Poker News

GPSTS Backing Massachusetts Poker Bill

On Tuesday, a hearing in Massachusetts will feature a discussion of whether poker should legally be considered a game of skill. Supporting the measure is the Harvard-based Global Poker Strategic Thinking Society (GPSTS).

The bill in question would, according to Andrew Woods of the GPSTS, remove poker legally from its stigma as a game of chance. Woods told Poker News Daily in the days leading up to the hearing, “What this recognition would do is move poker out of that legislative regime. Right now, poker is classified as a lottery in Massachusetts, which any poker player knows is something of a joke. This is explicit recognition that poker is a game of skill.”

Massachusetts State Representative Brian Wallace proposed the bill, which is numbered 4069. The measure is quite succinct in its language and signals out poker as a game of skill. It reads, “Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit, limit, criminalize, regulate, or require a license to operate, set up, promote, aid, play, or otherwise participate in games of skill played peer-to-peer, including but not limited to poker.” Wallace, a Democrat, has served in the Massachusetts legislature since 2003.

With its home chapter at Harvard, the GPSTS has become heavily involved in supporting Wallace’s legislation. On the organization’s interests, Woods told Poker News Daily, “We’re interested in being involved because the bill follows our goals and interests. The bill very precisely states that poker is a game of skill. Across the country, you’re seeing a lot of states coming up against the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) and instead looking at intrastate poker. They can’t get around the federal law, but they can allow it within their own state.” The UIGEA was passed in 2006 at the urging of then-Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN).

The GPSTS is focused on defining how skills derived from poker can be applied to the real world. Harvard Law Professor Charles Nesson founded the organization, which, according to its website, uses “poker to teach strategic thinking, geopolitical analysis, risk assessment, and money management. We see poker as a metaphor for skills of life, business, politics, and international relations.” GPSTS chapters can be found coast-to-coast, including at Dartmouth, New York University, UCLA, the University of Michigan, and Stanford.

The fall session of the GPSTS featured the annual Harvard versus Yale poker tournament on the eve of the schools’ match-up on the gridiron. Harvard bested Yale in 2009 and other GPSTS rivalries include UCLA versus USC and Princeton versus Penn. Woods explained that the organization has continued to grow leaps and bounds after two-and-a-half years: “We’ve been evolving our course work and activities to be in line with our mission be an institution that helps develops a skill set in poker that is applicable and fun to use. We’ve had success and are continuing to expand operations.”

A member of the GPSTS or poker community may testify at Tuesday’s hearing in the Economic Development and Emerging Technologies Committee. On the federal level, Massachusetts Congressman Barney Frank (D-MA) leads the charge on behalf of the internet gambling industry, having introduced HR 2267. The bill provides a complete framework for licensing and regulating internet gambling in the United States. Woods gave his take on federal legislation already on the books: “People’s views on internet poker are founded on archaic concerns around gambling in general. There are legitimate concerns about people playing it too much and those should be dealt with, but to prohibit it because it’s dangerous is kind of ludicrous.”

Visit the official website of the GPSTS for more information on this burgeoning organization.

Isildur1 vs. Hastings Round Two

The previous match between Hastings and Isildur1 went down Dec. 8, with Hastings making an astounding $4.2 million, in part thanks to an in-depth hand-history analysis by Brian Townsend derived from the combined Full Tilt histories of Townsend, Hastings and Cole South.

The record-setting session appeared to leave the unknown Swede in a state of disrepair.

However, after almost two months of grinding lower stakes games, Isildur1 returned to the high-stakes scene Monday, making over $806k to kick-start his comeback.

In typical Isildur1 style, he returned to put his profits back into play yesterday, commencing what appears to be a second run at the online poker leader boards.

Isildur1 started his night by playing 625 hands of $200/$400 PLO against Ilari "Ziigmund" Sahamies, making over $116k.

Sahamies went on to lose a total of $266,926 for the night.

Up next for Isildur1 was four tables of Six-Max $300/$600 PLO against Tom "durrrr" Dwan, Di "Urindanger" Dang and Jani Vilmunen. After making another $247k in 639 hands, Isildur1 was ready for his rematch with Hastings.

Hastings and Isildur1 took seats at six tables of heads-up $300/$600 PLO setting the stage for round two of what might be the biggest grudge-match in online poker history.

After 926 hands, Isildur1 had grabbed an ounce of redemption, taking apart the CardRunners pro to the tune of $504,987.

With the $504k from Hastings added to his total for the day, Isildur1 finished the day up $869k.

His comeback now in full swing after back-to-back $800k+ days, Isildur1 has moved into fourth place for profit in 2010 with over $1.4 million.

Below are three of the largest pots from yesterday's battle between Isildur1 and Hastings. To see more hands from the day head to MarketPulse.

Isildur1 Battles Justin Bonomo (ZeeJustin) on Full Tilt Poker

Railbirds rejoice! The mysterious high-stakes wunderkind known as Isildur1 is back at the tables on Full Tilt Poker having rebuilt his bankroll during the month of February. Starting as low as $5/$10, the Swede has gradually worked his way up as high as $300/$600, playing anyone who will take a shot at him.

Isildur1, who notably spent the latter part of 2009 playing nosebleed games against Phil Ivey, Patrik Antonius, Tom "durrrr" Dwan, and several other of the world's best players, went on some legendary million-dollar swings before losing more than $3 million in a session to Full Tilt Poker pro Brian Hastings. The match depleted Isildur1's bankroll on the site. After Hastings admitted to sharing hand histories with friends in order to take Isildur1 down, the Swede vowed that he wouldn't return until the incident was addressed.

On Monday evening, Isildur1 played a rousing $200/$400 No Limit Hold'em match against Justin "ZeeJustin" Bonomo, who has been spending a lot of time at the cash tables of Full Tilt of late. Isildur1 and Bonomo played nearly 2,000 hands, with Isildur1 taking more than $550,000 from the Las Vegas pro.

Poker News Daily caught most of the action between the two No Limit Hold’em specialists. Here are a few of the key hands from the match:

Hand #1

Button: Isildur1 ($93,797)
Big Blind: ZeeJustin ($40,000)

Isildur1 raises to $1,200
ZeeJustin raises to $4,200
Isildur1 calls

Flop: Jh-8h-4h
ZeeJustin bets $4,000
Isildur1 raises to $89,597 (all-in)
ZeeJustin calls

Isildur1 shows Qh-8s (pair of eights, Queen-high flush draw)
ZeeJustin shows Ah-2c (Ace-high flush draw)

Turn: 5d
River: 6s

Isildur1 wins $80,000 with a pair of Eights

Analysis: This hand took place early in the match and set the stage for what was a frustrating evening for Bonomo. Isildur1 raises every button; therefore 3betting with an Ace here is standard, especially knowing that the Swede will play in position with almost any two cards. The flop hits both players. Bonomo leads out and is faced with a decision for his stack after Isildur1 quickly moves all-in. Knowing that he's up against an active opponent who could be moving in with a weaker flush draw, Bonomo calls and discovers that he's a 3:2 underdog. The board bricks out and Bonomo reloads.

Hand #2

Button: Isildur1 ($136,889.50)
Big Blind: ZeeJustin ($53,297.50)

Isildur1 raises to $1,200
ZeeJustin calls

Flop: Js-8c-6s
ZeeJustin checks
Isildur1 bets $2,000
ZeeJustin raises to $6,800
Isildur1 raises to $14,600
ZeeJustin raises to $52,097.50 (all-in)
Isildur1 calls

ZeeJustin shows 6c-6d (a set of Sixes)
Isildur1 shows 8s-6h (two pair, Eights and Sixes)

Turn: 7c
River: 8h

Isildur1 wins $106,595 with a full house, Eights full of Sixes

Analysis: Just a brutal river for Bonomo. You can't fault Isildur1 for getting his money in with bottom two, as he's beating most of Bonomo's shoving range, but Bonomo, an 86% favorite on the flop, can't hang on and loses a $100,000 pot.

Hand #3

Button: Isildur1 ($129,587.50)
Big Blind: ZeeJustin ($59,996.50)

Isildur1 raises to $1,200
ZeeJustin calls

Flop: Ks-8c-6h
ZeeJustin checks
Isildur1 bets $2,000
ZeeJustin calls

Turn: 4c
ZeeJustin checks
Isildur1 bets $5,600
ZeeJustin calls

River: 8s
ZeeJustin bets $13,500
Isildur1 raises to $120,787.50 (all-in)
ZeeJustin calls

Isildur1 shows Qs-7s (a pair of Eights)
ZeeJustin shows Qd-8d (trip Eights)
ZeeJustin wins $119,993

Analysis: This had to feel good for Bonomo. He spent a good portion of the match check-calling against the aggressive Swede, patiently waiting for a spot to pick him off, and finally got his chance. However, Bonomo's heart likely stopped when Isildur1 shoved on the river. Isildur1 bet on every street and is representing a monster hand, such as a full house or maybe even a turned straight. Knowing that Isildur1 is capable of a huge river bluff, it's a pretty straightforward call for Bonomo.

Hand #4

Button: ZeeJustin ($45,999)
Big Blind: Isildur1 ($203,783)

ZeeJustin raises to $1,200
Isildur1 calls

Flop: Qd-10h-3h
Isildur1 checks
ZeeJustin checks

Turn: 7h
Isildur1 bets $2,000
ZeeJustin raises to $6,600
Isildur1 raises to $23,800
ZeeJustin raises to $44,999 (all-in)
Isildur1 calls

ZeeJustin shows 10d-7c (two pair, Tens and Sevens)
Isildur1 shows Ah-Jd (Ace-high flush draw, gutshot straight draw)

River: Ks

Isildur1 wins $91,998 with a straight to the Ace

Analysis: This was a fun hand to witness. After little action before and on the flop, fireworks ensued on the turn. Bonomo didn't make a lot of big hands during the session, so two pair probably looked like gold in this spot. Meanwhile, Isildur1 knew he has a bundle of outs to make the nuts on the river. Sure enough, the Swede made Broadway and Bonomo quit shortly thereafter.

PokerTracker Now Supports Rush Poker

It took all of two weeks for the major tracking and analysis programs to release patches accommodating Full Tilt’s Rush Poker. Recently, PokerTracker released a real-time updating Heads-Up Display (HUD) for the poker variation.

PokerTracker and Holdem Manager are the market leaders in poker tracking software. Each strives to out-innovate the other and, with the release of Rush Poker on Full Tilt, both scrambled to issue patches. Holdem Manager’s version came out several days prior to PokerTracker’s. Instead of a customary HUD, stats like voluntarily put money into the pot (VPIP), aggression factor (AF), and pre-flop raise (PFR) percentage appeared in the notes section on Full Tilt. While this was a serviceable workaround, Holdem Manager boasted no full-scale HUD.

