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2012 WSOP Schedule Announced

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 13:36:00 -0500

The official schedule for the 2012 World Series of Poker (WSOP) has been announced, which will feature 61 different tournaments with the $10,000 buy-in Main Event wrapping up the action. Held in Las Vegas (the poker epicenter of the universe) each summer, the WSOP draws tens of thousands of poker players from around the globe each year.

While there are some notable changes the biggest rumored change -- eliminating the delay added in 2008 that sees the final table of the Main Event played out months after play is halted at nine players -- failed to materialize, despite a Tweet from the WSOP a few days ago strongly hinting at a change.

The release of the preliminary schedule of 2012 WSOP events that showed the Main Event running from July 7-16 and a Tweet stating “A few hints on WSOP schedule coming tomorrow…you won’t find the November Nine returning.” had many poker fans guessing that the WSOP would return to its roots and go back to the format of having the Main Event play all the way down to a winner with no delay.

The November Nine format was added in 2008 in an attempt to boost television ratings and interest in the WSOP, with the hopes that delaying the final table of nine players until November would give mainstream media the chance to interview players and publicize the event.

That format will return in 2012, however, with the Main Event pausing at the final table no July 17 then resuming on October 28, with a winner decided on October 30. The WSOP said the move a week or two earlier was to avoid conflict with primary voting in the US Presidential election.

While the WSOP Main Event grabs the headlines each year due to a huge payout to the winner of $8-$9 million, several other of the 61 events on the schedule make the winner millionaires. The 2012 WSOP schedule also includes the poker tournament with the largest buy-in ever held, with the $1 million buy-in Big One for ONE DROP event held for the very first time.

Las Vegas is Dead – Can the City Recover?

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 08:40:00 -0500

For a couple of weeks we’ve been revisiting the blogger VegasRex’s classic posts from Las Vegas – the town he once loved and later hated to the extent that he had to leave.

To sum this up, we give you a couple of post about why Las Vegas slowly, but steadily, is dying.

How Sin City lost its “cool”.

But can Las Vegas once again regain its attraction?

Let’s end this series with Rex’s tips on what the city has to do to recover.

Thanks again Rex for all the cynical, yet valuable insights.

Is Las Vegas Still Cool?

“It's been a long time since I met someone my own age who reacted to Las Vegas residency in a positive way. There is no more envy, and there are no more excited questions about the town. From my own point of view, it really feels like the mystique of Las Vegas is a thing of the past.”

Read full post >>

Straight from the Hip

“I do not think that these are traits that anyone would associate with Vegas. Las Vegas is a place filled with manufactured excitement and tireless self-promotion. It's a place where people preen, get drunk, and excitedly run around the perimeter of swimming pools screaming: Woooooo!"

Read full post >>

Prelude to Recovery

“For the past 5 years, I have been yelling, nay, SCREAMING to anyone who will listen, exactly what needs to be done to restore Las Vegas to the most sought-after tourist destination in the USA. The problem is, nobody has listened to me.”

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10 Things Vegas Must Do to "Recover"

“It's time to bring Vegas back, and it's time to start thinking a little more aggressively about how to do that. This list is a start.”

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Macau Poised to Break Revenue Record

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 09:25:00 -0500

Macau is poised to kick off 2012 on the same winning streak it enjoyed in 2011, with analysts predicting that January gambling revenue totals will eclipse the record set last October.

The Chinese New Year holiday is expected to give a big boost to Macau's revenues for January, with VIP operators and gambling junket providers (who largely cater to high stakes baccarat players from mainland China) already experiencing surging business in early 2012.

Union Gaming Group principal Grant Govertsen has pointed to increased occupancy rates at hotels and casino raising their maximum and minimum table stakes and stated that: "Assuming hold is within the normal range, it should translate into record gross gaming revenue. We have walked most of the major casino floors on each of the past several nights, both on the Macau Peninsula and Cotai Strip, and have seen crowds grow significantly."

Macau's current record for monthly gamblign revenue was $3.4 billion which was set in October 2011. While many associate Las Vegas as the gambling capital of the world, Macau passed the Vegas Strip in 2006 as far as total gambling revenue taken in and is poised to eclipse the entire state of Nevada in the near future.

