Posted on

WSOP Runner-Up Files Suit Against PokerStars Over Confiscated Funds

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last week, Gordon Vayo was probably best known for his runner-up finish in the 2016 WSOP Main Event. That feat earned him $4.66 million of his $6.23 million in live winnings.

Today, Vayo is the poker player that is suing PokerStars.

Vayo vs. Rational Entertainment Limited dba PokerStars

In May 2017, Vayo won SCOOP Event #1: $1,050 NLH for $692,460.

One year later a complaint was filed with the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

The filing states that when Vayo attempted to cash out his online poker account, PokerStars “notified Mr. Vayo that his account was being frozen for investigation of suspicious activity.”

The money was deposited into Vayo’s PokerStars account immediately upon winning the tournament. Vayo continued to play on his PokerStars account for the next two months without incident.

The suspicious activity stemmed from Vayo’s location during the tournament. PokerStars prohibits players located in the U.S. from playing on its global site. Vayo, a resident of California, commutes to Canada to play online.

Following was nearly a year-long investigation where Vayo needed to provide documentation as to his whereabouts. Vayo said he complied and provided the proof requested.

Even so, PokerStars said it was “not inconceivable” that Vayo spent part of the SCOOP tournament in the U.S.

From the court filing:

“[PokerStars] has engaged in a practice of approving U.S. citizens and residents for play on the PokerStars.com site, allowing and encouraging them to play on the site, happily taking their money – in many cases for years. Then, after a U.S. citizen or resident wins a significant amount of money on the PokerStars.com site, Defendant conducts a sham investigation into the user’s activities and the location of the user’s access of the site, placing the onus on the player to retroactively prove that it is “inconceivable” that his or her play could have originated from within the United States, in order to gin up a pretext to deny payment.”

Where’s the proof Vayo violated TOS?

A six-figure payday is a life-changing amount of money for most. Paying out six figures, however, is not unusual for PokerStars. To claim that the attempt to cash out a large sum triggered the investigation seems at odds with PokerStars’ daily operations.

PokerStars is claiming that Vayo failed to produce sufficient evidence to alleviate its suspicion that he was in the U.S. during part of the tournament.

In the court filing, Vayo admitted to using and having trouble with a Virtual Private Network (VPN). VPN’s provide anonymity and privacy when a user is online.

The use of a VPN is against PokerStars’ terms of service.

“The use of VPN / Proxy / IP randomizer is prohibited, as they can provide misleading information regarding your location, or place of residence. According to our Terms of Service, which you can find on our website, all players are required to provide accurate data, including information about their location.”

It seems highly unlikely that PokerStars does not have proof to substantiate its suspicion. PokerStars issued the following statement.

“We cannot comment on pending litigation matters and our investigation into this particular matter is ongoing. However, as operator of the most regulated poker site in the world, we believe that we have a duty to protect the integrity of the game and ensure we provide a safe and fair poker platform by enforcing our terms of service. We have paid out over half a billion dollars in tournaments winnings this year alone and will continue to implement rigorous security procedures to protect our players.”

Play At PokerStars NJ

Let the court decide

“I am deeply disappointed it has come to this, but feel that taking legal action is necessary to protect my rights as well as those of other PokerStars players who are in my situation but may not have the means to get their message out and protect themselves against the unwarranted bullying tactics that I have experienced during this ordeal,” said Vayo in a statement to Forbes.

Currently, there is only one side of the story out there, and that is Vayo’s side. The lawsuit will force PokerStars to tell its side.

The next thing is to decide which story stands up in court.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The post WSOP Runner-Up Files Suit Against PokerStars Over Confiscated Funds appeared first on Play USA.

Posted on

Why PokerStars is Offering its Biggest-Ever Reload Bonus in New Jersey

 

It is rare that PokerStars must look up at a market leader.

For well over a decade, PokerStars has been the world’s leading online poker brand. Up until now, the company has been the market leader in every jurisdiction it operates with the exception of France where French online poker provider Winamax is the top operator. Meanwhile, companies like partypoker and 888poker have had their hands full with staying competitive and doing their best to capture a piece of the worldwide market share.

Read the full article on pokerfuse →

Posted on

Can Poker Grow Beyond A Fad By Embracing The Esports Fad?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Should the Pet Rock have tried to extend its shelf life by partnering with Cabbage Patch Dolls in the 1980s? Or maybe Beanie Babies in the 1990s? Can last season’s fad find success attaching itself to this year’s latest trend?

Poker boomed in the early 2000s creating an entire industry around it. A big push came from offshore online poker sites raking in hundreds of millions of dollars along the way. Poker peaked in 2006. After that, the US government stepped in stumping the online game’s growth. Poker’s popularity pretty much plateaued, but it didn’t go away.

Fortunately for those in that industry surrounding it, poker is no flash in the pan. The game, and people’s love for it, has hardly faded in the decade since poker was the in thing to do.

