Posts Tagged ‘Tyron Krost’
Sorel Mizzi Wins 2010 Bluff Player of the Year Title
Titan Poker pro Sorel “Imper1um” Mizzi is the 2010 Bluff Magazine Player of the Year, officials announced on Friday. Mizzi entered the top spot in the Player of the Year rankings in March and never relinquished his lead.
The 2010 CardPlayer Player of the Year, Tom Marchese, finished in second place in the Bluff standings. Mizzi ended the 2010 calendar year with a whopping 1,777 points, the highest score ever turned in, while Marchese racked up just 1,257 during the stanza. Others in the top 10 included PokerStars pro Vanessa Selbst, recent World Poker Tour (WPT) event winner Dwyte Pilgrim, and UB.com pro and former CardPlayer Player of the Year winner Eric “basebaldy” Baldwin.
Mizzi got the 2010 calendar year started off on the right foot by taking third place in the Aussie Millions Main Event for $659,000. Tyron Krost took down the marquee poker tournament and Mizzi quickly ratcheted his first six-figure score of 2010. Mizzi then won two preliminary events during the PokerStars European Poker Tour (EPT) Snowfest stop in March for nearly $150,000 total.
In April, Mizzi’s victory parade stopped off in Atlantic City, where he won the East Coast Championship Event during the Borgata Spring Poker Open for $170,000. That tournament drew 62 players and featured a top nine that included Chris “SLOPPYKLOD” Klodnicki, David “Davidp18” Peters, and former Full Tilt Poker pro Lee Markholt.
At the end of April, Mizzi final tabled the High Roller Event during the EPT’s Monte Carlo Grand Final for $190,000. Two weeks later, he ran deep in another High Roller Event, this time at WPT Paris. Just footsteps from the Eiffel Tower, Mizzi played second fiddle to Absolute Poker pro Freddy Deeb and walked away with $159,000.
In August, Mizzi placed second in the EPT Tallinn High Roller Event for $98,000. He concluded 2010 by bubbling a pair of WPT final tables, taking seventh in the Foxwoods World Poker Finals for $88,000 and grabbing ninth in the Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker Classic at the Bellagio for $59,000. Remember, televised WPT final tables are played six-handed.
All told, Mizzi racked up nearly $1.9 million in earnings from live tournaments tracked by the Hendon Mob database last year. Along the way, he provided poker coaching to November Niner Matt Jarvis, a fellow Canadian. Jarvis ultimately bowed out in eighth place in the $10,000 buy-in tournament in Las Vegas for over $1 million.
Mizzi, who has been linked to several incidents on online poker sites in the past, has nevertheless remained a central figurehead in the industry. He told Poker News Daily in an interview in November that surrounding himself with talented poker friends has been critical: “I think it’s one of the most important things… That is how I got my start. I found players and tried to pick their brains. You know, it’s like anything in life, that’s the best way of learning, you find mentors. At least, for me, [it’s been] finding people where you want to be and trying to pick their brains as much as possible.”
Here were the top 10 players in the 2010 Bluff Player of the Year standings:
1. Sorel “Imper1um” Mizzi – 1,777.77 points
2. Tom “Kingsofcards” Marchese – 1,257.30 points
3. Fernando Brito – 1,060.53 points
4. David Peters – 1,009.26 points
5. Vanessa Selbst – 986.77 points
6. Eric “basebaldy” Baldwin – 943.92 points
7. Dwyte Pilgrim – 896.23 points
8. Chris Bjorin – 889.25 points
9. Jason Mercier – 882.40 points
10. Chris Bell – 879.63 points
Jason Mercier took down the 2009 Bluff Player of the Year title. Other past winners have included John “The Razor” Phan (2008), Bill Edler (2007), Chad Brown (2006), and Phil Ivey (2005).
Tags: 2008, 2009, 2010, absolute poker, aced, bellagio, canadian, Doyle Brunson, european, full tilt poker, interview, Online Poker, Phil Ivey, poker player, pokerstars, titan poker, tournament, Tyron Krost, vegas, WSOP
Stars Shine at APPT Sydney Final
While Reza Vakili grabbed the overnight chip lead, Aussie online superstar Jonathan 'xMONSTERxDONGx' Karamalikis and WSOP, WPT and EPT Triple Crown winner Roland de Wolfe sit right behind him as the only players over the 700k chip mark.
Also still stacked in the the chase for the AUD$459,510 first-place prize is Team PokerStars Pro Daniel Negreanu, 2010 Aussie Millions champ Tyron Krost, 2007 APPT Grand Final winner Grant Levy and 2008 APPT Macau champ Eddy Sabat.
A total of 289 players paid the AUD$6,300 entrance fee to create a prizepool of AUD$1.73 million.
The event's third day will go off at 12:30 p.m. Sydney time Saturday and a champion will be crowned Dec. 12.
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Negreanu, Tony G Among APPT Sydney Survivors
A total of 289 players paid the AU$6,300 entrance fee to create a prizepool of AU$1.73 million with AU$459,000 dedicated to first place.
Now only 163 remain with several notable players still in the running including the aforementioned Negreanu and Tony G as well as Eddy Sabat, Joe Hachem, Lee Nelson, Tyron Krost, Grant Levy and David Saab.
Team PokerStars Pro Chris Moneymaker very nearly secured his spot in Day 2 but he busted in the late stages of Day 1c yesterday.
Daniel Neilson finished as the Day 1 chip leader with 164,100 chips. The top 10 was rounded out by a group of relatively unknown players outside of Vijayan Nagarajan who made the APPT Sydney final table in 2007.
Day 2 will begin at 12:30 local time today with the tournament running until Sept. 19, when a champion will be crowned.
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The PartyPoker Weekly: Tyron Krost on Aussie Millions Satellites, VIP Gift Promotion and More
Tags: Tyron Krost
PartyPoker World Open VI Begins September 6th
Starting on Monday from the Palm Beach Casino in London is the sixth incarnation of the PartyPoker World Open. Last October, Phil Laak took down the title of PartyPoker World Open V champ after defeating a final table that included Luke “FullFlush” Schwartz, Laak’s girlfriend Jennifer Tilly, and World Poker Tour (WPT) host and Poker Hall of Fame member Mike Sexton.
This year, Laak will return to defend his title. A total prize pool of $480,000 is up for grabs in the $10,000 buy-in tournament. Forty-eight players will be in action across eight heats, the first of which features Victory Poker CEO Dan Fleyshman taking on Marty Smyth, Sam Trickett, 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event November Niner James Akenhead, Neil Channing, Lee Atherton, Peter Jetten, and U.K. poker pro Ian Frazer.
The second heat, which will be played on September 6th and 7th, features three of North America’s hottest players in Andrew “good2cu” Robl, UB.com’s Brandon Cantu, and former National Heads-Up Poker Championship winner Huck Seed. The group’s opposition in Heat #2 includes James Mitchell, Matt Perrins, Josh Gould, Dragan Galic, and Felipe “Mojave” Ramos.
The third heat of the PartyPoker World Open VI, which will pan out on September 7th, features young guns Schwartz and Full Tilt pro Annette Obrestad taking to the felts together. European Poker Tour (EPT) founder John Duthie and high-stakes cash game pro David “Viffer” Peat will join them, as will Liam Flood, John Eames, Barny Boatman, and Giovanni Safina.
That’s a lot of pros already and we’re only halfway through the opening seat of heats in the annual PartyPoker tournament. Former WPT Championship winner Yevgeniy Timoshenko will be part of Heat #4 on September 8th. His competition includes “Dixie,” 2010 bracelet winner Praz Bansi, Simon Zach, recent WPT London winner Jake Cody, Fabrice Souiler, and 2010 Aussie Millions Main Event champ Tyron Krost. This heat also has an open seat.
Laak will defend his title as part of Heat #5 on September 8th and 9th. However, he’ll have to get past Tom “durrrr” Dwan, who is in the midst of completing a pair of online Million Dollar Challenges against Patrik Antonius and Dan “JungleMan12” Cates. Others in the eight-player field will include John Tabatabai, Toby Lewis, Roland De Wolfe, Dale Hoy, Heather Mercer, and Jason Grey.
The final heat of the PartyPoker World Open VI will kick off on September 9th and feature some of the top talent Europe has to offer. Juha Helppi, David “Devilfish” Ulliott, Sandra Naujoks, Roberto Romanello, and Bruno Fitoussi will be a part of the Heat #6 field. Sexton, a sponsored pro of PartyPoker, will also be in the running, as will Titan Poker pro Sorel “Imper1um” Mizzi and Tilly.
The starting stacks in the PartyPoker World Open VI have been tripled and the final table, which is set to occur on September 10th, will be played seven-handed. The top seven players made the money during the fifth World Open, which also featured a field of 48. Heading into his title defense, Laak told PartyPoker officials, “Last year was a wild roller coaster ride. This year, I am looking forward to coming back to defend my title – it is ideal that it comes straight off the back off the WPT London Poker Classic – hopefully I can win both!”
Jesse May and PartyPoker’s Kara Scott will front the event’s broadcast, which can be seen on Five in the U.K. in late 2010. Spectators are welcome.
ANZPT Gold Coast a Record Breaker
All 140 seats and 10 alternate seats were sold early bringing the total field to 287 - Up from last year's 249.
That means a $717,250 prize pool that will pay 32 places with $182,965 reserved for the winner.
2010 Aussie Millions Champion Tyron Krost joined the field Thursday, as did PokerStars Team Australia Pro Tony Hachem, ANZPT Canberra champ and high-stakes cash game pro Jason Gray and 2009 Aussie Millions $100k winner David Steicke.
PokerStars Qualifier Darko Balaban finished at the top of the list of 63 survivors from the day.
They will join the 69 Day 1a survivors for Day 2 Friday at the The Jupiters Hotel and Casino poker room beginning at 11:30 a.m. Australia Eastern Standard with plans to make it into the money or play a full seven levels.
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ANZPT Gold Coast Poised to Break Records
During the tour's first season, Conrad Jupiters Casino Gold Coast partnered with the Conrad Treasury Casino Brisbane 80 kilometres up the road, to jointly host ANZPT Queensland.
A total of 249 players made the event a huge success.
However, this season, Jupiters opened a 16-table poker room and decided to go it alone as host.
By all accounts, the move was a solid one.
Wednesday's first Day 1 flight of the AUD$2,500 main event saw 137 players hit the felt and Thursday's second is a virtual sellout with 146 of the150 seats already wrapped up.
In other words, a new player and prizepool record will be set for Queensland this week.
2009 Aussie Millions champ Stewart Scott, defending ANZPT Queensland champion Scott Kerr and New Zealand's first World Series of Poker bracelet winner Simon Watt all played Wednesday in a decidedly International field, including players from Australia, Argentina, Netherlands, Japan, New Caledonia, Hong Kong, New Zealand, USA, Brazil and Norway
After 8 levels of play PokerStars Qualifier Shivan Abdine grabbed the chip lead with Kerr not far off the pace.
Team PokerStars Pro Australia Tony Hachem, Bill Argyros, ANZPT Canberra Champion Jason Gray and 2010 Aussie Millions Champion Tyron Krost are all expected for the second Day 1 flight Thursday.
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August 9th – Daily Deal
Topics: Mizrachi joins Deepstacks Live, Atlantic City Summit, Ameristar Casino results and Aussie Millions results.
On today’s Daily Deal, Atlantic City hosts a major gambling summit, Ameristar Casinos turns in its second quarter financial results, and the Aussie Millions Main Event wraps up on GSN. Plus, Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi signs on with Deepstacks Live. It’s all coming your way… right now!
Hello, I’m Sean Gibson and welcome to the Daily Deal by Poker News Daily.
Last Friday, a “who’s who” in the New Jersey gambling world turned out to the Atlantic City Convention Center. The topic: how to rejuvenate the city’s fledgling casinos and, at the same time, preserve the storied horse racing industry in the northern part of the state. Economists, representatives of organized labor, and other key industry leaders gathered on Friday and among them was Interactive Media Entertainment and Gaming Association Chairman Joe Brennan.
Brennan told Poker News Daily about the attendees’ attitudes towards intrastate internet gambling: “There wasn’t one sense either way. The bigger issue was North Jersey versus South Jersey economic developments issues. The question: How do we save the horse racing industry in the North and preserve the gaming enterprises in the South?”
In other land-based casino news, Ameristar Casinos reported lower than expected financials for the second quarter of 2010 and cited heavy construction work near one of its properties as the reason for poor performance. The casino giant reported that consolidated net revenues were down $15.9 million dollars versus the same period in 2009. Construction on a major artery connecting the city of Chicago to Ameristar’s East Chicago, Indiana property cut into the company’s profitability in the second quarter.
On Saturday night, the two-thousand ten Aussie Millions Main Event wrapped up on GSN with Tyron Krost taking down the title and one point eight million dollar first place prize. Krost defeated Frederik Jensen heads-up. On Saturday, August 14th, the Full Tilt Doubles Poker Championship will begin airing on GSN at 8pm Eastern Time. The $50,000 buy-in tournament features sixteen teams.
One of the first members of the 2010 World Series of Poker November Nine to make a splash following the final table being determined in July is Full Tilt Poker pro Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi. Mizrachi signed on with Deepstacks Live to teach three courses over the next three months, largely in events held in his home state of Florida. You can catch Mizrachi on September tenth at the Mardi Gras Casino in Hallandale Beach, Florida. The cash game session comes with a four-hundred ninety-five dollar price tag and will also feature online poker studs Matt Graham and Tristan Wade.
That does it for today’s edition of The Daily Deal and be sure to check back in with us every week day for a new episode featuring the top news in the world of poker. Also be sure to add us to your twitter feed at twitter dot com slash poker news daily. I’m Sean Gibson, wishing you great sessions at the tables all week long!
The Aussie Millions on GSN: Sydney’s Tyron Krost Brings the Title Home
Aussie Millions Main Event Wraps Up on GSN
On Saturday night, the stirring conclusion of the 2010 Aussie Millions Main Event aired on GSN. The broadcast, which is sponsored by Full Tilt Poker, began with five players and newly minted Titan Poker pro Sorel “Imper1um” Mizzi as the chip leader. The final five consisted of two Aussies, two Canadians, and one Dane in a truly global event.
Peter Jetten was the first casualty of the hour-long show, running K-5 of diamonds into Tyron Krost’s pocket tens. Jetten 4bet all-in pre-flop with the suited hand and despite hitting a five on the river, hit the exits in fifth place. Jetten told cameras following his elimination, “I knew going into today that this would take a long time and I was ready to play until six in the morning. Unfortunately, I didn’t get an opportunity to test out my 3am and 4am playing skills.”
Frederik Jensen doubled up after Mizzi 4bet all-in with A-5 of spades and ran into A-K. However, Mizzi struck back, doubling up at the expense of Kosta Varoxis with A-Q against A-4. Loud chants of “Mizz-i” permeated the Crown Casino as Mizzi’s better kicker held up.
Varoxis quickly doubled up twice, first against Mizzi and then against Krost, to get right back into the hunt for the $1.8 million first place prize. In his hand against Krost, Varoxis spiked a six-outer on the river to survive.
Mizzi drew out on Varoxis’ pocket kings with A-6. All of the money went in pre-flop and the drama was quite abbreviated, as Mizzi flopped an ace and never looked back. Varoxis, down to just 500,000 in chips, promptly moved all-in on the flop with A-6 against Jensen’s pocket twos. The wired pocket pair held and Varoxis’ Aussie Millions run came to an end. He commented after his elimination, “I came in wanting to do the best I can. I wanted to win. I knew I could win. I had the chance to and I came pretty close. I’m more than happy with that.”
With three players remaining, Mizzi 3bet to 775,000 with a wired pair of sevens and Krost shoved over-the-top all-in for 6.2 million with A-K of spades. Mizzi made the call, putting his stack at risk, and watched as a king fell on an all-heart flop to give Krost top pair. Mizzi called for running hearts for a chop (neither player held a heart), but no help came on the turn or river and Mizzi busted in third place. He entered the final table as a commanding chip leader and lamented, “Compared to the other days I played, I wasn’t getting the cards I was getting earlier.”
Then, on a flop of 3-K-2, Krost check-raised to 650,000 with K-9 and Jensen made it 1.1 million with K-6 for top pair with a weaker kicker. Krost moved all-in and Jensen made the call, yelling for his “one time.” The board filled out 7-2 and Krost took down the 2010 Aussie Millions Main Event title. Jensen was gracious after his runner-up showing: “It would have been a really sweet win, but [Krost] deserves to win. Tyron, he’s a good guy and a really good player.” Krost hoisted the trophy before Aussie Millions on GSN hosts Paul Khoury and Grub Smith wrapped up the tournament.
Next Saturday, the Full Tilt Doubles Poker Championship debuts on GSN at 8:00pm ET. Sixteen teams entered the made-for-TV tournament, which was filmed at the Golden Nugget in Downtown Las Vegas, and the top prize is $1 million. Check your local listings for station information.
Aussie Millions Main Event Final Table Kicks Off on GSN
On Saturday night, the final table of the 2010 Aussie Millions Main Event began airing on GSN. The one hour Full Tilt Poker-sponsored show hit the airwaves at 9:00pm ET featuring eight players, including chip leader Sorel “Imper1um” Mizzi, who had three times the stack of the next closest combatant. Mizzi, now with Titan Poker, rocked a Betfair logo during the broadcast of the January tournament.
The blinds kicked off at 10,000/20,000 and Paul Khoury and Grub Smith provided the call of the action. Kosta Varoxis made waves early, doubling up at the expense of Mizzi with pocket nines against A-J suited. The money went in on a flop of A-9-2, all spades, with neither player holding a spade. Varoxis 3bet all-in and Mizzi insta-called despite being just 4% to win the hand. The turn and river both bricked out and Varoxis doubled through to stave off an early exit.
Then, Steve Shelley check-raised all-in with pocket sevens on a flop of 5-8-3. Tyron Krost, who entered the final table as the second largest stack, made the call with pocket jacks and had Shelley dominated. The turn and river came an eight and a deuce, respectively, and Shelley was the first casualty of the 2010 Aussie Millions Main Event final table, picking up $115,000 for his efforts. He told GSN officials following his exit, “I don’t know if I went in with much of a strategy. I just played my natural game and had a few tips along the way.”
Annette Obrestad open-shoved all-in pre-flop with A-J offsuit and picked up a caller in Krost, who showed a wired pair of sevens. The flop of K-Q-7 gave “The Huntress” a straight draw and Krost a set, which became a boat when another king hit on the river. Obrestad earned $161,000 and explained to viewers, “I’m a little bit disappointed, but I just didn’t get any cards at the final table and I kind of felt like people were picking on me a little bit.”
Canadian Peter Jetten called a raise from Krost pre-flop with Q-10 of spades and Steve Friedlander came along with 7-5 from the blinds. The flop came 9-8-8 and the trio checked around to a jack on the turn. Krost held K-J for top pair, while Jetten had turned a straight. The Canadian bet 150,000 and Krost called to bring a five on the river. Jetten fired out a bet of 350,000 and Krost, showing restraint, just called to ship a pot of 1.3 million to Jetten. Tom “durrrr” Dwan and two women were shown in the stands cheering Jetten on.
After a raise and two calls pre-flop, Friedlander moved all-in over-the-top with pocket sevens. Varoxis, who began chugging a bottle of water while contemplating a call, looked him up with A-K to set up a race. The board filled out K-9-2-K-J, giving Varoxis trips and the win in the hand. Friedlander hit the rails in sixth place for $230,000 and told GSN officials, “I was happy that a couple of people busted in front of me because it put me in a better spot. I was just waiting for a hand to shove.” Friedlander had been nursing a short stack throughout the evening.
Entering next week’s finale of the 2010 Aussie Millions Main Event on GSN, Mizzi remains the chip leader. The conclusion of the high-stakes tournament, which emanates from the Crown Casino in Melbourne, will air on Saturday, August 7th at 9:00pm ET. Check your local listings for full details.
Poker News in Brief: Jul. 26- Aug. 1, 2010
A new bill looking to legalize and regulate online poker in the U.S. passed through House committee, 888poker launched some new software, the World Series of Poker debuted a new Facebook app, and a retired Fisherman won the Commerce Casino's summer $1 million Guaranteed event.
However, not every story made the front pages of PokerListings.com. Fortunately, we've compiled a list of those that fell through the cracks in our weekly Poker News in Brief Feature below.
This week we'll look at the dates for the PartyPoker.com World Open VI, Full Tilt signing a 2010 WSOP bracelet winner, two of poker's biggest sites coming together, London's newest poker club and a whole lot more.
World Open VI Dates Released
The PartyPoker.com World Open VI is headed back to London this fall.
The 48-player event will take place Sept. 6-10 at the Palm Beach Casino, immediately following the inaugural WPT London Poker Classic, running Aug. 29-Sept. 5.
A $10,000 buy-in means a total prize pool of $480,000 with $200,000 going to the winner.
Team PartyPoker pros Mike Sexton, Tony G, Dragan Galic, Tyron Krost, Felipe Ramos, Ian Frazer and Giovanni Safina are all expected to play.
Early confirmations also include defending champion Phil Laak, Yevgeniy Timoshenko, Dave ‘The Devilfish' Ulliott, JP Kelly, Annette Obrestad, Sorel Mizzi, Roland de Wolfe, James Akenhead, Neil Channing, Praz Bansi, Luke Schwartz, Jennifer Tilly and David ‘Viffer' Peat.
"Last year was a wild roller coaster ride," said Laak. "This year I am looking forward to coming back to defend my title - it is ideal that it comes straight off the back off the WPT London Poker Classic - hopefully I can win both!"
The event will be filmed for broadcast on Five in the UK later this year and then distributed internationally.
Flushy Signs with Full Tilt
2010 WSOP Bracelet Winner James "Flushy" Dempsey has signed a sponsorship deal with Full Tilt Poker.
The 27-year-old from Brighton in the U.K. has earned over $1 million online and $735k live since 2005 - $511,867 of which came at this year's WSOP, when he won the $1,500 Omaha bracelet and finished second to Sam Farha in the $10,000 Omaha 8 event.
"I couldn't be more excited," said Dempsey. "This is such a dream of mine. I've worked very hard for this over the years and to have won a bracelet and now this - it's just fantastic."
The WPT Wants You
The World Poker Tour has put out an open casting call looking to find "the most brutally honest poker analyst we can find" for a new recurring TV segment called "The Raw Deal."
The tour is looking for someone opinionated and fearless to bring their brilliant insights from the couch to a new seat right next to WPT stars Mike Sexton, Vince Van Patten and Kimberly Lansing.
Auditions are being held in person at The Bicycle Casino in Los Angeles Aug. 19 from 11 a.m. PT to 8 p.m. PT and online on the WPT's "Raw Deal" Facebook Page (www.facebook.com/WorldPokerTour) where you can upload a 45-second video.
Submissions are open now until Aug. 15 at 11:59 p.m. PT.
PartyGaming and bwin Merge
Two of the biggest and most powerful sites in online gaming are joining forces.
On July 29, bwin Interactive Entertainment AG and PartyGaming PLC agreed to merge and form a combined entity incorporated in Gibraltar and listed on the London Stock Exchange.
"This business combination makes great strategic, operational and financial sense," said Norbert Teufelberger, Co-Chief Executive of bwin. "We will be in pole position to capitalize on the wealth of opportunities that will flow from the continued evolution and expansion of the global online gaming industry."
"With market-leading positions in poker, sports betting, casino and games (in particular bingo), the enlarged group will have a winning formula to exploit the growing online gaming market, supported by a strong balance sheet, significant cashflow generation and a highly experienced management team," added Jim Ryan, Chief Executive of PartyGaming.
Under the merger, bwin's assets and liabilities will be transferred to PartyGaming
The move is still awaiting shareholder approval.
CardRunners Finds New Blood
CardRunners signed Norwegian Pot-Limit Omaha phenom Andreas Torbergsen as its newest instructor this week.
Playing under the names Skjervoy and Skjervøy, he's made over $1 million dollars on both PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker.
"When asking around the poker community about the best PLO players in the world, Andreas's name consistently came up as someone we need to have at CardRunners," said CardRunners founder Taylor Caby.
"He represents the first pro from outside North America on Team CardRunners as well as our first team member who exclusively plays PLO."
PKR Sponsors London's Newest Poker Club
PKR.com and the Fox Poker Club have signed a sponsorship deal for London's first fully licensed poker venue.
The Fox Poker Club in association with PKR.com will open on Aug. 7 on Shaftesbury Avenue, in the heart of London's West End.
The 6,500 square-foot club will have space for 200 players, as well as a poker library, smoker's deck and a bar/lounge.
Check out the web site www.foxpokerclub.com for more.
Poker Pro Magazine Celebrates Fifth Anniversary
Five years after promising to publish a poker magazine that would "tell it like it is" in an upscale, professional-looking format, Poker Pro Magazine is still in print.
"We wanted to create a publication that would not be left on the cardroom floor, but instead would be taken home and put on the coffee table," said Editor-in-Chief John "Johnny Quads" Wenzel. "That was a first in the poker world."
To celebrate its five-year anniversary the August edition of Poker Pro features a retrospective of the first 60 covers, as well as its usual mix of profiles, news, strategies and moneymaking tips from the game's top professionals.
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Tags: 2010, full tilt poker, Jennifer Tilly, legal, Online Poker, pokerstars, tournament, Tyron Krost, WSOP
WPT Barcelona: Records Fall
Added to the 134 from Day 1a, a total of 326 players entered the €3,200+€300 buy-in event helping the total prize pool in Barcelona pass the one million euro mark.
"We are delighted with the field this year which has broken all of our WPT records," said Sylvie Belanger of hosts Casino Barcelona.
"The most encouraging thing is that every year we see a significant increase in the number of Spanish players taking part which is very encouraging for the future of the game in this country."
36 places will be paid with first worth €315,000 and a $25,500 seat in the 2011 WPT Championship.
The Day 1b field included European Player of the Year Dragan Galic, WPT Bucharest winner Guillaume Darcourt and Aussie Millions winner Tyron Krost.
91 players survived and heading into Day 2, just 142 players remain with Day 1a chip leader Roberto Garcia Santiago outpacing the pack.
However, PokerListings blogger Matt "ADZ124" Marafioti is in the top 20 in chips and Canadian Sorel Mizzi, perhaps the hottest player in poker right now with almost $1.5 million in live tournament earnings already this year, is not far behind.
"With great numbers for the €10,000 buy-in WPT Grand Prix de Paris at the Aviation Club and now a great field at Casino Barcelona, the future is bright for the World Poker Tour stops in Europe," said WPT President Adam Pliska.
Previous WPT Spanish Championship winners include Markus Lehmann of Austria, Denmark's Casper Hansen, and American Mark Randal Flowers.
The 2010 WPT Spanish Championship continues through May 23.
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Theo Jorgensen Wins WPT Grand Prix de Paris
World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner Theo Jorgensen came out on top in the World Poker Tour’s (WPT) Grand Prix de Paris on Saturday. Jorgensen, who once defeated Full Tilt Poker pro Gus Hansen in a boxing match, banked €633,000 from the €10,000 buy-in tournament. Jorgensen entered the final table as the chip leader.
A total of 247 players turned out for the Grand Prix de Paris and, when the smoke cleared, eight reached this weekend’s final table. Among those who sought poker glory in Paris and coughed up the €10,000 entry fee were November Nine member and Everest Poker pro Antoine Saout, Andrew Feldman, Aussie Millions Main Event winner Tyron Krost, Men “The Master” Nguyen, and PokerStars pro Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier.
Jimmy Ostensson was the final table’s first casualty, bowing out when his wired pair of nines could not hold up against the A-6 of Fabrice Touil. The flop came J-4-K, but a running A-6 sent Ostensson out of the Aviation Club and looking for a taxi on the world-famous Champs-Elysées.
Seventh place at the Grand Prix de Paris went to Arnaud Mattern, who picked an inopportune time to shove with A-Q, as Antoine Amourette picked up pocket rockets. Mattern, who won the 2007 European Poker Tour (EPT) Prague stop, picked up €82,000. Nourredine Aïtaleb was the next to go. Aïtaleb shoved with A-J, but ran into Per Linde’s pocket queens. Linde, who finished 13th in April’s EPT San Remo Main Event, was once one out away from elimination in Paris.
In the defining pot of the Grand Prix de Paris, Jorgensen doubled up at the expense of Amourette with pocket kings against pocket sevens. The board ran out 5-4-5-10-3 and Jorgensen scooped a 3.3 million chip pot, the largest of the tournament at the time. Amourette quickly doubled up to stave off being the Grand Prix de Paris’ fifth place finisher, a distinction that went to Touil, who committed his chips pre-flop with A-8. Jorgensen called with J-8, but spiked a jack on the turn to shrink the field even further.
Mikhael Guenni woke up with pocket fives when his stack amounted to just five big blinds, but ran into Jorgensen’s pocket nines and could not improve. Linde was the next to go. Short-stacked, he pushed all-in with a paltry 7-5 and failed to draw out on Jorgensen’s K-J. Jorgensen flopped a straight and never looked back, sending Linde home €234,000 richer for his wear.
Heads-up play spanned all of three hands. In the final pot, Amourette was all-in with K-6 and up against Jorgensen’s A-K. The board ran out 6-J-4-A-5 and Jorgensen claimed his first WPT title. The tournament marked Jorgensen’s first top 20 finish in a WPT event. His bracelet came in 2008 during the WSOP Europe festivities, where he outlasted a field of 165 players in a £5,000 Pot Limit Omaha event for £218,000. Jorgensen defeated Titan Poker pro Sorel “Imper1um” Mizzi heads-up for his WSOP title in a final table that also included Erik Friberg, Max Pescatori, Chris Ferguson, and Jason Mercier.
Here were the final table results from the WPT Grand Prix de Paris:
1. Theo Jorgensen – 633,902
2. Antoine Amourette – 328,690
3. Per Linde – 234,780
4. Mickael Guenni – 187,825
5. Fabrice Touil – 140,870
6. Nourredine Aïtaleb – 93,910
7. Arnaud Mattern – 82,175
8. Jimmy Ostensson – 70,435
Kicking off on Wednesday is the WPT Spanish Championship, which will emanate from Casino Barcelona. The €3,500 tournament crowns a winner on May 23rd and preliminary events begin on Monday. In June 2009, Mark Flowers defeated Per Sjogren in the finale of the WPT Spanish Championship, which attracted a field of 160 players.
WPT Paris: Into the Final 48
FabriceTuil led the 127-player field to start the day, but while he did survive and remains in the top ten, Antoine Amourette moved into the lead.
Play is expected to move past the 27-person money bubble Tuesday with well known pros Arnaud Mattern and Theo Jorgensen also holding spots in the top ten and threatening to make a run at the €633,902 first-place prize.
Aussie Millions champ Tyron Krost, Team PokerStars Pro Alexander Kravchenko, and Winamax Pro Antony Lellouche are also still in the hunt while players like Andrew Feldman, Freddy Deeb, Praz Bansi and Sorel Mizzi hit the rail throughout Day 2.
Play resumes at 3 p.m. local time Tuesday and will play down to the final eight Wednesday.
The final table will go down in front of the TV cameras May 15.
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WPT Paris Starts Saturday
The WPT Grand Prix de Paris presented by PartyPoker will begin Saturday at the famed at Aviation Club de France on the Champs-Elysées and hundreds of the world's best poker players are expected to play.
A €1,000 side event earlier this week attracted 156 players to the club, including Freddy Deeb, Aussie Millions champion Tyron Krost, Sorel Mizzi, Isabelle Mercier, and Ludovic Lacay, who are all expected to play in the €10,000 main event.
"The countdown is on and the Aviation Club de France is delighted to welcome back the WPT to Paris," said Bruno Fitoussi, poker consultant for the club.
"The WPT Grand Prix de Paris is a high-class tournament, coverage of which will be televised, and it is an undoubted highlight on the international poker circuit."
The tournament will run through May 12 with the final eight playing to a champion May 15.
The WPT will also film its inaugural high roller event at the club, a €20,000 No Limit Hold 'em Freeze Out tournament playing May 14-15 with the final on May 16.
Land-based satellites for the WPT Grand Prix de Paris main event have been running at the Aviation Club de France since May 1.
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Aussie Millions winner and F1 driver signed to PartyPoker
The PartyPoker team is growing again. The newest members are Aussie Millions winner Tyron Krost and the youngest F1 driver ever, the Spaniard Jaime Algersuari.
“Krost joins the PartyPoker team”
Krost started playing poker about five years ago by making a $50 deposit. Little by little the success in limit games lead him to crown his career so far by winning the Aussie Millions main tournament.
Krost told that a sponsor deal is every player’s dream and said that he couldn’t have imagined a better sponsorship and partner than PartyPoker. “The site is clearly going to the right direction, and I am very happy to be a part of Team PartyPoker and to be able to personally make the site even better.”
F1 driver Algersuari considers himself as a poker rookie. “Some people say I am a freshman in F1 circles, and I would say the same about poker. Poker has always fascinated me, but my driving duties have prevented me from really learning the game. In Spain Poker is becoming more and more popular all the time, and I can’t wait to refine my online playing skills.”
This duo will be joining Team PartyPoker’s big names. Tony G, Mike Sexton, Kara Scott, Dragan Galic, Bodo Sbrzesny, Ian Frazer and Felipe Ramos already play for PartyPoker.
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Aussie Millions Winner Tyron Krost Signs With PartyPoker
In January, Australian poker pro Tyron Krost took down the AUD $10,000 buy-in Aussie Millions Main Event. The nearly USD $1.8 million bankroll boost put Krost on the map. Three months later, he’s the newest member of Team PartyPoker.
A total of 746 players entered the 2010 Aussie Millions Main Event. When the smoke cleared, the poker tournament featured a stacked final table that included Betfair pro Sorel “Imper1um” Mizzi, Peter Jetten, and 2007 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe Main Event winner Annette “Annette_15” Obrestad. Krost vaulted into the poker spotlight and told readers in his first PartyPoker blog, “I feel incredibly lucky to be a member of Team PartyPoker and offered the chance to help make PartyPoker one of the best places to play online.”
