PokerStars California iPoker Campaign Proving A Great Success

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Wednesday, August 5th, 2015 | Written by Adam Brown

At the beginning of July, PokerStars launched its ‘Let California Play!’ campaign, an innovative summer-long tour of the Golden State by some of the site’s most popular pros. The tour’s aim was to create grassroots support for a future regulated online poker industry, and so far it is proving a great success, with hundreds of residents and local players showing up at California’s various card rooms to catch a glimpse of such poker celebrities as Daniel Negreanu, Vanessa Selbst, Jason Somerville, Liv Boeree, and Chris Moneymaker, or compete against them in a series of specially organized tournaments.

At the end of July, the tour subsequently arrived at the Napa Valley Casino in support of the ‘Californians for Responsible iPoker’ coalition, and talking to daily newspaper, the Napa Valley Register, PokerStars’ communications director Lee Jones, said:

“There are millions of poker players in California, and they deserve to be able to play poker in the comfort of their own homes. Until iPoker is regulated in California, online players are going to play at unauthorized sites, which puts them at risk.”

Poker Pros Mingling With Locals

Just like other stops on the tour, the Napa Valley Casino was packed out on Saturday 25th July with local residents taking part in the specially organized tournament, and hoping to chat with some of the game’s most successfully players. The $335 buy-in tournament even rotated its tables in order to give all players a chance to sit at the same table as legends of the game, and as local resident Dean Curnen commented:

“This is pretty amazing. To play at the same table as the pros, when do you get an opportunity like that at an amateur level? It’s unbelievable. This could be the biggest thing that’s ever happened to American Canyon,” before adding, “I love to watch him [Negreanu] play. He just seems like a really cool guy. The fact that he’s playing just 5 feet away from me is pretty unreal.”

A total of 100 players participated in the event, with $35 from each buy-in donated to two charities, namely Wounded Warriors, and Boys and Girls Club of American Canyon.

Next Stops On The Tour

The PokerStars Pro Tour kicked-off in San Diego on July 17th, and has since visited casinos and cardrooms in Lake Elsinore, Chula Vista, American Canyon, and most recently Citrus Heights on August 2nd. Next stops on the tour include Delano on the 6th, followed by Rosamond (7th), Fresno (8th), and Turlock (9th).

Legalization Unlikely In 2015

While the ‘Let California Play!’ campaign has created a great deal of interest and excitement across the state, the same cannot be said about California’s drive towards legalized online poker which has failed to get off the ground this year. Included amongst the bills introduced to the legislature in 2015 are those of Assemblymen Mike Gatto (AB 9) and Reggie Jones-Sawyer (AB 167), as well as a third “shell bill” by Assemblyman Adam Gray (AB 431).
However, Assemblymen Mike Gatto’s bill has since been shelved as there was “no consensus on the issue,” while the other two bills are not expected to advance further this year, especially with the state’s Interim Study Recess beginning on September 11th.

Financially Rewarding Industry

While California is unlikely to join the country’s other three regulated states by introducing online poker regulation this year, PokerStars is doing an excellent job in promoting the potential benefits of a legalized market for both consumers and the government alike. As Lee Jones, explains:

“Poker players need to make their voices heard. They need to reach out to their local lawmakers and let them know that this is something important to them.”

As well as iPoker regulation providing a safe environment for players to compete against one another, with all necessary responsible gaming measures in place, the industry also has the potential to contribute substantially to state’s coffers. In fact, various studies have suggested that regulated iPoker could provide a potential windfall of $263 million during its first year of regulation, rising to more than $500 million annually on maturity. In addition, the industry could create a further 1,300 new jobs across the state, especially for gaming providers, programmers, and those people involved in marketing services.