Posts Tagged ‘Europe’
Innovation award nomination for RealDealPoker.com
Bluff PokerStars UK and Ireland Poker Tour tournament 8pm Wed 20 January
Massive value in tomorrow’s Card Gang UKIPT special
Alec Torelli leaves Doyle’s 10 to join Victory Poker
Bluff Europe Weekend Round-Up
Microgaming Network Attempts to Curb Online Poker Datamining
On Thursday, one of the top online poker networks in the industry, Microgaming, announced its intentions to eliminate datamining on its family of sites.
The Microgaming Network, which includes sites such as 32RedPoker, CrazyPoker, PurpleLounge.com, and Unibet, is one of the top ten poker networks in the industry, according to PokerScout.com. Averaging approximately 1,600 players in its cash games and offering a variety of tournament action, the Microgaming Network draws a tremendous amount of action from Europe. However, this hasn’t prevented Microgaming from taking what is a groundbreaking step in the online poker world.
Effective immediately, Microgaming announced the following changes to its hand history policy: "With immediate effect, hand histories on observed tables will no longer be stored on players’ computers and the practice of downloading and storing hand histories in bulk will be stopped." At most sites, all hands at a player’s table are transferred to a special file on the player’s computer hard drive. This allows a player to go back at a later time and review these histories - and opponents’ tendencies on the virtual felt – and use software like PokerTracker and Holdem Manager to analyze it.
Microgaming feels that such software has tilted the playing field between those who utilize such information and those who do not. Instead of using poker software to analyze play, Microgaming believes that it has become an “exploitative tool” that players use to pick up an unfair advantage.
In the announcement, Andrew Clucas, Head of Poker at Microgaming Software Systems, which operates the Microgaming Poker Network, stated, “Concern has been rising over the long-term effect of third party software upon the poker industry as a whole, and in particular the negative effect it has on the recreational player demographic. The decision to put a stop to the practice of datamining on the poker network is part of Microgaming’s overarching network strategy to support operators in attracting and retaining recreational players. It further demonstrates commitment in providing a secure and fair playing environment.”
While some in the poker playing community may view Microgaming’s move as an assault against those who use the varieties of software available, Clucas emphasizes that the company is simply ensuring a balanced playing field for its customers. “Microgaming is not seeking to alienate its winning players,” Clucas said. “There has been a move in the industry towards penalizing winners; we believe that is the wrong approach. There will always be winners and losers in poker. What we are trying to achieve is a more level playing field for all the players.”
Some in the poker world see the move by Microgaming as just the first domino in a chain about to fall. Steve Ruddock, a writer for the National Online Poker Examiner and a frequent participant in the battles on Full Tilt Poker, PokerStars, and the Cake Poker Network, believes that the move by Microgaming should be the standard for the online poker industry.
“I think datamining creates an unequal playing field because it puts the emphasis on data collection instead of hard-work, focus, and skill,” Ruddock noted. “Players are no longer rewarded for their hard-work: instead, players are rewarded for spending $50 to $100 and receiving data in return. Tracking software has turned breakeven or slight losers into winners by negating the advantage that decent winning players held over them: Work ethic and focus. Poker is equal parts strategy, psychology, and hard work; datamining eliminates the need for the third part.”
As to Microgaming’s decision, Ruddock sees that it could be a point of sale for players. “I think Microgaming’s decision will have widespread effects,” he opines. “At some point, ‘Do they allow datamining?’ will be just as important as ‘Do they offer rakeback?’ in the minds of potential customers. I hope more sites follow Microgaming’s lead. It would leave a handful of sites with a player base of dataminers and, once they see that the table is full of tight grinders, they’ll start looking for greener pastures.”
Top poker professional Kenna James, who is sponsored by PokerHost on the Cake Poker Network, took a philosophical approach to looking at the issue. “Datamining is an interesting platform for looking at us, as humans, as a microcosm of what is going on in the advancement of the high-tech world and its applications to us altogether,” James stated. “The issue I see with datamining is that it can reduce people to sets of numbers and I personally find this very impersonal; people are more then just a set of numbers.”
“The complexities of poker go beyond that in a live setting where you have to interact with real people, but maybe not so much online where you can hide behind the anonymity of an avatar,” Kenna explained. “Things get more complicated when you bring in emotion, compassion, and reason, among other things. These human qualities and characteristics can slowly be eroded when you begin to see people as just a number.”
James finished our discussion with an interesting thought: “Hours or days or years of using tools like this and becoming dependent on them for making their decisions may lead to some serious personal issues we have not yet discovered in life off the virtual felt.”
Whether other poker networks will follow Microgaming’s lead in the banishment of datamining and poker software remains to be seen. It also is a question as to how players will respond to not being able to use poker software on the Microgaming Network.
Tags: 5, cake poker, cent, EUR, Europe, king, manager, Online Poker, online poker industry, player, Poker, poker software, pokerstars, Pro, skill, software, tournament, Winning Player, writer
Kara Scott Joins PartyPoker
The Canadian will join Mike Sexton, Remy Biechel, Ian Frazer, Felipe “Mojave” Ramos, Stewart Scott and Bodo Sbrzesny as a full-fledged member of Team Party.
“I’ve had such a positive experience in poker and have been incredibly lucky as well,” she said. “Being asked to be a part of Team Party is a real rush and I’m so honored. I just hope I can do them proud.”
Although she was born in Alberta, Canada, Scott rose to fame in England where she became one of the main hosts of the award-winning show Poker Night Live.
She went on to host the popular PokerStars European Poker Tour and most recently provided the commentary on the latest season of High Stakes Poker on GSN, which is set to air later this year.
While she will play tournaments patched by PartyPoker, Scott will continue her television work as well.
“They understand that while I absolutely love playing poker and am really stoked about playing more big live events and working on improving my game, my actual job is TV presenting,” she explained. “It was really gratifying that they feel I’ll bring value to their team as both a player and a TV presenter.”
Ironically, it was a PartyPoker event that gave Scott one of her first big breaks when it came to actually playing the game.
“When I started playing poker a few years ago I was lucky to get asked to be on a couple of Party Poker’s UK TV tournaments and had my first big cash, and win, with their Sports Stars Challenge III,” she said. “It seemed like a natural progression for me to get involved with them now, particularly as I’ll be spending a lot of time in Canada.”
After winning the Sports Star Challenge III, Scott went on to make deep runs at the WSOP Main Event in back to back years. She finished 104th for $41,816 in 2008 and 238th for $32,963 in 2009.
In 2009, she also had her biggest score ever at the Irish Open where she outlasted 798 players before eventually falling to Christer Johansson heads-up. She earned €312,600 for second place.
In her relatively short span of playing high buy-in events, Scott has won $557,902, which places her 24th on the all-time women’s tournament money list.
“Kara is a great signing and we are really looking forward to working with her,” said a PartyPoker spokesman.
“She has historic links with PartyPoker.com after taking down the Sports Stars Challenge III and we have been super impressed by her progress since then. As well as being a great presenter, Kara is also a fantastic player with great results and the potential to go even further. We are excited about this new relationship.”
As part of the deal, Scott will play tournaments around the world and act as a presenter for the Premier League when it moves to Vegas for the first time in February. She will also represent PartyPoker at a number of Canadian Poker Tour events.
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Tags: 2008, 2009, 5, Canada, canadian, cent, EUR, Europe, european, European Poker Tour, high stakes, High Stakes Poker, irish open, kara scott, king, member, Mike Sexton, PartyPoker.com, player, Poker, Poker.com, pokerstars, Pro, Stewart Scott, tournament, vegas, women, WSOP
Kara Scott Joins PartyPoker
The Canadian will join Mike Sexton, Remy Biechel, Ian Frazer, Felipe “Mojave” Ramos, Stewart Scott and Bodo Sbrzesny as a full-fledged member of Team Party.
“I’ve had such a positive experience in poker and have been incredibly lucky as well,” she said. “Being asked to be a part of Team Party is a real rush and I’m so honored. I just hope I can do them proud.”
Although she was born in Alberta, Canada, Scott rose to fame in England where she became one of the main hosts of the award-winning show Poker Night Live.
She went on to host the popular PokerStars European Poker Tour and most recently provided the commentary on the latest season of High Stakes Poker on GSN, which is set to air later this year.
While she will play tournaments patched by PartyPoker, Scott will continue her television work as well.