Enter PokerTracker. Text found on the program’s website explains the delay in issuing an update for Rush Poker: “We weren't satisfied in giving you guys something silly like stats in exported notes or to make you look up your opponents manually in a list of players. We wanted only the best. We wanted to give you exactly what you have on every other table you play on.” In essence, PokerTracker bills its patch as a real-time updating HUD while players whisk around the ever-changing felts of Rush Poker logging 200 to 300 hands per hour.

PokerTracker’s Rush Poker HUD has a few drawbacks, however. First, it does not display session stats or hero stats. Instead, the patch focuses on providing you with up-to-the-minute stats on your opponents. Second, players are unable to mark hands for further review via the HUD. In addition, if you want to add player notes, you’ll need to do so before your table changes, which occurs every time your action in a hand ends. Full Tilt Poker added a special “Quick Fold” feature to expedite the action even further. Finally, your mucked hands do not appear via PokerTracker when playing Rush Poker on the world’s second largest online poker site.

PokerTracker developers have not yet test-driven the software on the variety of mods that are available for the site, so players using anything other than the layouts and themes provided by Full Tilt Poker may experience issues with the HUD. In addition, Rush Poker support is only available for the Windows version of PokerTracker. Those using the tracking program on a Mac will remain in the dark for now.

In the same release of PokerTracker, developers touted that every online poker site except Bodog now has Omaha support. Site representatives noted, “Unfortunately, we did not receive a large number of Omaha hand histories to test with, so there will most likely be occasional hands that won't import. If you encounter one that errors out or doesn't import properly, please send it to our support team so we can get it fixed.” The latest release, dubbed Beta 30.2, adds Omaha support for the CEREUS Network, Microgaming Network, Ongame Network, Pacific Poker, Everest Poker, the Boss Media Network, the Cake Poker Network, and the Entraction Network.

In addition, PokerTracker now supports the auto-import of hands and an HUD on the CEREUS Network, which includes UB.com and Absolute Poker. The site adds, “We've also improved the stat interaction on the HUD by allowing CTRL+click and drag to move the stats on the table.”

The popular poker software review site PokerSoftware.com called PokerTracker “the most powerful tool an online poker player can use to enhance their career.” A 60-day free trial of the program is available. When it comes time to purchase, customers can choose between a $44.99 Small-Stakes version and an $89.99 Full version. Graphs and hundreds of stats make PokerTracker one of the poker software industry’s staple programs.

PokerTracker Now Supports Rush Poker

It took all of two weeks for the major tracking and analysis programs to release patches accommodating Full Tilt’s Rush Poker. Recently, PokerTracker released a real-time updating Heads-Up Display (HUD) for the poker variation.

PokerTracker and Holdem Manager are the market leaders in poker tracking software. Each strives to out-innovate the other and, with the release of Rush Poker on Full Tilt, both scrambled to issue patches. Holdem Manager’s version came out several days prior to PokerTracker’s. Instead of a customary HUD, stats like voluntarily put money into the pot (VPIP), aggression factor (AF), and pre-flop raise (PFR) percentage appeared in the notes section on Full Tilt. While this was a serviceable workaround, Holdem Manager boasted no full-scale HUD.

Enter PokerTracker. Text found on the program’s website explains the delay in issuing an update for Rush Poker: “We weren't satisfied in giving you guys something silly like stats in exported notes or to make you look up your opponents manually in a list of players. We wanted only the best. We wanted to give you exactly what you have on every other table you play on.” In essence, PokerTracker bills its patch as a real-time updating HUD while players whisk around the ever-changing felts of Rush Poker logging 200 to 300 hands per hour.

PokerTracker’s Rush Poker HUD has a few drawbacks, however. First, it does not display session stats or hero stats. Instead, the patch focuses on providing you with up-to-the-minute stats on your opponents. Second, players are unable to mark hands for further review via the HUD. In addition, if you want to add player notes, you’ll need to do so before your table changes, which occurs every time your action in a hand ends. Full Tilt Poker added a special “Quick Fold” feature to expedite game play even further. Finally, your mucked hands do not appear via PokerTracker when playing Rush Poker on the world’s second largest online poker site.

PokerTracker developers have not yet test-driven the software on the variety of mods that are available for the site, so players using anything other than the layouts and themes provided by Full Tilt Poker may experience issues with the HUD. In addition, Rush Poker support is only available for the Windows version of PokerTracker. Those using the tracking program on a Mac will remain in the dark for now.

In the same release of PokerTracker, developers touted that every online poker site except Bodog now has Omaha support. Site representatives noted, “Unfortunately, we did not receive a large number of Omaha hand histories to test with, so there will most likely be occasional hands that won't import. If you encounter one that errors out or doesn't import properly, please send it to our support team so we can get it fixed.” The latest release, dubbed Beta 30.2, adds Omaha support for the CEREUS Network, Microgaming Network, Ongame Network, Pacific Poker, Everest Poker, Boss Media Network, Cake Poker Network, and Entraction Network.

In addition, PokerTracker now supports the auto-import of hands and an HUD on the CEREUS Network, which includes UB.com and Absolute Poker. The site adds, “We've also improved the stat interaction on the HUD by allowing CTRL+click and drag to move the stats on the table.”

The popular poker software review site PokerSoftware.com called PokerTracker “the most powerful tool an online poker player can use to enhance their career.” A 60-day free trial of the program is available. When it comes time to purchase, customers can choose between a $44.99 Small-Stakes version and an $89.99 Full version. Graphs and hundreds of stats make PokerTracker one of the poker software industry’s staple programs.

Tiffany Michelle Talks Politics on Fox Business Network

If someone would have asked you who you thought would be a good person to appear on a national news program to discuss politics, we're guessing that UB.com's Tiffany Michelle would have been way down your list.  Sure enough, however, Michelle was Neil Cavuto's guest Tuesday on his Fox Business Network show, "Cavuto," comparing President Barack Obama's persistence with his health care plan to a poker player playing bad cards.

In the five-minute conversation, titled "Obama Making a Bad Bet?" on the Fox Business website, there was no debate on whether the proposed health care reform plan was good; it was simply assumed it was bad and that the majority of Americans are against it.  Cavuto's interview consisted of repeatedly asking Michelle to compare the President's health care efforts to playing poor hands.  For her part, Michelle came off fairly well, indulging Cavuto by using poker metaphor after poker metaphor to describe Obama's health care reform strategy.

Some tidbits:

Neil Cavuto: Taking a look at what the President's doing… a good gambler, I understand, or someone who bets a lot, understands, or thinks, that he or she has a good hand.  Am I right?
Tiffany Michelle: Yeah, generally you have a good hand, or you know if you have a bad hand, how to maneuver with that hand and take advantage of your opponent's weaknesses.

Cavuto: Now, the President, fairly or not Tiffany, is viewed to have a bad hand right now because prior cards he's dealt have turned out to be, you know, threes and fours.  They haven't really worked out.  Yet he continues playing the same hand.  What is the strategy behind that?
Michelle: [Preceding portion of answer snipped] What often happens for some players is you continue to push the issues, you continue to play the bad hands, you continue to get in sticky situations, and what really needs to happen is you need to step away from the table, you need to clear your head.

Tiffany Michelle laid it on thick, inserting poker comparisons at every turn.  Some of her best lines included:

"Here we are, let's say we're deep in the World Series, we're coming close to the bubble, you can taste that final table and the money and it's not looking like it's going to happen."

"Not only did Barack Obama in his first year in office decide to tackle one of the toughest issues in U.S. politics… it would be like me approaching Phil Hellmuth on my first day of my poker game and saying, 'Hey, Phil Hellmuth, you have 11 bracelets.  I want to challenge you heads-up.'"

"Talk about Scott Brown, that was a really bad beat for Barack Obama and the Democrats, who really thought they had a good chip lead there.  You know, they thought they had a lock on this tournament."

Members of the poker community universally panned the interview.  The reactions, however, were split between those who detested the fact that Michelle was chosen as the poker representative and those who simply thought that the interview itself was horrible.

He added, "I thought it was evenly presented, the gambling expert knew as much about gambling as the politics expert new abt politics," as well as, "I think it was more shady that TM passed herself off as a gambling expert with a clue abt politics to promote herself."

"Hollywood" Dave Stann, one of Tiffany Michelle's fellow UB.com pros, was more disgusted with Fox Business, Cavuto, and the interview itself, Tweeting, "WTF FoxNews? Generic gambling terms dissing Obama, then using pro gamblers as pawns 2 back it up? I dodged their invite 2day, thank fuck!"

Summing it up for someone who asked what the interview was all about, Stann tweeted, "fucking Fox presenting right-wing editorial talking points as 'news' then interviewing pros as 'evidence' of Obama ineptitude."

Some of the more entertaining comments on the interview came from the Two Plus Two forums.  Forum poster "TheTruthSpeaks" wrote, "While I was watching it I kept waiting to wake up as this certainly must be a dream or something. I mean surely I didn't really just see Tiffany Michelle on a news channel talking about politics while using horrible poker analogies to do it.  This has got to be the first sign of the Apocalypse."

"Randomness28" may have had two of the best quotes on how ridiculous the interview concept was, first saying, "Funny that the Q is 'How is Obama playing his hand?' .... so they decide to bring in a poker player for analysis. Someone should tell the staff of Cavuto's that 'playing his hand' is just a figure of speech.  Next on Cavuto: 'Are Republicans a move ahead of Democrats in setting up for 2012? We bring in chess GM to discuss this.'"

He later added, "Equivalent of this would be for Fox to pose the Q: How is the Obama administration going to kick off its second term in office? And to bring in a third string kicker of a Junior College to answer the Q."

Judge the Tiffany Michelle Fox Business interview for yourself.

Tiffany Michelle got her start in the poker world in 2006, when she served as an on-air host for the World Series of Poker (WSOP) coverage on Sirius Satellite Radio.  In 2007, she appeared on-camera, hosting various segments and conducting interviews for PokerNews.com.  Michelle officially turned heads the following year when she was the last woman remaining in the WSOP Main Event, eventually bowing out in 17th place and earning $334,534.  She was exposed to a nationwide audience in 2009 when she and fellow poker pro, Maria Ho, competed on the hit CBS show, "The Amazing Race."

Table Ninja Added to Holdem Manager

Recently, the popular poker tracking and analysis program Holdem Manager announced that it had added a free 30-day trial of Table Ninja to its suite of products. The change took effect on January 20th.

Table Ninja, available for PokerStars, consists of hotkeys that players can use to play more effectively online. Shortcuts for common actions like checking, betting, folding, calling, and raising exist within the program, making multi-tabling on the world’s largest online poker site a breeze. Other functions affect table controls and opening and closing sit and go and cash game tables. The creators of Table Ninja recently released TableNinjaFT for Full Tilt Poker, the world’s second largest online poker site. Playing more tables, of course, means larger profits for solid grinders.

PokerSoftware.com, which lists the price of Table Ninja for PokerStars at $35, called the program “the best efficiency/productivity add-on software that money can buy for PokerStars players.” TableNinjaFT is currently free and the software review site explains, “Although it may not have as many features as its PokerStars counterpart, the fact that it is free is a major selling point.” Members of PokerSoftware.com have rated TableNinjaFT the highest of the 50-plus programs reviewed at 4.73 out of 5.00. Table Ninja for PokerStars is the 11th highest rated program, coming in at 4.07.

In a press release distributed by Holdem Manager officials, PokerStars Supernova Elite member “Actaru5” commented on the importance of using Table Ninja on the virtual felts: "It's the best engineered poker software I have ever seen... I honestly can no longer imagine playing without Table Ninja." Poker staking site Part Time Poker described Table Ninja as follows: Table Ninja makes “the multi-tabling experience a smoother, more enjoyable, and likely more profitable affair."

Table Ninja will be offered in Holdem Manager’s suite of products and a free 30-day trial will become part of the program. In addition, customer support staff for Holdem Manager will provide the same function for Table Ninja. As expected, Holdem Manager officials were elated at the prospects of adopting Table Ninja. The press release explained, “Everyone at Hold'em Manager is excited to add TableNinja to the Holdem Manager platform as a part of our ongoing mission to provide our customers with world class poker analytics software.”

Holdem Manager runs $55 for a Small-Stakes Edition and $80 for the Professional version. It is one of two programs that pace the tracking and analysis market, with PokerTracker being its main competitor. Holdem Manager’s Heads-Up Display (HUD) overlays right on top of a table, allowing players to note key stats about their competition in real-time, like the percent of time opponents voluntarily put money into the pot, make continuation bets, and fold to 3bets. Graphs within Holdem Manager make trending a breeze and a built-in hand replayer shows the HUD’s stats.

Companion programs to Holdem Manager include Omaha Manager, Table Scanner, and Leak Buster. Omaha Manager provides the same tracking and analysis capabilities for Omaha as Hold’em, helping customers excel in the rapidly-growing game. Table Scanner offers stats on those seated at a table to allow lobby surfers to find the juiciest ones or those that suit them best. Finally, Leak Buster does exactly what its name implies; it analyzes your game to find holes. To date, the software suite lacked an AutoHotKey (AHK) component, which now comes in the form of Table Ninja.

Table Ninja was officially introduced into Holdem Manager on January 20th. Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest poker software news.

Hand Dissection with Steve Gross (gboro780)

Steve "gboro780" Gross is the epitome of consistency in the world of online poker. The 24 year-old poker pro from New Jersey has been among the world's top tournament players for several years across every major online poker site offered to U.S. players. In 2009, Gross had nine online scores of $40,000 or more. Three of those are for six-figures, including a $275,601 win in a Full Tilt Online Poker Series (FTOPS) event in February. Gross also took second in Full Tilt Poker's $1 Million Guaranteed in January for $126,506.

Gross' other six-figure score came during the PokerStars Spring Championship of Online Poker (SCOOP) in April. He took second place in Event #11, a $3,150 Six-Max No Limit Hold'em event, for $128,000. Fellow high-stakes tournament whiz-kid James "Andy McLEOD" Obst was the winner of that event, coming from behind to defeat Gross in what was a heads-up match for the ages.

Gross took some time with Poker News Daily to discuss a hand he played against Obst with a few tables remaining in SCOOP Event #11.

Hand Setup:
Seat 1: Andy McLEOD (70,681 chips)
Seat 2: gboro780 (100,397)
Seat 3: get crunk (55,251)
Seat 4: HarrisMP (19,088)
Seat 5: ely_cash41 (8,229)
Seat 6: Brian Strahl (75,785)
Blinds are 250/500 with a 65 ante

Cards are Dealt:
get crunk folds
HarrisMP raises to 1,350
ely_cash folds
Andy McLEOD calls from the small blind
gboro780 calls with Jd-9d from the big blind

Flop: Ts-4d-2c
Andy McLEOD checks
gboro780 checks
HarrisMP checks

Turn: 8c
Andy McLEOD bets 3,100
gboro780 raises to 9,742
HarrisMP folds
Andy McLEOD raises to 24,000
gboro780 raises to 94,794 (having Andy McLEOD covered)
Andy McLEOD folds
gboro780 wins the pot with Jack-high

Gross' Analysis:
For Andy McLEOD to want to get it all-in on the turn, he needs to have two pair or better. If the villain were a random, I would never make this assumption, but knowing McLEOD is world-class, I don't see him wanting to get it in with one pair here with so much behind and such a small amount in the middle at a crucial point in the tournament.

I didn't think he was slow playing anything pre-flop. Andy has a bit of a maniacal image, but he is very bright and knows how to use it. He's super active, 3bets a lot, and in turn also gets played back at a lot. So, I thought he was trapping pre-flop here very rarely and would play his big hands fast more often than not in this setting.

I recognized the opener, HarrisMP, from watching nosebleed cash games on Full Tilt Poker and knew he had some game. At a six-max table with 40 big blind effective stacks against really good players, 8-8 and 10-10 become pretty huge hands that I believe McLEOD would have chosen to 3bet before the flop, particularly being out of position from the small blind.

So, of the two-pair-or-better hands we're worried about that would be in McLEOD's get-it-in range, we are left with 2-2, 4-4, and T-8 suited. Now I love T-8 suited, but I'm hardly ever flatting with it and, speculating in McLEOD's shoes here, it's just not the right part of the tournament for that. But it's still possible. Pocket fours and pocket twos are certainly a concern, although I think they get folded pre-flop a decent amount too.

When McLEOD leads at the turn, the rational part of my brain told me to take one off and try to hit the nuts with my straight draw. I can possibly take it away from him on the river if some scare cards come or if he checks and appears to be giving up. Then, the nutso part of my brain clicked in and told me to raise it up on a semi-move where we could take it down with jack-high, still potentially hit the nuts, and still potentially take it down on scary rivers (for bigger pots).

McLEOD and I have played together for years and know that we are both quite capable. So, when I raised the turn, I wasn't entirely shocked to see him keep the pressure on and come back over the top for 24,000. However, I felt that there were so few hands he actually wants to get it in with and a player of his caliber has air and random hands here way more often than 2-2 or 4-4. If by chance he does have those hands, I still have outs and 60 big blinds if I lose.

South Carolina Attorney General Appeals Poker Skill Game Ruling

The fight for five poker players in South Carolina is far from over. According to the Associated Press, the state’s Attorney General will appeal the October ruling that Texas Hold’em, the world’s premier poker genre, is a skill game.

It’s a familiar debate as the poker industry enters 2010. Is Texas Hold’em a game of skill or is it ultimately determined by chance? South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster filed an appeal with the state’s Supreme Court, the Associated Press explained on Thursday: “McMaster's appeal says he doesn't think whether there is skill or just chance involved has anything to do with lawmakers' attempt to ban gambling. The attorney general skipped the Court of Appeals and filed with the state Supreme Court, saying the question deals with the constitution's wording on gambling.”

Five poker players were charged in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina back in 2006. According to the favorable ruling by Judge Markley Dennis in October, the buy-ins for a weekly home game in the South Carolina town varied between $5 and $20. The small blind was $0.25 and the big blind was $0.50, with pots ranging between $5 and $10. Fifty cents was taken from several pots in order to provide food and drink for players, but the “house” did not profit from the game.

The game got ugly on April 12th, 2006, when police officers raided it and began arresting participants on the grounds that they were playing in a “house used as a place of gambling.” The defendants, under the guidance of the Poker Players Alliance (PPA), argued that poker is a game of skill, not chance, and therefore did not constitute illegal gambling. The trial court heard the case in February, which featured World Poker Tour (WPT) host Mike Sexton recap hands played on the roving tournament series to demonstrate poker’s skill component.

Dr. Robert Hannum was also brought in to testify last February. The October ruling explains, “Dr. Hannum also testified that a statistical analysis of professional poker players demonstrated that past performance was a reliable indicator of future success, establishing that the skill of the player was the predominant factor in determining wins and losses.” The lower court ruled that poker was a game of skill. However, because South Carolina’s laws were vague on whether that mattered, the five defendants were found guilty.

An appeal was filed, setting up October’s ruling. Judge Dennis candidly explained, “This Court agrees with Appellants that the South Carolina Supreme Court, if faced with the question, would adopt the dominant factor test for the purpose of defining gambling.” He added, “It should also be noted that the South Carolina Attorney General has consistently applied the dominant factor test when providing opinions about whether certain activities are legal.”

Judge Dennis harped on the overwhelmingly broad nature of South Carolina’s gambling statute, which could be construed to mean that nearly any game played with cards or dice is illegal. Judge Dennis specifically called out Bunco, Go Fish, and Solitaire as possible infractions of state law, saying, “Simply put, [the law], as written, has the potential to make criminals of virtually every man, woman, and child in the state of South Carolina.” Twenty of the original defendants pled guilty to gambling charges, while five fought against the state.

According to the Charleston Post and Courier newspaper, the filing by the Attorney General was 57 pages long and McMaster is a Republican candidate for Governor. The Courier revealed, “No timetable has been set on when the case will be heard, and more rounds of legal filings are expected. The legislature is expected to take up a bill legalizing social card games next year.”

Phil Ivey Files for Divorce

In breaking news from TMZ, 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) November Nine member Phil Ivey has filed for divorce from his wife of seven years, Luciaetta. Ivey finished seventh in the $10,000 buy-in tournament this year and earned $1.4 million.

On Tuesday, a report that appeared on TMZ read in part, “Ivey and Luciaetta filed the joint petition in a Nevada court on December 22 ... three days before Christmas. The divorce was granted today - both parties were present for the ruling.” The couple wed in 2002 and has no children. TMZ added that Ivey has made $12 million over the course of his poker career. The “Tiger Woods of Poker” appeared on the cover of “ESPN: The Magazine” in November.

Ivey earned two WSOP bracelets during the 2009 tournament series to ratchet his total up to seven. Interestingly, none of the seven has come in Hold’em, as he has instead taken down Pot Limit Omaha, Limit Seven Card Stud, Limit Seven Card Stud High-Low, Limit SHOE, Deuce to Seven Draw Lowball, and Omaha/Seven Card Stud High-Low events. In the latter, his most recent bracelet win, Ivey trumped Ming Lee heads-up in a final table that also included Carlos Mortensen, November Nine member Eric Buchman, Jon “PearlJammer” Turner, and Dutch Boyd.

TMZ was quick to point out the irony of Ivey being compared to Woods. Its news story detailed, “Ivey is known in the card community as the ‘Tiger Woods of Poker’ - [insert your own joke here].” Woods was involved in a now-famous auto collision with a tree in front of his home. His wife purportedly smashed the SUV’s window with a golf club to help Woods exit safely. What led to the incident is anyone’s guess, but a handful of women are alleged to have had extra-marital affairs with the professional golfer.

