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Daily 3-Bet: Hole-Card Mafia, Señor Gus, Czech Poker Hope Vojtech

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The PokerListings Daily 3-Bet is a soil-free, hydroponic garden that is sure to increase the yields of your mid-afternoon poker news harvest.

You can always fire suggestions for future 3-Bet pieces in the comments section below.

In today’s Daily 3-Bet we’ll take a look at an extraordinary story about an enterprising card counter, a new look for Gus Hansen and the great Czech poker hope Vojtech Ruzicka.

1) Miss Brown Beats Vegas

The house always wins. Except when it doesn’t.

Ivey2
Another famous advantage player.

Whenever someone manages to beat the casino it makes for a compelling read and Michael Kaplan’s recent Thrillist piece about an anonymous woman named “Miss Brown” is a doozy.

It’s got everything you want from such a tale including the obligatory beating Blackjack for hundreds of thousands of dollars, getting shit-canned by casino security, going busto, DEA agents and jail.

Heck, Miss Brown was even part of a team called the Las Vegas Hole-Card Mafia.

There’s even a little something for poker players as Miss Brown frequented Aria’s Ivey Room for a period of time:

The stakes, $200/$400, no limit, were huge; players would win or lose six figures in a night. I found people to take half of my action and went on a terrible losing streak. Over the course of a year I dropped $500,000. Half of that was my own money and the other half belonged to people who were backing me. I played well but I ran bad. Financially, I was in way over my head. I was not properly rolled for a game so big.

Do yourself a favor and head over to Thrillist to read the entire article.

2) Gus Hansen Brandishes New Look at Aria

We just can’t quit you, Gus Hansen.

The Great Dane was sadly absent from the WSOP this year but he’s finally made it out to Vegas for the booming cash games post-WSOP.

Hansen took a seat next to Daniel Negreanu at Aria and Kid Poker snapped a shot of Hansen’s new look.

Some porn star from the 70's just sat down in the big game at Bellagio. Never seen him before. Anyone? pic.twitter.com/rUPHLd7oDb

— Daniel Negreanu (@RealKidPoker) August 6, 2016

Awesome.

Negreanu thinks he’s got a 70s pornstar vibe going on. We’re thinking he could be the first Danish Mariachi musician. What say you?

3) Vojtech Ruzicka Hopes to Stop Looming Czech Poker Ban

There are a lot of great stories in the 2016 November Nine but only one of them could potentially save online poker in an entire country.

We’re talking of course about Voljtech Ruzicka who is hoping the fame he receives from making the N9 could help stave off the looming poker ban in the Czech Republic.

Here’s hoping.



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Brammer, Kozlov, Nitsche Get Busy Winning on 888poker Sunday

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With the World Series of Poker now in the rear view poker players worldwide are back at the online tables in force again.

The Sunday majors on 888poker in particular are picking up speed and prize pools have grown to six-figure numbers.

This past Sunday some notable pros made their mark as 888poker Team Pro Dominik Nitsche made a final table, Chris "NigDawg" Brammer made $3k/hr and “TomYamKai” celebrated his second win in one week.

Nitsche 3rd in $80k Sunday Challenge

Dominik Nitsche travels to and plays in so many different places you sometimes think there are two of him.

This past weekend he spent it at home in Edinburgh, and what happens? He plays online and almost wins another one.

In the Sunday Challenge, a $90 buy-in with $80,000 guarantee, Nitsche finished in third place early Monday morning.

dominik nitsche 2
Comfortable on the road or at home.

Three months after Nitsche took down the Super XL Mini Main Event, he's back at a final table. Watch for him and fellow 888pro Chris Moorman to rack up results over the coming weeks as they’ll be playing more Sunday majors shortly.

Nitsche cashed over $9k in the event which was eventually won by Silver CaiFuXi Nõmmik from Estonia. Final-Table Payouts:

1. Silver CaiFuXi Nõmmik - $14,274 (Estonia) 2. links1111 - $15,211 (Slovakia) 3. Dominik 888Dominik Nitsche - $9,142 (Germany) 4. _rudinhos_ - $6,857 (Poland) 5. OBigO - $4,799 (United Kingdom) 6. REFpussy - $3,885 (Mexico) 7. THEPWNER - $2,971 (Netherlands) 8. Nemekiss - $2,057 (Mexico) 9. ravenbyrne - $1,289 (United Kingdom)

TomYamKai wins $120k Whale

The $600 buy-in “Whale” is one of the biggest tournaments on 888poker and runs every two weeks. TomYamKai from Finland took it down for over $30k, making this the most profitable week in his career.

Not only was this one of his biggest cashes on 888poker yet, it also came only a week after he won the $100k Mega Deep for almost $27k. Second place went to C_SWAMI from Canada, another experienced player on who’s also already had plenty of success on 888poker.

The Whale drew 279 players to the tables and generated a prize pool of $157,635.

Final-Table Payouts

1. TomYamKai - $32,236 (Finland) 2. C_SWAMI - $23,645 (Canada) 3. BadModafoka1 - $17,812 (United Kingdom) 4. krokopp - $13,398 (Switzerland) 5. ekziter1 - $9,142 (Belarus) 6. dccnesquick - $7,093 (Netherlands) 7. Grisildur - $5,517 (Sweden) 8. Deeepz - $3,940 (Switzerland) 9. UrShitStorm - $2,995 (Sweden)
Christopher Brammer
Chris Brammer

Brammer binks Turbo Mega Deep

British pro Christopher Brammer has become active at the tables again and he went on to win the $40k guaranteed Mega Deep event.

242 players generated a prize pool of $48,400 and Brammer received almost $10k for first place. The tournament only took three hours, which means his hourly rate was over $3k in this one. A nice way to make an easy living.

Brammer played eight tournaments on 888poker plus 36 events on other platforms, so it looks like we might hear more from the Brit again after soon.

Big names at $100k Mega Deep final table

The $215 buy-in version of 888poker’s Mega Deep tournament found a winner in SickmanJFS from Uruguay last weekend. Only one month ago, Sickman finished this event in third place, making this one probably his favorite online tournament at the moment.

Second place went to 33ReNate from Mexico, who celebrated his biggest cash on 888 so far. Martin MakeToney Kozlov finished in third place.

The Australian just had a memorable WSOP with seven cashes including a final table in a $3k 6-max event plus his first bracelet in the $10k 6-max NLHE Championship event for $665,709!

At that final table he had to overcome Jack Salter, Nick Petrangelo, Chris Ferguson, Justin Bonomo and finally Davidi Kitai to secure the win.

Nicolas PKaiser Fierro from Chile, who has won more than $9 million online, also made the final table of the Mega Deep and finished in 7th place. Last year, he managed to win this very event three times!

Final-Table Payouts

1. SickManJFS - $25,875 (Uruguay) 2. 33ReNate - $18,630 (Mexico) 3. Martin MakeToney Kozlov - $13,800 (Australia) 4. icallyamet - $10,350 (United Kingdom) 5. 974kWRT - $7,245 (Ukraine) 6. trino11 - $5,865 (Bulgaria) 7. Nicolas PKaiser Fierro - $4,485 (Chile) 8. Runnerboy23 - $3,105 (United Kingdom) 9. Xorkoth - $1,945 (United Kingdom)

To play in the Sunday majors or any other of the countless online poker events on 888poker, register and create your account through the PokerListings 888poker review page.



