February may be the shortest month, but I've long held that, indeed, size doesn't matter. As proof, we have the full slate of PokerStars tournaments played out over this weekend. February may have had the fewest days, but it was about as girthy at the end as you could've hoped...more
It's hard to imagine PokerStars Team Pro member Vicky Coren being afraid to walk into a casino poker room, but the way she describes it in her book, For Richer or for Poorer, Confessions of a Player, it seemed to her at the time like walking into a lion's den....more
So the Nottingham UKIPT was bordering on the nuts. 1058 players for a new UK live poker tournament record field and this with a 500 buy in which is not a lot in the poker world but is a lot to the casual player. I was amazed and delighted to...more
PokerStars Macau at Casino Grand Lisboa produced the biggest Macau Poker Cup (MPC) to date with record numbers throughout the week's poker festivities from February 21-27. "Asia's premiere poker series" is clearly more than a tagline as the MPC had a whopping 1,579 players compete in the 6 featured tournaments...more
Tonight was a warm-up for the Sunday Million players. No, not that Warm-Up, but more of a preparation of sorts for next week's action. For those who haven't heard, the March 6th Sunday Million plans to up the ante, so to speak, with a special $5 million guarantee. Not only...more
Think of the $1,000,000 Turbo Takedown as part of your benefits package here at PokerStars. You get your usual wage taking pots off the other players or perhaps taking down a SnG or two. Then after checking your paystub (the cashier's window), there's a listing for "Frequent Players Points" which...more
Oscar night. For some the red-carpet arrivals actually constitute the real "show," with the awarding of the little golden statues later on a less interesting formality. So, too, has the Sunday Warm-Up on PokerStars emerged as a weekly rival to that other big $215 buy-in tourney happening later on every...more
In the movies, the underdog wins, the guy gets the girl, and dreams come true despite overwhelming odds. Hollywood loves nothing more than a happy ending and it was only fitting that on Oscar Sunday, an online qualifier held his own against one of the world's best. Cast in the...more
After several months of delays, the space shuttle Discovery took to flight earlier this week on its last mission. A blast out of the earth's atmosphere to deliver supplies to the International Space Station over the next eight days bringing needs to those in space. Our flight into the cosmos...more
After one of the hardest fought heads-up matches you could wish for on the European Poker Tour, Michael Tureniec, from Sweden, has won the EPT Copenhagen, earning a first prize of DKK 3,700,000 after defeating countryman Per Linde. For Tureniec it puts to right his previous best on the...more
8.35pm: Michael Tureniec wins EPT Copenhagen and DKK 3,700,000 It's all over in the EPT Copenhagen Main Event. Having opened from the button for 375,000 Per Linde upped things to 600,000 before Tureniec shoved all-in. Linde snap called showing 7♥7♦ to Tureniec's A♠J♣. The board ran 2♣3♦5♣J♦4♣ to hand...more
7.36pm: Break time Players are on another 15 minute break. 7.35pm: Last hand of the level The level ends with Per Linde picking up another million-plus. On a board reading J♣4♠4♥T♦A♠ Linde bet 400,000 which Tureniec called, mucking when Linde showed K♣Q♣. -- SB 7.30pm: Linde doubled again Per...more
2.50pm: Break time That's the end of the level. Players are now taking a 15 minute break. 2.46pm: Three to the flop John Eames opened from the button for 85,000 which Michael Tureniec called from the small blind. Per Linde also called from the big blind. The flop came...more
A total of 449 players bought in to the EPT Copenhagen Main Event. Now, five days later, just eight remain, competing for a first prize of DKK 3,700,000. Here's how they'll line up when the final begins on Saturday at 12noon. Seat 1: Andrea Dalle Molle, 27, Rome, Italy...more
It has been another day for Swedish rejoicing at the EPT Copenhagen as three players from the other side of the bridge made it through to the final table of the main event, led from the start by the untouchable Per Linde, who bags up 4,980,000 tonight. Linde's lead...more
7.34pm: Eames knocks out Nordkvist in 9th (€29,508) Joel Nordkvist has just been knocked out to end play for the day and set the Season 7 EPT Copenhagen final table. The Swedish cash game specialist shoved for 344,000 from the small blind into John Eames on the big blind,...more
3.19pm: That's the end of the level Players are now on a 15 minute break. 3.18pm: The difference a table makes At this stage in a tournament you often find some players gunning to building a big stack while other are trying to hold on for the high profile...more
The European Poker Tour Main Event is down to just 24 players after another frenetic day of play at the SAS Radisson Hotel in Copenhagen, one that featured 49 eliminations and the emergence of a new chip leader. Per Linde leads the field tonight with 1,622,000 chips, closely followed...more
7.50pm: Bitter-sweet end to the day We're pleased that play has come to an end here on Day 3 in Copenhagen but we're very sad that it has due to the elimination of Nicolo Calia in 25th place. Helge Rahbek min-raised from the button with 2♦2♠ and called when Calia...more
