$500 in freerolls for 500+ members

Maximum Poker League has reached 500 members plus! In order to celebrate we are throwing $500 worth of freerolls throughout September.

Instead of just having the normal poker freerolls, we have decided to do something different. We will be having slot tournaments and a black jack touranment. Not to worry, we will still be having poker freerolls.

The freerolls begin this Sunday, September 7th at Doms Casino. We will begin with 4 slot tournaments at 12pm, 2pm, 4pm & 6pm. Following the slot tournaments will be the black jack tournament at 8pm (all times are EST).

The slot tournaments will run 15 minutes and whom ever has the most coins at the end of that 15 minutes is the winner and wins $25. There will be 4 of the slot tournaments each worth $25.00. We will also have a $50 black jack tournament. The black jack tournament will run up to two hours max. The top 3 in chips win (1st $25, 2nd $15, 3rd $10).

PLEASE NOTE: You MUST send me your username & email for Doms Casino in order to play these events!! The touranments will be restricted list only! You must provide me with your Doms Casino username & email no later then Friday at midnight! Please PM me at MaximumPokerLeague

We will also have poker freerolls at Big Daddy, Landshark, and Reefer Poker.

Please visit MaximumPokerLeague for a complete list of all events.

$5 Free at Purple Lounge Poker

$5 Free - No deposit required

Introducing Purple Lounge! Purple Lounge is on the microgamming network (Doyle's Room, 32Red, Crazy Poker, etc).

NOTE: Purple Lounge is not open to US Players!

As an introduction, our representative is offering $5 free to the first 20 members that download Purple Lounge through our banner/link. Just download the site, register a real player account, and either post here or send me a PM with your Purple Lounge username and email. No deposit required! Just download the software and register an account.

Special Promotions:

$1000 Poker Bonus

Make a first deposit into your Purple Lounge account and for every 20 raked hands that you play you will receive a $1 bonus. This bonus can be accrued to match 100% of the your first deposit, up to a massive $1000!!
Simply sit down and play at any $1-$2 or higher stake tables.
Here's how it works: Purple Lounge will look after your bonus for you until you have raked 1000 hands. After 1000 hands you will receive the first $50 of your bonus in your Purple Lounge account. For every subsequent 500 raked hands you will receive another $25 into your account, all the way up to either 100% of your first deposit or $1000, whichever comes sooner

Free Tournament Seat

Win a free tournament seat for one of our guaranteed prize tournaments simply by playing at our real money tables this weekend!
Play at least 1500 or 2500 raked hands this weekend
Win a tournament seat for next Saturday's $18,000 or Sunday's $175,000 guaranteed prize tournament
Your seat will be FREE! All you need to do is claim your seat by emailing them at support@purple-lounge.com

$10 Free

Purple Lounge is giving away FREE $10 to get you started! It's simple, we are giving a free $10 to every player that opens a Purple Lounge Account and makes a deposit within 24 hours of creating their account. Just download our free Poker / Casino software, register a REAL player account and make a deposit!
This Poker promotion can be combined with the $1000 poker match bonus or the $100 Monthly casino match bonus.

SharBear Gets Interviewed by GPWA

She’s afraid of heights, but she keeps Maximum Poker League flying high!

Real name: Sharon Liss

City currently residing in: Palm Harbor, Florida, USA

Age: 40

Favorite food: All Seafood (except clams)

One book everyone must read: The Hero Within by Carol S. Pearson

Your gaming sites: www.maximumpokerleague.com

OK, let's start with the two questions everyone wants to know about...What is the back story behind your screen name and your avatar?

My sister and I used to love the “Care Bears” (the show with the cute little pastel-colored bears) when we were kids. My sister started calling me SharBear (Shar was short for Sharon). Come to find out there actually was a ShareBear! It has stuck with me ever since. She still calls me that today! The 613 is my birthday.
As far as the avatar, I have a set of ’50s pin-up women on ace cards. I use them as my avatar for all forums I belong to.

How did you become interested in online poker? What's your favorite game? What's the most you've ever won playing online?