Earlier this month, Woods announced that he was taking a leave of absence from golf. In addition, companies like Accenture and Gillette ended their advertising and sponsorship agreements with Woods. In fact, a Reuters article released on Tuesday noted that Woods’ infidelity could costs the shareholders of companies he endorses up to a colossal $12 billion. Researchers explained the enormous loss of value: "Our analysis makes clear that while having a celebrity of Tiger Woods' stature as an endorser has undeniable upside, the downside risk is substantial, too."

Ivey’s first eight in the money finishes on the World Poker Tour (WPT) were all for final tables and he picked up a win in the Season VI L.A. Poker Classic for $1.6 million. All told, Ivey has just under $3 million in career earnings from the WPT circuit.

Meanwhile, posters on the popular online poker forum PocketFives.com reacted to the TMZ story. “33mikemcg” noted, “I had no idea he was married. Nice life for that ex-wife I am sure she will get plenty to last a lifetime.”

Poker players, who travel around the United States and the world to live tournaments, seemed to be able to sympathize with Ivey. “ImaLuckSac” explained that the pro’s lifestyle may not have been conducive to a stable marriage: “All jokes aside, who can really be that surprised? These guys are constantly traveling, stressed, and still making the big bucks. Personally I think they deserve a lil' strange.” Others jokingly speculated as to whether Ivey had any prop bets on how long his marriage would last.

Ivey is a member of Team Full Tilt, a group that also includes poker pros like Howard Lederer, Andy Bloch, Erick Lindgren, Mike Matusow, and Jennifer Harman. He was the inaugural opponent on the NBC poker game show “Face the Ace” and seemed to strike up an accord with Maryland logger Darvin Moon at the final table of the 2009 WSOP Main Event.

Poker Community Reacts to New TSA Airline Regulations

The events aboard Northwest Flight 253 disrupted many people’s holiday celebrations, as the attempted bombing by Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab of Nigeria left many wondering just how safe their impending flights home will be.  The poker community is also left to wonder just how much their hectic travel schedules will be impacted by the aftermath of the incident.

In the days following the attempted bombing, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) issued a number of new security measures intended to prevent anything like the Northwest Flight 253 incident from happening again.  The official directive from TSA Acting Administrator Gale Rossides issued a number of new changes, including added security measures at the boarding gate.  While travelers have grown accustomed to being home-free once going through the security checkpoint, the directive states that passengers must be patted down at the gate and attendants must inspect personal items prior to boarding.

There are new rules in place once passengers are on board the plane as well.  As has been widely reported by television news networks, passengers must remain seated for the final hour of a flight.  Passengers are also not allowed to have anything on their laps during the final hour, including pillows and blankets.  The airlines will also be suspending in-flight internet and pilots will not be able to point out landmarks or make passengers aware of their approximate location on the flight path.  Finally, passengers will not be allowed to access their carry-on bags during the final hour of a flight.

With these new rules and regulations, there will be inevitable delays in travel.  Those taking to the skies in the coming weeks have been advised to allot extra time to pass through security.  While this is the occasional inconvenience for many travelers, for poker players traveling the tournament trail, it adds up to countless extra hours in transit.

Many players find traveling to be one of the downsides of their chosen career and the new TSA regulations have them even more frustrated.  “More reasons not to fly,” 2008 PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) winner Carter “ckingusc” King told Poker News Daily.  Poker pro and spokeswoman Christina Lindley summed up her growing impatience with traveling with a simple, “Meh.”

Team PokerStars Pro member Maria “Maridu” Mayrinck vented her frustrations in a thread on popular poker forum PocketFives.com: “This + airport security is inf tilting. It really drives me insane I travel a lot, I get so doped on xanax to not YELL at them, and don't get me started on the humiliation of taking shoes off OMG, there is a study on man hours/cost of this per year it's TILT FROM HELL.”

One such study Mayrinck references is a 2007 effort by a team at the Harvard School of Public Health that concluded that there was no substantial evidence that the oft-lamented shoe removal at the security checkpoint prevented security incidents.  Team Full Tilt member Andy Bloch also questioned just how beneficial these security measures are:  “Where's the cost-benefit analysis of all these security measures? Irrational fears of rare terrorist acts lead to excessive spending.”

Though Bloch and Mayrinck are making relevant points, it doesn’t change the fact that as players return home after their respective holiday adventures, they will have to contend with these new changes.  Moreover, in less than a week, a couple of thousand players will be boarding international flights to Nassau to take part in the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure.  Those headed to the Bahamas for the event should be advised that even more time should be allotted to pass through security on international flights.

PokerTracker Releases Omaha, Mac Support

Just days before the beginning of 2010, the popular poker tracking and analysis software PokerTracker turned a new leaf of its own, releasing Omaha and Mac supported versions. The so-called Beta 30 was announced in the PokerTracker forums.

Mac poker software is quickly growing in popularity as more and more online poker players switch to the alternative computing system. Poker aficionados who received new Mac laptops for the holidays can now use PokerTracker with ease, as the programming team released support just in time for the new decade. Auto-import of hand histories for the new PokerTracker release is available for PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker, and Ongame Network clients.

In addition to the Mac-supported version, another growing area of the marketplace received support from PokerTracker, Omaha. The up-and-coming game’s support on PokerTracker is still somewhat patchwork, as Auto-Rate is not yet functional and only hands from PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker, PartyPoker, and the iPoker Network will import to the poker tracking tool. In addition, Table Tracker does not yet support Omaha. Text found in the PokerTracker forums notes, “The Omaha beta is freely available to all owners of the Holdem version and to all trial users. For those of you who do not own PT3, but have an expired trial, Omaha will be getting its own trial separate from the Holdem one soon, so please be patient.”

Beta 30 also received an extreme makeover in the form of a Setup Wizard. In an effort to make configuring PokerTracker as easy as possible, the program’s developers had the foresight to include a setup tool to add sites. A process that sometimes required a player posting on poker forums like PocketFives.com and TwoPlusTwo.com may soon be a breeze thanks to the Setup Wizard. Novice PokerTracker users and customers setting up additional online poker sites to the mix will be able to take advantage of the new feature.

Players transitioning from the Windows-based version of PokerTracker to the Mac utility can employ the software’s new backup and restore feature. Now, layouts, reports, stats, notes, and buddies can all be placed into one central zip file. This essentially creates one point of reference when switching versions or computers.

Because the new version remains in beta, a variety of bugs are expected. In fact, one day after Beta 30 was announced, PokerTracker programmers rolled out Beta 30.1, which addressed issues with the software’s Heads-Up Display (HUD), PartyPoker hand imports, and database names containing characters that sent the program into a tizzy. The site frankly states, “There's a very good probability that there will be bugs. If you aren't willing to deal with bugs and help us locate and fix them, please wait until the stable release is out.”

Bugs fixed in the Beta 30 release included importing hands from the Microgaming Network, tournament import issues on Full Tilt, and rebuy and add-on support for PokerStars. Support for heads-up tables was added for Bodog and tournament bounty support was also added across several sites. Improvements to sanity checks and keyboard shortcuts were also added.

Along with Holdem Manager, PokerTracker represents the industry-leading tracking and analysis software. At the time of writing, PokerTracker and Holdem Manager were the third and fourth highest rated programs by users of PokerSoftware.com, respectively, and both are used by thousands of online poker players. Holdem Manager launched an Omaha client, Omaha Manager, earlier this year. Poker Copilot serves as the staple tracking program for Mac players.

Posters on PocketFives.com have reported a bevy of bugs in PokerTracker’s Mac version. Member “diesel83” remarked, “It seems to be picking up my hands and results fairly well, but the HUD is worthless right now. At least it is here. Going back to fusion to run Windows until next update though.”

The Full Version of PokerTracker runs $89.99, while the Micro-Stakes Edition will set players back $44.99.

Isildur1 May File Online Poker Data Mining Complaint

Online poker player "Isildur1" has been careful about keeping his identity a secret since bursting onto the high-stakes scene in October. However, poker publication PokerNews.com was able to track down the unknown Swede for an interview earlier this week to discuss his poker career, nosebleed matches with the game's best, and the recent scandal involving Brian Townsend and fellow Full Tilt Pros sharing hand histories.

Isildur1 has been on a wild ride since taking a shot at the highest games on Full Tilt. After recording massive wins over Tom "durrrr" Dwan and Ilari "Ziigmund" Sahamies early on, the Swede took severe hits to his bankroll during sessions with Phil Ivey, Patrik Antonius, and Brian Townsend. The million dollar swings caught the attention of the poker world and seemingly restored the Full Tilt nosebleed games that had appeared to be drying up in 2009.

When asked by PokerNews.com who his toughest and weakest opponents were at the $500/$1,000 Pot Limit Omaha tables, the Swede didn't shy away: "Out of all the players I faced, I felt as if I had the biggest edge over durrrr. He tends to make some stupid plays, and I was able to take advantage of them. Phil Ivey was tough for me, as he only likes to play two tables at a time. But for me two tables is not enough action, and I had to play others at the same time."

While his losses to Ivey and others were gargantuan, it was a session against CardRunners instructor Brian Hastings that created a buzz never seen before in online poker. After five hours of ruthless heads-up Pot Limit Omaha action, Hastings walked away with $4.2 million of the Isildur1's money, leaving the Swede scratching his head over what took place during the richest match ever played online.

Shorty after the historic bout in an interview with ESPN, Hastings openly admitted to sharing hand histories with Townsend and Cole South in order to break down Isildur1's strategies. "Honestly, I give most of the credit to Brian Townsend here," Hastings told ESPN. "He analyzed a database of heads-up hands that Isildur1 had played and constructed ranges of what Isildur1 was doing in certain spots."

According to Full Tilt's Terms and Conditions, such a practice is not allowed: "The use of shared hand histories provides detailed information on opponents a player has little or no personal experience playing against, and is deemed to be an unfair advantage. Violating this policy is subject to the maximum penalties for prohibited software use." PokerNews.com made sure to ask Isildur1 if he knew of the restrictions that the site had in place involving data-mining and hand histories.

"I was not aware of the exact rule that you just mentioned," he replied, "but since seeing that it is in fact a rule at Full Tilt Poker, I think I am going to put through a formal complaint, as I think this is a case where the sharing of hand histories directly affected the match I played with Brian [Hastings].”

“I played with Brian Townsend and Cole South a lot," Isildur1 continued. "They were always waiting for me. The last session where Hastings won all the money, it just felt like something was wrong. Everything that could go wrong for me did. Every time I tried to pull off a bluff of some kind, it felt as if it was being picked off. At the time, I just thought it was crazy luck, but now, knowing they shared a lot of their analysis of hand histories with each other, it makes a lot more sense.”

