Alexander Jung Captures PartyPoker Millions VI — PartyPoker’s annual floating cruise-ship event, the PartyPoker Millions, was captured this time around by Germany’s Alexander Jung. Jung triumphed over a 171-player field light on American players, who were unable to qualify online (Party does not accept US players online at this time), but still could buy in directly since it was a land… er… water-based tournament. Jung’s triumph was worth $358,280 over a relatively anonymous final table, the most recognizable player of which was the fourth-place finisher, Finland’s Mika Paasonen. Germany went one-two, however, as Dominik Stopka captured the runner-up $225,585 prize money.

Full Tilt Announces $25,000 Heads-Up Championship — Here’s something new under the online sun. On Saturday, May 24th, and continuing into Sunday, May 25th, Full Tilt Poker will hold a high-stakes, heads-up championship. Think of it as the online version of NBC’s popular National Heads-Up Poker Championship; after all, with a $25,000 buy-in and several of Full Tilt’s biggest names already on board, it’ll feature many of the same players. The event will have a maximum of 64 players, but will go off only when each level is completely full; if 64 players don’t register, then the field will be rolled back down to 32, or to 16, or to whatever level constitutes a complete, no-byes bracket. It’s a safe bet that 64 players will give this one a try, regardless. It’s also the largest ever buy-in for an online, heads-up freezeout event.

Land-Based Casinos Suffer Rough First Quarter –- Who says the housing-market and credit crunches aren’t being felt in the gambling industry? Nationwide, America’s major gambling entertainment corporations posted either reduced profits or outright losses for the first quarter of 2008. A number of online firms fared poorly as well, although online software provider Playtech was one of the few exceptions after signing several new licensees of late.

May 15 Hearing, PPA Rally in Rousso Case — Lee Rousso’s day in court occurs (or will have occurred, depending on when you read this), on Thursday, May 15th. Rousso, the Poker Players Alliance representative for the state of Washington, is also a practicing attorney who has mounted a legal challenge to that state’s controversial law making playing online poker a felony, a law Rousso and many others believe is unconstitutional. Rousso’s hearing will be supported by a PPA rally and press conference, with Andy Bloch and Barry Greenstein among those making the trip to Washington to attend.

Kayleigh Bounced as WPT Hostess — Brit-born poker hostess Layla Kayleigh looked as if she might finally be the one to permanently fill the shoes of long-departed original World Poker Tour hostess Shana Hiatt when the WPT’s sixth season began, but alas, it was not to be. Kayleigh, like Courtney Friel and Sabina Gadecki before her, was released after just one season in the role. Auditions for the hostess spot have begun again, with current online video reporter Kimberly Lansing reportedly among the favorites.