Financial Returns Continue for ChipMeUp Investors

Staking poker players is a profitable pastime for some poker players and thanks to ChipMeUp.com, players around the world are getting in on the staking action. The latest ChipMeUp stakehorse to bank big dollars for investors is "Titan Lucky," or maybe better known as "equinespy" on PokerStars after he finished third for $141,048 in Sunday's World Championship of Online Poker's Event 26. "Titan Lucky," whose real name is Mark Griffiths, earned his backers $2,821.66 for each 2% share sold. For those wise enough to have gotten a piece of Griffiths, they earned $2,816.66 for their $5 investments. In the end, all investors made a combined 56,333.2% profit on their stakes.
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Although Griffiths is somewhat unfamiliar to the majority of poker fans, ChipMeUp.com features a number of big-name players who are easily recognized including Erik Seidel, who won $162,382 during the World Series of Poker Event #49 ($811.91 payout per share); navigator (Miha Remic), who cashed for $80,000 ($4,000 payout per share); and Pokernews head honcho Tony G who dragged $83,630 during the WSOP Event 49 ($418.15 per share). The "G" also scored a big payout of $559,650 ($5,596.50 per share) during the European Poker Tour's High Roller event in which he finished third.

In case you are unfamiliar with ChipMeUp.com, this unique Web site allows players to buy shares (percentages) of players who are playing in poker tournaments around the world (including online events). With stakehorses participating in tournaments such as the Unibet Open in Prague, the WSOP Europe Main Event and the Pokernews Cup, plenty of opportunities exist to make a quick buck by capitalizing on a chosen player's performance. Current players scheduled to see action in the upcoming days and months include rkruok (an Australian online specialist), Tony G, Thomas Bihl, Kathy Leibert and 2009 Aussie Millions winner Stewart Scott.

In addition to offering staking opportunities, ChipMeUp.com gives players a chance to buy a variety of tournament entry chips (tokens) for a fraction of what it would cost to buy one at regular prices. For example, a Full Tilt Fifty-Fifty tournament seat sold for $.25 a day ago. Considering the incredible values offered, these auctions are an easy way to add your bankroll and lower the costs of tournament entry fees. Players can also bid for pieces of players as well. One recent auction saw a 1% share of Tony G go for $.88 (in the Tony G Poker $1M tournament). Considering that the potential payout is valued at $1,000 or higher, this lucky bidder may have just scored the deal of the century.

For more information on how to stake a player or to see the latest players offering pieces of themselves, go to ChipMeUp.com.

WCOOP Day 12: Ryan _g0lfa� D_Angelo Claims Second WCOOP Bracelet This Year

Day 12 of the 2009 World Championship of Online Poker saw three more WCOOP bracelets awarded but only two new WCOOP champions were crowned. Ryan “g0lfa” D’Angelo took down his second WCOOP event in less than a week by outlasting the field in Event 29. “Unsyatisfied” and “spencerman3” won their respective events to take down impressive six-figure scores as the last week of the 2009 WCOOP kicked off.

Event 28 was the conclusion of the $1,050 no-limit hold'em event that started on Sunday. A first-place score paid half-a-million dollar top prize to “Unsyatisfied”. Despite going into heads-up play at a significant chip disadvantage, “Unsyatisfied” turned everything around with one key hand. After making an opening raise with {K-Clubs}{J-Spades} and getting reraised by “GAKingChaser”, “Unsyatisfied” called and was probably quite satisfied to see the flop run out {K-Spades}{K-Diamonds}{K-Hearts}. “GAKingChaser” led out at the pot and “Unsyatisfied” put in a raise with the quads. This did not scare “GAKingChaser” who made the call, and the {9-Spades} hit on the turn. This time, “GAKingChaser” put in a check-raise all-in, but was caught bluffing with {6-Diamonds}{5-Diamonds} as “Unsyatisfied” took down the huge pot to double up, eventually going on to win the tournament, the WCOOP bracelet, and a whopping $513,076.

PokerStars WCOOP 28 - $1,050 No-Limit Hold'em (2-day)
Buy-in: $1,000+50
Prize Pool: $3,268,000
Entrants: 3,268

1. Unsyatisfied - $513,076
2. GAKingChaser - $382,356
3. Neil “Visionary129” Mcfayden - $269,210
4. reilly11014 - $187,910
5. runslikerubs - $138,890
6. goin4br0ke - $106,210
7. John “johnnyv5000” Vellios - $73,530
8. thepractice - $40,850
9. Ginsash - $26,144

Notable Finishes: Gabriel “kafelnikovz” Almeida (14th - $14,706),
Jamie “pokerjamers” Armstrong (18th - $9,804), Alex “mahoney3” Todd
(19th - $8,333.40), Steven “stevesbets” Jacobs (28th - $7,353), Tim
“timkrank” Miles (29th - $7,353), Jeff “yellowsub86” Williams (31st -
$7,353).

Ryan “g0lfa” D’Angelo took down the $320 8-Game event last week and
added a win in the $320 mixed pot-limit hold'em and pot-limit Omaha to his resume. He entered the final table with the chip lead and cruised to heads-up play during which he
defeated “groengras”. The win came during a pot-limit Omaha round when “groengras” got it in with {7-Hearts}{10-Spades}{A-Hearts}{K-Hearts} against D’Angelos’s {Q-Spades}{A-Clubs}{10-Diamonds}{5-Hearts}. The
board rolled out [4d{4-Hearts}{5-Clubs}{2-Hearts}{Q-Clubs} and D’Angelo made queens-up to notch his second WCOOP title of the series and $69,245.51.

PokerStars WCOOP 29 - $320 Mixed (Pot-Limit Hold'em and Pot-Limit Omaha)

Buy-in: $300+20
Prize Pool: $422,100
Entrants: 1,407

1. Ryan “g0lfa” D’Angelo - $69,245.51
2. groengras - $50,262.01
3. DarthFisumus - $37,989.01
4. Corey “Comandr_Cool” Burbick - $28,280.71
5. Julian “MrCoco” Gardner - $20,049.76
6. Monam1 - $15,828.76
7. alfito775 - $11,607.76
8. spassewr - $7,386.76
9. Guldgraveren - $4,221.01

Notable Finishes: Kenny “SpaceyFCB” Hallaert (10th - $3,334.60),
Francis “teacuppoker” Cagney (15th - $2,617.03), Ben “Benba” Lamb
(19th - $1,646.20), Neal “absolutfiend” Liptak (22nd - $1,646.20),
Ricky “RonaldKosh” Fohrenbach (32nd - $1,435.14).

The last WCOOP bracelet of the night went to “spencerman3” after he
defeated “Ginobili1988” in the $320 no-limit hold'em 2x Chance. Within an hour of the final table, only two players remained. On the final hand, “spencerman3” rivered two pair holding {A-Clubs}{2-Clubs} on a {9-Spades}{4-Diamonds}{2-Spades}{Q-Clubs}{A-Hearts}. The action was checked to “spencerman3” on the river and after firing a bet about half the size of the pot, “Ginobili1988” reraised all in. The insta-call from “spencerman3” put
an end to the tournament as “Ginobili1988” tabled {9-Diamonds}{5-Clubs}. The victory earned “spencerman3” $131,819.41 and the bracelet.

PokerStars WCOOP 30 - $320 No-Limit Hold 'em (2X Chance)
Buy-in: $300+20
Prize Pool: $834,300
Entrants: 2,488

1. spencerman3 - $131,819.41
2. Ginobili1988 - $99,006.39
3. grpoker2 - $70,915.51
4. buckguy2200 - $48,806.56
5. BobbyDick66 - $37,126.36
6. Malte “Akaperion” Strothmann - $28,783.36
7. acehole60 - $20,440.36
8. Evilduke11 - $12,097.36
9. DiverKRD - $7,091.56

Notable Finishes: Nathan “nsinger” Singer (13th - $4,254.94), Filipe
“Improved” Montenegro (15th - $4,254.94).

Time is running out on the WCOOP, so sign up for a PokerStars account and win your bracelet today.

Aussies Lisandro and Hachem Dominate ESPN's Poker Coverage

For those looking for a little poker action, Tuesday provides a wealth of televised poker when World Series of Poker Main Event coverage continues on ESPN at 8:00 p.m. EST. Having completed the early rounds of the championship event, the action focuses on players still in the hunt for the title including Phil Ivey, Phil Hellmuth and last year's champ, Peter Eastgate.

During ESPN's first hour of coverage, the WSOP's Player of the Year Jeffrey Lisandro leads the way at the featured table as he takes on all comers including fellow Australian and WSOP Main Event winner Joe Hachem. In the second hour, Lisandro and Hachem continue to battle while coverage shifts to former WSOP Main Event champions including Chris "Jesus" Ferguson, Greg Raymer, Hellmuth and Eastgate. Other players featured during hour two include Ivey, Kenny Tran and French wunderkind Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier.
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If that's not enough action to satisfy your poker jones, then make sure to log on to ESPN.com for this week's edition of Inside Deal. Hosted by ESPN poker editor Andrew Feldman, ESPN the Magazine contributor Laura Lane and ESPN.com columnist Bernard Lee, the Inside Deal continues to provide poker audiences with interesting and entertaining industry coverage. This week's edition features an interview with Team PokerStars pro Daniel Negreanu, and Michael Binger.

Arguably one of the most visible players in the game, Negreanu and the Inside Deal panel discuss his past high-stakes play, his 2009 WSOP performance and his obsession with golf and other sports.

A Revamped Face the Ace Returns to NBC

Let's look at Face the Ace in culinary terms. When it comes to the current crop of poker television shows, NBC's Face the Ace is like a fish fillet on a Vegas buffet. It might look appetizing from afar with those grill marks and the little chopped chives sprinkled on top, but once you dig in, it's cold, underseasoned, and in desperate need of some acid. The first two episodes of Face the Ace were universally reviled, and, thankfully, before the show returned in its regular Saturday afternoon time slot this past weekend, the producers engaged in a bit of retooling for the broadcast. The results? Far fewer cringe-worthy moments but we're still far from "Must-See TV." Let's call it a passable dish, but not one we're dying to try again.
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One of the best decisions that was made behind the scenes of Face the Ace was to increase Ali Nejad's presence onscreen while scaling back some of Steve Schrippa's (painfully unfunny) banter with the contestants. More Ali Nejad is always a good thing when it comes to poker television -- he's smart, articulate, and with his other gig as the voice of Poker After Dark, he's becoming a familiar voice to fans when it comes to commentary.

This week's episode also had a far more outgoing, energetic contestant in Adam Erlich. Sharing the fact that he once tried out for The Apprentice was a good move but revealing that he'd read the book "How to be a TV Contestant" before appearing on the show didn't exactly endear him to the audience any further. Although his personality bordered on grating, and he tended to the overdramatic while tossing in those reraises, Erlich was head and shoulders above the previous contestants when it came to chatting up the pros and talking the audience through his thought process.

Chris Ferguson and Phil Gordon, the episode's two featured "Aces," were clearly comfortable in front of the camera and their banter with Erlich was smooth and friendly. This was a marked improvement from past episodes in which conversation was awkward at best. Remember when Phil Ivey attempted to chat up an utterly star-struck Jonathan Nygaard?

Production also scored points by throwing some interesting bread crumbs to inspire discussion between the pros and the contestants. We learned about Ferguson's history with early online poker, and Gordon's apparent new career as a llama farmer. He owns two, Dalai Llama and Barack Ollama.

The audience also appeared far more engaged this week, or at least more liquored up. Inviting the contestant's supporters to crowd around the table during all-in situations created more drama and tension while the crowd called for all-ins and booed when anyone folded. One rowdy spectator even shouted "Roshambo for 200!" at known rock-paper-scissors aficionado Phil Gordon.

Erlich was confident at the table and after getting his money in with the best hand and losing several times to Chris Ferguson, he was finally able to come out on top, picking up $40,000 for his win. After deciding to let it ride, he sat down against Phil Gordon in his $200,000 match. Gordon was surprisingly conflicted over his role as “dream killer.”

“It’s really tough to sit over here. I want you to win but I still have to play my best,” Gordon said.

Ultimately, Erlich got the rest of his chips in with {A-Diamonds}{5-Clubs} against Gordon’s {J-Clubs}{9-Hearts}, but Gordon hit middle pair on the {Q-Clubs}{9-Diamonds}{7-Clubs} flop. Erlich couldn’t find an ace on the {10-Diamonds} turn or the {5-Spades} river, and his $40,000 went up in smoke leaving the amateur to exit the set empty-handed but graceful in defeat.

Despite some substantial improvements, when it comes down to it, the quality of Face the Ace truly hinges on the chemistry between the contestants and the pros they play. Unfortunately for viewers, that’s not a draw that is going to hit every time.

Face the Ace returns to NBC on October 31. Think you can take on the pros? Open an account on Full Tilt Poker and earn your spot on the show.

The Nightly Turbo: APPT Seoul Postponed, PKR Heads Up Draw Results, and Harrah's News

The Nightly Turbo is the best place to find the day's top poker news stories. If you're looking to save time by finding the news all in one place, then look no further. This is your daily read and when you're done you can get back to crushing your tables.

In Case You Missed It

ChipMeUp is making some poker players very profitable. If you don't know what it is or want to find out more read Financial Returns Continue for ChipMeUp Investors.

Ryan "g0lfa" D'Angelo won his second WCOOP bracelet of the year. Day 12 WCOOP results are in.
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2009 WSOP Main Event coverage airs on ESPN tonight. The Aussies are taking over the coverage tonight.

Face the Ace returned to your television screens on Saturday. Did you miss it? Well we have a recap.

PKR Heads up Draw Results

From October 8 through 10 in London, PKR will hold its inaugural Heads-Up Grand Slam. They've completed the draw for the match-ups and there are sure to be some fireworks in the first round. The Grand Slam will be shown on Sky Sports in the UK. For those of us who can't make it, we'll have to find another way to get in on the action, probably somewhere on the Internet.

So Tom Dwan could face his arch nemesis Luke Schwartz in the semifinals if they both happen to make it that far. PokerNews head honcho Tony G could face Ilari Sahamies in the quarterfinals and that could be an enjoyable match to watch. And if the poker gods want us all to see a rematch of the 2007 WSOPE, Annette Obrestad could face off with John Tabatabai in the second round. The combinations are endless right now. We'll just have to wait until October to find out who ends up with all the chips.

Sign up for a PKR account with PokerNews and you can chose your first deposit bonus, and to learn more about the event check out MatchRoomSport.com

$1k Monday

The Full Tilt $1k Monday had 357 entrants. That means the $300,000 guarantee had $57,000 more added to it (check out our pretty sick math skills). PokerNews blogger Dave "Doc Sands" Sands took down the first place prize of $89,250. Not a bad Monday, if you ask us.

Buyin: $1000 + $60
Prize Pool: $357,000
Entrants: 357

1. Dave “Doc Sands” Sands - $89,250
2. Grayson “The_Dean221” Nichols - $57,120
3. makavelyces - $42,480
4. Ponga80 - $33,022.50
5. SalSant - $24,990
6. Pot Luck Poker - $17,850
7. JBlaze20 - $11,602.50
8. Davidp18 - $8,925
9. Jeremiah “Believer8219” Vinsant - $7,140

Notables: Corey “Comandr_Cool” Burbick (10th-$4,462.50), Tim “Tmay420” West (14th-$3,570), David “GhettoFabolous” Randall (15th-$3,570), Jamie “pokerjamers” Armstrong (18th-$2,677.50), Paul “ComeOnPhish1” Lieu (20th-$1,963.50), Matt “NoBadBeatsPlz” Kay (26th-$1,963.50), Billy “DurangoDan35” Kopp (29th-$1,606.50), Brent “Bhanks11” Hanks-30th ($1,606.50)

Asia Pacific Poker Tour Seoul Postponed

If you're headed to South Korea in the next few days for the PokerStars.net APPT, you should probably cancel your ticket. PokerStars.net has postponed the event that was scheduled for September 17 through 20 at the 7-Luck Casino.

Apparently, the casino was renovating the third floor specifically for hosting the tournament and those renovations aren't complete yet. Tournament planners thought about using milk crates and cardboard boxes for tables to get the show on the road but decided against it. The event will be rescheduled when the construction is complete.

The next APPT event is scheduled for October 14 through 18 in Auckland, New Zealand, and you can win your way there on PokerStars, so go sign up for an account.

Another Lawsuit for Full Tilt

Clonie Gowen's $40 million lawsuit still hasn't been resolved and already another lawsuit has been filed against Full Tilt Poker. This time, Jason Newitt has filed a suit against Tiltware, Full Tilt Poker, Pocket Kings, Pocket Kings Consulting, Raymond Bitar, and Howard Lederer claiming he was unfairly fired and his distribution payments were unfairly halted.

The firing may or may not be because Newitt forwarded an email from Lederer about Jimmy "Gobboboy" Fricke calling him a "freak and a very weird dude." Just a little tip for next time you hit "forward" or "reply" on an email: make sure only what's supposed to be in there is in there. Maybe this is why some companies have disabled the "reply all" function.

Pokerati has more.

A New Property for Harrah's

It has been reported that Harrah's is buying up the Planet Hollywood Resort's debt in what seems to be an attempt to take over the Strip property. Harrah's probably has a huge crush on Planet Hollywood Peepshow star, Holly Madison and wants to woo her by flexing Harrah's buying muscles. Harrah's purchased some of the $860 million debt from Planet Hollywood.

“(Harrah’s) is buying a position on the cheap right now but with long-term ideas,” said Mike Sullivan, a finance professor at the University of Nevada. “They’ve got their foot in the door right now... . They are picking up a position of influence so they must be interested in acquiring assets."

If Harrah's acquires the Planet Hollywood property, it would own ten casino properties on and near the Las Vegas Strip.

Read more at the Las Vegas Review Journal.

Have you visited our Facebook page and become a fan yet? You should.

Male Borgata Player Wins Ladies Event But Loses Self-Respect

Recently, a guy named Abraham Korotki took down the Ladies Event at Borgata in Atlantic City, much to the dismay of the sizable field of female competitors, when he defeated Nicole Rowe heads up for the $20,892 first-place prize.

Although I understand part of an argument for men being allowed to play in women's events because discrimination in regard to sex is not allowed under gaming laws, it is difficult to fathom the mindset of this "winner" playing in such an event. These events are designed to allow women to play against women if they choose to, without having to play against men. It makes no sense for a man to try to barge in on a women's-only game. Men always have plenty of tournaments to play in across the country. Borgata alone offers 49 tournaments that are not specifically devoted to women players during its Poker Open series.
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In essence, Korotki took advantage of a legal loophole that allowed him to play in a women's tournament. I'm not saying that women are less-skilled than men are. We can cite numerous examples of women, such as Annie Duke, Jenifer Harman and Cyndy Viollete, who could show this guy a thing or two at the table. But there is a reason that women's events are held: many women feel uncomfortable playing against men and they want to enjoy the game without them. To put it simply, women's tournaments are supposed to provide a level playing field for women who might not want to play in what have been traditionally male-dominated events.

According to Borgata, the casino was powerless to prevent the 65-year-old Korotki from playing because New Jersey gaming laws and a federal statute forbid discrimination during poker tournaments. Having worked with Borgata for several years while providing media coverage for the casino's Poker Open series, I know how hard Borgata has worked to develop its Ladies Tournament. For a man to win it is a slap in the face for those who have worked diligently to give women a tournament of their own, and as expected, the Borgata’s organizers were frustrated with the situation but could do nothing about it.

Despite many women having witnessed Borgata officials trying to dissuade Korotki from participating, he continued playing and later claimed to the Philadelphia Daily News that Borgata staff did not try to encourage him to stop playing. Having given no thought to the fact that women-only events provide a level playing field for their players and that these events help promote the game to a relatively untouched demographic, Korotki managed to destroy much of the hard work of those trying to attract women to the game while creating an uncomfortable playing experience for the rest of the field.

Here's where the story becomes more aggravating. According to sources on the scene, once Korotki and Rowe got heads-up (each with nearly identical chip stacks), Rowe offered to chop the remaining prize money because the additional cash would help her pay for her living expenses while she recovers from surgery scheduled in a few weeks. Korotki refused and ended up winning the lion's share of the prize pool. Although Rowe took home $11,889 for finishing second, the extra money would have been pretty important to her as she recovers from breast cancer surgery.

To many of us in the poker industry, Korotki’s actions are a disgusting display of greed and self-absorbed gall that gives poker a bad name. And the more the media cover the story, the more poker gets a black eye. According to the Borgata poker blog, Korotki had the nerve to talk trash after his win. "It's always nice to win a tournament. The ladies played very well and it's always nice for the weaker sex to have a victory," he said. This disgusting display of ignorance and condescension was yet another slap in the face for women players such as Rowe, who, incidentally, finished second in the Ladies Event in 2007.

To show that he is a good guy, Korotki said that he would donate his winnings to charity, but this doesn’t make his behavior any less unsportsmanlike. His disrespect for all women who participated in this tournament and other women-only events around the world is offensive. He used the law to take advantage of a situation and in this case took money from someone who could have used it for a purpose other than feeding one’s ego. Unfortunately, no one offers a losers-only tournament, which is where he belongs.

PokerNews is in the process of trying to organize a special tournament for Nicole Rowe and her fight against Breast Cancer. Be sure to follow us on Twitter for up to the latest.

WSOP Main Event on ESPN: Aussies, ElkY, Ivey, and More

The ninth and tenth hours of ESPN’s coverage of the 2009 World Series of Poker Main Event took us through the highs and lows of Day 3, the first day of play in which the entire field was united in one room. A pair of Melbourne-dwelling Aussies took center stage this week, with 2005 Main Event champion Joe Hachem and triple bracelet winner Jeffrey Lisandro dueling on the featured table. These two were certainly familiar with one another’s tendencies at the table, as they’ve spent countless hours playing together in high-stakes cash games at the Crown Casino. Pairing the icy Lisandro with the tiltable Hachem was an interesting lesson in contrast, with only one of the boys from Down Under surviving to play the next day.
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Cast of Characters: While Hachem and Lisandro ruled the main featured table, Kenny Tran captained the secondary along with Ville Wahlbeck, the only player remaining in the field that could wrest 2009 Player of the Year honors away from Lisandro. Tran was later joined by the always-entertaining David “Devilfish” Ulliott while out in the field Phil Ivey, Jennifer Harman, J.C. Tran, Peter Eastgate, Greg Raymer, Phil Hellmuth, Jean-Robert Bellande, Lou Diamond Phillips, Jason Alexander, Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier, Josh Arieh, Dennis Phillips, Jordan Farmar, Hevad "Rain" Khan, Joe Sebok, and Kent Senter worked on growing their chip stacks.

Interesting tidbits: Eight former world champions and 59 bracelet winners made it to Day 3 of this year’s Main Event, as did five of the 29 players that hold four or more bracelets.

That’s one way to introduce yourself to your opponent: “Phil Ivey, you know I’ve had a serious crush on you for years, I’m Melissa”.

Dissed!: Lauchlin McKinnon was the only player at his table (and perhaps at this year’s Main Event) to refuse to shake Phil Hellmuth's hand as he sat down at the table.

Worst Beat - Kenny Tran runner-runners a wheel: Holding the {9-Clubs}{5-Hearts} against David "Devilfish" Ulliott's {A-Hearts}{10-Clubs}, Kenny Tran checked the {A-Clubs}{K-Hearts}{4-Spades} flop. Devilfish checked behind and the {2-Clubs} came on the turn. Tran led out for 9,000 with his gutshot straight draw, and Devilfish called with top pair. The river was gin for Tran, falling the {3-Diamonds} to make his straight. He bet 27,000, prompting a speech from his opponent.

“If you outdrew me I’m gonna be so sick,” said Devilfish before making the call and seeing the bad news. Things only got worse for Devilfish later on. After getting the last of his chips in with K-J for top two pair, and earning a call from Prahlad Friedman with Q-Q, a third queen spiked on the river, making Friedman a set and sending Devilfish to the rail.

Fashion highlight: The immaculately pressed navy pinstriped suit WSOP Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack wore as he awarded Jeffrey Lisandro 2009 Player of the Year honors.

Fashion lowlight: Unfortunately, it appears that Jeffrey Lisandro's garish black and white striped silk shirt will be immortalized on the walls of the Amazon Room for years to come.

What happened to...? Though Bertrand Grospellier’s meteoric rise on Day 3 was carefully chronicled on last night’s broadcast, he wasn’t the only French player who leapt to the front of the pack that day. Ludovic Lacay, who ultimately finished in 16th place, remained in the top five throughout Day 3, but has yet to earn a frame of screen time.

"The Nuts": Phil Hellmuth and Norman Chad took turns in the dunk tank out by the Rio’s pool. Thankfully, neither appeared shirtless.

MVP - ”ElkY”: Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier not only managed to survive a day at Phil Ivey’s table, but was able to climb into the chip lead. Day 3 saw the former StarCraft whiz take his stack from 208,000 to 1.38 million by the end of the session, as he carefully picked his spots and fastidiously avoided getting involved in big pots with Ivey.

Hand of the week - Hellmuth’s River Call: With the board reading {3-Diamonds}{10-Hearts}{9-Spades}{K-Diamonds}{3-Clubs} on the river, Columba Duffy moved all in for 104,900, leaving the action on Phil Hellmuth, who had 120,000 behind. Forced to a decision for nearly his entire stack, Hellmuth made the call, having turned the nut straight with {Q-Hearts}{J-Hearts}. Duffy had not filled up but was instead on a bluff with {A-Spades}{Q-Diamonds}, and Hellmuth raked in his chips feeling like quite the genius.

Notable eliminations: Ville Wahlbeck, Jean-Robert Bellande, Jennifer Harman, Greg Raymer, Devilfish, Jason Alexander, Jeffrey Lisandro, Humberto Brenes, and Jordan Farmar all saw their Main Event come to an end, as did Kent Senter, who was eliminated by Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier with pocket jacks against pocket tens.

Quote of the Week: "Did this really happen to me? This is Jean-Robert! This does not happen for me. You didn't get the memo, dealer?" – Jean-Robert Bellande, referring to himself in the third person after surviving an all-in.

ESPN's coverage of the 2009 WSOP Main Event airs every Tuesday night at 8 p.m. EST. Check your local listings for showtimes and make sure to follow us on Twitter for up-to-the-minute news.

WCOOP Day 13: Three New Champions Crowned

Day 13 of the 2009 World Championship of Online Poker offered tournaments in three games that produced three new WCOOP champions. Darryll “df1986” Fish captured the night’s biggest event and $160,525.11 in the no-limit hold’em event. “KRUTHE” took down the pot-limit Omaha with rebuys, and “ShawnZJones” captured the stud hi-low bracelet.

The Event 33 final table featured several big online names including Jordan “scarface_79” Smith, Jeremiah “Believer82” Vinsant, Bryn Kenney, and eventual winner Darryll “df1986” Fish.

The key hand came after a deal was made during three-handed play. Vinsant raised on the button and was called by “nicelife” in the small blind and Fish out of the big blind. The flop fell {3-Clubs}{K-Spades}{8-Clubs} and it was checked to Vinsant who made a continuation bet. After “nicelife” folded, Fish put in the check-raise. Vinsant then three-bet all-in and Fish called, tabling second pair with {8-Spades}{6-Spades}. His read was correct as Vinsant turned up {A-Clubs}{10-Hearts} for ace-high. The turn and river did not save Vinsant, propelling Fish to the chip lead and eventually the WCOOP title.
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PokerStars WCOOP 33 - $1,050 No-Limit Hold’em
Buy-in: $1,000+50
Prize Pool: $1,240,000
Entrants: 1,240

*1. Darryll “df1986” Fish - $160,525.11
*2. nicelife - $177,084.33
*3. Jeremiah “Believer82” Vinsant - $134,892.57
4. Jordan “scarface_79” Smith - $84,320
5. redsxfan3300 - $60,760
6. REDDYBABY902 - $48,360
7. shengy - $35,960
8. Jack “011PokerDr” Pan - $23,560
9. Bryn Kenney - $12,896

* denotes three-way deal

Notable Finishes: Fredrik “H@££INGGOL “ Halling (10th - $10,540),
Steve “gboro780” Gross (14th - $8,246), Nelson “Mumtum23” Chain (15th
- $8,246), Bryan “Squirrely1” Sapp (21st - $4,960), David “WhooooKidd”
Baker (22nd - $4,960), Chris “Bushman” Bush (24th - $4,960), Owen
“ocrowe” Crowe (28th - $4,340).

“KRUTHE” owned the Event 31 final table. After entering as the chip leader, “KRUTHE” cruised to heads-up play with a huge chip lead over “GotURead”. They agreed to a deal and left the required $14,000 in the middle to be played for. It did not take long for “KRUTHE” to seal the deal. With about a 12:1 chip lead, “KRUTHE” called a “GotUread” three-bet preflop, seeing the flop run out {3-Hearts}{K-Spades}{2-Clubs}. “GotURead” shoved his last few chips and “KRUTHE” called with {8-Spades}{5-Diamonds}{9-Hearts}{K-Clubs}, having out-flopped “GotURead” who held {J-Hearts}{Q-Clubs}{2-Diamonds}{J-Diamonds}. The turn and river were blanks and “KRUTHE” took down the tournament and $115,144.26.

PokerStars WCOOP 31 - $320+Rebuys Pot-Limit Omaha (6-max)
Buy-in: $300+20
Prize Pool: $700,000
Entrants: 799

*1. KRUTHE - $115,144.26
*2. GotURead - $92,805.74
3. exmanager - $67,900
4. Kevin “ImaLuckSac” MacPhee - $47,250
5. berdyfish - $33,250
6. Robert “Craps4Dinner” Saltiel - $21,000

* denotes two-way deal

Notable Finishes: Bryn Kenney (14th - $5.950), michaelsc (18th -
$5,950), Matt “VerySexual” Larsh (20th - $4,480), Nick “Stoweski”
Stowe (23rd - $4,480), Ben “Benba” Lamb (28th - $3,640).

Event 32 was the only pure stud hi-lo tournament on the WCOOP docket.
“ShawnZJones” and “Amke" began the final table with the big stacks and soon found themselves playing heads-up for the bracelet. “Amke" was in the lead to start, but “ShawnZJones” battled back to claim victory. On the final hand, “Amke" was all-in on third street and while both held a pair of tens heading to seventh street, “ShawnZJones” made aces-up to emerge victorious.

PokerStars WCOOP 32 - $530 7-Card Stud Hi-Lo
Buy-in: $500+30
Prize Pool: $255,000
Entrants: 510

1. ShawnZJones - $47,940
2. Amke - $35,062.50
3. traction1 - $25,755
4. TheBigViking - $19,125
5. oerockets - $12,750
6. Boykee - $8,925
7. ExtremeUA – $5,737.50
8. Hevad “RaiNKhAN” Khan - $3,825

Notable Finishes: James “Andy McLEOD” Obst (9th - $3,187.50), Adam
“STUDstood” Roberts (14th - $2,550), Joel Adam “2FLY2TILT” Gordon
(16th - $2,550), Chris “Money800” Moneymaker (17th - $2,040), Kevin
“ImaLuckSac” MacPhee (27th - $1,530), Marco “NoraFlum” Johnson (31st -
$1,530), Zac “Zacpacker” Fellows (33rd - $1,275).

If you've missed any of our recaps, check out the PokerStars.TV WCOOP round up show below.

Watch WCOOP 2009: Round-Up Show 2 on PokerStars.tv

Time is running out on the WCOOP, so sign up for a PokerStars account and win your bracelet today.

The Nightly Turbo: Annette_15 Banned, Mercier Gets New Sponsor, and More

Welcome back to The Nightly Turbo. We're bringing you poker's top stories for the day conveniently packaged on one page so you don't have to search too far. We just hope you're working on your game with all that extra time we're saving you.

In Case You Missed It

On Monday, we first told you about the man who won the Ladies Event at the Borgata. We now have a few more details about the event and, of course, a few opinions.
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Everest Poker

WSOP Main Event coverage aired on ESPN last night. If you missed any of it, we have your recap.

Day 13 of the PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker saw three champions crowned. We have the results here.

Ever wonder what Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels has to do with poker? We tell you in From the Big Screen to the Final Table.

Brown Loves Mississippi

Chad Brown was in Biloxi, Miss., for the Gulf Coast Poker Championship. Brown and wife Vanessa Rousso were hosting the event at the Beau Rivage Casino. The "employees-can't-participate" rule doesn't apply here though. Brown took down not only one but two events.

On September 10, Brown won the $500 PLO event for $32,301 and then a few days later entered the $5,000 Championship Event and bested 153 players for first place and a prize of $225,567.

So far this year, Brown has cashed in tournaments for about half a million dollars. Rousso has also had a pretty stellar year with her win at Monte Carlo and second-place finish at NBC Heads-Up. Maybe running good will be passed on to their unborn children.

Sign up for a PokerStars account and get your chance to play against Chad and Vanessa.

Annette_15 Banned...Sort Of

Annette "Annette_15" Obrestad is depicted in an ad for her sponsor, Betfair. The ad shows a photo of Obrestad with this headline "Online experience is measured in games, not years. Join the new breed. Annette_15".

The Advertising Standards Authority has ruled that the ad could have an appeal to young children and adults because the ad could imply that Obrestad is 15 because of her screen name. Betfair was given clear instructions from the ASA not to feature Obrestad in any ads until she turns 25. Would the ad have been rejected if she were touting Guinness? We doubt it...

InTheNews.co.uk has more.

You Heard it Here First

We can't confirm this just yet, but a little birdie told us that Betfair is getting ready to abandon its software platform and join the OnGame Network. With Betfair already one of the world's largest sports books, the influx of gamblers will mean a huge boost to the OnGame Network.

When will it all go down? You'll just have to check back with us to find out. In the meantime, sign up for a Betfair account for a nice bankroll bonus.

Isabelle Rebounds Quickly

Isabelle Mercier is no longer a PokerStars Team Pro. That news has been covered by all of our fine media friends. She has, however, found a new home with BetClick, which is most well-known for its sportsbook, but which is attempting to grow its poker market. It will be opening sites in Belgium, Hungary, Netherlands, Czech Republic and Romania and hopes Isabelle's assets (ahem) will be a driving force in attracting a new player base.

Mercier was a PokerStars Team Pro for five years. She made a name for herself in 2004 by winning the WPT Ladies Night II event and has continued to do well since, amassing about $1 million in tournament winnings.

There is more over at High Stakes News.

Anti-Poker Prohibition Ads Going Mainstream

The Safe and Secure Internet Gambling Initiative has launched an ad campaign aimed at getting lawmakers to end the prohibition of online gambling in the U.S. The ads will run on The Huffington Post, The Washington Post, and Politico.

“As Congress searches for ways to pay for health care reform and other worthy programs, it should end the unsuccessful prohibition of Internet gambling and start collecting taxes on the billions in revenue currently lost to unlicensed, offshore gambling operators,” said Jeffrey Sandman, spokesperson for the Safe and Secure Internet Gambling Initiative.

One of the ads is designed to look like it is straight out of the thirties, with bootleggers rolling out barrels of booze, and says: "End Prohibition! Again. It didn't work for alcohol, it doesn't work for Internet gambling."

We can only hope Internet gaming follows in the footsteps of the now billion-dollar booze industry.

Safeandsecureig.org has more.

Million Dollar Cash Game

The participants of season four of the Full Tilt Poker Million Dollar Cash Game has been announced. Full Tilt Pros Phil Ivey, Chris Ferguson, Justin "Boosted J" Smith, Patrik Antonius, Gus Hansen, Mike Matusow, Allen Cunningham, and Howard Lederer are on the roster. Tom "Durrrr" Dwan, David Benyamine and Doyle Brunson will also make appearances.

The event is invitation-only, so you can go ahead and use all that money you tucked away under your mattress for something with a better return on investment, like, maybe casino war? The pros will battle it out in London on September 16 and 17. The series will air in January 2010 on Sky Sports.

Get your chance to play with the pros by signing up for a Full Tilt account.

WPT-Merit Cyprus Classic Poker Turnuvası

First Super Satellite which held place at September,4 l; The winner Victor Alejandro Lemos Lama, Muhieddim Hazem, Haldun Özgen, Levent Başkaya, Ali Özkan Toptaş ve Burak Tiftikçi won free ticket for the main tournament.
Secon satellite on September, 5 ;Nazım Torbaoğlu, Tal Cohen Sasson, David Sason, Tayfun Radoplu, Ioannis Petri, Reto Herrmann, Frederik James Berger, Ioannes Ahtanassiaides,Alexev Yuzikov, Rahmiz Özcelep, Savaş Şenkaya ve Victor Alejandras Lemos won ticket for the main event.Other Tournament Results

04/09/2009, Buy-in: $500+$40
1 Mehmet Deniz $14181
2 İbrahim Aksu $10010
3 Tamer Ustaoğlu $6048
4 Alexey Gritsenko $3337
5 İsmet Nakri $2711
6 Conte Francesco $2086
7 Mimuni Charli $1460
8 Rahamim Passi $1043
9 Cengizhan Gürsoy $834


05/09/2009, Buy-in $500+$40
1 Ragnar Astrom $12532
2 Göksel Çelikbaş $8846
3 Gil Atzlan $5345
4 Slherle Eabian $2949
5 Gökhan Gürakan $2396
6 AvitaN Eyah $1843
7 Bakhshi Azizallah $1290
8 Melih Ekmekçioğlu $922
9 Aviv Meiri $737


07/09/2009, Buy-In $500+$40
1 Murat Alyüz $10476
2 Maxim Brovko $5820
3 Ceyhun Altundağ $3492
4 Eyüp Şenkaya $2328
5 Gil Atzlan $1164


08/09/2009, Buy-in $500+$40
1 Kenneth Strandli $12222
2 Boris Fragin $6790
3 Rahmi Özcelep $4074
4 Mariusz Czech $2716
5 Shay Levi $1358

09/09/2009, Buy-in : $1000+$80
1 Joseph Koumi $18770
2 Reto Herman $10428
3 Maria Loura Arrudo $6257
4 Martin Kabherl $4171
5 Fabio Feherle $2086

09/09/2009, Buy-in: $500+$40
1 Özcan Barut $5098
2 Boby G $3059
3 Shahaf Hadayu $2039

10/09/2009, Buy-in:$1500+$90
1 Jan Skampa $24881
2 Elias Brussianos $13823
3 Metin Bekil $8294
4 Göksel Çelikbaş $5529
5 Kerignard Yorane$2765

Poker on the Warped Tour: An Exclusive Interview with NOFX Front Man Fat Mike

As the Vans Warped Tour plows through North America for the 15th year, there's a good chance that on any given night, once the crowds have left, many players in participating bands are sitting down to play poker. The game has become an increasingly popular way for bands to kill time while waiting to ship off to the next stop on the tour. One of the players likely to be organizing games is Mike Burkett, better known as Fat Mike, vocalist for punk band NOFX. Mike keeps busy with his band, which has released 12 full-length records (including 2009's Coaster), 15 EPs, and a slew of singles. We caught up with Mike in the midst of it all to talk bad beats, Vegas, and big money.
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We've been told that you've got some serious poker skills Mike, how do you approach the game? Is it just a hobby, or are you out to bank some serious cash?

I started taking it seriously about four years ago. I could write off all my entry fees by making more than I put in, so I don't know if that makes you a professional, but I was playing and cashing enough checks to where I could have probably made a living at it, but then I had a daughter and was doing more stuff with my band and now I don't play as many tournaments.

Were you playing primarily live or online?

I was flying to Las Vegas and to the Commerce Casino. I was making quite a few final tables. I came in fifth at a Commerce Casino shootout tournament. The lady had a two-outer and I should have cashed for $30,000. There were 300 people in that tournament, which is about the size of the tournaments I play.

You started hosting poker tournaments on the tour a number of years ago, what are those games like?

The Warped Tour is totally different. The tournaments generally have ten to twenty people and we usually play for $100 to $200.

Have you met anyone in the other bands on tour who surprised you as being especially good, or are there any people you thought would be good but ended up being the sucker?

This year there is nobody, in any of the bands, who is good. There are some good players, but they're just people who work on the Warped Tour. Matt (M. Shadows) from Avenged Sevenfold is good and so is Davey Havok from AFI. Then you always have Fletcher (Dragge) from Pennywise. He lost $13,000 on our last game in 2006. He lost money to Kevin (Lyman, founder of Warped Tour), Nick (Hexum) from 311, me, and Davey Havok. Since it was the last game, that night had a $1,000 buy-in. I was the bank so I kept giving him markers. At the end of the night I went to his manager and told him Fletcher owed me $13,000. He didn't even think twice, just opened a box and handed me the money.

Do you mix it up online at all?

Well I don't play often because people have gotten way too advanced in their ability. The kind of stakes I play online are the stakes the professionals are playing at. It's easier at home. I don't see much of an advantage playing online anymore. It's a grind. If you want to play eight hours a day you can make a living, but I don't have eight hours a day. There's a casino near my house and I would rather go there and play live.

Have you picked up games other than No Limit Hold'em?

I think the main event of the World Series of Poker should be Omaha Hi-Lo. You're not going to get an amateur to win the WSOP if it is Omaha. You're shooting for the nuts in that game and it's so easy to trap people when you're going to scoop and all they have is a 50% chance to get half. They're thinking "I can get the nuts" and maybe win half.

I play online tournaments and I do pretty good, but whenever I play Omaha Hi-Lo tournaments I get killed, which leads me to believe I'm not that good at it (laughs).

The thing is, if I get back into poker playing seriously - and I can't right now, I don't have the time - Omaha Hi-Lo is the game I want to excel at. Even though it's harder to get games at local casinos, it's easier to get cash. But you don't get as many suckers. Hold'em is pretty simple to understand, those players are not going to sit down in Omaha. Think about Backgammon, you can't play it against a real player, they will win every time. I used to play Backgammon so much as a kid, but there is so much involved in it.

The World Series of Poker overlapped with the Warped Tour this year. In the past have you ever taken time to head to Vegas for a shot at WSOP glory?

I would like to. When I go to Vegas I play the $500 tournies at the Wynn or the Bellagio. It's pretty easy to get into the money in those games. I haven't flown to Vegas to play tournaments in a while. I tour so much with my band, and when I had my daughter I just didn't have time anymore.

So we now know all about the Warped Tour games, do you get much of a chance to play when you're on your own tours?

Not really. If I do have any spare time, it's only a couple of hours. You can't sit down and play for just a couple of hours.

Playing in a casino, do you ever get hounded for pictures or autographs? How does that affect how you play?

Not so much. I did at a few celebrity tournaments. One of them I did pretty well in. It's funny because I'm the celebrity at the table and I'm thinking, "Nobody knows who I am, this isn't fair." That's when I got to meet Jennifer Tilly, Phil Laak, and Antonio Esfandiari, as well as a lot of the old time guys who were playing before poker was big.

It doesn't affect my play; I don't think anyone knows my game well enough. It's not like I have secret moves or anything like that. I play strong hands and sometimes I take advantage of weak players. I'm not some super bluffer. I semi-bluff but I don't bluff too much at all. I'm a simple player. Usually in the tournaments I play, you generally do well playing like that.

What do you think is the biggest mistake that amateurs make on the tables?

They just play too many hands. Nobody has any idea about position. Matt from Avenged Sevenfold pays attention. But people get AJ off-suit and they can't fold it. It's so funny, but dude, you have the losing hand and you have two people after you betting and you're going to play AJ? It hurts sometimes when you come in under the gun and you have AJ and well, even calling one big raise with AJ out of position is terrible.

Best of luck Mike, hopefully we'll catch you winning an Omaha Hi-Lo bracelet soon.

Need to freshen up your Omaha skills also? Check out the PokerNews Strategy section here.

Weekend Survival Guide: Vegas Deals, Gadgets, G.I. Joe, and More

In honor of the impending weekend, PokerNews will be offering up a few things that'll allow you to spend some of that hard-earned bankroll, since nothing's better than working hard, but playing harder.

Go

With the World Series of Poker over and done with for the summer, Las Vegas is offering a slew of sick deals to entice you back to Sin City.

The Luxor is offering up a free flight for a friend, when you buy one ticket to fly on Southwest Airlines and stay with them between 8/17 - 1/07/09. Once there, be sure to check out LAX, and if you're bold enough (and rich enough) hit up Noir Bar, the private club within LAX itself. Book it before 8/10 (we know, soon) here.
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The brand new Paradise Tower has just opened for business at the Hard Rock Hotel, and they're celebrating by offering 30% off any stay over three nights. The new rooms are slicker than ever, with fresh new decor, luxurious amenities, and a 40" LCD TV in every room. Book it at HardRockHotel.com.

Buy

The Mimo Mini USB Monitor is a portable 7" USB monitor that gives you just enough additional room to add a table or two to your current setup. It's the perfect companion for the grinder-on-the-go who is tired of playing on that 15" laptop. Costing less than a full $1/$2 NL Hold'em buy-in, how can you not spoil yourself. Buy it here.

Did Jeff Madsen's rhymes in last night's Nightly Turbo inspire you? Check out the iPill, which allows iPod users to add a mini microphone to their iPod that will enable them to use it as a voice recorder. Sure, call it silly now, but you'll be thanking us for the hours of entertainment it'll provide after a long night of drinking. Read more about it at Gaj-It.com.

Watch

Face the Ace is on Saturday night at 9pm EST with its second episode and it should be an interesting one, as Don Topel squares off against an un-known pro for $1 million. Topel, a 41-year-old truck driver from Midlothian, Illinois beat Erik Lindgren and Howard Lederer to make it to the million dollar match. Whether you like the show or not, the expression on this guy's face (whether he loses or wins) will be priceless and definitely worth checking out. Qualify yourself for the show by signing up at Full Tilt.

If you're male and over the age of twenty, then seeing G.I. Joe The Rise of Cobra is a no-brainer, and if you're not, then support your friends who are. Even if the brand new flick is pure garbage, like the cartoon/comic that an entire generation of boys grew up watching always said, "Now you know, and knowing is half the battle." Watch the trailer here.

Play

If you can't get enough poker to satisfy your action cravings, and we know you're out there, then you'll want to hop into some of the great tournaments being offered by Full Tilt during the FTOPS, and prepare yourself for the WCOOP on PokerStars with some satellites.

FTOPS
August 8
14:00 $500+$35 buy-in PLO 6max with a $350k guarantee
16:00 $100+$9 buy-in NL Hold'em Rebuy with a $500k guarantee

August 9
14:00 $240+$16 buy-in NL Hold'em KO 6max with a $750k guarantee
16:00 $500+$35 buy-in NL Hold'em Heads Up with a $500k guarantee
18:00 $300+$22 buy-in NL Hold'em with a $1.5 million guarantee

PokerStars Extreme WCOOP Satellites
August 8
14:00 $215 buy-in (Stars is adding 50x $1050 seats)
16:00 $27 buy-in (Stars is adding 100x $215 seats)

August 9
14:00 $82 buy-in (Stars is adding 100x $320 seats)
16:00 $82 buy-in (Stars is adding 50x $530 seats)
18:00 $27 buy-in (Stars is adding 100x $215 seats)

Those craving the live action, and hoping to get away from staring at avatars of peoples babies all day, may want to check out these tournaments.

Commerce Casino, in Los Angeles is hosting a $30,000 guarantee on Saturday at 1pm with a $120 buy-in, and one optional $100 dollar re-buy, with thirty minute levels and 3,000 in starting chips (with the re-buy).

In Atlantic City, pop over to the Borgata on Saturday at 11am for their $340 buy-in, offering 10,000 chips to start with, and thirty minute levels.

The Venetian in Vegas has a $540 buy-in at noon on Saturday, giving players a whopping $15,000 in chips (with optional $10 dealer bonus), and 40 minute levels, giving you more than enough time to build your "donkey image", before flipping the switch to table captain.

Hopefully the first installment of the Weekend Survival Guide served you well, like it or hate it, let us know below. Invite your friends to become a fan of PokerNews at our Facebook page here.

The Nightly Turbo: The Poker Hall of Fame, Chinese

It sure has been a busy week. Good thing you have us to bring you the day's top poker news, so you aren't searching for it all over the place and missing that chance to bluff someone with seven-deuce.

FTOPS XIII Day 2

FTOPS XIII is going strong. No overlays yet, as players are coming out in full force for their chance at a win. Events 2 and 3 crowned champions last night.

The first event of the day was the $300+$22 buy-in No Limit Hold'em 4xShootout 6max. There were 1,193 players entered which brought the total prize pool to $357,900, $107,900 more than the $250,000 guarantee. "Jive32" took the title and $62,632.50 for his efforts.
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Event #2 Final Table Payouts
1. jive32: $62,632.50
2. CooLJohN22222: $39,369.00
3. POCKET FIVE: $26,198.28
4. Jsbryan: $17,895.00
5. Mutha Flushaa: $12,526.50
6. Gracie8585: $8,589.60

The $200+$16 Omaha/8 event was the second event of the day. This event attracted 1,086 players giving the total prize pool a $17,200 boost from it's $200,000 guarantee to $217,200. The final five players decided on making a deal and third place finisher "HelloCity" took home the biggest chunk of change with $32,238.44, proving yet again, sometimes it's not a bad idea to make a deal.

Event #3 Final Table Payouts
1.* UgA7211: $29,630.73
2.* Acesoverxxx: $21,224.28
3.* HelloCity: $32,238.44
4.* gr24: $24,295.57
5.* LAJG: $26,840.58
6. TheComeUp: $9,774.00
7. arobinson11: $6,516.00
8. thechemist83: $4,887.00
9. knickadam55: $3,475.20
* Winnings reflect post-deal payout amounts.

You still have a shot at FTOPS fame. Sign up here.

Views on the Poker Hall of Fame

Daniel Negreanu and Doyle Brunson have taken to their blogs to speak out about who they think should be inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame. This is the first year that the public has been able to vote on who they think should be nominated. Then, the 15 living members of the Hall of Fame and 15 media members vote on the publicly nominated top 10. Each voter has two votes.

Criteria for induction are:
(1) Must have played against top competition.
(2) Played for high stakes.
(3) Played consistently well, gaining respect of their peers.
(4) Stood the test of time.
(5) Contributed to the overall growth and success of poker with positive and lasting results.

The top 10 nominees are: Tom Dwan, Barry Greenstein, Dan Harrington, Phil Ivey, Tom McEvoy, Men Nguyen, Scotty Nguyen, Daniel Negreanu, Erik Seidel, and Mike Sexton.

While Doyle outlines his views on each of the nominees, Daniel focuses more on the criteria for selection, even saying he doesn't think he should be inducted...yet. No matter which way they went about it, they've both come to the same conclusion: Mike Sexton. We'll just have to wait till November to find out who will be inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame Class of 2009.

The Chinese Version of Rounders in the Making

"Listen, here's the thing. If you can't spot the sucker in the first half hour at the table, then you ARE the sucker." It's every poker player's favorite movie. Mike, Worm, and Teddy KGB have been immortalized in the poker community, which is no surprise that when rumors of Rounders 2 started floating around, they spread like wildfire.

Now the buzz is in Asia. Poker King seems to be Asia's answer to the 1998 Hollywood hit. Directed by famous Chinese director Chan Hing-Kai and Janet Chun, Poker King tells the story of two bitter poker rivals competing for world championship glory. The Asian Poker Tour Macau Festival will be featured in this highly anticipated movie. Johnny Chan, who made a cameo in Rounders, is hoping for a role in the Poker King.

“Poker King has the potential to be much, much bigger than Rounders ever was. Say there are over one billion Chinese speaking people in the world and compare this to the US and their 300 million people, you can see that this could be huge. Rounders gave poker a new lease of life in the western world – this could kick start a new poker boom in Asia," said Chan.

Bigger than Rounders? I guess we'll just have to wait and see.
Check out more about the movie here.

Send My Chips

Run out of money on your Absolute Poker account but you just won the an FTOPS event on Full Tilt? SendMyChips will transfer your funds from Full Tilt to Absolute Poker for you (for a small fee of course).

They have levels and black lists set up to protect players against fraud. The levels limit the amount a player can transfer over seven days and the black lists allow poker sites to ban player aliases from using the SendMyChips services.

This seems like a great idea and it will keep you from having to make deals, to get money on your account, with a friend of a friend of a friend. Only problem, they currently don't accept transaction requests from US based players.

If you want to check out more about it, go here.

Sexy Time

If you have a Wii, you like poker, and you're a fan of anime chicks, then Sexy Poker is the game for you. The game features six anime style women that strip to their undies if you're good enough at poker. You can download the game for 500 points on WiiWare.

Wanna learn more about the game? Check it out here.

Like The Nightly Turbo? Tell us about it below. Become a fan on Facebook too.

Say YES to a $500 PokerNews Cash Freeroll at Betfair Poker!

Don't forget that the upcoming $500 PokerNews Cash Freeroll at Betfair Poker does not require a minimum deposit and points/rake requirements.

The freeroll will take place on August 14 and only requires that you have a Betfair Poker account that was registered through PokerNews.

Already have an existing account with Betfair Poker? That's fine, you are welcome to join in so long as you originally signed up through PokerNews.

We've got other exclusive promotions currently running with Betfair Poker. For a peek, simply head to PokerNews Freerolls today.
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A Round in the Cage with Randy Couture

Possibly one of the toughest men on the planet, Randy Couture is stepping out of the ring and sitting down at the poker table for both an upcoming charity event, Operation All-In, and the highly anticipated PokerNews Sports Legends Challenge. We caught up with Randy to see how he is preparing himself for his foray on the felt.

First of all Randy, how did you first find your way into the game of poker?

It all started with my Extreme GI Foundation, where our second event was a charity poker tournament at the Hard Rock. We had a bunch of pros come in and Jamie Gold was there to emcee the event. It was a really great event, and we raised a bunch of money for the soldiers, so it was a blast. It also was my first time at a poker table, and boy was it a learning experience.
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We know the second installment of Operation All-In is coming up, has your poker game improved at all since last year?

Well, I certainly hope so. I tend to be a little aggressive early on and then you're forced to go all-in just to stay in the game (laughs). I'm definitely not the best poker player, but I do have a lot of fun playing. I'm looking forward to the Golden Nugget event on August 22nd, as well as playing with these sports legends in the Bahamas in September.

Tell us a bit about the Sports Legends Challenge, what prompted you to get involved?

They asked Chuck (Liddell) and myself to represent Mixed Martial Arts and we both jumped at the opportunity to be around guys like Jim Brown, Jerry West, and Sugar Ray Leonard, I mean the list of stars goes on and on.

Over the course of your MMA career, you developed quite a rivalry with Chuck, do you foresee that spilling over onto the felt?

Well, I dont know, our rivalry was primarily contained to the cage. We always got along well outside of the cage, but we're both very competitive guys, so we'll see if we end up on the same team or different teams, and obviously if we're on different teams its all about winning, so we will be going at it, thats for sure.

Sports Legends Challenge is offering a lot of different events over the course of the weekend, from poker instruction, to golf outings, to the Main Event, is there one event in particular you are most looking forward to?

I think the whole experience is going to be fun; I've never been down there and I hear its absolutely gorgeous. I'm really looking forward to the Main Event, as that is obviously the big draw, but I also enjoy golfing a lot. I know how to swing the club alright, and even though I never can be quite sure of which fairway I'll end up on, I love playing.

We all know poker players love to gamble out on the golf course; do you foresee any serious betting on the links?

(laughs) I think I'll leave all my gambling for the poker table.

Which sports legend do you anticipate being the worst player of the bunch, and which do you think has a little game?

To be honest, I'm not sure of any of there poker skills. Every single one of them may be just as bad as I am, which could make for some seriously interesting and entertaining plays.

Mixed Martial Arts has become one of the most popular sports in the country these days, which sports legend would have made an excellent MMA fighter in their day?

I think Jim Brown is obviously a tremendous athlete who is a big physical guy, and would have been a great fighter. Obviously Sugar Ray Leonard, with his boxing skills, was already a tremendous fighter in his day, and with a little work on his grappling and wrestling skills would have made for a helluva MMA fighter as well.

Before we let you go, tell us about your most memorable hand of poker?

(laughs) Three times during the first Operation All-In event I found myself short on chips, needing to move all-in with any decent holding, and all three times it came down to the river card to make or break me. I ended up winning all three hands, one of which was with one of the poker pros, and it was pretty exciting. Jamie Gold was emceeing and made a huge deal out of each situation, which made the hands even more entertaining. You win some and you lose some though, as right before the final table Frank Trig hit a card on the river to knock me out on his way to finishing third in the tournament.

Well, best of luck Randy we look forward to catching up with you at the Sports Legends Challenge in a few weeks. For your shot at a trip to the Sports Legends Challenge, check out Absolute Poker for satellites.

PokerNews Jet Set: Macau

Since we know you're heading to Macau for all the APT and APPT action, we thought we'd go ahead and prep you with a plethora of places to spread the spoils of your victories and sorrows of your defeat. Don't get too caught up in this 21st century gambling mecca, filled with hundreds of flashing neon signs and LCD screens, as you still need to win your seats for the upcoming PokerNews Cup, and PokerNews Sports Legends Challenge.

Monkey Bar – (Grand Waldo Casino, 1st Floor, behind the gaming floor)
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Monkey Bar is a dark, blue-lit bar inside the Grand Waldo that is favored by locals on the Cotai side of Macau. Tall, plush red couches surround a wrap-around island stainless steel bar that is periodically set afire by the staff. Beautiful young women who hail from all corners of Asia dance atop the bar amidst the flames, aided by dancing poles that reach from bar to ceiling. These same women act as "buy-me-a-drink" girls, who will climb down from the bar to engage in friendly chit-chat with unaccompanied males for the price of two shots of tequila - one for you and one for her.

Bellini Lounge – (Venetian Casino, just off the gaming floor)

When you get a hankering for live music, Bellini Lounge in the Venetian is where the young, trendy and moneyed clientele of the Macau casinos head. Although it can be a bit loud and hard to hear that lovely Filipina beauty you've been eyeing for the last hour, Bellini Lounge is worth a visit just to behold the immensity of the Venetian itself. The hotel complex, the largest casino in the world, is an imposing monolith that dominates the center of the Cotai Strip. Its gaming floor is filled day and night with baccarat and sic bo players and its Canal Shoppes, upscale restaurants like Fogo Samba (a meat-lover's paradise) and bars like Bellini Lounge provide an alternative to gambling that many of the more-established Macau properties lack.

Lion Bar – (MGM Grand Casino, center of the gaming floor)

On the peninsula side of Macau, MGM Grand's Lion Bar also provides live music with a nightly cover band that blares popular American music designed the get the crowd's blood pumping and feet thumping. The crowd materializes a bit later than Monkey Bar or Bellini Lounge, with most patrons not turning up earlier than 11pm. They array themselves in a variety of squat, plush chairs and couches that front the stage, having no qualms about paying very un-Macanese prices to order just about any alcohol they desire from the long, well-stocked bar at the back of the room. Ladies get a break on drink prices on Wednesday nights and turn out in droves to take advantage of it.

Whiskey Bar – (Galaxy StarWorld Casino, 16th Floor)

If the days of being that young at heart are behind you, Whiskey Bar on the 16th floor of the Galaxy StarWorld might be more your speed. The air is much more refined at Whiskey Bar, with decor suggestive of a stately manor, impressive views of the waterfront and a scotch and whiskey selection unrivalled in Macau.

D2 Disco – (inside the AIA Tower, Avenida Comercial de Macau, Macau peninsula)
MP4 Disco – (inside the Royal Hotel, Estrada de Vitoria, Macau peninsula)

Once you've put a few drinks in your system, it's time to trip the light fantastic. Stay away from the Cotai Strip if dancing is your aim; the nightlife on that side of Macau is primarily a bar scene. Instead make a beeline for the Macau peninsula, where your two best options are sizzling hot nightclubs with alpha-numeric names: D2 and MP4. MP4 is open Thursday to Sunday; D2 is open every night of the week. Neither sees much action before 2am, but then, both are hopping until long after the sun sheds its light on the city. Inside each disco lithe, young bodies meld seamlessly in time with thumping disco music. Spend some time dancing with a "buy-me-a-drink" girl or a local girl, but be prepared to negotiate for services rendered with many of the locals. Their time is valuable. They won't waste it on a lonely guy looking for someone to talk to.

Other Attractions

When you get tired of spending every waking minute inside of a casino, and everybody does, it's time to head out and explore the city itself. Macau has a rich colonial tradition that dates back to the 16th century. By day, historical sites like the Ruins of St. Paul's, the Guia Fort, and Lighthouse are the main destinations. If you'd rather just relax, spas and saunas cover every square-inch of Macau. Those located outside the walls of the Western casinos provide amazingly therapeutic services at bargain-basement prices. Know the difference between the two before you go. Spas are what can be considered "legit" relaxation parlors; saunas provide some seedier services.

If you've yet to win a seat to some of the events themselves, what are you waiting for? PokerStars has a slew of satellites for the APPT. For the APT you'll want to check out Titan Poker, Party Poker, Bwin and PKR.

Near Miss for Andy Bloch in FTOPS Event #5

The thirteenth Full Tilt Online Poker Series (FTOPS) continued on Friday with two more events. Among all of the notable finishes, one in particular stands out. Team Full Tilt member Andy Bloch took second place in event #5, a $200+16 stud tournament, for $17,081.60. On the final hand, at a 20:1 chip disadvantage, Bloch made a stand with ({a-Clubs}{5-Hearts}){3-Hearts} and managed to make a pair of queens. His opponent, Xsporean, began the hand with ({k-Diamonds}{7-Hearts}){3-Spades}. The rest of Xsporean’s board ran out {4-Spades}{3-Diamonds}{8-Clubs}{4-Diamonds} and Xsporean made fours and threes to win the hand and take down the tournament.
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Bloch is certainly no stranger to runner-up showings. Most recently, Andy finished second to Nenad Medic in the Pot Limit Hold’em World Championship at the 2008 World Series of Poker. Just prior to that, he took second place in the 2008 NBC National Heads Up Championship after coming up short against Chris Ferguson in the finals. Finally, and perhaps his most memorable runner-up performance, he finished 2nd, to the late Chip Reese, in the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. event at the 2006 WSOP.

In an interview with PokerNews just before the 2009 WSOP, Bloch spoke about his second-place finishes in the WSOP and missing out on his first bracelet.

“People wouldn’t talk about me being one of the best players without a bracelet. But you know, a lot of my peers, a lot of poker pros, they are kind of surprised when they hear that I don’t have a bracelet yet. So, in some sense, it’s not like I need to win it to gain the respect of my peers, because in a lot of ways that’s showing that they have a lot of respect for my game already if they think that I must already have a bracelet. It would be a great thing [to win one] and my goal for the World Series is to win a bracelet. But if I get second in a big event, I’d be pretty happy, too.”

Bloch didn’t make any final tables this year, but he did cash in three events. While that first-place finish still eludes him, as long as he can pull out the solid second-place paydays, Bloch will be a force to be reckoned with on the poker scene, live and online.

FTOPS XIII – Event #5 - Stud
Buy-in: $200+16
Prize Pool: $108,800
Entrants: 544

1. Xsporean - $25,785.60
2. Andy Bloch - $17,081.60
3. I Intent - $11,968
4. electron78 - $7,398.40
5. Austin “The Quietwinner” McCormick - $4,569.60
6. bobboufl11 - $3,155.20
7. fishhawker - $2,393.60
8. PPLL99 - $1,632

FTOPS XIII – Event #4 – NLH 1 Rebuy +1 Add-On

Buy-in: $200+16
Prize Pool: $679,400
Entrants: 1,415 (1,024 Rebuys, 958 Add-Ons)

1. Jon “TwistedEcho” Heath - $102,382.28
2. YesImaHick - $103,811.37
3. Craig “ELMO_MASK” Boyd - $100,895.15
4. kautabjo - $54,352
5. OJ Limpsin - $40,764
6. Frank “Gator93” Hernandez - $29,214.20
7. Josh “professor plum” Prager - $19,023.20
8. KaPanY3 - $13,588
9. My Brim Low - $9,511.60

There is still plenty of time to win an FTOPS event. Sign up for Full Tilt here.

PNC Satellite Series at PartyPoker Announced

PartyPoker is our latest partner to host an incredible Satellite Series to the 2009 PokerNews Cup Australia.

This time, there are two different packages on offer:

$5,000 package
Main Event Entry
Accommodation at the uber-premium Crown Promenade Hotel
$1,500 cash for travel

$3,500 package
Main Event Entry
Accommodation at the uber-premium Crown Promenade Hotel

To participate, you will need a PartyPoker account that's linked to PokerNews. Sub satellites run daily and start from as low as $2. Alternatively, players can opt to buy-in direct to Sunday's Super Satellites for $380 or $535. The first Super Satellite begins in just a few hours with one in ten players guaranteed to go home with a package!

PartyPoker offers PokerNews players an exclusive $50 free with no deposit. Additionally, look out for PartyPoker's $6,000 PokerNews Cup Australia Freeroll on August 30!
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The PokerNews Cup Australia will run from September 27-October 5 at the Southern Hemisphere's most sought after poker destination, Crown Casino Melbourne. For further details on our flagship event, visit www.PokerNewsCup.com.

PokerNews Playlist: Volume 2

For both serious and casual online poker players, Sundays are (hopefully) a long grind. For those who don't want to play in a meditative state, music can be the perfect middle ground between total silence and the distraction of television. Don't know what to listen to? Let us take care of that.

This summer Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band kicked off the second leg of their 2009 tour. To celebrate we have selected 30 of our favorite Springsteen tracks and broken them down into three categories of Springsteen's career - early (1973-1982), middle (1983-1995) and late (1996-2009). A long Sunday afternoon provides the perfect opportunity to sit down and listen to the wealth of material he's released. Of course, any fan of Springsteen will debate with any other fan's essential playlist. So why not head over to our forums to post your own. Not a fan (yet)? Let this playlist serve as an introduction to one of America's greatest songwriters.
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Early career

Bruce Springsteen burst into the spotlight with his 1973 debut, Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. He followed it with a string of albums echoing the urgency of working class youth and a need to escape from the various places that life drops people.

"Does This Bus Stop At 82nd Street?"
"Incident on 57th Street"
"Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)"
"Thunder Road"
"Born to Run"
"Backstreets"
"Badlands"
"The Promised Land"
"Hungry Heart"
"The River"
"Atlantic City"

Middle career

1984's Born in the U.S.A. is arguably Springsteen's most popular album. However, after its release it would be 18 years before he had the E Street Band back him up again (Tunnel of Love doesn't count). The rest of the material recorded in this phase was largely forgettable, but there are a few gems, especially on The Ghost of Tom Joad which saw him return to the acoustic/folk structure seen earlier in Nebraska.

"Dancing in the Dark"
"Glory Days"
"No Surrender"
"I Wish I Were Blind"
"Cautious Man"
"Lucky Town"
"Local Hero"
"Ghost of Tom Joad"
"Sinaola Cowboys"
"Straight Time"

Late career

Springsteen took seven years between full-length albums before his post - 9/11 masterpiece The Rising. The album reunited him with the E Street band, and the following years have proven to be some of his best, with consecutively stellar releases.

"Lonesome Day"
"The Rising"
"The Hitter"
"Jesse James"
"American Land"
"Radio Nowhere"
"Girls in Their Summer Clothes"
"Working on a Dream"
"The Wrestler"

With any luck, this Sunday will find you a few dollars richer. Check back each Sunday as we bring you fresh playlists to get you through poker's toughest day of the week.

Ben Conoley is a music journalist based in Eastern Canada. He serves as Interview Editor for Punknews and has recently written for Alternative Press, Exclaim!, Chart, Canadian Musician and elsewhere. He currently serves on the Polaris Music Prize jury.

Don't forget to follow us on twitter here, and be sure to sign up for your very own account at My.Pokernews.com.

PokerNews Sponsors Sports Legends Challenge

Two worlds will collide in the Bahamas in September. For four days, twenty-five of the greatest sports legends of our time along side twenty-five of the world’s top poker professionals will take over the Atlantis Paradise Island Resort in the Bahamas for the PokerNews Sports Legends Challenge. PokerNews and the Sports Legends Challenge have joined forces to create a once-in-a-lifetime experience for participants.

“We’re absolutely thrilled to be involved with such a high-profile, premiere event,” said PokerNews Editor-in-Chief, Matthew Parvis. “The Sports Legends Challenge is any poker players’ dream come true and we look forward to a long standing relationship with SLC for many years to come.”
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PokerNews, the world’s leading online source for poker news, reviews, and bonuses, has been named the title sponsor of the event that will pit sports legends, poker pros, and fans against each other in a variety of poker, golf, blackjack, and slots tournaments. PokerNews will be providing exclusive interviews and reports throughout the event.

“The Sports Legends Challenge is extremely proud and honored to have a global media organization with the stature of PokerNews as its titled sponsor. PokerNews will play a major role in internationally expanding the Sports Legends Challenge brand,” said CEO and Founder of The Sports Legends Challenge, Bruce Bibbero. “PokerNews has established a reputation for poker and gaming excellence as the sports legends participating in our program have established similar reputations for excellence and achievement in professional sports and the uniting of these two organizations represents the foundation for an outstanding long-term relationship.”

The PokerNews Sports Legends Challenge will take place from September 14th through September 17th at the Atlantis Resort and Casino in the Bahamas. Participants will take part in Sit-n-Gos, cash games, and golf, as well as a poker academy, where they will get tips and training from the poker pros, and a Q&A session with the sports legends.

Antonio Esfandiari, Mike Sexton, Annie Duke, Gavin Smith, Marco Traniello, and Johnny Chan are just a few of the poker pros that are scheduled to attend. The sports legends have Troy Aikman, Rocco Mediate, Tony Hawk, Herschel Walker, Randy Couture, and Sugar Ray Leonard in their corner, as well as many more.

All the activities over the four days lead up to the PokerNews Sports Legends All-Star Poker Challenge. This event will pair up sports legends, poker pros, and participants in a winner-take-all finale that will air on Fox Sports Network on Thanksgiving Day.

To win your way to the Bahamas to get the chance to meet some of your favorite poker players and sports legends check out our Absolute Poker Promotions.

Daniel _Danneville_ Loewinski Captures PokerStars Sunday Million

The PokerStars Sunday Million boasted a field of 8,342 entrants this weekend, with a total prize pool of $1,668,400 and a first-place payday of over $200,000. Among the top finishers falling short of the final table were GARIFUNA1 in 16th place ($4,337.85), Bryan “bparis” Paris in 20th ($3,670.49), Jesper “KipsterDK” Hougaard in 52nd ($2,836.59), and Daniel “Allanon85” Drescher in 61st ($2,586.03). In the end, it came down to a battle of the Swedes as Daniel “Danneville” Loewinski faced off against Michael “Skämmes” Tureniec, with Loewinski emerging as the victor. The chip counts at the start of the final table were as follows:
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Michael “Skämmes” Tureniec - 18,407,722
asbo22 - 13,017,771
Daniel “Danneville” Loewinski - 12,275,378
BREAKURFACE - 9,112,220
KingGorn - 7,320,978
FreeLancerZZ - 6,546,888
ThePokerBody - 6,394,602
domino16 - 5,346,851
buttonsAAAA - 4,997,590

The first to exit the final table was buttonsAAAA at 250,000/500,000/50,000. From early position, KingGorn raised to 1,142,475 and buttonsAAAA moved all in for 3,986,104 from the button with {A-Spades}{J-Clubs}. KingGorn called with {K-Diamonds}{K-Hearts} and took down the pot as the board came {9-Spades}{6-Hearts}{3-Diamonds}{4-Hearts}{8-Hearts}. For the ninth-place finish, buttonsAAAA earned $12,930.11.

FreeLancerZZ was the next to fall after losing a battle of the blinds. BREAKURFACE made it 1,400,000 to play from the small blind and FreeLancerZZ shoved for 6,906,125 from the large blind. BREAKURFACE called with {A-Clubs}{Q-Spades} and defeated FreeLancerZZ’s {K-Diamonds}{J-Clubs} as the board ran out {2-Clubs}{2-Diamonds}{9-Hearts}{A-Diamonds}{2-Hearts}. FreeLancerZZ took $18,352.41 for eighth place. Two hands later, asbo22 made a move with {K-Hearts}{8-Spades} and ran into chip leader Michael “Skämmes” Tureniec‘s {A-Hearts}{J-Clubs}. The board fell ace-high and asbo22 was out in seventh place for $33,368.01.

BREAKURFACE departed at the 300,000/600,000/60,000 level. Under the gun, BREAKURFACE raised to 1,350,000 and next to act, Michael “Skämmes” Tureniec popped it to 3,500,000. It folded back around to BREAKURFACE, who went all in for 17,483,470. Tureniec called and revealed pocket tens to BREAKURFACE’s {A-Spades}{K-Diamonds}. The community cards came {3-Clubs}{2-Spades}{3-Diamonds}{Q-Hearts}{6-Hearts} as BREAKURFACE came up short, out in sixth place for $50,052.01. KingGorn was dethroned after getting it in with {A-Hearts}{8-Clubs} against domino16’s {6-Spades}{6-Clubs}. The board rolled out {6-Diamonds}{Q-Clubs}{8-Diamonds}{K-Clubs}{10-Spades} as KingGorn was knocked out in fifth place for $66,736.01.

ThePokerBody was sent to the rail after seeing Daniel “Danneville” Loewinski shove with the bigger stack from the small blind. ThePokerBody called all in for 6,919,204 with {A-Clubs}{K-Diamonds} and was in good shape facing Loewinski’s {Q-Hearts}{J-Hearts}. However, the board ran out {10-Hearts}{J-Spades}{7-Clubs}{10-Clubs}{2-Diamonds} as ThePokerBody exited in fourth place for $83,420.01.

Domino16 was the next to fall. On the button, domino16 made it 1,800,000 to go and Michael Tureniec reraised to 4,200,000 from the small blind. Loewinski folded in the big blind and domino16 shoved for 17,222,065. Tureniec called with {9-Clubs}{9-Spades} and was flipping against domino16’s {A-Hearts}{J-Diamonds}. The board came down {K-Clubs}{10-Spades}{3-Hearts}{K-Spades}{K-Diamonds} as domino16 failed to catch up to Tureniec’s nines, out in third place for $125,130.01.

After much discussion, a deal was agreed upon. Michael “Skämmes” Tureniec was guaranteed $202,271.36, while Daniel “Danneville” Loewinski was promised $192,503.30. The remaining $30,000 would be awarded to the winner. Despite being at a chip disadvantage at the start of heads-up play, Loewinski went on to win the tournament.

On the final hand at 400,000/800,000/80,000, Loewinski opened to 2,400,000 and Tureniec reraised to 6,400,000. Loewinski shoved with the bigger stack and Tureniec called all in for 32,143,612 with {6-Clubs}{6-Hearts}. Loewinski tabled {A-Spades}{Q-Spades} and won the race by making a flush on the river after the board ran out {5-Clubs}{3-Spades}{8-Hearts}{2-Spades}{4-Spades}. Michael “Skämmes” Tureniec collected $202,271.36 for finishing as the runner-up. Daniel “Danneville” Loewinski was the winner of this week’s PokerStars Sunday Million, good for $222,503.30.

Final Results:

*1. Daniel “Danneville” Loewinski - $222,503.30
*2. Michael “Skämmes” Tureniec - $202,271.36
3. domino16 - $125,130.01
4. ThePokerBody -$83,420.01
5. KingGorn - $66,736.01
6. BREAKURFACE - $50,052.01
7. asbo22 - $33,368.01
8. FreeLancerZZ - $18,352.41
9. buttonsAAAA - $12,930.11

* - Two-way deal awarding $30,000 to the eventual winner.

_KtownCicero_ Clinches Victory in Full Tilt $750K Guarantee

This week’s $750,000 Sunday Guarantee at Full Tilt Poker drew a crowd of 4,401 with first place set at $155,434.52. Notable finishes that missed the final table included Kyle “kwob20” Bowker in 13th ($6,205.41), Ace18 in 17th ($4,356.99), A6540 in 21st ($3,256.74), Hans “miAmihAns” Winzeler in 33rd ($2,640.60), and Brandon Adams in 49th ($1,584.36). KtownCicero began the final table as the chip leader and finished as the champion to take home the six-figure payday. Here are the chip counts at the beginning of the final table:

KtownCicero – 2,894,057
crazyz987 – 2,146,534
jba1986 – 2,017,000
Jacob “wvumaniac2” Bucher – 1,734,617
HITTHEPANDA – 1,734,209
kishotti –1,025,034
00s – 774,672
feltingfools – 749,148
chkrazethedevil – 127,729
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Despite nearly tripling up in the early going, chkrazethedevil busted first at 25,000/50,000/6,000. Under the gun, chkrazethedevil shoved for 346,458 and KtownCicero called from middle position. Jacob “wvumaniac2” Bucher then reraised all in for 1,381,617 from the hijack and crazyz987 went all in over the top for 2,340,805 out of the big blind. KtownCicero got out of the way and the hands were revealed to be {A-Hearts}{8-Spades} for chkrazethedevil, {A-Spades}{K-Clubs} for Bucher, and {Q-Diamonds}{Q-Spades} for crazyz987. The board ran out {4-Hearts}{J-Spades}{K-Hearts}{J-Hearts}{10-Spades} as Bucher made the best hand to eliminate chkrazethedevil in ninth place for $11,794.68. Soon after, 00s was sent to the rail at the end of the level despite getting it in ahead. All in with {A-Diamonds}{K-Diamonds}, 00s fell to HITTHEPANDA’s {A-Hearts}{Q-Diamonds} as the board ran out {6-Hearts}{A-Spades}{J-Diamonds}{Q-Spades}{J-Hearts}. 00s pocketed $15,843.60 for eighth place.

Heading out at the 30,000/60,000/7,500 level was kishotti. Jacob “wvumaniac2” Bucher raised to 148,500 from middle position and kishotti called from the cutoff. The flop came {7-Hearts}{2-Spades}{10-Clubs} and Bucher fired a continuation bet of 240,000. Kishotti min-raised to 480,000 and Bucher countered by moving all in with the bigger stack. Kishotti called all in for 985,031 and showed {6-Hearts}{6-Clubs}, miles behind Bucher’s {A-Diamonds}{10-Diamonds}. The turn and river fell {9-Spades} and {K-Hearts} as kishotti was ousted in seventh place for $20,244.60.

Jba1986 was sent packing in the 50,000/100,000/10,000 level. Under the gun, jba1986 shoved for 826,056 with {A-Clubs}{6-Clubs} and found action from KtownCicero in the big blind with {A-Spades}{Q-Spades}. The board fell {Q-Clubs}{10-Clubs}{10-Diamonds}{A-Hearts}{6-Hearts} as jba1986’s tournament came to an end in sixth place for $26,934.12. The next hand, Jacob “wvumaniac2” Bucher ran pocket kings into pocket aces and became the short stack at the table. His remaining 503,832 went into the middle the following hand with {K-Spades}{6-Diamonds}, but he found himself up against KtownCicero’s {7-Diamonds}{7-Clubs}. The board rolled out {A-Clubs}{3-Clubs}{A-Hearts}{A-Spades}{9-Hearts} and Bucher was out in fifth place for $36,352.26.

Feltingfools was felted at 60,000/120,000/15,000. From the cutoff, feltingfools shoved for 1,168,076 with {K-Clubs}{Q-Spades} and KtownCicero made the call on the button with the dominated {K-Hearts}{8-Hearts}. But the board came {A-Hearts}{K-Spades}{A-Clubs}{10-Hearts}{9-Hearts} as KtownCicero made a flush to send feltingfools to the rail in fourth place for $48,411. Crazyz987 said goodbye at 80,000/160,000/20,000. On the button, KtownCicero raised to 320,000 and crazyz987 went all in from the big blind for 1,534,925 with {K-Diamonds}{Q-Hearts}. KtownCicero called with {7-Hearts}{7-Clubs} and won the coinflip as the board fell {8-Clubs}{2-Clubs}{A-Diamonds}{4-Diamonds}{A-Clubs}. Crazyz987 pocketed $61,614 for third place.

As heads-up play began, the chip counts stood as follows:

KtownCicero: 9,712,027
HITTHEPANDA: 3,490,973

The duel went back and forth for awhile, but in the end it was KtownCicero notching the victory at the 100,000/200,000/25,000 level. HITTHEPANDA moved all in for 1,370,292 and KtownCicero made the call with {J-Diamonds}{10-Spades}, leading HITTHEPANDA’s {7-Diamonds}{4-Clubs}. The board ran out {Q-Spades}{6-Spades}{2-Clubs}{J-Clubs}{8-Diamonds} and HITTHEPANDA was out in second place for $94,093.38. The winner of the Full Tilt $750,000 Sunday Guarantee was KtownCicero for $155,434.52.

Final Results:

1. KtownCicero - $155,434.52
2. HITTHEPANDA - $94,093.38
3. crazyz987 - $61,614
4. feltingfools - $48,411
5. Jacob “wvumaniac2” Bucher - $36,352.26
6. jba1986 - $26,934.12
7. kishotti - $20,244.60
8. 00s - $15,843.60
9. chkrazethedevil - $11,794.68

PokerStars Announces Americas Cup of Poker

It’s a battle for international bragging rights as PokerStars has announced its 2009 Americas Cup of Poker. This inaugural Americas Cup of Poker (ACP) will bring together teams from 16 different nations to battle toward the live final, to be held at the Cerro Catedral Ski Resort in Argentina’s Patagonia region. Up for grabs is $250,000 in prize money, with $100,000 to be split among the winning team’s players. Daily freerolls and online qualifiers priced as low as $0.20 assure that every PokerStars player has the chance to take part. These qualifiers have just begun at PokerStars.

The 16 teams who will participate in the ACP are split into four groups, consisting of 13 American continents nations and three “wild card” entries, comprised of players from the rest of the world. The four groups are as follows:
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Group A: USA, Mexico, Ecuador, Wildcard 1
Group B: Canada, Columbia, Uruguay, Wildcard 2
Group C: Chile, Venezuela, Peru, Costa Rica
Group D: Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, Wildcard 3

For the next three weeks, each group’s teams will compete in a series of head-to-head, round-robin matchups. The top eight teams overall – the two teams with the best records from each group – will move on to the live final in Argentina. Each team in Argentina will be comprised of the top five players from each nation, based on points earned during the qualifiers, and each team in the final will also be joined by a live member of Team PokerStars Pros. Qualifying points are earned by placing in the top 100 during any of the ongoing first round’s qualifying events.

More information on the ACP is available at www.pokerstars.com/poker/promo tions/americas-cup/.

Ty _GimmeDa1time_ Reiman Wins Full Tilt $1K Monday

The Full Tilt $1K Monday attracted 401 runners to the virtual felt this week, with a top prize of $100,250 awaiting the winner. Notable finishes that fell short of the final table included Kevin “Wu_Wizard” MacPhee in 12th ($4,611.50), knickadam55 in 14th ($3,609), joaoMATHIAS in 16th ($2,807), Aditya “Intervention” Agarwal in 17th ($2,807), and Seth “grtwhitehoop” Fischer in 18th ($2,807). Despite starting heads-up play with a severe chip deficit, Ty “GimmeDa1time” Reiman battled back to take down the tournament. The chip counts at the start of the final table were as follows:

4Judy – 508,472
Ty “GimmeDa1time” Reiman – 432,940
Tristan “Cre8ive” Wade – 292,990
Tim “BegsClutch” Begley – 224,285
LCsLittleTrick – 192,735
Adam “ProbBluffingYou” Shuman – 136,213
dsindy – 84,636
8balldeluxe – 71,145
Christian “charder30” Harder – 61,584
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The first hand of the final table was the last hand of the tournament for 8balldeluxe. Pushing with {K-Clubs}{Q-Diamonds}, 8balldeluxe ran into Adam “ProbBluffingYou” Shuman’s {A-Diamonds}{A-Clubs} and did not catch up, finishing in ninth place for $8,020. The next to depart was dsindy at the 2,500/5,000/600 level. Under the gun, dsindy shoved for 40,704 and next to act, Tristan “Cre8ive” Wade, called. Christian “charder30” Harder then reraised all in for 125,768 in the cutoff and Wade called again. The hands were revealed to be {5-Diamonds}{5-Spades} for dsindy, {A-Diamonds}{J-Diamonds} for Wade, and {K-Spades}{K-Clubs} for Harder. The board fell {K-Hearts}{2-Diamonds}{Q-Clubs}{2-Hearts}{Q-Spades} as Harder took it down to eliminate dsindy in eighth place for $10,025.

Christian Harder, though, was the next to report to the rail. After running pocket eights into jacks to lose a big chunk of his stack, Harder opened to 12,345 in middle position and 4Judy called on the button. The flop came {Q-Hearts}{10-Clubs}{7-Clubs} and Harder bet 13,366, only to see 4Judy raise it to 35,000. Harder shoved for 140,251 and 4Judy called with {K-Diamonds}{Q-Spades}, ahead of Harder’s {K-Hearts}{J-Hearts}. The turn and river landed {10-Spades} and {J-Spades}, and Christian “charder30” Harder was out in seventh place for $13,032.50.

LCsLittleTrick exited next at 3,000/6,000/750. Tim “BegsClutch” Begley raised to 14,500 on the button and LCsLittleTrick shipped it in from the small blind for 108,933. Begley called with {A-Spades}{Q-Hearts} and saw he was behind LCsLittleTrick’s {K-Spades}{K-Diamonds}. However, the board ran out {A-Clubs}{7-Spades}{7-Diamonds}{10-Spades}{9-Spades} and LCsLittleTrick’s tournament was over in sixth place for $20,050.

Adam “ProbBluffingYou” Shuman busted at 5,000/10,000/1,000 when he made a move with {J-Diamonds}{8-Hearts} and found action from Tim “BegsClutch” Begley with {5-Clubs}{5-Spades}. No help for Shuman as the community cards came down {4-Spades}{2-Spades}{6-Diamonds}{A-Diamonds}{K-Spades} and Shuman was out in fifth place for $27,067.50. Begley claimed another victim a few hands later when he took out 4Judy. In the small blind, Begley made it 30,000 to play and 4Judy called, bringing out the flop of {3-Clubs}{A-Clubs}{K-Diamonds}. Both players checked as the {9-Hearts} hit the turn. Both players again opted for the free card, as the {2-Spades} landed on the river. Begley bet 50,000, only to see 4Judy shove for 245,226. Begley made the call with {A-Hearts}{J-Spades}, which proved to be the better hand to 4Judy’s {6-Clubs}{6-Hearts}. 4Judy pocketed $36,090 for fourth place.

Tristan “Cre8ive” Wade made his exit at the 8,000/16,000/2,000 level. Tim “BegsClutch” Begley limped in from the small blind and Wade raised his option to 48,000. Begley shoved with the bigger stack and Wade called all in for 459,870 with {K-Diamonds}{Q-Diamonds}, slightly trailing Begley’s {A-Spades}{7-Hearts}. The board rolled out {8-Hearts}{2-Diamonds}{9-Hearts}{A-Diamonds}{7-Spades} as Begley held on to win the pot and eliminate Tristan “Cre8ive” Wade in third place for $46,115.

Heads-up play began with Tim Begley holding about a 4-to-1 chip lead on Ty “GimmeDa1time” Reiman. However, Reiman closed the gap quickly and went on to win the tournament. On the final hand at 10,000/20,000/2,500, Begley raised to 44,000 on the button and Reiman made the call. The flop came {8-Hearts}{3-Clubs}{7-Hearts} and Reiman put in a check-raise all in with the bigger stack. Begley called all in with {A-Clubs}{8-Spades} and was up against Reiman’s {J-Diamonds}{9-Clubs}. Fourth street was a safe {Q-Clubs}, but the {10-Diamonds} on fifth street gave Reiman the winning straight. Tim “BegsClutch” Begley finished in second place for $62,155. Ty “GimmeDa1time” Reiman took down the Full Tilt $1K Monday for $100,250.

Final Results:

1. Ty “GimmeDa1time” Reiman - $100,250
2. Tim “BegsClutch” Begley - $62,155
3. Tristan “Cre8ive” Wade - $46,115
4. 4Judy - $36,090
5. Adam “ProbBluffingYou” Shuman - $27,067.50
6. LCsLittleTrick - $20,050
7. Christian “charder30” Harder - $13,032.50
8. dsindy - $10,025
9. 8balldeluxe - $8,020

Poker Book Review: Jeff Hwang_s _Advanced Pot-Limit Omaha, Volume I_

“What else could you possibly say about Omaha that you didn’t say in the first book?”

Such was the question Jeff Hwang says he was consistently asked when working on his newest book, Advanced Pot-Limit Omaha, Volume I: Small Ball and Short-Handed Play. Indeed, as Hwang himself points out, it wasn’t that long ago that even one book about pot-limit Omaha was considered by most publishers to be one too many.

Hwang notes that at the time his Pot-Limit Omaha Poker: The Big Play Strategy first appeared in December 2007, “no one -- not even the biggest publisher of poker books in the business -- thought that there was a market for PLO books.” Times have certainly changed, with PLO starting to be spread more frequently both in Vegas card rooms and elsewhere, and a sudden spate of Omaha-related texts hitting the shelves this summer and fall.
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Among these new offerings, Hwang’s Advanced Pot-Limit Omaha, Volume I is a clear highlight. Hwang’s new book further establishes its author as a foremost authority on PLO strategy and theory, building significantly on his earlier book’s advice while providing numerous tips and strategies for succeeding in the game many observers are heralding as “the game of the future.”

In his first Omaha book -- the first half of which concentrated on pot-limit Omaha (the rest concerned Omaha-8 and PLO-8) -- Hwang presented his recommended “big play strategy,” a somewhat judicious approach to PLO that involved careful starting hand selection and an ability to recognize “big-pot situations” in which one should be desirous to play for stacks. Much of the point of Hwang’s earlier treatment of PLO was to explode the “fallacy that you have to be in a gambling situation when the money goes in.” Rather, a sound technical understanding of starting hand construction and how draws work -- “straight draw physics” and “big-pot science,” says Hwang -- as well as an appreciation for the importance of playing with position can help one consistently find those situations in which to exploit significant equity edges when playing big pots, and thus not always be “flipping” for stacks.

One need not have necessarily read Hwang’s earlier book in order to tackle Advanced Pot-Limit Omaha, although having some experience with PLO, as well as that fundamental grounding in the technical aspects of the game the first book provides, are most certainly useful prerequisites. Rather than repeat the earlier presentation of “big play strategy,” Hwang mostly assumes his reader’s understanding of that basic approach and thus without much ceremony moves directly into discussing the “advanced” plays the title of his new book advertises.

The new book’s somewhat intimidating 500-plus page length may well put off more casual readers -- good news to the more serious students of PLO as they stand to benefit greatly from Hwang’s advice, further distancing themselves from the many hold’em players who jump into PLO games without much prior tutelage. Despite its length -- and the occasionally complicated concepts being discussed -- the book is not too taxing of a read thanks largely to Hwang’s communicative style as well as to the smart, sensible organization of the book.

Like a good teacher, Hwang does a terrific job explaining difficult material in clear, unambiguous terms, at times demonstrating both wit and candor as he carries the reader through various concepts and hand examples. The book’s logical organization also helps keep it from becoming overly arduous, and in fact, as Hwang himself points out, the ordering of the sections was by no means arbitrary but consciously plotted so as to help the reader get the most out of each subsequent discussion.

The book begins with a lengthy look at a particular advanced play, floating, that bluffing technique often employed in no-limit hold’em whereby one calls with a lesser hand on one street with an idea to try to take the pot away on a later street. While such a first step might seem an arbitrary starting point at first glance, floating is actually a terrific way for Hwang to build upon the basic “big play strategy” approach of his first book, immediately introducing to his reader a play which goes beyond hand values and pot odds.

From there, Hwang frontloads the book with sections covering other important concepts necessary to the strategic advice that follows. Hwang ably applies to PLO the idea of stack-to-pot ratio (SPR) introduced by Ed Miller, Matt Flynn, and Sunny Mehta in Professional No-Limit Hold’em, explaining why it is perhaps an even more meaningful consideration in pot-limit games. Other concepts including deep stack leverage, positional advantage, the “pivot” card, value betting, and bluffing are given attention, all setting the stage for Hwang’s presentation of “small ball” strategy, his discussion of three-betting before the flop, and his advice regarding short-handed play.

There is much here that should prove especially eye-opening to no-limit hold’em players who might mistakenly carry over certain preconceptions from their game to PLO. Just to touch on one example, Hwang explains how the idea of “pre-flop initiative” -- crucial in NLHE -- is much overrated in PLO, and in fact shows both through explanation and hand examples how raising before the flop in PLO not only often fails to create fold equity, but tends to persuade players to play back at the raiser after the flop. That is not to say Hwang discourages preflop raising in PLO, but rather makes an effort to clarify for his readers the reasons why one should be putting in those raises, with the idea of forcing people out with post-flop continuation bets (as in NLHE) not generally being high on one’s list of motives for raising before the flop.

Most sections of the book include multiple hand examples, the most extensive of which being the “128 Hand Walkthroughs” which further the discussion of short-handed play. The book concludes with a thoughtful consideration of bankroll requirements for PLO, views on “miscellaneous topics” such as game and seat selection, and some concluding thoughts about the evolution of PLO and its probable future.

As Hwang ably demonstrates in Advanced Pot-Limit Omaha, Volume I, there was quite a bit more to say about Omaha. In what looks to be a rapidly growing category of poker literature, Hwang’s book appears destined to be regarded as an important contribution to PLO strategy and theory.

PokerNews Cup: How to Qualify

With just over eight weeks to go to the 2009 PokerNews Cup Australia, here's a quick run down of how you can join Tony G and the rest of his crew in sunny Australia!

Carbon Poker
$6,000 PokerNews Cup Australia Freerolls – August 17
1st place - $5,000 package
2nd-5th place - $220 ticket to PokerNews Cup Grand Final Qualifier
6th place onwards share $120 as per Carbon Poker’s standard payout structure

PokerNews Cup Rake Race
Earn 2,000 VIP points in a month – Receive $60 Satellite Ticket
Earn 4,000 VIP points in a month – Receive another $60 Satellite Ticket
Earn 7,000 VIP points in a month – Second $60 Satellite Ticket will be upgraded to a seat to the $50,000 Guaranteed Tournament
Earn 10,000 VIP points from now until August 21 – Receive $220 Grand Final Ticket
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Weekly $500 Cash + Qualifier Ticket Freerolls – July 15 – August 12
Winner receives $220 ticket to PokerNews Cup Grand Final Qualifier
$500 cash distributed as per Carbon Poker’s standard payout structure

PokerNews Cup Australia Satellite Series
Sub satellites start from as low as $2.20
Buy-in direct to Grand Final for $220 running August 22
Each Grand Final will guarantee one $5,000 package with one in 30 places paid

PartyPoker
$6,000 PokerNews Cup Australia Freerolls – August 2, 30
Winner receives $5,000 package
$1,000 cash distributed as per PartyPoker’s standard payout structure

Full Tilt Poker
$5,500 PokerNews Cup Australia Freerolls – August 2, 16, 30
Winner receives $5,000 package
$500 cash distributed as per Full Tilt Poker’s standard payout structure

$11,000 PokerNews Cup Australia Freeroll – September 13
Top two finishers receive a $5,000 package each
$1,000 cash distributed as per Full Tilt Poker’s standard payout structure

Titan Poker
$6,000 PokerNews Cup Australia Freerolls – August 6, 13, 20, 27
Winner receives $5,000 package
$1,000 cash distributed as per Titan Poker’s standard payout structure

Players must have signed up to the above poker rooms through PokerNews and completed all entry requirements to receive full eligibility. Each tournament carries specific qualification requirements - please see PokerNews Freerolls for further details.

The 2009 PokerNews Cup Australia will take place from September 27 to October 5 at the Southern Hemisphere's premiere poker destination - Crown Casino Melbourne. The Champion will take home the title and a guaranteed AUD250,000 first prize.

_route666_ Rolls to Victory in PokerStars Super Tuesday

The PokerStars Super Tuesday drew a crowd of 394 this week, with a first-place payday of $76,239 up for grabs. Noteworthy finishes falling shy of the final table included tysonduke23 in 11th ($5,910), Dan “WiLDmAn75” Buzgon in 13th ($4,925), Thayer “THAY3R” Rasmussen in 17th ($3,940), and Ronald “ronaldgrauer” Grauer in 18th ($3,940). At the end, route666 was the last player standing to take down the tournament and the five-figure prize money. The chip counts at the start of the final table were as follows:

Ozenc “ozenc” Demir - 288,407
Daniel “Allanon85” Drescher - 210,552
Greg “In a Gang” Hyman - 193,333
Todd “tbt4653” Terry - 129,192
route666 - 99,665
Joseph “bigegypt” Elpayaa - 82,900
Amir “AmirSF” Lehavot - 68,771
Jason “JasonGray” Gray - 58,797
acesover333 - 50,383
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Joseph “bigegypt” Elpayaa busted on the first hand of the final table at 1,500/3,000/300. Ozenc “ozenc” Demir raised to 7,575 in early position and Daniel “Allanon85” Drescher made the call from middle position. Elpayaa reraised to 20,600 from the cutoff and action folded back around to Drescher, who shoved all in with the bigger stack. Elpayaa called all in for 62,000 with {K-Diamonds}{K-Hearts} and was leading Drescher’s {A-Clubs}{K-Clubs}. However, the board ran out {5-Hearts}{7-Hearts}{5-Diamonds}{A-Diamonds}{10-Spades} and Joseph “bigegypt” Elpayaa was eliminated in ninth place for $6,895.

A few hands later, acesover333 bit the dust at 2,000/4,000/400. In middle position, acesover333 made it 11,222 to go and Ozenc Demir popped it to 28,000 on the button. A call from acesover333 led to the flop of {A-Spades}{10-Hearts}{8-Diamonds}. The action was on acesover333, who moved all in for 33,962. Demir called with {Q-Clubs}{Q-Hearts} and was leading acesover333’s {J-Spades}{J-Diamonds}. The turn and river were bricks for acesover333, out in eighth place for $9,456.

Jason Gray reported to the rail after getting it all in preflop with {A-Diamonds}{K-Hearts} against route666’s {K-Diamonds}{K-Clubs}. The board came {8-Diamonds}{J-Clubs}{2-Hearts}{3-Hearts}{K-Spades} as Gray finished in seventh place for $13,396. Greg “In a Gang” Hyman was felted by Daniel “Allanon85” Drescher. Under the gun, Drescher raised to 8,999 and Hyman shipped it in for 120,600 on the button with {6-Spades}{6-Hearts}. Drescher called with {A-Spades}{Q-Clubs} and won the race as the board ran out {K-Spades}{10-Diamonds}{A-Diamonds}{3-Hearts}{9-Spades}. Greg “In a Gang” Hyman took sixth place for $17,336.

Todd “tbt4653” Terry fell at the 3,000/6,000/600 level. On the button, Terry pushed all in for his last 44,326 with {J-Hearts}{8-Diamonds} and found action from Ozenc Demir with {2-Clubs}{2-Spades}. The board came down {10-Clubs}{3-Diamonds}{4-Diamonds}{5-Diamonds}{A-Hearts} and Terry’s tournament was over in fifth place for $22,458. Amir “AmirSF” Lehavot was also on the losing end of a coinflip. He was all in for 119,730 with {3-Hearts}{3-Diamonds} against Daniel Drescher’s {A-Hearts}{J-Spades}. The board rolled out {A-Spades}{J-Hearts}{9-Spades}{2-Spades}{8-Spades} and Lehavot was flushed out in fourth place for $32,505.

Ozenc “ozenc” Demir was eliminated in third place at 4,000/8,000/8000 by route666. A limped pot between the two led to the {A-Spades}{8-Diamonds}{K-Clubs} flop. Route666 bet 16,000 and Demir called as the {3-Diamonds} landed on the turn. Route666 bet 32,000 and Demir moved all in for 127,999. After a moment, route666 made the call with {K-Diamonds}{J-Diamonds} and was leading Demir’s {9-Hearts}{8-Spades}. The river was the {3-Hearts} and Ozenc “ozenc” Demir was out in third place for $43,340. The chip counts at the start of heads-up play were:

route666: 948,370
Daniel “Allanon85” Drescher: 233,630

It did not take long for route666 to close out the match. Drescher min-raised on the button and route666 made the call. The flop fell {7-Clubs}{6-Diamonds}{5-Hearts} and route666 checked to Drescher, who bet 16,000, prompting a check-raise to 48,000 from route666. Drescher shoved all in for 198,706 and route666 insta-called with {7-Hearts}{6-Clubs}, well ahead of Drescher’s {Q-Diamonds}{9-Diamonds}. The turn and river came {10-Spades} and {3-Spades} and Daniel “Allanon85” Drescher finished as the runner up, earning $57,130. The winner of the PokerStars Super Tuesday was route666 for $76,239.

Final Results:

1. route666 - $76,239
2. Daniel “Allanon85” Drescher - $57,130
3. Ozenc “ozenc” Demir - $43,340
4. Amir “AmirSF” Lehavot - $32,505
5. Todd “tbt4653” Terry - $22,458
6. Greg “In a Gang” Hyman – $17,336
7. Jason “JasonGray” Gray - $13,396
8. acesover333 - $9,456
9. Joseph “bigegypt” Elpayaa - $6,895

PokerNews Top 10: Scandinavian Players

While passing through the halls of the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino this summer, one would frequently overhear players relating to one another stories of hands played. Such narratives often included thumbnail profiles of opponent types. “I loved my table.” “A bunch of nits and by-the-book types. Would have been perfect if it weren’t for the crazy Scandi opening every pot on my left.”

Those “crazy Scandis” -- that is, the group of players hailing from that group of northern European countries collectively known as Scandinavia -- earned the adjective thanks to an especially aggressive style of play most often traced back to their best known representative, Denmark’s Gus Hansen. On the heels of fellow Dane Peter Eastgate’s WSOP Main Event victory in 2008, this year’s Series saw a host of Scandinavian players find success at the Rio, with many cashes, several final tables, and a couple of bracelets.
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Norway’s Thor Hansen had five cashes at this summer’s WSOP, as did Ken Lennaárd of Sweden, who just missed a bracelet by finishing second in a $2,000 No-Limit Hold’em event (No. 36). Denmark’s Jonas Klausen also took a runner-up in a $1,500 NLHE event (No. 34), and Tomas Alenius of Sweden won the $1,500 Limit Hold’em event (No. 26). And if we consider Finland, Mika Passonen’s runner-up finish in a $2,000 NLHE event (No. 32) must be mentioned, as must the remarkable run of Ville Wahlbeck, who cashed six times, made four final tables, and won the $10,000 Mixed Event (No. 12) on his way to earning over $1 million this summer alone -- a nice finish for the Finnish!

What follows is a list of the current top ten Scandinavian poker players based on various criteria, including live tournament earnings, recent success, and overall influence. For the sake of the list, nearby Nordic countries Finland and Iceland were additionally considered, even though neither is specifically part of the Scandinavian peninsula. No Icelanders made it, with the country’s top earner Runnar Runarsson being its closest challenger. Also landing just outside the list were Lars Bonding (Denmark), Erik Friberg (Sweden), Jesper Hougaard (Denmark), Dag Mikkelsen (Norway), Rene Mouritsen (Denmark), William Thorson (Sweden), and Thomas Wahlroos (Finland).

10. Ville Wahlbeck (Finland)

Not only did all six of Wahlbeck’s cashes at this year’s WSOP result from deep runs (four final tables, lowest finish 13th), but five of the six came in events with $10,000 buy-ins or higher -- that is, in events classified as “World Championships.” The series was barely two weeks old when Wahlbeck had already won the $10K Mixed Event, finished second in the $10K 2-7 Lowball, and third in the $10K Seven-Card Stud. To that he later added a sixth-place finish in the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. event, pushing his career earnings past $1.2 million.

9. Juha Helppi (Finland)

Helppi’s biggest career cashes have both been runner-ups, one to Roland de Wolfe in the 2005 WPT Grand Prix de Paris Main Event, the other to Phil Hellmuth, Jr. in 2006 in a $1,000 no-limit hold’em with rebuys event. Both finishes earned Helppi over $300,000, helping boost his career total over $2.4 million. Helppi would get his revenge against Hellmuth in 2007 -- as well as some added exposure -- when he defeated the Poker Brat, Dave “Devilfish” Ulliott and others in the PartyPoker.com Premier League that year.

8. Martin De Knijff (Sweden)

De Knijff’s victory in the 2004 World Poker Tour Championship, the Five Star World Poker Classic at the Bellagio, landed him over $2.7 million in prize money and instant notice as a player to watch -- that is, if his 13th-place finish in the 2002 WSOP Main Event hadn’t already achieved as much.

7. Johan Storakers (Sweden)

Storakers’ $2.8 million-plus in tournament winnings, earned over the last dozen years in practically every European country and the United States, earn him his place as one of Scandinavia’s most consistent performers. His biggest live tourney score came at last fall’s UltimateBet Aruba Poker Classic, where he earned nearly half a million dollars for a second-place finish.

6. Patrik Antonius (Finland)

A former model, Antonius has successfully parlayed both handsome looks and an intimidating playing style into celebrity and success. A frequent face on shows such as “Poker After Dark” and “High Stakes Poker,” Antonius has gathered over $2.8 million in tournament earnings, demonstrating a prowess in a variety of games in the process. The Full Tilt pro has also made his mark online, routinely playing in the highest stakes games and sparring with Tom “Durrrr” Dwan in the ongoing “Durrrr Challenge.”

5. Annette Obrestad (Norway)

Easily the most famous and accomplished female player from Scandinavia, Obrestad has amassed over $2.7 million in live tournament earnings without ever having entered a tournament in the United States. That will change soon, however, when Obrestad finally turns 21 this September. Her triumph in the inaugural WSOPE Main Event in 2007 for which she won £1,000,000 is, of course, Obrestad’s largest live score, though by the time of that victory Obrestad had already reportedly earned over a million dollars playing online without ever having deposited a cent.

4. Thor Hansen (Norway)

Hansen’s five cashes at this summer’s Series pushed his career total to 46, placing him just outside the top ten in that category. Hansen owns two WSOP bracelets and was named the Norwegian Poker Player of the Year in 2005. His career tournament earnings of over $2.6 million date back over two decades.

3. Chris Björin (Sweden)

Björin’s poker career most resembles Thor Hansen’s on this list, also extending back twenty years and including two WSOP bracelets and 47 WSOP cashes, putting him in a tie for tenth on the all-time cashes list. Björin cashed three times this summer, including a 156th-place finish in the Main Event. He’s earned over $4 million lifetime in tournaments.

2. Peter Eastgate (Denmark)

Eastgate’s victory in last year’s WSOP Main Event easily puts him at the top of the all-time money list for Scandinavian players. And while the $68,789 he earned for his 78th-place finish at this year’s Main Event pales in comparison to the $9.1 million-plus he claimed for last year’s victory, his deep run in this summer’s Main Event perhaps earned the 23-year-old even more respect for his skills at the table.

1. Gus Hansen (Denmark)

Gus Hansen’s triumph in the first-ever World Poker Tour event, the 2002 Five Diamond Classic, followed by a second victory later that first season in the 2003 L.A. Poker Classic, not only quickly established him as a formidable player but as a television star as well, his daring playing style marking him as a player to watch just as the poker “boom” had ignited. Though still looking for his first WSOP bracelet, Hansen has nevertheless earned a heady $7.4 million-plus overall in tournaments thus far, including relatively deep runs in the 2004 (150th), 2007 (61st), and 2008 (160th) WSOP Main Events.

APPT Macau Festival of Poker Schedule Released

Officials for the PokerStars.net Asia Pacific Poker Tour have now released the schedule for the upcoming Macau Summer Festival of Poker, the keystone event of which, the APPT Macau main event, kicks off Season 3 of the APPT. The festivities at Macau run August 15-30, 2009 and include a selection of satellites and preliminary events in addition to the August 25-30 main event. Online qualifiers to the APPT Macau main event, as with all upcoming APPT stops, are available at PokerStars.

The 2009 Macau Summer Festival of Poker will include 20 separate events, with buy-ins for non-satellites ranging from HKD $1,000 all the way up to HKD $40,000 for the APPT Macau main event and $88,800 for a special “High Rollers” event to be held August 29 and 30. Also on the agenda are special women’s and charity events and a “Terrence Chan Limit Hold’em” (shorthanded) tourney, scheduled for August 23.
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The complete 2009 Macau Summer Festival of Poker slate of events:

August 15
14:15 Satellite to 100K Guarantee $550
18:00 No Limit Hold’em - $100,000 Guaranteed $2,500

August 16
14:15 No Limit Hold’em w/ Re-buys - $20,000 Guaranteed $500
17:00 Satellite Main Event Phase 2 $900
19:00 Satellite Main Event Phase 3 $4,200

August 17
12:15 Satellite Main Event Phase 2 $900
14:15 No Limit Hold’em $1,000

August 18
12:15 Satellite Main Event Phase 2 $900
14:15 No Limit Hold’em $1,500

August 19
12:15 Satellite Main Event Phase 2 $900
14:15 Knock-Out Bounty No Limit Hold’em (each bounty $500) $2,000
18:00 Satellite Main Event Phase 3 $4,200

August 20
14:15 Free to Enter Mega Satellite w/ $500 Re-buys (1 Main Event seat guaranteed) ($0/$500)
18:00 APPT Macau Charity Event w/ max 2 Re-buys ($50,000 added value prizes) $1,000

August 21
14:15 No Limit Hold’em Deep Stack $1,500
18:00 Satellite Main Event Phase 3 $4,200

August 22
12:15 Mega Satellite to $10K $2,150
15:30 No Limit Hold’em Day 1 $500,000 Guaranteed $10,000
18:00 Satellite Main Event Phase 3 $4,200

August 23
12:15 No Limit Hold’em Day 2
14:15 Terrence Chan Limit Hold'em Tournament 6 handed $2,500
18:00 Satellite Main Event Phase 3 $4,200

August 24
12:15 Satellite Main Event Phase 3 $4,200
14:15 Turbo Shoot-out No Limit Hold’em $1,500
16:30 Satellite Main Event Phase 3 $4,200
21:00 APPT Macau Welcome Party

August 25
12:15 APPT Macau Main Event Day 1 Flight 1 $40,000
15:00 No Limit Hold’em $4,000

August 26
12:15 APPT Macau Main Event Day 1 Flight 2 $40,000
15:00 No Limit Hold’em 7-Handed Event $5,000
18:00 Last Chance Mega Satellite to Main Event $4,200

August 27
12:15 APPT Macau Main Event Day 1 Flight 3 $40,000
16:00 Knock-Out Bounty No Limit Hold’em (each bounty $1,000) $4,000
18:00 Ladies Event No Limit Hold’em $1,500

August 28
12:15 APPT Macau Main Event Day 2
15:00 No Limit Hold’em Teams Event $5,000
18:00 Mega Satellite to High Roller Event $9,400

August 29
12:15 APPT Macau Main Event Day 3
14:15 APPT Macau High Rollers Event Day 1 $88,800
15:00 No Limit Hold’em $2,000
18:00 Satellite to APPT Seoul w/ Re-buys $500

August 30
12:15 APPT Macau Main Event Final Table
13:00 APPT Macau High Rollers Event Day 2
14:15 No Limit Hold’em w/ Re-buys $1,000
18:00 Mega Satellite to APPT Seoul $4,000

More information on the upcoming Macau Summer Festival of Poker is available at www.appt.com/tournaments/macau /.

