Poker News

Women Rule the Day at Bay 101

After all, Bay 101 has seen deeper runs by women than any other venue on the World Poker Tour.

At the 2007 edition of the popular bounty event, Joanne Liu made runner-up to Ted Forrest in an attempt to become the WPT's first female champion.

Then last year, veteran pro Kathy Liebert matched the feat, finishing second to 2009 champion Steve Brecher.

Liebert's runner-up finish helped push her up and over $5.6 million in career tournament earnings, making her far and away the number one earning female poker player of all time.

Being the number one female player in the game is not exactly the reason Liebert plays the game, but it's certainly an honor she cherishes.

"Being a top poker player is more important to me than being a top female poker player," she said. "But being the top woman in poker is something I'm proud of. There are a lot of women trying to catch up to me."

One of the women chasing Liebert is two-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner and respected high-stakes cash game pro Jennifer Harman.

Though Harman, who currently sits fifth on the all-time female money list and made the final table at Bay 101 in 2008 finishing third, really sees herself as just one of the boys.

"I look at myself as a poker player," she explained. "I don't believe in the whole gender thing because this is a co-ed sport.

"You shouldn't get kudos for being a woman or a man, you should get kudos for being a great poker player and that's all."

International Women's Day is about celebrating the economic, political and social achievements of women past.

But even as women like Liu, Liebert and Harman continue to achieve in poker, it appears many men on the felt refuse to treat them as equals.

"I think some men treat women with no respect at the table and some men treat women with too much respect," said Harman. "For me, since I'm like old furniture in this business, they just treat me the same as anybody else. They don't play any differently against me because I'm a woman, but I know with some women they do."

Regardless, Harman, who booked her first major cash in a poker tournament 16 years ago, says the game is changing all the time and more women are flocking to it every day.

"When I first started, I would walk into a poker room and there would be me," she said. "Now you walk into a poker room and there are one or two women at every table.

"I think it's grown and it will continue to grow. A lot of women are still intimidated, but I know they enjoy the game and they want to do it, they just need to take that next step, because poker can be a lot of fun."

Liebert says she feels a lot of love and support from female fans of the game, many of whom she sees following her lead.

"I always have women coming up to me and telling me they are rooting for me," she said. "And they feel like if I'm a woman and I can do it they can do it to."

Action at the WPT Bay 101 Shooting Star continues through March 12. For comprehensive coverage, tune in to PokerListings' Live Updates and News.

National Heads-Up Poker Championship: Elite Eight Set

Eight players remain in the 2010 National Heads-Up Poker Championship, which will begin airing on NBC on April 18th at Noon ET. Among the survivors are poker veterans Doyle Brunson and Annie Duke.

Duke faced off against 2007 National Heads-Up Poker Championship winner Paul Wasicka in the round of 16. The seesaw match featured the short stack doubling up time after time. Finally, Duke shoved with A-10 pre-flop and Wasicka made the call with pocket aces. The flop came A-2-J, giving Wasicka what seemed like an insurmountable lead. However, Duke spiked a queen on the turn and king on the river to make a runner-runner Broadway straight and double through.

Coverage found on PokerNews described the scene during Duke’s miracle double-up: “The gallery went absolutely berserk. Duke, standing over the table, held her hands up to her face in utter disbelief. She then walked to Wasicka's side of the table and whispered something in his ear before re-taking her seat.” Wasicka was the runner-up to Jamie Gold in the 2006 WSOP Main Event, earning $6.1 million.

The hand crippled Wasicka, who promptly doubled with A-9 against Duke’s K-10. In the final hand of the match, Wasicka committed his chips with pocket jacks and Duke made the call with a meager 8-5 of diamonds. The flop came 8-2-7, giving Duke top pair, and a five on the turn improved the UB.com pro and Poker News Daily Guest Columnist to two pair. Wasicka needed a two, seven, or jack on the river to stave off elimination, but a nine fell and Wasicka was ousted. Next up for Duke is 2007 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event champion Jerry Yang, whose supporters had a less-than-cordial run-in with Jennifer Harman earlier in the day.

Brunson’s miracle run continued. In 2008, Brunson defeated Annette “Annette_15” Obrestad two matches to none in a prelude to the WSOP Europe Main Event. In the Sweet 16, the two Caesars Cup participants squared off once again. They sat at the feature table and Brunson shoved all-in on a flop reading 7-5-J. Obrestad held 6-4 for an open-ended straight draw, while Brunson flipped up J-5 for two pair. The turn was a king, leaving Obrestad needing to hit a straight on the river to avoid doubling up the 10-time bracelet winner. However, a jack hit, giving Brunson a boat and a critical double-up.

Obrestad, the 2007 WSOP Europe Main Event champion, then shoved pre-flop with Q-5 of hearts for her remaining stack. Brunson, who underwent extensive dental surgery two days after the Super Bowl, woke up with A-8, which held on for the win. Brunson’s Elite Eight opponent is 2008 WSOP Main Event November Nine member Dennis Phillips, who bested high-stakes cash game pro Eli Elezra in the round of 16. Phillips’ National Heads-Up Poker Championship opponents have included Chris Ferguson and Kara Scott.

Eight-time bracelet winner Erik Seidel will face off against 2008 WSOP Main Event winner Peter Eastgate in the round of eight. Seidel bested another former World Champion to punch his ticket to the Elite Eight, Chris Moneymaker. Seidel doubled up after flopping a straight with Q-J against Moneymaker’s K-2. The flop came 9-10-K, giving Seidel the nuts, and a running 6-9 didn’t help matters for Moneymaker. The former Tennessee accountant was then all-in with 10-8 of diamonds against Seidel’s A-Q. The board came 3-5-7-3-7 and Seidel’s two pair with an ace kicker scooped the pot and sent Moneymaker packing.

The winners of the clubs and spades brackets will face off against each other in the Final Four. Similarly, the survivors of the hearts and diamonds brackets will play each other. Here is how the field shapes up:

Clubs Bracket
Erik Seidel vs Peter Eastgate

Spades Bracket
Scotty Nguyen vs Jason Mercier

Hearts Bracket
Dennis Phillips vs Doyle Brunson

Diamonds Bracket
Jerry Yang vs Annie Duke

A winner will be determined today. The action kicks off at 11:00am PT from Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest National Heads-Up Poker Championship coverage.

Doyle Brunson Advances to Round 2 of National Heads-Up Poker Championship

Round 2 of the National Heads-Up Poker Championship plays out today from Caesars Palace in Las Vegas and will see the field trimmed from 32 to 16. Among those players still in contention is Doyle Brunson.

There was a question as to whether Brunson would even be able to play in the unique heads-up tournament after undergoing extensive dental surgery shortly after the Super Bowl last month. However, the DoylesRoom front man did more than just show up to the event in his backyard, he advanced to the second round. After an upset by GoDaddy Girl Vanessa Rousso in the opening round in 2009, Brunson defeated Brock “t soprano” Parker to advance in 2010.

In the pairing’s final hand. Parker was all-in with a wired pair of eights and Brunson showed A-Q of diamonds, setting up a race situation. The queen came as the window card and Brunson never looked back. Now, he’ll play actor and Ante Up for Africa co-founder Don Cheadle in the round of 32. Cheadle bested J.P. Kelly in the first round. Kelly won bracelets on both sides of the Atlantic last year after taking down a $1,500 Pot Limit Hold’em event in Las Vegas and a £1,000 No Limit Hold’em event in London.

In a clash of the titans in the first round, Full Tilt Poker’s Howard Lederer faced off against UB.com troublemaker Phil Hellmuth. Like the match-up between Parker and Brunson, this one came down to a race. Lederer moved all-in pre-flop with pocket tens and Hellmuth made the call with A-K of hearts. The flop came K-5-2, giving Hellmuth top pair, top kicker and a running 9-K sealed Lederer’s exit. This was Lederer’s fourth straight first round elimination in the National Heads-Up Poker Championship.

Next up for Hellmuth is another industry giant, Annette “Annette_15” Obrestad. The winner of the 2007 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe Main Event, Obrestad outlasted former baseball great Orel Hershiser in first round action on Friday. The 2010 cycle of the National Heads-Up Poker Championship is Obrestad’s first appearance on the program, which will air on NBC. Obrestad Twittered on her next foe: “Won my match. Guess who im playing tomorrow.... Thats right... @philhellmuth. Sigh lol.”

Also advancing to the second round is 2009 WSOP Main Event runner-up Darvin Moon. Coverage found on PokerNews noted that the table featuring Moon and Caesars qualifier Bill Huntress was “the quietest table on set.” Huntress was all-in after a flop of Q-4-A with three clubs and showed J-8 of spades for what ESPN poker announcer Norman Chad would dub “nuclear squadoosh.” Moon showed K-10, including the ten of clubs, for straight and flush draws. He also, rather amazingly, held the best hand. The turn and river fell a nine and seven, respectively, ending any hopes of the qualifier making it through to the next round. Moon’s second round opponent is Poker News Daily Guest Columnist Annie Duke.

