Archive for August, 2009
Just another Sunday in Macau didn’t just mean a visit to a spa or sauna, or even some friendly gambling at one of the many casinos -– instead it meant completion of both the PokerStars.net APPT Macau Main and High Rollers Event!
Continued here:
08 30th, 2009
Taking place throughout the month of September on Poker is Take 2, an innovative online poker promotion that allows players to earn up to $50 in cash and double Full Tilt Points (FTPs).
Take 2 kicks off at 00:00 ET on September 1st and runs until 23:59 ET on September 30th. There are two ways to boost your bankroll and FTP balance. First, players who compete on at least two real money ring game tables during the month-long promotion will earn bonus cash based on the number of days they hit the virtual felts. Five days of multi-tabling will earn a Full Tilt customer a cool $5 bonus. Players that multi-table for 10 days will pocket an extra $10 for a total of $15. Fifteen days of multi-tabling means an extra $10 in your pocket, or $25 total. Finally, 25 days of multi-tabling during the month of September results in $50 in bonus cash.
In addition, poker enthusiasts can earn double FTPs on two tables while playing. For example, if a player were to earn 60 FTPs at one table and 40 FTPs at another table, they would take home a total of 200 points as part of the Take 2 promotion. Points can be used in the Full Tilt Store for poker paraphernalia and other items. In addition, FTPs can be redeemed for tournament and sit and go entries. A Mini Cooper S in the Full Tilt Store will set players back six million FTPs, while a Harley-Davidson Night Train motorcycle runs four million. A wide variety of electronics, including a 2.7 million FTP price tag Apple MacBook Pro, can be had, along with apparel, sporting gear, luggage, poker books, and Full Tilt branded merchandise.
Players must opt into Take 2 by visiting the “Cashier” window. Then, they’ll need to click on the rectangular “My Promotions” link and look for “Take 2.” Follow the instructions to register your account and then hit up the cash game felts of Full Tilt in earnest. The “My Promotions” page will keep tabs on how many FTPs and bonus cash you’ve earned; extra points will be dumped into a player’s account within six hours. In order for a tables to count, at least one FTP must be earned while more than one window is open.
Full Tilt will only double the number of FTPs on two tables. Text found on Full Tilt’s website explains, “If a player plays at more than two real-money ring-game tables simultaneously during Take 2, that player will receive double points from the combination of their top two tables.” For example, if a player were to earn 60 FTPs at one table, 50 FTPs at another table, and 10 FTPs at a third table, then they would receive 110 bonus FTPs, equal to the sum of their top two points-earning tables. Full Tilt spreads Texas Hold’em, Omaha, Stud, and Razz in a variety of structures.
The site is fresh off hosting the 13th Full Tilt Online Poker Series (FTOPS), which played out earlier this month amid much fanfare. Starting on September 9th, MiniFTOPS XIII will make its debut, featuring the same tournament lineup as FTOPS XIII, but with buy-ins that are one-tenth of the size. Highlights include a $256 buy-in Two-Day Event featuring at least $400,000 on the line and a $55 buy-in Main Event that assures at least $500,000 is up for grabs. A total of 25 tournaments will play out, each hosted by a member of Team Full Tilt.
Read more here:
08 30th, 2009
This weekend, the high-stakes action at the nosebleed tables was relatively calm compared to the Pot Limit Omaha (PLO) frenzy that transpired last weekend. The slow action of Friday and Saturday brought an anticlimactic end to a week that saw the return of Challenge play, a big winning week for Ashton “THEASHMAN103″ Griffin, and a substantial loss for the player known as “martonas.”
The bulk of martonas‘ $1.4 million downswing came at the hands of Tom “durrrr” Dwan and Phil “OMGClayAiken” Galfond last Friday at the $300/$600 PLO tables. Martonas clashed with durrrr in two massive hands, one worth over $280,000 and another that sent $460,000 durrrr’s way. In the latter hand, the two got it all-in on the flop with martonas holding a massive combination flush and straight draw to durrrr’s nut flush draw. The river brought the third diamond to complete the flush and give durrrr the best hand.
