Poker News

Justin “ZeeJustin” Bonomo Responds To Bodog Dismissal

While the news of his dismissal as a sponsored professional continue to make noise around the poker community, poker professional Justin “ZeeJustin” Bonomo has issued his response to his departure as a sponsored player on the online poker room Bodog.

Back on January 3rd, Poker News Daily reported that Bodog issued a press release which stated that Bonomo was no longer a member of Team Bodog, the group of professionals who represent the online room at live events and at tournaments and cash games on the site. Bonomo’s departure followed on the heels of the November axing of fellow former Bodog pro Jean-Robert Bellande. No reason for either of the dismissals was given by Bodog, leaving many wondering how if there was any acrimonious feeling between the site and “ZeeJustin.”

In his latest blog posting just prior to playing in the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA) at Paradise Island in the Bahamas, Bonomo put to rest any rumors of problems between himself and Bodog. “First and foremost, I would like to stress the fact that I did not ever at any point quit the Bodog Pro Team. I had imagined myself a member of Team Bodog for the duration of my poker career”, “ZeeJustin” contends in the blog post. “I want to thank Bodog and its staff for giving me an opportunity to play for them. I have greatly enjoyed playing alongside my good friends, Evelyn (Ng) and David (Williams, both of whom still represent the U. S. facing site), and will miss being a part of that team.”

Bonomo continues on to state in his blog that there are already sponsorship opportunities coming his way since severing ties with Bodog. “I have already been involved in conversations regarding new sponsorship opportunities”, Justin writes in his blog. “Moving forward, I will be focusing my attention on aligning with a sponsor who will better utilize my play and media presence. I am looking forward to evaluating a potential new home, although any decision regarding new sponsorship will not be rushed.”

“ZeeJustin” finishes off his blog post by stating he is dedicated to having an excellent 2010, starting with the PCA, and has some off-the-felt activities with “Poker2Nite” and Bluff Magazine coming for fans in the short-term. “Thanks to everyone who has reached out to me in the last week and also those who were interested in my sponsorship situation. I appreciate all of your support.”

One reason that Bodog could have used for Bonomo’s dismissal, performance, is completely discredited by a look at his career since he started playing as a Bodog pro. Since he became a Bodog sponsored pro in 2007, “ZeeJustin” has garnered $1.975 million in tournament earnings. When you compare that to the earnings of his teammates at Bodog during the same span – David Williams has earned $919,000, Jean-Robert Bellande has earned $280,000 and Evelyn Ng has earned $56,000, according to The Hendon Mob database – it is obvious that Bonomo was one of the most visible players on the roster, driving deep in tournaments and earning face time at final tables. Bonomo reached the ESPN televised table in the $40,000 40th Anniversary No Limit Hold’em event at the 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP).

Kevin Saul, Amnon Filippi Among PCA Day 1A Leaders

Day 1A of the 2010 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA) played out on Tuesday, with 668 players taking to the felts inside the Atlantis Resort and Casino in the Bahamas. Wayne Bentley, a PokerStars qualifier from Britain, leads the way with 329,500 chips.

Bentley nearly amassed 11 times the starting stack of 30,000 in the $10,000 buy-in poker tournament after eight levels of play. He held pocket aces and eliminated a player with pocket kings within the first few minutes of Day 1A, doubling his stack to 60,000, and he never looked back. Team PokerStars Pro member Daniel Negreanu issued the traditional “Shuffle up and deal” command moments earlier. At the end of Day 1A, 430 players remained in the hunt.

Bentley sits comfortably in front of the second place stack of Amnon Filippi, who held a pile of 220,100 chips at the end of Day 1A. The accomplished poker pro was nearly 50,000 chips ahead of online poker pro Kevin “BeL0WaB0Ve” Saul, the winner of the 2007 installment of the World Poker Tour’s (WPT) Bellagio Cup for $1.3 million. Last year, Saul finished eighth in the PCA Main Event for $234,000, outlasting all but seven of the 1,347 players who entered.

Team PokerStars Sports Stars will be out in full force on Wednesday for Day 1B, as German tennis legend Boris Becker, Swedish NHL star Mats Sundin, Dutch hockey pro Fatima De Melo, baseball commentator Orel Hershiser, and U.K. football legend Teddy Sheringham will all take to the felts. Also entering on Day 1B is Mike Kosowski, the winner of Season 1 of the “PokerStars.net Million Dollar Challenge.” Kosowski earned $1 million after defeating Negreanu heads-up in the finale of the poker game show last month.

2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event November Nine member Eric Buchman sits in sixth place after Day 1A with 159,100 chips. The PokerStars sponsored player finished fourth in the $10,000 buy-in feature tournament in Las Vegas in November, adding $2.5 million to his net worth. The event was ultimately won by Joe Cada, who will take to the felts for Day 1B today. Joining him will be pros like Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier, Humberto Brenes, and Victor Ramdin. Also playing is rapper Nelly, who has become somewhat of a staple on the poker circuit in recent months.

Here were the top ten chip stacks in the Bahamas after the smoke had cleared on Day 1A of the 2010 PCA Main Event:

1. Wayne Bentley - 329,500
2. Amnon Filippi - 220,100
3. Kevin Saul - 175,500
4. Eric Froehlich - 166,000
5. Dustin Dorrance-Bowman - 163,700
6. Eric Buchman - 159,100
7. Garðar Geir Hauksson - 138,900
8. Jacob Avital - 137,700
9. Christian Schwarz - 133,200
10. Rafal Michalowski - 129,300

The PCA is a stop on both the European Poker Tour (EPT) and Latin American Poker Tour (LAPT) and, as such, has attracted a global field. Still remaining after Day 1A are players from the United States, United Kingdom, Iceland, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Germany, Ukraine, Brazil, Canada, Sweden, Mexico, Turks and Caicos, Russia, Finland, Argentina, France, Norway, Switzerland, Slovakia, Poland, Denmark, Hungary, Czech Republic, Ireland, Belgium, New Zealand, Romania, Australia, Slovenia, Greece, Costa Rica, Austria, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Curiously absent is a representative from the host nation, the Bahamas.

Last year’s champion, Poorya Nazari, hails from Canada and nearly tripled his stack on Day 1A. Notable players who survived the first starting day, along with their chip counts, include:

Dennis Phillips – 113,000
Dario Minieri – 109,800
Vivek “Psyduck” Rajkumar – 106,400
Poorya Nazari – 89,300
Barry Greenstein – 89,200
Jeff Madsen – 79,400
John Duthie – 60,100
Marcel Luske – 55,600
Gavin Smith – 54,000
Jean-Robert Bellande – 53,900
Kevin Schaffel – 53,200
Bernard Lee – 46,800
Amit “amak316” Makhija – 42,000
Steven Paul-Ambrose – 37,900
“Miami” John Cernuto – 36,500
Chris “moorman1” Moorman – 34,700
Ivan Demidov – 27,600
Tom McEvoy – 19,900
Huck Seed – 16,000
Jeff “yellowsub” Williams – 13,100

Play wrapped up in Level 8, when blinds were 400-800 with a 100-chip ante. Day 1B will encompass the same eight levels before the field merges for Day 2 on Thursday.

Bodog Drops Bonomo

The 24-year-old joined David Williams and Evelyn Ng as a member of the Bodog Pro Team in 2007, but confirmed reports that he was leaving the team Wednesday.

“Bodog and I have officially parted ways after a two-year sponsorship relationship,” said Bonomo. “I want to thank Bodog and its staff for giving me an opportunity to play for them.”

Although he didn’t go into detail regarding his departure, Bonomo stressed that he did not quit the team. Despite the change, Bonomo is already in talks with other poker rooms regarding sponsorship.

“Moving forward, I will be focusing my attention on aligning with a sponsor who will better utilize my play and media presence,” he said.

Just two months ago, Bodog also dropped poker pro Jean-Robert Bellande, which means Ng and Williams are the room’s only remaining pros.

Bonomo learned poker online and won countless tournaments using the screen name ZeeJustin. In 2005, he broke onto the live poker scene by making the final table of PokerStars.com EPT Deauville. At the time he was the youngest player to make a televised final table. Since then he has accumulated $2.3 million in live tournament winnings.

Controversy arose in 2006 when it was learned Bonomo had been multi-accounting, a practice banned on almost all online poker sites. He eventually made a public apology and was subsequently signed by Bodog Poker in 2008.

The young pro recently launched a redesigned website and will be featured on the cover of Bluff Magazine’s January issue.

Poker Community Reacts to Justin Bonomo Leaving Bodog

On Saturday, the USA-facing online poker room Bodog officially parted ways with sponsored pro Justin “ZeeJustin” Bonomo by removing him from its website. Now, the poker community, Bonomo’s agent, and Bodog have had a chance to react.

Bonomo’s agent, Matt Palmer, President and CEO of 11Management, told Poker News Daily, “It is true that Justin and Bodog have parted ways. While Justin will miss playing alongside his fellow Bodog teammates and good friends Evelyn Ng and David Williams, he's ready to move on to bigger and better opportunities. We've begun conversations regarding new sponsorship opportunities and we're excited to work with a poker brand that is better able to leverage Justin's poker success and personality.” Palmer is also the agent for Joe Sebok, who recently signed on to be a member of Team UB.com.

Palmer gave us his take on Bonomo’s 2009 calendar year at the felts: ‘Justin's coming off another excellent year at the tables, including a final table appearance at the World Series of Poker's (WSOP) $40,000 buy-in 40th Anniversary event and a win at the WSOP Circuit event at Caesars. I fully expect Justin to continue his winning ways in 2010.” Bonomo’s fifth place finish in the $40,000 buy-in No Limit Hold’em event commemorating the Series’ 40th running was worth $413,000. In April, he won the Caesars Palace WSOP Circuit Championship, a $5,150 buy-in contest, for $227,000.

Ed Pownall, Global Public Relations Director for BodogBrand.com, explained why the online poker room parted ways with one of its three remaining sponsored pros: “Bodog and Justin Bonomo have agreed that, with the transition of the Bodog-branded poker rooms to the Bodog Network in 2010, now was a natural time to re-evaluate the relationship and have agreed to part ways.” Jean-Robert Bellande, of “Survivor: China” fame, also left Bodog in recent months after his sponsorship agreement was not renewed at the end of October.

Posters on the popular poker forum TwoPlusTwo.com gave their take on what room might be a good fit for Bonomo. TwoPlusTwo member “molinn9” weighed in, “Time for him to move on to pokerstars. would be good pro for them.” Bonomo was traveling to the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure in the Bahamas at the time of writing and was unavailable for comment. The $10,300 buy-in Main Event kicks off on Tuesday from the Atlantis Resort and Casino on Paradise Island with the first of two starting days. The tournament will crown a champion on January 11th.

In the meantime, Bodog will center its efforts on growing the newly forged Bodog Network, which has taken a unique approach to rakeback. Pownall discussed the methodology: “The new offering has already caused much debate with its re-working of the rakeback issue and will reward operators bringing depositing players to the table rather than the traditional method of rewarding the winning players. The system unveiled at the EiG in Budapest in September has already seen other networks, including Microgaming and iPoker, publicly follow in a similar vein.” The idea, in turn, is to reward winning players indirectly by feeding them net depositing opponents.

Yesterday, the weekly Bodog $100,000 Guaranteed played out. The site’s hallmark event, which comes with a $162 price tag, drew 509 players, meaning that Bodog kicked in $23,000 after the tournament fell short of its prize pool. In the end, reigning UB.com Aruba Poker Classic Main Event winner Brandon “AreTheseUtz” Hall took down the top prize of $25,000 after defeating Brian “AKbigfish” James heads-up. James pocketed a $15,000 consolation prize and “paulyman” took third for $9,500. The top 63 players finished in the money and the top five earned more than $5,000.

The Bodog Network is expected to take on non-Bodog sites this year.

Justin Bonomo lost his sponsor

Looks like Justin “ZeeJustin” Bonomo has lost his sponsor deal with Bodog. A couple of months earlier Jean-Robert Bellande, known from the “Survivors” reality tv-show, lost his deal with Bodog as well.

Team Bodog has lost half of their sponsored players since November and now there’s only two left: Evelyn Ng and David Williams.

Bonomo’s weak performances are doubtfully the reason for his sponsorship cease as Bonomo has won over $1,2 million from tournaments and he was in the WSOP 2009 $40k NLHE event’s final table.

Bonomo is unfortunately best known when he played some tournaments from multiple accounts. PartyPoker and PokerStars closed Bonomo’s accounts in 2006 and froze up hundreds of thousands of dollars to compensate some losses to other players.

Source: Pokernewsdaily

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Justin Bonomo lost his sponsor

Justin Bonomo (ZeeJustin) No Longer a Bodog Poker Pro

Two months after Jean-Robert Bellande lost his status as a sponsored pro of the online poker room Bodog, Justin “ZeeJustin” Bonomo also appears to be out. Bonomo is no longer listed as a member of Team Bodog on the poker room’s website.

David Williams and Evelyn Ng are the lone survivors of Team Bodog, whose numbers have been cut in half since mid-November. Bonomo owns more than $1.2 million in career earnings from World Series of Poker (WSOP) and Circuit Events and brought Bodog a considerable amount of exposure after final tabling the $40,000 buy-in No Limit Hold’em tournament commemorating the 40th running of the WSOP in 2008. Bonomo claimed fifth place for $413,000 in the event, which aired on ESPN. One month prior, he captured his first Circuit gold ring by winning the Caesars Palace Championship tournament for $227,000, defeating Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi heads-up.

Bonomo appeared on the UB.com-sposored poker news show “Poker2Nite” last week, breaking down a hand from a $5,000 Mixed Hold’em event during the 2008 WSOP. In the segment, dubbed “In the Tank,” Bonomo wore no Bodog logo and, as taped rolled from the event two years ago, the Bodog logo on Bonomo’s white shirt was blurred out. In the end, Bonomo finished as the runner-up to Full Tilt Poker pro Erick Lindgren and banked $230,000.

Bonomo is still listed on Bodog’s website in a Heads-Up TLB Records console. In addition, Bonomo’s Twitter page continues to boast a Bodog logo. Now, Williams and Ng will serve as the face of the USA-friendly online poker room, sports book, and casino. According to the traffic ranking outlet PokerScout.com, Bodog is the 15th largest site or network worldwide with a seven-day running average of 840 real money ring game players. During its peak hours, nearly 1,500 cash game enthusiasts call the site home. Bodog is the fifth largest site to accept players from the United States, trailing PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker, the CEREUS Network, and the Cake Poker Network.

During November’s running of the Bodog Poker Open, three sponsored online pros took to the field in the Main Event. They included Smith “nevertilt22” Collins, Jonathan UFPokerStar Westra, and Ari Engel, who ultimately took third in the 257-player tournament for $16,000. A total of 2,646 players showed up for the 11 events that comprised the Bodog Poker Open’s Championship and Contender series, creating a total prize pool of $368,000. The online poker site added another $65,000 to the kitty.

Bonomo’s image was removed from Bodog’s website during the day on Saturday. Williams appeared during a high-stakes home game as part of the G4 online poker reality show “2 Months, $2 Million,” which starred Dani Stern, Jay Rosenkrantz, Emil Patel, and Brian Roberts. Williams lost $50,000 during the game, which took place at the Las Vegas home of the “2 Months, $2 Million” cast and also featured Team PokerStars Pro member Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier and David “Viffer” Peat.

In November, Bellande lost his status as a Bodog pro. Last February, Bellande renewed his sponsorship agreement with the online poker room. However, it was not picked up once it expired, as a Bodog Poker Room Manager told Poker News Daily in November, "Jean-Robert Bellande’s deal with Bodog Poker expired at the end of October and the decision was made not to renew the deal. It has been an absolute pleasure having Jean-Robert as one of Bodog.com’s Poker pros and we wish him all the best."

Ads running on Bodog’s poker website promote betting on the Fiesta Bowl, which pits Texas Christian University (TCU) against Boise State. At the time of writing, TCU sits as an eight point favorite. Wagering is also open on the Orange Bowl, GMAC Bowl, and Thursday’s BCS Championship game.

Poker After Dark Season 6 Kicks off January 4th

Fans of the popular NBC poker franchise “Poker After Dark” won’t have to wait long after the clock strikes Midnight this evening to catch the show’s sixth season, which debuts on Monday night, January 4th, at 2:05am ET.

Ali Nejad and Leeann Tweeden will reprise their “Poker After Dark” announcing and hosting roles, respectively, as the show enters season number six. The first week is entitled “Commentators III” and, while the name isn’t very catchy, the action on the felt should be nail biting. Howard Lederer, Gabe Kaplan, Joe Sebok, Nejad, Mark Gregorich, and Kara Scott will all play in “Poker After Dark’s” Season 6 premiere. Sebok, who hosts UB.com’s “Poker2Nite,” and Scott, the new floor reporter for GSN’s “High Stakes Poker,” are making their “Poker After Dark” debuts. You can catch “Commentators III” beginning on January 4th.

A total of 13 shows were filmed for Season 6 of “Poker After Dark,” including six-handed freezeouts and three different buy-in cash games. Followers of 2007 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe Main Event champion Annette “Annette_15” Obrestad will be able to catch the youngster on a special “Nicknames” episode that also features Mike “The Mouth” Matusow, Antonio “The Magician” Esfandiari, Erick “E-Dog” Lindgren, Phil “The Unabomber” Laak, and Phil “The Poker Brat” Hellmuth. Obrestad, a Betfair pro, turned 21 in September and is finally old enough to gamble legally on U.S. soil.

A $50,000 buy-in cash game features a star-studded lineup of Brandon Adams, Todd Brunson, Chris Ferguson, Matusow, Esfandiari, and Hellmuth. A press release distributed by Poker PROductions notes, “Any time Matusow and Hellmuth play against each other in a cash game, the insults alone make for must-see-television.” A high-stakes $150,000 buy-in cash game will see Tom “durrrr” Dwan, Patrik Antonius, David “Viffer” Peat, Eli Elezra, Kaplan, and Alan Meltzer take to the felts. The six are staples of “High Stakes Poker” and one mounts the comeback of the century.

One of the more notable freezeout themes is “Lonesome Shark,” which features Lindgren, James Akenhead, Esfandiari, Matusow, David Williams, and Brad Booth. What do they all have in common, you ask? All six are poker’s most eligible bachelors and the heads-up battle in this episode is one of the longest of the season. Mixed Martial Arts will take center stage shortly thereafter in a show featuring UFC announcer Bruce Buffer, Antonius, Strikeforce fighter Dan Henderson, former UFC champion Randy Couture, Lederer, and Lindgren.

Here is the schedule through April for new episodes of Season 6 of “Poker After Dark” according to NBC.com:

Week of January 4th - Commentators III
Howard Lederer, Gabe Kaplan, Joe Sebok, Ali Nejad, Mark Gregorich, Kara Scott

Week of January 11th – Nicknames
Annette Obrestad, Mike Matusow, Antonio Esfandiari, Erick Lindgren, Phil Laak, Phil Hellmuth

Week of March 15th - Cash Game $50,000 buy-in, Part 1
Chris Ferguson, Phil Hellmuth, Antonio Esfandiari, Brandon Adams, Todd Brunson, Mike Matusow

Week of March 22nd – Cash Game $50,000 buy-in, Part 2
Todd Brunson, Mike Matusow, Phil Hellmuth, Brandon Adams, Antonio Esfandiari, Chris Ferguson

Week of April 19th - My Favorite Pro
Craig Ivey, James Ashby, Steve Bartlett, Phil Hellmuth, Jens Voertmann, Chris Ferguson

Week of April 26th - He Said, She Said
Erica Schoenberg, Jean-Robert Bellande, David Grey, Karina Jett, Mike Matusow, Annie Duke

Additional dates for new episodes will be announced in the future and re-runs of popular shows will also air over the first four months of 2009. “Poker After Dark” will take a hiatus during the weeks of February 15th and 22nd due to the Winter Olympics, which NBC owns the rights to.

“Poker After Dark” and “High Stakes Poker,” both products of Poker PROductions, were filmed in October at the Golden Nugget in Downtown Las Vegas. The latter begins airing on GSN on Sunday, February 14th.

Poker Community Rings in the New Year

Now that Christmas is over and done with, people are setting their sights on the next big celebration, New Year’s Eve.  Party plans range from night club celebrations to cozy gatherings at home with family and friends, but almost everybody intends to do something to celebrate the end of the decade.  Those based in Las Vegas can enjoy an elaborate fireworks show on the Strip, with pyrotechnics being shot off the roofs of seven different casinos, including the MGM Grand, Planet Hollywood, Caesars Palace, the Venetian, the Stratosphere and the newly-opened Aria.

One poker pro who will be at Aria to ring in the New Year is UB.com’s Phil Hellmuth.  He has been invited to one of the biggest New Year’s Eve parties in Las Vegas and the Poker Brat couldn’t resist name-dropping some of the celebrities he would be rubbing elbows with as the clock strikes Midnight via his Twitter account (@phil_hellmuth).  As Twitter reports, Hellmuth will watch the ball drop with the likes of Eva Longoria-Parker, her husband Tony, and countless others at the Beso Restaurant and Eve Nightclub in CityCenter.

Reality star Kim Kardashian will also be on hand and will play host to a pre-New Year’s Eve party Wednesday night at Eve, which is situated above Beso.  Both Eve and Beso are owned by Longoria-Parker, who worked hand-in-hand with famed chef Todd English to launch the Las Vegas version of her popular Los Angeles restaurant of the same name.  The New Year’s Eve bash will serve as the grand opening of Eve, while Kardashian’s party will be a precursor to the official launch of the club.

Jean-Robert Bellande of “Survivor” fame has spent the final days of 2009 gallivanting all over Latin America.  According to his Twitter feed (@BrokeLivingJRB), he has been everywhere from Cabo San Lucas to Puerto Rico to the Dominican Republic this holiday season.  Bellande can’t seem to go too long without getting his poker fix, though, and found time to play online in between lounging on the beach and sightseeing: “Booked a small win over Brian Townsend this morning after being stuck big in 2-7. Feeling very relieved.”

Online poker pro Jeff “ICuRaRook” Sluzinski is going to take a small break from his schedule to celebrate the New Year and a friend’s birthday.  “No poppin’ crazy bottles at clubs or anything for me,” Sluzinski told Poker News Daily.  “We might go to the Strip, but we will probably just chill at [my friend’s] house.”  However, Sluzinksi does plan to log some hours online New Year’s Eve, as he is in contention for the Yearly Tournament Leaderboard honors on PokerStars.  The top three finishers all win entries into stops on the various PokerStars-sponsored tours.  He currently sits in fifth place and has a couple more days to boost his numbers and claim one of the top prizes. Although he admits he will be playing online on New Year’s Eve, Sluzinski intends to call it an early night.  “I’ll stop around 7 or so,” he explained.

In typical fashion, many poker players, like Joe Sebok, are waiting until the last minute to finalize their New Year’s plans.  He Tweeted about his options and has not even decided what city he is going to ring in 2010 in, Los Angeles or Las Vegas.  Unfortunately for the “Poker2Nite” host, he may be sidelined from all festivities thanks to a cold, as he noted on @JoeSebok: “Woke up with scratchy throat, a headache, and sore body. I get it 2009, you ain't going down w/o a fight. You are going out tho, you b***h.”

Poker News Daily would also like to wish all of our readers a Happy New Year.  May your New Year’s Eve celebrations be lively and fun and may 2010 be a year for all of you to remember.

Returns

Filming of 13 different shows concluded in October at the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas featuring a mixture of well-known regulars from previous seasons and thirteen players making their Poker After Dark debut.

Ali Nejad, returns to provide commentary and Leeann Tweeden is back for her third season as the show’s host.

Seven of the new shows will follow the traditional Poker After Dark week-long six-handed winner-take-all freezeout format while the remaining six will feature cash games of varying buy-ins that will each air over a two-week period.

Producers say there are first-time winners, matches that end in dramatic fashion, huge swings, plenty of laughs and many other memorable moments.

The season will kick-off Jan. 4 with a Poker After Dark staple: The “Commentators” episode, featuring Nejad and High Stakes Poker host Gabe Kaplan along with newcomer Joe Sebok from Poker2Nite and Kaplan’s new co-host Kara Scott.

A “Nicknames” episode will follow that includes Annette “The Huntress” Obrestad’s Poker After Dark debut and great names like Mike “The Mouth” Matusow, Antonio “The Magician” Esfandiari, Erick “E-Dog” Lindgren, Phil “The Unabomber” Laak, and Phil “The Poker Brat” Hellmuth.

The first cash game episodes to air will feature a $50,000 minimum buy-in and players including, Todd Brunson, Chris Ferguson, Matusow, Esfandiari, and Hellmuth.

In what could be the first win for an amateur on Poker After Dark a “My Favorite Pro” episode will air including online qualifiers Craig Ivey from Australia, James Ashby from Alabama, Jens Voertmann from Germany, and 2009 Howard Lederer Charity Event winner Steve Bartlett playing alongside Hellmuth and Ferguson.

In a match similar to the “Battle of the Sexes” theme of Season 2, a “He Said, She Said” episode will include Erica Schoenberg, Jean-Robert Bellande, David Grey, Matusow, Annie Duke and Karina Jett, making her Poker After Dark debut.

The next cash game show has a $100,000 minimum buy-in and includes some of the biggest cash players in the world. Here Hellmuth will take on Eli Elezra, Doyle Brunson, Tom “durrrr” Dwan, Gus Hansen, and Laak.

A “Lonesome Shark” show will feature bachelors Lindgren, James Akenhead, Esfandiari, Matusow, David Williams, and Brad Booth and there is a “Mixed Martial Arts” show featuring Bruce Buffer, Dan Henderson, Randy Couture and Patrik Antonius.

The third and final cash game has a $150,000 minimum buy-in and includes Dwan, Antonius, David Peat, Elezra, Kaplan, and Alan Meltzer.

Finally, the season wraps up with a “Charity in Mind” show, highlighting the charity work of players including Phil Gordon, Jennifer Harman, Andy Bloch, Duke, Lederer and Ferguson.

Season 6 begins Jan. 4 in Poker After Dark’s regular 2:05 a.m. timeslot on NBC.

For more information and the entire schedule, check out the Poker After Dark page on NBC’s website.

Bodog Founder Calvin Ayre Featured in National Post

On Saturday, the National Post ran an article entitled “Calvin Ayre online gaming tycoon,” a profile of the founder of the popular online poker room, casino, and sports book Bodog. Ayre donned a Bodog Fight shirt for the interview’s image.

Diane Francis was tasked with interviewing Ayre in Antigua and the news outlet described the internet mogul as “semi-retired.” The article begins with Francis asking Ayre about the 2006 Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA), approved by better than a 3:1 edge in the House of Representatives before being attached to the SAFE Port Act at the urging of then-Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN). When asked if Canadian authorities had pursued Ayre in any capacity related to the 2006 law, he told the Post, "No. I haven't lived in Canada for ten years or been in the Canadian tax system. The legal system did not allow me to do this in Canada. Now I like living in the tropics.”

Ayre revealed that he owns the rights to the domain name Bodog.com and licenses the rights to the network to affiliates located around the globe. In the United States, for example, Morris Mohawk Gaming Group, a Canadian outfit, owns the rights to market the brand. After recently releasing “Survivor: China” castaway Jean-Robert Bellande, Bodog’s stable of poker pros currently stands at three: Evelyn Ng, Justin “ZeeJustin” Bonomo, and David Williams.

The Post then inquired about Bodog’s revenue figures. Ayre explained, "My current deals aren't revenue based and are all different structures which I don't talk about. Forbes audited our books and based the number on the same multiple that the British public companies were trading at, or more than $1.5 billion. In 2006, Bodog made US $320 million in revenues and 25% profit." After the UIGEA was passed into law, online poker sites with publicly traded parent companies like PartyPoker and Pacific Poker exited the market, leaving sites like Bodog, PokerStars, and Full Tilt Poker to pick up the slack.

On the current legality of online poker in the United States, Ayre told the Post, “Poker is not illegal to bet online in the U.S. because it's considered a skilled game. It's a gray area, but there are lots of American companies with poker sites.” This year, Bodog forged its own poker network and will purportedly begin accepting non-Bodog domains into its ranks next year. Jonas Odman, Vice President of the Bodog Network, told Poker News Daily that a “unique solution” to rakeback will help differentiate the family of sites from others in the industry.

In September, Ayre served as the keynote speaker at the Budapest Affiliate Conference. He told event organizers at the time, “I’m very flattered to have been asked to be this year’s keynote speaker in Budapest. The iGaming space is the birthplace of the Bodog brand, and it remains one of the must dynamic and fascinating sectors in the entertainment space.” In addition to Morris Mohawk, Bodog’s licensees include Bodog Europe and Bodog Asia. The former recently opened its doors to Canadian online poker players.

According to PokerScout.com, which keeps tabs on online poker room traffic, Bodog is the 15th largest site or network worldwide with a seven-day running average of 860 real money ring game players. During its peak hours, around 1,500 cash game players call the site home. Its traffic is comparable with that found on PKR and every Sunday, the site hosts its $100,000 Guaranteed, a $162 buy-in event that kicks off at 4:00pm ET. The tournament regularly sees a $20,000 to $30,000 overlay, with $29,000 kicked in by the site last week.

Read the entire Calvin Ayre interview with the National Post.

Poker Community Celebrates Thanksgiving

If you hail from the United States, this weekend is a time for family, food, shopping, and some nice downtime from the stresses of life.  If you’re a poker player, it is also time to squeeze in a tournament, be it in Costa Rica, Las Vegas, Atlantic City, or Los Angeles and put in some extra time at the tables in between bites of turkey.

Players like Jean-Robert Bellande, Jon “pokertrip” Friedberg, David “Bakes” Baker, and Team PokerStars Pro Maria “Maridu” Mayrinck decided to escape the cold weather and squeeze in a tropical vacation shortly before the holiday, flying out to Costa Rica to take part in the Latin American Poker Tour (LAPT) event.  Meanwhile, other players like Eric “AvrilSharapova” Ladny, Men “The Master” Nguyen, and World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner Brian Lemke spent their time at the final table of the United States Poker Championships at the Taj Mahal in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Even poker players who stayed at home still found themselves unable to stay away from the felt for too long and several players turned up for the $2,500 buy-in Main Event of the final Venetian Deep Stack series of the year.  Some of the players who took part in the event included Allen “Chainsaw” Kessler, UB.com Pros Bryan “badbeatninja” Devonshire and Brandon Cantu, Full Tilt Red Pro Jeff Madsen, Eric “basebaldy” Baldwin, Nenad Medic, Jamie “TheCronic420” Rosen, and Christina Lindley.

Lindley filled Poker News Daily in on her last minute change of plans when it came to her holiday vacation.  After a successful run online the past two weeks, including a runner-up finish in Full Tilt Online Poker Series (FTOPS) Event #24 worth more than $106,000, Lindley decided to delay her trip home to Nashville, Tennessee in order to take part in the Venetian event.  She flew out the morning the event started, played until she busted, and then headed home for the typical Thanksgiving fare.  “I told my mom I’d get there in time to make a pumpkin pie,” Lindley explained.  “And maybe some karaoke with my little brother, who is home from college, if we’re lucky.”

Another player who is opting to stay away from the felt is Nick “fu_15” Maimone.  When Poker News Daily asked what his Thanksgiving plans were, he responded, “Not playing poker? AKA trying to be normal.”  Others are following Maimone’s lead and opting for traditional holiday plans including trips home.  A quick glance at Twitter indicated that poker pros and “The Amazing Race” teammates Maria Ho and Tiffany Michelle would both be spending the holidays with friends and family.

Just because a fair share of players are heading home for the holidays doesn’t mean the poker rooms will be empty this weekend.  The Bicycle Casino in Bell Gardens, California will once again be holding their annual Turkey Shootout/Ho Ho Hold’em Series, with the first of 13 events kicking off Thanksgiving Day.  The “Turkey Shoot” tournament will feature a $100 buy-in.  If you are wondering just how many people would opt to play a poker tournament Thanksgiving Day, last year’s installment drew 230 players and offered up a first place prize of $8,600 to tournament winner Susie Baranowski.

Even players who take Thursday off for a little family and feasting may skip Black Friday shopping for some card playing.  The first event of the Bellagio Five Diamond World Poker Classic, the $500 buy-in SpadeClub.com tournament, is scheduled for Friday and players like Mike “GoLeafsGoEh” Leah plan on taking part.  Granted, Leah is Canadian, so his Thanksgiving happened a few weeks ago and he isn’t skipping any festivities to take part.  The Bellagio also has two other tournaments scheduled throughout Thanksgiving weekend, with events continuing daily until the World Poker Tour Main Event begins on December 14th and wraps up shortly before Christmas.

Happy Thanksgiving from all of us here at Poker News Daily.

VP of Bodog Poker Network Discusses Expansion

Recently, officials from Bodog announced the formation of the Bodog Network, a family of poker sites encompassing the various Bodog brands around the world with expansion to non-Bodog domains expected in 2010. Poker News Daily sat down with Jonas Odman, Vice President of the Network, to review the company’s plans to take on new sites.

Poker News Daily: Thanks for joining us. Can you give us an update on the Bodog Network? When can we expect more sites to be added?

Odman: We’re talking to potential partners now and will hopefully get someone on board. We have a target list, but we’re looking for someone who is technologically savvy to be the first partner. Ideally, we would like to find someone with a big European base of players.

PND: Are American-facing sites more attractive than those that do not accept U.S. players?

Odman: It’s possible that we would not want or require the customer database of our partners. So, if our partners take American players, it’s fine. They can take players from anywhere they want. It’s a big project. We will have to develop things on the business-to-business side. It’s new to us and will be a big project. We want to move up in player liquidity.

PND: Explain the importance of seeking out European-focused online poker sites to join the Bodog Network.

Odman: We want to cover all limits at all hours so you always have a game when you log in. If you’re a high-limit player and log on during European hours, you might have trouble right now. Also, we will be able to offer better tournaments.

PND: What will happen to Bodog.com’s team of sponsored pros, which includes Evelyn Ng, David Williams, and Justin “ZeeJustin” Bonomo after the departure of Jean-Robert Bellande?

Odman: Team Bodog will represent Bodog.com and continue to do that. Our operators on the network will have their own teams of players.

PND: Are you planning to offer payment services and other ancillary features as well or only focus on online poker?

Odman: Initially, it will just be poker. The sites will have to do payments themselves. Our target partners are bigger and they won’t need to have those types of services provided to them anyway.

PND: What are the benefits of potential partners moving to the Bodog Network?

Odman: There are some unhappy operators on other networks. On Bodog, the operators can keep their customer databases. That will differentiate us from some networks. We also have a unique solution to rakeback where operators that bring in net depositing players will earn more money than they would on other networks.

The players that the network wants are net depositing players, but with the way the rake is split now, the winning players get too large of a proportion of revenue. We don’t think that’s fair. We want to reward operators who bring in net depositing players.

We will take the players’ deposits as a factor before we split the rake between the operators. The typical rakeback player will be worth much less. The winning players will come anyway because we will have good players for them to play against. By focusing on net depositing players, it will benefit the whole ecosystem.

PND: What is the long-term focus of the Bodog Network?

Odman: Our long-term goal is to be in the top three and it depends on which partners we get. We have a good liquidity now, but we want to move up the ladder.

Jean-Robert Bellande no longer Bodog pro

Jean-Robert Bellande Out as Bodog Sponsored Pro

Former “Survivor: China” contestant Jean-Robert Bellande is no longer a sponsored pro of Bodog, according to a representative from the online poker room. His current agreement expired at the end of October and was not renewed.

Only three sponsored pros currently appear on Bodog’s website: Evelyn Ng, Justin “ZeeJustin” Bonomo, and David Williams. The runner-up in the World Poker Tour’s (WPT) Ladies Night Event in 2003, Ng also took 11th in the Season IV Borgata Poker Open for $64,000. That same season, Ng grabbed 39th in the WPT Championship for $73,000.

Bonomo is one of the industry’s top online poker players, but has also dominated on the brick-and-mortar felts. Bonomo won the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Circuit Event Championship at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas in April for $227,000. One month later, he final tabled the $40,000 buy-in No Limit Hold’em tournament commemorating the 40th running of the WSOP for a colossal $413,000.

Rounding out the shrunken crop of Bodog pros is Williams, who boasts the only bracelet of the trio. Williams captured his piece of hardware in 2006 by virtue of taking down a $1,500 buy-in Seven Card Stud tournament for $163,000, defeating a talented final table that also included “Miami” John Cernuto and 10-time bracelet winner Johnny Chan. Text found on Bodog’s website still refers to “four pros,” but only three profiles appear.

“Jean-Robert Bellande’s deal with Bodog Poker expired at the end of October and the decision was made not to renew the deal. It has been an absolute pleasure having Jean-Robert as one of Bodog.com’s Poker pros and we wish him all the best,” the room’s Poker Manager told Poker News Daily. In February, Poker Royalty, which represents Bellande, boasted that the pro had renewed his sponsorship agreement with the USA-facing site. At the time, Bellande commented, “I am thrilled to continue my relationship with Team Bodog. Bodog is a fantastic organization and I am excited to continue with such a select team of world-class poker players.”

During the 2008 WSOP, Bellande finished as the runner-up to Matt “mattg1983” Graham in a $1,500 buy-in Limit Hold’em Shootout for $173,000. The final table of the marathon tournament wrapped up after 7:00am at the Rio in Las Vegas. In 2005, Bellande grabbed third in the Rio’s WSOP Circuit Event Championship for $210,000 in a contest that saw Doug Lee and Full Tilt Poker pro Jennifer Harman battle heads-up.

Bellande was one of 16 contestants to head to China for the 15th cycle of the CBS reality series “Survivor.” Bellande was the eighth player voted out of the popular program and became the second member of its jury, the group of seven castaways who selected flight attendant Todd Herzog as the show’s $1 million winner. Bellande was on the Fei Long tribe both before and after a tribal switch-up; the group then merged to become Hae Da Fung.

In 2006, Bellande made waves by competing in the WPT’s Bad Boys of Poker against the likes of Tony G, Mike “The Mouth” Matusow, Phil Hellmuth, Men “The Master” Nguyen, and Gus Hansen. In the end, Tony G triumphed over the invite-only six-handed table and earned $25,000. All told, Bellande owns over $75,000 from WPT felts.

According to the tracking site PokerScout.com, Bodog is the 14th largest site or network worldwide with a seven-day running average of 930 real money ring game players. It features a 24-hour peak of 1,411 cash game players and, at the time of writing, which is around 8:30pm ET on a Sunday night, 1,359 combatants have taken to its ring game felts. Bodog is the fifth largest site or network that accepts U.S. action, trailing PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker, CEREUS, and the Cake Poker Network.

WSOP Main Event Festivities in Full Swing

If you think the conclusion World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event is just about the $10,000 buy-in feature tournament, you couldn’t be further from the truth. A variety of side events and a cavalcade of media will make this weekend one for the ages.

On Saturday at 10:00am, credentialed media can begin accessing the behemoth facility that is the Penn and Teller Theater at the Rio in Las Vegas. Media will be seated on stage, in the first row of the auditorium, and in a press box overlooking the festivities. Players will be nearly on top of the audience as part of a revamped stage layout and only a handful of poker fans will likely be let in due to an overwhelming number of supporters brought by each player.

Harrah’s officials placed the $15.8 million up for grabs into a money market account back in July. It has since accrued $1,321 in interest, which will be divided among the top finishers based on their original payday. Ninth place will see no change to their payout, while the first place bounty of $8.5 million will be boosted by $607 in interest. Players who have busted out of the Main Event will be herded to a special interview area 10 minutes following their exit. Play kicks off at Noon PT on Saturday.

During the dinner break of the Main Event, World Poker Tour (WPT) Host and Poker News Daily Guest Columnist Mike Sexton will be inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame as the lone representative of the Class of 2009. Sexton’s induction ceremony takes place in the Brasilia Ballroom in a $150 per plate affair sponsored by JAQK Cellars. Sexton was one of nine players up for nomination and received 75% of the vote of a panel of media members and living Hall of Fame players.

Sexton told ESPN “Inside Deal” hosts Laura Lane and Bernard Lee about his plans for the induction speech: “I’m getting my thoughts together now on what I’m going to say. Certainly, I’m going to acknowledge the other nominees and thank people who have been very important to me in my poker career and life as well.”

Play is expected to last between 12 and 24 hours on Saturday and will continue well into the night until two remain. On Sunday, a meatball eating contest featuring some of the world’s top professional eaters will take place at Cafe Martarano’s at the Rio. Among those vying for the title will be Ultimate Bet front man Phil Hellmuth, who owns a record 11 WSOP bracelets. Hellmuth will square off against the likes of Joey Chestnut, who has won the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest three years running.

At 3:00pm PT on Sunday, DoylesRoom is announcing the fifth member of its Brunson 10. The stable of young online poker pros hand-picked by site namesake Doyle Brunson already includes Chris “moorman1” Moorman, Amit “amak316” Makhija, Alec “traheho” Torelli, and Zachary “CrazyZachary” Clark. The festivities are being held in conjunction with the release of Brunson’s autobiography, “The Godfather of Poker.” Brunson will be on-hand distributing signed copies of his book for those in attendance at the Blush Nightclub at the Wynn. Members of the media were distributed invitations to the exclusive event this week.

Also taking place on Sunday is Vince Neil’s Fifth Annual Off The Strip Poker Tournament. The event, run by Matt Savage and organized by the Mötley Crüe front man, emanates from Buzio’s at the Rio at 7:00pm. The gala boasts a $550 buy-in and a $50,000 prize pool will be up for grabs. Proceeds benefit the Skylar Neil Foundation, named in honor of Neil’s daughter, who died of cancer 14 years ago. Las Vegas comedian Vinny Favorito, All-In Magazine owner Casey Thompson, and Bodog pro Jean-Robert Bellande are just a few players confirmed for the event.

Monday at 10:00pm PT will see the two survivors of the Main Event play down to a champion. The tournament’s conclusion will air on Tuesday at 9:00pm ET on ESPN. Poker News Daily will be on site in Las Vegas for the conclusion of the 2009 WSOP Main Event. Check back for complete coverage from Sin City.

WSOP Main Event Festivities in Full Swing

If you think the conclusion World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event is just about the $10,000 buy-in feature tournament, you couldn’t be further from the truth. A variety of side events and a cavalcade of media will make this weekend one for the ages.

On Saturday at 10:00am, credentialed media can begin accessing the behemoth facility that is the Penn and Teller Theater at the Rio in Las Vegas. Media will be seated on stage, in the first row of the auditorium, and in a press box overlooking the festivities. Players will be nearly on top of the audience as part of a revamped stage layout and only a handful of poker fans will likely be let in due to an overwhelming number of supporters brought by each player.

Harrah’s officials placed the $15.8 million up for grabs into a money market account back in July. It has since accrued $1,321 in interest, which will be divided among the top finishers based on their original payday. Ninth place will see no change to their payout, while the first place bounty of $8.5 million will be boosted by $607 in interest. Players who have busted out of the Main Event will be herded to a special interview area 10 minutes following their exit. Play kicks off at Noon PT on Saturday.

During the dinner break of the Main Event, World Poker Tour (WPT) Host and Poker News Daily Guest Columnist Mike Sexton will be inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame as the lone representative of the Class of 2009. Sexton’s induction ceremony takes place in the Brasilia Ballroom in a $150 per plate affair sponsored by JAQK Cellars. Sexton was one of nine players up for nomination and received 75% of the vote of a panel of media members and living Hall of Fame players.

Sexton told ESPN “Inside Deal” hosts Laura Lane and Bernard Lee about his plans for the induction speech: “I’m getting my thoughts together now on what I’m going to say. Certainly, I’m going to acknowledge the other nominees and thank people who have been very important to me in my poker career and life as well.”

Play is expected to last between 12 and 24 hours on Saturday and will continue well into the night until two remain. On Sunday, a meatball eating contest featuring some of the world’s top professional eaters will take place at Cafe Martarano’s at the Rio. Among those vying for the title will be Ultimate Bet front man Phil Hellmuth, who owns a record 11 WSOP bracelets. Hellmuth will square off against the likes of Joey Chestnut, who has won the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest three years running.

At 3:00pm PT on Sunday, DoylesRoom is announcing the fifth member of its Brunson 10. The stable of young online poker pros hand-picked by site namesake Doyle Brunson already includes Chris “moorman1” Moorman, Amit “amak316” Makhija, Alec “traheho” Torelli, and Zachary “CrazyZachary” Clark. The festivities are being held in conjunction with the release of Brunson’s autobiography, “The Godfather of Poker.” Brunson will be on-hand distributing signed copies of his book for those in attendance at the Blush Nightclub at the Wynn. Members of the media were distributed invitations to the exclusive event this week.

Also taking place on Sunday is Vince Neil’s Fifth Annual Off The Strip Poker Tournament. The event, run by Matt Savage and organized by the Mötley Crüe front man, emanates from Buzio’s at the Rio at 7:00pm. The gala boasts a $550 buy-in and a $50,000 prize pool will be up for grabs. Proceeds benefit the Skylar Neil Foundation, named in honor of Neil’s daughter, who died of cancer 14 years ago. Las Vegas comedian Vinny Favorito, All-In Magazine owner Casey Thompson, and Bodog pro Jean-Robert Bellande are just a few players confirmed for the event.

Monday at 10:00pm PT will see the two survivors of the Main Event play down to a champion. The tournament’s conclusion will air on Tuesday at 9:00pm ET on ESPN. Poker News Daily will be on site in Las Vegas for the conclusion of the 2009 WSOP Main Event. Check back for complete coverage from Sin City.

WSOP Main Event Festivities in Full Swing

If you think the conclusion World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event is just about the $10,000 buy-in feature tournament, you couldn’t be further from the truth. A variety of side events and a cavalcade of media will make this weekend one for the ages.

On Saturday at 10:00am, credentialed media can begin accessing the behemoth facility that is the Penn and Teller Theater at the Rio in Las Vegas. Media will be seated on stage, in the first row of the auditorium, and in a press box overlooking the festivities. Players will be nearly on top of the audience as part of a revamped stage layout and only a handful of poker fans will likely be let in due to an overwhelming number of supporters brought by each player.

Harrah’s officials placed the $15.8 million up for grabs into a money market account back in July. It has since accrued $1,321 in interest, which will be divided among the top finishers based on their original payday. Ninth place will see no change to their payout, while the first place bounty of $8.5 million will be boosted by $607 in interest. Players who have busted out of the Main Event will be herded to a special interview area 10 minutes following their exit. Play kicks off at Noon PT on Saturday.

During the dinner break of the Main Event, World Poker Tour (WPT) Host and Poker News Daily Guest Columnist Mike Sexton will be inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame as the lone representative of the Class of 2009. Sexton’s induction ceremony takes place in the Brasilia Ballroom in a $150 per plate affair sponsored by JAQK Cellars. Sexton was one of nine players up for nomination and received 75% of the vote of a panel of media members and living Hall of Fame players.

Sexton told ESPN “Inside Deal” hosts Laura Lane and Bernard Lee about his plans for the induction speech: “I’m getting my thoughts together now on what I’m going to say. Certainly, I’m going to acknowledge the other nominees and thank people who have been very important to me in my poker career and life as well.”

