Poker News

Pacific Poker offers a great $8 free Campaign for the first 50.000 new players - and more!

Get $8 free to Pacific Poker through our great new promotion! Create a new account and download the Pacific Poker’s special Bankroll Management client to get all the great benefits.

- In order to cash out the $8 free, players must wager 20x the bonus amount

- Players making a deposit are eligible to recieve their first deposit bonus

- This bonus is available for only the first 50.000 players that claim the bonus

- Players will recieve $8 free instantly

- All players who will take the benefit of the bonus will be upgraded to the regular client between February 8th and February 15th

Click this link and download Pacific Poker’s Bankroll Management client!

You can learn more about the Bankroll Management client: here

Your next step is the WSOP 2010 Promotion!

Soon after you have claimed your bonus, the second phase starts and you’re eligible for the great WSOP promotion as well: 8 ways to the WSOP, which is launched at February 8th! 8 ways to win 1 of 88 seats to WSOP 2010!

WSOP 2010 promotion is open to all depositors!

Note that players from the following countries are not eligible for the bonus offer: Argentina, Albania, Bosnia, Brazil, Serbia, China, Croatia, Georgia, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, North Korea, Lithuania, Mexico, Moldova, Montenegro, Philippines, Romania, Singapore, Slovenia, Vietnam, Columbia and South Korea.

You just read Poker News from HighStakesNews.com

Pacific Poker offers a great $8 free Campaign for the first 50.000 new players - and more!

Tiffany Michelle Comments on New Amazing Race Cast

The pairings for the 16th cycle of the Emmy Award winning reality series “Amazing Race” were released last week and, this time around, no poker players will make the journey. Competing last season was UB.com pro Tiffany Michelle, who hit the “Amazing Race” circuit with Maria Ho. Michelle sat down with Poker News Daily to preview the new season, which kicks off on February 14th on CBS.

Poker News Daily: This cycle’s cast list includes former housemates on CBS’ “Big Brother,” Miss Teen South Carolina 2007, and a Major League Baseball third base coach. Who’s your horse?

Tiffany Michelle: It’s interesting to see that there are three all-female teams this season. Last year, it was a really young, competitive bunch. The producers have to keep it to where everyone’s strengths, weaknesses, and abilities are on par with the others in that season. We thought it was weird that there wasn’t an old couple or a mom and daughter last year. This year, they opened it up again.

I’ve been watching the initial meet the cast videos and I think the cowboys (Jet and Cord) will be a fan favorite. The ones that stood out to me were the detectives (Louie and Michael). That’s an interesting type of person to put on the show.

PND: Were you surprised to see that no poker players will journey out for this season of “Amazing Race”?

Tiffany Michelle: Doing enough in the entertainment business, I have some insight into how casting works. You can’t exhaust one group of people. You want to keep it new and fresh every year and that’s why we were brought on last year. Each season, they’ll reach out to grab people from all walks of life. As hot of a topic as poker is, each of the poker players who have been on reality shows were there for a reason. I don’t think you’ll see a huge influx of poker players on reality shows.

PND: What about poker players gives them a leg up on the competition in a series like “Amazing Race”?

Tiffany Michelle: Your outlook on life, games, and competition is different than the everyday person’s. Poker encompasses psychology, mathematics, aggression, and observation. Poker is very similar to chess in that it requires a lot of mental stamina and gamesmanship. Poker players are used to approaching games from a different point of view.

PND: There has been a trend on the show to include racers who have already appeared in front of television cameras and in the public eye. Does that give anyone an edge?

Tiffany Michelle: After Phil [Keoghan] says go, you are not even aware of the cameras or audio guys. Within the first day, you’re oblivious to having a camera crew. They’re good at not getting in your way too.

PND: This installment’s cast is rumored to travel to places like Chile, Argentina, Singapore, and Seychelles. If you had the chance to run the “Amazing Race” again, where would you go?

Tiffany Michelle: Warm places like Australia, the Caribbean, and some lovely tropical destinations. This season, it’ll be a little bit colder and you won’t hit a lot of hot spots. A lot of our season’s cast wanted to go to Africa because it’d be an incredible experience. That was one place that I thought would be awesome. From a technical standpoint, it’s hard to pull that off, though. We went to Vietnam, which they said for years they had tried to do.

PND: How’d you fare at the L.A. Poker Classic?

Tiffany Michelle: I only played one event. Maria and I both played and it was nice to be back in the saddle. Now, I am off to Panama and I’ll be back at the Commerce Casino after that. I’m trying to decide between doing the North American Poker Tour (NAPT) or L.A. Poker Classic Main Events. In two weeks, I’m going to Las Vegas to do a show with the Harlem Globetrotters. We’re going to suit up and play against them. I’m pretty sporty, but basketball is my worst sport.

PND: We read on Twitter that you were reviewing movies for the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards. What’s your involvement with them?

Tiffany Michelle: I’m a member of SAG, which is the union for acting, entertainment, film, and television. Every year, whereas the Emmys and Oscars are voting on by academies, actors vote on the SAG Awards. During awards season, they send you movies to watch and you vote. I always get a slew of current nominees.

I thought “Inglorious Basterds” was incredibly phenomenal. I thought it was an amazing movie. “Up in the Air” was cool too. I’m a girl, so of course I loved “It’s Complicated.” For television shows, I love “Glee” and Kevin McHale is a friend of mine.

PND: How have you been faring in the ongoing Ultimate Bet Online Championship (UBOC)?

Tiffany Michelle: Sunday was the $2,500 buy-in $1 million guaranteed. I played it even though I don’t play short-handed poker. I can play six-handed, but I know there are a lot of specific strategies with regards to starting hands.

Nguyen on Winning

But it’s more than money that motivates him.

“It’s not the money,” he told PokerListings. “When you win tournaments, fame and money come with it. For me it’s so important to bring home the title. You want to show the world you still have it, you can come out and compete.”

Competing is exactly what Nguyen has done this week at the WPT Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker Classic.

From a field filled with 329 of the biggest names in poker, just 16 players are still in the hunt for an almost $1.5 million first-place prize headed into Day 5 Friday.

Nguyen was among the leaders before a late fall from grace that has him short stacked.

However, he still retains a shot at making the final table and booking the win.

Nguyen’s $10,705,581 in career earnings has him sixth on poker’s all-time money winners’ list and a win at Bellagio this week would push him up to fourth all-time above Phil Hellmuth and only below Daniel Negreanu, Phil Ivey and 2006 Main Event champion Jamie Gold.

Nguyen has five World Series of Poker bracelets and this past April he finished sixth at the WPT Championship, marking his sixth WPT final table.

