As the iconic World Series of Poker (WSOP) Paradise Main Event gradually moves through the third of its four starting flights, Japanese player Masashi Oya proved his skill battling against an impressive plethora of poker pros for a potential mouth-watering prize counting seven figures at the largest buy-in event, the Event #9 $100,000 Ultra High Roller.

Oya Took Home a $2,940,000 Top Prize 

The event, which was spread across three days, gathered a total prize pool of $11 million from 111 entries at Atlantis Paradise Island. 

Oya proved his nerves of steel during the third day of the event, held his chips in the lead, and eventually won the top prize valued at $2,940,000 while gathering 550 PGT points. His big win also brought his first WSOP gold bracelet. 

Facing online phenom pro poker names like Ben Heath, Leon Sturm, Danny Tang, Nick Schulman, David Peters, Ren Li, Sorel Mizzi, Taylor von Kriegenbergh, and Justin Bonomo, Oya took the lead into a heads-up battle against Jason Koon.

Oya held a five-to-two chip advantage over his opponent entering heads-up play, and he quickly extended his chip lead. Koon called all-in on the river while Oya proceeded to prove his superiority and pipped Koon, sending the chips in the middle and claiming the win. 

Oya Won Over $4 Million in 2023

So far, the Japanese player has so far scooped up an impressive $5.58 million win in live poker tournaments. Of it, over $4 million came in 2023 alone. 

This makes him the leading pro poker player on Japan’s All-Time Money List, leaping over the iconic Tsugunari Toma. 

Oya’s latest victory along with his 12 PokerGO Tour cashes in 2023 have propelled him to the 39th position in the Top 40 on the leaderboard thanks to the 1,709 PGT points he managed to accumulate out of a total of 12 cashes. 

The Japanese player will most likely have to add to his PGT points total in the other eight events scheduled until the end of the season in order to secure his place in the Top 40. This would also qualify him for a seat in the PGT Championship $1 Million Freeroll that will take place on January 9-10, 2024.

The list of additional players who finished in the money in Event #9 and climbed higher on the PGT leaderboard features Ren Lin, who reached the sixth position, Nick Schulman, who moved to the 12th position, and Justin Bonomo, who reached the 53rd spot. 

Quan Zhou and Justin Bonomo also rose into the Top 100. Ivan Luca and Benjamin Heath made it into the Top 200. Danny Tang is ranked 300th overall on the PGT leaderboard. 

Erik Seidel also grabbed his tenth World Series of Poker bracelet in the $50,000 Super High Roller at WSOP Paradise.

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Amid the Bell probe into The Star’s operations, the operator temporarily stopped serving free alcohol at the Star Sydney. The government inquiry uncovered that some gamblers received alcohol as an inducement which was only one of the issues flagged by the probe. Ultimately, the Bell Inquiry, which was published last year, found that the operator was not suitable for a casino license. Still, The Star was given a chance to remedy the situation and implement changes to its operations, seeking to ensure compliance and discontinuing bad practices.

Now, a new report suggests that the Star Sydney resumed serving free alcohol to high rollers. As announced by The Australian, the venue discussed the matter with the NSW Independent Casino Commission (NICC). The Commission revealed that the Star Sydney voluntarily stopped serving free alcohol to visitors in light of the release of the government inquiry. Yet, The Star asked the NICC on multiple occasions to resume serving alcohol and according to the latest report, the Commission didn’t object to that return but only under certain conditions.

While the Star Sydney resumed serving free alcohol for VIP patrons, the same practice won’t be allowed for the main gaming area. This is in fact in line with NICC’s view on the matter. “The Star voluntarily ceased the service of free liquor to patrons following the release of the Bell Report, but following numerous requests from The Star, the NICC has since not objected to the service of free liquor in certain circumstances,” explained the Commission.

Still, the NICC said that in the upcoming months, it will continue to monitor the matter closely. Finally, it reminded gambling operators to ensure compliance with the established rules.

The announcement comes after late last month, The Star released its FY23 financial results, posting a statutory net loss of AU$2.44 billion ($1.57 billion). At the time, the operator confirmed that it remains committed to strengthening its anti-money laundering and safer gambling policies. Further efforts toward ensuring compliance with the rules included the replacement of Board members as well.

Robbie Cooke, The Star’s group CEO and managing director, outlined that the last year was incredibly challenging for the company. Still, he highlighted the important changes to The Star’s policies that ultimately seek to protect the jobs of thousands of workers.