PokerStars Macau at Casino Grand Lisboa is on it's way to the biggest Macau Poker Cup (MPC) ever as the first 2 events have already surpassed all expectations. The MPC runs all week from February 21-27 and already attracted 139 players for the opening Charity event. Expectations were high entering...more
More players once again in this week's Twitter Poker League game; "mikeehlers" came out on top of the 1,327 strong field and claimed $223.30 for his efforts. This 7th week of the season took just five hours from start to finish, and there was plenty of action throughout. We had...more
It's sunset a year from now and you're wearing a pair of wrap-around shades, calfskin leather driving gloves, and the smile of a driver who has nary a care in the world. You're taking a hairpin turn like you're on rails and think to yourself, "Even if I crash, I...more
6.10pm: Break time That's the end of the level. A new level, and a new post, will be starting in 15 minutes. 6.05pm: Lodden out Johnny Lodden's tournament is over, the Team PokerStars Pro eliminated by Kevin Iacofano. Iacofano had opened in early position, making it 13,500 which Lodden...more
3.25pm: DOOOONG! DOOOONG! That's the end of level bell tolling. Join us in a new post shortly by clicking the 'next' button when it appears in ten minutes. Keep bashing that refresh button. -- RD 3.21pm: The short stacked table It's just the way things go; some tables get...more
If Day 1 of the EPT Copenhagen Main Event had been a cocktail, it would be a Gimlet; fairly neat with a high sugar content, simple ingredients thrown together and shaken, with the result being a good sharpener to get things started. Day 2 on the other hand would...more
As the story goes, Archimedes stepped into a bath and noticed that for every inch of his foot that went into the water, the water level rose. It was a math thing involving volume, displacement, and such. And so Archimedes was heard to exclaim, "Eureka!" That is apparently translated to...more
Hi again, all! In my last blog, I had just finished a trip to Nassau in the Bahamas and was about to spend a few days at home in Boucherville. My next trip was then a stop in France at Deauville, for the EPT - Deauville. This small village of...more
It took a marathon session into Tuesday's nighttime hours, but the Italian Poker Tour has its latest winner. Italian Giacomo Loccarini traveled to Malta where he beat out a field of 237 players for the lion's share of the €459,780 prize pool. For his effort, Loccarini pocketed €122,000. Giacomo Loccarini...more
8.50pm: Play concludes The last six hands played out without any major incidents, fights or fire evacuations. Chip leader at the end of the day is Swedish player Michael Tureniec who bagged up 640,000. The next nearest player is fellow Swede Per Linde on 514,600. Play will continue at midday...more
PokerStars Macau at Casino Grand Lisboa launched the Macau Poker Cup (MPC) this week which runs from February 21-27. Event 1, the Charity Event, had 139 players and a prize pool of HKD $291,263 which are both new records for this long running MPC tournament. Hong Kong's Roy Wan was...more
When Viktor "Isildur1" Blom is involved in a match of any sort, people usually start using phrases like "high stakes," "nosebleed," and "OMG." For once, Blom is going to be chilling out a little and giving a PokerStars qualifier a shot at the big time. Sunday at 3pm ET, Blom...more
When I was in college I remember playing poker for a $5 buy-in with my friends and scraping together enough money between us to buy a six pack or two. None of my friends knew much about the game, so I could sometimes win enough to do my laundry that...more
Mer Brit, who plays on the PokerStars handle "peachymer" is not your everyday online poker fiend. She's a sweet Southern woman who loves photography, volunteer work and horses. The newest member of Team PokerStars Online is also a feared tournament player. PeachyMer hails from Atlanta, and describes her game as...more
5.45pm: Break time We'll be back in 15 minutes and in a new post. -- MC 5.45pm: Sunar's image Surinder Sunar's image in the poker world is that of a very tight player. This is probably why Ove Sundvor decided not to fire a third barrel at him. The two...more
2.55pm: Break time That's the end of the level. Players are on a 15 minute break. 2.53pm: Sareen not serene as pot helps Helppi Juha Helppi opened for 2,700 from the hijack and Sonny Sareen called in the cut off. The flop came A♣2♠5♣. Helppi, who cashed here last...more
"Time for the $1000 Super Tuesday on @PokerStars!" tweeted Andrew "foucault82" Brokos as the first hands of this week's event were dealt. "John Duhamel at my table," he added. "Now I can add him to the list of world champions I've played with." Indeed, sitting across the virtual felt...more
It's been an exciting day in Copenhagen; crowds of people, tension, bundles of nervous energy and stakes as high as they'll go. Yes, it's Champions League night in the Danish capital, with the local club taking on the mighty Chelsea FC of the English Premier League for a place...more
