Efforts to legalize real-money online poker in California this year are likely dead, but that doesn’t mean stakeholders in a future industry there aren’t already gearing up for the long road ahead next year and doubtless beyond.

The most up-to-date firm to form a partnership for online poker within the Golden State was Louisville-based Churchill Downs, in line with a Thursday report from The Courier-Journal. The deal is with Crystal Casino & Hotel in L. a. and Ocean’s 11 in Oceanside, that are under the similar ownership. The partnership means the groups would interact to bring a poker room to the market and share within the profits. California is the biggest potential I-poker market within the country.

“It is a large market, a high population, a rich population, a gambling population,” as one high-stakes poker pro recently put it. It's been estimated that it may be worth greater than $380 million a year.

Amaya Gaming Group, which owns PokerStars, has relationships with the likes of Commerce, The Bike and Hawaiian Gardens should California ever regulate the games.

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