ESPN Coverage of the '09 Series

I'm really disappointed with the changes.
The poker viewing public is getting screwed.
In years past they have shown at least
a few episodes of non-NLHE games
throughout the series but not in 2009.

There will only be a total of 4 events shown
over 32 hours of broadcasting (31 episodes).
Of course, the Main Event gets the most attention.
Each of the 4 M.E. Day 1's will get 2 hr episodes,
followed by coverage of thinning the field.

The other 3 events are first timers.

The 40th Anniversary $40,000 NL Hold’em
will be the first major tournament this year
and the first to be broadcast.
I think we'll see every internet kid with
a big ego pony up the $40k for this one,
so a field eclipsing 300 players is possible.
Having said that, the logic of having this
monster event at the start of the series
escapes me. When Harrah's makes their
money from the juice on these tournies,
why would they risk busting players at
the start. This event should be played
between the $50k HORSE and the ME.
Give some people a shot at winning
some money in the early events so they
will take a shot at the $40k NL.

The $40k will be followed by the new
WSOP Champions Invitational which
will have a "field built for TV".
Dont confuse this with the Tournament of
Champions that Mike Sexton used to run.
This new event will probably disappoint.
To quote Mike Matusow, "Its just stupid,
especially since half the people who've
won the World Series are dead or are just
complete jokes of a poker player. I mean
you're gonna have (Robert) Varkoni there ?
Out of the 25 who've won maybe 10 or 12
are great players."

The other event showing up on ESPN will be
the Ante Up For Africa Celebrity Charity Event.
A $5,000 charity event that attracts top pros
as well as celebrities playing poorly. Great TV !
Well...maybe not. If you prefer watching Ben
Afflack and Eva Longoria play poker I guess
this is your event.

WSOP Fantasy Pool on FTP

Its that time again !
Full Tilt Poker is running a
WSOP Fantasy Poker contest.
Pick a 15 man team for each event.
Get your selections in soon.

I won half a dozen hats and
entries into freerolls last year.
In the freerolls I won a couple of
$215 tournament entries.

Its definitely worth your time to fill
out your best picks for some events.

WSOP Gaming Expo

WSOP Ggaming Expo Gets Rebranded

The lifestyle expo that supports the annual World Series of Poker events is to have a remake this year. Out goes the old 'Gaming Lifestyle Expo' to be replaced by a more upbeat branding 'PokerPalooza'.

Commenting on the change, Ty Steward, marketing director for the WSOP, said: "It's going to be part trade show, part carnival, all fun. "Visitors to the poker spectacular in Las Vegas this year will find PokerPalooza in the Rio Pavilion in the Rio Convention Center between July 2-5.

This year the exhibit is split into several interactive zones with something to offer new poker players as well as those that have been in the game for years. The zones are:

Poker Media

Poker Education

Arcade

Poker Retail

Poker Circuit

WSOP History

"Lap of Luxury"

"Bad Beat Bar"

Food/Beverage

There will be a wide selection of poker wares and services on display, and celebrities will be present for autograph signings. In the past there have been novelty chip sellers, poker bobble heads, poker rooms and more.This year there is also expected to be autograph and book signings, together with useful seminars conducted by a number of poker champs. On weekends between May 30 and June 28, Rio will host exclusive strategy seminars with Doyle Brunson and Mike Caro. Meet and greets with Brunson and Caro will also take place July 2 through July 5.

The more adventurous will also find a mechanical bull courtesy of Stoney's, the Richard Petty Driving Experience, sumo-wresting suits and several carnival-style games....and a hot dog eating competition.

PAD - Hellmuth Bashing, hehehe

Here's a good reason to stay up until 3:05 am !

This week's Poker After Dark sched says:

Week of May 4
(Hellmuth Bash Cash Game I)
Phil Hellmuth, Kenny Tran, Phil Laak,
Antonio Esfandiari, Tom Dwan, Bob Safai

The following week it's Hellmuth Bash II

New TV Show - Face the Ace

from www.bluffmagazine.com

The company that produces NBC’s
Poker After Dark will mix everyone’s
favorite game with reality television
when Face The Ace premiers this summer.

Poker Productions, the company responsible
for the late night hit for NBC, is betting
that poker fans nationwide will tune in to
Face The Ace when the poker reality show
debuts in August. Hosted by Steve Schirripa
(”The Sopranos”), the show will center on
contestants drawn from online qualifying
tournaments who play heads-up no limit
hold’em against poker pros.

