Microgaming, one of the leading names in online game software designers, has released a new online slot, Wealth Spa. It is the only spa that results in you making money rather than spending it. The online slot is based on the experience of visiting a health spa, with coin collecting — which, to my knowledge, has nothing to do with a spa — taking place throughout. I would love to go to a spa where there are coins laying around waiting to be collected. Then again, I would just love to go to a spa. Alas, Gambling Review’s salary leaves a little to be desired, so I will continue to live my spa experiences out vicariously through Microgaming’s online slots. If your paycheck barely covers the expense of driving to work, you should do the same.

Wealth Spa is a 5-reel, 20-payline online slot with 5 bonus rounds. With bonuses, players can earn up to 25 free spins and extra-large jackpots. The bonus games are Smoothie Bonus, Bath Oil Bonus, Hot Stone Bonus, Massage Bonus and Body Wax Bonus. The latter I find intriguing, because they have essentially named a bonus round after a procedure many regard as torture. Certainly a body wax is more unpleasant than waterboarding. The Massage Bonus is particularly enjoyable, and if it leads to a jackpot you can be certain of a happy ending.

Yesterday an online slot designed by Cryptologic just made someone a millionaire, paying out $1,547,314 to a lucky customer. The online slot, Millionaire Club, is a progressive slot that some were hoping would reach the $2 million mark before paying out. After the jackpot, the slot reset at $175,000. It is not known yet who the winner is or in which online casino the win took place. A big jackpot is nothing new to Millionaire Club. The Cryptologic progressive slot paid out a whopping $5.9 million last year.

So, for the online gamer who won the $1.5 million, the good news is that you’re a millionaire. You can afford to pay off your credit card debts, pay off your house and buy a new car. The bad news is that the United States Treasury Department is going to anally rape you and steal a big chunk of those winnings. Hey, somebody has to pay for all of Obama’s government programs. Also, you can now look forward to being vilified by the Obama administration as an evil rich person who is exploiting the poor. You may even have activists protesting and threatening you on your lawn. Probably not, but you never know. So do yourself a favor and enjoy the money you won, but don’t tell anyone about it. If anyone asks how you bought a new car, say it was because of the Cash for Clunkers program. If someone asks how you paid off your house, say the government wiped clean your debt. If they still question you about anything new and fancy you have, say it was the stimulus bill. Hey, the $800 billion has to have done something, right?

Cryptologic games are some of the most popular online slots in the online gambling business. Though Millionaire Club has had the biggest single payout in the last year, it does not have the largest cumulative payouts. Cryptologic’s Marvel Hero has that honor, paying out $2.6 million in 277 hits. The Super Hero progressive slot has paid out $2.4 million in over 2,500 hits. Millionaire Club is number three, paying out a total of $2 million in 2 hits. With all of the money being paid out, the popularity of Crypotlogic games is sure to continue.

The expression “Those who cannot do, teach.” has just been proven dead wrong at the World Series of Poker. Poker VT, an online poker site that trains poker enthusiasts of all levels, showed the world that they can do more than just instruct others how to play…they too can deliver the goods.

Over the course of the WSOP the poker pros at Poker VT cashed for a combined total of $839,257. Poker VT Captain, Daniel Negreanu played for a total of $331,860 in winnings.

“Every year the World Series of Poker comes around and pushes every poker player that enters to the limit of their abilities,” he said. “Many players who throw down the cash to enter fail to even see a return on their investment, let alone a new piece of jewelry on their wrist, so it’s good to see our team proving that the skills we teach at Poker VT translate into real championship play.”

Jason “Jcarver” Somerville put his money where his mouth for Poker VT’s curriculum, making two final tables and three cashes totaling $311,786 in winnings. “It’s simple,” Somerville said. “Our strategies work. Online or at an actual table – when you play true to your strategy you can’t go wrong.”

Negreaunu wasn’t the only big winner representing Poker VT. Mat “Choppy” Kay came out bit with one final table and two cashes for a total of $25,809; Joshua “theNorfman” Norris had two cashes for $18,246 and Bryan “Devo” Devonshire had a pair of cashes for $7,945 while JC “PrtyPsux” Alvarado came away with one final table and two cashes for $143,610.

Rumors are rampant that PokerRoad President Joe Sebok is on the verge of signing a deal with a major online poker site, though details as to which one and when something official will be announced are not known. At this year’s World Series of Poker, Sebok recorded three in the money finishes, 56^th in the $10,000 buy-in Main Event, 104^th in a $1,500 buy-in No Limit-Hold’em tournament for $3,300 and 36^th in a $1,500 buy-in Pot Limit Hold’em event for $4,800.

“There are always conversations going on. We maintain open communication lines with all of the sites continuously assessing the best fit for Joe. Joe is always looking at his options and he is excited about potential scenarios. We’re pleased that Joe has reached a point where he is considered a valuable asset to sponsors and their brand objectives.” said Sebok’s agent and 11Management President and CEO Matt Palmer.

Sebok has made a name for himself on the poker circuit as an accessible and media-friendly face. As President of PokerRoad, he regularly hosts a radio program with other regular hosts Gavin Smith, and Joe Stapleton. PokerRoad is a multi-media outlet, creating original radio and television programming.