All but one qualifier of the seven who entered was eliminated in first round play, as Stephen Quinn upset Ted Forrest yesterday. Here are the second round match-ups for the 2010 National Heads-Up Poker Championship:

Clubs Bracket
Chris Moneymaker vs Leo Wolpert
David Williams vs Erik Seidel
Erick Lindgren vs Peter Eastgate
Stephen Quinn vs Jamie Gold

Spades Bracket
Phil Ivey vs Scotty Nguyen
Joe Hachem vs Gabe Kaplan
Jason Mercier vs Pieter de Korver
Phil Gordon vs Phil Laak

Hearts Bracket
Allen Cunningham vs Eli Elezra
Chris Ferguson vs Dennis Phillips
Doyle Brunson vs Don Cheadle
Phil Hellmuth vs Annette “Annette_15” Obrestad

Diamonds Bracket
Barry Greenstein vs Sammy Farha
Jennifer Harman vs Jerry Yang
Darvin Moon vs Annie Duke
Paul Wasicka vs Gus Hansen

The action resumes inside Caesars Palace in Las Vegas at 1:00pm PT and will play down to a field of 16. The winner of the 2010 National Heads-Up Poker Championship will be determined on Sunday. Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest.

2010 National Heads-Up Poker Championship Bracket Set

The field of 64 is set in the National Heads-Up Poker Championship, which will air on NBC. One of the highlights of the opening round is a titanic showdown between PokerStars pros Jason Mercier and Daniel Negreanu, who have both been on a hot streak.

Mercier and Negreanu made the final table of the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe Main Event last year. Mercier finished fourth in the £10,000 buy-in poker tournament, while Negreanu fell heads-up to CardPlayer Magazine owner Barry Shulman after entering as the short stack. Mercier and Negreanu collected £267,000 and £495,000 for their efforts, respectively. Both are bracelet winners and members of Team PokerStars Pro.

Mercier enters the National Heads-Up Poker Championship, which is emanating from Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, on a high note. Last week, the Florida native took third in the L.A. Poker Classic’s High-Roller event for $141,000. In December, Mercier won a $5,000 HORSE event during the Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker Classic for $100,000. Negreanu made waves during the recent PartyPoker Premier League, finishing fourth at the final table. Heading into Thursday’s draw party, Negreanu Tweeted his desired first round opponent: “Headed down to Pure for the NBC HU draw party and I'm hoping to NOT draw one of the 7 qualifiers or a woman. Record going into #6 is 7-5.”

Meanwhile, two titans of the online poker industry will tangle, as 13 bracelets will meet when Full Tilt Poker front man Howard Lederer takes on UB.com bad boy Phil Hellmuth. Lederer was fourth on Bluff Magazine’s recent Power 20 list, while Hellmuth leads the all-time bracelet count with 11. Both have crafty nicknames, as “The Professor” will take on “The Poker Brat” in a high-stakes first round encounter.

In an all-female first round showdown, Full Tilt Poker’s Jennifer Harman is paired up with actress Jennifer Tilly. A total of seven women will make their way to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas today for first round action. Joining Harman and Tilly to add estrogen to the field are Annie Duke, Annette Dworski, Annette “Annette_15” Obrestad, Vanessa Rousso, and Kara Scott. Six women took to the field in 2009, including Rousso, who finished as the runner-up to Huck Seed.

Those in the hunt for the title range between 21 (Obrestad) and 76 years-old (Doyle Brunson). The tournament hits television airwaves on NBC beginning on April 18th and will run for six consecutive Sundays. The ultimate survivor of the single elimination heads-up tournament pockets $500,000, while its runner-up takes home a cool $250,000. Here’s a look at the first round match-ups in the 2010 National Heads-Up Poker Championship:

Clubs Bracket – Top Half
Patrik Antonius vs Chris Moneymaker
Leo Wolpert vs Eric “basebaldy” Baldwin
David Williams vs Joe Cada
Erik Seidel vs Huck Seed

Clubs Bracket – Bottom Half
Dan Ramirez vs Erick Lindgren
Peter Eastgate vs Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier
Stephen Quinn vs Ted Forrest
Dario Minieri vs Jamie Gold

Spades Bracket – Top Half
Gavin Smith vs Phil Ivey
Richard Edwards vs Scotty Nguyen
Shawn “westtexasman” Rice vs Joe Hachem
Gabe Kaplan vs Johnny Chan

Spades Bracket – Bottom Half
Daniel Negreanu vs Jason Mercier
Pieter de Korver vs Mike Sexton
Phil Gordon vs Tom “durrrr” Dwan
Phil Laak vs John Juanda

Hearts Bracket – Top Half
Jesper Hougaard vs Allen Cunningham
Eli Elezra vs Greg “FBT” Mueller
Annette Dworski vs Chris Ferguson
Kara Scott vs Dennis Phillips

Hearts Bracket – Bottom Half
Brock “t soprano” Parker vs Doyle Brunson
J.P. Kelly vs Don Cheadle
Howard Lederer vs Phil Hellmuth
Annette “Annette_15” Obrestad vs Orel Hershiser

Diamonds Bracket – Top Half
Barry Greenstein vs Vanessa Rousso
Sammy Farha vs Antonio Esfandiari
Jennifer Harman vs Jennifer Tilly
Jerry Yang vs Mike Matusow

Diamonds Bracket – Bottom Half
Darvin Moon vs Bill Huntress
Andy Bloch vs Annie Duke
Andrew Wilson vs Paul Wasicka
Gus Hansen vs Greg Raymer

Rice and Huntress both qualified for the National Heads-Up Poker Championship at the host casino, while Dworski, Edwards, Quinn, Ramirez, and Wilson all won online satellites. The tournament’s first round will play out today, while the second round will take place on Saturday. The quarterfinals, semifinals, and championship match will all pan out on Sunday. Here are today's start times:

Clubs Bracket - 1:30pm PT
Diamonds Bracket - 4:00pm PT
Spades Bracket - 7:00pm PT
Hearts Bracket - 9:30pm PT

Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest from Caesars Palace.

Full Tilt Poker Sponsors Kandy Masquerade Charity Event at the Playboy Mansion

FullTiltPoker.net will be one of the sponsors of the Kandy Masquerade, a sexy costume ball whose proceeds will benefit the Nevada Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (NSPCA). This will be the second annual production of the Kandy Masquerade, which will be held at the Playboy Mansion in Los Angeles, California on Saturday, February 27th at 8:00pm. The gala is presented by the Karma Foundation.

The timing will work perfectly for poker players at the World Poker Tour's (WPT) L.A. Poker Classic, whose six-day $10,000 Main Event begins on Friday. In an effort to allow any competitor who wishes to attend, L.A. Poker Classic tournament director Matt Savage has scheduled an 8:00pm break in the tournament that day, the second day of the event.

Entrance to an extravagant charity ball is, of course, not free. Kandy Masquerade tickets cost $1,000 apiece in advance. Organizers make no promises of ticket availability on the day of the event and have warned of a "very premium price." For the four-figure sum, attendees will receive admission into the Masquerade, free parking at the Roosevelt Hotel, along with a shuttle to the party, heavy hors d'oeuvres, an open bar, dinner, dessert, and entertainment. Celebrity DJ Paul Oakenfold and DJ Mister E will be on-hand to keep the festivities hopping.

All party goers are required to wear masks. Women are asked to wear "sexy, masquerade themed clothing," while men must wear all black. Anyone who has seen pictures or video of a Playboy Mansion party should have an idea of what to expect. It's not for children. Personal cameras are allowed for those who wish to share the sights with their friends.

The Karma Foundation is a social networking membership-only club best known for throwing extravagant, outrageous themed events like the Kandy Masquerade. Past events include the Kandyland and Kandy Halloween parties, both held at the Playboy Mansion, as well as the Kandy Kruise and Kandy Vegas, which was held at the Palms Casino Resort last year. Proceeds from the events go to charity. The Karma Foundation has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for such organizations as the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, March of Dimes, Children's Hospital of Orange County, and AIDS Walk Los Angeles. Membership dues for the Karma Foundation are $5,000 annually.

The NSPCA is a non-profit, no-kill animal sanctuary in Las Vegas. It is no stranger to the generosity of poker players. Full Tilt Poker pro Jennifer Harman has hosted three charity poker tournaments, two of which benefited the NSPCA to the tune of $450,000.

The Nightly Turbo: Jennifer Harman’s Charity, A Poker Room Robbed, and More

Jennifer Harman Goes “All-In for a Cure”

Jennifer Harman has pledged to contribute one percent of her poker earnings to The NephCure Foundation, a charitable organization whose goal is to support research to fight two terrible kidney diseases, Nephrotic Syndrome and Focal Segmental Glomerulosclerosis (FSGS).  The pledge is part of the "All-In for a Cure" program started by Poker Players International (PPI), a full service poker agency.  Other poker players who have pledged a portion of their earnings include Jason Young, who will be giving one percent like Harman, and Frank Vizza, who is donating five percent.

Harman is no stranger to kidney disease, having had two kidney transplants.  After her second procedure in 2004, she founded the non-profit organization Creating Organ Donation Awareness.  In a press release distributed by The NephCure Foundation, the Full Tilt Poker pro said, "Kidney disease is extremely difficult.  It is invisible and it affects kids and adults alike. NephCure is trying to find an answer and I'm here to help by joining 'All-in for a Cure.'"

As Harman said, kidney disease can affect anyone, even the most physically fit.  Both Alonzo Mourning, a seven-time NBA All-Star, and Sean Elliott, a two-time All-Star selection, suffered from FSGS.  Both had kidney transplants.  Ed Hearn, a former Major League Baseball player, has had to go through three transplants and still has FSGS, which damages the kidneys' filtering system.  

NephCure has committed $6 million towards research of both Nephrotic Syndrome and FSGS, but unfortunately, there is still no cure for either disease.  According to NephCure's website, 84 percent of donations are put towards research, education, and advocacy, while 10 percent are used for further fundraising.  The remainder pays for management and general expenses.

The cause is also personally important for PPI's Marketing and Player Development Leader Eric Siegel, as his son has Nephrotic Syndrome.  "It is great to have someone with the pedigree and reputation of Jennifer joining PPI’s pledge program," he said.  "Having her involved in this program is a tremendous benefit to everyone and I expect it to lead to more players coming on board. She understands the responsibility to give back. By doing so hopefully we can find a cure for this horrible disease that affects thousands of people."

Siegel, himself, is a poker player and has pledged one percent of his earnings to "All-In for a Cure."  His wife, Jennifer Geisser Siegel, serves on the NephCure Board of Directors.

Harman has a history of being one of the most philanthropic poker players around.  She has hosted the Jennifer Harman Charity Poker Tournament three years running, raising over $450,000 for the Nevada Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and $111,000 for the National Kidney Foundation. 

On the felt, Jennifer Harman is one of the most respected poker players in the world.  In her live tournament career, she has earned over $2.3 million and is the only female to own two World Series of Poker bracelets.  Harman is widely regarded by her peers as one of the best poker players in the world, adept at any game, and a player to be feared in the highest stakes games in Las Vegas.

Jennifer Harman Goes “All-In for a Cure”

Jennifer Harman has pledged to contribute 1% of her poker earnings to The NephCure Foundation, a charitable organization whose goal is to support research to fight two terrible kidney diseases, Nephrotic Syndrome and Focal Segmental Glomerulosclerosis (FSGS).  The pledge is part of the "All-In for a Cure" program started by Poker Players International (PPI), a full service poker agency.  Other poker players who have pledged a portion of their earnings include Jason Young, who will be giving 1% like Harman, and Frank Vizza, who is donating 5%.

Harman is no stranger to kidney disease, having had two kidney transplants.  After her second procedure in 2004, she founded the non-profit organization Creating Organ Donation Awareness.  In a press release distributed by The NephCure Foundation, the Full Tilt Poker pro said, "Kidney disease is extremely difficult.  It is invisible and it affects kids and adults alike. NephCure is trying to find an answer and I'm here to help by joining 'All-in for a Cure.'"

As Harman said, kidney disease can affect anyone, even the most physically fit.  Both Alonzo Mourning, a seven-time NBA All-Star, and Sean Elliott, a two-time All-Star selection, suffered from FSGS.  Both had kidney transplants.  Ed Hearn, a former Major League Baseball player, has had to go through three transplants and still has FSGS, which damages the kidneys' filtering system.

NephCure has committed $6 million towards research of both Nephrotic Syndrome and FSGS, but there is still no cure for either disease.  According to NephCure's website, 84% of donations are put towards research, education, and advocacy, while 10% are used for further fundraising.  The remainder pays for management and general expenses.

The cause is also personally important for PPI's Marketing and Player Development Leader Eric Siegel, as his son has Nephrotic Syndrome.  "It is great to have someone with the pedigree and reputation of Jennifer joining PPI’s pledge program," he said. "Having her involved in this program is a tremendous benefit to everyone and I expect it to lead to more players coming on board. She understands the responsibility to give back. By doing so hopefully we can find a cure for this horrible disease that affects thousands of people."

Siegel is a poker player and has pledged 1% of his earnings to All-In for a Cure.  His wife, Jennifer Geisser Siegel, serves on the NephCure Board of Directors.

Harman has a history of being one of the most philanthropic poker players around.  She has hosted the Jennifer Harman Charity Poker Tournament three years running, raising over $450,000 for the Nevada Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and $111,000 for the National Kidney Foundation.

On the felt, Jennifer Harman is one of the most respected poker players in the world.  In her live tournament career, she has earned over $2.3 million and is the only female to own multiple World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelets.  Harman is widely regarded by her peers as one of the best poker players in the world, adept at any game, and a player to be feared in the highest stakes games in Las Vegas.

Jennifer Harman donating 1% of winnings to charity

Team Full Tilt member Jennifer Harman has been one of the best poker players for years. According to Card Player, Jennifer Harman is going to donate 1 percent of her winnings to NephCure, an organization that funds the research of life-threatening kidney diseases.

Harman, who has undergone two kidney transplants tells that a kidney disease is extremely difficult. “It is invisible [the disease], and it affects kids and adults alike. NephCure is trying to find an answer, and I’m here to help by joining ‘All-in for a Cure.’”

“All-in for a cure”, a pledge program organized by the player representative group Poker Players International, asks pro players to donate 1 percent of their winnings to NephCure. Lee Childs, Matt Glantz, Frank Vizza and PPI founder Eugene Castro all have made the pledge alongside with Jennifer Harman.

Source: Card Player

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Jennifer Harman donating 1% of winnings to charity

WSOP Europe Caesars Cup Coverage Airs on ESPN

On the kickoff episode of the 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe on ESPN2, the inaugural Caesars Cup took center stage. Pitting teams of eight from Europe and the Americas against each other, the Caesars Cup ended in a landslide victory.

The first team to four wins took home the gold, with the action starting with four doubles matches. If needed, three singles matches would follow and all players had to see action in the doubles events. The first match-up featured Huck Seed and poker deity Phil Ivey facing off against Ilari “Ziigmund” Sahamies and Patrik Antonius, two Finnish players. Each team member alternated bets by street in the first two pairings and by hand in the second two. Both teams received 100,000 starting chips.

The Americans took down a 70,000-chip pot to open up play after flopping top pair, but repeated checking down the stretch proved fatal. In one hand, Sahamies just called pre-flop with A-J of spades and Seed rapped the table with 8-5. The flop came 7-9-7 with one spade and Ivey checked. Antonius, a Durrrr Challenge combatant, bet 5,000 and Ivey called. The turn was the king of spades, giving the Europeans a flush draw, and the action went check-check. The river was an ace. Ivey bet 10,000 with air, Antonius raised to 30,000, and Ivey folded, shipping the 58,000-chip pot across the “Pond.”

Running low on chips, Ivey committed the team’s stack with 10-6 and Antonius made the call with K-2. The flop came 3-4-7 and a brand new “Out Tracker” debuted on the top of the screen reminiscent of poker shows like NBC’s “Face the Ace.” The turn and river fell a king and four, respectively, and Europe won the first match, giving the team a 1-0 lead.

The next pairing featured Team PokerStars Pro member Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier and Betfair qualifier John Harvey facing off against Americas Captain Daniel Negreanu and 11-time WSOP bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth. The UB.com front man was paired up with Harvey during the match, setting up what many thought would be a beating. Instead, Harvey held his own against the experienced Hold’em player.

Hellmuth raised to 4,000 pre-flop with 8-9 and Harvey, holding K-10 of spades, made it 10,000. Hellmuth called, reminding the crowd that Negreanu excels playing these types of hands. The flop came 6-8-10 and Grospellier bet 13,000 with top pair. Negreanu raised to 41,000 with middle pair and a straight draw and Grospellier shoved with his team’s life on the line. Negreanu called and, needing to spike a seven, eight, or nine for the win, Team Americas saw a five and four fall. The European team doubled to 184,000 chips.

Negreanu and Hellmuth doubled up twice, once with pocket sevens and once with pocket aces, before the fat lady sung. In the final hand, the European team cracked Team America’s aces with A-3 despite being just 8% to win pre-flop. A five hit on the turn to give Team Europe a wheel to go up 2-0 in the standings. ESPN announcer Norman Chad was livid: “Hellmuth and Negreanu lose to a qualifier! A qualifier!” Betfair is the official sponsor of WSOP Europe.

The third pairing featured European Captain Annette “Annette_15” Obrestad and Dario Minieri taking on DoylesRoom namesake Doyle Brunson and Jennifer Harman. The age contrast between the two teams was striking and the American squad was quick to make use of their experience. Team Europe doubled through with A-8 against A-6 to take a commanding 4:1 lead in chips before Team Americas mounted a comeback. Harman open-shoved with pocket jacks and Obrestad made the call with pocket fives to double the North American squad up.

Then, Obrestad was all-in with 10-8 and Brunson called after only looking at one ace in the hole, but flipped over two of them for the best starting hand in Hold’em. Team Americas turned quads and doubled up to 152,000 chips. On the final hand, Obrestad was all-in with J-5 against A-4. The better hand held and Team Americas had clawed back to be down just 2-1 in the Caesars Cup standings.

