Online Poker News

Poker and online poker are subject to the rake, unlike other casino games where the casino bets against the players to make its income. Poker players are charged a small percentage of each pot or a percentage of the buy in to compete at the table or tournament. This is usually around ten percent of the pot/buy in for small stake games with a maximum of a £3 rake per pot. For the higher stake games the percentage or the rake is a little less. For example if the total pot was £15 the rack taken by the casino or online poker room would be £1.50, for the games with a larger stake say £5-£10 the maximum rake of £3 would be met.  As for tournament rake fees, for a low cost buy in of £20 the rake would be £2 usually shown as £20+£2. For the larger buy in say £500 the rack would be around £40 (£500+£40) depending on the poker room.
The rake can make it very hard to advance from the small stake games when someone first starts playing poker hoping to advance through the ranks; it’s said it best to get out of the small stake games as soon as possible. You may find yourself stuck there as the rake slowly eats up your stake, even if you do win the odd hand ever now and again.
It is possible to get a percentage of the rake back usually when you sign up to an online poker room they guarantee to match a percentage of your initial deposit. It’s also possible to sign up for rake back which only a few poker sites offer; this will give you a small percentage of the rake from each pot. This however will tie you to one site, and only a handful of poker sites offer this. You can use an affiliate but they can offer players deals that conflict with poker sites terms and conditions which could lose you your membership and winnings. So make sure you check it out thoroughly before you sing up to anything.

The Asian Pacific Poker Tour (APPT) was established in 2007 which was the first major real money poker event to be government-sanctioned by China & Korea. In November 2007 the first live No Limit Texas Hold’em poker game was played on Chinese soil at the Grand Waldo Casino in Macau.
A Year on and the APPT broke its own record from 2007 with the largest and wealthiest poker tour ever held in Asia. 538 players attended to get their share of the HKD 12,643,000 or roughly £925,500 prize pool. At the end of the seven day event Eddie Sabat aged 22 from the USA who qualified online claimed victory taking home HKD 3,540,040 or around £260,000.
Shortly after the 2 APPT Macau finished the High Roller Asian Pacific Poker Tour 2008 started, with a buy in of HKD 150,000 or £11,000. At the end of day one of this 3 day event, 63 players were slimed down to 28, and at the end of day 3 the final table looked like this.

Nam Le walked away victorious from the High Roller Asian Pacific Poker Tour Macau, winning with a pair of kings and making short work of the Australian Andrew Scott.

The Asian Pacific Poker Tour moves on from Macau, China for the second leg of season two, which starts 26th September, and runs for 3 days at Paradise Walker-Hill Casino, Seoul, South Korea.

Sitting at a poker table for the first time can be a daunting prospect, whether it’s a friendly game of poker round your mate’s house or full on game in the casino. As long as you are sure of your game, only take what you can afford to lose and follow these simple rules you will get along with your fellow players, even though you’re an amateur poker player you will come across as you know what you’re doing.
First of all pay attention to the game and what’s going on, it will soon become irritable to the other players constantly reminding you that it’s your turn, and secondly don’t be over eager and put your bet in or fold before it’s your turn,  it will put the players before you at an advantage.
Contrary to what you may of seen in the movies throwing your intended bet into the pot is not the thing to do, this is commonly known as splashing the pot and will make it difficult for the other players to see what you have bet. Just stack your chips and push them far enough in making it easy for the dealer to handle them. You may of also see this acted out in the movies, “I call your 20 and raise 40!” This is called a string bet and it’s also a no, no. Just say “call” and match the bet or “raise” and raise the bet, no need for the dramatics.
Try not to hold up the flow of play by pausing for excessive amounts of time while trying to decide what you’re going to do with your hand.
Never ever show your had whiles the hand is live or when you fold, the only time you reveal your cards is during a heads up in an all-in or at the showdown. Refrain from asking to see another players hand when they have folded. Once you have folded pass you cards to the dealer at a low level and a slow speed. Refrain from talking about your hand and what you might of had if you had stayed in, this again my put you at a disadvantage.
Most of all follow the basic rules of general etiquette, be polite, don’t swear or be offensive. Be modest when you win, no one likes a bad winner as well as a bad looser.
Following these rules will make for an enjoyable game and will ensure everyone will go home happy even if you did lose £40 to your mate.

Scotty Nguyen is a well known poker champion among dedicated poker fans, and after his controversial behaviour during his recent 1st place win, in the 39th World Series of Poker pushed him even more so into the lime light. Scotty was even on ESPN to talk about what happened during the WSOP final table and to give his side of the story.
Scotty Nguyen, originally from South Vietnam migrated to Orange County, USA at the age of 14 in 1974. He soon got started in the word of poker playing in the back room poker games rather than been in class, which ultimately got him expelled from his school.
He made his break into casino poker in Southern California where he was hired as a poker dealer. As dealer and observer of countless poker games he committed everything he saw to memory, this is where he picked up all the skills he required to become one of the world’s best poker players. He was soon able to put what he had seen into practice and began to make a living from playing poker.
He won his first WOSP bracelet in the 1997 WSOP, Omaha 8 or Better, 28th word series, but leapt to fame in 1998 when he became the WSOP No Limit Hold’em World champion, bagging a cool one million dollars and his second WSOP bracelet. The very next day catastrophe struck as one of his brothers was hit and killed by a car in Vietnam, Scotty does not were his 1998 WSOP bracelet do to this unfortunate accident.
Scotty is well known for his flamboyant character and unremitting chat at the table as well as his blue tinted sun glasses, gold pendants and white leather boots.
To date Scotty has accumulated five Gold WSOP bracelets and ranks number 7 on the all time top money earner list with $ 9,725,766.

The largest global online poker tournament series (WCOOP) kicks off this autumn running from the 5th – 21st of September. The event hosted by pokerstars.com consists of thirty three different events with a total guaranteed prize fund of $30,000,000, making it the largest prize fund for an online poker tournament.  Throughout the thirty three online poker events there will be a variety of different poker games including; Texas Hold’em, seven card stud, Omaha and H.O.R.S.E. just to name a few.
You can buy in to a game for as little as $215 with a guaranteed payout of $1,000,000. The Whole 2008 WCOOP will come to a close with a No Limits Texas Hold’em two day Main Event, with a buy in of $5,200 and a guaranteed payout of $10,000,000,. The tournament will also feature The PokerStars Million Dollar Men and Team PokerStars Pro who will be playing in select games throughout the tournament.