediterranean integrated resort project in the Republic of Cyprus.

Longtime gaming industry figure Ballantyne (pictured) formerly oversaw operations at Tigre de Cristal, the casino in Russia’s far east Primorye gaming zone that until recently was controlled by Melco subsidiaries. Ballantyne left that job last September to take up an undefined role with Melco.

On Wednesday, Melco formally named Ballantyne as the Cyprus project’s new property president, with responsibility for ensuring operations comply with local laws and overseeing the resort’s management and its expected 2,500 staff members. Ballantyne said it was “an honor for me that Melco has entrusted me with this great project.”

The €550m City of Dreams Mediterranean’s first phase is scheduled to open in the Limassol area in 2021. The resort has been granted a 30-year monopoly over casino operations and is projected to be generating annual revenue of over €700m by 2022.