It was a big night for durrrr, who picked up $1 million in profit. Galfond also found success in last Friday’s session, bringing his end-of-day winnings to over $800,000. Like durrrr, he also picked up a chunk of his bankroll off of martonas. Meanwhile, martonas ended the day down nearly $1 million and that was not the end of his misfortune. He dropped an additional $600,000 on Monday and, despite winning sessions on Sunday and Tuesday, ended the week as the big loser on Full Tilt with a $1.4 million loss from Friday, August 21st to Saturday, August 29th.
Other players who ended up in the losing column during that time include both Di “Urindanger” Dang and his brother Hac “trex313″ Dang, who each dropped in the vicinity of $300,000. Several Full Tilt Red Pros didn’t fare too well this week, either. , Haseeb Qureshi, David Oppenheim, and all came out of the week in the red with six-figure losses.
While those sponsored pros had a rough week, several other names in red came out in the black, most notably . He picked up much of his $500,000 in profit from two epic Durrrr Challenge sessions in which he was able to completely erase durrrr’s $726,000 overall lead in their infamous bet. Now, Antonius is sitting with a slight lead of $76,104 and half-million dollars more in his Full Tilt account. Richard Ashby and also booked respectable weeks with profits of $190,000 and $163,000, respectively.
The big success story of the week is THEASHMAN103, who found himself up nearly $900,000 at week’s end. His $1 million winning session on the tables on Tuesday resulted in the majority of that profit. THEASHMAN103 continues to be one of the big winners of 2009 on along with Antonius, CardRunners instructor Cole “cts” South, and Ilari “Ziigmund” Sahamies. Ziigmund had an impressive week himself, with $725,000 in winnings.
If this weekend is any indication, the fast and furious action on Full Tilt Poker may be hitting a lull. With the live tournament schedule picking up and continuing high-stakes action in Bobby’s Room at the Bellagio, perhaps the attention of many players is diverted. In his latest blog post, spoke of “insane” action at the Bellagio, so that could explain part of the dip in action at the online nosebleed tables. Only time will tell if action will pick back up shortly, when Durrrr Challenge play will resume, and if martonas can rebound from his rough week at the tables.
Read more from the original source here:
08 30th, 2009
Starting in November, Card Player Cruises will return to the high seas aboard the 138,000 ton Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines’ Explorer of the Seas. Destinations over the next year for the cruising company include Alaska, the Mediterranean, and Mexico.
The nine-night Canada and New England Fall Foliage cruise will depart from Cape Liberty Cruise Port in New Jersey and steam up the eastern seaboard of the United States. Ports of call include Portland, Bar Harbor, Saint John, Halifax, and Boston and the cruise starts at $550 per person. Card Player Cruises partner and Poker News Daily Guest Columnist Linda Johnson commented in a press release distributed by the travel company, “This trip will feature some of the most spectacular scenery on the Eastern Seaboard. There’s no better time to visit this region than in the fall, when the foliage stands out in every imaginable color.”
Besides the fall foliage outside of the ship, the other main attraction on the November cruise will be its poker room. $100 to $200 buy-in poker tournaments will abound and private seminars and free poker lessons will also take place. In addition, the press release notes, “Passengers can play as much or as little as they want during the week.” The Explorer of the Seas also features a rock-climbing wall, ice skating rink, miniature golf course, basketball court, disco, spa, fitness center, pools, Jacuzzis, and shops. In addition, what would a cruise be without a parade of food?
Here is the upcoming schedule for Card Player Cruises:
Canada and New England Fall Foliage nine-night cruise – October 15, 2009
Royal Caribbean’s Explorer of the Seas
Departs from Cape Liberty Cruise Port, Bayonne, New Jersey
Mexican Riviera seven-night cruise – November 15, 2009
Royal Caribbean’s Mariner
Departs from Los Angeles, California
Western Caribbean seven-night cruise – March 7, 2010
Royal Caribbean’s Voyager
Departs from Galveston, Texas
Mediterranean Venice 12-night cruise – May 15, 2010
Royal Caribbean’s Brilliance
Departs from Barcelona, Spain
Alaska seven-night cruise – August 27, 2010
Royal Caribbean’s Rhapsody
Departs from Seattle, Washington
Eastern Caribbean seven-night cruise – September 25, 2010
Royal Caribbean’s Oasis
Departs from Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Mexican Riviera seven-night cruise – December 5, 2010
Royal Caribbean’s Mariner
Departs from Los Angeles, California
The poker room closes while the ship is parked in port and opens while the vessel is out in the open water. Card Player Cruises customers make up between 25% and 40% of the total number of passengers onboard, so traditional cruising activities still occur day and night. In order to play poker, Card Player Cruises guests must be at least 18 years-old, while some special events, such as the Million, feature a different age requirement.
