The 2008 calendar year was a turbulent one for the online poker world. Our industry saw the regulations of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) become a reality, the second largest turnout ever for the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event, and a slew of PocketFivers finding success in Sunday major tournaments. The Online Poker Rankings saw Chad M8kingmoves Batista and Alex AJKHoosier1 Kamberis dominate. Let’s take a look back at the first three months of 2008 to discover what made headlines in the world of online poker.

The Poker Players Alliance (PPA) began 2008 with 900,000 members, desperately trying to crack the one million mark. The UIGEA, which was passed in late 2006, was barely more than a year old and momentum to overturn the ambiguous and rushed law was quickly gaining steam. Last January, PPA Executive Director John Pappas told PocketFives.com that its State Directors program was beginning to take shape. The aim was to develop a point of contact for the nationwide organization at the local level. The program steadily grew over the year and includes PocketFiver Rich TheEngineer Muny, who is the State Director for Kentucky.

Muny told PocketFives.com, “The State Directors program is going well. We’ve gotten everything we need in terms of support from the PPA.” In October, Muny and the 13,000 PPA members in the Commonwealth were tuned into the latest from a court hearing involving the seizure and potential forfeiture of 141 internet gambling domain names. The case currently sits in the Kentucky Court of Appeals. He commented, “We were able to see what we can do at a state level here.” The PPA was successful in getting 1,000 of its Bluegrass State members, or 7%, to call or write to Beshear or their local Representatives.

In March, the World Poker Tour (WPT) debuted on GSN. The network owns the rights to air the sixth season of the show, which featured a win in the Bellagio Cup III by Kevin BeL0WaB0Ve Saul (pictured). WPT Founder, President, and CEO Steve Lipscomb told PocketFives.com in an interview that Saul “plays with reckless abandon like no one I’ve ever seen before.” Around the same time, the WPT released its schedule for Season VII and GSN elected not to pick up the exclusive rights to the new slate of events. Seasons I through V aired on The Travel Channel.

In February, the seventh running of the Full Tilt Online Poker Series produced several notable wins by PocketFivers. Among them was Chris ilikeaces86 Olson, who grabbed first place in a $322 rebuy Six-Handed No Limit event for $257,000. PocketFiver Bedard took down a $216 Six-Handed Limit tournament, earning $49,000 for his efforts. In Event #6, members of the online poker community finished 1-2-3 in a $535 buy-in Pot Limit Omaha Six-Handed affair. Taking home $83,000 for the victory in that event was gaffel5. Meanwhile, Jeffrey YoungSupremacy Hakim pocketed $76,000 for winning a $216 buy-in Six-Handed tournament. Later in the tournament series, ma77th3gr34t won the $256 buy-in Knockout event for $146,000 and majdasad took second in the Two Day Event for $307,000. Finally, Klausen grabbed first in the $109 rebuy Pot Limit Omaha tournament for $89,000.

Just before the Super Tuesday election stampede in February, we brought you an article outlining the views of President-elect Barack Obama as they relate to online poker. An article that appeared in the Las Vegas Sun newspaper noted that Obama “has recently expressed that he worries that the internet is ‘a Wild West of illegal activity,’ and supports a study of Internet gambling.” Obama is a known poker player, although a struggling economy is likely at the forefront of his mind.

Meanwhile, the Interactive Media Entertainment and Gaming Association (iMEGA) was granted standing to sue to declare the UIGEA unconstitutional. Although Judge Mary L. Cooper disagreed with many of the points the organization made, she still granted its lawyers standing. The decision was a resounding success for iMEGA, who then appealed. Its President, Ed Leyden, spoke remotely to PocketFives.com from a cruise in the South Pacific, saying, “It’s an enormous victory because it recognizes our right to speak as the voice of the industry and do so in a court of law.”

In March, the online poker community breathed a collective sigh of relief as Massachusetts Casino Bill H. 4307, which would have criminalized the internet version of the game, was defeated in Committee. The bill’s purpose was to construct three brick and mortar casinos in Massachusetts. However, it also featured text that would have made playing online poker punishable by up to two years behind bars and a $25,000 fine. The Global Poker Strategic Thinking Society (GPSTS) was at the forefront of this fight, acting out of its home base at Harvard in conjunction with the PPA. Patrick took office at the beginning of 2007.

PocketFivers who woke up on March 28th saw a completely revamped version of the site. It had not undergone a major facelift since launching in 2005. A redesigned front page, complete with new-look consoles, were just a part of the site’s re-launch. Now, members can check out the latest from the live poker scene through PocketFivesLive.com updates and see the newest offers from our Free Training program all on the home page.

Stay tuned to PocketFives.com for more from the year that was in 2008.

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