US Sponsored Pros No Longer in Demand

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Tuesday, March 6th, 2018 | Written by Lucy Brown

Chris Moneymaker not only started the ‘Poker Boom’ after taking down the WSOP Main Event in 2003, but he also helped spark an interest in poker sponsorship deals after PokerStars realized the marketing potential of Moneymaker and his inspirational back story. It didn’t take long for other online poker rooms to get in on the action, and soon after almost every poker site had at least a few sponsored players representing their brands.

Black-Friday of 2011 brought the whole process to a screeching halt, though, as US players were subsequently cut off from the global poker market, thus reducing the value of US sponsored pros to international operators. This then lead to sites such as PokerStars abandoning US pros in favor of those from other important and growing markets, such as South America and Asia, with the situation not much changed after just three states decided to adopt regulation a couple of years later.

Early Sponsorship Efforts

Nevada, Delaware and New Jersey launched online poker markets in 2013, and at the time there existed great hope that other states would soon follow, helping to restore the US iPoker industry to its former glory. Nevada’s first regulated poker site Ultimate Poker, for instance, signed a number of poker pros when it first launched in Nevada followed later in New Jersey, including Jason Somerville, Phil Collins, Jeremy Ausmus, and Antonio Esfandiari.

However, the company soon ran into financial difficulties, with its roster of pros then the first expense to be cut. Likewise, Greg Merson’s time with WSOP online was short lived, as was Jessica Dawley’s tenure at 888poker as poker operators began to realize that their sponsored online poker players didn’t provide enough value to justify the amount of money spent on them by the brands.

Continuing Trend

The beginning of 2018 then saw the trend continuing with two of PokerStars’ main US sponsored pros departing from the site, namely Vanessa Selbst and Jason Mecier. Two players who are likely to continue representing the brand for some time to come, however, are Daniel Negreanu (now an American citizen) and Chris Moneymaker, who are not only considered an integral part of the brand, but are also two of the busiest pros representing PokerStars at live events throughout the country.

In fact, Moneymaker has been one of the most recognizable faces at PokerStars for a decade and a half, and even considered himself a degenerate gambler before winning the WSOP and taking up residence at PokerStars. Therefore, not only does his $2.5 million win from an $86 satellite tournament at PokerStars continue to serve as an inspiration for budding players, but also the fact that he has managed to practice good bankroll management and thrive within the industry ever since.

“I didn’t buy anything, I put it in the bank,” said Moneymaker about his huge win “I said: ‘I don’t want to f*** this up.’ I’d seen all of those stories about lottery winners who lost all of their money in a few years.”

Similarly, PokerStars sponsors Philadelphia pro Jen Shahade to play at various live tournaments in New Jersey, but generally these days site’s like PokerStars would prefer to spend their money on targeted advertising, and paying players to wear patches in tournaments after first reaching a final table.

Missed Opportunities

Nevertheless, poker operators are still guilty of missing out on some of the opportunities that do still arise concerning US players, with one notable example related to the 2017 WSOP Main Event winner Scott Blumstein. As the 25 year-old stated after his famous victory:

“My story’s a pretty interesting one, I think, and for it to end and climax in this fashion is something I never thought possible.. two weeks ago I was just a New Jersey online grinder and nothing’s really changed.”

One would have imagined that given his young , male demographic, and the fact he lives in a state with regulated online poker that a bigger fuss would have been made over his win, with a sponsorship deal by WSOP/888poker not far behind. After Pennsylvania launches its online poker market and joins the interstate liquidity sharing with the country’s other legalized markets, however, ambitious iPoker operators may then feel more motivated to take a harder look at the potential for sponsorship deals within the US, and how best to utilize its professional players.