For the past four years, led by Las Vegas blogger Scott Roeben (Vital Vegas), rumors have spread about the Oakland A’s relocating to Sin City, and specifically to the long-time site of the World Series of Poker (WSOP) — the Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino.

Those rumors are now beginning to seem more realistic given Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred’s recent comments and following a report from the Las Vegas Review Journal and the NBC affiliate (KSNV) in Las Vegas.

By the Numbers: 17 Years of the WSOP at the Rio

Worst Stadium in Baseball

The A’s, traditionally a competitive small-market franchise, have played in Oakland since relocating from Kansas City in 1968. But the team plays in what is almost universally accepted as the worst stadium in the league — Oakland Coliseum. Average attendance for the A’s in 81 home games last year was at 9,912 fans per game, easily the lowest out of 30 MLB teams (the Los Angeles Dodgers led the league with an average of 47,671 fans per game, in comparison).

As such, A’s owner John Fisher called upon the city of Oakland in the past few years to build his team a new stadium or he’ll be forced to relocate the team elsewhere. Unfortunately, for baseball fans in the Bay Area — and, yes, they still exist despite the pitiful attendance — it doesn’t appear that a deal on a proposed $1 billion waterfront stadium will ever come to fruition.

Speaking to Chris “Mad Dog” Russo on Sirius XM, Manfred wasn’t optimistic about the likelihood of the A’s remaining in Northern California. But that could be good news for baseball fans in Las Vegas.

“I think the A’s have proceeded prudently in terms of exploring the Las Vegas alternative,” Manfred said. “Given the lack of pace in Oakland, I think they have to look for an alternative.”

Oakland city councilman Noel Gallo told reporters that he wants the team to stay in the Bay Area, but will not support taxpayer funding for a new stadium. Fisher has given the city an ultimatum, and that is to pay for a new stadium or the A’s will do exactly as the Oakland Raiders NFL franchise did in 2020 when they moved to Las Vegas.

With that in mind, and even commissioner Manfred has said as much, a move to Las Vegas is becoming more likely. On Wednesday, reports indicated that the A’s were considering two Las Vegas locations — the Tropicana site on the south end of the Strip and the Las Vegas Festival grounds on the north end of the Strip.

But on Thursday, the Las Vegas Review Journal reported the team is also considering building a ballpark at a third site — the Rio, which is owned by Dreamscape Companies LLC, but still operated by Caesars Entertainment.

Iconic Poker Site to Become a Baseball Stadium?

The Rio is one of the most historical venues in poker as it served as the WSOP’s home from 2005-2021 before moving to Bally’s (now Horseshoe Las Vegas) on the Strip in 2022. Some of the most iconic moments in poker history took place at the Rio, such as Doyle Brunson winning his 10th WSOP bracelet in 2005 and Daniel Negreanu losing on a bad beat to bust from the 2015 Main Event just short of the final table.

One potential obstacle, and it’s a major one, to bringing Major League Baseball to the former WSOP site is that Dreamscape has reportedly been seeking an $850 million Rio renovation project.

But on Friday, Las Vegas’ NBC affiliate, KSNV, reported that a spokesperson for Dreamscape confirmed the company would entertain the idea of selling the land to the Oakland A’s.

“The company has been engaged in a dialogue about a portion of the excess land at the Rio as a potential MLB ballpark for the past several years. The company remains open to this idea,” the spokesperson said.

When Dreamscape purchased the Rio from Caesars Entertainment in 2019, the original plan was to renovate the casino hotel and rebrand it as a Hyatt, one of the top hotel chains in the United States.

Scott Roeben, who runs the popular Vital Vegas blog, has been making claims that the Rio could one day be torn down in place of a baseball stadium since 2018. He’s received some criticism for what some have said to be pushing false rumors. But on Thursday, the avid gambler who doesn’t particularly care much for sports took a victory lap on Twitter.

If baseball does indeed come to Las Vegas, it won’t be within the next year or two. Building a stadium takes time, and putting together the funding won’t be easy.

The 2023 Major League Baseball Spring Training season officially began on Tuesday with pitchers and catchers reporting in Arizona and Florida. Opening Day is scheduled for March 30. Oakland will start the season off at home with a three-game set against Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Angels. Ohtani, the first true two-way (pitching and hitting) star since Babe Ruth, might be the only reason to lure fans to the Oakland Coliseum for that series. The A’s figure to once again have the worst attendance in the league.

The World Poker Tour’s popular WPT Prime returns to the Gold Coast in Australia following a hugely successful trip only eight months ago. The Star Gold Coast casino will be packed to the rafters with some supremely talented poker players, who each have their eye on becoming a WPT champion down under.