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Gaming Innovation Group (GiG) has posted its Q2 financials, reporting all-time high revenues. The company is optimistic about the future and will do its best to maintain its momentum into H2.

As reported by the company, GiG achieved all-time high quarterly revenues at $33.9 million (all figures have been converted to USD). This represents a stellar 40% year-on-year increase, the iGaming and sportsbook solutions provider said.

Adjusted EBITDA for the period was $15.27 million, marking a 68% YOY increase. Adjusted EBITDA margin, meanwhile, increased to 45%, approaching GiG’s goal of 50%.

The GiG Media arm, meanwhile, reported all-time high revenues at $23.7 million with an adjusted EBITDA of $11.2 million. The Platform & Sportsbook division, on the other hand, reported revenues of $10.1 million with an adjusted EBITDA of $4 million.

Additionally, GiG said that profit before tax was $7.2 million, representing a spectacular YOY increase of 197%. Positive cash flow from operations, however, experienced a slight drop from $10.4 million in Q2 2022 to $9.9 million in Q3 2022.

GiG also reported earnings per share of $0.055.

Q2 Was a Productive Period for the Company

GiG also shared a few quarterly highlights concerning the favorable performances of GiG Media and Ask Gamblers.

In Q2, GiG struck a final agreement with Palasino and secured licenses in Pennsylvania, Maryland and Sweden for its Platform & Sportsbook business.

The quarter was especially productive for the supplier, which launched and completed the migration of all GiG legacy Sportsbook clients to Sportnco. Moreover, the company managed to launch two new brands and sign three new Platform & Sportsbook agreements.

As a result of its efforts, GiG secured the Full-service Platform Provider and Multi-channel Supplier of the Year award at the 2023 EGR B2B Awards.

Following the conclusion of the quarter, GiG signed one new deal and three heads of terms for Platform & Sportsbook. At the beginning of Q3, GiG also launched five additional brands and entered new markets. The number of brands powered by the operator is currently 65.

Richard Brown, Gaming Innovation Group’s chief executive officer, called Q2 “another step forward for GiG,” praising the results. He said that his company is excited to continue its growth in Q3.

We now look into the second half of the year with total focus on ensuring strong growth mechanics, continued operational improvement and long-term scalability for GiG.

Richard Brown, CEO, GiG

Meanwhile, GiG just named Richard Carter as CEO of the Platform and Sportsbook division.

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Evolution, a leading provider of live casino games, has announced the launch of two new high-limit live casino tables in partnership with the British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC) in Canada. 

Evolution’s VIP Games Bring Exclusive Gambling Experience to BCLC’s PlayNow.com

Streaming live from Evolution’s Vancouver studio, these VIP games offer an opulent and immersive gaming experience. With higher minimum bets, they cater to high rollers and VIP players looking for an exclusive online gambling experience. These tables join the existing lineup of Evolution-powered live casino games and live game shows on BCLC’s PlayNow.com platform, which includes lottery, casino, sports betting, poker, bingo, and instant games.

Jeff Millar, chief commercial officer of North America at Evolution, expressed his satisfaction with the partnership’s progress. He stated: “Our initial agreement with BCLC, over five years ago now, was instrumental in Evolution creating its Canadian live casino studio. Since then, our relationship with BCLC has gone from strength to strength. We are proud to launch these new VIP tables and confident that VIP players will be attracted by this premium online gaming experience.”

The Evolution Vancouver studio, spanning an impressive 16,000 square feet, was purpose-built to provide live casino services for BCLC. Initially offering Live Roulette, Blackjack, and Baccarat games, the studio has grown over the years, expanding its game offerings and staff. Monica Bohm, VP of eGaming at BCLC, previously highlighted the significance of Evolution’s live casino portfolio for the corporation, stating that it helps keep BCLC at the forefront of gambling entertainment while creating local employment opportunities and generating revenue to support provincial initiatives in British Columbia.

BCLC Welcomes VIP Roulette by Evolution

In addition to VIP Blackjack and VIP Baccarat, Evolution also offers VIP versions of European and French Roulette. These VIP games follow the same live casino format but feature higher wagering limits to accommodate the preferences of VIP customers.

One of the other recent additions to BCLC’s game portfolio was an instant ticket game based on the popular board game Ticket to Ride, offering players a chance to experience the Canadian railway network and win prizes up to $50,000. Developed in collaboration with Pollard Banknote, the game features artwork that captures the essence of the tabletop experience.

