Uri Gilboa has won the 2019 European Poker Tour Sochi 191,800 Russian Ruble ($2,931 USD) buy-in no-limit hold’em main event. The 61-year-old overcame a field of 758 total entries to become the. Precendenta edtie Israel Poker Tour s-a desfasurat intre 12 si 19 Mai 2014 si a avut un fond de premii garantat la 150.000 EUR care a fost depasit cu usurinta datorita unei participari masive. Atunci, 395 intrari au generat un fond de premii de 189.600 EUR si Avi Cohen a castigat 41.000 EUR. Pedro Poker Tour - Israel meets Vienna. Montesino Vienna. August 12, 2019 In September 2019, the Pedro Poker Tour is back at the Montesino. Israel Poker News Jonathan 'luckyfish89' Clark Takes Down November PLB Title. Upeshka De Silva Leads After Day 1 Of WSOP Main Event on WSOP.com. This is a private tour to Masada and the Dead Sea. Discover Israel’s remarkable history,landscapes and Jordan Valley. Drive deep into the Judean Desert and explore Masada’s fortifications and palaces alongside your personal guide, and learn about a dramatic, 1st-century battle between Roman troops and Jewish Sicarii rebels.

• Israel Poker Tournament
• Israel Poker Tour

While Israel does have legal gambling, it’s far from wide open here by any means, and in fact it’s quite restricted overall. Still though, it’s located in an area of the world, the Middle East, where there are a lot of very conservative Islamic countries which allow very little or no legal gambling, and some don’t have much gambling to speak of going on in their country, legal or otherwise, so compared to those, Israel is fairly progressive.

The legal gambling options here include both the lottery and state-run sports betting, and it’s actually a little curious that they allow sports betting but no poker, we can imagine that casino games could be seen as more games of chance and perhaps more predatory, given that there is very little or no skill involved, and the odds are stacked against players who are destined to lose money over time regardless.

Poker on the other hand is certainly a game where skill plays a significant role, especially in the long run, as luck evens out over time and one’s results become achieved due to the amount of skill a player has at playing the game.

Sports betting is also a game of skill predominantly, and there doesn’t appear to be a good reason why this is allowed and poker isn’t, based upon principle at least, and the real reason may be that it’s just easier for the government to roll out sports betting rather than poker, although it may be the case that poker is simply viewed as a less desirable form of gambling.

The lottery is very popular here, run by a state-run company called Mifal HaPayis, which was set up in 1951 to help build a new hospital in Tel Aviv, and is still going strong today, with annual revenues of about $4 billion. (1)

The Israeli Sports Betting Council oversees the sports betting side of things, and this is rolled out through two separate offerings, Toto, the original sports betting company set up in 1968, which is now quite behind the times and only offers weekly betting, and Winner, the more modern sports book which allows fixed betting on sports on a day to day basis, like commercial sports books do. (2)

Both of these operations offer both land based and online wagering, and they are the only two companies in Israel that are specifically permitted to offer online betting. All other gambling operations, besides these two forms, are prohibited by law from being offered either at a brick and mortar location or online.

Israeli gambling law does not specifically refer to online gambling, as the section of the Israeli Penal Code that applies was written back in 1977, before online gambling even existed, but based upon the rulings of the courts here, the law is being interpreted as applying to online gambling as well.

Israel does have a total of 4 casinos though, but the gambling all occurs onboard ship outside the jurisdiction of the government of Israel, and all sail out of Eilat. The government has been considering changing the laws and building a land-based casino in Eilat as well, but this has yet to be approved. (3)

Playing Poker in Israel

Israel used to have online gambling sites that were based out of the country, in the early days of online gambling, and this was a time where it wasn’t exactly clear whether or not this was permitted under law, but almost all of these sites became shut down by the Attorney General of Israel back in 2005.

There was one site though that wasn’t shut down by the government, an online backgammon site, even though other online backgammon sites were closed. The explanation given for not shutting down Israel based backgammon site Play 65 was that the site was “the unique circumstances of the site’s activity,” although that didn’t do much to clarify things. (4)

The fact that they are open to looking the other way toward a backgammon site is at least a start, and perhaps some day the unique circumstances of some online poker sites might be seen to qualify as well. It’s more likely that an actual change in the laws here is going to be needed to one day see licensed and regulated online poker in this country.

So there’s no live poker rooms in Israel either, and the cruise ship casinos don’t offer it either, as they do offer casino poker but no forms like Texas Holdem or Omaha where players compete against one another, rather than against the house, in formats such as Caribbean Poker.