However, the 1998 WSOP Main Event champion still feels like he has to fight for respect.

“I get older and people lose respect,” the 48-year-old Las Vegas resident said. “They say I don’t have my game no more, I’m scared. All those young guns, 21 or 22 years old, they have big hearts, but Scotty has a bigger one, baby.

“They got nothing to lose. They’re bluffing you, they try to embarrass you and laugh at you. They say I’m too old and I should retire, but I don’t let that bother me. I let my game show them, baby. You can laugh all you want, but I am the one laughing all the way to the bank.”

Things haven’t always been roses for Nguyen. There was public scorn over a rather embarrassing finish to the 2008 WSOP $50k H.O.R.S.E. event where he has admitted his emotions and alcohol got the best of him.

Plus, like all poker players, he’s had downswings and periods when it felt like he would never win again.

But the man they call the Prince of Poker, who fled his native Vietnam in 1978 for the United States, says it’s the tough times that have made him a better poker player, and a better person.

“When you hit hard times and things don’t go your way, it can only make you become stronger,” he explained. “When my back is against the wall and I look around and say ‘what am I doing, I can’t win, what happened to me?’ I just rewind and think about what I’ve been doing wrong and know that I have to change it.

“Hard times, that’s what you learn from.”

When the cards hit the air at Bellagio Friday at 12 p.m. PT and the play down to the final six commences, Nguyen will have just one thing on his mind – Winning.

“I’ve seen it all in poker: Good times, bad times, happiness, sadness,” he said. “I just want to let everybody know, Scotty still has it. I have to go out there and show them. Not just talk about, anybody can say it, I want to show the people.

“I just have to trust myself and go out there and show it.”

To follow Nguyen and all the action from the WPT Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker Classic, tune into PokerListings’ Live Updates.

Visit PokerListings.com

Korean triumphs at PokerStars APPT Cebu

Han outlasted 317 players and then beat American qualifier David Hilton heads-up to become the first Korean winner on the PokerStars APPT and take home APPT Cebu's first place prize of $158,000.

Fellow Korean Sim Somyung took third place for $60,000.

Korean players also had a strong presence at last year's APPT event in the Philippines, where three made the final table finishing second, third and fourth.

Mark Pagsuyuin was the only Filipino player who made the final table of APPT Cebu this year and he busted out in sixth place.

Vietnamese-American Nam Le was the most well-known player to go deep in APPT Cebu, but he finished in 12th place narrowly missing out on the final table. Le won the APPT Macau High Rollers event for $473,915 in 2008.

This marks the third year that PokerStars has hosted an APPT event in the Philippines, but this time around organizers switched the venue from downtown Manila to the more scenic Shangri-La resort in the province of Cebu.

The next stop on the APPT schedule is the grand final in Sydney, which takes place Dec. 1-6, 2009. Satellites for the event are currently running on PokerStars.

Visit PokerListings.com

Amazing Race: Tiffany Michelle and Maria Ho Finish Last in Cambodia

Poker players Tiffany Michelle and Maria Ho finished in last place for the second time on this season of the CBS reality series “Amazing Race.” This time, however, a team losing their passports saved the last women standing in the 2007 and 2008 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Events from elimination.

This week’s episode, which aired around 8:30pm EST due to an overrun of the NFL on CBS, began in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, where nine teams departed from Reunification Palace. Harlem Globetrotters Flight Time and Big Easy left at 6:53pm in first place, while Michelle and Ho departed the Pit Stop in sixth place at 7:16pm. Teams were instructed to fly to Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The first flight took off the next day at 12:15pm, with all nine teams making the journey together on a small propeller plane after spending the night in the airport.

Upon landing in Cambodia, Michelle and Ho left the airport in seventh place and headed to the Foreign Correspondence Club, where they were instructed to ask an editor for their next assignment. The clue, which appeared in a newspaper, was captioned, “The woman in this picture has a hotel suite named after her.” The “woman” in question was Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, who once stayed at the Hotel Le Royal. Teams headed to the hotel and searched for the real-life photo of Onassis to receive their next clue.

Michelle and Ho headed to the hotel and received information outlining the leg’s Detour, which is a choice between two tasks, each with its own pros and cons. This week, teams could select between Cover and Wrap. In Cover, teams had to head to a motorcycle stand, select four helmets, and then sell them for $10 to a family of four. In Wrap, teams headed to the Russian Market, where they were given a colored scarf. Then, they had to comb through the massive market to find a woman wearing a matching scarf. Michelle and Ho chose the latter along with seven other teams, with engaged couple Lance and Keri being the only team to select Cover.

After finishing the Detour, teams traveled to Wat Toul Tom Pong on foot to search for their next clue. There, the Cambodian leg’s Roadblock, which is a task that only one team member can perform, asked racers to work with a Monkey Master to complete three maneuvers. While teams were breezing through the Roadblock, Ho and Michelle became stuck in traffic, losing valuable time. Upon finally arriving at the Russian Market to perform the Detour, Ho and Michelle received a green scarf and departed in eighth place out of nine teams remaining.

Friends Zev and Justin checked into the Pit Stop in first place, while brothers Sam and Dan took second. However, upon checking in, Zev and Justin realized that they had misplaced one of their passports. Host Phil Keoghan informed the team that it needed the travel document in order to continue the race. If they failed to re-check into the Pit Stop with passport in tow before the last team arrived, they would be eliminated. This opened the door for Michelle and Ho, who were among the teams in last place, to survive the leg of “Amazing Race.”

Meanwhile, Ho performed the Roadblock, with Michelle standing by and commenting, “She’s not the most athletic, dancer-y one of the bunch.” On her way to the Pit Stop, Ho remarked, “I’m very proud of how we’ve done, but I wish I could have been a better monkey for my teammate.” For the second time on this season of “Amazing Race,” Michelle and Ho arrived at the Pit Stop in last place, but were spared elimination because Zev and Justin had not yet produced the lost passport. Michelle exclaimed, “I wish we had this much luck. We’d be bazillionaires.”

Next week, teams head to Dubai, where they experience extreme heights, extreme speed, extreme heat, and a winter wonderland, according to the show’s preview. “Amazing Race” airs on Sunday nights at 8:00pm ET on CBS.

Amazing Race: Tiffany Michelle, Maria Ho Finish Sixth in Vietnam Leg

Sunday night marked the second installment of the CBS reality series “Amazing Race,” which is in its 15th season. After starting the leg in seventh place, professional poker players Tiffany Michelle and Maria Ho finished in sixth. Nine teams remain.

After arriving at Cai Be, Vietnam for the Pit Stop, teams were transported by boat downriver to M? Tho. There, father and son team Gary and Matt were to first to depart the Bassac III riverboat at 5:45am. The clue instructed the teams, who had no idea where they were, to head to the Ho Chi Minh City Water Puppet Theater, a two hour taxi ride away. At the theater, they had to pluck a clue out of the mouth of a twisting, spitting water dragon. Michelle and Ho were the seventh team to depart, doing so at 6:11am. The last team to leave the Pit Stop, married couple Brian and Ericka, left just 18 minutes later.

The team of poker players exited the Water Puppet Theater in sixth place and were given a stamp with an image of a building on it, which they ultimately discerned to be the Main Post Office. There, teams were given their first Detour, a choice between two tasks, on this season of “Amazing Race.” The first option, “Child’s Play,” challenged teams to head to a local park, pick up a heavy concrete animal statue, and transport it along a course while collecting five colored balloons. In the second Detour option, “Word Play,” teams headed to the observation deck of a local hotel overlooking a busy traffic circle and had to spot six Vietnamese letters. Then, they had to leave the hotel and unscramble the letters to spell a common word.

Michelle and Ho elected to complete “Child’s Play” and selected a large wolf, transporting the statue on a cart, which quickly broke after leaving the start of the Detour. Fortunately, they were easily able to run back and grab a second cart to continue the challenge. With Michelle dragging the wolf through the Detour, Ho rolled the team’s luggage. Consequently, Michelle was exhausted. She told “Amazing Race” cameras, “The Detour was so incredibly tough. I was gasping for breath like I’ve never had to gasp before. Every other team has a man to lean on and we don’t.” Michelle and Ho are the only all-female team on this edition of “Amazing Race.”

Upon completing the Detour, teams received a clue outlining the leg’s Roadblock, a task that only one team member can perform. In the Vietnam leg’s Roadblock, dubbed “Who’s ready for a complete breakdown,” teams had to break down two VCRs, sorting their parts into separate piles. A man performed a demonstration on-site in a local market stall, Dien Co 008.

While teams were busy pushing and pulling their animals through the park, dating couple Marcy and Ron chose to complete “Word Play.” Upon figuring out what the six letters were, they failed to consult locals to unscramble the word for quite some time, a costly mistake that sent them into last place. Meanwhile, Michelle and Ho arrived at the Roadblock in sixth place, where the former disassembled two VCRs. The Ultimate Bet pro quipped, “I like these power tools. They are bad ass.”

Harlem Globetrotters Flight Time and Big Easy were the first to arrive at the Pit Stop, Reunification Palace, outrunning dating couple Meghan and Cheyne. For winning the leg, the Globetrotters earned a trip for two to Aruba courtesy of Travelocity. The island nation is currently playing host to the annual Ultimate Bet Aruba Poker Classic, whose $5,500 buy-in Main Event begins on Monday.

Brian and Ericka, who finished last in the first leg of “Amazing Race,” righted the ship to take fourth place this time around. Michelle and Ho checked in sixth, up one spot from last week. Marcy and Ron, after taking too much time to perform the Detour, checked into the Pit Stop in last place and were eliminated. For Marcy, it was bittersweet, as her father was shot down during the Vietnam War and rescued by American forces.

Next week, teams dress up like monkeys as the “Amazing Race” crew travels to Cambodia. In addition, “one team breaks the cardinal rule” and loses their passports. “Amazing Race” airs weekly on Sundays at 8:00pm ET on CBS.

Mike Matusow Calls Caesars Cup a Farce in Phil Hellmuth TwitVid

One of the most popular players in the game today, 11-time bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth, has given those who couldn’t make their way to the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe festivities the opportunity to tour the Casino at the Empire in Leicester Square in London and get personal with other poker pros through his Twitter account.

Hellmuth, who submits his tweets through the Twitter tag “Phil Hellmuth,” recently posted a four-minute twitvid that offers a look inside what has become one of London’s must-visit places for poker players. In the video, the “Poker Brat” serves as the travel guide for the viewer and, by the end, records two polarizing figures in the world of poker.

The video starts from his viewpoint in Leicester Square in London. Filmed before his triumphant entrance as Nero during the WSOP Europe Main Event, he points out that Leicester Square is the home of many historical statues, artists, and “stuff like that,” before strolling through the Square to the entrance of the Casino at the Empire. Strangely enough, and accurately pointed out by Hellmuth, the casino does not look out of place in a city that has been in existence for quite some time.

It takes approximately two minutes to get to the true meat of Hellmuth’s twitvid. As he strolls through the casino and reaches the poker arena of the Casino at the Empire, Hellmuth finds WSOP Media Director Nolan Dalla sitting with Men “The Master” Nguyen and Mike “The Mouth” Matusow. At this point, the twitvid takes off, as the duo espouse on some issues that are on their minds.

Hellmuth welcomes Nguyen to London, as “The Master” exhaustedly states that he just arrived in the U.K. after an 11-hour flight. The extremely jet-lagged poker veteran, who is one of the nominees for election into the Poker Hall of Fame, is hailed by Hellmuth as the “Vietnamese Godfather of Poker” and Hellmuth himself states that Nguyen will probably earn election into the Hall “within the next two to three years, if not this year.”

The conversation then turns to the always-entertaining Matusow, who definitely had some issues on his mind. Hellmuth notes that Matusow is upset that Team Americas captain Daniel Negreanu did not choose him for a spot on the Caesars Cup squad. “I’m not upset,” Matusow contends. “I can’t get upset over a f*****g farce.” Matusow continues on his rant when he notes, “When a 20 year-old is the captain of the European team and a 21 year-old Canadian is captain of an American team, why should I be upset?” Matusow is, in reality, good friends with Negreanu, who is actually 35.

The duo then continue their discussion when Hellmuth brings up the fact that Matusow had taken part in the Full Tilt Million Dollar Cash Game, a 24-hour ring game that was taped for television broadcast in Europe. Hellmuth says that Matusow walked away from the table - which included “November Nine” member Phil Ivey, former WSOP Player of the Year Allen Cunningham, former Main Event Champion Chris Ferguson, online legend Tom “durrrr” Dwan, Scandinavian superstar Patrik Antonius, and English poker star Andrew Feldman - with a $105,000 profit.

“It was without a doubt the toughest lineup I have ever played,” Matusow admitted. “I definitely brought my A+ game, not only because of the difficult table, but because no one would talk to me!” Hellmuth then reveals that he had been called on several occasions during the taping to provide a foil for Matusow, drawing laughter from all at the table.

Hellmuth has continued to post tweets during the run of the WSOP Europe. He can be found on Twitter under the moniker Phil Hellmuth.

