Poker News

Poland Limits Gambling, Poker to Brick and Mortar Casinos

Poland’s Senate approved a measure limiting gambling to casinos, stunting access to poker and other games outside of a structured establishment. The bill cleared the Senate by a 48 to 3 margin, with 30 lawmakers not voting.

The Krakow Post noted that the new crackdown on gambling outside of licensed casinos may also spell trouble for internet gambling and online poker: “The legislation also affects Internet gambling, which will no longer be allowed under Polish law. However, the enforcement of this aspect of the bill will inevitably prove much more difficult than even the removal of thousands of slot machines.” Around 50,000 slot machines, which can be found in places like bars and restaurants around the country, will be removed as a result of the new law.

Polish President Lech Kaczynski must still apply his John Hancock to the piece of legislation in order for it to become official. The Post quoted Poland’s Prime Minister as saying that he expects Kaczynski to sign by the end of the month. In addition to ridding the European country of 50,000 slot machines and potentially slowing the growth of internet gambling, the bill passed by Polish lawmakers also sets a legal gambling age of 18.

The Agence France Presse, or AFP news service, shed some light into this month’s vote: “The decision by parliament comes nearly a month and a half after [Prime Minister] Tusk was forced to sack several key ministers and political allies over allegations of influence peddling within his cabinet regarding the gambling legislation.” World Bulletin explained what a portion of the funds raised will be used for: “Tusk has said the restrictions will prevent young people from becoming addicted to gambling. The government will funnel tax revenues raised under the bill into foundations promoting physical education and culture.”

No general election is scheduled in Poland until 2011 and the scandal in question involved casino owners. The new bill also increases the tax rate on casinos, helping raise additional money for Poland’s government. On the TwoPlusTwo forums, a translated article that originally appeared on Bankier.pl revealed that the tax rate on tournament poker would also increase as part of the new measure, although this component was not reported by the AFP or World Bulletin. TwoPlusTwo poster “novahunterpa” commented, “Looks like every country is either trying to ban online poker and gambling or restrict it to state monopolies.”

One month ago, Poland saw the invasion of the PokerStars-sponsored European Poker Tour (EPT), which made its annual stop in Warsaw. The 25,000 PLN buy-in event was held at the Casinos Poland Hyatt Regency and French businessman Christophe Benzimra emerged victorious from the 203 player field. The online poker site claimed that EPT Warsaw was one of the largest poker tournaments ever held in Poland. No indication has been given as to whether the new law will affect the EPT’s Season 7 Warsaw stop.

Among those keeping a watchful eye on the situation in the European country was Interactive Media Entertainment and Gaming Association (iMEGA) Chairman Joe Brennan, who told Poker News Daily, “The genie is out of the bottle when it comes to online gambling. Whether it’s restricting it for consumer protection or guaranteeing the franchise for Poland’s brick and mortar casinos, the fact is that the Polish people have already voted with their feet, their wallets, and their computers by seeking out online gambling. Poland is going to have a hard time putting the genie back in the bottle, as would any country.”

Notable poker personalities hailing from Poland include Poker Hall of Fame member Henry Orenstein, a WSOP bracelet winner who also invented the hole card camera. Orenstein was born in Hrubieszów and currently lives in the United States. Michael Gracz was born in Warsaw and, like Orenstein, now calls the USA home.

Antonio Matias Wins EPT Vilamoura

Travel agency owner Antonio Matias took down the European Poker Tour’s (EPT) Vilamoura Main Event in the roving tournament series’ first ever trip to Portugal. Matias took home a €404,793 top prize.

The EPT Vilamoura stop had a buy-in of €5,300 and marked the richest tournament ever held in Portugal, according to PokerStars officials. Matias, a Portuguese businessman, was playing in his backyard and became the first native to take down an EPT tournament since Sandra Naujoks tasted victory in Dortmund last season. On his accomplishment, Matias told tournament staff following his win, “I like to think of myself as a citizen of the world, but it is very satisfying to win an EPT in my home country. I wasn’t intimidated by the competition because I play a lot of very good players in cash games. I just decided to play the way I play and hope that luck didn’t turn its back on me. When I got the chip lead yesterday, the only thing I had on my mind was winning.”

In the final hand of EPT Vilamoura, Pierre Neuville raised pre-flop holding J-10. Matias called with 8-7 and watched the action flop come J-8-7. Matias checked bottom two pair, Neuville bet with top pair, Matias put in a raise, and Neuville shoved. Matias called, having his opponent covered. Another seven on the turn gave Matias a full house, which held to scoop the EPT title. Neuville earned €257,681 for his runner-up showing.

Jeff Sarwer, a Canadian, called all-in for his tournament life with 9-5 on a flop of 9-7-3. Holding top pair, Sarwer watched as Matias flipped up pocket tens for an overpair. However, the turn came a five and, in a massive change of fate, gave Sarwer two pair, nines and fives, against Matias’ pair of tens. In heartbreaking fashion, the river came a three, shattering Sarwer’s EPT hopes and giving Matias a better two pair. The roller coaster of a hand ended with Sarwer seeking solace from Shaun Deeb, Jim “Mr_BigQueso” Collopy, and Jonathan “FatalError” Aguiar, who were on the rail to support him.

Jan Skampa was eliminated in fourth place from the Portuguese tournament. He ran K-9 into Sarwer’s pocket queens in a pre-flop raising war to cripple his stack, departing a few hands later and earning €117,000. Skampa was one of four players to claim a six-figure payday.

Here were the final results from EPT Vilamoura. A total of 322 players turned out, creating a €1.5 million prize pool:

1. Antonio Matias (Portugal) -  €404,793
2. Pierre Neuville (Belgium) – €257,681
3. Jeff Sarwer (Canada) – €156,170
4. Jan Skampa (Czech Republic) – €117,128
5. João Silva (Portugal) – €78,085
6. Michel Abecassis (France) – €62,468
7. Ryan Franklin (United States) – €46,851
8. Andrei Vlasenko (Russia) – €31,234

Next up for the EPT is a trip to Prague from December 1st to 6th. The €5,250 buy-in tournament saw Salvatore Bonavena claim a massive €774,000 payday last time out. The marathon Season 5 EPT Prague final table lasted 264 hands and spanned 12 hours. A bevy of Team PokerStars Pro personalities are expected, as last year, Noah Boeken, Dario Minieri, Marcin Horecki, Luca Pagano, William Thorson, Alex Kravchenko, and Katja Thater all threw their hats into the ring.

EPT Prague will be held at the Hilton Prague Hotel and will include a variety of side tournaments. In addition, cash games will kick off at Noon each day. The Main Event features two starting days (December 1st and 2nd) and registration opened today on PokerStars for interested players.

Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest live tournament news.

WPT and PartyPoker begin fight for poker supremacy

"That's our stated aim," PartyGaming's chief marketing officer Chris Welch told PokerListings. "And until that time we will leverage both the World Poker Tour and PartyPoker as best we can to take that challenge to our competitors."

Before the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) was signed into U.S. law in October 2006 and PartyPoker effectively pulled out of the U.S. market, it was the number one site in poker.

Since that time, PokerStars has emerged as the industry leader with more than 28 million players worldwide.

A major catalyst for PokerStars' growth has been the emergence of the European Poker Tour. While the WPT has always been credited with helping spur on poker's boom, it has since been surpassed by the PokerStars EPT, which boasted a total prize pool in excess of $55 million over 11 events last season, making it the largest poker tour in the world.

However, Welch says PartyGaming subsidiary Peerless Media Ltd's $12.3 million purchase of the WPT, approved by shareholders earlier this month, now has the organization primed to compete in Europe and across the globe.

"We think there is certainly room for two big tours in Europe," said Welch. "And the World Poker Tour, we believe, is a global brand while the European Poker Tour exists only in Europe."

Particularly in Italy and France, the WPT plans on embarking upon an aggressive growth strategy to begin competing with the EPT.

"We're looking forward to more global expansion, more International expansion," added newly appointed WPT president Adam Pliska.

Welch said part of that expansion will include offering more online satellites into WPT events worldwide.

"It's a great opportunity to offer our European players more tournaments and land based events and of course we are going to run satellites on PartyPoker," Welch said. "But we are also going to encourage other online sites to do the same."

While sites other than PokerStars once ran satellites for EPT events, many stopped after PokerStars forced its competitors to use the site's branding.

Welch says the WPT and PartyPoker will be taking a different approach.

"PokerStars have gone down the route of it being the PokerStars EPT and you've got to have that on your site to run satellites or freerolls," he explained. "That's not our strategy. Our strategy initially will be that it's the World Poker Tour and you can come and qualify from any online site or direct buy in.

"What they are trying to do is leverage their brand. They have the biggest tour in Europe and they are trying to get other people to mention their brand name. We have an opportunity here to grow the World Poker Tour by offering other online sites a chance to get in there without necessarily mentioning PartyPoker and that's what we are going to do."

But the battle for online poker supremacy will not just be fought on European soil.

In April of this year, PartyGaming entered into a $105 million settlement with the U.S. Attorney's Office to avoid prosecution for providing Internet gambling services to U.S. customers prior to the enactment of the UIGEA.

Under the terms of the agreement, PartyGaming agreed to stay out of the U.S. Internet gambling market under current legislation and is hoping, should the legislation change, it would be in a prime position to move back in.

Welch said the purchase of the WPT is yet another way PartyGaming is paving its road back into the United States.

"Should the United States open up, it's going to put us in a preeminent position, way ahead of the competition," he said. "We've taken the long view while some of the other players have taken the short view, and should the United States open up, we are going back to being number one again."

However, until U.S. Lawmakers get on board, Welch said the front lines of this fight will remain on the other side of the Atlantic.

"This provides us with a massive platform to bring PartyPoker back into the hands of millions of Americans," he said. "But in Europe, we can do that from day one."

The public face of both brands, 2009 Poker Hall of Fame inductee Mike Sexton, believes with PartyPoker and the WPT coming together, the sky is the limit.

"I think it can be a huge entity and a worldwide brand," he said. "Hopefully when online gaming becomes legalized in the United States, PartyPoker can come in and retain its status as the number one poker site in the world."

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WSOP 2009 Champion Joe Cada

A big Whoop and congratulations to PokerStars player Joe Cada on becoming WSOP Main Event Champion 2009 at the long awaited WSOP Final Table! Joe Cada is the youngest ever World Champion at just 21 years old!

Joe Cada was crowned World Champion in the early hours of November 10th 2009, after what has been described as an epic battle, where the lead changed hands several times whilst he was heads up with fellow American, Darvin Moon.

Roll of Honour – Top Five

• Joe Cada, USA - $8,546,435
• Darvin Moon, USA - $5,182,601
• Antoine Saout, France - $3,479,485
• Eric Buchanan, USA - $2,502,787
• Jeff Shulman, USA - $1,953,395

Note – 1st and 4th positions held by PokerStars players and 8th place by Kevin Schaffel, USA – actually a PokerStars Qualifier!

Congratulations one and all!

WSOP Main Event: James Akenhead, Antoine Saout Double Up

Players came out swinging after the first break of the 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event final table. Both short stacks entering the day, Antoine Saout and James Akenhead, doubled to get a new lease on life at the final table.

Akenhead was all-in on back-to-back hands. He received no action in the first, but on the second hand, he pushed pre-flop and Steven Begleiter made the call. Joe Cada’s supporters called loudly for their hero to call as well. Eric Buchman asked for a chip count, pointing to Akenhead’s stack, and then isolated by re-raising to 12 million. The stage lights brightened up considerably as everyone came to their feet with the first all-in and call of the 2009 WSOP Main Event final table. Begleiter faced nine million more to call and shoved his hand into the muck. Akenhead turned over K-Q, while Buchman showed A-K.

The flop came 2-3-J, helping neither player and keeping Buchman out in front. The turn was a king, giving both players top pair, and Akenhead needed to catch a queen to stay alive. Sure enough, one of the three remaining ladies in the deck hit the river, causing an explosion among the British train conductor’s fans. Buchman gave a small smile and Akenhead survived the all-in.

Shortly thereafter, Saout re-raised to 6.75 million over the top of a raise to 2.3 million by Darvin Moon after the flop came K-J-2. Moon re-raised all-in and Saout snap-called, having already committed two-thirds of his stack, and flipped up J-2 for bottom two pair. Moon revealed A-4 for ace-high and the turn came a three, giving Moon a straight draw to a five. However, another deuce hit on the river, doubling up Saout. The crowd came to life once again, as Saout’s supporters, decked in blue t-shirts, rallied behind their hero. Meanwhile, the French news outlets frantically began typing a story before the army of WSOP and PokerNews reporters could summarize the hand.

An official from Club Poker told Poker News Daily, “If Antoine wins, it will be huge for France.” He speculated that Saout could become the French version of Chris Moneymaker, who ignited the modern poker boom by winning the 2003 WSOP Main Event.

All nine players remain in the hunt for the $8.5 million first place prize payday. During the afternoon’s second break, rapper Ja Rule took to the stage with Lacey Jones and told the Absolute Poker pro that he’s rooting for Phil Ivey. Also taking center stage were Mike Matusow, who promoted his new book, “Check Raising the Devil,” “Celebrity Apprentice” runner-up Annie Duke, and Full Tilt Poker pro Jennifer Harman, who was railing Ivey and Jeff Shulman.

Moon continues to lead the way, although his stack has fallen to below 50 million. Joe Cada, Shulman, Akenhead, Phil Ivey, Kevn Schaffel, and Saout all sit with between 10 million and 20 million chips. Blinds are 200,000-400,000 with a 50,000 ante.

Discovering Saout: The unknown November Niner

But in an interview with PokerListings before leaving his home in Saint Martin des Champs, France for the 2009 World Series of Poker Main Event final nine in Las Vegas this weekend, Saout said that's just the way he likes it.

"It's even better if nobody is talking about me," he said.

The 25-year-old former engineering student, who qualified for his seat in the Main Event through a $50 satellite on Everest Poker, will likely need any edge anonymity can give him, coming into the final with the second shortest stack.

But he is also coming with a relaxed attitude.

"For the moment, I don't feel any pressure," he said. "Maybe it will come when I see the supporters once I arrive at the final table. I don't know."

Saout spent the end of the summer and early part of fall preparing for the Main Event by playing major tournaments across Europe.

There he proved his spot at the final table was no fluke, joining fellow November Niner shortstack James Akenhead at the final table of the World Series of Poker Europe main event.

He's now hoping the confidence that experience has helped him build will carry him forward in Las Vegas.

"I have had the opportunity to play a lot of tournaments thanks to my sponsorship with Everest Poker,"  he said. "That helped me gain more self-confidence, confidence in my game, and to earn more experience. Now I feel like I'm ready to play in the biggest tournaments."

Saout, who played much of the Main Event at a table with Phil Ivey, also spent some of his time studying the rest of the November Nine.

"I have been able to see a little bit of their game on ESPN videos," he said. "But I think that's not a guarantee. Within three months they have had time to change their game. And when it's time for the final table, it will be a special atmosphere, which could make them play differently."

Saout credits his math and analytical skills for his recent success in poker.

He multi-tables online and regularly leans on a close knit group of friends for strategy advice.

"I still talk about hands with my friends, both live and online poker hands," he said. "It is always good to get some other points of view. I also learn thanks to the big volume of games that I can play. And of course, I learn from my mistakes."

With Darvin Moon, Eric Buchman, Steven Begleiter, Jeff Shulman, Joe Cada, Kevin Schaffel, and Ivey all holding more chips coming into Saturday's final, Saout has his work cut out for him.

But the former junior champion Pétanque player sounds more than prepared for it.

"Everything is possible," he said. "But the road to victory is still long."

To follow Saout's progress and the entire 2009 WSOP Main Event final table, tune into PokerListings Live Coverage beginning at 12 p.m. PST Saturday, Nov. 7.

- With files from Fred Guillemot

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EPT 6 second-half schedule released

The major change to the schedule sees the addition of a new event in the Austrian Alps - the first 'EPT Snowfest' in Saalbach-Hinterglemm, running March 21-26, 2010.

Saalbach-Hinterglemm is one of Austria's premier ski areas and PokerStars qualifiers will also win a six-day ski package for this event.

Traditional stops in France, Denmark, Italy and the Grand Final in Monaco remain on the schedule, but the German leg of the tour will see a city and venue change.

The EPT will not be returning to Dortmund and although the new location has yet to be finalized, it appears it will likely be held in Berlin or Hamburg.

The second half of the schedule will also see the addition of several side events.

"There has been huge enthusiasm for the new EPT schedule and also for the bigger 'Festivals of Poker' like the one we held in London, and will be holding at the PCA, San Remo and Monte Carlo events," said EPT CEO John Duthie.

"The spectacular success of the EPT London Poker Festival a few weeks ago shows that players really relish the chance to play more side events, with a variety of games and buy-ins."

Last season's EPT proved a success with 11 events generating an overall prize pool of almost €55 million - more than any other poker tour.

Almost 8,000 players from 97 countries participated and with 13 events now on the schedule for Season 6, organizers believe the EPT is certain to smash records again.

Online satellites for EPT Portugal and the Pokerstars Caribbean Adventure are running now and others are planned in the coming months for future events.

Below is a look at the remainder of the EPT schedule. For more information the EPT website can be found here.

Tournament	Date	Venue	Buy-in	Cap
EPT Portugal	Nov. 17-22, 2009	Vilamoura	€5,000+300	600
EPT Prague	Dec. 1-6, 2009	Hilton	€5,000+250	600
PCA	Jan. 4-14, 2010	Atlantis	$10,000+300	1,600
EPT Deauville	Jan. 20-25, 2010	Casino Barriere de Deauville	€5,000+300	600
EPT Copenhagen	Feb. 16-21, 2010	Casino Copenhagen	35,000+2,250DKK	500
EPT Germany	Mar. 2-7, 2010	TBC	TBC	TBC
EPT Snowfest	Mar. 21-26, 2010	Alpin Palace Saalbach-Hinterglemm	€3,500+300	500
EPT San Remo	April 15-21, 2010	Casino San Remo	€5,000+300	TBC
EPT Grand Final	April 25-May 1, 2010	Sporting Club Monte Carlo	€10,000+600	1,000

 

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World Series of Poker November Nine: Antoine Saout

Although Antoine Saout may be one of the short-stacks at the final table with 9.5 million chips, this 25-year-old from Saint Martin des Champs, France, has proven he has the skills to make a run at the World Series of Poker Main Event title. In...

Local keeps APPT Auckland title in New Zealand

Simon Watt outlasted 263 players to win the biggest chunk of a $789,000 NZD prizepool in just the second APPT event ever held in New Zealand.

The event drew several recognizable players to the Skycity Casino, including Team PokerStars Pros Grant Levy, Emad Tahtouh, Tony Hachem, Celina Lin and Lee "Final Table" Nelson.

Nelson was eliminated in just the second hand of the tournament when he made a full house, but his opponent rivered quads.

The nine-player final table played out on Saturday with Assadour Assadourian the sole PokerStars sponsored player remaining. Unfortunately for Assadourian, he busted in seventh place for $23,670 NZD.

The final table eventually came down to New Zealander Watt and Frenchman Gerome Guitteau battling it out heads-up.

In the most pivotal hand of the tournament, Watt made an ill-timed bluff against Guitteau with ace-high and Guitteau on middle-pair.

Guitteau called him down and with over 90% of the chips in the middle, it looked like the Frenchman was destined to win the event. Instead, Watt spiked an ace on the turn and that was enough to secure the New Zealander the pot.

Two hands later, Watt busted Guitteau earning the APPT title and $209,085 NZD.

This is the second year that PokerStars has invaded New Zealand. Last year fellow Kiwi Daniel Craker beat 306 players to claim the inaugural title.

This year Craker put on an impressive performance in defending his title before finally busting out in 29th place for a cash of $5,523 NZD.

The next APPT event takes place Nov. 11-15 at the Shangri-La in Cebu, Philippines. Satellites are currently running on PokerStars.

Here are the complete final table payouts for the 2009 edition of APPT Auckland:

1 Simon Watt (New Zealand) - NZD $209,085
2 Gerome Guitteau (France) - NZD $142,020
3 Jason Brown (New Zealand) - NZD $82,845
4 Ke Sijia (China) - NZD $55,230
5 Richard Lancaster (New Zealand) - NZD $42,606
6 Jens Walther (Germany) - NZD $31,560
7 Assadour Assadourian (Australia) - NZD $23,670
8 Lance Climo (New Zealand) - NZD $18,936
9 Michael Shinzaki (USA) - NZD $14,202

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Simon Watt Wins APPT Auckland

Hometown hero Simon Watt bested Frenchman Gerome Guitteau in the finale of the Asian Pacific Poker Tour’s (APPT) Auckland Main Event. Watt banked NZ $209,000 for his efforts, or US $156,000 at current exchange rates.

Michael Shinzak hit the rail in ninth place, earning NZ $14,000. He pushed all-in pre-flop over the top of a raise by Guitteau, who promptly called and flipped up A-J. Shinzak showed just K-5 and the board ran out 7-A-10-9-K, giving Guitteau top pair. Lance Climo was sent packing in eighth place after his chips hit the middle pre-flop with A-10. However, he picked an inopportune time to put his tournament life on the line, as Watt tabled A-K. The turn was a king, sealing Watt’s win in the hand, and Climo earned NZ $18,000.

Assadour Assadourian, who finished 31st in APPT Auckland last year, was up to his winning ways once again in 2009 and claimed seventh place for NZ $23,000. The Aussie shoved after a flop of 7-8-J with two hearts holding Q-J for top pair. However, Guitteau held 8-7 for bottom two pair. The turn came a deuce and, needing a two, jack, or queen on the river to draw out, Assadourian saw the four of spades hit the board. Jens Walther was then bumped in sixth place after losing a race with A-Q against Guitteau’s pocket fives.

The next to go was Richard Lancaster, a Kiwi who pushed pre-flop with A-K and was called by Guitteau, who turned over A-Q. The flop came a seemingly benign 3-J-8, but a 10 on the turn gave Guitteau a gutshot straight draw if a king hit. The river – you guessed it – the king of diamonds, giving Guitteau a runner-runner straight for the win.

Chinese poker player Ke Sijia hit the skids in fourth place in APPT Auckland. Sijia called all-in after a board of J-2-10-3 with two diamonds and two hearts holding 9-10 of hearts for second pair and a flush draw. He was up against Guitteau, who held J-7 of diamonds for top pair and a flush draw of his own. The river came the queen of diamonds, filling Guitteau’s flush and lining Sijia’s pockets with NZ $55,000 for his fourth place showing. The pot gave Guitteau the chip lead three-handed.

Jason Brown saw his bankroll grow by NZ $82,000 for finishing third in Auckland. Brown ran pocket fives into Watt’s pocket kings and watched the board come 4-K-A-6-6, giving Watt a boat. The misfire left Brown crippled and he pushed on the next hand with K-4, up against Guitteau’s J-9. The flop came nine-high and Brown could never catch up. Watt and Guitteau were nearly even in chips entering heads-up play.

In the final hand of the APPT Auckland feature tournament, Guitteau’s tournament life was on the line with K-7 of clubs against Watt’s wired pair of fives. The flop came Q-6-J, which was no help to either player, and the board filled out 9-J. Guitteau earned NZ $142,000 for his runner-up showing. Here were the final table results from APPT Auckland:

1. Simon Watt (New Zealand) – NZ $209,085
2. Gerome Guitteau (France) – NZ $142,020
3. Jason Brown (New Zealand) – NZ $82,845
4. Ke Sijia (China) – NZ $55,230
5. Richard Lancaster (New Zealand) – NZ $42,606
6. Jens Walther (Germany) – NZ $31,560
7. Assadour Assadourian (Australia) – NZ $23,670
8. Lance Climo (New Zealand) – NZ $18,936
9. Michael Shinzaki (United States) – NZ $14,202

All but three of the final nine runners in the event were PokerStars qualifiers. The world’s largest online poker site serves as the presenting sponsor of the APPT circuit, which now heads to Cebu in the Philippines on November 11th. The PHP 100,000 buy-in tournament (approximately $2,150) will be held at the Shangri-la Mactan Resort.

World Poker Tour Marrakech: Christophe Savary is Crowned Champion

The final 17 players returned to the Casino de Marrakech this afternoon to slug it out for the World Poker Tour Marrakech title, the first ever on the African continent. At the end of a marathon day, Christophe Savary of France emerged victorious...

Mike Sexton Previews the WSOP November Nine

The entire poker world is anxiously awaiting the final table of the 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event, which will be played this November.  The finalists have been dubbed the “November Nine” because of the four-month delay of the final table.  It’s a final table that has created tremendous interest because it has everything – an amateur with a massive chip lead, three guys in their 20s, and great players from around the world.  It’s also got Phil Ivey – and that is huge for the WSOP.

I often get asked, “Who do you think is the best poker player in the world?”  Well, when asked the same question years ago, Doyle Brunson said, “You judge a hunter by the number of furs he brings home”  (I love that phrase).  Well, nobody has brought home more “fur” than Phil Ivey.  I consider Phil Ivey to be the best player in the world.

Ivey is the best in every poker category you can come up with – cash games, tournament poker, and online poker.  I would bet that he’s the most successful cash game player of all-time and he will become the all-time tournament money leader if he finishes in fourth place or better at the WSOP Main Event final table.  If he’s not the most successful online player out there, then he’s certainly one of them.  When it comes to playing poker (and that includes all games), put Ivey at the top of your list.

One thing’s for sure – in addition to most players, Harrah’s, the WSOP, and ESPN are thrilled that Phil Ivey is at the final table. Because he’s there, I look for ratings for the WSOP final table to at least double from last year.  And that’s good for poker.

OK, here are the November Nine and their chip counts:

Darvin Moon – 58,930,000
Eric Buchman – 34,800,000
Steven Begleiter – 29,885,000
Jeff Shulman – 19,580,000
Joe Cada – 13,215,000
Kevin Schaffel – 12,390,000
Phil Ivey – 9,765,000
Antoine Saout – 9,500,000
James Akenhead – 6,800,000

The November Nine chip leader is Darvin Moon.  He’s a 45 year-old amateur poker player from Oakland, Maryland.  Playing in his first-ever big-time tournament, he could become the next Chris Moneymaker.  Moon is an amazing story.  He won his seat in a qualifying tournament in West Virginia and thought about taking the $10,000 first place prize and putting it in the family business.  His brother talked him out of that and encouraged him to go ahead and enter the WSOP (brother knows best).  Experience or not, with nearly 60 million in chips, I can’t imagine anyone being a bigger favorite than him to win.  Will it be a “Full Moon” in November?

Starting in second chip position with nearly 35 million is Eric Buchman.  Eric is a 29 year-old pro from New York.  He’s been a pro for about 10 years and this marks his 23rd cash at the WSOP.  Prior to this tournament, he had nearly $1 million in career tournament cashes.  With his experience and chip count, he could be the man to beat.

In third chip position with nearly 30 million is 47 year-old Steven Begleiter from Chappaqua, New York.  He was a strategist for the investment bank Bear Stearns for nearly 25 years.  He qualified for the WSOP Main Event on the Newcastle Poker Tour and poker league.  He’s really popular there, as he plans to donate 20% of his winnings to his poker league.  Now that is a friendly game!

The only guy who has been to the WSOP Main Event final table before is 34 year-old Jeff Shulman, the editor of CardPlayer Magazine.  He’ll be starting out in fourth chip position with nearly 20 million.  Shulman created a controversy by saying he would “throw the bracelet in the garbage if I win”  (that’s because of his strong opinion of unfair media treatment by the WSOP).  Like most, I’m shocked by that statement considering Shulman is in the business of promoting poker.  Shulman’s experience could bode well for him in November, but hopefully he’ll change his mind about throwing the bracelet in the garbage.

On a side note, that 2000 WSOP Main Event is still vivid in my mind because I felt I had a real shot to win it.  I ended up finishing in 12th place and was knocked out by Shulman (who was the big chip leader at the time and won a race for all of my chips).  It turned out to be a heartbreaking tournament for Shulman as well because, for the first time in WSOP history, only six players made it to the TV table and Shulman was the massive chip leader with seven players left.  He ended up going out seventh.

The youngest player at the table, 21 year-old Joe Cada from Michigan, will be starting out in fifth chip position.  If he wins, he will break Peter Eastgate’s record of being the youngest WSOP Main Event champion ever.  Cada plays a lot of heads-up poker and likes his chances if he gets short-handed.  He’s young, confident in his abilities, and believes he’s got a good chance to win.

Kevin Schaffel, 51, has been playing poker for 30 years.  This super nice Floridian claims to be “semi-retired,” but he is a scratch golfer and plays a lot of poker.  Do you think he works much?  Kevin recently finished second in the WPT’s Legends of Poker at the Bicycle Casino and, I can tell you, he played very well there.  If he doesn’t dub any shots on the green felt in November, he could very well be crowned champion.

Phil Ivey is “the man” at any poker table.  Although he’s starting in seventh chip position with less than 10 million in chips, many are wagering on him to win.  I’m sure he feels pretty good about his chances and why wouldn’t he?  He’s already won two bracelets at the 2009 WSOP and then bet $20,000 on himself to win the Main Event at 100-1 odds when there were still 2,400 players left!  Like many, I would love to see Ivey win.  I think it would be great for the poker world if the greatest player in the game won the biggest event in poker.

Antoine Saout, 25 years-old and from France, will be starting in eighth chip position.  He qualified for this tournament by winning a $50 online satellite.  Word has it that he crushes online tournaments.  I know some French players who really respect his game.   When he told his mom he wanted to become a poker pro, she was not happy.  With this finish and becoming a guaranteed millionaire, mom has changed her mind.  “Bon chance,” Antoine!

James Akenhead, 26, from England, discovered poker a few years ago while he was pursuing his other love, pool.  He practiced pool 10 hours a day and was ranked 15th in the U.K. in nine-ball at one time.  Akenhead has been a poker pro for three years and several top players from England have told me that he’s a very tough player.  Although he’s starting on the short stack, if he can double up early, they really like his chances.  A Hall of Fame poker player once said, “Poker is like pool.  Some days you make every shot and other days you hit nothing but the rail.”  Can this pool player parlay the short stack into the title?

One thing’s for sure:  It’s going to be a great final table in November.  Like all poker players, I can’t wait.

WSOP on ESPN Ratings up 11% in 2009

On Tuesday night, action from the 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) will continue on cable station ESPN. “The Worldwide Leader in Sports” has seen a ratings boom in 2009 down the stretch, with the Main Event final table on tap for November 10th.

According to ESPN officials, through 11 weeks of coverage of the 2009 WSOP, its broadcasts have delivered a 0.91 average household coverage rating, up 11% from last year, when the average rating was 0.82. ESPN coverage of the 2009 WSOP began on July 28th, when the network aired the brand new $40,000 buy-in No Limit Hold’em tournament commemorating the 40th running of the WSOP. ESPN then went on to feature the WSOP Champions Invitational, a 20-person freeroll consisting of former Main Event winners, and the Ante Up for Africa charity gala, which included actors Matt Damon and Ben Affleck.

Last week, coverage of Day 5 of the Main Event was featured during the 9:00pm ET hour, followed by Day 6 at 10:00pm ET. Each episode lasted for one hour and the first garnered a 0.88 rating. The second hour began with a rap by Prahlad Friedman and had a feature table that included 2007 WSOP Player of the Year Tom Schneider. That episode generated a 1.17 rating, the second highest of the season. Last Tuesday marked the first week that the WSOP on ESPN moved to a 9:00pm ET kickoff, as it had previously started one hour earlier at 8:00pm ET. The Main Event final table will air on Tuesday, November 10th at 9:00pm ET and run for two-and-a-half hours.

Key for ESPN’s advertisers, which include online poker rooms PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker as well as Jack Link’s Beef Jerky, are two demographics. Males age 18 to 49 have tuned into the 2009 WSOP on ESPN in droves, rising 12% from the number that watched the 2008 broadcast. Among males age 25 to 54, the number of viewers is up 16% in 2009. PokerStars sponsors the “Straight from the Pros” segment as well as the program’s on-screen chip counts, while Full Tilt Poker sponsors the “Deal Me In” strategy segment during WSOP on ESPN broadcasts. Ultimate Bet has also been spotted airing commercials on the cable station. The site is fresh off the conclusion of its annual Aruba Poker Classic, which saw Brandon Hall and Robert Mizrachi chop heads-up.

Last year marked the first that the final table of the prestigious $10,000 buy-in Main Event was delayed until November in order to coincide with its broadcast on ESPN. As a result, ratings mushroomed by 50% for the final table airing. At the end of the day, Peter Eastgate bested Ivan Demidov in front of a packed house at the Penn and Teller Theater at the Rio and banked $9.1 million.

This year, another schedule change has the poker world talking. Play will resume in the Main Event final table on November 7th at 12:00 Noon PT and continue until two players remain. Then, the pair will play heads-up beginning on November 9th at 10:00pm PT to determine a winner. The gap in between will allow time for media interviews and further study by the heads-up participants of each other’s tendencies.

While WSOP on ESPN coverage has focused on players like Eastgate, Joe Hachem, Dennis Phillips, and Betrand “Elky” Grospellier, the following nine players will take to the felts in November:

1. Darvin Moon (Oakland, Maryland) – 58,930,000
2. Eric Buchman (Valley Stream, New York) – 34,800,000
3. Steven Begleiter (Chappaqua, New York) – 29,885,000
4. Jeff Shulman (Las Vegas, Nevada) – 19,580,000
5. Joe Cada (Shelby Township, Michigan) – 13,215,000
6. Kevin Schaffel (Coral Springs, Florida) – 12,390,000
7. Phil Ivey (Las Vegas, Nevada) – 9,765,000
8. Antoine Saout (Paris, France) – 9,500,000
9. James Akenhead (London, England) – 6,800,000

Check out the WSOP on ESPN every Tuesday at 9:00pm ET.

Poker News in Brief: Oct. 5-11, 2009

Instead, U.S. player Aaron Gustavson stole the spotlight by winning EPT London as a three-week long schedule of major tournaments in England finally drew to a close.

Of course, there was plenty of poker news that happened outside of London this week and as part of our ongoing Poker News in Brief feature, we'll try to catch you up with it all.

This week we'll be looking at a new UltimateBet charity tournament, poker players in the buff and France possibly opening up its online gambling market.

UltimateBet introduces Starlight Poker Challenge

Annie Duke, Phil Hellmuth and UltimateBet are once again showing their charitable side by hosting the Starlight Poker Challenge in Montreal, Nov. 14-18.

The event will offer a guaranteed first-place prize of $100,000, which is reportedly the most ever offered by a charity poker tournament in Canada.

Proceeds will be going to the Starlight Children's Foundation Canada, which is part of an international non-profit organization dedicated to assisting seriously ill children and their families.

The event will feature a WSOP-style structure with several celebrities set to play, including Hellmuth and Duke.

For more information check out the event's website here.

OktoberFest Returns to Hustler Casino

Hustler Casino in L.A. is celebrating the changing of the seasons with the return of its Oktoberfest Fall Classic Tournament.

This time around the casino will be offering a deep stack series with over $300,000 in guarantees. The 23-day tournament series will begin Oct. 15 and run until Nov. 2.

The centerpiece of the tournament will be the $225 buy-in Liz Flynt Poker Classic, which takes place Oct. 24-26 with a $100,000 guarantee.

Players will be treated to complimentary champagne, buffet and a visit from the Hustler Honeys and Hustler Hunks.

Click here for the complete schedule.

Half-naked poker pros in ESPN The Magazine

Poker players are generally not known for their fantastic physiques, so it came as a surprise to many that four poker players were featured in a photo in this month's "Body" issue of ESPN The Magazine.

The photo, which appears to be somewhat tongue-in-cheek, features Daniel Negreanu, Jennifer Harman, Phil Hellmuth and Scotty Nguyen sitting topless at a poker table.

The Body issue of ESPN The Magazine is meant to highlight some of world's most impressive figures and it features star athletes like Serena Williams, Dwight Howard and Zdeno Chara in varying degrees of undress.

The issue is currently available at newsstands around the world.

French bill to open online gambling market?

It appears the French-government's monopoly on online gambling is at an end.

According to Reuters reports out of Paris, a French bill that would end the state monopoly went before discussion on Wednesday.

Budget Minister Eric Woerth told Parliament he thought they had found middle-ground that would be an efficient way of controlling the market and ending the reign of numerous illegal sites.

France had been feeling pressure from the European Union and private operators to open up their market, which is worth billions.

The new legislation would see private firms obtain permits from a newly created regulator. These firms would then be able to run their own gambling sites.

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Aaron Gustavson Defeats Peter Eastgate in EPT London

As the great wrestler Ric Flair said, “To be the man, you gotta beat the man!” In this week’s finale of the European Poker Tour’s (EPT) London stop, Aaron Gustavson did just that, besting reigning World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event Champion Peter Eastgate heads-up.

Gustavson, an American who qualified for the event through the popular online poker room PokerStars, took home £850,000 for his efforts. All was not lost for Eastgate, however, as the Dane and member of Team PokerStars Pro earned a £530,000 consolation prize. The two emerged as the survivors of the largest poker tournament ever held in the United Kingdom, weighing in at 730 runners. Gustavson was one of 149 players, or 20% of the field, who qualified online through PokerStars.

In a press release distributed by EPT officials following Gustavson’s monumental win, the champion noted, “I’m speechless, totally overwhelmed. I don’t think it’s going to hit me for a quite a while. Having this title is amazing – a dream come true.” Gustavson’s battle against Eastgate was anything but prolonged, as the defeat took all of seven hands and 15 minutes to deliver. In the final hand, Gustavson’s A-Q held up against Eatsgate’s A-9 when the board ran out 3-5-6-K-J. Eastgate commented, “It’s been an amazing ride. I made it to second place, which is far more than you hope for going into a final table. Big applause for Aaron – he deserved it. I’m pleased I made it to heads-up.”

Nikolai Senninger hit the skids in third place after calling all-in for his tournament life against Gustavson on a board of 3-7-Q-9 with two hearts. Senniger showed pocket eights, while Gustavson flipped up Q-10 for top pair. The river came a 10, improving Gustavson to two pair and eliminating Senniger in third place, £285,000 richer for his wear. Taking fourth was Martin Gudvangen, who fell by the wayside with A-3 against Senniger’s A-Q. The best hand held and Gudvangen walked away from the EPT London Main Event with £227,000 in tow.

Dominic Cullen was sent packing in fifth place, earning £173,000. Cullen pushed pre-flop holding A-10, but ran into Gustavson’s pocket eights. The two were off to the races, with an eight spiking the flop to propel Gustavson to the win in the hand. Cullen edged out Rui Milhomens, who took sixth place for £124,000. Milhomens found himself all-in holding pocket eights against Eastgate’s A-10. This time, a 10 hit the river to send the player with the wired pair to the rails.

Gustavson sent Raymond Wu into the London night in seventh place for £87,000, a healthy return on his £5,000 buy-in. A short-stacked Wu pushed with Q-10, but Gustavson made the call from the big blind for a discount with K-6. The flop came king-high, keeping Gustavson in the lead in the hand for good. Karim Benanni finished in eighth place after running K-3 into Milhomens’ K-10.

The final table was played eight-handed and appeared live on PokerStars.tv from the Hilton Metropole. Here were the final results from the 2009 EPT London Main Event:

1. Aaron Gustavson (United States) - 850,000
2. Peter Eastgate (Denmark) - 530,000
3. Nikolai Senninger (Germany) - 285,000
4. Martin Gudvangen (Norway) - 227,000
5. Dominic Cullen (United Kingdom) - 173,000
6. Rui Milhomens (Portugal) - 124,000
7. Raymond Wu (Taipei) - 87,000
8. Karim Bennani Smires (France/Morocco) - 50,100

Next up for the EPT is Warsaw. The event takes place from October 20th to 25th at Casinos Poland and boasts a 25,000 PLN buy-in, the equivalent of $8,700 at current exchange rates. Last year, Portuguese poker player Joao Barbosa celebrated his 26th birthday in style by winning the EPT Warsaw event.

Matt Glantz Wins PokerStars EPT London High Roller Event

American Matt Glantz emerged victorious in the European Poker Tour’s (EPT) London High Roller event, banking £542,000. Glantz bested Erik Cajelais in a tournament that attracted 75 runners.

Cajelais entered the final table as a commanding chip leader, owning a stack of 893,000, well out in front of Glantz, who came armed with 647,500. Glantz had a wealth of experience, however, finishing fourth in the $50,000 buy-in HORSE Championship during the 2008 World Series of Poker (WSOP) for $568,000. That final table, of course, featured Scotty Nguyen, a 2009 Poker Hall of Fame finalist, emerging victorious while allegedly inebriated. Also that year, Glantz took third in the World Championship Mixed Event for $184,000.

Cajelais, meanwhile, was fresh off a win in the £2,500 buy-in Pot Limit Hold’em / Pot Limit Omaha contest during the 2009 WSOP Europe festivities, which were also held in London. In that event, he defeated Mats Gavatin heads-up and earned £104,000. Also appearing at the Pot Limit final table were Men “The Master” Nguyen, Hoyt Corkins, and Chris Bjorin, who went on to finish sixth in the WSOP Europe Main Event.

Just after the dinner break, Glantz prevailed in the High Roller tournament. Here is how its final table shook out:

1. Matt Glantz (United States) - £542,000
2. Erik Cajelais (Canada) - £326,000
3. Eugene Katchalov (United States) - £193,000
4. Adolfo Vaeza (Uruguay) - £141,000
5. Leo Fernandez (Argentina) - £104,000
6. Ilari Sahamies (Finland) - £74,000
7. Dennis Phillips (United States) - £60,000
8. Shane Reihill (Ireland) - £45,000

Phillips has been on fire over the past year. After finishing third in the 2008 WSOP Main Event for $4.5 million, the truck salesman grabbed 45th in the 2009 installment, earning another $178,000. He won a $500 buy-in tournament during the Venetian Deep Stack Extravaganza in Las Vegas in April and has become one of poker’s top ambassadors. Phillips, along with a half-dozen other pros, descended on Capitol Hill for the Poker Players Alliance (PPA) Fly-In held during National Poker Week. Phillips toured the Walter Reed Army Medical Center and also played in a charity poker tournament.

Sahamies, nicknamed “Ziigumd” in the online world, is the front man for the Cake Poker Network site Power Poker. Sahamies appeared on Season 5 of the GSN cash game show “High Stakes Poker” and was part of the winning squad in the inaugural Caesars Cup. Fernandez, along with Phillips, is a card-carrying member of Team PokerStars Pro. In April, Fernandez finished sixth in the Latin American Poker Tour’s (LAPT) Mar del Plata Main Event for $63,000. His employer, PokerStars, sponsors the EPT.

WSOP November Nine member Phil Ivey was the first player sent packing from the High Roller event. Others who hit the skids on Day 1 included Tom “durrrr” Dwan, Dave “Devilfish” Ulliott, Chris Moneymaker, Greg Raymer, Barry Greenstein, Vanessa Rousso, Luca Pagano, J.C. Alvarado, and Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier. After his victory, Glantz told PokerStars officials, “It feels great. It’s just been my day.” In the final hand, Glantz’s A-2 held up against Cajelais’ Q-J.

The £5,000 buy-in EPT London Main Event is currently underway. This time around, the tournament attracted 730 players, which PokerStars claims is the largest poker event ever held in the United Kingdom. Only 596 players took to the felts in 2008, representing a growth of 23%. A total of 58 countries are represented, including 138 players from the United Kingdom, 131 from the United States, 63 from France, 45 from Germany, and 42 from Italy.

Matt Hawrilenko Leads WSOP Europe Main Event Entering Day 4

Two days of play remain in the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe Main Event and, perched atop the leaderboard entering Wednesday’s battle is Matt Hawrilenko, a 27 year-old poker pro who goes by “Hoss-TBF” online.

Hawrilenko took down a $1 million first place prize for winning Event #56 of the 2009 WSOP in Las Vegas, a $5,000 buy-in No Limit Hold’em Six-Handed event. He triumphed over a final table that included Matt Waxman and Faraz “The-Toilet” Jaka and owns 701,500 chips in London, the only player to eclipse the 700,000-chip plateau. Hawrilenko already has three WSOP final tables in 2009 and has quickly become one of the most feared names on the circuit. Hot on his heels is CardPlayer Magazine founder Barry Shulman, father of WSOP November Nine member Jeff Shulman. The latter was featured heavily in last night’s coverage of the 2009 Main Event on ESPN and was seated at the feature table.

Speaking of the November Nine, two of its members remain in the hunt to repeat Ivan Demidov’s miraculous feat last year. In 2008, Demidov made the final table of both the WSOP Main Event in Las Vegas and the WSOP Europe Main Event in London. Antoine Saout, who hails from France, sits with the 24th largest chip stack (202,000), while England’s James Akenhead boasts the 30th biggest tally (153,500). The nine final table members in Las Vegas will take to felts on November 7th, when they’ll return to play down to two. Then, the action resumes late in the day on November 9th to determine a winner. The tournament’s finale will air on cable station ESPN on Tuesday, November 10th.

Also still in the hunt is Doyle Brunson, who was sixth in chips entering play on Tuesday. Brunson has trailed off a bit to own the 21st largest stack out of 36 remaining players. He owns 10 WSOP bracelets, tied with Johnny Chan for second most overall; the duo trails Ultimate Bet pro Phil Hellmuth’s 11. Brunson has been shut out of the winner’s circle since 2005 and will look to make a run entering the play down day in the WSOP Europe Main Event. Brunson has 246,500 chips and joining him at Table 1 today are Jason Mercier, 2009 Poker Hall of Fame nominee Men “The Master” Nguyen, and Shulman, among others.

Here are the Top 10 chip stacks remaining in the 2009 WSOP Europe Main Event:

1. Matt Hawrilenko – 701,500
2. Steven Fung – 648,000
3. Praz Bassi – 471,000
4. Arnauld Mattern – 469,500
5. Barry Shulman – 452,500
6. John Kabbaj – 448,500
7. Peter Gould – 409,000
8. Shandoi Demjan – 367,500
9. Keith Hawkins – 330,500
10. Eric Liu – 330,500

The rest of the field is as follows:

11. Ram Vaswarni – 322,000
12. Daniel Negreanu – 314,500
13. Chris Bjorin – 306,500
14. Thomas Bichon – 305,000
15. Yevgeniy Timoshenko – 285,000
16. Saar Wilf – 273,500
17. Teddy Sheringham – 272,500
18. Andre Akkari – 272,000
19. Tommy Pavlicek – 266,500
20. Anthony Cousineau – 257,000
21. Doyle Brunson – 246,500
22. Christian Harder – 243,000
23. Craig Burgess – 232,500
24. Antoine Saout – 202,000
25. Michael Fasco – 200,500
26. Elizabeth Lieu – 193,500
27. Markus Ristola – 157,000
28. Konstantin Buecherl – 156,500
29. Steve Zolotow – 156,500
30. James Akenhead – 153,500
31. Christian Kruel – 140,000
32. Jason Mercier – 125,000
33. Oyvind Riisem – 113,500
34. Dave “Devilfish” Ulliott – 80,000
35. David Docherty – 71,500
36. Men Nguyen – 63,000

The field will be chopped to nine today and the action is already underway from the Casino at the Empire. Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest WSOP Europe coverage.

International Federation of Poker: Governing Body for the Industry?

Ever since the explosion of poker in the early years of the 21st century, attempts have been made to organize players, either through a governing body for the sport or an organization to impose changes in the game, with varying degrees of success.

In April, a meeting in Lausanne, Switzerland attracted seven federations - the Danish Poker Federation (Denmark), the Fédération Française des Joueurs de Poker (France), the Stichting Nederlandse PokerBond (Holland), the United Kingdom Poker Federation (U.K.), the Russian Sport Poker Federation (Russia), the Ukrainian Poker Federation (Ukraine), and the Associacao Brazileira de Poker (Brazil) - to undertake the task of creating a worldwide poker federation that would bring the game into the sporting community. From this meeting was born the International Federation of Poker.

One of the tasks that the International Federation of Poker completed was electing its leadership and, when it comes to its President, its membership couldn’t have chosen a better man. Noted author Anthony Holden, who has written “Big Deal” and “Bigger Deal” and traveled around the globe playing poker, was elected as the first President of the organization. Poker News Daily had the chance to speak with Holden and discuss some of the challenges that face him.

PND: The International Federation of Poker (IFP) is not the first attempt at starting a governing body for poker. What chances for success do you believe the IFP has and how will it make a difference beyond other attempts?

Holden: The chances for success are as promising as they are exciting. The poker industry has grown so fast in the past decade that a governing infrastructure hasn’t been able to grow at the same pace. Poker is now one of the three most participated sports in the world alongside golf and fishing. There is a great need for a properly structured governing body, as there is in all competitive sports, and the IFP is such a body.

There are several features of the IFP that differentiate it from the previous organizations. The IFP is the first governing body in poker to be properly structured as a Sports Federation. The IFP is a not-for-profit organization with its head office in Lausanne, Switzerland, the global headquarters of international sports federations and the International Olympic Committee. It is subject to the Swiss Civil Code and will be arbitrated by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, also in Lausanne. This is a major step towards securing recognition of poker’s status as a sport.

The IFP’s goals are broader than those of other poker organizations. Current organizations have very specific interests which the IFP will also be working towards: seeking recognition of poker as a skilled mind-sport and promoting a single unified set of rules to be used in card rooms across the globe. These goals are only part of the broader goal of the IFP, which is to form a comprehensive governing body comprised of national federations from around the world.

Also, the IFP has a well-qualified and dedicated staff working full-time to achieve its goals. Other organizations have been run part-time by very busy people and often fallen by the wayside. The IFP has the resources and manpower to establish itself as a major player on the international poker scene.

PND: The IFP has a strong start with seven national federations already members. Is there a goal in number of national federations to bring onboard or is it more quality-based?

Holden: One of the early missions of the IFP is to build up a strong membership base from around the world. We have identified governing bodies in more than 20 countries outside of our founding members and we are confident that our membership will grow quickly and steadily in the coming months. We hope to have 30 member nations by the end of this year.

When considering an application, the quality of the federation applying is paramount. The IFP has strict criteria for acceptance as a member: the federation in question must be a non-profit organization that truly represents the interest of poker players in that country and whose goals for the promotion of poker are aligned with those of the IFP. Applications from federations are submitted to the Board for approval by vote.

While we are working hard to secure membership of federations in key markets, the IFP is seeking member federations in all nations, no matter how small or remote. We are in advanced discussions about membership with federations from Germany, Italy, and Kyrgyzstan.

PND: What is the strongest component of the IFP, the overall governing body or the individual national federations that comprise it?

Holden: The IFP is a truly democratic body. Every member nation has one representative on the Congress, the supreme authority of the IFP. The IFP operates a “One Country, One Vote” policy, so no matter what the size of a nation, it participates in the governing of the IFP on an equal footing with all other nations.

PND: What are the challenges that the IFP faces?

AH: The greatest challenge that the IFP faces is the stigma that governments and the non-poker playing public attaches to poker. Government decision-makers see poker solely as a gambling activity and think its place is in a casino alongside craps and roulette. The IFP is seeking to educate people that poker is a skilled mind-sport and so to secure it the legal status it deserves all over the world. All the federations we have met are at different stages in the debate with their governments.

The IFP wishes to see a global coordinated approach to the issue and to provide our members with support and advice. We have had promising talks with the International Mind Sports Association in Paris, currently consisting of the international federations of Bridge, Chess, Draughts, and Go. We are optimistic about joining this organization later in the year, and, once we do, we will have official recognition as a mind-sport. Every four years, the IMSA holds the Mind-Sports Games, alongside and in the same city as the Olympics. The IFP looks forward to the chance to bring poker into this event. Once we achieve this, it will be a very useful tool in many debates.

PND: What attracted you to accept a position with the IFP?

Holden: As a lifelong author and journalist, I’ve been playing poker for 40 years and writing books about it for 20. My first visit to the World Series of Poker (WSOP) was in 1977. In recent years, I have been sponsored by PokerStars at events around Europe as well as the WSOP Main Event. That has now had to stop, alas, as the President of IFP obviously cannot accept sponsorship from any one website. I accepted the job, despite this sacrifice, because I believe the goals of the IFP are so important to the game. It enables me to spend my entire working life around poker, doing something worthwhile. Now that beats writing hands down!

PND: What would you like to see for the IFP before the end of the year?

Holden: We would like to have at least 30 member nations and to hold the first IFP team poker event. We would also like to see our member nations making progress with their national governments in the reclassification of poker from a luck-based gambling activity into a skill-based mind-sport. Finally, the IFP has had promising discussions with the International Mind Sports Association and we would be delighted to join this organization by the end of the year.

Heads-Up: JP Kelly vs Fabien Dunlop

It's the heads-up we all expected. JP Kelly vs Fabien Dunlop. England vs France. Both players are aggressive and both are hungry.

Metsas wins Betfair’s $1 million freeroll

Anestis Metsas took the $1 million first-place prize at Betfair's Free Million Dollar Game Thursday, beating out 17 other Betfair qualifiers at the Casino at the Empire in Leicester Square.

"It's unbelievable to have won," he said. "This amazing win has given me the confidence to believe I can compete against the best players in Europe and the rest of the World."

The 23-year-old from Greece qualified for the event through a series of online freerolls and a live regional qualifier.

The road to Betfair's Free Million Dollar Game started in April 2009 with online freerolls leading to regional qualifiers with 18 winners descending upon London to play out the live final Thursday.

With a rather lively crowd in attendance, Metsas outlasted the other regional qualifier winners over a grueling 10 hours.

The final hand saw France's Kevin Michoud get it all in with a flush draw against Metsas' top pair-top kicker.

Top pair held, Metsas booked the win and told reporters he intends to share his $1 million prize with friends and family, starting with a holiday in Phuket, Thailand.

"Coming into the final table I knew I was up against 17 tough players and was hoping I could stay with the British and Scandinavian guys," he said.

"The early stages were frustrating. Every time I had good cards, people didn't want to go in and when I had bad cards everyone wanted to get involved in the big stacks.

"Having won, I'm now going to buy my way into the £1,000 No Limit Hold'em [Friday], and after that who knows."

PokerListings' comprehensive coverage of the World Series of Poker Europe begins Friday with live updates from Day 1a of the £1,000 No Limit Hold'em event in our Live Coverage section.

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Isabelle Mercier quits Team PokerStars

After five years as a member of Team PokerStars Pro, the French-Canadian poker superstar said she is saying goodbye to one of the most lucrative sponsorship deals in the poker industry to "take on new projects."

Following a series of emails back and forth with PokerListings, Mercier sent out a press release claiming she "currently has extensive projects, both nationally and internationally, in the world of poker," and, "is not about to give up her life's passion."

No specific details regarding the projects were included.

However, after the French-language release of her autobiography Profession: Bluffer in 2008, Mercier did tell PokerListings she was seeking an English publisher and interested in selling the film rights.

A law school graduate from the University of Montréal, Mercier's first foray into the poker world was a night shift job at the Aviation Club de France where she quickly ascended to the position of poker room manager.

Eventually, Mercier sold everything she owned to bankroll herself as a professional player, stepping into the spotlight when she won the World Poker Tour Ladies Night II event in 2004.

