Gambling Poker 24/7
$750 000 POKER BANK-BOOSTER FOR SEIDEL
2011-03-07
Poker veteran wins 2011National Heads Up Poker Championship
Veteran poker pro Erik Seidel (51) was the centre of attraction over the weekend at Caesars Palace, where he took down the 2011 National Heads-Up Poker Championship and added an impressive $750 000 to his career winnings.
The event saw 62 invited poker mavens facing off in a series of heads up matches. It was the fifth time that Seidel competed – previously with little success.
In the final heads up clash Seidel battled it out with Chris Moneymaker - regarded by many as the man who put internet poker on the map back in 2003 – in a best-out-of-three competition.
Seidel, who was runner up in the tournament last year, when Annie Duke took the honours, has had a successful year so far. Ranked 11th at the start of 2011, he has triumphed in the $250,000 buy-in Super High Roller tournament at the Aussie Millions and the $25,000 buy-in High Roller tournament at the Los Angeles Poker Classic, bringing his career total to $14.6 million.
Moneymaker, whose runner-up prize was worth $300 000, was generous in his tribute to Seidel “I tried everything,” he said. “I tried to check-raise, I tried to bluff him, I tried to trap him. He’s just a true champion.”
In order to face Seidel in the final, Moneymaker had to get past the 2010 World Series of Poker champion Jonathan Duhamel, whilst Seidel reached the final by defeating Internet whizz Andrew Robl.
The often enthralling championship will be screened by NBC starting mid-April.
NBC starts airing round-by-round coverage of the event on Sunday, April 17. For once, Seidel will look forward to watching it.
EPT MAIN EVENT SURVIVORS NOW DOWN TO 129
2010-10-04
But plenty of firepower in this field
The 2010 Pokerstars European Poker Tour Main Event rolled on in London Friday, with the 348 players from the Day 1 flights reduced to just 129 and the cash bubble popped; every player is now guaranteed at least GBP 7,500.
Despite many big names falling during Day 2 there is still some impressive talent in the field, all well behind million chip plus leader David Vamplew and his nearest rival, Christopher Tighe (912 000).
Still in the hunt for the GBP 900 000 main prize are Phil Ivey, Arnaud Mattern, Daniel Negreanu, John Juanda, Joe Hachem, Greg Raymer and celeb player Teddy Sheringham.
Saturday should see the field reduced further to around 24 players, and Sunday the final table.
848 hopefuls entered for the event, generating a prize pool of GBP 4,112,800.
PPA SPEAKS AT INTERNET FREEDOM SEMINAR
2010-07-26
Pro player Andy Bloch uses skills from his Harvard days to put online poker’s case
Pro poker player Andy Bloch used skills learned during his education at Harvard Law School to put forward the case for legalised online poker at an Internet freedom seminar in Las Vegas this week.
Andy was representing the Poker Players Alliance at the Netroots Nation 2010 event, and addressed the discriminatory nature of US gambling law in banning online poker. The PPA, which boasts over a million members across America, sponsored the seminar.
Netroots is a pivotal event for those committed to progress, freedom of the Internet and open public policy debate.
In a pre-seminar statement issued by the PPA, Bloch said: “Americans enjoy the game of poker no matter their political stripes, and can watch games on countless television channels.
“We need to make sure that both politicians and activists are aware of the ridiculous attempts to prohibit online poker. They are forgoing billions in tax revenue when our budgets are most in need, rejecting the opportunity to properly regulate online poker, and ignoring their responsibility to protect children and other vulnerable members of our society.”
During the seminar Bloch detailed the discriminatory nature of US laws when it came to internet poker, and the current state of play in legislative terms, noting that gambling is legal in at least one form or another in 48 states, where governments raise significant revenues from gambling taxes.
Yet despite this, federal laws penalise online gambling through the UIGEA, a flawed financially oriented law passed in a late night session just before a Congressional recess, attached to the coat tails of a must-pass security bill, he said.
