Le Monde du Poker.

AppId is over the quota
September 25 2011, Elaine Chaivarlis

It's been a week full of Full Tilt Poker news. And if you missed any of it, we're going to catch you up on all of it in the Weekly Turbo. You'll get a peek at Rafe Furst's open letter, find out what the Epic Poker League did with Howard Lederer and Chris Ferguson's member cards, and more.

On Tuesday, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced it was amending the original Black Friday indictments to include Ray Bitar, Chris Ferguson, Howard Lederer, and Rafe Furst.

We're used to silence regarding the Full Tilt Poker drama, so we weren't planning on hearing from Lederer, Ferguson, or Furst, so color us surprised when Furst tweeted the link to an open letter on his blog.

Rather than post the entire letter, here's an excerpt:

"What I would like to express here is concern for my family, friends, colleagues and supporters who believe in me and who feel my pain as if it were their own. It sucks to have to endure the character assassination and potshots being taken at me in the media and social networks without being able to defend myself. Privately though I have received incredible support from many of you, and I can’t tell you how much it means to me. May you never have to endure something like this, but if you do, I hope you have friends as good as mine."

"To the skeptics, please consider that not everything you read is true, and our society is built on a presumption of innocence until proven otherwise. It’s difficult to take back hurtful things that you might later regret, when the damage has already been done."

You can make your own conclusions, and if you'd like to read the entire letter, you can, at EmergentFool.com.

We can't say we didn't see this coming. On Wednesday, the Epic Poker League announced that the Standards and Conduct Committee suspended Howard Lederer and Chris Ferguson indefinitely.

“The Committee voted to suspend Howard Lederer and Chris Ferguson indefinitely, pending the outcome of the Department of Justice’s action," said EPL's Standard and Conduct Committee's chairman Stephen Martin.

Even though the complaint filed against Lederer and Ferguson is civil and not criminal, the committee deemed that "the specificity of the allegations and the fact they came from the United States government made this the right course of action in the best interests of the players in the League."

The committee also said that it would continue to monitor the actions of the DOJ and should any other League members be named, "the Committee will consider additional disciplinary action."

According to the committee, Lederer has signed his League documents granting him a 5-year card, however, Ferguson has not yet signed the League documents. Regardless, Ferguson's card has been suspended.

It should also be noted that Andy Bloch, who is on the Standards and Conduct Committee refused to take part in the consideration of the issue and commissioner Annie Duke does not take part in any committee discussions.

Read more at EpicPoker.com.

No, not this mob. A few days after announcing it ended its exclusive relationship with Full Tilt Poker, The Hendon Mob has snatched up another sponsor — Genting Poker. Weirdly enough, the first sentence of the announcement painted a mob-like picture in our head, so maybe it's not far from the mob linked above. Kidding!

"In a deal struck over a meal at Soho’s Little Italy The Hendon Mob shook hands with the godfathers of Genting, securing the future of the Hendon Mob website and guaranteeing the boys all the pasta they can eat."

According to the announcement, the partnership crosses over both live and online.

If you'd like to find out more, read the announcement on TheHendonMob.com.

The Epic Poker League recently announced its broadcast schedule for its inaugural season. According to the press release, 20 hours of programming are planned, seven of them airing on CBS and the rest on the Velocity Network.

The premiere episode will air on Oct. 7 at 10 p.m. EDT on Velocity; the first CBS episode will run on Oct. 8 at 1 p.m. EDT.

“Players and fans have been asking when they can tune-in to watch the Epic Poker League, so we’re pleased to share our national telecast schedule for CBS and Velocity,” said Jeffrey Pollack, executive chairman of the Epic Poker League and its parent company, Federated Sports + Gaming. “Epic Poker offers an innovative take on America’s favorite card game and our telecasts put an entirely new spotlight on many of the world’s finest players.”

The broadcasts will be hosted by Pat O'Brien along with co-host Ali Nejad.

“The broadcasts of Epic Poker on CBS and Velocity will offer viewers a new and innovative experience that will take poker programming to the next level,” said David Neal, executive producer of Epic Poker League. “Epic Poker productions take a page from the best professional sports programming.”

You can check out the rest of the television broadcast schedule on the press release, and watch a teaser video below.