We used to play card games growing up, but it was mostly Michigan Rummy for pennies. As an adult I started playing blackjack. About three years ago my dad told me about poker that you can play online for real money. He introduced me to poker forums, so I absorbed everything I could about different types of card games before playing for money. Once I started playing I was hooked.
My favorite game at the moment is Omaha, either Hi or Hi/Lo. I’m not a huge fan of limit, but I love a great game of H.O.R.S.E. No-Limit Hold’em will always remain one of my favorites because it was the first game I learned to play online.
The most I ever won to date would be a seat into the 2006 WSOP Ladies Event on King Solomon Poker. I won the entry plus travel expenses. It started with a $3 satellite. Also, in 2006 I hit a royal flush on 32Red Casino for $4,000.

Why did you transition from playing poker online to being a poker affiliate? What about the online gambling industry fundamentally intrigued you?

I belonged to a few poker forums. In 2006 I joined the Maximum Poker League (MPL) forum. It was the first forum where I really felt at home. I think it was because the owner was from Michigan and so was I. Right from the get-go they made you feel like a family. Well, one day MPL was looking for a moderator, so I volunteered. As time went by the owner gave me more and more responsibilities setting up games and running different aspects of the forum. The owner went through some medical issues and had to step back from the forum, so I ran the ship in his absence. Eventually he let me start posting affiliate links of my own. I approached him in October last year about moving from a free domain to a paid domain for more exposure and he agreed. I worked with a friend to get the forum set up. We busted a hump getting the site registered, setting up the forum, setting up link exchanges, etc. After it was all set up and running, Bill (the owner) offered me part ownership in the forum. I finally received my first affiliate payment in February of this year! It might have been small, but it was like getting a pat on the back for all the hard work. It was very exciting. Then that payment doubled in March and then doubled again in April. I haven’t made a fortune, but I have made enough to be able to give back to our members, which is what I wanted all along.

How did you settle on making a forum the central part of your business model? How much time does it take to administer the forums?

Doing something online was pretty much a given. I love computers and I am currently working on a Bachelor’s degree in Information Systems (IS). I am finally learning all the behind-the-scenes technical jargon that it takes to run a forum. These last few months I have earned a deep respect for our tech guy, Fonzi! He makes it look so easy, but now I am starting to see that it’s not.
Administering a forum is a part-time job if you want to do it right. I run one forum and it is time consuming. I can’t imagine running several. The most difficult part would be getting people to download the new poker sites and actually deposit. With all the legal issues, problems with deposit options, and poker sites shutting down and taking players’ money, it has been a constant struggle.
The easiest part of managing the forum is getting members to participate in games. We have a network of forums that all support each other and play each other’s games in order to increase the numbers. It has been easy to approach these forums about supporting each other’s games. It works out great for everyone in the long run.
We have a nice group of members who visit the forum daily and make posts that others eagerly respond to. We have a great number of members who visit often and do their part to post. Without the great members, we wouldn’t be a successful forum. We are still growing, but the members are making it happen by word of mouth.
We currently have a handful of moderators and they all do it voluntarily. They know we are not making big bucks yet, so they do it to help us out. One day I hope to be able to reward them for all their help. Alby is responsible for posting our games on other forums and posting other forums’ games on our calendar. TJ helps with posting screenshots and getting the conversation started daily on our shout-out box. Grump and Potsplasher are what we would call the bodyguards of the forum. They keep everything in line and make sure the drama stays outside the forum.

You are the co-owner of Maximum Poker League. Who is your co-owner? And how do the two of you divide the site's responsibilities?

My co-owner is Bill Maxwell (aka Billmax07). He has actually been running the forum for quite a few years. I just encouraged him to take it a step further. We have just meshed perfectly together as far as the forum goes. He is the most laid-back guy I know. He goes with the flow. If I have a crazy idea he lets me run with it and see how it goes. I couldn’t ask for a greater guy to work with.
We divide the poker affiliate links in half. We each deal with our affiliate managers to get leagues and games set up.
Recently Bill has let me venture into the casino scene. It’s new to both of us but we are willing to work together to give it a try and see how it goes.

Do the private tournaments you offer for members generally convert well? Or do you get most of your players through other methods?

It is no surprise that when we run freerolls on different sites our membership automatically grows. Of those new members we have a small percentage that actually become active members. A lot of our members come to us from other forums that we are friends with or are members of. I think we have actually started pulling members due to good ranking on search engines like Google and Yahoo. We also have some members who have been spreading the word, which has been helpful.