“They understand that while I absolutely love playing poker and am really stoked about playing more big live events and working on improving my game, my actual job is TV presenting,” she explained. “It was really gratifying that they feel I’ll bring value to their team as both a player and a TV presenter.”
Ironically, it was a PartyPoker event that gave Scott one of her first big breaks when it came to actually playing the game.
“When I started playing poker a few years ago I was lucky to get asked to be on a couple of Party Poker’s UK TV tournaments and had my first big cash, and win, with their Sports Stars Challenge III,” she said. “It seemed like a natural progression for me to get involved with them now, particularly as I’ll be spending a lot of time in Canada.”
After winning the Sports Star Challenge III, Scott went on to make deep runs at the WSOP Main Event in back to back years. She finished 104th for $41,816 in 2008 and 238th for $32,963 in 2009.
In 2009, she also had her biggest score ever at the Irish Open where she outlasted 798 players before eventually falling to Christer Johansson heads-up. She earned €312,600 for second place.
In her relatively short span of playing high buy-in events, Scott has won $557,902, which places her 24th on the all-time women’s tournament money list.
“Kara is a great signing and we are really looking forward to working with her,” said a PartyPoker spokesman.
“She has historic links with PartyPoker.com after taking down the Sports Stars Challenge III and we have been super impressed by her progress since then. As well as being a great presenter, Kara is also a fantastic player with great results and the potential to go even further. We are excited about this new relationship.”
As part of the deal, Scott will play tournaments around the world and act as a presenter for the Premier League when it moves to Vegas for the first time in February. She will also represent PartyPoker at a number of Canadian Poker Tour events.
Visit PokerListings.com
Tags: 2008, 2009, 5, Canada, canadian, cent, EUR, Europe, european, European Poker Tour, high stakes, High Stakes Poker, irish open, kara scott, king, member, Mike Sexton, PartyPoker.com, player, Poker, Poker.com, pokerstars, Pro, Stewart Scott, tournament, vegas, women, WSOP
Vanessa Rousso Bests Tough Field in 2010 PCA $1,000 Ladies Event
Harrison "gibler123" Gimbel may have garnered the headlines at the 2010 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA) by winning the Main Event and a $2.2 million paycheck, but he wasn't the only one having a good time at the Atlantis Resort and Casino in the Bahamas. One of the biggest hits of the Caribbean poker festival was the $1,000 + $100 Ladies No Limit Hold'em tournament.
A total of 91 women competed in the event, 33 of whom won their seats online at PokerStars via satellites with buy-ins starting as low as $2.20. They won more than just their entry and spending money; the online qualifiers were also pampered at the resort's Mandara Spa and received instruction at a High Heels Poker Tour Ladies Boot Camp session from Team PokerStars Pro Vanessa Rousso.
As it turned out, the Boot Camp attendees probably should have listened to their instructor more closely, as Rousso went on to win the event, scoring a $24,725 cash. Rousso burst onto the poker scene in 2006 when she placed 7th in the $25,000 World Poker Tour (WPT) Championship and then won a $5,000 No Limit Hold'em event at the WPT Borgata Poker Open a few months later. In 2007, she finished second in PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP), winning over $700,000, and became known to a broad television audience when she was the runner-up in the 2009 National Heads-Up Poker Championship. The GoDaddy.com girl has also won two tournaments on NBC's "Poker After Dark."
Other members of Team PokerStars Pro in the tournament who were not as fortunate were Katja Thater, Veronica Dabul, Sandra Naujoks, and Maria "Maridu" Mayrinck. Other known pros in attendance included J.J. Liu, 2007 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe Main Event champ Annette Obrestad, European Poker Tour (EPT) London Ladies champ Dagmara Aleksandrowicz, and Shirley Rosario, who placed fourth.
Another player of note was Elizabeth Bennett-Martin, who qualified for the Main Event via a PokerStars satellite for the second year in a row. A portion of her winnings was earmarked for the charitable organization Cambodian Legal Education for Women (CLEW). Created by her Toronto law firm, Bennett Gastle P.C., CLEW raises money to help impoverished women in Cambodia attend law school. The goal of these women is to provide legal help to those who would not normally be able to access any in Cambodia, where the population of more than 14 million has only 538 lawyers. Unfortunately, Bennett-Martin did not make the money in any event this year.
Sixteen women did cash, though, each getting a piece of the $88,270 prize pool. Runner-up Halli Pinson was impressed with the field, telling PokerStars, "This event was a lot more serious than most ladies tournaments. I didn't recognize that many faces, but the field seemed a lot more experienced than usual. These women had come to play, and they had come to win! Vanessa Rousso dominated the event though – she had good cards and she's an experienced player: the combination was lethal."
Those who did not want to pony up $1,100, but still wanted to compete in a women-only tournament, or those who just wanted another shot at a title, had the chance to play in another Ladies Event the next day for just $300. The field of 73 produced a prize pool of $19,119 and Diana Linke took home the top cash of $6,504.
PokerStars Caribbean Adventure $1,000 + $100 Ladies Event Final Standings
1. Vanessa Rousso - $24,275
2. Halli Pinson - $13,815
3. Ann-Margaret Johnston - $9,335
4. Shirley Rosario - $6,620
5. Jamie Kerstetter - $5,740
6. Pastora Sorenson - $4,635
7. Lisa Adams - $3,750
8. Vanessa Caldeira - $2,870
9. Irene Baroni - $2,425
10. Sarah Wasch - $2,425
11. Violetta Szczerba - $2,205
12. Nesrine Kourdourli - $2,205
13. Muriel Allard - $1,985
14. Anna Yamshchikova - $1,985
15. Alina Salnikova - $1,765
16. Hai Nguyen - $1,765
Tags: 15, 2009, 2010, 5, aced, Adam, After Dark, buy-ins, Caribbean, EUR, Europe, european, European Poker Tour, Katja Thater, ladies, law, lawyer, legal, London, member, NBC, Online Poker, online qualifiers, player, Poker, Poker After Dark, Poker Festival, pokerstars, Pro, qualifier, runner, runner-up, tournament, Vanessa Rousso, women, World Championship, World Poker Tour, WSOP
Dario Minieri Dominates PokerStars Caribbean Adventure High Roller Event
Italian poker pro Dario Minieri leads the pack for the second straight day in the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA) $25,000 buy-in High Roller tournament. Minieri is a member of Team PokerStars Pro.
After two days of play, there are 24 players remaining out of the 84 who entered. Minieri was on top of the leaderboard after Day 1 and turned in another strong outing on Tuesday for Day 2. Minieri holds a stack of 430,700 chips entering Day 3 on Wednesday, edging out Michiel Brummelhuis’ second place tally of 403,800. Minieri and Brummelhuis are the only players to cross the 400,000-chip threshold and own a comfortable lead over former World Poker Tour (WPT) Borgata Poker Open champ Vivek “Psyduck” Rajkumar’s third place total of 301,700. Minieri won the High Roller event at the European Poker Tour’s (EPT) Warsaw stop in October.
One of the final eliminations of the evening at the Atlantis Resort and Casino on Paradise Island in the Bahamas was Mike “The Mouth” Matusow. He was all-in pre-flop with A-Q against Carter “bdybldngpkr” Phillips’ K-8. Phillips struck lightning in a bottle when the flop came K-8-4 and a running 9-J left Matusow scratching his head. William Thorson also exited at the end of the day when his 7-8 ran into pocket sevens. Thorson has made three EPT final tables.
2004 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event Champion Greg Raymer sent fellow PokerStars-backed pro Andre Akkari out on Tuesday. Akkari pushed with A-9 of diamonds pre-flop and received a call from Raymer, who had A-Q of clubs. The flop contained a queen, keeping Raymer out in front for good. Meanwhile, Chad Brown hit the rails when his A-9 couldn’t draw out on former WPT Invitational winner Alex Brenes’ wired pair of eights.
Brummelhuis helped his cause by casting off Andrew “luckychewy” Lichtenberger, who appeared on several episodes of the G4 online poker reality series “2 Months, $2 Million.” Lichtenberger committed his chips pre-flop with K-Q, but Brummelhuis picked up aces. The flop came ace-high and that was all she wrote for the young American.
