Me in Oceanside, CA

Ahhh, California...

My brother Chris and I, hiking Runyon Canyon above LA

If you’re reading this blog, you’re probably either a poker player or fan of the game in some fashion. You know that the games in Las Vegas are plentiful on any day of the week. The weekend crowd consists of tourists from all parts of the US escaping their routine lives for a few days in the desert. During the week, the player ratio skews more towards Europeans on extended holiday, mixed with the company conference crowd and conventioneers. There are always locals in the game and during the daytime, they can represent 50 percent or more of the table lineup, even at Strip properties.

At nighttime the ratio shifts more towards the out-of-towners, but where the tourists are, there will always be local regs scattered about.

It’s so fun playing a heads-up tournament. You get to play every hand… what more needs to be said?

As a poker player and/or fan, you might’ve heard that while Las Vegas is the gambling epicenter of the US, when it comes to poker, the true Mecca is actually located in Los Angeles. And after a recent return visit to my old stomping grounds, I was quickly reminded of that fact. The LA cardrooms are different in so many ways from their Vegas counterparts in everything from the atmosphere to the feel of the cards to the player makeup to what’s comped and what isn’t. At any one time in the Commerce, Bicycle, Hustler or any other casinos that occupy very non-glitzy East LA districts, you won’t find more than 1 percent of the player pool designated as “tourists”. No tourist is going to take time out of enjoying gorgeous Malibu or exploring the weirdness of Venice Beach to grind Commerce Casino. These places are packed with locals who love poker, love gambling, and very much love action. They absolutely have to… how else could you explain these folks braving horrific Los Angeles traffic to get to Bell Gardens to play $2/$3NL midweek? It’s true, you do get comped food from a rather impressive menu at the Bike, as opposed to free cocktails a la Las Vegas. But I have to assume it’s more than that. Poker has become a real part of several cultures that make up Los Angeles’ diverse demographics. It’s been that way for decades now, before the no-limit era and now well into it.

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This week we again visit the regulated online poker situation in both California and New Jersey, plus big news for Internet gambling from Manitoba, Canada. Also, a look ahead to what’s coming up over the next several weeks.

Coming up in Texas poker is tough. In addition to fading the normal variance of the game, players have to fight exorbitant rakes and dodge robberies and raids. Spots come and go often, with no regulation cheats can operate with impunity for years before their reputations get tarnished. No poker tours come to our home towns, no special promotions for pit players trickle down into our economy, and no advertising means we have smaller player pools to fish in. When people express shock that grinders from Texas are going on a rush in a regulated market like Cali I just laugh- compared to our home games this is a walk in the park.

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I think I was in Los Angeles at the end of last summer. Somewhat amazingly, that was the last time I was outside of the desert. I did go to Palm Springs with my girlfriend and met some family there for Thanksgiving … but that’s still in the desert. I didn’t go home this past Christmas for the first time ever in my life, and I haven’t left Vegas once in 2012. This can’t be healthy. I need to get out for a while.

This was THE nit festival of all nit festivals. Your normal hourly rate simply does not translate when you remove the fun-loving, didn’t-come-to-fold tourist factor and replace it with the game-has-obv-passed-me-by-but-I’ll-still-sit-here-and-fold-for-$10/hr-zomg-dreams-do-come-true jaded older Vegas reg. I mean, it was truly miserable.

Las Vegas is awesome. We all know about the availability of booze and gambling 24/7, and the ability to keep whatever sleep schedule you desire. As cash game poker players, we never have to endure the pain of an alarm clock’s rouse, as Vegas embraces daywalkers and nightowls alike. The cost of living is relatively low, especially considering the quantity and quality of entertainment options available as compared to other cities with similar offerings, such as LA, San Francisco, Miami. If outdoor adventure is your thing, you can find plenty of that at places like Red Rock Canyon; hikes such as the Gold Strike near Hoover Dam, which takes you all the way down into the Colorado River; and weird natural beauty like the Valley of Fire. And for those less willing to leave Clark County, there’s the peaceful Summerlin suburbs, and the increasingly interesting downtown Vegas scene.