Each contestant will start off by choosing
one of four doors, behind each of which lies
a pro player. If the contestant wins his
match against the first pro, he’ll have to
make a choice: take the money and run, or
let it ride and play against another pro?
Beating three pros in a row will be worth
$1 million, but a loss means a trip home
empty-handed.

NBC Universal TV executive VP Jerry Petry
told Variety that the network had picked up
an initial run of seven episodes, with the
option of ordering more if the show succeeds
in its Saturday afternoon time slot.

“There’s nothing like it on the air right now,”
Petry said. “This will attract the core poker
fans who watch it on our network but will
also open it up to a new audience of people
who like game shows and aren’t necessarily
poker fans going in.”

In addition to a different format - the players
will play against pros, not other amateurs -
Face The Ace will also have the benefit of
being one of the big four television networks
with its national audience. Poker fans will
get their first taste of the show on
Saturday, August 1, at 9 p.m. ET

You can take a shot at qualifiing for the
show by entering freeroll tournaments at
Full Tilt. Look in the SIT N GO section
(not in Tournaments like 90% of the stories say).
They are tan coloured freerolls with 180
or 360 players.

In case you missed it, Joan Rivers

Here's a quick video of Joan Rivers
telling what she thinks of Annie Duke
and ALL other poker players on
Celebrity Apprentice.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fAevP8aZVs

.

Casey Reese Passes Away

It's been a while since my last post
and it's unfortunate that this is
what brought me back today.


Casey Reese, the son of the late
Chip Reese, has passed away from
an overdose of prescription drugs.
The loss comes about 16 months
after his father Chip, suddenly
died on December 4th, 2007 .

My condolences go out to the entire
Reese family.

Blue Water Classic

The big tournies at Point Edward
Casino (Sarnia) are fast approaching.
All events sell out, so if you're
interested, best lock up a spot soon.


Blue Water Classic * $150 + $20
No Limit Holdem
120 seats 82% full
Wednesday Mar 25, 2009
Est. Prize Pool: $18,000


Blue Water Classic * $300 + $35
120 seats 50% full
Thursday Mar 26, 2009
Est. Prize Pool: $36,000

Blue Water Classic * $600 + $70
Main Event Day 1
120 seats 35% full
Friday Mar 27, 2009
Est. Prize Pool: $144,000

Blue Water Classic * $600 +$70
Main Event Day 2
120 seats 55% full
Saturday Mar 28, 2009
Est. Prize Pool: $144,000

Rules, Blind Structure and
Prize Pool Allocation here:

https://www.olgpoker.com/calendar/index.cfm

The beats continue (no music)

My shitty luck on Full Tilt
this week continues seamlessly.

Satellite tournament.
Final Table.
2 get entry, 1 gets cash.

I have KK in cutoff.
Raising all around which
ends with 4 of us all-in preflop.
My KK is up against.
AJ, AJ, AQ.

Flop is rags + the case Ace.

Atleast I'm not alone.



.

A busy Sunday for Poker on TV

This coming Sunday (March 1st)
will have some of us poker junkies
setting the PVR or flipping channels
at a rapid rate.

Besides a brand new season 7
WPT show on FSN, there's first episode
of High Stakes Poker season 5 on
The Gameshow Network at 9pm.
(previous seasons repeats run 6pm-9pm) .
Also at 9pm, NBC has Celebrity Apprentice II
which has Annie Duke on the womens team.
At 10pm, ESPN2 will show the final table
of the World Series of Poker Europe.

I guess I'll be glued to the tv all night.

Hansen vs. Jorgensen

On Saturday afternoon, the much

anticipated boxing match between

Gus Hansen and Theo Jorgensen

went off without any serious injury.

Hansen had placed a handicap on

himself in the match. If Gus won,

Theo would pay him $25,000. If

Theo won, Gus would pay $35,000

After 3 rounds, the fight went to the

judging panel who decided in the

favour of Jorgensen.

BDPS funny quote

I'm not exactly a fan of the
Best Damn Poker Show which
features two of my least favourite
poker pros... Annie Duke and
Phil Hellmuth.