Here are the chip counts of the 24 players remaining in the 2010 PCA High Roller event:
1. Dario Minieri - 430,700
2. Michiel Brummelhuis - 403,800
3. Vivek “Psyduck” Rajkumar - 301,700
4. Tobias Reinkemeier - 279,900
5. Dmitry Stelmak - 264,000
6. Alex Brenes - 253,600
7. Greg Raymer - 206,600
8. Bijan Zahmat - 198,200
9. Sandra Naujoks - 180,500
10. Shawn Buchanan - 171,100
11. Lisa Hamilton - 153,900
12. Nick Schulman - 143,400
13. Carter “bdybldngpkr” Phillips - 139,400
14. Joe Cada - 135,700
15. Matt Marafioti - 121,000
16. Brett Richey - 106,400
17. Paul Berende - 104,400
18. Christian Kruel - 103,800
19. Bill Edler - 94,700
20. Adolfo Vaeza - 92,600
21. William Reynolds - 89,100
22. James Calderaro - 89,100
23. Isaac “westmenloAA” Baron - 76,200
24. Will Molson - 60,000
The winner of the $25,000 buy-in poker tournament will earn $576,000 and the top 16 players will finish in the money. Cada and Raymer are former winners of the WSOP Main Event in Las Vegas. Phillips won the EPT Barcelona stop during Season 6, while Naujoks, one of only two women ever to win an EPT tournament, took down the Dortmund event during Season 5. Schulman made the final table of the WPT Foxwoods World Poker Finals twice in a three-year span, recording a win and a runner-up showing for $3 million combined. Many consider Baron to be one of the top poker players on the planet. Needless to say, it’s anybody’s game.
The High Roller event will play down to its final table this afternoon from the Bahamas and crown a champion on Thursday. Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest from paradise. Pack your bags, we’ll leave tonight.
Tags: 15, 2010, 5, Barcelona, Caribbean, Chad Brown, EUR, Europe, european, European Poker Tour, Greg Raymer, Las Vegas, leader, member, News Daily, Online Poker, player, Poker, Poker News Daily, poker player, pokerstars, Pro, queen, runner, runner-up, tournament, vegas, William Thorson, women, World Poker Tour, WSOP
Annette Obrestad (Annette_15) Debuts on Poker After Dark
This week’s brand new installment of the NBC franchise “Poker After Dark” is dubbed “Nicknames.” Making her debut on the show is 21 year-old Betfair pro Annette “Annette_15” Obrestad, who went by the moniker “The Huntress.”
On her departure from the familiar screen name “Annette_15,” Obrestad told her tablemates, “Basically, I needed a nickname for the show,” and called her traditional handle “boring.” In the first hand, Obrestad, the winner of the 2007 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe Main Event, raised to 600 and the table folded around. Then, Phil “The Poker Brat” Hellmuth, a sponsored pro of UB.com, began Twittering at the table, truly a sign of the times.
Phil “The Unabomber” Laak raised to 550 pre-flop with 10-7 and Obrestad came along from the big blind holding A-2 of hearts. The flop came 5-9-9 with two hearts and the action went check-check to a three on the turn. Obrestad check-called a bet of 850 from Laak to another nine on the river. The action went check-check and Obrestad raked in the 2,900-chip pot with an ace.
Erick “E-Dog” Lindgren’s stay at the “Poker After Dark” feature table was brief. His “go big or go home” strategy resulted in four-way action to a flop of J-5-4 with two spades. Holding pocket queens, Antonio “The Magician” Esfandiari led out for 2,100 and Lindgren made it 5,400. The other two players got out of the way, Esfandiari pushed the price of poker to 15,400, Lindgren moved all-in, and Esfandiari made the call. Needing a spade or king to hit, the turn and river fell the jack of hearts and three of diamonds, respectively, sending Lindgren out in sixth place. Obrestad announced that she folded J-9 of spades after the flop.
Obrestad, who largely played tight throughout the first episode of “Nicknames” week, mixed it up and made it 600 to go with 8-5 pre-flop and received a call from Laak, who peeked down at K-4 of hearts. The flop came A-9-6 with two hearts and Laak check-called a bet of 750 from the young internet huntress. The nine on the turn resulted in a pair of checks, as did a king on the river. Laak scooped the pot with second pair, inching him further up the “Poker After Dark” leaderboard.
Esfandiari, while eating ground sirloin and brown rice throughout much of Monday’s kickoff episode, led out for 850 on a board of 8-8-4-10 with two hearts holding 10-4 of diamonds. Obrestad made the call with A-9 to see a five on the river. Esfandiari bet 2,400 and Obrestad called, shipping the pot of 7,900 to “The Magician.” Mike “The Mouth” Matusow, who was also part of “Nicknames” week, triumphantly identified what Esfandiari had: “He flopped two pair and turned three pair. Do you know how hard that is to do?”
Matusow hawked copies of his book, “Check-Raising the Devil,” which includes a foreword penned by Hellmuth. Not to be outdone, “The Poker Brat” declared that he enjoys partying with 2009 WSOP Main Event November Nine member Phil Ivey and discussed his then-upcoming appearance on a VH1 weight loss show, “First to 100.” Hellmuth was set to team with fellow UB.com pro Mark “P0ker H0” Kroon for the series, which ultimately never panned out.
In the final hand shown on the kickoff episode, Esfandiari raised to 850 with 8-7 and Laak called from the small blind with K-10 of spades. The flop of 8-5-K with two spades offered a little sniff for everyone, but the action went check-check. An offsuit four hit on the turn, leading to a bet of 1,125 from Laak. Esfandiari made the call and the turn was an offsuit queen. Laak bet 1,850 and Esfandiari mucked, giving “The Unabomber” a 6,100-chip pot.
You can catch episodes of “Nicknames” week through Friday on NBC nightly at 2:05am ET. After this week, no new episodes of “Poker After Dark” will air until March, although re-runs will still be shown each night.
Poker Channel Airing PCA Live
The Poker Channel Europe has decided to air live coverage of the final events at the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure over the next two days.
The World Cup of Poker final will air tonight (Jan. 13) and the final of the $25k High Roller will air on Thursday Jan. 14.
Coverage of both events will start at 9 p.m. GMT and continue for up to 8 hours until the events finish.
The Poker Channel reaches over 18 million homes in 25 European countries.
“We're delighted to bring live poker back to the Poker Channel with some of the most prestigious events in the poker calendar,” Poker Channel Managing Director Chris White. “We were the first channel to show a full live poker event on TV - the British Poker Open – back in 2005. We know our European viewers want more live TV coverage so we're working with world-class production teams and sponsors to offer this on a regular basis."
Full broadcast details can be found on The Poker Channel’s website.
Comprehensive coverage of the $25k High Roller event can also be found on PokerListings' Live Updates.
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United Kingdom Poker Tax Laws Changing
Online gaming operators such as Ladbrokes and William Hill fled to Gibraltar last year in order to escape U.K. government gambling taxes and become more competitive with overseas operators. Now, it appears the relocation could be all for naught.
The U.K. government’s Department of Culture, Media, and Sport this week announced proposed reforms to the regulatory gambling structure that will likely force offshore operators currently licensed outside of the U.K. to apply for a license from the U.K. Gambling Commission if they want to provide services or advertise in the U.K. Until now, operators located in “white listed” offshore tax havens such as Gibraltar, the Isle of Man, and Malta were allowed to advertise in the U.K. while avoiding levies, but this situation will most definitely change with the enforcement of licenses from the Commission.
Other modifications include the enforcement of new regulations that would demand that all offshore operators have active systems through their applications that would share information about suspicious betting patterns with governing authorities in the U.K.
"Online gambling has changed significantly in recent years with many European countries taking new approaches to regulation," said Gerry Sutcliffe, U.K. Sports Minister. "It would be wrong of us to stand still where many things are changing around us – especially where the protection of British consumers is at stake."
Last year, Italy introduced gambling licenses for all online poker and bookmaking sites, setting business tax ranging from 2% to 5%. The Italian government has subsequently seen tax revenues rise across the industry.
Right2bet, a European consumer-led campaign behind the idea that it is a citizen’s right to choose, stated that it hopes the U.K. does not follow suit by blocking operators from the market or burden consumers with extra charges passed on from the high tax regime.
PokerStars Team Pro and The Guardian newspaper columnist Vicky Coren has also recently voiced her opposition to changing tax laws in U.K. card rooms, particularly the Victoria Casino in London. Coren hypothesized that the regular games at the casino will die due to “a stupid, greedy, ill-thought-out change to the tax rules.” The 2009 budget introduced a tax on poker games on top of the conventional hourly fee despite the fact that customers play against each other and not the house.