This eye-opening information resulted in a month-long suspension for Townsend from Full Tilt as a Red Pro, meaning he won't collect any benefits (such as 100% rakeback), but should be able to continue playing on the site. He confessed to the violation in his blog, saying, "Of the three I was the sole one to break the T&C of Full Tilt. The three of us never shared hands where mucked hands were shown besides a few hands I posted on weaktight.org, and in fact all the information I received could be taken from watching the game."

Meanwhile, Isildur1 has virtually disappeared from Full Tilt Poker since his loss to Hastings, but he explained his reasoning behind his absence. "I still have a bankroll and will be back," he told PokerNews.com. " I am planning on putting in the request to Full Tilt to look into [the Townsend/Hastings situation] further, and until I hear back, I don't plan on playing much poker on the site.” Full Tilt Poker is the second largest online poker site in the industry, trailing only PokerStars.

We'll continue to bring you the latest high-stakes news involving Isildur1 and the Full Tilt Pros here at Poker News Daily.

Tom Dwan Leads by Nearly $1 Million in Durrrr Challenge

Merry Christmas from all of us here at Poker News Daily. Just a few days prior to the worldwide holiday, Tom Dwan and Patrik Antonius hit the felts of the Durrrr Challenge tables on Full Tilt Poker, pushing the total number of hands played to nearly 30,000.

Dwan now holds a commanding $937,000 lead over his opponent, a newly-minted member of Team Full Tilt. A total of 29,764 hands have been played of the 50,000 required for completion. The Challenge has stretched the majority of the 2009 calendar year and will likely last well into 2010. If Antonius is up at least $1 after 50,000 hands, Dwan will fork over $1.5 million. If Dwan leads by at least $1 after the requisite number of hands, Antonius will owe $500,000. In either case, the victor keeps the spoils of the competition.

In a $238,000 hand that took place during a recent session, Antonius called all-in on a flop of Ks-7h-Jc. He held Qc-9s-Js-Kd for top two pair, while Dwan turned over Jd-8s-9h-10s for a series of straight draws. The seven of clubs on the turn paired the board, while a nine of clubs on the river gave Dwan a straight. The hand occurred at a $200/$400 Pot Limit Omaha table, four of which make up the Durrrr Challenge virtual felts.

On a board of 3c-10c-9d-3h, Dwan check-raised all-in over the top of a pot-sized bet by Antonius for $86,000 and Antonius made the call with As-5c-Jh-Ad for aces-up. Dwan, meanwhile, put his stack at risk with 8c-9s-6d-10s for top two pair and watched as the river came an ace, improving Antonius to a boat and allowing him to scoop a $227,000 pot. The hand all but negated the $238,000 pot won by Dwan earlier on.

In a $114,000 pot, Dwan flopped a boat to give him a sizable payday just moments before challenge play came to a halt for the night. Dwan held 6s-Qh-Qc-10s and Antonius put in the standard raise pre-flop to $1,200. Dwan called to see the first three cards come 3s-Qs-3d. Dwan led out for $2,000 with a boat and Antonius called to see the seven of spades on the turn. Very uncharacteristically, the action went check-check to the nine of diamonds on the river. Then, fireworks went off. With Dwan holding a flopped boat, the youngster bet $5,200 and Antonius raised to $19,200. Dwan re-raised enough to put Antonius all-in and the poker pro called, promptly mucking his hand.

On December 22nd, Dwan and Antonius battled in a nearly 2,000-hand day that saw Dwan pull away by another $225,000. The challenge, which began back in February, now features Dwan leading by a commanding margin, although Antonius overcame a $1 million-plus deficit at nearly the 20,000-hand mark to gain the lead about 2,500 hands later. The December 22nd play featured the 10th largest pot in Durrrr Challenge history, a $259,000 sum won by Dwan. In fact, out of the top ten pots in the competition, Durrrr has taken down eight of them.

Dwan has claimed 16,015 hands total, while Antonius has scooped 13,640, according to statistics found on Full Tilt Poker. Both combatants are sponsored pros of the site, which accepts U.S. players. Visit our sister site, DurrrrChallenge.com, for a complete recap of the 46 sessions played so far as well as complete analysis.

PokerNews Op-Ed: Hand History Analysis Has and Always Will Be Part of Poker

Full Tilt Suspends Brian Townsend

The allegations, which claimed Cole South, Brian Hastings and Townsend colluded to cheat Isildur1 out of millions, began almost immediately after Brian Hastings’ one-day $4.2 million dollar win against the unknown Swede.

The first public comments made by any of the accused came from an ESPN.com interview with Hastings and Townsend after Hastings’ big win.

According to Hastings, the three players worked together to understand and find weaknesses in Isildur1’s game.

"Honestly, I give most of the credit to Brian Townsend here. I mean, Brian is honestly the hardest worker I know in poker,” Hastings told ESPN.

“He analyzed a database of heads-up hands that Isildur1 had played and constructed ranges of what Isildur1 was doing in certain spots. The three of us discussed a ton of hands and the reports that Brian made, so I'm very thankful to him and to Cole as well."

When it comes to sharing hands and information on opposing players, Full Tilt’s terms and conditions are very clear:

“Full Tilt Poker defines an unfair advantage as a user accessing or compiling information on other players beyond that which the user has personally observed through his or her own game play” (from item #8 of the Full Tilt T&C).

Townsend has taken full responsibility for the infraction, and through his blog clearly explained exactly what his infraction consisted of.

“I had about 20k hands of play on Isildur and I acquired another 30k hands” wrote Townsend.

“Of the three I was the sole one to break the T&C of Full Tilt. The three of us never shared hands where mucked hands were shown besides a few hands I posted on weaktight.org, and in fact all the information I received could be taken from watching the game.”

In layman’s terms, Townsend combined his own showdown hand histories with another 30,000 hands from South and Hastings to run definitive reports and queries on Isildur1’s game, allowing detailed strategic discussions between Hastings, South and himself, which directly led to Hastings having the successful session he did.

"At that level, to be successful, you really have to take advantage of the little things," Hastings told ESPN. "They can help make the difference. That's why [analysis and discussion] is so important."

The actual breach of Full Tilt’s T&C’s is considered a relatively small one, which the majority of serious online players are assumed to commit daily using software or websites to acquire or view hand histories from hands they were not specifically a part of. These histories do not share any private information and can be found through multiple sources, including PokerListings' own MarketPulse section.

As a result, Full Tilt decided to suspend Townsend’s Red Pro status on the site for a period of 30 days. It is assumed that during this suspension Townsend will no longer receive any of the benefits or rewards from being a Red Pro, potentially costing the online pro thousands of dollars.

As for the allegations of collusion, ghosting and multi-accounting, Townsend denies all claims.

“Cole, Hastings and I live about 3000 miles from each other," he wrote. "I have never played on Brian H's or Cole S's account.

When it comes to the issue of conglomerating hand histories, Townsend said that is simply not what happened.

"I analyzed the database I put together, and the three of us chatted about my analysis, and optimal strategy against Isildur," he wrote. "Any discussion we had occurred away from the table when we were not playing a session.”

Townsend was first suspended by Full Tilt for six months in 2008 after he admitted to moving down in stakes and playing under a secondary username "Stellarnebula".

He at no time played under mulitple usernames at the same table, but it is against the site's terms and conditions to have more than one active account at any time.

As of the time of publication Townsend ($1.5 mil), South ($210k) and Hastings ($3.8 mil) have taken a combined total of over $5.6 million from Isildur1.

As a result, Isildur1 currently sits with over $2.6 million in losses on the year, and appears to have either lost his roll or spirit. The Swede's last session came Sunday, resulting in a $25k loss from games as low as $10/$20 Pot-Limit Omaha.

Brian Townsend’s Full Tilt Poker Status Suspended for Isildur1 Controversy

In the wake of the arrival of Swedish high-stakes online poker player Isildur1, Brian “sbrugby” Townsend, a CardRunners instructor, has had his Full Tilt Poker Red Pro status suspended for one month.

According to PokerTableRatings.com, which has seen its traffic explode as a result of Isildur1 playing nosebleed stakes against the likes of Tom “durrrr” Dwan, 2009 World Series of Poker Main Event November Nine member Phil Ivey, and Patrik Antonius, Townsend took nearly $1.6 million off Isildur1 over 17,725 tracked hands. He ranks as Isildur1’s fourth “Worst Enemy” behind fellow CardRunners instructor Brian Hastings, Ivey, and Antonius.

The allegations of possible collusion against Isildur1 stemmed from an interview with Hastings posted by Gary Wise on ESPN.com. On his $3 million day against Isilaur1 that took place earlier this month, Hastings told Wise, “Obviously I'm happy and I'll take it, but Brian [Townsend] did a ton of work. The three of us discussed a ton of hands and the reports that Brian made, so I'm very thankful to him and to Cole as well." Hastings’ comments, as benign as they may seem, ignited a firestorm of controversy around the industry as players cried foul on behalf of Isildur1.

Full Tilt Poker’s Terms of Service states, “Players are not permitted to use the hand histories for hands that they have not personally participated in.” Accordingly, poker software such as Poker-Edge, Poker Crusher, and IdleMiner are strictly prohibited because they give players an unfair leg up in the game. Examples of shunned practices in the Terms and Services also include “exchanging hand histories with a friend.”

In a blog posted on CardRunners.com, Townsend admitted to acquiring a total of 30,000 hands on Isildur1 to supplement his own chest of 20,000. The poker training instructor noted, “This is against the T&C of Full Tilt Poker and because of this violation I am going to have my red pro status suspended for one month.” CardRunners instructors are sponsored pros of the site as part of an agreement forged in March of 2008. The group also includes Taylor “Green Plastic” Caby, Isaac “westmenloAA” Baron, Andrew “muddywater” Wiggins, and 2007 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure champion Ryan “Daut44” Daut.

Townsend defended his actions, saying, “[Hastings, Cole South, and I] never shared hands where mucked hands were shown besides a few hands I posted on weaktight.org, and in fact all the information I received could be taken from watching the game.” Isildur1 has been notably quiet on the virtual felts after storming the high-stakes online poker scene last month. According to PokerTableRatings.com, of the eight largest pots in the history of online poker, Isildur1 has been involved in every single one, winning half of them. Antonius scooped the largest pot ever seen in the industry, which registered at $1.3 million.

This isn’t Townsend’s first run-in with Full Tilt Poker authorities. In September of 2008, his Red Pro status was revoked for six months after the pro engaged in multi-accounting. Townsend played under two monikers on the world’s second largest online poker site, “Stellarnebula” and “Brian Townsend,” resulting in the disciplinary action. Townsend donated $25,000 to charity to help make up for his transgressions, commenting at the time, “This is by no means me making my actions correct, but I hope that it shows some good faith towards those that I work closely with.”