_{All monetary amounts are Australian dollars unless otherwise specified}

WPT Prime Gold Coasts gets underway at 2:30 p.m. local time on February 23 with the $1,000 Opening Event. It features two flights taking place on consecutive days, a Day 2, before crowning its champion some time on February 26. Last year’s WPT Prime Gold Coast Opening Event saw 399 players buy-in for $750 and create a $269,325 prize pool. Australia’s Dan Smiljanic emerged from the battle victoriously, and with $55,587 in cash in tow.

High Rollers are catered for with a $5,000 $5K High Roller Challenge, and following player feedback, a new addition to the schedule, the $10,000 $10K Super High Roller Challenge. Gavin Best won the $5K Challenge in 2022, outlasting 85 opponents to scoop a $130,355, which was his first six-figure score.

Of course, the tournament everyone wants to win, especially if they are playing on home soil, is the $2,000 WPT Prime Gold Coast Main Event. Day 1A of the Main Event starts at 11:30 a.m. on March 2 and sees players enter the fray with 30,000 chips and play to a 40-minute clock where the blinds start at 100/200 with a 200 big blind ante. The clock extends to 60 minutes from Day 2 onwards, and whoever is crowned the WPT Prime Gold Coast Main Event champion will secure a $16,500 package to the 2023 WPT World Championship at the Wynn Las Vegas.

The 2022 edition of the WPT Prime Gold Coast Main Event drew in 896 players, each paying $1,500 for the chance to become a World Poker Tour champion. Yan Lei was the last player standing; they received $201,755 for their efforts, in addition to a commemorative trophy. No doubt Lei will be in the mix again, hoping to defend their title.

2022 WPT Prime Gold Coast Main Event Final Table Results

Win a WPT Prime Passport on WPT Global Every Weekend

2023 WPT Prime Gold Coast Schedule

_{All monetary amounts are Australian dollars}

2022 WPT Prime Gold Coast Results

The 2023 WPT Prime Gold Coast should be a roaring success if it follows in the footsteps of the 2022 edition. It would be surprising not to see the 2022 champions head to The Star Gold Coast and attempt to become back-to-back champions. Here are last year’s winners.

_{All monetary amounts are Australian dollars. Bounties are not included in the player’s winnings}

Andrew Neeme and Brad Owen’s Meet-Up Game Returns to WPT Prime Cambodia

Win a WPT Prime Passport Online at WPT Global

Although it is too late to win a seat or package to WPT Prime Gold Coast online at WPT Global, you can start trying to win you way into the $110 Passport Qualifiers that take place every Saturday at 2:00 p.m. ET and again at 6:00 p.m. ET on Sunday. At least one $,500 WPT Prime Passport is guaranteed, which you can use for any of the following events:

• Amsterdam, Netherlands – March 29-April1
• Bratislava, Slovakia – May 11-15
• Hanoi, Vietnam – May 25-29
• San Remo, Italy – June 1-11

Satellites for the $110 Passport Qualifiers start as low as $5, giving every WPT Global player a chance of winning a potentially life-changing live poker package.

WPT Global has a history of making poker players’ dreams come true. LoriAnn Persinger and Stephen Kehoe captured packages to last year’s record-breaking WPT World Championship in Las Vegas, with both reaching the money places. Persinger ultimately collected $119,000 for her 30th place finish, while Kehoe returned home with $269,900 after seeing his tournament end in a 14th place finish.

Fabrice Bigot Tops Bumper WPT Prime Paris Main Event Field (€177,240)

Join WPT Global Today

The launch of WPT Global means that poker players around the world now have the chance to win their way to WPT events, win prizes and enjoy exciting games such as Poker Flips. As one of the world’s largest cash game poker networks, WPT Global is available in over 50 countries and territories around the world.

WPT Global offers a large deposit match bonus: 100% on deposits up to $1,200 (using any payment method). New players depositing a minimum of $20 automatically receive this match bonus which is unlocked in $5 increments (credited straight to the cashier) for every $20 of rake contribution.

Both tournaments and cash games count towards bonus unlocking; new players have 90 days from the date of first deposit to unlock and claim their full bonus amount.

February 16, 2023

PokerStars are well known across the globe as one of the biggest and best online poker providers. But did you know you can also play online poker for free with their PokerStars Play App?

The PokerStars Play platform brings all the thrills of online poker into your hands and includes Texas Hold’em and Omaha Poker options, as well as a great selection of casino games, all for free.

PokerStars Play is available worldwide, including in the United States and Australia. Still, you should know that real-money gambling isn’t included, and there’s no opportunity to win real money or prizes.

How to get started with free poker at PokerStars Play

There are two main poker games available when you download PokerStars Play. These are Texas Hold’Em and Omaha Poker. If you’re already an online poker player, you’ll be familiar with these games, but it’s worth taking a moment to look at them individually and how to play them on the PokerStars Play app.