Mike Matusow Calls Caesars Cup a Farce in Phil Hellmuth TwitVid

One of the most popular players in the game today, 11-time bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth, has given those who couldn’t make their way to the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe festivities the opportunity to tour the Casino at the Empire in Leicester Square in London and get personal with other poker pros through his Twitter account.

Hellmuth, who submits his tweets through the Twitter tag “Phil Hellmuth,” recently posted a four-minute twitvid that offers a look inside what has become one of London’s must-visit places for poker players. In the video, the “Poker Brat” serves as the travel guide for the viewer and, by the end, records two polarizing figures in the world of poker.

The video starts from his viewpoint in Leicester Square in London. Filmed before his triumphant entrance as Nero during the WSOP Europe Main Event, he points out that Leicester Square is the home of many historical statues, artists, and “stuff like that,” before strolling through the Square to the entrance of the Casino at the Empire. Strangely enough, and accurately pointed out by Hellmuth, the casino does not look out of place in a city that has been in existence for quite some time.

It takes approximately two minutes to get to the true meat of Hellmuth’s twitvid. As he strolls through the casino and reaches the poker arena of the Casino at the Empire, Hellmuth finds WSOP Media Director Nolan Dalla sitting with Men “The Master” Nguyen and Mike “The Mouth” Matusow. At this point, the twitvid takes off, as the duo espouse on some issues that are on their minds.

Hellmuth welcomes Nguyen to London, as “The Master” exhaustedly states that he just arrived in the U.K. after an 11-hour flight. The extremely jet-lagged poker veteran, who is one of the nominees for election into the Poker Hall of Fame, is hailed by Hellmuth as the “Vietnamese Godfather of Poker” and Hellmuth himself states that Nguyen will probably earn election into the Hall “within the next two to three years, if not this year.”

The conversation then turns to the always-entertaining Matusow, who definitely had some issues on his mind. Hellmuth notes that Matusow is upset that Team Americas captain Daniel Negreanu did not choose him for a spot on the Caesars Cup squad. “I’m not upset,” Matusow contends. “I can’t get upset over a f*****g farce.” Matusow continues on his rant when he notes, “When a 20 year-old is the captain of the European team and a 21 year-old Canadian is captain of an American team, why should I be upset?” Matusow is, in reality, good friends with Negreanu, who is actually 35.

The duo then continue their discussion when Hellmuth brings up the fact that Matusow had taken part in the Full Tilt Million Dollar Cash Game, a 24-hour ring game that was taped for television broadcast in Europe. Hellmuth says that Matusow walked away from the table - which included “November Nine” member Phil Ivey, former WSOP Player of the Year Allen Cunningham, former Main Event Champion Chris Ferguson, online legend Tom “durrrr” Dwan, Scandinavian superstar Patrik Antonius, and English poker star Andrew Feldman - with a $105,000 profit.

“It was without a doubt the toughest lineup I have ever played,” Matusow admitted. “I definitely brought my A+ game, not only because of the difficult table, but because no one would talk to me!” Hellmuth then reveals that he had been called on several occasions during the taping to provide a foil for Matusow, drawing laughter from all at the table.

Hellmuth has continued to post tweets during the run of the WSOP Europe. He can be found on Twitter under the moniker Phil Hellmuth.

Mike Matusow Calls Caesars Cup a Farce in Phil Hellmuth TwitVid

One of the most popular players in the game today, 11-time bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth, has given those who couldn’t make their way to the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe festivities the opportunity to tour the Casino at the Empire in Leicester Square in London and get personal with other poker pros through his Twitter account.

Hellmuth, who submits his tweets through the Twitter tag “Phil Hellmuth,” recently posted a four-minute twitvid that offers a look inside what has become one of London’s must-visit places for poker players. In the video, the “Poker Brat” serves as the travel guide for the viewer and, by the end, records two polarizing figures in the world of poker.

The video starts from his viewpoint in Leicester Square in London. Filmed before his triumphant entrance as Nero during the WSOP Europe Main Event, he points out that Leicester Square is the home of many historical statues, artists, and “stuff like that,” before strolling through the Square to the entrance of the Casino at the Empire. Strangely enough, and accurately pointed out by Hellmuth, the casino does not look out of place in a city that has been in existence for quite some time.

It takes approximately two minutes to get to the true meat of Hellmuth’s twitvid. As he strolls through the casino and reaches the poker arena of the Casino at the Empire, Hellmuth finds WSOP Media Director Nolan Dalla sitting with Men “The Master” Nguyen and Mike “The Mouth” Matusow. At this point, the twitvid takes off, as the duo espouse on some issues that are on their minds.

Hellmuth welcomes Nguyen to London, as “The Master” exhaustedly states that he just arrived in the U.K. after an 11-hour flight. The extremely jet-lagged poker veteran, who is one of the nominees for election into the Poker Hall of Fame, is hailed by Hellmuth as the “Vietnamese Godfather of Poker” and Hellmuth himself states that Nguyen will probably earn election into the Hall “within the next two to three years, if not this year.”

The conversation then turns to the always-entertaining Matusow, who definitely had some issues on his mind. Hellmuth notes that Matusow is upset that Team Americas captain Daniel Negreanu did not choose him for a spot on the Caesars Cup squad. “I’m not upset,” Matusow contends. “I can’t get upset over a f*****g farce.” Matusow continues on his rant when he notes, “When a 20 year-old is the captain of the European team and a 21 year-old Canadian is captain of an American team, why should I be upset?” Matusow is, in reality, good friends with Negreanu, who is actually 35.

The duo then continue their discussion when Hellmuth brings up the fact that Matusow had taken part in the Full Tilt Million Dollar Cash Game, a 24-hour ring game that was taped for television broadcast in Europe. Hellmuth says that Matusow walked away from the table - which included “November Nine” member Phil Ivey, former WSOP Player of the Year Allen Cunningham, former Main Event Champion Chris Ferguson, online legend Tom “durrrr” Dwan, Scandinavian superstar Patrik Antonius, and English poker star Andrew Feldman - with a $105,000 profit.

“It was without a doubt the toughest lineup I have ever played,” Matusow admitted. “I definitely brought my A+ game, not only because of the difficult table, but because no one would talk to me!” Hellmuth then reveals that he had been called on several occasions during the taping to provide a foil for Matusow, drawing laughter from all at the table.

Hellmuth has continued to post tweets during the run of the WSOP Europe. He can be found on Twitter under the moniker Phil Hellmuth.

Mike Matusow Calls Caesars Cup a Farce in Phil Hellmuth TwitVid

One of the most popular players in the game today, 11-time bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth, has given those who couldn’t make their way to the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe festivities the opportunity to tour the Casino at the Empire in Leicester Square in London and get personal with other poker pros through his Twitter account.

