Jeff Gross leaves PokerStars

We round-up some big stories of the week including a launch date for Phil Galfond and $1 million Spins at partypoker.

Gross leaves PokerStars

While we are used to seeing poker rooms reevaluate their sponsorship deals in an ever-changing market, so far the Twitch streamers with their ready-made audiences and endless content have been relatively safe. 

However, this week PokerStars Pro and Twitch star Jeff Gross announced he was leaving PokerStars after two years, as they were unable to reach a renewal deal:

partypoker add $1m Spins

Last week partypoker announced they were rebranding their Lottery SNG games from SNG Jackpots to 'Spins' - a curious move that almost felt like a troll towards Spin & Go from PokerStars. 

The change was not without substance, however, as part of that new offering will be $5 Spins with a $1 million jackpot. 

Precisely the same as what PokerStars currently offer, but when an operator is prepared to dish out seven-figures for a $5 game, it's always worthy of note. 

Galfond to launch RIOPoker

One of the most eagerly awaited projects in online poker finally gets underway. Two years ago Phil Galfond announced he was starting his own online poker room and there have been many delays and bumps along the way. 

It's still in the testing phase, but the public finally has a launch date if they want to try it out:

Remember when I said the next time I posted would be to announce @RunItOncePoker’s launch date?https://t.co/FD6fZjPp1Q

— Phil Galfond (@PhilGalfond) February 3, 2019

Another win for Lex

2018 was a tough year at the tables for Lex Veldhuis but 2019 started strong for him and on Sunday he had his second winning weekend in a row:

And Spraggy gets one too

A great year so far for lots of streamers and last night Ben Spragg shared some very useful advice on how to win the heads-up part of big tournaments:

Who is your favourite Twitch streamer? Let us know in the comments: