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The world of poker is dominated by men for the most part, but there are women who have made their mark on the felt. On many a poker forum, there is a debate as to who the “hottest” poker player in the game is – and that debate goes for the men in the game as well as the ladies. A top men’s magazine has recently taken on the challenge of naming the twenty hottest women in poker, albeit with some liberties taken along the way.
Topping the list of twenty women are two players who have earned their stripes on the tables and are sponsored poker players in their own right. UB.com’s heads the list of those who has made the move to the poker community while continuing to pursue a career as an actress. Michelle made her mark on the poker world in 2008 when she was the last woman standing in the Championship Event. Since that time, she has continued to excel at the poker tables and has appeared on “The Amazing Race” with fellow poker pro Maria Ho. Other movie and television credits for Tiffany include the movie “Semi Pro” with comedian Will Ferrell and the FX series “Nip/Tuck.”
Along with Tiffany, poker professional was included in the twenty woman lineup for “hottest woman in poker.” Rousso, who currently carries a sponsorship with website hosting company GoDaddy.com along with her sponsorship, also appeared in last year’s Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue. Rousso is one of the preeminent women players in the game today, with several six figure cashes in her career that include a victory at last year’s EPT Grand Final High Rollers event and a runner up finish to at the 2009 National Heads Up Poker Championship. She recently cashed at the ’s L. A. Poker Classic, finishing in 59th place.
Three other women have had or continue to have an intimate involvement with poker as well as maintaining an active career outside of the game. Top model Joanna Krupa is on the Maxim list as she maintains her modeling career alongside her hosting duties for the PokerStars North American Poker Tour events. Former spokesperson and model Serinda Swan makes the list along with actress Shannon Elizabeth, who has held sponsorship logos with both Poker and Doyle’s Room in her poker career.
For those that wonder where 2005 Women’s Champion is on the Maxim list, she is included along with other poker playing actresses such as Playboy model Jenny McCarthy and former “That 70s Show” performer Laura Prepon. Maxim also puts former “Baywatch” actress Pamela Anderson on the list, the second oldest member of the “hottest women in poker” behind Tilly. Anderson once was the face of her own online poker room, PamelaPoker.com, and allegedly settled a poker debt by marrying her opponent, former Paris Hilton paramour Rick Salomon, a marriage that was later annulled.
For those who remember the Bravo television show “Celebrity Poker Showdown,” many of its alumni appear on the Maxim list. Academy Award winner Mena Suvari, comedian Sarah Silverman, former “Beverly Hills 90210” actress Jennie Garth, “Austin Powers” star Heather Graham, “Party Of Five” actress Lacey Chabert, “The Office” star Jenna Fischer and actress Rosario Dawson all make their mark on the Maxim hot list as well as continue to play in charity events across the country. Rounding out the “hottest women in poker” are actresses Cameron Diaz, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Traci Bingham and Odette Yustman.
While it may not settle the arguments across the online forums, Maxim’s “Hottest Women In Poker” definitely adds fuel to the fire. Were there any ladies that the magazine missed on their list? Poker News Daily would like to know, so be sure to inform us of who Maxim should have featured on the list and who shouldn’t have been there.
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03 10th, 2010
Tuesday, ESPN.com released the March version of “The Nuts”, its ranking of the top ten poker players in the world. The list does not simply rank the best living players, but rather aims to determine who is currently playing the best poker. All variations of poker are considered – live and online, tournaments and cash games. Poker News Daily’s own Dan Cypra is one of the members of the voting panel, along with ESPN.com writers Gary Wise, Andrew Feldman, and (also a PND contributor), Bluff magazine’s editor-in-chief Lance Bradley and senior writer Jessica Welman, PokerNews.com editor-in-chief Matthew Parvis and tournament reporter Don Peters, and Poker Road’s Court Harrington.
This is the fourth month for “The Nuts,” and for the fourth month, the seemingly peerless sits atop the rankings. He did not have any significant live poker tournament success in February, but his cash game prowess is still second to none. While the rankings are a measure of who is the best “right now,” the panel’s focus is not so narrow as to limit evaluation to just a single month. Ivey gets credit for his outstanding results in the months leading up to the most recent vote.
Jason Mercier, one of the best players that the general poker public may have never heard of, moved up one spot to number two. In February, the Floridian made the quarterfinals of the National Heads-Up Poker Championship and placed third in the L.A. Poker Classic’s High Roller event. When he found out that he had climbed to the second spot, Mercier was excited, telling ESPN.com, “It’s pretty cool [to be No. 2]. I think that I’ve reached as high as I can go. I don’t think I have any chance of beating out Ivey.”
The biggest riser amongst last month’s top ten was Tom “” Dwan, who was number eight in February and is now number three this month. Dwan doesn’t have any notches in his tournament belt recently, but he has been absolutely destroying the online cash games, as he usually does. He made $2.7 million in the month leading up to the current vote, much of it off of in the Durrrr Challenge.
Speaking of Antonius, his poor cash results resulted in him dropping in the rankings from second to fifth.
New to “The Nuts” this month are Cole South and Scott Seiver. South has been tearing up cash games to the tune of $2.5 million in profit this year, while Seiver won the L.A. Poker Classic high roller event and placed fourth in the North American Poker Tour Venetian High Roller Bounty Shootout.
Dropping from the rankings were and , who were ninth and tenth, respectively, in February.
ESPN.com “The Nuts” Poker Player Rankings – March 2010
- Phil Ivey
- Jason Mercier
- Tom “durrrr” Dwan
- Daniel Alaei
- Eric Baldwin
- Cole South
- Scott Seiver
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Large pots were few and far between on Sunday night’s episode of the GSN series “High Stakes Poker.” Instead, a vegetarian prop bet between pros and Tom “” Dwan took center stage.
After being discussed non-stop for a half-hour of the 60-minute program, the vegetarian prop bet was finally agreed upon. Ultimately, Ivey would become a vegetarian for one year for $1 million. In a sit-down interview with “High Stakes Poker” hostess Kara Scott, Ivey told viewers, “I was thinking about doing it for a while, so this is an added incentive.” Dwan was confident that he’d win the bet, but nonetheless expressed a degree of doubt: “He’s got a lot of will power and he might go out and prove me wrong.” Any creature that moves is off limits for Ivey.
Back on the felts, Ivey proved why he’s one of the top names in the game by raising to $3,000 pre-flop with 7-2 and receiving four callers. The flop came 4-9-A with two hearts and Ivey put in a $12,000 continuation bet. Italian poker stud Dario Minieri, who held 10-8 of hearts, came along to see another ace hit the turn. Ivey bet out $30,000 this time around and Minieri folded. “High Stakes Poker” host Gabe Kaplan commented, “Most players would turn over the 7-2 there, but not Phil Ivey.”
Then, Team Pro front man raised to $3,000 with 9-6 of hearts and Eli Elezra came along with 9-8 of diamonds. The flop came 10-5-7, giving both players straight draws, and Negreanu bet $5,500. Elezra pushed the action to $13,000 and Negreanu came along to see a king on the turn. Elezra checked and Negreanu accidentally exposed his nine while reaching for a stack of $100 bills. He promptly checked and an eight hit on the river, filling his straight. Negreanu bet $20,000 and Elezra tanked before folding. Negreanu told the table, “That was the weirdest hand I’ve ever played.”
Minieri was overly active throughout the episode and set the tone after made it $3,500 pre-flop with A-8. Minieri, sensing weakness, made it $11,500 with A-9. Then, fireworks went of, as Hansen re-raised to $35,500 and Minieri shoved all-in for $213,000. Hansen quickly mucked, leaving Kaplan to remark, “That’s either a good read or a moment of insanity.” Negreanu would later try to force an all-in from Minieri when “Kid Poker” held pocket aces, but the Italian instead folded.
In one of the larger pots of the episode, which aired at 8:00pm ET on Sunday on GSN, Ivey raised to $3,000 with pocket eights, Negreanu called with A-7 of spades, and Dwan called with Q-J. The flop came A-J-4, and Ivey checked his pocket pair. Negreanu led out for $8,000 with top pair, while Dwan made the call with middle pair. Ivey got out of the way and a queen hit the turn to improve Dwan to two pair. Negreanu fired out a bet of $18,000 and Dwan called. The duo both checked a river five, shipping the $63,800 pot to Dwan.
In the final hand of the hour, Elezra raised to $3,000 with 9-7, Negreanu called with Q-9, and Dwan called with K-Q. The flop fell K-8-10 and Elezra put in a $7,200 continuation bet with an open-ended straight draw. Dwan came along with top pair to bring a jack on the turn, filling Eleza’s straight. However, with three spades now on the board, the action went check-check. The river was a six and Dwan bet $8,400. Elezra raised to $28,400 and Dwan released his hand.
Next time, four “High Stakes Poker” players get felted and an epic hand brews between Dwan and Ivey. New episodes of “High Stakes Poker” air on Sunday nights at 8:00pm ET on GSN.
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03 9th, 2010
In an article authored by the German news outlet Spiegel, Police Chief Rainer Wendt labeled the four armed gunmen who plundered the European Poker Tour (EPT) stop in Berlin over the weekend “small-time crooks.”
New details on the buzz worthy event have dribbled in since the incident took place on Saturday afternoon at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in the German metropolis. Text found on the PokerStars Blog shed light on the weaponry used in the high-stakes heist, which has captured worldwide headlines: “The police investigation so far has shown that the suspects had a handgun and a machete. Contrary to tabloid reports, no Kalashnikov assault rifles or hand grenades were used.” The tournament’s organizers added that the amount of cash removed was “substantially less” than numbers circulating cyberspace.
According to Spiegel, the security force at the casino was unarmed and those who responded to the distress call were small in numbers. Despite ending with no injuries, the robbery may spark a revamp in casino security. Wendt offered up the following helpful advice to the German news media: “A few guards and a hotel intern are not enough. That was really quite negligent.”
EPT Berlin Main Event winner Kevin “ImaLuckSac” MacPhee echoed the questionable security practices in a post on the popular poker forum PocketFives.com: “I honestly thought we should have stopped play. It was a pretty freaky thing to have happen, especially considering the poor planning of the tournament area… no exits, lots of panic, stampeding, screaming, and crying.” It was the EPT’s first stop in Berlin.
A 36 year-old security guard on the premises in Berlin, Roman, told another German news outlet that he made the attackers pay for their misgivings: “That guy for sure has trouble swallowing now.” Another attacker, purportedly armed with a machete, ran at Roman, who threw him to the ground. Roman recounted the media: “He did not say a word. As a civilized Middle-European, you don’t just break the necks of people like this, so I tried to [keep] him on the ground.” Roman added that he wasn’t carrying a weapon at the time because tournament officials asked him not to.
A separate Spiegel articled hinted that €800,000 may have been lifted from the scene and a PokerNews.com reporter dubbed the event “The blackest day in the history of German poker. Probably the biggest nightmare at a poker event that world has seen so far.” Claudia Sommerey, who was outside of the tournament room at the time, explained to Spiegel that security personnel subdued the bandits with ropes making up the line in the tournament registration area. She hid under a table before frantically calling police.
An article that appeared on CBS News revealed that following the robbery, the gunmen exited through a shopping mall. Appearing on CBS’ “The Early Show” on Monday morning, MacPhee recalled, “There was a lot of panic in the room that day and then we were asked to come back and play for €1 million. It was very unusual.” MacPhee was seated at the television table when the skirmish occurred. He noted, “The actual TV stage started to collapse.” Hands were brewing when the robbery took place, leading to chips being strewn about the tournament area as bedlam erupted. The robbery was also discussed on Monday’s edition of ESPN’s “Around the Horn.”
After a three-hour delay, the EPT Berlin Main Event resumed sans EPTLive, whose transmissions were cut off for the day. MacPhee went on to defeat Ilari Tahkokallio in the finals of the tournament on Sunday.
Police were able to collect DNA samples from one of the robbers and a bag containing €500,000 was reported to be found by a Hyatt staff member. Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest EPT Berlin robbery coverage. Read more about the .
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Recently, Poker News Daily brought you the story of Brandon McSmith, who had a lawsuit pending in the Eighth District Court in Nevada charging that . Now, the FBI has become involved in the case.
McSmith told Poker News Daily that he originally created a series dubbed the “All Star Poker Challenge,” which featured five pros taking on contestants in a series of five heads-up matches. Players would win $2,000 per match and, after their fifth win, would take home a seat in the () Main Event. On “Face the Ace,” three matches were held, with a top prize of $1 million up for grabs.
McSmith explained that he’s been pursuing a copyright infringement claim in Nevada. Among those law enforcement officials he contacted was Arlo Devlin-Brown of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. McSmith commented, “This week, the FBI got in touch with me twice and asked for all of the information. They’ll be launching an investigation of the copyright infringement charges.”
Back in July, the Southern District was behind a massive $30 million seizure of online poker funds destined for 24,000 players. Banks affected by Devlin-Brown’s actions included Citibank, Goldwater Bank, Alliance Bank of Arizona, and Wells Fargo. Major sites affected included and . McSmith explained, “They’re investigating everyone. An FBI Special Agent told me to forward everything to him. I read an article about Arlo Devlin-Brown freezing the assets of online payment processors. That’s why I chose to contact him.”
Poker and PokerStars reimbursed players for bounced checks and other payment issues at the time and in some cases issued a 10% bonus to offset any hassle. Meanwhile, McSmith continues to pursue his claims of ownership of “Face the Ace.” He told Poker News Daily, “At a certain point in time, you get tired of people lying about this. These guys knew I wanted to prosecute them. In order to prosecute a copyright infringement charge, you have to know you’re right. I’m not hiding anything. I put it out there and they’re on notice. The FBI is involved and my intent is to prosecute.”
Poker PROductions brings shows like “Face the Ace,” GSN’s “High Stakes Poker,” and NBC’s “Poker After Dark” to life. Mori Eskandani is the leading man behind Poker PROductions, but according to McSmith, Eskandani has dismissed his claims. McSmith added, “They didn’t contact me. Everything they’ve said is ridiculous and it’s a lie. It’s documented in letters and e-mails.” Besides Poker PROductions, NBC and Full Tilt Poker, which sponsored the show, have been brought into the mix.
It remains to be seen if Devlin-Brown is interested in the case because of the involvement of Full Tilt Poker, the industry’s second largest site. McSmith sent e-mail correspondence and other materials to the FBI via Next Day Air on Thursday. He originally requested $85 million, but then realized that according to Nevada state law, damages over $10,000 do not require an exact dollar figure. McSmith lamented that the situation was not resolved sooner: “Everybody could have done the right thing on this and brought me in to settle it. These guys choose to conspire and lie. When they first started denying and lying about it, I wanted to get the Feds involved.
On the future steps in the process, McSmith remarked, “The first step was printing everything out and forwarding it to them. I sent it Next Day Air, so they probably won’t get it until this week. The FBI Agent also gave me his direct line.”
“Face the Ace” featured Full Tilt Poker pros and was largely a ratings flop. It debuted with a 0.4 rating and a 2 share, the equivalent of 1.59 million viewers. The series originally aired in a Saturday night time slot in August before shifting to the afternoon.
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The first female champion of the National Heads-Up Poker Championship was crowned on Sunday as UB.com pro and Poker News Daily Guest Columnist took down the title and its corresponding $500,000 top prize.