A petition was created on Sept. 22 to bring online poker regulation to the Obama administration's attention. We the People, is a way to get the public's voice heard in the government. At the moment, the minimum number of signatures needed on a petition to be reviewed is 5,000 signatures in 30 days.

The online poker petition wants the Obama administration to "protect consumers, create jobs, and generate revenue by licensing and regulating online poker."

"Appropriate regulation of online poker will put the U.S. in charge of safeguarding responsible adult players, prevent underage participation and protect those with excessive gaming habits. The current, unregulated U.S. marketplace does not guarantee a single consumer protection," the petition says.

The petition continues, "U.S. regulation of this global industry will also mean the creation of American jobs and billions in new revenue without raising taxes. Licensed U.S.-based horse race wagering sites have proven that online betting sites can be successfully regulated. It is time to allow online poker the same opportunity."

Be heard. Sign the petition.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Full Tilt Poker attorney's slammed the U.S. Department of Justice for its allegation that the company ran a Ponzi scheme.

"A Ponzi scheme requires an investment vehicle in order to receive a certain rate of high return," Jeff Ifrah, one of Full Tilt Poker's attorneys, said. "None of those things happened here." Ifrah says Full Tilt Poker "should be likened to that of a problematic bank, rather than an illegal investment scheme."

The attorney for recently accused Chris Ferguson, Ian Imrich said, "While the government has obviously taken issue with the underlying activities of FTP, under any reasonable interpretation, the world-wide operations of the online cardroom are not a so-called Ponzi scheme."

The Wall Street Journal reports that as of Wednesday, the U.S. Justice Department had no comment.

WSJ.com has more.

The Boston Herald is reporting that even though U.S. Rep. Barney Frank is "very disappointed to hear the allegations" against Full Tilt Poker's, Howard Lederer, Chris Ferguson, and Rafe Furst, they don't change his views on online gambling legislation. "If anything, it strengthens them."

Critics berated Frank, as well as Sen. Harry Reid, for taking money from Full Tilt Poker. "Frank should refund every nickel of the tens of thousands in campaign donations linked to online gambling,” Tim Buckley state GOP spokesman said. “It appears Mr. Frank is another congressman willing to associate with criminals.”

According to the Boston Herald, Frank is willing to put the "donations from Lederer, Furst and Ferguson into a special account and donate it to a fund for victims if the Justice Department sets one up — and if the men are found guilty."

Read more at BostonHerald.com.

In case your week was as busy as ours, we're going to lighten up your Sunday a bit. In the midst of our flurry of work on Friday, we came across our favorite thread of the moment on TwoPlusTwo — Phil Hellmuth Riding a Giant Hotdog on Water. Yes, you read that right, and yes, it's literal — well, almost. We aren't sure if it's Hellmuth on the hotdog, but if it's not, the guy in the photo is a dead ringer for the Poker Brat. The initial image is gold in and of itself, but as you're all aware, there are some Photoshop masters on TwoPlusTwo.

This thread is a must read.

You should follow PokerNews on Twitter for up-to-the-minute news. Not only that, like PokerNews on Facebook, and sign up for the Nightly Turbo newsletter below.

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AppId is over the quota
September 21 2011, Elaine Chaivarlis

On Tuesday, the U.S. Attorney's Office amended the Black Friday complaint to add Howard Lederer, Chris Ferguson, and Rafe Furst. There wasn't much bigger news than that, so we stayed on top of it, spoke with Tom "durrrr" Dwan and tried to keep you all updated. This edition of the Turbo has everything you missed on Tuesday, plus everything that happened Wednesday. We'll tell you what Rafe Furst's open letter said, give you the details on Lederer and Ferguson's suspension from the Epic Poker League, and even bring you a poker documentary you might want to check out. Enjoy!

In Case You Missed It

Day 2 of the World Poker Tour Borgata Poker Open saw the field cut to 170 by the end of play. David Williams ended up bagging the most chips. Find out who else is left in the WPT recap.

Oh, look another World Poker Tour stop is running. WPT Malta kicked off on Tuesday and 101 players took their seats at the felt for Day 1a. Read the WPT Malta recap to find out who was eliminated and would need to fire another buy-in off on Day 1b.

On Tuesday, Tom "durrrr" Dwan spoke with PokerNews regarding Full Tilt Poker. Read an excerpt of the interview and then listen to the entire podcast, where he discusses player funds, DOJ actions, and more.