You've mentioned on the forums that in addition to running your site, you are a single mom who is also attending college. How do you find time for it all? Which college are you going to? What are you studying? And what time management tips can you offer your fellow GPWA members?

Once you are a mother, you automatically kick into multi-task mode (lol). Somehow you just find the time to do everything.
I am currently attending Eckerd College, studying Information Systems with a Management track. I’m about halfway done. I’m scheduled to graduate in May 2010.
It is very important to make time for your family. I have a wonderful 14-year-old daughter! We like to take time together to go out to dinner and movies on a regular basis. I have to take advantage of that while I can, because soon enough it will not be cool to be seen with me. Hehe.
As far as time-management tips, I think it is important to realize you can’t do everything in one day! Whether you like it or not there are only 24 hours in a day and you do need at least a few of those hours for some sleep. Don’t kill yourself trying to get it all done. Don’t be afraid to reach out and ask for help. You will be surprised how many people are willing to help. Also, always realize there are no dumb questions, so don’t be afraid to ask.

What characteristics of online poker rooms do you find are most important for players?

I think the most important characteristic would be the availability to withdraw funds with minimal problems. When a site requires you to sign your name in blood and give up your first child, then it is not the site for us to promote. Seriously though, there are sites that make it so easy to deposit and yet so hard to withdraw.

Is marketing poker to women different than marketing it to men? And if so, how?

I don’t believe it is any harder to market poker to women. In the last couple of years the percentage of women you see at the tables has increased dramatically. There are more women at the tables than players probably realize. There are more forums that are owned and run by women, which just shows that it is not only a man’s game anymore. Women are no longer intimidated by men at the tables and do not think twice about jumping into a game and taking a man for all his chips. Like I say, “Chicks with chips, a deadly combination.”

In an ideal world, how would you divide the efforts you put into your site? What percentage would go to marketing, updating content, managing your books and other tasks (please list the tasks, include a % and an explanation, please)?

50% Marketing, 30% Updating Contents, 20% Managing Accounts

For us the main focus right now is marketing. We are still a new forum so we need to concentrate on increasing membership. That is our biggest challenge right now. We are always looking for ways to draw in membership and new downloaders. And when you do pull in those members it is important that your content is updated or else the members become bored and do not visit as frequently. Then managing your accounts is the final area of concentration. When you start making funds you have to be aware of how much you have in order to put it to use to make your site even bigger and better.

How long did it take for you to start earning money?

I started posting affiliate links as a moderator around February last year. It wasn’t until February of this year that I got my first affiliate payment.

What's surprised you the most about the industry?

The most surprising part of the industry is how much there is to learn! It is more than just posting a banner and hoping that people download and deposit. There is so much more to be learned.

What's surprised you the most about players?

If you build it, they will come! If you post a game, they will play. It amazes me that players can play so many games from different forums at the same time. I have learned I can play three games at a time without a problem, but there are some players who can play five or six games and still manage to chat at the tables. That amazes me.

What advice would you offer someone who has just started in the industry?

When you start out you have to realize that you will not make money right off the bat. It takes time, patience, and a lot of work. What you are willing to put into it is what you will end up getting out of it. Do your homework and join great forums like GPWA that you can learn from! Know that there are people out there who are willing to help by giving advice, suggestions, and ideas. Absorb, read, learn, and be willing to take criticism with an open mind.

If you had to pick 5 keys to success as an affiliate, what would they be and why?

1) Form a friendly relationship with your affiliate program representatives and managers.2) Appreciate your members! Without them you are nothing!3) Be willing to ask for help when you need it, whether it is from a fellow forum owner or an affiliate program representative. 4) Register your forum (free forums do not get the same level of exposure).5) Check out and use a poker site or casino before your start promoting it.

What traits do you look for in an affiliate manager? How about in an affiliate program?

I look for quick response time to e-mails and great attitudes. When it takes an affiliate manager a week to write back, then we have a problem. A friendly affiliate manager can make the whole experience so great, but it does work both ways. I think it is great when affiliate managers are willing to give out their usernames for instant messaging!
I like to look for affiliate programs that have terms and conditions that are easy to understand and do not make it impossible to understand what you just read.

What prompted you to join the GPWA? And how has it helped you so far?