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Quick LOL … something I stumbled across while reading what I presumed was just a ho-hum news article about another state gearing up for online gambling (via the PPA’s latest newsletter). I wanted to see what state was next and whether or not they separated out poker. Turns out it was just California, talking about how much money they stand to make if they can just catch up with Nevada. For sure. Righteous, dudes.

But what stands out most to me is a line from one of the opponents of any measures for California to finally get serious about regulating online games within their own borders:

“We don’t want to see any of it,” said pastor James Butler from the California Coalition Against Gambling Expansion. “Pretty soon they’ll have an app that will allow you to connect instantly to a casino or a gambling site. Want to lose your home? We have an app for that,” Butler said.

Emphasis added. Not sure if we should tell the fine pastor that they already do have such an app — all over the UK to be sure, and in Nevada you can bet sports for real money anywhere you want using your Droid or iPhone with Leroy’s App. (It just turns off when you get to the California border — amazing that crazy technology these days!)

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We know about Jamie Gold’s poker residency at the Tropicana in Las Vegas — where he can be found playing 1/2 and apparently trying to fill the poker world’s Professor void by offering lessons that cost about as much as a college education. (The Jamie Gold Poker Room official launch party, btw, is Feb 17!)

But what about the rest of ‘em?

You can currently find Jerry Yang, the 2007 WSOP’s biggest winner and #20 on the all-time poker tournament money list, bussing tables while commanding an otherwise lackadaisical staff (according to Yelp) at Pocket 8s Sushi & Grill in central California. Um, pass the yum-yum sauce?

Via Pokerati’s resident Vegas grinder-thug @AndrewNeeme:

Poker Fish: You wouldn’t believe how many of Jerry Yang’s relatives are always hitting him up for free sushi.

The United States is moving closer and closer to regulated online gambling, with powerful Las Vegas casinos supporting political action. Plus, more talk of legal internet wagering from Florida, California, and Washington, DC

Online gambling bills from Congressmen in Texas and Washington State are ready to follow in the success of Barney Frank’s efforts! Plus, Internet betting is almost ready to launch in Washington DC while a major software provider gets some support in California!

Stumbled across this vid on Youtube — the time-lapse construction of the welcome desk @AviatorCasino in Delano, Cali. I can 100 percent say that Aviator is my favorite poker room in California’s Central Valley … (where Bakersfield is the big town some 30 miles away, but is also just a $15 flight from Vegas on Allegiant! $40 after taxes, but still … airplanes!)

That’s the whole theme of the Aviator Casino … airplanes, airports, and pai gow. That’s why at least some non-poker people see this creation of an info station at a California poker room as less about tourney registration but not too much less because it is still “functional art”:

More about this awesome little poker room — the coolest I’ve ever seen in the area — at TheAviatorCasino.com.

Check it out, of the many nifty-neato things I saw at the (brand-spankin’) new Aviator Casino in California’s Central Valley … their tables have a new embedded computer that seems to take swiping player cards to a new level. According to Team Pokeratier-turned-floor supervisor Harris, these are the first in play in a US poker room — what they are calling “the Julian System” by IT Casino Solutions:

A sign seen in the new Aviator Casino, in Delano, California, reminding me of a difference between casinos regulated in lands we know well and virtual establishments based out of places that may or may not exist beyond our poker imaginations:

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Check it out … with so many individual states hungry for cash, California being the hungriest, that state will definitely be taking a look at the issue until they somehow figure out a way to collect the most duckets from all those poker geeks calling California home.

The arguments themselves are nothing new — for or against — but you will notice a slight shift on the “Gogogo online gambling FTW!” side that we’re all supposed to be a part of …

Here, Patrick Dorinson, spokesperson for the Coalition of California Card Clubs and Tribes, is clearly pushing for the intrastate model, with the California Gambling Control Commission setting the rules. He addresses that critical component so matter-of-factly that any new recruits to the online poker side would hardly know this is different from the federally regulated, interstate model pushed Barney Frank, the PPA, and others … you know, what we’ve all been supporting for a long time. That one, according to statements in Washington DC congressional debate, looks to rely on regulatory standards set by the Nevada Gaming Control Board … with maybe some input from New Jersey and the Indians.

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Sen. Rod Wright: Give me PartyPoker.cali or give me death!