ESPN continued its coverage of the 2011 World Series of Poker Main Event on Tuesday. If you missed any of it, you should read our WSOP on ESPN recap and find out who came out of Day 5 with the biggest stack.

The 2011 World Championship of Online Poker is creeping close to the end of the series, but there are plenty of bracelets left up for grabs. History was almost made on Day 17, but you'll have to read the WCOOP recap to find out more.

Last week, Germany made strides in its online gaming legislation. Not only that, but Caesars' CEO Gary Loveman was appointed to Republican presidential candidate Jon Huntsman's business advisory council and you can read all about it in the latest Inside Gaming.

On Tuesday, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced it was amending the original Black Friday indictments to include Ray Bitar, Chris Ferguson, Howard Lederer, and Rafe Furst.

We're used to silence regarding the Full Tilt Poker drama, so we weren't planning on hearing from Lederer, Ferguson, or Furst, so color us surprised when Furst tweeted the link to an open letter on his blog.

Rather than post the entire letter, here's an excerpt:

"What I would like to express here is concern for my family, friends, colleagues and supporters who believe in me and who feel my pain as if it were their own. It sucks to have to endure the character assassination and potshots being taken at me in the media and social networks without being able to defend myself. Privately though I have received incredible support from many of you, and I can’t tell you how much it means to me. May you never have to endure something like this, but if you do, I hope you have friends as good as mine."

"To the skeptics, please consider that not everything you read is true, and our society is built on a presumption of innocence until proven otherwise. It’s difficult to take back hurtful things that you might later regret, when the damage has already been done."

You can make your own conclusions, and if you'd like to read the entire letter, you can, at EmergentFool.com.

We can't say we didn't see this coming. On Wednesday, the Epic Poker League announced that the Standards and Conduct Committee suspended Howard Lederer and Chris Ferguson indefinitely.

“The Committee voted to suspend Howard Lederer and Chris Ferguson indefinitely, pending the outcome of the Department of Justice’s action," said EPL's Standard and Conduct Committee's chairman Stephen Martin.

Even though the complaint filed against Lederer and Ferguson is civil and not criminal, the committee deemed that "the specificity of the allegations and the fact they came from the United States government made this the right course of action in the best interests of the players in the League."

The committee also said that it would continue to monitor the actions of the DOJ and should any other League members be named, "the Committee will consider additional disciplinary action."

According to the committee, Lederer has signed his League documents granting him a 5-year card, however, Ferguson has not yet signed the League documents. Regardless, Ferguson's card has been suspended.

It should also be noted that Andy Bloch, who is on the Standards and Conduct Committee refused to take part in the consideration of the issue and commissioner Annie Duke does not take part in any committee discussions.

Read more at EpicPoker.com.

The Epic Poker League recently announced its broadcast schedule for its inaugural season. According to the press release, 20 hours of programming are planned, seven of them airing on CBS and the rest on the Velocity Network.

The premiere episode will air on Oct. 7 at 10 p.m. EDT on Velocity; the first CBS episode will run on Oct. 8 at 1 p.m. EDT.

“Players and fans have been asking when they can tune-in to watch the Epic Poker League, so we’re pleased to share our national telecast schedule for CBS and Velocity,” said Jeffrey Pollack, executive chairman of the Epic Poker League and its parent company, Federated Sports + Gaming. “Epic Poker offers an innovative take on America’s favorite card game and our telecasts put an entirely new spotlight on many of the world’s finest players.”

The broadcasts will be hosted by Pat O'Brien along with co-host Ali Nejad.

“The broadcasts of Epic Poker on CBS and Velocity will offer viewers a new and innovative experience that will take poker programming to the next level,” said David Neal, executive producer of Epic Poker League. “Epic Poker productions take a page from the best professional sports programming.”

You can check out the rest of the television broadcast schedule on the press release, and watch a teaser video below.

In May, we told you that Evelyn Ng had renewed her sponsorship with Bodog, and Team Bodog added Tatjana Pasalic. A new name has been added to the roster — Amanda Leatherman.

“I am excited to have signed with Team Bodog and look forward to representing the Bodog brand and lifestyle," Leatherman said. "It is hard to believe that being part of a brand known for fun and exotic affairs can be considered work. I look forward to playing more poker for Bodog, especially in the upcoming November Punta Cana Poker Classic event, as well as representing Bodog at social events around the world. It’s going to be fun.”

