Denmark Seizes Online Poker Player’s Funds

As reported in the Copenhagen Post, The Supreme Court in Denmark has just seized the entire year's winnings of a man they say made his living playing online poker. The 35-year-old man was forced to fork over the 194,000 kroner (about $28,000) he earned playing online poker to the state.

The decision was made when it was found that the unemployed man has no other means of income and it is illegal for citizens in Denmark to earn one's entire living from online poker or any other form of gambling. However, the court was "nice" enough to eliminate a 5000 kroner fine from the Eastern High Court where he was originally convicted in November as there was disagreement over online poker being covered by the law.

This is the second recent case to return a similar verdict since June when a man was convicted of organizing poker tournaments for a living. However this verdict was overturned, even though the Supreme Court maintains there are laws against poker tournaments.

Prosecutors are insistent that the decision does not mean that online poker is illegal. Which really sounds like they don't know what they are talking about to me. "We will decide on a case by case basis whether someone is playing professionally," said Crown Prosecutor Svend Larsen.

This whole situation begs the question, "Why is it illegal to win money from an online casino, but legal to take money from a guy who got his money from an online casino? Isn't that sort of like money laundering?

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How Phil Ivey Became A Professional Poker Player

It’s been a wild couple of weeks of tournament poker for me. I was in London playing in the 3rd annual World Series of Poker Europe and now I’m in the Caribbean, soaking up the sun and surf and competing in the Aruba Classic sponsored by UltimateBet.

This week’s column is a departure from the norm in that I’m featuring an excerpt from my just-released book, Deal Me In, a collection of twenty inspiring biographies from the world’s top poker players who share their stories about how they turned pro.

Here’s an excerpt from Phil Ivey’s story, one of the game’s best players and a finalist in this year’s World Series of Poker Main Event:

My grandfather first introduced me to poker; I was eight years old at the time. He pulled out a deck of cards and patiently taught me to play Five-Card Stud. He never wanted me to be involved with poker for anything more than fun. My mother didn’t want me to play poker for a living either. In fact, I’m not sure she likes it, or that she supports my decision to be a pro even now.

Even in middle school, when friends, family, or even teachers asked me what I planned to be, I told them, “ I’m going to be a professional poker player,’an answer that was met with mixed reactions.

Although I was good around my home games, I certainly didn’t win in Atlantic City right away. At first, I lost more than I won. When I’d lose, I’d go back to my telemarketing job to earn enough of a bankroll to go back to Atlantic City. Eventually, I didn’t have to go back to work at all!

Even though I’d lose at times, there was never a point where I was not certain I was better than everyone I faced. What these players had on me was experience and discipline. I watched the better players carefully and learned through trial and error.

One of the things I learned early on was the value of managing my money. I was never afraid or too proud to move down in stakes if the situation called for it. If I had $30,000 to my name, I’d take $15,000 and go play $75-$150. If I’d lose, I’d move down and play $30-$60 with $10,000 until I’d built the bankroll back up. If I lost that and had to move to even lower stakes, I’d do that too.

Some of the younger players today don’t understand this, and I think it may hurt them in the long run. They make a name for themselves and then get staked. If they go broke, they beg for money from friends rather than go get a job and build up their bankroll the hard way.

I never did that. I never borrowed money. Even if I wanted to, I didn’t know anyone well enough to do it. When I needed money, I just went back to work.

Years later (after I’d won several WSOP championship titles), I decided to make another move. I met Larry Flynt, and I knew that he had his own high-stakes poker game in Los Angeles, a $1,500-$3,000 limit Seven-Card Stud game. I decided to move west and give it a shot. I never played in a game with stakes like that. I brought nearly $600,000 to the table — my entire bankroll — and lost almost all of it in the first weekend!

People ask me whether I’d approve of my kids playing poker professionally. I’d rather they do not.

Poker is a great hobby, but being a professional is a very different story. But how can I stop them if that’s what they want to do?

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Commerce Casino Event Draws Nearly 4,000

Say what you will about the economy, but poker tournaments are still booming in California.

A total of 3,967 bought into the $220 No-Limit Hold'em event at Commerce Casino this week, the first tournament of its Hold'em series. It was enough to create the largest land-based poker tournament in history outside of the WSOP.

Los Angeles-based player Moshe Mashiah outlasted everyone to take down a $164,627 first-place prize. But according to tournament director Matt Savage, the last 10 players actually chopped for $45,000 each.

The Commerce Casino Hold'em Series is currently in full swing with the $2,580 main event scheduled to take place this coming Friday.

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Ladies - Two Queens.

Late Position - Position on a round of betting where the player must act after most of the other players have acted (usually considered to be the two positions next to the button).

Lay Down Your Hand - When a player folds.

