Coronavirus Pandemic: SPiCE India 2020 Postponed; Live Poker Tournaments Derailed

On March 13, India confirmed its first death linked to Coronavirus (COVID-19). A 76-year-old man from Karnataka, who had returned from Saudi Arabia on February 29 after a month-long visit, passed away on March 10. People who came in contact with the man are being traced and quarantined, the state’s Health Minister, B. Sriramulu, said. As of today, India has 73 confirmed cases of the virus.

In such circumstances, it comes as no surprise that the Strategic Platform for iGaming Conference and Exhibition (SPiCE) India 2020, that was to be held at the Marriot Resort and Spa in Goa from March 25 to 27 has been postponed.

Taking a look at the global scenario, the situation is more devastating. With 135,809 reported cases and 4,990 deaths across the globe, the Coronavirus has hit the very spine of the global society. Ramifications of the disease have been witnessed in almost all industries, including the gaming industry, specifically casinos and live poker tournaments.

To date, 13 live poker tournaments have been canceled, and 11 have been postponed. This includes stops like WPT Venetian, Golden Poker Million Casino de Marrakech, Unibet Deep Stack Poker Open, 888poker LIVE Bucharest, and Winamax Poker Open Grand Final, among numerous others.

SPiCE India 2020 Postponed

About a week after the Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports (FIFS) postponed its GamePlan 2020 conference, the latest news to hit the stands, is the postponement of the SPiCE India 2020.

The third edition of the gaming conference was slated to run from March 25 to 27 at the Goa Marriot Resort and Spa. The event was expected to welcome 40 providers and over 600 attendees through the 12 networking sessions. With a pre-event and post-event party, a gala award ceremony and poker events for the attendees planned, the conference had to be postponed after the Indian government issued a travel advisory canceling all existing visas for foreign nationals other than diplomatic and employment visas until April 15 to limit the spread of the Coronavirus.

The event organizer, Eventus International, announcing the same, said, “We are, at this time, left with no choice but to postpone SPiCE India 2020, which will be rescheduled. New dates will be announced shortly after discussions with our stakeholders and advisors.”

Coronavirus Pandemic Results in Cancelation & Postponement of Several Live Poker Tournaments

The US, at present, has 1,762 confirmed cases of the Coronavirus with the death toll touching 41. Nearly all of Europe has been impacted, with Italy being the worst affected (15,113 cases and 1,016 deaths).

Even though news of quite a few live series being either canceled or postponed have been coming through since the end of February, a total of 24 series have been affected for March and April.

On March 10, WPT Barcelona, Winamax Poker Tour Spain Grand Final, and the 2020 Irish Open, all made official announcements on the postponement.

Soon after that, WPTDeepStacks in Maryland was canceled, becoming the first US-based stop to be called off because of COVID-19.

The Colorado Poker Championship (CPC), which was scheduled to run from March 26 to April 1 at Golden Gates Casino in Black Hawk, Colorado, has been canceled as well. Elaborating on the CPC cancellation, Poker Manager John Padmore said, “This has been a very difficult decision to make and one that I’ve been struggling with all day. Because of the rapidly changing situation and level of uncertainty and fear, I have decided to cancel this event in the interest of caution and safety. There is another CPC scheduled for May. Hopefully by then this crazy situation is under control and that event will run as planned. We will also consider some special events in April and June. Stay tuned for announcements for those.”

Unlike the previous WPT stops, the WPT DeepStacks Championship that is scheduled to run at the Thunder Valley Casino from March 19 to April 7 continues to be on track (for now). However, the casino has revealed altered structures and reduced guarantees for the series, with the guarantee for the $2,500 buy-in Main Event being lowered from $1 Million to $500,000.

On March 12, Lex Veldhuis announced that Lex Live 3 would be canceled as well. Meanwhile, the RunGood Poker Series that was to be held at Horseshoe Bossier City has been postponed as well. In the evening, the World Poker Tour announced that the WPT Venetian, scheduled for March 13-17, was being pushed back as well.

The WPT DeepStacks Amsterdam that kicked off on March 7 was canceled midway during Day 1A of the Main Event after Dutch authorities banned events with a crowd of over 100 people during a midday press statement. The government-issued ban is to stay in effect until at least March 31. As a result, Holland Casino decided to close all its casinos until the end of the month. Those who played Day 1A of the Main Event have been refunded their buy-in.

Similarly, Florida’s Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood also announced that following Flight 1C, their Escalator IV Series Event #4 would be canceled with those players who made Day 2 awarded payouts based on a prize pool chip chop.

Status of Upcoming Live Poker Series: March & April

Legalization of Online Poker in the US

In the face of such a devastating infection, even the fate of the 2020 World Series of Poker (WSOP) looks uncertain. However, the virus has inadvertently created a space for discussing the legalization of online poker in the US. Six-time WSOP bracelet winner and GGPoker Team pro Daniel Negreanu shared his views on the matter in the latest episode of the DAT Poker Podcast that was aired on March 11.

“For most [poker] sites, summer is not the most lucrative time of the year,” said Negreanu. “People actually go out and do things. But this summer is probably a little bit different. People are going to be home.”

The Canadian poker pro advocated that the time was ripe to re-evaluate the impositions placed by the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) of 2006.

“The government should, even just for this period, let online poker be legal. This would let people have something to do,” he further added.

Negreanu’s co-host on the podcast, Terrence Chan, also shared his views on the risks connected to the COVID-19 spread and explained that he believes no one is going to regret “being a little too prepared. No one ever has in the history of life.”

Giving the example of Italy, Negreanu further elaborated, “We have the chance to look at [Italy] and understand that this could happen here too. About 10 days ago, they had somewhere between 500 or 600 cases. Ten days later, they’re up to nine thousand cases.”

“They started by quarantining 16 Million people in the northern part of Italy. Now the vast majority of Italy is in quarantine,” he added.

According to Negreanu, the best way to avoid the COVID-19 from spreading further is to prevent large gatherings. “The only real way to fight against this is to start shutting down large gatherings. And that means casinos, restaurants, and a lot of places are going to struggle.”

With the stock markets crashing worldwide and the global economy suffering, perhaps blanket legalization of online poker in the US (though a long shot) is certainly something to aspire to. It would possibly go a long way in containing the virus within the country, while at the same time, it will allow poker players to continue pursuing their passion for the game.