12 Online Poker Players to Playboy Mansion
Loading ...AbsolutePoker is gearing up to make dreams come true for 12 lucky Texas Hold ‘em players. The site announced Tuesday that it’s giving away six trips for two to the Kandyland Party at the Playboy Mansion on June 13, 2009.
AbsolutePoker is the only online poker site granted access to the exclusive invite-only party, described as an “evening of decadent dreams.” With Playmates in attendance, the event will feature performances from the exotic Kandy Go-Go Dancers, body-painted Kandy-Models, some of the best DJ’s spinning sexy house and rock mix grooves, an open premium bar, special cuisine, and more.
“Our players can live out their ultimate ‘man-tasies’, and with our newest promotion, who can argue with the chance to experience a night of pure indulgence — sexy ladies, non-stop entertainment, plus VIP treatment — all wrapped up into the Kandyland ball at the Playboy Mansion,” said a spokesperson with the online poker site. “At Absolute Poker, we offer access to hot-ticket items and events that continue to set Absolute Poker apart from the crowd.”
The party will be hosted by the Karma Foundation, which is calling the Kandyland Party a “Willy Wonka meets Alice in Wonderland” type of experience. The company is transforming the Playboy Mansion with dazzling lighting effects, florals, huge mushrooms, enormous lollipops, giant candies, hearts, cool fuzzy cotton candy textures, candy cane poles for its Kandy Dancers, chocolate bars, Skittles, M&Ms, toys, and Kandy Kane Lane.
Online poker players are invited to play in AbsolutePoker’s free daily satellites, which began running February 16th. The top 30 players in each satellite will secure a spot in a second round tournament the following Sunday. The top 10 players in each Sunday tournament will then win a seat in one of three final events where the top two finishers will each win a Playboy Mansion prize package valued at $6,500.
Each package includes:
- Two VIP invitations to the Kandyland Party — where you will enjoy VIP treatment with your own private cabana, champagne, personal waitress, and unlimited Grey Goose Vodka!!
- VIP Tour of the Playboy Mansion by a Playmate!!
- Money for travel and three-night hotel accommodations!!
Do not let this unique chance pass! Sign up here!
Everythingaboutpoker.com · Filed Under Poker News
Spring Poker Madness at Titan Poker
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Players on the iPoker Network room Titan Poker will soon find their Loyalty Points balances increased as part of the site’s Spring Poker Madness promotion. The additional points are based on how many Loyalty Points players accrue during the month of March, which begins on Sunday. The promotion comes on the heels of Club Titan’s introduction.
A press release distributed by Titan Poker explained why doubling players’ Loyalty Points has gotten site members buzzing: “This is exciting news, as the doubling of loyalty rewards means more benefits and subsequently higher cash outs.” The additional bonus points earned by Titan Poker customers during March will be placed into their accounts in April. Points will be generated as follows:
20,000 – 39,000 Regular Monthly Loyalty Points
+ 20,000 – 39,000 Bonus Monthly Loyalty Points
= 90,000 – 179,999 Total Points
$800 – $1,750 Cash Out
45,000 – 67,500 Regular Monthly Loyalty Points
+ 45,000 – 67,500 Bonus Monthly Loyalty Points
= 190,000 – 284,999 Total Points
$1,750 Cash Out
75,000 – 99,999 Regular Monthly Loyalty Points
+ 75,000 – 99,999 Bonus Monthly Loyalty Points
= 300,000 – 399,999 Total Points
$1,750 – $4,000 Cash Out
At least 110,000 Regular Monthly Loyalty Points
+ At least 110,000 Bonus Monthly Loyalty Points
= At least 420,000 Total Points
At least $4,000 to Cash Out
The month of February has seen Titan Poker customers participating in a massive $1.5 million rake race. The top 800 players will finish in the money for at least $100, with its winner pocketing $100,000. Second place will capture $50,000 and third through fifth places will take home $35,000. Leader Board Points for the $1.5 million rake race are given out based on rake taken during a hand, ranging from one point for $0.25 to $0.50 to ten points for $3.01 to $5. At the time of writing, Titan Poker member poker813 has a sizable lead on the field with 782,000 Leader Board Points. His next closest competitor, foxynadja, has just 696,000. The rake race is one of the largest ever held online.
In just over one week, Titan Poker players can put their skills to the test in the site’s $2.5 Million Guaranteed, which takes place on Sunday, March 8th. The buy-in is a healthy $1,580, but satellites start at just $1.21. On Wednesdays and Saturdays, Titan Poker hosts a $109 rebuy tournament at 19:35 GMT that awards one seat for every $1,580 in the prize pool. In addition, at least three seats will be up for grabs. On Mondays, a $215 buy-in freezeout at 19:35 GMT also guarantees at least three seats. Four times per week, Titan Poker hosts a $27.50 rebuy tournament that awards one entry into the $2.5 Million Guaranteed for every $1,580 collected (no seats are guaranteed).
Team Titan Poker includes Mohamed Ali Azabi, Maria Cabaleiro, and Kirill Magnusov, who were among 12 players that won six month sponsorships with the iPoker Network site. Titan Poker has sent its players to tournaments around the world, including the European Poker Tour (EPT), World Series of Poker (WSOP), Asian Poker Tour (APT), and Aussie Millions.
The iPoker Network is owned and operated by Playtech, a publicly traded company on the London Stock Exchange, where it can be found under the symbol “PTEC.” The Network also includes CD Poker, Chili Poker, Mansion Poker, Noble Poker, Sun Poker, and VC Poker.