I saw the GPWA seal on a friend’s site and asked him about it. I asked him what it was all about it and he referred me to GPWA. I joined the forum and starting reading all the information. I realized how much they had to offer a newbie like me. The fact that webmasters and affiliate managers can come together to help one another is just fantastic. There is so much advice, information, and ideas from members of both sides. It had so much to offer that I joined as a member and then applied for the seal. We got the seal this year and proudly display it on the forum. I also get the GPWA Times and love the articles, affiliate interviews, and all the information I get out of it. I recently got my cool GPWA t-shirt and eagerly awaiting the new iGaming directory.

If you could change one thing about the online gaming industry, what would it be, and why?

That is almost too obvious as a U.S. citizen! Make it legal! Get rid of the UIGEA, regulate online gambling, and give us our god-given freedom back.

What's your favorite vacation spot? And why?

Key West, Florida! It’s not far, but it is like a paradise! Has everything you need on vacation – fun, sun, and water!

What is your favorite movie? And why?

Wow, that is a tough one. I’m a big movie buff so it is hard to pick just one. If I had to pick a favorite I would have to say “Shawshank Redemption.” The movie is a true testament to the human spirit!

If you could have one "super power," what would it be? And why?

I would have to say the power to fly. I hate heights but to have the freedom to soar over mountains, oceans, and any scenery I want would just be exhilarating.

Assuming you could pick anyone in the world (alive or dead), who would be sitting at your dream poker table? And why?

I have a fascination for James Dean, so it would be a dream to be sitting at a poker table with him. He could bluff me out of a pot anytime!

And finally, what are three things that nobody knows about you?

1) I love the paranormal (but I don’t see dead people).

2) I’m afraid of heights.

3) I collect geckos (even have a tattoo to prove it).

New MPL Leagues Announced

After a small break in August, MPL has returned with their fun and challeging leagues. MPL has picked Landshark Poker, Rio Party Poker, and Cake Poker to run leagues in September.

Mini Buyin League

Landshark Poker

Every Mon & Wed in September

8:00 pm EST (20:00 lobby)

$0.50 + $0.05

NLH

Password: maxpoker

Mini Buyin League Final Freeroll, Monday, September 29th, 8:00 pm EST (20:00 lobby), $100 Freeroll ($50 from Landshark, $50 from MPL), Password: will be PM'd to qualified players*, Top 5 paid
*Players must play a minimum of 3 buyin games to qualify for the final freeroll

This league will be a bounty league. $1 from buyin will become a bounty on each player.

MPL Bounty League
Rio Party Poker
Every Tues & Thurs in September
8:00 pm EST (19:00 lobby)
NLH
$2.00 + $0.20 buyin ($1 to prize pool & $1 is bounty on each player)
$10 added to game 1, 3, 5, 7 and 8
Password: maxpoker

MPL Bounty League Final Freeroll, Rio Party Poker, September 30th, 8:00 pm EST (19:00 lobby), NLH, $50 freeroll, Password: will be PM'd to qualified players*

*Players must participate in at least 3 buyin games to qualify for the final freeroll.


MPL Cake League
Cake Poker
Every Friday in Sept & Oct
8:00 pm EST (20:00 lobby)
NLH & Omaha (games alternate each week)
$2.00 + $0.20 buyin
Password: maxpoker

Visit Online Poker Leagues for more information...

Pokerstars WCOOP 2008

The PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) returns September 2008

Since the WCOOP started in 2002, the Main Event prize pool has grown at an incredible rate. 2008 is bound to be no exception! With a guaranteed prize pool of $30,000,000, that’s double the total guarantee of last year, making it the biggest online poker tournament series in the world!

There are 33 different events in total, covering a wide range of poker games, including Hold’em, Omaha, Stud, Razz, HORSE, 2-7 Draw and more. Each event has a huge guarantee prize pool, with many reaching more than $2,000,000!

The series culminates with the $10,000,000 guaranteed Main Event, September 21. Last year’s Main Event was won by ‘Ka$ino’, who took away prize money of $1,378,330! With cash prizes this big and a bracelet for the winner of each event, the WCOOP is THE series to be a part of. Don’t miss out on taking your seat!

You can buy in directly to any WCOOP event, or win your seat via one of the many PokerStars satellites running now. To register, open the PokerStars lobby, click ‘Events’ and ‘WCOOP’. Here you will also see the complete schedule of games.

