Las Vegas Visitation Up, Gambling Down
LAS VEGAS (AP) - Las Vegas saw slightly more visitors this May compared with the same month last year, although gambling was down more than 10 percent in Clark County.
The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority says about 3.5 million visitors came to Las Vegas in May. That's 2.4 percent up from the same month last year, when 3.4 million people visited Sin City.
Ladbrokes Slashes Odds on Heathrow passport Queues During Olympics
(Reuters) - Queuing and gambling, two popular pastimes in Britain, will be especially prominent during the looming London Olympics, starting at Heathrow Airport's arrival terminals it appears.
The slow pace of immigration checks has come under fire as Olympic officials and athletes begin arriving for the two-week Games and a leading bookmaker has already made it a racing certainty that an hour-long wait will be experienced.
Leo Wolpert, Vanessa Selbst Among Top 20 as 2012 WSOP Dwindles Dow to 700 Players
Poker pros Leo Wolpert and Vanessa Selbst were among the top 20 chip leaders of the 2012 World Series of Poker Main Event.
It seems Selbst’s name appears among the top 20 of just about every WSOP event she plays in at one point or another.
Shaun Deeb, Jason Somerville Enjoy Strong WSOP Showings Thursday
Both poker pros Shaun Deeb and Jason Somerville led with number of chips at various times of the day Thursday, Day 3 of the 2012 World Series of Poker.
Deeb has amassed $795,178 during his live poker career with two first place finishes.
Reality TV Shows ‘Pawn Stars’ and Hardcore Pawn’ in Ugly Feud
A feud has broken out between the casts of television's two most popular pawn shop reality shows!
The shows are "Pawn Stars," set in Las Vegas and seen on the History Channel, and "Hardcore Pawn," set in Detroit and seen on Tru TV.
"Pawn Stars" is the top-rated pawn shop-themed reality show on American television, and is one of the top-rated shows in all of cable television in the USA.
Doyle Brunson Busts Out of 2012 WSOP, Ryan Eriquezzo Wins National Championship
78-year-old poker icon Doyle “Texas Dolly” Brunson busted out of the World Series of Poker Main Event Wednesday afternoon. He had initially considered not entering this year’s event but changed his mind in the last minute.
Caesars First Time Falling Below IPO
Gaming giant Caesars Entertainment has fallen slightly below its IPO price for the first time since it went public five months ago. At that time the stock had shot up 71 percent during its first day of trading, reaching a high of $17.90.
Paddy Power Passes Preliminary Review to Operate Online Gambling Site in Nevada
While it is yet to name a potential business partner from the US, the United Kingdom’s third largest bookmaker, Paddy Power, was granted a preliminary finding of suitability to operate in Nevada by state gaming regulators Wednesday.
"The U.S. is a key potential new market for us," Paddy Power Chief Executive Officer Patrick Kennedy said on Wednesday. "We're looking at all opportunities in the U.S., but our expertise is in online gaming. That's obviously what we're looking at doing in Nevada and in other states."
Phil Ivey Divorce Settlement Fuels Nevada Supreme Court Arguments
CARSON CITY, Nev. — (Associated Press) - Poker pro Phil Ivey’s divorce case has the Nevada Supreme Court considering whether judges should oversee cases involving people from whom they’ve accepted campaign contributions.
The state high court heard 45 minutes of arguments Tuesday in Carson City on a lawsuit by Ivey’s ex-wife, Luciaetta Ivey, alleging decisions by a Family Court judge who handled the couple’s divorce were tainted by a $5,000 campaign donation.
Texas Online Poker Payment Processor Agrees to Forfeit $6m
A Texas-based online poker payment processor indicted April 15, 2011 has agreed to forfeit $5 million.
LST Financial of San Antonio and managing director Gregory Colton also promised "not to knowingly provide, either directly or indirectly, payment processing services for Internet gambling, including Internet poker”.
The company claims it was duped into processing the payments by three online poker rooms that were also charged at the time, including PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and UB.com.
Russia Sweetens the pot for Global Gambling Giants
* Vladivostok casino zone offering near zero tax rate
* First phase scheduled for 2016 completion
* Up to 12 casino-resorts anticipated for region
* Revenues forecast at $2 billion to $7 billion
By Farah Master
HONG KONG, July 12 (Reuters) - A Russian territory hoping to lure global casino titans to set up large-scale resorts has unveiled initial guidelines that offer companies more lucrative terms than Macau and Singapore, intensifying the race to secure investments in Asia's expanding gambling industry.
PokerStars Full Tilt Poker Deal Still On Despite Rumors to the Contrary
PokerStars Head of Corporate Communications, Andrew Feldman, shot down rumors Wednesday that the company had backed out of a deal to purchase the assets of shuttered Full Tilt Poker. Stars was widely expected to pay back monies owed to players of the one time second largest online poker company in the world.
This tweet appeared late Wednesday:
Andrew Feldman @AFeldmanESPN
The Head of Corp Communications for @PokerStars @erichollreiser says the Twitter rumors of PS folding on the FTP deal is "false"
Phil Ivey First Interview in Three Years: No Questions About Full Tilt Poker Debacle
We’ve been wanting to hear from Phil Ivey for the past year following the April 2011 indictment of Full Tilt Poker. We got the interview, but sorely lacking was any mention of Full Tilt Poker, not from the interviewer and not from Ivey. Its abrupt closure following accusations of improprieties ranging from a ponzi scheme to money laundering to bank fraud has resulted in millions of dollars being owed to players.