Besides tournaments, each ship’s poker room hosts a wide variety of cash games, ranging from limits of $1/$2 to $30/$60.Customers with children are more than welcome to participate as well. Card Player Cruises explains, “There are extensive programs for children that provide entertainment for the kids from morning until night. Some of the activities are scavenger hunts, arts and crafts, talent shows, pizza parties, disco parties, trips to the spa/gym, video games, etc. Children are able to sail at reduced rates on most cruise lines.”
Prices for the above schedule vary between $448 per person and $1,719 per person. The cost covers food, cabin, nightly entertainment, and use of the ship’s amenities. According to Johnson, the majority of players who board a Card Player Cruise are recreational and several are celebrating a milestone such as a birthday or anniversary. Players can call 888-999-4880 for any additional information and to book passage.
Read more from the original source here:
08 30th, 2009
It’s Sunday. Arguably the toughest day on the virtual felt. While you’re waiting for that tournament to start or if you’re on your synchronized break, here is some reading to bide your time. Reading will not only keep you busy, it will keep you up to date
More here:
08 30th, 2009
has launched its new September Surge promotion that will allow players to fast track their way through the VIP programme and eventually compete for sponsorship packages worth €100,000.
More here:
08 30th, 2009
The last PokerNews $250 Tourney for August is about to kick off very shortly at bet365 Poker. Remember, buy-in is only $1.10!
Read more here:
08 30th, 2009
For both serious and casual online poker players, Sundays are (hopefully) a long grind. For those who don’t want to play in a meditative state, music can be the perfect middle ground between total silence and the distraction of television. Don’t…
Continued here:
Forty-two players returned to the Grand Lisboa Hotel and Casino in Macau for Day 3 of the 2009 PokerStars.net Asia Pacific Poker Tour Macau Main Event. The contingency represented 14 different countries, each vying for the HK $4,194,000 (~US…
More here:
08 30th, 2009
It turns out they were right.
This summer, Nguyen added just $33,668 to his $10,705,581 in career tournament earnings with an 11th-place finish at the $10k Stud World Championship, falling far short of his $4 million goal.
However, the Prince of Poker was back on the felt at the WPT Legends of Poker event last week.
“People retire and then they come back right,” the 1998 WSOP Main Event champ laughed.
“Legends is my comeback, baby. It’s the first tournament I’ve played since the World Series.”
Nguyen currently sits 12th on the all time World Series of Poker money list with $4,727,717 collected from 37 WSOP cashes, and actually considers the 2009 Series his least successful.
“This was the worst World Series I’ve ever had just because of that statement - the $4 million,” he said. “It was always stuck in my head, I was always thinking ‘I got to get there, I got to get there.’
“You see baby, when you have to do something, there’s more pressure on you and that’s the wrong thing. It was stressful. In poker you can’t have that stress.”
Prior to the 2009 WSOP, Nguyen’s bold statement actually morphed into a prop bet with fellow pro Mike Matusow at the WPT Championship.
Getting 3:1 on $5,000, Nguyen is attempting to collect $3 million in tournament earnings over the next three years.
With a win in the 2009 L.A. Poker Classic’s $9,900 H.O.R.S.E. event and a sixth-place finish at the $25k WPT Championship, he’s earned almost $700k this year so far and seems well on his way to making the bet quite interesting.
And despite not coming through on his $4 million promise, Nguyen is not apologizing for believing in himself.
“You know baby, if you ask me again, I will tell you again,” he said. “Before the World Series if you ask me how much I’m going to make I’m going to tell you $4 million.
“I’m not going to tell you I’m going to lose, baby.”
Nguyen busted on Day 3 of Legends, falling just short of the money.
Visit
More here:
Sponsor:
