21 Jan 12
Daily Rewind: Zynga Real Money, New Party Premier League, Hachem Rumours & TCOOP
In Today's Rewind we get the latest Zynga news, check out PartyPoker's Premier League, the latest TCOOP results and the recent Joe Hachem gossip. All that plus a high stakes round up and another Daily Signoff.
Zynga Taking a Gamble
They stated they weren’t going to take advantage of their huge player base and offer real money poker games, but now it seems Zynga Poker has made a u-turn. AllThingsD confirmed the news yesterday, explaining that Zynga were considering various partnership opportunities with established gambling companies.In a statement given to the news site, a Zynga spokesperson said:
"We build games and experiences that our players want and love. Zynga Poker is the world’s largest online poker game with more than 7 million people playing every day and over 30 million each month. We know from listening to our players that there’s an interest in the real money gambling market. We’re in active conversations with potential partners to better understand and explore this new opportunity."
Following the news Zynga’s share prices rose by 6% as the potential billion dollar revenue stream became a very real proposition in the near future.
Indeed, while it will take a few months for the process to be completed, it looks as though online poker may have a new player in the near future.
The Party is On
The ever popular PartyPoker Premier League is set to return for its fifth incarnation this April. Now branded as a WPT event, the WPT Premier League V presented by PartyPoker.com will take place in the fabulous Montesino Casino in Vienna, Austria.Between the 4th and 12th of April a hand selected roster of pros will battle it out in the $125,000 buy-in tournament. Of the 16 players granted access to the tournament, Sam Trickett, Vanessa Selbst, Tony G, Luke Schwartz and Andy Frankenberger are already confirmed.
In addition to the regular $2,000 per point system, this year’s final table will have $200,000 in added prize money as well as a seat for the winner in the $25K WPT World Championship.
For a final touch of glamour the ever radiant Kara Scott will be hosting the event which will air on SkySports later in the year, before being distributed internationally.
TCOOP
Its turbo structure means the events are flying by thick and fast in the last 24 hours we’ve seen another handful of online players race to victory in PokerStars' TCOOP series. Germany’s "chismann" took down the $22 PL Draw event for $6,680, while "Ghoulio" took down the popular $55 6-max event for $31,953.7The biggest winner of the day, however, was the UK’s "_JMCD_89" who bagged a bankroll-tastic $68,000 for his win in the $82 Double Chance event.
Check out the full list of results and current leaderboard at PokerStars dedicated TCOOP site.
You’re Having a Laugh
It’s always wise not to invest too much authority in forum rumours, but when you combine a post with a Tweet from the subject in question, it does intrigue the senses.Having left his home at PokerStars, it’s been claimed that Joe Hachem is to become the face of new poker site: Haha Poker. The absence of any proof, combined with the sheer unfeasibility of the move, has caused many to instantly dismiss the post.
However, a recent Tweet by Joe does thicken the plot, somewhat:
“Signing contracts and drinking scotch mmmm good thing Neo here to make sure I don't sign my life away.”
Could it be one big joke? Or is Joe poised to start the next chapter in his poker career?
High Stakes Corner
“VietRussian” took the top spot yesterday in the high stakes charts with a healthy profit of $67,078, a shade ahead of “PimpyLimpy” who bagged $61,677.Topping the bottom charts with a loss of $61,130 was Viktor “Isildur1” Blom. Also making an unwanted appearance in the losers’ chart was Brain “aba20” Townsend with a $51,076 loss, over the course of just 107 hands.
#1
pavels4444, 21 Jan 12 17:27
zynga - one time!#2
Tim64, 21 Jan 12 17:53
zynga: "we're not going to offer real money poker -- that would be tacky and exploitative".zynga's financial advisers: "ummm, you realise you would make a sh*t load of money if you did?"
zynga, a few moments later: "we're going to offer real money poker".
#3
Tarhonya, 21 Jan 12 18:20
^haha, true story#4
pleno1, 21 Jan 12 20:37
oioi Jack Mcd! Grats kid#5
lynius, 21 Jan 12 21:36
If I had the money I'd be buying A LOT of those shares. Alas, I do not have money.#6
marti1988, 21 Jan 12 23:39
Zynga poker -Hero goes all in -KK
I call 45
I call 3K
I call A2
I call 92
I call 72
xaxaax this is zynga
#7
boboistina, 22 Jan 12 00:02
Screw zynga, i want FTP!!!#8
MichaelGotAA, 22 Jan 12 00:17
I take it your ready to be ripped off again #7 FTP is dead to me. They screwed too many people IMO. The name FTP should be never used again.#9
TheRebuz, 22 Jan 12 02:17
@6Equity Win Tie Loss Hand
Player 1: 38.414 % 37.694 % 1.658 % 60.648 % KK
Player 2: 17.195 % 17.140 % 0.327 % 82.533 % 54s, 54o
Player 3: 6.091 % 5.371 % 1.658 % 92.971 % K3s, K3o
Player 4: 22.531 % 22.389 % 0.589 % 77.022 % A2s, A2o
Player 5: 8.238 % 8.096 % 0.589 % 91.315 % 92s, 92o
Player 6: 7.532 % 7.390 % 0.589 % 92.021 % 72s, 72o
geting 5:1 on your money and wining ~40%
me LIKE Zynga, vamooooooooo
#10
YinYangS, 22 Jan 12 03:21
once zynga opens, i'm gonna jump in! i'm gonna move all my roll there!!! =)#11
ilovemagic, 22 Jan 12 05:27
@#10 ....LOL#12
Liudas20, 22 Jan 12 12:12
i gues first few mounght it will be like paradise for all who like fishing#13
Banjostring, 22 Jan 12 12:37
lol "Brain Townsend" sounds like a clever guy. I actually know a guy called Brian Damage who often misspells his name for comedy effect#14
Tudazul, 22 Jan 12 12:45
Come to cool side, Zynga.