Pub poker has been thrown a lifeline by the Tasmanian government after it issued on Wednesday a Ministerial Direction declaring social poker as an exempt game from the state’s gambling laws.
However, the Direction does not allow enough leeway for the return of larger series such as APLPT Tasmania due to strict limits on the maximum buy-in allowed for tournament play.
The update comes some eight months after the Tasmanian Liquor & Gaming Commission (TLGC) issued local operators the Australian Poker League, Bullets Poker League and Tasmanian Poker League with notices ordering them to suspend all paid games due to a change in how the regulator was interpreting Tasmania’s Gaming Control Act 1993.
Tasmania was, until now, the only state in Australia that did not permit the payment of cash to buy into poker games held outside of its casinos, although operators had traditionally skirted this rule by implementing a trade promotion system whereby players entered events by purchasing merchandise in lieu of a cash buy-in.
Under Wednesday’s Direction, which followed months of negotiations between the government and operators, poker is now an exempt game under the Gaming Control Act 1993 but can only be played under a tournament structure and with a maximum entry fee of $250 per tournament. Each tournament is also allowed one re-entry of equal value to the buy-in.
In a statement, APL Tasmania’s Anthony Dickson said, “While it is great that we can return to the felt soon, we are disappointed that some of what we raised with the government has not been included. With the government making it clear that this is the only action they will take on this matter, we can no longer offer our premier product, the APL Poker Tour. Sorry Tassie poker players but you will need to go interstate to play these events now.”
According to the APL, the direction also means operators will no longer be able to provide players with bonus chips to spend in venue and a such will need to take a larger cut from the prize pool to cover costs previously taken care of by partner venues.
“It’s great to be back soon but there are many things to consider,” Dickson said. “We will release a full statement in the coming weeks once we have fully reviewed the details of the exemption.”
The TLGC has been given up to 60 days under the Direction to recognise social poker as an exempt game, after which time paid games will officially be allowed to resume.
Good. Great !
About Bloody time. Liberals,,,, ALWAYS screwing the little guys.
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0455445560