Play is expected to last between 12 and 24 hours on Saturday and will continue well into the night until two remain. On Sunday, a meatball eating contest featuring some of the world’s top professional eaters will take place at Cafe Martarano’s at the Rio. Among those vying for the title will be Ultimate Bet front man Phil Hellmuth, who owns a record 11 WSOP bracelets. Hellmuth will square off against the likes of Joey Chestnut, who has won the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest three years running.

At 3:00pm PT on Sunday, DoylesRoom is announcing the fifth member of its Brunson 10. The stable of young online poker pros hand-picked by site namesake Doyle Brunson already includes Chris “moorman1” Moorman, Amit “amak316” Makhija, Alec “traheho” Torelli, and Zachary “CrazyZachary” Clark. The festivities are being held in conjunction with the release of Brunson’s autobiography, “The Godfather of Poker.” Brunson will be on-hand distributing signed copies of his book for those in attendance at the Blush Nightclub at the Wynn. Members of the media were distributed invitations to the exclusive event this week.

Also taking place on Sunday is Vince Neil’s Fifth Annual Off The Strip Poker Tournament. The event, run by Matt Savage and organized by the Mötley Crüe front man, emanates from Buzio’s at the Rio at 7:00pm. The gala boasts a $550 buy-in and a $50,000 prize pool will be up for grabs. Proceeds benefit the Skylar Neil Foundation, named in honor of Neil’s daughter, who died of cancer 14 years ago. Las Vegas comedian Vinny Favorito, All-In Magazine owner Casey Thompson, and Bodog pro Jean-Robert Bellande are just a few players confirmed for the event.

Monday at 10:00pm PT will see the two survivors of the Main Event play down to a champion. The tournament’s conclusion will air on Tuesday at 9:00pm ET on ESPN. Poker News Daily will be on site in Las Vegas for the conclusion of the 2009 WSOP Main Event. Check back for complete coverage from Sin City.

Bodog Cancels Sunday Tournaments, $100,000 Guaranteed

Players logging into the popular online poker room Bodog on Sunday to play in the weekly $100,000 Guaranteed flagship tournament found the site down due to technical difficulties.

On the PocketFives.com online poker forum, the trouble for many users began shortly before 5:00pm ET when one frustrated person posted, “Anyone else having problems logging into bodog?” The site’s $100,000 Guaranteed begins at 4:00pm ET each Sunday and comes with a $162 buy-in. On October 18th, a total of 469 players entered, creating an overlay of nearly $30,000. Overlays of over $20,000 are common in the event, which has become a haven for the world’s top online poker pros looking to claim their share of the dead money in the prize pool.

Players battling in the $100,000 Guaranteed at the time attempted to diagnose the problem, with PocketFives.com member “dirtydonzo” taking it upon himself to call Bodog’s customer support. The response: “Just called them. No real information. Lady said they are having technical difficulties and they are working to fix the problem. She didn’t have any specific details and didn’t know when the site might be back up.” The post was time stamped at 4:53pm ET, less than one hour into the $100,000 Guaranteed.

Meanwhile, PocketFives.com member “MarkFSU1” relayed his story, which was echoed by several other players: “I got a message saying the 100k was canceled because [there were] not enough players.” Customer support purportedly told some concerned Bodog members that the $100,000 Guaranteed would be rescheduled.

One player who attempted to log in while the melee was unfolding received an error message notifying him of maintenance: “Bodog is down for regularly scheduled maintenance and/or software upgrades. We expect to be back up shortly.” At 7:09pm ET, about two-and-a-half hours after issues were first reported, Bodog representative Rebecca “BodogBecky” Liggero appeared and claimed, “Tonight, Sunday, October 25th, Bodog Poker had to cancel all tournaments because many players were experiencing disconnection problems. Players will be compensated according to Bodog Poker rules, i.e. players will be paid a percentage of the prize pool based on their stack size when the tournament was canceled.”

According to Bodog’s Terms of Service, when a guaranteed prize pool tournament is canceled prior to hitting the money bubble, “the payout will be based on the prize pool composed of buy-ins only,” meaning that the guarantee is not factored in. Half of the purse is distributed evenly among all players remaining in the tournament, while the other half is dished out based on chip counts. Liggero instructed concerned online poker players to contact the individual Bodog licensees.

Liggero told Poker News Daily that the site is looking to right the ship this weekend. She relayed a statement from the Bodog Network claiming, “Bodog has more customers than ever and yesterday this caused some problems with our database. To repair the problems, we were forced to cancel all ongoing tournaments, including our flagship $100,000 tournament. All players have been compensated in accordance with our tournament cancellation policy. On top of that, we will invite all affected players to a $10,000 freeroll on Sunday. They will all receive an email with the details.”

A similar occurrence took place during the $100,000 Guaranteed five weeks ago. On September 20th, about 90% of players in the event were disconnected and blinded off. In a post made two days later, Liggero explained, “At 8:09pm EST on Sunday we had to restart our servers, and after that many players, but not all, were blinded out of the 100K tournament. At the time of the restart, 43 players were left in the 100K tournament, and all were already in the money. Since the tournament was not stopped, the result will stand and everyone will keep their prize money.” The statement added that Bodog officials should have halted the tournament at 8:09pm ET and so an additional 35 players would be compensated accordingly.

Players logging into the site on Monday were met with a small software update and the $100,000 Guaranteed is scheduled for Sunday, November 1st, the same day as the start of the fourth Bodog Poker Open. Bodog accepts players from the United States and features a stable of pros that includes Justin “ZeeJustin” Bonomo, “Survivor: China” castaway Jean-Robert Bellande, Evelyn Ng, and David Williams.

Bodog Poker Open IV Dates Announced

In the world of online poker tournament series, there are a few that are “must play” events for online professionals. The annual PokerStars’ World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) and the quarterly Full Tilt Online Poker Series (FTOPS) normally come to mind first, but Bodog has built its own franchise that has done very well, the Bodog Poker Open. Recently, the dates were announced for the fourth version of Bodog’s preeminent online tournament series and some special prizes have been added for the eventual champion.

The Bodog Poker Open IV is scheduled to start on November 1st and will wrap up one week later on November 8th. The weeklong schedule features several tournaments that will test the skills of the players involved in Limit, Pot Limit, and No Limit Texas Hold’em. It also has been split into two divisions that will enable anyone to get into the game.

The Bodog Championship Series features the seven main tournaments that run from a $50 rebuy to the $500 Championship Event. These tournaments should draw the cream of the internet poker world to battle it out on the virtual felt. The second division, called the Bodog Contender Series, features eight tournaments that cost 10% of the buy-ins of the main schedule, but will still be profitable for their eventual champions.

There are other additions that should make the Bodog Poker Open IV a schedule that will be well-attended. Each tournament in the Championship Series has money added to the prize pool, ranging from $2,500 for Event #6 ($150 Limit Hold’em) to the $25,000 that will be added to the Championship Event’s prize pool. In the Contender Series, two tournaments, the $10 No Limit Hold’em event (#1) and the Contender Championship Event, have money added to them.

Each player who wins one of the preliminary tournaments on the Championship Schedule will also earn a seat into the Championship Event along with a chunk of the prize pool. For those playing on the Contender Schedule, the winners of preliminary events will take home a seat into the Championship Series Main Event, while their final tablemates will earn a seat into the Contender Series Main Event. Finally, the eventual champions of both divisions’ Main Events will be featured in CardPlayer Magazine and Bodog’s online outlets, including the “Bodog Beat.”

For those who don’t want to pony up the full buy-in for either the Championship or the Contender Schedule, there are ways to qualify for the tournaments on the cheap through a very extensive satellite schedule. For as little as $0.50, players can work their way into the mix for playing in any of the Bodog Poker Open scheduled events on either side of the ledger. Players can even use Bodog Poker Points to enter into special satellite tournaments that can get them into a tournament for no monetary outlay.

Back on May 3rd, the Bodog Poker Open III wrapped up its Championship Event by crowning “biffsworld” as the victor. “biffsworld” vanquished the 279-player field, which included Bodog poker professionals Jean-Robert Bellande and Justin Bonomo, and took home the $40,283 first prize. “biffsworld” is expected back to defend his title, joining “scarface0928” (Mid-Main Event champion) and “winjack” (Mini-Main Event champion), who also earned titles during the Bodog Poker Open III. With the Bodog Poker Open IV less than two weeks away, the action should be picking up significantly as players attempt to win their way into the weeklong tournament series.

Joe Hachem, Jeffrey Lisandro Featured on WSOP on ESPN Coverage

Day 3 of the 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event hit television airwaves on ESPN on Tuesday night, with two hours of coverage dedicated to the festivities. Seated at the feature table were two Aussies, Joe Hachem and Jeffrey Lisandro.

Lisandro became the fifth player in WSOP history to take home three bracelets in a year and has logged 29 cashes since 2004. Hachem took down the 2005 Main Event and ignited a poker boom of his own in Australia. Joining the duo from Down Under was George Hardie, the former owner of the Bicycle Casino in Los Angeles. On the first hand, Lisandro raised to 3,600 with pocket eights and, after peeking down at pocket queens, Hachem made it 9,600. Lisandro called to see a flop of 10-4-2. Lisandro checked, Hachem bet 16,000, and Lisandro quickly released his hand, igniting chants of “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie!”

ESPN announcer Norman Chad commented that, while Phil Ivey remains his perennial pick to win the WSOP Main Event, Lisandro’s heroics in 2009 make him a close second: “Let’s assume that aliens come down and lure Phil Ivey away to a cash game mother ship, then I must turn to Jeffrey Lisandro.” Ville Wahlbeck was the only player remaining in the field that could catch Lisandro for WSOP Player of the Year honors. However, he’d need a seventh place finish or better in order to do so. Wahlbeck was seated at Table Two during the 8:00pm ET episode alongside Kenny Tran.

Also found in the field were Ivey and Phil Hellmuth. “The Poker Brat” found that one of his tablemates, Lauchlin McKinnon, did not want to shake his hand. Instead, his opponent told Hellmuth, “I don’t respect anything you do. I think you’re a complete prick.” Hellmuth joked, “I think this is going to be a good day.” Elsewhere in the Amazon Room, Bodog pro Jean-Robert Bellande pushed with A-10 of diamonds for 20 big blinds and rivered a flush to double up. Chad labeled him a “survivor,” a reference to his appearance on the China installment of the CBS reality franchise.

Kent Senter, who is undergoing stem cell treatment for an incurable form of cancer, was all-in with pocket tens against Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier’s pocket jacks. The board ran out K-5-3-3-5, giving Grospellier the win and sending Senter home. He was met with a herd of television cameras upon his departure. Grospellier is a PokerStars pro; his site began sponsoring chip count leaderboard graphics on Tuesday night on ESPN.

The “Straight from the Pros” segment featured Daniel Negreanu battling against Sammy Farha in a hand during the 2005 WSOP Main Event. Negreanu folded a straight after a third spade hit the river to give Farha a flush. Negreanu, the captain of the Team Americas squad that will compete in the Caesars Cup, told ESPN cameras, “He’s either bluffing here or I’m dead.”

Negreanu’s comrade on Team PokerStars Pro, Hachem, was featured in the Jack Link’s Beef Jerky Wild Card Hand, in which the cards of one player are not shown so the audience can play along at home. Hachem raised to 4,100 pre-flop with the Wild Card hand and Claus Nielsen called with pocket threes. The flop came 8-2-5 and Nielsen checked. Hachem fired out a bet of 6,200 and Nielsen made the call. The turn was a deuce and Nielsen put in a check-raise to 32,000, causing Hachem to relinquish K-Q.

Also in the field was former November Nine member Dennis Phillips, who relived tossing out the first pitch at a St. Louis Cardinals baseball game. However, he wound up throwing the ball directly at the ground. Wahlbeck then hit the skids after running pocket queens into pocket kings, leading to an announcement from WSOP Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack that Lisandro had claimed Player of the Year honors. Ivey then moved to Grospellier’s table, leaving Chad to remark, “Poker’s superpowers clash.”

