The World Series of Poker is one of the most popular events in the gaming industry, if not the most popular. Many players from all over the world gather regularly to be able to get the chance to sit at the final table and rake in the huge pot money up for grabs at this event. This event used to be shown on national television, and it has since captured the fancy of spectators and players alike. The main point of discussion at this game has always been the pot money followed by the high regard people have of the winners who make it big at this event.

Winner’s Gruelling Battle

One such individual who has wowed the crowd is the player Nenad Medic. The first part of the World Series of Poker so the star of Nenid Medic rose in the first event who has just won the World Championship Pot Limit Hold’em the previous evening where he earned a whopping $794,112. This is almost the same amount an old lady won recently through Mecca Bingo. Compared to this old lady who had only to pick the lucky bingo card and win the pattern asked for, Nenad Medic had to beat nine other poker players in the final table. Before that, he and these nine players had to go through no less than 341 professional and non-professional poker players.

Other Contenders for the Pot

There were other seasoned players on this event which added spice to the game. If you want to think of a celebrity match, then this definitely is what it is. There was Mike Sowers who is a professional poker player. He had long string of online poker victories to his credit such the FTP $1,000 Monday as well as the $1,050 LHE World Championship of Online Poker. The other contenders were Amit Makhija, a Sit n’ Go player known for playing high stakes, Patrik Antonius who happens to be a regular of the Big Game and Mike Sexton, a winner of WSOP bracelet. Other noteworthy opponents were Phil Laak aka “The Unabomber”, also a regular of high stakes poker, and the only female in the table, Kathy Liebert. Among these contenders, the final four were composed of Medic, Liebert, Sexton and Bloch. And these four happens to hold the record for earning over $1 million from poker tournaments. Talk about birds of the same feather flock together.

Having now played at Game Village I can well and truely say I’ve been sucked in!  After reading this Game Village review and finding out that I could claim £20 free without having to deposit I had to try it out!  This promotion applies to all new members, and after you’ve played with the free cash, you can (if you need to!) top up your account with the 200% cash match bonus! 

Game Village is different to most online bingo and gaming sites in that it is very much a social network, or social gaming network as they call it.  You really do feel part of the community, and I made a few good friends after just a couple of days playing there!  I guess it really helps that the large number and wide variety of games are so much fun, I just found it hard to leave.

There are far too many games, promotions and prizes etc that there is no point me even starting to go into them!  I recommend you read this Game Village, take the £20 free and try it for yourself! 

There really is nothing to lose!

sorry if I am a bit slow to pick up on this… but jannie just told me of this site where she hangs out called Game Village. Its really fun and there is loads going on, not just bingo and slots and all the usual chat.

If you don’t know about it check out my experience below, and maybe give it a go for yourself too
Game Village is not just online bingo , it’s an online bingo community. As well as some of the best bingo games around, they offer members their own online house and community.

It is now coming up to Game Village’s first birthday (22nd May) and to celebrate they are adding even more new games and promotions.
I love the site, its fun, easy to use and simple to sign up, no messing around on this site. In about a minute players can be become members and begin playing for cash and prizes and you don;t even have to download anything to your computer (hate that!) You also get a free £20 at the mo if you sign up so that can;t be wrong can it?.

Here is what they have to say at Game Village. Let me know what you think? And you can always read a review of Game Village and look at what other bingo and games player are saying about the site but seems it is pretty popular

Game Village offer a whole catalogue of unique games including bingo, slots, casino games and arcade games. All the games are designed built and run by Game Village meaning members have access to exclusive games available on no other site. Here’s a quick run-through of a few of the best of the games:

BINGO, the obvious first choice! The Bingo Hall, known as the Village Inn is well designed and easy to use. Cards can be purchased in advance so that players do not miss out and allowing them to take full advantage of the rest of the site in the meantime. Including in-built chat features the Game Village bingo is up there with the best, providing users with a fun and safe place to play their online bingo. From the home page you can also access another two bingo games, Chip Van Bingo and Elimination Bingo.

Following the Bingo games members can access two of Game Village’s best original games: Dingo and Super Gems. These two simple games are available both as free-play and 50p cash games. As well as these Game Village provide a wealth of online casino games including Slots games. Many of these games provide progressive jackpots and other cash prizes.

When in between games users can take advantage of the Mini-Slots feature. When waiting for a new game to start, at the bottom of the game screen players can play a variety of quick mini-slots so that you’re never bored. Depositing players have access to the cash games which, as already stated, provide great cash prizes and progressive jackpots. Other players, accessing Game Village through the Free Membership can play the points games. By just supplying a few details (no bank details required) members can play games which build up points. The points can then be used to play other games or to enter prize draws with cash prizes available.

Bringing online bingo together with a the social abilities of the internet Game Village provide users with a real life community. Using their virtual village members are provided with their own house after their first three deposits. Becoming a homeowner provides Game Village members with a host of great advantages. Firstly they can hold their own “house parties” whenever they want. House Parties are private bingo meetings where members can invite friends and play exclusive games. Players can also participate in other village activities, site forums and send gifts to friends. One of the new great promotional features available to homeowners is the “Invite a Friend” scheme where they will share a £50 bonus with all friends that join. In similarity with social networking sites members can also create their own detailed profiles and add photos, as well as view friend’s profiles.

