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Moneymaker Effect Hits The WCOOP!

September 8, 2008

Chris Moneymaker, once thought to be a mere memory in the poker tournament world since his 2003 WSOP Main Event win, made a very surprise appearance tonight during Event #5 of the PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker. Unlike past WCOOP appearances in which Moneymaker was a guest commentator or guest host at the final table, it was the man known online as “Money800” that would actually BE at the final table this time around!

Yes, you definitely just saw that last sentence correctly. Chris Moneymaker, pretty much only known as of late for his spokesman role on Team PokerStars, surprised a lot of critics this evening by making the final table of the very much pro-infested WCOOP Event #5. The $10,000 No Limit Hold Em championship drew in 321 players, shattering the $2 Million Guarantee PokerStars had put up by over a million bucks. The very best players from both the online and live poker stratospheres would gather to battle it out for the $617k first-place prize and the esteemed WCOOP gold bracelet.

As I railed the final couple of tables, I noticed Chris Moneymaker was playing some of the best poker of his career, utilizing his chip stack and loose image to steamroll his way deeper and deeper into the tournament, even outlasting fellow pros Ted Forrest (aka TheProfess) and Daniel Alaei (aka Steamraise) – both of whom finished in 20th and 13th, respectively. By the time it was said and done, and the final table bubble had burst, it was Moneymaker who would be sitting in the middle of the pack chip-wise at the Event #5 finale. He had outlasted 312 of his fellow poker peers and professionals in one of the toughest online tournaments of the year, and was hoping to add a little more gold bling to compliment his WSOP bracelet he won in 2003.

The journey, however, would be a tad short-lived. While three players in front of him went out before he did, it would be Moneymaker himself eventually succumbing to the bigger blinds, making a move with a weak Ace at $12.5k/$25k with his remaining $300k or so in chips. Unfortunately for him though, as the action was folded around the table, the big blind unexpectedly decided to wake up with pocket Kings! As the board bricked out horrendously, Moneymaker would take home a very impressive $179k in prize money for his 6th place finish. It may not have been the fairy-tale ending he was expecting, but at least it sort of signifies he can still be somewhat of a force in the tournament arena.

More importantly than that though - and I of course can’t account for this from a personal standpoint since I don’t know the man obviously – I think he will get to FINALLY enjoy some satisfaction of finally making it back to the final table of a huge tournament. I mean, after being written off as a one-hit wonder after the 2003 Main Event, he played some of the most spectacular poker of his life in this particular WCOOP event tonight. The man who started the “poker boom” played like the player a lot of people knew he was capable of becoming since his WSOP win, and at least for tonight, he’ll be able to give a nice, royal “F**K You” to all of his critics and poker peers that had bashed him in the past for his lack of tournament FT’s.

Congrats Chris, we here at 4Flush are glad to hear you’re back on the winning track again.

    Score a Royal Flush with your pocket cards on any real-money Texas Holdem ring game at CarbonPoker.com and you will receive a bonus of 100 x the big blind!

    Written by TJ "AceHigh Pino" Gill · Filed Under Online Gambling News 

    Republican Party Drops Online Gambling Prohibition From Platform.

    August 26, 2008

    I came across some positive news today on political news ticker CQPolitics.com in regards to the hotly-contested UIGEA ban. The story has reported that the Republican Party has removed online gambling prohibition from its upcoming party platform set to be announced at the Republican National Convention later next week. The draft of the actual document could still include other stipulations from the original UIGEA bill, however, it is still a big victory in the eyes of the PPA.

    “The draft’s shortening from nearly 100 pages represents a victory for the Poker Players Alliance, a group that has lobbied to legalize and regulate Internet gambling. The million-member group has spent $1.2 million during the first half of 2008 and members have contributed more than $350,000 to candidates this election year,” according to CQ Politics.

    As many 4Flush readers already know, the upcoming Presidential election could have a huge effect on the gambling industry in general. Over the last year and a half, Democrats have been fighting strongly for a resolution with their rival party to regulate online gambling and allow the United States to get a piece of the annual $15 billion dollar industry. Unfortunately, the Republicans have been staunch supporters of the UIGEA and have repeatedly asserted they will do everything in their power to rid America of internet gambling.

    It could be a trying time for the government either way, mainly because there really is no effective way to regulate online poker and other forms of electronic wagering. Congress knows they can’t punish American citizens for doing what they want with their money, and they know they can’t possibly penalize every bank or credit card company if they allow gambling transactions and deposits to go through. Despite every effort to find a solution to ban all forms of online gambling since the ’06 UIGEA passing, it’s been two years and many U.S. players are still finding ways to play poker and casino games. On top of that, there has been a lot of speculation that many more poker rooms who originally pulled out of the U.S. market after the passing of initial U.S. anti-gaming laws are preparing themselves for possibly re-entering the market very, very soon.

    If presumptive Democratic Presidential nominee Barack Obama has his way in this year’s election, there could be a lot of change to look forward to – especially for online gambling.

      Written by TJ "AceHigh Pino" Gill · Filed Under Online Gambling News 

      Josh “JJProdigy” Field Banned From PokerStars PCA Event

      December 28, 2007

      PokerStars BanJosh Field, also known as “JJProdigy” on most poker sites and poker forums, is probably best remembered for having to forfeit his $140,000 payday in the PartyPoker $500k because he played on two accounts during the tournament. Once word of the scandal was discovered, he was promptly banned for life at both PartyPoker and PokerStars. The incident seems to still cast a dark shadow on not just Field himself, but online poker in general.And online poker’s first infamous “multi-accounter” just got a tough reminder from his past handed down by PokerStars – that cheating is not something easily forgiven or forgotten.