The second episode of Tuesday night kicked off at 9:00pm ET and continued coverage of Day 3 of the 2009 WSOP Main Event. David “Devilfish” Ulliott joined the cast at Table Two, while Hellmuth found himself flanking Josh Arieh. Former Main Event winners Peter Eastgate (2008), Greg Raymer (2004), Dan Harrington (1995), Hachem (2005), and Hellmuth (1989) all remained alive to begin the episode, but Raymer quickly found himself on the sidelines after running pocket tens into pocket aces.

Lunkin doubled up after rivering a straight, causing Chad to lament, “I know Lunkin has played good, but I can’t tell you how ridiculously good he’s run. He should be halfway back to Moscow on an Aeroflot flight in coach.” Meanwhile, Nielsen bet out on an ace-high board after raising pre-flop with just 8-4. However, Hachem laid down pocket queens and Lisandro released pocket kings, giving the pot to Nielsen.

The Full Tilt Poker sponsored segment “Deal Me In” featured Howard Lederer taking on Hellmuth in a hand from the 2004 WSOP Tournament of Champions, which was ultimately won by Poker News Daily Guest Columnist Annie Duke.

Hevad Khan cheerily smiled at ESPN cameras, leading to the following comment from announcer Lon McEachern: “That’s the first real sign of life from him we’ve seen in two years.” Khan finished sixth in the 2007 WSOP Main Event. His lively antics resulted in the “Hevad Khan rule” against excessive player celebrations. Elsewhere in the dwindling field, J.C. Tran and Joe Sebok doubled up, while L.A. Lakers Guard Jordan Farmar was eliminated. Also hitting the exits was “Seinfeld” actor Jason Alexander, whose opponent made trips on the river.

Finally, “The Nuts” featured Chad and Hellmuth taking turns in a dunk tank. After Chad, a southpaw, finally sent Hellmuth to a watery demise, he commented, “I took more pleasure out of dunking you than anything in my whole life. That was two honeymoons rolled into one.”

New episodes of the 2009 WSOP Main Event on ESPN air on Tuesdays at 8:00pm ET and are repeated throughout the week on ESPN’s family of networks.

Bodog Network Launched Featuring Former Ongame Executive

Former Ongame Network CEO Patrik Selin is leading the launch of the Bodog Network, whose player base consists of customers of Bodog Europe, the Morris Mohawk Gaming Group, and Haydock Entertainment.

The newly forged network plans to incorporate non-Bodog domains starting in 2010. A gaming license for the European Union will also be unveiled next year. Selin commented in a press release distributed by Bodog, “I intend to build one of the largest and most reputable poker networks in the world. We are building a model that is founded on security and integrity, and Bodog Network partners will never need to disclose or put their customer databases at risk. The initial discussions I’ve had regarding potential candidate partners have been overwhelmingly positive.”

The news comes on the heels of the launch of Bodog.ca, which serves as the popular online poker room’s Canadian-facing portal. Bodog Europe holds the rights to market the site to the Canadian market. Founder Calvin Ayre commented on the fast-paced growth of Bodog, which has seen its market share slide over the past year: “I am extremely excited about this new licensee of BodogBrand.com - Bodog Network is the first business to business enterprise to license the brand and the fit simply couldn’t be better. Patrik Selin’s very detailed business plan and proposal were very compelling, and after building Ongame into a network powerhouse under his leadership, his abilities and credibility are unquestionable.”

Selin was at the helm when bwin acquired the Ongame Network back in 2006. He has also been successful on the poker felts, turning in a runner-up performance in 2007 in a £2,500 buy-in tournament held during the National Poker League in London for £20,000. He finished in the winner’s circle in the Ritz Club Poker Tournament, which was also held in London, for £22,000 in 2006. Selin finished 500th in the 2006 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event, banking $26,000, albeit a far cry from the $12 million pocketed by eventual winner Jamie Gold.

Upon bwin’s acquisition of Ongame in 2006, Selin served as the President and CEO of GNUF and Betway. BodogBrand.com is based in Antigua and is the licensing arm for Bodog across the world. Bodog ranks as the 15th largest site/network globally according to PokerScout.com, boasting a seven-day running average of 810 real money ring game players. During its peak hours, which occur in the evening across North America, nearly double that total can be found battling it out on its virtual cash game tables. Its traffic is comparable with that found on PKR.

Bodog is the fifth largest site to accept players from the United States, trailing only PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker, CEREUS (Ultimate Bet and Absolute Poker), and the family of rooms that make up the Cake Poker Network. Year over year, Bodog’s traffic is off by 8% according to PokerScout.com, while that found on Full Tilt Poker and PokerStars is up 110% and 56%, respectively.

Bodog plans to unleash a “much-anticipated and unique solution to the rakeback challenge” this week at an event in Copenhagen, according to its release, but did not provide any further details. Its family of pros consists of David Williams, Evelyn Ng, online poker staple Justin “ZeeJustin” Bonomo, and “Survivor: China” castaway Jean-Robert Bellande, who recently re-upped his deal.

Bodog recently announced that players would receive double poker points if more than 2,000 were earned in a calendar month. Bonus points are placed in a customer’s account at the end of each month and can then be exchanged for cash or used as buy-ins to designated tournaments. Points are earned in cash games depending on the rake taken from each pot and in tournaments at a rate of three points per $1 of tournament fees.

Poker Pros Michelle and Ho Confirmed for “The Amazing Race”

After two months of speculation, CBS has finally confirmed what the poker world has suspected all along: poker pros Tiffany Michelle and Maria Ho will be competing together as a team on the upcoming season of the competition reality show “The Amazing Race.”

Photos, bios and video of the two women went up on the show’s official website on Wednesday, along with those of the other eleven teams competing in the latest installment of the race. Ho and Michelle will be facing off against a wide array of people including a married couple who work as yoga instructors, members of the Harlem Globetrotters, a singer/songwriter team and a contestant who has Asperger’s Syndrome.

Rumors first surfaced of the poker playing pair’s involvement with the show when neither woman participated in this year’s World Series of Poker Main Event. A series of clues, including Michelle alluding to an upcoming project with one of the show’s producers, Jerry Bruckheimer, a forum thread featuring posts from former “Survivor” contestant Jean-Robert Bellande seeking female poker players for a new reality project and fan photos from the shows launch capturing what looked like Ho, all led to speculation that the two ladies would be the latest poker pros to take a stab at reality television.

In the video of the team posted on the show’s website, the two discussed their chosen profession and talked about how they became friends while travelling the poker tournament circuit. Michelle cited their success in a traditionally male-dominated field as one of their strengths as a team. No all-female team has won the show in its 14-season history and the team of Ho and Michelle believe they have a legitimate shot to win. “We’re used to being the women doing the things that no other women are doing”, Michelle explained.

Ho ran down some of the things the ladies did in order to prepare for the event. In addition to taking extensive notes on previous episodes of the show, Ho and Michelle also learned how to drive a stick shift, as there is typically some sort of vehicle-related challenge that involves just such a skill.  She joked that they may not have practiced eating rare and potentially unappetizing food, another staple challenge of the program, but asserted that she and Michelle were mentally prepared to run the race. Michelle and Ho also cited their knowledge of Mandarin Chinese (Ho is fluent) and sign language as potentially helpful skills, but noted that the last season of the race featured a lengthy leg in China, so Ho’s knowledge may not be put to use after all.

Should the two survive in the race long enough to make it to the finale, rumors indicate the two may have home field advantage working in their favor. The Las Vegas Review Journal recently reported that the production crew of the show pulled permits to film in and around Las Vegas in early August. Some of the stops listed on the permits included McCarren International Airport and the famous “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas” sign. While both women hail from Southern California, their poker work requires them to spend several weeks in Vegas each year, so the stop in Vegas would certainly be familiar territory for the duo.

This is not the only exciting news for Michelle. This week it was announced that she will be renewing her sponsorship deal with online poker site Ultimate Bet. Michelle first signed on with the site during her memorable WSOP Main Event run last year. She was the last woman left in the field that year and ultimately finished in 17th place.

“I’m happy to be signing on for another year with UltimateBet and I’m eager to get back to playing in live tournaments and exclusively at their online tables”, Michelle said in regards to her new deal. “The corporate team at UB has been so welcoming and supportive and I’m thrilled to be working with them. I can’t wait for the exciting things in store for us.”

The newest season of “The Amazing Race” begins on Sunday September 27th. The show will air on CBS from 8PM-9PM ET.

Michelle, Ho confirmed for <i>Amazing Race</i>

"We're excited to go out there and represent for the women," said Michelle in a video available on CBS.com. "No female team has ever won and we're used to doing what no other women are doing."

Also taking part in the season are two members of the Harlem Globetrotters, a former Miss America and her husband, dating aspiring country singers and eight other teams.

In the poker world Michelle and Ho are famous for being the last woman standing in the World Series of Poker Main Event in consecutive years. Ho came in 38th in the 2007 Main Event to score $237,865 while Michelle won $334,534 for coming in 17th in the 2009 Main Event.

This summer Ho narrowly missed out on the final table of the $10,000 WSOP Limit event by coming in 11th for $41,040.

Ho and Michelle are active in the entertainment industry and both have worked as on-camera talent for various poker news outlets.

The announcement isn't all that shocking considering that Michelle and Ho were rumored to be taking part in the show in mid-July and both were notably absent from the 2009 WSOP Main Event.

Michelle even mentioned on her Twitter that she would be gone filming a new project for several months in the summer.

Reality TV is nothing new for poker players as Jean-Robert Bellande appeared on Survivor: China in 2007 and Annie Duke was a cast-member of Celebrity Apprentice earlier this year. Bellande was eliminated early in Survivor but Duke made it all the way to the last two players in Apprentice before losing to Joan Rivers.

Season 15 of the The Amazing Race premieres Sept 27 on CBS.

WSOP Coverage on ESPN Spotlights Hellmuth and Ivey

Last night’s episodes of the World Series of Poker (WSOP) on ESPN spotlighted the two most recognizable Phils in poker: Phil Hellmuth and November Nine member Phil Ivey. Hellmuth was seated at the feature table for the coverage of Day 2B while the secondary feature table boasted a strong line up of Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi and PokerStars Pros Dennis Phillips and Maria “Maridu” Mayrinck. Over the course of the two episodes the show included updates on cancer patient Kent Senter, actor Lou Diamond Phillips and NBA star Jordan Farmar amongst others, but perhaps the most interesting aspect of Tuesday’s show was the unorthodox play of Hellmuth. As co-host Norman Chad aptly put it, it was, “as if Phil’s body and soul has been occupied by some idiot from Northern Europe.”

The episode began by reminding the audience of Hellmuth’s epic entrance in full Roman regalia for Day 1 of play and Chad assured viewers that the 11-time bracelet winner would be full of surprises during Day 2.  Chad got the inside scoop from Hellmuth, who told the poker commentator he was, “going to be more active and not back down from big raises.” While ESPN chose not to air the verbal confrontation between Hellmuth and internet poker pro Todd “Dan Druff” Witteles regarding the Ultimate Bet cheating scandal, Chad did make mention of each player’s role in the scandal and subsequent investigation as part of his commentary.

Hellmuth stuck to his word during the first featured hand of the night when he called a raise from 22-year old Ben Sprengers holding 7c 8c and got it all-in against Sprenger’s two pair when the Jd-6c-5c flop brought him an open-ended straight flush draw. After Hellmuth hit his flush to double up, Sprengers, who would prove to be Hellmuth’s nemesis throughout the day, questioned the Ultimate Bet Pro’s play and Hellmuth responded by saying, “I didn’t come to lay down son. I came to play.”

A member of last year’s November Nine, Phillips, also came to play and did not take long to clash in a pot with his tablemate Mizrachi. It would be Mayrinck, not Mizrachi who would be featured in the most pots with Phillips, as Mizrachi hit the rail midway through Day 2B play. Phillips picked up pocket aces against the Brazilian pro twice and managed to get her to pay him off both times.

