Pondering Poker

Posted on September 27, 2008 
Filed Under General

ponderingThere has been some interesting and sometimes strange news around the poker world this week. Here is a glimpse and a glance at some of the more or less interesting tidbits.

The World Series of Poker Europe has been running this week with three preliminary events and today's first of two Day Ones in the main event. The Events are being "double numbered", they are WSOPE 2008 Events 1-4, as well as 2008 WSOP 56-59. We have heard only minor grumbling about "diluting" the value of the WSOP bracelet; I mean they give out 55 bracelets in Las Vegas every summer, so what are four more. The question may be raised in 2009 when rumor has it, there may be a WSOPE group of tournaments in both London and Barcelona. Then again, it is supposed to be the World Series of Poker.

Next item, the State of Kentucky in the United States is attempting to seize control of 141 poker websites because.... well you can read the legal background but it comes down to yet another moralistic fundamentalist who believes that politicians have the right to restrict the freedoms of citizens based on their own irrational fears and beliefs. Wars have been fought over such morality or immorality based legislation.

A new study was found that interest in poker, at least among youth, has fallen. Indeed, according to this study: "interest in poker peaked in 2005" and has been falling dramatically since then. The reason? Poker was trendy and like all trends the novelty wears off. So poker will go the way of backgammon and the macarena?

One final report, gaming revenues for July in the State of Nevada were off again. The total "take" or "win" for the casinos was down 14% year over year and this includes the Las Vegas Strip casinos, which account for 50% of the total gaming revenues in Nevada. Poker revenues were down just slightly more than were the overall gaming totals. There is some doubt about whether all of the revenue from the World Series of Poker was included in these numbers, since the WSOP does not technically end until November 11th.

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