The OPEN INTERNET CHALLENGE (OIC) is open for registration! *LONG*

[Gaming Club]

As the title says, the next installment of the OIC is now open for registration. Now before we go any further, we’d like to extend our thanks to all of you who have been awaiting this very patiently and we sincerely hope that it will be an experience to remember.

BIG THANKS go out to Mike Haven (creator of the OIC), Jason Hold’em (OIC marketing) and HavanaBanana (OIC law enforcement) for their time, support, ideas and for allowing us to be the hosts once again [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

Now, on to business. Older posters, please bear with us as we’d like to give a brief explanation of the OIC for the newer posters’ benefit.

What is the OIC?
The Open Internet challenge in a nutshell is a contest where you are encouraged to gain experience at higher limits with a limited amount of risk to your bankroll. The goal is to reach $2000 within one month, starting with a $50 bankroll and beginning your play at $0.50/$1 tables.

As you increase your bankroll to certain amounts, you move up (or down) to the next limit until you reach the final goal of being at the $15/$30 level and have earned $2000. We also provided the $50 starting bankroll to the participants in the first challenge.

We’ve been the host of the particular challenge twice before and to make this fun, entertaining and promote a bit of competition between players, we threw in some value added prizes as well.

Reminiscing over, it’s time to get to the details of the next OIC. For clarity’s sake, the rules for the challenge have been numbered for your convenience and the changes, t & c and registration information for this version of the challenge have been included afterwards:

OIC Version 3 Official Rules

1. THE GAME

1.1. The Open Internet Challenge (OIC) will be fixed Limit Hold'Em, but it is the player's decision to choose between full-ring or shorthanded. VERY IMPORTANT – NL play will not be counted towards the OIC! No heads-up tables, no tournaments.

2. STARTING BANKROLL

2.1. You will begin with a $50 bankroll either by depositing that amount or by using your existing bankroll. This will need to be kept separate from your regular bankroll for purposes of the OIC. (You do not have to literally clear your account of everything except $50, but you must keep accurate records of the $50 bankroll you have set aside for the challenge. We’ve also added a little progress log sheet for you to download, print out and stick next to your PC. It will be available on the leaderboard login page.

3. BANKROLL INSURANCE

3.1. If you bust out with the $50 (playing only by OIC rules of course), The Gaming Club Poker Room will be refunding you with $50 or if you as a participant in the OIC accumulate 300 BRP's (which is the system that our new sign-up bonus works on) playing only by OIC rules, we will refund you with $50. Details of how to claim your refund can be found on the OIC entry page as noted in this post.

In order to check how many BRP’s you’ve accumulated, simply click on the “Promotions and Events” button in the poker software and enter your account number in the field provided.

4. MOVING UP

4.1 YOU MUST MOVE UP ACCORDING TO THIS CHART (For example, you MUST move up to $3/$6 as soon as your OIC balance is above $300, although you may choose to finish your orbit if you wish.*)

4.1.1.
Limit=============Start=============Finish
$0.50/$1==========> $50=============> $100
$1/$2============> $100=============> $200
$2/$4============> $200=============> $300
$3/$6============> $300=============> $500
$5/$10===========> $500=============> $1000
$10/$20=========> $1000=============> $1500
$15/$30=========> $1500=============>$2000

4.2. (NOTE *If you are playing on the button at $1/$2, win, and your bankroll becomes $210, you can choose to move up to $2/$4 immediately, or you can choose to finish the orbit. If you lose down to $190 by the end of that orbit you can choose to play on at $1/$2 because at that point your bankroll is below the entry point for the next level, (50*$4 = $200), (see Rule 5.4.); or, you can choose to move up to $2/$4 because you had passed the entry point for the next level, (50*$4 = $200), before your voluntary completion of the orbit.)

5. MOVING DOWN

5.1. YOU MUST MOVE DOWN ACCORDING TO THIS CHART** This represents your bankroll dropping below 25 big bets of the limit you are currently playing.

