Atom-RSSBad Beats in Poker: We all get them handed to us, and not only do we lose the money, but everyone goes on tilt for at least a hand or two so we can lose more of our poker bankroll!
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March 4, 2005
By Taft Wireback Staff Writer
News & Record
GREENSBORO -- State alcohol agents broke up a poker tournament Wednesday night at a restaurant in southwest Greensboro, hoping to send a message that playing poker for prizes is illegal even when players have no money at stake.
No arrests were made, but the state Division of Alcohol Law Enforcement confiscated poker tables, cards, chips, gaming records and other material from Ham's at 3017 High Point Road. The gaming equipment belonged to the poker tournament's promoter, 5th Street Entertainment of Charlotte.
Players competed with gaming chips that they received free, so they were not betting in the traditional sense. But the restaurant chain paid 5th Street to host the card games that led to a championship competition and the grand prize -- a trip to Las Vegas, said Rodney Johnson, ALE supervisor for the Greensboro district.
"Our information indicated it had a value of about $10,000," Johnson said of the Vegas trip. "Nothing comes out of the players' pockets (to play), but it's still a violation of the statute."
Johnson said that Ham's apparently was staging such "Texas hold'em" poker nights at restaurants in Greensboro and elsewhere. Each night's winners won gift certificates up to $25, then advanced to the next level of play, leading ultimately to a championship, he said.
Efforts to reach 5th Street Entertainment for comment Thursday were unsuccessful.
Ham's spokesman Greg Stephens said the tournament is being played in many other restaurants in addition to Ham's throughout North Carolina "and has been a great source of fun and excitement for guests at no cost."
"Ham's restaurants were assured by the promotions company that an opinion had been issued by the ALE that this form of entertainment is in no way a violation of any gaming or ALE regulations," Stephens said in a statement.
But Johnson said that North Carolina's gambling law bans any game of chance played for something of value, regardless of whether players have anything at stake.
Exceptions are made for such nonprofit ventures as church or civic club raffles.
Johnson said that in the past year, the popularity of poker has skyrocketed with the televising of poker matches on ESPN and other cable TV channels.
Numerous bars, restaurants and clubs statewide have tried to bend North Carolina's gambling laws to tap into the fad, Johnson said.
Late last year, ALE agents raided a secretive poker club in a northwest Greensboro office suite, which advertised its high-stakes games on the Internet. Agents cited 15 people for gambling violations in that incident.
The penalty for breaking the gambling law is relatively light, usually a fine of several hundred dollars at most.
Bars and restaurants that serve alcohol also could face disciplinary action by state alcohol officials.
In his statement. Stephens noted that Ham's was not cited or fined as a result of Wednesday's events, "and is cooperating with the ALE by suspending all Texas hold'em games until this matter is resolved."
Johnson said his agency's inquiry into Wednesday's tournament is continuing and charges of some kind remain possible.
Johnson said the questionable profit motive in the Ham's tournament was twofold: The restaurant chain paid the Charlotte promoter a substantial fee for hosting the games. In turn, the tournament brought Ham's more customers, whose food and drink purchases boosted restaurant profits, he said.
Johnson said he hopes that ALE's intervention Wednesday will get the word out that no matter how its profit motive is disguised, gambling for anything of value is against state law.
Contact Taft Wireback at 373-7100 or twireback@news-record.com
TEXAS CITY -- Of the 78 people cited for gambling in a poker raid at a bar in December, only nine have elected to continue the fight.
On Monday, 22 were due in court. The defendants, who faced class C misdemeanor gambling charges, originally turned down a plea bargain in favor of setting a trial date.
But most, faced with the prospect of spending more money to mount a defense and the possibility of even heftier fines, decided not to gamble with the law.
Two people failed to show up for the pre-trial hearing Monday, while a third was granted a rescheduled hearing.
Ten took up city prosecutor Robert Barfield's offer of a $127 fine plus 30 days of deferred adjudication. As long as those who took the deal are not cited for gambling again in the next 30 days, all will have no record of a conviction.
It was the same deal Barfield offered previously.
It was just going to end up costing me more money with missing work and the court costs," said Douglas Pennington, one of those who took the deal. It's just not worth it."
That doesn't mean Pennington thinks he did anything wrong. He maintained that because the game was operated like a pool or dart tournament -- in that the pot was split among the winning players -- the law should allow some leeway.
Brian Criss didn't think the game at Shenanigan's on Dec. 5 was illegal either. Still the Santa Fe resident took a plea bargain. His reasoning was simple: a new job awaits him in Georgia.
I can't justify coming back a 1,000 miles for a trial like that," said Criss. If I wasn't moving, I would have definitely fought it."
Less than a month ago Juan Flores, too, declared he was willing to take his case to the U.S. Supreme Court. But the cost of fighting proved too much.
It just ain't worth it," he said.
Brothers Matt and Mike Montez also took the deal after previously declaring they had done nothing wrong.
The Dickinson residents said they believe bar owner Frank Skaggs, who was in court Monday as an observer, may be responsible for their fix.
