Tag Archives: online poker

Online gambling in the United States, online poker, ripoff

Why UB and AP are Poorly-Rated at The Online Casino Gambling Directory

Here is the complete video of last week’s 60 Minutes report on the UltimateBet / Absolute Poker cheating scandal. In case you don’t know, a few big-money players were found to have been able to play at the site with the ability to see opponents’ hole cards; the report estimates that the cheaters got away with in the neighborhood of $20M.

One of the key elements of the report is that the current owner of UB / AP is a former member of the commission in charge of investigating the scandal — a clear conflict of interest.

The only thing that has kept UB / AP from being blacklisted at The Online Casino Gambling Directory is the fact that they are taking steps to repay the players that were cheated by the cheaters.

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blacklist, Microgaming, online casinos, online gambling, online poker, ripoff, warning

Blacklisted: Villa Fortuna Casino and Eight Others

Villa Fortuna Casino, along with eight other Microgaming sites that were promoted by Grand Prive Affiliates, have been blacklisted at The Online Casino Gambling Directory for breach of contract with its affiliates.

  • Grand Prive Affiliates contracted with affiliates to have affiliates refer customers to various Microgaming sites (Bella Vegas, Fortune Junction, Jackpot Wheel, Jupiter Club, Lake Palace, Road House Reels, Casino Grand Bay, Grand Bay Poker). In exchange for referrals, affiliates were to be paid a percentage of the lifetime revenue generated by referred players (see bottom page at the above link).
  • Weeks ago, Grand Prive Affiliates went out of business, while the sites that they were associated with, and to which affiliates referred players, remain operational. However, the sites are no longer paying affiliates for revenue generated by previously-referred players. This is theft and breach of contract.
  • Villa Fortuna Casino, while not an original part of the eight Grand Prive-branded group of sites, is being run by the same outfit as that which operates the eight Grand Prive sites.

The net-net of all of this is that, in my opinion, these sites are not to be trusted with your money. If they are willing to steal from and breach their contract with affiliates, there is sufficient evidence to think that they are perfectly capable of doing the same to its players.

Trust me on this one… I’ve been in this business for years. Stay away from these nine sites.

Besides, there are plenty of other top-rated, trustworthy Microgaming casinos and Microgaming poker rooms available to you.

(Please note: Microgaming casinos and Microgaming poker rooms do not accept players from the United States. Wherever you live, please check your local, state, and provincial laws before you gamble online.)

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bonus, free, freeroll, online poker, promotions, US players

Vegas007 – A Different Kind of Poker Experience

Vegas007 is a different kind of online poker experience. What makes Vegas007 different is that the site enables you to create your own personalized, 3D, customized poker player. The possibilities are enormous in terms of the ways that you can tweak your online poker player. It’s pretty easy and takes only a few minutes to complete the creation of your online poker avatar.

Vegas007 offers rakeback for all cash players as part of their generous sign-up bonus for new players. Here’s the deal:

  • 30% Rakeback:Rakeback is active on all cash game tables. No activation code needed. Rakeback earnings are paid weekly and deposited in to your player account automatically.
  • $5 Signup Bonus: A small rake requirement (100 RP) must be met before the $5 sign-up bonus is released.
    Money & prizes from freerolls & free cash games can be used on all cash tables in order to reach this rake requirement.
  • FREE Ticket: Sign up for a FREE player account today and receive 1 FREE ticket to the daily New Player Freeroll. No Code needed. The ticket will be added automatically to your player account.
  • First Deposit Bonus: Choice of 100%, 400%, or 1000% on initial deposits. Use code vegas007, vegas007400, or vegas0071000, respectively, in order to claim the bonus. In order to release your deposit bonus you must play on cash game tables to rake 5x the bonus amount. You have 2 months from making your first deposit to do this.

(Please note: Vegas007 accepts all players. Wherever you live, please check your local, state and provincial laws before you gamble online.)

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online poker, promotions

Great Offer for Bigtime Cash Game Players

PayNoRake online poker image 

If you are mainly a cash game player — and play at higher-than-normal stakes — PayNoRake.com on the Action Poker Network is for you. PayNoRake.com offers all players at least 50% of their rake back, with the top players earning 100% of their rake back. For each $25 in contributed rake (meaning, you have only to be dealt cards in order to be credited with a portion of the rake for that hand), you get an extra 5% rakeback, up to the 90% rake back level; thereafter, only $10 is needed for each additional 5% rakeback. Thus, players that generate $220 or more in contributed rake in a single day will get all of that back.

rake back chart

Rake back is paid into your account daily at midnight EST.

This huge rakeback is sure to attract bigtime cash game players, and I’m sure that there will always be good action at their higher-limit tables.

Check it out, and let me know what you think of PayNoRake.com.

(Please note: PayNoRake.com is on the Action Poker Network and does not accept players from the United States. Wherever you live, please check your local, state, and provincial laws before you gamble online.)

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online poker

Cereus Poker Network = UB + AP

In the wake of their recent scandals, and ahead of an upcoming 60 Minutes expose, UltimateBet has announced that it has moved to a completely new poker platform called Cereus. UltimateBet, along with its sister site AbsolutePoker, are currently the only two poker rooms on the Cereus Poker Network; even so, they claim that the Cereus Poker Network is the world’s third largest.