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From 13BB to $82k: MicroMillions Pays Big, Mini WCOOP Next

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While $10k buy-ins and star-studded High Rollers draw a lot of attention in poker these days, the truth is that 99 per cent of all poker action happens at small stakes.

Even more accurately: The overwhelming majority of it happens at the microstakes of $5 and less.

So while the high-stakes world is relatively small, the microstakes world is literally gigantic and features millions of players from across the globe.

And when those microstakers all congregate in the same place, as they did last weekend on PokerStars, the return on investment can grow substantially.

That's what happened to 22-year-old JiiJay from Finland, who turned a late-reg $22 buy-in into an $82,000 payday.

90 Events, 65,000-Player Main Event

Now one of the busiest and most successful festivals on PokerStars, the 2016 MicroMillions wrapped its massive schedule of 90 events at the end of last month with the $1m guaranteed, $22 buy-in Main Event.

micromillions

Over 65,000 players bought in to smash the guarantee and make for an unbelievable payday for the top 4 finishers.

After a four-way deal, each took home over $70,000.

The eventual winner was Finland's JiiJay, who turned a last-minute rebuy before late reg closed from 13 BB into an $82,173 payout.

"My other friends busted out earlier and went to sleep," the Finance Grad Student told the PokerStars blog.

"When they woke up the tournament was pretty deep, and they were just as excited as I was. They cheered and railed me for about last two hours or so, and when it was all over we were just like 'What the hell just happened?'" Read the full account of his win here.

Introducing the Mini-WCOOP!

With the massive and growing popularity of microstakes poker it was only a matter of time before it took its rightful place alongside PokerStars' signature festival.

WCOOPbracelet
A WCOOP for the rest of us.

For the first time ever in 2016 the new Mini-WCOOP will run alongside the famed World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) as a companion series.

Not technically part of WCOOP, the micro-to-low-stake series is its own independent series with buy-ins 1/100th and 1/1,000th of the buy-in WCOOP Events.

Mini-WCOOP buy-ins will range from $1.10 to $11 except for the Mini-WCOOP Main Event, which will be a $50 buy-in. A few limited satellites will also run to Mini-WCOOP events, which will run in the exact same formats and at the exact same days/times as the corresponding WCOOP Events.

The 2016 WCOOP runs from Sept. 4-26. Check the full 2016 WCOOP schedule here and sign-up for a new PokerStars account via PokerListings to play the 2016 Mini-WCOOP!



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Daily 3-Bet: Beal’s Trump Card, Cali Vote Looms, Polk $100-$10k

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The PokerListings Daily 3-Bet is an exclusive penthouse elevator that takes you directly to the top of the mid-afternoon poker news world.

You can always make your own suggestions for future 3-Bet pieces in the comments section below.

In today’s Daily 3-Bet we’ll take a look at Andy Beal putting his support behind Donald Trump, an important vote for online poker in California and Doug Polk attempting an old-school challenge.

1) Trump Taps Andy Beal as Advisor

Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump has named billionaire banker Andy Beal to his team of economic advisors.

andrew beal
Andy Beal

Beal famously took part in some of the highest stakes heads-up poker games ever played in Las Vegas as he took on a syndicate of poker players that included Doyle Brunson, Jen Harman, Howard Lederer and Phil Ivey.

The battle was chronicled in Michael Kaplan’s seminal The Professor, The Banker, and the Suicide King: Inside the Richest Poker Game of All Time.

One of the richest men in the world, Beal’s net worth has been estimated to be $10.7 million by Forbes Magazine, which would make him the 115th wealthiest person in the world.

In addition to his business ventures, Beal is a bit of a mathematician and even issued a $1m challenge to anyone who can solve Beal’s conjecture, which is a generalization of Fermat’s Last Theorem.

2) California Online Poker Vote Thursday

California by WPPilot
Online poker coming soon?

The race to get online poker legalized in California is heating up.

A bill that would legalize online poker in the state was pulled off the California Assembly floor on Monday in order to buy more time for negotiations.

The word out of California is that the bill could be brought back up on Thursday for a vote.

If it does pass the Assembly the bill would still have to pass through the Senate.

This particular online gambling bill differs from previous attempts because it has support from the state’s horse racing and card room organization as well as some of the tribes.

The bill would also penalize “bad actors” such as PokerStars, which didn’t leave the USA after UIGEA was passed in 2006, by keeping them out of the market for the first five years or pay an extra $20 million to the state up front.

3) Doug Polk Steps Up to $10k Challenge

Welcome to the micro-stakes, Doug Polk.

The renowned high-stakes heads-up specialist launched a brand-new $100 to $10,000 challenge over the weekend on his UpSwingPoker.com Twitch Channel.

The challenge of course shares some similarities to Chris Ferguson’s famed $0-$10,000 challenge he completed prior to Black Friday against much softer competition.

Polk wants to prove that it’s still doable, however, and that’s the idea behind his current challenge.

After three days off action Polk is pretty much treading water at $97. Upswing coming? You can follow along below, although you will need to be a subscriber to Polk's Twitch channel:

Watch live video from upswingpoker on www.twitch.tv



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$10m Powerfest, $500k GP Make Huge Months at partypoker

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You know about WCOOP.

And maybe you know a bit about mini-WCOOP now, too. 

But the $10m Guaranteed Powerfest and an ongoing $500k Grand Prix series might make partypoker the best value in online poker for the next couple of months.

With just under 200 events scheduled for Powerfest and daily Grand Prix Day 1s all the way from now until Sept. 5, there's certainly no shortage of action.

$500,000 Grand Prix = Big Value

If you're unfamiliar with partypoker's massively popular, monthly Grand Prix format here's a quick primer:

playground poker club
Playground awaits.

From July 31 until Sept. 5 there are a series of online $109 buy-in events. Players can buy-in and play as many Day 1 flights as they like but can only carry one stack forward to Day 2.

That Day 2 will be played on Monday, September 5, where the biggest stacks from Day 1 will move forward and play to a winner. Win the Grand Prix final and you'll likely pocket in the neighborhood of high five-figures or more. 

If you're in possession of one of partypoker's Grand Prix Golden Chips, that payout will be boosted another $50,000.

This time around the prize pool guarantee is $500,000 but the target is ultimately $1m so if partypoker makes the guarantee it will up the GTD to $600,000 for next month, and so forth.

The Grand Prix also runs in an online/live format - in this case for the Canadian Grand Prix at the Playground Poker Club in Montreal.

Online Day 1s are running on partypoker from Aug. 7-Sept 1 with your biggest Day 1 stack carrying over to a live Day 2 on Sept. 4. Live Day 1s with the same buy-in will also run on Sept. 2 and 3 to further juice the prize pool.

Check out all the details here.

3 Weeks, 198 Events, $10m Guaranteed

When the monthly Grand Priz winds down down, partypoker's next Powerfest is set to take off.

partypoker table
Feel the Powerfest.

Scheduled over three weeks from Sept. 4-25, this edition of Powerfest is prepped to be the biggest yet with $10m in guaranteed prize pools and an eye-watering 198 events to play out.

How can you get in on it? Direct buy-ins start from $5.50 or you can satellite in for just a penny.

Much like its September WCOOP counterpart buy-ins run on tiered levels. Featherweights go from $5.500-$11, Middleweights from $22-$55 and Heavyweights from $109-$215.

