Awful WSOP news from PokerStars

[MicroBob]

The more I think about it the more I'm not bothered by this.

Somebody gets the $10k deposited into their account for the entry.
They might even have intentions of spending the whole thing on their main-event entry but decide to play around with it on the tables while they've got it.
Some of the donkament-types winning their $10k seat could end up making some of the cash-games better.

[1p0kerboy]

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So you are definitely itemizing your concierge purchases on your '07 return, correct?
link

What about any t-shirts or books you've earned through various poker sites?


If I were to estimate the % of players who used the concierge service but didn't report, i'd probably go with 95%.

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I use my FPP for bonuses and yes, I claim them on my return.

You are really justifying cheating on your taxes because "other players do it"?

[1p0kerboy]

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The more I think about it the more I'm not bothered by this.

Somebody gets the $10k deposited into their account for the entry.
They might even have intentions of spending the whole thing on their main-event entry but decide to play around with it on the tables while they've got it.
Some of the donkament-types winning their $10k seat could end up making some of the cash-games better.

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Now that I think about it, this works out for me as well. I hope many of these players put the $ on the Stars cash games tables instead of buying into the WSOP.

[RikaKazak]

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It's not whether or not you DO it, but it's whether or not you SHOULD.

And you should have been paying taxes.

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Ok, nobody is getting the point... million dollar question:
Would you rather "buy" $10,000 from the FPP store, or would you rather write a $10,000 check from your personal account for WSOP entrance.

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check

Because it's easier to track/deduct/show to the IRS if I get audited.

But then again I pay 100% of taxes I owe. So doesn't much matter to me.

But I can see how the people who have a real job and just "avoid" poker taxes would want it the other way.

[LearnedfromTV]

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Some of the donkament-types winning their $10k seat could end up making some of the cash-games better.

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That's a very interesting point. Even if they don't use it on the Main Event, it'll probably stay in the poker economy, and in a way that is less, is "polarized" the right word here? In other words, 10k entry-winning fish who play the main event just give a few bucks each to the first 800 or so cashers and like 5k to the final 50 or so, in a huge variance single tournament. Those who don't play spread it around a lot more evenly.

[LearnedfromTV]

It's also possible that people are underestimating how good the average online fish is relative to the average live fish. There is a rather large poker subpopulation that does not play online, plays very badly, and have/play with more cash than online fish. It's a main reason live games are so much softer at a given stakes. think about how every 1k Rio single table sat will send someone to the ME who basically won the (game-quality) equivalent of a $60-$109 turbo.

[rgold79]

Harrah's now has interests that diverge from online gaming companies that serve US customers. Crippling the US market is better for Harrah's long term bottom line because it leads eventually to a legal, regulated online gaming site operated by Harrah's (something which, IMO, is an inevitability). Harrah's is a multibillion dollar, publicly traded mega-corporation, and the WSOP is only one brand. This decision, like all others corporations make, is made based on what will make the company's shareholders the most money.

EDIT: They were recently bought out by two private equity firms and thus will soon be private. Doesn't change the focus on the bottom line.

[crashjr]

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LOL @ OP upset because he can't cheat on his taxes now.

FTW your entry is deductable as a gamling loss anyways.

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So you are definitely itemizing your concierge purchases on your '07 return, correct?
link

What about any t-shirts or books you've earned through various poker sites?


If I were to estimate the % of players who used the concierge service but didn't report, i'd probably go with 95%.

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You're probably right but they are still cheating on their taxes. The tax system isn't fair but it's still the law.

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You don't pay taxes on FPP purchases, it is not taxable income. If you have a credit card that gives you back 3% cash rebate on all your purchases, you don't pay taxes on that cash payment from the credit card company either. If you get a free airline ticket thru frequent flyer miles, that is not income, and you don't pay taxes on the value of the ticket.

A rebate received from the party to whom the buyer directly or indirectly paid the purchase price for an item is a reduction in the purchase price of the item; it is not an accession to wealth and is not includible in the buyer's gross income. Rev. Rul. 76-96, 1976-1 C.B. 23; Rev. Rul. 84-41, 1984-1 C.B. 130.

Some credit card companies allow you to gift your rebate to a charitable organization. In this case, you would have a charitable contribution that's deductible if you itemize on Schedule A, and you don't have to recognize the income from the rebate.

Of course if you use the credit card for business, your rebate is a recovery of a tax benefit item so that would be considered income. For example, if you had $10,000 in business purchases and the credit card company refunded you 1 percent or $100, the $100 would be considered income of the business or an adjustment to the cost of the purchases.

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This position is aggressive but defensable. It is far from a slam dunk. The service went after frequent flier miles for years before giving up. If you face an audit, I think I would expect an adverse ruling and a trip to tax court. It would probably be cheaper to pay the assessment than to pay a tax lawyer to fight it.

[MattSuspect]

All,

Anyone know what the deal with prelims is? Prelims are now available for purchase in the FPP store. I emailed support, and they said yes you can buy in with FPPs.

??

edit: nevermind

PokerStars will deposit 85% of the buy in directly into your account. Within 7 days of an emailed receipt of you having played in the event, a credit of the remaining 15% will be made on your account. Example, you purchase the $3,000 prelim event for 186,000 FPPs. Within 72 hours, PokerStars will credit your account $2,550. Once we have proof you have played the event, we will credit your account an additional $450. PlatinumStar VIPs may only purchase the approved events listed below.

Event 1: $5,000 mixed hold 'em
Event 3: $1,500 no-limit hold 'em
Event 4: $1,500 pot-limit hold 'em
Event 7: $5,000 pot-limit Omaha
Event 8: $1,000 no-limit hold 'em with rebuys
Event 13: $5,000 pot-limit hold 'em
Event 28: $3,000 no-limit hold 'em
Event 30: $2,500 no-limit hold 'em six-handed
Event 31: $5,000 heads-up
Event 33: $1,500 pot-limit Omaha with rebuys
Note: This item is the entry fee for the applicable event only, rebuys are not covered. Accommodations, travel expenses and all other costs are the responsibility of the player. Entries are non-transferable, non- exchangeable and non-refundable. All seats must be purchased and booking arranged at least 14 days before the event start date

[punkass]

I think the average person who might have a grand or so online will probably cash out a good part of it. They may keep some of the money in the poker economy, but if it was me, I'd cash out at least half into my savings account and buy something shiny.