      The former up-and-comer, who had made plans to attend the 2008 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure, was denied an invite. Even though he turns 18 before the event was to begin, PokerStars decided that the lifetime online ban from their site would also carry over into the upcoming land-based PCA.

      Josh Field recently attempted to reach out to the communities at Pocket Fives and 2+2, publicly apologizing for his past errors in judgment and asking for a clean slate. Unfortunately for him, his apology wasn’t exactly welcomed with open arms. Scores of online poker players lobbied to PokerStars support to make sure the player formerly known as “JJProdigy” was not allowed to play in next year’s PCA. The flood of emails seem to do the trick, as PokerStars sent this email to inquiring players that was posted on PocketFives:

      Hello xxxx,

      Thank you for your email.

      PokerStars management has decided to extend player’s JJProdigy current ban
      to the PokerStars Carribean Adventure (PCA) event.

      If you have any further questions, please let me know.

      Regards,

      Jacob
      PokerStars Support Manager

        Written by TJ "AceHigh Pino" Gill · Filed Under Online Gambling News, PokerStars 

        2007 WSOP Bracelet Winner Wins PokerStars High Stakes Freezeout

        December 27, 2007

        Poker StarsOnline phenom Steve “MrSmokey1” Billirakis took down one of the most prestigious internet poker events of the year this past Sunday on PokerStars.

        The event, aptly named the ‘Sunday $5,200 Winner-Take-All Freezeout,’ showcased some of the best online poker players on the planet duking it out for the $100,000 first-place prize. WPT Finalists like Darrell “Gigabet” Dicken and Kevin “BeLOWaBOve” Saul were on hand for the event, as well as PokerStars’ first SuperNova member Dario Minieri!

        The tournament started with 2 tables and 10 players to a table. Deal-making was also not allowed in this winner-take-all MTT. The tournament lasted for an amazing 6 hours, with 2007 WSOP Bracelet winner ‘MrSmokey1’ eventually beating ‘supernova9’ heads-up for the title and the $100,000 payday.

        This tournament will be on replay for the remainder of the week on PokerStars, and ALL of the players’ hole cards will be shown for your viewing pleasure. This amazing lineup of online players is rarely seen for an event as unique as this one, so it should be an amazing replay to watch.

        Final Table ONLY Results of the $5,200 Winner-Take-All Freezeout

        1. MrSmokey1 ($100,000)
        2. supernova9
        3. oznec
        4. batoelrob
        5. holla@yoboy
        6. –db-
        7. RockAClock
        8. lilholdem954
        9. GigaBet
        10. TheCleaner11

          Written by TJ "AceHigh Pino" Gill · Filed Under Online Gambling News, PokerStars 

          Macau Casinos Losing Billions Due To Casino “Skimming”

          December 11, 2007

          In a story that was just revealed yesterday out of Hong Kong, it looks as if the thriving gambling region of Macau has fallen victim to widespread casino “skimming.” For those not familiar with skimming, it primarily involves high-limit players and a junket agent. Junket agents are responsible for bringing in high-rollers to the casinos and ensuring they play a significant amount during their stay. When a skim goes down, both the agent and the player form an off-the-table deal where each bet that is put in is matched or multiplied by a separate off-table wager. This is all done without the casino’s knowledge, and the full amount of the bet would avoid the wrath of [in this case] Macau’s 40% tax on gross revenues, which in turn allow the junket agent to offer a better return to their high-roller.

          It’s almost ironic that the practice would hit such a young and popular gaming destination as Macau. In fact, the original gambling Mecca of Las Vegas was plagued for nearly three decades by the same scam. “Sin City” was still a growing town back then, but the mafia made sure it was getting its piece of the pie as well. As prime developers of the original casinos on the now infamous Las Vegas Strip, mob bosses and gangsters played a key role in helping speed up the city’s growth – but not before they skimmed millions of untaxed dollars out of the establishment from the 1950’s to the 1980’s.

          Although the scam has only been seriously documented over the past 5 years, there is plenty of concern for the Chinese government who oversee the operations. If the numbers are accurate, taxpayers will have shelled out nearly $40 billion because of these illegal casino skimming operations. Also, in the last 5 years, Macau’s biggest casinos have lost an estimated $100 billion thanks to this illegal activity – the equivalent of $13 billion in U.S. dollars! It should be noted that most of Las Vegas’ biggest casino operators have moved their own chains into Macau, hoping to be cash in on the fastest-rising gaming market in the world.

          Regardless of how successful Macau has proven to be in the past few years, it still has a very real problem on their hands. Regional operators continue to say the issue is being investigated thoroughly and being worked on as much as possible, but they have not guaranteed a solution is on the horizon any time soon. Like Las Vegas before them, it’s unknown at this time if organized crime is behind such an operation, or if it’s just an isolated situation that is just being taken advantage of by VIP gamblers and their “handlers.” In either case, the problem may become more widespread if government authorities don’t do more to stop it.

            Written by TJ "AceHigh Pino" Gill · Filed Under Casino News 

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