Industry News

It's a long way from home: Welcome to the Pokerdome

Unsurprisingly, a single person has never won $60 million in a sporting event. In 2006, however, it's possible that one poker player will do just that. But before you start booking flights, there are a couple of potentially difficult hurdles to overcome. Apart from having to have a legitimate place among the highest echelon of high-profile poker players, you will also need to stump up a $10 million buy-in.



Should everything go according to plan, this July, six poker players will be risking such astronomic sums in a winner-take-all mega-event to win the biggest single-day payout in the history of sports.



It doesn't stop there. Fox Sports, the American company that will be broadcasting the event across the globe, has announced a three-year deal with MansionPoker, which ensures the event's pot will grow to $75 million in 2007 and an almighty $100 million in 2008.



The MansionPoker.net Pokerdome Series will get under way in mid-May and will climax in Australia. The first of the six contestants named was Phil Ivey, considered by many to be the world's greatest poker player.



Aside from the colossal sums at stake, MansionPoker will be creating playing surroundings that "look like the inside of a NASA space shuttle" by building a remarkable high-tech arena called the Pokerdome. The dome will consist of a poker table complete with an automated card-tracking system, integrated chip-counting capabilities, robotic cameras that focus on each player's face, technology that enables viewers to see the burned and discarded cards, players' heart monitors, and a rabbit-hunting camera to see what might have been.



George Greenberg, Fox's vice president of programming and production said, "Players will engage in a form of speed poker, in which each move will have to be made within 15 seconds. Viewers will be able to see as many as 45 hands dealt during each two-hour show."



Australian media tycoon Kerry Packer, who famously once offered to toss a coin for the $100 million fortune of someone who was annoying him by boasting about his wealth, was thought to be another ready to stump up $10 million to take his seat, until his death in December 2005.



In fact, Packer's passion for gambling, and his relationship with the global television networks, may well have been a driving force behind such an ambitious project. Indeed, the choice of Australia as a venue seems more than coincidental.



Terry on the River

Terry "Childers" Owens is set to open what he plans to be "the premier poker venue in the northeast of England." The chirpy Liverpudlian, who played such a devastating game in the televised 2005 Ladbrokes Poker Million, has spared no expense in setting up the 5,000-square-foot venue, which has full catering facilities and an emphasis on luxury.



"The River Poker Club is in the basement of a converted night club, and above it there is a public bar and restaurant that is also poker-themed," stated Owens. "We have put a lot of money into buying top-quality equipment and hope to give players the extravagance they want, and deserve, for their money.



"Initially there will be tournaments three nights a week, which will all be no-limit hold'em. Tuition for beginners, online facilities, and seminars are planned for the future."



Owens can be contacted on +44 (0)7958463886, or by e-mail at [email protected]



Hachem Top 10

Golfer Greg Norman topped the list of Australia's sports earners in 2005, but the appearance of poker and Joe Hachem in the top 10 created yet more attention and interest in the World Series winner down under.



No fewer than 50 sportsmen and sportswomen were credited with earnings of one million Australian dollars or more, with jockey Glen Boss, who rode Makybe Diva to her unforgettable third-straight Melbourne Cup win, filling the final position.



Online Gambling Grows Further in the UK
More than £2 billion was wagered online in Britain in the last 12 months, and a staggering 93 percent of the population with an Internet connection gambled with their cash. Residents in the southwest play more often than anyone else: One in 20 of those surveyed said they often spend five hours at a stretch playing online – according to Virgin Money, which carried out the research.



"There's no doubt online gambling and betting has become incredibly popular across the country, and these figures prove it," said a Virgin Money spokesman.



Dusk Till Dawn in Nottingham

Rob Young, a familiar poker face from Nottingham, is the man behind a new poker club called Dusk Till Dawn, described as "15,000 square feet of pure poker paradise."



Simon "Snowman" Nowab, runner-up in the 2005 World Heads-Up Championship and the club's marketing head, said, "We've got room for more than 500 players inside, and car-parking space for 226 of them outside.



"There is a main tournament area featuring around 20 tables for everyday use, and a second area with 15 tables for cash games and tournament overflow. Additionally, there is a high-limit room, similar to the one at Bellagio, with three or four tables. Plans are also afoot for a television studio, fully decked out with a TV table, plus full press and media facilities and a spectator/relaxation area.



"The club is going to be of the highest quality, and kitted out with all the latest gadgets. That includes 30 Internet terminals, the use of which will be free of charge. There's a VIP bar and a small dining area, which will have a table for friendly games and heads-up challenges. Throw in the 80-seater restaurant with full à la carte menu, and I think you will agree that Dusk Till Dawn is going to be something quite special."



There will be no traditional casino table games at the venue, which is situated in the Nottingham city centre, despite having a full casino license. The bad news is that we'll have to wait until the end of the year before it opens. However, Dusk Till Dawn's website is up and running. It can be located at http://www.dusktilldawn.com/.