Duke defeated eight-time () bracelet winner in the finals. She was nearly sent packing against Paul Wasicka in the round of 16, but trumped pocket aces with A-10 and pocket jacks with 8-5 of diamonds to move on. Duke beat Wasicka to face 2007 WSOP Main Event winner Jerry Yang in the Elite Eight. In the five previous installments of the National Heads-Up Poker Championship, Duke had only made it out of the opening round once.
Against Yang, a bevy of all-ins occurred, as her opponent doubled up with 3-6 against K-9, pocket threes against J-7, and even A-4 against A-K. Yang was finally sent to the rails holding J-3 against Duke’s A-8. The flop came A-J-2, giving Yang middle pair and Duke top pair. The turn and river were a 10 and nine, respectively, missing Yang and handing Duke a ticket to the Final Four against 2008 WSOP Main Event November Nine member .
After falling behind, Phillips doubled up after pushing pre-flop with K-J of diamonds. Duke called with a baby ace, A-5, and watched as the flop came K-Q-6, pushing Phillips out in front with top pair. No help came on the turn for Duke and the river improved Phillips to trips. In the final hand of the battle between Phillips and Duke, the former committed his chips with A-8 and was up against pocket sevens for a race. The board fell 9-3-2-6-4 and Duke advanced to the finals. Phillips earned $125,000 for his efforts in the invite- tournament.
The finals were held in a best of three format and Duke quickly jumped out to a 1-0 lead on the pro. Seidel was all-in on a flush draw with 8-6 of spades on a board reading 7-K-J with two spades. Duke had A-K for top pair, top kicker and dodged spades on the turn and river to claim the first match against Seidel.
In the second match, a sizable pot brewed when Seidel flipped up the , 10-2, on a board of 2-8-K-2-4. Then, Seidel took down match number two after Duke committed her chips with K-5 against Seidel’s 7-8. The flop came 9-6-4 with two hearts and the five of hearts on turn gave Seidel a straight. Duke could win if a heart fell on the river, but instead a black nine hit to set up the rubber match.
In the final hand of the third match, Duke’s pocket nines held against Seidel’s A-2. Duke banked a half-million dollars for winning the 2010 National Heads-Up Poker Championship, while Seidel earned a $250,000 consolation prize. Seidel had never made it out of the first round of the unique bracket tournament.
In a two weeks ago on Poker News Daily, Duke seemingly forecasted the final match-up of the 2010 National Heads-Up Poker Championship: “Erik Seidel and I were joking that we have bad records in that event. He’s a brilliant player, but has never won a match, and I’ve won one. I don’t care who I draw; I just want to win my [first round] match.”
Here were the final payouts:
1st Place: Annie Duke - $500,000
2nd Place: Erik Seidel - $250,000
3rd Place: - $125,000
4th Place: Dennis Phillips - $125,000
5th Place: Jerry Yang - $75,000
6th Place: Doyle Brunson - $75,000
7th Place: Jason Mercier - $75,000
8th Place: - $75,000
9th Place: Paul Wasicka - $25,000
10th Place: Eli Elezra - $25,000
11th Place: Annette “” Obrestad - $25,000
12th Place: - $25,000
13th Place: Gabe Kaplan – $25,000
14th Place: - $25,000
15th Place: - $25,000
16th Place: - $25,000
A total of 13 former WSOP Main Event champions entered. Amazingly, nearly half of them, or six, made the top 16. Other former Main Event winners who played included (2009), (1996), (2005), (1987, 1988), (2000), (1989), and (2004).
You can catch the 2010 National Heads-Up Poker Championship on NBC beginning on Sunday, April 18th at Noon ET.
Image courtesy NBC Sports.
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03 7th, 2010
2009 was an amazing poker year. The first thing that jumps out at me is the continuing trend of young guys doing so well in live events. The two biggest events of the year were won by 21 year-olds. captured the () World Championship and won the () Main Event. They were the youngest players to ever win those events. By now, you must recognize that internet poker has developed a tremendous crux of terrific poker players and they continue to prove themselves in the biggest live events in the world.