I didn't see more than bits and
pieces of a couple episodes of
season 1 last year. I've only done
slightly better with season 2 of
the show. I've watched 2 full
episodes of this info-tainment
poker based reality show. But....
it has provided me with some
hearty laughs.

Phil and Annie were sitting
behind their podium discussing
and analyzing how their teams
were perfoming in the tournament
so far... and then it got ugly.

Annie (to Phil): "You're like a
cancer that rots your soul".

Phil's response: "Any other guy
in the world who was paired with
you for 3 days would have gotten
a gun by now".

Trump Seeks Bankruptcy Protection

Trump Entertainment Resorts has
filed under Chapter 11, which is the
third time the casino operator has
sought bankruptcy protection.

The filing had been anticipated since
the company missed a $53.1 bond
payment due in December.

Both Donald Trump and his daughter
Ivanka tendered their resignations
from the company's Board of Directors
just days before the filing.

Trump operates 3 casino properties in
Atlantic City NJ, the Trump Taj Mahal,
Trump Plaza and Trump Marina.

Atlantic City has been hit hard by
both the poor economy and increased
competition from Pennsylvania.

Trump isn't the only operator having trouble
in AC. Atlantic City gambling revenue was
down an average of 7.6% in 2008, with
December's revenue down almost 19%.
Casino operators, including MGM Mirage
and Pinnacle, have postponed four major
casino construction projects in the city.
The Tropicana is about to be sold in
bankruptcy court, and both Resorts and
the Atlantic City Hilton are trying to
restructure debt agreements with lenders.

Bad Beat of the Day

It didn't occur at the poker tables.
It was on The Price is Right.
Showcase showdown at the end
of the show. First player missed
their showcase by only $270.
Second player missed the price by
only $116 and won both showcases.

To be so close to the price and have
your opponent come closer is a
bad beat.

Good Ol' PokerStars

I was home alone dogsitting tonight,
a perfect time to log some online
poker hours, earn some frequent
player points, and maybe even make
a few bucks to take with me to Vegas.

Decided to play some NL cash on
PokerStars, something I haven't done
in quite a while. I mostly play my cash
games on Full Tilt. About all I've used
my Stars account for lately is to play the
Elite Poker Tour (http://www.elitepoker.ca/)
events on Friday nights and the odd
big Sunday tournament.

I figure I should be able to handle 4 tables.
I didn't want to take on more than that
right away since I find the P-Stars graphics
a little harder on my eyes than Full Tilt.
I get on the waiting list for 6-7 tables.

First table pops up and I get it tiled
just the way I like it.

Second hand, I get dealt KK in the
cutoff. Couple of limpers so I
make it 6 big blinds. Small blind
raises me by about the pot.
All others fold. I pop it enough
that he has to fold or get it all in.
He shoves and turns over TT.
I'm 80% to win, he's a 4:1 dog.
Turn is a T. He wins. I go broke.

I start cursing. " F*ckin' PokerStars ".

A few years ago when I was trying to
grind out a bankroll at the $0.05/0.10
and $0.10/0.25 tables, I went through
several rough stretches of bad beats
where I just got pounded. Suckout after
suckout. Nut flushes were no guarantee.
Full houses were no guarantee. Sets were
continually drawn out on the river.
It got to the point where I referred to
any suckout (even in live games) as
"getting Poker Starred".

I guess this beat tonight caught me
off guard since I went broke in only
the second hand.

I told P-Stars in a very harsh voice
(they can hear me yelling through
my moniter, you know) ...
"F*ck you ! I'm not reloading.
I'm going to sit out and take up a space.
You're not going to earn any rake until
you kick me off after a couple orbits."

This threat did not go unnoticed by the
software at P-Stars. My seats at the
other 3 tables got incredibly hot.
Within about 10 minutes I not only
had my money back, but had a profit
going on all 3 tables (about 40%).

I wish I had figured out this secret to
getting lucky on P-Stars a few years ago.

Great Dane Television

Gus Hansen is starting his own
online TV channel on February 21st.

www.GusHansenTV.com.

What kinds of things will we get to
watch ? We'll likely see some of the
high-stakes action Gus plays in at FTP.
Other than that, the only thing scheduled
for gus tv so far is a boxing match featuring
Gus against Theo Jorgensen which is taking
place during the EPT Copenhagen events.