Hellmuth, who submits his tweets through the Twitter tag “Phil Hellmuth,” recently posted a four-minute twitvid that offers a look inside what has become one of London’s must-visit places for poker players. In the video, the “Poker Brat” serves as the travel guide for the viewer and, by the end, records two polarizing figures in the world of poker.

The video starts from his viewpoint in Leicester Square in London. Filmed before his triumphant entrance as Nero during the WSOP Europe Main Event, he points out that Leicester Square is the home of many historical statues, artists, and “stuff like that,” before strolling through the Square to the entrance of the Casino at the Empire. Strangely enough, and accurately pointed out by Hellmuth, the casino does not look out of place in a city that has been in existence for quite some time.

It takes approximately two minutes to get to the true meat of Hellmuth’s twitvid. As he strolls through the casino and reaches the poker arena of the Casino at the Empire, Hellmuth finds WSOP Media Director Nolan Dalla sitting with Men “The Master” Nguyen and Mike “The Mouth” Matusow. At this point, the twitvid takes off, as the duo espouse on some issues that are on their minds.

Hellmuth welcomes Nguyen to London, as “The Master” exhaustedly states that he just arrived in the U.K. after an 11-hour flight. The extremely jet-lagged poker veteran, who is one of the nominees for election into the Poker Hall of Fame, is hailed by Hellmuth as the “Vietnamese Godfather of Poker” and Hellmuth himself states that Nguyen will probably earn election into the Hall “within the next two to three years, if not this year.”

The conversation then turns to the always-entertaining Matusow, who definitely had some issues on his mind. Hellmuth notes that Matusow is upset that Team Americas captain Daniel Negreanu did not choose him for a spot on the Caesars Cup squad. “I’m not upset,” Matusow contends. “I can’t get upset over a f*****g farce.” Matusow continues on his rant when he notes, “When a 20 year-old is the captain of the European team and a 21 year-old Canadian is captain of an American team, why should I be upset?” Matusow is, in reality, good friends with Negreanu, who is actually 35.

The duo then continue their discussion when Hellmuth brings up the fact that Matusow had taken part in the Full Tilt Million Dollar Cash Game, a 24-hour ring game that was taped for television broadcast in Europe. Hellmuth says that Matusow walked away from the table - which included “November Nine” member Phil Ivey, former WSOP Player of the Year Allen Cunningham, former Main Event Champion Chris Ferguson, online legend Tom “durrrr” Dwan, Scandinavian superstar Patrik Antonius, and English poker star Andrew Feldman - with a $105,000 profit.

“It was without a doubt the toughest lineup I have ever played,” Matusow admitted. “I definitely brought my A+ game, not only because of the difficult table, but because no one would talk to me!” Hellmuth then reveals that he had been called on several occasions during the taping to provide a foil for Matusow, drawing laughter from all at the table.

Hellmuth has continued to post tweets during the run of the WSOP Europe. He can be found on Twitter under the moniker Phil Hellmuth.

Amazing Race: Tiffany Michelle, Maria Ho Escape Elimination in Premiere

Poker pros Tiffany Michelle and Maria Ho were spared elimination on the premiere of the CBS reality show Amazing Race, which is entering its 15th season. Michelle and Ho arrived at the first pit stop in last place.

The 15th installment of the CBS franchise began in the L.A. River, the site of movies like “Grease.” Twelve teams arrived by bus, including Michelle and Ho, who told other teams that they worked for a non-profit instead of admitting they were wealthy poker players and the last women standing in the 2007 and 2008 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Events.

In a new twist, the first challenge took place immediately, with the last team to complete it eliminated at the starting mat. In it, teams had to sort through 1,000 license plates for one of 11 from Shinagawa, Tokyo, their first destination. Despite confusing license plates, some with misleading Japanese symbols on them, Michelle and Ho finished the task first and headed to the airport to fly to Tokyo. On completing the task first, Michelle quipped, “We have our Asian lucky charm right here,” referring to Ho. In the end, married yoga teachers Eric and Lisa were eliminated in Los Angeles.

All teams flew to Japan, where they were told to head to the Tokyo Tower Television Studio. There, a live audience awaited a game of “Sushi Roulette,” which capitalized on the popularity of Japanese game shows. The Roadblock, which is a task that only one team member can perform, asked contestants to stand in front of a giant roulette wheel and eat the food that landed in front of them. The two players who received scorching hot wasabi bombs had to consume it in less than two minutes in order to receive their next clue. Play continued until each team had eaten a wasabi bomb.

On-screen graphics like an alligator breathing fire added flair to this task, which saw the wasabi land on Ho’s space on the third spin. However, she was unable to eat it within the two-minute time frame and had to play again. As luck would have it, the wasabi once again landed on her space on the fourth spin. Ho told Amazing Race cameras, “My hands were shaking. I was tearing up. It was just like one of those moments where people say it’s mind over matter.” Ho finished her wasabi with two seconds left on the clock.

After completing “Sushi Roulette,” the teams received a colored flag, which corresponded to the visors of 20 audience members. They had to lead their group to the Konno Hachimangu Shrine across town on foot navigating Tokyo’s congested streets. Dating couple Meghan and Cheyne arrived at the Shrine, the Pit Stop for the leg of the race, first and received trips to Aspen and Vail.

Michelle and Ho stopped at a hotel to get a map to the Shrine, sharing its location with brothers Sam and Dan. Michelle explained, “They’re both young, hot, 20-something guys who have become our friends.” Meanwhile, two members of Michelle and Ho’s group became separated in Tokyo’s maze of crowded streets. After hunting around, the poker players were unable to locate their lost crowd members and checked in at the first Amazing Race Pit Stop in last place. Michelle and Ho were assessed a two-hour time penalty for not completing the task, but were spared being sent home in a non-elimination leg. As punishment, they would be forced to complete a Speed Bump, which is a task that only Michelle and Ho would perform, in the upcoming leg.

The teams were then dispatched to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, where they were taken by bus to Cai Be. Despite departing three hours behind other teams at 3:22am from the Pit Stop, Michelle and Ho were quickly able to catch up, as the first flight to Vietnam did not leave until 10:30am. Meanwhile, Lance Layne, an engaged lawyer from Massachusetts, lashed out at Michelle and Ho for not being eliminated on the previous leg: “I can’t believe they gave those two chicks a Speed Bump. Bastards should have been sent home.”

A person at the airport recognized Michelle and asked, “Did you get into the Top 15?” This generated doubt in Michelle and Ho’s stated profession as non-profit workers, eventually leading to other teams figuring out that they were actually poker players. Teams arrived at the Cai Be docks just before nightfall only to see that it did not open until 7:00am. In the morning, they proceeded to mud pits across the Mekong Delta and were tasked with scooping enough mud to fertilize a fruit tree by filling up its base to a designated red line.