5.1.1.
Limit Playing======BR Drop Point========New Limit
$0.50/$1=========> $0===============> Get a Job!
$1/$2===========> $50=============> .50/1
$2/$4===========> $100=============> 1/2
$3/$6===========> $150=============> 2/4
$5/$10==========> $250=============> 3/6
$10/$20=========> $500=============> 5/10
$15/$30=========> $750=============> 10/20

5.2. If your BR drops below this point you may CHOOSE to finish your orbit (continue playing until it is your turn to post the blinds again), but as soon as your hands are up you MUST drop down, (even if you were able to win a hand and get back above the cutoff point). The reason you must move down in this situation is because you dropped below the established cutoff point. We do this to prevent someone from gambling it up on the last few hands at a limit in a desperate attempt to stay above the cutoff point. The OIC isn't about gambling, it's about playing your best! Finishing your orbit is voluntary; you may leave the table and move down before your blinds if you wish.

5.3. Our moving down limits Rules are designed to prevent anyone from tilting away a large sum of money. If you find yourself in this situation: take a break; examine your play; and then drop down and work your way back up... remember you are HONOR BOUND to follow this rule.

5.4. **IMPORTANT NOTE You may voluntarily move down to the previous limit as soon as your BR drops below the entry point for the current limit. For example: You are playing $3/$6, (entry limit $300), and your bankroll drops to $275. You may CHOOSE to drop back to $2/$4 and work your way up to $3/$6 again. This is an option for those who want to be more conservative with their bankroll; the above table in 5.1.1 represents the point at which you ABSOLUTELY MUST drop down.

6. MOVING DOWN MORE THAN ONE LEVEL

6.1. If you choose to finish your orbit after your bankroll has dropped below the cutoff point listed in rule 5.1.1., it is theoretically possible (by playing other hands and losing) that you will need to drop down two levels and work your way back up.

6.2. Example: You are playing $15/$30 and you have $800. After the hand is played you have $620 but still have 3 more hands before your orbit is finished.*** Unfortunately, you manage to lose $180 more in those 3 hands and are down to $440. This means that you have to drop down to $5/$10 without playing any $10/$20 on the way down.

6.2.1. (***We remind you that finishing the orbit before moving up or down is voluntary.)

6.3. To determine where you should be playing in a situation like this use the Drop Point Chart, Rule 5.1.1., as your guideline. Check the limit below the one you are currently playing. If your bankroll is below the drop point for that limit, you must move down another limit. Repeat this process until you find out where you should be playing.

7. WHERE DO YOU GO?

7.0. Examples:

7.1. Q: You sit down with $127 and you are playing $1/$2. You lose down to $95 playing UTG.

A: You can stay in $1/$2 as you have not fallen below 25 Big Bets yet, (25*$2 = $50); or, you can choose to drop to $0.50/$1, as you are below the $100 entry point of your current $1/$2 level.

7.2. Q: You sit down with $127 and you are playing 2/4, you lose down to $95 playing UTG.

A: You must drop down to $1/$2 because you just dropped below the 25 Big Bets required to keep playing at your level $2/$4, (25*$4 = $100).

7.3. Q: You sit down with $127 and you are playing $2/$4, you lose down to $95 playing 3 seats from UTG. You decide to play the 3 remaining hands in the orbit and you win yourself back up to $166.

A: You MUST move down to $1/$2 because you dropped below the 25 Big Bets trigger amount, (25*$4 = $100), even though you decided to finish the orbit. You will be able to move up to $2/$4 again only after you have won back up to $200 playing at $1/$2.

7.3.3. (One of the reasons for this is that it would be against the spirit of the OIC to play crazily the last few hands of an orbit to try to regain your level. The OIC is all about playing your best, and not about gambling.)

7.4. Q: You sit down with $127 and you are playing $2/$4. You lose down to $95 playing from the button. You decide to complete the orbit but lose down to $48.

A: You must move down to $0.50/$1.00 as you do not have sufficient funds to play $2/$4. (Imagine going to $2/$4, but since you have below 25 Big Bets for $2/$4, you would have to move down).

8. MULTIPLE TABLES

8.1. Multi-table play is allowed, but not encouraged. The whole point is to gain solid experience, particularly at higher levels than you may usually play. If you choose to multi-table you may only have money equal to your OIC bankroll in play at any given time. (i.e. If you had $120 in your BR you could buy into 3 tables for $40 each.)

9. FINAL THOUGHT

9.1. Anyone who participates may choose to quit the Challenge at any point. The purpose of the Challenge is to gain experience with limited risk; however, it is utterly foolish to get yourself into a situation where you are uncomfortable, or don't have the best of it. Don't be stupid; there is no shame in quitting early. Have fun and good luck!

