How hefty you might ask yourself?

Try $300,000,000 healthy - and no, the added zeros in that figure are not typos.

Dikshit, who is actually worth a little over a billion dollars, will be paying forward three separate payments of $100 million to the U.S. Department of Justice over the next several years.  He will stay remain the largest shareholder of the very company he started, with a 27% majority; however, his company’s stock will most likely dwindle for the next few months with news of the verdict.  The publicly-traded U.K. gaming company is one of the biggest in the industry - and before the 2006 UIGEA, was the largest poker room in the world.

The fine also means Mr. Dikshit will have to plead guilty to the internet betting charges that were brought against him by U.S. authorities, even though it was something he has felt he was never truly responsible for in the first place.  It looks as if he just wants to move on from the entire ordeal and just get back to his normal responsibities at PartyGaming, and he hopes that he will avoid the much harsher penalty of spending at least 2 years behind prison walls.

The final two tables included WSOP finalists Clonie Gowen, Brett “GetCrunk” Richey, and Nick Schulman.  The aforementioned three went out just before the final table of 9 players - earning themselves at least $72,000+ each.  The three players that went out before the TV final table were WSOP bracelet winner Mike “The Mouth” Matusow, Joe McGowan, and Ben Straate.  Each of them earned at least $100,000+ paydays for their finishes.

The televised final table will feature some of the biggest names in poker - both live and online.  The biggest headliner will of course be 2008 WSOP Main Event final tablist David “Chino” Rheem.  Rheem is looking for some serious revenge after his M.E. dreams were crushed when his AK couldn’t hold up against eventual winner Peter Eastgate’s AQ.  Those who will be chasing him are big-time tournament pros Hoyt Corkins - who is also a WPT winner himself - Amnon Filippi, Steve Sung, Justin Young, and Evan McNiff.

The winner will take home the coveted World Poker Tour trophy, an entry into the season-ending $25k WPT Championship, and a nice paycheck of $1,538,730!

Here are the final chip counts before play resumes on Friday, December 19th, 2008:

Seat 1: Chino Rheem — 4,240,000
Seat 2: Amnon Filippi — 2,750,000
Seat 3: Hoyt Corkins — 2,295,000
Seat 4: Steve Sung — 5,885,000
Seat 5: Justin Young — 2,410,000
Seat 6: Evan McNiff — 4,805,000

Our partner site over at Poker Strategy Forums will be holding FOUR special tournaments all this weekend at none other than the biggest and most popular site in the world - POKERSTARS!  These private tournaments will not just be a fun time for new and existing players to get together and play some cards, but each of them will have $100 added to EACH of the prizepools.

CLICK HERE FOR INFO ON ALL THE $100 ADDED TOURNEYS AT P.S.F.

The good people at P.S.F. are starting the festivities on Thursday, December 4th, 2008, with a No Limit Holdem tournament + $100 Added! The buy-in for this tourney is only $5 and will start at 18:00 Eastern Time (6 pm EST, 3 pm PST).  It’s perfect for players wanting to play a little cards after work or for the early morning risers over in Europe and abroad who want to do the same.

Download PokerStars Today if you don’t have an account - or hit up the banner below:

Here is the full schedule so you can set aside time to play:

*NOTE: ALL these tourneys have $100 ADDED to the prizepools!

December 4th, 2008  -  PokerStars (18:00 EST)  -  Tournament # 124278900 - $5 Buyin (NLHE)

December 5th, 2008 -   PokerStars (18:00 EST) - Tournament # 124279594 - $5 Buyin (NLHE)

December 6th, 2008 -   PokerStars (18:00 EST) - Tournament # 124279917 - $5 Buyin (NLHE)

December 7th, 2008 -  PokerStars (18:00 EST) - Tournament # 124280649 - $5 Buyin (HU)

You will NOT find this video anywhere else right now, so please watch and discuss it over at one of the rising poker forums on the interwebs by clicking on the link below.  You will have to be patient as the video is going to be released in 10 more segments to really build up the drama behind the drama that has undoubtedly swallowed by the former WSOP champion’s life as of late.

I’m very intrigued over what he has to say about the investigators formally implicating him as the main culprit behind the cheating scandal that stole countless millions from hi-limit poker players on the very site he helped build up from nothing.  Discuss away by checking out the following link:

Russ Hamilton Exclusive Interview

You can watch the video below as well:

The full thread can be found here –> J.B. Released by U.B.

As many people already know, Josephy disappointed many of the followers that made him the household name he is today by signing on with a site that cheated its players out of millions following the UB/AP scandal fallout.  The original founder of the popular training site over at PokerXFactor.com didn’t have much to say other than this over at TwoPlusTwo:

Just wanted you guys to know that you will no longer see me as a redlined pro in their lobbies, nor will you see me wearing their patches at live events any more.

That is all for now,

Bax

His good friend and PXF co-founder Eric “Sheets” Haber had the following response to Josephy’s O.P:

The reason why Bax is no longer a UB pro is simply because UB renegged on its deal with him.

I was there for the phone conversation and can attest that this is the case.

They called him and openly renegged on their agreement without explanation and should be ashamed for doing so imo.

Tons of Team PokerStars members will be partaking in this year’s APPT, including Australia’s native son and WSOP Main Event champ Joe Hachem, Vanessa Rousso, and Chad Brown.  Many internet qualifiers and recent EPT champions will also be gracing the seats, along with a fair amount of local pros.  Festivities were already underway last week with several smaller tournaments coming to fruition; all of which have led up to the championship that is now being played as we speak.

We’ll keep you all posted here at PokerNewsGuru of the final results of this star-studded tournament.