"This is the same government that wanted super-casinos and unlimited fruit-machine jackpots. So they want to encourage dangerous, mindless gambling but punish a game of skill? It's idiotic," Coren wrote. "All poker-lovers should resolve, next year, to write to their MPs and the chancellor about this punishing tax. It must be removed, for the survival of big casino poker rooms and the future of the live game in this country."
Tags: 2009, 5, cent, Columnist, Dang, EUR, Europe, european, jackpot, king, law, London, online gaming, Online Poker, Poker, pokerstars, Pro, skill, United Kingdom
Rousso: Results Speak
Especially when you consider she taught roughly one-third of the field how to play.
In the end, Rousso bested the field of 91, including 33 women from around the world who qualified for the event on PokerStars, winning the $1k buy-in and a spot in a special Ladies Boot Camp offering onsite tutoring from Rousso and the High Heels Poker Academy.
But Rousso said booking the $24,000-win in the ladies-only field was still no cake walk.
“There were a couple of pros who played,” she told PokerListings. “J.J. Lui was in there, Annette Obrestad. There was a bunch of good players.
“Obviously you have to run well in any tournament you play in. But I didn’t make any mistakes that I know of, I played well and I’m happy with the way I played. Starting the year off with a victory is really cool.”
A victory in the PCA Ladies Event is really just a bit of icing on the cake that was the past 12 months for Rousso.
The 27-year-old upped her career earnings to over $3.5 million in 2009, was featured in a two-page spread in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition, and signed on as the newest spokeswoman for GoDaddy.com.
In addition to her runner-up finish at the NBC Heads-Up Championship, Rousso also booked her biggest career win, taking down the PokerStars European Poker Tour High Roller Event in Monte Carlo for $940,000 this past April.
Once the whipping-girl for online forum posters who believed she was more marketing tool than poker player, Rousso is now letting her results prove the doubters wrong.
“What I learned early on in poker is that results speak,” she said. “It doesn’t really matter what you say about how good you are, or how you talk about strategy. All that matters is your results at the end of the day.
“Early on in my career I just had to put my head down and plow forward making the best decisions I could and hopefully, as I believed, I had an edge over the fields that I was playing in and my results would speak for themselves.
“Now that I’m at the point in my career where I have $3.5 million in earnings, if you count my results live and online, I think my results are beginning to speak for themselves. I’ve only been playing for four and a half years, and I just hope over the next six years or so, my results will continue to speak for themselves.
“Then, after a solid performance of ten years in professional poker, you can establish yourself.”
And as far as her detractors are concerned, Rousso says she isn’t even paying attention these days.
“It doesn’t really matter what anybody says,” she said. “It matters what people in your circle, people you care about, what they think about you. And of course, what matters at the end of the day is your actions, what you do with the gifts you are given as a person. It’s not just about getting good results at the poker table. It’s also about what you do with your success.
“Once you achieve monetary success it’s about what do you do with that to be a better person. So I just try to make good decisions both on and off the poker table. I use my results on the poker table to help open doors off the poker table and hopefully help me make an impact on this world during the time that I’m here.”
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Tags: 2009, 5, actor, EUR, Europe, european, European Poker Tour, king, ladies, NBC, player, Poker, poker player, pokerstars, Pro, runner, runner-up, tournament, woman, women
Jonas “Nebuchad” Danielsson Announces Retirement From Poker
On Friday, a top European online poker professional announced that he would quit playing poker, citing fatigue and a depleted bankroll as the reasons.
Swedish professional Jonas “Nebuchad” Danielsson, in a rambling blog post issued last week, stated (in a rough translation from the original Swedish), “The fire and passion I had for poker is now complete. It's like a bonfire that burned all night and now (it) hisses in the morning.” Citing an inability to sleep and the desire to experience other things in life, Danielsson says that the decision to quit playing poker has been brewing in his mind for the past two years; only now did the time feel right for his retirement.
In addition to the physical desire to stop playing, “Nebuchad” also states in the blog that he couldn’t do what most players do when faced with a depleted bankroll. There were “hints,” he says, from his fellow players that he should step down in levels and attempt to rebuild, which Danielsson pushed aside for two reasons. First, Jonas writes, “It would not change my financial situation. I should not have to work harder in my life, if I play my cards right.”
The second reason demonstrates one of the pitfalls of all players, whether they play at high-stakes or micro-stakes: “Secondly, going from top to bottom anywhere on the table and the risk of going out is too much for my vanity psyche. Without exaggerating, I would find it hard to look people in the eye.” Ego is something that all players have to face at some point in their poker playing lifetimes.
“Nebuchad” continues with a couple of memories that made him one of the top online players in the world. He discusses his legendary battles against Patrik Antonius, including a breakdown of a few hands, and remembers the moments quite fondly. “I can’t describe the feeling I had in poker (that day),” Jonas recalls.
In a down moment for his poker career, Danielsson recaps what should have been one of the top moments in his life. In 2008 during the Scandinavian Poker Awards, Jonas won the best online player award and accepted it from top professional Daniel Negreanu. When Negreanu asked him what his screen name meant, “Nebuchad” responded with a statement that implied that he disliked members of the Jewish faith. It was a statement that was taken out of context and, since that time, Danielsson has stated he meant no disrespect of the Jewish people and that he was highly nervous during the awards ceremony.
In a thread on the TwoPlusTwo forums, the common belief is that the Swede will be back at some point. The poster "mumrik" writes, “(From his blog post), it doesn’t seem like he has given up the thought of playing poker completely.” "GiantWalleye" agrees and cites his own experience: “I played fulltime back in 04-06, got bored and got a job. (I) realized I didn't like working and was back to playing fulltime by ‘08. He will be back.”
In his live playing career, Danielsson had been suffering from a downswing. According to the HendonMob database, “Nebuchad” did not cash in a live event in 2009 and only took in approximately $190,000 over his four-year live career. Jonas cashed in three events during the 2008 World Series of Poker (WSOP) and earned his best live cash, a third place in the Swedish Poker Championships for $67,658, early in the year. The earnings from his online cash games, however, are said to have Danielsson well off. At some point, the desire for the game could potentially bring “Nebuchad” back from the grave.
Tags: 15, 2008, 2009, 5, aced, Daniel Negreanu, EUR, Europe, european, king, member, Online Player, online players, Online Poker, Patrik Antonius, player, Poker, Pro, WSOP
Harrison Gimbel Becomes Youngest PCA Main Event Champ Ever
Harrison "gibler321" Gimbel outlasted a talented final table in the 2010 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA) Main Event to become the youngest winner ever of the $10,000 buy-in poker tournament. He earned a $2.2 million first place prize.
Gimbel is just 19 years-old and unable to play in a casino on U.S. soil legally. Accordingly, he qualified for the PCA in the Bahamas and outlasted the record-setting 1,529-player field that turned out. In the final hand, Tyler “puffinmypurp” Reiman was all-in pre-flop holding a wired pair of eights and up against Gimbel’s pocket tens. The flop came 10-6-2, giving Gimbel top set and a veritable stranglehold in the hand. However, an eight on the turn left Reiman drawing to one out with the title of 2010 PCA Main Event Champion on the line. The river was a jack, shipping the $2.2 million prize to Gimbel and crowning the tournament’s youngest champion in history.
Thomas Koral was sent packing in eighth place when his pocket queens could not draw out on Reiman’s pocket aces. The board of 6-10-6-J-K ensured that the better hand held and Koral earned a healthy $201,300 for his troubles. Then, Zachary Goldberg pushed all-in with pocket tens and received a re-shove from Norwegian poker player Aage Ravn. The Euro showed A-Q, setting up a coin flip, and an ace on the turn sealed Goldberg’s demise. He earned an even $300,000 for his seventh place performance.
Ravn was bumped from the 2010 PCA Main Event in sixth place as part of a three-way all-in. Ravn and Ben Zamani both committed their chips pre-flop against Gimbel. The best hand pre-flop went to Gimbel, who had jacks and both players covered, while Zamani showed pocket eights. Ravn held A-Q of clubs and would be rooting for paint that wasn’t a jack to come. However, the flop fell 5-8-7, giving Zamani top set, and he never looked back. Ravn’s sixth place finish was worth $450,000.
Ryan “g0lfa” D’Angelo, one of just three players to win multiple PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) events in the same year, fell in fifth place. Seeking vindication for an earlier loss with pocket jacks, D’Angelo committed his chips with the hand and was up against Reiman’s Big Slick. However, a king hit on the river to send D’Angelo home, $700,000 richer for his wear.
