Poker Snaps

More Poker in Spain

Paul Millward, a former journalist for the Racing Post, has opened a card club in Cabo Roig, on the Costa Blanca, 25 miles south of Alicante. Called Aces High, the club is based in Pharaohs Sports Bar, where regular tournaments are held on Mondays, Tuesdays, Fridays, and Sundays. This is likely to extend to Thursdays and Saturdays.



"Our most popular game is the €20 rebuy no-limit hold'em," said Millward. "There are 300 starting chips, with blinds at €5-€10, and increasing every 15 minutes. These tournaments usually last for around three hours and pay the first eight places, with the winner collecting anything between €500 and €1,200.



"I like to pay the first eight places whenever possible, even if the last three places at the final table are paid only €50, because it encourages novices to play again if they manage to make the final table.



"The club is run on fairly strict poker room rules, but many of the players are holiday-makers or novices, so some leeway is necessary. However, as the regulars have become better acquainted with the rules, the standard of the games has improved.



"The games are good value-for-money entertainment for those who fail to make the final tables, and many take the trouble to come and say thanks for a great night."



With more than 300 individual players having sat down to play since the club opened in early June, and with tournaments regularly attracting up to 50 entrants, the ex-pat has every reason to feel pleased.



However, he is not about to rest on his laurels: "Later this year, we will be introducing minitournaments, starting after the main event. Cash tables with varying limits will also be introduced. Hold'em is overwhelmingly the most popular game, although there is some demand for seven-card stud.



"As standards improve, we will be looking to run satellites to major events around the world. I'm looking for sponsors, and can offer our casino tables for branding and a lot of publicity in return."



Interested parties can contact Millward, who is planning on making his World Series of Poker debut in the 2006 seven-card stud event, on: 0034 617 891 279.



Hotels on Mayfair? Not Quite, but Harrah's Vegas Monopoly Plans are Going Well
Harrah's Entertainment continues its quest for outright ownership of Las Vegas with the purchase of the Imperial Palace Hotel & Casino.



The Imperial Palace features a 52,000-square-foot casino and a 2,640-room hotel, occupying an 18.5-acre site on the world-famous Las Vegas Strip, situated between Harrah's Las Vegas and the Flamingo. It is across the Strip from Caesars Palace, a casino Harrah's Entertainment purchased in June.



The company now owns, or manages through various subsidiaries, more than 40 casinos in three countries, primarily under the Harrah's, Caesars, and Horseshoe brand names.



Betfair to Go it Alone?
Gambling software company CryptoLogic has warned that it may lose a key contract – its supply of poker software to Betfair, the leading betting exchange.



Shares in the company, which is Canadian but is listed in London and on the NASDAQ in the United States, lost nearly a quarter of its value when the news was announced.



Betfair, which is preparing for its stock market flotation, told CryptoLogic it intends to bring the online poker software that it licenses from the company in-house.



CryptoLogic said that if Betfair were to leave, its 2005 results would be unaffected. But the decision "could have a material affect on 2006 earnings if this revenue is not replicated with growth from other existing and potential new licensees."



The big questions are: Does Betfair have enough player liquidity to relaunch as a stand-alone site? And, will sites currently feeding into the pool of CryptoLogic games, such as Williamhillpoker.com and Paddypowerpoker.com, be adversely affected by the sudden removal of Betfair players?



Clearly, there are interesting times ahead.



HighRollerRadio.com Introduces "On the Felt" Internet Radio Show

Highrollerradio.com, a radio station that stream-casts and produces online wagering, gaming, and sports shows on the World Wide Web, has announced the addition of a new show called On the Felt.


This online radio show, created for poker players, was the first to broadcast live from the World Series of Poker Lifestyle Show at the Rio Casino.



Produced in a sports-talk radio format, On the Felt is hosted by Mark Arum, a poker player and radio personality. He leads fast-paced, lively discussions and short features on all topics of interest to today's poker player.



Interviews with the biggest names in poker, tips to improve poker skills, as well as the latest poker news and tournament standings are also on the agenda.



WSOP Circuit Expanded

The second season of the WSOP Circuit, a string of televised events to rival the World Poker Tour, features an expanded schedule of 12 stops at Harrah's casinos around America.



Each stop on the 2005-2006 circuit offers several tournaments, with buy-ins ranging from a few hundred dollars to $10,000 for the no-limit hold'em Circuit Championship.



The winner of the final event of each Circuit stop will qualify for the tour's grand finale, the 2006 World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions, which will be televised by ESPN.


Remaining schedule for the WSOP Circuit:

Caesars Indiana Oct. 19-Nov. 2

Paris/Bally's Las Vegas Nov. 9-22

Showboat Atlantic City Nov. 28-Dec. 9

Grand Casino Tunica Jan. 5-26

Harrah's Atlantic City Feb. 7-17

Caesars Atlantic City March 21-31

Caesars Palace Las Vegas April 3-14

Harrah's New Orleans May 18-28

Harrah's Lake Tahoe June 6-16

2006 TOC at Rio June 28-29

2006 WSOP at Rio Summer 2006



The World Series of Poker 2005 Tournament of Champions (TOC) is a $2 million freeroll, featuring a select group of poker's biggest names. It will be held Nov. 6-8 at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.



The final nine players from the World Series of Poker's 2005 main event are eligible to join more than 100 top players who qualified for the TOC at five World Series of Poker Circuit events earlier this year.



Among those eligible to participate in the TOC are top-ranked professional players such as Phil Ivey, Howard Lederer, Antonio Esfandiari, Jennifer Harman, T.J. Cloutier, Chris Ferguson, Robert Williamson, Russ Hamilton, Yosh Nakano, Michael Mizrachi, Tony Le, Eric Cloutier, and Mimi Tran.



However, European representation looks restricted to Ireland's Andrew "The Monk" Black, courtesy of his fifth-place finish in the World Series main event.



First place will pay $1 million; second, $325,000; third, $250,000; fourth, $150,000; fifth, $100,000; sixth, $75,000; seventh, $50,000; and eighth and ninth, $25,000.