Appropriately, Krost won his seat to the Aussie Millions through a $640 satellite on PartyPoker and took his younger brother with him to the event in Melbourne. There, Krost busted Full Tilt Poker front man Gus Hansen, who had eliminated Krost from the 2008 WSOP Main Event in Las Vegas. Krost finished 249th in the 2008 running of the Las Vegas tournament, cashing for $35,000. Krost vividly recalled his experience down the stretch in the Aussie Millions Main Event: “I played against some of the best of the online world, won my fair share of coin-flips, and dealt with ice-cold room temperatures in the Crown Casino poker room and hellishly hot temperatures under the TV studio lights.”
One of the main faces of PartyPoker is industry veteran Tony G, who commented in a press release distributed by the site on Thursday, “Tyron crushed the field at the Aussie Millions and it is a pleasure to get him on the team. When I first saw him, I thought he may need a trike, but now I expect him to be a Tour de Force in the poker world! There is so much more to come from him.” On May 8th, Krost will debut in PartyPoker gear at the World Poker Tour’s (WPT) Grand Prix de Paris, a televised event emanating from the Aviation Club in Paris.
Also a member of Team PartyPoker is WPT host and Poker Hall of Fame member Mike Sexton, whose insight into Texas Hold’em strategy turned many onto the game after the WPT debuted on the Travel Channel in 2003. Sexton, a Poker News Daily Guest Columnist, scored a WSOP bracelet in 1989 after coming out on top in a $1,500 Limit Seven Card Stud High-Low event. Sexton’s last WSOP final table appearance came in 2008, when he finished fourth in the World Championship of Pot Limit Hold’em for $248,000 in an event televised by ESPN.
Joining Krost, Tony G, and Sexton on Team PartyPoker is Kara Scott, the floor reporter for the GSN cash game franchise “High Stakes Poker.” Season 6 of the popular cable series featured “High Stakes Poker” announcer A.J. Benza being given the boot in favor of Scott, who conducts interviews following key hands with players. Scott has also lent her face to broadcasts of the European Poker Tour (EPT), Sky Poker, and the World Series of Backgammon. She won the 2008 PartyPoker Sports Stars Challenge and was the runner-up in last year’s Irish Poker Open Main Event for over $400,000.
Other members of Team PartyPoker include Bodo Sbrzesny, Dragan Galic, Ian Frazer, and Felipe “Mojave” Ramos. According to the traffic ranking site PokerScout.com, PartyPoker is the third largest site worldwide, boasting a seven-day running average of 4,500 real money ring game players. PartyPoker does not accept players from the United States, although its parent company, Party Gaming, has signed a Non-Prosecution Agreement with U.S. authorities that could pave the way for its return should internet gambling ever be legalized and regulated in the North American country.
Tags: 2008, 2010, Australia, european, full tilt poker, Gus Hansen, high stakes, interview, kara scott, legal, tournament, Tyron Krost, vegas, WSOP
The Nightly Turbo: Tyron Krost’s New Sponsor, WPT Grand Prix de Paris Filmed, and More
Jason Alexander Joins Poker2Nite
Last week’s episode of the UB.com sponsored poker news show “Poker2Nite” featured former “Seinfeld” star Jason Alexander. The franchise airs on Wednesday nights at 11:00pm ET on Fox Sports Net.
“Poker2Nite” kicked off with highlights from the 2010 Aussie Millions, which featured Tyron Krost defeating a Main Event final table that included Betfair pros Sorel “Imper1um” Mizzi and Annette “Annette_15” Obrestad. The festivities Down Under also saw 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event November Nine member Phil Ivey move to the top of the all-time tournament money list at $12.6 million by finishing second in a $100,000 buy-in event. A debate ensued between “Poker2Nite” hosts Joe Sebok and Scott Huff as to whether a six-figure buy-in tournament should count towards prestigious leaderboards like the all-time money list.
Victory Poker pro Antonio Esfandiari joined the show via Skype to discuss his $1.4 million win in the 2004 running of the World Poker Tour’s (WPT) L.A. Poker Classic, whose 2010 installment kicks off on February 26th from the West Coast casino. Esfandiari discussed his charge through the tournament six years ago: “It was a sweet victory… An unknown kid on the poker market taking down the LAPC was a life-changer.” Esfandiari was 25 years-old at the time.
Alexander joined the set to break down his Day 3 run in the 2009 WSOP Main Event. He explained, “What I’ve learned more than anything else over the last couple of years is patience.” Alexander also noted that a change in mentality was partly responsible for his recent success in poker: “I go into a tournament thinking not how long will I last, but how smart can I be.”
Alexander will take to the felts of this year’s National Heads-Up Poker Championship invitational tournament and noted that he felt no pressure to perform. He often tells his pro opponents, “If I lose to you, no big deal. If you lose to me, your career will never be the same.” Alexander fell to Huck Seed in the first round of the 2008 National Heads-Up Poker Championship; Seed went on to reach the semi-finals.
Justin “ZeeJustin” Bonomo gave “Poker2Nite” viewers the nickel tour of the Panorama Towers in Las Vegas, home to world-class pros like Esfandiari, Bodog’s David Williams, PokerStars front man Barry Greenstein, Scott Seiver, UB.com’s Adam “Roothlus” Levy, Shaun Deeb, Evelyn Ng, and Steve “MrTimCaum” O’Dwyer. The complex features two gyms, two pools, game rooms, conference rooms, limo service, and even a pet park for dog-lovers. It also hosts a bevy of high-stakes poker home games.
Sebok broke down a hand against J.C. Tran during the 2007 L.A. Poker Classic in the debut of High Mistakes. Tran was the chip leader in the event when the hand occurred, while Sebok was second on the leaderboard. Sebok mistakenly limped pre-flop with Q-8 of diamonds after tossing in the wrong chips and Tran came along with K-10. Two other players also saw the K-10-5 flop with two diamonds, leading to a bet from Sebok and a call from Tran.
Sebok check-raised to 35,000 after a third diamond hit on the turn to give him a flush and Tran called. The river was a 10, improving Tran to a boat, and Sebok called all-in for his tournament life after Tran pushed. The hand was set up for Sebok to fold to an all-in river bet, but he failed to do so.
Dana Workman doled out the Weekly Misdeal, offering a satirical look at the week’s poker headlines. Workman poked fun at soccer star Charlie Davies playing at the Bellagio, embattled swimmer Michael Phelps taking to the felts at the Borgata, a poker table equipped with a built-in drink dispenser, and Doyle Brunson being named Best Poker Twitterer by Bluff Magazine’s readers for his parade of blonde jokes and Doyleisms. Brunson underwent dental surgery today in Las Vegas that may sideline him until the 2010 WSOP.