The final team match featured Gus Hansen and Peter Eastgate, two Danes, battling John Juanda and Barry Greenstein. The abbreviated match ended with Greenstein raising to 10,000 with K-J and Hansen re-raising to 32,000 with A-8. Greenstein pushed and Hansen called, leading to a board of 5-7-9-5-7. Team Europe’s ace kicker played and the squad entered, as Chad explained, “match point.”

Obrestad selected herself to play in the first heads-up match, where a win would crown Team Europe the first Caesars Cup champs ever. Negreanu countered with the reigning National Heads-Up Poker Championship winner, Seed. Obrestad doubled up early. After raising with A-J and receiving a call from Seed, who held J-10 of diamonds, the action flop came J-2-K with two diamonds. Seed checked and Obrestad bet 7,000 with middle pair. Seed made it 31,000 to go and Obrestad pushed over the top. Seed called and the board filled out 4-2, giving Team Europe a critical double up.

Seed countered by doubling with K-7 against A-3 of hearts after spiking a king on the turn to move to 62,000 in chips. Then, Seed was all-in with his stack on the line with A-3, but Obrestad found A-7 and called. The flop came 9-9-7; another seven on the turn brought a full house and the win for Team Europe in the inaugural Caesars Cup.

The WSOP Europe festivities continue on ESPN2 according to the following schedule. All times are Eastern and coverage is of the WSOP Europe Main Event:

Sunday, February 7th: 10:00pm
Sunday, February 7th: 11:00pm
Monday, February 8th: 12:00am
Sunday, February 14th: 11:00pm
Monday, February 15th: 12:00am
Monday, February 15th: 1:00am
Sunday, February 28th: 9:00pm
Sunday, February 28th: 10:00pm

Andy Beal is back at the Bobby’s Room

According to 2+2 forums, the billionaire banker Andy Beal has been spotted in Bellagio.

Andy Beal is famous from his really, really, really high stakes games against the best poker players of the world aka “The Corporation”.

Beal played against “The Corporation” which consisted of players like Doyle and Todd Brunson, Ted Forrest, Howard Lederer, Jennifer Harman and Barry Greenstein. They played Fixed Limit Hold’em with as high as $100k/$200k stakes.

Now people are rumoring that Andy Beal is back at the Bobby’s Room where he has been spotted playing Fixed Limit with $30k/$60k and $50k/$100k stakes. At least Eli Elezra, Jennifer Harman and Phil Ivey have been playing against Beal.

Source: 2+2

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Andy Beal is back at the Bobby’s Room

2009 WSOP Europe Air Dates Announced

Fans of the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe won’t have to wait long for the tournament series to air on ESPN. The first episode kicks off on Sunday, January 31st at 11:00pm ET and a total of 10 hours will air.

The opening episode will be one of two recapping the Caesars Cup, a made-for-television tournament that featured Team Europe taking on Team Americas. The former ultimately crushed the Americas squad four matches to one, with the stars of poker turning out to compete on behalf of their continents. Team PokerStars Pro member Daniel Negreanu captained the Americas squad, which also featured DoylesRoom namesake Doyle Brunson, 2009 WSOP Main Event November Nine member Phil Ivey, 11-time WSOP bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth, reigning National Heads-Up Poker Championship winner Huck Seed, 2008 WSOP Europe Main Event winner John Juanda, Big Game player Jennifer Harman, and Barry Greenstein, who was a last-minute replacement for Chris Ferguson.

The American squad held a total of 45 gold bracelets and more than $50 million in career earnings. Their foes: Team Europe, led by 2007 WSOP Europe Main Event Champion and Betfair pro Annette “Annette_15” Obrestad. Her group of young guns included 2008 WSOP Main Event winner Peter Eastgate, Italian poker sensation Dario Minieri, 2008 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure victor Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier, Power Poker front man Ilari “Ziigmund” Sahamies, Durrrr Challenge participant Patrik Antonius, Gus Hansen, and Betfair qualifier John Harvey, a 47 year-old pipe inspector from Scotland.

On March 1st, the second of two hours dedicated to the Caesars Cup will air on ESPN. The festivities kick off at Midnight ET and serve as the run-up to the WSOP Europe Main Event, which will begin on February 7th. The £10,000 buy-in tournament drew a crowd of 334 runners and featured one of the toughest final tables ever assembled in WSOP Europe history. Two members of the November Nine – James Akenhead and Antoine Saout – reached the feature table in London, a feat accomplished in 2008 by Ivan Demidov.

Also at the WSOP Europe Main Event final table was Negreanu, the face of the “PokerStars.net Million Dollar Challenge,” who took fifth in the same event in 2008. Joining Negreanu was Barry Shulman, whose son, Jeff Shulman, reached the final table of the Main Event in Las Vegas. The duo was seeking to make poker history as the first father/son team to win poker’s most coveted bracelets in the same year. The final table lasted 16 and a half hours and the entire WSOP Europe schedule panned out at the Casino at the Empire in London.

Here is the schedule for the 2009 WSOP Europe Caesars Cup and Main Event on ESPN. All times are Eastern and each episode runs for one hour:

Sunday, January 31st: 11:00pm (Caesars Cup)
Monday, February 1st: 12:00am (Caesars Cup)
Sunday, February 7th: 10:00pm (WSOP Europe Main Event)
Sunday, February 7th: 11:00pm (WSOP Europe Main Event)
Monday, February 8th: 12:00am (WSOP Europe Main Event)
Sunday, February 14th: 11:00pm (WSOP Europe Main Event)
Monday, February 15th: 12:00am (WSOP Europe Main Event)
Monday, February 15th: 1:00am (WSOP Europe Main Event)
Sunday, February 28th: 9:00pm (WSOP Europe Main Event)
Sunday, February 28th: 10:00pm (WSOP Europe Main Event)

Poker PROductions filmed WSOP Europe for ESPN. The same company also brings poker television staples like NBC’s “Poker After Dark” and GSN’s “High Stakes Poker” to life. Last August, ESPN and the WSOP reached an agreement to keep the tournament series on the cable station until April 2018. The WSOP attracts a total viewing audience of more than 80 million people each year and at least 32 hours of coverage will air annually.

WSOP Europe air dates outside of the United States will likely be announced soon.

Phil Ivey Files for Divorce

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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.

Face the Ace: Brian Twitty Wins $40,000

We had a chance to catch last weekend’s installment of the NBC poker franchise “Face the Ace.” In the end, Brian Twitty, a real estate appraiser and band member, walked away with $40,000 after defeating Jennifer Harman.

The first contestant to take to the “Face the Ace” stage was Anathan Thangavel from Beverly Hills, California. The recent law school graduate selected the ace of clubs because he was out at a club partying until 5:00am the night before taping. Out strolled 2008 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Player of the Year Erick Lindgren, who has appeared on “Face the Ace” multiple times. Each player began with 20,000 chips and blinds kicked off at 200/400.

Holding 7-9, Thangavel called pre-flop and Lindgren rapped the table with 7-J. The flop came 2-3-7, giving both players top pair, but Lindgren held a better kicker. The Full Tilt Poker pro led out for 1,000, Thangavel raised to 3,000, and Lindgren shoved for 15,200. Lindgren told the challenger that he could see one of his cards and Thangavel picked the jack. Upon seeing the paint card, he quickly sent top pair into the muck.

In a key moment in the match, Thangavel picked up pocket jacks and called the big blind, while Lindgren raised to 2,000 with A-K of hearts. An all-in and call put Lindgren at risk and the assembled crowd on the “Face the Ace” stage watched the drama unfold. The flop came A-3-A, giving Lindgren trips and leaving the challenger drawing thin. The turn and river came a 10 and three, respectively, and Thangavel was down to just four big blinds.

In the final hand between Lindgren and Thangavel, the latter was all-in with J-3 and Lindgren made the call with 9-10. The flop came 6-9-K, giving Lindgren middle pair, and the turn came a 10 to improve him to two pair. Needing a queen on the river to make a straight, Thangavel watched as a seven hit, sending him home.

The next contestant was Twitty, who hails from Cypress, California. Twitty told “Face the Ace” host Steve Schirripa that he wanted to play against Phil Ivey, but instead found himself up against Jennifer Harman. Twitty was the victim of a bad beat late in his match against Harman after the pro raised to 3,100 with K-J. Twitty moved all-in with A-9 and Harman called with her tournament life on the line. The flop came 8-3-7, keeping Twitty’s ace-high ahead, and a seven on the turn changed nothing. However, Harman spiked a king on the river for a six-outer to double up.

Then, Harman made it 6,000 pre-flop with A-3 and Twitty pushed with A-Q. Harman called to put Twitty at risk, but the flop came queen-high to keep Twitty out in front for good. In the final hand between Harman and Twitty, the Full Tilt Poker pro was all-in with Q-8 of diamonds and Twitty called with K-J. The flop came 10-10-10, keeping Twitty in the lead, and a jack on the turn improved him to a boat. Harman needed the nine of diamonds for a straight flush or a queen for a better full house on the river to win the hand, but watched as an ace hit. Twitty earned $40,000 for defeating his first pro.

