The Nightly Turbo: Iowa Poker Bill Hits Roadblock, Bodog Addresses Collusion, and More
We're glad you took a few minutes out of your busy basketball watching to catch up on the day's biggest poker stories. In this edition of the Nightly Turbo, we're bringing you the latest on Iowa's chances at legalized online poker, Bodog Poker adding a new feature to prevent collusion, and more.
In Case You Missed It
Many poker pros weren't happy with things at the Wynn Classic Championship this week. Rich Ryan touches on that topic and more in his latest Five Thoughts piece.
In honor of March Madness, we decided to run our own version of the popular tournament. Check out The Muck to find out how to vote on your favorite poker players from the Round of 64 all the way to the championship!
Ron Rose and Chris Bigler burst onto the poker scene with victories during Season 1 of the World Poker Tour. Find out what they've been up to lately in the latest edition of Where Are They Now.
Are you still confused about how to claim your poker winnings in your tax return? Kristy Arnett sat down with tax expert Theresa Fox to get some answers in the Strategy with Kristy podcast.
David "Doc" Sands entered the Top 5 of the Global Poker Index this week. Mickey Doft takes a look at the biggest movers and shakers on the GPI.
Caesars Entertainment Corp. announced this week that O'Sheas is set to be demolished in two months. What will be replacing the popular Vegas party spot? Find out in the latest Inside Gaming.
Is Iowa Online Poker Bill Dead?
On Tuesday, the Iowa Senate approved a bill to legalize and regulate intrastate online poker by a vote of 29-20. The next step for the measure is to move through the Iowa House, but House Speaker Kraig Paulsen (R-Hiawatha) told KCRG on Thursday that there has been a “general lack of interest” regarding online poker among his GOP caucus members.
Not encouraging news for poker players in the state.
The issue has been a hot one in the Iowa Senate for months, but Paulsen says there has been very little conversation about the bill in the House. “What are we in? Week 10?” said Paulsen. “I don’t know if I’ve had three members mention this subject to me ... until this week when the big hub-bub was."
A study by the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission showed that the legalization of online poker in the state could generate between $3 to $13 million in state tax revenue. However, a recent poll by the Des Moines Register that showed 69 percent of Iowa residents opposed legalization of online poker.
Read more at KCRG.com.
Bodog Exposes Hole Card Info
On Thursday, Bodog addressed concerns about collusion on its anonymous poker tables by allowing players to request the hole card information of everyone at a table 24 hours after a game ends. The software update was announced in December but finally implemented this week.
"The fact that we can now offer players this information is another advantage of our anonymous tables and something nobody else can offer," said Jonas Odman, VP of the Bodog Poker Network. "Collusion is a natural concern for any poker room but this new additional feature puts the player in full control. This makes the Bodog Poker Network the fairest place to play poker online in the world."
Bodog's traffic had seen a slight surge since it introduced anonymous tables last November, but the site has seen a sudden drop since the Bodog.com domain was seized and the brand's founder was indicted last month. According to PokerScout.com, Bodog's traffic has declined by 13 percent since those events.
Read more at PokerNews.com.
BestBet Opens Largest Poker Room in Florida
In April, the newly branded BestBet Jacksonville casino in Florida will host a $1 million guaranteed televised World Poker Tour event at the venue's brand new poker room, which opened earlier this month. Formerly called Jacksonville Poker, BestBet's poker room boasts 70 poker tables, making it the largest in the state and one of the largest in the world.
“We are very excited with the opportunity to open BestBet Jacksonville,” said CFO Jamie Shelton. “BestBet Jacksonville will complement our existing facilities and serve as a platform for our larger events like the upcoming WPT televised tournament. While proud to house the largest poker room in the State of Florida, our continued focus and attention to our customers is our number one priority.”
BestBet says the new room has already attracted many of the top poker players in Florida like Jason Mervier, Matt Glantz, John Racener, Shaun Deeb and Andrew Robl. Later this month, former World Series of Poker Main Event champ Greg Raymer will be hosting seminars before Jacksonville’s first 600-player, $10,000-added tournament on March 24.
“BestBet Jacksonville will certainly enhance our standing in the international poker scene as well as with our North Florida player base,” said head of poker Deborah Giardina. “Our mission was to create one of America’s premier poker tourism destinations. Given the response so far, we are well on the way to realizing that goal.”
Check out pictures of BestBet's new poker room at bestbetjax.com.
More Operators Apply for Nevada Licenses
The list of operators seeking Nevada Internet gaming licenses grew longer on Thursday as Spielo and GTECH G2 submitted paperwork to the Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB). The two companies make up the new gaming division of Lottomatica Group, which provides a full range of player-focused games, products and services across every gaming channel.
“Applying for these licenses in Nevada is an important step in our iGaming strategy for the US,” said Spielo International president and CEO Walter Bugno. “Spielo International and GTECH G2 are names that are trusted in regulated markets around the world. We have an established track record as providers of end-to-end gaming products to more than 1,500 customers on five continents.”
eGaming Review also reported Thursday that Playtech is planning to submit an application with the NGCB soon. Read more at PokerNews.com.
March Mania at the Trop
If you're looking for a fun environment to watch the NCAA Tournament in Las Vegas, HeadsUp Entertainment and Tropicana Las Vegas have partnered with Cantor Gaming to create the March Mania Poker Series and Ultimate Players' Party.
From March 15 through 25, poker players can participate in daily tournaments at Tropicana while getting the full March Madness experience in the tournament area. During the 23-event poker series, Cantor Gaming will be providing convenient walk-up betting stations and state-of-the-art wireless Samsung tablets, which allow players to wager without leaving the poker table.
"We are redefining how poker tournaments and players' experiences are created by providing an amazing lineup of poker tournaments daily at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. and a state-of-the-art party area for participants to watch and wager on the NCAA games," said HeadsUp President and CEO Kelly B. Kellner.
The $1,500 March Mania Poker Series Main Event will run from March 23 through 24 and boasts a starting stack of 40,000 in chips. For more information, check out troplv.com.
Calling the Clock
Kristy Arnett caught up with Kevin MacPhee at EPT Madrid to ask him about his guilty pleasure, his biggest regret, and more.
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