Since then, Mercier has amassed more than $1 million in career live tournament earnings, most recently following up a final table appearance at last year's EPT London High Roller tournament with a win at the EPT Monte Carlo Ante Up for Africa event to benefit Darfur, where she donated the entire €250,000 first-place prize to the cause.

Her biggest online score is a third place finish in the PokerStars Sunday Million this past July for $115k.

Mercier had lived out of a suitcase the past four years before finally buying homes in both Monaco and Montreal this past year. She remained absent from most of the 2009 WSOP turning up only to play in the Ante Up For Africa charity tournament and the Main Event.

A representative from PokerStars said it was Mercier's decision not to renew her sponsorship contract with the site and the organization wishes her the best.

Team PokerStars Pro Vicky Coren said she would wager this isn't the last the poker world will see of Mercier.

"I'm sad that Isabelle has left Team Pro, but I do understand it," Coren said. "The International tournament circuit is pretty relentless, but Isabelle has embraced the full-on romantic poker life, always on the road, living out of a suitcase for months at a time.

"In that same romantic spirit, she's now jumping off to try new things and have fresh adventures. Having said that, I would bet good money that we'll still see Isabelle cropping up in the bigger tournaments, like Monte Carlo and the PCA. I hope so, because she's one of my favorite people in poker."

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World Poker Tour Merit Cyprus Classic Day 6: Bichon Scores One for France

The first annual World Poker Tour Merit Cyprus Classic crowned its inaugural champion last night inside the walls of the Merit Crystal Cove Hotel and Casino in Cyprus. 32-year-old French pro Thomas Bichon claimed the bracelet, the title and the...

Sumpas Claims WCOOP High Roller Title; ternoplayer Wins Event #9

It was a busier Sunday than normal on the virtual poker felts as the PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) recommenced with three events, two of which played down to a champion early Monday morning. The $215 No Limit Hold ‘em (Event #9) drew a field of 11,131 players, while the $10,300 No Limit Hold ‘em High Roller (Event #10) attracted nearly 300 of the wealthiest and most respected poker players in the world.

The $10,300 High Roller Event easily surpassed its $2 million guarantee as 299 entrants produced a prize pool of $2,990,000. A first-place prize of $611,455 of was on the line as well as the coveted WCOOP gold bracelet, which was won by Scott “dorinvandy” Dorin in the High Rollers event in 2008.

Several Team PokerStars Pro members participated in the tournament, including Chris Moneymaker, Joe Hachem, Peter Eastgate, Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier, Barry Greenstein, Vanessa Rousso, Ylon Schwartz, Steve Paul-Ambrose, J.C. Alvarado, Katja Thater, William Thorson, Dennis Phillips, Alexandre Gomes, and Hevad Khan. Fellow team member John Duthie made the final table, taking eighth place for $74,750.

The final table was loaded with big names as it formed late into the night. Kevin “BeL0WaB0Ve” Saul entered with the chip lead, while Scott “SCTrojans” Freeman, Peter “Belabacsi” Traply, Mike “Sowerss” Sowers and Dustin “DDBeast” Dorrance-Bowman were among the others vying for the title.

Sumpas, hailing from Sweden, took the chip lead into three-handed play and eliminated Saul shortly after Saul declined a three-way chip chop of the remaining prize money. With the blinds at 5,000/10,000 and a 1,250 ante, Sumpas raised to 21,400 on the button and Saul re-raised to 56,530 from the small blind. Sowers folded his big blind and Sumpas called to see a flop of Ad-Qs-3h. Saul checked, Sumpas fired 46,500 into the pot and Saul called. The 3d fell on the turn and Saul check-called again, this time a bet of 125,000. The river brought the 10h and Saul checked to Sumpas for a third time. The Swede moved all in, putting Saul to a decision for his remaining 453,000 chips. Saul took some time before deciding to call with Ac-8s for aces up, but Sumpas tabled Kd-Jd for a rivered straight to scoop the pot and send Saul on his way with $337,870.

Sumpas had a 5-1 chip lead over Sowers going into heads up play but the short stack battled for nearly an hour before ending his tournament on a bluff. On a board of Ks-4s-4d Sumpas bet 30,000 and Sowers check-raised to 90,000. Sumpas re-raised to 165,000 and Sowers moved all in for 748,250. Sumpas called with Kd-Tc, which had the Jh-10d of Sowers drawing nearly dead. The 7s turn and 3d river sealed the deal for Sumpas, who earned a WCOOP bracelet and $611,455 for his victory. Sowers walked away with $448,500.

The massive score was the biggest ever online for Sumpas, who also made the final table of last year’s WCOOP Main Event, taking sixth place for $415,150. Here’s a look at the final results of WCOOP Event #10:

1. Sumpas - $611,455
2. Mike “Sowerss” Sowers - $448,500
3. Kevin “BeL0WaB0Ve” Saul - $337,870
4. Scott “SCTrojans” Freeman - $254,150
5. Peter “Belabacsi” Trapley - $173,420
6. Kevin “KevBoyStar” Stani - $134,550
7. Matias “Festivuss” Gabrenja - $104,650
8. John Duthie - $74,750
9. Dustin “DDBeast” Dorrance-Bowman - $56,810

Event #9 more than doubled its guarantee as an astounding number of players took part in the $215 No Limit Hold ‘em tournament on Sunday. The 11,131 generated a prize pool of $2,260,200, with the winner collecting $303,876.

It was a long, protracted day for the nine players that reached the final table. The tournament began at 1:00 ET Sunday afternoon and play didn’t conclude until after 8:00 a.m. The final table lacked the power punch of the High Rollers Event but high-stakes tournament specialist Grayson “graybone” Nichols managed to take fifth place for $89,048.

When heads-up play began Slovakia’s ternoplayer was at a considerable chip disadvantage to France’s maxisou, but the tables turned quickly. Ternoplayer doubled up holding As-Qc against maxisou’s Ah-3s and then gained the chip lead by winning a few small pots. On the final hand, maxisou raised in position preflop and ternoplayer called. The two saw a flop of Qs-Js-5h and ternoplayer checked to maxisou, who led out for 1.6 million. Ternoplayer raised to 4 million and maxisou moved all in for around 18 million. Ternoplayer called with Kc-Qd and had his opponent’s Jc-8h in bad shape. The 8d landed on to turn to give maxisou the lead but the river brought the Kd, giving ternoplayer the pot, the WCOOP title and the first-place payday of $303,876.

WCOOP Event #9 Results:

1. ternoplayer - $303,876
2. maxisou - $214,828
3. micha88 - $155,834
4. r&g2007 - $111,310
5. Grayson “graybone” Nichols - $89,048
6. akilam77 - $66,786
7. PanjoDeLuxe - $44,524
8. masterpice - $22,262
9. SoulMaster7 - $13,913

PokerStars’ WCOOP Exceeding Guarantees, Crowning Champions

The 2009 PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP), which started on September 3rd, has had several of the opening tournaments break their guaranteed prize pools to this point in the schedule. As the tournament grinds its way through its first weekend, eight WCOOP bracelets have been awarded in several different disciplines of poker.

Of the eight events that have been played to this point, only three tournaments - Event #4, the $215 buy in No Limit Single Draw 2-7 with rebuys, Event #7, the $215 buy in Pot Limit Five Card Draw, and Event #8, the $215 Limit Hold’em - have failed to reach their guaranteed prize pools. For those events, PokerStars has provided the overlay of around $30,000 for each tournament. With the performance of the other five events played in the WCOOP so far, however, PokerStars has had no problems with covering these overlays.

As the first eight events have played out, $5.1 million has been paid out to the combatants during this run of the WCOOP. Players have been turning out in droves to take part in the 2009 schedule, with 33,236 buy-ins paid and 24,487 unique players taking part in the tournaments. The worldwide scope of the WCOOP has also been shown, with 124 countries taking part and 82 of those countries earning something back for their efforts by making it into the money.

Leading the pack as far as earnings for this year’s schedule is the champion of Event #1 - the $215 Six Handed No Limit Hold’em tournament - “ChopSueyyy.” With that victory, “ChopSueyyy,” who calls Finland home, earned a payday of $234,421.82 for defeating a sizeable field of 8538 players. Following “ChopSueyyy” on the earnings board are France’s “MMalipo,” Event #6 ($109 No Limit Hold’em) champion “vakAAttack” from Greece, the United States’ “DHUSTLER15” and Canada’s “Futuro.” All of these players have been able to take home six figure paydays for their efforts during the WCOOP.

Other players who have taken down a bracelet during the early events of the WCOOP include “MUSTAFABET,” who won the $215 Six Handed Pot Limit Omaha tournament (Event #3), “2FLY2TILT” (Event #4), “FireGoblin” (Event #5, $109 Eight Game Mixed Event), “CesarSPA” (Event #7) and Kevin “iacog4” Iacafano (Event #8). Top professionals who have been in the mix during the first eight events include Team PokerStars professional Barry Greenstein, J. C. Tran, Scott “BigRiskky” Clements, Jon “PearlJammer” Turner, WSOP bracelet winner Brandon Cantu and Aaron “GambleAB” Bartley, who final tabled Event #4.