The appetite of Asian gamblers shows no signs of being sated, with casinos in both Singapore and Macau showing double digit growth in 2011 with more of the same projected for 2012 and 2013.

Rumbles from the Chinese government about possibly slowing the growth of gambling in Macau via making credit harder to come by have spooked investors in the stocks of casino groups operating in Macau but to date has had no impact on the steady stream of gamblers visiting the former Portugese colony.

Several US casinos also stand to profit from booming business in Macau, with Las Vegas Sands, MGM International, and Wynn Resorts all operating casino properties in Macau.

Exclusive Slots Tournament at Europa Casino

Sun, 22 Jan 2012 13:48:00 -0500

Europa Casino is playing host to an exclusive slots tournaments on January 23-26 just for CasinoTop10 readers, with €1,000 in free cash being awarded to top finishers in the free contest.

Europa is a favorite online casino for many players, with hundreds of casino games and popular progressive slots jackpots such as Beach Life (which is at $7.2 million and counting) to pick from. New players just signing up at Europa can also cash in on a huge 200% up to $2,450 signup bonus and access a variety of ongoing promos, contests, and bonus offers.

As far as the terms of the slots tournament, competing in it couldn't be simpler as it is structured to give you the best of both worlds; simply play any of the slots games at Europa Casino and you'll be awarded leaderboard points based on how much you play.

Updated leaderboard standings will be published so you can see your position at all times, with the top five finishers when the tournament wraps up on January 26 in line for the following prizes:

1st place: €500

2nd place: €200

3rd place - 5th place: €100

Remember, just your play on slots games will count towards point in the tournament, so while you can play all the blackjack, craps, or roulette that you like it will only be play online slots that count in the race for the €1,000 in free prizes.

Zynga Looks to Ante Up for Online Gambling

Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:53:00 -0500

Social games developer Zynga announced on Friday that it was in talks with potential partners to offer real money online poker and casino games, hoping to create a new revenue stream to soothe anxious investors questioning its long-term growth prospects.

Moving into online gambling would mark a significant departure from the company's normal business model, which sees it pull in money by sellign advertisements as well as giving users the chance to spend real money on virtual currency that can only be used in its games.

Its Zynga Poker game has 7 million daily users and 30 million or so monthly users, which is light years ahead of PokerStars -- the world's largest online poker site for real money play -- which sees a peak of 50,000-60,000 users active on the site on a typical day.

The comparison, though, is a bit unfair as Zynga Poker is free to play with only a tiny fraction generating revenue for Zynga while many of PokerStars players are real money players generating significan revenue day after day.

Zynga's annoucement was a dramatic about-face from its position just a few months ago that it had no interest in dabbling with online gambling for real money, and possibly spurred on by its struggling share price since its recent IPO, which is off nearly 15% from its opening price.

While the company is marginally profitable some analysts fear that its growth prospects are limited, with a saturation point possibly reached for its popular games such as CityVille, FarmVille, and CastleVille. Competition from competitors is also increasing with Zynga's stranglehold on the social games market slipping a bit.

In October the company announced plans for several new games including Zynga Casino, which is still in development and will include popular casino games such as bingo, blackjack, and roulette.

Zynga hasn't released the names of potential partners, with some analysts also not ruling out that the company may use some of its IPO warchest to buy itself into the online gambling space instead via an acquisition.

Top 10 Best and Worst Things about Las Vegas

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 06:51:00 -0500

No one has described life in life in Las Vegas better than the blogger VegasRex. Today, we continue to revisit some of his most memorable posts.

When you read Rex’s work you get a quite contradictive picture of Las Vegas.

He loves some aspects of the city and hates others, and sometimes you get the feeling he loves that he hates and hates that he loves.

What’s for sure though, Sin City is a place that leaves you with opinions.

But is it paradise or pure filth?

10 Best Things about Living in Las Vegas

“I've crapped on Las Vegas quite a bit in the past, oh ... six years ... but living in the town is certainly not all bad.