Poker Maximus II Coming in September
The Merge Gaming Network and Carbon Poker have slowly been releasing information regarding the upcoming Poker Maximus II this September (2012).
Doyle Brunson Still All-In at 2012 WSOP Main Event, Shaun Deeb, Vanessa Selbst Going Strong
Poker icon Doyle Brunson was still playing in the World Series of Poker 2012 Main Event. The Texas Dolly was actively tweeting from his table.
The Beast Roars to over $100,000 at Americas Cardroom Online Poker Site
Jaws drop at online poker tables around America as major $100,000 milestone reached in first 11 days of The Beast’s existence
Liquidator Appointed for Purple Lounge Online Poker Room, Casino
The parent company of shuttered online poker and casino site Purple Lounge has appointed a liquidator, the UK firm of Chartered Accountants, Baker Tilly Restructuring and Recovery LLP. A creditors meeting will be held July 23.
Annie Duke Silence is Deafening
Never one short for words, poker pro Annie Duke has suddenly gone silent.
Duke’s Twitter page has not featured any entries since June 7 when she last tweeted:
Bathroom sign at a Thai restaurant. Now I know the way to a man's heart. pic.twitter.com/LKuaR86f
Facebook Introduces New Game ‘Hotel Casino’
There has been much discussion this week over Facebook apps like Zynga’s Farmville and Texas Hold’em Poker offering real money play down the road. Add Hotel Casino to that list as it seems custom made for such a platform.
Hotel Casino is Facebook’s newest game, described as “allowing players to manage their own hotel casino, and play each other at their favorite casino games for simulated bets and rewards”.
MGM Resorts Asks Mass. Casino Panel to Reconsider 2-step Bidding Process
BOSTON — (Associated Press) - MGM Resorts has asked the state's new gambling commission to reconsider its proposal to prequalify potential bidders for casino licenses in Massachusetts.
The Las Vegas company said in a letter released by the panel on Tuesday that the two-step process would unnecessarily slow the bidding process and waste time and resources.
DOJ Asks for Leniency for Absolute Poker Executive
The US Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of New York have requested a reduced sentenced for an executive of Absolute Poker who they say has been fully cooperative following charges of money laundering and bank fraud in April 2011.
Brent Beckley’s sentencing has been postponed on a number of occasions already. Beckley acted as an executive for both Absolute Poker and UB.com.
Howard Lederer, PokerStars File For Motion to Dismiss in Online Poker Complaint
The US Government contends the man most associated with disgraced Full Tilt Poker, Howard Lederer, had been involved in an elaborate ponzi scheme. Last week, US authorities arrested Full Tilt CEO Raymond Bitar, who was indicted for money laundering and bank fraud last year. They slapped a superseding indictment upon Bitar immediately following his arrest, charging he too was involved in a ponzi scheme to defraud customers.
No Further Hearings Set for Federal Online Poker Legislation
Staffers for Texas Republican Congressman Joe Barton have confirmed that no hearings are set as of yet for a piece of legislation that look to legalize online poker at the federal level.
Revel Ranks 8th of 12 Atlantic City Casinos 3rd Month in a Row
By Wayne Parry on July 10, 2012
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — Three 8s is a lousy poker hand, and it's an equally inauspicious way to launch a casino.
Yet that's exactly what Revel has to show for itself after three months of operation, ranking 8th out of Atlantic City's 12 casinos in terms of gambling revenue in each of those months.
New Jersey's newest casino took in $14.9 million in June, up $1 million since May, when it took in $13.9 million. In April, its first month of operation, it won $13.4 million.
Gambling Company News and Tweets – July 10, 2012 (3 pm EST)
Here is all the latest Twitter chatter related to the gambling sector – poker, sports betting, financials, entertainment, politics and more. Be sure to follow Gambling911.com on TWITTER here to get all the latest updated gambling news as it happens.
Top Current Company News: Bwin Euro 2012 results, Betable.com, Zynga
William John Poker Player Profile – WSOP Main Event Day 1 Chip Leader
William John leads after Day 1 with the most number of chips. There is some recent history that might make this Australian poker player feel a bit more confident.
Only one player in recent memory held the Day One chip lead and then went on to win the world championship -- Joe Cada back in 2009.
John also holds a huge edge over the second-ranked player, John Hoang of the US.
William John was the only player to break the 200,000-chip mark, ending Day 1c with a total of 266,700 chips.
Casualties of WSOP: Some Notable World Series of Poker 2012 Eliminations
Heading into Tuesday’s play there were several noteworthy eliminations spanning a three-day period.
Euro 2012 Marred Results at Bwin.Party
(Reuters) - Bwin.Party Digital Entertainment (BPTY.L), the world's largest listed online gaming group, said a run of predictable results in the Euro 2012 championship marred a solid performance in its casino and bingo operations in the second quarter.
The company said its trading performance since the beginning of April was broadly in line with expectations, with solid performances in bingo and casino being offset by continued pressures in poker.
Darvin Moon Blasts Epic Poker Head Jeffrey Pollack: He’s a Douchbag
2009 World Series of Poker Main Event runner up Darvin Moon has lashed out at former Epic Poker Chairman Jeffrey Pollack, accusing him of “f***ing up “ the Heartland Poker Tour, one of Epic’s only successful assets.
Poker Maximus II: Big News Coming Within 24 Hours
One of the most popular online poker tournaments, Poker Maximus, was expected to make a big announcement within the next 24 hours (July 10, 2012). Carbon Poker was offering its customers the opportunity to participate in this huge tournament.
