While covering the WPPA tournament at the Orleans on Thursday I had the opportunity to meet Dan Heimiller for the first time. Dan won the Wednesday $1000 +$40 Limit Hold’em event. I researched Dan and was surprised by the many accomplishments this unassuming professional players has accumulated. He has remained so low key that most of us are not even aware of the incredibly solid game he plays. Dan goes quietly about his business of taking apart his opponents at the final table of high stakes poker tournaments. Checking out his record reveals a player that has made as many final WSOP tables as anyone around. He cashed six times in the 1997 WSOP and won the 2002 WSOP ½ Stud + ½ Hold’em event beating the likes of pro, Max Stern, and second place finisher, Ram Vaswani of the Hendon Mob. Dan collected $108,300 plus one of the coveted World Series of Poker Champion bracelets. During the final table play of the WPPA Limit Hold’em event on Wednesday Dan went into the three way match with practically no chips. He was down to $400 in chips at one point when the chip leader, experienced professional Greg Fund, made a serious error in judgment and folded his Ace instead of putting Dan all in. Dan later said he had been watching and knew greg was not paying close attention to chip stacks. dan kinew he could take advantage of this oversight refused to give up, then he began taking away large pots from over aggressive chip leader and eventual second place finisher. It was a classic show of Dan doing what Dan does best, making the final table and then getting all the chips. Not bad for a guy no one mentions when they talk about all the poker greats. He will certainly have a place in our Pro Player Bio Gallery as one of the great players.

I read this article on the regulation of on-line poker sites. eCOGRA (eCommerce and Online Gaming Regulation and Assurance), a non-profit, non-partisan body with a full time staff in London, England provides client on-line gaming sites with inspections and certifications of accepted industry standards for customer fairness and satisfaction. eCOGRA has spent the last year developing Generally Accepted Practices (eGAP) that are relevant and effective to the industry. Internet gaming is moving toward legitimacy even without the help of the US government by developing and imposing self-regulation measures. Inspections to determine adherence to accepted standards will be carried out by independent auditors such as PricewaterhouseCoopers. Sites that pass the tests will be awarded the eCOGRA seal that will be dispayed on the site. Website operators believe players will be more inclined to play on certified sites and will search for websites displaying a seal of approval. Player confidence will reward those websites that have choosen to be under constant, independent surveillance. This sounds like a great idea whose time has come. I think this is the first step toward the goal of legalizing our favorite pastime and is a goodwill gesture to all the moral police.