US poker players

In the wake of Black Friday US poker pros are still searching for a big game

It’s a tough life for a poker player in the United States since the events of April 15th or Black Friday. An estimated 50,000 Americans made their living from playing poker online and overnight not only did they have their livelihoods taken away from them but also their savings. When the US Department of Justice swooped down on the biggest three poker sites in the world their accounts were frozen. In the case of Poker Stars it was just a temporary setback and their players all regained access to their accounts within a matter of days. With regards to Absolute Poker (CEREUS Network) and Full Tilt Poker players are still waiting for their money and it wouldn’t be unwise to assume that the money isn’t coming back any time soon.

Poker players in the United States still have several options if they want to continue to ply their trade. They can leave their homes for a country that hasn’t outlawed online poker, Canada is a particularly popular choice. The problem is that the Canadians aren’t particularly excited about having poker players moving to their country and Canadian immigration authorities are now insisting that those moving across the border in order to play poker register their intention on their visa applications and have the intention of taxing them on their winnings. This leaves open the other option of moving to another country and simply living on a tourist visa making occasional trips away for the purposes of renewing their visa. The problem with this option is it means abandoning their homes. Not all players find success at the top level but most are grinders who make a living without becoming millionaires and they can’t just afford to pick up and leave everything behind.

The live game in the US is experiencing something of a revival, probably owing to the collapse of the online game. There are casinos in many US states and they are expanding their card rooms to cope with the influx of poker pros looking for action. Although there isn’t as much money in the live cash games, the live tournaments, particularly the big ones such as the World Poker Tour offer hundreds of thousands of dollars in prize money, making them a very tempting target. The recent World Series of Poker is testament to the extent poker pros are willing to go to in search of finding a big poker pot to take.