Poker News

PartyPoker offers seats in Conrad Poker Tour

The Conrad Poker Tour final event takes place at the Conrad Punta Del Este Resort and Casino in Uruguay Dec. 4-5 with an estimated prize pool of $1 million.

The $2,500 buy-in event is one of the most highly anticipated tournaments of the year for South American players, according to Latin American PartyPoker Ambassador Felipe "Mojave" Ramos.

"This is one of the major dates on the Latin American poker circuit, which I am very much looking forward too," said Ramos. "I'm aiming for success but also looking forward to having a top group of PartyPoker.com qualifiers to cheer on too!"

There will be four main qualifiers to the event, all of which will be open to players located in Uruguay, Argentina, Brazil, Peru or Chile.

The qualifiers will take place Sept. 11, Oct. 1, Oct. 22 and Nov. 12 on PartyPoker.

Each package won on PartyPoker will include the buy-in for the event, two nights accommodation at AWA Boutique + Design Hotel in Punta del Este, transportation from the hotel to the casino, $500 spending money and a reception dinner with Ramos at one of Punta del Este's high end restaurants.

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PartyPoker introduces new leaderboards

The site has introduced a total of four new leaderboards, including weekly and monthly boards for both Single-Table Tournaments and Multi-Table Tournaments.

"A player doesn't have to opt in for the leaderboards," a PartyPoker spokesperson said. "They just have to take part in sit-and-go and multi-table tournaments and see their ranking on the board."

The top 208 players on the boards will grab a share of $30,000 every month.

The formula used to determine leaderboard points for each tournament will be the square root of the buy-in divided by two, plus the square root of winnings.

Leaderboards and PartyPoints are separate entities and players will earn each independent of the other.

For complete information and links to the leaderboards go here.

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PartyPoker.com aims for the sky

The online gaming giant and Ace Magazine have teamed up to create Poker in the Sky, an "elevated" poker event taking place Sept. 11 in Copenhagen.

In the event, 22 players will step on a platform and then be hoisted 50 meters in the air above City Hall Square. They will then play a four-hour poker tournament, surrounded by the spires of the city and with actual birds the only railbirds.

Two of the 22 seats will go to celebrity guests, but the rest of the spots are up for grabs on PartyPoker.com - provided you don't have a fear of heights.

The contest is limited to residents of Denmark only and the last satellite will take place tomorrow (Sept. 3).

The 22 poker players will not only have a great view of Copenhagen but the winner of the game will nab a package for the PartyPoker.com World Open V in London in October. Mike Sexton, Tom "durrrr" Dwan and several other well-known pros are already scheduled to play the World Open V.

The Danish winner of the PartyPoker.com Poker in the Sky wins flights, hotels and a $10,000 buy-in for the tournament in London.

For more information, check out the Danish PartyPoker site here.

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Top names announced for PartyPoker.com World Open V

PartyPoker.com has announced that the line up for this year’s World Open V will include Tom ‘Durrrr’ Dwan, Luke ‘Fullflush’ Schwartz and Mike Sexton. The event, which takes place from Sunday 11th October to Thursday 15th October at Mayfair’s Palm Beach Casino, will see a field of 48 runners compete for a first prize of $250,000.

Poker News in Brief: Aug 10-16, 2009

One would be wrong.

It's been as busy as ever and as part of PokerListings' ongoing News in Brief feature, we've compiled a list of stories that didn't quite make the front page this week, but are worth mentioning to the hardcore poker enthusiast.

This week we find the Borgata has dropped the buy-in for its WPT event, the Party Poker team is expanding and players at PKR and Everest Poker are finding life a little more enjoyable.

WPT Borgata buy-in drops

The buy-in for the World Poker Tour's Borgata Poker Open has been dropped from $10k to $3,500, but with a guaranteed prized pool of $2 million, organizers expect it to be as big as ever.

"With a $3,500 buy-in, televised WPT Borgata Poker Open Championship event and a guaranteed $2 million prize pool, anyone has the chance to take home the trophy and championship money," Borgata's Senior VP of Operations Joe Lupo said.

The 7th annual Borgata Poker Open is actually a 16-day series featuring a wide array of tournaments beginning Sept. 9 and culminating with the televised championship event Sept. 19-24.

To view the event schedule or for more information visit theborgata.com.

Party Poker signs German gamer

29-year-old Palladium Elite player Bodo Sbrzesny, a former semi-professional tennis player and professional video gamer from Bruchsal, Germany, has been signed to Party Poker's grassroots team.

In creating a grassroots team Party Poker is now sponsoring players with emphasis on VIPs, player loyalty and historic links to PartyPoker.com.

Sbrzesny joins France's Remy Biechel, Brazil's Felipe Ramos, the UK's Ian Frazer and the legendary Mike Sexton on the team.

PKR aims to Xhilirate

PKR.com is partnering with the pioneers of poker massage.

The online poker site has signed a deal to make Xhilarate the exclusive massage supplier for all PKR Live tournaments and PR functions.

Xhilarate's massage team has worked the World Series of Poker Europe and the Grosvenor ((UK Poker)) Tour in the past.

"Nothing quite compares to the glamour and style of the Xhilarate girls and their massages," Marketing Manager Erika Schwartz said.

Reach the summit

Everest Poker has made a series of improvements to its VIP Summit Club frequent player program.

It's now 40% easier to reach the first "Base Camp" level where players can take part in a $5k freeroll and turn points directly into cash.

The climb beyond Base Camp will also go much quicker with reduced tier thresholds.

Players who reach "The Summit", the top tier of the program, will also be rewarded with a 900% Summit Point bonus, 20% higher than before.

Kiev hosts gaming expo

EPT Moscow isn't the only thing moving to Kiev these days.

The two-day EELEX iGaming expo is headed to Kiev, Ukraine Sept. 10-11.

The aim of the expo is to answer questions regarding gaming in Russia and the Ukraine.

Mini booths will be equipped where visitors can get acquainted with solutions for Internet poker, casinos, sportsbooks and payment systems.

EPT Moscow was previously moved to Kiev due to a shift in poker's legal status in Russia.

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Party Poker World Open V

Are you good enough to compete against the biggest names in Poker? Prove it by winning a seat in the 48 capacity PartyPoker.com World Open this October 11th to 15th in front of TV Cameras in London, England.

This is a challenge to all serious poker players who want to prove themselves as an excellent player in a live game, remember, the PartyPoker.com World Open V will be televised. As well as the prestige that such an appearance would undoubtedly bring, there is a $480,000 prize pool to play for, good job!

Let’s get the facts on the table.

The prize packages up for grabs are worth a generous $13,000 which includes:-

• $10,000 buy in
• 7 nights hotel in London, England
• $1,000 spending money

The only way to claim one of the $13,000 prize packages is through the Qualifiers (satellites) running now as follows:-

• Daily $3, $8 and $75 buy ins, feeding to
• Sundays $700 buy in at 7.15pm UK (2.15pm New York) where the coveted prize packages are awarded.

If you want to play with Poker’s Elite in London this Autumn then get serious and get playing in those qualifiers – NOW!

Not got a Party Poker Account? Get a wiggle on and go through our Party Poker Bonus Code page to get a choice of bonuses and angst free opening of your account. Party Poker, my my, you’ll love it!

Our factual Party Poker.com Review will fill you in on the nitty gritty of this cracking site.

Win a seat in the PartyPoker.com World Open V

Satellites are running on Party Poker for one of the biggest televised tournaments in Britain. The fifth season of the World Open takes place in London from 11th to 15th October with top pros Mike Sexton, Ian Frazer, Remy Biechel, Felipe ‘Mojave’ Ramos and Bodo Sbrzesny among the field competing for the $480,000 prize pool.

PartyPoker Enters Sponsored Players Wars, Signs Three Top Pros

After staying out of the battle for sponsoring players for the entirety of their existence, PartyPoker has entered into the fray by signing three players to begin a team of sponsored players. These players come from their online ranks and have shown outstanding skills on the online poker site and in international competition.

For several years, PartyPoker featured only one sponsored pro on its rolls: PartyPoker ambassador and World Poker Tour commentator Mike Sexton. Recently, however, Party decided to extend sponsorships to players based on performance at its online poker room. PartyPoker looks at their VIPs, player loyalty to the site and historic links to PartyPoker in determining the criteria for addition to what they are calling a “grassroots” team. The three additions made this week not only are outstanding players in their own right but also represent the international aspect of poker.

Earlier this week, PartyPoker tabbed English poker professional Ian Frazer to join Sexton on the PartyPoker team. Frazer is a building contractor from London who has compiled a strong list of success on the felt. Nicknamed “The Raiser”, Ian has captured three major European titles at the 2005 888.com Pacific Poker Open, the 2006 PartyPoker European Open and the 2006 Goalpoker.com Champions League of Poker. In total, he has amassed over $1.3 million in tournament earnings and has money finishes in the three major tours (the WSOP, the WPT and the EPT) that are in existence.

Yesterday, PartyPoker announced the addition of two more members to Team PartyPoker. Brazil’s Felipe Ramos – who had a final table appearance at this year’s World Series of Poker – and France’s Remy Biechel have accepted the sponsorship that PartyPoker has offered and will represent the company in tournaments around the world. Both Ramos and Biechel are PartyPoker players whose poker accomplishments merit their newfound sponsorship deals.

Ramos is an aggressive young professional poker player from Sao Paulo, Brazil and is a popular and influential figure on the Latin American poker circuit. A top VIP at PartyPoker.com, he started playing professionally in January 2008 and has earned over $700,000 since that time. Last week he finished in sixth place in the $5,000 PLO (Event 35) at the World Series of Poker. Along with this finish, Ramos has been a Brazilian Series of Poker champion and contributes strategy advice to many poker magazines. He plays at PartyPoker under the names ‘mojave14’ and ‘FelipeMojave’ and, in addition to playing in live events for PartyPoker, will also be writing his own blog for the site and help nurture fellow players with tutorials.

Biechel is a very popular poker player on the French circuit and a Palladium Lounge member at PartyPoker. He currently has over $840,000 in lifetime live tournament winnings and has cashed significantly in two big international side events. He won the €5000 side event at this year’s EPT Monte Carlo, taking home €280,000, and secured second place in a side event at the 2008 WPT Festa Al Lago for $163,000. Along with playing, Biechel is also coaching French World Cup winning ex-footballer Frank Lebeouf, who will represent PartyPoker in next week’s WSOP charity event “Ante Up For Africa.”

With the addition of Ramos and Biechel, Team PartyPoker now stands at four players and more will be added in the future, according to PartyPoker executives. A PartyPoker spokesman stated, “We’re delighted to welcome Felipe and Remy to the team. Like Ian Frazer, they both have history as loyal customers and have increased their play since the re-launch of the new software and VIP programs.”

Ian Frazer becomes Party Poker Pro

Ian Frazer is the first player to become a sponsored pro with PartyPoker. The 50-year-old Londoner is the first member of what promises to be an expanding grass roots team. The emphasis is on VIPs, player loyalty and historic links to PartyPoker.com.

PartyPoker.com Million Dollar Hand starts today

PartyPoker.com is offering players the opportunity to win large - thanks to the second incarnation of their Million Dollar Hand promotion.

Aisling Collins wins PartyPoker.com Women’s World Open III

Aisling Collins is better off to the tune of $50,000 after winning the PartyPoker.com Women’s World Open III yesterday. The Sky Poker employee qualified for the final after winning the runner up turbo qualifier and took that excellent form into the 7-runner final.

Poker News in Brief: May 18-24, 2009

This week we take a look at the Poker Brat's new book, how online poker is headed to a TV set near you and where the best female poker players on the planet will be this week.

Brat's book hits shelves

Commemorating the 20th anniversary of his World Series of Poker Main Event win, Phil Hellmuth has released a book featuring the inspirational stories behind 20 different poker champions.

Deal Me In by Stephen John and Marvin Karlins features poker legends Doyle Brunson, Daniel Negreanu, Phil Ivey, Annie Duke, Johnny Chan, Chris Ferguson, Carlos Mortensen, Chau Giang, Jennifer Harman, Allen Cunningham, Howard Lederer, Erik Seidel, Chad Brown, David "Devilfish" Ulliott, Layne Flack, Scotty Nguyen, Annette Obrestad, Tom Dwan, Peter Eastgate and Hellmuth himself giving first-hand accounts of their rise to poker stardom.

