Late last year, South Point honcho Michael Gaughan indicated on more than one occasion that his poker site was gearing for its launch in Nevada and would likely be ahead of the pack by a number of months. But those plans got thrown in the muck by delays in the software testing process. South Point chose to design a poker platform of its own instead of teaming up with a gaming company with a product already on the market.

That decision may have cost the company a first-to-market advantage, but it hasn't stopped South Point's goal of offering players an online poker site alternative to that of Ultimate Poker. All signs point toward South Point launching in the very near future.

Those signs include South Point Casino customers recently being asked if they'd like to register at South Point Poker. And the announcement made roughly one week ago that South Point would re-brand under the name of Real Gaming.

The South Point Poker website continues to inform visitors that real-money poker is coming soon. And that same website is looking for qualified employees such as software developers and poker investigators. It appears as though a number of new customer service openings have also been posted that were not there when South Point made rumblings about being first last October.

While South Point was the first in Nevada to receive a license in the category of online gaming operator, the company was not able to parlay that into being first to have an online site up and running. However, the first player seated at the table is not always the one who scoops the biggest pots. The player with the greatest patience and stamina is often the one who's counting all the chips in the end. In that regard, South Point Poker is right on schedule.