With the poker world having moved online, there are two well-known and popular event series arriving online that will already be household names in homes where online poker players rule the roost.

MicroMillions and SCOOP (Spring Championship of Online Poker) are always huge, but with poker players forced to play from home during these uncertain times, a month of big guarantees and PokerStars’ well-recognised tables being put to use for some headline-grabbing poker events will cheer many players up.

The 17th series of MicroMillions will kick off the festivities, with the action starting this week and running up to the 26th of the month. As ever, hundreds of events will cater for the low and micro stakes online poker player across tournaments that total a massive guaranteed prizepool of $2.6 million.

Buy-ins for MicroMillions events cost between just $1.10 and $11, with satellites running for pennies – or cents – in the build-up to each event. The highlight of the MicroMillions series is undoubtedly the $11-entry Sunday Storm Special Anniversary Edition which brings the festival to a close on April 26th and has a massive guarantee $1 million. This Sunday’s opening Sunday Storm has a healthy guarantee of $250,000 with a reduced buy-in of $5.50.

Seven events have taken place in the 2020 Poker Masters Online Championship so far, and with players such as Alex Foxen, Sam Greenwood and Jorryt van Hoof all starring, we’ve taken a look at who was a cut above the rest in each event and what the overall standings are heading into a busy weekend of action.

Event #1

Taking place in no-limit hold’em, the event saw Elias Talvite come out on top, winning $481,250 as he beat Spanish High Roller Sergi Reixach ($323,125) into second place. The $25,000-entry event also saw German tournament crusher Ole Schemion finish 3rd for $206,125 and Sam Greenwood come 4th for $123,750. Big names all fell short of the money places, with Jason Koon, David Peters and Timothy Adams all drawing a blank.

Event #2

Mayor Fumiko Hayashi has had to reverse course pretty quickly on recent comments she’s made about his city’s Integrated Resort (IR) process. After insisting things had to go on as scheduled, she’s now backtracking, saying that some parts will have to be delayed. That could open up an opportunity for Genting Singapore to get their bid into the mix.

GGRAsia reports Hayashi now expects the request for proposal (RFP) process for Yokohama to be announced in August, rather than the originally scheduled June timeframe. The implementation policy for an IR is also delayed by the same amount of time. The reason given for this delay is now specifically due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Previously, Hayashi had told the media that Yokohama would stick to its June deadline. She had refused to delay matters at that point because the Japanese national government was sticking to their January to July 2021 timeframe to accept bids. But she now believes Yokohama can get their bid in, even with a two month delay.

Yokohama has several operators interested in winning their RFP process, but the one making news is Genting Singapore. The operator of Resorts World Sentosa filed their Annual Report on August 15, and their Yokohama got a mention in Chariman Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay’s statement.

GGPoker and the World Series of Poker have announced that they will be teaming up to provide online poker players with a brand new WSOP Circuit series, the WSOP Super Circuit Online Series.

With poker players around the world now needing to play online to get their fix of fun, GG Poker are providing a network for players to win a WSOP Super Circuit Championship Ring in one of 18 headline series events.

The announcement has led to a lot of excitement, not least on Daniel Negreanu’s Twitter account, as the six-time WSOP bracelet winner and GG Poker player put up a challenge for fans to guess the next GG Poker Pro, with the prize being a ticket into a $500,000-guaranteed GG Poker online event.

GGPoker and @WSOP teaming up! We also have a new ambassador, tag @ggpokerofficial with your guess who it is and you could win a ticket to the #GGMasters $500k guarantee! pic.twitter.com/dDcYj5ujME

The current situation in the Philippines is hard to assess. A lack of COVID-19 testing means that the 5453 positive cases the country knows about may be badly underestimating the situation. As many Filipinos continue to break quarantine, the online gaming and land based gambling industries are taking their best guesses at when a sense of normalcy might resume.

On April 15, Labor Undersecretary Dominique Tutay suggested that if the enhanced quarantine ends in early May, as is currently expected, Philippine Offshore Gambling Operators will be allowed to resume operations immediately. “POGOs will continue as long they are allowed by law. We will just continue our initiative to regulate and ensure that these firms are compliant with labor and immigration laws as well as payment of taxes,” Tutay said.

