Texas Hold ‘Em is on its way to becoming America’s game. It’s all over the Internet, on television 24/7, and seemingly everywhere. Despite the fact that THE tournaments may violate the letter (and spirit) of the law, they are becoming increasingly popular. From NBC-4:
hurches, school boosters and other nonprofit groups are calling the government’s bluff, raising big money through Texas Hold’em poker tournaments that state officials say are illegal, it was reported Monday.
Two years into the nation’s no-limit poker craze, organizations have found that tournaments are easy and more profitable than bake sales, carwashes or other types of fundraisers, the Daily News reported.
The baseball team from West Ranch High School in Stevenson Ranch made $12,000 in October, for instance, while the Make-a-Wish Foundation brought in a whopping $60,000 in an August tournament hosted by Kings star Luc Robitaille, according to the newspaper.
“It’s on TV, people are playing it in their homes, everybody seems to be playing,” Joy Holland, development director of St. Mel Catholic Church in Woodland Hills, which held a poker tournament Saturday to raise money for a new sound system, told the Daily News.
“I don’t play — it’s not my thing — but I’ve already been called by three or four parishes. They want to do it, too.”
But the state Attorney General’s Office says most charity poker tournaments are illegal, and the organizer could face a year in jail or a $5,000 fine for the misdemeanor violation, according to the Daily News.
“California law is rigid and inflexible when it comes to nonprofits and charitable gambling,” Nathan Barankin, communications director for the Attorney General’s Office, told the newspaper.
NBC 4 – News – Nonprofits Raise Money Through Illegal Poker Tournaments
I guess there’s no money in baked goods or car washes anymore. After 40 years of state governments promoting “public interest gaming” in the form of racing, lotteries, and casinos, it’s not surprising that fundraisers are embracing gambling.
North of the border, after all, some provinces permit casino games only in charity casinos, so this is nothing revolutionary.
This, however, is groundbreaking:
You can learn about that image on NBC-4.