PokerNews is giving away seats to the PokerStars Spring Championship of Online Poker Main Event, but there is less than a week left to qualify!

It appears that World Series of Poker (WSOP) officials are going to lighten up and let the players have a little fun this year. In a conference call Tuesday, WSOP representatives discussed some changes to what had previously been strict rules governing behavior at the tables.

One of the biggest complaints from players last year was the damper that was put on table talk. Players were allowed to chat, but they were not permitted to discuss the contents of their own or their opponent’s hand, even when heads-up in a pot. Most talk of active hands is still disallowed, but the rule has been modified. “You can say whatever you want about the contents of your hand and disclose the contents of your hand as long as you don’t show your cards and as long as no other player in a hand has a decision to make,” said WSOP Tournament Director Jack Effel.

“If a player is all-in and there’s no one left to act, you can say, ‘I have two aces and a flush draw. I know I have you beat,’” he elaborated. “Obviously, there will be errors, but we’re trying to get you guys to loosen up a bit and talk. We still want to protect against soft play and collusion.”

Daniel Negreanu, known for his table banter, was an extremely vocal opponent of the “no table talk” rule last year, letting his feelings be known during live broadcasts of tournaments, via Twitter, and on his blog.

“Over 99% of table talk is completely unrelated to collusion, which appears to be the one and only reason that the TDA [Tournament Director’s Association] added this rule,” Negreanu wrote on his blog at FullContactPoker.com last August. “The biggest lie that’s being told is that if you get rid of this rule, you make collusion legal. That is just not true. Collusion and soft play is illegal. It was before this rule was implemented, and I imagine it always will be.”

“Part of what makes poker interesting is the ability to look at your opponent and gauge whether or not they look like they are bluffing or not,” he added later. “It is undoubtedly a poker skill. This rule infringes upon a skill that’s been used since poker’s inception and is one of the sexier aspects to the game, not to mention the viewing public.”

WSOP officials appear to have seen the light and have admitted that they were a bit too draconian with the rule’s enforcement. WSOP Executive Director Ty Stewart said, “We’ve tightened poker up so much that players are afraid to use verbal strategy to out-man their opponents, which has been integral to poker. It takes poker back to its fundamental basis and its strategic intent. As a result, you get good TV.”

The WSOP is also loosening up when it comes to celebrations at the table. Poker fans may remember the often maniacal-looking histrionics from online star Hevad “RaiNKhAN” Khan during his run to the final table of the 2007 WSOP Main Event. His act after winning big hands wasn’t looked upon kindly by tournament officials, so they put the clamps on future celebrations. That strict policy, too, has changed. While players need to keep their dances of joy within some sort of reason, emotion is now permitted.

“There were cases last year where celebrations were penalized,” admitted Stewart. “A poker room isn’t a church. We just think we need to set the tone to bring some of the fun back.”

Online gaming company bwin.party is readying itself to enter the California online poker market should the game become legalized in the state. The operator of bwin.com and PartyPoker.com, bwin.party announced Tuesday that it has inked an agreement with the United Auburn Indian Community (UAIC) to provide online poker games to residents of California when and if pro-online gaming legislation passes in the state.

“California is the largest state in the U.S. in terms of population and is known to have a significant number of poker players who like to play poker online.  Combining our own significant assets and resources with those of UAIC will create a strong partnership that is well-placed to seize the opportunities that will arise if appropriate online poker legislation is enacted in the Golden State,” said Jim Ryan and Norbert Teufelberger, Co-CEOs of bwin.party, in a press release.

The UAIC operates the Thunder Valley Casino Resort in Lincoln, California, about 20 miles northeast of Sacramento. As such, the tribe would qualify to apply for an online poker license, according to currently proposed legislation in the state Senate. bwin.party would supply the necessary technology as well as the company’s experience in operations.

Senate Bill 1463, the Gambling Control Act, was introduced by State Senators Rod Wright and Darrel Steinberg on February 24, 2012 and would make online poker legal within state borders. After two years, the legislature could evaluate how things have gone and potentially legalize other casino games.

“We see the legalisation of Internet poker and other Internet gaming as being inevitable,” said David Keyser, Tribal Chairman of UAIC. “Having met with representatives from a number of different online gaming companies, bwin.party was our first choice as partner.  With its unrivalled expertise in online poker, proven technology and player loyalty we are confident of being able to maximise the revenue opportunity from a regulated online poker market in California and to continue to enhance the long-term prosperity of our community.”

