Two Poker Milestones and One of Our Own

This past month has been a busy one in regard to poker milestones. First, on Feb. 1, Gavin Griffin scored one of the most impressive achievements in recent poker history. By winning his first World Poker Tour title (the 2008 Borgata Winter Open), he became the first player to win poker's triple crown: a WPT title, a World Series of Poker gold bracelet (2004 pot-limit hold'em), and a European Poker Tour title. The EPT has seen tremendous growth over the past two years, thanks to PokerStars and other online sites sending tons of players to the events, and Griffin, who won the 2007 Grand Final championship event and $2.4 million, is the reigning champ. Congratulations, Gavin!

Next, the largest gambling destination in the world took steps to regulate poker. Macau introduced regulations covering Texas hold'em, and casinos in the region can now offer live games and hold tournaments. Up until now, Macau's casinos have been unable, besides a one-time special permit granted to an Asia Pacific Poker Tour event in November 2007, to offer Texas hold'em games. Now that casinos in the region have the green light to spread poker, it could easily usher in a poker boom in Asia.

Lastly, here at Card Player, we've been busy for most of the past year developing an exciting new product that we think all poker players will appreciate. We are proud to unveil SpadeClub, Card Player's new membership poker software that gives its members a shot at more than $100,000 in cash and prizes each and every month. Each month culminates in a $40,000-guaranteed freeroll in which the top prize is more than $10,000. You get a chance to play in a ton of high-paying tournaments each month, and a buy-in or deposit is never required. Exclusive members pay only a small monthly membership fee to participate. Check out more about SpadeClub in The Inside Straight.