Playing Texas Hold’em at PokerStars Play

Texas Hold ’em is the most popular poker variant, so it’s no surprise to see this game on the PokerStars Play app. For beginners or those who need to become more familiar with the game. Texas Hold ’em is extremely easy to learn and start playing (hence its popularity).

The aim when playing Texas Hold’em game is to make the best possible five-card poker hand using a combination of hold cards and community cards. Hold cards are two cards dealt face down to every player, whereas community cards are a further five cards dealt face up throughout several betting rounds. Each player uses hold cards and community cards to build a five-card poker hand.

You can read more about how to play Texas Hold’em with our full Texas Hold’em poker guide.

Playing Texas Hold’em with PokerStars is easy and once you’ve downloaded the app and signed up, you’ll be playing in no time. Once you log in to the app and reach the Featured Menu, you’ll see Texas Hold’Em as one of the main options. You can also find this game (and other poker options) by selecting the poker menu on the left-hand side of the app. Once you’ve chosen your game, you’ll be able to choose your buy-in amount and stake.

Playing Omaha Poker at PokerStars Play

Omaha Poker is also an extremely popular version of poker and is often the next game that players learn after Texas Hold’em. Like other poker games, a hand in Omaha Poker consists of several rounds of betting and a combination of hole and community cards. The main differences you’ll see when playing Omaha Poker is the different phases that make up a hand, such as the pre-flop, the flop, the turn, the river, and the showdown. These phases make up the different betting rounds and the subsequent actions that the players can take.

If you’re interested in learning more about Omaha Poker, then take a look at our full Omaha Poker guide.

Just like Texas Hold’em, it’s super easy to get into a game of Omaha Poker on the PokerStars app. Once you have downloaded the app and logged in, you’ll see Omaha Poker as an option in the Poker menu. You’ll just need to select a buy-in amount, and your stake and PokerStars will transport you straight to your table!

Can I play online poker legally with PokerStars Play?

Yes, you can 100% legally play online poker for free with PokerStars Play! Their Play product is sometimes called a ‘social casino’, which means that you aren’t betting using real money and can play for free with no financial risk. This makes PokerStars Play an excellent option for beginner poker players or anyone wishing to improve their poker skills with no risk to their wallets!

Currently, PokerStars Play is available in 81 countries across North & South America, Europe, Africa, and Asia, so if you’re lucky enough to be a resident of one of these countries, you can download the PokerStars Play app and get started on honing those bluffing skills.

How to Download and Use the PokerStars Play App

PokerStars Play is available as an app for both tablet and mobile devices on both Play Store for Android and the AppStore for iOs. In our experience, the apps on both platforms download very quickly and don’t take up significant storage space on your device, so after you’re all set up, you can concentrate on your first poker hand.

Once you load up PokerStars Play, you’ll see that the app is laid out for easy navigation by the user. You’ll first see the Featured Menu, which allows you to select Texas Hold’em but also 2-3 slot titles which are included with the app as part of the PokerStars Play casino experience. You’ll also have the option to take the Big Spin, which is another way to get chips to use on poker and other games.

From the Featured Menu, you can also select the Poker Menu and Slots Menu on the lobby tabs to the left of the screen. The Poker Menu allows players to choose either Texas Hold’em or Omaha Poker games, in addition to the poker tournaments, which are based in different locations around the world.

How to get free chips with PokerStars Play

If you’re playing online poker, you might be ok the lookout for free chips. Well at PokerStars Play, you have the option to earn and win chips to use on poker games.
When playing on the app, you’ll have access to the Ad Wheel in the main lobby. You can spin the wheel every 4 hours and win free chips to use on the poker tables. Complete 5 spins and you’ll get a Bonus Spin with a jackpot reward!

Want to know more – check out this video from PokerStars to convince you!

In addition to the Ad Wheel, you’ve also got a few more options to get free chips. These include following PokerStars Play on Facebook and looking out for their weekly Free Chips posts. For those keen-eyed social types there are also opportunities to earn more chips through the PokerStars social channels, with quizzes and competitions. You can also become a YouTube subscriber, where as well as earning chips, you’ll have access to some helpful guide videos and promos.

Other free games available with PokerStars Play

We’ve already covered the poker games you can play, but there are also a number of free games that are included with PokerStars Play. Here we’ve listed some of our favorite extras:

• Quizzes
  You can access quizzes directly from the main screen in the app, and these allow you to earn chips by answering a few simple questions.
• Scratchers
  Scratchers are available in either free or premium versions, and can unlock more rewards for players. You’ll get access to a free scratcher every day, and you can purchase premium scratchers that offer higher rewards.
• Challenges
  Challenges are a way to earn extra chips just by playing your regular games. You’ll receive challenges on a daily and weekly basis, and by completing these challenges, you’ll unlock more chips.

