January 29, 2006
"Gambling is a reality in California. We have pokerparty com card clubs, we have race tracks, and we have casinos run by the tribes. State-sanctioned gambling is the lottery. What also is a reality is that these nonprofits are picking up the slack (of government). You have to balance those out. On balance, these are worthy pokerparty organizations that need all; the help they can get to raise money," Torrico said. In case you missed the news when the story broke back in July, Brunson's offer was made public and the stock sky-rocketed 50 percent in less than a day. World Pokerparty Tour Enterprises (WPTE) stock hit a record-high of $29.50 per share that day, but now hovers at $6.14 per share on the Nasdaq. David Chesnoff and Chaka Henry, whose Pokerparty .com Las Vegas law firm removed the offer almost as quickly as they had made it, has declined comment on the case at the moment. The filing of this action could be another blow to the legendary Brunson, who has invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination and has declined to participate in the investigation.
At the lunch break, we play pokerparty .com outside. And as stars like Phil "Pokerparty Brat" Hellmuth mix with the spectators, the room fills with the buzz that has brought pokerparty out of the smoky back rooms, through the Travel Channel on Wednesday nights at pokerparty com -- and now with other shows on ESPN and Bravo -- right into our living room. Two wide-eyed twentysomethings beg to be photographed beside pokerparty celebrity Evelyn Ng, whom Tour spokeswoman Lapin describes as "a local Bay Area gorgeous slinky Asian woman." Pleasanton software salesman Bill Ballew gathers card-shark autographs on his program and the bill of his Iowa Hawkeyes baseball cap. Jordan Berkowitz, high school dropout, spendthrift and online-poker addict, is every mother's nightmare. Well, not every mother's nightmare. Not his own mother's. Jordan admits the 100 hours a week he spends playing Texas hold 'em pokerparty com online does, at times, drive his mom a little nuts. Occasionally, Pagona Berkowitz will yell at her 18-year-old son to get some help.
"You're an addict," she'll say. "You should be going to Gambler's Anonymous." But then Jordan will win another pokerparty .com tournament, like he did last Friday, and Pagona's attitude will soften. At 17, this dropout from Marple Newtown High School finished seventh in the 2004 World Championship of Online Pokerparty. An incredible feat when you consider he was competing against hundreds of the best players on the planet, and he'd only been playing the game for 18 months.
It cost him $2,500 to buy into the WCOOP. For placing seventh, he won $72,000. Or, as Jordan puts it, "only $72,000." He believes he should have done better. That's how the great ones think. I met Jordan for the first time last week. I read about him in a magazine called Sync. It said he was "America's Greatest Online Pokerparty Player" and that he lived in Media. (Berkowitz lives in Marple Township.) Forty grand -- $40,000! -- will do that to some parents. It would do it to this one. Not so much because of the pokerparty .com money, but because of what it represents.
Simply put, Jordan Berkowitz is a pokerparty com prodigy. He's the LeBron James of the online Texas hold 'em poker world. While the prestige of winning the title may be important, it is critical to stress the charitable involvement of the STPT. At each location, the players are playing what amounts to a charity event, which is something that Fracalossi finds important. "The money we raise will stay local. It's a chance for all pokerparty players to come and give something back to their community and a chance to be the STPT Champion. Our goal is the find the best amateur player in the world," Fracalossi emphasized. While the U. S. second season gets ready to start, be looking for the European version of the Small Town Pokerparty Tour! To learn more about the schedule of the STPT or to nominate your city for a chance to play on the Pokerparty Tour, be sure to visit the Small Town Pokerparty Tour website at smalltownpokertour.com.
