BodogLife CEO Calvin Ayre Retires

Calvin Ayre, the founder and face of the Bodog online gambling company, has announced his retirement from the company. The move is largely based on form, not function, as the majority of Bodog was sold to the Morris Mohawk Gambing Group in 2007. However, Ayre remained on as the face of the brand, and traveled around the world with his entourage of Bodog girls to help promote the brand. No longer though, as he has decided to focus more of his efforts on promoting his charitable organization, the Calvin Ayre Foundation.

The current plans for Bodog include refocusing their marketing efforts to the European market, as well as continuing to expand into Africa and South America as those areas continue to develop and grow. Bodog currently is one of the few online casinos that accept gamblers from the USA, so they have a significant share of that market and are looking to expand.

For those of you who don’t know, the Bodog brand runs an online gambling operation that accepts wagers on sports, horses, poker, and casino games. If you’d like to learn more about their site, click this link: Check Out BodogLife.com

There has been much speculation as to why Ayre retired, and many executives believe that Ayre was just stressed out on all fronts: his legal troubles with the USA, an ongoing patent lawsuit regarding all of Bodog’s domain names, and a strenuous lifestyle traveling all over the world.

However, Ayre simply cites that he wants to build his charitable foundation so it can help all people, but most specifically underprivileged children and adolescents. To learn more about the organization, go to CalvinAyreFoundation.com.

Throughout his life Calvin has always been under the spotlight. Before his Bodog days, there was tons of controversy with his other businesses. In the late 1980’s he was reported as being linked to a marijuana trafficking ring, but never received any charges. He has also had problems with the British Columbia Securities Commission, not to mention his legal troubles with the United States regarding running an online gambling operation.

Calvin Ayre, the founder and face of the Bodog online gambling company, has announced his retirement... 

World’s Biggest Casino High Rollers (Whales)

We’ve all heard about them and the casinos absolutely love them. High Rollers otherwise known as casino whales are part of an exclusive, heavily private and unbelievably luxurious world that goes on behind the silk curtains of casino VIP rooms around the world. This elite group of players comprises only a small portion of casino players worldwide, but their massive multi-million dollar bankrolls and credit lines can easily amount to the losses of 100’s if not 1000’s of regular patrons. In this article, we take a look at some of the biggest casino ballers on the planet and show you where the creme de la creme get their gamble on.

The Rollers

#5. Charles Barkley - As one of the most respected, skilled and high paid NBA players Charles Barkley has some change to throw around, and what better place to do so than Las Vegas. The former NBA pro has frequented Vegas on and off for decades and is known to be one of the most public high rollers in the game. Most recently, Barkley can be seen on the Blackjack tables at the Wynn Las Vegas playing close to $30,000 per hand and chatting it up with the dealers and pit bosses. The self-admitted far to frequent gambler has claimed close to $10 Million dollars in loses over the past decade.

#4. Adnan Khashoggi - This highly publicized Saudi Arms dealer is a known worldwide casino whale who plays both Blackjack and Baccarat and is said to have lost millions of pounds to London based casinos. While he is one of the more unknown high rollers, his bankroll is estimated in the billions. He is also said to be responsible for a 19% drop in Hilton International’s profits one quarter due to a very large winning streak.

#3. Larry Flynt - The porn industry mogul behind Hustler, Larry Flynt is no stranger to the VIP casino rooms of the world and is an avid Black Jack player risking up to $30,000 per hand. His rumoured losses mostly were sustained at the Las Vegas Hilton and reached around $3.2 Million dollars. Although his losses are considerable, he is also noted as going on very long winning streaks which have included a $1 Million dollar profit in one sitting.

#2. Kamel Nacif - A very wealthy business man from Mexico, Kamel Nacif is a Las Vegas regular hitting Sin City approximately 6-10 times per year with a bankroll between $1 and $5 Million dollars each trip. The savvy entrepreneur is said to have taken Vegas casinos for between $18 and $22 Million throughout his gambling career and hasn’t let up yet. Nacif is a Baccarat player and is rumoured to be very easily agitated while at the tables, no surprise considering his average bet per hand is in the $160,000 range.
#1. Kerry Packer - Australian billionaire Kerry Packer takes the cake as the worlds biggest casino high roller by a very long shot. Although Kerry is no longer with us, he will be remembered as the legendary high roller at many of the world’s top casinos. This mega casino baller was not only known for his $450,000 per hand play at Blackjack, but also for his extreme generosity towards casino employees which have included several $1 Million dollar tips to waitresses working the tables. Yes, it’s true. Packer also particularly enjoyed intimidating the casinos and regularly tried to extend the Vegas maximum bets to $1 Million dollars, something even the casinos wouldn’t risk. This behemoth of a whale can literally bring a casino to its knees, but his action is something that was and is in high demand. Common complimentary gifts to Packer for his loyal play include $100,000 travel reimbursements on arrival and 10% + cash back on any losses he sustains at the tables. This ladies and gentlemen, is one high roller that seriously rocked the tables of all the casinos he ever played at.

