James Bardolph, Creative Director at FACEIT, tells Forbes magazine that the inspiration behind his crazy idea to host the Season 4 esports Championship Series finals at the Hard Rock Hotel in Cancún, Mexico came from the World Poker Tour.

There was a time when I looked upon the lush green grass of Wembley Stadium, and all I could see was Norman Whiteside curling the ball past Neville Southall with his wand of a left foot. Now, when I look at the hallowed turf, I see inflatable white domes.

In 2013, I was at Wembley for the International Stadiums Poker Tour (ISPT). A joke at the time, you had to be there to experience the monumental achievement of the organisers to host an event in such a vast, cavernous arena.

The lifespan of the ISPT was as fruitful as a blind snake charmer plying his trade in the Souks of Marrakech, but for that one fleeting moment, they dared to do something different, and anyone who was there will always remember, white domes and all.

A team from Singapore has won the Asian Nations Pairs Challenge in Bangkok as the International Federation of Poker continues to prove to SportAccord and the International Olympics Committee that Match Poker is a mind sport to be reckoned with.

Poker is dirty.

Its apartment reeks of socks worn for too long. Houseplants desperate for light, wilt away in the corner. Silver and gold rings lie on the floor below fingers that have grown too thin. Veins are popping. Empty bottles pick up the reflection of a tortured soul. Men and women of the night come and go. Anything goes. It usually does.

So how do you clean it up?

3: Barrels that look and feel distinctly partypokerish with Patrick Leonard vowing to leave live poker for a year to focus on his online game; a look at the schedule of the $2.7m Monster Series, and a Mosconi Cup contract extension.

Three news stories with the name ‘partypoker’ at heart. We begin with a Twitter Ask Me Anything (AMA) from Patrick Leonard, move onto the schedule for the Monster Series, and end with a sponsorship deal with the Mosconi Cup.

On Friday, while Iron Man, Thor and Thanos were forcing my heart to headbutt my ribs, partypoker’s ambassador, Patrick Leonard, was on Twitter for an interesting AMA. Looking through the long list of questions, I only stumbled across one idiot – how do you run like God – so it’s well worth a read if you love the game.

The most interesting Q&A insert for me was when someone posted the question – Current Online Power Rankings? In his response, Leonard talks about two unique online multi-table tournament (MTT) animals.

Galaxy executives clearly have a monumental task in front of them. They want – still – to try and convince Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte that Boracay is the perfect spot for its $500-million casino resort. Duterte has repeatedly called the once-popular tourist destination a “cesspool,” ordering it closed for six months. He has also gone so far as to declare, “There will never be [a casino in Boracay].”

It had previously been announced that the project was being pulled completely, but now it is simply “on hold” according to the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp (PAGCOR), which oversees gaming regulations in the country. Galaxy was already given a provisional license for the casino by PAGCOR, but once President Duterte took his stance on Boracay, everything halted. In an interview with Reuters, PAGCOR’s president, Alfredo Lim, said, “They (Galaxy) have to probably explain to the president the advantages and that they will comply with the environmental laws.”

President Duterte has apparently decided that gambling is evil, and has gone so far as to say that he wouldn’t approve any casino project in the country. Galaxy’s chairman, Lui Che Woo, along with the director of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and other representatives recently met with Duterte to try and convince him of the benefits of the entertainment complex Given Duterte’s propensity for stubbornness, that meeting probably didn’t go as the casino backers had planned.

At the beginning of the month, Duterte announced the closure of Boracay Island for a “six-month rehabilitation project” beginning on April 26. The result is the possibility of about 30,000 employees in tourist-related positions losing their jobs. However, Duterte has gone further, stating that he plans on giving the land to the farmers following the end of the rehabilitation period.

The debate rages in India over whether or not poker is a game of skill or simply a game of chance.

Ask Adda52’s CEO Anuj Gupta what he thinks, and he’ll tell you that poker requires more skill than what fund managers require. Following the success of the Deltin Poker Tour (DPT), which was organized in conjunction with Adda52, hopefully more will see the high amount of skill and grit needed to be a winner.

The DPT wrapped up its latest tournaments in Goa on April 29. The four-day event was a huge success and included a Super High Roller Series, as well as a shoot out and bounty, among others. As popularity gains momentum, it will become increasingly harder for lawmakers to deny the game, eventually leading to acceptance on par with what has been seen across Europe and the US.

The game requires a high degree of dedication and a large amount of discipline. Gupta points out that a player’s success hinges solely on how much he or she is willing to invest in training, just as is the case with any sport and even many business activities. He predicts that the next two to five years will be key for the industry, which will see a continued increase in the number of Indian players. “There are a few such parents even now, who are proud to see their children play poker and perform well, and the list is growing. In the next year or two, you’ll hopefully see us operating out of multiple destinations,” he explains.

Silver Heritage Group Ltd (SHG), an Australia-based gaming operator, didn’t fare too well in the first quarter of the year. The casino company just released its earnings to the Australian Securities Exchange (ASE), reporting a loss of $1.9 million in earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA). It’s not the end of the world, though, and company executives noted in their report that they expect business to pick up for the rest of the year.

For Q1, SHG reported total revenue of $4.7 million. This was helped in part by the recent grand opening of the company’s Tiger Palace Resort Bhairahawa, located in Nepal on the border with the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Tiger Palace received its gaming license in December of last year and opened to the public in mid-March of this year.

In the filing with the ASE, SHG reported, “Resort revenues and casino revenues [at Tiger Palace] have both been growing steadily over the first quarter 2018 and that growth continues in April.” However, Tiger Palace also reported an adjusted EBITDA loss of $1.8 million for the first quarter. The casino’s table drop was $3.2 million and its hold percentage was 23.9%.  Gross gaming revenue (GGR) was reported as $911,000.

In order to support its assertion that the financial situation is improving, SHG reported that the GGR for Tiger Palace in the first 28 days of April had reached $450,000. This was an increase of $50,000 over the GGR for March.

G2E Asia

G2E Asia is the must-attend event of the year dedicated to the Asian-facing gambling industry, an annual hub for professionals working in this space.  Focused segments this year include Digital Content & Technology, Integrated Resort Experience, Parts & Components Pavilion and the Asia Lottery Expo and Forum in addition to a full conference program stretching across the event’s three days.

Other activities surrounding G2E Asia include the inaugural G2E Asia Awards, the official G2E Pre and After-Party and of course the usual elaborate expo floor exhibitor stands where the latest innovations in Asian gaming are on display.

What: G2E Asia