Lead - The first player to bet into a pot.

Limit Poker - A game that has fixed minimum and maximum betting intervals along with a prescribed number of raises.

Limper - The first player who calls a bet.

Limp In - To enter the pot by calling rather than raising. (The usual concept of "Limp In" is when the first person to speak just calls the Big Blind)

Live Blind - An instance where the player puts in a dark bet and is allowed to raise, even if no other player raises. Itʼs also known as an "option".

Live Card(s) - In Stud Games, cards that have not yet been seen and are presumed to still be in play.

Live Hand - A hand that could still win the pot.

Live One - A not so knowledgeable player who plays a lot of hands.

Look - When a player calls the final bet before the showdown.

Loose - Is a player who plays a lot hands.

Lowball - Is a form of draw poker in which the lowest hand wins the pot.

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Ten Rules for Recreational Gamblers to Follow

1. Adhere to the principles of sound money management

Don't allow your money to lose its value the minute you set foot in the casino. If you gamble with any degree of regularity this is a must.

Bring with you the cash you have budgeted for the outing, and stick to it. Using credit cards and taking cash advances are paving stones on the road to ruin.

2. Don't chase jackpots

It's important to keep a realistic perspective as to your expectations. Coming out ahead is tough enough, making the big score even tougher.

Be satisfied with modest gains. Over the long haul, preserving winning sessions as opposed to allowing them to deteriorate into losing ones is the optimum game plan.

3. If you win a substantial amount, always set aside a major portion and make sure you go home with it

Casinos thrive on gamblers who contract the "bet it all back" syndrome.

If it happens to be a slot jackpot, ask for your winnings in the form of a check.

It's paramount to always have something to show for extreme good fortune because it never comes easy.

4. Don't chase comps

Let them come to you, based on your desired and comfortable level of play.

Don't fall prey to casino marketing machines. Always use your players club card and accept whatever perks come your way based upon your own terms.

5. Play at a leisurely pace

The faster you bet your money and the longer you gamble, the greater your vulnerability to the relentless and unbeatable house edge.

Place a time limit on your gambling sessions. Slot machines are fertile ground for fostering a tendency to play too fast. Don't fall into the trap.

6. Learn to play all casino games, concentrating on the ones - such as blackjack, craps and baccarat - with the least destructive house advantages

By becoming as diverse and versatile a recreational gambler as you can be, you'll be able to give your bankroll a rest from the slots.

You needn't be intimidated by table games. They're not rocket science.

7. Become an informed and knowledgeable slot player

Casino officials are all too happy to keep the devices shrouded in mystery and superstition.

Pick up a good book on the topic and learn all you can about how slots work and the sophisticated computer programs you're up against when you play them.

8. Play blackjack according to the principles of basic strategy

Memorizing a few simple rules will keep the house edge to a bare minimum and make the game an affordable wagering opportunity structured for long-term play.

9. Take advantage of video poker

When you learn how to recognize the best pay tables, you're competing against true mathematical probability, oftentimes close to 100 percent payback. You know a video poker machine's payback percentage, but that's not so with slot machines.

10. Become familiar with craps

The best bets at this game carry some of the lowest house advantages in the casino. One, the odds bet, has no house edge at all.

Un

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O

Odds - The probability of making a hand vs. the probability of not making a hand.

Offsuit - Cards of a different suit.

Omaha - A game in which each player is dealt four down cards with five community cards. To make your hand, you must play two cards from your hand and three from the board.

Open - To make the first bet.

Open-ended Straight - Four consecutive cards whereby one additional (consecutive) card is needed at either end to make a straight.

Open Card - A card that is dealt face-up.

Open Pair - A pair that has been dealt face-up.

Option - An option is a Live Blind made in the dark before the cards are dealt. If no one raises, the "option" player may raise the pot.

Out Button - A disc placed in front of a player who wishes to sit out a hand(s) but remain in the game.

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M

Main Pot - The center pot. Any other bets are placed in a side pot(s) and are contested among the remaining players. This occurs when a player(s) goes all-in.

Make - To make the deck is to shuffle the deck.

Maniac - A very aggressive player who plays a lot of hands.

Middle Pair - In flop games, when a player makes a pair with one of his/her down cards and the middle card on the flop.

Middle Position - Somewhere between the early and late positions on a round of betting (the fifth, sixth and seventh seats to the left of the button).

Muck - To discard or throw away your hand. It's also a pile of cards that are no longer in play.

Minimum Buy-In - The least amount you can start a game with.

Monster - A very big hand. In a tournament, a player who begins to accumulate chips after having a small stack is considered to be a monster.

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Q

Quads - Four of a kind.

Qualifier - In High-Low games, it is a requirement the Low hand must meet to win the pot.

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