In his most recent admission of violating Full Tilt’s Terms of Service, Townsend noted that he has never played on South’s or Hastings’ online poker accounts. He commented, “I analyzed the database I put together, and the three of us chatted about my analysis, and optimal strategy against Isildur.”

Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest high-stakes headlines.

FBI Issues Online Poker Findings; PPA Responds

Online poker players tuned into last week’s House Financial Services Committee on internet gambling can recall a letter cited by Congressman Spencer Bachus (R-AL) that claimed online poker games could be compromised.

The memo, dated November 13th and written by FBI Cyber Division Assistant Director Shawn Henry, addresses six questions put forth by Bachus regarding the current state of affairs in the online poker world. The report states, “The technology exists to manipulate online poker games in that it would only take two or three players working in unison to defeat the other players who are not part of the team.” Henry’s analysis speculates as to whether online poker sites would spend the time and money needed to combat these tag team maneuvers: “It really comes down to a cost analysis for the vendor. How much money will I make or lose by detecting cheating and implementing safeguards?”

The letter from Henry then addresses money laundering possibilities in private online poker tournaments before Bachus asked if “qualified personnel” existed to regulate the game should it be legalized. Henry responded, “FBI investigative resources are focused on our highest priorities, that being counterterrirosm, counterintelligence, and cyber threats to critical infrastructure.” No mention of online poker or internet gambling is given in Henry’s response to this question.

Henry questions the age and location verification mechanisms that online poker sites currently have in place. Henry responds, “For age verification, the possession of a credit card is usually the only validation these sites require. Credit card numbers are easily compromised and can be bought by the hundreds on several ‘underground’ websites.” On the question of location verification, Henry asserts, “While geolocation can be accurate when used to determine the physical country of residence, it becomes exponentially less accurate when determining the city or zip code.”

Also discussed in the letter from the FBI Cyber Division official are bots, programs against the Terms of Service of most major sites. In addition, Bachus asks whether U.S. law enforcement officials have had any conversations with their counterparts overseas where internet gambling is regulated about “potential vulnerabilities.” Henry emphatically claims, “The FBI has not engaged in this discussion with our foreign partners.” On casino bot programs manipulating online games, Henry admits, “While casino software could very easily be employed to manipulate games, the FBI has no data in this area.”

The Poker Players Alliance (PPA) was quick to point out the pitfalls of Henry’s letter. Its Executive Director, John Pappas, charged, “Every concern the letter raises is better addressed by licensing and regulation than by prohibition. The letter misconstrues much about the current state of online poker, but it does so in a way that clearly makes the case for why federal oversight is necessary. Licensing and regulation is the most protective measure we can take to ensure the online community can be properly monitored while maintaining our internet freedom.”

The PPA added that Congressman Peter King (R-NY), the current Ranking Member and former Chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security, conveyed that money laundering and terrorism financing were not taking place through internet gambling. The PPA explains that online poker sites use credit databases to address age and location and that the Department of Justice has never found evidence that organized crime benefited from internet gambling. In total, the lobbying group notes, “In defense of Mr. Henry’s letter, it is intended to address the status quo, not the internet poker landscape under HR 2267.”

Age verification was one of the many issues discussed at last week’s hearing, which focused on HR 2267. The bill, proposed by Congressman Barney Frank (D-MA) crafts a complete licensing and regulatory framework for the internet gambling industry in the United States.

Isabelle Mercier inked the deal with BetClic

The former PokerStars player Isabelle Mercier and BetClick inked their deal in the end of the week.

Their deal was already announced in September, but it was only now when they signed the deal.

Mercier was a concult for BetClic and is one of the people who are working on BetClick’s “poker strategy”. BetClic is part of the Mangas Gaming Group which is very big part of online gambling industry these days.

“I am super impressed by the energy and ambition of this young company which is really going places. As with poker I’ve always made decisions based on both analysis and instinct, and this project has a great feel to it. I know it will be really exciting,” Isabelle told Pokerlistings.

BetClic was founded in 2005 and has been managed to grow very big quite fast. The company works on 15 different countries and has over 1,5 million customers. Just recently BetClic acquired Expekt Poker.

Source: Pokerlisting

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Isabelle Mercier inked the deal with BetClic

Barack Obama Poker Article Appears on Cover of National Journal

Since the inception of the game, poker has often been invoked as a metaphor for other parts of life.  Similarities have been drawn between poker and business, poker and relationships and, most recently, poker and politics.  The latest article to draw comparisons between government and gaming was recently published as the cover story of the National Journal.  The feature piece examines President Barack Obama’s tenure in office and draws comparisons between his political decisions and his poker game.

National Journal is a 40-year old weekly publication that covers the U.S. national political scene and emerging trends in policy.  The magazine is primarily read by the Washington political sect who, thanks to author Will Englund, now have some new insight on how President Obama’s style of poker play may be influencing his policy decisions.

Englund’s feature-length piece begins with his view on how poker imitates life.  In his words, “If there is a single game that comes closest to recapitulating modern existence – that both mimics and informs the logic of a cluttered, challenging, bewilderingly complicated, less-than-all-knowing, partially comprehensible human society – it is poker.”  As Englund notes, Obama is not just a metaphorical poker player, he is also an avid fan.  Fellow politicians and card sharks have referred to his playing style as cautious, patient and, oddly enough, conservative.  In other words, our President is a bit of a nit.

The article offers insight from both poker author James McManus, whose books include “Positively Fifth Street” and the recently released “Cowboys Full: The Story of Poker,” as well as Harvard Law School Professor Charles Nesson.  Nesson is also the founder of the Global Poker Strategic Thinking Society, a Harvard student group designed to promote how poker’s strategic thinking that may be applicable to other avenues of life.

In the National Journal piece, both Nesson and McManus described Obama’s style of play as traditional and Englund cites the game of Stud, in which players have ostensibly more control over each street of play, as the type of game in which the President would excel.  His work on public health insurance is used as an example of President Obama’s conservative and cautious style as well as his ability to keep his holdings close to his chest and not let the opposition know exactly what he is planning.

The analysis of Obama as a poker player also includes a discussion of botched bets and misplayed hands and offers some predictions about the type of strategic decision-making the President has in store for the future: “Look for Obama to stick with Stud, where memory and insight and experience and calculation rule the table.”

On the whole, the article praises the game of poker as a way to sharpen critical thinking skills.  Nesson speaks to the game’s practical application in politics, business, and day-to-day interactions.  The piece also traces the long and storied presence of poker in American politics.  Former President Richard Nixon was known to have funded his early political campaigns with poker winnings and several game theorists have served as political consultants over the course of U.S. history.  More recently Obama and several other politicians have openly admitted their fondness for the game.  Another example of a politician and poker enthusiast is former Senator Alfonse D’Amato, who now serves as the Chairman of the Poker Players Alliance (PPA).

The article is currently on the Journal’s official website, but it is only available to subscribers of the magazine.

Poker Community Weighs in on Poker2Nite

The third episode of the Fox Sports Net show “Poker2Nite” is in the books and co-host and UB sponsored pro Joe Sebok’s recent posts on Twitter indicate that the series is starting to get in a groove.  Admittedly, Sebok is a bit of a biased source, so we here at Poker News Daily decided to scour the internet for other reactions in order to gauge how people like the program, which is hosted by Sebok and Scott Huff and also features actress Dana Workman and Absolute Poker’s Lacey Jones.

If Twitter and the major poker forums are any indication, several people have not had the chance to see the show because of its somewhat erratic scheduling.  Since Fox Sports Net has different schedules for each of its regional stations, the 11:00pm ET Wednesday time slot posted on the show’s website is not always when it airs in certain parts of the country.  Viewers eager to watch the show are not completely out of luck if the program does not air in the area or they don’t have cable.  UB.com posts each of the episodes on its website shortly after they air and, so far, the first two have each netted around 3,000 online views.

While many poker players polled had not had a chance to watch the show, several notable names sent congratulations to Sebok and company on the new program. CardPlayer Player of the Year contender Eric “basebaldy” Baldwin noted the marked improvements in the show between the first and second episodes on his Twitter account (@basebaldy):  “@Poker2Nite showing improvement already in the 2nd episode! Watch for it on FSN on Wednesday nights.”

Alex Outhred echoed those sentiments on his Twitter feed (@alexpokerguy), congratulating those involved with a “good start y’all.”  Posters on the poker forum TwoPlusTwo also received the show with enthusiasm, but their optimism was a little more tepid.  Comments generally implied that the group had low expectations and were pleasantly surprised.  The poster “FreakShow” offered his take on the first episode: “Huff was awesome…Sebok looked a little rigid/nervous (like he was very focused on sitting up straight).”  Several posters agreed that their biggest problem with the first episode was the general uneasiness of Sebok as a host.

The longtime poker commentator agreed with those assessments of his performance and commented on it on his own Twitter account (@JoeSebok).  Shortly after the first episode aired, Sebok wrote, “final @Poker2Nite thought: certainly painful to see myself tense and nervous on tv. luckily that’s easiest thing to fix tho. ty everyone! .”

Since then, he seems to be working on relaxing, but the comments on TwoPlusTwo have grown increasingly critical.  Poster “LOLNHDONKWP” was particularly unimpressed by Sebok’s analysis of the record-setting online poker hand between Isildur1 and Patrik Antonius: “Awful ‘analysis’ by Joe Sebok.  Only thing he got right was that Isildur was 45% to win the hand.  He neglected to consider what he has already committed to the hand so it was amazingly standard getting the rest on flop, with 4 cards to make the stone cold nuts.”

Critics aside, the general sentiment about the show appears to be that it is good for poker, so most people are sending their best wishes to the show’s cast and crew as they continue their initial 13 episode run.

BetClic Signs Isabelle Mercier

Mercier will act as a consultant for the site, which is a part of the Mangas Gaming group, and will be involved with developing a strategy for BetClic Poker.

“I am delighted to be working with BetClic and the Mangas group,” Mercier said.

“I am super impressed by the energy and ambition of this young company which is really going places. As with poker I’ve always made decisions based on both analysis and instinct, and this project has a great feel to it. I know it will be really exciting.”

Mercier brings years of experience from the poker industry, where she originally started as a poker room manager at the Aviation Club de France.

She was also a successful player and her big break came in 2004 when she won the WPT Ladies Night Out II event. Since then she has won over $1 million on the tournament circuit including a final table in the 2006 WSOP where she finished fifth for $175,404.

 “We are proud to welcome Isabelle to our team as an ambassador and advisor,” said BetClic managing director Nicolas Béraud. “She will give us new vision and excitement in this fast growing sector.”

Although Mercier will be a consultant for the company she will also continue to play poker, joining the rest of the sporting ambassadors at BetClic including footballers Marcel Desailly, Deco, Arrigo Sacchi, Mateusz Borek and Stefan Effenberg.