Four-handed, Zamani put his tournament life on the line with A-10 against Gimbel’s pocket eights. Once again, pocket eights found top set and the hand was good enough to scoop the pot and send another player into the Bahamian night. Zamani, the last PokerStars qualifier standing, earned $1 million for fourth place in the flat pay structure.
2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe Main Event winner Barry Shulman, in a stirring run through the PCA tournament, was eliminated in third place for $1.35 million. He shoved from the button with Q-10, but ran into Gimbel’s A-9. PokerStars’ coverage accurately noted that the 2010 PCA Main Event marked the second time in four months that Shulman has banked seven-figures in a major poker tournament. He’s the father of 2009 WSOP November Nine member Jeff Shulman, who took fifth in the Las Vegas spectacle for nearly $2 million.
Gimbel scooped a healthy pot about a half-hour into heads-up play to claim the chip lead. Gimbel raised to 600,000 pre-flop and Reiman made the price of poker 1.675 million. His opponent obliged and the flop came 2-A-8. Both players slowed down, as the action went check-check to a seven on the turn. Reiman checked, Gimbel bet 2.2 million, and Reiman called to bring a three on the river. Reiman once again checked, Gimbel fired out a bet of 4.7 million, and Reiman came along, watching as Gimbel turned over A-5 for top pair. Gimbel pumped his chip stack to 28 million, while Reiman fell to 17 million, reversing the totals entering heads-up play.
The battle between Gimbel and Reiman lasted less than hour. Here were the final results from the Atlantis Resort and Casino on Paradise Island in the Bahamas:
1. Harrison Gimbel - $2,200,000
2. Tyler Reiman - $1,750,000
3. Barry Shulman - $1,350,000
4. Benjamin Zamani - $1,000,000
5. Ryan D'Angelo - $700,000
6. Aage Ravn - $450,000
7. Zachary Goldberg - $300,000
8. Tom Koral - $201,300
Elsewhere at the 2010 PCA, Dario Minieri leads a star-studded field of 52 players left in the $25,000 buy-in High Roller tournament. His stack of 218,600 chips paces the field entering Day 2, with Lex Veldhuis hot on his tail with 214,500. In fourth place after one day of play is none other than reigning WSOP Main Event champion Joe Cada, who will come armed to Tuesday’s action with a stack of 164,400.
Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest 2010 PCA coverage.
Tags: 2009, 2010, 5, Caribbean, EUR, Europe, king, Las Vegas, legal, member, News Daily, oil, Online Poker, player, Poker, Poker News Daily, poker player, pokerstars, Pro, qualifier, queen, tournament, vegas, World Championship, WSOP
PokerStars’ NAPT Looks for Success in a Crowded Market
Winter freerolls from DevilfishPoker.com
Gimbel Crowned Youngest PCA Champ in History
“It feels amazing,” the Jupiter, Florida resident said moments after the win. “This is what I’ve dreamed of. I’ve always wanted to win a big major tournament and luckily I accomplished it on one of my very first ones.”
There was action from the outset in Monday’s final eight with Ryan “g0lfa” D’Angelo giving up the chip lead when he lost a massive race holding jacks against Gimbel’s A♠ K♠.
Ty Reiman then leapfrogged Gimbel, sending 26-year-old Chicago, Illinois online pro Tom Koral to the rail in eighth when his aces held against Koral’s queens.
21-year-old New Yorker Zac Goldberg was the next to go when his pocket tens failed to hold against Aage Ravn’s A♠ Q♠.
But Ravn failed to capitalize on the University of Arizona student’s misfortune, busting sixth when the Norwegian online qualifier re-shipped with A♣ Q♣ facing a Ben Zamani push.
Gimbel went all in behind with jacks, and although Zamani flopped a set of eights to win the hand and triple up, Gimbel’s jacks held to scoop the side-pot and rail Ravn.
Zamani then ran A♦ J♦ into Barry Shulman’s A♠ K♥ and looked to be out fifth before a diamond on the flop, turn and river spared him.
Left as the short stack after the hand, Shulman doubled through Gimbel to stay alive and it was actually start-of-day-chip-leader D’Angelo who exited fifth.
The double WCOOP winner shoved with jacks against a Zamani raise and Reiman re-raise and after Zamani folded, Reiman made the call with A♠ K♥.
A king on the river sent the 24-year-old New Yorker out and suddenly Reiman had built a massive chip lead that looked insurmountable.
Play moved down to three-handed when Zamani put his tournament life on the line with A♥ T♦ against Gimbel’s 8♥ 8♣.
Gimbel flopped a set and although the 23-year-old Floridian online pro turned some outs, the river blanked to end his hopes.
Heads-up began when 2009 World Series of Poker Europe champ Barry Shulman took third place, running Q♣ T♠ into Gimbel’s A♥ 9♦ and failing to improve.
And although Reiman actually held an 11-million-chip lead with 45 million in play to start, it wasn’t long before Gimbel moved in front, catching cards and getting Reiman to pay him off.
Gimbel won every key pot heads-up until he had built a 4:1 chip lead and before long, Reiman shoved with eights and he made the call with tens.
Gimbel flopped a set and despite the fact Reiman turned one of his own, the river blanked to give Gimbel the title.
“I felt my opponents were really good,” said Gimbel, whose previous poker accoplishments include a PokerStars Sunday Million final table appearance and a win in the 2009 Florida State Poker Championships. “A lot of these players were really good, but I had a lot of confidence in myself coming into today and it really showed.
“I used to wrestle in high school and my coach always said 'envision something and it’ll come true.' Not that it’ll come true, but it’ll happen.”
After six long days of poker in the Caribbean, the last man standing from a record field of 1,529 is now hoping to make a few things happen with the massive $2.2 million first-place prize.
“I’m going through all the stuff I can buy right now,” Gimbel said. “A new car, maybe a nice apartment or a house.”
To read a full recap of Gimbel’s historic win and the entire 2010 PCA, click through to PokerListings’ Live Updates.
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PartyGaming signs with Danske Spil to provide online gaming in Denmark
More positive news for online poker in Europe: Denmark's state-operated Danske Spil has signed a five-year agreement with PartyGaming, which will use its expertise and know-how to offer online gaming to the Danish market.
Denmark's relationship with gaming, particularly online gaming, has been patchy through the years. While live poker tournaments were considered perfectly legal, online poker was frowned upon by the Danish Supreme Court until very recently. The Danish gaming system, Danske Spil, enjoyed a lengthy virtual monopoly while all foreign gaming companies were forbidden to enter the Danish market for most of this decade, which sparked a number of disagreements with the European Commission regarding free trade agreements within the European Union.
In 2009, Denmark finally relented and put forth a draft legislation to partially open the Danish poker and casino market, which is expected to pass as law in 2011. Denmark further showed its commitment by allowing Danish people access to Hollywood Poker's online gaming facilities. Now in early 2010, the state's former monopoly, Danske Spil, is partnering with one of the world's largest online gaming providers to prepare for the upcoming competition.
The partnership between Danske Spil and PartyGaming has everything needed to make it successful: while the Danske Spil group is one of the largest in Europe, with over 500,000 registered customers and a reported turnover of €1.47 billion (about $2.13 billion) in 2008, PartyGaming bills itself as " the world’s leading listed online gaming company" thanks to its very successful brands that include PartyPoker, PartyCasino, and PartyBets.
Jim Ryan, Chief Executive Officer of PartyGaming, was understandably glad to announce this new partnership:
This is a landmark B2B deal for PartyGaming and validates our strategy to become a leading provider of B2B services to both corporates and governments around the world. Danske Spil is widely recognised as one of Europe’s leading gambling businesses, one that is pre-eminent in the Danish market. We are delighted that Danske Spil has recognised our expertise and high standards of business practice and we look forward to building a significant and profitable enterprise as soon as the newly regulated Danish online gaming market opens.
Ryan has every right to be delighted. Danske Spil researched the market for seven months to find a partner that met its exacting standards for security, ethics, and, of course, quality. Their choice of PartyGaming is an endorsement of the highest possible level of the company's expertise and capability.
H.C. Madsen, CEO of Danske Spil, said of this new partnership:
With some of the world’s leading products in online poker and casino as well as a large international customer base, PartyGaming is definitely a strong business partner for Danske Spil. Combining this with Danske Spil’s unique and strong position in the Danish market with more than 500,000 Danish online customers will guarantee that together we will deliver a highly attractive customer experience to players in Denmark.