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From the Poker Vaults: Poker Players Love Golf

What_s up with poker players and their fanatical obsession with golf? If professional golfers loved poker as much as professional poke

The Online Railbird Report, Vol. 22: South Sizzles, Dang Dominates

Some of the highest-stakes poker games ever played went off this week, with the likes of Patrik Antonius, Tom 'durrrr' Dwan, Ilari 'Ziigmund' Sahamies...

Play $2,000 Cash Freeroll at PlayersOnly

Sign up to PlayersOnly through PokerNews and make a deposit anytime during the calendar month of July and you can play in the $2,000 PokerNews Cash Freeroll on Sunday, August 16 at 18:25 GMT/14:25 EDT - it's that simple!If you already hold an..

2009 WSOP ME Day 5 Special Report: End of the Beginning, Beginning of the End

It_s _in the money� time for the 2009 World Series of Poker Main Event, with Day 5 starting play with all 407 players of cashing in the event. It_s in essence a Phase Two for the largest poker show on earth, with the differences between these later stages and the circus that marks the opening sessions a striking contrast.
For the first time, the Amazom Room is truly roomy. Alternating tables have been removed from each area of the giant ballroom still being used for play, making the gaps between tables 15-20 feet wide, instead of the standard three-to-four feet during the early parts of the WSOP, when the aisles are obstacle course and collisions and negotiations over right-of-way are inevitable.
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The spread-out tables, arranged in a giant checkerboard of felt and vinyl, serve a real and important purpose: the later the Main Event progresses, the higher the ratio of floor staff and media to players actually remaining in the event. It_s doubly important when the neverending cries of _All in and a call!� result in heavier and heavier rushes to the tables in question, to see which big star might be on the ropes� or in position for a key double-up. At such times the media can feel like carrion, picking at the bones of the vanquished, but poker is at times a cruel pastime; it comes with the territory.
This year_s Day 5 brings a precipitous continuation in the number of players bounced, with nearly a quarter of the remaining players escorted to the payout windows in the first two-hour level. Rumors circulate that the target number for surviving players at end of day is somewhere around 175, raising the possibility that Day 5, as with Day 4, will be a short session indeed. Still, stars and anonymous players alike find their final hands here. Early knockouts include Jeff Kimber, Can Hua, Thor Hansen, Sorel Mizzi, David Levi, Remy Biechel, Sander Lylloff and Burt Boutin. Boutin_s exit is among the most painful, as he got his chips all in with pocket aces against pocket kings, but let out an anguished cry when the flop brought the killer king.
Elsewhere the early action brought tales of both survival and success. Ludovic Lacay, who started the day in second spot, continued his hyper-aggressive attack mode and knocked out three players from his table in the first ninety minutes. The extra chips, however, kept Lacay only in second, for overnight leader Matt Affleck accumulated chips as well. Tom _Donkey Bomber� Schneider was among those making the biggest early surges, while three remaining World Champions � Joe Hachem, Dan Harrington and Peter Eastgate � bided their time, waiting to make their moves. Harrington wasn_t even sure he_d play the Main Event after a chronic and painful neck condition flared up a week before the ME began, but found himself, neck brace and all, deep within the money as Day 5 progressed. Elsewhere a cold-battling Joe Sebok threw his hands in the air with a whoop and several coughs, shouting, _I won a pot! It only took an hour an hour and fifteen minutes!� But even with the pot, Sebok remained at only 370,000, facing an uphill climb against an ever-dwinding pack.
It_s a time of waiting and winnowing. The spontaneous excitement on the day the Main Event_s money bubble bursts makes it perhaps the most entertaining sequence of the entire tourney. From here on it_s a slow crescendo, building back to the excitement and crush surrounding the final few tables and the setting of this year_s November Nine.
For now, though, it_s just the grind, the picking off of disappointed players, one by one, albeit on the game_s biggest stage. As the pace of eliminations slows, it_s unknown exactly how many levels will be played reach the WSOP_s target range for the day. Continue to check in with PokerNews_ Live Reporting for the latest updates.

The Online Railbird Report, Vol. 21: Nosebleed Stakes Sparse in Light-action Week

This week brought some of the lightest high-stakes action since we began tracking the nosebleed-stakes online poker games� and for good reason. Many favorite online regulars were taking their games live into Bobby_s Room, where the action has been running virtually around the clock over the last several days. Others, like Hac _trex313� Dang and Phil Ivey, were tending to their stacks in the WSOP Main Event. Typically prolific online players Gus Hansen and Tom _durrrr� Dwan logged only a single 44-hand heads-up session, while the equally active _DIN_FRU� managed only 110 hands all week. There was still a bit of action to be found on the limit tables, however, where Ted _profbackwards� Forrest, Van Marcus, and _�DONKEY1965�_ all logged some serious hours.
_--DONKEY1965�_, Ted Forrest, _NEKOTYAN� Score Big H.E.R.O.S. Wins
The biggest swings in online poker this week remarkably came in the short-handed H.E.R.O.S. games. Ted _profbackwards� Forrest racked up a $111,000 win during some early morning action on the fourth of July, taking on Sami _LarsLuzak� Kelopuro, Erick Lindgren, Joe _Nizot Skizared� Cassidy, _PixKim,� and _�DONKEY1965�_ at the $500/1,000 level. The game ran nearly all night with familiar faces like Justin _Boosted J� smith, Nick Schulman, Chau Giang, Richard Ashby, and _sotto monte� all making appearances.
Ashby and Giang were involved in what ended up being one of the more baffling limit hold_em hands of the night. Playing five-handed, the action was folded to Giang in the small blind. He limped in and Ashby raised from the big blind. Giang called and they saw a flop. Giang led out, Ashby raised again, and they ended up capping the action. The turn came the and Giang led again. Ashby raised, and they capped it again on fourth street. The river came the and Giang led out a third time. Ashby raised and Giang called. As it turned out, Ashby made that pre-flop raise from the big blind with , the flop hitting his hand absolutely perfectly, making him the nut straight and an open-ended straight flush draw to boot! Ashby hit his flush on the end and raked in the $18,000 pot while Giang mucked, leaving fans to wonder what he had.
The following day, _NEKOTYAN� took down a $125,000 win at the $500/1,000 level against largely the same cast of characters, while the next evening, the stakes were raised to $1,000/2,000. _�DONKEY1965�_ emerged as that night_s runaway winner, booking a $283,000 profit against _Moscowflyer,� Eli Elezra, Ashton _theASHMAN103� Griffin, and Ted Forrest.
In another brutal case of aces cracked, --DONKEY1965�raised to $2,000 from the small blind playing limit hold_em. Elezra three-bet and �DONKEY1965�called. The flop came down and Elezra led out. �DONKEY1965�raised, and the betting was capped. The turn fell the . Undeterred, Elezra led again, --DONKEY1965�raised, Elezra three-bet and --DONKEY1965�called. The river paired the board with the and Elezra bet out. �DONKEY1965�flat-called. Elezra rolled over for aces up, but �DONKEY1965�turned a flush with to take down the $30,000 pot.
Van _Sirens� Marcus Drops Six Figures at PLO, O/8
Australian pro Van _Sirens� Marcus experienced quite a rough session early Tuesday morning on Full Tilt Poker. First, he took on Ted _profbackwards� Forrest in a bit of heads-up $1,000/2,000 Omaha 8-or-better. The two battled it out mano a mano for about ninety minutes before _NEKOTYAN,� Richard Ashby, and Josh Arieh joined in on the fun. While Forrest emerged as a $49,000 winner in the session, Marcus dropped just over $100,000 over the course of 400 hands.
One of the larger scooped pots came during three-handed action between Ashby, Marcus and Forrest. Ashby raised to $2,000 on the button, Forrest folded the small blind and Marcus defended his big blind. Marcus check-called Ashby_s bet on the flop, then checked again when the hit the turn. Ashby bet, Marcus raised, Ashby three-bet, Marcus capped and Ashby called. The river fell the and Marcus check-called one more bet. It was bad news at showdown, however, as Ashby flipped over for a king-high flush and a 8-6-5-3-A low to scoop the $26,500 pot.
Following his Omaha-8 session, Marcus switched over to pot-limit Omaha, where he played a heads-up match with Phil _OMGClayAiken� Galfond across two $200/400 tables. Galfond dominated the action, winning $122,000 over the course of two hours and 550-plus hands. He also managed to drag 12 of the 16 largest pots they played.
In one particularly ugly hand, Galfond kicked off the action with a raise to $1,200. Marcus three-bet to $3,600, Galfond four-bet to $10,800, and Marcus came back over the top for his entire stack, $32,196 in all. Galfond called and turned up while Marcus revealed the other two aces with . The flop, however, came down , Galfond hitting two pair. The turn was the , the river was the and Galfond raked in the $64,392 pot, leaving Marcus to rebuy.
Who_s Up? Who_s Down?
This week_s biggest winners: _�DONKEY1965�_ (+$265,000), _NEKOTYAN� (+$123,000), Cole South (+$77,000)
This week_s biggest losers: Ashton _theASHMAN103� Griffin (-$218,000), Van _Sirens� Marcus (-$168,000), Eli Elezra (-$90,000)
"The Online Railbird" report is a weekly feature summarizing the biggest matchups in the online game. Many of the largest online collisions take place at Full Tilt. Why not join the fun?

2009 WSOP: Main Event, Zackey Racks up Lead on Blistering Day 5

The magical shrinking field at the World Series of Poker Main Event continued at a breakneck pace on Day 5, with the field dropping from 407 players to 185 in just three levels of play. Along the way to the early end of the day, aces were cracked, bad beats were delivered, and over 200 bracelet dreams were crushed. By the end of the day Warren Zackey had emerged as the overnight chip leader, with Kasper Cordes, Tom Schneider, James Akenhead, and Day 4 chip leader Matt Affleck all sporting big stacks.
Leo Labbe set the tone for Day 5 when he shipped it in on the very first hand of play. Steve Sanders min-raised from early position, and Labbe moved all in over the top with . Sanders quickly called with pocket aces, and picked up a set on the turn to send Labbe packing just minutes after the day_s action began. Other early eliminations included Thor Hansen, Sorel Mizzi, Sander Lylloff, and Andrew Tuttle.
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Nick Binger picked up his fourth cash of the 2009 WSOP, but fell short of his ultimate goal when he busted on Day 5. Binger moved all in over the top of Corrado Montagna_s three-bet with , but found himself facing pocket kings when Montagna snap-called. The board ran out aceless, and Binger was done.
Dan Harrington started the day as one of the few remaining former world champions in the field, but he ended it in the company of most of his fellows: on the rail. Harrington got it all in on the flop of with and got action from Eric Cloutier, who called with . Cloutier faded the clubs on the turn and river, and _Action Dan� was done.
Kara Scott became the only woman to cash in both the 2008 and 2009 WSOP Main Events when she busted on Day 5. Scott lost most of her chips when her aces got cracked, then pushed the rest of her stack in a few hands later with against Paul Baron_s . Baron made a pair on the flop, then tripped up on the turn. Scott was already drawing dead when the hit the river, and her Main Event was done.
It was a good day to be the 2007 Player of the Year, as Tom _Donkey Bomber� Schneider went from an average chip stack to one of the biggest stacks in the room early on. In one hand he sent Tony _Bagels� Cavezza packing when his held up against Cavezza_s on the board of . Schneider finished the day near the top of the leaderboard with over three million in chips.
Another player vacuuming up chips on Day 5 was Warren Zackey. Zackey and Tom Lutz both accumulated big stacks early in the day, and then put those big stacks in the middle of the table on the flop of to create a pot worth nearly four million. Zackey showed for the overpair to Lutz_ for the nut flush draw and live overcards. The on the turn changed nothing, leaving Zackey still in the lead, and the on the river gave the monster pot to Zackey as Lutz headed to the rail. Zackey continued to chip up all throughout Day 5, finishing with 4,872,000.
Several big-name players made big strides in the last level of the day. J.C. Tran doubled through Nasr El Nasr when he called all in on the flop of . Tran showed for top pair, top kicker, but he had a lot of outs to fade as El Nasr showed for the flush draw and live overcards. Tran dodged all those bullets as the turn and river came down and to move him on to Day 6.
Antonio Esfandiari increased his stack in the late going by making his opponents disappear. All the chips went in preflop as Esfandiari and Adam Sanders tangled. Esfandiari showed to Sanders_ . No help on the board for Sanders, and "The Magician" added to his stack.
Phil Ivey concluded his Day 5 with a little excitement, sending Huub Verdonschot to the rail on the last hand of play. The hand was a classic coin toss as Ivey held pocket eights to Verdonschot_s . The flop missed both players as it came down , but Verdonschot picked up straight outs on the turn. Ivey_s eights held up in the end as the hit the river, and Verdonschot was done.
Day 5 was done as well, with 185 players making it through to Day 6. Among the survivors were Ivey, Esfandiari, Schneider, Bertrand _ElkY� Grospellier, Ludovic Lacay, Joe Hachem, Peter Eastgate, Joe Sebok, and Dennis Phillips.
Join PokerNews at noon local time for all the live updates from Day 6 of the 2009 WSOP Main Event.

Payment Processor Files Against U.S. for Return of Seized Online Poker Funds

San Diego-based Account Services Corporation, one of several online payment processors servicing U.S. players, has asked a federal judge to order the return of approximately $14 million it believes was improperly seized by authorities from the U.S. Department of Justice_s Southern District of New York (SDNY). Account Services was one of several payment processors targeted by the DoJ, with approximately $40 million � largely consisting of payments of winnings and returned deposits � being seized in early June.
The July 10th motion, filed by the offices of San Diego attorney Michael Panzer in the United States District Court of Southern California, involves two bank accounts used in the processing of online-poker payments. The larger of the two, an account at a Wells Fargo Bank in California, had approximately $13 million seized, while an additional $1 million was taken from two accounts at San Diego-based Union Bank. The Wells Fargo bank was served with a warrant, while the Union Bank was served with a _warrantless seizure,� according to the motion, although one was supplied roughly two weeks later.
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13,800 online players were affected in the short term by the seizures at the Account Services Corp. banks alone, though the online-poker sites � including industry giants PokerStars and Full Tilt � quickly made good on the seized funds for their customers, pending the eventual legal resolution of the matter.
Among the arguments raised by Accounts Services:
� The seizures appear to have been made under a statute of the 1970 Illegal Gambling Business Act, though Accont Services alleges that the act is inapplicable to the seizures, and that _ASC_s corporate activities do not violate the IGBA�;
� The DoJ_s Southern District of New York office _acted with callous disregard for the [aggrieved parties_] constitutional rights;
� The majority of the funds seized belonged to individual poker players themselves, who could not, according the statute involved, have violated the law;
� _Online poker is not illegal gambling.� The motion specifically declares that online poker, with its elements of skill, is not illegal gambling, and noted that the statute believed to have been used for the seizure includes this definition of gambling: including _pool-selling, bookmaking, illegal slot machines, roulette wheels or dice tables, and conducting lotteries, policy, bolita or numbers games, or selling chances therein�;
A large percentage of the 40-page motion outlines clear arguments for why poker should be treated legally as a game of skill, from defining the strategic parlance of the game to distinguishing the semantics of why words such as _bet� differ in meaning within poker as compared to the forms of gambling outlawed under the IGBA. The million-member strong Poker Players Alliance also issued a statement on Friday praising the motion. From the PPA statement:
_On behalf of the players whose money was seized by the government, the PPA is pleased that Account Services took this step of filing its motion and contesting the seizure. We fully endorse the arguments that Account Services has included in their filing that online poker is a game of skill and not the type of illegal gambling activity that is prohibited by Federal Law.
_The PPA will likely seek to get involved in this action to ensure that the voice of U.S. poker players are heard and their freedom to play the skill game of online poker is preserved � without the threat of the government seizing their money.

2009 WSOP Main Event Special Report: The Winnowing and the Ivey

Day 7 of the Main Event of the 2009 World Series of Poker began with 64 hopefuls still in the running for the richest prize in poker. All eyes were on Phil Ivey, widely acclaimed as one of the game_s best -� if not the best -- players who arrived for the day_s noon start in a strong third position, not far beyond overnight leader Darvin Moon. _Where_s Phil Ivey at, man,� asks one of the Amazon_s room security guards of another, barely an hour into play.
Ivey_s stellar poker resume lacks only a Main Event triumph before some would call it _complete�, though that Holy Grail_s symbolic importance surely exceeds its likelihood, even for the best of pros. In this modern poker era, with thousands of players entering the ME, it_s statistically improbable that any individual pro one could name will win the Main Event; the fields are simply too deep, the odds on any single player so very long.
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And yet, each year, someone beats those odds. For Ivey, the 2009 WSOP will be remembered as a great series, regardless of his final placement here. He_s one of four players to have already won two or more bracelets at this year_s series, and a third triumph would match Jeffrey Lisandro_s triple-bracelet performance this summer, and make Ivey only the sixth player in WSOP to accomplish that feat in a single series.
Ivey_s made deep runs in the Main Event before, too. A key episode from what was perhaps the defining moment that ushered in poker_s modern era was when Chris Moneymaker laid a bad beat on Ivey late in the 2003 Main Event; a stunned and dejected Ivey went to the rail, while Moneymaker_s incredible parlay of fortune continued all the way to the title, which in turn ignited the famed _Moneymaker Effect.� Soon, marginally skilled poker masses picked up the game in the hopes that they, too, could pull off the miracle and walk away with millions.
Two years later, in 2005, Ivey ran deep again. But that was the year that Aaron Kanter ran roughshod over opponents on his way to the final table and a fourth-place finish. Kanter_s runner-runner knockout of reigning champ Greg Raymer � who was in the midst of his own unlikely repeat run � defined the pre-final table play. But only a short time before bouncing Raymer, Kanter_s knockout of Ivey sent perhaps that tourney_s most fearsome threat to the rail with another deep run, but also another disappointment.
Entering this year_s Day 7, it_s again Ivey_s show. The show itself is a part of the WSOP that more unlike anything the TV presentation can offer at a later date. The gargantuan Amazon Room is 30% controlled tension (marked by bursts of frenzy), ringed by 70% vacant space. Outside, the rest of the Rio Convention Center is in a teardown mode, the corporate booths that lined the hallways all but a memory. One or two straggler booths remain, while the Milwaukee_s Best girls hold a fire sale on their last boxes of t-shirts ($5 for t-shirt, drink cozy and souvenir WSOP poker chip).
The previous days had seen several poker-merchandise businesses and online sites giving the away the last of their overstock in a slightly different way, perching themselves at the Rio Convention Center_s main crossroads and handing out branded t-shirts and hats in the hopes the fans will wear the merchandise at the rail� and perhaps be in the background of some televised shots at a later date. A little bit of brand exposure goes a long way, reminding one of the years-long battle over that rooftop behind and above the left-field seats at baseball_s famed Wrigley Field. (This year, the famed rooftop offers advertising for the nearby Hammond Horseshoe casino� like the WSOP, a Harrah_s property.)
And still, it_s all backdrop. There_s poker to be played, two grueling days_ worth of players to be bounced before this year_s _November Nine� is determined. It won_t be Prahlad Friedman, who entered the day as a short stack and exited on one of the very first (if not the first) hands. Friedman_s 64th-place departure assured each of the other players a six-figure payday, life-changing money for a few, perhaps not for others, but a reminder to all that the stakes have become serious. Another early departure was Joe Sebok, who grimly battled with an extreme short stack for three days before bowing out.
The first two-hour level saw ten players trimmed from the pack, leaving 54 still in the hunt. Half that many, 27 players, will remain when the chips are bagged for the day. The surviving players caught an unexpected break over the weekend with back-to-back three-level/six-hour days, but the grueling nature of the Main Event is in the air today. It_ll be a long battle.

2009 WSOP: Main Event Day 6, Ivey Chases Moon as Field Shrinks to 64

After two abbreviated days at the World Series of Poker Main Event, the remaining 185 players took to the felt at the Rio to play deep into the money. By the end of Day 6, the field was reduced to just 64 survivors as some big names fell by the wayside and others surged to the top of the leaderboard. Former world champions Joe Hachem and Peter Eastgate were among the most notable casualties as their impressive runs finally came to an end. Darvin Moon shot to the top of the leaderboard when he cracked David Benyamine_s kings and he never fell far from the top spot, but lurking right behind him at the end of the day were Billy Kopp and the most feared man in poker, Phil Ivey. Ivey finished the day third in chips, while Ludovic Lacay, Antonio Esfandiari, and Jeff Shulman all ended with healthy stacks.
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Michael Greco had the best WSOP of any former television star, with a final table to his credit, but his run at the Main Event ended early on Day 6. He got all his chips in preflop with , but Scott Bohlman called with . Greco made top pair on the flop, but couldn_t pick up another king to stay alive. Other early bust-outs included Cole South, Joe Serock, Nasr El Nasr, and Thierry van den Berg.
Bertrand _ElkY� Grospellier was one of the early chip leaders in the Main Event, but he busted on Day 6 as well. Grospellier lost most of his stack early in a big hand with Fernando Gordo and Scott Cook where four players saw a raised flop of . Gordo led out, Grospellier and Cook both called, and Don Tran got out of the way. The on the turn brought another bet from Gordo, and again Grospellier and Cook both called behind. Gordo checked the river, as did Grospellier. Cook thought for a long moment before checking behind, and revealed for a full house. Gordo and Grospellier had different variants of Big Slick, and ElkY found himself on the short stack. He ran into Scott Sitron_s pocket kings not long after that hand, and headed to the rail.
Darvin Moon called a small raise from David Benyamine to see the flop, and Moon led out. Benyamine raised, Moon reraised, and Benyamine four-bet. Moon slowed things down by just calling, and the came on the turn. Moon bet enough to put Benyamine all in, and Benyamine called with pocket aces. Moon tabled for bottom set, and when the river brought the , Benyamine was done and Moon was the new chip leader.
Billy Kopp took out Joe Hachem in a coin toss after Hachem moved all in preflop with . Kopp made the call with , and Hachem missed the flop, but picked up a flush draw. Any king, jack, or nine would also be good for Hachem, but the board ran out and to send the 2005 champion to the rail just before dinner.
With Hachem_s elimination, Peter Eastgate was the last man remaining with a chance for a second Main Event title, but the 2008 champ_s run ended late on Day 6. Eastgate got all his chips into the middle preflop, and got action from both Billy Kopp and Dennis Phillips to make a large three-way pot. Phillips and Kopp checked down the board of , and Eastgate showed for top two pair. Phillips mucked, but Kopp showed for the flush and the win. Peter Eastgate made a phenomenal run at a back-to-back championship, but was unable to make it all the way.
Joe Sebok came back from the dinner break in short-stack ninja mode, and picked up a couple of key double-ups to make it through to Day 7. He won a coin flip against Frank Rusnak with to Rusnak_s for his first double-up. Then Sebok moved all in over the top of Billy Kopp_s preflop raise with . Kopp reluctantly called with , but he could only muster a pair of sevens as Sebok doubled up once more. Sebok finished the day with an even one million in chips.
Antonio Esfandiari made a solid run at the chip lead late in the day, beginning when he busted Wesley Ismay in a big pot. Ismay reraised Esfandiari preflop, and Esfandiari called as the came down. Esfandiari led out, and Ismay called. The hit the turn and the fireworks went off as Esfandiari led out again, Ismay moved all in over the top, and Esfandiari called. Esfandiari showed , and Ismay was caught bluffing for all his chips with Q-9. The came on the river, and Esfandiari finished the day in sixth place with well over five million in chips.
The man no one else in the field wanted to see with chips picked up a ton of them on Day 6. Phil Ivey busted several players on the way to his big stack, including Hac Dang. Dang and Ivey got it all in preflop, and Dang got his chips in about as good as possible. He shoved with , Ivey called with , and the board came down jack-high to give Ivey top set and send Hang packing. Ivey then busted Kent Goulding in another come-from-behind victory. Ivey raised from the button, Goulding reraised from the big blind, and Ivey called. Goulding checked the flop, and Ivey fired a big enough bet to put Goulding all in. Goulding called with , and Ivey showed for the flush draw. Goulding looked good for the double-up on the turn, but the on the river filled Ivey_s flush and sent Goulding to the exit.
Darvin Moon closed out Day 6 with 9,745,000 to take the chip lead, while Billy Kopp finished a strong second with 8,245,000 and the always-dangerous Phil Ivey ended in third chip position with 6,345,000. Other notable survivors from Day 6 included Prahlad Friedman, Blair Rodman, Tom Schneider, and Dennis Phillips, who picked up a big pot late in the day to continue his run at consecutive final tables when he busted Fernando Gordo. Join PokerNews at noon local time for all the live updates from Day 7 of the WSOP Main Event.

PokerNews Video Tribute: 40 Years of the WSOP, Part 3

PokerNews concludes its stunning three-part tribute to the 40-year history of the World Series of Poker with this extended look at some of the highlights of recent years, which have seen the expansion and awareness of poker and the WSOP reach unprecedented levels. 2003 was the year unknown amateur and online qualifier Chris Moneymaker stunned the online world by capturing the title, and this third and final tribute returns to Moneymaker_s defining moment of glory, and where the WSOP has gone since the _Moneymaker Effect� reshaped the poker world. (Part 1 of this special three-part series is available here, with Part 2 available here.)

The PokerNews Top 10: Top 2009 WSOP Performances

It has been a summer full of amazing individual achievement at the World Series of Poker, with no less than four players winning multiple bracelets, and several others with five or more cashes and several deep runs. With only the Main Event to go, it_s a good time to look back and consider the top ten performances from this summer. It should be noted that the following list does not strictly mirror the points model employed by the WSOP to determine its player of the year, although many of the names on this list appear at the top of the POY list as well. Nor does the list rate players strictly according to the number of cashes a player has accumulated or total winnings earned, but rather the overall consistency of a player_s achievements at this year_s WSOP, with added weight given to those who managed to realize the goal of every poker player who enters a WSOP event by capturing the bracelet.
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10. Barry Greenstein -- 7 cashes, 2 final tables, total winnings $161,243; Daniel Negreanu, 8 cashes, 2 final tables, total winnings $331,860
Both Greenstein and Negreanu came up short this summer in their quests for bracelets, but both once again ably proved themselves as belonging among poker_s elite. Greenstein_s seven cashes came in a variety of games (limit hold_em, mixed hold_em, pot-limit Omaha, seven-card stud hi-low 8-or-better, H.O.R.S.E., no-limit 2-7 draw lowball). The California resident made two final tables this year, finishing ninth in the $10,000 World Championship Pot-Limit Omaha event (No. 40) and fifth in the $2,500 Mixed Hold_em (Limit/No-Limit) event (No. 47).
Negreanu_s eight cashes also came in many different varieties of poker (limit hold_em, mixed hold_em, PLO/PLH, seven-card stud, seven-card stud hi-low 8-or-better, Omaha hi-low 8-or-better, 2-7 triple draw). Toronto_s most famous poker player managed a fourth-place finish in the $10,000 World Championship Omaha Hi-Low 8-or-Better event (No. 18) and had a near miss by finishing runner-up in the $2,500 Limit Hold_em Six-Handed event (No. 14).
9. John Juanda -- 4 cashes, 4 final tables, total winnings $170,745
The 2008 World Series of Poker Europe Main Event winner had a stellar 2009 WSOP, making no less than four final tables. Born in Indonesia and now residing in California, Juanda finished fifth in the $1,500 Seven-Card Stud event (No. 16), fourth in the $10,000 World Championship No-Limit 2-7 Draw Lowball event (No. 23), ninth in the $2,500 Pot-Limit Omaha event (No. 30), and fourth in the $2,500 2-7 Triple Draw Limit event (No. 55).
8. Steve Sung -- 2 cashes, 2 final tables, 1 bracelet, total winnings $883,380
Sung earned his first ever WSOP bracelet in the so-called _Stimulus Special� $1,000 No-Limit Hold_em event (No. 4) during the first week of the series. That meant he bested the largest field in any event this summer -- 6,012 -- outside of the Main Event itself. The native of South Korea, who now makes his home in California, followed up on his Event No. 4 victory with an impressive third-place finish in the $10,000 World Championship No-Limit Deuce-to-Seven Draw event (No. 23).
7. James Van Alstyne -- 3 cashes, 3 final tables, 1 bracelet, total winnings $519,080
Van Alstyne_s summer just kept getting better as it went along, with three final tables all in mixed-game events. Born in Georgia and currently residing in Las Vegas, Van Alstyne finished sixth in the $10,000 World Championship Mixed Event (No. 12) in which players play eight different games (the H.O.R.S.E. games, plus 2-7 triple draw, pot-limit Omaha, and no-limit hold_em). Then he finished as the runner-up in the $3,000 H.O.R.S.E. event (No. 21). Finally he broke through and won Event No. 31, the $1,500 H.O.R.S.E. event, thus capping off a remarkable WSOP.
6. Greg _FBT� Mueller -- 3 cashes, 3 final tables, 2 bracelets, total winnings $709,635
After taking seventh in the $10,000 World Championship Seven-Card Stud event (No. 6), Mueller came back two weeks later to win another of the $10,000 World Championship events, the Limit Hold_em event (No. 33). Then the one-time professional hockey player from Vancouver turned around and became the fourth player this summer to win multiple bracelets when he took another limit hold_em event, the $1,500 Limit Hold_em Shootout (No. 50).
5. Ville Wahlbeck -- 6 cashes, 4 final tables, 1 bracelet, total winnings $1,082,176
Not only did all of Wahlbeck_s cashes this year come from deep runs, but five of the six came in the $10,000 buy-in World Championship events, the only exception being his 12th place finish in the $2,500 Razz event (No. 44). During the first week of the Series, the Finnish pro took third in the $10,000 World Championship Seven-Card Stud event (No. 6), first in the $10,000 World Championship Mixed Event (No. 12), and 13th in the $10,000 World Championship Omaha Hi-Low 8-or-Better event (No. 18). He then nearly won the $10,000 World Championship No-Limit 2-7 Draw Lowball event (No. 23), finishing runner-up. Wahlbeck then capped off his WSOP with a sixth place in the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. event (No. 49).
4. Brock Parker -- 4 cashes, 2 final tables, 2 bracelets, total winnings $806,870
Along with Wahlbeck, Parker was the talk of the WSOP in the early going after he became the first player this summer to win two bracelets. In fact, the Maryland native_s victories came in two consecutive events, as Parker entered the second the day after winning the first. Both were also in short-handed events, the first in the $2,500 Limit Hold_em Six-Handed event (No. 14), and the second in the $2,500 No-Limit Hold_em Six-Handed event (No. 19). Parker would additionally cash in Events 29 and 50, both also hold_em events.
3. Phil Ivey -- 5 cashes, 3 final tables, 2 bracelets, total winnings $356,994
Ivey added to his already formidable stature in the poker world by capturing two more bracelets this summer, bringing his overall total to seven. Ivey won the $2,500 No-Limit 2-7 Draw Lowball event (No. 8), then also landed the $2,500 Omaha/Seven-Card Stud Hi-Low 8-or-Better mixed event (No. 25). The native of California and New Jersey resident would additionally final table the $5,000 No-Limit Hold_em Shootout (No. 41), as well as cash in another hold_em event (No. 13) and a pot-limit Omaha event (No. 30).
2. Vitaly Lunkin -- 4 cashes, 3 final tables, 1 bracelet, total winnings $2,696,385
Lunkin ends the summer as the highest earner over the first 56 events -- by a long shot -- having started off the Series in grand fashion by winning the prestigious $40,000 buy-in 40th Annual No-Limit Hold_em event (No. 4). After scoring a modest cash in the $10,000 World Championship Mixed Event (No. 12), the Russian would come close to winning a second bracelet on two more occasions, finishing runner-up in Event No. 40, the $10,000 World Championship Pot-Limit Omaha event, then taking fourth in the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. event (No. 49) after having had a sizable lead at the final table.
1. Jeffrey Lisandro -- 6 cashes, 3 final tables, 3 bracelets, total winnings $807,521
Lisandro tied an all-time WSOP record this summer by winning three bracelets, taking down the $1,500 Seven-Card Stud event (No. 16), the $10,000 World Championship Seven-Card Stud Hi-Low 8-or-Better event (No. 37), and the $2,500 Razz event (No. 44). The native of Australia who now makes Italy his home just missed another final table, finishing ninth in the $10,000 World Championship Seven-Card Stud event (No. 6), and additionally cashed in a pot-limit Omaha event (No. 35) and a pot-limit Omaha hi-low event (No. 27).

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2009 WSOP Vlog Update: Tony G and 'The Shrink'

Tony G stopped in early for a video update during his action in Day 2a of the World Series of Poker Main Event. Checking in with Tony was Jamie Glazier, the founder of Dare2Dream, an Australia-based mental-coaching system advocated by Joe Hachem and newly branching out into the poker world.
In this update, Tony G talks briefly about his hopes for for the Dare2Dream philosophy and approach and the upcoming chance to take a rare break from the rigors of the WSOP:

2009 WSOP: $10,000 NLHE Main Event, Lehavot Tops Massive Day 2b Field

Day 2b kicked off with almost twice as many runners as the previous Day 2 flight, as 2,924 players returned for Day 2b of the 2009 World Series of Poker Main Event. In the days of 6,000-player "Stimulus" events and 6,494-player Main Events that may not seem like a huge field, but in reality the Day 2b field was larger than any Main Event field prior to 2005. As a matter of fact, more players took to the felt at the Rio on Day 2b than played in every WSOP Main Event combined from 1970-1995. At the close of play, Amir Lehavot was the chip leader on a stack of 610,500, well in front of his nearest competitors Peter DeBaene and Troy Weber.
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Among the players in the massive Day 2b field were some of the biggest cash game players in the world, such as Phil Ivey, Tom _durrrr� Dwan, and Jennifer Harman. Also in the field were international superstars like Bertrand _ElkY� Grospellier, Nicolas Levi, Alexander Kostritsyn, and Dave _Devilfish� Ulliott. World Champs were on display throughout the room on Day 2b as well, with Phil Hellmuth, Greg Raymer, Joe Hachem, Scotty Nguyen, Dan Harrington, Peter Eastgate, and WSOPE champion John Juanda all taking the field. And there was the occasional player whose celebrity comes from other arenas, such as Los Angeles Laker Jordan Farmar, actors Marlon Wayans and Lou Diamond Phillips, and producer Sam Simon.
Nearly half of the massive field busted on Day 2, among them some of poker_s top players. Erick Lindgren suffered a tough beat at the hands of Craig Ivey to start the day, and suddenly the field was one bracelet winner shorter. Lindgren saw the three-way flop of with Ivey and Vinny Pahuja, and Ivey led out. Pahuja got out of the way, and Lindgren pushed the rest of his stack into the middle. Ivey called with for an overpair, but Lindgren had the lead with . The on the turn gave Ivey additional straight outs, but it was the on the river that made a set for Ivey and sent Lindgren packing early on Day 2b.
Other premature bust-outs included Isabelle Mercier, Paul Darden, Victor Ramdin, and Bill Chen. Scotty Nguyen, Vanessa Rousso, and Kathy Liebert were also early casualties, as was Michael _The Grinder� Mizrachi. Mizrachi never got much going on Day 2b, and was sent to the rail before the dinner break. By the time dinner rolled around, nearly 900 players had been eliminated in just four hours of play.
The action continued apace after dinner, with Gavin Griffin, Ylon Schwartz, and Marlon Wayans all heading to the rail. Wayans played a solid tournament, but when he got all his chips into the middle holding pocket kings to Fergal Nealon_s , all he could do was watch the outcome. The flop came down 9-6-2 with two hearts, and the turn brought the . Wayans held the , so there was only one out left for Nealon. He spiked it on the river when the hit, and Wayans was done. Other Day 2b eliminations included Cyndy Violette, Paul Magriel, Hal Lubarsky, Tom Dwan, and Nenad Medic.
For much of the evening it appeared that 2008 champ Peter Eastgate_s name would be added to the bust-out list, but the resilient champ came back from the brink time and again on Day 2b. He survived to see Day 3 along with Phil Ivey (pictured) Phil Hellmuth, Dan Harrington, Lou Diamond Phillips, Jeff Lisandro, and Brian Lemke.
As the fourth level of play drew to a close, 1,486 happy survivors bagged their chips in preparation for a rare day off at the WSOP. Join PokerNews at noon on Friday as Day 3 kicks off with roughly 2,000 players all vying for a shot at the Main Event bracelet.