"Each chapter takes you behind the scenes into the early lives of poker's biggest names," Hellmuth said. "They cover their humble beginnings, the obstacles they overcame, the demons they faced and ultimately the success they enjoyed."

Deal Me In is available exclusively online at Hellmuth's website www.PokerBrat.com.

Harrah's eyes online gaming

Harrah's Entertainment announced this week it has established a new subsidiary, Harrah's Interactive Entertainment, to manage the global growth of the World Series of Poker.

Former PartyGaming CEO Mitch Garber, has signed on as CEO.

In addition to growing the WSOP brand, Harrah's claims the new subsidiary will "explore the use of interactive gaming technologies to expand the reach of Harrah's brands globally, starting in Europe."

In other words, it appears Harrah's and the WSOP are considering moving into the online gaming industry in Europe.

Online poker hits cable

Starting this August, US Cable Network G4 will be taking its audience inside the world of high-stakes online poker.

Dubbed 2 Months, $2 Million, a new ten episode docu-series will air following the lives and adventures of Jason "pr1nnyraid" Rosenkrantz, Brian "Flawless_Victory" Roberts, Emil "whitelime" Patel and Dani "ansky" Stern as they attempt to earn $2 million dollars online over just two months.

The series also promises a window into the high-stakes Las Vegas lifestyle the group leads when they step away from their monitors.

Ladies hit the felt for PartyPoker World Open

The PartyPoker.com Women's World Open III begins Sunday.

The $3,000 buy-in event will include 36 of the world's best female players hit the felt at Three Mills Studios in London between May 24 and May 27.

Annette Obrestad headlines a tough field that also includes actress and WSOP bracelet holder Jennifer Tilly and EPT Dortmund champion Sandra Naujoks.

The top prize is $50,000.

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PartyPoker.com Women’s World Open III Nears Start

This Sunday brings the start of the PartyPoker.com Women's World Open III. The limited-field event, organized by Matchroom Sports...

Win a seat at the Asian Poker Tour event in Macau

The Galaxy StarWorld Hotel and Casino will be the venue for the Asian Poker Tour Macau this August and players can win a seat thanks to PartyPoker.com Packages worth $7,000 apiece including buy in and 7 night’s accommodation are up for grabs in a series of online qualifiers.

PartyPoker offers Paris Hilton a new Bentley

Hilton's new blue Bentley Continental GTC convertible was reportedly egged while the starlet played poker in a private game in the Hollywood Hills on Monday.

It's not the first time Hilton has run into Bentley trouble playing poker, reportedly having lost a Continental GT in a poker game in 2006.

After that incident, PartyPoker.com offered Hilton the opportunity to win her car back in a heads-up match with PartyPoker spokesman Mike Sexton.

While Hilton never took advantage of the offer, the company hopes this latest round of car trouble will entice the heiress to return to the tables.

"We challenge her to take us up on the offer," said a PartyPoker.com spokesman. "Three years is a long time in show business and we're sure she'd jump at it now."

Like the original offer, the terms of this latest challenge are simple: Beat Sexton in a No Limit Hold'em heads-up grudge match and the poker room will replace her car.

Given that a brand-new Continental GTC lists for just under $200,000, it might be an offer worth considering for the 28-year-old socialite - provided she's got the poker chops to hang with Sexton.

"Fortune may be on her side in many ways, but when it comes to Bentleys it certainly doesn't seem to be the case," PartyPoker.com said. "We're confident Mike Sexton would win."

The last time Hilton and Sexton crossed paths at the poker table was the 2007 Celebrity Invitational in Los Angeles, when Sexton found himself dumping chips to Hilton just to keep her in the game.

The heiress is not likely to benefit from such charity this time around.

Keep an eye on PokerListings.com to find out if Hilton takes Sexton up on this challenge.

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Top names line up for Sports Star Challenge

PartyPoker.com has announced the line ups for the fourth series of their popular Sports Star Challenge event which runs from 29 May to 1 June. Top names from motorsports, darts, rugby, boxing and golf will compete for a top prize of £20,000.

Party Poker Releases Dates for Sports Stars Challenge IV

Party Poker has released the dates for its PartyPoker.com Sports Stars Challenge IV, one of the most popular televised poker tournaments in Europe. The event will run from May 29-June 1 and will feature some of the world’s biggest sports stars, both past and present, taking their seats at the table in hopes of becoming a poker champion.