According to the press release, Leatherman, who previously interviewed players for the World Poker Tour and hosted the PokerStars Big Game, is a single, ex-cheerleader, who will be hitting the felts soon.

"The Bodog life and my own are scarily similar. I can't wait to do the Bodog photo shoot. I'll be posting those shots on my facebook as soon as I have them but in the meantime I'll see you all at the tables, both live and online," she said.

Read the press release for more.

According to a post on TwoPlusTwo by PokerStars Steve, "PokerStars is developing a fast-moving ring games product. We expect it to be available for public beta testing in a few months."

Steve was replying to a question from a TwoPlusTwo community member asking whether PokerStars was "adding something like Rush or testing it."

Dale "Daleroxxu" Philip took to his Twitter to voice his excitement for the new feature:

Daleroxxu Dale Philip Awesome News -> "PokerStars is developing a fast moving ring games product.... public beta testing in a few months." - PokerStars Stefan September 19 2011

Reactions in the form have been mixed and you can bet some players weren't too happy with the news. Giovanni "ei8htyei8ht" Pellegrini tweeted:

ei8htyei8ht Giovanni Pellegrini Just saw 2p2 post: http://t.co/T29x8q4C & am insta-deeply-concerned. Rush poker was an unholy abomination for the industry in the long term September 19 2011

What do you guys think? Let us know below.

If you're looking for a documentary that looks at poker from Black Friday forward, and follows Alec Torelli as "he strives to even greater heights in his poker career," then we've got the piece for you — The Big Blind.

The documentary is an official selection for the 2011 New York Television Festival, and according to the Vimeo page, is an A&E unscripted pilot selection.

You can watch Part 1 of the documentary on Vimeo, but below, is Part 2, which includes interviews with Phil Hellmuth, Annie Duke, Brian Rast, and Dan Bilzerian.

We're hooked and want to see the rest.

Follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook for up-to-the-minute news.

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AppId is over the quota
September 20 2011, Chad Holloway

The poker world was no doubt anxious to hear news about Full Tilt Poker and the Alderney Gaming Control Commission (AGCC) hearing that recommenced Monday at the Riverbank Park Plaza Hotel in London, but it was shocking news from the Manhattan United States Attorney’s Office that set the poker world ablaze. U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara announced on Tuesday that prosecutors were amending their original complaint, unsealed on Black Friday, as part of a money laundering complaint against some of FTP’s biggest names.

The amendment alleges that Full Tilt Poker and board members, including CEO Ray Bitar, Howard Lederer, Chris “Jesus” Ferguson, and Rafe Furst defrauded players in what Bharara claimed was nothing but a Ponzi scheme: “Full Tilt was not a legitimate poker company, but a global Ponzi scheme. Full Tilt insiders lined their own pockets with funds picked from the pockets of their most loyal customers while blithely lying to both players and the public alike about the safety and security of the money deposited.”

The amended complaint, goes on to lay out details, including that as of March 21, 2011, FTP owed approximately $390 million to players around the world, with $150 million owed to U.S. players; however, FTP only had $60 million on deposit in its bank accounts, meaning over $300 million is owed to players worldwide.

This was the result of FTP’s payment processing channels becoming so disrupted that “the company faced increasing difficulty attempting to collect funds from players in the United States. Rather than disclose this fact, Full Tilt Poker simply credited players’ online gambling accounts with money that had never actually been collected from the players’ bank accounts. Full Tilt Poker allowed players to gamble with — and lose to other players — this phantom money that Full Tilt Poker never actually collected or possessed.”

Not only that, the complaint alleges that between April 2007 and April 2011, Bitar, Lederer, Ferguson, and Furst lined their own pockets with approximately $443,860,529.89 of players’ money.

A press release regarding the amended complaint claimed: "Bitar received approximately $41 million, Lederer received approximately $42million, and Furst received approximately $11.7 million. Ferguson was allocated approximately $87,486,182.87 in distributions, and received at least $25 million, with the remaining balance characterized as "owed" to him. Much of the money that was distributed was transferred by the Board members and owners to accounts in Switzerland and other overseas locations."

This is a breaking story and PokerNews will be here to bring you any and all updates as they happen.

In the meantime, don't forget to follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook.

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