So are you convinced? If you’re ready to start playing online poker for free, download the PokerStars Play app right now!

The PokerStars Sunday Million may be rapidly approaching its 17th anniversary but the long-running tournament is the online event every poker player dreams of winning. Not only does the Sunday Million guarantee at least $1 million in prize money for a $109 buy-in, but taking it down comes with bags of kudos from your fellow grinders.

Although $109 is a great price for a $1 million guaranteed online poker tournament, it is a sum that is outside the constraints of most players’ bankrolls. If $109 is too steep for you, perhaps you should take a look at the Road to the Sunday Million route to this week’s event because you can play your way into the February 19 edition of the Sunday Million from only $0.55.

The Road to the Sunday Million features two $11 buy-in tournaments that are ridiculous value. They play as a traditional progressive knockout event, but PokerStars adds 16x $109 seats to the prize pool, or $17,500 worth of tickets if you prefer. Not only do the top 16 finishers bag a seat to the Sunday Million, but they walk away with cash prizes too! It is a great satellite format because you can still win some cash even if you miss out on one of the added $109 tickets.

Such an $11 Road to the Sunday Million tournament ran on February 16. It saw 1,907 players enter, with the top 16 finishers receiving an entry to the next Sunday Million on February 19. Everyone that reeled in a $109 seat also walked away with cash amounts worth between $60 and $2,073! Brazil’s “petrosant” captured $2,073 when they won the tournament, while Azerbaijan’s “Guzyaka” netted $1,028 for their second-place finish.

The Latest Road to the Sunday Million Winners

PokerNews Freerolls Offers Readers More Added Value on PokerStars

Two more Road to the Sunday Million tournaments shuffle up and deal before this weekend’s event. Both kick-off at 7:05 p.m. GMT, doing so on February 17 and February 18. Jump into these seat-added tournaments if you harbor dreams of becoming this weekend’s Sunday Million champion.

Don’t panic if you miss out this weekend because the $11 buy-in Road to the Super Million tournaments run at 7:05 p.m. GMT throughout the week.

The $11 buy-in events are superb value but imagine turning $0.55 into a $109 Sunday Million ticket plus a hatful of cash. $0.55 buy-in Road to the Sunday Million satellites run several times per day, each guaranteeing at least three $11 seats will be won. Navigate your way to the target tournament, then cash in it, and your ROI will be off the charts!

Start Your PokerStars Journey With a $600 Welcome Bonus

Those of you who do not already have a PokerStars account can download the excellent software via PokerNews. Make your first deposit using the bonus code “STARS600”, and PokerStars matches your deposit 100% up to a maximum of $600. In fact, your first three deposits in the first 90 days after creating your account are matched 100% up to a combined maximum of $600.

The first high-roller event of the 2023 PokerStars European Poker Tour Paris has closed its curtains and it was Andre Marques who captured the title in the €10,200 Mystery Bounty. A total of 107 entries were recorded in this event which generated a prize pool of over €1,000,000 in cash and bounty prizes.

Marques earned the largest career tournament score of his career and his first six-figure payday of €128,500. He will also add €47,500 in bounty prizes to his total to kick off the festival being held at the Hyatt Regency Paris Etoile. It’s been a fine start to the 2023 campaign for the Portuguese poker player who also earned two of his biggest scores at the 2023 PCA in The Bahamas just a couple of weeks ago.

Marques out-lasted a feisty Kayhan Mokri who is also one of the hottest players on the tour right now. Mokri has quickly become a big fan of the mystery bounty format after earning two $100,000 bounties in separate deep runs at the 2023 PCA. The Norwegian will actually go home tonight as the biggest winner, pocketing €82,950 for second place and accumulating a whopping €105,000 with at least 10 bounties.

Going into the heads-up match, both players were extremely satisfied with their performance thus far and had acknowledged that they thought it was going to be the two of them earlier on in the day. With only the smallest bounties still up for grabs at the end of the night, it was sheerly the trophy that Marques had his sights set on.

“I just want the Spade,” Marques pointed to the illustrious PokerStars trophy on the table. “I want first place!”

Final Table Payouts and Bounties

Day 2 Action

There were 45 players who returned to their seats for Day 2 but late registration was still open for another two levels. That led to an abundance of players joining or re-joining the field in the first hour. A total of 81 entries were recorded for this event, including 36 who registered on Day 2.

The mystery bounty portion of the tournament began at the start of Level 13 and it didn’t take any encouragement for the big stacks to go bounty-hunting whenever possible. That included the unimaginable quadruple elimination by Mauricio Ferreira Pais where he turned the nut straight to eliminate four shorter stacks in the blink of an eye.