When asked if he wanted to take the money and run or play another pro for $200,000, Twitty selected the cash. The episode, which aired on Saturday, marked the second to last for “Face the Ace,” which will air its season finale on January 2nd. “Face the Ace” makes its home on NBC.

Poker News in Brief: Nov. 23-29, 2009

With only the main event of the U.S. Poker Championships to keep poker fans busy they were left to contemplate the identity of the rumored Swede who has taken millions off Tom "durrrr" Dwan.

There was a ton of other poker news, however, and we're going to break some of it down for you today in our regularly scheduled Poker News in Brief feature.

This week we're going to look at PKR Live III results, another world record broken on PokerStars, an Andy Beal update and a certain young celebrity with a penchant for poker.

Billionaire poker player bids on Trump Casinos

It appears that billionaire banker Andy Beal isn't quite done with the poker world.

The Dallas-based businessman made a bid for three bankrupt Trump Entertainment Resorts Inc. Casinos in Atlantic City this week.

Beal was portrayed as a fearless poker player in Michael Craig's The Professor, the banker and the Suicide King: The Richest Poker Game of all Time.

In the book, Craig chronicled Beal's heads-up matches against the likes of Phil Ivey, Jennifer Harman and Doyle Brunson, which were some of the biggest games ever played.

Under Beal's buyout proposal, an affiliate of his Dallas-based bank would convert its $486 million mortgage on the casinos into equity.

Beal's bid is just the latest in a series that included Trump Entertainment bondholders and Donald Trump himself.

The three properties in question are the Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort, the Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino and the Trump Marina Hotel Casino.

Russian breaks world record on PokerStars

Russian online player innerpsy broke the record for number of hands played in a 24 hour span this week.

The 21-year-old poker pro somehow managed to log 40,088 hands on PokerStars in just one day.

"Before this challenge I never actually played more than 20,000 hands in a day before but the idea came up and I just figured I could do it," he told PokerStars Blog. "It was one of the toughest things I have ever accomplished, but I am proud I managed it."

The challenge was hosted on PokerStars by Russian forum Card Game Masters and nearly 10,000 fans logged on to watch innerpsy burn his way through more hands than some poker players go through in their lifetime.

Qualifier wins PKR Live III

A 21-year-old English man made history by winning the biggest PKR Live payout ever in London this week.

Vincent "vd12345" Diver qualified for the event for just $5 on PKR and went on to outlast 133 players to take the first place prize of PKR Live III for $33,500.

"It's an incredible sum to me and it still hadn't kicked in until I saw it on my PKR account," he said. "It has opened up a lot of doors for me."

This year's PKR Live required a buy-in of $1,000 and took place at the Loose Cannon in London. The event has grown in every year of its existence.

Grandmothers arrested for playing poker in Cyprus

Forty two women between the ages of 75 and 95 were arrested at private home game in Cyprus this week.

The police raided the house where the games took place in Ayios loannis and proceeded to charge the women for illegal gambling. The police also confiscated €100 in betting money, 546 playing chips and 530 playing cards.

Playing cards for money is illegal in Cyprus and the police regularly conduct raids at clubs, betting ships and various associations.

The women were playing poker and gin rummy.

The raid took place on Sunday at 6 p.m. after a series of complaints from neighbors about noise.

Zac Efron a poker pro?

Renowned director Richard Linklater says teen heartthrob Zac Efron is a poker shark.

Linklater told the UK's Press Association that although Efron looks clean cut, he will take your money if you play poker against him.

Linklator is currently directing the young star in Me and Orsen Welles, which sees Efron play teenager Richard Samuels who ends up working with a young Orsen Welles.

Efron has never played the popular WPT Celebrity Invitational, which takes place every year at the Commerce Casino in Los Angeles.

Full Tilt Poker Players Rushing to Claim Holiday Hundred Bonus

Only a few days remain in the Full Tilt Poker Holiday Hundred promotion, offering online poker players a $100 bonus on the world’s second largest site. The room has seen its high-stakes action balloon in recent weeks thanks to Isildur1.

Happy Holidays from Full Tilt Poker. One month before poker players awake on Christmas morning or participate in Hanukkah and Kwanzaa festivities, Full Tilt members can claim a special $100 Holiday Hundred bonus. Players have until the end of the day Eastern Time on December 6th to cash in. All they have to do is open the Full Tilt Poker Mac or Windows client, log in, and click “Requests” on the top menu bar. Then, select “Check My Bonus Offer” and click on “Accept Offer.”

Full Tilt Poker members have 30 days to release their bonus money by earning Full Tilt Points (FTPs) in real money ring games and tournaments. Every FTP earned means that players will claim $0.06 of the Holiday Hundred bonus, which will be paid out in increments of $10. Simple math will allow you to calculate that 167 FTPs are needed to clear each $10 increment and 1,667 are required for the full bonus to be unlocked. For each dollar that Full Tilt rakes from a pot, every player who was dealt cards in the hand receives one FTP. Each $1 paid in tournament entry fees means that players will earn seven FTPs.

Now, for the fine print. Players who have never deposited on Full Tilt Poker before should sign up for the site and clear the initial 100% first-time deposit bonus by the end of the day on November 30th. Then, Full Tilt will issue the Holiday Hundred bonus by December 2nd and players must accept it by the 6th. Full Tilt Poker customers who already hold active bonuses have until the end of the day on November 30th to clear their full value. Then, Full Tilt will place the Holiday Hundred bonus in their accounts by December 2nd and it must be accepted by the 6th.

The world’s second largest online poker site has seen its high-limit table action increase since the beginning of the month after the arrival of Swedish online poker mystery man Isildur1. The newcomer has battled a bevy of Full Tilt Poker pros in Pot Limit Omaha and No Limit Hold’em games. His cast of opponents has included newly-minted site pro Tom “durrrr” Dwan, 2009 World Series of Poker Main Event November Nine member Phil Ivey, Durrrr Challenge participant Patrik Antonius, and CardRunners pros Brian Townsend and Cole South.

According to PokerScout.com, which tracks online poker room traffic, Full Tilt boasts a seven-day running average of 18,800 real money ring game players. During peak hours, the site approaches 30,000 cash game enthusiasts. It’s the second largest site worldwide behind PokerStars and happily accepts customers from the United States. Besides Ivey, Dwan, and Antonius, other members of Team Full Tilt include Howard Lederer, Gus Hansen, Andy Bloch, Jennifer Harman, Andy Bloch, and bad boy Mike “The Mouth” Matusow.

Full Tilt Poker is gearing up for the second running of the Mini Full Tilt Online Poker Series (MiniFTOPS), which kicks off on December 9th and wraps up 11 days later.

Top Poker Pros Discuss What They Are Thankful For

Most Americans spent Thanksgiving Day huddled around the dinner table, noshing on roasted turkey, stuffing, potatoes, gravy, and a variety of desserts. Poker News Daily was able to talk to several pros to hear what they are thankful for.

Many poker players took the day off from the tables to spend time with their families. Beth Shak was quite reflective when she said, “I’m thankful for my health and the heath of my family. I’m thankful for the love from my family and friends. I’m thankful for love and laughter in my life.”

Even those who may not have originally called the United States home were able to get in on the tradition with their families and bring some of their own flair to the holiday. Marco Traniello, who sat in on Thanksgiving with wife Jennifer Harman and their children, noted, “We are very thankful for our wonderful family and friends that we have. This year, though, we substituted the turkey with an authentic Pilgrim’s dish… lasagna!”

There was even more fun in the Joe Sebok household, as one of the wittiest poker players in the game today commented on his Thanksgiving by saying, “I am so thankful for all of my peeps that I am close with, all the opportunities that I have been given this year, and yes, even the crazy world of poker that I have found myself in somehow.” After a moment of pause, Sebok added, “Oh, and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, too!”

Some of the pros in the poker community talked about their activities on Turkey Day. Jonathan “FieryJustice” Little headed to the ski slopes instead of watching football and commented, “I was planning on working out, but I can hardly move from skiing. I think I will have enough time to crawl to the tournament at Bellagio,” where the Five Diamond World Poker Classic will begin. Pamela Brunson thought about all the food she ate when she said, “I gobble gobbled but good! Time to start a new exercise regime! I’m starting by two-steppin’ on Friday!”

In the end, all of the players – and many Americans themselves – thought of those who couldn’t be with those they love. Eric Mizrachi, gathering with the Mizrachi clan, said, “I’m thankful for what all the people did to have such a nice country that we are living in today. I’m proud to be an American and at least I know I’m free!” The effervescent Absolute Poker pro Lacey Jones enthusiastically responded to Poker News Daily, “I’m thankful for our troops! And I want to wish a Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!”

Poker News Daily wants to thank all those who responded and join with them by wishing everyone the happiest of Thanksgivings.

Poker News in Brief: Nov. 16-22, 2009

The 21-year-old generated some major mainstream press coverage this week by appearing on the Late Show with David Letterman and CNN's American Morning.

There was plenty of news that didn't involve Cada, however, and as part of our ongoing Poker News in Brief Feature we're going to break some of it down for you today.