An initial look at the new software does not reveal much new by way of features and the interface itself. Instead, players are asked to believe that most of the improvements are under the hood, and that Cereus is “… the strongest poker platform on earth”. This remains to be seen, but it is hard to believe that the folks at UB and AP would leave any security vulnerability open after the disasters of the past months.

Both UltimateBet and AbsolutePoker have upped their new player bonus to 200%, with the bonus at UB being capped at $1100 and the bonus at AP capped at $500.

(Please note: Both UltimateBet and AbsolutePoker accept U.S. residents from all states. Wherever you live, please check your local, state and provincial laws before you gamble online.)

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freeroll, online poker, tournaments, US players, WCP

World Cup of Poker @ PokerStars.com

One of the more interesting online poker tournaments is the World Cup of Poker, now running at PokerStars.com. Now in it’s fifth year, the World Cup of Poker pits teams from countries from around the globe against one another in exciting No-Limit Texas Hold’em tournament play.

Last year, Team USA – comprised of Tyler Netter, Randy Principe, John Kenlan, Shaun Deeb, and captained by Team PokerStars Pro Greg Raymer – was victorious in Barcelona, Spain, beating seven other nations. Canada (captained by TeamPokerStars Pro Daniel Negreanu), Germany, Ireland, Mexico, Iceland, Portugal and Romania all contributed to a thrilling competition.

You can qualify for your 2008 national team by making it through a series of freeroll qualifiers. For the US National Team, these are bring held on November 27 – 30. Check the World Cup of Poker page for specific dates and times for the freerolls for the US National Team, as well as for any other country’s team.

Look for me at the tables — my player name is RobertMedl. (I know…. it’s not a very creative nickname.)

(Please note: PokerStars.com accepts U.S. residents from all states. Wherever you live, please check your local, state and provincial laws before you gamble online.)

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freeroll, Microgaming, online poker, poker, promotions

Freeroll Frenzy Tournaments 24-7 Through October 22, 2008

If you like poker freerolls, then you’re going to love this offer. From now through October 22, 2008, Cool Hand Online Poker is offering their players hourly freerolls! Each day, they are running 4 X $500, 4 X $200, 2 X $40 and 14 X $20 freerolls. This is a great opportunity to hone your poker skills and maybe even build a small bankroll to get started playing online poker.

Novice and casual online poker players are catered to at Cool Hand Online Poker. Cool Hand Online Poker, unlike most poker rooms, limits players to 2 real money tables and 1 tournament table. This means that sharks have to work so much harder, for so much longer in order to try and take a player’s bankroll. In other words, it’s not worth their time, because to a shark time is money. The average poker player can now get in on all of the poker action without fear of their bankroll being ravaged.

But that is not all that Cool Hand Online Poker is offering! All players can also take advantage of the $350 sign up offer that allows players to earn a $10 bonus for every 100 raked hands up to $350! That’s a massive payout rate that is 2.8 times faster than any of their biggest competitors!

(Please note: Cool Hand Online Poker does not accept players from the following US states: IL, IN, LA, MI, NJ, NV, NY, OR, SD, WA, WI. Wherever you live, please check your local, state and provincial laws before you gamble online.)

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Online gambling in the United States, online poker, poker, politics, PPA, US players

KY Domain Name Grab Thwarted — For the Moment

Earlier this week, the Kentucky state governor attempted to block access by the state’s citizens to over 100 online gambling websites on the grounds that the state government may seize devices that are used for illegal gambling. On Friday, the Poker Player’s Alliance (PPA) halted this domain name grab, at least temporarily, on the grounds that poker is a game of skill and, as such, is not covered by the laws that the governor was attempting to use to block access to the sites. In addition, the PPA claims that there are First Amendment issues that are relevant to the case.

Read more about the KY domain name grab at CardPlayer.com.

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bonus, eWalletXpress, exclusive, free, hold-em, online poker, promotions, US players

Pitbull Poker – Great Bonuses, Easy Deposits, Low Withdrawal Fees

Real-money online poker players in the US are becoming increasingly frustrated with limited and costly banking options. I’ve recently surveyed the 50 or so online poker sites that accept real money players from the US, and found that Pitbull Poker is one of the best online poker options available.

  • Pitbull Poker accepts real-money players from all US states.
  • Pitbull Poker is flash-based, so no download is needed.
  • They offer hourly feerolls (mainly hold’em with $0 entry fee / $0.25 rebuy and add-on). While you will need to make a minimum deposit ($25) and meet the minimum withdrawal amount ($50), there is no playthrough requiremet on the deposit nor the freeroll winnings.
  • In addition to the $10 FREE that they offer to my visitors (contact support via live chat to claim your $10 FREE), they offer deposit bonuses to fit the stakes of all players.
  • For deposits, they offer eWalletXpress — an ewallet that is free to open an account, and free to fund from a banking account.
  • Pitbull Poker will issue checks of $50 or more for a low $8 fee. This is the best option for withdrawals of over $80. For withdrawals of under $80, have the funds paid back to eWalletXpress, and then from there to your banking account; while this incurs a 10% eWalletXpress fee, it’s a better option than the check from a percentage perspective.

(Note: Pitbull Poker accepts players from all US states. Please check your local, state and provincial laws before you gamble online. If your local laws prohibit online gambling then we recommend you consider an alternative form of entertainment. )

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