Adrian Mateos was one of those players that busted short of the money but still had a bounty chip to redeem. After reaching into the treasure chest, Mateos pulled out the €75,000 bounty which was the largest on the board. The second largest bounty of €50,000 was awarded to Nikita Kuznetsov, who also collected over €17,000 for his eighth-place finish today.

The tournament excelled at a rapid pace en route to the final table, including the hand-for-hand portion which saw Erik Seidel fall to eventual third-place finisher Pedro Garagnani on the stone bubble. That allowed Stephen Chidwick and Jonas Hagstrom to squeak into the money with just a few big blinds apiece. Jamil Wakil, Julien Sitbon, and Bruno Volkmann were other notables who bowed out just shy of the final nine players.

Once gathered at one table, the first couple of eliminations came in quick succession with Zhi Yi Ning finishing up in ninth place and Kuznetsov being forced to settle for eighth. That was where the stalemate began with each of the final seven players grabbing a hold of the chip lead at one point in time.

Nearly two hours later and over 15 consecutive double-ups, the final seven were exhausted and it was evident that a massive cooler was the only way to break the deadlock. That it was when Ferreira Pais saw his pocket aces cracked by Pablo Navarro holding ace-jack. Navarro made a runner-runner straight to eliminate Ferreira Pais and take over the lead.

In a timely manner, the short stacks of Tom Orpaz and Ren Lin quickly filed out of the room, leaving just four players on the final break of the night. Once they returned, it was Navarro who was on the wrong side of the deck, sending over back-to-back double-ups to Marques and eventually succumbing to the blinds in fourth place. Garagnani held on to a short stack for much of the final table but managed to ladder his way up to third place for nearly €60,000 plus bounties.

That left Marques and Mokri to duke it out for the title and it was a short-lived heads-up match after Marques took a key pot in the early going. Marques continued to extend his lead in the next few hands and it all came to an end when he made a full house with rags against Mokri’s seven-big blind stack.

That wraps up the coverage for this event from the PokerNews live reporting team, but things are just heating up at EPT Paris and there will be plenty of more tournaments to keep an eye on in the coming days.

check out the rest of the ept paris coverage on the pokernews live reporting hub

One year ago, Doug Polk bet $200,000 on dropping 50% body fat within 365 days against fellow poker player Bill Perkins. He revealed on Thursday that he fell just short of victory.

There weren’t many stipulations to the bet, which began on Feb. 11, 2022. By 1:30 p.m. CT on Feb. 10, 2023, the Upswing Poker founder had to drop at least 50% of his body fat, going from around 28% body fat to 13.85%, or he’d lose. He was at liberty to choose any diet and exercise regimen he wanted.

At the end of the challenge, he was down to 15.1% body fat, just 1.3% body fat away from winning. Instead, he’s out $200,000 to Perkins, an avid prop bettor.

Early Prop Bet Failures

PokerNews spoke with the three-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner to gain insight into his routine the past year as he attempted to not only win a six-figure prop bet but also improve his health. While he didn’t succeed in accomplishing the former, he did the latter.

“The first five-ish months, I was mainly planning on trying to build up some muscle but not super focused on losing weight,” Polk said.

During those initial few months, Polk explained, he wasn’t making any progress. In fact, he was taking steps backwards and had to reevaluate. The owner of The Lodge Card Club in Austin, Texas hired “a lot of people (paid to help me trim body fat) that either didn’t know what they were doing or were just trying to keep their job.”

One nutritionist six weeks into the challenge tried to convince him that he was making progress despite having actually increased his body fat, he said. So, he had to make some changes, one of which included getting rid of his nutritionist and personal trainer, or there was no shot he’d pull it off.

“I reached the point where I decided I needed to take matters into my own hands. So I fired everybody and did it myself,” Polk said. “Since August, my progress has been really good. I’ve just been dropping pounds steadily every month.”

Poker Pro Turns it Around

At around that time, Perkins recommended a new trainer who was helpful in Polk’s transformation. His workout and diet routine has since consisted of lifting weights 5-6 times per week in the early mornings, some cardio, and six small meals per day that total around just 1,800 calories. Once every fourth day he’d bump that up to 2,300 calories.

Eating a breakfast that included just a couple of egg whites and some raspberries, and then equally small meals full of rice, fruit, and grilled chicken throughout the day took its toll on the heads-up poker star.

“The number one problem I’ve had is I can’t sleep when I’m on a big caloric deficit,” Polk stated.

There’s been a misconception about the type of prop bet Polk entered, and he said he noticed that from social media comments. This wasn’t a weight loss bet. In fact, Polk could have conceivably gained weight during the challenge and still won had he replaced body fat with muscle mass. That said, since the challenge began one year ago, he’s lost about 30 pounds of pure weight.

Down to the Wire

Three weeks ago, he went in for a DEXA scan, which measures body composition such as body fat and muscle mass. The results showed he was at 17.2% body fat, down about 39% compared to the start of the challenge. But he still had some significant work to be done to get to exactly 13.85% body fat to win the prop bet.