In the rest of the interview, Tutay hit on all of the typical POGO issues you’d expect to hear from a government official before there was a pandemic. She’s concerned about illegal immigrants and payment on taxes, mostly.

While it’s probably the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation’s (PAGCOR) ultimate call on what happens next with POGOs, the source we spoke to in the industry are already preparing for a return to the office. They hope to return to work in early May, as Tutay suggested they could, but expect a full return is more likely in June or July. Assuming that doesn’t happen, they are already preparing to conduct operations from home for several more months.

It took a while, but Tennessee is finally ready to get in on the sports gambling scene. Of course, there’s no rush since virtually all sports activity is on hold because of the coronavirus, but at least all of the pieces of the puzzle are now in place. The final step was for the Tennessee Education Lottery Corporation (TELC), which is overseeing the activity, to sign off on the rules that will govern sportsbooks’ operations, and that happened yesterday. However, one provision in the newly-created policies is not going to sit well with operators, especially as they look to pick up every dollar they can following the massive revenue losses caused by COVID-19.

The rules were initially expected to be implemented this past February, but that was delayed after heated debates started over some of the options. Perhaps thinking that the coronavirus would keep people too busy to notice, the TELC approved a hold cap of 10% on all payouts. In other words, the sportsbooks will only pay out 90% of the actual winnings, keeping the other 10% in reserves.

This isn’t completely different from what is seen in other states; however, those states have holds that are typically much smaller – Nevada has a rate of 6.3% and New Jersey’s rate is 6.9%, and the national average is 7.5%. Only Washington, DC was worse, with a proposed 20% hold. Ultimately, the district’s sports gambling rules were put into effect with no cap included.

The concern is that the hold might lead to gamblers turning to the black market, which is one of the issues legalized sports gambling was designed to resolve. According to Brendan Bussmann of Global Market Advisors, a global gaming advisory firm, “A year ago, many looked to have Tennessee be a model for a mobile-only state and take best practices to craft a market. Based on some of the provisions today and the wait-and-see approach, it is turning into a model of how not to craft an ideal market that maximizes revenue and provides the best opportunities for customers, operators and the state.”

The Arkansas Racing Commission (ARC), the state body charged with overseeing casino licensing, held a scheduled meeting yesterday to address several important issues. One was undoubtedly how to recuperate revenue lost due to the coronavirus pandemic, but the members of the commission were still able to spend a little time finding a resolution to a long-standing argument over who should have the right to build a casino in Pope County. They worked out a game plan, and the two leading gaming operators in the battle will now face off and let the winner be chosen by the number of points they can earn in a final round of scoring.

State residents approved a measure in 2018 to allow gambling expansion in the state, with the county becoming one of the primary targets. However, controversy immediately set in when Cherokee Nation Businesses (CNB), working with Legends Hospitality, was awarded a license by the ARC almost immediately. That didn’t sit well with rival Gulfside Casino Partnership, who launched a legal attack to try to prevent the deal from moving forward.

A judge, Pulaski County Circuit Judge Tim Fox, determined that the ARC needed to take a second look at the licensing process and make a more informed decision based on the merits of each company. The ARC has taken the judge’s ruling under advisement, and is going to proceed just as he suggests. The commission will make a final decision on who wins the casino license sending the companies’ applications to be scored, with the higher score being ruled the victor.

Initially, five different casino operators had stepped into the casino license boxing ring, but three were almost immediately disqualified, leaving, initially, just Gulfside and CNB. The three that didn’t make it were sent packing after not fulfilling the requirements of the application process; specifically, not securing the requisite letters of recommendation as stipulated in the gambling expansion legislation. Gulfside was then also dismissed because its letters were signed by local elected officials who were no longer in office when the application was submitted. The ARC argued that this voided the letters and, subsequently, Gulfside’s application.

The Eldorado Resorts/Caesars Entertainment deal (it’s also a merger and an acquisition, depending on who you talk to) is moving forward, despite the fact that the coronavirus has the gaming world in a headlock. The process was never going to be easy – regulators in each state where the two companies have operations have to agree to the arrangement before the final checks are signed and delivered. Most of these regulatory approvals have already been secured as the companies diligently make their rounds, but a few more are needed – that of Nevada regulators being one. However, the former chair of the Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) doesn’t foresee any issues.