Before completing the fruit tree task, Michelle and Ho served the Cai Be dock master soup for their Speed Bump. The poker-playing duo completed the extra challenge with ease before heading to the mud pits. Michelle and Ho were in last place leaving the pits due to the time lost while completing the Speed Bump, but gained ground in the leg’s Road Block, which consisted of herding 150 ducks across a bridge and back again in a fenced enclosure.

Michelle claimed that she had ducks growing up and “flew” through the task, leading to the team being in sixth place after finishing the Roadblock. The Pit Stop on the Vietnam leg was a boat, the Bassac III, and Michelle and Ho arrived in seventh place, surviving a chaotic two-hour episode. Father and son Gary and Matt came in first place and won kayaks.

Amazing Race airs every Sunday on CBS at 8:00pm ET. Next week will see Michelle, Ho, and the rest of the CBS reality show’s cast travel to Cambodia.

Master hunts 7th bracelet, denies cheating

When play resumes in London Wednesday, Men "The Master" Nguyen will have a legitimate shot at his seventh WSOP bracelet, coming in third in chips behind Swede Mats Gavatin, an EPT champion, and London's own Richard Gryko, who made 50th at the 2009 WSOP Main Event.

Sitting behind Nguyen in the chip counts are Canadian Erik Cajelais, who booked runner-up finishes at both the WPT and WSOP in 2007, and the UK's Robin Keston, who counts both an EPT and WSOP final table on his resume.

But despite the fact a win would move him into a tie for sixth on the all-time bracelet winners list with Phil Ivey and Billy Baxter, Nguyen says he doesn't play the game for such honors.

"To be honest with you, making money motivates me; I don't care about more bracelets," he told PokerListings. "I already proved to the world that I am a very good player. I've won so many tournaments that I can't even count them all. I've won player of the year four times. I don't have to prove anything to the world.

"I came to enjoy myself here in England. I came to play with other players here in the UK and from Europe and make money. That's important, not that I can win more bracelets and show poker players and the whole world that I'm good. They already know."

Allegations of chip dumping, card marking and other unethical practices at the poker table have swirled around Nguyen for years.

To this day he denies it all.

"I see a lot of things they say on the Internet," he said. "If they say that in any magazine I'll sue them for slander, but I've never seen it. They slander me on the Internet, but I talked to my lawyer and he said they can say anything they want on the Internet.

"They are probably jealous. I earned what I won. I came to the United States empty-handed. I got what I won, I got my name out there and people just talk about me now. Show me. Catch me. Until they can prove it they should not talk about it. It's just gossip."

Nguyen fled communist Vietnam in 1978 and settled in Los Angeles, California. He started playing poker in 1984 and won his first WSOP bracelet in 1992.

A devout Buddhist, Nguyen reiterated that he would never cheat and never has.

"I'm a Buddhist so I am afraid to cheat," he explained. "If I cheat on anything it will come back to me. If I do something like that God will punish me.

"If I cheated do you think I would be able to go all over the world and play poker? They would kick me out of every tournament."

An emotional player at the tables, Nguyen has also been accused of being abusive to dealers and floor staff.

Again, Nguyen denies any wrongdoing.

"The problem is that sometimes dealers make mistakes and I just try to correct them," he said. "If you play with me at the table you will see how good I am and how nice I am. I will always be nice.

"People talk and they don't think. People say 'Oh Men, you did this or that,' but they don't know. The dealer comes in and maybe they don't change the deck, so I ask why they don't change the deck, because it's a rule. I'm just correcting mistakes."

Regardless of all the allegations against him, with $9,116,177 in career tournament earnings coming into the 2009 WSOPE, Nguyen sits 12th on poker's all time money winners list.

His 65 cashes at the WSOP also put him second only to Phil Hellmuth's 75, and when the final five players return to London's Casino at the Empire Wednesday, Nguyen will have a chance to add to his already stacked resume.

To follow all the action live from Leicester Square click through to PokerListings' Live Tournaments page beginning at 2 p.m. BST.

Visit PokerListings.com

Deal Me In — Poker Pro Chau Giang

CardPlayer.com is providing exclusive excerpts from the book each Sunday. This week’s passage focuses on Chau Giang, who describes his tumultuous attempts as a younger man to flee his native Vietnam for the hope of a better life in the United States: “The war had been over for two years. The communists had attained their goal

Deal Me In — Poker Pro Chau Giang

CardPlayer.com is providing exclusive excerpts from the book each Sunday. This week’s passage focuses on Chau Giang, who describes his tumultuous attempts as a younger man to flee his native Vietnam for the hope of a better life in the United States: “The war had been over for two years. The communists had attained their goal

David Pham - Poker Player Profile

David “Dragon” Pham is one of the fiercest tournament players the United States has ever seen, but he almost didn’t make it to America. Born in South Vietnam in 1967, Pham fled to the US at the age of 17 aboard a boat with 145 passengers; only 46 people would survive that voyage, and fortunately, David Pham was one of them. When he arrived in the States, Pham briefly worked for his cousin’s laundry business, but since his cousin was Men “The Master” Nguyen, he soon shifted his focus to poker.

Honing his game in small tournaments and cash games, it wasn’t until 2000 that David Pham played in the World Series of Poker, making two final tables for over $65K, and also being honored as Card Player’s Player of the Year. The following year, “Dragon” would claim his first WSOP bracelet, winning the $2000 S.H.O.E. event for $140K. In 2003, Pham won the $5000 Limit Hold’em event at the WPT L.A. Poker Classic for $457K, and a year later, he took 1st in the Five Diamond World Poker Classic for $414K. David actually has an incredible seven WPT final tables to his credit, although none of them have come in a championship event.

David Pham won his second WSOP event in 2006, taking home $240K in the $2000 No Limit Hold’em Shootout. For his next trick, he won the 2007 Card Player of the Year award a second time after making a remarkable 11 final tables, bagging a grand total of $1.8 million. More recently, Pham finished 4th at the EPT PokerStars Caribbean Poker Adventure for $600K. All told, “Dragon” has amassed more than $7.8 million in live poker earnings.

ESPN Inside Deal Welcomes Dennis Phillips

This week’s edition of the ESPN poker show “Inside Deal,” which airs on ESPN.com, featured 2008 World Series of Poker (WSOP) November Nine member Dennis Phillips and a revealing phone conversation with WSOP Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack.

