Video Poker Forum 

World's Best Freeroll

2005 World Series of Poker Champion Joseph Hachem, when asked how winning the big payoff would affect his life, spoke of how one million would change his life, let alone seven and half million. Well, how about 100 million? That is the jackpot in what is being billed as the “World’s best freeroll”, a joint effort between Titan Poker and Noble Poker, two online poker rooms. Starting April 30, 2006, the Online Main Event Tournament will kick off. As the field narrows down to ten finalists the tournament will pause, ramping up for a Final Event to be held in a secret location sometime in May, 2006, where one of the ten will have a chance to win the $100 million jackpot prize purse. Of course, to get the big money, the winner will have to hit a Royal Flush of Spades at the final table, which means getting the biggest prize is more a matter of luck than skill, and could be awarded to any of the ten players at any time, regardless of who takes first place.

Salon Owner Mixes With Poker Stars

While Lucia Barrett didn’t run away with the first place purse at the Caribbean Poker Classic on the paradise island of St Kitts, her experience is a good reminder that there are many benefits to being a seat winner these days. Barrett snagged her seat at the event by winning an online satellite tournament, a story that is becoming very familiar these days. The online site paid her entry, flew her to St. Kitts, and even gave her a thousand dollars spending money. While she didn’t blow away all the competition, she did do well, and more than that, she had a very memorable experience. Star watching is one of the benefits she enjoyed, sitting at a table with former Celtic footballer Tony Cascarino as well as Hollywood actress-turned-poker ace Jennifer Tilley. Not only did Barrett outlast Tilley, she was the second to last woman competitor in the field, and made it to spot 50 out of 125 players. Not bad for an Internet player, but Barrett thought she should have done better, pointing out it was bad luck that did her in. Related Links Jennifer Tilly

True High Stakes Poker Hits Airwaves

A buy-in for a poker tournament is the amount of money a player has to put up to participate. One of the attractions of the buy-in is that it provides a built in limit; a player knows they can’t lose more than they have invested up front. When those buy-ins approach $10,000 for such huge events as the World Series of Poker Championship, it starts to mean real serious business. In what is being billed as the highest buy-in around, GSN is about to launch their new television show that really makes players put their money where their mouth is, with a tremendous buy-in of $100,000. Starting on Monday, January 16th at nine pm Eastern Time, High Stakes Poker is going to showcase the best of the best; or at least, the best of the best who can afford a hundred grand to play. Doyle Brunson, Johnny Chan, Barry Greenstein, Phil Hellmuth, Daniel Negreanu, Jennifer Harman, Ted Forrest and Bob Stupak will all be there, laying it on the line in some heavy-hitting No Limit Texas Hold’em. Related Links Doyle Brunson Johnny Chan Barry Greenstein Phil Hellmuth Daniel Negreanu Jennifer Harman Ted Forrest

Mobile Poker Game Wins Award

The publisher of WorldKing Poker, one of the new rash of mobile poker games for cell phones, has received an award for the “most dynamic and sophisticated application.” The Forum Nokia PRO Award was given to Digital Chocolate, WorldKing Poker’s creator, signifying excellence in providing software for the mobile phone industry. The Forum Nokia PRO Award is given to recognize outstanding achievement for members of Nokia’s developer program., which is called the Forum Nokia PRO. There are seven categories designed to pick out the best, selected by an independent panel of analysts and industry journalists from around the globe. The game itself blends poker with a spelling competition, with modes such as Five Card Draw and the ever popular Hold’em, and players can compete with up to six computer opponents or as many as four friends in a hot-seat mode.