Of course, many people dependent on the game have spent that decade eagerly anticipating another boom in poker’s popularity. The opportunity to get more women in the game. Selling poker to the 1.3 billion people living in China.  Getting more states to legalize and regulate online poker. No matter what it was, the thing to ignite the next poker boom always seemed right around the corner.

Most of the ideas have been slow in coming to fruition. Or perhaps they haven’t had the huge impact poker people had hoped for. Still, many hold out hope. They pray there is some magic pill that can cure what ails a somewhat stagnating game and make poker the cool thing to do once again.

Others have no time for hope. They want to see poker become popular again now. Instead of waiting and wishing for it to happen, these people go out and do something about it.

Is poker a sport?

Mediarex CEO Alex Dreyfus is one good example. This is the guy that created the Global Poker League, putting some of the world’s most successful poker players on teams and pitting them against each other in a brand new game format played inside a soundproof cube. It was an attempt to turn poker into a sport and get it trending again.

The Global Poker League can’t be considered a complete failure. It did get one season completed. However, it failed to convince the public poker is a sport. And it never grew the game’s popularity in any kind of meaningful way.

It wasn’t for lack of trying. Dreyfus gave it a go. He was reportedly still giving it a go in Asia before the Chinese government decided to follow America’s lead and crack down on poker as well. What happens to Global Poker League China now is anybody’s guess. But that’s another story.

This one is about Dreyfus’ failure to convince anyone except a series of misguided investors that poker is a sport.

The truth is, it was always going to be an uphill battle. Traditional sports involve athleticism. That takes poker out of the running from the jump.

A British outfit got the game declared a mind sport a few years ago. According to most definitions, a mind sport is a game of skill based on intellectual ability as opposed to physical exercise. In other words, mind sports are by definition, not sports.

In that sense, poker and other card games like it, are more akin to board games, or video games. A fact that brings us back around to what this article is really about.

Is poker an esport?

The popularity of esports, which is a fancy term for competitive video gaming, has had a boom of its own over the past few years.

According to the gaming news site MMOExaminer, esports’ popularity started among the people who play the games, much like poker. However, it has evolved into something even bigger, with people watching esports competitions in ever-increasing numbers and overall revenue rising alongside it.

The esports industry generated more than $636 million in revenue in 2016. The numbers grew in 2017 and are expected to be even bigger this year. In fact, some predict global revenue will surpass $1.75 billion by 2020 with an estimated audience of 600 million people watching esports around the world.

Is poker an esport?

Are esports the next poker?

Answers to both these questions can and will be debated endlessly by insiders in both industries. But in the meantime, doers like Dreyfus, including two of the most successful organizations in the poker industry, are making a valiant effort to attach poker to what appears to be the in thing right now.

WSOP NJ – Get $10 No Deposit

Marketing the poker-esports connection

The World Poker Tour (WPT) has plans to host multiple televised final tables later this month inside the new Esports Arena Las Vegas at Luxor Las Vegas.

The 30,000 square-foot multi-level arena has a competition stage, 50-foot LED video wall, gaming stations, and a network TV-quality production studio. All signs point to it being the perfect place for the WPT to highlight poker’s strong connection to esports. And help the game jump on this trend.

Chinese game developer Ourgame International Holdings Limited, which owns the WPT, has also laid out plans to open up to 10 esports arenas in China and the US by 2019. An Ourgame subsidiary actually owns Esports Arena Las Vegas as well. That means the WPT will likely be trying to dine out on that strong esports-poker connection for years to come.

News also hit this week that the World Series of Poker and UMG Media Corp. will be setting up a competitive gaming area at the 2018 WSOP in Las Vegas, Nevada, running May 29 to July 17 inside the convention center at the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino.

The UMG Esports Stage will feature half a dozen or so competitive gaming booths. A place were spectators and poker players on a break can play games like Fortnite, Hearthstone, Madden and FIFA against each other in the same room where WSOP events are being held.

The latest trend

It could be just marketing people realizing poker and esports appeal to the same demographics. Or, maybe there really is a strong similarity between the two. One thing is sure: Poker doesn’t want to be yesterday’s news just yet and is willing to attach itself to the latest trend in an effort to remain relevant.

It’s really not a bad idea, especially if you believe something that was all the rage can get a few more miles out of sidling up to the latest craze.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The post Can Poker Grow Beyond A Fad By Embracing The Esports Fad? appeared first on Play USA.

Posted on

Bright Future Ahead Has WSOP.com Players Donning Sunglasses

The future of online poker in the US looks so bright right now, players in Nevada, New Jersey and Delaware have started wearing shades.

On May 1, what is now being called a monumental day for online poker in the US, shared liquidity, or the pooling of players from the three states that currently offer online poker, launched.

That meant players on the WSOP.com sites in New Jersey and Nevada, 888 Poker in New Jersey, and the Delaware online poker sites that use 888 software, including Delaware Park, Dover Downs and Harrington Raceway, started competing against each other online for the first time.