The Sports Stars Challenge IV will include some of the world’s best in motorsports, golf, boxing, rugby and darts. There will also be an online qualifier added to the field for the first time ever. The number of heats will increase from six to seven, with the winner of each of the seven heats advancing to the final table to battle it out until one of them walks away with the title. The overall winner receives £20,000 with second getting £10,000 and third receiving £5,000.

The motorsport table will feature Italian F1 driver Giancarlo Fisichella, while the golf heat will include both 2008 European Ryder Cup team member Graeme McDowell and Jean Van Der Velde. European football’s list of legends includes former Holland captain Frank De Boer, French World Cup winner Frank Leboeuf, Germany’s European Championship winner Thomas Helmer, Romania’s Florin Radiciou and Denmark and Liverpool legend Jan Molby.

Germany’s former unbeaten World Champion Sven Ottke will headline the boxing heat. He will be joined by Northern Ireland’s Commonwealth heavyweight and Prizefighter champion Martin Rogan and Poland’s female boxing champ Agnieska Rylik. The rugby heat will feature union’s former France and Wasps captain Raphael Ibanez and Australian league star Brad Drew, while the darts heat will pit legend Phil Taylor against Russia’s ladies champ Anastasia Dobromyslova.

PartyPoker.com players also had the chance to win a seat through a freeroll in the sports heat of their choice. The sports are European football (two heats), rugby (union and league combined), motorsport, boxing, darts and golf. Two online qualifiers will join each heat.

“We offered freerolls to win a seat in the event on the site”, a spokesperson for Party Poker said, “but the places were snapped up so quickly that we were loath to promote it too much to save the disappointment of players. This is a once in a lifetime experience for a select group to take to the felt with their sporting heroes. The overall lineup is the most diverse and international in the event’s history and more star participant names will be released in the near future.”

For the fourth consecutive year the event will be run by Matchroom Sport, a promotions company founded by English entrepreneur Barry Hearn. Matchroom Sport is typically involved in snooker and boxing events for the most part, but Hearn is thrilled to be involved in the Sports Stars challenge again.

“This is the poker event that the sporting world looks forward to and we have some great international names and great poker players competing for the trophy, big prize money and the ultimate bragging rights”, Hearn said. “We’re particularly excited to introduce the online element and the motorsport and golf heats this year.”

Past winners of Sports Stars Challenge are rugby union star Austin Healey, Irish snooker champion Ken Doherty, and television presenter Kara Scott, who won £20,000 last year after defeating Manchester United football legend Norman Whiteside heads-up. There is no presenter heat in the new format this year.

Coverage of the event will be aired in the UK later this year on Sky Sports and then distributed internationally.

Mike Sexton Re-Signs with PartyPoker

World Poker Tour (WPT) Host Mike Sexton has renewed his agreement with PartyPoker, according to a statement released by the popular online poker site on Wednesday. He will act as its host, consultant, and ambassador.

For many of today’s poker superstars, Sexton was one of the first voices to bring the game to life. Alongside Vince Van Patten, Sexton has brought the WPT into millions of households around the world for seven seasons. A spokesperson for Party Gaming, which is the publicly traded parent company of the independent online poker site, commented in a press release, “We are truly delighted to renew our association with Mike Sexton. Mike is the ‘Ambassador of Poker’ and we hope he gets the acknowledgement he deserves and is inducted into the World Series of Poker Hall of Fame this year. Poker wouldn’t be as popular as it is today if it wasn’t for Mike Sexton.”

On his role with PartyPoker, Sexton explained, “PartyPoker has always had a place in my heart and is special to me. I am delighted to pen a new deal; it means so much to me. I am looking forward to representing them in events around the world and meeting the online package winners at the WSOP. I also relish my role as a consultant advising on poker room matters.” According to traffic ranking site PokerScout.com, PartyPoker is the fourth largest worldwide with a seven day running average of 4,400 real money ring game players and sees a high of just over 7,000. It is the second largest site or network that does not allow players from the United States.