Polk would face some obstacles in the latter stages of the challenge, most notably becoming a father for the first time. The Texas poker room owner’s wife, Kaitlin, gave birth to Otis Douglas Polk on Jan. 27, about two weeks from the end of the prop bet. On top of that, he struggled to get to the gym and eat properly during a massive ice storm that hit Austin last week.

5 Best Poker Player Prop Bets Ever

_{*Images courtesy of Doug Polk.}

There are no breaks for the award-nominated RunGood Poker Series (RGPS) team as they head to Mississippi later this month for RGPS Horseshoe Casino Tunica taking place Feb. 28-March 5. Not only that, RGPS Bay Area also takes place at Graton Casino in the Bay Area Feb. 28-8.

And with all of this happening, the RGPS team has once again been nominated for “Best Mid-Major” at the annual Global Poker Awards, while RunGood founder Tana Karn is also in the running for for “Industry Person of the Year.”

The RGPS Tunica “Checkpoint” stop will feature several Ring Events and will culminate with the $200,000 guaranteed $200 buy-in RGPS Tunica Main Event scheduled to run March 3-5.

Read about the RGPS Bay Area stop!

Mississippi Grind

The RGPS Tunica stop will kick off with a $200 Seniors Ring Event on Feb. 28, followed by a $165 Opening Night Guest Bounty Ring Event the same day. There will also be several $165 Flip & Go Ring Events running on demand, the first of which gets underway on Feb. 28.

The next day, the two-flight $250 DeepStack Ring Event will get underway as players complete for an RGPS ring and the lion’s share of the $50,000 guaranteed prize pool.

Other highlights of the series include a $200 One Day NLH Ring Event with a $20,000 guaranteed prize pool, a $300 Pot Limit Omaha Ring Event and a $200 Ladies Ring Event.

But the biggest draw of the southern RunGood stop is the $200 Main Event, the first starting flight of which gets underway on March 3. After two more starting flights on March 4, players will reconvene on March 5 for a shot at the title.

Previous Winners

When the RGPS team was last at Horseshoe Tunica in October 2022, the $600 Main Event drew a field of 597 runners for a prize pool of $310,440. At the end of it all, it was Mississippi native JW Carter who took home the $58,110 top prize after defeating heads-up opponent Wesley Jones.

Others who joined Carter at the final table included Mike Cordell (3rd – $28,654), BJ McBrayer (4th – $21,358) and Matthew Lawrence (5th – $16,112).

Earlier in the series, Michael Benbrook took down the $200 Two Green Chip Bounty event for $4,565 and Jones emerged the winner in $300 Pot-Limit Omaha for $5,151.

2022 RGPS RunGood Tunica Main Event Final Table Results

Back in March 2022, Max Le took down the $575 Main Event after an even six-way chop in an event that drew 602 runners for a prize pool of $301,000. The others who got in on the chop were Teresa Lammie-Anders, David Lee, Matthew Kassela, Brock McCoy and Kyle Cartwright.

After wrapping up in Tunica, the RGPS team will stick around in the south for RGPS bestbet Jacksonville in Florida taking place March 23-April 2.

The full schedule for the upcoming RGPS Horseshoe Tunica stop is available in the table below.

2023 RGPS Tunica Full Schedule

Many different paths carry first-timers to the poker tables. Some come to poker via other card games, while others find poker after having sampled other gambling games in the casino, such as blackjack, craps, or roulette. Sports bettors sometimes wander from the sportsbook over to the poker room and find themselves in a game. Online poker players read news articles and reviews here at PokerNews, see you can get a free $88 just for signing up to 888poker and decide to give this crazy game a shot.

Those who stick with the game do so for many reasons, although most are motivated by the prospect of making money from playing a game of cards. Once they realize that poker is a game that rewards not only luck but there is a significant skill element, they take steps to improve their knowledge and skills, and some start dreaming of consistently making money from playing online poker or poker at a brick-and-mortar casino. Only those who take some time to learn poker strategy and gain experience are usually able to sustain that success over more extended periods.

In other words, the short answer to the question “Can I make money playing poker?” is obviously that you can, but you also need to be willing to work to increase your skills and have an advantage over your opponents. While it’s certainly possible to win at a single cash game session or go deep and go deep in the $100,000 Mystery Bounty Main Event the first time you play at 888poker, only a small percentage of players remain profitable long-term, and invariably those players are better skilled than those who do not.

Let’s look more closely at the question, however, by asking a few other questions addressing factors that will affect the likelihood of your being able to make money at poker and how much you can make.

What is your win rate?

