Poker Vice
Table Of Contents
Poker Vice was designed for Facebook. It was the first game of its kind to offer a “Poker Buddy” system and other unique features to keep friend players connected. Poker Vice was self sustaining for 2 years. It also boasted the best looking user interface and art for its time. Everything with the topic 'Poker' on VICE TV. Everything with the topic 'Poker' on VICE TV. Everything with the topic 'Poker' on VICE TV.
On Nov. 3, Americans voted for whether Donald Trump will win re-election, or Joe Biden will take over office and become the 46th president of the United States. Four days later, on Nov. 7, several major news networks called the race for former vice president Biden, after he was projected to surpass the 270 electoral votes required to become president-elect of the United States.
Here PokerNews tries to divine what effect Biden's victory will have on the future of online poker in the U.S.
Based on his established track record over the last four years, a Donald Trump victory in the election would have been a clear negative for the future of online poker in the U.S.
But what about his opponent, now president-electJoe Biden?
Thinking Back to 2011
In this case, there isn't as much to go off as the precedent set by the Trump Administration's re-interpretation of the Wire Act.
The aforementioned revisiting changed a previously published opinion from the Department of Justice dating to 2011.
'The text of the Wire Act and the relevant legislative materials support our conclusion that the Act’s prohibitions relate solely to sports-related gambling activities in interstate and foreign commerce,' wrote Assistant Attorney General Virginia A. Seitz.
That allowed online poker to fall outside the bounds of the Wire Act and paved the way for the growing legalized U.S. market as we know it today, which has four states actively spreading online poker with a fifth, Michigan, set to begin in the near future.
Vicenfish Poker
It's worth noting that the sitting president in 2011 was Barack Obama, which means Biden was vice president during this sea change that enabled the ball to get rolling. That doesn't necessarily mean Biden will be all in on iGaming legislation at the federal level, especially in the current environment that has far more pressing issues, but it's at least an encouraging sign.
More Recent, Concrete Hints
Biden has recently gone on the record with some quotes that offer some reason for optimism with regard to his attitude to possible expansion of iGaming legislation.
In December, his campaign released a statement during his visit to Las Vegas saying he 'doesn't support adding unnecessary restrictions to the gaming industry like the Trump Administration has.'
Another quote posted in a recent story from Online Poker Report runs along the same lines:
“I would reverse the White House opinion that was then reversed and overruled by the court. The court is correct. That should be the prevailing position.”
Possible Snowball Effect
iGaming industry expert Steve Ruddock told PokerNews that if Biden is elected, a new attorney general will be installed and it's unlikely the new AG would be interested in investing time and resources into yet another re-interpretation of the Wire Act.
Most likely, they'd just direct the government to drop the case, meaning the feds would get out of the states' hair on the issue and let them do as they please.
'It’s not realistic to hope that either candidate would do anything to legalize online gambling at the federal level,' wrote Dustin Gouker for OPR. 'However, restoring the status quo, ending federal meddling and leaving matters up to the states would constitute a win at this point in time.'
iGaming legislation has picked up an incredible amount of steam in recent years thanks in large part to the 2018 Supreme Court decision that allowed sports betting outside of Nevada. Online sports betting was a natural offshoot of that as operators looked to maximize their profits, and 13 states to date have legalized online sports betting.
And as Ruddock pointed out, the current momentum continuing would create something of a snowball effect. The more states that legalize online gambling of any kind, the more difficult it is for the federal government to put a stop to things with a Wire Act interpretation like the one that came down under Trump. It's a certainty that the states would fight tooth and nail to hang onto their newfound tax revenues, as New Hampshire has taken the lead on with its ongoing lawsuit.
Whether online poker specifically would be able to take advantage is a whole different story as states focus on more lucrative verticals of sports and casino. However, the door would at least be cracked and a Biden presidency wouldn't be trying to slam it shut.
Tags
Online PokerPoker and the Law
Poker dice are dice which, instead of having number pips, have representations of playing cards upon them. Poker dice have six sides, one each of an Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, and 9, and are used to form a poker hand.
Each variety of poker dice varies slightly in regard to suits, though the ace of spades is almost universally represented. 9♣ and 10♦ are frequently found, while face cards are traditionally represented not by suit, but instead by color: red for kings, green for queens and blue for jacks. Manufacturers have not standardized the colors of the face sides. The game can also be played with ordinary dice.
