Official WSOP website gave us first info about the biggest poker event. Among major changes are Colossus II and reschedule of the Main Event. Also among news: the biggest WPT events finished including $100,000 Alpha8 and Five Diamond World Poker Classic.

So let’s start from the World Series, it would be a nice thing to do. Let us provide you with link to the official site. Here is what we see:

• World Series 2-16 is scheduled from May, 31 to July, 18.
• Main Event is scheduled July, 9-18.
• Collossus II guaranteed prize money is $1,000,000 now and total guaranteed prize fund is $7,000,000 (used to be $5 million).
• 100% in the schedule are the following events: Millionaire Maker, Monster Stack, Little One for ONE DROP, Seniors Event and Ladies Championship.

This is all relevant information. There are talks mostly about Collossus, this year tournament has the fans with mixed feelings: 22,374 buy-ins in the tournament with $565 buy-in and $11,187,000 prize money had only 638k for the winner…

You are about to know one of the greatest secrets of the poker world. Probably we should have tried a less direct approach to telling you this. The secret is the world poker center has not been Las Vegas for quite some time, it’s LA! O yeah, baby! Bring the cash! And a couple of squids in spicy sauce to add, please!

So what is the place for World Series of Poker? Las Vegas/ First city in mind when it comes to gambling? Las Vegas. Most films about poker players shoot at? Las Vegas! Where is the biggest poker room in the world? Las… Los Angeles!

Yeah. Yeah, not Macao, not Vegas are really close to LA when ot comes to the most monumental poker buildings in the world. Commerce Casino alone has over 200 tables! Two hundred tables! Poker only, no some sort of roulette or baccarat.

And there is also The Bicycle, Hollywood Park, Hustler  and other facilities comparable to Commerce!

That is just one feature between two poker Meccas. Let’s see the list of all the differences between poker life in Las Vegas and Los Angeles.

Ask ten people who is the standout in the poker world. Nine of ten will call one name: Phil Laak! Even now when all the noticeable quality poker TV shows are gone, people remember talkative, hyperactive and seemingly always under the influence of something Irish American named Phil.

Laak was born in Ireland in 1972, grew up in the USA. He first played cards when he was 7-8 years old when he and kids of his age together with their parents went to vacation. Future pro has won his first prize and pot there – it was a chocolate bar.

First taste of his poker life was felt back then.

Our hero has an engineer diploma. However, he was never going to work at one place and has always tried something new.

“I always tried to get out of system using my brain and wanted to get out of matrix ending the routine: earn money, pay for the mortgage, pay your bills and start a new month”.

Loyalty of tax system in Russia is appreciated times and times better than those in Europe and the USA. World Series Main Event finalists paid on average 46% of their winnings to the state! The only one that came off clear is Pierre Neuville…

Winnings in Russia are paid according to standard income tax and there is certainly no mentioning of “professional poker players” in the law. As usual, it is very dark forest without trodden paths and foresters huts, speaking metaphorically – and there are just wild beasts and fallen pines on the way.

And this matter has been resolved on the West ages ago. And the result is in favor of state. Poker players in the ISA are forced to pay 50% from what they win. And since World Series finalists do live in America, they are no exception to this rule.

Let us take the winner Joe McKeehen, for example. Without taxes his winnings were $7,683,346, with them -- $4,297,394! We will save you time by making calculations – it is $3,073,240 to the Internal Revenue Service of the United States (basic income tax) and over $300,000 to the local authorities budgets of the state and the city of participant.

The first day of WSOP Main Event Final Table is over; six players continue to fight for $7,683,346! Original chip leader Joe McKeehen has accumulated more chips and it looks like nobody is able to stop him.

Few month earlier Joe McKeehen have registered into the Main tournament of the year - WSOP Main Event 2015. As usual, we had to wait for the outcome for quite some time, but now this time has come.

Nine players are to fight for the most respected title in poker and a huge prize of almost $8 million on the bright shining blue and red arena.

To start with, let us remind you who’s fighting for all these trophies, anyone could forget about this right now.

As the level of competition is very high, you have to find edge by all means possible. It’s known for quite some time that many pro (and not only pro) players regularly use different kind of stimulators to enhance their game quality. Those substances often have serious side effects. But there is also a little group of natural additives and we’re going to talk about them now.

We are not going to write about preparation and substances which cause addiction, seriously affect on brain work and nervous system. This is no the way poker meant to be played and popularized.

We will not be recalling Stu Ungar, 70s and 80s when one could often see at the poker table (even at World Series!) a pack of amphetamines and something like Diazepamum. We will not be telling you the most widespread brands among the modern day online and live players of strong and prohibited preparations.

Do you need it? You don’t.

