As Pokerati slowly but surely gets settled in to our new Las Vegas digs, we\’ve started thinking about the next Pokerati Invitational … and specifically how to keep it legal. Kinda funny, but that was pretty easy to do in Texas … just throw a tourney with no entry fee or any other sort of rake and it was all good — whether it was held at Adam\’s house, the Lodge, Sadler & Carter, or the Platinum Room. Dealer tips and money that was taken out of the prize pool to be put back in in the form of a medieval battle helmet trophy or fancy sandwiches … well that may have been legally questionable … but we somehow managed to stay clean as I threw an event once a year for all my best poker friends/clients/colleagues and anyone else\’s butt that may have needed kissing. Good times!
Anyhow, I\’m trying to figure out what\’s possible here in Nevada, where all things \”gaming\” seem to be heavily regulated. Like can I throw my own event, at a house, if I so choose? With my own dealers? Or if I go to a casino, do I have to take an entry fee?
These questions are semi-rhetorical for now, as I study up on how things work in the Silver State … where as far as I can tell it is still illegal to play online. (Who knew?!? I thought they changed that law, but apparently not. I was kicking ass on Full Tilt just yesterday!) You know what has me shaking my head is how I made a conscious choice way back when to ditch the Dallas underground in favor of the online world. Shortly thereafter, my bosses at PartyPoker were deemed serious criminals if they didn\’t get out of Dodge by sundown. So now in an attempt to go totally legit, I have come to Las Vegas, where, heck, just about everything is legal … and lo and behold, there\’s still a lot of gray areas — not to mention people who live and work in them.