Poker Book Review: _Pass the Sugar_ by Joe Hachem and Peter Ralph

mélange (n) -- a mixture or medley; hodgepodge
Pass the Sugar, the auto-biography of 2005 World Series of Poker Main Event champion Joe Hachem, co-authored by Peter Ralph, is an entertaining but unpolished recounting of the life and times of the Lebanese-born Australian whose unexpected surge to the 2005 WSOP title set a sports-mad country on its ear. The book, of course, is titled after the catchphrase that Hachem used for years and made famous in his run to victory, where his _mates� cheered every big pot he claimed with elated cries of _Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! Oi! Oi! Oi!�
Pass the Sugar is the second biography of a Main Event winner to appear this decade, following 2005_s Moneymaker, by Chris Moneymaker with Daniel Paisner. As with Moneymaker, Hachem_s climb from anonymity to a level of international fame spreading far beyond the poker world itself is an extended story ripe for the telling; the disappointment is that the book itself falls somewhat short of its promise � what could have been a great tale is here just something adequate, like a photo of a scenic panorama rendered dull by a camera lens not quite focused.
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The book is essentially an assemblage of first-person narratives by Hachem and others, beginning its story in medias res at the moment that would truly change Hachem_s life � when he sat down for his heads-up duel against eventual runner-up Steven Dannenmann for the title. From there the first half of the book, titled _Part One � The Main Event,� intersperses Hachem_s run through the 2005 WSOP with flashbacks (and occasional flashforwards) designed to flesh out the character of this intriguing Aussie with an interesting background who suddenly and literally found himself center stage. The poker part of the story works well; the character expansion, somewhat less. What emerges is an incomplete picture of what surely is one of the poker world_s most complex characters� but with that character posed, seemingly, for the cameras.
Hachem_s spur-of-the-moment decision to enter the 2005 WSOP, courtesy of a last-minute gesture and change of vacation plans by his wife, Jeanie, allowed him to accompany a group of Melbourne friends who had already committed to playing in Las Vegas. Early on, Hachem noted a few good omens that pointed toward a successful run, the most important in the telling being Jeanie_s recurring insistence that he was going to finish either first or third. Hachem_s cheering section as his wife_s prophetic vision came true included his younger brother Tony, cousin Billy Sukkar and fellow players such as Emad Tahtouh and Arul Thillai.
Fans of televised poker might remember how well Hachem ran late in the event, when he stormed back from short-stack status to the win. ESPN_s cameras first captured him only as the money bubble approached, and showed him time after time with monster pairs that held up as he worked his way toward the final table. Hachem won a couple of key races as well, and received one of his biggest breaks of the tourney when he pushed his chip stack in bad against Aaron Kanter, who was, until the hand in question, by the far the most fortunate player in the event. Kanter_s luck turned sour in that hand, when Hachem caught a needed king to double up and stay alive. Other than Kanter, the TV version depicted Hachem as the player who was luckiest when it mattered most, though the truth behind big-field poker is that no one wins a title without a couple of big breaks along the way. What the ESPN cameras couldn_t show, in their highly edited take on the Main Event, was the process of Hachem himself picking his spots late in the action, after never having an above-average chip stack through most of the first four days of play.
When Hachem quickly dispatched the amateur Dannenmann after trapping him with a flopped straight, holding 7-3 and catching a heaven-sent 6-5-4 flop, it was almost anticlimactic. By the time heads-up play began, Hachem had seized both the chip lead and the strategic edge; the toughest foes at the final, Mike Matusow and Andy Black, had already been eliminated, and _Big Mo� was clearly on Hachem_s side. The win, along with his fellow Aussies_ exuberant celebration, made Hachem a national hero and _Pass the Sugar� one of poker_s most memorable sayings.
That_s the part of Pass the Sugar most poker fans already know. But what about the man behind the catchphrase?
Hachem, for those unfamiliar with his background, was born in Beirut, Lebanon, just before the Middle East strife of the Six-Day War. Joe was the eldest of three sons, and was six when his poor family emigrated to Australia_s small but tight-knit Lebanese community via a loan organized through the Catholic Church. Hachem_s youngest brother Tony is also well known in the poker world, though middle brother Elei was killed as a teenager in a car accident. His parents also separated when Joe was 13, with Joe_s beloved Uncle Vince becoming the father figure in the teenaged Hachem_s life. In fact, it_s only in the book_s final stages, when recounting the 2008 passing of his _Khaule Mansour,� that Hachem risks dropping his guard and shares a bit of the pain that surely has shaped a part of his complex character.
The hard-working, entrepreneurial Hachem was on the go from an early age. He worked job after job from age seven on, including later stints at a meat-packing plant and as both model and manager for a modeling agency, being for years the primary breadwinner for his family before settling on chiropracty as his chosen career. Hachem quickly built a thriving practice before being dealt a medical bad beat of his own. After battling for several months with chronic burning sensations in his hands and feet, he was diagnosed with the rare condition erythromelalgia, which causes chronic inflammation of blood vessels in the extremities. Active use of hands or feet aggravates the condition, making the diagnosis a deathblow to Hachem_s chiropractic career.
Hachem was forced to sell his practice and moved into work as a mortgage banker, all while having been bitten by the poker bug. Hachem had become a poker regular, excelling in cash games and tournaments at Melbourne_s Crown Casino, and he also hosted a monthly 30-player, three-table poker tourney in his garage. Consistently beating the Melbourne games led to his amassing enough of a poker bankroll to finance his life-changing 2005 WSOP adventure.
Pass the Sugar, though, at times stumbles all over itself in telling Hachem_s tale, with the flashbacks and other artificial literary devices often an annoyance that joins loose writing and editing in detracting from the tale. Hachem_s biggest break of the 2005 WSOP might have come on Day 1, when the aggressive eventual winner found a pair of pocket nines (in a chapter titled, appropriately enough, _A Pair of Nines�). Hachem tried to bully a weaker player � who he somewhat derisively refers to here as _Mr. Beady� � getting a good chunk of his starting chips in the pot with a board showing A-K-5-Q and no indication at all that his opponent, weak player or not, was going away.
Did Hachem suck out a nine on the river? Ahh, but there_s a chapter of Vegas-trip interlude to wade through before finding the cliffhanger_s (obvious) answer, as otherwise there_d be darned little reason to tell the tale. It_s the lit_ry equivalent of a _30s _Flash Gordon� film serial showing a humming, stage-threads-visible missile closing in on poor Flash_s space rocket. Cue closing credits. In days of yore, we_d have to wait a week to learn the answer, though in our heart of hearts we already know that Flash will pull off another miraculous escape from the dreaded Ming_s merciless attack... or spike that needed nine.
So too does Pass the Sugar pad and posture its somewhat thin collection of what were likely narrated, first-person tales, and the book does so rather unsatisfactorily, the _mélange� as mentioned at top. The collective story is told in the present tense, quite jarring for a well known bit of poker history accompanied by even older personal-life flashbacks. Frequent errors and typos also jar the reader �- an example being _Dannenmann� spelled as _Dannemann� throughout -� again detracting from the final product.
Also of note is that the tale of Joe Hachem_s historic win and the snippets of his early personal life that we_re given together account for only half the book. Most recent WSOP Main Event winners have been slapped with the label _amateur player,� Hachem included, and the second part of the book (_Seeking Validation�) details Hachem_s struggle against that too-easy and incorrect label. Does winning the WSOP Main Event and being called an _amateur� player put a chip on one_s shoulder, if that player is hard-working and skilled, but prior to the breakthrough, unknown?
In Hachem_s case, as illustrated in Part Two, the answer seemed to be _Yes.� This middle section is another loose collection of tales from Joe and others about events following his 2005 triumph, as he cemented his status as one of the most prominent names in the game. Interspersed with several of Joe_s own tales are stories along with guest appearances from poker dignitaries and celebrities, family and friends, including Seinfeld_s Jason Alexander and 2004 WSOP champ Greg Raymer. Tossed in here as well are miscellaneous Hachem anecdotes, all leading up to the win he cites as validation, his $2.1 million triumph in the December, 2006 Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker Classic in Las Vegas.
The constant struggles to reach new levels of success, as in "Validation," are in fact one of the book's overriding themes. One is mindful of the 2006 WSOP Media Day conference where a then reigning-champion Hachem admonished a Vegas newspaper reporter to get his facts straight for referring to Hachem as an online qualifier, as with previous winners Moneymaker and Raymer. Hachem indeed paid his $10,000 2005 WSOP entry fee out of pocket, though the quick outburst suggested that Hachem was already struggling against the confines of his media-created box.
The shortish third and final part of Pass the Sugar, _Fame and Family,� is a brief collection of more recent anecdotes and life stories from a more worldly Hachem, who_s seemingly accepted his present and future role among poker_s very public elite. Tales of trips to Cannes (via sponsor PokerStars), South Africa and elsewhere, an appearance on Australia_s version of _60 Minutes,� ongoing charity work with Aussie cricket legend Shane Warne, and recent family tragedies remind the reader that Hachem_s life, as with his poker career, is very much a work in progress.
Pass the Sugar is an interesting book, if a bit of a messy one. The opposing contrast, of course, is between interesting and captivating. One difference between an autobiography and a biography is that an autobiography is more often the tale the subject wants to tell than the one potential readers most yearn to digest. Here, that distinction conjurs up Jungian questions of self and shadow and persona, the differences between the _I� that each of us is, that which we believe we are, and that which other people perceive. That Joseph Hachem is a complex human character goes almost without stating, but the toughest back questions, those that would help bring into clarity the man behind the story, were perhaps unexamined here.
Or perhaps that_s just poker. After all, if we_re to win at the game, we can_t share all our secrets.
Note: Pass the Sugar is published by Melbourne Books and sells for AU $32.95.

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The PokerNews Profile: Nick Schulman

Upon winning his first World Poker Tour title and $2.1 million, Nick Schulman was approached with an invitation to appear on the _Late Show� with David Letterman. A native New Yorker, Schulman had no doubt passed by the show_s 53rd Street studio more times than he could count, but he decided against it, worried that his nerves would get the best of him on-air. At his core, Schulman is a shy young man who was fortunate enough to catch the tidal wave of the poker boom right at its crest. Following his early successes, however, Schulman never stopped trying to improve himself as a player. He made the decision to learn and master all the different games of poker rather than become a no-limit hold_em machine like many of his peers. That choice has paid off huge dividends, including stints in the _Big Game,� extraordinary online success, and only recently, his first World Series of Poker bracelet.
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Nick Schulman was born on September 18, 1984 in New York City. He grew up in Manhattan and earned excellent marks in school up until about age 14. During his freshman year in high school, he began experiencing anxiety attacks. Neither he nor his parents understood what was happening to him and his disorder went untreated for some time. Schulman began ditching school in order to hang out in pool halls and found that his anxiety abated once he was out of the classroom setting. A week of cutting class turned into a month, and by age 15, Schulman had dropped out entirely. It wasn_t until eight months later that his parents discovered that their son was hustling pool for $20 a game rather than attending the ninth grade. A war ensued between Schulman and his parents, who wanted him to resume his education. He wouldn_t re-enroll, however, and elected to get his G.E.D. instead. When Schulman was 16, he moved out of his parents_ apartment to live with a fellow pool player.
It was in the back of those New York City pool halls where Schulman first learned to play poker. As the poker boom took off, his pool friends began playing more often and Schulman took to the game easily. After taking an honest look at himself as a pool player, Schulman realized he had more potential in the poker world and began to hone his skills. Schulman played live in underground NYC cardrooms where his typical game was $5/10 no-limit hold_em, as well as online as _The Takeover.� At times he admittedly played way over his head and drastically under-rolled, but Schulman took the time to scrutinize his mistakes and better his own game. By the time he was 19, Schulman was playing full-time, and poker had replaced pool as his primary obsession.
Schulman turned 21 in the fall of 2005 and entered his first World Poker Tour event at the Borgata shortly after his birthday. He didn_t last long, busting out early on the first day of play. Two months later, he headed north to Foxwoods to play in the cash games surrounding the WPT World Poker Finals, but ended up buying into the $10,000 Main Event. His last-minute decision ended up being perhaps the best one he ever made, as he won the event, besting a final table that included Allen Cunningham, Lyle Berman, and Bill Gazes to win over $2.1 million and become the WPT_s youngest-ever champion.
Schulman admits that he let his win go a bit too much to his head in the sense that he spent too much money too soon and grew overconfident in his own abilities. Though he made three WPT cashes and two WSOP cashes in 2006, his total tournament earnings that year totaled less than $100,000. Schulman rededicated himself to studying his own game and learning the different variants of poker so he could compete with the best players in high-limit mixed games. In 2007 he made his first WSOP final table, finishing sixth in the $5,000 No-Limit Hold_em event and returned to the scene of his biggest victory � the WPT Foxwoods, where he again made the final table and came just short of a repeat performance, finishing second for nearly $865,000.
2008 saw Schulman finish 12th in the WSOP_s $5,000 No-Limit Deuce-to-Seven Lowball event, and come close to yet another WPT final table, finishing 13th in the Doyle Brunson Five Diamond Classic at Bellagio. In early _09 he final tabled the $25,000 High Rollers Event at the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure and went deep at the L.A. Poker Classic Main Event, finishing 17th. It was only a few weeks ago, however that he captured the most coveted prize in poker � a WSOP bracelet � which he earned by defeating an elite field in the $10,000 World Championship No-Limit Deuce-to-Seven Lowball event. Schulman took home $279,751 for his victory and despite his reserved nature, it was impossible not to notice the proud smile on his face as he posed for his winner_s photo.
Outside of poker, Schulman enjoys a good game of pickup basketball. He lives with his girlfriend in New York City.

Hip-hop Star Nelly Highlights PokerStars Gala at Palms

One of the highlights of the poker world_s summer social season unfolded on Thursday night as PokerStars held its giant party for its WSOP qualifiers and others, featuring hip-hop star Nelly. The veteran rapper, who has participated in several 2009 World Series of Poker events himself, led the festivities at the Rain Nightclub at the Palms Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.
As in previous years, the festivities hosted by Stars at Rain were held on the WSOP_s official media day, an off day for most players. Dozens of celebrities and prominent players were among the throngs at Rain on Thursday night, including NBA LA Lakers player Jordan Farmar, _Seinfeld� comedian (and Friend of PokerStars) Jason Alexander and actor Lou Diamond Phillips. Former world champion players and Team PokerStars members Peter Eastgate, Joe Hachem, Greg Raymer and Chris Moneymaker also attended, along with other Stars notables including Daniel Negreanu, Jason Mercier, Bertrand _ElkY� Grospellier and Dario Minieri.
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In addition to Nelly_s live performance, attendees were treated to ongoing entertainment from stiltwalkers, aerialists suspended from the club_s ceiling, podium dancers and more. Over a thousand invitees attended the gala, always one of the highlights of the summer season and a must-attend for PokerStars online qualifiers.
Some of the sights from the event (photos courtesy PokerStars):
Early on at the festivities at Rain, before most attendees arrived
A handful of celebrities and PokerStars pros on the red carpet at Rain: Jason Alexander, Noah Boeken, Torrie Wilson, Lou Diamond Phillips, Joe Hachem and Chris Moneymaker
Nelly performs at Rain on Thursday night
PokerNews also caught up with a bit of the red-carpet action from Rain:

$500 Cash Freerolls at Tony G Poker

Tony G continues to give his loyal players a weekly dose of amazing cash prizes in the form of this exclusive $500 PokerNews Cash Freeroll Series.
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Bodog Party Adds to WSOP Festivities

The unofficial party season surrounding the 2009 World Series of Poker continued on Thursday night when an exclusive gathering was held at the _Kingpin Suite� at the Palms Casino Resort near to the Rio. The evening_s gathering in the exclusive 25th-floor suite included appearances by Bodog pros Evelyn Ng, Jean-Robert Bellande and Justin Bonomo.
Along with plentiful food and drink, guests were treated to pocket billards, bowling on the two-lane alley within the suite, and an entertaining display by a traveling card sharp, whose expertise at bottom dealing and smoothly loading in a cold deck drew dozens of onlookers. On the whole, the get-together offered a bit of a light-hearted respite from the larger parties running elsewhere.
PokerNews video hostess Gloria Balding stopped by to check out the fun, with her video report as follows:

2009 WSOP Vlog: A Tony G Day 1a Experience

With action underway in the 2009 World Series of Poker Main Event, PokerNews_ acclaimed presentation of the festivities continues across many forms or media � live updates, videos, feature recaps and more.
Here, PokerNews_ own Tony G checks in with video hostess Gloria Balding. A key early double-up had Tony in good shape early on, and he had thoughts to share on how the changes from double to triple starting stacks would affect the makeup of the final table. Tony also participated in the Ante Up For Africa charity, function, where he played against Sarah Silverman and others. Here_s Tony:

Visit Las Vegas_ New M Casino Resort for $75/Night in Special PokerNews Offer 

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2009 WSOP: Day 1D Advance Sellout Leaves Hundreds Out of Main Event

The gambling nature of poker players, betting that despite waiting until the last minute to register for the 2009 World Series of Poker_s Main Event, came back to bite them on Monday as several hundred players were shut out of the final Day 1d session once the WSOP announced a sellout. The angry players, including several recognizable, _name� players, demanded accommodation despite the declared lack of space at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino, where the event was played, and despite an official announcement that its official � and then extended -- occupancy of some 2,809 players for Day 1d had been reached.
Nearly 20 Harrah_s and WSOP officials quickly rearranged a meeting/conference in the large Rio Convention Center hall formerly housing the PokerPalooza to address affected players, though the meeting was not, as many shut-out players had hoped, to learn that the WSOP had found new way to house the late entrants. Instead, WSOP Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack offered profuse apologies for the shut-out situation, but he and other officials noted that none of the other plans floated by frustrated players were workable.
Among those plans were to have a separate starting session begin later on Tuesday, allowing all blocked-out players to enter, and then merging them into the Day 2B group later in the week. A second plan floated by players involved an impromptu day 1E session to be held on Wednesday, but again, space considerations prevented that option from moving forward in a serious manner. Survivors from the proposed Day 1E would still have had to have been added in to the already large Day 2b group, and even with groups from Days 1c and 1d playing five levels each on their opening days � another change necessitated by the heavily imbalanced starting-session turnouts � the logistics proved impossible for WSOP staff to manage.
The players_ own heavy preference in playing the final of the four starting sessions was the largest contributing factor to the shutout, as only 1,116 players registered for day 1a play, followed by a paltry 873 on Day 1b, which was barely a third of the available space. The two weak turnouts, followed by a less-than-2008 Day 1c crowd of 1,696, assured that a collision between space availability and player demand would occur on Day 1d.
Despite the shutout of several hundred players, the 2009 WSOP Main Event will post these basic numbers:
Players: 6,494 players
Total Purse: $61,043,600
First Place: $8,548,435
Total Players Cashing: 648

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The PokerNews Profile: Yevgeniy Timoshenko

On the biggest night of his young life, Yevgeniy Timoshenko dressed like he knew victory was his. Clad in a charcoal pinstripe suit with hardly a hair out of place, Timoshenko came into the final table of the 2009 WPT Championships with nearly a 2:1 chip lead over his closest competitor and took his seat under the glare of the TV lights like he_d been doing this for years. The $25,000 Main Event at the Bellagio Five Star World Poker Classic may have been the biggest tournament Timoshenko had ever played, but this poker prodigy had already raked in over a million dollars in online tournaments and another million playing live� and all before his 21st birthday.
Yevgeniy Timoshenko was born in 1988 in the Ukraine. At age ten, he immigrated to the United States with his family, settling in Mukilteo, Washington, a northern suburb of Seattle. When Timoshenko was sixteen, Greg Raymer won the 2004 WSOP Main Event, catapulting poker into the mainstream of popular culture. Timoshenko was fascinated by what he saw on television, and began dabbling in the play-money Texas hold_em games on Yahoo! From there, he opened an account on UltimateBet where he became a self-described _play-chip shark,� dominating play-chip MTTs and sit-_n_-goes. Timoshenko earned enough frequent player points on the site to begin playing on the _Ultimate Points� ring game tables, starting with stud and moving on to limit hold_em. Finally, he broke through and cashed a freeroll tournament, putting a precious $6 and change in his account. Timoshenko took that money, played a small buy-in real-money tournament, and ended up winning it for $300. With that seed money, he started playing limit hold_em ring games and quickly grew his bankroll into the thousands via the $10/20 and $15/30 LHE games on PartyPoker. Timoshenko soon discovered poker forums and began posting hands in earnest to try and improve his own game.
Gradually, Timoshenko transitioned into a no-limit hold_em multi-table tournament specialist. Playing as _Jovial Gent� on PokerStars, Timoshenko won the Daily $100 Rebuy for over $30,000, the notoriously tough Sunday $200 Rebuy for over $60,000 and final-tabled the Sunday Million, finishing fifth for $59,000 and change. Then, on November 26, 2006, Timoshenko beat Jon _apestlyes� Van Fleet heads-up in a special $500 buy-in edition of the Sunday Million for a $250,000 score, firmly placing him on the short list of up-and-coming online players to watch. He followed that up with wins in the Bodog Sunday $100K, the Full Tilt $1K Monday, and a final-table finish in the UltimateBet Sunday $200K. By 2008, Timoshenko had booked over $1,000,000 in online tournament winnings.
All of 19 years of age, Timoshenko began hitting the road for major tournaments in 2007. His first major live tournament score was actually a win, taking first place in a �1,000 NLHE side event at the 2007 Paddy Power Irish Open in Dublin for over $166,000. From Ireland he moved on to France, where he final-tabled the �4,000 No-Limit Hold_em event at the Paris Open for a $27,445 take. The following January he was down under in Melbourne, Australia for the 2008 Aussie Millions. Timoshenko made two final tables, the first in a $1,000 NLHE preliminary event where he finished sixth, and another in the $3,000 Two Card Manila Championship where he finished third despite little familiarity with the game.
With all his success in Europe and Australia, he took his game to yet another continent, where he entered the $5,000 Main Event at the Asian Poker Tour_s stop in Macau. Timoshenko came away with his second major tournament victory, besting a final table that included Casey Kastle and Steve Yea to come away with the $500,000 first place prize. Only two weeks later, Timoshenko was halfway around the world in Spain at the EPT Barcelona Open, where he finished second in a �2,000 NLHE side event, adding another $134,000 to his exploding bankroll. From there he traveled north to London to compete in the 2008 World Series of Poker Europe. Timoshenko made the final table of the £1,500 No-Limit Hold_em event alongside his good friend Adam Junglen. Junglen finished sixth and Timoshenko came away with third place, good for another $100,000.
The best was yet to come, however for Timoshenko. Only two months and two weeks after turning 21, he entered the $25,000 buy-in WPT World Championships at Bellagio. Timoshenko turned in a positively dominating final-table performance, steamrolling his opponents on his way to victory. Timoshenko banked over $2.1 million for his feat, and joined David Chiu, Carlos Mortensen, Joe Bartholdi, Tuan Le, Martin de Knjiff, and Alan Goehring on the elite list of WPT World Champions.
These days, Timoshenko can often be found playing high-stakes NLHE and PLO cash games on Full Tilt Poker under the screen name _bballer88.� He still calls Mukilteo, WA home.

Exclusive $500 Cash Freerolls Back on Titan Poker

Back by popular demand, the $500 PokerNews Cash Freeroll Series will begin again with the first one kicking off this Tuesday, July 7 at 18:45 GMT.
Remember, you will only need one Titan Poker Point to qualify - so start today.
To recap, sign up to Titan Poker through PokerNews, make a minimum deposit and earn a single Titan Poker Point to use to 'buy-in' to these freerolls. Existing Titan Poker account holders - if you've got points just sitting in your account you may already be eligible! Of course, your account would need to be linked to PokerNews to participate in this promotion.
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July 28
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Video Feature: Boeree Tops Castello by Decision in 'Rumble Nowhere Near the Rio'

Wednesday_s much-anticipated _Rumble Nowhere Near the Rio� charity boxing match between well-known poker women Liv Boeree and Melissa Castello was a hit with fans, with Boeree, the spokesplayer for UltimateBet, defeating Castello, one of PokerNews_ own popular poker video hostesses, in a unanimous decision rendered by the three-judge scoring panel.
The charity bout, sponsored by PokerBattle, announced by PokerRoad and generously hosted by Barry_s Boxing Center in Las Vegas, raised money for several worthy charities, including the Marie Curie Cancer Trust, which picked up $1,000 via Boeree_s victory, and the Hemophilia Foundation of Southern California, which gained $500 for Castello_s valiant but unsuccessful effort.
The judge_s decision, delivered as an officially sanctioned bout through the Nevada State Athletic Commission, turned out to be a see-saw affair, with Boeree taking the opening 90-second round in the view of most onlookers. Castello won the second round according to several observers, but Boeree reasserted herself in the third round to gain a two-point decision on each of the judge_s cards.
PokerNews has prepared this video for interested fans, with a special voiceover by PokerRoad_s own Joe Stapleton. So grab a beverage, settle, in and enjoy this 19-minute presentation of _Rumble Nowhere Near the Rio�:

2009 WSOP: $10,000 NLHE Main Event Day 1a, Redmond Lee Grabs Early Lead

The stars turned out at the Rio for Day 1a of the World Series of Poker Main Event, as 1,116 players took their seats for Day 1a of the $10,000 World Championship No-Limit Hold'em Event #57. As has become standard at the WSOP Main Event in recent years, poker pros and amateurs were interspersed with stars from the worlds of sporting and entertainment. Taking another shot at WSOP gold in 2009 was actor Brad Garrett, who entertained his tablemates last year. Also in the field were actor Jason Alexander, cricket star Shane Warne, baseball legend Orel Hershiser, and rap superstar Nelly, who entered several events throughout the 2009 WSOP.
Of course, a few poker superstars were interspersed among the amateurs and the celebrities as well. Johnny Chan took to the field on Day 1a, along with fellow Main Event champs Jerry Yang and Berry Johnston. Several players who have already claimed bracelets in 2009 were in the field looking to add to their jewelry cases, including Vitaly Lunkin, Greg Mueller, Zac Fellows, and Roland de Wolfe.
Also in the field were Jennifer Tilly, Eli Elezra, Gavin Smith, Tony G, and Nikolay Evdakov. Phil Laak played Day 1a in his own persona this year, after showing up at last year_s Main Event in full-face makeup and disguise. Laak_s antics led to a new rule at the WSOP this year barring players from hiding their true identity at the table.
John Phan had a rough run early on Day 1a as he picked up two premium hands in short order, only to see them both cracked to send him home early. Phan lost most of his stack in a big hand with when he rivered a set on the board of . Phan_s opponent check-raised the turn and led out on the river, leading Phan to just flat-call the river with his top set. His opponent showed for the turned straight.
Phan got the rest of his chips in a few hands later holding . Phan led out on the flop, and an opponent in the small blind check-raised. Phan called all in and was well ahead of his opponent's . He stayed in the lead on the turn, but the small blind rivered the to make two pair and send Phan to the rail during the first level of the day. Other early eliminations included Mike Sowers, Davidi Kitai, and Masaaki Kagawa, who went out in a classic cooler, running his pocket kings into pocket aces.
Nelly also busted on Day 1a when his pocket queens were outflopped by Jeremy Ausmus_ 9-10 on the J-9-9 board. Nelly couldn_t catch another queen, and he was done. Freddy Deeb turned Broadway with on the board of , but it wasn_t enough to keep him alive as Keven Stammen rivered queens full of kings with to send Deeb to the rail.
Other eliminations on Day 1a included Mark Vos, Wooka Kim, Zac Fellows, and Orel Hershiser. Hershiser got his money in good with 9-8 on the board of . Luke Patten was his lone opponent with J-10 for the up-and-down straight draw. Patten missed his straight draw but picked up the on the river for the better two pair, and Hershiser was done.
Day 1a was a rough one for 2007 champ Jerry Yang, who couldn_t make it through the minefield to advance to Day 2. Yang found himself short-stacked late in the day and shipped it in preflop with . He found one caller with , but picked up a pair on the flop to take the lead. The on the turn swung the momentum away from Yang, but he still had outs to stay alive. None of them included the , so when that hit the river, Yang was done. Other late bust-outs included Isaac Haxton and Allen Cunningham.
By the time the dust settled on Day 1a, 821 players remained out of the original 1,116 who started the day. Redmond Lee held the top spot on the leaderboard with 134,275, as a collection of top pros, amateurs, and actors chased him. Among the other healthy stacks at the close of the day were Billy Kopp, David Sands, Lex Veldhuis, Eli Elezra, Jason Riesenberg, Tom Schneider, Joe Serock, Sandra Naujoks, and John Hennigan. Actor Jason Alexander made a strong run on Day 1a, finishing in 30th place with one of the biggest stacks in the room. Other notable survivors included Tony G., Roland de Wolfe, Phil Laak, Lana Maier, and Jimmy Fricke.
Join PokerNews at noon local time for all the live updates from Day 1b of the 2009 WSOP Main Event. The top ten players from Day 1a action:
Lee, Redmond -- 134,275
Docquier, Jean -- 122,755
Gianluca, Marcucci -- 118,000
Buermann, Peter -- 117,400
Mourshaki, Ebrahim -- 116,025
Botond, Balazs -- 113,000
Grishchuk, Alexander -- 111,875
Guinther, Jimmie -- 110,425
Rhea, Arthur -- 109,275
Luht, Joe -- 108,125

The Online Railbird Report, Vol. 20: The Mid-Year Report

Continued heavy live cash-game action at the Bellagio and the five-day long $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. event at the World Series of Poker resulted in a mild week when it came to the high-stakes online poker games. Players such as Phil Ivey, Gus Hansen, Tom _durrrr� Dwan, and Ilari _Ziigmund� Sahamies logged less than a thousand hands apiece online. Still, familiar faces Sami _LarsLuzak� Kelopuro, Ted _profbackwards� Forrest and Di _Urindanger� Dang dominated this week_s action, all posting six-figure wins over the last seven days.
Less is More for _durrrr�?
Could fewer, shorter sessions be the answer for _durrrr�? Last week, Tom Dwan played only a few hundred hands and finished almost a half-million to the good. This week, he put in only eight sessions totaling less than 600 hands and it translated into another $821,000 in winnings. Once over $4 million in the hole from online play in 2009, Dwan finished out the first half of the year with over $1.5 million in profit. The bulk of Dwan_s earnings this week came from a frenetic two-table session of heads-up $500/1,000 pot-limit Omaha against Ilari _Ziigmund� Sahamies. By the end of the 200-hand match, Dwan had close to $1.3 million spread across both tables, finishing with half a million dollars in profit. _Durrrr� simply crushed Sahmies in this particular session, winning 11 of the 15 largest pots of the night � three of them worth more than $200,000 and three others topping out at over $350,000.
In one of the aforementioned pots worth more than a Rolls Royce, Dwan opened the action with a raise to $3,000. Sahamies popped it to $9,000 and Dwan called. Sahamies fired at the flop for $18,000 and Dwan smooth-called. The turn came the and Sahamies fired another bullet for $45,000. Again, Dwan called and they went to the river which fell the . Sahamies triple-barreled it for $121,000 and Dwan called. Ziigmund had complete air with while Dwan flopped a flush with and took down the $386,000 pot.
Clearly steaming from the loss, Sahamies got more than a little spicy in the chat box as he quit the game:
Ziigmund: f** i_m tilt
Ziigmund: come to f**ing bobbys room u get more
durrrr: i_ll be 15min
durrrr: game already going i think
durrrr: same as yesterday
Ziigmund: come to f bobbys room u get more f sicko
Continued Upswing for Ted _profbackwards� Forrest
After booking $193,000 in winnings last week, Ted _profbackwards� Forrest added another $177,000 to the till this week, playing several solid sessions of both full ring and heads-up limit poker. In the pre-dawn hours of Tuesday morning, Forrest joined Josh Arieh, Erick Lindgren, _Gagrin,� _NEKOTYAN,� and _-DONKEY1965-_ in the $500/1,000 H.E.R.O.S. action and raked in $60,000 in winnings. His biggest session of the week, however came against Ashton _theASHMAN103� Griffin in a stop-and-start heads-up match spread over several $1,000/2,000 and $2,000/4,000 Omaha hi/lo tables. Over the course of 300 hands, Forrest departed the tables with a $148,000 win.
One of the bigger confrontations the two had that night came on the $2,000/4,000 _Patrik� table. Griffin opened for a raise, Forrest three-bet and Griffin called. Forrest led out at the flop and Griffin called. The turn came the and Forrest fired again. Griffin made the call and they went to the river, which fell the . Forrest bet and Griffin called. Forrest showed , flopping the nut low and backing into top two pair for high to scoop the $32,000 pot.
Van _Sirens� Marcus Takes $115,000 Off DIN_FRU in Omaha Hi/Lo
The identity of _DIN_FRU� (translation: _your wife� in Swedish) has not been confirmed, though rumors have begun to circulate regarding Erik Sagstrom, who dominated heads-up high-stakes limit hold_em games back in 2004 and 2005. It_s also interesting to note that DIN_FRU didn_t pop up at any of the tables we tracked between June 26 and June 30 � the five days of the WSOP_s $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. event where Sagstrom finished third. Hmmmm�
DIN_FRU took on Van _Sirens� Marcus at heads-up Omaha Hi/Lo on Thursday evening and posted a $115,000 loss to the Australian pro over the course of three and a half hours and nearly 900 hands. In one of the more interesting hands of the match, DIN_FRU opened for a raise and Marcus smooth-called. The flop came down . Marcus checked to DIN_FRU who bet, Marcus raised and DIN_FRU called. The turn was the and Marcus led out. DIN_FRU called and they saw the river come down the . Marcus led out, DIN_FRU raised, Marcus three-bet and DIN_FRU called. Marcus turned up for a jack-high flush and a 8-7-4-2-A low to scoop and raked in the $24,000 pot.
Kelopuro Posts Wins vs. Hansen, Antonius
To say Sami _LarsLuzak� Kelopuro has had a rough go of it in 2009 is to put it mildly. The Finn is down nearly $3 million for the first half of the year but managed to turn out a few solid wins this week to shrink that number down just a bit. In a three-hour heads-up match vs. Gus Hansen on Sunday night, Kelopuro booked a $358,000 win at $500/1,000 pot-limit Omaha. It truly was Sami_s night as he earned nine of the session_s ten largest pots, including this whopper.
Kelopuro opened for $3,000, Hansen three-bet to $9,000 and Kelopuro called. The flop came down and Hansen led out for $12,000. Kelopuro raised to $54,000, Hansen shoved for $82,993 and Kelopuro called the balance. It was Kelopuro_s two pair with up against Hansen_s pair of eights and a straight draw with . The turn gave Kelopuro some added outs with the for a flush draw and the on the river filled it, earning Kelopuro the $132,488 pot.
Kelopuro had another successful night at the online tables on Tuesday, taking on fellow Finn Patrik Antonius at $300/600 no-limit hold_em with a $100 ante. Two hours later, Kelopuro emerged with a $123,000 win. His largest single-hand haul of the night came in this $135,000 hand, where Hansen caught what he thought was a lucky turn card.
Antonius opened for $2,000 from the button and Kelopuro called. The flop was and Kelopuro led out for $3,000. Hansen called and they went to the turn, which came the . Kelopuro took the lead again, betting $7,200 and earned another call. The river was the and Kelopuro fired one last time for $19,800. Hansen came back with a raise to $84,000, attempting to set Kelopuro all in. Kelopuro called in a shot, revealing two red fours for a set. Hansen_s turned two pair with were up in flames and Kelopuro dragged the $135,394 pot.
Who_s Up? Who_s Down?
This week_s biggest winners: Tom _durrrr� Dwan (+$821,000), Di _Urindanger� Dang (+$260,000), Van _Sirens� Marcus (+$212,000)
This week_s biggest losers: Ilari _Ziigmund� Sahamies (-$489,000), Gus Hansen (-$416,000), _luckexpress10� (-$311,000)
2009 to date biggest winners: Patrik Antonius (+$4,749,000), Hac _trex313� Dang (+$3,003,000), Ilari _Ziigmund� Sahamies (+$2,219,000)
2009 to date biggest losers: Sami _LarsLuzak� Kelopuro (-$2,952,000), _papa ninja� (-$1,245,000), Brian Hastings (-$1,061,000)
"The Online Railbird Report" is a weekly feature summarizing the biggest matchups in the online game. Many of the largest online collisions take place at Full Tilt. Why not join the fun?