9.10pm: End of the play Domantas Klimciauskas looks to be our overnight chip leader with just over 200,000. He's from Lithuania, don't you know? Well, you do now. Full chip counts and wrap of the day's play to come. It will be entertaining, informative and maybe even educational. --...more
6.42pm: End of level It's another break and, more importantly, the opening of the buffet, which has so far proved to be superb. There's a piece of lasagne with my name on it*. -- RD * Not literally. 6.40pm: The curious case of the disappearing cards "I turned around...more
4.22pm: Break time That's the half way point. Four levels to go after a 15 minute break. -- MC 4.21pm: Trauma continues for Sykes We mused before about PokerStars qualifier Jamie Sykes' journey to make it here to play. He's probably thinking it wasn't worth it after being eliminated a...more
2.06pm: Break time The players are in their first 15 minute break of the day. 2.05pm: Action from table 28 Rasmus Nielsen was surprisingly okay after paying off Vojtech Ruzicka in a large pot. We didn't see the cards but Nielsen is down to 10,200 and Ruzicka is probably one...more
Things got under way just as we expected in Copenhagen today. A room full of players, tables stacked with chips, eight levels and no dinner break. So eight hours later it's situation normal on the European Poker Tour. While we lost 80 players the surviving 133 profited gladly from...more
9.20pm: Bagging, tagging and wrapping The last of the chips are getting bagged and tagged at the moment. Full chips and end of play wrap to come. Stay logged on for those. In fact they're available now. Go on, have a look. One player that will not be coming...more
For those who like their EPT schedules 'freshened up', then this is indeed good news: this year's EPT Grand Final has upped sticks and moved from Monte Carlo, along the French Mediterranean coast and into central Spain to Madrid. PokerStars announced today that the EPT Season 7 finale, which will...more
6.47pm: Break time That's the end of the level. Players are now on a 15 minute break. 6.46pm: Wigg rolling on Anton Wigg is looking unstoppable right now - maybe it was the massage. In a seven way pot (yes, seven players to the flop) Wigg fired 3,325 at...more
4.30pm: Break It's the halfway mark of the day as the players go on a 15-minute break. -- RD 4.24pm: Top flop for Sunar When Surinder Sunar called a bet from Peter Eastgate on the river on a A♠3♠A♦T♥2♥ board and picked up a caller behind him in the...more
2.11pm: Break time Players are taking their first 15 minute break of the day. -- SB 2.10pm: Nielsen takes the lead Claus Bek Nielsen just rocketed into what we'll assume to be the chip lead, up to 60,000 after he eliminated Carlos Batista Rodriges. With a board already showing...more
It was one of those rare Sundays that online poker was the sole focus of the day, as few major live poker tournaments required players to jet around the world. Most players were comfortably in their home surroundings, settled in for a day/night of online poker excitement. Seemingly for that...more
For the second week in a row the $750,000 Guaranteed Sunday Warm-up became a $1,000,000 prize pool. Thanks to the 5,175 players who forked over their $215 buy-ins $1,035,000 was on the table tonight to be divided by 765 lucky players and one them will be walking away with $161,905.05...more
If you spent any time inside the ballroom at the Sheraton WTC this week, it was clear that the natives had one thing on their mind-- crowning a Brazilian LAPT champion. After four seasons in the southern hemisphere, a Brazilian player had yet to bring home an LAPT title, but...more
9:38pm: Alex Manzano wins LAPT Sao Paulo in shocking final hand Alex Manzano came in for a raise to 270,000 pre-flop and Joao Neto made the call. On a 3♦2♠2♣ flop, Neto check-called a 275,000 bet. Neto then check- called a 615,000 bet on the 7♣ turn. The river was...more
The LAPT Saou Paulo event's field was bigger than any other in the four season history. Of the 536 players who started on Day 1, only remain. Five of the players are Brazilian. If one of those players should win, it will be the first time a Brazilian has won...more
Brazil is ready to make history. It announced its intentions when it packed this record-breaking tournament with its countrymen. At its beginnings, the main event was made up of 60% Brazilian people. Now, with the final table in place, Brazilians are sitting in five of the eight seats and stand...more
9:15pm: Colonese out, final table set With only a few hands left before he blinded off, Fabio Colonese got his last 110,000 in with J♣8♥. He got called in three spots. Everybody checked the Q♦7♦A♥ flop. On the T♥ turn, Leandro Csome led out and pushed everyone else form the...more
5:18pm: Break Players are now on a 15-minute break. We'll be moving into a new post on the home page. Join us there. --BW 5:13pm: Velasquez goes down to aces After cracking Gerardo Godinez's aces earlier, Crisitan Velasquez might have had it coming to him. In this case, 'twas a...more
There's a legend in the poker world called the "curse of the Day 1 chip leader." We've seen it happen dozens of times. Guy or gal runs incredibly well, bags up an insanely large stack, and goes on to spew it all off by the end of Day 2. It's...more