One issue that remains to be clarified is how the notoriously strict Danish taxation system will treat new gaming providers as they enter the market. Taxes on poker winnings are remarkably high on Denmark. For example, 2008 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event champion Peter Eastgate could only spend $2.5 million out of the $9.1 million he won with his bracelet, the rest going to the government's arks. Companies willing to offer online poker will have to jump through hoops to be on the government's exclusive no-tax list, meaning that players will not be taxed over their winnings on those sites. Hollywood Poker currently enjoys no-tax status and it is to be expected that Danske Spil's upcoming online poker venture will enjoy it too.
PartyGaming's shares (LSE: PRTY) last traded at 279.3 pence per share in London today.
Tags: 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 5, cent, CEO, Chief Executive Officer, EUR, Europe, european, European Commission, European Union, Hollywood, law, legal, London, officer, online gaming, online gaming market, Online Poker, Peter Eastgate, player, Poker, Pro, tournament, WSOP
Ryan D’Angelo, Tyler Reiman Lead PCA Entering Final Table
Eight players remain in the 2010 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA). Online poker pros Ryan “g0lfa” D’Angelo and Tyler “puffinmypurp” Reiman lead the eight-handed final table by a comfortable margin.
For Reiman, a massive pot against European Poker Tour (EPT) founder John Duthie gave him the ammunition to nip at D’Angelo’s heels entering Monday’s final table. Duthie was all-in pre-flop holding pocket aces, the best starting hand in Texas Hold’em, and held a 4:1 advantage over Reiman’s pocket queens. The flop, however, contained a queen and propelled Reiman into the lead in the hand for good. Duthie was out two hands later, finishing in 12th place for $130,000. Reiman owned a stack of 9.35 million entering the final table, trailing only D’Angelo’s 10.09 million.
D’Angelo comes to the 2010 PCA Main Event with top-tier credentials. He was one of only two dual winners during the 2009 PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP), taking down a $320 buy-in Eight-Game event and a $320 buy-in Mixed tournament. The only other player to accomplish the feat in the September tournament series was Team PokerStars Pro member and former PCA winner Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier, who took down two No Limit Hold’em events.
In third place on the 2010 PCA Main Event leaderboard is Barry Shulman, who is fresh off a victory in the 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe Main Event for £801,000. He defeated PokerStars sponsored pro Daniel Negreanu in the finale of that tournament, which also saw Jason Mercier, Praz Bansi, and WSOP Main Event November Nine members Antoine Saout and James Akenhead reach the final table. Shulman owns a stack of 6.81 million entering Monday’s play.
Benjamin “xthesteinx” Zamani sent longtime PCA Main Event chip leader Wayne Bentley packing on Sunday. The 23 year-old called Zamani’s all-in on a flop of 3-8-2, showing pocket deuces for a flopped set. In a scene reminiscent of Joe Cada in the 2009 WSOP Main Event, Bentley turned over pocket jacks and watched in agony as the board ran out 6-7. Bentley, a Brit, took home an even $100,000 consolation prize for his 16th place showing.
Poker pro Jeff Madsen hit the rails in 19th place, pocketing $87,500 from the $10,000 buy-in poker tournament. Norwegian poker player Aage Ravn called Madsen’s all-in with pocket fours and Madsen flipped up A-J for an old fashioned race. The board ran out K-7-9-5-9 and that was all she wrote for the poker rapper.
Who will join D’Angelo, Reiman, Ravn, and Shulman at the eight-handed final table of the 2010 PCA, a stop on the EPT and Latin American Poker Tour (LAPT)? Here’s a look at the leaderboard:
1. Ryan D'Angelo – 10,090,000
2. Tyler Reiman – 9,350,000
3. Barry Shulman – 6,805,000
4. Harrison Gimbel – 6,000,000
5. Thomas Koral – 5,370,000
6. Benjamin Zamani – 3,700,000
7. Zachary Goldberg – 2,340,000
8. Aage Floenes Ravn – 1,690,000
Ravn is the only non-American at the final table. A total of 57 countries were represented among the 1,529 players who entered the 2010 PCA Main Event. About half of those players were from the United States. Now, seven out of eight finalists, or a hefty 88%, hail from the North American nation. Similarly, Shulman, who is 63 years-old, is the only member of the final table older than 26. Gimbel is the baby of the group at 19, while Reiman and Goldberg weigh in at the tender age of 21.
Regardless of a player’s age, life-changing money is on the line when play kicks off this afternoon from the Atlantis Resort and Casino on Paradise Island in the Bahamas. Each player remaining is guaranteed to earn at least $201,000:
1st Place: $2,200,000
2nd Place: $1,750,000
3rd Place: $1,350,000
4th Place: $1,000,000
5th Place: $700,000
6th Place: $450,000
7th Place: $300,000
8th Place: $201,300
The final table kicks off at Noon ET from Atlantis and will continue until a champion is crowned. Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest PCA coverage.
Tags: 2009, 2010, 5, Caribbean, cent, Dang, Daniel Negreanu, EUR, Europe, european, European Poker Tour, founder, Jeff Madsen, John Duthie, king, leader, member, News Daily, North America, Online Poker, player, Poker, Poker News Daily, poker player, pokerstars, Pro, queen, Texas, tournament, United States, World Championship, WSOP
Estonia Moves to Legalize Online Poker
Starting this year citizens of the small Northern European country will be able to legally play online poker on the nation-based Olympic Casino group platform, which was developed by industry giant Playtech.
“We are truly glad of this opportunity to start our partnership with Olympic as the leading casino entertainment provider in Central and Eastern Europe,” said Mor Weizer, executive manager of Playtech.
In 2011, the laws will change again, allowing international operators into the country as long as they are able to satisfy requirements set by the Estonian government.
A former economic leader, Estonia was one of the hardest hit countries by the world-wide recession in the late 2000s.
Last year retail sales plummeted and the government is hoping that regulating and taxing the online gambling industry will help stimulate the economy.
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A sick tattoo prop bet at the LA Poker Classic
A sick tattoo prop bet at the LA Poker Classic
Ryan D’Angelo, John Duthie Lead PCA Main Event into Play Down Day
Today, the 2010 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA) Main Event enters its play down day, as the 24 remaining players will become eight when all is said and done. At stake is a $2.2 million first place prize and the title of 2010 PCA Champion.
Ryan “g0lfa” D’Angelo leads the field entering Sunday’s action at the Atlantis Resort and Casino on Paradise Island in the Bahamas. His chips number 7.5 million, while the next closest competitor, European Poker Tour (EPT) founder John Duthie, owns just 5.3 million. D’Angelo scooped a blockbuster pot late in the day on Saturday after putting in a check-raise to 310,000 on a flop of 5-A-9. Dimitri Hefter called and the turn was a king. D’Angelo bet 500,000 and Hefter called to see a three hit on the river. The action slowed down, as both players checked, but the damage was done and D’Angelo’s A-Q was enough to rake in the chips.
Meanwhile, Duthie amassed a chunk of his chips after cracking Swedish poker player Kent Lundmark’s pocket aces. Duthie’s opponent led out for 100,000 on a flop of 7-2-8 with two spades. Duthie raised it up to 300,000 and Lundmark pushed all-in over the top for 2.2 million. Duthie called and showed 7-8 of diamonds for top two pair, while Lundmark turned over his wired pair of aces. The board ran out K-6 and Lundmark hit the rails in 29th place for $66,000.
Wayne Bentley, who held a commanding chip lead after the combined Day 1 field, continues to fly high in the 2010 PCA Main Event. Heading into Sunday’s play down day, Bentley owns a stack of 2.9 million, good for third overall. Three tables will accommodate the field this afternoon and Bentley heads to #1, where D’Angelo and Harrison Gimbel, who led the field entering Day 4, will join him. Bentley’s chip stack was chopped down to just 75,000 at one point on Saturday after his A-K could not withstand pocket queens. The board ran out five cards nine or lower and Bentley was crippled before mounting an epic comeback to land in third on the leaderboard entering today’s action.
Speaking of the leaderboard, here are the 24 players remaining in the 2010 PCA Main Event:
1. Ryan D'Angelo - 7,483,000
2. John Duthie - 5,304,000
3. Wayne Bentley - 2,878,000
4. Thomas Koral - 2,438,000
5. Barry Shulman - 2,433,000
6. Aage Floenes Ravn - 2,282,000
7. Zachary Goldberg - 2,195,000
8. James Tolbert - 2,016,000
9. Benjamin Zamani - 1,905,000
10. Robert Mizrachi - 1,823,000
11. Harrison Gimbel - 1,803,000
12. Tyler Reiman - 1,796,000
13. Darren Keyes - 1,614,000
14. Luc Greenwood - 1,528,000
15. Dimitri Hefter - 1,350,000
16. Matthew Haugen - 1,161,000
17. Jimmie Guinther - 932,000
18. Jeff Madsen - 896,000
19. Gijs Verheijen - 882,000
20. Bo Schultz - 720,000
21. Tamas Lendvai - 662,000
22. Praz Bansi - 542,000
23. Richard Toth - 488,000
24. Kenny Nguyen - 242,000
Eight nations are represented in the final 24. Duthie is the only member of Team PokerStars Pro remaining in the field after his comrades like 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event Champion Joe Cada, 2004 Main Event winner Greg Raymer, 2003 World Champion Chris Moneymaker, and former PCA victor Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier busted in prior days.
The elimination of Amanda Baker in 38th place set up a male-only field on Day 5. Poker pro Praz Bansi sent her packing after Baker pushed all-in with Q-J and Bansi made the call with pocket rockets. The board came K-2-4-4-3 and the last woman standing in the $10,000 buy-in feature tournament saw her title hopes evaporate.
Every one of the 24 remaining players is assured a payday of at least $75,000. The top four finishers will earn $1 million from the record-setting PCA Main Event field of 1,529 entrants. Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest 2010 PCA coverage.
Tags: 15, 2009, 2010, 5, Caribbean, Dang, EUR, Europe, european, European Poker Tour, founder, Greg Raymer, Jeff Madsen, John Duthie, king, leader, member, News Daily, player, Poker, Poker News Daily, poker player, pokerstars, Pro, queen, remaining player, tournament, woman, WSOP
Poker News in Brief: Jan. 4-10, 2010
The 2010 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure drew a record 1,529 players to generate a $14.8 million prize pool – the seventh biggest in poker history.
Plus, there was some poker news that happened outside of the Bahamas and we’re breaking it down for you below in our ongoing Poker News in Brief feature.
This week we’ll look at a new poker film coming to DVD, Pennsylvania legalizing live poker and table games, Belgium moving to nationalize online poker and Bodog making a big brag.
Legal Poker for Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania legalized poker, blackjack and other table games at Casinos this week in an attempt to generate extra revenue for the State.
Previously, casinos in Pennsylvania had been restricted to slot machines only.
It will be six months before games start being dealt in Pennsylvania, but the State stands to make millions in licensing fees.
Several neighboring states are taking notice and Indiana is considering allowing riverboat gambling in Lake Michigan and the Ohio River. Back in November, Ohio voters passed a law that will see four casinos constructed in four cities.
The Pennsylvania law change could have a potentially negative effect on neighboring Atlantic City if Pennsylvania residents opt to gamble closer to home.
Poker Film “Shark City” to See DVD Release
Indie poker flick Shark City is scheduled to be released on DVD on Feb. 16 though Morningstar Entertainment and Stardust Pictures.
The film stars Vivica A. Fox, Carlo Rota, Jefferson Brown and David J. Phillips and it centers around around the story of two friends who get mixed up with the daughter of a gangster. The two attempt to con a group of gangsters through a poker game and the plan goes awry.
High stakes poker, both live and online, is central to the theme of the film.
Shark City won the John Muir award at the Yosemite Film Festival.
To learn more go to the film’s website.
Belgium Attempts to “Nationalize” Online Poker
Belgium appears to be the latest country that is trying to restrict its citizens to only playing on local online poker rooms.
A recent story in Belgian newspaper Da Standaard claims the government has plans to demand Internet Service Providers block any foreign online poker sites.
This could potentially have huge ramifications for sites like PokerStars, Full Tilt or PartyPoker as they would have to set up regional offices in the country to continue operations.
The changes are scheduled to become law before the end of the year.
Meanwhile, the European Commission is reportedly not pleased with Belgium’s decision claiming it goes against the free trade agreement made by members of the European Union.
Despite the European Commission’s objections, Italy currently restricts its online poker market to rooms that have a presence in the country.
Study Shows Bodog Best Brand
Bodog may not have the most players, but according to a recent independent study it carries the strongest brand recognition.
The report was conducted by gaming consultant Josh Apiafi using Google to understand the brand strength of the top 10 online poker websites including PokerStars, William Hill, 888.com, Bet365, Betfair, bwin, Ladbrokes, Paddy Power, PartyPoker and Bodog.
“We had a hunch since I first rolled out the Bodog brand and business model that we are considered interesting,” said Bodog founder Calvin Ayre. “But that’s only part of the story – we also stand for having fun and that’s what all people want, especially ones that like to gamble."
The survey was conducted by looking at the number of Google alerts generated daily during December. Apiafi recorded every time a document was published that contained a mention of the brands listed above.
In the end, Bodog narrowly edged PokerStars by a score of 510 to 493.
Huge Growth for HeadsUp Entertainment
HeadsUp Entertainment, a poker media company out of Canada, posted its most recent quarterly statement this week and the company showed massive expansion in 2009.
The company sanctioned 362 events under its Canadian Poker Tour (CPT) brand this year, up from the 71 since it acquired the tour in 2008. HeadsUp Entertainment is aiming to host more than 560 events in 2010.
Also in 2009, HeadsUp Entertainment helped produce the CPT Finals in the Dominican Republic and Canadian Open Poker Championships in Calgary for television. The Canadian Open Poker Championship drew big-name poker players like Gavin Smith, Jennifer Tilly and Huck Seed.
HeadsUp Entertainment also currently runs www.canadianpokertour.tv and Canadian Poker Magazine.
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Tags: 2008, 2009, 2010, 5, Belgium, bodog, Canada, canadian, Caribbean, cent, EUR, Europe, european, European Commission, European Union, founder, gamble, Gavin Smith, HB, high stakes, High Stakes Poker, Internet service providers, Jennifer Tilly, king, law, legal, legalizing, member, model, Online Poker, online poker room, online poker site, online poker sites, Pennsylvania, player, Poker, poker player, poker site, pokerstars, Pro
2010 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure Main Event Payouts, Nationalities Announced
Although attendance at the 2010 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA) out-paced last year’s tally by 13.5%, this year’s champion will earn a whopping $800,000 less. In 2009, Canadian poker player Poorya Nazari earned $3 million after defeating American Anthony Gregg heads-up.
Gregg took home $1.7 million, while Benjamin Spindler boosted his bankroll by $1.1 million for third place. Nazari, Gregg, and Spindler were the only three players to cross the seven-figure threshold. This year, the top four finishers in the PCA Main Event will earn at least $1 million, with first place taking home $2.2 million, second place earning $1.75 million, third place grabbing $1.35 million, and fourth place realizing an even $1 million.
In 2010, the top 199 players out of the 1,347-player field, or 14.8%, finished in the money. This time around, 224 out of 1,529 players will take home a cash prize, or a similar 14.7%. The top four players will bank $6.3 million, or 42.6% of the total prize pool of $14.8 million this year. During the 2009 PCA Main Event, the top four earned $6.55 million, or nearly 52% of the prize pool. This year, the more even structure means that the top prize will shrink by 26.7% despite the larger turnout.
Here’s a look at what’s at stake in the 2010 PCA Main Event:
1st Place: $2,200,000
2nd Place: $1,750,000
3rd Place: $1,350,000
4th Place: $1,000,000
5th Place: $700,000
6th Place: $450,000
7th Place: $300,000
8th Place: $201,300
9th to 10th Places: $150,000
11th to 12th Places: $130,000
13th to 14th Places: $115,000
15th to 16th Places: $100,000
17th to 20th Places: $87,500
21st to 24th Places: $75,000
25th to 32nd Places: $66,000
33rd to 40th Places: $59,000
41st to 48th Places: $52,000
49th to 56th Places: $45,000
57th to 64th Places: $38,000
65th to 72nd Places: $33,000
73rd to 80th Places: $28,000
81st to 88th Places: $23,500
89th to 96th Places: $23,500
97th to 104th Places: $23,500
105th to 112th Places: $23,500
113th to 120th Places: $20,000
121st to 128th Places: $20,000
129th to 136th Places: $20,000
137th to 144th Places: $20,000
145th to 152nd Places: $17,500
153rd to 160th Places: $17,500
161st to 168th Places: $17,500
169th to 176th Places: $17,500
177th to 184th Places: $15,000
185th to 192nd Places: $15,000
193rd to 200th Places: $15,000
201st to 208th Places: $15,000
209th to 216th Places: $15,000
217th to 224th Places: $15,000
Also revealed by PokerStars officials were the nationalities of the 1,529 entrants, who hailed from 57 countries around the world. A total of 739 players hailed from the United States, or 48%, with Canada being the next most represented country at 164. Other nations that sent players to compete in the 2010 PCA Main Event included Germany (100 players), the Netherlands (60), United Kingdom (56), France (44), Brazil (37), Spain (27), Sweden (27), Argentina (21), and Italy (21).