Since professional play began for Sebok, he has accumulated winnings of over $1,700,000. Signing with a major online poker site will mean one more rung on the way to super-poker-stardom for this up and coming poker wiz. 

On July 19 Full Tilt Poker, one of the most popular online poker websites, is setting its sights on breaking the official Guinness World Record for the Largest Online Poker Tournament by bringing more than 35,000 players to the table.

The record attempt is being done as the curtain call to the aptly titled “FIVE,” a week of events and promotions set up to blow out the candles for Full Tilt’s fifth birthday.  Team Full Tilt member Howard Lederer said of the event, “By extending the limits of what is possible in online poker tournaments, Full Tilt Poker will allow players to compete for a big payout without the big buy-in,”

The online poker record attempt will offer players the chance to sit down with some of the biggest names in high stakes and tournament play in the world. Team Full Tilt, WSOP bracelet winners Howard Lederer, Chris Ferguson and Phil Ivey (who made it to the WSOP main event final table last night) are all expected to participate.

The current World Record of 35,000 online poker players is held by rival and #1 online poker site, PokerStars. Full Tilt hopes that this will not only establish them as a World Record holder, but as leaders in the online gaming industry.

Such a record would not be possible in a land-based casino. The World Record for Largest “Live” Poker Tournament was set at the 2006 World Series of Poker with 8,772 players taking to the tables. Full Tilt hopes to attract nearly four times that amount to secure their name as Guinness World Record Holders.

The Record Breaker games begin on July 19, 2009 at 15:05 ET. Players can be a part of the world record attempt for $5 or 1000 Full Tilt Points and compete for a share of $250K added prize pool.

Bob Seger once said, “Knowledge is what you get when you read the fine print. Experience is what you get when you don’t.” Such a thought can be applied to the many online casinos and poker websites that closed their doors to U.S. Citizens when the UIGEA (Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act) was passed. However, USA Online Gambling maintains that the UIGEA does not outlaw online gambling, but merely restricts the ways transactions took place between online casinos and players. Such a thing seems like a logical choice given Fedzilla’s insatiable appetite for seizing the funds of online gambling businesses. Still, many top online gambling sites have found a way to circumvent the giant lumbering federal government and continue their transactions.

USA Online Gambling, (usa-online-gambling.com), is a website dedicated to educating online casino providers and players alike on how to “read the fine print.” Founder of USA Online Gambling, Tracy Carter, states, “There is a long list of sites that have overcome the UIGEA regulations and an even longer list of supporters, which aim to get the act overturned. The list of 30+ supporters of online gambling includes prominent politicians and entertainment companies such as Congressmen Barney Frank and Ron Paul, Harrah’s Entertainment, The Interactive Media Entertainment & Gaming Association and the World Trade Organization.”

The website provides a detailed analysis of what the UIGEA says and does not say. While the ultimate goal is to eventually overturn the act, but until that happens, the goal of the site is to let other know what the law “really says.”

“The fact that the government has attempted to make online gamling illegal is more than just an infringement on the rights of casinos to offer a service with massive entertainment value, but it is an infringement of the rights of players who want to enjoy online gambling from the comfort of their home. Overturning UIGEA would allow many casinos that left the U.S. Market to return, as well as increasing the number of payment and withdrawal methods. It is estimated that overturning the UIGEA and providing sites with a method of taxing sales would infuse the U.S. With over $50 billion in tax revenue within the next ten years. A number that would surely grow as online casinos were permitted to expand.” says Carter.

This month, online gamblers have been paying a lot of attention to games with patriotic themes, which makes sense. With our Independence Day on the fourth of this month, what better way to celebrate our country’s sovereignty than by risking some of your money with the hope that you can turn it into more? After all, isn’t that capitalism? Well, actually no, because capitalism is based more on hard work and business sense than luck, but it’s similar enough that online gambling seems patriotic. In fact, gambling is more like investing all of your money in the same stock, which brokers say not to do. But consider yourself patriotic anyway and celebrate capitalism while it still exists in America.

With the attention being paid to patriotic-themed games, players have been watching the Red, White and Win online slot machine, designed by Vegas Technology, very closely. This interest was also due to the fact that the progressive slot, which increases its jackpot as more people play it, was nearing the $1 million mark. Red, White and Win, a three-reel and one-payline online slot, pays out whenever the player gets three American flags across the reels. Because it’s a progressive slot, it pays out a percentage of the jackpot based on how many coins the player wagers. The payout is 5% of the total amount of the player wagers one coin and 10% if the player wagers two coins. The player wins the entire amount if they wager three coins.

Red, White and Win reached $997,740 over the weekend before a player hit the jackpot. However, since the player wagered only one coin, instead of winning $997,740, the player only won $49,887. That’s a decent payout to be sure, but I’m sure the player is second guessing betting only one coin. Let me just say this now: If you are playing a progressive slot machine, always wager the maximum number of coins. Wagering the minimum is a technique that gamblers call “being stupid.” Now I’ll get off my soapbox.