The generic term “win rate” is used to refer to how much someone is winning at poker over a given period or a number of hands played. A player with a positive win rate is profiting from poker, while a player with a negative win rate is not. Calculating your win rate is done differently in cash games and tournaments.

Cash games usually express a win rate as the amount won per hour or 100 hands. In No-Limit Hold’em or Pot-Limit Omaha, the unit of measurement is often converted to big blinds. For example, in a $1/$2 NLHE game at 888poker, making a profit of $10 equals winning five big blinds.

Meanwhile, in Fixed Limit Hold’em, Stud games, and others with fixed-limit betting, the amount won is usually measured in “big bets”. For instance, in a Limit Hold’em game where the small bet is $2 (preflop and flop) and the big bet is $4 (turn and river), a player who wins $100 is said to have won 25 “big bets.” Somewhat confusingly, both “big blinds” and “big bets” are often abbreviated as “BB” by players discussing poker.

In tournaments, a win rate is usually expressed as a player’s return on investment or ROI. To calculate your ROI, divide your profits by your costs and the multiply the answer by 100. For instance, if you spend $200 in buy-ins and cash for $220 total, your ROI is $20 (the profit) / $200 = 0.1 * 100 = 10%.

When Should I Move Up In Stakes? | Ask an 888poker Pro

You aren’t making money playing poker if your win rate or ROI is negative. But even if you enjoy a positive win rate or ROI, you need to consider other expenses related to playing poker if you prefer playing live poker. If it costs you $10 in gas every night to get to and from a poker room and you’re only averaging winning $5 per session, your win rate is positive, but you aren’t making money. Or if you spend $10,000 over a year traveling to poker tournaments but only have an ROI good enough to earn you $8,000 worth of cashes during that time, you’re technically “winning at poker” but losing money overall. Obviously, those expenses do not exist in the online poker world because there is no need to travel to or from a venue, which is one of the reasons online poker sites like 888poker are so popular with poker grinders.

The most significant point to take away here is that if you are interested in making money at poker and don’t keep track of your wins and losses, you need to start doing so right now. A simple spreadsheet will suffice; even jotting down your results on a scrap of paper is better than not recording your progress at all. Find out what your win rate or ROI is, and take into account other possible expenses associated with playing poker; then you’ll see whether or not you are making money at poker. You’ll likely be encouraged to sharpen your study of the game to try to increase your profit if you’re winning, or to become profitable if you’re losing.

Check out some top poker strategy from 888poker pros

How much do you play?

Another question to ask when addressing the larger question of whether or not you can make money playing poker is to consider just how much poker you’re playing.

If you’re strictly a recreational player who only joins a home game once per week or who plays online at 888poker for an hour or two here and there, you can still win at poker, but it makes sense that you won’t win as much as you would if you logged more volume.

Many serious players who put in a lot of volume at the tables can increase their profit steadily even if their win rates are somewhat low. This is because they tend to play longer hours or multiple tables at once, sacrificing the rate at which they win for more overall profit.

Most players consider cash games a more reliable way to make money at poker given the higher variance of poker tournaments. In most poker tournaments, only the top 10 or 15 percent of finishers enjoy any profit, so it logically follows that most players finish out of the money most of the time they play.

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That means when playing tournaments, even good players lose more often than they win money. But when they win, they win enough to make up for the losses, sometimes hitting massive scores when finishing at a final table or winning the entire tournament and getting back 10, 20, 50, or even 100 times the buy-in. Bounty and Mystery Bounty tournaments help reduce variance because you can win money for eliminating opponents and do not necessarily have to finish in the prize money-awarding places to see a return on your investment. If you love the mystery bounty format, only 888poker runs them daily at present.

Cash games tend to be less volatile that way, although even good cash game players will frequently have losing sessions. They may even have more losing sessions than winning ones, although they manage to enjoy larger profits than losses, generally speaking, and thus have favorable win rates. Even so, if you don’t practice sound bankroll management you can experience one nasty cash game session and lose everything you’ve won and then some.

Once you’ve figured out your win rate, you can think about how much you need to play to make a desired amount over a given time.

You should also try to gauge what is the best amount of time to play poker for you to increase your chances of remaining profitable. Some players are better off playing, say, only 10-20 hours per week than 40-50 hours per week or short sessions instead of long ones because they have trouble remaining focused and thus playing well over more extended periods. Others can put in those extra hours and not suffer. Always play to your strengths.

What stakes are you playing, and are they suitable for you?

An important question to answer when delving more deeply into whether or not you can make money at poker is to look at the stakes for which you are playing and whether you choose well when sitting down in games where you can win and win consistently.

One common misconception among new players is that playing for higher stakes is the best way to win more money at poker. You have no doubt heard the tongue-in-cheek comment about moving up stakes where they respect your raises! A player who wins consistently at the $0.25/$0.50 NLHE cash game tables at 888poker might imagine simply picking up and moving over to the $2/$5 game will result in winning 10 times as much money, but more often than not, such ideas turn out to be foolhardy.