There are definitely some compelling reasons to move to the city. There are absolutely some things to love about living on Dirt Island.”

Read the full post>>

10 Worst Things about Living in Las Vegas

Ok, Rex couldn’t even come up with 10 good things about Vegas.

Do you think it was easier to come up with 10 bad things?

“I must admit that this one was much easier to write. It was so easy to write that I had to force myself to cut it short, somewhere over 5,000 words, and break it into separate articles.”

So what you have to look forward to is a five-piece article with Rex hating on basically everything Las Vegas has to offer. It’s understandable why he finally decided to move.

But then again, now he lives in the Portland region, where his hate can be directed towards the high hipster density. And that, my friends, is pure hate – from the heart.

Read the full post>>

Betfair and IOC Cooperate to Tackle Corruption at the Olympics

Tue, 17 Jan 2012 16:29:00 -0500

Online gambling operator Betfair and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) have announced a partnership for the 2012 Olympics designed to clamp down on the threat of gambling-related corruption for various sports and games.

The IOC has signed an information-sharing agreement with Betfair (which operates an online betting exchange as well as offering casino and poker games) to stamp out potential corruption related to the London 2012 Games.

The two organizations will share data in order to pinpoint unusual betting activity that could point to match fixing or other irregularities, utilizing Betfair's in-house software and dedicated integrity team.

"The interests of sports governing bodies, like the IOC, and Betfair are completely aligned in wanting to ensure consumers can bet on sporting events in a transparent and secure manner," said Martin Cruddace, Betfair's chief legal and regulatory affairs officer. "If we are to protect the sports we all love then we must continue to work openly and co-operatively, and today's agreement is a clear example of just that."

Much of the concern is related to illegal betting markets in Asia, which are unregulated and unchecked and can see billions change hands each year with no obstacles or checks in place to prevent individuals or groups from bribing athletes to alter results.

Sports such as tennis have been particularly susceptible to match fixing, with some online betting sites going so far as to void results when a heavily favored opponent unexpectedly retires or otherwise performs very poorly when far more than usual is wagered on their underdog opponent to win.

Major sporting events such as the Olympics and football's World Cup can have a major impact on the results of both online and offline sportsbooks, with the increased action influencing both quarterly and annual financial results during the years the events are held.

7 Million Reasons to Play Beach Life Slots

Sat, 14 Jan 2012 11:01:00 -0500

The popular Beach Life progressive slots jackpot is nearly at the $7 million mark, well above its previous record high and rapidly growing in recent weeks as more and more players take a shot at one of the largest online jackpots.

Available at casinos using Playtech software (which includes Europa Casino, William Hill, and Swiss Casino), Beach Life slots brings the popular progressive jackpot structure online, with players potentially winning millions with just one spin of the reels.

Progressive jackpots pool a small amount of money from each spin of the reels which is used to feed the overall jackpot; this means that players at multiple online casinos can contribute to the same jackpot prize, allowing it to grow larger and much more rapidly than it otherwise would.

The Beach Life jackpot is at $6.9 million at last check, far above the previous high of $4.3 million which was left in the dust months ago. The average hit size for Beach life historically has been $1.8 million, so its far overdue for a big score and hasn't been hit for over 250 days.

Progressive jackpots can grow very quickly once they hit dizzying heights, with casinos promoting them more heavily and offering special bonuses and other promotional offers, which only intensifies the rate at which the jackpots grow as new players give it a whirl to try to become an instant millionaire.

Beach Life isn't the only big online progressive around, with several others over the $1 million mark, including Major Millions and Mega Moolah (found at All Slots Casino).

Slots fans are also able to cash in on some of the most generous new player signup bonuses and reload bonuses; unlike other games such as blackjack or craps nearly every bonus can be cleared while playing slots. Bonuses can be an excellent way to stretch your gambling dollars farther, with some adding hundreds or even thousands of dollars to your gambling bankroll.

Living in Las Vegas – The Uncensored Truth

Wed, 11 Jan 2012 07:32:00 -0500

Very few describe life in Las Vegas as it really is – the unpolished version, what happens behind the facades. The blogger VegasRex did this. He put all the filth from the town he loves in the spotlight.

