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Today in the 3-Bet we find Phil Hellmuth watching a grand entrance instead of making one, the ISPT waffling on its guarantee and Jamie Gold explaining the secret "diet" that helped him win the 2006 WSOP Main Event.
1) Hellmuth, Gross Buy In to Olympic Opening Ceremony
For a man known for his grand entrances, it's only fitting Phil Hellmuth is spending his poker offtime being inspired by the biggest and grandest entrance in the world.
A friend of Olympic swimmer, poker enthusiast and gold-medal hoarder Michael Phelps, Hellmuth is in London to catch the Olympic opening ceremonies tonight and tweeted a pic of his tickets to rub it in.
Bragged Hellmuth:
PIC: our Olympic Opening Ceremony Tickets!!@Jgross5 and I heading into the stadium in a couple hours: psyched!! moby.to/pcvh3b
— phil_hellmuth (@phil_hellmuth) July 27, 2012Joining him at the event is fellow poker pro Jeff Gross, also a friend of Phelps and a dominant performer in his own right.
Master of the humble brag, Hellmuth didn't specifically refer to the price of the tickets but as you can see from the pic, he wasn't exactly bashful about showing just how deep his pockets are.
Catch the Olympic opening ceremony streaming live here.
2) ISPT Hedges But Insists €20 Million is Legit
Less than a week after naming two-time $50k Players Championship winner Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi its ambassador and having a tournament organizer reveal more details about its inaugural event, the ISPT is under fire again.
Already a subject of heavy scepticism in the poker community, the ISPT (International Stadiums Poker Tour) has now removed the word "guarantee" from its website with respect to the €20m prize pool it's offering for the Wembley Stadium debut next May.
A press release from yesterday also skirted the use of the word guarantee and said:
“Organizers are expecting a huge turnout and an overall prize pool of approximately €20 million.”
Newly appointed UK rep Stephen McClean, who just this week ensured players the guarantee was rock solid, has now said organizer Prosper Masquelier has told him the guarantee is in escrow but details can't be released until another press conference scheduled for September 3.
Check out the latest hoo ha here.
3) Jamie Gold's Poker Diet: Thin to Win
What was the secret to Jamie Gold's win at the 2006 World Series of Poker Main Event?
"The Poker Diet," apparently. What's the poker diet? Hard to say.
In a new syndicated article out today Gold says his diet leading up to the Main Event was essential to his focus and paved the way to the championship.
He doesn't actually reveal the diet though. Instead he talks about a key hand on Day 1 that almost bounced him from the tournament.
Facing a a likely straight or flush and a call for his tournament life with a set of tens, Gold had an "easy fold."
But no. As Gold explains:
"I felt like I was 'in the zone,' not hearing anyone around me, just staring him down, looking for a clearer answer. Seat 3 was getting antsy, unraveling in a way that only a bluffer would.
"He asked the floor man to put me on the clock, but in such a mad way that I confidently said, 'No need for that. I call!'
"He angrily turned over A-Q. I'd been correct, and when the river brought the 4c rather than one of his miracle jacks, I was propelled into Day 2 and went on to win the tournament."
Easy peasy. It's Jamie Gold's world. We just live in it.
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