Today’s tournament action promises to be quite busy as three events take place on what would normally be the big Sunday tournament day for many of these players. Event #9, the $215 No Limit Hold’em tournament with a $1 million guaranteed prize pool, will be overshadowed somewhat by Event #10, the $10,300 buy in High Rollers No Limit tournament with a $2 million guaranteed prize pool. Event #11, a $530 No Limit Hold’em event will finish the day out with the first of two days of play.

Over the next two weeks, another thirty events will be taking place with buy ins from $109 to the $25K High Roller Heads-Up tournament. The capstone of the schedule will be the two day $5200 Championship Event, which was won last year by Carter “ckingusc” King. Poker News Daily will continue to monitor the action and report on the World Championships of Online Poker as they play out.

Brunson, Harman, Antonius, Sahamies Join Caesars Cup Lineup

With the Caesars Cup getting ready for its inaugural action in just over three weeks, both American captain Daniel Negreanu and European captain Annette “Annette_15” Obrestad have been busy filling out the remainder of their squads. Earlier this week, each named two additional members to their teams, bringing the total to six of the eight that they will need.

Captain Negreanu, who seems to have been leaning towards more experienced players, continued to choose veterans with the selections of Doyle Brunson and Jennifer Harman. They will join a stellar lineup that also includes 2009 “November Nine” combatant Phil Ivey, 11-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner and former World Champion Phil Hellmuth, and reigning WSOP Europe champion John Juanda. If there is one drawback to Team Americas, it is that Negreanu seems to have chosen players with a wealth of cash game expertise, which could potentially override their tournament poker backgrounds.

Little needs to be said for Doyle Brunson’s inclusion. The grizzled veteran of the Texas road games was among those who brought poker to Las Vegas and brings the vast experience that his 50-plus years in the game has honed. He has captured ten WSOP bracelets in his career, with two from the Main Event. He continues today to be at the forefront of poker and has a nearly unequaled library of knowledge that will be critical for his teammates to tap into during the Caesars Cup competition.

If Negreanu was looking for a female to be a part of Team Americas, then Jennifer Harman had to be on the top of his wish list. The only woman who has multiple open tournament victories in the history of the WSOP, Harman has been one of the high-stakes poker staples for the past 25 years. Her steely determination and intuitive style of play will give opponents fits as they try to determine where they are in a hand.

Captain Obrestad has chosen a tactic almost directly the opposite of Negreanu by going for the younger, internet-seasoned players for Team Europe. Captain Obrestad has tapped two Finns, Patrik Antonius and Ilari Sahamies, to join her and defending WSOP champion Peter Eastgate of Denmark, Italy’s Dario Mineri, and France’s Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier on Team Europe.

Antonius brings one of the strongest games, tournament or otherwise, of any of the players in the Caesars Cup. While he is, so far, the oldest member of Team Europe at 29, he has traveled the world in his profession of high-stakes poker. In tournaments, he has earned over $2.8 million, including a European Poker Tour (EPT) championship in 2005, and has made untold amounts as a cash game player. Currently, Antonius is also engaged in one of the epic battles of 2009, the Durrrr Challenge, with Tom Dwan.

While he may not have the list of titles of other players in this event, Sahamies has the chops to be included in the Caesars Cup. Known as “Zigmund” online, Sahamies has claimed over $300,000 in tournament winnings and is especially known for his skills in high-stakes Pot Limit Omaha. Sahamies will also bring some chatter to the felt as he uses his verbal skills to attempt to throw his opponents off their games. Sahamies is also the face behind Power Poker.

Both Negreanu and Obrestad have two more choices for their respective teams before the Caesars Cup can be contested. Obrestad has one of her choices removed from her discretion, as WSOP Europe sponsor Betfair is offering a place on the team for an online player yet to be determined. All in all, the field is coming together as one of the strongest player lineups for a made-for-television competition in years. Poker News Daily will have all the details on the final selections, as well as the format of the Caesars Cup, in the near future.

Frenchman grabs APT Macau title

"I'm overwhelmed, this is so wonderful," the Rennes, France native said. "I qualified for this tournament through a $5 lottery tournament on PKR and end up beating all these top players."

The win was worth approximately $391,547, slaughtering the recently turned pro's career best cash of $8,000.

When play began at the Starworld Hotel and Casino at noon Macau time Kastle was almost immediately the first out, busting on the third hand of his third consecutive APT final table.

Winifred Yu, who was in Macau working as a member of the crew for the Chinese film 'Poker King' being shot during the event, busted next, followed by Christer Hallberg, Michael Woo and Chris Chau.

Steicke, who added to his growing poker resume by taking down the Poker Pack High Rollers event earlier in the week, was the next out, leaving Allain three-handed with Inwook Choi and the formidable Tran.

Choi then made a straight to bust a short stacked Tran and get heads up.

Eventually Choi got all his chips in the middle with ace-queen dominating Allain's ace-three, but the Frenchman hit a miraculous three to book the win.

"It is disappointing not to take down the Main Event, but congratulations to Alain," Tran said.

"He played good poker and is a deserving champion. To take down such a major tournament for just $5 is quite something - there's no doubt he has great potential."

There were a total of 326 entrants at the Asian Poker Tour Macau main event with a total prize pool of HK$10,919,040.

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Adrien Allain Wins 2009 APT Macau Main Event

In the Far East, it was a Frenchman from halfway around the world who emerged victorious. Adrien Allain, who hails from Rennes, France, won this year’s running of the Asian Poker Tour (APT) Macau Main Event. Allain banked HK $3.035 million for his efforts.

Allain qualified for the APT Macau festivities by winning a $5 tournament on PKR. In the online world, he’s known as zlatan35 and his largest poker cash prior to Macau weighed in at $8,000. His HK $3.035 million payday equates to nearly USD $400,000 at current exchange ranges. In the final hand in Macau, Allain drew out with A-3 against Korean poker player Inwook Choi’s A-Q after spiking a three on the flop. Entering heads-up play, Choi was a 2:1 underdog. Here’s how the final table shook out:

1st Place: Adrien Allain (France) - HK$3,035,000
2nd Place: Inwook Choi (Korea) - HK$1,660,000
3rd Place: J.C. Tran (United States) - HK$910,510
4th Place: David Steicke (Hong Kong) - HK$708,300
5th Place: Chris Chau (Hong Kong) - HK$506,000
6th Place: Michael Woo (Hong Kong) - HK$404,800
7th Place: Christer Hallberg (Sweden) - HK$303,600
8th Place: Winfred Yu (Hong Kong) - HK$202,400
9th Place: Casey Kastle (Slovenia) - HK$131,500

J.C. Tran holds two World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelets and was arguably the most successful player at the final table. After scoring his first piece of hardware in 2008, Tran won another bracelet this year by virtue of winning a $2,500 buy-in Pot Limit Omaha event for $235,000. Tran won the 2006 PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) Main Event for $670,000.

Tran, a member of the APT’s Poker Pack, commented in a press release distributed by tournament officials, “It has been a great 12-day festival for the Poker Pack. It is disappointing not to take down the Main Event, but congratulations to Allain. He played good poker and is a deserving champion. To take down such a major tournament for just $5 is quite something – there’s no doubt he has great potential.”

Day 1B of the APT Macau Main Event featured filming of the Chinese language poker film “Poker King.” Ten-time WSOP bracelet winner Johnny Chan predicted that the movie would be bigger than “Rounders,” which helped spur the growth of No Limit Texas Hold’em in the United States. Yu, who finished in eighth place, came to the Macau event as part of the crew of “Poker King.”

Tran was eliminated from the tournament when Choi and Allain checked the action down on a board of A-J-10-9-8. Tran showed the Dead Man’s Hand, aces and eights, but was trumped by Allain’s A-Q for a straight. David Steicke was ousted from the final table after running his pocket nines into Choi’s pocket kings. The board ran out 3-3-A-3-K, giving Choi a better full house and sending Steicke packing.

WSOP November Nine member James Akenhead made the trek to Macau. Also appearing in the field were 2008 WSOP Europe Main Event winner John Juanda, Chan, Liz Lieu, Season VI World Poker Tour (WPT) Championship winner David Chiu, new Team Ultimate Bet member Liv Boeree, Amnon Filippi, and reigning WPT Championship victor Yevgeniy Timoshenko. Matt Savage served as the APT Macau’s Tournament Director, a role he will reprise in October for the annual Ultimate Bet Aruba Poker Classic.

In addition to finishing third in the Main Event, Tran won the Poker Pack Headhunter tournament in Macau. Other highlights included Team Korea (featuring Steve Sung, David “Chino” Rheem, and Brandon Wong) winning the inaugural JBET Battle of the Nations. A “Poker King” charity tournament was also held, with Poker Pack member Quinn Do emerging victorious.

WSOP November Nine — Saout Tries to Take it Down for France

“I think it could help the image of poker, which is not always well regarded,” Antoine Saout said about the potential effects his World Series of Poker final table appearance might have in his native country of France. “There has always been passion for the game in France…This brings hope to lots of players who wish to follow

WSOP November Nine — Saout Tries to Take it Down for France

“I think it could help the image of poker, which is not always well regarded,” Antoine Saout said about the potential effects his World Series of Poker final table appearance might have in his native country of France. “There has always been passion for the game in France…This brings hope to lots of players who wish to follow

November Nine Profile - Antoine Saout

Of the nine players returning to the Rio for the final table of the 2009 World Series of Poker Main Event, Antoine Saout makes up one of the two players there who aren’t American – he is from Saint Martin des Champs in Brittany, France. The other non-US player is, of course, Britain’s very own James Akenhead.