Sebok concluded “Poker2Nite” by breaking down his prop bet with Gavin Smith and Jeff Madsen that involves a unique last longer bet during the upcoming L.A. Poker Classic Main Event. Whoever busts first must tattoo the faces of the other two players on their body. Whoever busts second must ink the surviving player’s face. The “Poker2Nite” host is trying to get out of the prop bet.
Next week, “Poker2Nite” will feature a Best of Season 1 episode. The series has purportedly not yet been renewed for Season 2, although Huff and Sebok explained that “Poker2Nite” would go on hiatus during the L.A. Poker Classic.
Tags: 2008, 2009, 2010, Barry Greenstein, bellagio, bodog, Doyle Brunson, panorama towers, Phil Ivey, pokerstars, tournament, Tyron Krost, vegas, WSOP
Last Chance for PartyPoker LAPC Seats
The packages are worth $14,000 and include the $10,000 buy-in, seven nights' accommodation and $2,500 spending money.
However, if a PartyPoker online qualifier wins the tournament, there will be a massive $1 million payout with $500,000 going to the winner and $500,000 shared amongst all other PartyPoker qualifiers.
Qualifiers start from $3 and there are daily freerolls into the sub-qualifiers running until Sunday Feb. 7.
The final main $700+$50 LAPC weekly qualifier takes place this Sunday at 2:15 p.m. ET, where one $14,000 package will be awarded for every 20 players and at least two packages guaranteed.
"The PartyPoker packages are amazingly appealing to anybody who wants to attend the LA Poker Classic," said PartyPoker ambassador and WPT commentator Mike Sexton. "The $1 million payout if an online qualifier takes down the Main Event offers superb extra value. Imagine if you bust out really early and then one of your fellow qualifiers went on to win, you'd still go home with your share of $500,000."
Last Week, PartyPoker qualifier Tyron Krost won the 2010 Aussie Millions.
The LAPC takes place at the Commerce Casino, Feb. 26- Mar. 4.
Last year's the main event was won by Cornel Cimpan and in 2008, Phil Ivey won his first WPT title by taking home the crown.
For more information on how to qualify online check out PartyPoker.
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Tyron Krost keeps Aussie Millions title on home soil
Tags: Tyron Krost
Tyron Krost Wins Aussie Millions Main Event
Australian native Tyron Krost has taken home the title in the 2010 Aussie Millions Main Event, which emanated from the Crown Casino in Melbourne. Krost defeated a field of 746 players and earned AUD $2 million for his efforts.
Stephen Shelly was the first player eliminated from the eight-handed Aussie Millions Main Event final table. Shelly moved all-in over the top of a raise by Krost holding pocket sevens on a board of 8-5-3. However, Krost made the call and showed pocket jacks. Calling for running cards for a straight or a seven for a set, Shelly instead saw and eight and deuce come on the turn and river, respectively. He earned AUD $125,000 for his efforts.
Shortly afterward, the Aussie Millions Main Event lost a heavy-hitter, as Betfair pro Annette “Annette_15” Obrestad was ousted in seventh place, earning AUD $175,000. In her final hand, Obrestad open-shoved with A-J and received a call from Krost, who had a wired pair of sevens. The flop came K-Q-7, giving Obrestad a straight draw to a ten, and, as her rail chanted in earnest for one of her four outs to come, a five and king instead struck, sending Obrestad out. The 2007 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe Main Event winner will be a force to be reckoned with in her first WSOP on U.S. soil in 2010 and was the last woman standing in the 2010 Aussie Millions Main Event.
Steve Friedlander exited in sixth place, banking AUD $250,000. Friedlander committed his chips with pocket sevens pre-flop and was up against the A-K of Kosta Varoxis. Once again, pocket sevens would determine someone’s fate and, this time around, the board ran out K-9-2-K-J. The hand pushed Varoxis up the leaderboard and sent Friedlander packing. Peter Jetten was the next player to go. Jetten 4bet all-in pre-flop with K-5 and ran into Krost’s pocket tens. The board fell A-J-2-7-5 and Jetten earned AUD $350,000 for his efforts.
With Krost holding the chip lead, Varoxis hit the rails in fourth place. Varoxis called all-in on a flop of Q-9-7 holding A-6 for a prayer. Frederik Jensen held a wired pair of twos, which turned into a set when another deuce hit on the river. All was not lost for Varoxis, however, who earned AUD $450,000 for his fourth place showing.
Another Betfair pro at the final table, Sorel “Imper1um” Mizzi, was bounced in third place from the 2010 Aussie Millions Main Event. Mizzi called off his chips pre-flop with pocket sevens and was up against the A-K of Krost. The flop came king-high and Krost never looked back, sending the dangerous Mizzi to the rails. Mizzi earned AUD $715,000, adding to an already impressive live tournament resume that includes a runner-up showing to Theo Jorgensen in a £5,000 Pot Limit Omaha contest during the 2008 WSOP Europe for £132,000 and a chop in the 2007 Irish Poker Open for more than €500,000.
Krost entered heads-up play as a 2:1 chip leader over Jensen. In the final hand of the Aussie Millions Main Event, Jensen put his tournament life on the line with K-6 on a flop of K-3-2. However, Krost held K-9 and had his opponent out-kicked. The board ran out 7-2 and, according to coverage found on PokerNews, chants of “Aussie! Aussie! Aussie!” echoed through the venue in celebration. Jensen picked up a healthy AUD $1.1 million for second place. Here’s how the final table stacked up. All payouts are given in Australian Dollars:
1st Place: Tyron Krost - $2,000,000
2nd Place: Frederik Jensen - $1,100,000
3rd Place: Sorel “Imper1um” Mizzi - $715,000
4th Place: Kosta Varoxis - $450,000
5th Place: Peter Jetten - $350,000
6th Place: Steve Friedlander - $250,000
7th Place: Annette “Annette_15” Obrestad - $175,000
8th Place: Stephen Shelly - $125,000
This year’s attendance of 746 players marked a sizable 10% jump over 2009’s tally of 681. Last year, Australian Stewart Scott defeated the United States’ Peter Rho heads-up to earn AUD $2 million.
Aussie Millions, Main Event: Tyron Krost Keeps the Title in Australia
Sydney PartyPoker Qualifier Wins Aussie Millions
23-year-old Tyron Krost won a $640 online satellite to get into the main event at the Crown Casino and walked away AUD$2 million richer after besting a field of 746 this week.
"It feels like a dream and I don't want to wake up," he said moments after the win. "$2 million, it's amazing."
After a fairly lengthy feeling-out process, fellow Aussie Steven Shelley was the first player to get his walking papers from the final eight Saturday, running sevens into Krost's jacks.
But it wasn't long before he was joined on the rail by online superstar and 2007 World Series of Poker Europe champ Annette Obrestad.
The Betfair pro got into a flip for her stack with ace-jack against the PartyPoker qualifier's sevens and would have liked the straight draw she picked up on the flop if that same flop didn't give Krost a set.
The turn and river bricked out and Obrestad was sent back to Norway seventh.