This week we'll look at another man winning a ladies event, the end of Fair Poker, more support for an online poker bill, an upgrade for Cake Poker and more.

Man wins Ladies Championship at Lake Tahoe

Greg Sessler became the latest man to enter and win a female poker tournament last week.

Sessler won the Ladies Championship at the World Series of Poker Circuit stop in Lake Tahoe by outlasting all 95 players that entered the tournament. Of that total, four were men.

Although organizers encourage only women to play, Harrah's cannot exclude any player based on gender. After winning the tournament Sessler defended his decision to play.

"Me playing in this tournament really had nothing to do with trying to take advantage of the ladies or thinking it was a softer field," he said.

"If Jennifer Harman would have come and played in the ladies event, she would have been much tougher competition than me. I came here because I only had one day and I really like the structures and the payout."

Back in September Abraham Korotki entered a ladies event at the 2009 Borgata Poker Open and went on to win it. Former baseball star Jose Canseco also famously entered a women's tournament a few years ago.

More support for Frank's pro-online poker bill

The U.S. bill that would both legalize and regulate online poker has another co-sponsor.

Rep. Anthony D. Weiner of New York's 9th district signed on board this week as the 63rd co-sponsor of the legislation.

Rep. Barney Frank originally introduced the bill last spring but it has yet to be heard before committee.

Frank's bill would essentially repeal the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act that was passed in 2006 and put a regulatory system in place for the online gambling industry.

Unfair outcome for Fair Poker

Lesser-known online poker room Fair Poker disappeared this week, but its players found a new home at Noble Poker.

Both sites were members of the iPoker network and were merged into one site earlier in the week. Fair Poker players had their account balances and the iPoints they had earned transferred to Noble Poker.

iPoker remains one of the busiest online poker networks in the world with Titan Poker, ChiliPoker, Bet365, CD Poker, William Hill, Mansion Poker and numerous others all under the iPoker banner.

The 2009 BC Poker Championships, starring Liz Lieu, will be televised.

HeadsUp Entertainment to televise BC Poker Championships

HeadsUp Entertainment, operators of the Canadian Poker Tour and Canadian Poker Player Magazine, will help televise coverage of the 2009 BC Poker Championships in Vancouver.

"We are very pleased to be part of Canada's premier poker tournament," said HeadsUp President Kelly B. Kellner. "We consider it a privilege to be able to cover the event through both our magazine and on television."

HeadsUp Entertainment made a deal with The Score Television Network, which is the exclusive broadcast partner of the Canadian Poker Tour, to show highlights from the tournament.

The 2009 BC Poker Championships began this week with 606 runners. The event received the attention of some big name poker players including Tiffany Michelle, Liz Lieu, Maria Ho, Greg "FBT" Mueller, Gavin Smith and Brad Booth.

Last year Canadian poker super-star Daniel Negreanu outlasted 689 players to win the 2008 BCPC for $300,708.

Cake Poker adds players, synchronized breaks

Cake Poker had a busy week adding synchronized breaks to its software and taking players from Third Bullet Poker.

Third Bullet was already a member of the Cake Network and the company's executives made the decision to merge the player base onto Cake Poker for better technical support and customer service.

Meanwhile, Cake's synchronized breaks will let multi-table tournament players take a break no matter how many tables they are running. The breaks will occur at 55 minutes past the hour, every hour.

The breaks do not affect Sit 'n' Go tournaments with less than 30 players.

The feature is quickly becoming an industry standard as Absolute Poker and UltimateBet recently added synchronized breaks as well.

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.

Face the Ace: Andrew Weinstein, Adam Drescher Leave Empty-Handed

The challengers continued to struggle on the NBC poker franchise “Face the Ace.” On Saturday, tax attorney Andrew Weinstein and poker novice Adam Drescher each left the show’s Las Vegas set with nothing to show for their efforts except some network television face time.

Weinstein, a 40 year-old from Washington State, selected the ace of clubs for his $40,000 match. Out strolled Erick Lindgren, a World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner whom Weinstein has played with before. Each player received 20,000 chips in the opening round and blinds escalated quickly, beginning at 200-400.

Weinstein came out firing, raising pre-flop with gems like 5-10, 7-3, and 2-6 before getting his chips in with A-7 against Lindgren’s A-4. However, the two chopped the pot when the first four cards came 8-A-10-8, giving both players the Dead Man’s Hand with a 10 kicker.

Weinstein doubled after calling all-in with A-10 against Lindgren’s K-Q of diamonds. The ace was the door card, keeping Weinstein in the lead in the hand for good, and the challenger built his stack to over 31,000. Then, Lindgren doubled with pocket sixes against Weinstein’s J-5 of hearts. On the match’s final hand, Lindgren shoved with Q-7, including the seven of clubs, but ran into Weinstein’s A-6, including the ace of the suit. Four clubs came and Weinstein earned the nut flush and a win in the $40,000 match.

The Full Tilt Poker qualifier could play on for $200,000 or take his money and run. He chose the former option after very little debate, selecting the ace of diamonds. Jennifer Harman emerged from the smoky “Face the Ace” façade and, in a hand that had the audience buzzing, Harman was dealt 10-8 and raised to 3,000 pre-flop with a starting stack of 100,000 and blinds at 500-1,000. Weinstein peeked down at Q-9 and made the call. The flop came J-Q-5, giving Weinstein top pair, and he check-called a 4,000 bet from Harman. The turn was a three and Weinstein once-again check-called a bet from the pro, this time totaling 13,000. The river was a nine, giving Harman a miracle straight, and Weinstein check-called a small bet of 12,000. Harman sheepishly scooped the pot and the mood of the match changed dramatically.

Weinstein avoided disaster in a hand with A-7 against Harman’s pocket kings. Harman raised pre-flop to 3,000, Weinstein made it 11,000, Harman bumped the action to 22,000, and Weinstein called to see the flop come 10-6-Q. Harman led out for another 30,000 and Weinstein quickly released his hand.

Harman’s A-K of hearts withstood Weinstein’s A-9 offsuit on the match’s final hand after the pro made a flush, sending Weinstein home from Sin City with nothing. Harman, a 73% favorite pre-flop, called feverishly for a nine to hit, but the board of 5-2-Q-6-8 with three hearts ensured that no upset would occur.

Drescher then took to the stage. The poker player from Bethesda, Maryland had only been playing the game for six months and his inexperience proved fatal. He selected the ace of diamonds, Huck Seed, who won the 2009 National Heads-Up Poker Championship over Vanessa Rousso. Only a few hands into play, Drescher open-shoved with 10-9 for 19,400 chips into a pot of only 600 and Seed picked up pocket kings. Seed was an 83% favorite to send Drescher packing and the board ran out 3-7-2-9-3. Drescher made top pair, but it wasn’t enough, as the qualifiers were blanked on the November 14th episode of “Face the Ace.”

The show, which is sponsored by Full Tilt Poker, aired preceding golf coverage on NBC and went head-to-head with multiple college football games. “Face the Ace,” hosted by Steve Schirripa, will return on December 12th. Check local listings for more information.

Erik Seidel Appears on HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm

Normally, poker players are seen on television only within their element, in a poker tournament or cash game. Recently, however, a top pro took the time to appear on one of the most popular programs on cable television.

In last Sunday’s episode of the HBO comedy “Curb Your Enthusiasm” entitled “Officer Krupke,” Erik Seidel appeared in a non-speaking role on the show. Seidel was seated behind “Curb” star and creator Larry David and his on-screen wife, Cheryl Hines, as the couple dined in a restaurant. David and Hines discussed her auditioning for a role on the “Seinfeld” reunion, which has been a prominent part of this season’s storyline. Seidel’s prominence in the shot – he is framed by both David and Hines as they perform the scene – has led many to discuss how he got on the program.

On the poker forum TwoPlusTwo, some answers are given on how Seidel got his “moment in the sun.” A tweet from Seidel himself that was posted on the site admits, “Yes, that was my ugly mug on Curb. From a charity auction, I’m a huge fan of the show.” Also noted in the discussion on TwoPlusTwo were the appearance of actor/poker player Ben Affleck and that Daniel Negreanu will have a spin on another HBO program, “Entourage,” also because of a charitable cause.

Seidel’s charitable actions have been quite apparent over the past year. When poker pro and friend Annie Duke battled her way to the final two on the past season of the NBC reality series “Celebrity Apprentice,” Seidel was prominent in several of the tasks. Not only did he appear during the final episode pitting Duke against eventual winner Joan Rivers, but Seidel also contributed to one of the early tasks on the program. In that episode, Seidel was among several poker players that donated to Duke’s cupcake drive. Seidel purchased one of the cupcakes created by Duke’s Athena teammates for $5,000, helping the team to victory.

The latest sighting of Seidel on “Curb Your Enthusiasm” continues a long-running theme of poker players appearing in mainstream television, movies, and magazines. In addition to Duke’s “Celebrity Apprentice” appearance this year, the team of Tiffany Michelle and Maria Ho on the current run of “The Amazing Race” has drawn attention to poker personalities. After battling valiantly through several difficult physical stunts, the duo was eliminated two weeks ago, finishing in sixth place on the Emmy Award-winning program.