I carried the torch for the old guys in 2009, the highlight being my induction into the Poker Hall of Fame on November 7th. The Poker Hall of Fame is the one area in poker that old guys have a big edge.
I am happy to point out that two well-known, experienced, high-stakes players had the best WSOP in 2009. Three bracelets and the best all-around player award went to Jeff Lisandro and poker superstar won two bracelets and made the final table of the Main Event. You have to salute both those guys.
A real buzz was created in 2009 by the nosebleed high-stakes games online. It’s difficult to follow the swings these guys take, which amounted to millions of dollars per week. These guys have moxy (a polite way of saying “balls”) that is hard to believe.
It’s always exciting to think about what’s ahead for the poker world. Here are some things I believe will happen in 2010:
1. The young guys will continue to dominate the big events in poker. I say that because the big events take at least four or five days to play and I believe the younger guys can handle those long, tough, consecutive sessions better than the older guys. Generally speaking, when stamina plays a role in something, young guys fare better.
2. The direction of online poker will finally come out of the “gray area.” I believe that legislation will finally come forth in some fashion, so we’ll know whether or not online poker will become regulated. If it’s not on the federal level, I believe you’ll see individual states, starting with California, attempt to legislate and regulate online poker.
3. More countries around the world will individually regulate online poker like Italy and France are doing. For those who may not know, those countries are legalizing online poker, but you can only play against players from your own country. This is the model I believe that individual U.S. states will follow.
4. The WPT will expand its brand worldwide with more live tournaments in more countries around the world. Party Gaming purchased the WPT, which bodes well for poker players around the world. Players can qualify online for these events at .com and, hopefully, other sites as well.
5. The enforcement of Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act () will come to an end.
6. Here’s a good thing: Far more money will be raised through poker charity events than has been in the past. PokerGives.org is designating September “Poker Charity Month,” where numerous live casinos as well as online sites will hold charity events for PokerGives.org. In my mind, benefiting worthwhile charities is a big plus for the entire poker industry and players, management, and casinos should all do more to support charity events.
7. Two players will win two bracelets at the 2010 WSOP and no one will win three. I don’t know who they will be, but I know who I’d bet on to do it.
8. I’m afraid that the trend will continue for women on the WPT. They won’t win a $10,000 buy-in or higher event in 2010. There just aren’t enough aggressive women in poker to favor them winning a WPT event. Incidentally, I hope I’m wrong about this prediction. Go ladies!
9. Two people will be inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame in 2010. The top candidates are , , Phil Ivey, , and Tom McEvoy. Who do you like?
10. Championship poker events will continue to thrive and television will continue to play a major role in bringing more players into the poker world.
Best of luck to everyone in 2010!
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Recently, gossip site TMZ reported that embattled professional golfer Tiger Woods, fresh off a highly publicized marital tiff, turned down a $75 million sponsorship offer from the online sports book, casino, and poker site Paddy Power.
As its name implies, Paddy Power makes its bread and butter off the Irish poker market. TMZ explained that the multi-faceted online outlet approached the 14-time major champion with an offer it thought Woods couldn’t refuse. TMZ recounted, “Tiger Woods just blew off a $75 million endorsement offer from an Irish gambling company – and that is how you know you’re rich.” The offer was reportedly for five years, but Woods turned down the lucrative proposition despite its long-term potential.
The news comes one day after five-time NBA champion Dennis Rodman became the official celebrity endorser of the Network site . Despite being dumped on the first round of negotiations, Paddy Power will apparently return to the bargaining table with another offer, according to TMZ. Paddy Power is a member of the massive iPoker Network, which is the fourth largest worldwide according to the traffic ranking site PokerScout.com. The network does not accept members from the United States.
Despite not accepting action from the populated North American nation, Paddy Power Poker could have used Woods’ recognition around the world to attract customers to its site. Woods has won tournaments across Europe, Asia, and Australia in addition to his domination on the links in North America. He’s arguably the most recognizable name in the world of golf.
