The Nightly Turbo: Florida Considering Vegas-Style Casinos, Isildur1 and the Tax Man, and More
If you're looking for the top poker news stories of the day, look no further. We've scoured the Internet to bring you everything you need to know. Up on the docket today, Florida is considering building Las Vegas style casinos, Viktor "Isildur1" Blom might have to pay the tax man quite a bit of money, and more.
In Case You Missed It
Team PokerNews covered four events from the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure in the Live Reporting Blog, but there were plenty of side events going on. Take a look at the results from the PCA side events.
Going to be in Las Vegas soon and wondering what tournament series are running? The Las Vegas Grinder gives you the scoop.
Another Sunday of major online poker tournaments is in the books. "Benji79" came away with the biggest score, but plenty of others added serious money to their bankrolls too. Check out the Sunday Briefing for all the results.
The 2011 Aussie Millions is under way and the PokerNews Live Reporting Team is there covering all the action. Event #3, the $1,100 Pot-Limit Omaha, played down to a final table Monday and if you're looking for the final table lineup, you can check out the recap.
What Happens in Florida....
It just doesn't quite have the same ring to it does it? The state of Florida is considering expanding casino gambling statewide, and has received proposals from some of Las Vegas' leading hotel and entertainment companies. During his campaign for governor, Rick Scott opposed expanding casino gambling in the state, but now that he's in the driver's seat, he said he's open to the proposition.
Scott met with CEO of Las Vegas Sands Corp., Sheldon Adelson, recently, increasing speculation on the issue. Adelson has said he is willing to invest up to $3 billion to fund a Miami hotel and casino project.
In a radio interview, Florida Senator Mike Haridopolos said, “We’re a big-time gambling state, and we need to figure out in general how we’re going to maximize revenue because people are going to gamble.”
Will we be calling Florida the Las Vegas of the South? Only time will tell. Check out more on the issue at Examiner.com.
Paying the Piper
The grand mystery of Isildur1's identity was solved last week at the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure. It wasn't a big surprise to very many people, if anyone, when Viktor Blom walked through the black curtain.
It was said that one of the reasons Blom didn't reveal himself was the tax situation in Sweden. Well, that hasn't changed, and last week a financial newspaper in Sweden revealed that the Swedish government had begun to crack down on online poker sites. Under Swedish law, residents must pay taxes on gambling online unless they play on sites based in the European Union or the state-run Svenska Spel. Unfortunately for Blom, he did most of his playing on Full Tilt Poker, and since it's a non-European Union site, he could be looking at a hefty tax bill.
How hefty? $149 million. Why so much? Well, according to Swedish tax laws, all gambling is taxable, even losing hands. (Double bad beat.) Though originally from Sweden, Blom recently moved to London where gambling income is not taxed. There is no word yet whether or not Blom will have to pay up, but Erik Boman, a spokesperson for the Swedish tax agency said, "Internet poker is something we're looking into and I know this poker player, but I can't comment on whether we've opened a case."
You can read more on Betting.Betfair.com.
Quick Sesh Before Tee Time
TMZ must have had a slow day Sunday because it posted a video of Phil Hellmuth playing poker at the Medinah Country Club from back in October. The video isn't exciting, and we're not so sure the story is either. Apparently, while waiting to tee off, Hellmuth took on some of the caddies in a friendly game of seven-card stud.
From TMZ, "But after the video cuts off ... things really started to heat up. Sources tell us Phil was holding his own until one of the caddies took him for a $350 pot by besting Hellmuth's ace-high flush with a full house." While the caddy was probably breaking a sweat until he won the hand, we're not so sure Hellmuth was. He was after all, tweeting last week about playing Chinese for $500 a point and losing $51,000.
We can't embed the video for you, so you'll have to check it out on TMZ.com.
UBOC 6 Under Way
The sixth installment of the UB Online Championship kicked off Sunday with three events: a $500+$30 no-limit hold'em deep stack hosted by Eric Baldwin, a $300+$20 Sniper no-limit hold'em deep stack hosted by Joe Sebok, and a $300+$20 no-limit hold'em deep-stack ultra turbo hosted by Team UB.
Twenty-nine events are on the 15-day UBOC 6 schedule. UB is guaranteeing $5 million in cash and prizes throughout all the events, and the championship event boasts a $1 million guarantee.
Running simultaneously, the Mini-UBOC caters to players whose bankrolls aren't as established as those of others. Twenty-nine events are on the Mini-UBOC schedule, ranging in buy-ins from $15+$1.50 to $50+$5 for the Main Event.
If you missed any of Sunday's events, don't worry, there are plenty more on the docket, you just need a UB account.
Do You Have What it Takes?
Only a few days are left in the PokerNews Hostess Hunt, so if you're thinking about auditioning, you had better get your video in soon. While at the 2011 Aussie Millions, Lynn Gilmartin grabbed some friends and co-workers to test their skills in front of the camera. Good thing they aren't auditioning!
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The first Lock Pro Supremacy was one of the most fun online tournaments of the year so far and there are three more to play. There are $7,500 Freerolls that also have 25 x $100 Lock Pro Bounties in each tournament, so you can boost your bankroll even if you don't make the money.