Gus and Theo have a prop bet

on who will win, $35,000 vs $25,000.

Current Odds:
Theo Jorgensen is -285 fave
Gus Hansen is +200 dog.
Gus Hansen wins by knockout: +2600
Theo Jorgensen wins by knockout: +850
Match ends in draw + 1400

PAD Nerd-O-Rama

Is it just me, or is this possibly the

most boring week of PAD ever ?

Oli Nejad summed it up pretty well.
" 6 geniuses + 1 math problem = 4 aspirin"

I've always wanted to over hear geniuses

disgussing geometric proofs and proofs

by induction. .... Not !

The "Brilliant Minds" have so much potential.
Unfortunately for the audience, these guys
show that being extremely math smart
doesn't often combine with being a

conversational, social animal.

This could easily be called:
"Revenge of the Nerds Week".

The only semi-entertaining guy with

some personality is David Sklansky,

and he was knocked out first.

Hostess Leanne Tweedan has some how

gotten the idea that these "math pros"

are doing sophisticated algebra and

calculus equations in their heads while
the rest of the world is asking the

magic 8-ball whether to call or fold.

Sklansky even explained to her that

everyone can figure out pot odds and

the percentage of times your hand

will hold up. That's not what makes

these "math" guys special.

Its GAME THEORY !

Atleast I have something to look

forward to. Next week (Feb 16) it's the

"Nets" versus "Vets" cash game with

Taylor Caby, Cole South, Gabe Kaplan,

Dave Benefield, Doyle and Eli Elezra

Heads-Up Practice

... and a chance to enter a big
televised tournament.

Both FullTilt and PokerStars have
freeroll satellites for the National
Heads-Up Championship in Vegas.

Its a great chance to practice your
heads-up skills. Its something almost
everyone needs to polish up on.

I've finished somewhere between
3rd and 10th countless times,
but cant seem to crack the
final four (out of 256).

I'll keep trying.

PPT Online Tx Update

The lower buy-in NL Holdem K/O
tournaments have been a big success !

We're going to extend that buy-in
and format to our other nights.
We've had as many as 17 players !

Mondays 7pm, $3 + .50, Bounty NLH
Tuesdays 7pm, $3 + .50, Bounty NLH
Wednes 7pm, $3 + .50, Bounty NLH
Thursdays 7pm, $3 + .50, Bounty NLH
Fridays 7pm, $3 + .50, Bounty NLH

These new events will start Feb/6/09.

Everyone is Welcome !

The buy-in for the KnockOut tournament
is $3 + $0.50, with $2.40 going to the
prize pool and $0.60 paid as a bounty
every time you Knock another player out.

To locate our tournaments, click the
"Private" tab in the tournament lobby.
Password is " PPT "

Sign up for a new Full Tilt Poker
account using bonus code PPT.

High Stakes Poker, Season 5

GSN has started running commercials
for the upcoming season of HSP.

Season 5 premieres Sunday, March 1st.

I'm so excited ! HSP is probably
my favorite show on television.

Taping was done December 19-21 at
the Golden Nugget in Las Vegas.

The upcoming season will have a
minimum cash buy-in of $200,000,
which is the largest to date.

Prospective Lineup:

Daniel Negreanu

Doyle Brunson

Phil Hellmuth

Eli Elezra

Antonio Esfandiari

Tom Dwan

Dario Minieri

Howard Lederer

Peter Eastgate

Ivan Demidov

Barry Greenstein

Sam Simon

Giorgio Medici

Ilari Sahamies

Phil Laak

Patrik Antonius

David Benyamine

Bob Safai

Nick Cassavetes

Mike Baxter

Filming on Friday December 19th featured

Doyle Brunson, Dario Minieri, Phil Laak,

Tom “durrrr” Dwan, Eli Elezra, Mike Baxter,

Alan Meltzer, and David Peat.

Saturday’s action features Daniel Negreanu,

Joe Hachem, Howard Lederer, Patrik Antonius,

Antonio Esfandiari, Sam Simon, Tom Dwan,

& Nick Cassavetes.

Sunday’s table will include Peter Eastgate,

Doyle Brunson, Ivan Demidov, Phil Ivey,

Barry Greenstein, David Benyamine, and

Ilari Sahamies.

Although that is the order in which the tables were

filmed, GSN may not necessarily air the episodes

in that particular order.