The iPoker Network is largest group of sites that does not accept players from the United States, according to traffic ranking site PokerScout.com. The Network has a seven-day average of 6,200 ring game players. Its 24 hour peak is nearly double that number, 11,005 players. The top site by average cash game volume is PokerStars (24,800 players), followed closely by Full Tilt Poker (10,400).
PTEC finished trading on Wednesday down ?8.75 to close at ?365.00. Its 52 week high is ?558.00.
Sign up now @ Titan Poker and get a free bonus!
Everythingaboutpoker.com · Filed Under Poker News
What the Economic Crash Means for Poker (Part II)
Loading ...This is Part II of a two-part series on perspectives of the economic crisis and its possible impacts on the gambling and poker industries.
Lou Krieger
Prior to playing poker and writing about the game for a living, New York-born Lou Krieger was a management consultant in California and Washington, D.C. As one of the most respected writers in poker, he has written over 400 columns, 11 books, and is the host of “Keep Flopping Aces,” a weekly show on Rounders Radio. Krieger has written for Card Player magazine and is the editor of Poker Player Newspaper. He was named one of the most influential gaming authors of the past century, an honor given to only five poker writers. He lives in Palm Desert, California.
Last Friday, I walked in the Agua Caliente Casino poker room in Rancho Mirage, California, which is about six miles from my house and where I usually play poker. It wasn’t a holiday or a three-day weekend and no special events were going on, but all of the tables were filled to capacity. Long lines existed for the majority of games and here we are in a recession, which made me wonder.
Earlier in the week, I heard a local radio interview with Richard Milanovich, Chairman of the tribe that owns Agua Caliente as well as the Palm Springs’ Spa Resort and Casino. Milanovich is a savvy guy who seems to have his fingers accurately on the pulse of the local economy. He said that while the tribe was feeling the economic pinch in the same way everyone else was, the numbers for Agua Caliente Casino were a lot better than the numbers he was seeing for casinos in Las Vegas.
He pointed out that it’s less costly for locals to play here and less costly too for weekend visitors from Los Angeles since Agua Caliente is only about 110 miles from L.A., while Las Vegas is a good 250 miles.
I guess I didn’t really buy it at the time, but having witnessed it in person, it sure made sense to me. Of course, it was impossible to tell how many poker room patrons were locals and how many journeyed there from Los Angeles or San Diego, but the room was packed and Milanovich’s assessment seemed spot on.
I’m still a bit confused by all of this. After all, if someone from L.A. is looking for a poker game, there’s no need to drive 110 miles to find one. Los Angeles is full of poker rooms. On the other hand, for a small, weekend getaway vacation, Agua Caliente is a less costly alternative to Las Vegas and also provides full casino gambling in addition to poker. Non-poker playing family members can have their fill of slots and other games, take in shows, and play golf.
I’m hearing anecdotal data from guys who have been forced into poker playing to feed their families and that might account for some of the crowding at the tables too. On my weekly internet radio show, “Keep Flopping Aces,” one caller last week told me he lost his job as a restaurant manager, couldn’t find employment, and had to turn to his hobby, playing poker, as a job rather than an avocation. He’s at his local casino every day, grinding out a living at the tables, and it’s paying better than anything he could find in the work-a-day world in this economy.
My summary is that Las Vegas will show reduced numbers for the duration of the recession, while local casinos, although not flourishing, will pick up some of the folks who heretofore were regular visitors at the Strip. I’m sure some players will try to ply their trade and earn a living at the poker tables, although the majority of them will probably fail at this endeavor in the long-run.
Russ Fox is a tax specialist and poker author. He is one of the most respected authorities on the subjects of taxation and the law and taxes on gambling winnings. Fox runs and operates a website called “Taxable Talk.” The site regularly features topics of interest to gamblers and poker players. Fox also co-wrote “Why You Lose at Poker” as well as many others strategy-based articles. He lives in Irvine, California.
The poker economy has already felt the impacts of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA). Coincidentally, I’ve noticed what I estimate to be a five percent drop in players in local (Los Angeles area) card rooms. Meanwhile, the world economy is now definitely in retreat with massive stimulus programs being politicians’ main idea of a fix. Unfortunately, history tells us that government interference in the economy could actually make the situation worse, which is what happened during the Great Depression.
I see two possible near-term outcomes. We could see the Federal Government further attack online gambling, including poker. I remember when my friends said that the website Napster would never be shut down. However, a judge did just that. The staff at the Department of Justice has been very negative towards online gambling; to think that’s going to change suddenly is foolhardy. While I’d love to see online poker legalized in the United States, I believe that to be very unlikely to happen in the near future.
Alternatively, poker could prosper in the coming years. There’s historical precedent for this. During the Great Depression, the card game bridge boomed in popularity because of the famous Culbertson-Lenz match. Indeed, some bridge matches made the front page of most newspapers. In bad economic times, people look to escape. Poker, a much easier and more familiar game to Americans than bridge, could easily prosper. Of course, in this day and age, this means appealing to television rather than newspapers, which we see is already happening. It would also be ideal to have a personable individual win the WSOP Main Event, who could then represent the game.
There’s no way to predict the future with any degree of certainty, but I’m hopeful that poker will continue to prosper in the next several years.
Everythingaboutpoker.com · Filed Under Poker News
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