2009 WSOP: $10,000 NLHE Main Event, Demes Tops Day 1b Field

The field was smaller for Day 1b of the 2009 World Series of Poker Main Event, likely due in part to the July 4th holiday. A total of 873 players entered the second Day 1 flight, down from 1,116 on Day 1a. The final two flights of Day 1 typically hold bigger fields, so it remains to be seen how the final tally will stack up compared to recent years. More civilians and poker superstars took to the felt on Day 1b, as boxing champ Winky Wright joined WSOP champs Greg Raymer, Chris Moneymaker, Doyle Brunson, and Amarillo Slim Preston in the Day 1b field. Other former Main Event winners in the field included Jim Bechtel, Chris Ferguson, and Carlos Mortensen. But it was Brandon Demes of Tempe Arizona who closed out the day as the chip leader.
Day 1b was something of a family affair, as Doyle Brunson was joined in the Main Event by his son Todd and daughter Pam, while Barry Greenstein and son Joe Sebok also took the field. Jack Ury broke his own record for the oldest entrant in the WSOP Main Event by returning for another year at the age of 96. Other big names who showed up for Day 1b included Hoyt Corkins, Kara Scott, Grant Levy, and Alex Kravchenko.
Chris Moneymaker won the Main Event in 2003, the last time the total number of entrants was less than 1,000. Considered by many to be responsible for the 21st century _poker boom,� Moneymaker got nothing going on Day 1b and busted early. He got all his money in preflop with , but found himself drawing thin against Joe Villacci_s . When the board ran out , Villacci_s aces up was enough to send the former champ to the rail. Other early eliminations included David Steicke and boxing champ Winky Wright.
Jeremiah Smith picked up an early double-up when his aces held against an opponent_s kings, but the _Cash Plays� host was knocked out shortly after the dinner break in brutal fashion. All the money went in on the turn with the board reading . Smith tabled pocket threes for bottom set, only to watch Jim Bookstaff show pocket aces for top set. The on the river filled up both players, but that was no good for Smith, and he headed to the rail. Other Day 1b bust-outs included David _The Dragon� Pham, Vicky Coren, and living legend Doyle Brunson.
Brunson was another victim of pocket threes that flopped bottom set, this time against an opponent with a double belly-buster straight draw holding 6-5 on the flop of 9-7-3. Brunson was drawing thin after the turn brought a four to fill his opponent's straight, and when the board failed to pair on the river, Brunson exited to an ovation from the rest of the players.
Pascal Perrault busted just before the last break of the day when his aces were cracked to send him to the rail, and Dustin Woolf took a brutal beat to go out near the end of Day 1b. Woolf opened for a raise from late position, and called the small blind_s all-in move with . Woolf was the player at risk, but felt fairly safe when his opponent tabled . But the board ran out to make a flush for Woolf_s opponent as _Neverwin� headed home.
As the closing bell rang on Day 1b, Brandon Demes was sitting atop the leaderboard with 137,075. Other big stacks included Nick Maimone, Jim Bookstaff, and Jesse Rios (pictured), while familiar players like Fabrice Soulier, Sam Khouiss, Shaun Deeb, Greg Raymer, and Alex Kravchenko also made it through the day. Other notable survivors included Amarillo Slim Preston, Juha Helppi, Luca Pagano, Jerrod Ankenman, and Ali Eslami.
Join PokerNews at noon local time for all the action as Day 1c kicks off at the WSOP Main Event.

Full Tilt Announces $16M, 25-Event FTOPS XIII Schedule

�Mini FTOPS� Slate Returns, _Ante Up For Africa� Fundraiser Included
Full Tilt Poker has now released plans for its 13th Full Tilt Online Poker Series (FTOPS). This latest edition of the world_s second-largest recurring online poker series is scheduled for August 5-16, 2009 and includes 25 events and a guaranteed prize pool of $25 million.
Full Tilt has also announced that the popular _Mini FTOPS� that debuted alongside FTOPS XII will return in this edition. The traditional FTOPS XIII will again include a couple of the features special to the FTOPS series, such as the final weekend_s two-day short-handed _high roller� event with a $2,620 buy-in and a $2 million guaranteed prize purse, and of course the main event itself, which begins on Aug. 16 and offers a $2.5 million pool for its $535 entry fee.
In addition, an unnumbered event, a special _Ante Up For Africa� fundraiser, has been schedule for August 15. More details on this and other FTOPS events will follow in a future update. The complete lineup of event hosts has also yet to be announced, but here is the schedule for FTOPS XIII:
Event # Date Event Buy-in Guarantee
#1 8-5 NLHE 6-max $200+16 $1,000,000
#2 8-6 NLHE 4x Shootout 6-max $300+22 $250,000
#3 8-6 Omaha Hi/Lo $200+16 $200,000
#4 8-7 NLHE 1R/A $200+16 $500,000
#5 8-7 7-Card Stud $200+15 $100,000
#6 8-8 PLO 6-max $500+35 $350,000
#7 8-8 NLHE w/ Rebuys $100+9 $500,000
#8 8-9 NLHE Knockout 6-max $240+16 $750,000
#9 8-9 NLHE Heads-Up $500+35 $500,000
#10 8-9 NLHE $300+22 $1,500,000
#11 8-10 HA (Half PL Hold'em, Half PL Omaha) $200+16 $200,000
#12 8-10 NLHE (Antes from Start) $1,000+60 $1,500,000
#13 8-11 NLHE 3x Shootout $300+22 $200,000
#14 8-11 H.O.R.S.E. $500+35 $300,000
#15 8-11 NLHE 6-max Turbo $200+16 $500,000
#16 8-12 PLO Hi/Lo Knockout $240+16 $200,000
#17 8-12 NLHE 6-max w/ Rebuys $300+22 $1,000,000
#18 8-13 PLO Heads-Up $200+16 $150,000
#19 8-13 LHE 6-max $200+16 $150,000
#20 8-14 NLHE 6-max $200+16 $400,000
#21 8-14 Razz $300+22 $150,000
#22 8-15 NLHE 6-max (2 Day) $2,500+120 $2,000,000
(unnumbered) 8-15 _Ante Up For Africa NLHE 6-max (Antes from Start) $100+20 $100,000
#23 8-15 PLO w/ Rebuys $100+9 $350,000
#24 8-16 NLHE Knockout $120+9 $750,000
#25 8-16 NLHE Main Event $500+35 $2,500,000

2009 WSOP: $10,000 NLHE Main Event Day 1c, Cada Caps Copious Field

With the holiday over, the fireworks were confined to the inside of the Rio as Day 1c of the 2009 World Series of Poker Main Event drew the biggest field yet of the Day 1 flights. 1,697 players signed up for Day 1c, prompting tournament officials to shift the schedule to five levels on Days 1c and 1d, as opposed to the four levels played on Days 1a and 1b. Among the poker superstars taking the field on Day 1c were Scotty Nguyen, Jamie Gold, Dennis Phillips, Joe Hachem, Matt Savage, Daniel Negreanu, and John Juanda. Antonio _Magic Man� Tarver brought out the athletic star power, as the former light heavyweight champ took to the felt. At the close of play, Joe Cada led the Day 1c survivors.
Phil Hellmuth made his customary Main Event grand entrance, coming in on a Roman sedan chair as multitudes of toga-wearing and body-painted models escorted the 11-time bracelet winner to his seat. Also in the field was _Miami� John Cernuto, who returned to WSOP action after collapsing during a preliminary event this summer.
The larger field meant more big names busting out, and some of the early eliminations included David Saab, David _Chino� Rheem, Evelyn Ng, and Daniel Negreanu. Negreanu_s stay at the featured table was much shorter than he had hoped, as he was sent home well before the dinner break. All the money went in on the flop, and Negreanu opened for two pair. He was in deep trouble when his opponent made the call and tabled for the bigger two pair, and when the turn brought the Negreanu was left with only two outs. The on the river wasn_t one of them, and Kid Poker was finished.
Jamie Gold was another Day 1c casualty, busting later in the afternoon when he got it all in with to an opponent_s pocket jacks. Gold missed the flop entirely, and when the turn brought the , he was drawing dead. Other Day 1c eliminations included John Caldwell, Al _Sugar Bear� Barbieri, and Annie Duke.
One thing players didn_t want to see at their table at any point during this WSOP was the trademark fedora of triple bracelet winner Jeff Lisandro. Lisandro_s winning ways continued all through Day 1c, as he racked up an impressive stack to finish the day among the chip leaders. In an early pot, Lisandro checked his big blind to see the flop of . Lisandro bet out and the small blind called. The hit the turn, and both players checked. The small blind fired a bet when the hit the river, and Lisandro quickly raised. After a moment_s hesitation the small blind called and showed for eights full of aces. Lisandro tabled for jacks full of eights, and scooped yet another big pot.
1983 Main Event champ Tom McEvoy won the Champions_ Invitational event earlier this summer, but couldn_t make it through the minefield of Day 1c. He made his exit after the dinner break and was soon joined on the rail by late eliminations Brandon Cantu, David Singer, and recent _Rumble Nowhere Near the Rio� winner, Liv Boeree.
As play drew to a close, WSOP Media Director Nolan Dalla took a moment to recognize one player in particular who would move on to Day 2. Kent Senter was diagnosed in March with multiple myleoma, a rare cancer of the plasma cells, and given anywhere from six months to two years to live. Senter, a father of four, had always dreamed of playing in the WSOP Main Event, and with his diagnosis and the expensive treatments, that dream seemed unlikely to ever come true. Until Bluff Magazine publisher Eric Morris contacted PokerStars, who put up the $10,000 entry fee so that Senter could live out his dream. Senter made it through Day 1c with a medium stack and received an ovation from the entire room when Dalla introduced him.
Joe Cada was the man sitting with the most chips when the final pot was pushed, his stack of 187,000 establishing him as the overall chip leader of all the Day 1 flights so far. Tyler Patterson, Sebastian Stier, and Chance Kornuth also finished with hefty stacks. Other notable Day 1c survivors included Phil Hellmuth, Joe Hachem, Terrence _Not Johnny� Chan, Marc Naalden, Justin Bonomo, Hevad Khan, Isabelle Mercier, Dennis Phillips, and Howard Lederer.
Join PokerNews at noon local time as the final � and likely largest � flight of Day 1 players takes to the field for Day 1d.

2009 WSOP: Carsten Joh Wins First Bracelet in NLHE #51

Carsten Joh has won the gold bracelet and $664,426 in the 2009 World Series of Poker Event #51, $1,500 No-Limit Hold_em, after a grueling final day that lasted nearly 13 hours, including an hour of heads-up play against runner-up Andrew Chen.
Day 3 kicked off about 15 minutes after the official 1pm starting time with 30 players left, all chasing a piece of a total prize pool of $3,796,065. They represented the last survivors from the initial field of 2,781 who registered on Day 1.
The early going featured a flurry of eliminations, giving a glimmer of hope for a not-too-late night; 14 of the 30 remaining players were shown the door within the first two hours of play, including one on the very first hand. That unlucky player was Allan Lebiszczak, who moved all in from the small blind with . He was called by Jason Helder in the big blind, who had . Lebiszczak took the bad beat and $15,374 for 30th place when the board came .
Alex Jacob, the most recognized player left in the tournament, lasted only about 90 minutes before running his into David Walasinski_s , and finding no help from the community cards. Jacob � along with all his famous _fro � was eliminated in 21st place, worth $19,587.
Viktoria Szilasi, the last female player in this event, lasted to 13th place, good for $39,820. She pushed from the button with and was called by Steven Levy in the small blind, who had the slightly better . He improved to two pair when the board came , and Szilasi was out.
As per usual WSOP practice, the players were consolidated to a single table when they got down to ten, though for record-keeping purposes it is not deemed a final table until the players are reduced to nine. That occurred when Jon Mazursky was eliminated in tenth place ($56,751). He raised preflop with , and received a sneaky call from Jason Helder with in the hole. Mazursky then shoved on the safe-looking flop of , and that_s when he got the bad news. The turn and river ran out and , and Helder_s kings held up to send Mazursky packing.
The remaining nine players then took a one-hour dinner break before tackling final-table competition. Helder was the chip leader at that point, with 2.9 million, followed by Levy with 2.5 million.
The first empty seat opened when Nathan Page, who had entered the final table as the second-shortest stack, looked down at , and raised to 110,000. Andrew Chen pushed all in with , and Page called. Chen won the race with overkill quads when the board came . Page was awarded $80,894 for ninth place.
Jason Helder lost the last of what had once been his big stack just a few minutes later, about two hours into the final table. He had earlier turned over more than half of his chips to Chen on the bad side of an all-in preflop confrontation with to Chen_s . Then, just after Page_s exit, Helder doubled up Thibault Durand, taking himself down to below 600,000, with blinds and antes at 25,000/50,000/5000. So it was not surprising when Helder opted to put it all in before the flop when he looked down at . He was called by Owen Crowe with in the pocket. No improvement came for Big Slick on the board of , and Jason Helder was out in eighth place, with a payday of $86,702.
Georgios Kapalas had been perhaps the least active player at the final table to this point, presumably experiencing a lack of both good cards and good opportunities. His stack had finally diminished to the point that he was all in from the big blind with just after a raise from Carsten Joh with . No jack came to make Kapalas a better pair on the board of , and he was eliminated in seventh place for $97,634.
Thibault Durand went out in sixth place. He had been crippled on the previous hand when his apparent attempt to steal the blinds and antes with had been arrested by David Walasinski, who looked him up with . Durand_s move looked to pay off when the first four cards came , but Walasinski made his set on the river to double up. On the next hand, Durand was all in before the flop with , facing the of Steven Levy. When the dealer put out , queen-high was the winner, and Thibault Durand left $115,817 richer.
Owen Crowe lost a classic race, and as a result was the next to leave, taking $145,199 for fifth place. Andrew Chen raised from the button with . Crowe reraised from the small blind with . Chen shoved. Crowe thought for several minutes, then said, _I_m probably really going to hate myself,� and made the call. The community cards of did not give Crowe the desired overpair. Chen_s eights were good, and Crowe_s day was done.
Action folded to Steven Levy in the small blind. He raised to 220,000 with . David Walasinski was in the big blind with and reraised all in. Levy called immediately, and was in trouble. No help came on the board, and Steven Levy was out in fourth place, with a check for $192,650.
Carsten Joh had been the short stack when play was six-handed, and was still the shortest entering three-handed play. He quickly changed that status, though, with a double-up through David Walasinski. Joh limp-reraised all in from the small blind before the flop with and got a reluctant call from Walasinski, holding . The flop was big for Joh: . Walasinski couldn_t catch up with and on the turn and river. That pot put Joh to over 4,000,000, and dropped Walasinski to 2.6 million, with blinds and antes at 50,000/100,000/10,000.
Less than 20 minutes later, Joh captured the rest of Walasinski_s chips when the latter moved all in from the button with and Joh called from the big blind with . Both players made a pair on the board of , but Joh_s was better. David Walasinski was eliminated in third place, picking up $272,405 for his three days of work.
That pot gave Joh a slight lead over Chen going into heads-up play: 6.9 million to 5.7 million. He steadily increased that lead over the next hour, until he held a 4-to-1 advantage entering what would prove to be the final round, with blinds and antes at 60,000/120,000/15,000.
In the last hand, Carsten Joh raised to 410,000 from the button holding . Andrew Chen responded by moving all in for 2.2 million with . Joh called instantly. The board played out , giving Joh a superfluous set on the end to win the race. Chen, who had been the chip leader for most of the final table, had to settle for second place, with $412,632 as a none-too-shabby consolation prize.
The impressive come-from-behind victory marks the first WSOP cash, final table, and bracelet for Carsten Joh, who hails from Reutlingen, Germany, though he has a track record of several final-table appearances in major European events.

2009 WSOP: Sagstrom Leads Final Table of HORSE #49

From nineteen to eight. That_s all the ground covered in Event #49, $50,000 World Championship HORSE on Day 4, but those 11 spots felt like light-years for the 19 competitors returning to the Rio yesterday. Play resumed three spots off the money, and finished up at the final table, as the bubble burst early and the final table was set late. Along the way, the top names at the leaderboard barely budged, as Erik Sagstrom went from second to first, and Vitaly Lunkin shifted down one spot from first to second. The action behind them was fierce, though, as players fought to keep their chances at the final table and the coveted custom bracelet alive.
Todd Brunson came into Day 4 as the shortest of stacks, and it didn_t take long for all his chips to end up in the middle. He squared off against Vitaly Lunkin in an early stud hi/lo hand, but bricked out for his demise. Brunson started with [] , but all he could muster at the end of the hand was a pair of sevens with no low. Lunkin started the hand with [] and made a pair of eights on fourth street, which held up to send Brunson home just out of the money.
Stud hi/lo was equally unkind to Brett Richey as he busted in 18th place. The hand started off with four players going to fourth street, as Richey completed and got action from Lunkin, Ray Dehkharghani, and Ville Wahlbeck. Wahlbeck made open queens on fifth street, and Dehkharghani and Lunkin both got out of his way. Wahlbeck showed [] to Richey_s [] . Richey picked up the on sixth for two pair of his own, but he failed to fill up on the river, and Wahlbeck_s better two pair sent him packing.
Frank Kassela was the bubble boy, getting action from Huck Seed and Ray Dehkharghani in what turned out to be his final hand. In the razz round, Kassela completed on third street with the in the door, and Seed and Dehkharghani both called. Seed folded to Kassela_s bet on fourth street, and Dehkharghani raised. Kassela three-bet for all his chips, and Dehkharghani called with a 7-5 board. Kassela showed [6-8] 5-3 for a draw to an 8-6 low, as Dehkharghani showed [3-8] 7-5 for a draw to a worse eight. Kassela_s board ran out 9-6 [4] to make an 8-6-5-4-3, and Dehkharghani bricked on fifth street with the before catching running low cards on sixth and seventh to finish with 7-6-5-3-A. With Kassela_s elimination the bubble was burst and the players redrew for the final two tables.
John Kabbaj was the first in-the-money elimination when he was sent packing in 16th place ($72,914), and his demise also came in razz. He and Erik Seidel kicked up the action on fifth street, when Seidel led out showing 4-3-7. Kabbaj raised with 5-5-3 up, and Seidel called. Seidel caught a nine on sixth and led out when Kabbaj bricked with a queen. Kabbaj called, and then raised Seidel on the river. Seidel called with a smooth seven, showing 7-4-3-2-A, and Kabbaj was drawing dead with a 7-5-3-2-x.
The action went back to hold_em before the next elimination, and this time it was Steve Billirakis heading the rail. Billirakis raised and got one caller in Vitaly Lunkin. The flop came down , and Lunkin check-raised. Billirakis called, and the turn brought the . Lunkin bet out, and Billirakis called once more. The hit the river, and Lunkin led out one last time. Billirakis raised all in, and Lunkin quickly called with for aces full of nines. Billirakis_ for aces full of sevens was no good, and he picked up $72,914 for his 15th-place finish.
Freddy Deeb held the title of last champ standing, but he relinquished the _standing� part of it when he was ousted in 14th place ($83,630) courtesy of Gus Hansen. Deeb lost most of his chips in a pot with Erik Sagstrom, and found himself all in from the big blind against Hansen, who raised from the button. Deeb was in good shape preflop as his was marginally ahead of Hansen_s . All that changed on the flop as it came down . Deeb needed a ten or an ace to stay alive, but the board missed him as it completed and .
Tony G headed to the rail in 13th place ($83,630) after a whopper of a stud hand that saw betting and raising all the way to the river. Tony G was the bring-in with the in the door, and David Chiu, Erik Sagstrom, and Gus Hansen all came along for the ride. The fireworks started on fourth street as the raises and reraises started to fly. Chiu got out of the way as Tony G, Sagstrom, and Hansen went to war. When the dust settled, Tony G was all in by fifth street, but Sagstrom and Hansen kept hammering at each other in the side pot. By seventh street, Sagstrom_s board read , and Hansen_s looked like . Hansen folded to a river bet from Sagstrom, who opened in the hole for a queens-up that rivered the flush. Tony G could only show [] [] for two pair, and Tony G was on his bike in 13th place as Sagstrom solidified his chip lead.
David Chiu was the next to fall in a three-way Omaha hi/lo hand against John Hanson and Ville Wahlbeck. After a preflop raise from Hanson, the last of Chiu_s chips went into the middle preflop, and Hanson and Wahlbeck checked down the board. Chiu looked good when he showed for the second-nut flush, but Wahlbeck tabled a pair of sevens for sevens full of jacks, and Chiu was done in 12th place ($99,590).
Omaha hi/lo claimed another victim in Ray Dehkharghani, who busted in 11th place ($99,590) in a three-way pot with Huck Seed and Vitaly Lunkin. Lunkin opened for a raise from the button, Dehkharghani three-bet all in from the small blind, Seed called from the big blind, and Lunkin called as well. The live players checked down the board, and Dehkharghani showed for aces up, but Seed tabled for aces up with a better kicker. Lunkin_s kings were no good as Seed scooped the pot and Dehkharghani headed to the rail.
When Mike Wattel busted in tenth place ($123,895), the remaining nine players gathered around one table for the final elimination of the evening. Wattel_s demise came in Omaha hi/lo after Wattel got all his chips in against Chau Giang on the flop. Giang tabled for three pair and a gutshot Broadway draw, and Wattel was in trouble with . The on the turn locked up the hand for Giang as he made Broadway and there was no low possible. The river was an irrelevant , and Wattel_s tournament was done.
With big limits and aggressive players, it didn_t take long to reach the final table once play consolidated to one nine-handed table. Gus Hansen was the victim, Omaha hi/lo was the game, and ninth was his finishing position. Five players saw the flop after Vitaly Lunkin raised. Chau Giang led out after the flop, Ville Wahlbeck and Erik Sagstrom both folded, Hansen called all in, and Lunkin called as well. Giang fired again on the turn, and Lunkin got out of the way. Giang opened for trip kings, and Hansen needed help with . The on the river filled Giang_s boat, and Hansen was the final table bubble boy in ninth place ($123,895).
The final table seating assignments and chip stacks looked like this as Erik Sagstrom bagged the biggest stack at the final table. Ville Wahlbeck finished Day 4 on the short stack, but locked up his impressive fourth final table of the 2009 WSOP. Event #2, $40,000 No-Limit Hold_em champ Vitaly Lunkin finished the day in good shape, as did David Bach.
Seat 1 - Ville Wahlbeck, 645,000
Seat 2 - Erik Sagstrom, 3,675,000
Seat 3 - John Hanson, 1,700,000
Seat 4 - Huck Seed, 1,380,000
Seat 5 - Vitaly Lunkin, 2,490,000
Seat 6 - David Bach, 2,345,000
Seat 7 - Erik Seidel, 965,000
Seat 8 - Chau Giang, 1,075,000
Join PokerNews at 2PM local time for all the live updates from the final table.

2009 WSOP: Dewitt Tops Final 16 in Triple Chance #52

Day 2 of Event #52, $3,000 Triple Chance No-Limit Hold'em, saw the return of 149 players Monday afternoon, of whom only 81 would make the money. The next item on the agenda was to create the final table before the 3am deadline, and not surprisingly, that goal was not reached. Jason Dewitt will be the commanding chip leader when the final 16 players return for Day 3 at 1pm Tuesday afternoon to determine the champion.
James Van Alstyne, Jolyn Thompson, and Erik Cajelais all started the day short-stacked and were all eliminated in the first level of the day. Sandra Naujoks came to the table with over 50,000 in chips, but she was also gone within the first hour. Harris Pavlou began Day 2 second in chips, but he was another early casualty when he ran his pocket jacks into Jason Dewitt's A-K. A king on the flop and turn, followed by an ace on the river was more than enough to send Pavlou to the rail while Dewitt moved into the lead with over 300,000 in chips.
As the bubble approached, John Juanda, Kirill Gerasimov, and Noah Schwartz all fell just short of reaching the money. Jeff Lisandro was another player eliminated shy of the money bubble, gone after his pocket nines were dominated by his opponent's pocket queens � but Lisandro didn_t miss a beat as he quickly registered for another tournament in his quest for bracelet number four of 2009.
The money bubble was reached in a dramatic four-way hand that saw a player's pocket aces end up without chips or money. The hand started with one player raising to 7,000, and then a second player reraised to 20,000. A third player called on the button and then a fourth player reraised all in for 26,000 total, with his three opponents all making the call. The flop was checked around. The also brought another round of checking from the three live players players. The on the river prompted the original raiser to bet 20,000 and the other two players who had chips decided to fold. The all-in player turned over his pocket aces for top set, but the original raiser turned over for a rivered straight to take down the pot and send all the surviving players into the money.
The remaining field, satisfied with at least doubling their buy-ins, soon gave way to a flurry of eliminations. Lee Childs, Paul Testud, and J.J. Liu all made the first level of payouts, good for $5,892 apiece. Ivo Donev, Nenad Medic, Tony Dunst, and Roy Winston managed to eke their way into the second level of payouts, each collecting $6,929. Patrick Bruel, Johnny Lodden, Praz Bansi, Kathy Liebert, and Nick Binger each lasted long enough to see $8,037 added to their tournament results. Shane Schleger, Ian Frazer, Lee Markholt, and Blake Cahail each held on long enough to pick up $9,145 for their efforts. Milan Andrejkovics, Nicholas Sliwinski, and Johan _busto_soon� Van Til all headed to the cashier to pick up their $10,559 in winnings.
In a three-way hand, Antonio Esfandiari was able to triple up when his went up against Alexander Jung's and Karga Holt's . The flop came down giving Holt a flush draw, but Esfandiari took the lead when the came on the turn. When the hit the river, Jung finished in 34th ($12,374) while Esfandiari moved to over 260,000 in chips and Holt fell to 107,000. Joe McGowan, Isaac Baron, James Taylor, and Michiel Brummelhuis also had the good fortune of adding $12,374 to their bankrolls. Jonathan Tare's pocket tens failed to overcome Jorg Peisert's pocket kings, and Tare's 28th-place finish ($12,374) meant the field was now down to the final three tables.
Day 1 chip leader Tim Horan was the first player to earn $14,967, finishing in 27th. Donnacha O'Dea looked set to double up when he made a raise and called all in with against Alex Millar's . The flop came down six-high, but the on the turn moved Millar into the lead, and the on the river sent O'Dea home in 26th ($14,967). He was soon joined by Mike Caro and Antonio Esfandiari, both visiting the payout desk to be awarded $14,967.
Jason Dewitt was the first player to break the million-chip mark, after he got involved in a hand with Jon Van Fleet in a blind-vs-blind confrontation. Dewitt made a raise to 25,000 from the small blind, and Van Fleet obliged by moving all in for around 200,000. After some thought, Dewitt made the call with against Van Fleet's . The flop was to give Van Fleet bottom pair while Dewitt added a gutshot straight draw. The on the turn kept Van Fleet in the lead, but the on the river gave Dewitt the winning hand, sending Jon Van Fleet from the tournament in 22nd place ($14,967) while Dewitt now held over 1.1 million in chips.
As the players at the last three tables were told there were six hands left in the day, a flurry of eliminations ensued. First, Darryl Ronconi ran into Jason Dewitt's on the board of when all the money went in, and a blank on the river sent Ronconi to his hotel room in 19th place ($14,967).
The tournament staff was about to combine the field into two tables and do a redraw when two players were eliminated in one hand. Karga Holt got the action underway with an opening raise to 31,000 from late position. Wes Watson called from the button, followed by Rob Tepper in the small blind, and then Jason Cohen moved all in from the big blind for his final 100,000. Holt then decided to go all in as Watson folded. After Tepper made sure that they were past the next pay jump, he called all in as well. Holt was well ahead with against Tepper's and Cohen, happy to see his were both live cards. Holt reinforced his lead when the flop came down , but Cohen still had some outs. Those outs disappeared when the came on the turn, leaving Tepper and Cohen both drawing dead. Robb Tepper officially finished in 17th, while Jason Cohen went home in 18th, each doing the paperwork on their $19,068 winnings at the end of Day 2.
When the remaining players bagged their chips, it was Jason Dewitt whose bag held by far the most chips, with 1,599,000 noted as his total. Alex Millar was the only other player to note a seven-figure chip count (1,006,000), with Karga Holt in third place at 715,000. Michael Katz (356,000), Jason Somerville (320,000), Max Greenwood (294,000), Eric Lynch (230,000), and An Tran (216,000) are some of the notable names who will also return for Day 3 at 1pm Tuesday afternoon to play down to a winner on another busy day at the World Series of Poker. PokerNews will be there covering all the exciting bracelet-winning action.

2009 WSOP: Swinford Tops #53 Stud/8; Christensen Heads NLHE #54; Ewenstein Leads #55 2-7

$1,500 Seven-Card Stud Hi/Lo Event #53, Day 2 � Swinford Leads Final 14
Day 2 of Event #53, $1,500 Seven-Card Stud Hi/Lo, started with 143 players looking to navigate their way to the final table. Allie Prescott ended Day 1 as the chip leader but had a daunting task ahead as a strong field remained between him and the final table. Among those still alive coming into Day 2 were Mike Matusow, Annie Duke, Jon _PearlJammer� Turner, Dr. Max Stern, Keith Sexton, Marcel Luske, Al _Sugar Bear� Barbieri, David Rabbi, Marsha Waggoner, Barry Greenstein, Andy Bloch, and Daniel Negreanu. Brian Swinford closed out Day 2 as the chip leader with 292,000 heading into the final day.
Marcel Luske started the day with around 34,000 in chips but was out of the event within an hour. In his final hand, Luske was involved in a three-way pot between David Wortham and another player. Luske finished with kings up, but Wortham started the hand with rolled-up fours. Wortham backed into a seven low to beat the third player_s eight low and scoop.
The final 48 players in this event will receive paydays. Hand-for-hand play lasted a single hand as the bubble boy of the event exited quietly from the building. After the announcement was made, Matt Savage got on the mic and informed the crowd that ESPN color analyst Norman Chad had officially made his first-ever World Series of Poker cash in this event.
Several notable names made their exits shortly after the bubble burst. Justin Bonomo was the first post-bubble elimination. Following him to the payout window soon after were Barry Greenstein and Daniel Negreanu. David Rabbi joined them a short while later after losing the remainder of his stack to Richard Sklar. Norman Chad was able to move up a couple of pay levels to finally finish in 32nd. Sitting on a short stack for most of the day, Chad finally busted to Todd Ickow. Ickow held two pair to the lonely pair of aces for Chad. Chad_s first cash was good for $3,295, officially making him the most successful poker player on the ESPN broadcast team.
Defending champion Ryan Hughes was among those eliminated toward the end of the day. Al Barbieri also did not make Day 3. At one point in Day 2, Barbieri held the chip lead, but he faltered towards the end of the day and left the tournament area a disappointed 21st. Andy Bloch, Steve Jelinek, Tim Vance, and Derek Raymond were also late Day 3 casualties.
Play was suspended at 3 a.m. PDT with 14 players remaining. Brian Swinford finished the day with the chip lead at 292,000, but Chad Brown is right behind him with 284,000. Also in contention is Dr. Max Stern. The three-time bracelet winner enters Day 3 play fourth in chips at 216,000. Day 3 will kick off at 2 p.m. PDT Tuesday and continue until the bracelet has been awarded.
$1,500 No-Limit Hold_em Event #54, Day 1 � Christensen Ascends to Top of Leaderboard
Event #54, $1,500 No-Limit Holdem, kicked off Monday afternoon. A massive field of 2,818 players turned out for the last $1,500 buy-in event of the 2009 Series. A strong contingent of pros showed up in hopes of making a deep run. Taking their shots at this event were Men _The Master� Nguyen, Beth Shak, Van _Mrs. Master� Nguyen, Tom McEvoy, Jeff Madsen, Michael _The Grinder� Mizrachi, Jason Mercier, Phil Laak, David _The Dragon� Pham, Hevad Khan, David Singer, Eugene Todd, Ivan Demidov, and Phil Hellmuth. After losing 87 percent of the field in Day 1, Jon Christensen emerged as the chip leader with 160,800.
Sorel Mizzi and Shaun Deeb were among the early bust-outs. Mizzi lost most of his chips after running into a set of jacks. Deeb was all in with pocket nines but failed to outdraw the pocket queens of Theo Tran. Queens were also very kind to Liv Boeree. Both Dennis Phillips and another player were all in preflop with pocket kings; Boeree held pocket queens and made the call. A queen on the flop left both of her opponents drawing dead and Boeree nearly tripled up with the hand as she commented, _Poker is an easy game, just get it in bad and you win.�
Theo Tran surged as one of the early chip leaders. On the board of , Tran_s opponent moved in and Tran snap-called with for the second-nut flush. His opponent held only and Tran moved up to 25,200. Gavin Smith was not as fortunate. He shoved with top pair on the flop and was called by an opponent with a flush draw. The player filled his flush and Smith hit the rail. Jeff Madsen was all in preflop with pocket sevens and called by an opponent_s . Madsen remained ahead after the flop but a king on the turn ended Madsen_s day.
J.C. Tran entered the dinner break as the overall chip leader at 51,000. However, just minutes after the break, Tran hit the rail. His last 30,000 chips went in on a ten-high flop against Sanford Lee. Tran held pocket jacks and Lee woke up with pocket aces. Tran was unable to catch a jack and Lee took over the chip lead with around 60,000 in chips. After nearly tripling up earlier in the day, Liv Boeree busted after dinner. The last of her chips went in preflop with pocket fives. Her opponent called with . The flop of left Boeree needing a five to win. The turn left Boeree drawing dead and she exited from the tournament area.
Jonathan Little and Alex Kostritsyn will not see Day 2 of this event. Kostritsyn ran A-K into the pocket queens of another opponent. Kostritsyn caught kings on the flop and turn, but the river fell a queen to give his opponent queens full and send Kostritsyn packing. Jonathan Little was rocketed out of the tournament by Gary Tang. On the board of , Little moved all in for 3,500 and Tang called with pocket aces. Little mucked and headed home.
Play ended with 376 players advancing to Day 2. Jon Christensen finished as the chip leader with 160,800. Jody Howe and Zsombor Gall are right behind with 126,600 and 114,300 respectively. Some of the notable players still remaining in the field are Van Nguyen, Men Nguyen, Theo Tran, Mike Sica, Alex Bolotin, Hevad Khan, Carlos Mortensen, and Raymond Rahme. Day 2 will kick off at 2 p.m. Tuesday and is scheduled to continue until the final table is reached.
$2,500 Limit Deuce-to-Seven Triple Draw Event #55, Day 1 � Ewenstein Leads Lowballers
Event #55, $2,500 Limit Deuce-to-Seven Triple Draw, also kicked off Monday afternoon. This is the only triple draw lowball event on the schedule and the event drew a strong crowd of pros and lowball enthusiasts. John Phan won this event in 2008 for his second bracelet and he returned to defend his title. Adam Ewenstein finished Day 1 as chip leader with 71,800.
This year_s event saw an eight percent increase over last year_s number with 257 players turning out. Among those in the Day 1 field were Terrance Chan, Allen Kessler, Steve Zolotow, Robert Mizrachi, David Singer, Shannon Elizabeth, Mike Sexton, David Sklansky, Michael Binger, Richard Brodie, Gavin Griffin, Bryan Devonshire, Jon _PearlJammer� Turner, David _Chino� Rheem, Dennis Phillips, and Sam Grizzle.
Billy Baxter has won seven WSOP bracelets � six in lowball and one in razz. It was once written, _You don't tug on Superman's cape...and you don't play in a low-draw game with Billy Baxter.� Matt Hawrilenko is probably too young to have heard this line as he decided to tug on Baxter_s cape early in the event. Baxter raised a bet from Hawrilenko after the first draw and both Hawrilenko and another player made the call. All three players took a card on the second draw and action was checked around. Baxter and Hawrilenko both drew another card and action was checked yet again. Hawrilenko tabled 8-7-6-4-3 and Superman mucked.
Robert Williamson III hit the rail shortly after dinner. He was all in on the deal and drew two cards on the first draw with his opponent drawing one. The second draw, Williamson_s opponent stood pat and Williamson drew two again. After his opponent rapped pat a second time with 9-8-7-5-3, Williamson turned over 8-5-4-2 and drew one card. He squeezed it out only to discover he paired his four and ended his day with a pair. Howard Lederer had better luck against Ali Eslami and another opponent. Lederer had both players all in and stood pat on the third draw with 7-6-5-3-2. Eslami had an eight, but drew one in hopes of drawing a seven. He could not catch his card and Lederer ousted two to move up to 7,800.
As play marched towards the end of Day 1, several big names hit the rail. Barry Greenstein was eliminated at the hands of Justin _BoostedJ� Smith, Robert Mizrachi fell to the 8-7 of another opponent. Bryan Devonshire, Bill Chen, Erick Lindgren, and Todd Brunson all hit the rail early to get some much-needed rest. Greg Raymer has apparently taken up signing fossils to award players for busting him out. Steve Zolotow is the proud owner of one of them after his 8-6-5-4-2 bested Raymer_s king.
Phil Hellmuth twittered at one point that he was going to the UltimateBet party and would be showing up at this event at 11 p.m. But 11 p.m. came and went with no sign of Hellmuth. Tournament officials decided to pull his chips and refund his entry. A couple of players who probably didn_t miss Hellmuth_s chips were Jimmy Fricke and Allen Kessler. Fricke moved up to 30,600 after taking a nice pot off Fabrice Soulier and Kessler moved up to 27,000 after taking a pot off Yueqi Zhu with 8-7-5-4-2.
Adam Ewenstein finished as Day 1 chip leader with 71,800. Mike Peltekci followed in second with 65,100. Some notable players still in the hunt are Blair Rodman, Justin Smith, John Juanda, _Captain� Tom Franklin, Daniel Negreanu, and Billy Baxter. Play will resume Tuesday at 2 p.m. and is scheduled to continue to the final table. Stay tuned to PokerNews.com as we bring you coverage from the remaining preliminary events at the World Series of Poker.