10:24pm: Mancini busts to end day Amos Ben's pocket queens just held up against Angelo Mancini's K♥J♦ to send Mancini out in 25th and end the day. We'll have a wrap and chip counts soon. --BW 10:13pm: Manzano catches lucky to bust Torres It doesn't seem to matter what...more
4:19pm: Break time We're now on a 15-minute break. We'll be moving on to a new post on the home page.--BW 4:17pm: Et tu, Humberto? 4:09pm: Colonese KOs two A short-stacked player open-shoved for his last 50,000 and the cutoff moved all-in behind him for about 150,000. The action...more
Bringing the World Series of Poker November 9 back to the Rio in Las Vegas each year takes millions of dollars and gratuitous amounts of media coverage. But bringing them to Foxwoods to compete in a $15,000 freeroll requires a lot of old-fashioned elbow grease and quality marketing from Bernard...more
There is big, and there is the Latin American Poker Tour event in Sao Paulo. There is huge and there is the record-breaking Day 1 of this Season 4 kick-off. There's every other event that's ever happened on the LAPT, and there's what happened today. For the first time in...more
12:01am: Done and dusted According to the tournament clock, 172 players survived Day 1 of the LAPT Sao Paulo. Our runaway chip leader is Argentina's Leandro Csome, who made a sensational run to finish up with 271,100 in chips. His closest competition appears to be Emerson Baroni, who bagged up...more
9:45pm: Break time Players are now on their last break of the night. We'll be moving on to a new post to clear the air. You'll find that on the home page. 9:42pm: Ma-ma-ma-my Baroni In case you were wondering what chip leader Emerson Baroni looks like, here's how to...more
4:15pm: Break time Players are on a 15-minute break. We'll be moving to a new post for levels 5-8. 4:07pm: Full prize pool information We now have the full payout list for LAPT Sao Paulo. You can find it by clicking that link. The R$ 2,391,630 prize pool will go...more
The Macau Poker Cup (MPC) will run next week from February 21-27, and all signs point towards yet another record-breaking week for PokerStars Macau at Casino Grand Lisboa. The Red Dragon main event now comes with a HKD $3,000,000 guarantee, and the 321-player record --set in 2010--is expected to be...more
The first season of the PokerStars France Poker Series has been a great success, and this grand final in Paris was always going to be top of the bill. So it proved, with 567 players showing up for the €2,000 buy-in tournament, generating a prize pool of nearly a million...more
It was suggested to me that I should share what life is like as the world champion of poker. I believe it's a great idea and I am very excited to share my adventures. Where to start? Winning the WSOP Main Event bracelet in November and all that followed, of...more
The day after Valentine's Day is usually full of people looking to pick up candy at a substantial discount. Those who indulged their sweet tooth a bit too much may not have been in the mood to play the Super Tuesday, but a field of 436 players signed up to...more
I don't know where to begin, so first the news: I am now a member of Team PokerStars Online. That means the site that has been my main base of operations for online poker since 2004 is now the site that I play on exclusively and will officially represent in...more
Szili001 is the Twitter Poker League champion for week 6. A total of 1,300 players turned out this Sunday the 13th of February, and although that's just a coincidence we all know how superstitious poker players can be. Those 1,300 players generated the largest prizepool this season ($1,300) and a...more
Gareth Walker has topped a UK record-breaking 1,058 field to win the UKIPT Nottingham crown and £109,000. After four gruelling days of poker and a ten-hour final table, Walker proved he was a marathon man with a sprint finish to beat Brett Angell's J♥T♦ with 6♣9♣. He hit a flush...more
4.35am: Walker flushes Angell to claim the title Walker shoved an effective 4.5 million (11.2 big blinds) with 6♣9♣ and was called by Brett Angell with T♥T♦. The flop dropped K♣3♣4♦. Walker turned round to his rail and said, somewhat hopefully: "Flush draw." The 5♣ completed that draw, as...more
2.40am: Break time Players are on a 15 minute break, the next blind level with be 150,000-300,000 ante 30,000. The chip stacks are as follows: Brett Angell: 4,345,000 Gareth Walker 5,790,000 Romano Pizzo 5,565,000 The tournament is still anyone's for the taking. -- NW 2.25am: Gareth Walker doubles through Romano...more
12.30am: Chip counts of the fantastic four Here's how the remaining riders rack up: Romano Pizzo - 7,025,000 Brett Angell - 4,560,000 Tim Bettingen - 2,125,000 Gareth Walker - 2,030,000 All four have got here in different ways, it's been an impressive grind from Walker and Angell who've rarely, if...more
9.25pm: Chips for dinner Click through to the chip count page to how the players stand at the break. Seven players left. -- RD 9.20pm: Dinner break The seven remaining players are now on a one hour dinner break. Play will restart around 10.15pm-- NW 9.15pm: David Heaton eliminated...more
The world's online poker players could breathe a sigh of relief this year as Valentine's Days fell on a Monday, freeing up the weekend before for all the online poker they wanted. The result? Lots and lots of money to buy the winners' valentines some big gifts. The biggest of...more