This is not the first time bwin.party has found an American partner for a possible entry into the United States online gaming market. Last year, the company entered into agreements with both MGM Resorts International and Boyd Gaming and announced its intention in March to seek a license in Nevada should intrastate online poker be legalized in the state. Like with California, a potential operator must partner with a company with a state gaming license. If either MGM or Boyd is awarded a license, bwin.party will provide the poker software and take care of the site’s maintenance.

Under the rules of SB 1463, a California license would be good for ten years and each licensee will be required to pay a nonrefundable $30 million license fee. The bill also proposes a tax rate of 10 percent of gross gaming revenue.

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Titan Poker, one of the leading sites on the iPoker Network, has ended its relationship with its resident pros, star European players Sam Trickett and Marvin Rettenmaier. In a sign of the times, the departures were not announced via a press release or a news item on Titan’s site, but rather by the players themselves on Twitter.

Trickett went first on May 3rd, posting on his account (@SamTrickett1), “Me an [sic] Titan have decided to part ways. I have enjoyed representing them and they was a [sic] absolute pleasure to work with.Thanks again Titan….”

This past Sunday, May 6th, Rettenmaier announced the same on his account, @MadMarvin, writing, “@titan_poker has decided to part ways with its Pro Team. I am very thankful for the opportunities and I had a great time representing them.”

Both Trickett and Rettenamaier signed on with Titan Poker in March 2010 and renewed their contracts last June, to run through the end of 2011. There is no indication of any problem between either player and the poker room, so this is likely just a simple business decision by Titan and the two players no longer appeared to be bound by any contract.

Trickett, from England, had an incredible year representing Titan Poker in live tournaments in 2011. In the first month of the year, he won the $100,000 No-Limit Hold’em event at the Aussie Millions and then followed that up with a runner-up finish in the $250,000 Super High Roller No-Limit Hold’em event there just a few days later. His combined haul for the two tournaments was just under $2.9 million. Then, in September, he won the Partouche Poker Main Event in Cannes, France, good for $1,364,666 (€1,000,000). In October, Trickett made the final table of the High Roller event at European Poker Tour (EPT) London and the €5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha event at the 2011 WSOP Europe, earning himself more the $200,000 total. He won $4.6 million in live tournaments last year and has won over $6.3 million in his career.

Trickett also plays nosebleed cash games and has been a fixture lately in the gigantic cash games in Macau. He recently won pot there worth more than $2 million.

Marvin Rettenmaier, a native of Germany, seems to play anywhere and everywhere. In 2011 alone, he had 25 live tournament cashes for a total of more than $600,000. Just a couple weeks ago, he won the €2,000 No-Limit Hold’em event at the EPT Grand Final, banking €118,300, or $156,186 for people on the west side of the pond. Rettenmaier’s biggest win to date was in the France Poker Series Paris Finale, where he finished on top of the field of 567, earning €244,036 ($332,470).

The iPoker Network ranks as the second largest poker network or room on the internet in terms of cash game traffic, according to PokerScout.com. With a seven day average of 3,350, it sits comfortable ahead of PartyPoker (3,000). Of course, it would take a miracle to catch PokerStars, which boasts a seven day average of 29,800 cash game players.

With less than three weeks until the start of the 2012 World Series of Poker (WSOP), it is now permissible to begin getting excited for the annual poker festival. Before the party ends, ESPN will once again begin its broadcasts of the WSOP, starting with a special airing of the Big One for ONE DROP tournament on July 3rd.

The Big One for ONE DROP will be the richest poker tournament in history, featuring a $1,000,000 buy-in and, to this point, a 30-player field. With $111,111 of the buy-in going to ONE DROP, a charitable organization which seeks to provide access to clean, drinkable water to people around the world, the prize pool has already reached $26,666,670. If the tournament stays at its current size, the winner will receive $12,266,668.20, which would break the record of $12,000,000, set by Jamie Gold when he won the 2006 WSOP Main Event.

The tournament is a three-day event beginning on July 1st. ESPN and ESPN3 will air the final day of the event “virtually live,” employing just a 15-minute delay. That will be it for the WSOP broadcast until July 31st, when ESPN will return with its two-hour, edited shows, starting with that same Big One for ONE DROP.