This thanks to New Jersey signing on to the interstate agreement this past October that has seen the Delaware and Nevada sites share player pools since 2015.

Increased traffic and bigger prize pools guaranteed

Now that players on the WSOP and 888 sites have come together, the sites are promising they will see increased cash game traffic and tournaments with much bigger prize pools in all three states. In fact, the sites are guaranteeing it.

Right out of the gate, the sites launched a new Coast to Coast Classic tournament series featuring more than $1 million in guaranteed prize pools that will run from May 11 to May 20 for players in all three states. The Coast to Coast Classic Main Event even features a $200,001 prize pool guarantee, a record guarantee for legal and regulated online poker in the US.

Plus, with the annual World Series of Poker set to kick off in Las Vegas, Nevada at the end of May, and run through the middle of July, even bigger things are about to go off online this summer.

Traffic on WSOP.com in Nevada has spiked during the WSOP every year since 2014. In fact, last summer, traffic rose more than 25 percent from one week before the series began to the first week of June. The jump was 17.8 percent the year before and 20.1 percent in 2015.

There’s little doubt with New Jersey and Delaware players now able to get in on the action, the spike will be even bigger this year.

Online WSOP bracelet events drive liquidity

Online WSOP bracelet events have traditionally driven cash game liquidity on WSOP.com in Nevada as well. Only players in New Jersey and Nevada will be able to play the now four online WSOP bracelet events scheduled for this summer. However, players from all three states should be able to hop on and enjoy the increase in cash game activity surrounding them.

WSOP.com in Nevada first hosted an online WSOP bracelet event in 2015. The $1,000 tournament drew 905 entries that year. It grew to 1,247 in 2016. Then, the number of online bracelet events was bumped up to three in 2017. Entry numbers rose even bigger.

The traditional $1,000 No Limit Hold’em event drew 1,312 entries. A new and even more affordable $333 No Limit Hold’em event drew a record 2,509 entries. And finally, the new $3,333 No Limit Hold’em online high roller drew 424 entries.

This year, WSOP.com will host four online WSOP bracelet events, including the first-ever Pot-Limit Omaha online bracelet event. Entry numbers should be up across the board with New Jersey players entering the fray.

The 2018 WSOP online bracelet event schedule is as follows:

  • $365 No Limit Hold’em June 3 at 3:30 p.m.
  • $565 Pot Limit Omaha 6-Handed June 22 at 3:30 p.m.
  • $1,000 No Limit Hold’em June 29 at 3:30 p.m.
  • $3,200 High Roller June 30 at 3:30 p.m.

New Players Get A Free Bonus At WSOP.com NJ

    • $10 No Deposit100% to $400 With Deposit
    • WSOP NJ ReviewOverall Grade A-
      • Games B+
      • Support B
      • Banking A-
      • Player Value A
    • PLAY NOW

Satellites and $15 million in guarantees

However, there’s more to all this than just online WSOP bracelet events.

The sites will be running a traditionally large series of satellites into live WSOP events as well, including the Main Event. These online satellites have always performed well and should grow even further this year.

Traffic on WSOP.com in Nevada during the series always seems to find a secondary peak leading up to the Main Event. This year should be no different, particularly with players from outside of Nevada able to help it get there.

The 25 Seat Scramble with 25 WSOP Main Event seats guaranteed has always helped drive traffic right before the Main Event begins. It will run again on July 1.

Plus, all told, WSOP.com says it will be offering $15,000,000 worth of guarantees from May through September, marking its biggest summer ever.

Every Sunday, players will find a $100,000 guaranteed $320 buy-in tournament running. That will be the largest weekly online poker tournament guarantee in the country. But that’s not all. There will be a total of $250,000 in guarantees running on the site every Sunday.

Every other day of the week will feature a tournament with at minimum a $10,000 guarantee. Plus, there will be daily freerolls into the weekly $100,000 guaranteed event and online bracelet event freerolls to boot.

New Jersey and Delaware come along for the ride

In years past, WSOP.com in New Jersey has seen traffic go up and go down during the WSOP. A heavy cross-promotional schedule in New Jersey helped push numbers up in 2014. However, they fell just as fast without those same promotions running in 2015.

Now, with New Jersey tapped right into the 2018 WSOP, a return to increased traffic in the Garden State is almost guaranteed.

The annual WSOP has been the most lucrative time of year for WSOP.com in Nevada since the site launched. In fact, it traditionally generates more gross gaming revenue during the WSOP than rest of the year combined.

One can expect new records to be set for the US online poker market as a whole this summer, with New Jersey and Delaware now a part of it all. Th glare from a future this bright is almost blinding.

New Players Get A Free Bonus At WSOP.com NJ

    • $10 No Deposit100% to $400 With Deposit
    • WSOP NJ ReviewOverall Grade A-
      • Games B+
      • Support B
      • Banking A-
      • Player Value A
    • PLAY NOW

The post Bright Future Ahead Has WSOP.com Players Donning Sunglasses appeared first on .