Negreanu has been able to parlay his poker stardom into a cameo role in one of the top films of this year, “X-Men Origins: Wolverine,” where he played poker against the character Gambit. Fellow poker players Scotty Nguyen, Jennifer Harman, and Phil Hellmuth joined Negreanu in the recent “Body Issue” of “ESPN: The Magazine.” In addition, popular recent poker films and television series such as “The Grand,” “Lucky You,” and the highly controversial ESPN series “Tilt” have featured some of the biggest names in the game such as Doyle Brunson and Antonio Esfandiari.

It is good to see poker players such as Seidel in an arena outside of the poker table and even better that Seidel was able to parlay his appearance on the program into a charitable cause. The “Curb Your Enthusiasm” episode with Seidel appears nine more times between now and November 15th, so there are plenty of opportunities for poker fans to check out his turn on one of the most popular programs on cable television.

Tom Dwan (durrrr) Joins Team Full Tilt

The elite group of 13 poker pros that comprise Team Full Tilt Poker has a new member joining its ranks.  The online poker room just announced that its 14th member of the team will be 23-year old high-stakes online poker pro Tom “durrrr” Dwan.

Full Tilt Poker recently added Dwan to its roster, but Dwan has been a noticeable presence on the site for quite some time prior to the new sponsorship deal.  Full Tilt has been hosting Dwan’s “Durrrr Challenge” cash game tables since the epic bet first came to light in February and the youngster is a mainstay on all of the highest stakes cash game tables on the site as well.

Prior to Dwan, the last addition to the squad was Patrik Antonius, who joined Team Full Tilt in the summer of 2008.  The other members of the exclusive group are Howard Lederer, Jennifer Harman, Allen Cunningham, Chris “Jesus” Ferguson, Gus Hansen, Mike Matusow, Andy Bloch, Erik Seidel, Phil Ivey, John Juanda, Phil Gordon, and Erick Lindgren.  The group has a collective 37 World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelets and is widely considered to represent some of the best tournament and cash game players in the world.  Dwan is now the youngest member of the group, but in his brief career, he has made an indelible impression on both the online and live poker communities.

In a press release announcing the news, Lederer spoke about the young pro and why they decided to include him on the team: “Team Full Tilt doesn’t take adding a team member lightly, but Tom Dwan has proven, through skill and dynamic play, that he will be a force to be reckoned with for many years to come. We are proud to count Tom as one of our own.”

Dwan’s list of accomplishments include over $1 million in tournament poker winnings, three WSOP final tables, a World Poker Tour final table, and several successful appearances on poker television shows like “Poker After Dark” and “High Stakes Poker.”  Dwan holds the record for both the largest pot in “High Stakes Poker” history as well as the largest pot in televised poker history, which he recently won off of Ivey during the filming of the “Full Tilt Poker’s Million Dollar Cash Game.”  Dwan won the $1.1 million pot when he turned a seven-high straight against Ivey’s five-high straight and the two players got it all-in.  The big hand is scheduled to air as part of the show on U.K.’s Sky Sports in January of 2010.

Now that Dwan is a member of Team Full Tilt, he will be facing off against his fellow team members as action continues in his “Durrrr Challenge” bet.  Dwan and Antonius have played a little over 27,000 hands of the 50,000 required.  Dwan currently holds a $779,248 lead over Antonius.  Once Antonius finishes his 50,000 hands against Dwan, fellow Team Full Tilt member and recent seventh place finisher in the 2009 WSOP Main Event, Ivey, will step up, as will David Benyamine.

Dwan is set to take part in the upcoming season of “High Stakes Poker,” which will be filming at the Golden Nugget in Las Vegas from November 11th to 13th and will likely be sporting a Full Tilt Poker patch as part of his duties.

Tom Dwan is the newest member of Team Full Tilt

There has been some speculation about Tom Dwan and Full Tilt Poker. Well, now it’s official, Tom Dwan is the latest addition to Full Tilt Poker’s Pro Poker Team.

Full Tilt Poker announced about their newest Team Full Tilt member. FTP’s announcement was praising Dwan quite highly:

“Dwan, best known by his online player handle “durrrr”, is one of the most influential and successful players in online poker history. Known for his prolific play in high-stakes games at Full Tilt Poker, he has proven himself to be an unstoppable force any time he sits down at a table.”

Dwan has won $1.1 million from live tournaments, these include 3 WSOP cashes and one WPT final table.

Dwan became the youngest member of the Team Full Tilt. Other members are: Phil Ivey, Chris Ferguson, Howard Lederer, John Juanda, Jennifer Harman, Phil Gordon, Erick Lindgren, Erik Seidel, Andy Bloch, Mike Matusow, Gus Hansen, Allen Cunningham and Patrik Antonius.

You can visit Dwan’s team page here.

Source: PR Newswire

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Tom Dwan is the newest member of Team Full Tilt

durrrr signs with Team Full Tilt

The site is calling the 23-year-old  New Jersey native and former Boston University English major "one of the most influential and successful players in online poker history," and there's really no doubt about it.

While he's down around $1.8 million playing in online's biggest games this year, Dwan took over $5.4 million off the virtual tables in 2008.

Plus, there is whatever he's been raking in at the biggest live cash games around the world, $1.1 million in live tournament earnings, and some of the biggest pots and largest winning sessions in televised poker history to consider.

After dominating the last season of GSN's High Stakes Poker, this past September he raked in a $1.1 pot at million at Full Tilt Poker's Million Dollar Cash Game in London - the largest ever.

Since much of Dwan's online work has been done on Full Tilt's tables and his $1.5 million durrrr Challenge has been one of the biggest railbird draws in online history, he is an obvious choice for the team.

But while the site has a large stable of Red Pros sponsored to play on the site, Team Full Tilt is a group largely made up of the game's most elite players, including Phil Ivey, Chris Ferguson, Howard Lederer, John Juanda, Jennifer Harman, Phil Gordon, Erick Lindgren, Erik Seidel, Andy Bloch, Mike Matusow, Gus Hansen, Allen Cunningham and Patrik Antonius.

"Team Full Tilt doesn't take adding a team member lightly," said Lederer. "But, Tom Dwan has proven, through skill and dynamic play, that he will be a force to be reckoned with for many years to come.

"We are proud to count Tom as one of our own."

While he will continue to prowl Full Tilt's highest stakes games, Dwan will also be lending his knowledge to the Full Tilt Poker Academy and blogging for the site.

Dwan is now Team Full Tilt's youngest member.

WSOP Main Event: James Akenhead, Antoine Saout Double Up

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Kara Scott to be Named New Host of High Stakes Poker

According to several industry insiders, poker podcasts, and online sites, poker player and announcer Kara Scott will take over for A. J. Benza as co-host on the popular GSN poker program “High Stakes Poker.”

Poker News Daily has been able to confirm through several industry insiders that there is “a deal worked out” for Scott to flank Gabe Kaplan when the high-stakes cash game picks back up for its sixth season on November 11th at the Golden Nugget in Las Vegas. According to Poker News Daily’s sources, the only obstacle is Scott obtaining a permit that would allow her to work inside of the United States. As a foreign national, this document is critically important, as without such documentation, Scott would face criminal charges.

The ESPN poker show “Inside Deal” has discussed the issue and listed Scott as the top contender. A thread on the popular poker forum TwoPlusTwo has all but crowned Scott as the heir apparent to Benza. For the record, and possibly because of the hurdle of the working documents, neither GSN nor the producers of “High Stakes Poker,” Poker PROductions, has announced that Scott has been hired.

Since Benza announced in October that he would not be back for the new season of the show, there has been speculation that “High Stakes Poker” was looking at a female to team with longtime poker player Kaplan. Whether in the booth breaking down the hands in play or serving as a hostess who would interview players while the game was in action, many poker insiders and forum posters have commented that the show is moving in the direction of another poker television program, “Poker After Dark” (also produced by Poker PROductions).

With these thoughts in mind, there have been various ladies of the game that have drawn attention as the new replacement. One of the first names bandied about as Benza’s replacement was poker professional Vanessa Rousso, which also raised diverse opinions on the internet. Once Poker News Daily broke the news that Rousso would not fill the role, the return of former World Poker Tour (WPT) hostess Shana Hiatt gained steam. It took an announcement from her publicist at Creative Management Entertainment Group to squash those rumors.

Even poker professional Daniel Negreanu, who has played in every edition of “High Stakes Poker” and claims knowledge as to the new host, put up such other names as current WPT hostess Amanda Leatherman as well as Sabina Gadecki, Kimberly Lansing, Lacey Jones, Tiffany Michelle, and even “Big Game” regular Jennifer Harman, who has appeared on previous seasons of “High Stakes Poker.” Negreanu later noted that none would take to the “High Stakes Poker” set for Season 6. Strangely enough, former WPT hostess Courtney Friel, who is a correspondent for Fox News, has not been named as a potential candidate.