Phillips was not the only November Niner profiled. The show also featured a segment discussing year’s winner Peter Eastgate besting Hellmuth’s record of youngest Main Event Champion. Hellmuth won his Main Event title at age 23 while Eastgate was just 22-years old when he won the Main Event last year. The 2008 Player of the Year Erick Lindgren also made the coverage, as the cameras caught his pocket queens getting cracked by Craig Ivey’s pocket jacks to eliminate the Full Tilt Pro early on Day 2B.

Some of the other players featured last night included Robert Williamson III, Scotty Nguyen, Tom “durrrr” Dwan, Ville Wahlbeck, 2009 WSOP Player of the Year Jeffrey Lisandro, Hevad “Rain” Khan, Howard Lederer and Frankie Gay, who was playing in the Main Event to honor his late son who was a soldier killed in action overseas. While Gay did not survive to Day 3, he and his family felt the trip was an appropriate tribute to their beloved son.

Senter, whose dying wish was to play in the WSOP Main Event, fared better than Gay did on the felt and survived to Day 3 despite doubling up Billy Gazes late in the day. Some of the other players to survive Day 2B included Hachem, Phillips, Mayrinck, JC Tran, Anthrax guitarist Scott Ian, Eastgate and Phil Ivey.

Ivey did more than just survive Day 2B. He ended the day as one of the big stacks in the room thanks in part to a huge hand in which he got it all-in preflop holding pocket kings to Jonas Molander’s A-K. The kings held to give Ivey the 223,700 chip pot and vault him to the top of the chip counts.

This week’s “The Nuts” segment featured a chess game between Chad and Lederer. Chad didn’t have much time to interview Lederer, as his opponent made quick worth of the TV personality on the chess board. The PokerStars’ Straight From the Pros segment highlighted a hand Khan played against Jon Kalmar in the 2007 Main Event and the Full Tilt Poker-sponsored piece Deal Me In had Jennifer Harman offering insight on a hand she played in a WSOP Circuit event against Jean-Robert Bellande.

Next week’s episodes will feature coverage of Day 3, the first day the entire field will converge on the Rio at the same time.

Bodog Launches Bodog.ca, Now Accepts Canadian Players

Starting on Thursday, online poker players from Canada can officially sign up for Bodog, one of the world’s largest sites, through Bodog.ca. Previously, Bodog did not accept players from the North American country, which has produced some of the game’s top-tier players.

The news coincides with the 15 year anniversary of the Bodog brand. A press release proudly announcing the launch of Bodog.ca noted, “The Bodog brand is celebrating its fifteenth year anniversary this year – an absolutely remarkable pedigree and testament to its enduring values in an industry that quickly kills off mediocrity. The brand has gone through quite an evolution during that long history and Bodog Europe is looking forward to carrying the torch forward for at least another fifteen years of world-class customer service, unbeatable promotions, and, above all – fun.”

The aforementioned Bodog Europe holds the rights to Bodog.ca and is led by Keith McDonnell. The marketing outfit is licensed and regulated in Antigua and now conducts business across two continents. Morris Mohawk owns the rights to market Bodog in the United States. McDonnell commented in the same release, “We’re extremely excited to be able to bring the unique Bodog experience to Canadian players. Canadians are passionate sports fans and are extremely savvy consumers. The Bodog brand is known world-over for its unmatched customer service and here at Bodog Europe, we put the player’s experience and entertainment ahead of all else.”

Bodog Europe’s flagship website is Bodog.co.uk. Poker News Daily became aware of Bodog.ca last week. However, Bodog made no official announcement about its purpose until this morning.

Canada has produced some of poker’s top players. Among them is Team PokerStars Pro member Daniel Negreanu, a four-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner. Negreanu was born in Toronto and took down his first bracelet 11 years ago in a $2,000 buy-in Pot Limit Hold’em tournament. In that event, he cashed for $169,000 and trumped a final table that also included Chris “Jesus” Ferguson and Lee Markholt. Negreanu is the all-time money leader on the World Poker Tour (WPT) and has captured two titles.

Also coming out of Canada is one of Bodog’s featured pros, Evelyn Ng. The Toronto native took second in the WPT Ladies Night event in 2003 and is currently dating Lex Veldhuis. Team Bodog also includes David Williams, Justin “ZeeJustin” Bonomo, and “Survivor: China” castaway Jean-Robert Bellande. Bodog’s weekly $100,000 Guaranteed attracts the site’s skilled players, as a five-figure overlay is commonplace in the $162 buy-in Sunday tournament.

Nenad Medic took down the $10,000 buy-in World Championship of Pot Limit Hold’em during the 2008 WSOP to give Canada another bracelet. Medic is a product of Waterloo and won the Foxwoods World Poker Finals during Season V of the WPT for $1.7 million. Other famous Canadian poker players include 2008 WSOP November Nine member Scott Montgomery, Steven Paul-Ambrose, and online poker stud Mike “SirWatts” Watson. The latter came out on top in the Bellagio Cup IV WPT event for nearly $1.7 million.

Canadian Bodog players will also be able to take advantage of the site’s sports book and casino, which features 80 games to choose from. Bodog is doubling Poker Points for players who earn at least 2,000 in a calendar month. When the stanza is over, Bodog will deposit the hard-earned bonus points into a player’s account. These can be exchanged for cash or used to buy into Poker Point tournaments.

According to traffic ranking site PokerScout.com, Bodog is the 15th largest room/network worldwide with a seven-day running average of 750 real money ring game players. During its peak hours, nearly double that total can be found battling it out on cash game tables. At the time of writing, which is midday across North America, a total of 554 players are seated at its real money ring games.

Poker Players on Reality TV: Good or Bad for the Game?

Several poker superstars have joined the cast of reality shows in recent years. Bodog pro Jean-Robert Bellande was a castaway on the CBS reality hallmark “Survivor.” Annie Duke finished as the runner-up to Joan Rivers on NBC’s “Celebrity Apprentice.” Now, Tiffany Michelle will likely join Maria Ho on “Amazing Race.” Poker News Daily sat down with former PokerStars Vice President of Marketing Dan Goldman to discuss whether these appearances are beneficial or hurtful to the game.

Poker News Daily: What are your thoughts on Tiffany Michelle and Maria Ho appearing on the 15th installment of CBS’ “Amazing Race”?

Goldman: These are two interesting characters. Tiffany is controversial, but I don’t think that makes her appearance negative. She’s controversial, but not despised, which could make for interesting television. My personal sense is that among people who know what’s going on with Ultimate Bet, I’m not sure there’s not a lot that can be done to rehabilitate the site’s image. One of the advantages of shows like “Amazing Race” is that they’re reaching an audience wider than poker and that’s what Ultimate Bet needs.

PND: Can you compare Tiffany Michelle’s “Amazing Race” appearance to Annie Duke’s performance on NBC’s “Celebrity Apprentice”?

Goldman: Annie is tightly associated with poker. Tiffany and Maria have their own aura that potentially transcends poker. They are two young, attractive women and will be a bit more interesting to a wider audience than Annie. They are, for the most part, unknown outside of poker.

PND: Tiffany Michelle is a member of Team UB. Is there any downside to the online poker site for her to appear on the show?

Goldman: I don’t think there’s a downside for Ultimate Bet. What’s the worst thing that could happen? It’s not like people are going to flee Ultimate Bet because her team didn’t act well. Their worst-case scenario for Ultimate Bet is that nothing happens. The best-case scenario is that a new audience will learn about them.

PND: Do you plan to watch “Amazing Race” when it debuts on September 27th on CBS?

Goldman: I watched the first season of the show and sort of liked it. I’m not a big fan of reality shows in general. If I watched one, it’d be this because it’s the best of an uninteresting brand of television. I’m obviously in the minority here, but the fact that a poker player is on it doesn’t affect me.

PND: When you were with PokerStars, was there any talk of using reality television as a marketing vehicle for your players?

Goldman: We talked about it, but briefly. We always stayed fairly close to poker. We did talk at length about doing a reality show centered on poker or one that had significant components of poker. We talked about doing a “Big Brother”-type show with a handful of poker players and a handful of people who were smart, but weren’t poker players. The goal was see if we could educate a non-poker crowd. We investigated it and there was some interest from networks, but not enough for them to fund development. It would have been a significant expense.

PND: What was the feedback you received from networks?

Goldman: It was poker and this was in 2004. Their feeling was if the show had poker, they wanted to hear about it. At least one of the networks was willing to do it as a partnership, but we decided that there were other ways to invest the millions of dollars that would have had more impact. PokerStars was a much different company back then than it is now.

PND: ESPN.com releases a weekly poker news show, “Inside Deal,” with Bernard Lee and Laura Lane that is sponsored by PokerStars. Have you watched it?

Goldman: It’s not bad. I think there’s a lot more they could do with it. If I were doing it, the show would be in smaller doses and more like “Entertainment Weekly.” It’d be a 15 minute show with short two to four minute segments, but it’s interesting. Bernard Lee is better than I thought he would be.

PND: Do you think there’s a market for a show like “Inside Deal” on television?

Goldman: I don’t think there’s a broad enough audience. If you did it once or twice a week for 15 minutes, it could attract an audience if you figured out where to put it. The show probably should tag along with a World Poker Tour or World Series of Poker episode. Stuff like this does better online and has longer legs. If it can be promoted properly, it has a lot of potential.

Liv Boeree Joins Team UB

Liv Boeree, formerly an ambassador of Absolute Poker, has become a card-carrying member of Team Ultimate Bet (Team UB), officials of the Tokwiro-owned online poker rooms announced this week.

In a press release distributed by Ultimate Bet, Boeree noted that she was looking forward to joining “Celebrity Apprentice” runner-up Annie Duke and 11-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth, among others, on the Team UB roster: “It’s an honor to play with the two people who helped launch my poker career. Annie and Phil are two of my favorite players, so to sit on the same team as them is a bit of a surreal experience, but one I’m definitely proud of.” While on the show “UltimatePoker.com Showdown” in 2005, Boeree received poker coaching from Duke. The same press release explains, “It was [also] on UltimatePoker.com Showdown that Liv also earned the respect of 11-time WSOP bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth.”

Boeree has worked for various media outlets throughout her career, including Gutshot TV, the Daily Express, and Challenge TV. Her reporting career has led her to become successful on the felts of live poker tournaments around the world. In January, she finished seventh in an AUD $1,100 buy-in No Limit Hold’em tournament held during the Aussie Millions for AUD $19,000. In April, she caught fire at the World Poker Tour (WPT) Championship, winning a preliminary tournament, taking third in another, and finishing 37th in the $25,000 buy-in televised Main Event for over $80,000 total. In May of 2008, Boeree won the $2,000 buy-in Ladbrokes Poker European Ladies Championship for $42,000. The event drew 52 runners and culminated with Boeree besting Lenna Martyak heads-up.

In an August 8th blog on Ultimate Bet, Boeree noted that she had just returned from Sonisphere, a music festival near London. Among those who took to the stage was the band Anthrax, which features fellow Team UB member Scott Ian. On Anthrax’s set, Boeree recalled, “These guys are as hard and heavy as ever and it was a real treat to watch them play with their old singer, John Bush.”

Besides Ian and Boeree, other members of Team UB include Adam “Roothlus” Levy, who made a deep run in last year’s WSOP Main Event, ultimately finishing 48th for $135,000. He made the final table of the WPT Festa al Lago in October of 2008, banking $266,000 in a tournament won by Team PokerStars Pro member Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier. Online, Levy has been a stud. He finished as the runner-up in an event held during the quarterly Full Tilt Online Poker Series (FTOPS) in February for $387,000. One week later, he took third in the marquee PokerStars Sunday Warm-Up for another $53,000. He’s ranked 95th in the world according to PocketFives.com.

Brandon Cantu joined Team UB in June. That month, he won a $1,500 buy-in Pot Limit Omaha High-Low Split tournament for $228,000 during the 2009 WSOP, besting Lee Watkinson heads-up for his first bracelet. Nine events prior, Cantu was the runner-up to Ray Foley in a $1,500 buy-in No Limit Hold’em tournament, where he cashed for $403,000.

Fellow bracelet winner Matt “mattg1983” Graham also calls Team UB home. Graham won his second piece of hardware in 2009 by taking down the $10,000 buy-in World Championship of Pot Limit Omaha for a rousing $679,000. He’s defeated two of the game’s best in his bracelet wins, outlasting Vitaly Lunkin in the Pot Limit Omaha event and beating “Survivor: China” castaway and Bodog pro Jean-Robert Bellande in a $1,500 buy-in Limit Shootout last year.

Other members of Team UB include “Hollywood” Dave Stann, Michael Binger, Gary “Debo34” Debernardi, Mark “P0ker H0” Kroon, Shawn “westtexasman” Rice, and Tiffany Michelle, who will compete on the upcoming season of the CBS reality series “Amazing Race.”

Annie Duke’s Advice for Tiffany Michelle on Amazing Race

Confirmation by Poker News Daily that Ultimate Bet pro Tiffany Michelle will appear on the 15th installment of the CBS reality series “Amazing Race” has led to a flurry of excitement in the industry. Poker News Daily sat down with Annie Duke, whose appearance on the popular reality franchise “Celebrity Apprentice” helped raise well over $730,000 for charity.

Poker News Daily: We’re sure you’ve had a chance to digest the news that Tiffany Michelle will appear on the upcoming edition of “Amazing Race,” reportedly with Maria Ho. Is her appearance good for poker?

Duke: In general, it’s good for poker players to be on reality shows. One of the problems with poker is that the game is seen as fringe in the sense that people think it is awful morally and socially. That’s part of the reason that you have a block of the country that wants to stop it. The more poker gets onto these mainstream shows, the better. It takes poker out of the fringe and into legitimacy.

Having been on “Celebrity Apprentice,” I get more offers that are straight business now, where I’m asked to comment on things from a business perspective. People see me as a more mainstream person. I know there are at least a couple of poker players lobbying to get on the next season of “Celebrity Apprentice.”

PND: Will Michelle’s acting background prove useful in appearing on a reality show?

Duke: I don’t think so. The best way you can see that is to look at “Celebrity Apprentice.” You have a people who are used to being in the public eye. They’re used to the cameras and know how to handle themselves in the media. They often don’t do well at all. You can’t hide from a camera when it’s on you for15 hours a day.

After 15 hours, there wasn’t an instance of me lying on “Celebrity Apprentice.” People saw that I didn’t lie and there wasn’t a single incident of me calling Brandi [Roderick] stupid. People believed Joan [Rivers], but by the end, there was so much footage and people figured out that she was lying. So, the cameras can work either way. The producers edit the show to create a story, but they can only use the footage they get. Whatever you give them could be used against you.

PND: So how do you think Michelle and Ho will do on “Amazing Race”?

Duke: I haven’t watched tons of “Amazing Race,” but I’ve seen enough to know that regardless of how you do, a lot of people regret going on there. People look like jerks. You’d probably be better served on a show like “Amazing Race” being generous. With “Celebrity Apprentice,” one of the things I did was be up front with people about what they were doing wrong. On “Amazing Race,” it’s better to help your fellow contestants out if they have trouble finding a route marker, for example. You don’t have to go overboard, but if someone clearly needs help, you should help them.

PND: Does being a poker player give a team an advantage on “Amazing Race”?

Duke: On that show, I don’t know that being a poker player is helpful. I guess the only place poker skills might come into play is in puzzle challenges. Poker players think things through more logically. There’s some strategy in things like buying airline tickets as well, so they’ll have an advantage there. For Tiffany Michelle, it helps that she’s a pretty girl.

PND: Are poker players clamoring to be cast for reality shows after your success on “Celebrity Apprentice” and Jean-Robert Bellande’s appearance on “Survivor”?

Duke: I’m sure people saw what “Celebrity Apprentice” did for me. I think that poker players as a group are very popular. They’re very much in the American conscious at the moment, so it’s good casting. One of the things with “Celebrity Apprentice” is that they like people who are strategic. Poker players will always be strategic. That creates good television and good contrast with other people.

PND: What poker players do you think would do well on shows like “Amazing Race,” “Celebrity Apprentice,” and “Survivor”?

Duke: I’d want someone who would put the best face on poker and would also do really well. I’d love to see John Hennigan on “Amazing Race.” He’s a really good person and would be great. On a show like “Celebrity Apprentice,” my brother [Howard Lederer] would be great, although he might not be loud enough to get attention. Chris Ferguson and Rafe Furst would also be great.

With “Survivor,” I’d want someone younger. You know who would be good? Joe Sebok. He’s in great physical condition, very smart, and very physical. He’d be my number one choice. Joe would be great strategically, well-liked, and good in challenges. On “Amazing Race,” Joe would be fast. He also has solid business sense, so he’d do well on “Celebrity Apprentice.” If you had to package the all-around reality show guy, I’d pick Joe Sebok.

Harlem Globetrotters, Miss America May Join Tiffany Michelle on Amazing Race

According to an article that appeared this week in The Examiner, two members of the Harlem Globetrotters basketball team and Miss America 2004 may join poker players Tiffany Michelle and Maria Ho on Season 15 of the CBS reality show “Amazing Race.”

Poker News Daily can confirm that Tiffany Michelle is among the cast for the 15th cycle of the reality series, citing anonymous sources inside the industry. Her rumored partner is Maria Ho, who Reality Fan Forum snapped a picture of at Los Angeles International Airport on the day that “Amazing Race” filming allegedly began. In the image, she did not appear to be donning a backpack (as is customary for “Amazing Race” teams); instead, she was pulling a suitcase. Michelle and Ho represent the last women standing in the 2008 and 2007 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Events, respectively.

The Examiner speculates that Harlem Globetrotters members Nate “Big Easy” Lofton and Herbert “Flight Time” Lang are members of the “Amazing Race” cast. Lang attended Centenary College in Louisiana and wears #4 for the showcase basketball team. His biography found on the Harlem Globetrotters website appropriately reads, “He is a self-proclaimed reality TV junkie… What Flight Time likes about reality TV is that, even though he knows parts are staged and scripted for dramatic effect, ‘After a certain amount of time, you really get to see what people are like.’” Lang was roped into reality television after catching an episode of CBS staple “Survivor.”

Lofton attended Southeast Louisiana and grew up in New Orleans. His biography notes, “His gregarious personality and thunderous dunks entertain Globetrotter fans young and old.” A total of 26 players make up the current roster of the Harlem Globetrotters, which showcase unusual basketball skills at venues around the world. Several members of the team, including Lang, appeared on the ABC reality series “The Bachelorette” in May. The Globetrotters challenged the seven remaining bachelors to a pick-up game of basketball, with bachelorette Jillian Harris looking on intently. “The Bachelorette” wrapped up on Monday night with Harris riding off into the sunset with Ed Swiderski.

Joining Lang, Lofton, Michelle, and Ho will likely be Miss America 2004, Ericka Dunlap. The Examiner notes that “Amazing Race” has featured pageant winners before, as Dustin-Leigh Konzelman and Kandice Pelletier competed as part of Season 10 and All-Stars. Dunlap hails from Florida; the reigning Miss America is Katie Stern, a native of Indiana. No indication was given as to who will partner with Dunlap for “Amazing Race.”

An entry appearing on Wikipedia adds that two newscasters from the television network C-SPAN will also take part in “Amazing Race” when the 15th season kicks off in September. The show pits teams of two against each other in a race around the world. Along the way, they’ll complete various challenges as part of “Detours” (a choice between two tasks, each with its own pros and cons) and “Road Blocks” (a task that only one team member can perform). Each leg typically consists of one Detour and one Road Block; many of the legs end with the last team arriving at the “Pit Stop” being eliminated.

“Amazing Race” will once again air on Sunday nights, debuting on September 27th for two hours. The popular reality program follows CBS News program “60 Minutes” and will serve as the lead-in for the new drama “Three Rivers.” “Amazing Race” is an Emmy-winning reality show whose reigning champions are lawyers and siblings Tammy and Victor. In seasons past, the top prize has been $1 million and to date, no “celebrity” installment of “Amazing Race” has taken place.

Other poker players who have appeared on major reality shows include Annie Duke, who finished as the runner-up to comedian Joan Rivers on the second season of “Celebrity Apprentice.” In addition, Bodog pro Jean-Robert Bellande competed on “Survivor: China,” the 15th cycle of the cornerstone CBS show. Bellande was the eighth player voted out of “Survivor: China” and served as a member of the jury.

Tiffany Michelle, Maria Ho May Compete on Amazing Race

Poker News Daily can confirm that Ultimate Bet Star Player Tiffany Michelle will compete on the upcoming season of the CBS reality series “Amazing Race,” according to anonymous sources inside the industry. The show debuts on September 27th at 8:00pm ET following “60 Minutes.” Michelle’s partner, according to Bluff Magazine and various television news outfits, is Maria Ho.

The upcoming season is the 15th for the “Amazing Race,” which pits teams of two against each other for a race around the world – literally. Last season, contestants traveled to diverse destinations that included Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Romania, Russia, India, Thailand, and China before crossing the finish line at the King Kamehameha Golf Club in Maui, Hawaii. Michelle and Ho represent the last women standing in the 2008 and 2007 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Events, respectively. Michelle gained notoriety last year by calling the clock during a hand she wasn’t involved in, an act that was criticized by tablemate and November Nine member Craig Marquis.

An e-mail sent to Michelle seeking comment about the rumors resulted in an auto-response that read, “I’ll be off shooting for the next month, till mid August, and may be away from my computer and out of touch during that time.” An image that appeared on RealityFanForum.com showed Ho at Los Angeles International Airport allegedly for the start of “Amazing Race.” In a blog entry dated June 27th, Michelle indicated that she would not defend her title of Last Woman Standing in the Main Event: “It’d have to be something pretty big to deter me from the WSOP Championship Event this year and trust me, IT IS! I can’t disclose much right now, but I’ll be leaving the country to film a project for a month and it conflicts with the Main Event.”

In May, Jean-Robert Bellande, who appeared on CBS’ “Survivor: China” in 2007, posted on the online poker forum TwoPlusTwo that “two hot poker girls” were wanted for an “upcoming reality show.” Bellande, a Bodog pro, noted that the ideal candidate is “a respected pro, young, hot, single, [and] engaging.” The Bad Boy of Poker suggested Kristy Gazes and Team PokerStars Pro member Vanessa Rousso, although the latter is engaged to Chad Brown. Last season on the “Amazing Race,” former NFL cheerleaders Jaime and Cara finished as the runner-ups to siblings and lawyers Tammy and Victor.

A representative from Ultimate Bet told Poker News Daily, “I know Tiffany is away working on a project, but unfortunately that is all we know at this point. We can’t comment on any such rumors.” Michelle signed with the Tokwiro-owned online poker room one year ago, joining a Team UB roster that includes Adam “Roothlus” Levy, Brandon Cantu, Gary “debo34” Debernardi, “Hollywood” Dave Stann, Matt “mattg1983” Graham, Michael Binger, Mark “P0ker H0″ Kroon, Scott Ian, and Shawn “westtexasman” Rice. The site’s two main faces are 11-time WSOP bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth and “Celebrity Apprentice” runner-up Annie Duke.

At the Dream Team Poker event held at Caesars Palace in March, Michelle and Ho joined forces to bring Team Yo Mama to life. The all-female squad also featured Lacey Jones. No female team has ever won “Amazing Race,” which first aired in 2001. That season, contestants traveled 35,000 miles around the world, led by Rob and Brennan. For its 11th season, favorites from the first 10 cycles of “Amazing Race” convened for a special All-Stars edition. Notable teams included Rob and Amber of “Survivor” fame and Season 7 winners Uchenna and Joyce, who were eliminated at the end of the ninth leg.

During each episode, teams compete in “Detours,” which is a choice between two tasks, each with its own pros and cons. In addition, they’ll stumble upon “Road Blocks,” which are challenges that only one team member can perform. Each “Detour” and “Road Block” typically focuses on the local culture, giving the show a unique flair. New Zealander Phil Keoghan serves as its host and the show will return to its Sunday night timeslot on September. “Amazing Race” serves as the lead-in for the new CBS drama “Three Rivers.”