Although six entrants were from unknown lands, curiously absent from the list of countries represented was the Bahamas, the host nation of the annual PCA, which pans out at the Atlantis Resort and Casino in Nassau. Nearby countries represented in the $10,000 buy-in poker tournament included the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Turks and Caicos, and Bermuda.
The PCA Main Event field numbered 62 when it entered Day 4 play on Saturday, with the action continuing until 24 players remained. As of 6:45pm ET, online poker pro Ryan “g0lfa” D’Angelo led the way with a stack of six million chips, comfortably ahead of European Poker Tour (EPT) founder John Duthie’s 4.6 million.
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Harrison Gimbel, Barry Shulman Among PCA Day 4 Leaders
A total of 62 players remain out of the 1,529 who began the 2010 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA) Main Event. A host of brand name players survived Day 3, including 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe Main Event winner Barry Shulman.
Day 3 played out on Friday from the Atlantis Resort and Casino, just across the harbor from Nassau in the Bahamas. One of the final eliminations of the day was Amnon Filippi, who shoved all-in over the top of a raise by Bryce Yockey. His opponent came along and Filippi showed pocket eights against Yockey’s K-Q of spades, setting up a classic race situation. The flop came king-high, propelling Yockey into the lead, and a running 10-3 didn’t help Filippi’s cause. His 67th place finish was worth $33,000 in the $10,000 buy-in poker tournament.
Shulman, whose son Jeff Shulman reached the final table of the 2009 WSOP Main Event in Las Vegas, sent Greg Dyer packing during the last level of play and crossed the one-million chip threshold. He finished with nearly 1.7 million, with the entire field trailing Harrison Gimbel’s tally of 2.6 million. Gimbel trumped former Bodog pro Justin “ZeeJustin” Bonomo in one hand after Bonomo check-called a bet of 25,000 on a flop of Q-4-6 with two hearts. The turn was the deuce of spades, leading to another check-call from Bonomo, this time for 41,000. The river was the three of hearts and Bonomo checked. Gimbel fired out a bet of 70,000 and Bonomo called, only to see his opponent flip up Q-J for top pair.
Eliminated in 91st place in the Bahamas was 2009 WSOP Main Event November Nine member and Full Tilt Poker pro Phil Ivey. Ivey doubled up Bill Gazes with A-Q against Gazes’ K-J when a king hit on the river. Ivey had Gazes covered by a minuscule 2,000 chips and Ivey hit the rails on the next hand. Ivey, considered by many to be the world’s premier all-around player, added another $23,500 to his bankroll for his efforts in Nassau.
Two women remain among the 62 Day 3 survivors, Amanda Baker and Liz Lieu. Lieu owns a stack of 536,000 entering the fourth day of play in the 2010 PCA Main Event and will head to Table 7, where her competition will include Shulman. Meanwhile, Baker will come armed with 1.3 million chips and be seated at Table 6, which also features Gimbel, Eric “EFro” Froehlich, and Jonathan “FatalError” Aguiar.
Here are the top ten chip stacks entering Day 4 on Saturday:
1. Harrison Gimbel - 2,625,000
2. Matthew Haugen - 2,149,000
3. Ryan D'Angelo - 2,092,000
4. Praz Bansi - 2,003,000
5. Barry Shulman - 1,655,000
6. Eric “EFro” Froehlich - 1,331,000
7. Amanda Baker - 1,306,000
8. James Tolbert - 1,284,000
9. John Duthie - 1,210,000
10. Kent Emil Lundmark - 1,158,000
Notable names remaining in the 2010 PCA field, along with their chip counts, include:
Jeff Madsen - 930,000
Robert Mizrachi - 876,000
Amit “amak316” Makhija - 800,000
Aaron “aejones” Jones - 651,000
Alex Brenes - 559,000
Jonathan “FatalError” Aguiar - 544,000
Liz Lieu - 536,000
Wayne Bentley - 509,000
Dean Hamrick - 433,000
Bill Gazes - 288,000
Johnny Lodden - 286,000
Peter “Nordberg” Feldman - 221,000
Huck Seed - 216,000
Among those whose 2010 PCA Main Event title hopes were dashed on Friday included Daniel Negreanu, 2008 WSOP Main Event November Nine member Dennis Phillips, Victor Ramdin, Dario Minieri, Russian sensation Ivan Demidov, Vicky Coren, Luis Medina, ESPN baseball analyst Orel Hershiser, and PokerStars poker pro Steven Paul-Ambrose.
At the time of writing on Saturday, players remaining in the Bahamas poker tournament were in Level 23 and blinds were 12,000-24,000 with a 3,000 ante. All Day 4 runners were assured a payout of at least $38,000.
Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest PCA coverage.
Tags: 000 chips, 15, 2008, 2009, 2010, 5, bodog, Caribbean, Daniel Negreanu, Dennis Phillips, EUR, Europe, Ivan Demidov, Jeff Madsen, John Duthie, Johnny Lodden, king, Las Vegas, leader, Liz Lieu, member, News Daily, Phil Ivey, player, Poker, Poker News Daily, pokerstars, Pro, runner, Russia, tournament, vegas, Victor Ramdin, women, WSOP
Estonia Legalizes Online Gaming
Estonia, a small European country bordering with Russia, has recently legalized online gaming as a way to increase its tax income. The decision seems to have been aided by the success of the Baltic Poker Festival hosted by PokerStars.
For now, Estonian citizens will only be allowed to play on Estonian-based platforms such as Playtech's collaboration with the Olympic Casino Group, before opening up to international operators in 2011. This leaves the Playtech group in a very favorable position at the moment as the main provider of legal online gaming in the land. Playtech's Executive Manager, Mor Weizer, commented on this development: "We are truly glad of this opportunity to start our partnership with Olympic as the leading casino entertainment provider in Central and Eastern Europe."
Estonia is one of the smallest European Union (E.U.) countries, with only 1.33 million citizens. It borders north and west with the Gulf of Finland and Baltic Sea, respectively, as well as Latvia on the south and the Russian Federation on the east. Because of its bridging position between Europe and Russia, Estonia was invaded by the Soviet Union and Germany before regaining independence in 1991. At this point, Estonia started an aggressive and effective reform and growth program, which saw it become one of world's fastest-growing economies for several years. It joined the EU in May 2004 and was hoping to adopt the Euro as its currency by 2013. This is where online gambling comes in.
Estonia seemed a shoo-in for the Euro currency until the 2008-2009 economic crisis, which left it with the second most damaged economy of the EU, down by about 36%. A country must meet strict criteria to join the Eurozone and Estonia is taking pains to bounce back from the depression in time to join. The Estonian government hopes that taxing gaming operators will help revive its economy with the added income and influx of new jobs.
According to the Estonian Free Press, large international online gaming operators are currently showering Estonia with attention in the form of large advertising campaigns about upcoming services and there are rumors about millionaire investments planned for the country, which is seen as a gateway to the whole Baltic region's market.
Although online gambling remains a sore topic in the European Commission, where nations such as Germany and France block all online gaming in order to favor their state monopoly operators, more and more countries are opening up to its legalization and taxation. Estonia joins the likes of Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland and Sweden in creating legislation that allows online gambling, ensures it is taxed appropriately, and ensures its citizens are safeguarded against negative side effects like fraud, money laundering and underage gambling.
Tags: 2008, 2009, 2011, Belgium, cent, Easter, EUR, Europe, european, European Commission, European Union, France, king, legal, manager, NFL, online gaming, Poker, Poker Festival, pokerstars, Pro, Russia, Sweden