Just two other events will be show on “the mothership.” The WSOP National Championship, which will feature the top 100 qualifiers from the 2011-2012 WSOP Circuit tour, will grace television sets on August 7th. From there, it is the Main Event every Tuesday night through October 30th.

That final broadcast is the Main Event final table, and is the only other broadcast after the first one that will be “virtually live.”

This year’s schedule continues ESPN’s trend of showing very few preliminary events. 2008 was when the preliminary event broadcasts began to decrease, dropping to seven from ten the previous year. That number was chopped to just three in 2009 and then two in 2010. Last year, three events besides the Main Event were aired, but in 2012, ESPN is opting to show just the Big One and the WSOP National Championship.

2012 World Series of Poker ESPN Broadcast Schedule

Date Time (ET) Event Network July 3 3 p.m., 8 p.m.* The Big One For One Drop ESPN3/ESPN July 31 8-10 p.m. The Big One For One Drop ESPN August 7 8-10 p.m. WSOP National Championship ESPN August 14 8-10 p.m. WSOP Main Event ESPN August 21 8-10 p.m. WSOP Main Event ESPN August 28 8-10 p.m. WSOP Main Event ESPN September 5 8-10 p.m. WSOP Main Event ESPN September 11 8-10 p.m. WSOP Main Event ESPN September 18 8-10 p.m. WSOP Main Event ESPN September 25 8-10 p.m. WSOP Main Event ESPN October 2 9-11 p.m. WSOP Main Event ESPN October 9 9-11 p.m. WSOP Main Event ESPN October 16 9-11 p.m. WSOP Main Event ESPN October 23 9-11 p.m. WSOP Main Event ESPN October 30 9 p.m.* WSOP Main Event Final Table ESPN

 

*denotes live event with no set end time

Doyle Brunson blogged about the good times with his late friend Amarillo Slim, and ESPN unveiled its television schedule for the 2012 WSOP.

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When it comes to online poker network reorganizations, things usually happen in one of three ways: one network buys another, a poker room leaves a network, or a poker room joins a network. On Monday, though, a significant move was made that did not fit any of these categories. Yes, Lock Poker announced that it will be leaving the Merge Gaming Network, but at the same time, it will be acquiring the Cake Poker Network and creating a new online poker network, Revolution Gaming.

A press release issued by Lock Poker read, in part, “Lock is in the process of acquiring assets from Cake and will be re-branding the Cake Network to launch Revolution Gaming, driving technology, marketing, player rewards and implementing a richer tournament schedule. The LockPRO team will be at the foundation of these changes. They will come together and offer their recommendations on all levels, truly bringing the player into the boardroom.”

Lock Poker has confirmed that Revolution Gaming will use the Cake Poker software, though its development team will immediately begin working on improvements. Current Lock players, who use the Merge software platform, will be migrated to the Cake software on May 31st. All login information will remain the same and balances will remain intact.

“Lock will also continue to manage their own stand-alone cashier so withdrawals will be as fast and easy as they are now,” the company added. “All players’ current player VIP rewards will only increase and all rakeback players will be moved over to the increased percentage on Revolution.”

“We are very excited at the prospect of driving the product, marketing and overall vision of the network. It is a dream come true,” said Lock CEO Jennifer Larson in the press release. “Merge was a great stepping stone for us but we have outgrown them. We really need to forge our own path to continued success. The only way to do this is to stay true to our of core philosophy: partnering with our players.”

It will be interesting to see how this changes the look of the online poker industry. Though neither would be considered large, the Merge Gaming Network and Cake Poker Network are the two largest remaining U.S.-friendly networks (Bodog/Bovada falls in between the two, but it is a standalone room). According to PokerScout.com, the Merge Gaming Network is the 8th largest online poker network/room with a seven day average of 1,640 cash game players. The Cake Poker Network is just 22nd with 610.

It appears that Lock Poker’s exodus from Merge will be a major stomach punch to the network. A Lock Poker representative told PocketFives.com on Sunday (in response to a rumor that Cake might be buying Lock) that Lock Poker made up 40 percent of Merge’s traffic. If this figure is accurate, Merge’s cash game traffic would fall to 984 players if everybody on Lock stayed onboard (it is entirely possible that some players would opt to move to another Merge skin). On the flip side, if all Lock players stayed on Lock, Revolution Gaming would have 1,266 players, based on current traffic numbers. The new totals would put Revolution in the 9th spot in PokerScout’s rankings, while Merge would sink to 12th.

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