Today is the one year Anniversary of Black Friday. On April 15th, 2011 the Department of Justice seized the domains of the three largest U.S. poker sites, derailing the engine that funded much of the growth in the poker industry. Fallout from this event is stall happening to this day.
Personally, I remember fondly playing on PokerStars with the rest of the Ante Up Nation. I'm still jealous of our Canadian brethren that are still allowed to play. Several professional players have either moved out of the country or commute to play online poker occasionally. Some professionals have switched their focus to live poker, others have left poker as a profession to find a job in the "real world". And of course no one has been paid out by either Full Tilt or UB. Some people have staggering sums locked up online.
The damage done by Black Friday probably won't be repaired until poker is regulated in the US. But the world didn't end. Poker is still the game I love and has a vibrant community.
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