The 2008 WCOOP runs from September 5-22. Satellites for the 2008 PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker will be running with cash qualifiers starting from $2.20 and FPP satellites from just 100 Frequent Player Points. They’re running multi-table satellites, Sit & Go satellites and Steps qualifiers.

To register for a WCOOP satellite tournament, open the PokerStars lobby, click ‘Events’ and ‘WCOOP’. You can also use the Event Filter to quickly find the exact satellite you are looking for. Go to ‘Events’ and ‘WCOOP’, click the Event Filter and enter the details you want to find

500 Member, $500 Freerolls

MPL Reaches 500 Members!!

So how does MPL celebrate when they reach a mildstone of 500 members? By offering $500 worth of freerolls, that's how!

In addition to the traditional poker freerolls, MPL has decided to do something a little different. We are offering casino slot touranments and black jack tournament. There will be freerolls at several different sites.

Here is the tentative schedule:

Doms CasinoSlot Tournament
Maximum Poker League
Sunday, September 7th
12:00pm ET, 2:00pm ET, 4:00pm ET, 6:00pm ET
Four $25 slot freerolls
Each slot tournament to last 30 minutes.
Who ever has most coins at end wins the $25. Winner takes all.
Password: Will be posted at 11:00am on Sept 7th, one hour before tournaments begin. Password will be the same for all slot tournaments.

IMPORTANT NOTE: In order to be able to participate in the slot &/or black jack touranment, you MUST give me your Doms Casino username (log in name, not nickname) and email. The only way to register players is by a restricted list. The deadline to get me this information is Thursday, September 4th @ midnight. You must either send a PM to SharBear613 on MPL or send Sharon an email at webmaster@maximumpokerleague.com. This list is due no later then Friday AM to our Doms representative.

Doms CasinoBlack Jack Tournament
Maximum Poker League
Sunday, September 7th
8:00pm ET
$50 Freerool
Top 3 paid
Password: Will be posted one hour before the game



In order to participate in these freerolls on Doms Casino, you must email your MPL forum name, Doms username and Doms email to webmaster@maximumpokerleague.com. The casino freerolls are restricted list only.


Big Daddy Casino Poker
Poker Freeroll
Maximum Poker League
Sunday, September 14th
7:00pm EST (18:00 lobby)
NLH$100 Freeroll
No rebuys or addons
Top 10 paid if possible
Password: Will be posted one hour before the game





Landshark Poker
Poker Freeroll
Maximum Poker League
Sunday, September 21st
7:00pm ET (19:00 lobby)
NLH$100 Freeroll
Top 10 paid
Password: Will be posted one hour before the game


Landshark Poker
Poker Freeroll
Maximum Poker League
Sunday, September 28th
7:00pm ET (19:00 lobby)
NLH$100 Freeroll
Top 10 paid
Password: Will be posted one hour before the game





Reefer Poker
Poker Freeroll
Maximum Poker League
Sunday, September 28th
8:00 pm ET (19:00 lobb)
$50 Freeroll
Top 5 paid
Password: Will be posted one hour before the game



Be sure to visit Maximum Poker League for more information

Poker.com transform into PDCPoker

Out with Poker.com, In with PDCPoker.com

On Tuesday the 19th at 2:00 am (server time), PokerCS will be undergoing several changes. First off the brand and domain will be changing from PokerCS to PDCPoker.com.

"This change has been a while coming, and is simply a face lift of sorts. Secondly the latest client software – Version 4.4 will be going live. This scheduled redeploy will require approx. 3hrs downtime. "All existing Pokercs members have been sent an email further detailing the changes. We appreciate your patience during the changeover and look forward to the next level of gaming with you in 4.4. " ~~Liam "Poker Room Manager"

In honor of the change, PDCPoker is holding $2,500 Welcome Freerolls at 2pm ET Saturday August 23 and again Sunday Aug. 24. The Saturday one' is already on the lobby and will start taking registrations 6 hours before game time (8:00am Saturday).

The freerolls will be limited to 4,000 players and have no restrictions to join. You have to play from PDC. and not any other Merge site!! Not Carbon. Not Reefer. This is a PDC special only.

Download PDC Poker here

What: $2500 Welcome to PDC Poker Freeroll

When: Saturday 23rd and Sunday 24th August at 1pm server time

Where: PDC Poker-->Tournaments-->Scheduled-->Special