2009 WSOP Vlog Update: Tracking Tony G Through the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E.

What's it like to participate in the priciest of all events at the World Series of Poker, the $50,000 buy-in H.O.R.S.E. tourney, commonly referred to as the "player's championship" of the WSOP. PokerNews' own Tony G was one of a select group who pulled off a rare double during the 2009 WSOP, joining Vitaly Lunkin and David Chiu as the only players to cash in both the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. and the early-series $40,000 buy-in no-limit hold'em event.
Tony checked in with the PokerNews video crew throughout his lengthy H.O.R.S.E. run, offering poker fans the chance to glimpse the day-to-day flow demanded by such an exhausting event.
Here's Tony on Day 1 of the H.O.R.S.E. tourney:
A day later, when he emerged from the pack to build a sizeable chip stack:
Day 3, and the money bubble looms:
And finally, Day 4, which would see Tony's exit, in the money but a few spots short of the final table:

Full Tilt Announces _Face the Ace� Online Qualifiers

Looking for a chance to match your heads-up poker skills against some of poker_s most famous names? Full Tilt is providing just that opportunity, with online qualifiers now available for seats on the brand new poker TV show _Face the Ace,� which gives each contestant the chance to defeat up to three different Full Tilt pros in head-to-head matches and walk away with as much as $1,000,000.
_Face the Ace� begins filming on July 9th in Las Vegas in preparation for its television premiere, which will be on NBC on Saturday, August 1st at 9:00 pm ET. The show, first announced in late April, is described as _part game show, part reality show,� will be hosted by _Sopranos� star Steve Schirripa, and promises to include some formidable poker aces. Among the _Aces� scheduled to appear in various episodes are famed Full Tilt pros Howard Lederer, Phil Ivey, Chris _Jesus� Ferguson, Jennifer Harman, Erick Lindgren, Phil Gordon, Erik Seidel, Allen Cunningham, Andy Bloch, John Juanda, Mike Matusow, Patrik Antonius and Gus Hansen.
The show_s format begins with a contest (the online qualifier) facing four smoked-glass doors; behind each is a different _Ace� who will be the opponent in that heads-up matchup. A player who wins hus first match must risk his winnings to play the second match, and must risk his winning again if he wins that second match to try for the hat trick. Winning all three matchups, risking the money each time, would produce the million-dollar winner.
Seven one-hour episodes of _Face the Ace� are currently scheduled, running from the prime-time August 1st debut through January 2nd, 2010.
More information on becoming a contestant on _Face the Ace� is available at facetheace.com and fulltiltpoker.net. Here's the promotional trailer for Full Tilt's "Face the Ace":

2009 WSOP: Horan Nabs Early Lead in NLHE #52

Day 1 of Event #52, $3,000 Triple Chance No-Limit Hold'em, saw the arrival of 854 entries to the Rio on Sunday afternoon. Some of the noteworthy names who took part included Erick Lindgren, Mike Sexton, Dennis Phillips, Jordan Morgan, Gavin Griffin, Humberto Brenes, Barny Boatman, Kathy Liebert, Neil Channing, David Singer, Eli Elezra, Michael Mizrachi, and Phil Hellmuth. After ten levels of play, Australian Timothy Horan took the chip lead among the remaining players heading into Day 2, followed by Harris Pavlou, Karfa Holt, and Antonio Esfandiari (pictured).
The Triple Chance event gave each player 3,000 in chips along with two rebuy chips, each good for another 3,000. Players could use the chips any time during the first three levels of play, with any remaining chips automatically turned in at the end of Level 3. Tony Cousineau went to the extra chips early, after flopping a diamond flush with on the flop, only to see his opponent turn over for the nut flush. Cousineau would be one of the first to make his exit from this event, subsequently turning his attention to Event #51, where he was still alive. Daniel Negreanu, Theo Tran, Archie Karas, Eugene Todd, and Vanessa Rousso all joined Cousineau on the rail before the end of the third level.
Phil Hellmuth, arriving late as usual, got off to a fast start, flopping a Broadway straight with to move over 17,500. Unfortunately his early success didn't last long and Hellmuth was gone before the dinner break. Erik Cajelais held the early chip lead after eliminating Vicky Coren with just king-high. On the flop of , Coren moved all in with and Cajelais called with . With the top half of Coren's straight-flush draw in her opponent's hand, Coren was left looking for any remaining five, six, seven, or ten for the win. The turn and river brought no help for Coren as she was eliminated, as Cajelais moved to 57,000 in chips.
Richard Grace became one of the chip leaders towards the end of Level 6 by winning a huge pot without ever seeing a flop. The hand began with Grace making a raise to 800, and his opponent reraised to 2,400. Grace raised again to 7,400, and his opponent put in the fourth raise to 19,000, upon which Grace shoved all in for 55,000 and his opponent finally decided to fold. Grace had approximately 75,000 in chips as the players went on their dinner break.
Liv Boeree moved all in shortly after the dinner break with her pocket fives, only to see Erick Lindgren make the call with pocket tens, sending Boeree to the rail. She would soon be joined by Sorel Mizzi, Eric Froehlich, and Richard Grace, whose flopped pair of aces was no good against Isaac Baron's turned straight.
Jeff Lisandro busted a small stack when his won a coinflip against an opponent's , commenting, _You don't get Player of the Year by folding.� Lisandro_s amazing run at the WSOP this year continued, taking his stack over 110,000 when his flopped another ten to knock out a player holding pocket sixes. Andy Black wasn't as fortunate, his losing to a player holding when the opponent caught a runner-runner straight on the board to cripple Black, who was sent packing a few hands later.
The final hour brought another rush of eliminations as Antonio Esfandiari worked his magic, when his flopped another king against an all-in player holding . Michael Mizrachi's success came on the river, as he was involved in a three-way hand with J.J. Liu and another player. Liu held pocket tens, Mizrachi was all in with , and the other all-in player showed . Liu loved the flop, as well as the on the turn. But the on the river doubled up Mizrachi to 40,000 and sent Liu down to around 90,000, while the third player headed to the exit. Maria _Maridu� Mayrinck wasn't as fortunate with her pocket nines, which remained second-best against her opponent's pocket tens.
When play ended for the evening, just 149 players remained for the scheduled 2pm restart on Monday, with only 81 players destined to make the money. Tim Horan from Sydney, Australia surged into the chip lead on one of the final hands when his pocket kings held up to eliminate a player holding A-K, sending Horan to 149,000 in chips. Fellow Aussie Harris Pavlou finished second with 137,300.
Among the notable names returning in the top 20: Antonio Esfandiari (127,900), Isaac Baron (114,000), Jeff Lisandro (113,800), Kirill Gerasimov (106,400) and Shane _shaniac� Schleger (100,700). Erik Cajelais, Johnny Lodden, Eric Lynch, An Tran, Mike Caro, Ian Frazer, and David Plastik also return for Day 2. PokerNews will be there to follow all the tournament action on a very busy Monday afternoon with six tournaments in action as the 2009 World Series of Poker moves into the home stretch.

The Miscellaneous Poker Ledger, Vol. 1

Unlike our recurring _News Briefs� features, which often focus on items of business and legislative interest, _The Miscellaneous Poker Ledger� will share anecdotes and oddball news items from the edges of poker that might otherwise fall through the cracks. Hear about an unusual poker news story? Send a note to info@pokernews.com with _Miscellaneous Poker News� in the subject field, along with a link to or an explanation of the item.
_No Can Do� for Kansas_ Kandu Poker
A Wichita, KS establishment_s effort to create a new _full skill� version of poker has run afoul of that state_s officials. The Kansas Attorney General has issued a _cease and desist� order against the Highlands gastropub and Cardroom, alleging that its new game called Kandu Poker, in which the upcoming board cards are flashed to the players for a period of three seconds before being dealt, is still illegal. _Kandu_s flash is a sham,� said Attorney General Steve Six in a news release accompanying the June 22 order. "Kandu is a thinly-veiled illegal poker game. Anyone participating by operating or playing this game may face criminal charges."
Gastropub co-owner stated to a Wichita TV channel that the legal challenge was planned for. "We expected to find ourselves in that position. It took us a little longer than expected but we welcome the opportunity to find ourselves in the courtroom where we can present our side of things and are confident they can find in our favor."
UFC Bans Full Tilt, UltimateBet, PartyPoker as Player Sponsors
The popular mixed martial arts organization Ultimate Fighting Championship has added three online poker sites to its growing list of banned sponsors. An editorial at fightopinion.com alleges that the banning followed a strong-arm attempt by UFC to charge potential sponsors $100,000 each just for the right to negotiate sponsorship deals with its players. The three sites � Full Tilt, UltimateBet and PartyPoker � have plenty of high-profile company on the list, being joined by such entities as Rolling Stone magazine in the latest update to those firms _banned� from sponsoring UFC-affiliated MMA fighters.
2+2 Author Sklansky Robbed in Home Invasion
The occasional las Vegas home invasion involving a poker figure involves David Sklansky, one of the co-founders of publishing firm Two Plus Two. According to police reports, Sklansky_s home near the southern edge of Las Vegas was targeted by armed robbers, who burst in at about 3 a.m. early Thursday morning. The ever-promoting Sklansky, who escaped injury in the armed robbery, found a way to work poker into his account of the frightful episode in a Las Vegas News3 piece. "During the time he was there, my main focus was to make sure that he didn't think that I was panicking or that I would do something silly," Sklansky explained to the News3 crew. "The advice is the same as in a poker game; you try and figure out what the other guy is thinking and then act accordingly.

Inaugural Suzie and Howard Lederer Celebrity Charity Tourney Slated for July 1st

Famed _World Series of Barbecue� Also Part of Night_s Festivities
One of the most popular of all summer Vegas poker events not connected with the playing of poker itself is the annual World Series of Barbecue hosted by Suzie and Howard Lederer. This year the popular barbecue returns, and along with it comes the debut of a charity event destined to move near the top of all such philanthropic poker outings � the Suzie and Howard Lederer Celebrity Charity Tourney, set for July 1, 2009. Huge prizes will be awarded in conjunction with the event, which is guaranteed to draw one of the summer_s most prestigious poker gatherings. Up for grabs for the lucky winner is a seat onto the popular NBC late-night poker program, _Poker After Dark�.
The day_s events are scheduled to take place at the Golden Nugget in downtown Las Vegas, beginning with a pre-tourney meet-and-greet around 3 p.m. and the tournament itself at 4 p.m. Entry for the tourney is $330, with $200 re-buys available and a $100 add-on at the end of the re-buy period, all to benefit the night_s designated beneficiary, the Boys and Girls Club. Entry into the tourney plus the purchase of two re-buys is required for admittance to the _Barbecue� festivities.
The night_s events, of course, include far more than the charity tourney. This is the seventh annual _World Series of Barbecue� hosted by the Lederers, one of poker_s premier power couples, with the party beginning at 6 p.m. in the famed Tank at the Golden Nugget, the rave-inducing $30 million pool and nearby 200,000-gallon shark aquarium that stands as one of downtown Las Vegas_ most popular attractions. The night_s fun ends with a special fireworks show at 10:10 p.m. immediately after the adjacent Fremont Street Experience_s famed Viva Vision light show.
PokerNews is proud to support the Lederers and their work on behalf of the Boys and Girls Club, and will be sponsoring several players into the event.
For more information or to register for the Suzie and Howard Lederer Celebrity Charity Poker Tournament, call 800-777-4658, ext. 8164, email poker@goldennugget.com or stop by the Golden Nugget Poker Room.

Weekly �2,000 Guaranteed Tourney Series at Unibet!

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This series is one of the highlights on the PokerNews global promotional calendar - head over to Unibet today!
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2009 WSOP: Greg Mueller Takes Second Bracelet in Shootout #50

Greg _FBT� Mueller is the champion of Event #50, $1,500 Limit Hold_em Shootout. With this win, Mueller became the fourth double-bracelet winner of the 2009 Series, having previously taken first in Event #33, $10,000 World Championship Limit Hold_em, just 11 days before. The other two-time winners so far this year are Phil Ivey, Brock Parker, and Jeffrey Lisandro.
All eight players at this final table started with equal stacks of 450,000 in chips. The shootout format of the tournament meant that each of the finalists had prevailed over two previous tables. Day 3 got underway just after 2:00 p.m. with limits of 6000/12,000, giving each player starting ammunition of 37.5 big bets. No antes were used in this event. The first hand portended well for Mueller as he hit a runner-runner nut flush with on the board of and was called on every street by Joep van den Bijgaart, who mucked when shown the unbeatable cards.
Van den Bijgaart sent an even larger pot to Matt Sterling a few minutes after that, getting on the bad side of a set-over-set flop, but he then recovered some chips from Marc Naalden when he turned quad kings a short time later.
Jose Barbero was the first player to end up all in. The board was showing , and Barbero held for two pair. He was called by van den Bijgaart, who had for flush and straight draws. The river was the , making a full house for Barbero, who doubled up to 120,000. That was only six big bets at this level, however, and about 15 minutes later Barbero was all in again. Coincidentally, this time he was the one with the heart flush draw up against two pair. He had on a flop of versus Greg Mueller_s . The on the turn didn_t help, and this time the rivered didn_t, either. Barbero was eliminated in eighth place, for a payout of $13,655.
After having dropped those early pots, van den Bijgaart never really got out of the hole, chronically one of his table_s short stacks. It finally caught up to him in the day_s fourth level. He raised from late position with , then called a reraise from fellow Dutchman Marc Naalden, who had . Van den Bijgaart got the last of his chips in on the flop of , but would need to hit two consecutive cards to overcome Naalden_s top pair. That didn_t happen, as the board ran out and , and van den Bijgaart was out in seventh place, good for $18,136.
The remaining six players took their dinner break, returning to limits of 20,000/40,000. By this point, the table had neatly bifurcated into two factions: the big stacks and the small stacks. Greg Mueller, Marc Naalden, and Millie Shiu each had 795,000 or more, while David Williams, Flaminio Malaguti, and Matt Sterling each had 375,000 or less.
It took only about 15 minutes for Malaguti to take his final stand with Big Slick. He raised from the small blind with and was called by Williams from the big blind, holding . The flop was , and the action was bet and call. When the turn made Williams a pair, he raised Malaguti all in and Malaguti tossed his remaining chips into the middle. The river reduced the table to five. Flaminio Malaguti took home $24,824 for his sixth-place finish.
Pocket aces surprisingly turned up three times in the course of about 20 minutes during Level 5. Williams and Shiu both dragged pots with them, but the bullets delivered a fatal wound to Sterling. With in hand, Sterling bet fifth street with the board showing , then called a raise from Mueller, who had rivered the nut straight with . Sterling was crippled with that loss, and he was all in preflop on the next hand with . It was once again Greg Mueller who topped him with an inferior starting hand, making two pair with on the board of . Matt Sterling received a check for $35,058, and the table was down to half of its original players.
David Williams was reduced to less than one big bet in a hand against Marc Naalden about seven hours into the day. Naalden raised preflop and Williams reraised from the button. On the flop of Naalden check-raised, then bet both the turn and river, with Williams calling all the way. Naalden showed for trips, and Williams flashed the before mucking. It was just a few minutes later that Williams put the last of his chips in before the flop, holding and getting called in two places. He could not beat either opponent, though; both Millie Shiu and Greg Mueller bet the hand aggressively all the way through, as Williams watched helplessly. Shiu had started with , but lost the pot to Mueller_s when the final board read . David Williams earned $51,145 for fourth place.
Millie Shiu lost another pot to Mueller on the next hand, taking her down to 65,000, just over one big bet. That went into the middle soon thereafter, with Shiu holding to Mueller_s . The board came , and Shiu unfortunately was left with the second-worst possible hand. However, her third-place exit was worth $77,138.
Remarkably, both of the last men standing had already won a bracelet earlier in the summer, and both in limit hold_em events (Naalden_s win came in Event #38, $2,000 Limit Hold_em). Additionally, both had cashed in two other tournaments in this Series.
Greg Mueller entered heads-up play with a 4-to-1 chip lead, holding 2.9 million to Naalden_s 700,000. Despite that lead, it would take about two hours for the winner to be determined. Just a few hands in, Marc Naalden evened the score at 1.8 million apiece. The chip lead then changed hands at least six times over the next hour, and at one point Naalden was up to 2.5 million to Mueller_s 1.1 million. Just before 11:00 p.m., however, Mueller took the lead for what would prove to be the last time, though he would require another 30 minutes or so to oust his stubborn opponent.
The end finally came when Mueller held to Naalden_s . Of course, these two hands will often chop a pot, but not this time. Naalden raised from the button and Mueller called. The flop was , and Mueller check-called Naalden_s continuation bet. The turn was the , giving both players top pair, and, predictably, the two of them raised each other back and forth until Naalden was all in. The river was the , and Mueller_s five kicker just barely played to give him the pot and the championship. Marc Naalden picked up $120,614 for second place.
Greg Mueller took home $194,854 for the win, bringing his WSOP career total to two bracelets, seven final tables, 19 cashes, and $1,516,261 in earnings.

2009 WSOP: Cantu Tops #48 PLO/8 Final; Mueller, Schneider Advance in Shootout #50

$1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha Hi/Lo Event #48, Day 2 � Cantu Towers Over Final Nine
Day 2 of Event #48, $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha Hi/Lo, kicked off Friday afternoon with 87 players returning, all looking to make the money and advance to the final table. Perry Friedman began the day as chip leader at 144,500, but a strong field stood between him and the final table. Among the players returning on Day 2 were Aaron Kanter, Lee Markholt, Lee Watkinson, Padraig Parkinson, Paul Darden, and 11-time bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth. Brandon Cantu will enter the final table with a commanding chip lead, his mountain of 1,025,000 chips almost twice as big as the next-nearest stack as Cantu eyes his second WSOP bracelet.
Paul Darden and Padraig Parkinson were both eliminated in early action. Parkinson was all in on the flop against Jeremiah DeGreef. Both held a pair of fours for high, but Parkinson had DeGreef outkicked. DeGreef improved to two pair on the turn while Parkinson picked up the nut-low draw. The river missed both players and DeGreef_s two pair was good enough to scoop as Parkinson fell shy of cashing. Paul Darden and Cung Tran both shoved all in preflop against Phillip Loomis. Tran tabled , Darden held , and Loomis flipped over . The board fell to triple up Tran and send Darden to the rail.
Seventy-two players will be paid from this event. Hand-for-hand play at the bubble lasted a mere ten minutes as Carlo Citrone became the event_s bubble boy when he ran into the of another opponent. A nine fell on the flop to give Citrone_s opponent a set, and the set held to guarantee the remaining 72 players a payday. Howard _Tahoe� Andrew was among the notable names to be sent packing after the bubble burst. A three-way preflop betting war resulted in Andrew and Brandon Cantu both putting all their chips at risk against Perry Friedman. By the river, Cantu held the nut low, Friedman the nut straight, and Andrew was third-best with a set of aces. The two-time bracelet winner headed home in 52nd place.
Perry Friedman hit the rail in 38th place as Brandon Cantu soared to 525,000 in chips. Friedman moved all in on the flop of and Cantu made the call. Friedman held for an overpair and low draw against Cantu_s for better overpair, gutshot straight draw, and low draw. The turn and river failed to improve Friedman and his tournament was done. Cantu was the clear chip leader, but then moved up to nearly a million in chips after eliminating Noah Boeken in 27th place and then Jeff King in 24th.
Phil Hellmuth persevered on the short stack for much of the afternoon, but finally fell to Mathieu Jacqmin in 14th place. Hellmuth put his chips at risk preflop and found callers in both Jacqmin and Lee Watkinson. The flop was checked by both players, but Jacqmin bet out 40,000 when the fell on the turn. Watkinson got out of the way and Jacqmin flipped over for a turned wheel. Hellmuth held and needed a three or a heart for a chop. The river fell the and Hellmuth was out.
Sean Getzwiller became this event_s final table bubble boy. Tommy Vedes raised to 42,000 and Getzwiller moved in from the button. Vedes called and tabled . Getzwiller flipped over . The flop came down to give Getzwiller middle pair, both players a nut low draw, and Vedes a straight draw. The turn counterfeited both players_ nut low draws and gave Getzwiller two pair. Vedes still had a draw to the wheel. The river fell the to give Vedes a six-high straight with a wheel and Sean Getzwiller headed out in tenth place, good for $15,664.
Brandon Cantu enters the final table with a hefty chip lead, but with the nature of the game, no lead is safe. Both Cantu and Lee Watkinson enter the final table looking to win their second bracelet. The final table will kick off at 2 p.m. PDT Saturday.
Seat 1: Lee Watkinson (412,000)
Seat 2: Steve Jelinek (260,000)
Seat 3: William McMahan (168,000)
Seat 4: Brandon Cantu (1,025,000)
Seat 5: Ted Weinstock (250,000)
Seat 6: Aaron Sias (353,000)
Seat 7: Mathieu Jacqmin (552,000)
Seat 8: Ronnie Hofman (76,000)
Seat 9: Tommy Vedes (334,000)
$1,500 Limit Hold_em Shootout Event #50, Day 1 � Binger, Bellande Among Shootout Survivors
Day 1 of Event #50, $1,500 Limit Hold_em Shootout, also kicked off on Friday afternoon. Most tournament poker is about survival. In the case of shootout events, winning is the only goal. Win one table and you_re in the money. Win the second table, and you_re at the final table. Win the final table, and you_re a WSOP champion. At the end of Day 1 action, 64 winners advanced to Round 2. Among those advancing are Nick Binger, Jean-Robert Bellande, Tom Schneider, Greg _FBT� Mueller, David Plastik, and Humberto Brenes.
This event was capped at 1,000 players, but tournament officials only set up for 64 tables, or a maximum of 640 players. By the end of registration, only 572 players entered the event, allowing most tables to play nine-handed. Among the players who signed on for this event were Cyndy Violette, Eric Froehlich, Sorel Mizzi, Berry Johnston, Michael Binger, Shaun Deeb, Humberto Brenes, Joe Sebok, Michael _The Grinder� Mizrachi, Nick Frangos, Men _The Master� Nguyen, and Tom McEvoy.
Bryan _Devo� Devonshire and Michael Mizrachi were among the first big names eliminated. Mizrachi lost most of his chips at the hands of _Minneapolis� Jim Meehan. The Grinder then had to gamble with against the of Dylan Linde. The board failed to bring a deuce and Mizrachi hit the rail. Marco Traniello fell to Stefan Rapp. With three spades on the board, Traniello was all in and drawing dead at the turn holding pocket sixes and a flush draw against the turned straight and nut-flush draw of Rapp. Allen Cunningham, J.C. Tran, Tom McEvoy, and Joe Sebok were also among the early exits.
_Crazy Mike� Thorpe was the first player to advance to Day 2. Thorpe had grinded his opponent down to just a couple of big bets when his opponent moved in with . Thorpe had him dominated with . Thorpe caught a pair of jacks on the flop and held two pair by the river to advance. Ben Ponzio and Jonathan Dwek both eliminated short-stacked opponents to advance to Day 2. Nick Binger won his table in dramatic fashion. His opponent was all in and dominated with against the of Binger. Binger hit aces on both the turn and river to advance.
Jean-Robert Bellande is a step closer to making a final table repeat, having won his first-round match-up to advance. Last year, he finished runner-up to Matt Graham in this event after a marathon match that lasted until 7:30 a.m. David Plastik, Greg _FBT� Mueller, and 2007 Player of the Year Tom Schneider also advanced to Day 2. Robert Campbell had to suck out in order to advance. His opponent was all in with pocket nines against Campbell_s . Campbell spiked a jack on the turn to move on.
By the time play reached Level 8, 38 matches were still going. Since the majority of tables started with nine players, most tables only had 45,000 in chips total. Level 8 limits were 1,000 and 2,000, leaving 28.5 big bet left in play. As a result of the high limits, all of the remaining matches ended relatively quickly. David Williams and Johnny Neckar were among the players who won their tables toward the end of Day 1 play.
Sixty-four players will return tomorrow. The only way to advance in pay is to make the final table. Among those looking to make tomorrow_s final table are David Williams, Nick Binger, Tom Schneider, Greg Mueller, and Humberto Brenes. Day 2 play will begin Saturday at 1 p.m. PDT and continue until the final table has been reached. Stay tuned to PokerNews.com as we bring you all the action from this event and all the remaining events of the 2009 World Series of Poker.

The PokerNews Interview: PPA Executive Director John Pappas, Part 1

Poker Players Alliance Executive Director John Pappas is a native Arizonan who_s been involved in politics for his entire adult life. Pappas, who describes himself as a _huge fan of poker,� also enjoys golf and cooking when he_s not busy with PPA matters on the national scene. Pappas went into public policy, working in Washington D.C. immediately after graduating from college in 1997. The PPA_s operational head worked on Capitol Hill for six years for a member of Congress on the Homeland Security Committee, then moved on to professional lobbying with a D.C.-based public affairs firm for another firm before joining the Poker Players Alliance in 2007. Pappas sat down with PokerNews recently for a lengthy chat about poker_s political stance in the United States today.
PokerNews: The Poker Players Alliance made a grand appearance at the 2009 World Series of Poker, unveiling several new initiatives. Briefly, what are these and how will they help poker?
John Pappas: These are ways in which we can turn the average poker player into what we like to call poker advocates. As we heard from a current member of Congress (Shelley Berkley) and our chairman Alfonse D_Amato, the only way we_re going to change how Washington thinks about poker and the ability of Americans to play is if they recognize that poker players care� and that they vote. The best way to demonstrate that is through National Poker Week, which will take place July 19-24, 2009, where we_re inviting our 50 state directors to Washington D.C., as well as a number of poker professionals to meet with members of Congress one on one. More importantly, we_re going to try to engage the broader poker community from across the country to weigh in during that week, to let Congress know that poker_s not a crime, it_s a pastime that they enjoy, and that [Congress] should lessen any restrictions on people being able to play on the Internet.
We_ve created a number of different vehicles for people to do this. The first one is called pokerpetition.com. This is a petition that will be signed by poker players and will be delivered to President Obama during National Poker Week. I_m excited to get to six figures and then to seven figures and be able to drop a huge stack of paper on President Obama_s desk. [Note: Over 125,000 people signed the online petition in the first four days of its existence.]
We_ve also created a site called mypokerstory.com, which allows people to upload videos of themselves, to tell their story about why they love the game. This is an effort to personalize poker players for members of Congress and the community at large. People have a misconception that poker players are handlebar-moustached, cigar-smoking individuals in a back room somewhere, when in reality, people who play poker � everyone from your mother or sister to your neighbor who_s a doctor, to college graduates and college students who are doing this as a great form of recreation. And for some people it_s a livelihood.
Finally, we have nationalpokerweek.com, which is a site you can go to for information on National Poker Week and how you can become an advocate during that week. We_ll be posting updates on that site over the next month.
PN: In its press conference at the World Series of Poker, PPA officials mentioned legislation separate from the Barney Frank regulatory bill currently under consideration. Can you comment on this for our readers?
Pappas: We_ve been working with Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ), who introduced legislation at the end of last Congress, which was called the Skill Game Protection Act. It essentially would set up a licensing regimen for online skill games, meaning peer-to-peer, non-house-banked games. That would include poker, bridge, chess, mahjongg, backgammon and other games that people play against each other [in their own house]. That is legislation that we have been working to get reintroduced, hopefully in time for National Poker Week, so we can use that as part of our national poker advocacy platform in Washington.
PN: Speaking of Barney Frank, what_s the latest with his and the McDermott bills?
Pappas: The Barney Frank bill has been dropped [_dropped� means introduced as a bill], as H.R. Bill 2267. It has a few warts that we_re hoping to work through, yet inasmuch as it licenses and regulates Internet poker the PPA is completely supportive of the bill. As I like to say, I don_t want to let perfection get in the way of progress. Any piece of legislation when it_s introduced is simply a draft. You can never consider it a final product; it_s going to go through many iterations. Barney [Frank_s] committed to holding a hearing on this legislation in July of this year, so probably right around the time the World Series completes, Barney will be holding a hearing. He wants to hold an open debate about it and not hide it behind some other hearing, as they did to us in 2006. (Update: the planned hearing for July has been rescheduled for September, following Congress_s summer recess.)
PN: Legislation is a slow process. What are the chances that any of these bills could pass in 2009 or shortly thereafter?
Pappas: It_s difficult to handicap it; it really is. As was noted by Congresswoman Berkley and as anyone can know by reading the papers, Congress has a lot of issues on their plate and really, poker isn_t probably on their radar screen. That_s why we_re hoping to elevated the issue into lawmakers_ minds through National Poker Week. I think that will help us get to appoint where we can at least get a bill passed out of the House and be in discussions over how we can get something out of the Senate for next year.
I don_t know if we can get everything all at once; it certainly would be our goal, but I think we_re going to have a little work to do in the Senate still. I think if we can get improvements to Barney_s bill he has a very good chance of getting his bill out of committee in a noncontroversial fashion, and give the Democratic leadership the comfort level to bring it to the House floor for a vote. Democrats don_t want to bring anything to the floor that_s going to serve as a wedge issue against vulnerable Democratic members, and there are a number of vulnerable Democratic members, people who won their district, who won their election, but John McCain won their district [in the Presidential election], and so they have to be very wary of that.
This is again why National Poker Week is so important. If we can demonstrate that there are millions of Americans who care about this, then what do lawmakers have to worry about? If they know there_s 20,000 people in their Congressional district who care about this vote, versus the 8,000 who may say that they oppose it, we win. We win by 12,000 votes, and that_s a huge difference.
PN: Analyses have been made regarding the Frank regulatory legislation that suggest that conservative Democrats � the _blue dog� Democrats � are a key Congressional constituency. Is that the group that qualifies as having these wedge considerations?
Pappas: Certainly. And I think one of the ways you get beyond those _blue dogs� who may have social concerns about this is the fiscal value that regulation brings. Right now it costs us money to try to prohibit online poker. Through licensing and regulation the federal government could be making money. Internet poker provides a venue, provides revenue, for paying for some of these programs that these blue dogs might not otherwise support because the revenue isn_t there.
PN: Referring to Barney Frank_s legislation, how does the PPA feel about the _states rights� issues?
Pappas: It_s an interesting paradox for us. Because of the Constitution, and the abilities of states to opt in and opt out of federal regulatory regimes as provided to [the states] under the Constitution, the language probably isn_t as strong enough as we would like to see. We wouldn_t like to see a governor just simply be able to say, _I_m opting out of Internet gambling.� We_d like for them to be able to point to specific reasons why.
Unfortunately, what we_ve come across and what a lot of legal scholars have told us is that the more you make restrictions on that, the further you have constitutional problems, and you_ll find challenges from the states themselves saying that the law is unconstitutional, because it wouldn_t allow them to easily opt out. We_ll see if there_s ways of tweaking it and improving it. We have some amendments out there and we_re running them by constitutional scholars as well as Barney Frank_s office to see if he would accept it.
Beyond that, I think the onus is going to be on the poker players and those who want this right. If legislation like this does come to pass, the focus has to turn from Congress to their local legislators, their governors and their attorneys general to say, _This legislation passed; the state wants to partake in the revenue that could be associated with Internet poker.� If they want to ensure that their players in their state aren_t forced to find unlicensed, unregulated sites to play on, then they should opt in to this regime, as a way not only to protect their state_s consumers, but also to collect the revenue that can be generated.
In Part 2 of this interview, PPA Executive Director John Pappas talks about the coming implementation of UIGEA regulations, the recent seizure of approximately $40 million in online poker players_ funds, and the future outlook of the PPA.

Poker News Briefs, June 27, 2009

Smooth Sailing for California Online Poker Bill?
Several published reports this week indicate that the road to online intrastate poker for California (meaning it would be available for that state_s residents only) faces a smoother road than expected to becoming law. The massive budget shortfalls facing America_s most populous state are contributing to the good fortune expected for the proposed California Online Poker Law Enforcement Compliance and Consumer Protection Act. The state proposal includes provisions designed to protect California gambling concerns who were opposed to earlier versions of the bill; estimates suggest that legalized online poker could raise as much as $250 million for California_s depleted state budget coffers.
WSOP Academy Schedules Main Event Primer June 29 � July 1
One of the most prestigious of all poker training camps, the WSOP Poker Academy, has scheduled its Main Event Primer for July 29 � July 1, 2009. The Main event-focused three-day camp will be held at nearby Caesars palace and will feature several of the high-profile poker professionals who have taught at other WSOP Academy functions. The roster of instructors for this special camp includes Phil Hellmuth, Greg Raymer, Annie Duke, Mark Seif, Alex Outhred, Sam Chauhan, poker-tells expert Joe Navarro and others. Seating is limited for the event; more information can be found at wsopacademy.com.
Lee Munzer, 1943-2009
The poker world was saddened to learn of the recent passing of Lee Munzer, a well-known poker writer whose work appeared predominantly in the 1990_s and early 2000_s. Munzer authored over 150 articles and features for most of the popular poker magazines of the day, in addition to a lengthy career in sporting and business publications. One of Munzer_s final gifts to the poker community was the creation of the entire 120-page media guide for the 2005 World Series of Poker. Munzer_s survivors asked that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Lance Armstrong Foundation at livestrong.org. A memorial service is schedule for July 3rd at the Palm Mortuary in west Las Vegas.