We trusted that it was all on the up and up because of what he told us," Michael Montez said. He led us to believe he had checked it all out."
And while Skaggs did visit with Texas City police and the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission representatives on the legality of the tournaments, the club owner admits he was never told the Texas Hold 'Em poker tournament was legal.
I wasn't told it was illegal either," said Skaggs.
Texas City police have maintained Skaggs was told his plan for the tournament, which included a $20 entry fee and cash winnings, was illegal.
Police officials said when they found out later Skaggs went ahead with the game, they conducted the raid.
The Montez brothers said that if indeed Skaggs never was given a green light to have the tournament, the former Texas City mayoral candidate should pay them back for the money they spent as a result of the raid.
Skaggs said previously he couldn't afford to help all those who had to pay fines.
As for the nine who remain, all asked for jury trials.
Barfield said the Texas City municipal court conducts only one jury trial a month. He said the court must pull its pool of potential jurors from the Texas City residents who are called to jury duty at the Galveston County courthouse and who are not assigned to district or county court cases.
As a result, the earliest any of the nine trials would begin would be April.
Barfield warned that, because only two cases could be heard each time, it might take up to a year before all of the cases are resolved.
All the cases will be heard in municipal court. If convicted, each could face up to a $500 fine. Monday as an observer, may be responsible for their fix.
We trusted that it was all on the up and up because of what he told us," Michael Montez said. He led us to believe he had checked it all out."
And while Skaggs did visit with Texas City police and the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission representatives on the legality of the tournaments, the club owner admits he was never told the Texas Hold'Em poker tournament was legal.
I wasn't told it was illegal either," said Skaggs.
Texas City police have maintained Skaggs was told his plan for the tournament, which included a $20 entry fee and cash winnings, was illegal.
Police officials said when they found out later Skaggs went ahead with the game, they conducted the raid.
The Montez brothers said that if indeed Skaggs never was given a green light to have the tournament, the former Texas City mayoral candidate should pay them back for the money they spent as a result of the raid.
Skaggs said previously he couldn't afford to help all those who had to pay fines.
As for the nine who remain, all asked for jury trials.
Barfield said the Texas City municipal court conducts only one jury trial a month. He said the court must pull its pool of potential jurors from the Texas City residents who are called to jury duty at the Galveston County courthouse and who are not assigned to district or county court cases.
As a result, the earliest any of the nine trials would begin would be April.
Barfield warned that, because only two cases could be heard each time, it might take up to a year before all of the cases are resolved.
All the cases will be heard in municipal court. If convicted, each could face up to a $500 fine.
February 28, 2005
Sarah Bridge, Mail on Sunday,
ThisIsLondon
ONLINE poker sites have expanded dramatically in recent years, but analysts are warning that they may prove a gamble too far and become the next dotcom bubble.
The number of people playing poker both online and face to face is soaring due to televised celebrity tournaments and poker games on soaps such as Coronation Street and The Archers, but experts say the rise in numbers is unsustainable.
'The bubble is going to burst at some point,' said Mark Griffiths, professor of gambling studies at Nottingham Trent University.
More than 1.5m people play poker online in Britain, betting millions of pounds and fuelling incredible valuations for poker companies.
The world's largest site, PartyPoker.com, is considering floating on the stock market for £3bn, making it bigger than British Airways, and rival site 888.com is weighing up a float.
British company SportingBet is now worth £1bn compared with just £164m last year, and existing betting giants such as Ladbrokes and William Hill are seeing profits boom thanks to online poker.
Because American companies are effectively banned from offering poker online - US law covering online gaming is in dispute - British firms have a head start against major US casino operators such as MGM Mirage, Caesars Palace and Harrah's.
But billion-pound valuations may be swept aside by a wave of consolidation. 'It is the Amazon or eBay effect,' said one commentator. 'There will be one site so big that everyone else will be sucked under.'
Tamar Yaniv of PokerStars.com, the world's second-largest site: 'There are definitelytoo many players in the market at the moment. The next two years will be survival of the fittest.'
Greg Feehely of broker Altium Capital predicts that the market will grow by 60 per cent this year. He said 'It could double in size but we are erring on the side of caution as the rates of growth are totally unsustainable in the medium term. There will be consolidation at some point.'
Unlike traditional bookmakers who can suffer at the hands of lucky punters, there is little risk in setting up these companies because they take their cut from the bets.
Feehely said: 'Poker sites are attracting players by advertising million-pound pots at no risk to themselves.'
The risk, he says, is that the rate of growth could slow dramatically. 'Poker is the hot thing at the moment, but who knows in the future? Any slowdown will not be like the dotcom bubble. Dotcoms never made any money. These companies are generating cash and profits by the bucketload.'
However, Michael Mainelli of the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation warns that the boom might not be all it seems.
'It is very difficult to get reliable figures and it has the air of a fad,' he says. 'Player numbers are likely to level off in a couple of years because it takes up a lot of time compared with laying bets on a betting exchange. And,' he warns, 'there is a fair amount of automation in the industry.'
Which means when you believe you are playing against a real person, it is actually a computer. Says Mainelli: 'You are never going to win against the house.'