At the upcoming World Series of Poker (WSOP) in Las Vegas, Sexton will serve as the host of PartyPoker’s suite. The WPT personality will also blog about his experiences on the site throughout the two month-long spectacle. Twenty years ago, Sexton took down a bracelet in a $1,500 buy-in Limit Seven Card Stud High-Low tournament for $104,000. More importantly, he claimed his first (and so far only) WSOP bracelet. Sexton finished fourth in the $10,000 buy-in World Championship of Pot Limit Hold’em last year for $248,000. The tournament kicked off ESPN’s coverage of the 2008 WSOP and was ultimately won by Full Tilt Poker pro Nenad Medic.

Sexton told Poker News Daily, “PartyPoker.com recently revamped its software, VIP and loyalty programs, and is the best platform on the market. Three-quarters of players have chosen to take the new table, but there is also the option of keeping the classic table design.”

Sexton claimed victory in the 1992 running of the Foxwoods Poker Finals. Eight years later, he took down the Euro Finals of Poker Main Event in Paris, the first American to do so. In 2006, he won the WSOP Tournament of Champions, besting one of the toughest final tables ever assembled. He defeated Team PokerStars Pro member Daniel Negreanu heads-up. Mike Matusow, Andy Bloch, Darrell “Gigabet” Dicken, Chris Ferguson, and Kido Pham also were among those in contention. Until Season VII, Sexton was not able to compete in WPT events. He sits in the top 15 in number of cashes on WSOP felts at 44.

Sexton is a Guest Columnist right here on Poker News Daily and has shared his thoughts on the National Heads-Up Poker Championship and the 2009 WSOP schedule with the site’s readers. He has also relived serving as an expert witness in a case in South Carolina to prove poker is a game of skill. He came armed with a video library of hands that have played out during WPT tournaments to show how a player’s skill in betting and bluffing won pots. In addition, Dr. Robert Hannum from the University of Denver spoke on the results of a study that examined 103 million hands on PokerStars. It was revealed that three-quarters of them did not go to showdown, meaning a player’s skill won the pot 75% of the time.

PartyPoker will hold the third installment of its Monthly Million tournament on Sunday. The event comes with a $640 price tag and runs on the first Sunday of every month. The month of May will also see PartyPoker hold a $1 million rake race that awards a combination of cash and WSOP prize packages and satellite buy-ins to its winners. The top 3,000 players will finish in the money when the final leader board is determined on May 31st.

Mike Sexton rejoins PartyPoker

"PartyPoker.com has always had a place in my heart and is special to me. I am delighted to pen a new deal; it means so much to me," said Mike Sexton.

"I am looking forward to representing them in events around the world and meeting the online package winners at the WSOP. I also relish my role as a consultant advising on poker room matters."

Sexton has been a part of PartyPoker in the past, acting as host and bringing his reputation as one of the most respected figures in the game to the poker site.

Sexton is the face and voice of the World Poker Tour as well where he provides commentary along with Vince Van Patten on its televised events. He is also a World Series of Poker bracelet holder and was the 2006 WSOP Tournament of Champions winner.

Sexton's accomplishments expand beyond just playing the game and commentating on events. He also advocated corporate involvement with poker to take the game into the mainstream, and he is the cofounder of PokerGives.org, which encourages players to make charitable donations.

"We are truly delighted to renew our association with Mike Sexton. Mike is the 'Ambassador of Poker' and we hope he gets the acknowledgement he deserves and is inducted into the WSOP® Hall of Fame this year," said a spokesman for PartyGaming Plc, owners of PartyPoker.

"Poker wouldn't be as popular as it is today if it wasn't for Mike Sexton."

Part of Sexton's duties with Party Poker will be to represent the online poker site at the 2009 WSOP where he will also act as host in the PartyPoker suite at the Rio during the Main Event.

Sexton will also travel to other live poker events around the world throughout 2009 to represent the site. He'll also have a presence on the poker site nurturing new talent and contributing to the PartyPoker blog.

"The site has changed a lot in recent times, and I am very impressed by the new software and new VIP and loyalty schemes," Sexton said.

For more information about the poker site, visit Party Poker.

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PartyPoker Announces Million Dollar Rake Race

In May, players on PartyPoker will have a chance to race their way to a share of $1 million. This week, the site announced one of the richest rake races ever held online. The announcement comes just a few days before the third running of the PartyPoker Monthly Million.

First place in the PartyPoker $1 Million Rake Race will take home $20,000 in cash plus a $20,000 prize package to the upcoming World Series of Poker (WSOP) in Las Vegas. Players will have the entire month of May to generate as many Race Points as possible. These are fundamentally different than PartyPoints and depend on the rake taken in a real money cash game hand. Race Points are calculated by taking the total rake per user per hour and dividing it by the total number of hands played over the same time period. That figure is then multiplied by the number of raked hands played. A special multiplier is also used and is determined by a player’s rake divided by the total number of hands played.

It’s not as complicated as it sounds. Let’s say a player generated $5 in rake in an hour over a total of 100 hands. If only 80 of them were real money hands, then the number of rake points equals (5/100) x 80 x Multiplier. The multiplier in this case is three and can be derived by checking out the $1 Million Rake Race landing page on PartyPoker. The leader board will be updated at least once an hour so players can see where they stand. The runner up at the end of May will take home $18,000 plus a $20,000 WSOP package, third place pockets $15,000 and a WSOP package, fourth place earns $10,000, and the top 3,000 players will finish in the money.

The fourth through tenth place finishers plus the players who land in 50th, 100th, 300th, 500th, 750th, and 1,000th will win a $5,500 WSOP Experience prize package. These consist of one $1,500 buy-in to a side event of a player’s choosing, seven nights’ hotel accommodations, and travel for two. In addition, winners of the package have the ability to experience one diversion during their stay, including trips to nearby attractions such as the Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam, Las Vegas Motor Speedway, and Red Rock Canyon. Alternately, players can cruise the famed Las Vegas Strip in a helicopter or rove the desert in a dune buggy.

PartyPoker.com spokesman Warren Lush told Poker News Daily, “The Million Dollar Race is the biggest rake race for cash game players that we have ever offered on PartyPoker. The rewards are great, with the top ten winning WSOP packages and cash, but it has been structured to offer significant rewards all the way down to 3,000th place. This is just one of many great promotions that we have in the pipeline in the coming months.”

The PartyPoker WSOP qualifier takes place on Fridays at 18:10 ET and Saturdays at 14:15 ET. It awards a $12,000 Main Event package for every 20 players who enter and comes with a buy-in of $640. Several entries to it are up for grabs as part of the Million Dollar Rake Race, as the 1,250th, 1,500th, 1,750th, 2,000th, and 2,500th players will win their way in. Daily Satellite and Daily Final entries will also be given away.

This weekend marks the third running of the PartyPoker Monthly Million. The $1 million guaranteed prize pool tournament occurs on the first Sunday of every month and boasts a buy-in of $640. Players start with 20,000 chips and blind levels last 20 minutes each. The price of poker begins at 25-50 and then grows to 50-100 and 100-200. A five minute break takes place after every three levels and antes kick in starting at Level 6. A Mega Friday Satellite is one of the last chances players have to win their way into the high-stakes monthly tournament on PartyPoker. The $55 buy-in contest kicks off at 17:00 ET and guarantees at least 20 seats into the Monthly Million. Players can satellite in for free by participating in country specific freerolls and PartyPoints qualifiers.

According to traffic ranking site PokerScout.com PartyPoker is the fourth largest worldwide with a seven day running average of 4,450 cash game players. It is the second largest that does not accept U.S. players, trailing only the iPoker Network, which includes rooms such as Boyle Poker, CD Poker, Chili Poker, Mansion Poker, Paddy Power, Titan Poker, Tony G Poker, and William Hill. PartyPoker is owned by Party Gaming, a publicly traded company on the London Stock Exchange.

Double delight from PartyPoker.com

PartyPoker.com has announced two new promotions which will get the month of May of to a flying start. 3,000 players will share prize money of over $1,000,000 in their new rake race promotion.

Win a trip to Paris worth $15,500 with PartyPoker.com

The legendary Parisian venue the Aviation Club plays host to the Grand Prix de Paris next month and two lucky players can freeroll their way there thanks to PartyPoker.com.

PartyPoker.com launches new promotion The Gladiator

It may not have anything to do with the TV show, Russell Crowe or the wonders of ancient Rome but PartyPoker’s new promotion The Gladiator still has plenty to entice players.