Look what I found: Poker the new Bingo?

[Quint]

The word is that they spread 1/2 and 2/4 NL in addition to the two scheduled tournaments and SnG's.

I'm guessing the 10% rake (for charity) is uncapped and may make the cash games unbeatable. The vig on the tourneys may be the same.

Here's an that soewhat addresses the legality of the game.

I might have to make a scouting trip soon. It would be sweet if this caught on and other charities started doing the same thing across the state.

[Talking Poker]

What I think is most interesting here is that your "donations" are tax deductible. That shouldn't include ALL of your losses, but rather only the part going to charity (the vig/rake), but it's not clear in the ad.

I also don't see how this is legal and expect it to get shut down sooner than later.

[GeoffM]

How the hell can you expect people to keep track, legal and auditable track, of the rake?

[Talking Poker]

You can't obviously, which is why I think they may be implying that you can claim ALL of your losses (Which is obviously not the case) - OR, they mean that you can claim any EXTRA (not poker related) donations you may make. It's pretty vague.

[GeoffM]

Maybe they have a chip inserted into your brain that operates like PokerTracker

[Penguinfan]

I am afraid a few on this site (Names withheld) would have no slot for the chip in this particular case.

[Quint]

Is this any different from most "charity" events?

I've been on both sides of the fence for other charitable organizations. When collecting donations for raffle or auction we give the donator a receipt for the value of the donation, other items were purchased, but when these items are auctioned off the person that won doesn't receive anything noting the fair market value. So, how do they know how much of their "donation" went to the charity and how much is tax dedutible? For that matter, how much of the purchase price of the ticket to attend is tax deductible?