6.40pm: Break We've got an end of level break for 15 minutes during which we are desperately trying to sort out some kind of feed from the final table. We can't hear the announcer, TV technical issues are barring the usual PA from being used and we're not allowed...more
The day before Valentine's Day is Sunday, the biggest day of the poker week. Apologies for gifts that didn't get purchased today because of online poker, though anyone watching their significant other late into the night can likely expect an even better gift. Chocolates be damned, show poker players the...more
On this day before Valentine's Day, a total of 5,165 players showed up for the Sunday Warm-Up, together creating a lovely prize pool of $1,033,000, well exceeding the tourney's $750K guarantee. The top 765 finishers were due to split those riches, with the one left standing at the end due...more
After 12 levels and 203 knockouts, the record-breaking UKIPT Nottingham saw 12 players left standing, all with one hand stretched out on the £109,000 first prize. Like those Touch the Truck contestants in America, today was a feat of endurance just as much as it was a test of skill....more
2.55am: Overnight chip counts 12 players remain in the UKIPT Nottingham main event, amongst them there are three PokerStars qualifiers and two players who made a UKIPT final table in Season One - Mike Hill (Manchester) and Gareth Walker (Nottingham). There will be a re-draw tomorrow and play will re-commence...more
The idea of a rabbit's foot as a symbol of good luck has been around for centuries. They're carried on keychains, tucked inside coat pockets, and can be found capping cards in poker rooms around the globe. Eugene Katchalov decided to harness the legend of the rabbit's foot when...more
12.10am: Break time The 25 remaining players in the main event are on a 20 minute break, during which tournament staff will do official chip counts. Here are the latest exits: 26. Sam Macdonald, UK, PokerStars qualifier, £2,380 27. Gavin Kan, UK, £2,380 28. Justin Devonport, UK, £2,380 29. Gemal...more
9.50pm: Break It's a 20 minute break for the players as the red 500 chips are coloured up. Join us in a new post shortly. Full chip counts are taking place now. -- RD 9.45pm: Majewski runs through Fields Piotr Majewski has just doubled through Luke Fields after three-bet...more
6.48pm: End of level Players are going on an one hour dinner break. Full chip counts to come upon their return. We have 55 players left. -- RD 6.47pm: Seperated at birth? Young? Check. Grey hoodie? Check. Chipped up? Check. All three of these statements apply to both Sam...more
4.25pm: Break Time The 82 remaining players are now on a 20 minute break, during which tournament staff will colour up the redundant black 100 denomination chips and do full chip count. -- NW 4.20pm: Repeat final table chance for Walker Gareth Walker has flown under the radar here in...more
2.10pm: Bubble bursts three-way We lost three players simultaneously, according to UKIPT tournament director Toby Stone and that bursts our bubble. No grim two-hour bubble grinding here! The player I witnessed busting was Dainius Antanaitis who had just a couple of big blinds left. He got it in with...more
As the end of play draws in you usually have to ask yourself, "What's the story of the day?" Has a plucky online qualifier knocked out three big names pros to claim the chip lead? Was the play fast and brutal or slow and strategic? Today, the story wrote...more
1.40am: Big stacks As the players bagged and tagged their chips we peered over their shoulders and have compiled an unofficial top five. The top two in chips - Sam Macdonald and Luke Fields finished with more than Day 1A chip leader Dave Colclough, full chip counts will be with...more
9.55pm: Break That's the end of another level. Fifteen minutes for phone calls, toilet breaks and bar stops. Join us in a new post shortly. -- RD 9.50pm: Typical Swede Kim Holmberg, who was mentioned just below, has been chipping up aggressively to over 120,000. It's tricky to count...more
7.40pm: All together now The 363 remaining players are about to combine again for level seven. -- NW 7.25pm: Champion stuff Two time UKIPT champion Nick Abou Risk has looked comfortable all day and I just saw him four-bet to good effect. He opened to 700 from middle position and...more
4.25pm: Break It's our second break of the day and we'll be entering the twilight zone of the split dinner break in the next two levels. Half the field will fight the buffet at the end of level 5 while the other half plays level 6 and then they'll...more
2.05pm: End of level It's the first 15-minute break of the day. Just another nine levels left to play. -- RD 2pm: Freerollin' Chris Brammer finished Season 1 at the top of the UKIPT Leaderboard and won entries into all nine UKIPT events this season. That's quite some freeroll....more
It's easy to throw terms such as bigger and better around like cheap confetti but here in Nottingham something truly wonderful has happened. We had 478 players enter the £500 main event today to set the scene for Day 1B to make a UK record-breaking 1,000 player tournament. The...more