There's even a tier for high rollers from $530-$5,200. The marquee main events are at $215 (with a $500k Guarantee) and $1,050 (with a $1m Guarantee).

Check the full Powerfest schedule here and register for a new account via our partypoker review to be eligible for an exclusive up to $500 sign-up bonus.



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Daily 3-Bet: Phelps' Lucky 21, GPL Pivots, Kid Poker Gambles

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The PokerListings Daily 3-Bet is all too happy to dole out medals in the mid-afternoon poker news world.

Got wind of something that might work for a future 3-Bet piece? Feel free to leave us a comment below.

In today’s Daily 3-Bet we’ll take a look at Michael Phelps’ absolute domination in Rio, a different approach for the Global Poker League and Daniel Negreanu getting his degen on.

1) Phelps Crushing in Rio

21 gold medals. That’s where it currently stands for Olympian/superhuman/poker player Michael Phelps. He has a total of 25 medals once you include silvers and bronzes.

Michael Phelps
Poker player Michael Phelps.

He picked up two more gold medals last night, one in the individual 200 meter butterfly and the other in the 4 x 200m freestyle relay along with Conor Dwyer, Townley Haas and Ryan Lochte.

Of course Phelps already picked up a gold medal in Rio on Aug. 7 in the 4 x 100m freestyle relay.

Incredibly the Baltimore native still has a shot at two more medals in this year’s Olympic games.

It’s probably a safe bet this is Phelps's last run at the Olympics but there’s certainly a promising poker career waiting for him when he retires.

Close friends with poker pros Jeff Gross and Antonio Esfandiari, Phelps has played poker tournaments in the past and has been known to play long sessions online.

2) Global Poker League Changes Schedule

It appears the Global Poker League is switching up its strategy slightly during its inaugural season.

If you stopped by the GPL website this week you may have noticed that both the GPL playoffs in San Diego and the Grand Final in Wembley have both been re-scheduled to Las Vegas.

It’s not a complete surprise as CEO Alex Dreyfus posted on Facebook after the Summer Series that there would be changes as the league grows.

The second half of the season will now start on Sept. 20. We will have more on this tomorrow but for the time being we’ll leave you with this rather mysterious chart from Dreyfus:

More to come. #fanengagement #fancentric #pokertainment #wesportifypoker pic.twitter.com/ASHaqsISWj

— Alexandre Dreyfus (@alex_dreyfus) August 10, 2016

3) Daniel Negreanu Back on the Props

Daniel Negreanu is putting serious effort into getting his cash game chops back by playing the big games at Aria and Bellagio this year. Of course with every high-stakes games there’s going to be a little gambling in the form of prop betting.

Now Negreanu isn’t quite Ivey-level when it comes to sick gambling but he’s not afraid to throw a little cash around in prop bets. It seems to have worked out better for the Canadian pro since his $436k pun the other night if you go by his Twitter:

Back on the props. My sheet so far. 2 hours in stuck $100k but I'm about to run good right??? :-) pic.twitter.com/0MD5N7VFL2

— Daniel Negreanu (@RealKidPoker) August 10, 2016

Good job Twitter sweaters! Won it all back since my last tweet. Let's keep it rolling! pic.twitter.com/0q59A0g4GV

— Daniel Negreanu (@RealKidPoker) August 10, 2016

Up 86k now in the props. Got 300 and change to win to get even for the other night pic.twitter.com/995320zQ6x

— Daniel Negreanu (@RealKidPoker) August 10, 2016

Now this is how you start a fresh page! That's what I'm talkin about. pic.twitter.com/2e9lN4szwS

— Daniel Negreanu (@RealKidPoker) August 10, 2016

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First-Ever £5k Devilfish Cup to Honor Dave Ulliott, Daughter

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It's only a matter of time before the UK's first and truest poker star, Dave 'Devilfish' Ulliott, joins his peers in the Poker Hall of Fame.

In the interim the WPT, partypoker and the Dusk Tiil Dawn poker club in Nottingham will carry the torch with the new Devilfish Cup to celebrate his life and achievements.

Just announced today, the first-ever Devilfish Cup will start on Oct. 31, 2016, with a £5,000 buy-in and £1 million guarantee.

A £300 donation plus 3% of the prize pool will go to Marie Curie, a philanthropic organization for terminally ill patients, and a trust fund for Ulliott’s daughter, Lucy, which she'll receive on her 16th birthday.

“Rob Yong, owner of Dusk Till Dawn, announced after Dave’s funeral that we would wait a while before announcing plans to honor him,” said friend of Ulliott and DTD Director Simon Trumper.

David
Bar. Drink. Legend.

“During his last few days, Rob visited Dave and asked him how he wanted to be remembered. He asked us to hold a high buy-in event at the club, as Dave was always proud of his WPT Tunica win.

"We thought it fitting to replace this year’s High Roller with the Devilfish Cup. World Poker Tour and WPT Foundation have been great and it is a pleasure to be working with them on this inaugural event.”

Bar, Drink Renamed in Tribute

Perhaps the most fitting tribute for a man known for his love of a good time, Dusk Till Dawn "will further honor Ulliott by renaming both the venue bar and his favorite drink on the menu, a double vodka Red Bull, to 'The Devilfish.'"

A party in "true Devilfish style" will also be held on Nov. 2 with a live band "playing all of Ulliott’s favorite tunes, including 'Johnny Be Good.'"

"We are proud to announce the Devilfish Cup for the partypoker WPT UK festival at Dusk Till Dawn," added WPT President Adam Pliska, "and to honor and celebrate Dave ‘Devilfish’ Ulliott alongside his family, friends, and fellow competitors.

Qualifiers will run at all buy-in levels on partypoker starting as little as 1 cent. Download the partypoker software via our review here to play and to benefit from our up to $500 bonus.



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Countdown to BOM 2016: Live Satellites Begin at Portomaso!

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82 days. 21 hours. 10 minutes (give or take when you read this).

It's hard to believe it's come around already but the countdown to the 2016 PokerListings Battle of Malta is on.

With less than 3 months to go we’re in the heat of preparations and about to enter a new phase: our live qualifiers at the Portomaso Casino in Malta.

With 11 satellites already on the schedule and 2 special editions to be added, chances to get in on the cheap are plentiful and frequent with seats not only to the BOM main event but the Siege of Malta and Grandmaster High Roller, too.

3 Main Event Tickets GTD Saturday

This year the Battle of Malta will run from November 2-7 with a full slate of side events to go along with the signature main event.

Malta fan 1747

Apart from the €550 buy-in, €500,000 Guaranteed ME there's also the Siege of Malta Second Chance, Grandmaster High Roller, PLO Knight's Crusade, NLHE Win the Button and the Deepstack Turbo.

Online qualifiers for full packages are currently running but there are also plenty of clubs/casinos across Europe offering live tournaments where you can win tickets for Europe’s best low buy-in poker event.

In Malta the Casino Portomaso will be the host of all the live satellites with the first one running this Saturday, Aug 13. It's a €55 + €5 freezeout with 1 re-entry and 3 main event seats guaranteed.

Following up all the way until the end of October is a series of satellites with plenty of twists, including qualifiers for the Siege and the High Roller event and team, bounty and guaranteed prize pool events.

Big Value, Plenty of Options

All live satellites at Portomaso will have a €55+5 buy-in and start at 8 PM with a few different variations. Satellites will run on Saturdays or Tuesdays where you can earn tickets for the BOM.

battle of malta sign

The Kick-off on Saturday, Aug 13, as mentioned, has three main event tickets guaranteed.

The Super Value Satellites will have two tickets for the “Siege of Malta” added for the top two players.

The Tag Team tournament will be a unique event on September 3. Two players will form a team and change every level. They will have the right to take two time-outs, but there won’t be any breaks.

The Extravaganza events will have five representatives of the BOM participating with a bounty on their heads. Eliminate one of them and you’ll get a raffle ticket for a main event seat.

There will also be one single satellite where the winner gets a High Roller ticket instead of the main event. The Road to the Battle of Malta events will have further bounties and even five seats guaranteed in the October satellites.

Also, like last year, a BOM satellite Leaderboard competition will run with big prizes for the Top 10 finishers. Here's the Portomaso satellite schedule for the next four weeks:

 

Date

Theme

Feature

Aug 13

Kick-off

3 ME seats guaranteed

Aug 20

Super value

2 Siege tickets added

Sept 3

Tag Team event

2 players per team

Sept 10

Extravaganza

Bounties carry raffle tickets

Find the complete schedule/formats for the BOM satellites and the Leaderboard competition here.



Visit www.pokerlistings.com

Daily 3-Bet: War Gambles, Erik123 Goes $2k to $1m, Stacked PNIA

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The PokerListings Daily 3-Bet is a cushy pull-out bed that appears out of nowhere to give you a much needed mid-afternoon poker news nap.

You can always fire suggestions for future 3-Bet pieces in the comments section.

In today’s Daily 3-Bet we’ll take a look at what the army could learn from gambling, an epic Erik123 story and a stacked table on Poker Night in America.

1) Sexton on War & Gambling

There’s an analogy that can be made between gambling and… pretty much anything.

Mike Sexton
Veteran Mike Sexton

Task & Purpose, a veterans website, featured Mike Sexton in an article this week where the PartyPoker ambassador explained what the military can learn from gambling.

Sexton, who himself served in the military from 1970-72, mentioned that both war and gambling provide incomplete information:

You can’t control the outcome. You can’t control the luck factor. You can’t control what card comes off the deck. All you can do is make the best decisions when and where you can. On the poker table it’s about putting money into the pot with your best hand.
The battlefield is no different.

Interesting stuff. You can check out the complete article on Task & Purpose right here.

2) Erik Sagström Epic $2k to $1m Run

Swedish pro Erik “Erik123” Sagström is a legend in the high-stakes community and was one of the first online players to really crush the game.

Erik Sagstrom
Erik Sagström

We had no idea just how meteoric his rise in online poker was, however, until this week when a purported childhood friend of Sagström on TwoPlusTwo poker forum posted about Sagstrom's early days of poker.

CrazyJim wrote that Sagström got started on a play money site called GPKR that was actually a PhD thesis project for teaching an AI to play poker.

When Sagström graduated high-school he received a $2,000 graduation gift, which he promptly deposited on PartyPoker.

It turned out to be the best gift ever because Sagström was able to run that $2k up to $1,000,000 and was effectively rolled for whatever he wanted to play at that point in time.

Now of course this has not been confirmed by Sagström but it’s definitely believable.

3) Garrett, Tilly, Mercier on Poker Night in America

Going through WSOP withdrawals? Need some TV poker action?

Poker Night in America’s got you covered.

The TV show is running a very compelling $25/$50 cash game today with Brad Garrett, Jennifer Tilly, Jason Mercier, Ryan Fee and others looking to run it up.

Great stuff:

Watch live video from PokerNightTV on www.twitch.tv



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A New Hope: Global Poker League Resets for Second Half

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“We are a small team," says Alex Dreyfus, visionary and head honcho for the upstart Global Poker League. "And we are swamped."

“We didn’t really have time to sit down, review and improve the product," he told PokerListings yesterday after the announcement of substantial changes for the remaining portion of its inaugural GPL season.

Out are the playoffs at TwitchCon in San Diego and a live final at Wembley Stadium in London. Matches won't begin again until Sept. 20 instead of the original Aug. 18.

Lower costs and a focus on the US and digital audience are in. But plenty of hope still remains for an inventive poker product that's "only reached 1%" of its potential.

"We Don’t Have a Big Enough Fan Base Yet”

The launch of the Global Poker League this spring was met with both high hopes and strong scepticism.

Aaron Paul The Cube IMG 6066
Aaron Paul in The Cube

It’s too early to predict its ultimate future just yet but after the first two parts of the season the GPL hasn't gained the traction - among both poker enthusiasts and casual fans - expected. Or hoped for.

After a series of lessons learned over an intriguing Summer Series in Las Vegas, with 33 days of heads-up matches in the GPL's signature arena, The Cube, it's time for a restart.

"We have everything in Vegas now," Dreyfus says, "so it’s easier to hold the finals here. And 40% of our traffic comes from the US, so they’re very important.

"We’ve also decided to put more focus on the digital than the live audience for now, as we don’t have a big enough fan base yet.”

Originally The Cube was going to be shipped first to San Diego for Twitchcon and then across to London, which would have turned out to be a logistical challenge. Spending a lot of money to host a final in front of a likely near-empty stadium clearly wouldn't have been the wisest move.

And instead of running the GPL playoffs on location at TwitchCon in San Diego (Sept 30 – Oct 2), there will be an exhibition event instead.

“We will have a booth and several GPL players, so you can play against them," Dreyfus says. "Also, we’ll have our first GPL shop where you can buy merchandise.”

Barcelona, Burning Man Obstacles to Avoid

GPL w Xuan Liu Dan Cates Alex Dreyfus
Engaging fans and players key.

Another change is when the League will resume play. Originally set for August 18 it's now been postponed until September 20.

As the GPL learned in April, scheduling matches against big events like SCOOP doesn't help its cause. This August/Sept it has EPT Barcelona, the WCOOP and Burning Man to compete with, making most of the League unavailable.

The GPL is also looking to intensify its efforts to involve and engage poker fans and players.

“We want to have a fan-centric platform," Dreyfus says, "with creative tools to connect the players and the audience.

"You’ll not only be able to watch them play but also to bet on the matches, to play them yourself, buy merchandise products.”

GPL new label 1

To handle the workload the GPL will hire more staff, Dreyfus says, both for the Vegas and the Malta offices. North America will focus on content and poker with the technical and merchandising departments based in Europe.

Mastering the Balance

Despite the inaugural growing pains there's no plan, Dreyfus says, to give up fighting for the GPL's spot in the poker industry.

If you set out to revolutionize the poker industry you won't do it in three months. And teething problems are normal for every entrepreneurial adventure.

As Dreyfus himself has put it: “We try, we fail, we adjust.”

No matter what the changes beget for the rest of Season 1, or the size of audience the GPL garners in the next couple of months, its fate will not be decided this year.

The clock is ticking, though, with the balancing act of pleasing the audience, players and investors across two vastly differently sports worlds a challenge not to take lightly.



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Baazov Resigns, Ashkenazi Appointed Permanent Amaya CEO

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PokerStars' parent company Amaya reported its second quarter earnings today and they came with a surprise - the resignation of CEO David Baazov.

The embattled Baazov, who spearheaded Amaya's at-the-time shocking purchase of PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker for $4.9 billion, had been on a voluntary leave of absence since March after he was charged with insider trading surrounding the purchase.

Despite the charges Baazov insisted he was still planning on acquiring the company himself and was using the time off to prepare his bid.

