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Copyright 2005 Mustang Daily via U-Wire
University Wire
February 1, 2005 Tuesday
HEADLINE: Gambling
online sparks college crowd
BYLINE: By Melissa L Dorcak, Mustang Daily;
SOURCE: California Poly State U.
DATELINE: SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif.
BODY:
California Poly State University computer science senior Jason
Smyth enjoys playing online
poker in the evenings. He logs on as SarahJane, as he said
that players are more likely to bet against a female name. A year
ago, he started with $20 in his online account. Today, he averages
$150 a week in poker winnings.
Occasionally Smyth and his friends will drive to Chumach Casino
to participate in a tournament, but it was the introduction of
online poker and his desire for fame that morphed his hobby into
a part-time job. Smyth, 21, started playing online poker because
he was underage and could not get into casinos. Online poker also
incorporates another one of his favorite pastimes: Electronic
entertainment.
"Especially for this generation, online
poker definitely beats brick and mortar casinos, which are
slower paced and require an I.D. to get in," Smyth said.
So forget the haze of cigar smoke lingering in a dimly lit card
room, guarded by a pit boss who never uncrosses his arms. The
new face of poker is a computer screen and college students across
the nation are logging on to try their hands at winning some money.
It started with ESPN's coverage of the World Series of Poker.
The glamorous coverage tells the tales of nobodies who wager their
way to the final table and make millions. This has sparked a new
wave of popularity in gambling among both men and women.
The online gaming industry joined the bandwagon by bringing poker
games to millions of computer screens worldwide. Now, players
don't need to drive to the nearest card room or casino to wager
a bet, it's simply a click away.
This is creating revenue for some and tremendous problems for
others. Smyth bought a motorcycle and pays rent with his online
poker revenues. At the same time, Eric Geffner, a clinical psychologist
in Los Angeles who specializes in compulsive gambling, said one
of his patients lost more than $8,000 in one weekend after he
signed up on an online poker site.
The recent wave of increased gambling is nothing new. However,
this is the first time the pastime has been so readily available
to gamblers. The online gambling industry has quickly become one
of the largest revenue-producing businesses on the Internet next
to pornography, Geffner said.
According to PokerPulse.com, in a 24-hour period people wager
an estimated $162 million in online
poker games. The Web site reported that in October alone,
1,344,000 players gambled online with real money.
(C) 2005 Mustang Daily via U-WIRE
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