This particular expose didn’t paint the greatest picture for online poker in general, going as far as publicly calling the game we all know and love as “illegal in the United States” but just “out of the jurisdiction” of our authorities to enforce any punishments to the players who deposit and choose to play freely on the net.  But as with most people who are familiar with U.S. laws can tell you - internet poker is NOT illegal in the United States, and the CBS piece should not convert you to think otherwise.

The interviews conducted included sit-downs with former WSOP bracelet winner Todd Witteles, a Kahnawake Gaming Commission representative, as well as several other online poker players.  The producers did an excellent job of naming the people involved in cracking open the initial investigation (the players themselves), as well as really putting on the heat on the main conspirator of the scandal, Russ Hamilton.  Hamilton has not been formally charged and did not return calls to either 60 Minutes or the Washington Post.

This site provides players everything from poker news, poker strategy, of course the best sites to Play Poker Online. The bonus information is super-extensive at this site, with initial deposit bonuses ranging from as low as $50 to as high as $5,000.   PokerSense.com also has a section on live tournaments like the WSOP, the WPT, and EPT circuits. They provide a historical look on these type of tourneys as well as player standings and upcoming schedules. Also, if you’re curious in finding out about some of the world’s most famous poker players?  Be sure to make a stop on PokerSense’s poker players tab for some interesting information.

Another especially nice feature on the site is the section for online poker tournaments. It’s right on the home page and offers live updates of tournaments and freeroll schedules. Their top ten online poker sites are listed just above that section as well with bonus, rating and reviews. The articles and strategies are not overwhelming; they are easy to grasp and fun to follow up and read. PokerSense.com is definitely one place to stop by and check out if you want to play online poker. Their site is a one-stop resource for almost everything poker, including solid UNBIASED reviews and great poker tips that anyone can quickly learn from!

Well, after a few more hours from the initial breaking of the story - and some extra digging by the media staff over at PokerNews.com, it looks as if we finally have an answer:

She’s suing Full Tilt Poker for $40,000,000 over a breach of contract!

Gowen alleges that when she signed on as a Full Tilt pro back in 2004, she was promised a 1% ownership of the company.  She went on to sport FTP gear around the tournament circuit, appeared in television commercials and promotional ads, and essentially did her part in promoting the Online Poker mega-brand as best she could - for no added compensation beyond her supposed 1% stake in the company.

Well, in 2007, when it came time to receive her distribution check, she was only given a fraction of what she thought she was owed - which was $250,000 from Howard Lederer, chief operator of Full Tilt Poker.  Gowen felt the company was worth way more than what Lederer was making it seem to be, and refused the payment.  The crazy thing is, despite not being paid she still went ahead and promoted the company anyways!

On November 11th, 2008, she was informed by Full Tilt Poker that she would no longer be apart of Team Full Tilt.  This must’ve been the primary factor for Gowen to be bringing such a high-profile lawsuit against the company, especially considering she was supposedly never compensated for promoting the company for the last four years.  The tough thing about this suit is that she openly admits to only having an oral contract that was made with Tiltware LLC executives (controlling company of Full Tilt Poker), and not a definitive written contract about her claims.

The suit alleges the company is worth $4 billion, and she’s owed the 1% she was promised by executives when she signed on with FTP in 2004.  It is unclear why she not only named Tiltware LLC in the legal filing, but also other Full Tilt team members such as Phil Ivey, Andy Bloch, and Erick Lindgren.

Tiltware LLC has released the following statement about the claims:

“Tiltware, LLC, has been made aware of the recent filing of a meritless lawsuit by a former Full Tilt Poker endorser — Ms. Cycalona Gowen. All claims have no merit and there are many inaccuracies improperly and unlawfully asserted by Ms. Gowen within her frivolous complaint. Tiltware LLC expects that this lawsuit will be dealt with accordingly by a competent court in due course.”

The Guru will keep track of this as it progresses in the coming days. Stay tuned - and in the mean time, you can still get the best deposit bonus by using a special referral code Full Tilt offers up when you download the poker software.

WSOP bracelet winner and fellow NWP’er Todd Witteles, also known online as “DanDruff,” posted this juicy piece of gossip earlier this evening after a member on the site made it known a public filing that was made by the attorneys of Miss Gowen on November 14th, 2008.

It is unknown what she may be pursuing in this soon-to-be very ugly legal matter (although it looks like it might be a contract dispute of some sort), but the suit specifically names Tiltware LLC (software provider) and a few big name Full Tilt power players such as Howard Lederer and Phil Ivey as defendants in the case.

Here is a partial case docket that was just posted online:

Gowen v. Tiltware LLC, et al.,
Plaintiff: Cycalona Gowen

Defendant: Full Tilt Poker, Tiltware LLC, Pocket Kings Ltd., Kolyma Corporation, A.V.V., Raymond J. Bitar, Howard Lederer, Andrew Bloch, Phillip Ivey, Christopher Ferguson, John Juanda, Phillip Gordon, Erick Lindgren, Erik Seidel, Jennifer Harman-Traniello, Michael Matusow, Allen Cunningham, Gus Hansen and Patrick Antonious

Case Number: 2:2008cv01581
Filed: November 14, 2008

Court: Nevada District Court
Office: Las Vegas Office [ Court Info ]
County: Clark
Presiding Judge: Judge Robert C. Jones
Referring Judge: Magistrate Judge Robert J. Johnston

Nature of Suit: Contract - Other Contract
Cause: 28:1332 Diversity-Other Contract
Jurisdiction: Diversity
Jury Demanded By: Plaintiff
Access additional case information on PACER