For a lot of people blogging is more about pleasing your sponsors than having an opinion.

Unfortunately this often pays off.

Like Rex says,

“I could have easily spent my days and nights blowing air-kisses and exchanging phony and insincere pleasantries at PR events.

Las Vegas welcomes ass-kissing wannabes with open arms, and this is a lure and a temptation that most bloggers simply cannot resist.”

What made VegasRex unique is that he never sold out. You can agree or disagree with his political rants, but calling him a sellout … impossible.

“I never let the Las Vegas machine corrupt the content. Whether I was right or wrong, popular or unpopular, I took a position and I was always sincere,” he says.

We were fortunate to have Rex writing for us before he realized Las Vegas was killing him and decided to move to the North West.

As a tribute to the best Las Vegas blogger ever, here is a collection of his best, most popular posts on CasinoTop10.

Wanna know the truth of Las Vegas?

Read on.

Vindication is Mine

“Common sense should tell you that I do not think that everyone in Vegas is stupid. This would be statistically impossible. Not all Canadians have small wieners, and not all Las Vegans are dumb ... it's just that the majority of them do and are. “

Read the full post >>

White Lines

“So Paris Hilton was found in possession of cocaine ... big f**king deal. We shouldn't arrest her, we should give Paris Hilton cocaine as soon as she steps off the plane. We should give everybody cocaine as soon as they step off the plane.”

Read the full post >>

A Geography Lesson

“While the larger circle is the smelly, dingleberry-laden brown eye of the country ... that dot you made is the exact point where this nation's shit ends up. It's where the least competent, the least intelligent, the most violent, and the most greedy come together to bake and simmer in a dirt encapsulated cesspool.”

Read the full post >>

Neon Police State

“Because I am afraid of retribution. Genuinely. If I did not have a family, I would not be as concerned, but I know how this police department operates. It's one of the reasons I fear living here much longer.”

Read the full post >>

A Las Vegas Story

“Standing there, near the corner of Charleston and Main, my child was holding a $1 bill. It was folded into a square shape, and there was a single piece of tape wrapped around it. Of course, I didn't just fall off the banana boat yesterday. I knew what she had, but I really didn't want to have to explain it.”

Read the full post >>

Next week we will come back with more of Rex’s best posts.

And if you’re reading this Rex, please move back.

Las Vegas needs you!

Nevada Casinos Big Losers in 2011

Tue, 10 Jan 2012 13:41:00 -0500

The adage "the house always wins" might be true in theory but not always in practice, with the $4 billion loss absorbed by Nevada casinos in 2011 a testament to that fact. It makes the third straight year that the 256 Nevada casinos overall are in the red, although overall revenue did increase from 2010 to 2011 for the first time in five years.

Like other US casinos, those operating in Nevada have faced very difficult operating conditions as the lingering recession and high unemployment rates throughout the US have led to fewer tourist and gambling dollars making their way into casinos.

Las Vegas casinos have fared slightly better in 2011 due to an uptick in revenue from non-gambling operations such as food, entertainment, and shopping, with convention traffic to Las Vegas steadily increasing and showing signs of life. The situation has been more grim for Nevada casinos outside of Las Vegas, which have fewer entertainment options to entice tourists from the US and abroad.

The situation in Nevada is in stark contrast to other gambling areas such as Macau and Singapore, which have both eclipsed the famed Vegas Strip as far as total gambling dollars brought in and are projected to continue to log strong growth in the foreseeable future as more and more Asian gamblers stay close to home, especially lucrative high stakes baccarat players.

Some Las Vegas casino groups such as Las Vegas Sands and Wynn have operations in Macau and Singapore, which have softened the sting of continued losses for their US-based properties.

Both Nevada and New Jersey (whose own Atlantic City casinos are also struggling mightily) are contemplating shoring up some of their brick-and-mortar casino losses by possibly offering intra-state online poker sites for residents, with both states taking preliminary steps to either pass legislation authorizing online sites or setting up agencies to regulate online gaming if US laws change to allow it.