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2009 WSOP: Cantu Claims Second Bracelet in #48 PLO/8

The final table of Event #48, $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha Hi/Lo, kicked off with Brandon Cantu leading the pack at 1.025 million. Joining him at the table was fellow bracelet-winner Lee Watkinson. Both were gunning for their second bracelets and were looking to use their experience to help them achieve that goal. Ultimately, Cantu and Watkinson faced off against each other, with Cantu pulling off a dramatic come-from-behind victory to take home bracelet number two.
William McMahan was the first player to exit from the final table. Tommy Vedes raised to 36,000 preflop and McMahan potted to 120,000 total. Vedes then raised enough to set McMahan all in, and McMahan made the call. McMahan held and Vedes had . The flop was a monster for Vedes when it fell . McMahan was left needing an ace, or two perfect runners. The turn fell the and the river the to send McMahan home in ninth place, good for $22,862.
A couple of hands later, Ronnie Hofman headed out in eighth place. Hofman moved in on the flop of and was called by Lee Watkinson. Watkinson flipped over for two pair and Hofman held for nothing but air. The turn left Hofman only needing to pair one of his cards to survive. The river sealed the win for Watkinson and Hofman exited to collect his $25,618 payday.
Aaron Sias was next to fall at the hands of Ted Weinstock. Sias raised to 56,000 preflop and Weinstock potted, which was enough to put Sias all in. Sias made the call and flipped over . Weinstock held . The flop of gave Weinstock a set of aces and a low draw for Sias. Sias was unable to complete his low as the fell on the turn and hit the river. Sias finished in seventh place and took home $30,028.
In a pair of hands, Lee Watkinson became the new chip leader at this final table. Watkinson had been using aggression to pick up pots throughout the final. In one such pot, Watkinson raised 70,000 preflop and was called in two spots by Steve Jelinek and Ted Weinstock. On the flop of , Watkinson check-raised all in after Jelinek bet out 100,000. Both of his opponents folded to move Watkinson up to 863,000.
Watkinson moved into the chip lead after Brandon Cantu_s stack took a severe hit when he was scooped out of a multi-way pot. Steve Jelinek raised to 87,000 preflop and Brandon Cantu and Ted Weinstock both called from the blinds. On the flop of , Cantu potted to 252,000, enough to put both of his opponents all in. Both made the call and Cantu rolled over for a low draw and pair of nines. Weinstock flipped over for a pair of sevens, gutshot straight draw and the same low draw. Jelinek tabled for top pair and the nut-low draw. The turn fell the to give Jelinek the low and the river fell the to give Weinstock trip sevens for high. After the pot, Cantu was left with 670,000 in chips.
Steve Jelinek was the next player to fall, eliminated in sixth place. Tommy Vedes potted to 70,000 preflop and Jelinek re-potted to 222,000. Vedes called and the flop came down . Jelinek moved in for 184,000 and Vedes called. Jelinek held for kings up and Vedes tabled for trip sixes. The turn left Jelinek needing a king or the case ace to stay alive. The river fell the and Jelinek headed out in sixth place, good for a $36,893 payday.
Tommy Vedes hit the rail next in fifth place. Mathieu Jacqmin raised to 90,000 preflop and Vedes called. On the flop of , Jacqmin check-raised all in after Vedes bet out 225,000. Vedes called all in for slightly less and tabled for an open-ended straight draw and flush draw. Jacqmin flipped over for trip eights, a low draw, and the nut-flush draw. The turn fell the and the river to eliminate Vedes, who received $47,617 for his strong finish.
Brandon Cantu regained the chip lead after doubling up through Mathieu Jacqmin. On the flop of , Jacqmin made it 500,000 to go and Cantu attempted to move in, but verbally called. The verbal declaration stood and the fell on the turn. Cantu moved in for his last 135,000 and Jacqmin called. Jacqmin held for two pair and a live four for his low. Cantu held for a pair of aces and a live three for his low. The river gave Cantu a wheel and he scooped his way back to 1.465 million in chips.
Ted Weinstock and Brandon Cantu called a 100,000 raise preflop by Mathieu Jacqmin to see the flop of . Cantu bet out 300,000 on the flop and Weinstock moved all in for 500,000. Jacqmin then also moved in and Cantu got out of the way. Jacqmin held for a double-nut draw and a pair of aces. Weinstock held for a pair of sixes and nut-low draw. The on the turn gave Jacqmin his nut flush and the river prevented a low from forming. Ted Weinstock headed out in fourth place and took home $64,727.
The chip lead changed hand a couple of time before the next elimination. After taking out Ted Weinstock, Mathieu Jacqmin moved up to 1.4 million in chips and stood as chip leader. Then Lee Watkinson used aggression to move into the chip lead with 1.6 million. Watkinson then took a massive chip lead after sending Mathieu Jacqmin to the rail. Jacqmin potted from the small blind and Watkinson called from the big. The flop fell and Jacqmin check-raised all in after Watkinson bet pot. Watkinson snap-called and Jacqmin found himself needing help. Watkinson held for a flopped set while Jacqmin had for a flush draw and a weak pair of sevens. The turn gave Jacqmin a low draw, but the on the river sent a stunned Jacqmin out in third place for $92,946.
Lee Watkinson held more than a 2.5-to-1 chip lead going into heads-up play. Watkinson had 2,485,000 to the 945,000 of Brandon Cantu. Watkinson continued to use his aggression to knock Cantu down to only 470,000 in chips. Cantu then doubled up to 840,000 after flopping a set of jacks and moving in. Wakinson called with a Broadway draw, but failed to hit. Cantu then took a page out of Watkinson_s book and used aggression to build his stack to 1.3 million. Cantu regained the chip lead briefly before Watkinson battled his way back to a 2.2 million chip lead.
In the end, it came down to two decisive pots. First, Brandon Cantu was all in preflop with against Watkinson_s . The board did not produce a low and Cantu won the hand with only a pair of sixes to take a 2-to-1 chip lead on Watkinson. On the final hand of the tournament, Cantu raised to 150,000 preflop and Watkinson made the call. The flop fell and the rest of Watkinson_s chips went into the middle. Cantu held for a pair, flush draw, and a low draw. Watkinson held for a wrap and a low draw. The turn missed both players when the hit, and the river gave Cantu trip fours and the victory. Lee Watkinson finished as runner-up and will take home $141,873 for his well-fought battle.
This final table started with two veteran poker players looking for a second WSOP bracelet, and in the end, Brandon Cantu and Lee Watkinson squared off for the gold. Cantu caught a rush of cards at the right time to overcome Watkinson_s massive chip lead and walked away as a two-time bracelet winner. Cantu also took home the $228,867 top prize. The WSOP is now in its home stretch as the Main Event is only five days away. Stay tuned to PokerNews.com as we bring you coverage of the remaining events of the World Series of Poker.

The PokerNews Interview: PPA Executive Director John Pappas, Part 2

In Part 1 of this two-part interview, PPA Executive Director John Pappas discussed new initiatives introduced by the PPA and the current political landscape surrounding legislation introduced by Barney Frank at the United States federal level. In this concluding second part, Pappas discusses several other issues of interest to the United States poker players.
PokerNews: Around the end of 2009, banking regulations called for under the UIGEA are scheduled to be fully implemented. Will the landscape for online poker change at that point, and if so, how?
John Pappas: It very well could. We are hopeful that there could at least be a delay in the regulations. Barney Frank has introduced another bill [H.R. 2266] which would delay the implementation of the regulations for at least another year. While we think that_s interesting, we don_t think it_s substantive enough to stop the banks from just going ahead and implementing their policies and procedures. We_d like to see a further clarification and the PPA is working with _unlikely allies� to strengthen the enforcement of the UIGEA in some respects, but loosen it in respect to online poker play.
PN: Let_s talk about the recent seizure of roughly $40 million in online poker funds by the US Department of Justice. Can you elaborate on that for our readers?
Pappas: Sure. We learned of the action as soon as it took place in the first week of June. The PPA has been working with our legal counsel and we_ve created a new legal team, in which to investigate this matter and see what the best way to respond to it will be. We_re looking at all appropriate avenues, and we think that we have a strong legal case with which to protect the players_ money down the road. From what I understand, most of the players have been reimbursed by the sites, but that money is still technically frozen, so we are exploring avenues in how we can unfreeze that money. And if that means litigation, we may go that route.
PN: The PPA has repeatedly referred to the seized funds as _the players_ money�. Can you more clearly explain that?
Pappas: Interestingly, the monies which were seized were in most case payouts to players, either of their winnings or refunds of their initial online poker deposits. This could not in any way be construed as proceeds of illegal gambling. It couldn_t be argued that it the money itself was somehow associated with illegal activity. This was people playing poker on the Internet, and as we strongly believe, there is no federal law which says it_s unlawful to play poker on the Internet. Therefore, the idea that players_ money is being seized we think is a complete violation of those individuals_ rights, and we_re exploring all avenues in order to protect that money.
PN: It seems as though the PPA could easily qualify for legal _associational� status regarding its US member players. Is this an ongoing process?
Pappas: Sure. We are communicating with our members to see how they were affected, and whether it_s appropriate to bring a claim on their behalf. It_s nothing we_re going to jump into; we won_t _willy nilly� file a lawsuit. We want to make sure that this is done in a very professional matter that gets the attention it deserves.
PN: One criticism that detractors have occasionally fired off at the PPA in various forums and discussion groups is that the PPA may engage in _feel good� measures, but really hasn_t yet tested its political mettle. Is that a fair complaint? How do you respond to those detractors?
Pappas: I don_t think it_s a fair complaint at all. We_ve tested our political mettle in a number of ways. I don_t consider the issue with the SDNY [the U.S. Department of Justice, Southern District of New York, regarding the funds seizure], to be a political issue; this is a legal issue. We_re not going to approach this with a letter-writing campaign to the Department of Justice or President Obama directly on this issue. What we are going to do is respond to this in a legal way, not a political way.
In terms of us testing our political mettle, we_ve done a fine job of that. It_s remarkable that we_re even talking about legislation to license and regulate Internet poker, when just two years ago, we were beating back measures that were going to try to prohibit the game, such as the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA). [For someone to] say that we haven_t proven our political mettle is not giving us the credit that is deserved in terms of building the organization.
In the last Congress there were eight pro-Internet gaming bills introduced, one of which passed Barney Frank_s committee by a bipartisan majority; that had everything to do with the PPA pushing it and making sure that Republican members voted for it. It had a lot to do with our PPA members in those Congressional districts weighing in. Spencer Bachus (R-AL), our biggest opponent, even conceded and said _Even though I oppose this bill, my colleagues on the committee have been hearing from their poker players who want to play this game.� And when you have our biggest opponent conceding that the grass roots is working against him, that means a lot, and in fact, in a recent article in The Politico, which is a widely-read Capitol Hill rag, Bachus admits that there is no way he can defeat Barney_s bill this year. He says that in plain black-and-white.
PN: Twelve months from now, where will the PPA_s efforts be focused?
Pappas: We_ve got to see where we are legislatively. Obviously we_d love to be in a position where we are now at a point where we are convincing every single state to opt in to the licensed and regulated Internet gaming platform that the federal government has passed. That_s ambitious; as an organization, what we need to be focused on is continuing to build support for our issue at the federal level.
We_re also going to continue to play a significant role in defending poker players and proving that poker is a game of skill at the state level, which I believe is a valuable part of this entire fight. Not only does it broaden the appeal of the Poker Players Alliance to say, _This is not just about Internet poker, this is about the game, and what_s healthy for the game is healthy for the Internet game, which is healthy for the brick-and-mortar game, which is healthy for the home game. I think we_re going to try to continue to pick our battles there, in states that make sense, where we can win the argument that poker is a game of skill and therefore not unlawful gambling.
We_re going to build our litigation, we_re going to continue to work on Capitol Hill to educate Congress; we_d love to see the co-sponsorship for bills like Barney_s and Senator Menendez_s to build to well over 100 co-sponsors, and we want to get a vote. We want, by next year, to have a vote on the House floor on this legislation. I think that within a year we will be able to say that we_ve had a vote on Internet gaming, and I_m sure that if we get a vote we_re going to win.

The Online Railbird Report, Vol. 19: Choppy Waters for Dang, DIN_FRU

As the start of the WSOP_s $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. event approached and the live cash games continued to thrive, the online action dropped off a bit from last week_s frenzy. Nosebleed-stakes regulars Phil Ivey, David _MR B 2 U SON� Benyamine, and Gus Hansen all played the H.O.R.S.E. event, while some typically prolific players like Tom _durrrr� Dwan were hardly heard from at all this week. In their absence, DIN_FRU continued to take on all comers in heads-up matches, Niki Jedlicka booked some more solid wins, and Ted _profbackwards� Forrest made a rare appearance online and managed to clean up in the Omaha/8 games.
Where_s _durrrr�?
Typically one of the most high-volume high-stakes cash players online, Tom Dwan was all but absent this week, logging only a small handful of sessions and only a few hundred hands, but still finishing the week more than $500,000 to the good. In the few hours he did play, Dwan picked up a $179,000 win over Sami _LarsLuzak� Kelopuro and Patrik Antonius over the course of 80 minutes at the $300/600/100 ante pot-limit Omaha on Sunday evening. While playing in that three-handed game, Dwan also played Kelopuro heads-up on a separate $300/600/100 table. Soon their battle expanded to two tables and two games as they sat down at a $300/600/100 no-limit hold_em table for even more action. Dwan took over $260,000 off Kelopuro that evening, including this huge NLHE pot:
Kelopuro opened for $2,000, Dwan three-bet to $6,200 and Kelopuro called. Dwan checked the flop over to Kelopuro, who bet $7,800. Dwan called and they saw the hit the turn. Dwan checked again, Kelopuro bet $17,400, and Dwan came back over the top for his entire stack, $147,396 in all. Kelopuro called all in for $46,968 and turned up �dominated by Dwan_s . The river was the and Dwan took down the nearly $157,000 pot.
Kelopuro would get some of those losses back later in the week when he booked a $189,000 win over Dwan inside an hour in a $300/600/100 PLO rematch in the wee hours of Friday morning, but would ultimately finish the week down $382,000.
A Bumpy Ride for DIN_FRU
The Finnish player known only as DIN_FRU suffered some heavy losses this week, notably in a six-hour heads-up match of $1,000/2,000 limit hold_em with Niki Jedlicka. After 1,300 hands, DIN_FRU left with a $406,000 loss and was down as much as half a million at one point before making a small comeback.
This being limit poker, the session_s largest hand topped out at only $38,000. The match was in its fifth hour and Jedlicka had already worked his stack up to $422,000 while DIN_FRU was sitting on $176,000. DIN_FRU raised from the button, Jedlicka three-bet, DIN_FRU capped and Jedlicka called. The flop was and Jedlicka check-called DIN_FRU_s bet. The turn came the and Jedlicka checked again. DIN_FRU bet, Jedlicka raised, and they capped the betting. The river fell the and Jedlicka led out. DIN_FRU raised, Jedlicka three-bet, and DIN_FRU called. Jedlicka showed for a wheel and took down the pot.
Though DIN_FRU lost big that night, he managed to win $33,000 back from Jedlicka in a 45-minute match the next afternoon. The following evening, however, he decided to take a shot at the $500/1,000 HA game, sitting down amidst a lineup that included Phil Ivey, Di _Urindanger� Dang, _luckexpress10,� Gus Hansen, _just_the_nuts,� David Benefield and Ashton _theASHMAN103� Griffin. DIN_FRU ended up down $112,000 after two and a half hours of play and ended up on this losing end of this hand against Griffin, one of the night_s largest at over $226,000:
Griffin opened for $3,500, DIN_FRU reraised to $10,000, Griffin four-bet to $31,500 and DIN_FRU called. Griffin potted for $64,500 on the flop, DIN_FRU moved in for $80,994 and Griffin called, showing for top pair, top kicker to DIN_FRU_s for the king-high flush draw. DIN_FRU missed his outs, the landing on the turn and the hitting the river to make Griffin aces up and earn him the $226,585 pot.
Ted _profbackwards� Forrest Dominates Omaha/8 Action
Ted Forrest decided to get in on the booming online action this week, booking several profitable sessions including a $187,000 win at Omaha/8 on Friday. In the morning hours, he took in $80,000 at the $1,000/2,000 level, raking in chips from _Sirens,� Ashton _theASHMAN103� Griffin, _Rekelme,� and Rafi _howisitfeellike� Amit. Later in the afternoon, Forrest took on Griffin in a heads-up match at the $2,000/4,000 level and after 500-plus hands, booked a $107,000 win. Forrest seemed to scoop every major pot of the session, including this $40,000 hand:
Forrest limped in from the button, Griffin raised from the big blind and Forrest called. Griffin led out on the flop, Forrest raised and Griffin called. The turn came the and Griffin fired again. Forrest again raised and Griffin called. The river was the and Griffin slowed down and checked. Forrest bet and Griffin called. It was the for Forrest, making the nut flush for high and a 7-5-4-3-A low to scoop the pot.
Rough Week for _Urindanger�
Di _Urindanger� Dang had a brutal session against Gus Hansen on Tuesday evening, dropping over $475,000 in the space of 165 hands. Dang and Hansen_s match played over two tables of $500/1,000 pot-limit Omaha, the aptly named _Hansen Knockout� and _Hansen Suckout.� Dang simply could not catch a break in this session, losing the vast majority of his all-ins, including this $194,985 pot where Hansen hit a perfect river card.
Hansen limped in on the button, Dang raised to $3,000, Hansen made it $5,000, Dang four-bet to $15,000 and Hansen called. The flop came down and Dang led out for $30,000. Hansen called and they went to the turn, which paired the board with the . Dang immediately moved all in and Hansen called. Dang had flopped two pair and turned a flush draw with while Hansen had a gutshot straight draw and a higher flush draw with . Hansen hit his straight on the river with the and he raked in the $194,985 pot.
Who_s Up? Who_s Down?
This week_s biggest winners: Gus Hansen (+$588,000), Tom _durrrr� Dwan (+$501,000), Phil Ivey (+$314,000)
This week_s biggest losers: _luckexpress10� (-$546,000), Sami _LarsLuzak� Kelopuro (-$382,000), Di _Urindanger� Dang (-$207,000)
"The Online Railbird" report is a weekly feature summarizing the biggest matchups in the online game. Many of the largest online collisions take place at Full Tilt. Why not join the fun?

Poker News Briefs, June 25th, 2009

Oral Hearings in July for iMEGA UIGEA Challenge
Oral arguments have been scheduled for July 7th, 2009, in the Interactive Media Entertainment and Gaming Association_s ongoing challenge to the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA). The U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals announced the date when iMEGA and U.S. government lawyers will argue the merits of the UIGEA, which iMEGA seeks to have declared unconstitutional. The three-judge panel for the hearing in Philadelphia has also been announce, consisting of Carter appointee Korman Sloviter, Clinton appointee Thomas L. Ambro, and George W. Bush appointee Kent A. Jordan .
Eastgate to Donate Eco-Green Poker Table for Charity
The ecology-friendly poker table that Peter Eastgate won last year to go along with his WSOP Main Event title will be making a return trip to the Rio – this time, Eastgate will donate the table manufactured by EGM Greens during this year_s _Poker Paloozaâ€� at the World Series of Poker. The table will go to the winner of a silent auction conducted at EGM_s booth during the July 2-5, 2009 Poker Palooza, which is the world_s largest assemblage of poker-lifestyle products and services. Funds from the auction will go to a yet-to-be-announced charity designated by Eastgate.
BetOnSports Defendants Plead Guilty
Two more defendants have pled guilty in the United States_ long-running case against executives and employees of BetOnSports. In the latest developments, Neil Scott Kaplan and Lori Beth Kaplan-Multz, siblings of BOS founder Gary Kaplan, and Penelope Tucker, Gary Kaplan_s personal assistant, each agreed to large cash forfeitures. Neil Kaplan will serve two months in a halfway house followed by eight months of house arrest, with Kaplan-Multz accepting a nearly identical two to four months in a halfway house followed by six to eight months of house arrest. Tucker received one year_s probation.

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2009 WSOP: Ankenman Scores First Bracelet in #42 Mixed

Day 3 of Event #42, $2,500 Mixed, kicked off with 14 players looking to make the final table. Among those left in contention were Jimmy _Gobboboy� Fricke, Jon _PearlJammer� Turner, Layne Flack, Blair Rodman, and Dario Alioto. The final table was headlined by Layne Flack, in search of his fourth bracelet. However, it was Jerrod Ankenman who rose above the pack and walked away with the bracelet and the $241,637 top prize.
Blair Rodman was the first player to make his exit in Day 3 action. He was all in after calling a preflop raise from Andrew Radel during Omaha hi/lo. Adam Friedman called as well and the flop came down . After check-calling a bet from Radel on the flop, Friedman led out after the hit the turn. Radel raised and Friedman made the call. The river fell the and Friedman check-called Radel_s bet. Radel held the nut low and a baby flush with , but Friedman held a slightly better flush with to take down the high. Rodman mucked and headed for the payout window.
Rami Boukai soon followed him out the door, eliminated in 13th place. Boukai put the last of his chips in during stud hi/lo with A-3-4 and was called by Trai Dang who held buried queens. Dang improved to queens up by the river and Boukai couldn_t make a low. Dang was unable to put Boukai_s chips to good use as he was the next player out. During the pot-limit Omaha round, Dang bet pot into the board of . Eric Crain bet enough to put Dang all in and Dang made the call. Dang tabled for a set of threes and Crain flipped over for middle pair, a flush draw, and a straight draw. The river fell the to complete Crain_s flush and eliminate Dang in 12th place.
Andrew Radel was knocked out in 11th place at the hands of Jerrod Ankenman. Radel called a raise preflop from Layne Flack before Ankenman reraised, making it 71,500 to go. Flack folded and Radel made the call. The flop fell and Radel put the rest of his chips at risk. Ankenman made the call and showed for aces and an open-ended straight draw. Radel tabled for two pair and a higher straight draw. The turn was the to give Ankenman his straight. The on the river failed to complete Radel_s draw and he hit the rail.
Adam Friedman was the next to fall short of the final table. In a deuce-to-seven hand, he shoved all in after the first draw and stood pat with 9-6-4-3-2. Layne Flack made the call and drew one card on each of the next two draws. He started with 7-6-5-2 and needed an eight, four, or three. On the last draw, Flack caught a three to send Friedman home in tenth place.
Jimmy Fricke entered the day as the short stack and fought admirably to stay alive. But his efforts fell short as he was felted in ninth place to become this event_s final table bubble boy. Most final tables feature nine players, but since the mixed event includes stud variants and triple draw, this final table was eight-handed. Fricke got his money in good during razz, putting the last of his chips in on third street with A-5-6 and getting called by Jerrod Ankenman holding 8-4-3. Fricke caught a seven on fourth street but on subsequent streets the lowest card he could catch was a jack to finish with a jack low. Ankenman caught an ace on sixth and a seven on the river to improve to an eight low and the final table was set.
Jerrod Ankenman had more than 500,000 in chips over his nearest competitor heading into the final table. Here_s how the players stood in chips to start the final:
Jerrod Ankenman -- 1.2 million
Jon Turner -- 591,000
Sergey Altbregin -- 387,000
Eric Crain -- 355,000
Jeff Tims -- 260,000
Chris Klodnicki -- 109,000
Dario Alioto -- 103,000
Layne Flack -- 60,000
The two shortest stacks were the first two to be eliminated from the final table. In a stud hand, Dario Alioto called off the last of his chips on sixth street against Jon Turner. Alioto held sevens and fives for two pair and Turner held trip nines. Alioto caught a jack on the river to send him packing in eighth place, good for $25,860. Layne Flack also went out during the stud round. Flack moved in on fifth street with split eights and Eric Crain called with split nines. Flack improved to eights up on sixth street, but Crain also improved to nines up. Flack failed to fill up on the river and finished in seventh place, taking home $30,674 for his strong finish.
Eric Crain was the next player to get the boot, eliminated in sixth place after losing two huge no-limit hold_em hands. In the first hand, Crain moved all in preflop with and was called by Sergey Altbregin with pocket aces. Crain caught a king on the flop, but a third king did not follow. Altbregin doubled up to 600,000 as Crain was left with only 160,000. The very next hand, Jerrod Ankenman raised to 30,000 and Crain moved all in. Ankenman called and tabled pocket eights. Crain held . The flop fell to give Ankenman a set, but Crain picked up a Broadway draw. The turn and river failed to complete Crain_s straight and he headed out in sixth place, good for $38,075.
Jon Turner was the fifth-place finisher in this event. Jerrod Ankenman raised preflop and Tuner called with the last of his chips. Sergey Altbregin and Chris Klodnicki also came along for the ride. This gave Turner great value for his hand as he stood to quadruple up. The flop of was checked around. The turn fell the and action was checked to Klodnicki, who bet out. Ankenman was the only caller. The river was the and the two active players checked. Ankenman turned over for nines up. Klodnicki tabled and Turner flipped up . Ankenman won the pot and Turner headed to the payout window to collect his $49,569 prize for fifth.
Jeff Tims moved all in preflop during no-limit hold_em and received a call from Chris Klodnicki. Tims_ was dominated by the of Klodnicki. Matters became worse for Tims when the flop gave Klodnicki a flush draw. The turn left Tims drawing dead when the fell to complete Klodnicki_s flush. Jeff Tims finished in fourth place and took home $67,848. A few hands later, Sergey Altbregin doubled up through Jerrod Ankenman to take over the chip lead. A preflop betting war between the two left Altbregin all in with pocket kings, up against Ankenman_s . Ankenman picked up a pair of queens on the turn, but the river fell a blank to move Altbregin up to 1.4 million in chips. Ankenman was still very healthy with 900,000.
Chris Klodnicki raised from the button to 30,000 preflop during a pot-limit Omaha hand. Jerrod Ankenman made the call and the flop fell . Ankenman checked and Klodnicki fired out 72,000. Ankenman re-potted to 288,000 and Klodnicki moved in for 375,000 total. Ankenman made the call with for the nut flush draw, a wheel draw, and a pair. Klodnicki held for two pair only. The turn fell the to fill Ankenman_s flush, leaving Klodnicki with four outs to win. The river was the and Klodnicki finished in third place. $97,897 made for a nice return on Klodnicki_s $2,500 investment.
Heads-up play began with Sergey Altbregin holding a slight edge over Jerrod Ankenman. Altbregin had 1.8 million to the 1.41 million of Ankenman. But Ankenman took a series of pot off Altbregin during Omaha hi/lo to move into a massive chip lead of 2.39 million to just 700,000. Altbregin slipped further down to 415,000 before committing the last of his chips during a no-limit hold_em hand.
On the flop of , Ankenman bet out 50,000 and Altbregin responded by pushing all in. Ankenman made the call with for top pair and a straight draw. Altbregin held for middle pair only. The turn fell the to give Ankenman his straight and Altbregin was drawing dead to a chop. The river was the and Sergey Altbregin finished as runner-up for this event, taking home $149,342.
Jerrod Ankenman entered the final table with the chip lead and was able to walk away from the table with his first bracelet. After doubling up Altbregin in the early going, Ankenman controlled the pace of play and rebuilt his stack until he ultimately overtook Altbregin. In addition to the gold bracelet, Ankenman took home $241,637 in prize money.

2009 WSOP Vlog Update: Theo Tran from the $10K PLH

Theo Tran checks in again from the 2009 World Series of Poker and adds another segment to his new video blog for PokerNews readers and fans. Theo sums up his recent events, including running up against tough players when out of position and cashing in a recent $2,000 event. Theo also entered the $10,000 Pot-Limit Hold'em tourney and jumped up in the early levels to 50,000 in chips. Here's Theo's latest:
Theo's videos from the 2009 World Series of Poker are among the hundreds of video entries available in our extensive library at tv.pokernews.com. More new videos appear each day, so visit often!

The PokerNews Top 10: The Top Moments in Televised Poker

While the World Series of Poker has been broadcast to the world via television in some form or another since the early 1970s, it is really only during the last decade that professional high-stakes poker has become a regular feature of sports and entertainment programming, with the relatively-recent innovation of the _hole card camera� doing much to stimulate interest among viewers. It is not surprising, then, for a list of top ten moments in televised poker to focus primarily on the very recent past, although a couple of earlier moments warrant inclusion as well. The following list -- like all such lists, subjectively compiled and thus undeniably debatable -- ranks the top ten moments in televised poker using both historical and dramatic value as criteria.
10. _I Can Dodge Bullets, Baby� (2005 World Series of Poker, ESPN)
Phil _The Poker Brat� Hellmuth_s status as an iconic figure in poker was significantly assisted by the increased popularity of televised poker, making Hellmuth one of the most recognized poker players among the general public. Hellmuth_s nickname stems from his frequent tableside tantrums, which have often been given special attention during televised events in which he has been involved. The case could be made to select one of those less flattering outbursts for the list, e.g., _If there weren_t luck involved, I would win every time� (2004 WSOP, ESPN); _The guy can_t even spell poker� (2005 WSOP, ESPN); _Mori, are you going to give penalties for this **** or not?� (2007 Poker After Dark, NBC). Hellmuth_s most memorable TV moment, however, had to be from the first day of the 2005 WSOP, when, with the board showing A-4-4-Q, Hellmuth managed to lay down against Frank Passantino_s . After the hand, Passantino shows his cards, positioning the Poker Brat perfectly to deliver one of his more memorable bits of self-aggrandizement to his wife on the rail: _Honey! I was supposed to go broke on that hand. Except they forgot one thing -- I can dodge bullets, baby!�
9. "Late Night Poker" (Channel 4, 1999)
Produced in Cardiff, Wales, the British series presented a series of _heats� (or sit-n-gos), with those who perfomed well all meeting in a finale. When the show debuted in the summer of 1999, it was the first example of televised poker that routinely gave viewers glimpses of players_ hole cards, in this case via the use of cameras positioned under the tables and shooting up through glass. Those first episodes featured commentary by the show_s creator, Nic Szeremeta, and the American poker player and author Jesse May, the latter of whom would become known as the _voice of poker.� A particularly influential show in the history of televised poker that greatly influenced later WPT and WSOP broadcasts.
8. The Bear and the Champ Get Lost in Durrrrland (2009 "High Stakes Poker", GSN)
Since its debut on the Game Show Network in early 2006, High Stakes Poker has consistently remained especially popular among poker players for its fascinating presentation of high-stakes cash games, ably supplemented by the insightful and often humorous commentary of co-hosts A.J. Benza and Gabe Kaplan. Several hands from the show could be selected as the most memorable, e.g., Gus Hansen_s quad fives versus Daniel Negreanu_s sixes full of fives from Season 2; Brad Booth_s successful semi-bluff with causing Phil Ivey to lay down pocket kings in Season 3; Sam Farha_s aces versus Jamie Gold_s kings in Season 4. However, for sheer fascination over both the personalities involved and strategy employed, none top the hand from earlier this year in which Tom _durrrr� Dwan managed to win a nearly quarter million-dollar pot with by getting both Barry Greenstein () and Peter Eastgate () to fold after a flop of . Said Greenstein later of Dwan_s play, _He posterized me.�
7. The November Nine (2008 World Series of Poker final table, ESPN)
It was somewhat surprising to many when it was announced on May 1, 2008 that the final table of the 2008 WSOP would be delayed nearly four months, to be played in November in order to produce a _plausibly live� broadcast of the event that viewers could watch without necessarily having knowledge of the outcome. The two-hour episode was a ratings success for ESPN, achieving a nearly 50% improvement over the viewership for the previous year_s final table. While the program_s climax was somewhat muted (only two hands of heads-up play between winner Peter Eastgate and Ivan Demidov were shown), perhaps the most dramatic moment of the show came during the opening 15 minutes, when Demidov, holding , successfully used positional advantage to force former chip leader Dennis Phillips to fold his after a flop of .
6. Yang Tears It Up (2007 World Series of Poker, ESPN Pay Per View)
As they did the previous year, ESPN provided live streaming of the WSOP final table in 2007, with commentary by Ali Nejad, Phil Gordon, and a host of guests stopping by. Jerry Yang began the final table seventh in chips, and in his early commentary Gordon repeatedly refers to Yang as both _weak� and _very tight,� further adding that _almost without exception� all with whom he had talked to had judged the Laotian-born resident of California to be the least skilled player among the final nine. Thus did Gordon inadvertently help set the stage for some of the more thrilling hands of televised poker ever shown. Using sheer aggression, Yang took just 14 hands (winning six) to assume the chip lead without showing down once. Indeed, not having hole card cameras arguably increased the drama. Yang would show his hand on Hand No. 15, when he busted former chip leader Philip Hilm, and again six hands later when eliminating Lee Watkinson. Not even three orbits into play, and the so-called weakest, tightest player at the table suddenly had half of the chips in play!
5. The Comeback Kid (1997 World Series of Poker, ESPN)
The one and only WSOP Main Event final table to be played outdoors (on Fremont Street, in front of Binion_s Horseshoe), there_s a somewhat surreal flavor to ESPN_s broadcast, in which an obviously weakened Stu Ungar, donning those John Lennon-like blue sunglasses, wins his third Main Event title 16 years after having won his first two back-to-back. Following the final hand in which Ungar rivered a straight to defeat John Strzemp, Ungar_s friend Gabe Kaplan interviews the champ briefly, and Ungar talks about his love for his then 14-year-old daughter Stephanie and in a general way refers to the many troubles he_d overcome to get back to the top of the poker world. Sadly, Ungar_s comeback would end tragically a year later with his premature death.
4. On the Inside of the World Series of Poker (Discovery Channel, 1999)
This documentary produced by Steve Lipscomb for the Discovery Channel also presented an inside look at the WSOP, introducing the Series to a much wider audience than ever before. As Lipscomb notes in his introduction to Mike Sexton_s Shuffle Up and Deal, ratings data showed the audience for the documentary actually doubled from the time the show began to the time it concluded, meaning viewers happening upon the program had stopped switching channels to watch, a phenomenon _which led [Lipscomb] to believe there was an audience out there for poker on television.� Indeed, the show was one of the network_s 20 highest-rated programs of the year, and at the time was the single most-watched poker show ever. Thus does On the Inside of the World Series of Poker have a dual historical significance as a landmark in televised poker, generally speaking, as well as a specific catalyst for the creation of what would eventually become the WPT.
3. _Puggy Has All the Money� (1973 World Series of Poker, CBS)
In 1973, Jimmy _the Greek� Snyder, who would later become known for his long tenure as a co-host of CBS_ NFL Today, helped arrange for the production of a documentary chronicling the 1973 WSOP that would later air on CBS_ popular weekend show Sports Spectacular. The program took a serious, studied look at the WSOP and the world of professional poker. Toward the end of the documentary, as the final hand in which Puggy Pearson defeats Johnny Moss is shown, Snyder narrates the action: _It_s the type of happening that draws out every drop of emotion, even for those who are just watching. For them, it_s total involvement.� As the words are spoken, the unsteadily-held camera pans to Snyder observing the action from the rail, visual confirmation of the point he has made.
2. The World Poker Tour Debuts (2003, The Travel Channel)
On March 30, 2003, the first episode of the World Poker Tour aired on the Travel Channel. The producers of the WPT successfully combined elements of both sports programming and game shows to create a compelling drama with an absorbing plot and reasonably interesting (and distinct) characters. Those looking back on that first show today might be surprised to find Gus Hansen, winner of the 2002 Five Diamond Poker Classic event that was aired for the debut, being _cast� as a poker outsider, a backgammon specialist who had decided to give this poker thing a try. His success at that final table certainly didn_t impress seasoned poker pro Freddy Deeb (whom Hansen eliminated in fifth), who in his knockout interview said _the guy who won that last hand from me, he play very bad, in my opinion.� The use of post-production commentary of Mike Sexton and Vince Van Patten, especially helpful to viewers new to poker, would be part of the formula followed by ESPN later that summer for its WSOP broadcasts.
1. Moneymaker Bluffs Farha (2003 World Series of Poker, ESPN)
The seven one-hour episodes ESPN produced packaging the 2003 World Series of Poker Main Event not only lit the fuse that ignited the _poker boom,� but also -- along with the recently-launched World Poker Tour -- helped create a new standard for televised poker with regard to production and the conscious creation of narrative. Poker amateur and eventual champ Chris Moneymaker's heads-up bluff against seasoned pro Sam Farha during the final episode -- putting his tournament life on the line by going all in on the river with nothing but busted straight and flush draws -- was the highlight of a series filled with remarkable moments, somewhat justifying Norman Chad's hyperbolic pronouncement that Moneymaker had successfully run _the bluff of the century.�

World Poker Tour Announces Season VIII US Schedule

World Poker Tour Enterprises, Inc. has released the venues and dates for the American stops on the upcoming eighth season of the World Poker Tour. The season_s dozen United States events begin with the Bellagio Cup in Las Vegas in mid-July, and run through the WPT Championship, also at the Bellagio, in April of 2010. Four of the 12 WPT U.S. stops will be held at the Bellagio, with a new event set to be debut in March of 2010, the Hollywood Open at Lawrenceburg, Indiana_s Hollywood Casino.
The 12 United States-based events in Season VIII of the World Poker Tour:
Bellagio Cup V
July 13-19, 2009 Bellagio, Las Vegas, NV
Buy-in: $15,400
Legends of Poker
August 22-26, 2009, Bicycle Casino, Los Angeles, CA
Buy-in: $10,000
Borgata Poker Open
September 19-24, 2009, Borgata Hotel, Atlantic City, NJ
Buy-in: To be determined
Festa al Lago
October 20-26, 2009, Bellagio, Las Vegas, NV
Buy-in: $15,400
Foxwoods World Poker Finals
November 5-10, 2009, Foxwoods Resort Casino, Mashantucket, CT
Buy-in: $10,000
Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker Classic
December 13-19, 2009, Bellagio, Las Vegas, NV
Buy-in: $15,400
Southern Poker Championship
January 24-27, 2010: Beau Rivage, Biloxi, MS
Buy-in: $10,000
L.A. Poker Classic
February 20-25, 2010, Commerce Casino, Los Angeles, CA
Buy-in: $10,000
WPT Celebrity Invitational (at L.A. Poker Classic)
February 27 - March 1, 2010: Commerce Casino, Los Angeles, CA
Invitation-Only Event
Bay 101 Shooting Star
March 8-12, 2010, Bay 101, San Jose, CA
Buy-in: $10,000
Hollywood Poker Open
March 20-24, 2010: Hollywood Casino, Lawrenceburg, IN
Buy-in: $10,000
WPT Championship
April 17-24, 2010 Bellagio, Las Vegas, NV
Buy-in: $25,500
Separately, the World Poker Tour announced a new international event to be held in Slovakia, running from August 26 � September 2, 2009. The WPT has not yet released the complete international portion of its schedule, though the WPT Spanish Championship, June 24-30, 2009, has previously been announced.

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