With plenty of chat hosts and support advisors online twenty four hours a day, seven days a week making the site safe and fun to play at, as well as their catalogue of superior games and promotions Game Village truly is a great place to play!
If you want to play then find out more at Game Village

Check out these awesome poker chip USB sticks:

You can get 1GB and 2GB versions, surely a must for any poker player that takes himself seriously!  I’m just looking into getting one from here.

The 2GB one is about £15 well worth it for how cool I’m going to look!

People have different reasons for wanting to play online poker. Some play for recreational purposes, others to try to make a little money on the side, others have rakeback deals and to try to make poker a living. Some like the ease of getting into a game, others like the variety. Whatever your reason for playing poker, you’ll probably enjoy it more if you play well. One trap to avoid when trying to play your best online poker is allowing emotions to dictate your play.

How Emotions Affect You in Online Poker: Tilt

Tilt is a danger that both live and online poker players face. Essentially, tilt happens when you make a good play and are rewarded for it with a horrible beat. Your blood boils, your head spins, and you start making crazy, undisciplined plays in order to teach the poker fates a lesson. Of course, this usually results in more and bigger losses. In a live game, this is bad, but in an online game, where you can just click a few buttons to send more money over from your bank account to the poker table, it can be disastrous.

Other Dangers of Emotion in Online Poker

Another pitfall to watch out for is using one big win or big loss as an excuse to move up in stakes. In online poker, moving to a higher stakes game again is as easy as a few clicks of the mouse. There’s no need to get up, put your name on a board and wait for a new seat. Resist the temptation to move up in stakes until you’re really ready, as a premature move can annihilate your bankroll.

 Best of Luck - TGDx

A facet of Texas Holdem strategy that many new players don’t consider is money management. Your first experience with Texas hold’em was probably to deposit $100 or so online or to plunk it down at your local casino and start playing, letting the chips fall where they may. If you play poker as a rare vacation activity when you happen to be in somewhere like Las Vegas or Atlantic City, you probably don’t have to worry as much about money management. If you plan to make poker a regular hobby or are even considering it as a profession, you definitely need to think about this aspect of the game.

Texas Hold’em Poker Money Management: Total Bankroll vs. Game Bankroll

One of the most important Texas Holdem tips is to have a sufficient bankroll. If possible, it’s a good idea to play at a limit such that you only put ten percent of your bankroll at risk at any given time. This means you have enough money to play the limit of your choice comfortably with only a tenth of your bankroll. To be able to comfortably handle the swings of a limit game it is optimal to have 100x the big blind in chips, although many players do fine with only 25x or 50x. Remember, this means your total bankroll will have to be 250-100x the big blind of the limit you choose. If you’re playing no-limit, you’ll want an even bigger bankroll, perhaps even twice as big, as the swings are bigger. If you play sit-and-go tournaments, the ten percent of your bankroll figure may work, but with the variance in multi-table tournaments, you may not want to dedicate more than one to five percent of your bankroll to any one tournament.

The Danger of Being Under-Bankrolled in Texas Hold’em Poker

The simple fact is that Texas Holdem
is a game of short term luck, and as someone famously once said, the short term can be an awfully long time. If you don’t have enough money to cover the times when the cards fall on the wrong side of the odds, you won’t be around when the odds fall right, which will be disastrous. You could be a tremendous player, but if you don’t have the money to stick around until the odds even out, no one will ever know.

The Danger of Being Over-Bankrolled in Texas Hold’em Poker

Of course, you don’t need to worry about having too much money. However, if the limit you are playing represents an infinitesimal portion of your bankroll, it may be difficult to play well. If you could lose 100 straight sessions at your current limit and not make a dent in your bankroll, it’s hard to see how you can stay focused enough to win at that level.

Final Money Management Notes

Remember that if you are a losing player, no size bankroll will make you a winner over the long term. However, if you are adequately funded, you give yourself the best chance to prove your skills and come out ahead.

Party Poker started off as the strongest global online poker operator. Sites such as Pokerstars and Full Tilt Poker were reviewing their strategies and tactics against the former online poker giant.

Party Poker was 800 pound giant in the online poker world. There was a number of reasons for such success. Party Poker was one of the first to fully appreciate poker affiliate opportunities. The other sites did not the benefits affiliate marketers were offering them and they did not want to share their profits with anyone else.

Pert Poker engages themselves in extremely aggressive marketing strategies and created deals with most affiliate managers online, which meant there were Party Poker reviews everywhere on the site.

This has brought them an early leadership position, which at the peak of their success looked like a potential for monopolistic position.

Nevertheless, as online poker industry evolved and expanded, the mass appeal was created, meaning that online poker was no longer considered a game for professional poker players, now it was the game for everyone and anyone interested in the game, the number of which has been growing steadily offline as well as online.

The first mistake Party Poker did, was become public, which forced them to pull out of US market after UIGEA was introduced according to the SAFE Port Act. This caused an instant loss of number 1 position in the world. Since then the site wasn’t able to create any big steps towards becoming Number one in the remaining market.