As a game[edit]
The classic poker dice game is played with 5 dice and two or more players. Each player has a total of 3 rolls and the ability to hold dice in between rolls. After the three rolls, the best hand wins.
In most variations, a straight only counts as a Bust (high-card). A Straight is less probable than a Full House, so, if counted, it should rank above a Full House, though tradition usually ranks it below Full House, as in card poker. Neither a 'flush' nor a 'straight flush' is a possible hand, due to the lack of suits on the dice.
In some rules, only a straight to a King is called a Straight, while a straight to an Ace is called (somewhat incorrectly) a Flush. Each one has an exact probability of 120 / 7776. Under these rules, a Straight beats a Full House (unlike in card poker, but correctly reflecting its probability) but does not beat a Four of a Kind (incorrectly reflecting its lower probability). A Flush beats a Four of a Kind (as in card poker, and correctly reflecting its lower probability).
Probabilities[edit]
The poker dice hand rankings and the corresponding probabilities of rolling that hand are as follows[1][2](not sorted by probability but from highest to lowest ranking):
| Hand | Exact probability | Percentage | 1 in ... | Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Five of a kind | 6 / 7776 | 0.08% | 1296 | J J J J J |
| Four of a kind | 150 / 7776 | 1.93% | 51.8 | 10 10 10 10 A |
| Full house | 300 / 7776 | 3.86% | 25.9 | K K K 9 9 |
| Straight | 240 / 7776 | 3.09% | 32.4 | A K Q J 10 |
| Three of a kind | 1200 / 7776 | 15.43% | 6.5 | 9 9 9 K J |
| Two pair | 1800 / 7776 | 23.15% | 4.3 | Q Q 9 9 A |
| One pair | 3600 / 7776 | 46.30% | 2.2 | 10 10 K Q 9 |
| Bust (high card; no pair, no straight) | 480 / 7776* | 6.17% | 16.2 | A K Q J 9 |
*Busts have much lower probability than in card poker, because there are only 6 values instead of 13, making pairs and straights much more likely than with cards. In poker dice there are in fact only four possible bust hands: [A K Q J 9], [A K Q 10 9], [A K J 10 9], and [A Q J 10 9]; both other no-pair hands (i.e., in which either the A or the 9 are missing) are straights. Consequently, in some variants of the rules, straights are counted as busts.[3]
Variants[edit]
Marlboro once marketed a set of octahedral poker dice that included suits; each die had slightly different numberings, ranging from 7 up to ace. A similar set is currently manufactured by Koplow Games.[4][5]
In 1974, Aurora produced a set of 12-sided poker dice called 'Jimmy the Greek Odds Maker Poker Dice'[6] and in 2000, Aurora/Rex Games produced a similar set under the name 'Royal Poker Dice'.[7] The sets featured five 12-sided dice allowing for all 52 playing cards to be represented. The remaining 8 faces featured stars and acted as wild cards allowing for every possible poker hand to be rolled.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^Deep, Ronald (2006), Probability and statistics with integrated software routines, Elsevier Inc., ISBN0-12-369463-9Chapter 1 p 42
- ^Bărboianu, Cătălin (2006), Probability Guide to Gambling: The Mathematics of Dice, Slots, Roulette, Baccarat, Blackjack, Poker, Lottery and Sport Bets, INFAROM Publishing, p. 224, ISBN973-87520-3-5Extract of page 224
- ^Arneson, Erik (2012). 'The Complete Rules for the Dice Game Poker Dice'. About.com. New York Times Company. 'Board / Card Games' subsite. Archived from the original on 2014-04-12.CS1 maint: unfit url (link)
- ^Koplow Games
- ^8-sided poker dice on BoardGameGeek.com
- ^Jimmy the Greek Odds Maker Poker Dice on BoardGameGeek.com
- ^Royal Poker Dice on BoardGameGeek.com
Gambling Vice
External links[edit]
Gambling Vice President
- Rules for Dice Poker at BrainKing.com (similar to Yahtzee)
- Arneson, Erik (2012). 'The Complete Rules for the Dice Game Poker Dice'. About.com. New York Times Company. 'Board / Card Games' subsite. Archived from the original on 2014-04-12.CS1 maint: unfit url (link) (no straights)
- Poker dice at Britannica.com