Online Poker shut down in U.S.

[BlueBlackRed]

Some of my friends used to play a few of those sites. They quit, not for fear of prosecution, but rather they noticed they all went from winning to losing...at the same time. Fraud? Hacked? Don't know.

Add to that some of the allegations- money laundering, for instance- ant it paints a rather nasty picture, if true.

It could also be that a lot of the less skilled players left after losing interest and too much money.
Thus the people your friends used to "feed upon" were gone, that created a rapid change in skill level and then it became sharks eating sharks.

 

[John Crichton]

I'm sure the FBI and the U.S. Government did it for financial reasons, but I think this is great news overall. Online gambling just gave gambling addicts an even easier and simpler way to bankrupt themselves and their families from the comfort of their own homes ... not to mention giving people under 18 a way to throw away money they couldn't afford to throw away.

The only thing I can really say is good riddance ...

They only shut down a few sites, not all of them. People can still go online and play poker for money, place bets on sports and all that. The industry is still there minus a few big-name sites.

 

[catsclaw227]

It could also be that a lot of the less skilled players left after losing interest and too much money.
Thus the people your friends used to "feed upon" were gone, that created a rapid change in skill level and then it became sharks eating sharks.

This is actually confirmed by a number of big online players. There was a boom a 5 or 6 years ago, then the minnows got devoured and now players that were regularly winning in medium stakes games had trouble playing consistently well in low stakes games.

Plus a massive influx of European players that are more aggressive and often play well against the strategies discussed in all the poker books. These good young players weren't playing in one or two medium ($5/$10 or $10/$20) or high stakes games, but instead would play 8 games at the same time for $2/$4.

Players previously winning were now losing a lot.

 

[catsclaw227]

I'm sure the FBI and the U.S. Government did it for financial reasons, but I think this is great news overall. Online gambling just gave gambling addicts an even easier and simpler way to bankrupt themselves and their families from the comfort of their own homes ... not to mention giving people under 18 a way to throw away money they couldn't afford to throw away.

The only thing I can really say is good riddance ...

I can understand your feelings, and it sounds like you might know some families that may have been affected by that kind of behavior.

But, keep in mind, the tried this with prohibition and it didn't stop the use of booze, in fact things got worse. An alcoholic can go to any grocery store or corner gas/mini-mart and get alcohol. Pulling beer off the shelves doesn't solve the problem.

EDIT: Now, shutting them down because there were shady banking practices, laws being broken, and money being laundered.... Well, those are good reasons to lock down the main big sites. There is a message being sent to other online gambling sites, as much as there are laws being upheld.

 

[John Crichton]

I can understand your feelings, and it sounds like you might know some families that may have been affected by that kind of behavior.

But, keep in mind, the tried this with prohibition and it didn't stop the use of booze, in fact things got worse. An alcoholic can go to any grocery store or corner gas/mini-mart and get alcohol. Pulling beer off the shelves doesn't solve the problem.

Well said. Drinking, gambling, narcotics and the like is a symptom of a larger problem.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

It could also be that a lot of the less skilled players left after losing interest and too much money.
Thus the people your friends used to "feed upon" were gone, that created a rapid change in skill level and then it became sharks eating sharks.

While possible, it's not that likely with this bunch: they generally profit on their gambling vacations. As in, their winnings more than pay for their travel, lodging, and dining expenses (occasionally, even with family in tow). A couple have come up just short of making it to the televised rounds of the WSOP.

IOW, these guys are sharks, not clownfish...and not little ones, either.

In addition, the same pattern of simultaneous changes of fortune did not show up in sites that have, as yet, not been popped by the Feds.

 

[catsclaw227]

While possible, it's not that likely with this bunch: they generally profit on their gambling vacations. As in, their winnings more than pay for their travel, lodging, and dining expenses. A couple have come up just short of making it to the televised rounds of the WSOP.

IOW, these guys are sharks, not clownfish.

In addition, the same pattern of simultaneous changes of fortune did not show up in sites that have, as yet, not been popped by the Feds.

I won't dismiss the idea that there might have been fraud done by the developers (fake AI players, programmed river cards coming out that suck out on much better hands, etc)

But playing live at one table in Vegas or Atlantic City or other Native American casinos, where there are a LOT of minnows, it's not tough to pay for your vacation, or at least get some comps, if you know what you are doing.

The Main Event of the WSOP gets televised from day 1. Anyone with 10K can get in and play. You can be the worst player in the world and get into the "televised" round of the WSOP. Getting past day 1, though. That is the initial challenge, then it's getting into the money.

I've never played in WSOP play - never had time to go to Vegas when it was going on, and never had 10K of totally disposable money to plunk down - but I've played the tables and have had consistent winnings for a weekend.

But, I did notice that the online tournaments on PokerStars where getting harder to win or get into the money. Lots of high volume players who play 8 hours a day, 5+ tables at a time, mostly european, were making some of the games more difficult. In a 45 player tourney, it became a lot more common to have a good hand of mine get sucked out on by a lesser hand - especially when I was betting my hand correctly and I end up losing a bunch of my chip stack to a donkey hand.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

The Main Event of the WSOP gets televised from day 1

True, but I'm talking about when they narrow it down to just a couple tables. As in, not the wide camera shots with more focus on the tables where the known whales are playing, but when everyone is sitting there with a sizable stack, and there are nooooo distractions.

 

[catsclaw227]

True, but I'm talking about when they narrow it down to just a couple tables. As in, not the wide camera shots with more focus on the tables where the known whales are playing, but when everyone is sitting there with a sizable stack, and there are nooooo distractions.

Well, now you are talking about already being in the money. Usually the last couple hundred players (+/- 20% depending upon registration) get into the money at the main event, and that's a really tough feat. You're not there until day 3 (late), day 4.

 

[Kzach]

This was actually big news in the MMA world as well because Strikeforce fighters and fighters from other, smaller, promotions have Fulltilt as their sponsor. Given that fighters tend to get as much or even more money from sponsorships than they do from fight pay, this will have a significant effect on the sport.

Luckily for the monster that is the UFC, they banned online poker sponsorship years ago.