In April, Light & Wonder entered into a distribution agreement with ReelPlay, allowing the latter to supply its games to the BCLC. Hypernova Megaways was the first game to be featured in the BCLC’s content portfolio, with more games expected to be added in the future, showcasing Light & Wonder’s commitment to supporting independent studios.

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The provider of exciting casino-style games for the online and retail gambling industry, High 5 Games, announced a new partnership, helping it expand its footprint in the regulated gambling market in the US. The developer confirmed Thursday it joined forces with Caesars Sportsbook & Casino, expanding its offering for customers in Pennsylvania.

Per the terms of the new partnership, Caesars Sportsbook & Casino clients in the state will benefit from land-based games such as Jaguar Princess, Dangerous Beauty and Golden Knight, among others. Additionally, the company’s customers will tap into popular slots such as Green Machine Deluxe Power Bet and other engaging and fan-favorite titles.

The terms of the new collaboration will also bring Rapid Rewards, High 5 Gaming’s unique in-game promotion system for Caesars’ online casino based in New Jersey, TropicanaCasino.com. The duo did not rule out expansion of the promotional system to additional states such as Pennsylvania, Michigan, as well as West Virginia.

A Mutually Beneficial Partnership

The latest collaboration between Caesars and High 5 Gaming isn’t the first one. In fact, the duo joined forces back in 2014 when the developer signed its first major iGaming partnership with Caesars for the market in New Jersey. Now, building upon the strong foundation, High 5 Games will help expand the offering of the operator for Pennsylvania, which is an important gambling market in North America.

“We take pride in offering exceptional content to our casino players and our expanded partnership with High 5 Games allows us to continue delivering on that promise.“

Matthew Sunderland, senior vice president of iGaming at Caesars Digital

Matthew Sunderland, Caesars Digital’s senior vice president of iGaming, said that the company is excited to expand its offering and deliver new games from High 5 Games. He explained that the new deal enables the company to continue to deliver unique experiences to its growing customer base. Finally, Sunderland said: “This launch in Pennsylvania further elevates our selection of games to bring an enjoyable experience to our players.”

“Taking our games online in Pennsylvania is a pivotal moment in our enduring partnership with Caesars.“

Tony Singer, CEO of High 5 Games

Tony Singer, High 5 Games’ CEO, acknowledged that the deal with Caesars in Pennsylvania represents an important moment for the long-standing partnership between the two companies. Finally, he explained that the company has a long-term goal to support the growth of its partner operators by delivering innovative and engaging titles.

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Over the last few years, GGPoker has been growing at a steady pace. The network kept improving its games, introducing innovations, as well as lucrative rewards and promotions. But while offering engaging poker action for high rollers and newcomers, GGPoker has kept a higher rake, when compared to its competitors.

While this didn’t bother many players, an update in the raking system started a boycott, led by a number of high roller players, who rejected the new rake structure by GGPoker, a forum post on Two Plus Two released earlier this week reveals.

“As of today, the High Stakes community will boycott 25/50+ games on GGPoker. Ninety percent of the highest volume players at these stakes have already committed to the boycott,“

reads a statement released by the group opposing the updated rake system on GGPoker

Can the Boycott Impact GGPoker?

Led by “the High Stakes community,” the boycott reportedly has already impacted $25/$50+ games on GGPoker. In fact, Mixgrill, the representative of the group opposing the updated rake system, confirmed that the high-stakes tables have been down to one, as of Monday, confirming that the boycott is already working.

According to the forum post, the group that opposes the new high rake system consists of 90 high-stakes players and poker pros. Ultimately, the group calls for the development of a “sustainable long-term playing environment.” The boycotting high rollers noted: “An environment in which it is possible for players to win money and enjoy themselves, as the network continues to generate enough revenue to profit.”

“The boycott is already working. The table count has decreased to just one, and we are currently contacting the last few players who have not yet joined us,“

explained the boycotting group

An important topic raised by the boycotting group involved the high rake back advertised by GGPoker. The high rollers acknowledged that this high rake back is “supposed to offset the rake.” However, they claimed: “With up to 60% being offered in the client, these numbers are misleading and generally false.”

According to the boycott group, the increase in rake was so drastic that pro poker players realized that they cannot win. The group predicted a significant decrease in the volume of raked hands, which can also ultimately impact recreational players. This, in turn, may also result in less revenue for GGPoker and customers switching to alternative poker networks, said the boycotting group.

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