When emotions take control over mind, when steam boils within, when you want to punch that dummy across the table, it’s time for fists and threats. And that is poker. And if in our countries we’re not used to deal with that kind of problems like gentlemen, aboard everything’s way more civilized

Recently the biggest fight in the history of poker could have happened.

Seriously. Jokes aside.

Super high roller David “Doc” Sands challenged to fight Douglas Polk who also specializes on very expensive tournaments and nosebleed-cash.

Ihsan Farha, aka Sammy, aka Mister Cool is a legendary high stakes player. He is a true example of old school gambler. Farha was the runner-up of WSOP Main Event 2003, second to only Chris Moneymaker to whim he has lost in the famous heads-up battle. Later Sammy will become one of the most recognized high stakes players and one of the most dangerous cash players in Las Vegas.

Farha was born in Lebanon and moved to the USA when he was young to escape civil war. He had relatives in the USA, including his brother. He wanted to work with this brother (to become a medicine doctor).

But eventually Sam will choose another path. He’ll get a degree in economics and will be closely connected with playing cards.

By the way, despite loyal attitude towards different card games inside the family, Farha was staying aside those games. Due to unknown reasons. Even when his friends started to play, our hero wasn’t following their example.

But when eventually Sammy made it to the poker table, the passion to cards started to burn like the wildest fire.

Recent cardinal changes on Full Tilt Poker mark the beginning of the new era of world poker development. Poker is now becoming targeted only on amateurs. These changes in online poker may doom it forever.  Regular players have to find new fishy places and with time there is great possibility that they’ll end up in live poker rooms.

We do not discuss online poker very often; we follow some other aspects of poker life. But sometimes changes in virtual world are so massive that they affect live poker also.

And that is the case here.

First “let’s-make-poker-more-user-friendly” changes at Full Tilt Poker were made few days ago. Their logic: the number of deposits decreasing, regulars are over their heads, we need to find new stream of noobs or we are going to die soon. Changes in poker terrify.

Man of steel, aka Big Bet King, aka $500,000 Aria Super High Roller Bowl champion, aka one of the best super high rollers of modern poker. One of the Big Three: Rast – Esfandiari – Laak. Brian Rast. 33 years of age. American. Married to Brazilian spouse.

 “…as hard as a hammer and as bent as the sickle that crosses it,” – this description of one of the heroes of a famous movie “Snatch” characterizes our today’s person in interest the best.

He is that tough. He has such a poster at his home:

After the Black Friday when American online poker came to its end, poker TV shows have disappeared from the screens. What’s the point in spending extra money if there are no potential gamblers who can play in poker rooms?

Place of High Stakes Poker and Poker After Dark has been taken by other TV programs, many of which regularly include online coverage.

It used to be this way earlier: advertisers such as PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker bought air time for their shows. They’ve taken for 60 minutes, paid a lot and it was worth it. In CIS many recognized poker from these shows and went to register to online poker rooms.

In America the situation was quite similar to that.

Poker Notepad: Tournaments are fun, but cash is cash

Here is thesis: you can’t earn for a living playing live poker tournaments. At least, in the USA. The statement is made by the person who understands a thing or two about poker. So is it true that poker earings can’t buy you living?

The article about disability of making money for a descent living playing live tournaments in America was published on deadspin.com.

In the beginning author quotes Brian Devonshire:

The big scandal rises around one of participants of heads-up tournament with buy-in of $10,000 at WSOP which takes place in Las Vegas these days. The Moldavian player Valeriu Coca is suspected of cheating by respected players. The investigation is on the way, the results are yet to be sounded.

The story began in Event #10: $10,000 Heads Up No-Limit Hold'em Championship. Moldavian Valeriu Coca took the 5^th place in it and stayed ahead of such dangerous opponents as Matt Marafioti, Pratyush Buddiga, Aaron Mermelstein, Connor Drinan, and Byron Kaverman.

Coca lost only to 51-year-old American Keith Lehr, future tournament champion.

The winner of the biggest tournament in history of poker will receive “practically nothing” - $638,880. At the same the rake of the event is $1,454,310! And though mathematically there is no problems with that prize structure, situation smells a little fishy.

So we have a new record: 22,374 registration to $565 The Colossus Tournament with prize fund of $11,187,000. 10% of the players ITM.

These are the twits of pro players:

Upcoming World Series will be full of surprises. There are more than ten changes only in the schedule. And, probably, we’ll see the biggest poker event in history of poker!

WSOP is coming. Famous phrase “Shuffle up and deal” will be pronounced in few days in Rio Casino and 46^th World Series of Poker will begin.

And we can say that this series is revolutionary without it being overstatement.

Let’s not split into hairs. Our aim is to tell you about the most interesting changes and events on WSOP 2015.