Mac poker players have been traditionally left in the dark when it comes to online gambling but the tide now seems to be turning with both greater representation and an increased presence.

And with the increased profile for Mac poker players has emerged a new website, Pokeronamac.com offering a new directory of reviews for the best Mac-compatible online poker rooms.

Mike Jonas, owner of the site, said: “Online poker is growing and evolving at a rapid pace. For a poker room to survive in this competitive market they need to continually offer new and innovative software.

“We’re just seeing the beginning of the Mac online poker industry now and there’s a lot more to come.”

Apple Macs are believed to offer the key benefit of extra security when gambling online as they work by a niche operating system.

A Californian woman has scooped an unexpected jackpot while killing time waiting at a casino for a friend.

Kathleen Chapman, 51, was playing a few games on the slots at a Reno casino when she was waiting for her friend for a spot of Sunday lunch.

Spinning away aimlessly on the MegaJackpot machine at the Atlantis Casino Resort, Ms Chapman netted herself a surprise $1 million.

She told the Associated Press: “I really like Wheel of Fortune and my aunt, who is home taking care of the kids this weekend, loves everything red, white and blue.

“Those are the colours of the game, so that is why I decided to play. I still don’t believe it.”

Strictly speaking though Ms Chapman won closer to $9,999,900 as she first had to spend $100 on the $1 machine before she won.

Still, sounds like a good investment to me!

Barry Greenstein has won this year’s LA Poker Classic Invitational.

The Invitational is the centrepiece of the month-long LA Poker Classic and this year incorporated a No-Limit freeroll poker tournament.

More than 300 celebrities and poker players took part with Greenstein netting the winning check for $100,000.

However, Greenstein decided to donate his entire winning purse to charity, cementing his nickname as “The Robin Hood of Poker”.

Some of the celebrities that took part in the event included Jason Alexander of Seinfeld fame and Saturday Night Live news anchor Norm McDonald.

However, Greenstein’s win will not go unrewarded as he does plan to take up his free $25,000 seat at the World Poker Tour Championship.

The popular “How to…for Dummies” book series has had another addition with new offering “Poker for Dummies”.

Made popular for providing successful self-teaching methods, the series has covered a wide range of subjects and skills and with the worldwide poker craze sweeping the globe, poker seemed the next obvious area for expansion.

Poker for Dummies was written by poker expert Lou Krieger and also fellow poker enthusiast and lawyer, Richard Harroch.

The book is meant to be particularly suitable for poker beginners as it gives a step-by-step guide on how to play. The book authors also hope it will give instruction on “how to get, bluff, and play your way to the top, from seven-card stud and high-low splits to Omaha and Texas Hold’em Poker”.

Costing $16.99, many will see Poker for Dummies as a canny investment.

Joe Hachem, the current World Series of Poker (WSOP) Champion, has set his sights on the New Zealand Poker Championships.

Having registered for the event, Hachem does not face a long journey to get there because hailing from Australia himself, New Zealand is just a short flight away.

The first prize stands at around $40,000 plus the honour of the New Zealand poker title.

Taking place at Christchurch Casino on April 7th and 8th, first prize at the event also nets a free seat at the 2006 WSOP tournament in Las Vegas.

Among the competitors that Hachem will face will be fellow Australian Lee Nelson who has already started 2006 with a win at the Aussie Millions championship.

Around 150 players will be taking part at this year’s New Zealand Poker Championships.

Canada-based software developer Poker Academy has released its new offering – Pro Texas Hold ‘em Version 2.5.

The company said it is the first poker software game and training tool to allow consumers to create, simulate and also host online multi-table tournaments.

Kurt Lange, Poker Academy chief executive, said: “With poker tournaments the rage worldwide, for fun or for money, players of any skill level need help training to win at casinos, online poker rooms, or poker leagues.”

He added that another interesting feature of the new software is the Hand Evaluator window strength tab, which shows simulation values of over 100,000 different trials meaning the results can be calculated in terms of strength against one to nine players.

There is also a widely anticipated Play and Learn facility allowing users to play against AI enhanced computer opponents. This feature also allows you to adjust your opponent’s aggressiveness, betting tendencies, odds estimation and hand selection.

This year’s LA Poker Classic at the Commerce Casino attracted stars from both the poker and celebrity worlds.

The world’s biggest poker room hosted almost 700 players who all took part in the $10,000 buy-in No-Limit Texas Hold ‘em tournament.

A number of well-recognised poker players took part including Phil Ivey, Men “the Master” Nguyen and Michael “the Grinder” Mizrachi.

However, on top of this there were a number of Hollywood’s finest playing in the event including American Pie star Shannon Elizabeth, James Woods and Jennifer Tilly.

After two days the strong field was reduced to just 100 contestants but after a four-day slog Alan Goehring emerged victorious after beating Daniel Quach and netting himself $2.4 million.

Among the celebrity stars, James Woods did the best, coming in at 24th place and winning himself $40,000.

One of Las Vegas’ landmarks, the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, may be sold.

Bosses from the company announced this week that there had been a number of offers from interested buyers.

The hotel-casino is particularly popular among a younger audience due to its lively dynamic.

Hard Rock Hotel is a private company and has about $140 million in publicy traded bonds.

A Hard Rock Hotel and Casino statement said: “The company has determined that it will explore a potential sale.

“There can be no assurances that this process will lead to a transaction.”

Lat year, the chief executive Peter Morton stated the company had secured $1.25 billion to build a new condominium complex near the Vegas casino site.

This year’s Casino Affiliate Convention and Gaming Marketing Conference will take place in Amsterdam in April.

The event will be focussed on European marketing and advertising in the poker, casino and bingo industries.

It will be the fourth year the convention has taken place and the event is widely believed to be the largest of its kind.

Taking place at Amsterdam’s NH Grand Krasnapolsky Hotel, the convention will run from April 9th to April 10th.

Over 350 European Gaming Affiliates are expected to attend the event and online poker and casino will be among the big talking points.

An auction is to be held on eBay next month in which a number of Victorian casino antiques will be sold to members of the public.

The auctions will be held on behalf of Victorian Casino Antiques and will be a fascinating look into the history of one the world’s oldest pastimes.

It will be held in Las Vegas and broadcast live on the internet so interested fans can watch the items go under the hammer.

Antique casino items in the sale will date back from as early as the 1840s, with vintage cigar boxes dated from 1849.

There will also be 1950s slot machines and even an antique baby carriage.

The Victorian Casino Antiques company was formed over 30 years ago and thus far three auctions have been scheduled, with the first on March 11th, the second on July 8th and the third planned for October 14th.