Kudos to Jason, Mike & HavanaBanana for tirelessly going back and forth revising the OIC rules.

Declaration of non-OIC Balances

This is very important and as such, we would like to highlight this point in particular. In order for us to correctly calculate your OIC standing, we need to be able to assess which funds in your account are in respect of the OIC and for funds which are for play outside the OIC.

As the OIC relies on honesty, we require all participants to declare correct non-OIC balances as consistently erroneous declarations will result in you being disqualified from the OIC.

What is this non-OIC balance, some of you may ask? Take these situations for example:

Example 1:
You have $75 in your Gaming Club Poker account and you register for the OIC. The OIC only requires a $50 starting bankroll, so you would be required to declare $25 ($75 - $50 = $25).

Example 2:
You decide to play games that are outside of the OIC rules i.e. NL games and you make $30 profit and you receive a $20 bonus as well. You now have a total of $100 in your account ($50 OIC balance + $30 profit on NL games + $20 bonus).

In order for us to correctly calculate what your OIC standing and balance is, you are required to declare the $30 profit from the NL games and the $20 bonus = $50 non-OIC balance declaration.

In simple form: Any monies that are outside of your OIC bankroll or outside of the play rules will require declaration.

We trust that this makes sense and we’re sure that the posters who’ve had experience with the OIC previously will gladly help clarify this point. You are able to declare your non-OIC funds balance on the leaderboard login page.

Changes & Registration Information
There are a few minor changes to the challenge, namely:

1. Starting Bankroll:
The Gaming Club Poker Room will not be providing the $50 starting bankroll for this installment of the OIC. Participants will either have to:

a. Deposit $50 into their account
OR
b. Use their existing bankroll if it is $50 or more

So what’s really in it for me if I’m risking my own $50 bankroll? Plenty [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img] Although you are providing the starting bankroll, we will be providing you with $50 starting bankroll insurance, provided you’ve played by the rules and have met the conditions required to qualify for a $50 refund. You qualify for the $50 bankroll insurance if:

You bust out (i.e. lose your $50) playing strictly according to the rules set out above.
You accumulate a total of 300 Bonus Redemption Points (BRP’s) by playing strictly according to the rules of the OIC.

Details of where to go to claim your refund if you’ve met the above conditions can be found on the OIC registration page (detailed below).

2. Prizes:

We will still be giving daily $50 prizes to:

* Each days leader (i.e. the player on top of the leaderboard)
* The player with the biggest balance jump
* The player with the biggest rank jump on the leaderboard

MAIN PRIZE

The first participant to reach the $2000 target will receive:

* $500 cash into their Gaming Club Poker account
* A 300 piece chipset

ADDITIONAL PRIZES

A $1000 freeroll will be held for all players who reach the $1/$2 level or higher.

Registration

To register for the OIC please go to http://www.gamingclubpoker.com/OICReg
And fill in your details. Please be sure to read the T & C as well as the information about non-OIC balances very carefully!

Viewing the LeaderBoard:
You will only be able to view the leaderboard once you’ve registered and will require you to login with your account information. The link can be found on the OIC registration page.

3. Duration of the challenge:

We’ve extended the play period by one week making it 4 weeks worth of play instead of 3.

So….a quick recap:

QUICK SUMMARY

* Go to http://www.gamingclubpoker.com/OICReg to register for the challenge
* Make sure that you read the rules very carefully – remember you are HONOR BOUND to follow them
* Ensure that correct non-OIC balances are declared
* Make a $50 deposit or use your existing bankroll for OIC play
* We will be providing you with bankroll insurance (subject to t & c)

* Play for the OIC begins at 10AM GMT November 10th and ends 10AM GMT December 10th.

We realize that we’ve given you short notice as to when the OIC starts, but there is an extra week added to the challenge so it shouldn’t make that much of a dent as far as getting yourself signed up quickly goes.

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask the board for assistance or PM us and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can.

Lastly, we’d really appreciate your feedback in terms of any bugs that pop-up, links that don’t work and so on. If you do happen to come across anything that isn’t working, please let us know as soon as you can so that we can get it fixed.

To everyone, good luck & good cards!