As of August 11, however, he's now officially resigned from all positions at Amaya effective immediately.

"I am proud of my contributions in building Amaya into the successful company it is today," Baazov said in a press release, "and continue to be supportive of its strategy and management."

Ashkenazi CEO, 'Seasonal Headwinds' Overcome

scoop
SCOOP a big deal.

Interim CEO Rafi Ashkenazi, who has replaced Baazov during his leave of absence, has now been named CEO of Amaya "on a permanent basis."

"We continue to execute on our 2016 strategy," Ashkenazi said in a release.

"Through focused expense management and product improvements and diversification, we delivered second quarter results that overcame seasonal headwinds and continued currency challenges, evidencing the strength of our combined core business.

"In addition, the Special Committee continues to focus on the strategic alternatives process with a committed view towards maximizing shareholder value."

Some highlights from Amaya's second quarter earnings:

Total revenues and real-money online revenues for the quarter increased 10.2% and 11.2% year-over-year, respectively (excluding drops in foreign exchange rates those numbers would be 14.2% and 15.9%) Real-money online poker revenues dropped to 75% of total revenues compared to 83% last year; casino and sportsbook revenue went up to 21% of total revenue compared to 12% for the prior year Real-money online poker revenues for the quarter were virtually flat year-over-year at $215.6 million The record-breaking Spring Championship of Online Poker (SCOOP) generated the largest prize pool in the series' history with approximately $91 million awarded, an increase of 19% over the previous year. Customer Registrations increased by 1.9 million to approximately 103.5 million Approximately 2.3 million unique players played online poker during the quarter PokerStars NJ grew approximately 25% in the second quarter of 2016 year-over-year and accounted for approximately 44% of total New Jersey real-money online poker revenue.

Read the full report form Amaya here.



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Daily 3-Bet: Pons' $3k Win, Poker Central Expands, NAPT Redux?

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The PokerListings Daily 3-Bet hands out gold, silver and bronze medals every day, from Monday to Friday, all year.

You can always have your say about what goes into the Daily 3-Bet by posting in the comments section below.

In today’s Daily 3-Bet we’ll take a look at N9er Fernando Pons getting some great practice, Poker Central adding some big-name pros and PokerStars returning to the USA for its first live tournament in years.

1) Fernando Pons Wins €50 Turbo

What do you do after locking up $1m, a spot in the 2016 November Nine and a shot at winning $8m? Start grinding €50 turbos online of course!

Fernando Pons IMG 9302
Already a winner.

That’s what Spaniard Fernando Pons got up to this week.

In fact Pons, who plays online as nandito1312, outlasted all 336 entries in the SuperJueves Bigstack Turbo €50 on PokerStars.es to win €2,947.

The 888poker qualifier is taking an active approach to the November Nine hiatus and is heading to Bilboa today to play the 888Live event.

Pons of course has his work cut out for him at the Main Event final table as he’s the shortest stack with 6.1 million, which is roughly 12 big blinds.

Probably a good time to start grinding those nine-player Sit & Go’s 24/7.

2) Poker Central Adds Ho, Rast, Marchese

The Poker Central family got a lot bigger this week.

2016 WSOP Maria Ho2
Maria Ho

The burgeoning poker TV network added poker pros Maria Ho, Brian Rast and Tom Marchese as official ambassadors. They’ll join Phil Hellmuth, Daniel Negreanu and Antonio Esfandiari carrying the Poker Central badge.

Rast is an obvious choice for an ambassador role as he won the inaugural $500k Super High Roller Bowl for $7.5m in 2015.

Ho is one of the most well-known pros in the game and even hosts PokerListings’ €550 Battle of Malta tournament.

Finally Marchese’s success in the game is the stuff of legend with over $13m in earnings.

Lately the Aria $25k Super High Roller events have been Marchese’s own personal piggy bank. He also showed his humorous side during his matches on the Global Poker League.

3) PokerStars Live in USA

Did we hear that right? A PokerStars live tournament is going to take place in the USA? That’s correct, according to Chris Moneymaker:

It's been a long time since there was A LIVE @PokerStars tournament on US soil. October 29-November 6 sounds like a good time, doesn't it?

— Chris Moneymaker (@CMONEYMAKER) August 12, 2016

Details are scarce as of yet but Moneymaker said it will be in New Jersey, which makes sense considering PokerStars operates a NJ-facing site.

You have to go back all the way to early 2011 for the now defunct North American Poker Tour to find the last ‘Stars event that was held on US soil.

Perhaps if things go well, Vanessa Selbst will finally have a shot at winning a third 'NAPT' title.



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Hand of the Week: A River Set-Up with No Escape in $50k PPC

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For many poker players, the $50,000 Players Championship at the World Series of Poker (WSOP) is the true World Championship of poker.

The $50k PPC is an 8-game event that tests a player's ability in every aspect of every game.

Only the best all-round players have a chance to win it.

Brian Rast has won it twice - the second time coming just this past summer in stunning come-from-behind fashion.

The final hand against his last remaining opponent this year, Justin Bonomo, was particularly dramatic.

Flop to River

We’ve arrived at the heads-up of the 2016 Players Championship. Brian Rast and Justin Bonomo are battling it out on the highest level of poker.

Both players have had the chip lead numerous times. At the moment Rast is slightly ahead with 12 million to Bonomo's 10.6 million.

Both players have $800,000 secured, but of course these two are playing for the win more than anything else now. There is one of the most coveted bracelets on the line as well as $1.3 million.

The game is No Limit Hold’em and the blinds are 60k/120k/40k. Rast sits with 100 bb while Bonomo holds about 88bb. On the button/in the small blind, Bonomo finds    

He raises to 400,000. Rast calls to make it 880,000 in the pot. The effective stacks are at 10.2 million and the flop falls      

Rast checks and Bonomo bets 350,000. Call. There's now 1.58 million chips in the pot and effective stacks are 9.9 million.

The turn is the   Rast checks again, Bonomo thinks about it quickly and then bets 2.2 million. Rast needs about 90 s to decide and announce call. The pot has now grown to 5.98 million chips with effective stacks now at 7.7 million.

The river is the   Rast checks again. Bonomo doesn’t take too long to announce all-in for 7.7 million chips. Rast calls with    

It’s a full house against Bonomo’s straight and Brian Rast wins the tournament. Watch the hand play out below:

Analysis

What a bad spot for Justin Bonomo! He semi-bluffed twice, then hit a monster on the river and ran it into a bigger one. But let’s take a look at how he got there.

Rastthinks
Setting the trap.

Pre-flop, Bonomo raises with Q J. He’s in position and often has the better hand here, so why would he not build up the pot?

Brian Rast makes an interesting decision. Just a call with A T instead of a reraise. Three factors make this a valuable move.

1. He’s disguising his hand. 2. He keeps all the weaker hands in the pot. 3. He varies his game, thus strengthening his calling range. If there is a showdown Bonomo will see that Rast might just call even with strong holdings.

In heads-up play A-To is such a strong hand that you’d almost always want to get to showdown – even without hitting anything.

Bonomo Barrels Again

Rast hits two pair on the flop and now wants to maximize his profit. But in first position on the flop, he would check with any possible hand so there’s no reason for him to act any differently now.

When Rast checks, Bonomo pretty much has to c-bet. The flop hits his range much better than his opponent’s, plus he has a gutshot draw.

