PokerStars Returns to Sochi and the Bahamas, Australia Bans Online Poker

PokerStars is gearing up for exciting events in two major locations. The PokerStars Festival will take place in Sochi, Russia, from October 16 to 22, 2017. This event follows the success of the PokerStars Championship held earlier this year. The main tournament features a buy-in of $1,100 with a guarantee of $500,000. Payment for buy-ins through the PokerStars client is not available, but live reporting by Alice Pinky will be provided.

In the Bahamas, the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure will return from January 6 to 14, 2018. After a less successful championship in 2017, the event will revert to its original name. The main tournament's buy-in has been increased to $10,300, with additional super high roller and high roller tournaments featuring buy-ins of $100,000, $50,000, and $25,000 respectively. All expensive tournaments with a buy-in of $10,000 or more will have a rake not exceeding $300, and tournaments with level durations of less than 19 minutes will have reduced organizer fees by 50%.

Meanwhile, Australia has enforced a ban on online poker. The Senate passed amendments to the gambling law, prohibiting unlicensed sites from providing services to their clients. There is no licensing procedure for online poker in the country, and companies continuing to operate may face daily fines of $6.75 million. It is estimated that there are currently around 130,000 active online poker players in Australia.