In late 2009, disaster struck for Woods. A purported past of infidelity finally caught up to the golf superstar, leading to an infamous run-in featuring his wife Elin Nordegren, a Cadillac Escalade luxury SUV, a golf club, a fire hydrant, and a tree in front of his Florida home. As news of Woods’ crash spread around the internet like wildfire, major sponsors began questioning their relationship with the 34 year-old.
Among the first Fortune 500 companies to cut bait with Woods was Accenture, followed by AT&T, Gatorade, and Gillette. According to a study released by the University of California – Davis in late December, Woods’ extracurricular activities could have cost shareholders of associated companies between $5 billion and $12 billion. The study examined businesses including Accenture, AT&T, Electronic Arts, Gillette, Nike, Gatorade, TLC Laser Eye Centers, and Golf Digest. The study added that Woods raked in $100 million annually from endorsements, “more than any other athlete.”
Woods spoke to the media in mid-February about the incident and may return to golf. The Masters, which Woods has won four times, will kick off from Augusta National Golf Course outside of Atlanta on April 6th. He last took down the high-profile tournament in 2005.
Paddy Power Poker has a bevy of promotions taking place, including Cashpoint, whose format is similar to ’s Gladiator. Paddy Power Poker players who rack up 100 Paddy Points for 10 days or more during the month of March are eligible to win cash prizes. The site will take a player’s 10 highest earning point days during the month and match $1 for every 20 points earned on the lowest day. The minimum payout is $5 and players can also qualify for a $2,000 Cashpoint freeroll.
Other sites on the massive iPoker Network include bet365, CelebPoker, Chili Poker, Mansion Poker, Noble Poker, , , and . The publicly traded company Playtech owns and operates the network. Playtech is traded on the London Stock Exchange under the symbol “PTEC.”
Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest poker gossip on Woods and other celebrities.
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Early reports that the International Federation of Poker (IFP) would be accepted into the International Mind Sports Association (IMSA) may have been misguided, according to the Poker Black Belt Blog (pokerblackbelt.co.uk). After reports circled last month that the IFP’s acceptance into the IMSA was only a month or so away, the IFP released a statement this week denying that the membership with the IMSA was finalized and that several steps still needed to be taken before a decision was made. This means that poker in the Olympics could be further away than we hoped.
The President of the IFP, Anthony Holden, issued a press release about the inaccurate reports on Monday: “I do not know how or where these rumors started, but I must make it clear that they are premature. IMSA membership is one of IFP’s publicly declared goals, and we have put in much work towards that end over the past year. Despite very encouraging signs, however, we are not there yet.”
According to Holden, the IFP is working ardently with SportAccord, formerly known as the General Association of International Sports Federations, to become a full member. SportAccord is an organization intended to unite the world of sport and is a loyal partner of the the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
“In order for IFP to secure a ‘global’ membership and be recognized in as many countries as possible, IFP requires poker to be recognized as a game of skill – a ‘Mind Sport’ and is, therefore, planning to apply to become a member of both SportAccord and the International Mind Association,” said Holden.
The IFP’s goal was to be a full member of SportAccord and the IMSA before the 2010 SportAccord Congress in Dubai on April 30th. Holden says that the IFP will be an observer this year, but intends to have an application to be a full member ready for the 2011 Congress in London.
The IOC recognizes the IMSA, meaning that if poker were accepted into the IMSA, it could be considered an official game of skill by the IOC. Currently, the only card game to be accepted by the IMSA is Bridge. Other skill games recognized by the IMSA include Chess, Go, Draughts, and Xiangqi. The IMSA played a major role in the inaugural World Mind Sports Games, which were held in Beijing two months after the 2008 Summer Olympics.
The hope is for poker to join the IMSA and the World Mind Sports Games, gaining further ground in becoming a part of the Olympic Games. The IOC has outlined that a game or sport must be practiced by men in at least 75 countries on four continents and by women in at least 40 countries on three continents in order to be recognized. That shouldn’t be a problem considering the increasing popularity of poker over the past decade.
