Daily Rewind: PokerStars Introduce Changes, ChipTic Busts Out & Tensions Rise
In today's Daily Rewind we check out how PokerStars have made things more profitable for players, encounter some problems with ChipTic and find out why things are hotting up at the WSOP.
The Daily Rewind is your one-stop-shop for a sharp review of the day in poker. Join us here for a mix of the latest news and a more irreverent insight into the poker world. Today we discovered the following topics for you:
Faster Bonuses at PokerStars
After round table discussions with players and an analysis of the figures, PokerStars has decided to implement some changes to its bonus system.
In an effort to reward players with a greater frequency, the amount of FPPs required to claim a VIP bonus has been reduced.
Under the new system, which comes into place on June 1st, a Bronze level player will now be able to exchange 1,000 FPPs for $10, instead of 2,500 for $25 (a reduction of 60%).
The greatest shift in value is a 75% reduction for Gold members who can now exchange 6,250 FPPs for $75, as opposed to the 25,000 FPPs for $300.
PokerStars' Fixed Limit rake system is also taking a step backwards, with caps at $1/$2 and $2/$4 falling between 13.5% and 37.5%.
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| Earn money faster |
ChipTic Fail
It was designed to usher in a new era in live poker reporting, but it seems that ChipTic’s tracking software encountered a glitch during yesterday’s session.
A problem occurred when ChipTic’s table-shifting feature decided to stop working, which meant that hundreds of players were left in limbo not knowing if or when they should move tables.
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| Never work with children, animals or technology |
The problem continued for well over an hour before the WSOP’s tournament staff decided to switch back to a manual system.
Overall the reaction to ChipTic’s inclusion in this year’s Series has been positive, however, the system is yet to prove itself which has caused some players to question its usefulness.
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| ChipTic's fatal error |
Storms at the WSOP
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| Gangsta talk from poker's "bad boy" |
When someone wins a bracelet it’s not often that one of their Facebook friends responds by plastering their wall with threats to another poker player.
However, that’s exactly what happened after Brent Hanks took down the first open event at this year’s WSOP.
While many may have thought that Chad “lil_holdem” Batista had disappeared from the poker world for good, he made a dramatic return to the limelight yesterday after calling out Jason Mercier.
The series of posts on Hank’s wall indicated some serious tension between the two.
The comments have since been removed but it looks as though this one could resurface later in the Series.
Batista vs. Mercier wasn’t the only storm brewing yesterday, as Sam Trickett tweeted that he’d been robbed by a fellow poker player.
@Samtrickett1: “I had money stolen from me by a well known poker pro that I thought was my friend! If he doesn’t call me soon I’m going to expose him 4 what he is.”
It seems as though the action at the felt isn’t the only thing that’s going to get the railbirds reaching for their popcorn this summer.
High Stakes Corner
David “Deldar182” Eldar stormed the high stakes tables yesterday and walked away with $172,097 profit. The Australian player took full advantage of the softer games by dominating the PLO tables.
Also enjoying success, but still over $100,000 behind “Deldar182”, was Tom “tjbentham” Bentham. The UK based pro managed to rake in a haul of $70,223 in just 613 hands.
At the opposite end of the spectrum, “mikki696” endured a $133,870 loss. Running almost as badly was “10IsTheYear” whose 1,616 hand session left them with a deficit of $123,264.
Daily Signoff
With tempers starting to fray at this year’s WSOP, we thought we’d end today with one person who angered more than a few players during the 2006 Main Event.
