Poker News

PokerRoom and CasinoRoom to Close April 14th

Tuesday will mark the end of an era in the online poker community, as PokerRoom and CasinoRoom will shut their doors. The poker site currently makes its home on the Ongame Network and players will be asked to move to bwin.

An e-mail sent to affiliates of PokerRoom on Wednesday read, “I would like to inform you that the option to play poker on PokerRoom and CasinoRoom will be disabled on Tuesday the 14th of April. The remaining players will only have the option to transfer to bwin after they log in.” Many players in the United States have fond memories of the online poker site, one of the first to sport 3D graphics. The site currently spreads Texas Hold’em, Omaha High, Omaha High-Low, Seven Card Stud, Seven Card Stud High-Low, and Five Card Draw. It vacated the U.S. market after the passage of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA).

Players are currently able to battle it out on up to 12 tables at once on PokerRoom. In addition, they can use a bevy of shortcut keys. Pressing F1 causes a player to fold, hitting F2 induces a call/check, and pushing F3 results in a bet/raise. Similar to other online poker room sites, PokerRoom offers its customers the opportunity to log player notes and keep track of a variety of stats while they play. PokerRoom also offers a web-based version that allows players to compete on Mac and Linux machines. Only two online poker sites, PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker, offer fully downloadable clients for Mac poker players.

According to PokerScout.com, which tracks online poker room traffic, the Ongame Network is owned by bwin and is the fifth largest worldwide in terms of cash game volume, boasting a seven day running average of 2,900 players. Its 24 hour peak is nearly 5,500 and, at the time of writing (which is early evening in London), a total of 3,883 players are competing in real money ring games. The world’s largest online poker site, PokerStars, has a seven day running average of 23,000 ring game competitors. Besides PokerRoom and bwin, other sites on the popular Ongame Network include Betsson, Eurobet, Hollywood Poker, PokerLoco, RedKings, and Stryyke.

The Network’s software uses caricatures to represent players seated at the virtual felts. They include a James Bond look-a-like and a man donning the signature hat of the Texas Dolly himself, Doyle Brunson. bwin boasts one of the top sports books in the world, offering wagering on soccer, tennis, basketball, volleyball, Formula 1 racing, motorbikes, baseball, hockey, handball, and cycling.

bwin’s poker arm is the official sponsor of a World Poker Tour (WPT) event in Venice, Italy on May 6th. The buy-in is a healthy €4,400 and the tournament takes place at the luxurious Casino di Venezia, which sits on the Grand Canal in the heart of the city. WPT Founder, President, and CEO Steve Lipscomb commented in a press release announcing the launch of the new tournament stop, "We’re thrilled to launch our first ever brick and mortar WPT tournament offering in Italy. bwin is a strong partner with the right market position in the region. We look forward to working with them to bring this event and the WPT brand to poker players in Italy and Europe.”

bwin serves as a sponsor of some of the world’s most visible sports teams, including the AC Milan and Real Madrid. It also sponsors Moto GP and the International Basketball Federation (FIBA). Its stock can be found under the symbol “BWIN” on the Vienna Stock Exchange. It closed the week up €0.86 to €21.36. Its 52 week range has seen BWIN waver between €10.50 and €24.45.

Annie Duke Cleans Floors, Witnesses Rodman Alcohol Intervention on Celebrity Apprentice

I've been watching NBC's “The Apprentice” ever since its first season premiered back in 2004. Sunday's show was one of the most bizarre I've ever seen and ended with poker pro Annie Duke, a contestant on the show, witnessing the exposure of five-time NBA champion Dennis Rodman's drinking problem. The board room became a real-life intervention.

Last week, the contestants were tasked with creating a promotional campaign for the launch of a video phone designed by ACN. From the onset, Rodman's erratic behavior was brought into the spotlight, as the basketball veteran clashed with teammate and country music star Clint Black, ending with Rodman throwing down his microphone and leaving the set. In the end, however, the men's team pulled out its first win of the season on the strength of a concert by R&B singer Brian McKnight, sending the women to the board room, where “Deal or No Deal” model Claudia Jordan was fired.

This week's task was to manage five hotel rooms at the Loews Regency Hotel in New York City. The teams would be graded on customer service and other factors such as room cleanliness. The winning Project Manager received $20,000 for the charity of their choice. Duke is playing for Refugees International, which she's worked closely with as part of Ante Up for Africa, the charity she founded along with actor Don Cheadle.

The women's team, Athena, selected TLC's Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins as its Project Manager, while the men's squad (Kotu) picked Rodman. Duke commented on Rodman taking on a leadership role: “That forces him to interact with the customers, which you know can only end in disaster.” Duke's comments would foreshadow one of the most unique endings in the history of The Apprentice, which is in its eighth season on NBC.

Watkins was quick to delegate tasks as the teams received crash courses on making beds, scrubbing toilets, delivering room service, and even taking care of guests' pets. Talk show host and New York native Joan Rivers was put in charge of Athena's concierge services, taking advantage of her local connections and top-notch interpersonal skills. By the time the men had decided to purchase treats for their guests at the popular Carnegie Deli, Rodman had already began ordering vodka cranberries from Loews' kitchen.

Rodman suggested parking a Ferrari outside of the hotel for guests to use, claiming “People look at cars! People look at people! They look at my ass all the time!” Meanwhile, Duke was among those furiously cleaning rooms in the minutes before guests checked in. She recalled, “We're just frantically trying to get it done and these stains won't come out. It was a lot of freaking work.” She joked that she would leave a $100 tip at hotels in the future.

Rodman continued to drink throughout the two hour-long episode and provided little direction for his team after the first few hours of the task. Guests of Kotu were waiting to be checked in, while the women were organized on the strength of Watkins' leadership skills. Duke served as the bellhop at the beginning of the task for her team and was extremely professional. She told NBC cameras, “I behaved like an employee the whole time. I was weird about it.”

Guests who checked in came armed with a bevy of requests, including on-stage tickets for Equus and dinner at the popular Waverly Inn. Each team welcomed a guest from the first season of Celebrity Apprentice. For the men, it was “Sopranos” star Vincent Pastore, who quit during the previous season. For the women, it was actor Stephen Baldwin, who was fired in Week 11. Rivers commented on the importance of fulfilling the needs of celebrities: “You really have to treat them like a celebrity. They expect a little more.” Pastore's special requests included cannoli and CDs.

With a lack of leadership, the men's team struggled to fulfill guests' orders. A bottle of chardonnay arrived more than an hour late and several room service orders were bumbled. Rodman, who swore profusely throughout the show, went to dinner at Tao with several of his guests and the team's driver. The women, meanwhile, struggled to keep pace with a needy room of men who requested Duke to bring them cart after cart of food. On her new fans, the Ultimate Bet pro commented, “I was really proud that I was being requested. I knew I was going to be judged on the quality of service.” The room in question was disappointed at the service received from pro golfer Natalie Gulbis.

After returning from dinner, Rodman grew tired of his team and once again walked off. This time, he proclaimed, “I'm out of here. They're too fucking cool.” He removed his shirt in the hallway of the hotel and exited the scene. Former “Monster Garage” host Jesse James told his teammates, “I think Dennis may have an alcohol abuse problem for real.”

The next morning, Athena offered complimentary breakfast to its guests, which resulted in numerous errors being made. Breakfast arrived to one room 40 minutes early and patrons in another room saw their massage bill double without being told. Reality star Khloe Kardashian took the fall for the first error and Rivers was to blame on the second. Duke explained, “Khloe had no friggin' clue and she's, for me, a little bit frustratingly laid back. We've got a lot of crap to do today and people need to be on task.”

In the board room, show host Donald Trump, who has gone to Duke early and often for objective advice, asked the World Series of Poker bracelet winner whether she thought her team won. Duke responded, “There's so much subjectivity from the guests, but I think that, as a hotel staff, we did fantastic particularly given the steepness of the learning curve we had to climb up.”

Instead of breaking down the task, the board room featured Rodman's drinking problem coming to life. One of the NBA's top rebounders lashed out at James, commenting on his former alcohol abuse (James has been sober for nine years). James, who was seated in between Rodman and Heisman Trophy winner Herschel Walker, pointed at both and said, “You have two of the greatest athletes in the history of American sports right here. Look at the contrast.”

In the end, the men's team scored 86 points out of a possible 100, well short of the women's total of 91. Dennis was fired on the spot in a rather unconventional board room. The show's credits included the text, “For problems with alcohol abuse, contact Alcoholics Anonymous.”

Celebrity Apprentice airs at 9:00pm ET on Sunday nights on NBC and runs for two hours. Duke remains in the running after five weeks.