California state Sen. Roderick Wright (D-Inglewood) — the legislator behind California’s aggressive efforts for intrastate online gambling and opponent to Barney Frank’s federal online gambling bills — is in some hot water. I couldn’t tell on quickest glance if he’s being hassled over some jurisdictional technicalities or if its indicative of some major shenanigans involving one of the biggest proponents for California’s French-like vision for online poker. But either way, somebody seems pretty pissed off at Wright, as a Los Angeles County grand Jury unsealed an 8-count felony indictment against him yesterday.

Wright is the sponsor of California’s SB 1485, a bill that would immediately kick off licensed and regulated online gambling for Californians in California. The bill has seemed on its last legs since this summer, but just won’t die as California desperately digs into its couch cushions looking for any way possible to to make up for extreme budget deficits supposedly driving the state toward insta-bankruptcy.

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While the PPA’s petition has already received more than 7000 signatures, including most of poker’s top professionals, the PPA is not letting up on the Commerce Casino for its vocal opposition to HR 2267. Responding to the Commerce’s response (to a response to a response?), the PPA points to the law as written and shows how most of the Commerce’s supposed concerns were addressed in amendments. The PPA wants players to see how California casinos are really making a protectionist money grab but trying to disguise it as a bold stand to protect poker players worldwide.

PPA Excutive Director John Pappas told PokerNews’ Matthew Kredell he will stop supporting Commerce events, but stopped short of calling for an all-out boycott:

“We didn’t think that was appropriate. Players will make that decision on their own. But you see the number of professional players who signed the letter. I know Commerce will be holding a lot of high-profile events in the future. Some pros might question whether to attend.”

Follow coverage of the PPA’s crusade to get Commerce officials to change their minds here. Meanwhile, the Commerce Hold’em Series gets underway today,

Drama was out in full force this past week, with allegations of hypocrisy, cheating, and extortion exploding through the poker world, which was still feeling aftershocks from an Annie Duke/Daniel Negreanu feud that had reached new levels of nastiness after Negreanu’s aggressive C-bet. But the poker fight that really blew up late last week was between the Commerce Casino and PPA, and shows how heated political matters can get in a very short period of time.

Open letter from pros, PPA website target Commerce
Though Barney Frank’s online gambling bill made it out of committee last month relatively unscathed, one troublesome opponent came from the Commerce Casino in California. In an effort to squelch the impact of their dissent, the PPA sends its million-plus members word of an open letter to the Commerce (signed by a few dozen top-level pros) and launches PlayersBeforeProfits.com, making it easy for poker players to bombard the Commerce with tweets, emails, and phone calls voicing displeasure.

Commerce says PPA misguided, Frank bill will cost jobs and hurt poker
Commerce board member Tom Malkasian, who testified against HR 2267 last month, turned up his rhetoric against the PPA, saying they are ignoring key issues. The Commerce has a right to fight against unfair competition from offshore operations, he tells PokerNewsDaily, and its something they must do to protect California revenue, American jobs, and poker player interests, he says. At least Duke and Negreanu seem back on the same team, having both signed the initial letter and both tweeting to help get thousands of signatures for the PPA in just a couple days. Duke hints at plans for a boycott.

Bike, other California casinos lock step with Commerce
In what’s becoming an increasingly hostile back and forth, the PPA appears to be winning the PR battle, now with more than 6,000 signatures and countless tweets to Congress. The Commerce counters with even bigger numbers and a sign their side is growing, too. They mass-email a press release late Friday, announcing a unified front with other major California card rooms, including the Bicycle, Hawaiian Gardens, and Hollywood Park. These card rooms claim they collectively represent more than 20,000 California employees and handle $13.4 billion in wagers, all of which would be severely threatened by the Frank bill.

Industry Leaders Join Together with Commerce Casino in Opposing Frank Bill; “California Will Lose If Frank Bill Is Passed”

The letter suggests HR 2267 is too broad, and would be more acceptable if it tried to legalize poker-only, not all online gambling. It also says the Commerce welcomes the emails, but asks concerned players to use their new email address supportonlinepoker@commercecasino.net.

Boycott Commerce?
Twitter suggested lots of support for the idea, but few if any have thus far declared intent to cancel plans or skip the upcoming Commerce Hold’em Series, which kicks off Wednesday with a $500k Guarantee.