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Boxing legends Johnny Nelson and Ryan Rhodes have had the first ever fight.....around the poker table.

The two fighters from South Yorkshire were in attendance at a charity poker event at the Ultimate Charity Vegas Experience at Doncaster Racecourse.

£10,000 was on offer for a Royal Flush on the top table and another £10,000 in a seven role dice game.

Other prizes included signed sporting memorabilia and tickets to Nelson's Testimonial dinner at Bramall Lane on October 18 with chances to learn how to play the game at a special poker academy.

All proceeds were divided up amongst local charities.

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The number of women, and in particular the number of famous women, playing poker continues to grow.

US actresses Jennifer Tilly, Cheryl Hines and Shannon Elizabeth are all regulars on the poker circuit and now they could be joined by Paris Hilton.

Hilton has been spotted playing poker in Atlantic City and told OK! magazine that she only got to play for about 45 minutes which she said was much shorter than her Las Vegas sessions.

Paris said: "I love to gamble. I love being around a lot of people. There's always great restaurants and it's fun. I like Atlantic City - it's kind of like Las Vegas for New York."

Women only tournaments are a hotly debated topic in the poker world but former world champion Bev Pace has defended them.

Women's tournaments are good for getting more ladies interested in poker, said Pace.

The standard is no different to a mixed sex game but they do encourage some to come forward who wouldn't do otherwise.

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A referendum will appear on Colorado ballots that, if passed, would increase maximum betting limits in the state's casinos from $5 to $100.

Currently, poker players playing in Colorado ]have to abide by the extremely restrictive maximum betting limits that have applied to all casino games there since 1991.

According to the state, the increase in betting limits would raise an extra $29 million a year for its community colleges in the first year.

Florida recently changed its rules on betting limits and allowed the spread of competitive no-limit games, increasing revenue by 379% and accounting for $274 million of its $1.9 billion revenue.

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Daniel Negreanu, the Canadian professional poker player with four World Series of Poker bracelets and two World Poker Tour Championship titles, is tipping Russia to become the next poker superpower.

"Poker's popularity is surging in Russia," Negreanu said. "You can expect to see more Russian names winning on the European Poker Tour and other major international tournaments in coming years.

"Why are so many talented Russian players suddenly bursting on the poker scene, maybe it's because of the game of chess. Many years ago, Russian masters dominated their American counterparts in a different game of skill.

"That game, of course, was chess. The battles between Bobby Fischer and Boris Spassky were epic. And while poker isn't quite at that point, we're definitely headed in that direction."

Angus MacKenzie / Eurosport