As a tournament poker player, Scott has over $500,000 in career earnings, with $453,450 in 2009 alone. She has finished inside the final 250 players in the last two World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Events (238th this year, 104th last year) and was the runner-up at this year’s Irish Open. As a broadcaster, Scott has done commentary on the European Poker Tour (EPT), made-for-television poker shows like “Poker Night Live,” and also covered tournament backgammon on television and the internet.

James McManus Discusses the Poker History Book Cowboys Full

Earlier this decade, when poker wasn’t the behemoth that it is today, a noted writer by the name of James McManus accepted a job from Harper’s Magazine to cover the 2000 World Series of Poker (WSOP).

Far from looking at it as simply a poker entity and observe the proceedings, McManus decided to dovetail his story of the tournament with the ongoing murder investigation of the late Ted Binion and chronicle his efforts to play. After using a satellite to gain entrance into the Main Event, McManus went on to finish fifth in the $10,000 tournament and chronicled the whole story in what has become one of the poker world’s seminal books in “Positively Fifth Street,” which was released in 2003.

Since then, however, McManus has limited his writing about poker to newspapers and magazines. His last non-fiction book, “Physical: An American Checkup” (2006), looked at the American health care system and pointed out its problems even prior to this year’s debate on the issue. Now, one of the most notable scribes in the business has returned with what might be called the definitive book on the history of the game.

“Cowboys Full: The Story of Poker” was released on October 27th and documents, as best as possible, the development, growth, and history of what once was considered to be America’s game and has since expanded around the world. From the beginning of the creation of playing cards in China and Korea to today’s game, McManus nails the goal of putting a history to a pastime.

“Poker has a long-deserved reputation as the cheaters’ game, but the book reminds us that cheating has been a big part of baseball, football, cycling, boxing, horseracing, marriage, taxes, politics, warfare, and most other human activities,” McManus stated before the interview with Poker News Daily began. “It’s naive to single out poker as being overly luck-based or larcenous, especially when making laws banning some games, while encouraging others. For the State to encourage lotteries and bingo while banning poker is greedy and cynical.”

McManus continued by discussing the theory that poker is luck-based and how his book handles that issue. “I think the book makes it fairly clear how much luck is involved in other games, such as baseball and football, games that few people think of as being determined by luck,” McManus said. “Luck determines the winner of baseball’s World Series about as much as it does the winner of the WSOP.”

PND: After the success of “Positively Fifth Street,” why didn’t you write another poker book immediately?

McManus: Because I was sent by a magazine to get an executive physical at the Mayo Clinic, by another magazine to cover the debate about stem-cell research, and by another to write about emergency surgery my daughter had undergone. It seemed only natural that I would combine this material into a book, which turned out to be “Physical: An American Checkup” (2006).

In the meantime, poker still had my interest. My agent, editor, and I were all surprised that there was no single book on the history of what is clearly America’s card game and arguably the national pastime, especially during the boom years this decade. As such, I continued to research the poker story and it became “Cowboys Full.”

PND: What were some of the problems in writing a book on a subject that doesn’t have a well-known and documented history?

McManus: One problem was that I had no training as an historian; it’s one reason I call it the story of poker, not the history.

Another was that people tend not to keep records of their poker action, especially when they work as blacklegs and swindlers. You’re forced to rely on lore, hearsay, and the work of feature writers such as Mark Twain, who were paid to exaggerate for humorous or dramatic effect. The book addresses this problem directly and makes a serious effort to deduce what was actually going on. The reporting becomes more precise and historically reliable as I cover the last third of the 20th century, especially when famous hands began to be televised.

PND: What was more difficult, the research for or the writing of “Cowboys Full”?

McManus: Most definitely the research. I have 35 years of experience as a writer, but very little as a researcher, although Google and the Amazon search function made the job a lot easier than if I had to do it with microfiche. I also couldn’t have done it without David Schwartz’s hospitality and sage advice at the UNLV Center for Gaming Research or without his marvelous history of gambling, “Roll the Bones.”

PND: You look at poker from sides that the average person wouldn’t consider. When you talked to academics and scientists about poker and its effects on human history, did they understand what you were doing?

McManus: In many cases, I was relying on what people had written. People like John von Neumann, Oskar Morgenstern, David Halberstam, and the presidents and generals in charge of World War II and the Cold War were already dead while I was writing.

At the same time, I interviewed plenty of folks including Todd Brunson, Barry Greenstein, Jennifer Harman, Linda Johnson, Andy Beal, Crandell Addington, Chris Ferguson, Aaron Brown, Tony Holden, and Gabe Kaplan, who understood some of these issues a lot better than I did before I started talking to them.

PND: What was the most surprising aspect of poker you learned from your research?

McManus: How important its logic and psychology was, and continues to be, to the military and diplomatic strategies deployed in a world in which several countries, including some extremely unstable regimes, have nuclear weapons. In other words, how important poker-based game theory is to life beyond the green felt.

PND: What can the reader take away from “Cowboys Full” other than a grasp of the history of the game?

McManus: That it isn’t just a history lesson. It has dozens of pretty cool stories about actual games: riverboat hustles, friendly games in the White House and the homes of ordinary citizens, $40 million showdowns between Andy Beal and the corporation of Las Vegas pros captained by Doyle Brunson, Jennifer Harman facing off against Andy while waiting for her second kidney transplant, Stu Ungar making a WSOP final table from the intensive care unit, and Chris Moneymaker’s bluff against Sammy Farha. They’re all there and more.

PND: Now that you have followed up “Fifth Street,” are you finished writing books about poker?

McManus: No, but almost. I’m currently writing the final book of the trilogy. Book one was a memoir about the WSOP, which became “Positively Fifth Street.” Book two is the history of poker, which is “Cowboys Full.” Book three is a novel tentatively titled “The Winter Casino” about a very large tournament played in a city being threatened by an Al-Qaeda cell with a nuclear suitcase device.

Daniel Negreanu Breaks Down WPT Tournament Poker Statistics

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Shana Hiatt Will Not Be Next High Stakes Poker Host

Poker News Daily can independently confirm that former World Poker Tour (WPT) and “Poker After Dark” hostess Shana Hiatt will not reprise her role on GSN’s “High Stakes Poker.” Instead, it appears that Kara Scott will be signed.

According to Hiatt’s publicist, Creative Management Entertainment Group, the former WPT hostess will not join the cast of “High Stakes Poker.” Hiatt has been taking care of her one year-old child and traveling the world with her husband, Todd Garner. Hiatt was one of the original voices of the game for much of today’s poker playing population, joining Mike Sexton and Vince Van Patten on Travel Channel broadcasts. Hiatt departed the WPT scene in 2005.

Hiatt formerly appeared on NBC’s “Poker After Dark” and “National Heads-Up Poker Championship.” Both are franchises of Poker PROductions, the Mori Eskandani-led outfit that also produces “High Stakes Poker.” Consequently, many in the industry believed that Hiatt would sit alongside former “Welcome Back, Kotter” star Gabe Kaplan in the Season 6 “High Stakes Poker” broadcast booth. Poker PROductions is in the midst of preparing the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe Main Event for airing on cable station ESPN in early 2010.

Former host A.J. Benza, whose dismissal by GSN executives sparked a considerable amount of controversy, noted in a blog post that the next “High Stakes Poker” host would actually be a hostess. In a post authored by Kaplan on Friday, the ousted host explained, “I hope the chick they get to do some table interviews during the three-days of play at the Golden Nugget really, truly compliments and adds a great dose of comedy that was apparently lacking up in the booth manned by Gabe Kaplan. Does GSN realize they have apparently copied ‘Poker After Dark,’ the show that feels like a marriage between a Xanax and a Valium?”

On a Mediocre Poker Show podcast, Benza fingered Scott as his replacement. Scott is a sponsored PokerStars player and has taken on commentary duties for European Poker Tour (EPT) events. She finished in the top 250 in both the 2008 and 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Events and won the PartyPoker Sports Stars Challenge in early 2008 for £26,000. She is fresh off hosting the PokerStars.net Ante Up for Africa tournament that aired on CBS and was filmed during April’s EPT Monte Carlo Grand Final in Monaco.

Poker PROductions and GSN officials could not comment on who would be the next host of “High Stakes Poker” because contract negotiations are ongoing. A GSN representative told Poker News Daily, “We can’t announce the new co-host until his/her deal has been signed and finalized, which hasn’t happened yet.”

In threads on Full Contact Poker, site front man Daniel Negreanu, a member of Team PokerStars Pro, commented, “I like how a guy says he’s 99% sure it’s Vanessa [Rousso] when I’m actually 100% sure it’s not! It’s not Amanda [Leatherman] or Lacey [Jones] or Tiffany [Michelle] either. It’s not an actress either. I can tell you who it isn’t but can’t tell you who it is. Fun game for me!” Negreanu also reinforced that the next hostess is not Hiatt, Sabina Gadecki, Kimberly Lansing, or Jennifer Harman. Poker News Daily can also independently confirm that Leatherman will not be the considered, although she told us she’s love the opportunity.  PokerStars will sponsor “High Stakes Poker” for Season 6.

The show is set to begin filming its next cycle in November from Las Vegas. Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest on the search for the next “High Stakes Poker” host.