Inside Straight: News

Players Criticize World Series of Poker Coverage
Heads-Up Battle the Focus of the Complaints
By Stephen A. Murphy

At 17 hours, it was the longest final table in World Series of Poker history. Thanks to some seamless editing, it was fit neatly into a two-hour time block for ESPN.

Depending on whom you ask, the 2008 main-event final table was either a massive failure or a huge success. Or, you could ask the outspoken poker pro Mike Matusow, and he'd tell you it was both.

"If I was a fan, it'd be a big letdown," Matusow told Card Player TV. "As far as that, I think it was a failure. As far as Harrah's and ESPN, I think it was a major success."

There's no denying that it was a ratings success. The four-month delay of the final table, so that the audience could watch the "near-live" action without knowing who won, attracted 46 percent more viewers than 2007. But that didn't stop the criticism.

When asked about their thoughts regarding the final table, nearly every professional poker player critiqued the coverage in a politically correct way. They made sure to highlight the good before they pointed out the bad.

2000 World Champion Chris "Jesus" Ferguson said he appreciated that ESPN showed so much of the action that preceded the final table. 2008 WSOP Player of the Year Erick Lindgren said that ESPN "did the best with their situation." Even Matusow acknowledged the impressive production work that it took to get it on the air, saying it was "nothing short of a miracle."

But then they pointed out the bad.

"They just never showed any hands," said Matusow. "They just showed everyone's bust-out hand."

Of the 274 hands that were played at the final table, ESPN aired 23 of them. But the heads-up coverage between the eventual champion Peter Eastgate and the runner-up Ivan Demidov was the catalyst for most of the criticism. Over the course of four hours, there were 105 hands played between the final two players. ESPN showed just two hands, in five minutes of air time.

"The one glaring omission was that the heads up lasted two hands on television," said Ferguson. "It really didn't show the entire battle between these two great players."

And there was a battle. Eastgate started out with an 80.3 million-50.6 million chip advantage over Demidov, only to watch the Russian claw his way back to take the lead. However, the cool 22-year-old Dane didn't panic; instead, he allowed the aggressive Demidov to bluff off his chips in a series of mistakes.

Both Matusow and Ferguson suggested showing more heads-up action in the future.

"It's a shame the rest of the American public didn't get to see that," said Matusow. "It would've been so sick to watch."

Poker Industry May Be Coming to Texas
Lawmaker Wants State to Protect its Citizens
By Bob Pajich

Texas state Rep. Jose Menendez is again trying to convince his lawmaking colleagues that people have the right to play poker in a safe and protected way by introducing a bill that would bring cardrooms to the state.

His bill - H.B. 222, also called the Poker Gaming Act of 2009 - would create a poker gaming commission under the state's lottery wing that would oversee the cardroom industry in Texas. Its duties would include approving cardroom-establishment licenses and all equipment used to play poker in them, and ensuring the safety of the players by regulating its license holders.

Menendez's proposal would allow for people to apply for one of two kinds of poker licenses: one to run charity events and one to run a commercial poker room.

The owner of any bar or restaurant with a liquor license issued by the state can apply for a commercial license, as can existing pari-mutuels and social clubs. His 41-page bill outlines all of the criteria required to receive a license.

Organizers of charity poker tournaments must submit an application for each tournament they want to hold at least 30 days in advance, and the state caps the rake that a charity-tournament poker operator can collect at 30 percent.

A tax rate is not defined in the text, but it calls for a portion of the tax collected to be distributed to the municipalities that are home to the cardrooms. A portion of the tax collected is also earmarked to help the homeless and the impoverished.

H.B. 222 would also require that all dealers and poker room employees be licensed by the state through the poker commission. The dealers would have to go through a training program that would be approved by the commission.

Menendez, a Democrat from San Antonio, attempted to get a version of this bill passed in 2007, but it didn't make it past committee. Menendez told a local TV station that one of the reasons he's pushing for the state to get involved with regulating the industry is the dangers that players potentially face when playing at underground establishments.

Earlier this year, a man was killed during a botched robbery attempt at an Arlington apartment complex where a group of friends had gathered to play cards and gamble, and in and around Dallas, a series of poker robberies by masked gunmen have taken place in games held in storefronts. Even a VFW was hit.

Menendez believes that licensing and regulating poker in Texas will give players the protection they deserve.

High-est Stakes Poker Ever
The Price to Play on Popular TV Show Goes Up
By Stephen A. Murphy

Now it's $200,000. That's the minimum for how much players will have to buy in for on the fifth season of High Stakes Poker.

The unprecedented amount highlights the newest season of the poker series that regularly features the richest cash games in television history.

In all prior seasons, the series began with players buying in for "only" $100,000. However, by the end of last season, the amount was upped to $500,000 per player.

"High Stakes Poker, by a wide margin, has become a must-see on Game Show Network for poker players and poker fans all over the world," said Henry Orenstein, an executive producer of the show.

The cash game will be held at the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.