BetClic was created in 2005 and has grown from a start-up to a major player in the online gaming world. The company operates across 15 countries with over 1.5 million customers.

Although the site is known primarily for sports betting it has started to push its poker offering. BetClic also recently acquired Bet-At-Home and Expekt, both of which offer online poker rooms.

Mercier was rumored to have joined BetClic back in September, but she denied the claims at the time.

WPT, Party Gaming Officials Discuss Acquisition

Recently, PartyGaming, the parent company of PartyPoker, completed the acquisition of the World Poker Tour (WPT). Despite a last-minute proposal from Mandalay Media, a mobile gaming company, WPT shareholders rubber-stamped the sale for $12.3 million plus a percentage of future gaming revenues.

Poker News Daily sat down with WPT General Counsel Adam Pliska, WPT Host and Poker Hall of Fame member Mike Sexton, WPT Founder Steve Lipscomb, and PartyGaming Chief Marketing Officer Chris Welch to break down the sale.

Poker News Daily: Talk about why the WPT is a good fit for PartyGaming.

Pliska: Party Gaming was an initial tour stop sponsor of the WPT. We’ve had a long relationship starting from the beginning that was mutually beneficial.

Welch: PartyPoker wouldn’t have been the success it is today without the WPT. The fact that Mike Sexton was a PartyPoker ambassador and WPT host shows you the depth of the relationship.

PND: A last-minute proposal submitted by Mandalay Media was dismissed. Talk about the offer.

Pliska: As defined in our proxy statement, I can attest that there was an analysis of the offers. I can tell you that the company was pleased with the offer on the table from PartyGaming. When you look at the up front parts of it and the future revenue part parts of it, it made it very attractive. Throughout this process, I have come to never be surprised and I’m pleased with the results.

Lipscomb: The process was driven by our Board of Directors. They carefully did what they needed to do based on their duties to shareholders. It was an honor to have multiple parties that were interested. The final result, which was being with PartyGaming, really was the best for us.

PND: Will WPT regulars see any changes when Season 9 begins filming next year?

Pliska: What you’re going to see in Season 9 is business as usual. We’ll continue to be creative and innovate. I think, for the most part, you’re not going to see any interruptions.

PND: PartyPoker does not accept customers from the United States. Talk about being able to expose the WPT brand to the site’s customer base.

Sexton: One of the primary advantages of this whole situation is that we can expand the WPT brand worldwide. It’ll be in many more countries than it is now.

Welch: We are very excited by the partnership with the WPT. We are predominantly a European business, but we view this as one of the steps to coming back into the U.S. PartyPoker has 12 million members in the U.S. that we can cross-sell Club WPT to.

PND: Why is it important to be able to cross-sell to U.S. players?

Welch: We’re set up to take advantage of any U.S. developments. You can bet that when the market opens up, we’ll be at the forefront of it. The acquisition of the WPT will give us a substantial asset that we can leverage in the U.S.

Club WPT is a very successful subscription service and PartyPoker gets 2,000 to 3,000 downloads a day from the U.S. even though we don’t market there. As you would expect, we have a powerful marketing scheme that we will use to leverage the WPT brand across Europe.

PND: Will it be tough to bring more land-based tournaments to Europe, where you can already find series like the European Poker Tour (EPT)?

Lipscomb: We’re far from a new tour. There was no such thing as a poker tour since we launched the first once. We’ve been global since Season 1. If you are trying to launch one of the many additional tours starting to spring up in the marketplace, I wouldn’t want to be in that position, but I wouldn’t lump us in with that crowd.

Sexton: Recognize that the WPT is on television worldwide. People know who we are and what we do.

PND: Talk about the ongoing eighth season of the WPT.

Lipscomb: Seldom in the world of television do you have an eighth season of anything. It’s uncommon to have an eighth season when you’re working with the same people and they all still like each other. I truly believe that the joining of the WPT and PartyGaming is pretty exciting. Mike is the voice of poker and to have him in this great new synergy is an opportunity we’ve dreamed of.

PND: What does the future hold for WPT Enterprises, now Ante4?

Lipscomb: What we’ve announced is that we’re going to be looking for an opportunity as a publicly traded company to find businesses to join, acquire, or merge with to maximize shareholder value.

Joe Cada Wins 2009 WSOP

On hand number 88 of a topsy-turvy heads up match, Joe Cada won a race with a pair of nines to defeat Darvin Moon’s Qd Jd. The board ran out 8c 2c 7s Kh 7c giving Cada two pair, nines and sevens. In preflop action, Cada was on the button and he raised to 3 million with 600k/1.2m blinds and 200k antes. Moon reraised to 8 million and Cada thought briefly before raising all-in. Moon quickly called off about 70 million chips to put his tournament at risk. If Cada had lost the pot, he would have been crippled. With his victory, Cada pockets a cool $8.55 million dollars while Moon takes home the runner-up spot and $5.18 million.

While Cada started with a 2-to-1 chip advantage at the start of heads up play, he quickly ran into trouble as Moon played a hyper-aggressive style that was, largely, effective against Cada’s style of play. Here is a recap of the big hands that took place before the final hand.

With stacks around even, Moon had the button and raised to 3 million which was called by Cada in the big blind. The flop came down Jc 4h 2d. Cada checked and Moon bet 4 million. Cada called to make the pot around 14 million total. The turn was a Qh and Cada checked to Moon who bet 6 million. Cada opted to check raise to 16.75 million and Moon called — putting the pot at nearly 50 million chips. The river was the 5c and Cada, who had checked the flop and turn, lead out with 35 million chips. Moon contemplated the bet for a few minutes before deciding to lay down his hand on the final board of Jc 4h 2d Qh 5c. This put Cada up 120 million to 72 million.

Moon grinded Cada back down with a few more decent size pots to get back near even. Soon after, Cada snapped off a Moon bluff on a busted flush draw by calling a river raise with Js Th on a Td Ah 3h 6c 4s board in which Moon had Jh 5h. After that pot, Moon started, once again, to grind chips away from Cada a few million at a time. Moon was consistently betting a large percentage of the pot on flops and Cada usually backed down. After about 20 hands of aggressive play from Darvin, he managed to get back to even chips at around 95 million each. The players went on a 25 minute break almost dead even in chips.

Shortly after the break, Moon went on a mini-run with two medium sized pots to get up to 122 million to Cada’s 73 million. To this point in the tournament, this was Moon’s all-time chip high and the momentum in the match appeared to be swinging his way.

In the next crucial pot, Joe Cada had the button and made a standard preflop raise to 3 million chips. Moon called and the flop came down 3h 5d Ac. As he’d been doing much of the night, Moon bet 5 million chips out of position into a pot that was about 6.5 million. Cada had largely been folding to these bets but this hand he opted to raise to 13 million total leaving 8 million for Moon to call. Moon cut out enough chips to put in a raise to 25 million but Cada quickly folded. This pot was good enough to put Moon into a commanding chip lead with around 145 million to around 50 million.

After a number of uneventful pots, Cada four-bet shoved preflop after a standard 3 million opening raise and a standard 8 million reraise from Moon. Moon decided to fold to Cada’s all-in raise which brought Cada back a bit to a 2-1 chip disadvantage. Not much later, Cada went all-in yet again but the outcome was quite different for both players. Cada opened to 3 million on the button and Moon called to see a flop of Tc 5d 9h. The flop was checked and the turn came Td. Cada took a 3 million chip stab at the 6.5 million chip pot and, shocking the crowd, Moon quickly went all-in in a large overbet of the pot forcing Cada to make a tough decision for his tournament. After going in the tank for a few minutes, Cada called with Jh 9d for second pair. Moon flipped over 7s 8s for an up and down straight draw with one card to come. Needing a 6 or a J for a straight and the right to be called World Series of Poker champion, Moon missed the river when a 3h came off the deck. This gave the chip lead back to Cada as he faded the seven outer.

With the stacks at 108 million to Cada and 86 million to Moon, the players played a few more medium sized pots before the fateful final coinflip that awarded the Main Event title to Joe Cada. With his victory, Cada becomes the youngest main event winner ever at the tender age of 21. In the coming days and weeks, we’ll be back with more information, interviews and analysis of the 2009 World Series of Poker.

The WSOP Final Table Awaits: Final Thoughts From Cada, Schaffel and Buchman

Bernard Lee to Host WSOP Wrap-Up Radio Show

Those looking for a little post-game analysis after this year’s World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event wraps up this coming Tuesday need look no further than Bernard Lee’s poker radio program, “The Bernard Lee Poker Show.”

The ESPN Inside Deal host and Poker News Daily contributor will be hosting a special two-hour edition of his long-running poker show dedicated solely to this year’s November Nine. The show, which airs regionally in New England on 1510 AM The Zone and online at RoundersRadio.com, will feature guest appearances from November Niners Steven Begleiter and Kevin Schaffel and promises several other surprise guests.

The WSOP wrap-up show will air on Wednesday from 7:00pm ET to 9:00pm ET, with the first hour featuring Lee’s interviews with Schaffel and Begleiter. The first portion of the show will broadcast on both terrestrial and web radio, while the latter half of the show can be found exclusively on Rounders’ Radio. During the second hour of the show, Lee will field questions from listeners submitted via phone, e-mail, or the show’s chat room. Lee has gained plenty of experience offering his insight into the world of poker thanks to his gig on Inside Deal where he and co-host Laura Lane discuss the latest hot topics in poker news. He also has plenty of experience with the respective members of the November Nine, as all members of both the 2008 and 2009 WSOP Main Event final tables have made an appearance on his radio program.

Rounders’ Radio’s Managing Director expressed his enthusiasm over the special program in an official statement announcing the upcoming show. “We are thrilled Bernard Lee will provide listeners of Rounders’ Radio with detailed poker coverage they can’t get anywhere else – an in-depth wrap-up of this year’s exciting World Series of Poker final table. Lee knows what poker players want to hear, and no one else can deliver the information in such a straightforward, easy to understand manner. We are very excited about the show.”

Typically “The Bernard Lee Poker Show” airs live on The Zone on Tuesdays from 7:00pm ET to 8:00pm ET and is replayed at 5:00pm ET on Saturday, but this special edition of the show will take place live on Wednesday after all of the WSOP action has come to a close. The final table resumes on Saturday, November 7th, when the nine players will play down to the final two, who will then get a day off before returning to the felt on Monday night to play down to a new World Champion. The following day, the final table coverage will air from 9:00pm ET to 11:00pm ET on ESPN.

Those who are unable to listen to the show live on Wednesday can catch the replay on 1510AM on Saturday, or listen to the full episode on the Rounders’ Radio website, which has an extensive archive of past “The Bernard Lee Poker Show” episodes.

Internet Gambling Revenue Analysis Released by Joint Committee on Taxation

Today, Congressman Jim McDermott (D-WA) released a study by the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) revealing that up to $41 billion could be generated by regulating and taxing the internet gambling industry over a 10-year period.

