A leading operator that has initiated a new protection plan is PokerStars. They have set their new PokerStars Player Protection Plan. This plan will put the funds of their French players under the protection of the international financial services firm the IFG Group. These funds will be managed by a financial services fund manager that will regulate the funds and ensure that the company has enough funds to replay players at any given time. PokerStars believes that the security of the player accounts is the key to the success in the future. This initiative by PokerStars has been grabbing the attention of many other online operators who have decided to follow suit soon. With new markets opening up in Europe, the online gambling industry will see many opportunities. This is the perfect time for online poker and gambling operators to launch such initiatives that focus on player protection and gain the trust of potential customers.

Seth Palansky, a spokesman for World Series of Poker, told members of the press last Monday that a further seven players are expected to commit their cash, making this the highest WSOP prize ever. The current record is held by Jamie Gold, who won $12 million after beating over 9000 opponents in the 2006 Texas Hold’em “no-limit” event.

Even is the list of players were to stay at 22, the top prize would be a whopping $8.89 million, which is almost $200,000 more than Pius Heinz won at the main event three weeks ago. The German was happy with his winnings, but the various poker sites out there are reporting this is nothing compared to the potential this time around. If all goes to plan and the top prize passes that of the main event in 2006, the winner will certainly be catapulted to the very top of the World Series of Poker all-time biggest winners list.

Looking back to 1976 and we see the now infamous Doyle Brunson picking up a respectable $220,000 after winning the main event. WSOP officials used this field size and adopted it as the minimum for all future events. The latest $1 million buy-in interestingly includes a sizeable chunk going to charity, with the tournament expected to raise over $2 million for One Drop, a Montreal-based organization. Curiously, but perhaps not surprisingly, One Drop is run by Guy Laliberte, who for those who don’t know is organizing the upcoming tournament. Some may also know him from his work with Cirque du Soleil. Not only this, but a further 10% will be taken from the amount goes to World Series of Poker officials as payment for hosting the event.

Fill Tilt Poker was initially accused of having created hundreds of fake accounts via payment processors and used players money in their names for purchases of golf balls and jewellery.  It looks like the worst fears of several international players are coming true, they might not be able to get their money out of FTP. Ponzi fraud is like a pyramid scheme where high returns are promised on investments in a short period of time. The funds are never invested they are just pocketed. In FTP’s case, the funds from player accounts were used to pay salaries and other expenses to operators and administrators. At present the company holds cash reserves of $6million and it owes players an enormous $300 million plus and it looks like they have no intention of paying it back either.

Now to add a twist to this interesting casino game, Microgaming has come up with Bonus Pai Gow Poker. This game has bonus payouts for certain special hands. The graphics of the game are crisp and clear and you will enjoy playing this skillful and entertaining poker variant for sure. To make the most of your game you should play Bonus Pai Gow Poker and other poker online games at Roxy Palace Casino. The casino offers you great bonuses, promotions and services and gambling here is a lot of fun.

There have been 75,672 entries in 58 different tournaments; with that many people signing up it makes me wonder who actually thought poker would ever die out. And what’s even better is that all these players from across the world are making their way to the ‘gambling homeland’, Las Vegas. This is quite impressive especially since the poker tournament is taking place so soon after the recession and the Black Friday crackdowns. But it only goes to show you how passionate people are about their poker gaming. These poker lovers would go to the ends of the earth to have a good game and the company of other poker enthusiasts.

Shortly after Black Friday, the Alderney Gambling Control Commission (AGCC) who licenses Full Tilt Poker announced it would be reviewing the situation shortly. Next they announced the suspension of Full Tilt’s license which in turn forced the company to shut down all servers and suspend all operations. The full AGCC statement went as follows: “The decision to suspend these licenses follows a special investigation prompted by the indictments unsealed by US Attorney General’s Office in the Southern District of New York on 15^th April 2011, during which grounds were found to indicate that these licensees and their business associates were operating contrary to Alderney legislation”.

The servers used by Full Tilt Poker are currently offline and all forms of play have been fully prevented. Most reactions shared by players were of resignation as opposed to anger. One player from the United Kingdom wrote “Full Tilt ceases operations. I guess after Black Friday, today should be called Predictable Wednesday. I hope everyone gets their money”. Players attempting to visit the site are met with a message stating that the servers are currently down for maintenance and will be back up shortly, but few take this information at face value. A spokesman for Full Tilt Poker has gone on the record as saying that the public can expect a statement from the company within 24 hours which will be followed by further interim statements as matters move forward. Unfortunately, the AGCC ruling came at the worst possible time for Full Tilt Poker who were mid-way through financial negotiations which would have allowed the company to return the deposits of American players.

Poker Stars however, the other major American online gambling site has reacted to the Black Friday events by reassuring their customers that business will continue as usual and that they are in no way under any threat from the same issues. A spokesperson for the site said “online operations continue as normal and all funds in players’ accounts are safe and available for withdrawal as usual with no delays”.  The Isle of Man Gambling Commission who license Poker Stars stated that the companies global licensing it intact and all their services are in full compliance with licensing requirements. Poker Stars report a 5% increase in web traffic after Full Tilt suspended its services.

Wynn Resorts and PokerStars were supposed to fight together for the legalization of online gambling. But Wynn Resorts said that it made its decision to terminate their partnership with PokerStars because” the indictment unsealed by the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York.” PokerStars were charged in the indictment for illegal gambling and breaches under the 2006 UIGEA by US federal prosecutors. The other online poker rooms also indicted are Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker.

When Pokerstars, Full Tilt and Absolute Poker were forced to leave the US market, 95% of the market share for US poker players also went as well as $200 million worth of advertising money. What this means is that poker television shows will go as well like “The Big Game” on Fox and “Poker After Dark” on NBC. So the poker landscape in the US has completely changed in such a short period of time.

PokerStars has recently given back more than $100 million to US players.

So, what is the secret of Andrew’s happiness? Oh for that you just have to visit the Taj Mahal Casino in Atlantic City almost every single day and play stud poker games. Yes this is his routine that Andrew and others believe has a lot to do with him living so long. Along with playing poker Andrew likes to socialize with his poker mates and the friendly staff at the casino. Andrew lives next to the casino in an apartment that is aptly named Best of Life Park. Happy days!

First thing that you need to do is not let them have control over your cards. Usually they bluff you to make you believe that they have a good hand so you need to play like a professional and if you are close to raiser go for a better hand and make your re-raise large. Keep an eye on poker bullies and make sure you use better tactics to beat them. Play slow and this makes them raise their stakes. This is when you give your best and win the stakes. Learning their body language can be very helpful in catching when they are bluffing. Make sure you also have a winning strategy in advance to beat them is they come up with a good hand. This works for me and it should for you too if you will not crack under pressure as poker bullies are all about pressurizing players. One other important thing that I learn by using these strategies is that you can get a little aggressive at time. So make sure that you show them that they do not intimidate you and that you are a step ahead of them without being aggressive. Enjoy your game of poker as you give these poker bullies a run for their money and play like a professional.

Caro’s Book of Poker Tells (1980s) by Mike Caro
Well this mad genius knows what he is talking about and this can help you spot a tell miles away, sort of.

The Book of Bluffs by Matt Lessinger
This book gives you all the bluffs that you can use and this could also mean winning all the games that you play. Matt who is a poker player by profession tells you how to make your opponent fold no matter how strong his hand may be.

Harrington on Hole’Em- Volumes I, II & III by Dan Harrington with Bill Robertie
Now, it is just one book that has been divided into three volumes. Volume I is called Strategic Play and tells you all that you need to know, to survive the early and middle stages in No Limit Hole’Em. Volume II Endgame, is all about maximising betting patterns and more. The III Volume is about practising all the strategies and is aptly called The Workbook.

The Theory of Poker by David Sklansky
This book is the forth book that you need to read and this is about theories for nearly all the poker variants.

Sit*N*Go* Pro by Micon
The last book that will conclude your reading is Sit*N*Go* Pro by Micon which is an e-book. Well this cannot be called a book technically, as this is an e-book that can be printed out if you wish and you can also order for the instructional CD/DVD. This publication is all about mastering the essential techniques that will help you dominate the game.

Happy reading!