The statistics for June are now available, and Nevada successfully tackled the challenges of the summer.
In June, online poker reached its highest revenue level since records began for the nascent online poker industry in Nevada, thanks to the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas.
Similarly, when the WSOP concluded, the cash game traffic drastically dropped to its previous levels before the WSOP, prompting the site to take measures to rectify the situation. One such measure could be the recruitment of a brand ambassador or a similar role, a concept the site initially resisted. However, rumors of Greg Merson’s potential association with the site might be WSOP.com’s strategy to alter its trajectory.
Las Vegas’ live poker scene is currently taking a break, as poker players have left the city following the WSOP to participate in other global locations. With events such as the EPT Barcelona and the WSOP Circuit in Palm Beach, Florida, along with smaller tournaments at places like the Isle of Pompano and even LAPT in Panama City, players have temporarily moved away from Nevada.
Of course, they’ll return when the next live tournament arrives in the desert.
Peak Revenue Numbers Make Online Poker Executives Happy
The Nevada Gaming Control Board published the numbers for June late last week, clearly showing a surge due to the summer’s WSOP.
Revenue from online poker rose over 20 percent from the previous month, reaching $1,037,000 in June compared to $862K in May. This marked the highest earnings for Nevada’s online poker since the initial launch of the sites over a year ago.
Monthly online poker revenue for June saw a nearly 30 percent increase from April, largely due to the influx of players for the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas that began in May.
While there was no notable change for Ultimate Poker in June, WSOP.com experienced a roughly 50 percent surge in cash game traffic. The overall revenue growth was slower but still substantial.
WSOP Ends, WSOP.com Traffic Plummets
Cash game traffic began to decline again as the WSOP in Las Vegas concluded and many players left the city.
According to data from PokerScout, the seven-day average for cash games on various sites saw a significant drop last week, which followed the conclusion of the WSOP live events. WSOP.com experienced a decrease from 152 to 127 cash game seats, marking a nearly 17 percent decline. This decline is in addition to the already shrinking numbers due to poker players leaving Nevada to return to their respective states and countries.
Ultimate Poker did not experience a significant increase during the WSOP, and even after it, the change was not major, only seeing a rise from 54 to 55 players last week.
WSOP.com attempted to counteract the downturn by launching a promotion that coincided with the broadcast of WSOP episodes on ESPN. However, so far, it hasn’t had much impact.
When it was rumored that Greg Merson was promoting WSOP.com on social media and potentially entering a sponsorship deal, it seemed logical. The online poker site was in need of a boost, having previously experienced a good run of success in late May, June, and early July. However, despite weeks of speculation, WSOP.com has still not confirmed any partnership with the 2012 WSOP Main Event winner.
WSOP initially claimed to avoid personal endorsements with individual players to uphold utmost trust and integrity. However, Merson may be the representative capable of swaying the opinions of these executives. The manner in which the company decides to leverage Merson’s influence could potentially be advantageous for WSOP.com.
Criminal Tidbits from the Las Vegas Blotter
The criminal element in Las Vegas – or those allegedly involved – had an interesting week.
During the final weekend of the WSOP in Las Vegas, an FBI-led operation led to the arrest of several high stakes poker players involved in an illicit international sports betting ring.
Richard Yong and Paul Phua were among those arrested. Often dubbed as “Asian businessmen”, they participate in some of the world’s highest stakes poker games and are also known for sports betting. Their 22-year-old sons were also involved.
On July 13, Yong, his son, Phua, and Phua’s son were apprehended on the Las Vegas Strip for placing bets on the World Cup. It was revealed that the elder Phua was a senior figure within the 14K Triad, one of the globe’s largest and most influential criminal organizations, known for its involvement in drug smuggling, illicit gambling, prostitution, and loan-sharking.
On June 18, Phua was arrested in Macau for operating a World Cup betting operation. However, he was released on bail and traveled to Las Vegas for poker and additional sports betting. Both the FBI and Caesars Palace, a Las Vegas Strip establishment, kept an eye on his activities. Caesars Palace eventually evicted him due to his actions. After Phua and his companions moved to another Strip hotel, the FBI carried out a raid and arrested everyone.
Poker players intervened to help. Andrew Robl redeemed his Bellagio chips and put forth $1.5 million in bail money to free the Phua father-son pair, while Phil Ivey contributed an additional $1 million.
This fulfilled the requirements for bail, however, the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement division of the US Department of Homeland Security intervened. The Phuas, being Malaysian citizens, are currently detained for potential deportation and as a result, they are not approved for the bail set by the federal judge.
David Chesnoff, Ivey’s lawyer, is now the representative for the Phuas.
A man reportedly robbed the Bellagio Casino at gunpoint late last week. He allegedly threatened a teller at the cashier cage with a gun, seized between $30K to $50K, and then fled the scene on foot. He was later apprehended at a different Las Vegas casino over the weekend. His real identity has yet to be disclosed.