Rastturn
Turning point.

Pot equity and fold equity definitely justify a bet in this spot. But Rast calls and now Bonomo has to ask himself what Rast is calling with.

There are many reasonable hands he would do this with. For example a five, a ten, and of course an ace. There are also draws, but not many, as it's a rainbow flop.

Turn Aggression

With another ace appearing on the turn, Rast checks again. He's already filled up his full house and wonders what hand his opponent could call a bet with.

Not many hands would defend here, like a weaker ace or a ten, but these hands would usually also bet.

Then there are some possible bluffs in Bonomo’s hand, like two clubs, K-Q or Q-J, so a check seems to be the best move.

Bonomo considers his options and decides not to slow down. The gutshot straight is still there, which he has to think would be the nuts, and he might still be able to make a ten or a five fold.

bonomogrimace

In addition, Bonomo makes a big bet to prepare the all-in blow on the river. There are many river cards he was going to use for a push.

Suicide King on the River

A fascinating battle in one of the most prestigious tournaments of the WSOP comes to a crashing halt when the river creates a set-up with no escape for Justin Bonomo.

From the start, Brian Rast managed to under-represent his hand very well so Bonomo never saw what was coming.

Rast’s well-hidden monster hand gets a full payout. Goes to show that sometimes slow play actually is the best play.



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Doyle Brunson Allegedly Targeted in Robbery

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One of Doyle Brunson’s neighbors was robbed this weekend but the iconic poker pro may have been the actual target.

The 10-time bracelet winner was told by a police officer a robbery took place a few houses away from his own residence.

The victim was caught in his garage and told by the culprit that he knew he was a professional poker player. The robber also said that his cut was supposed to be $700,000.

According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal the robbery was reported at 8:56 a.m. on Friday.

Brunson: “I’m Not Getting Robbed Again”

Doyle Brunson
Not his first rodeo.

Doyle Brunson experienced more than a couple stick ups back in the day.

Brunson famously traveled the underground poker circuit with Sailor Roberts and Amarillo Slim back when most high-stakes games were considerably more dangerously.

The Texas native didn’t sound too concerned about the Vegas robbery as he has numerous security systems in place at his residence.

Most of the time poker pros also keep the majority of their cash at the casinos where they play.

The story isn’t unique, however, as several high-profile poker pros have been robbed over the last 10 years.

Theo Jorgensen, Jonathan Duhamel, David Sklansky and Greg Raymer have all been the target of criminals.

Here were Brunson’s thoughts on the robbery via Twitter:

A police officer just left my house. There was a robbery a few doors from my house last night. the robber told the guy he knew he was

— Doyle Brunson (@TexDolly) August 12, 2016

a poker player and got him in his garage. that was probably meant for me. Don't these idiots know we leave our money at the casinos where

— Doyle Brunson (@TexDolly) August 12, 2016

we play? He told the victim his cut was supposed to be 700,000. WARNING...I carry a pistol with me at all times. When I come home I get out

— Doyle Brunson (@TexDolly) August 12, 2016

of my car with a gun in my hand. I have all kinds of silent alarms, motion detectors, etc. Plus I'm 83 years old, have been good with guns

— Doyle Brunson (@TexDolly) August 12, 2016

all of my life and am not going to be robbed again. 5 times in my life is enough! So any aspirations of trying had better be reconsidered!!!

— Doyle Brunson (@TexDolly) August 12, 2016

The robber got about $500 from his victim and said he was going to kill his informants for giving him the wrong house.

— Doyle Brunson (@TexDolly) August 12, 2016

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Daily 3-Bet: Big 4 Climax, Draw My Fedor, All Hands on Barca

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The PokerListings Daily 3-Bet is a blank whiteboard, a fresh sharpie and a hand-drawn hyperlapse of afternoon poker news' life story.

Got a tip for a future 3-Bet? Drop us a note about it in the comment.

Today in the 3-Bet we find the SHRPO Big 4 reaching its climax, Pamsi immortalizes Fedor and poker players take to the skies for EPT Barcelona.

1) Big 4 Incoming in So. Fla.

While much of the international poker world is busy taking winery tours and parasailing in the Alps, US grinders have been on the grind again down in South Florida.

Tom Marchese IMG 9336
Big Cheese rolling at SHRPO.

The $7.5m Guaranteed Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open Big 4 got underway on Saturday and is playing down to its climax tomorrow.

What is the Big 4, exactly? Four tournaments all playing down to a simultaneous final-table spectacular live streamed and televised by Poker Night in America. The events:

$5,250 Championship Freezeout ($5m GTD) $2,650 NLH Freezeout ($1m GTD) $1,100 NLH Re-Entry ($500k GTD) $25,500 High Roller Re-Entry ($1m GTD)

The $5k Championship is currently down to around 27 players with Matt Affleck, Seth Davies, Joe Serock, Esther Taylor-Brady and Tom Marchese all still in the hunt.

The $25k has 62 entrants already and dozens of big names playing including Mike Leah, Noah Schwartz, Shaun Deeb, Dan Colman, David Peters, Faraz Jaka, Joe Cheong and Chance Kornuth. 

The action will be be fantastic and you can watch it all play out tomorrow right here.

2) Drawing Fedor, Pamsi Style

Her content relationship with the Global Poker League may have been shortlived but Argentinian YouTube sensation Pamsi is still a huge poker fan and still doing her thing on the intertubes.

Her latest project is a pretty fun one, actually - drawing the lives of some of the world's best poker players.

Her premier subject? Everybody's favorite player right now, Fedor Holz. Check it out below. Submit your ideas for players she should draw, too.

3), Barcelona, Ahoy!

That long summer stretch between the World Series of Poker and the start of the next EPT Season is finally, almost, over.

The Red Spade has been beamed into the sky and the continent's best talents are beginning to wing their way to the beaches of Barca as we speak.

Action begins Wednesday, which feels almost too good to be true; check a preview below!



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40 Events, $4m GTD in Sept. Super XL Series on 888poker

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Nine days. 40 events. At least $4 million in pay-outs. Some of the best poker players in the world.

888poker’s largest tournament series is back from Sept 17-25 and it will be its biggest series yet.

This will be the sixth edition of the 888poker Super XL Series and for the first time the main event has a $1.5m guaranteed prize pool.

Something for Every Style

40 events with buy-ins from $5 for the Mini Turbo Snap event to $2,100 for the High Roller event -- that’s the range you’re looking at.

the whale

Most of the events will be available in three versions – regular, mini, and turbo – so there’s something for every playing style and bankroll size.

Does the name “Crazy 8s” sound familiar? There’ll also be a tournament in the series that follows the concept and structure of WSOP Event # 54.

That was called the $888 Crazy Eights 8-handed No Limit Hold’em event and it drew one of the largest player fields of the summer – 6,761 players. It was sensationally won by a nail studio owner from Ohio.

For the Super XL Series the “Crazy 8” will come in two versions - an $8.80 and an $88 buy-in – and will be the opener of the series. Further highlights:

$250k Guaranteed “Whale” $75k Guaranteed 6-Max $200k Guaranteed Mega Deep

There will also be several tournaments with starting times that suit American players more than Europeans. Look for the Americas Events. Check below for the complete schedule.

Nitsche, Moorman Ready to Go

Because of the steadily growing success of the series 888poker will host its flagship series three times within a year for the first time. XL series IV ran in January and XL Series V took place in May.

dominik nitsche 2

In Chris Moorman and Dominik Nitsche 888poker now has two of the most renowned poker players of the world in their pro team and both were fast to respond to the good news.