1.30am: Play is done for the day Dave Colclough appears to be overnight chipleader with 224,300, not far behind are Stuart Barnett (205,500), Carlo Citrone (203,600), Timothy Boyle (188,500) and Oluwashola Akindele (186,400) by our reckoning 100 of the 478 runners made it to day 2. The day's wrap will...more
9.57pm: Break and colour up It's a 20-minute break this time as we have a colour up of the redundant 25 chips. 9.55pm: Satnam's sat-nav still working Satnam Sandhu is still sitting pretty on 95,000 having been bounced around a couple of seats due to table breaks. In terms...more
7.45pm: End of level The field has been combined as we start level 7. Just five levels left to play today... -- RD 7.44pm: Fry on the up PokerStars snapper Neil Stoddart alerted me to a big pot involving Will Fry. The board was 5♠7♣5♣7♥T♠ and Fry had moved...more
4.30pm: Thew doing well as the break is rung in Julian Thew is up to 31,000 at the end of level four, twice what he started with four hours ago. Things aren't going so well for other known players, such as Marc Goodwin. The EPT Barcelona Season 6 runner-up...more
2.10pm: End of level The players depart for their first 15-minute break of the day, there should be four more after levels four, six, eight and ten. By Odin's beard, this is going to be a long day. -- RD 2.05pm: Schaffmann hoping to go one better than second...more
In the middle of 2010, Peter Eastgate announced he was leaving the game that made him a world champion. He left Team PokerStars Pro, stopped playing poker, and auctioned his WSOP Main Event bracelet for charity. Now, after several months on hiatus, Eastgate is ready to return to the game....more
I had an opportunity to interview Liv Boeree recently at the PCA and found her to be refreshingly candid with some really interesting insights on what it's like to be a female pro poker player, suddenly thrust into the glare of overwhelming publicity. Her San Remo win was what started...more
For most online poker professionals, the game is not about television exposure, sponsorships, or the whirlwind trips around the globe. It's a daily grind in front of computer monitors, hand cramped around a mouse, eyes falling exhausted and spent out of their skulls. It's a job, and the online pro's...more
This week's Super Tuesday follows a Super Sunday the Green Bay Packers had after winning the Super Bowl. While a fancy ring wasn't available to tonight's winner, over $90,000 was available for the 475 players who participated, with the final 54 players getting a piece of the $475,000 prize...more
Lucky Bastaa is this week's Twitter Poker League tournament champion. A smaller field than usual this week, probably due to the super bowl - 992 players turned out for the 5th week of the season. Three players also volunteered to have 300FPP bounties placed on their heads, "HAnN18AL", "iamfrmindia" and...more
The first thing that usually happens when we mention we have video of Liv Boeree is a group of 20-something males show up at our door with flat-brimmed caps and a lot of bling. They beg for a copy to take home. They usually end up getting in a fight...more
While watching the Super Bowl last night and trying to figure out how I took the wrong side of almost every bet (I correctly picked who would take the first timeout), I checked my Twitter feed to see David Aydt's status updates blowing up about "Liv Boeree"-this and "Liv Boeree"-that....more
It took all day, all night, and most of the next morning, but the Estrellas Poker Tour has its latest champion. After a marathon session that took the final table players into the morning light, Ricardo Escobar emerged as the victor. For his effort (and ability to stay awake) Escobar...more
I hibernate in January. It's a close run thing between August and January as to which month involves me doing the least. I don't really trust people who 'hit the ground running' in the New Year - I put them in the same bracket as people that go literally running...more
There aren't many people in poker who command the type of respect Eugene Katchalov gets. The man wins WCOOP bracelets. He wins WPT titles. He wins stack of cash on top of stack of cash. It's not even been a full month since Katachalov won the $100,000 Super High Roller...more
A handy online dictionary provides the primary definition for "sport" as an athletic activity requiring skill or physical prowess." But an alternative definition notes that the word means "diversion, recreation, pleasant pastime." The former could describe the annual game that many Americans watched on television as the football season came...more
American football may have taken center stage with tonight's Super Bowl and those $2.9 million for 30 seconds commercials, but online it was the Team PokerStars Pros taking the spotlight, trying to take home a Sunday Major. Tonight's $750,000 guarantee Sunday Warm-up found 4,710 players who managed to peel their...more
The sun is setting across the River Torrens as another beautiful day in Adelaide has drawn to a close. While many locals will be nestling on the couch or tucking up into bed, ready for another working week ahead, there will be a few celebrations tonight in old Adelaide town...more
Congratulations Octavian Voegele - ANZPT Adelaide champion! A big congratulations to Australian-based Austrian Octavian Voegele on a memorable victory here at the ANZPT Adelaide. After finishing third in this event last year, Voegele returned with a vengeance this year to take home the trophy and $148,900. That concludes our live...more
