European Poker Tour event will be staged in Germany
The first European Poker Tour event will be staged in Germany in March. Not surprising, as poker is booming here. The game has become hip and popular on TV. But critics warn it could encourage gambling addiction. Poker clubs are springing up like mushrooms across Germany. Every week, poker tournaments take place in practically every urban area. It’s a game almost everyone is familiar with, either from playing simple variants like Draw Poker or from any good old Western. 
Figures by the German Poker Players Association show there are some 260,000 active poker players in Germany — 90 percent of which are male. Sandra Dellenbusch from Rhinepoker in Hilden said her poker school offered seminars for an average of 200 players per week. The worldwide poker boom began in the United States following the prestigious World Series of Poker in 2003 in Las Vegas. Chris Moneymaker, an accountant from Tennessee, won the first prize of $2.5 million after qualifying online for a spot. The triumph sparked a wildfire of amateur poker players hoping for the big money.