Poker News Daily will continue to update the IFP’s progress in the coming months.
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The field of 64 is set in the National Heads-Up Poker Championship, which will air on NBC. One of the highlights of the opening round is a titanic showdown between pros Jason Mercier and , who have both been on a hot streak.
Mercier and Negreanu made the final table of the () Europe Main Event last year. Mercier finished fourth in the £10,000 buy-in poker tournament, while Negreanu fell heads-up to CardPlayer Magazine owner Barry Shulman after entering as the short stack. Mercier and Negreanu collected £267,000 and £495,000 for their efforts, respectively. Both are bracelet winners and members of Team PokerStars Pro.
Mercier enters the National Heads-Up Poker Championship, which is emanating from Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, on a high note. Last week, the Florida native took third in the L.A. Poker Classic’s High-Roller event for $141,000. In December, Mercier won a $5,000 HORSE event during the Five Diamond World Poker Classic for $100,000. Negreanu made waves during the recent Premier League, finishing fourth at the final table. Heading into Thursday’s draw party, Negreanu Tweeted his desired first round opponent: “Headed down to Pure for the NBC HU draw party and I’m hoping to NOT draw one of the 7 qualifiers or a woman. Record going into #6 is 7-5.”
Meanwhile, two titans of the online poker industry will tangle, as 13 bracelets will meet when front man takes on UB.com bad boy . Lederer was fourth on Bluff Magazine’s Power 20 list, while Hellmuth leads the all-time bracelet count with 11. Both have crafty nicknames, as “The Professor” will take on “The Poker Brat” in a high-stakes first round encounter.
In an all-female first round showdown, Poker’s is paired up with actress . A total of seven women will make their way to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas today for first round action. Joining Harman and Tilly to add estrogen to the field are , Annette Dworski, Annette “” Obrestad, , and Kara Scott. Six women took to the field in 2009, including Rousso, who finished as the runner-up to .
Those in the hunt for the title range between 21 (Obrestad) and 76 years-old (Doyle Brunson). The tournament hits television airwaves on NBC beginning on April 18th and will run for six consecutive Sundays. The ultimate survivor of the single elimination heads-up tournament pockets $500,000, while its runner-up takes home a cool $250,000. Here’s a look at the first round match-ups in the 2010 National Heads-Up Poker Championship.
Clubs Bracket – Top Half
vs
Leo Wolpert vs Eric “basebaldy” Baldwin
vs
vs Huck Seed
Clubs Bracket – Bottom Half
Dan Ramirez vs
vs Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier
Stephen Quinn vs
Dario Minieri vs
Spades Bracket – Top Half
vs
Richard Edwards vs
Shawn “westtexasman” Rice vs
Gabe Kaplan vs
Spades Bracket – Bottom Half
Daniel Negreanu vs Jason Mercier
Pieter de Korver vs
vs Tom “” Dwan
vs
Hearts Bracket – Top Half
Jesper Hougaard vs
Eli Elezra vs Greg “FBT” Mueller
Annette Dworski vs
Kara Scott vs
Hearts Bracket – Bottom Half
Brock “t soprano” Parker vs Doyle Brunson
J.P. Kelly vs Don Cheadle
Howard Lederer vs Phil Hellmuth
Annette “Annette_15” Obrestad vs Orel Hershiser
Diamonds Bracket – Top Half
vs Vanessa Rousso
Sammy Farha vs
Jennifer Harman vs Jennifer Tilly
Jerry Yang vs
Diamonds Bracket - Bottom Half
vs Bill Huntress
vs Annie Duke
Andrew Wilson vs Paul Wasicka
vs
Rice and Huntress both qualified for the National Heads-Up Poker Championship at the host casino, while Dworski, Edwards, Quinn, Ramirez, and Wilson all won online satellites. The tournament’s first round will play out today, while the second round will take place on Saturday. The quarterfinals, semifinals, and championship match will all pan out on Sunday.
Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest from Caesars Palace.
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