6:55pm: Level up With multiple breaks throughout that level, the usual scheduled break has been skipped as the players jump to the next level. 6:50pm: Play resumes Chip counts: Jesse McKenzie - 3,498,000 Ian Parnell - 775,000 Octavian Voegele - 718,000 6:40pm: Andrew Dales eliminated in 4th place Play folded...more
4:25pm: Ten-minute break A quiet end to the level as the players will be looking to take a break and re-vitalize for, hopefully, a little more action in the next session. 4:00pm: Dales hooks a double up A huge swing of chips, and a little luck, has just gone the...more
2:15pm: Ten-minute break 2:10pm: Three-bet aggression Finally we're seeing a little aggression, but we expect nothing less from Jesse McKenzie and Octavian Voegele, as they, along with Jeff Rossiter, are the most aggressive players at this final table. Andrew Dales is the player who copped the brunt of it, having...more
The 2011 PokerStars.net ANZPT Adelaide Main Event attracted a field of 253 players and after three days of intense poker on the felt of the Adelaide Casino Poker Zone, only nine remained in contention for the trophy and first place prize of $148,900. Here's a closer look at the ANZPT...more
One of the great things about the game of No Limit Texas Holdem is that any player can lose all of their chips on a single hand. One mistake, one cooler, one bad beat - that's all it takes. Even so, when we returned to the Adelaide Casino Poker Zone...more
5:05pm: Hibbott busts; Final table is set! David Hibbott blinded down to his last 48,000 before he made his final stand. Jesse McKenzie opened to 26,000 from the cutoff before Hibbott moved all in from the small blind. Danny Chevalier over-called in the big blind, and McKenzie also made the...more
4:45pm: Ten-minute break 4:40pm: Nobbs eliminated; Hand-for-hand commences Action folded around to Graeme Nobbs in the small blind who open-shoved all in, but Charles Caris made a quick call in the big blind. Nobbs: A♣T♠ Caris: A♥J♦ Nobbs was dominated and despite calls for a ten, it wasn't to be...more
2:15pm: Ten-minute break 2:10pm: More eliminations The rapid pace of eliminations doesn't appear to be slowing down any time soon as we've just lost another two players. Robert Goodwin pushed preflop with A-9 and found a caller in Oliver Grujic with pocket sixes which held on the board of 5♥Q♥2♦7♥4♥....more
Rush Rising and Dasultanz, as they are known by their screen names, have claimed the title of 2010 Champions of the U.S. and European Women's Poker League, along with the grand prize of a Ladies Luxury Event package in their choice of two beautiful and historic cities. When we checked...more
Dontcha love it when time flies? You're so busy that before you know it, the day has left you in its dust. Today was one of those days. 111 players took to the felt of the Adelaide Casino for Day 2 of the PokerStars.net ANZPT Adelaide Main Event. There was...more
After the success of Season 1 of the PokerStars Estrellas Poker Tour it was no great surprise to see Season 2 getting off to a flyer. Day 1A at Madrid yesterday saw 229 players at the tables. After nine levels just 80 of those survived to come back for tomorrow's...more
6:30pm: That's a wrap The final hands have come and gone without incident and the final 36 players are bagging up their chips. They'll return tomorrow at 12:15pm to try and reach the ANZPT Adelaide Main Event final table. Leading the way is likely to be Ian Parnell who surged...more
5:20pm: Ten-minute break 5:18pm: Will not Dunn with yet Just prior to the break Will Dunn landed a big double up through Leo Boxell. Dunn opened to 9,000 before Boxell re-raised to 34,000. Dunn moved all in and Boxell made the call with 8♠8♣ but for the second time today...more
3:10pm: Ten-minute break 3:00pm: Yann rockets to the top PokerStars Player Yann Dion has jumped towards the top of the chip counts with the elimination of American Jay Houston. It was Houston's pocket sixes up against Dion's pocket aces, but a third ace on the flop was more than enough...more
1:00pm: Ten-minute break 12:58pm: Putt doubles again As most of the players were heading off to their break, Graeme Putt was busy doubling up. He did it with K♥K♦ against the 2♠2♥ of Alec Smith as two other players claimed to have folded pocket pairs. Smith couldn't find a deuce...more
111 players will return to the felt of the Adelaide Casino for Day 2 of the PokerStars.net ANZPT Adelaide Main Event. Here's how they will lineup for Day 2: Table 1 Seat 1: Vince Moro (Australia) - 5,275 Seat 2: Mat Cheer (New Zealand) - PokerStars Qualifier - 38,850 Seat...more
One of the great things about Adelaide in February is the beautiful warm weather. While the days can be kinda hot, the evenings produce a gorgeous mild warmth that is best enjoyed with a refreshing ale or three, or a little al fresco dining in one of the many popular...more
7:45pm: Bag, tag and depart That's a wrap from the Adelaide Casino Poker Zone as Day 1b of the 2011 PokerStars.net ANZPT Adelaide Main Event is done. Octavian Voegele will be our chip leader with over 150,000 with PokerStars qualifier Alec Smith and Eric Assadourian the likely only other players...more