Strangely, pocket sevens were involved in the next elimination as well, with Reno, Nevada's Steve Friedlander running them into Aussie Kostas Varoxis' big slick.
A king on the flop and another on the turn did the lone American at the final table in and play went five handed.
It stayed five-handed for quite a while until Canadian Peter Jetten appeared to implode, shipping it in with K♦ 5♦ against Krost's tens on a move and failing to improve.
Once the massive chip leader, Sorel Mizzi's downfall began soon after when he doubled up Frederik Jensen and before the Betfair Poker pro knew what had hit him, Krost had suddenly moved into the lead.
A few desperations shoves from Varoxis were next on the agenda, and although the first couple worked, his luck eventually ran out when he couldn't beat Jensen's deuces with A♥ 6♣.
Mizzi's downfall ended three-handed when he ran pocket sevens into Krost's ace-king and could not hold, leaving the two PartyPoker qualifiers to battle it out heads up.
Krost began heads up with better than 2:1 chip lead over Jensen and the Aussie began applying pressure on the Dane right from the outset, pounding him into submission before getting him all in dominated to book the win.
A humble Krost seemed to have the all big hands when he needed them throughout the final, beating some of the best young players in the game while following up Stewart Scott's 2009 win to become only the second Aussie to keep the title on home soil in Aussie Millions history.
"I just ran really well and got really lucky," he said. "I had a lot of big hands."
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Sydney PartyPoker Qualifier Wins Aussie Millions
23-year-old Tyron Krost won a $640 online satellite to get into the main event at the Crown Casino and walked away AUD$2 million richer after besting a field of 746 this week.
"It feels like a dream and I don't want to wake up," he said moments after the win. "$2 million, it's amazing."
After a fairly lengthy feeling-out process, fellow Aussie Steven Shelley was the first player to get his walking papers from the final eight Saturday, running sevens into Krost's jacks.
But it wasn't long before he was joined on the rail by online superstar and 2007 World Series of Poker Europe champ Annette Obrestad.
The Betfair pro got into a flip for her stack with ace-jack against the PartyPoker qualifier's sevens and would have liked the straight draw she picked up on the flop if that same flop didn't give Krost a set.
The turn and river bricked out and Obrestad was sent back to Norway seventh.
Strangely, pocket sevens were involved in the next elimination as well, with Reno, Nevada's Steve Friedlander running them into Aussie Kostas Varoxis' big slick.
A king on the flop and another on the turn did the lone American at the final table in and play went five handed.
It stayed five-handed for quite a while until Canadian Peter Jetten appeared to implode, shipping it in with K♦ 5♦ against Krost's tens on a move and failing to improve.
Once the massive chip leader, Sorel Mizzi's downfall began soon after when he doubled up Frederik Jensen and before the Betfair Poker pro knew what had hit him, Krost had suddenly moved into the lead.
A few desperations shoves from Varoxis were next on the agenda, and although the first couple worked, his luck eventually ran out when he couldn't beat Jensen's deuces with A♥ 6♣.
Mizzi's downfall ended three-handed when he ran pocket sevens into Krost's ace-king and could not hold, leaving the two PartyPoker qualifiers to battle it out heads up.
Krost began heads up with better than 2:1 chip lead over Jensen and the Aussie began applying pressure on the Dane right from the outset, pounding him into submission before getting him all in dominated to book the win.
A humble Krost seemed to have the all big hands when he needed them throughout the final, beating some of the best young players in the game while following up Stewart Scott's 2009 win to become only the second Aussie to keep the title on home soil in Aussie Millions history.
"I just ran really well and got really lucky," he said. "I had a lot of big hands."
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Young Stars Lead Aussie Millions Final
Betfair Poker pro Sorel Mizzi will come in to the final eight with a massive chip lead and all the confidence that comes with it following a day where it appeared he could do no wrong on the felt.
"Confident is definitely the one word to describe how I'm feeling right now," the 23-year-old Canadian said. "Everything is just going my way. I'm getting hands, I'm making the correct reads. I feel like I'm playing the most perfect poker I know how.
"I might not be playing perfectly, but it's the best that I know how to play and things are working out for me right now."
Using the screen names Imper1um and zangbezan24, Mizzi is one of the most feared tournament players in online poker history.
While he has also amassed more than $1.6 million in career earnings in live tournaments, a major title has escaped his clutches to date, making this shot at Aussie Millions glory even more desirable to him.
"How badly do I want this?" he asked. "On a scale from zero to ten, it's a ten."
Mizzi holds close to half of the chips in play with eight players remaining, but said he has no plans to bully the table tomorrow.
"I'm just going to adjust to the situations when I see what they are," he said. "I don't really know my strategy going into tomorrow, but I'm really good at just feeling things out. Hopefully I feel things right and hopefully I keep hitting the cards I was hitting today."
In Mizzi's way stands fellow Betfair Poker pro and 2007 World Series of Poker Europe champ Annette Obrestad.
Considering she currently sits fifth in chips, Obrestad is being cautiously optimistic about her chances.
"I can't say I'm too confident, considering Sorel has six times the amount of chips I do," she said.
No less than an online poker legend, Obrestad, otherwise known as Annette_15, is hoping the experience of playing on a big stage in the past will pay off in Australia Saturday.
"I think it helps a lot because I'm not really nervous when I play," she said. "For me it's just another game of poker, just for a lot more money."
She's also banking on the deep structure here at the Aussie Millions allowing her to remain patient despite her stack size.
"I think people are going to be way too aggressive and try to outplay each other," the 21-year-old Norwegian said. "I don't really see the point in that because with my image, people think I'm nuts anyway, so I'll just wait for a hand and probably get it in good."
Also posing a major threat to Mizzi's lead is 24-year-old fellow Canadian Peter "Apathy" Jetten.
With a European Poker Tour High Roller and two World Series of Poker final tables on his resume, including a runner up finish in the 2008 WSOP $10k Pot-Limit Omaha, Jetten is another player hoping experience will help him get over the hump Down Under.
"I think that experience just helps so much, if not in my play then at least in making me more comfortable," he said. "The PLO event eluding me heads-up hurt a lot. It's really nice to be back with a shot at winning again and I want to win this one very badly."
Rounding out the final eight are PartyPoker qualifier's Tyron Krost and Fred Jensen, both of whom have a couple of small WSOP cashes on their sheets.
Plus Aussie Hold'em Poker group qualifier Steven Shelly, fellow local Kosta Varoxis and Reno Nevada's Steve Friedlander.
To follow all the action until the AUD$2 million first-place prize and 2010 Aussie Millions title is handed out, tune in to PokerListings' Live Updates beginning at 2 p.m. Melbourne time Saturday.
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Tags: 15, 2008, 2010, 5, Australia, canadian, EUR, Europe, european, European Poker Tour, king, Nevada, Omaha, Online Poker, online poker history, player, Poker, Pro, qualifier, runner, tournament, tournament player, Tyron Krost, WSOP