It was a great poker milestone for Ladbrokes Poker.com last week
when a very special hand was dealt to UK sales exec Mike Ventham to
claim a European record-breaking 100 millionth hand for the popular
online poker site.
The hand won Mike, a lifelong Spurs fan, $10,000 in one of the biggest
online table pots ever at Ladbrokespoker.com. Mike, known as ‘Tricky’
has been playing online at ladbrokespoker.com since its launch in
May 2002 and has enjoyed a series of online wins totalling over $50,000.
When Ladbrokespoker.com informed Tricky he had made history as the
100 millionth hand, ‘he said: “As soon as the pot went
to $10,000, the whole table went all-in. I had a ACE / 9 and knew
no one was ever going to fold! It’s my biggest online win to
date and I’m absolutely delighted!”
According to independent online Poker analysts, Poker Pulse, online
Poker grew over 600% in 2003 and has already more than doubled again
this year. Ladbrokespoker.com is dealing over 500,000 hands of Poker
a day. At the busiest times over 5,000 people from 65 different countries
are playing against each other on over 600 virtual tables.
With its’ ever increasing association with Hollywood stars and
Premiership footballers, Poker is the gambling sensation of the year.
The A-list Poker room includes some of the biggest names in showbiz
and sport such as Ben Affleck, George Clooney, Michael Owen, Teddy
Sheringham and even the heir to the Goldsmith fortune, Zac Goldsmith.
The recent Ladbrokespoker.com Poker Million Masters 2 tournament saw
a total of 72 players including 36 Ladbrokespoker.com online qualifiers
and 36 Poker professionals and celebrities including a Rugby World
Cup winner, a Darts World Champion and the current Snooker World Champion
compete for the first prize of $300,000. The first prize and coveted
title was eventually won by former Irish Olympic swimmer, Donnacha
O’Dea who beat one of the most revered poker players of all
time, Dave ‘The Devilfish’ Ulliott in a nail biting grand
finale.
Ladbrokes eGaming Managing Director John O’Reilly commented:
“High stakes and the art of online bluffing have made
online Poker one of the biggest sensations of the last decade. In
just over a year, the industry has grown at a prolific rate. This
time last year we were dealing around 170,000 hands a day, today that
figure has reached over 500,000 a day – it’s been astounding
growth.”