The show opened in its usual witty style, with “Inside Deal” Host Laura Lane trying to find Phillips to commence taping. ESPN employees and co-host Bernard Lee were all dressed like the former truck salesman, donning red St. Louis Cardinals hats and white collared shirts complete with logos. “Inside Deal,” which is sponsored by PokerStars.net, began its 40 minute show by discussing new legislation introduced by Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ) to regulate online games of skill like poker in the United States. Poker News Daily was sourced on the story, with Lee commenting, “This is a revised bill that Senator Menendez introduced in 2008. The previous bill focused on just skill games. This specifically focuses on online poker.” The bill is numbered S 1597.

Discussion on “Inside Deal” then turned to the recent sale of the World Poker Tour (WPT) to Gamynia Limited. Lee gave his take on what the sale of the hallmark tournament series means for players: “For the Tour, time will tell. For the 2009-2010 season, there won’t be too many changes.” Lee then noted that legalized and regulated online poker in the United States would mean a dramatic increase in qualifiers for WPT events. “Inside Deal” broke down the results of its sponsor’s weekly online poker major, the Sunday Million, and discussed the death of PokerListings founder Andreas Oscarsson.

Pollack called in for “Inside Deal’s” first telephone interview. He gave a preview of the 2009 WSOP Europe festivities, which kick off on September 19th from London. Pollack explained a potential solution for the sellout of Day 1D of the 2009 WSOP, which left more than 500 players shut out of the game’s most prestigious tournament: “We’re going to continue to have pre-registration open months in advance. I think we’re going to allow players to select their start date for the Main Event until a certain point. After that, we’re going to select their start date so the days are properly balanced.” Among those left out in the cold on Day 1D were Durrrr Challenge participant Patrik Antonius, Poker Hall of Fame member T.J. Cloutier, and five-time WSOP bracelet winner Ted Forrest.

Phillips joined the show to talk about his interactions with members of the 2009 WSOP November Nine and his experience at National Poker Week in Washington, DC. On the latter effort, which was organized by the Poker Players Alliance (PPA), Phillips recalled, “I honestly believe there will be a compromise between the two [internet gambling bills in the House and Senate]. They will come together with something. My hope is that in the next 12 to 18 months, this farce of a law they have will be amended.”

Phillips divulged the secrets to his deep runs in the 2008 and 2009 Main Events, where he finished 3rd and 45th, respectively, and relived throwing out the first pitch at a Cardinals baseball game. On November Nine member and CardPlayer Editor Jeff Shulman, who has threatened to throw out the bracelet should he win the Main Event, Phillips commented, “Even if he felt it, to come out and publicly state it is horrible. It’s repulsive to me that he’d consider throwing it away.”

ESPN Poker Editor Andrew Feldman then joined the “Inside Deal” set in Bristol, Connecticut to review Sexy Poker for the Nintendo Wii, which resembles a game of strip poker. Discussion of the game was a segue for forecasting technological breakthroughs in the game, with Lee suggesting that tournament officials mic up every player at a final table and use interactive cameras to divulge tells. Feldman also discussed World Team Poker, whose first match-up pits Phil Hellmuth’s Team USA against Men “The Master” Nguyen’s Team Vietnam. Phillips recalled Danes rooting for Peter Eastgate and Russians cheering for Ivan Demidov during the 2008 WSOP Main Event final table as examples of how team poker may have a bright future.

An unaired exit interview with Dan Harrington following his elimination from the WSOP Champions Invitational aired and Lee broke down Eastgate’s one-outer against Scott Montgomery during last year’s Main Event finale. New episodes of “Inside Deal” are released every Tuesday on ESPN.com.

J.C. Tran - Poker Player Profile

J.C. Tran is a tournament poker phenom who hails from Sacramento, California. Tran’s biggest accomplishments include two World Series of Poker bracelets, a WCOOP Main Event victory, and five WPT final tables. His biggest cash is actually a 2nd place finish in the 2007 L.A. Poker Classic for $1.1 million, but he would later claim victory and $683K in the World Poker Challenge that same year. J.C. Tran’s live poker winnings are in excess of $8 million, and include 28 WSOP cashes for $1.6 million. With an incredibly balanced mix of live and online success, Tran is an absolute monster at the tables and always a force to be reckoned with.

J.C. Tran was born in Vietnam, but moved to the States at just two years of age. He would later attend California State University, and ply his trade at the $9-$18 game at Capitol Casino in Sacramento.

World Team Poker set for take off

"This is the first time the poker world has seen anything like this," World Team Poker Director of Communications Gideon Cross told PokerListings. "It's really exciting."

Although the structure of the league is still in the works, Cross said it will include 32 teams of five players representing countries from all over the globe in heads-up challenge matches.

Team captains are being chosen by World Team Poker and the captains are expected to pick their teammates.

Eleven-time WSOP gold bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth will captain Team USA, which will take on Men "The Master" Nguyen's Team Vietnam in World Team Poker's first event, planned for Las Vegas this November.

Although no dates have been confirmed, Cross said the second event on the schedule will see Team USA take on back-to-back WSOP Main Event Champ Johnny Chan and Team China in Macau.

World Team Poker plans to broadcast its events live on the Internet with interactive features allowing viewers to chat with team captains and wager on the outcome.

The actual matches are expected to feature several different poker variants and allow the players involved to set the stakes and raise them during play.

"This is going to be like the World Championships or the Olympics of poker," Cross said.

More information can be found at the World Team Poker website.

Visit PokerListings.com

Thang Luu wins WSOP Event #4 - $1,500 Omaha Hi-Low Split-8 or Better…again

Vietnam´s Thang Luu has joined a very exclusive World Series Of Poker Club. The winner of the 2008 $1,500 Omaha Hi-Low Split-8 or Better event repeated the feat yesterday, becoming only the ninth player in WSOP history to successfully defend their title in the exact same event.

World Series of Poker Gold — Thang Luu Completes Historic Repeat

This may very well go down as one of the most impressive feats in World Series of Poker history. Thang Luu, a 34-year-old Las Vegas resident who moved to the United States from Vietnam, followed up his win at the World Series’ $1,500 Omaha eight-or-better event in 2008 with a repeat victory in 2009 in the

Nguyen can make history at WPT Championship

Should Scotty Nguyen bank the $2,149,960 first-place prize in the offing at Bellagio, he will become poker's all-time leading money winner with almost $12.6 million, surpassing 2006 WSOP Main Event winner Jamie Gold's $12.1 million.

"That's right," Nguyen told PokerListings as he sat bagging his 5,880,000 in tournament chips. "That's my goal. That's what I promise the poker world and the fans."

Earlier this year at the Los Angeles Poker Classic, Nguyen told PokerListings TV he would quit poker if he made less than $4 million at the 2009 WSOP.

