History-Making $585,000 Pot Headlines June Stats; More Online Poker Trends at PokerListings.com

Curao, Netherlands Antilles (PRWEB) July 1, 2008 -- The month of June in the poker world is, for the most part, all about the World Series of Poker (http://www.pokerlistings.com/live-tournaments/wsop).

But perhaps showing just how much of a force online poker has become, online action at most stakes continued virtually unabated despite the heavy live competition, and some extraordinary pots were played - not the least of which was the biggest pot ever won online.

Tracking and analyzing over 20 million hands every month, PokerListings.com's MarketPulse section is the best real-time statistical overview of the online poker industry on the Web, and looking at the numbers for June, the story of the month was far and away the controversial $585,000 pot won on Full Tilt Poker by high-stakes player "pr1nnyraid" in the early hours of June 25.

The controversial part? Whether or not the history-making pot was actually a setup between friends.

A PokerListings.com feature story about the hand and its details can be found here (http://www.pokerlistings.com/blog/online-poker/585000-pot-just-a-clever-ruse), but the

Coles notes are essentially that pr1nnyraid and his opponent in the huge pot - the somewhat unknown Tony Bliar - may have set up the game and the big hand to create a bit of attention for themselves.

Further investigation of the hand histories did turn up some very "unusual" play in both sessions, and the general consensus in the poker forums - although still just pure speculation - is that the pot was likely a setup among friends rather than a legitimate beat.

Regardless, the pot is in the books and now stands as the largest in online poker history - not to mention the biggest of the year on the MarketPulse top 100 pots (http://www.pokerlistings.com/market-pulse/biggest-pots) list.

To see the full hand history, and more of the top 100 biggest pots over the last day, week, month and year, check out the list here (http://www.pokerlistings.com/market-pulse/biggest-pots).

More online poker numbers of note from June 2008:

The story traffic-wise in June was undoubtedly the massive surge of players at DoylesRoom.com. A virtually unprecedented 101% increase saw player traffic at DoylesRoom jump to 1,532 players on average over each 24-hour period this month compared to just 765 players in May.

Also showing traffic increases in June were Absolute Poker, with a 15% increase to 1,208 players on average, and traffic-volume leader PokerStars, who managed to increase yet another 6% to an average of 12,856 players.

See a complete list of the top 10 online poker rooms in terms of traffic volume here (http://www.pokerlistings.com/market-pulse/online-traffic).

Also worth noting is the expanded traffic report available at PokerListings, now split into three areas:

Traffic Today is a breakdown of player volume by poker room for the current day, including the number of players presently online, the average over the last 24 hours plus the high point and low point over the same period; you'll also find a graph plotting player traffic per hour for each room compared to the industry average.

Traffic by Month displays average player volume details for the current month, the two previous months plus six-month and 12-month traffic averages. Monthly volume is also charted against industry average.

The 2008 Highlights tab lists the figures for the busiest and quietest days/months for each room so far this year. All data is also updated hourly.

"Simply put," says Hannah Mayen, media relations director at PokerListings.com,, "there's no better way for serious players to track this kind of information. Tracking over 20 million hands, as MarketPulse does, just allows for a more comprehensive and responsive overview and gives a deeper, more revealing look at an industry moving faster than ever."

For more monthly stats and trends in the online poker industry, visit the full PokerListings.com MarketPulse section (http://www.pokerlistings.com/market-pulse).

About PokerListings.com's MarketPulse section:

Automatically tracking and analyzing nearly 20 million online poker hands every month, PokerListings.com's new MarketPulse section is the most comprehensive, real-time statistical "snapshot" of the online poker industry ever developed. Biggest pots in the last day, week and month with full hand histories; traffic volume and trends across all poker rooms; statistical breakdowns for all Hold'em limits and table-types; summary profiles for over one million online players are just some of the statistics you'll find, all in an easy-to-read format and updated every hour. More features to be added in the coming weeks: Biggest winners and losers in total earnings, including their preferred room, game and stakes; most hands played and where; and expanded stats for Omaha, Seven-Card Stud, Mixed games, Razz and more.

About PokerListings.com

PokerListings.com (http://www.pokerlistings.com) was launched in 2003 and quickly became the largest online poker guide in the world. It provides poker players with in-depth reviews of all major online poker rooms, the world's best sign-up bonuses and promotions, breaking poker news and detailed content on strategy, tours, tournaments and the game's best players. PokerListings.com also has the best live poker tournament reporting on the Web, with unrivaled year-round coverage from the WSOP, the World Poker Tour, the European Poker Tour and more.

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