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July 10, 2010 at 8:36 pm | Poker News | | Written by: spenda
The world’s largest online poker site has received a lot of attention over the past week, both good and bad. From French strikes to “MicroMania” to the retirement of a world champion, PokerStars has certainly taken some attention away from the WSOP Main Event which started earlier this week.
Recently, PokerStars was forced to close its doors to French poker players due to political reasons. PokerStars responded by opening PokerStars.fr which was not met with as much fanfare as expected. Instead of a ton of action there was a whole lot of nothing going on at PokerStars.fr due to a player strike! Yes, the French online poker community felt (rightfully so) that the rake levied upon the new site was practically unbeatable and decided to protest the games. This was a large effort and it involved players opening up the maximum number of tables and sitting out on all of them. They also blocked the waiting lists so no one else could play. What should be noted is PokerStars does not have as much control over this situation as it may seem. In fact, they are pretty much handcuffed by the French Parliament which forced French players out of PokerStars.net in the the first place. Because of the new costs of the site, permits, and other expenses, the players have had to pony up and pay a much higher rake % than those playing on PokerStars. At this time it seems the staged sit-in might have worked, parties from both sides are discussing possible solutions which will ultimately need to include less rake. As an immediate response PokerStars.fr has reportedly decided to not rake any pot that does not see a flop, which is certainly a good place to start.
Some strange news from the World Series of Poker this week as former Main Event Champion (and PokerStars sponsored professional) Peter Eastgate decided to “retire” from poker. While players retire all the time they certainly do not do so before their 25th birthday. Eastgate, who won the 2008 World Series of Poker Main Event, announced he was stepping away from poker for the time being. Eastgate has also appeared on the televised cash game High Stakes Poker as well as being a staple in PokerStars nosebleed NL Hold’em games. At this point all we know is Eastgate had lost motivation and wants to find out about life outside of the poker world. Being a professional poker player is certainly not an easy job, and Eastgate was thrust into the limelight quite early in his career.
Speaking of Team PokerStars, two well-known professionals were added to the team this week in former Bodog pro David Williams and female poker savant Vanessa “fslexduck” Selbst who is a heads-up master. Williams is best known for his runner-up finish to Greg Raymer in the 2004 Main Event and for appearances on cash game shows such as High Stakes Poker, The PokerStars.net Big Game, and Poker After Dark. Selbst who recently won the NAPT Mohegan Sun Main Event for $750,000 is one of a few well known professionals who is openly gay. The ivy-league educated professional nearly won the $5,000 Heads-Up Championship in the 2007 WSOP, taking 3rd for $128,968. Both players plan on participating at PokerStars.com playing under the names “dwilliams” and “V. Selbst”.
Those of you who are stuck at micro stakes trying to build a roll will be happy to hear PokerStars is dedicating the entire month of July just to you! If you play $10nl or lower as well as limit games $.10/$.20 or lower you will become eligible for bonuses, prizes, tournament tickets, and more! PokerStars has named this promotion MicroMania and the main staple are four $1.10 daily freeze outs with $1,000 added to the prize pool. These tournaments can be found in the special tab in the tourney area. Cash game players are set to receive extra VPPs and VIP rewards for participating in low-stakes games through out July. Players will receive at least 50% more VPPs which will help them move up VIP levels as well as clear any lingering deposit bonuses.
With the Main Event heading into week 2 and a lot going down in the online poker world lately be sure to check back here for weekly updates on any big news.
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