Poker War Has Begun

Empire Online warned their former partner PartyGaming that it was coming. In mid November Empire made a statement that they intended to seek legal recourses against PartyGaming, and now they have. On Tuesday Empire began legal proceedings, claiming breech of contract, in the High Court of Gibraltar. A spokesman for the company said that Empire “seeks substantial damages” as well as “injunctive relief” from PartyGaming. Their opponents in the matter seem to have no worries at all. According to PartyGaming's Director of Communications, John Shepherd, his company is confident in a successful end to any litigation with Empire. Empire recently suffered a tremendous blow when it floated shares in June and lost over half its value. Empire claims the damage came from an earlier move by PartyGaming to ring off its own players from those of partner “skin” sites, who used their game engine to run poker hands for their customers.

Poker Chip Sheds Light On Xmas Gift Problems

The holiday gift giving season is nearly upon the shoppers of the world, and new and fancy gift ideas abound. For the poker fan is a shoppers life, there are plenty of gifts to choose from, ranging from chips to table tops to books and DVDs and decks of cards. One unique idea that has likely not hit the cornor shop yet is the Poker Chip Lighter, by SmokersMarket.com. The online site, which caters to the smokers of the world, offers lighters of all shapes, sizes and functions, and has recently announced a new addition to its line up. The Poker Chip Lighter is the same size as a regular poker chip, and comes in a variety of colors and values. Would your poker fan fancy a black chip worth 100? They have you covered. There are even pink chips for the lady poker players.

Dublin Tournament Justifies Poker Decision

When David Pomroy decided to quit his job to play poker full time, he made a discover identical to that of most pro poker players; he was making more money playing poker than he was at his full time job. The former office worker used to put in his hours from nine am to five pm, and then go home and play for two hours online, improving his poker game. David started playing at nineteen, and at twenty-two he had become good enough that his ten to fifteen hour sessions per week raked in more than 40 hours at the office. When he made the equivalent of around £60,000 for a third place finish in European Poker event held in Dublin, it justified his decision to leave his job, being the most money he had ever pocketed playing the game he loves.

CNMI Looks At Poker Related Crime

As reported by the CNMI online news source the Saipan Tribune, local officials are taking a look at any possible links between poker and related crime. Over the last four years, according to the Department of Public Safety, there have been at least 634 crimes and offenses that occurred at poker establishments. The breakdown is: 166 poker-related theft cases, 140 counts of assault, 132 cases of disturbing the peace, 22 burglary related cases, 12 child abuse or neglect cases and 133 cases of criminal mischief. There were two rape cases that happened on the premises of poker establishments and one homicide. There was one case of a dead person being found in a poker establishment. Former pubic defender Masood Karimipour insists that this is indicative of the hidden cost of gambling establishment, which should be measured along side the obvious benefits, such as gambling revenues.

Cindy And Cyndy Help Boost WPT Image

Poker players around the world who aim to emulate the pros know the name Cyndy Violette. As one of the top pro women poker players in the world, Cyndy has a reputation of tough, aggressive, successful poker. For those people who follow either Internet trends or the Modeling industry, they should be familiar with another Cindy; Cindy Margolis, once billed as the “most downloaded woman on the Internet.” Cindy is learning how to play poker from Cyndy, and it seems just in time. Margolis will be joining forces with the World Poker Tour, the outfit thought responsible for launching the current poker craze, lending her looks and personality to help promote the WPT. Players online will be able to communicate virtually with Margolis as she trains up to compete in celebrity poker tournaments to promote both the WPT and Chipleaders.com. Related Links WPT Cyndy Violette Cindy Margolis

Poker Means Money For Entrepreneurs

By the time you finish reading this article, over one million dollars will be wagered online. The cash cow of poker business continues to grow as players like “Ms Fortune” (an online name) manage to enhance their work a day salaries through online poker rooms such as PartyPoker. Ms Fortune’s real name is Jane Foster, a mother of three from Manchester whose full time day job is a student. Two and a half years ago she put down $30 to give poker a whirl and had managed to build it up enough to take vacations, redecorate the house, and get a car. It is stories like Fosters that keep the money flowing into the coffers of online poker rooms, and it shows no signs of abating. The future of poker, however bright it looks, could be in doubt, as up to ninety percent of online players are based in the US, where it is considered illegal. Related Links Party Poker