Before the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) can sign off on the acquisition/merger, gaming regulators in three more states have to give their approval. Nevada, New Jersey and Indiana are the last on the list, but COVID-19 has forced them to shift priorities, and holding meetings to discuss issues like the $17.3-billion dollar are not at the top of the list. Eventually, the regulators will have to get together, though, and make a determination.

Becky Harris was the first female chair of the NGCB and now spends her days as a sports betting fellow at the International Center for Gaming Regulation at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She recently participated in a conference led by SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, an investment and financial advisory firm, where she offered her view of what to expect out of the NGCB. Per a memo sent to SunTrust clients by company analyst Barry Jonas, “[While] the current (Nevada Gaming Commission) Chairman Tony Alamo recently announced his decision to step down … Harris noted the deal could be approved without an acting chair – important, given prior appointments have sometimes seen lengthy processes.”

It would be difficult for Harris, or anyone, to know exactly when the final approvals could be received – the longer the coronavirus maintains its grip, the longer the current lockdown will remain in place. However, Jonas offered a forecast, predicting that the deal could be completely consummated sometime in June. There is little doubt that regulators in Nevada and New Jersey will support the marriage, with only Indiana now being seen as a possible stumbling block.

Dr. Anthony Fauci has a difficult job. He’s in charge of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and is also spearheading efforts by the US government to thwart COVID-19’s attempts at dismantling the country. His suggestions on combatting the virus haven’t always been received well and has reportedly received death threats over his policies, but this hasn’t been enough to stop People magazine from including him in the list of candidates for its “Sexiest Man Alive” award. Now, Fauci has issued a new statement on what he perceives as the best way for the sports world to get back on its feet, and, as usual, his comments are likely to find mixed reactions.

Fauci doesn’t see a problem with sports leagues starting to get back into action, but he would prefer that all events take place in front of empty stadiums, fields and arenas. He would expect games to be held without fan attendance, like what is already being seen with Germany’s Bundesliga, and adds that players will need to be regularly tested to find out if they have been infected with the coronavirus. Anyone who turns up positive will need to be quarantined.

The disease specialist participated in an interview with Peter Hamby from Snapchat as part of his Good Luck America series and asserted, “Nobody comes to the stadium. Put [players] in big hotels, wherever you want to play, keep them very well surveilled. Have them tested every single week and make sure they don’t wind up infecting each other or their family, and just let them play the season out.”

Fauci isn’t ready to say when he thinks major leagues could start getting back into gear. He has indicated that he believes the number of coronavirus cases is stabilizing, which is a good sign, but won’t offer an opinion of when the NBA, NHL and others might be able to crank up operations. Currently, there is talk of some possible sports activity next month, but nothing concrete is in place – most predictions are that fans might find some relief in June. For football fans, the NFL Draft is coming next week, and the league is still adamant that its players will be on the field come September.

This is a guest contribution by Steve Kaaru, Writer for CoinGeek. This article first appeared on CoinGeek.com.

Indacoin digital currency exchange has added support for Bitcoin SV, becoming the latest in a rising number of exchanges that allow users to buy BSV easily. The exchange pointed to the increasing user demand as a key factor in its listing decision. The listing will make Bitcoin available to 170 countries worldwide and make it easy to buy with over a dozen fiat currencies.

Indacoin’s listing will make it possible to buy BSV on its trading platform and through its extensive partner network. These partners include global exchange OKEx, Changelly, and Waves. It will be available for purchase via the U.S. dollar, the British pound, the Euro, and over a dozen more fiat currencies. Users can also use their Visa and Mastercard credit and debit cards to purchase BSV, the exchange revealed in a press release shared with CoinGeek.

Guilherme Jovanovic, the chief business development officer at Indacoin, expressed his optimism for the future of BSV, stating: “Enabling BSV direct purchase with the most popular payment methods on the internet—Visa & Mastercard is a big step to increase its global adoption. We are thrilled to bring Bitcoin Satoshi’s Vision to a whole new level.”