Merge Gaming Network Welcomes Back New U.S. Customers

Regardless of how it works out, you have to admit that the Merge Gaming Network has some guts.

The small online poker network is looking to fill the gaping void in the poker market by re-opening its doors to United States customers. The network laid out the welcome mat on Thursday, and while it has not made any official announcements, member sites such as Carbon Poker, Pokerview, Lock Poker, RPM Poker, and Black Chip Poker have all begun bringing U.S. players back into the fray.

Merge stopped accepting United States customers in the beginning of June, though it still allowed customers to continue to play at its virtual tables. Unlike larger competitors Absolute Poker, PokerStars, and Full Tilt Poker, who were all forced out of the U.S. market as a result of the Black Friday indictments, or even others who left the U.S. because of the Black Friday scare, Merge made its decision for its own reasons.

With the elimination of the big boys, Merge saw its player numbers surge; cash game traffic had increased 79 percent a month after Black Friday, according to PokerScout.com. This was great for the network’s member rooms, but it created one big problem: the flood of refugees caused headaches for the payment processing department.

At the time of the new U.S. player ban, Merge was experiencing a two week backlog of cashout requests. There was no relief in sight, either, so in order to keep things from getting worse and angering their loyal players, Merge shut off the flow of new U.S. players. The plan was for it to be a temporary move, though there was no specific duration for the “freeze out” announced.

Rumors popped up a couple times this summer that Merge was “close” to re-opening in the United States. In mid-July, word was that Merge might start accepting new U.S. customers by around the end of the month, but that obviously did not happen. Then, in the second week of August, a report came out that it could happen within a week or so. Again, it did not happen on a network-wide basis, though Sportsbook.com did begin new U.S. customers.

But now, even though the network has told skins to not be too vocal in making the decision know to the general public, Merge is open for business once again in the U.S. Currently, the Merge Gaming Network ranks as the 12th largest online poker room or network in terms of cash game traffic, according to PokerScout.com. With the wasteland that is U.S. internet gambling, that makes it the biggest U.S.-facing network, ahead of Bodog (13th) and the Cake Poker Network (20th). Bodog will be shutting out U.S. players completely at the turn of the year. As new players begin to signup, Merge might be able to break into the top ten. With a seven day average of 1,140 cash game players, it is just 40 players behind iPoker.it, though it does have a ways to go to overtake the Entraction network, which has a seven day average of 1,300 cash game players.

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Poker lingo:

DOYLE BRUNSON - In Hold'em, 10-2 in the hole. So named because Doyle Brunson won two straight WSOPs (q.v.) in 1975 and 1976 with 10-2 on the last hand. (Suited (spades) in 1975, unsuited in 1976).
RUSH - A winning streak. Also "ON A RUSH".
HIGH-LOW SPLIT - Forms of poker in which the pot is split between the best hand and best lowball hand.
MANIAC - A player who bets, raises and reraises without regard to the quality of his hand. Most often found in flop games.
DRAWING DEAD - A draw in which it is impossible to obtain a winning hand for any of a variety of reasons: an opponent's hand is better than whatever you are drawing to, the card(s) that make your hand are out of play, or (in Hold'em) give an opponent a stronger hand even if it makes yours. Frequently used in the past tense, since one rarely knows it at the time.
LITTLE SLICK - In Hold'em, hole cards of A-2, suited or not.

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