"We are thrilled to be partnering with GSN in filming their fifth season of High Stakes Poker," said Brett Kellerman, chief operating officer of the Golden Nugget. "It is a perfect fit for the players, the fans, and the Golden Nugget."

Production of the new season was filmed Dec. 19-21, and while the network hasn't publicized which players will compete yet, it is more than subtly hinting that the audience won't be disappointed.

"I am very excited about the mix of players that we will bring together for this next season," said Mori Eskandani, an executive producer of the show. "Viewers are in for a thrill."

Phil Hellmuth Launches Poker Apparel Line
By Stephen A. Murphy

Some players love him. Some players hate him. All of them would like to have achieved Phil Hellmuth's level of success, which includes the World Series of Poker record for the most cashes ever (69) and the most bracelets won (11). But while you cannot be Hellmuth, now you can at least wear his new line of clothes.

The "Poker Brat" has just launched his own apparel line. Fans now can order T-shirts and hats from www.PokerBrat.com.

"I love the people who designed these shirts," said Hellmuth. "We've worked with artists in Las Vegas, Missouri, and West Hollywood, and I told them to design whatever their hearts desired, and, man, did they create some great poker designs!"

The new line is called the Poker Brat Clothing Co., and it will soon be available on Phil Hellmuth's website. PokerBrat.com is currently taking orders.

Cheri Dokken Retires as Commerce Casino Tournament Director
The Trailblazer Directed More World Poker Tour Events Than Any Other Woman
By Stephen A. Murphy

Cheri Dokken couldn't sleep.

It was the night before her first tournament. She had been promoted to the position of tournament director for Commerce Casino, the biggest poker casino in the world.

The pressure was on, and all eyes were on her.

"I don't think I smiled once that first year," said Dokken. It was 2000 when Dokken became the tournament director. After eight years in that position and 17 years with the casino, Dokken has retired.

She remembers the struggles and obstacles that she encountered in a poker industry that wasn't used to having females at the table. She admits that players tested her, seeing what they could get away with. But Dokken didn't waver.

"I stood toe-to-toe with them on my decisions," said Dokken. "After about two years, I started to gain the respect of the male players in the room."

As tournament director, she was consistent and fair.

"You need to make sure everyone is being treated the same," said Dokken. "It doesn't matter if you're Phil Hellmuth or Joe Smith."

Dokken learned the game from her parents as a child. Her family would play at the kitchen table, and all the kids would talk excitedly about how they would "go to Vegas and show them how it's done." While a laughing Dokken admits that didn't exactly happen, no one can argue that she didn't become a major player on the poker scene.

She directed more World Poker Tour events than any other woman, and she oversaw a poker room that has about 240 tables.

"I'm really going to miss the players at Commerce," said Dokken.

Absolute Poker and UltimateBet Are Now Cereus
Two Sites Now Part of One Poker Network
By Bob Pajich

Tokwiro Enterprises, the owner of both Absolute Poker and UltimateBet, has combined the two sites onto a single new poker network named Cereus.

According to a company announcement, the Cereus network has been a year in the making and brings the player pools from both sites together, even though the "skins" of Absolute Poker and UltimateBet will remain the same.

The company promised that the new network will give players more action, more tournaments, and faster-growing bad-beat jackpots. The change also promises the best security to protect its players, something with which both sites have had trouble in recent years.

According to Absolute Poker: "The combination of a new technology platform and a new 24/7 security center brings players a water-tight gaming experience. The number one priority for the development of the CEREUS poker network was to deliver state-of-the-art security. CEREUS boasts the new Security Center application that immediately detects abnormal winning statistics in real time. It is a major security achievement and gives the Absolute Poker poker room additional layers of security, allowing us to ensure fair play for everyone at the tables."

Both Absolute Poker and UltimateBet were rocked by cheating scandals that were perpetrated by individuals inside the companies, including former World Series of Poker Champion Russ Hamilton.

Another thing the merger should do is benefit players who love the big weekend tourneys that are offered on both sites. The combined traffic should boost the prize pools, and at the same time give more options to online players.

Tokwiro Enterprises is owned by former Kahnawake Grand Chief Joe Norton. The Kahnawake Gaming Commission, located on Kahnawake Indian lands in Canada, charges sites to license and regulate their games.

The KGC hired a former New Jersey gaming officer and district attorney Frank Catania of Catania Gaming Consultants to investigate the cheating scandal at UltimateBet that bilked players out of around $15 million. The scandal was discovered by online players who noticed anomalies in the way certain players played and their winning percentages.

UltimateBet was fined $1.5 million and was required to comply with a list of regulations that included saving all of its game logs and implementing a better security system.

Before this, online players uncovered a cheating scandal that was taking place on Absolute Poker. People manipulated a "test" account that was created when the software was first written and allowed the programmers to see everyone's holecards.

As a result, the KGC fined Absolute Poker $500,000 and required the site to refund the money to all cheated players. Both fines were paid to the KGC.