Nitsche, who is German but now based in Edinburgh, has fond memories of the last XL series as he won the Mini Main Event for over $36k.

"888 did a great job of listening to the players," he says. "There is clearly a lot of demand for more mid-to-high stakes tournament series on the Internet, especially during times that are a bit quiet for live poker like last May.

"I'm sure this XL Series will be the best yet and I can't wait to make a deep run in a big event and possibly stream it on Twitch."

"I am very excited to be playing every event but if I had to pick a favourite it would have to be the $2,100 High Roller followed by the Main Event. I just think it's a great series scheduled at the perfect time. A lot of people will be at home and will have a chance to compete for big prizes. The satellite system is also great as it gives a lot of lower stakes players a chance at big money."

"I can't wait to play the upcoming 888poker Super XL Series," adds Moorman. "There is a great selection of tournaments every day with great structures and a wide variety of tournament types to keep it fresh."

Satellites are already running everyday on 888poker and you can not only qualify for the main event but also for the opening events.

Check the lobby for more satellites and register. The Mini Opening event already has over 330 players.

888 XL Series VI - Full Schedule

 

Date

Time (GMT)

Event

Buy-in

Sept 17

6 PM

#1 - $100k Crazy 8 Kick-off

$88

Sept 17

6 PM

#2 - $10k Mini Crazy 8 Kick-off

$8.80

Sept 17

8 PM

#3 - $10k Turbo Kick-off

$55

Sept 18

4.30 PM

#4 - $200k Mega Deep

$215

Sept 18

5 PM

#5 - $300k Opening Event

$160

Sept 18

5 PM

#6 - $50k Mini Opening Event

$12

Sept 18

6 PM

#7 - $250k Whale

$600

Sept 18

8 PM

#8 - $30k Turbo Opening Event

$55

Sept 18

9 PM

#9 - $10k Super Turbo Opening Event

$75

Sept 19

6 PM

#10 - $15k Omaha

$109

Sept 19

6 PM

#11 - $3k Mini Omaha

$12

Sept 19

7 PM

#12 - $15k Turbo Snap Event

$55

Sept 19

7 PM

#13 - $5k Mini Turbo Snap Event

$5

Sept 19

8 PM

#14 - $3k Super Turbo Snap Event

$30

Sept 20

6 PM

#15 - $500k High Roller Event

$2100

Sept 20

6 PM

#16 - $150k Mini High Roller Event

$215

Sept 20

8 PM

#17 – $60k Turbo High Roller Event

$160

Sept 21

6 PM

#18 – $50k 8-max NLHE

$109

Sept 21

6 PM

#19 - $10k Mini 8-max NLHE

$12

Sept 21

8 PM

#20 - $5k Turbo 8-max NLHE

$30

Sept 21

11 PM

#21 - $10k Americas Event

$160

Sept 21

11 PM

#22 - $2k Mini Americas Event

$12

Sept 22

1 AM

#23 - $5k Turbo America Event

$55

Sept 22

5 PM

#24 - $50k R+A Event

$55

Sept 22

5 PM

#25 - $10k Mini R+A Event

$5

Sept 22

6 PM

#26 - $100k Quarterback

$215

Sept 22

6 PM

#27 - $30k Mini Quarterback

$44

Sept 22

8 PM

#28 – Turbo Quarterback

$109

Sept 23

6 PM

#29 - $30k Knockout

$150

Sept 23

6 PM

#30 - $10k Mini Knockout

$35

Sept 23

8 PM

#31 - $10k Turbo Knockout

$75

Sept 24

6 PM

#32 - $75k 6-max

$160

Sept 24

6 PM

#33 - $15k Mini 6-max

$30

Sept 24

8 PM

#34 - $10k Turbo 6-max

$55

Sept 25

4.30 PM

#35 - $200k Mega Deep

$215

Sept 25

6 PM

#36 - $1.5 million Main Event

$1050

Sept 256PM

6 PM

#37 - $150k Mini Main Event

$160

Sept 25

6.30 PM

#38 - $15k Micro Main Event

$5

Sept 25 8 PM

8 PM

#39 - $30k Turbo Main Event

$109

Sept 25

9 PM

#40 - $15k Super Turbo Main Event

$75

If you don’t have an account at 888poker yet head to our review page and register. It only takes a few minutes and you can get up to an $888 bonus!



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Daily 3-Bet: 4x SHRPO Heroes, 4-Color EPT Decks, 20% ITM FTW

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The PokerListings Daily 3-Bet is a fresh stack of chips, a favorable seat assignment and an extra 5% shot at bringing in some afternoon poker news profit.

Have something you'd like to see in a future 3-Bet? Let us know in the comments.

Today in the 3-Bet we find a big plate of poker heroes to watch in Florida, some 'funky' decks under consideration and a new payout scale for EPT Season 13.

1) Big Guns Blaze in Big 4

Remember that simultaneous four final-table playdown at the SHRPO Poker Open we mentioned yesterday?

Jason Koon 2
J. Koon in the hunt.

Action is imminent from So. Fla right now and the list of poker heroes in the mix is noteworthy.

The final table of the $25k High Roller is absurdly talented with Marvin Rettenmaier, Dan Colman, Rainer Kempe and Nick Petrangelo all in play.

Seth Davies, Jason Koon, Roman Valerstein, Tim Burt and Joe Serock are all still alive in the $5k Championship.

November Niner Jerry Wong, Dermot Blain and Dan Heimiller are in the $2.6k and even the $1,100 FT is stuff with talent like Aaron Massey, Daniel Buzgon, Marsha Wolak and Phil Hui.

It'll be a great show with millions of dollars still to be distributed. Toggle through two live streams to watch it all right here!

If you need some added incentive Battle of Malta host Maria Ho is an emcee, too!

2) 4-Color Decks Yay or Nay?

A fairly innocuous-looking tweet from the EPT last week stirred up a bit of buzz this week about 4-color decks at EPT Live Events.

A staple of online poker the EPT tried them out at EPT Malta last year to some positive reviews and is thinking of giving them another go at EPT Barcelona:

Who'd like to see our funky 4-colour decks back for #EPTBarcelona? pic.twitter.com/SrtDiEJ67z

— European Poker Tour (@PokerStarsEPT) August 8, 2016

At the lower stakes they seem to be well received but high-stakes players are definitely against the idea - for a couple of reasons, not the least of which is game integrity:

@PokerStarsEPT please not at high stakes

— steveodwyer (@steveodwyer) August 8, 2016

@OnTheMac there are a wide variety of ways to see cards you aren't supposed to see. 4CD makes it so much easier to identify specific cards.

— steveodwyer (@steveodwyer) August 13, 2016

@PokerStarsEPT No 4 colour decks please

— Jack Salter (@jackziyang) August 13, 2016

@PokerStarsEPT you're not going to get close to a majority favourite, ppl have to get used to favour them (obv some ppl wont ever prefer)

— David Yan (@missoraclepoker) August 8, 2016

@PokerStarsEPT i do want to see em, just protect your cards haters

— trujus (@TyRaeL_88) August 9, 2016

What's your preference?

3) EPT Expands Payouts to 20% for Season 13

Speaking of changes for the upcoming EPT Season, PokerStars' Head of Live Poker Neil Johnson introduced a few things in a new blog post he says will "move the needle" for S13.