In his address, Bloch asked the rhetorical question why the public should be concerned at the Internet bans and their discriminatory nature when it came to internet gambling. He explained that the bans attacked the basic freedom of the internet, and their discriminatory nature sets an unfortunate precedent whereby lawmakers might arbitrarily pick some other popular internet activity to be given similar treatment, diluting further the liberty of the internet.
FRENCH SUCCESS FOR PARTY GAMING AND POKER STARS
2010-06-28
Two of the industry’s major operators score French licensing.
The French gambling regulator ARJEL has released its second list of new licensees, which features two of the online gambling industry’s major operators, Party Gaming and Pokerstars.
The following were the companies successful in this second wave of licensing:
LIL Managers Ltd (FriendBet.fr): sports betting
Reel Malta Ltd (PokerStars.fr): poker
Electraworks SAS (PartyBets.fr , GameBookers.fr, PartyPoker.fr, ActPoker.fr, LuckyJeux.fr): poker, sportsbetting
Gaming Iliad SAS (Chilipoker.fr): poker
Partouche Gaming France SAS (Partouche.fr): poker
Party Gaming announced its success in achieving licensing, noting that it now has authority to operate online poker and sports betting websites for residents in France. The group can offer sports betting immediately and will offer poker on Partypoker.fr/ when the market is opened, which is expected to be later this month.
The group is to launch five French-facing networks and sites involving Party Poker and its Party Bets and Gamebookers sports betting brands, along with the LuckyJeux.fr domain, its poker partnership with PMU.
Party Gaming’s statement reminded the market that it has previously signed three exclusive B2B deals this year to form a significant French poker network with PMU, the country’s largest pari-mutuel horse racing company, AB Groupe, a leading TV broadcaster, and Aviation Club de France, one of France’s most prestigious card rooms and private members clubs. This network will now benefit from pooled poker player liquidity that will be provided by Partypoker.fr/
DWAN’S SEE-SAW
2010-05-06
Online poker’s quintessential high stakes poker player has a roller coaster career
The ‘mountain and valley’ style action of online high stakes poker aces is avidly watched by legions of Internet railbirds – none more so than the inscrutable Tom ‘durrr’ Dwan.
After ending last year in a disastrous decline of around $5.5 million and well into a ‘valley’ phase, Dwan persevered, coming right in the early months of 2010 and soaring into a mountain climb that saw multi million dollar wins in February, March and April to become this year’s top earner thus far.
His heads up clashes against the likes of the mysterious Isildur1 and the redoubtable Ilari Sahamies have become almost legendary in 2010, but the month of May has not been kind.
Dwan has come off his heater on the Internet nosebleed tables at Full Tilt in the last week it appears, losing $2.5 million in a matter of days in heads-up matches – much of it against jungleman12 and Phil Ivey.
Last Saturday Dwan played a marathon 8 400 hands, the vast majority of them against jungleman12 on $200/$400 NLHE, and dropped close to $600 000. The same day he clashed with international ace Phil Ivey on several $500/$1 000 PLO nosebleed tables, dropping another $420 000 or more.
It’s anyone’s guess whether we’re in for another tour of the valleys, or a return to the peaks.
The top Finnish player, Patrik Antonius has seen similar swings in fortune, starting 2010 with a series of disastrous losses that saw him $4 million or more in the hole, but in recent weeks fighting back into the black against players of the calibre of Dwan, Phil Ivey, Ilari Sahamies, Gus Hansen and Cole South.
BETFAIR BACKS AMATEUR POKER
2010-02-22
Giant online betting exchange to sponsor season four of APAT
The giant UK-based online betting exchange group Betfair is to sponsor the fourth season of the Amateur Poker Association and Tour (APAT), it announced this week.
The Association boasts a membership of over 20 000, and its APAT event hosts 28 live tourneys in the United Kingdom and Ireland, along with three competitions in Europe.
Betfair Poker will be the exclusive online qualifying home for APAT, and will also host the APAT National Online Championship and League fixtures.
247GamblingPoker.com has the most extensive listings of poker sites you can find, whether you're looking to play for fun or put some serious chips on the table.
Find the best poker games on the web and read our expert advice to hone your skills and rake in cash the next time you enter a game, check out 247GamblingPoker.com.