A few days ago here at the Championship, he booked a bet with Mike Matusow getting 3:1 on $5,000 that he would earn $4 million over the next three years.

"He's dead," Nguyen said, with the WPT Championship title clearly in his sights. "Count on it baby, he's dead."

To book this win, the 1998 WSOP Main Event champ will have to get through a bevy of great young players still in contention.

APT Macau champ Yevgeniy Timoshenko will come into the final ten holding 5.1 million in chips and two-time EPT final tablist Christian Harder is not far behind on 4.6 million.

Justin Young made second at the WPT Five Diamond back in December and is currently fourth in chips with 4.2 million.

2006 Bellagio Cup winner Shannon Shorr and 2008 WSOP $5k Pot Limit Omaha final tablist Brian Rast have a little over three million chips each, while 2007 WPT Five Diamond champ Eugene Katchalov holds 2.3 million.

Just below the two-million chip mark sits the ever-dangerous Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, looking to repeat his 2008 WPT Festa al Lago win here at Bellagio.

The two shorter stacks include the relatively unknown Israeli Ran Azor and France's Aviation Club manager and 2007 WSOP $50k H.O.R.S.E. runner-up Bruno Fitoussi.

Regardless, Nguyen said he's just going to do his thing and let the chips fall where they may.

"I'm just going to play Scotty Nguyen style, baby," he said. "Fearless, baby; Fearless and confident."

The Vietnamese-born Nguyen sits on the edge of history with unmatched bravado and the poker skills to back it up.

"Think about it, how many people do you know who will look straight at the camera and say 'I will win four million dollars this year'?" he asked. "None. I'm the only one. That's why they have people betting on me five to one, four to one, three to one, you know, baby? I take it all.

"Whoever wants to bet against me, I take it all. I told you, this is my year."

The play down from ten to the final table of six at the WPT Championship will begin at 12 p.m. PT in Las Vegas and PokerListings will have all the action on our Live Tournaments page.

Visit PokerListings.com

Life on the High Seas by Linda Johnson

Recently, I returned from another spectacular adventure with Card Player Cruises aboard Royal Caribbean Cruise Line’s Legend of the Seas. As I grow older, my interest in visiting new places and learning about other cultures grows. To begin the trip, I flew to Shanghai, China with my business partner, Jan Fisher, and Card Player Cruises’ operations manager, Rita Axel. There, we met up with my brother, mom, aunt, and Jan’s father.

The 14-day cruise was an eye-opening experience and made me so very proud to be an American. Visiting China, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Singapore was a culture shock of gargantuan proportions. Although I had already been to Thailand and Singapore, I found China to be much more modern and Vietnam and Cambodia to be much poorer than my preconceptions of them. I don’t think anyone who joined us on this cruise wasn’t affected by what they saw. Many of the people in Asia work long days at back-breaking work and make less than $1,000 a year, yet they were kind and loving and seemed to enjoy our visits. They were proud of their homes and proud to tell us about their customs and history.

Here were some of the highlights of the cruise:

The Poker Room: The games (Omaha/8, Hold’em, No Limit, and a Mixed game) were lively and the players had a good time.

Shanghai, China: We enjoyed a trip to a Buddhist temple, a city tour, a river cruise, a two hour massage, and shopping, shopping, shopping!

Xiamen, China: The tour featured a scenic drive, a tea ceremony, shopping at a pedestrian mall, and a two hour massage.

Hong Kong: We went on a city tour before going to the Aberdeen fishing village to experience a sampan ride. Disaster struck while having lunch at the Jumbo Floating Restaurant: My mother didn’t see one of the steps and took a bad fall, breaking a bone in her foot. Ever the trooper, she insisted that we finish the tour to Victoria Peak and the Stanley Market before letting me take her to an orthopedic specialist. He made a walking cast for her and told her to stay off her foot as much as possible for six weeks. For the duration of the trip, she had to be in a wheelchair, but her spirits never dampened and she never complained. She is my hero!

Sanya, China: We finally got out of the modern cities and into the countryside. The roads through the local villages were rough; pigs and cattle roamed openly. We took a boat ride to Monkey Island, aptly named for the monkeys that roamed freely. Next was a short stop at the Nurian Hot Springs. One of my trip highlights was lying in a nibble fish pool and having tiny fish nibble away at my dry skin; it really tickled!

Danang, Vietnam: Mom and I rented a vehicle and a driver and took a scenic tour with a stop at China Beach and a marble factory.

Nha Trang, Vietnam: I had planned an excursion for the Card Player Cruises group that would really showcase how the people in Vietnam live. It began with a trip to a local kindergarten (the children were beautiful and so friendly), a visit to a mat-making village and a clay pot manufacturer, a traditional Vietnamese lunch by the river, and a stop at a temple.

Vung Tau, Vietnam: I stayed on the ship with my mother and we checked our e-mail and relaxed by the pool. Many of our cruisers made the long trek to Saigon.

Bangkok, Thailand: I planned an overnight trip for 20 of our passengers that began with a visit to the Sriachi Zoo before checking into the Royal Orchid Sheraton in Bangkok. It was a beautiful hotel on the river with spectacular views from the rooms. After some free time during which I had a traditional Thai massage (lots of stretching involved), we went to a great dinner and a production show that would rival the best in Las Vegas. Our night ended with a stop at the night market and an adult show. The next morning, we broke into two groups: one took a city tour and the other took a canal tour before we reunited for the two hour ride back to the ship.

Sihanoukville, Cambodia: Cambodia was very hot and humid. The poverty was more prevalent than we had seen in the other countries. We went to a temple, did a city tour, and stopped at a market. I actually was so warm that I passed up a two hour, $10 massage and went back to the ship for a swim.

Singapore: My good friend Vince Lau picked us up at the port and took us to the Meritus Mandarin Hotel where we checked into our rooms. Following a city tour and a great lunch, my mom, aunt, and brother headed to the airport. In the evening, we went to a local Hawker food court and then drove through the red light district and walked around Clarke Quay. The next day, Vince had arranged for a poker seminar and tournament. Twenty of our cruise passengers joined about 50 locals to hear Mark Tenner, Barry Tanenbaum, Jan Fisher, and me talk poker. After the chat, we played in a freeroll tournament. Sushi was on the dinner menu then it was early to bed so we could get up at 3:00am to head to the airport to go home.

New International Field Featured on Poker After Dark

The United States, Russia, Canada, France, Vietnam, and Indonesia. One country will be victorious. Which will it be? Poker After Dark's third edition of International Week will start tonight at 2:05 a.m., featuring six top pros from around the world. In their two previous installments,...