PayoutLine 1
Getting paid is good, right?

A new $/€25K PLO High Roller and more fun side activities like chess, pinball and backgammon are planned but most notable will be the change in payouts.

"For the last three seasons," Johnson writes, "the EPT has paid 15% of the field at our Live Events with a minimum cash of approximately 1.7x your buy-in.

"For EPT13, we are expanding our payouts out to 20% of the field (non-EPT events will finish out their seasons with the existing structures).

"It isn't going to have the top-end impact that some people may think as we have decided that the min cash for all the players that we are adding between 15% and 20% will be between 1x-1.2x your buy-in."

A very interesting shift - for players at both ends of the poker spectrum. What's your take?



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888poker, PartyPoker, Betsson Offer Late-Summer BOM Satellites

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Want to keep summer going?

There’s a little tournament called the Battle of Malta that might interest you.

The €550 buy-in event takes place every November in sunny Malta with beaches just blocks away.

What’s more there are plenty of ways to qualify for the event with minimal investment. The majority of online satellites not only include the buy-in but also a complete vacation package that includes accommodation at the 5-Star Hilton.

Steps, BOM Leaderboards and More

888poker, PartyPoker, Betsson, Betsafe and Nordic Bet are all offering satellites to the 2016 BOM but each one is a little different.

First up, 888poker runs a $160 BOM qualifier every Thursday from now until October. Each qualifier awards at least one $1,800 Deluxe Package to the 2016 BOM.

Maria Ho 1221
BOM host Maria Ho

Of course you can take part in the steps program, which starts at just $.01 to qualify for the weekly BOM satellite on Thursday.

Meanwhile PartyPoker is running a points race from now until Oct. 2. For every 10 points a player accumulates until Oct. 2 they will earn extra chip for the big Oct. 9 Battle of Malta qualifier.

Basically the more points you generate during the race will give you a bigger stack in the qualifier. First place in the Oct. 9 qualifier awards a complete BOM package with buy-in, accommodation and more.

Finally Betsson, Betsafe and Nordic Bet are running a weekly €200 BOM qualifier every Sunday with a €1,650 package up for grabs. You can qualify through the steps program starting at just €2.

The 2016 PokerListings Battle of Malta is scheduled to take place at the Portomaso Casino in St. Julian’s from Nov. 2-7 with a massive €500,000 guaranteed prize pool. For more information check out our Battle of Malta landing page.



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Jason Koon, Marvin Rettenmaier Dominate SHRPO Big Four

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High roller Jason Koon outlasted 846 entries and then beat former roommate Seth Davies to win the SHRPO $5.2k Championship for $1,000,000 last night.

Koon has been a fixture on the high roller circuit for the last few years but last night represented his biggest score ever.

The final table also featured noted pros Joe Serock (6th), Ryan Fair (8th) and (9th) Zo Karim.

The SHRPO Championship was just one of the four final tables that played out simultaneously last night as part of the venue’s Big Four series.

Rettenmaier Clips Colman in High Roller Final

Koon wasn’t the only well-known poker pro to walk away with an enormous prize last night.

Marvin Rettenmaier
Marvin Rettenmaier

Marvin Rettenmaier narrowly edged Dan Colman to earn a $787,497 payout in the $25k High Roller.

Rettenmaier entered heads-up play with an edge over Colman but the former One Drop winner battled back and even took the chip lead before eventually falling to the German.

Colman, who has already had a ton of success at SHRPO, added yet another enormous cash to his results with a $485k cash for his runner-up finish.

The final table also included established pros Nick Petrangelo (4th), Daniel Strelitz (5th), Barry Hutter (6th) and Rainer Kempe (7th).

In the smaller events 21-year-old student Bradley Sindler made his first cash ever by winning the $2.6k buy-in tournament for $246,400.

Finally Ruslan Dykshteyn took the $1,000 re-buy event for $184,704. Dykshteyn beat Robert Mizrachi heads-up to win the tournament.



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Daily 3-Bet: Seducing India, Podcasting DNegs, Moorman Erupts

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The PokerListings Daily 3-Bet is a mango lassi, a towering stack of rupees and the game of your life in the hidden afternoon poker news temple.

Have something you want featured in a future 3-Bet? Drop us a line about it in the comments.

Today in the 3-Bet we find tales of a new poker obsession in India, Daniel Negreanu talks (and talks) and Chris Moorman starts a new legacy.

1) "Dark, Seductive" Obsession

We've profiled the burgeoning Indian poker scene a few times here on PokerListings along with a few of its most prominent rising stars, including Aditya "Intervention" Agarwal and Aditya "Sushi" Sushant.

The trickle-down effect of their success - along with a growing middle class and a 'Teen Patti'-driven culture of card games - is now really starting to take hold.

Aditya Sushant Day4 2016 Main Event
Rock star.

Games are booming in the major cities and, according to a new post on QZ.com, playing poker has reached "rock star" status in some high-end enclaves with high-stakes cash games a new obsession among India's well-heeled:

"Legally, cash poker games in India only exist in a few scattered places such as Goa, Sikkim, and Bengaluru. But everyone plays poker and, of late, it has arguably become an underground national obsession.

"This includes online poker which has six lakh registered Indian users on a single website, adda52.com. Scores of young people have given up lucrative careers to play full time. Yet, there are no regulations in place to ensure it is played responsibly.

"The poker scene often operates in plush neighbourhoods in top cities in friendly sessions. But alongside these casual games, homes and farmhouses are often rented out for “raked games.” Here the house operates like a casino, taking a percentage of the pot (rake cap) in exchange for administrative hassles such as paying off cops and deciding who gets to play on credit.

"Since the operational stakes are so high, many believe poker’s illegality has made India home to some of the highest rake cap games in the world."

It's another fascinating look at the spread of poker culture around the globe. Check it out here.

2) Negreanu Unchained

If you've ever been to a live event Daniel Negreanu is playing, you know just how popular he is with poker fans.

There's a perpetual rail 2-3 rows deep and the stream of photo and autograph requests is unending - all of which Negreanu, amazingly, never fails to meet with a smile and enthusiasm that speaks to just how seriously he takes his role as poker's de facto ambassador.

2016 WSOP Daniel Negreanu
Never a dull moment.

There's also been no shortage of ink (or whatever you call online type) spilled with his thoughts and views on poker, life and beyond over the years.

Is there a bottomless lust for DNegs content? That's been our experience to this point, and we're about to see if it can go even one step further with the launch of his new podcast.

Never short on words Negreanu sat down with his friend and poker "super agent" Brian Balsbaugh to kick off what will be a recurring podcast where he "talks to some of the most powerful and influential people in poker about issues that matter to you." Listen to episode one by clicking on the image below:

FCPPod

3) Moorman is as Moorman Does

Nobody in history has ever been as proficient as the UK's Chris Moorman when it comes to winning online poker tournaments.

With well over $13m in online earnings and, at last count, over 8 kajillion tournament wins, he's been an unstoppable machine of triumph over the better half of the last decade.

So why would last night's win in the 888poker $50k Volcano worth singling out for a mention? It was his first - of many to come, we presume - as part of 888poker's pro team.

The world’s greatest online player, @Moorman1, wins his 1st tourney - $50K Volcano - as our ambassador. Congrats! pic.twitter.com/4mDhXtDgfi

— 888poker (@888poker) August 17, 2016

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