Despite the fact that Party Gaming, which includes Party Poker, Party Casino and Party Bets, is still growing; unfortunately for them their competitors seem to be quickly catching up or even taking over mo-re shares in this very profitable market.

For instance iPoker Network, which has passed Party crew not so far ago, as reported by the Piokerscout. This was measured by the number of real cash players active at the same time on both sites. Ipoker Network has 9827 real cash poker players, whilst Party Poker has 9365. The 24 hour peak is higher on iPoker compared to Party also.

To summarize the results published by Ipoker Network, Party Poker is third busiest online poker site worldwide according to the 7 day average, with Pokerstars being number one, which is twice as much as Full Tilt Poker, which is number two on the list. It looks like fairly shortly Party Poker will give up the third position to IPoker Network and pull out of the leadership 3 altogether. This is significant change after being number 1 for that many years.

The names behind are also getting stronger, with Ongame Network in the fifth place with 7846 cash game players, which is 1599 less than Party Poker. The Network is expected to grow rapidly in the next three to six month, which would squeeze the Party site onto the fifth place with no hesitation.

Do you think there is a hope for PArty Poker??? Is there anything you feel they can do to reincornate and push the competitors back in their place?

Betfair Pokerroom is now asking the money back, which was given to the punters even if they lost, as the software appeared to have an error.

Betfair Poker doubled punters’ cash, disregarding who won and who lost and the sum ended up being £1.7 million in total.

As soon as Betfair users spotted the fault, they started raking in hundreds of thousands of pounds.

It took Betfair three hours to spot the error, by then everyone who lost were given prizes as well as the top two winners of the poker .

Betfair tried to get the cash back from the punters, but most of them claimed to have spent it already.

Betfair Poker spokesman said this: “We are aware of the allegations but are not commenting”.

Poker industry has been reborn and is becoming stronger than ever, with more players converting into the dedicated fans daily. This rapid growth has brought poker to a new dimension, which has turned the balance of power on its head. Now instead of the house calling the shots, the patrons do. In a casino environment, when a customer speaks, a croupier listens. Now, in places with intense oligopolistic competition between casinos, the house doesn’t always win any more, the customer does.

Poker rooms are trying their hardest to create a competitive advantage through customer satisfaction, using zero tolerance quality control policy and other methods of attracting players. One of the examples of such efforts is the introduction of deep-stack tournaments.

Most poker players always hope to take part in tourneys with a lot of play potential. It has always been the story before that the fairly affordable tournaments came with a fraction of the starting chips and very short blinds levels, in contrast to big tournaments. Now, due to the increased competitiveness of the industry the format has changed and more tournaments are becoming deep-stack in favour of the players rather than the house, which is also good news for those who just learned poker basics, who can now take part in serious tournaments and test their beginners luck without having too much at stake.

The Venetian started the trend in 2007 with the first ever Deep-Stack Extravaganzas (DSEs), a $300-$1000 tourneys with larger than usual starting stacks and an extended blind structure. This has created a great opportunity for poker lovers to win huge prizes for a fairly moderate entry prize.

The manager of the poker room Venetian, Kathy Raymond admitted to the fact that deep-stack tournaments are absolutely vital for any poker company that wants to stay competitive.

“For years, many tournaments have been short-stacked with accelerated blind structures,” she said. “I believe that casinos are spreading more and more deep-stack tournaments to try to remain competitive, and I do not see this trend changing anytime in the near future.”

Other casinos have followed the trend set by Venetian to keep their market share safe. In fact, the Bicycle Casino in Los Angeles is hosting a deep-stack event this week, called “Mo’s Deep Stack”, with a number of tourneys with an entrance e from $300 to $500 and a $1,600 championship happening on Saturday.

The Larry Flynt’s Challenge Cup also decided to switch to deep-stack.

Here is how Patee McGuire, the manager of the poker room, explained the move: “This could be the wave of the future,” she said. “Players like these tournaments for obvious reasons — they start with more chips, feel more confident with the deep stack, and have the ability to play comfortably for longer periods.”

888 offers World Series of Poker seats
Online casino 888.com is offering poker players the chance to win a set at one of the four biggest poker tournaments in the world.

Members will be invited to play for a position at a the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas, the Aussie Millions in Melbourne, the European Poker Tour in Monte Carlo or the 888.com UK Open in London.

Players can pay just $1 to take part in the Live the Dream satellite tournament which will be held every hour each day, between December 20th and 28th.

The Christmas offer will see one in every ten players will win a seat in the Live the Dream Final – the winner of which will be handed a seat at the world-class tournaments.

888.com’s marketing director Matt Robinson said: “888 is thrilled about giving their players the opportunity to make their dream a reality.

“Live the Dream is all about making dreams come true for our players. There’s nothing we would like more than to give our players the chance to play for such incredible cash prizes in the world’s biggest poker tournaments, and win.”

 What do you think about this guys? I recon its a real deal and I think those of you who ever dreamt of competing with real poker masterminds for a very little price should definately try this out.

Or maybe you think otherwise?