Games of different stakes attract differently skilled players. While the lowest stakes games almost always include the least-skilled and least-experienced, they attract strong players sometimes, too. Similarly, many of the best players can be found in the higher stake games, but there also will be inexperienced or poor players sometimes sitting around the table.

How To Deal With Aggressive Opponents – Ask the 888poker Pros

On average, though, the higher the stakes, the more challenging the games. Thus do the profitable players’ win rates go down as the buy-ins and/or stakes go up? In online cash games (to cite one example), NLHE players of the lowest stakes, including the “micros,” have been known to sustain win rates of as much as 20-40 BB/100 hands over large sample sizes, while the best players in the higher NLHE games online generally top out at around 3-8 BB/100 hands.

That’s one reason to be realistic about moving up in poker stakes — even if you’re great and better than most in the games, you aren’t going to win at the same rate you did at the lower stakes. But you also need to be honest about your ability as a poker player and recognize when the competition is too tough to beat. As you move around and test out which stakes work for you, continue keeping accurate records and notes at which stakes (for cash games) or buy-ins (for tournaments) you are winning most consistently and where you are winning less or losing.

Sometimes you might find it hard to win in a lower stakes game than in one a notch or two above, simply because of your particular skill set and how well you respond to the styles and tendencies of others. More often, though, there will be a stakes “threshold” above which you might take shots now and then but probably shouldn’t go regularly.

Be honest with yourself and be intelligent with your bankroll, and your chances of making money at poker will increase.

The Wynn Millions is returning to Las Vegas this spring and the prestigious festival will feature two dozen events, including a $3,500 buy-in Wynn Millions Championship with a $3 million guarantee.

That’s not the only big guarantee of the Wynn Millions festival, which starts on Feb. 20 and runs through March 19, as there will be more than $8 million in guaranteed prize pools across the 28 days of action, including a two-day $600 No Limit Hold’em event with a $200,000 guarantee and a $1.5 million guaranteed Mystery Bounty event.

Read this PokerNews review of the Wynn Poker Room!

$8 Million Up for Grabs

Events in the Wynn Poker Room always attract plenty of big names and big action and this year’s festival is shaping to be no different.

Things will kick off with the one-day $500 No Limit Hold’em on Feb. 20 as players compete for a slice of the $50,000 guaranteed prize pool. After that, the $200,000 guaranteed No Limit Hold’em event will get underway before a $600 H.O.R.S.E tournament with a $30,000 guarantee.

The $1.5 million guaranteed Mystery Bounty tournament is sure to draw a big field as players look to become the latest big bounty winner. The event will feature three starting flights and will play down to a winner on Feb. 26. PokerNews will be in attendance on Day 2 to once again offering updates on the exciting bounty draws!

Other highlights of the series include a two-day $1,100 Seniors event with a $100,000 guarantee, a $400 Ladies event with a $20,000 guarantee and several mixed game offerings, including the $50,000 guaranteed $1,100 Limit Omaha 8/B event and the $10,500 PLO High Roller.

The biggest draw of the festival, the Wynn Millions Championship, will feature three starting flights as players look to run up their starting stack of 40,000. The tournament is sure to be a long one as it is scheduled to play for six days and will reach a winner as the final table plays out on March 11.

The championship event has played as a $10,000 buy-in since the Wynn Millions’ inception in 2021 but that changes this year with the $3,500 offering. PokerNews will once again be on-site to offer live updates and content.

The series will also feature three High Roller events as part of the PokerGO Tour (PGT), including two $10,500 No-Limit Hold’em events and a $10,500 Pot-Limit Omaha event.

Previous Winners

The previous Wynn Millions Main Event had a $10,000 buy-in and passed the $10 million guarantee with 1,075 runners for a prize pool of $10.1 million. The event was one for the ages as several big names made deep runs, including 2021 Wynn Millions champion Andrew Moreno, who wound up in 24th place for $71,657.

In the end, it was Tony Sinishtaj who defeated Isaac Kempton during heads-up play for $1.6 million after battling a powerhouse final table that included Sean Perry (8th – $202,908) Tony Tran (6th – $304,161), Vanessa Kade (4th – $527,481) and Alex Livingston (3rd – $745,749).

2022 Wynn Millions Final Table Results

There were plenty of other big winners at last year’s Wynn Millions. Daniel Negreanu took down Event #2: $15K NLH High Roller for $216,000, while Brek Schutten won Event #5: $15K NLH High Roller for $219,300 and Cliff Josephy emerged victorious in $3,000 6-Max NLH for $154,670.

The full schedule for the 2023 Wynn Millions festival is available in the table below.

2023 Wynn Millions Full Schedule