This is one of several studies to be released by various outfits, but is the first to be handed down by an agency of the United States Government. On the importance of the JCT’s findings, McDermott commented in a press release distributed on Thursday, “I suspect that many of my colleagues… will take more interest in this issue once they see $41 billion available that they can match up with any number of worthy programs.” Being debated on Capitol Hill is major health care reform, one social program that could conceivably be funded through internet gambling.

McDermott continued, “I would suspect it’s only a matter of time before Congress appropriately moves to regulate the industry in order to protect consumers and reverse the flow of billions of dollars currently lost offshore as Americans gamble billions online despite attempts to prohibit the activity.” In May, the Washington Congressman unveiled HR 2268, the Internet Gambling Regulation and Tax Enforcement Act. The measure imposes a fee of 2% of deposits on licensed internet gambling operators.

HR 2268 is a companion bill to Congressman Barney Frank’s HR 2267, which establishes a comprehensive framework for companies to solicit U.S. customers. The two bills were introduced on the same day and HR 2267 is up to 62 cosponsors on both sides of the political spectrum. Safe and Secure Internet Gambling Initiative (SSIGI) spokesperson Michael Waxman told Poker News Daily, “This is a very significant development in support of the push to regulate the industry. We would expect that there will be more conversation and more interest in internet gambling regulations as Congress is attempting to figure out funding for health care and other various programs.”

Today, Democrats in Congress unleashed health care reform that comes with a price tag of nearly $900 billion. While not able to cover the full amount, legalizing internet gambling could, in theory, put a dent in the price tag. The JCT’s analysis does not include online sports betting, which is barred in Frank’s legislation. Moreover, the findings assume that states will not opt out of HR 2267. A February study by the U.S.-based firm PricewaterhouseCoopers revealed that up to $52 billion could be raised by taxing internet gambling companies over a 10-year period.

On the significance of a $4 billion per year revenue stream when programs like health care run over 200 times that total, Interactive Media Entertainment and Gaming Association (iMEGA) Chairman Joe Brennan explained, “It’s realistic to see it packaged with a number of revenue enhancers. As a standalone, in my opinion, it’s not enough money to be able to get people off the mark who have been against this in the near-term.”

Information released today by the SSIGI noted that Frank planned to hold a markup hearing on HR 2267, but the House Financial Services Committee has released no official information. For the balance of the week, Frank’s committee will be bogged down in discussion of systematic regulation, overdraft protection, and investor protection. The grizzly state of the U.S. economy has been the committee’s main focus since September of 2008.

Frank has also introduced HR 2266, the Reasonable Prudence in Regulation Act. The measure delays industry compliance with the regulations of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) by one year. As it stands, the financial services industry in the United States must come into full compliance with the 2006 law by December 1st, which is just five weeks away. The Poker Players Alliance (PPA), the industry’s main lobbying force, has been working feverishly to delay the deadline through other means, including appealing directly to U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.

The JCT study assumes that wagering taxes will be levied and that HR 2267 will be amended so that internet gambling companies doing business in the United States must also be incorporated in the United States. Read the full internet gambling study.

Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest news from Capitol Hill.

ESPN Inside Deal Welcomes WSOP November Niner Kevin Schaffel

This week, the ESPN poker franchise “Inside Deal” welcomed 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) November Nine member Kevin Schaffel. New Poker Hall of Fame nominee member Mike Sexton also called into the show.

The 13th installment of “Inside Deal” began with a discussion of Daniel Negreanu’s breakdown of World Poker Tour (WPT) tournament cashes. Negreanu’s analysis revealed that very few players are actually winners on the WPT circuit, emphasizing the importance of satellite and cash game aptitude. “Inside Deal” host Bernard Lee explained, “You don’t cash very often and what [Negreanu] is saying is that when you do, you’ve got to make it count.” Lee noted that Gus Hansen has nine WPT cashes, eight for final tables. Phil Ivey has notched eight WPT final tables out of 11 cashes.

Ivey, a WSOP November Nine member, is camped out in Cabo San Lucas, allegedly in “exile” preparing for his run at the $8.5 million first place prize. Lee explained, “What he’s going to be able to do is prepare himself mentally and physically for the biggest challenge of his life.” Ivey has a variety of prop bets on the line, making for a potentially enormous payday next month.

Sexton joined “Inside Deal” via phone and gave his take on being the lone member of the Poker Hall of Fame Class of 2009: “It’s pretty flattering and certainly an honor to be inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame with the legends and icons of the game.” Sexton’s enshrinement ceremony will take place during the dinner break of the WSOP Main Event final table on November 7th in an $800 per plate affair. The WPT host has already begun preparing his speech and revealed, “I’m getting my thoughts together now on what I’m going to say. Certainly, I’m going to acknowledge the other nominees and thank people who have been very important to me in my poker career and life as well.”

Schaffel, an avid golfer, then came on and told Lee and fellow “Inside Deal” host Laura Lane, “The guys at my golf club tell me I smile a lot more.” Schaffel sits in sixth place on the leaderboard entering the Main Event final table and recently completed the purchase of a home. He made deep runs in the 2004 and 2008 WSOP Main Events, cashing for nearly $100,000 combined, and told viewers, “I definitely can attribute some of my success to things I’ve learned in the past.” He’s bringing 90 fans to Las Vegas, where his 12 first cousins will convene for only the second time ever.

Part of Schaffel’s good luck may have been due to an image of 2008 WSOP Main Event champion Peter Eastgate that the future November Nine member stashed in his wallet. A gift from a family member, the image was doctored with PhotoShop to feature Schaffel’s head pasted on Eastgate’s body. Schaffel remarked, “There were a couple of times when I thought about the photo while playing.” Schaffel played alongside Eastgate on Day 7 and showed the youngest WSOP Main Event ever the image to break the ice.

ESPN.com Poker Editor Andrew Feldman joined the set for a game of Poker-dy, the “Inside Deal” version of the classic television game show “Jeopardy.” For the clue “This is the funniest player in the poker industry,” Lee answered ESPN commentator Norman Chad, Schaffel said Antonio Esfandiari, and Lane suggested Negreanu. For “This starting hand has by far gotten me into the most trouble,” Lane answered K-Q, Lee answered A-Q, and Schaffel tossed out pocket queens.

Finally, Schaffel was asked if so many of his hands being recorded during the WPT Legends of Poker meant that opponents would be able to diagnose his game. Schaffel finished second in the event for $471,000 and explained, “Not really. The difference is that I might make a play as the chip leader that I might not make otherwise.” Schaffel was among the pacesetters throughout much of the event, which took place shortly after the WSOP Main Event final table was determined.

“Inside Deal” is released every Tuesday on ESPN.com.

Daniel Negreanu Breaks Down WPT Tournament Poker Statistics

Anyone in the world of poker knows the difficulty of not only the game, but also making a living at it. On his blog at Full Contact Poker, professional player Daniel Negreanu demonstrated this reality with a thorough breakdown of statistics culled from the World Poker Tour’s (WPT) website.

Negreanu, in a posting entitled “I Am A Stats Geek Like No Other,” starts off the discussion regarding his statistical analysis by looking at the return on investment (ROI), for players on the WPT circuit. In his analysis, Negreanu looks at the average WPT event costing $10,000 and estimates roughly another $10,000 for travel, hotel room, and meals. In Negreanu’s opinion, players have to win over $20,000 per event to “break even” on the tournament poker circuit.

Negreanu limited the analysis to players who have played in at least 30 tournaments and found 176 players who fit the criteria. Not surprisingly, many of those in the top ten by Negreanu’s calculations of Earnings Per Event are some of the most highly respected players on the circuit today. Former World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event Champion Carlos Mortensen leads the pack with an average of slightly over $100,000 per event entered and is joined by such players as Jonathan Little, Gus Hansen, and Negreanu himself.

Perhaps the most telling statement on this ROI analysis from Negreanu is the discussion of tournament veteran Casey Kastle. Kastle, who was responsible for the non-smoking movement in poker rooms, holds the record for most cashes in WPT history. In fact, according to the number crunching from Negreanu, he has cashed in 30% of the tournaments he has entered. On the down side, Castle earns about $7,000 per cash, meaning that he is actually losing money.

“If you are going to make it on the WPT, the most crucial stages come late,” Negreanu says on his blog. “You can’t waste opportunities and you need to raise your game at the late stages. You don’t get tons of opportunities, but when you do, you have to get to the final table in order to make any money.”

The ladies don’t escape Negreanu’s gaze, either. Of the women who have played the minimum 30 tournaments, only five – J.J. Liu, Kathy Liebert, Jennifer Harman, Mimi Tran, and Vanessa Rousso – have over $10,000 per event entered and the latter two barely eclipse that number.

Finally, Negreanu presents his overall breakdown. Of the 176 players eligible, only 56 have an ROI of $20,000 or more. “Shockingly,” Negreanu continues, “of the 176 eligible, only 90 of those actually have an ROI of over $10,000. That means there are 86 people out there who have played 30 or more events and are overall losers to the investment.”

This, according to Negreanu, points out a couple of factors that players need to take into consideration. “It’s one of the key reasons that a solid satellite system is essential for any live tour to be successful,” he says. “Without smaller feeder tournaments, the cost of playing is too big. Now, I love the WPT, but I think one of the biggest mistakes they’ve made is not focusing more on a feeder system involving online satellites. It’s essential.”

The statistics also point out the importance of being able to play cash games profitably, according to Negreanu. “When I started out, I grinded in cash games and satellites in order to be able to afford the expensive buy-ins. I’m afraid I don’t think enough people really think about how they are managing their money when it comes to deciding whether to play an event.”

The statistical evidence presented by Negreanu is difficult to argue with and many should look at it before they decide on a career as a professional tournament poker player. His work shows that it is difficult to be a professional and that you need to have ample skills in not only cash games, but also in the tournament arena.

Did PokerStars Get Rid Of AJ Benza?

According to Pokerati, PokerStars is the new sponsor of High Stakes Poker. Team PokerStars Pro Dennis Phillips revealed the breaking news in his radio show yesterday.

Dennis Phillips also revealed that he and Phil Hellmuth are going to play in the new season of High Stakes Poker.

In his blog, Daniel Negreanu tells that Gabe Kaplan will be handling the analysis and commentary solo, and the new co-host will be someone that everyone knows and likes.

There was some rumors earlier that Vanesso Rousso would be the new host, but Rousso herself has stated that she’s not the new member of the HSP crew.

We can add a new rumor on top of that. Daniel Negreanu and Jennifer Harman are really close friends, so it just might be that Jennifer Harman will be the co-host of Gabe Kaplan. We’ll see.

The new face of High Stakes Poker?

Source: Pokerati

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Did PokerStars Get Rid Of AJ Benza?