5:35pm: Ten-minute break 5:32pm: Assadourian takes one out It's great to see Eric Asssadourian back on the poker felt, and he's making the most of it after recently eliminating Brett Daphne in a big preflop clash. It was Assadourian's J♣J♠ racing with Daphne's A♥K♥ with the board bricking out Q♣9♥6♦Q♦6♥....more
3:25pm: Ten-minute break 3:15pm: Finding voice PokerStars sponsored player Paul "The Voice" Khoury is now up to 42,000 in chips - clearly harnessing the power of Tony Hachem and Brendon Rubie after stealing the nametags that the casino have issued to each player. Khoury recalled to us following a raise...more
1:15pm: Ten-minute break 12:55pm: Curly straightened Peter Aristidou opened with a raise to 425 from early position before Emanuel Seal added another 1,000 to the bet from the small blind. Aristidou made the call and they went to a flop of 7♣4♣A♦. Both players checked and the J♣ hit the...more
The 2011 season of the Women's Poker League will begin on February 7, with a focus on helping women learn the game in a friendly, no-stress environment. With low buy-ins, league competition, freerolls and an opportunity to win a PokerStars Women Live Event package for the winner, it's the perfect...more
The action for Season 2 of the PokerStars Estrellas Poker Tour begins tomorrow (Thursday) in Madrid. The four-day event, with a €1,000 buy-in, starts at 4:30pm. Players can still buy into the €910 + €90 tournament in person at the Gran Madrid Casino before Day 1B on Friday. Also on...more
It seemed like forever, but the wait was finally over as Season 3 of the PokerStars.net Australia New Zealand Poker Tour had arrived. It was worth the wait as the tour kicked off in style at the Adelaide Casino Poker Zone for the $2,400 ANZPT Adelaide Main Event. This event...more
The first day of February gives players a chance to hit the refresh button if they've had a bad start to their year as another month of major tournaments on PokerStars kicked off with the Super Tuesday. Tonight's tournament drew a field of 401 players creating a $401,000 prize...more
Hola, fellow girly players. This is my first blog for the PokerStars Women site, and I have to say I'm super excited for women this year. This is a fantastic opportunity for all of us. I know many of you are superstar players that don't need any help whatsoever, but...more
7:30pm: Day 1a is in the books That wraps up play here on Day 1a of the ANZPT Adelaide Main Event. Approximately 50 players have made it safely through to Day 2 with Jesse McKenzie a runaway chip leader with 181,325 and nearly double that of the next best which...more
5:20pm: Ten-minute break 5:00pm: Karamalikis goes with his gut Some players just seem to have a sixth sense for this game of poker. Having the nerve to pull the trigger or going with your read is not a skill that can be easily taught. For Jonathan Karamalikis it just seems...more
3:10pm: Ten-minute break 3:05pm: Huang out Just prior to the break, Team PokerStars Pro Bryan Huang lost his battle with his short stack. Huang squeezed with J-8 but Graeme Putt looked him up with pocket eights. The board bricked out and Huang's day was over. 3:00pm: Scott runs into quads...more
1:00pm: Ten-minute break 12:50pm: The numbers game It looks like we're going to get over the 100-player mark today which bodes well for the tournament to get close to last year's field of 236 entrants. Of course that event did have a buy-in of $3,000, and this year's event has...more
1,203 players took part in this week's league game, generating the largest prizepool of the season and a first place prize of $205.41. As per usual we had four players volunteer to be bounty players, but one of them failed to register in time we were left with just three....more
Season 2 of the Estrellas Poker Tour is about to kick-off in Madrid and to match the occasion PokerStars is proud to announce the new Spanish Poker Awards which will recognize the top performances during the season 2 of Estrellas Poker Tour. There are 8 awards up for grabs: Estrellas...more
A major snowstorm was headed for Philadelphia exactly when I was scheduled to leave for the Bahamas. In a panic, I called the airline to change my flight: "There's a sixty percent chance your flight will be cancelled, to change it will cost $500...but if you wait an hour, we...more
A new year is upon us and it brings with it the dawning of a new season of the PokerStars.net Australia New Zealand Poker Tour. In 2011 the ANZPT promises to be bigger and better than ever before with more stops, bigger fields and massive prize pools. Once again the...more
After winning the World Series of Poker, a small final table you may have heard about last November, Team PokerStars Pro Jonathan Duhamel could be forgiven for taking things a little easy, perhaps planning what to do with his $8,944,138. Instead, the Canadian has hardly been home, preferring to head...more
To contact the PokerStars Blog team, simply email blog@pokerstars.com. To subscribe to the PokerStars Blog RSS feed, click here.
PokerStars has special offers running all year round, with cash prizes, seats to the best live events and much more.
Qualify for the biggest live poker events in your region and around the world, with freerolls and satellite qualifiers running now.