There are some home games that run here and there is at least one decently large underground poker club in Tel Aviv, but you really need to have the right contacts to even find places like this, so only those who are really motivated and don’t mind the risk of playing at illegal poker games are going to become involved. (5)

Other than that, players can play at one of the online poker sites that are located in other countries. Unlike other countries in the Middle East, poker is very popular in Israel and it’s estimated that 500,000 Israelis play the game. Given the very limited options for live poker here, almost all of this occurs online.

Online Poker in Israel?

Players from Israel are welcome at all of the major online poker sites, in spite of the fat that the Israeli government clearly prefer that they confine their online gambling to the two government run sports betting sites, and therefore that they play no poker at all online, since they don’t offer it.

Israeli authorities have tried to block online gambling and online poker websites, as governments tend to do elsewhere, and the ISPs who were ordered to do this ended up refusing, and the matter went to court. In the end, the Supreme Court ruled that the authorities do not have the authority to block these websites, so for now at least, online poker players in Israel continue to have access to their favorite online poker sites.

The Israeli government responded by discussing a bill that would provide them with this authority to block these sites, but nothing has been passed as of yet, and when it does, we’ll still have to see whether the courts allow it.

Poker is felt in Israel to be primarily a game of luck rather than skill, and this has likely played a role in their not being too fussy about allowing it, putting it in the same class as casino betting. Should this view loosen up, or their view toward gambling loosen up, we may one day see regulated online poker in Israel, although given the fact that players can play all they want anyway, so at the present time at least, it really doesn’t matter when.

Israel Poker Tournament

For the time being, the only legitimate poker site that I would recommend playing at would most likely be PPI Poker, which accepts Israeli’s and offers 35% rakeback to ALL players. They also have the lowest deposit fees at any poker skin on the GG Network. It was founded by poker players and also run by veteran iGaming businessman.

References:

1. Mifal HaPayis

2. Online Sportsbooks in Israel

3. Israeli Casinos and Gambling in Israel

4. Online Gambling

5. Poker in Tel Aviv

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Israel Tours, Holy Land Trips of 9-23 days for the Evangelical Protestant Bible believer. Prepare yourself for a life changing journey to walk where Jesus walked and visit Jerusalem, Galilee, & Samaria. Each Holy Land tour is led by a local guide who is an expert on the historical, cultural, scenic, and spiritual history of Israel. If you travel with 10 or more people, a private group tour may be the way to go. Pilgrim Tours can customize an itinerary to fit your group needs with many options to choose from.
Concerned about safety?As a Christian tour operator, the staff at Pilgrim Tours takes a Biblical perspective in regards to the current situation in the Middle East. We do not believe that peace in Israel is something that will occur until the Prince of Peace comes to restore His kingdom. Please, do not make a reservation with us based on the hopes of a calm future. If you are interested in the special blessings only available in Israel, we will take you there. An expert driver and guide will keep you from areas that could present a problem and treat you to the riches of Israel as a special guest.

Below is a large variety of Christian Israel Tour Packages departing year-round.

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What to know before touring Israel

US citizens need a valid U.S. passport with at least six months validity beyond intended stay, to enter Israel. Make two photocopies of your passport. Leave one copy at home and carry the other separately from your original.

Israel: U.S. and Canadian Citizens do not need a Visa when entering Israel.

Non U. S. /Canadian Citizens are responsible to fulfill appropriate entry requirements of destination. Contact your Consulate office for requirements.

Hebrew, Arabic and English.

The US Dollar is widely accepted across Israel and we suggest bringing about $25 for each day you’ll be on tour. U.S. dollars are recommended for use for small purchases and lunches. Lunches typically cost $10-15. It is important to bring about 20 - $1 bills as some bathrooms charge a small fee for use. Credit cards may also be used for larger purchases. ATMs in Israel are all connected to European and American banking systems. Please be advised that the ATM machines dispense money in SHEKELS – NOT US DOLLARS. Please notify your bank before traveling overseas.

Electricity in Israel is 220 volts 50 Hz and uses the European plug with two round pins. You will need to bring along the necessary converters and adapters to operate any 120 volt appliances such as hair dryers and electric razors as well as camera and cell phone chargers.

The time zone for Israel is seven hours ahead of EST and two hours ahead of GMT.

Israel Poker Tour

In Israel the climate is temperate, and temperatures all year round are reasonable. Israel has two main seasons: Winter (from November to March) is cold and rainy in most parts of the country; summer (from April to October) is hot and dry with little or no rainfall. The desert areas can be extremely hot in summer time. The best time to visit is March-June or October-November, although climate shouldn't be a major consideration in choosing a time to visit.