There you have it, the biggest casino whales in the world who risk small fortunes on every single hand shaking the foundations of some of the world’s largest casinos. These guys gamble big and gamble hard, but you know the saying…..go big or go home!

We’ve all heard about them and the casinos absolutely love them. High Rollers otherwise known as... 

Ladbrokes Casino Launches £20 No Deposit Casino Promotion

Ladbrokes Casino has recently launched a very exclusive promotion for UK players and for a limited time (stops June 6th, 2008) they are giving away Free £20 Casino Chips to players who open a new account. The promotion is a celebration of the launch of Ladbrokes first television ad (viewable on their site) and is one of the best promotions currently being offered by any casino online. All you have to do to claim your free £20 no deposit casino bonus is follow the instructions below:

Step 1. Open a new account at Ladbrokes (opens a new window) and open a new account making sure that you register a payment method while joining. You only need one account to access the casino, poker room and sports betting.

Step 2. Once you have fully completed registering your account, click here and you will be taken to a page on Ladbrokes site where you can enter your email address and account name for the free £20 promotion. Your free casino chips will be in your account within 24 hours an you will be notified by email.

That’s it, another great free promotion from Ladbrokes.com. Full promotion details and conditions can be found on the Ladbrokes Casino website. Stayed tuned for future bonuses and promotions found exclusively first on PickCasinos.com.

Ladbrokes Casino has recently launched a very exclusive promotion for UK players and for a limited time... 

E Cheque Online Casinos For Canadian Players

E Cheque is an extremely popular casino deposit method that usually allows for instant play without the hassle of having to wait for funds to clear or casinos to process your payment. Since we get a lot of request regarding making E Cheque deposits at online casinos, we thought we would do some research and find out which casinos allow E Cheque for Canadian players. As it turns out, there are only two reputable online casinos that allow E Cheque and only one has instant E Cheque available.

Jackpot City Casino offers instant E Cheque deposit for Canadian players only. The transaction will be debited from your chequing or savings account approximately 2-5 days after you deposit. Jackpot City also offers a $500 bonus for new players who open a real money account at the site which is automatic when you sign-up through our link.

Party Casino is another popular and recognized brand that accepts somethign very similar to E Cheques called Instant Transfer. Intsant Transfer works by adding a bank account to your profile and after verifying a small deposit, you are giving an instant credit of $500 to be used in the casino. After a successful deposit has cleared your bank, your credit limit is raised to $2000 and continues upwards as you establish a history. This method takes about 3-7 days to get activated but is a great feature for casino players. Our Party Casino bonus offer is an instant $100 bonus on your first deposit if you use our sign-up link.

E Cheque is an extremely popular casino deposit method that usually allows for instant play without the... 

American Facing Online Casinos Remain Positive

While legislation passed in the United States in 2006 forced a large withdrawal of many online casino operators from the US market, the few that have remained are staying positive despite the continued restrictions.  Online gambling transactions were significantly effected in 2006 by the passing of the UIGEA (Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act), which set out to put strong limitations on US banks and credit card companies that process gambling related activities.

Although the assumed intention of the bill was to eliminate US players from gambling on the Internet, the actual implementation of the restrictions has been complicated due to numerous payment processors and subsidiaries that handle the transactions.  The initial shock wave of the bill sent many of the top online casinos into a panic which consequently led to a domino affect of US player restrictions that saw some 100+ operators back out of the market.  For the few that have remained, business has never been better with an enormous group of new potential players created by the fallout of the initial pull out.

Some of the more popular casino sites that have recently jumped into the market include Rushmore Casino and Club USA Casino, which both set out to improve the US online gaming experience in lieu of the current setbacks with the hopes of increasing pressure on the US government to re-examine the merits of the 2006 bill.  While recent activity by those who oppose the UIGEA has been positive, we are most likely a while off from seeing any big turning points with regards to the state of online gambling in the US.

The overall consensus regarding the legislation has been that it primarily serves the tax interests of the US government who are presumably losing out on billions of dollars in un-taxable revenue each year to the offshore corporations that run online casino operations.  With that at the core of the issue, a possible resolution to the current legislation will most certainly include provisions to either, regulate online casino wagering for US citizens making them taxable, or, permit American based companies to run government sanctioned casinos online.  Either way, the present climate has frustrated and angered both operators and players alike, and will continue to be a hotly debated issue until such time that change is made.

For more information, see the Wikipedia UIGEA Bill page with updates and definitions.

While legislation passed in the United States in 2006 forced a large withdrawal of many online casino... 

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