WCOOP 2014: Lateski right on time for $488K win in Event #45, $2,100 NLHE

At the $2,100 buy-in level, Event #45 sported some of the largest buy-ins of all of the 2014 World Championship of Online Poker. Just a handful of high roller events and the principle Event cost more to enter, making this probably the most more attractive tournaments at the schedule for bagging a large score. It turned out to be a large score, indeed, worth $488,095 to the Finnish player who came out ahead greater than 36 hours after the tournament began.

Day 1 of this two-day event kicked off with 15,000-chip starting stacks, 25/50 blinds, and 30-minute levels. That drew a field of 1,457 players and built a $2,910,000 prize pool that just about doubled the $1.5 million guarantee. The highest 198 players earned a minimum of $3,351.10, with $488K on the top for the winner. The primary day of play ended with these 10 players on the top of the heap:

1. poosnack11 (Canada) 419,501 chips2. gkap13 (Greece) 357,6393. Lateski (Finland) 351,9164. Pro1612 (Germany) 351,7465. RJules12 (Costa Rica) 343,7986. badbeatman06 (Mexico) 332,0737. KKremate (Brazil) 317,9758. hwtd1 (Canada) 297,9449. GoToCa$hier (Portugal) 293,78610. ZeelandBoy (Malta) 291,710

In the top just three of these top 10 players from the start of Day 2 - those sitting in 3rd, 7th, and 9th overall - would stick around long enough to look the overall table.

Team Online's Naoya "nkeyno" Kihara wasn't near the highest when Day 2 began, but he managed to move his short stack into contention because the field shortened to four, three, after which two tables. Living so with regards to the edge, he was just about the overall table bubble boy on this event. He got all-in before the flop with pocket sevens against the pocket aces held by Portugal's GoToCa$hier as one of the crucial shortest of the ten remaining stacks, only to catch a seven at the turn and double right back into contention.

A break at the bubble helped Naoya Kihara in Event #45

A few orbits later Kihara's A♥ J♣ lost out to the all-in FaceStealer's K♣ J♠ because the latter hit a straight, but Kihara had enough enough momentum left to cruise into the general table. It kicked off at 10:47 p.m. ET, with blinds and antes at 20K/40K/5K and these nine players vying for WCOOP gold:

Seat 1: FaceStealer (1,225,958 in chips) Seat 2: IneedMassari (717,155 in chips) Seat 3: thagrinda444 (3,161,512 in chips) Seat 4: AJacejackAJ (4,117,676 in chips) Seat 5: nkeyno (1,318,717 in chips) Seat 6: Lateski (3,891,392 in chips) Seat 7: GoToCa$hier (860,795 in chips) Seat 8: KungKroon (3,284,372 in chips) Seat 9: KKremate (3,277,423 in chips)

The calm, after which the storm

More than an hour would go by before the primary elimination, however it wasn't for an absence of action. Sweden's KungKroon chipped away at Canada's thagrinda444 early, but then the Canadian struck back and doubled as much as 4.03M with K♠ K♥ against the A♣ 5♠ of fellow Canadian (and Event #37 champion) AJacejackAJ. thagrinda444 ran T♣ T♥ into FaceStealer's A♣ A♥, giving the Costa Rican player a double to 2.15M, and past SCOOP champ GoToCa$hier doubled to 2.72M with J♦ J♥ against Brazilian KKremate's A♦ Q♥ after flopping a set.

Naoya Kihara got in at the action in an excellent spot for a double-up, too, moving all-in for 832K at the 30K/60K/7.5K level with K♣ K♠ to open the betting. KungKroon raised to isolate at the button and showed down A♠ K♥, which needed some help from the board to win the pot. The 5♣ T♦ J♣ gave the Swede four Broadway straight outs to compliment the threes remaining aces within the deck. The 7♠ at the turn was no help, however the A♣ at the river made a couple of aces, giving KungKroon the 1.82M chips within the middle. With that, Kihara's run because the last Red Spade standing resulted in 9th place ($30,014.20).

The next elimination wouldn't take nearly as long. Just three minutes after getting back from the primary break of the overall table, with the blinds and antes newly as much as 40K/80K/10K, Brazil's IneedMassari, a past WCOOP champion, came in for a comparatively modest raise to 176K. AJacejackAJ was within the cutoff and made it three bets all-in for 1.12M, which got the remainder of the table to fold quickly. IneedMassari snap-called with Q♦ Q♥, which was bad news for AJacejackAJ's pure bluff with 9♠ 6♠. The board fell 8♦ 2♥ A♣ T♣ J♥, the queens held up, and AJacejackAJ was gone in 8th place ($55,466).

Only 13 more minutes can be needed for the third knockout of the general table to come back to pass. After 17 consecutive six-figure pots, two short stacks would face off against one another. FaceStealer opened the action with a minimum raise to 160K at the button, then called when thagrinda444 re-raised all-in to 1.13M within the big blind. FaceStealer had the advantage with 9♠ 9♥ to thagrinda444's A♥ 8♣, and the pair held up for the 2.37M-chip pot on a 6♠ 2♣ K♥ 6♦ 3♣ board. With that, thagrinda444 left the tournament in 7th place ($84,506).

Six how you can Tuesday

After that relatively quick burst of activity, the chips were distributed like so:

Seat 1: FaceStealer (2,841,401 in chips) Seat 2: IneedMassari (4,061,921 in chips) Seat 6: Lateski (4,097,705 in chips) Seat 7: GoToCa$hier (3,254,850 in chips) Seat 8: KungKroon (3,275,155 in chips) Seat 9: KKremate (4,323,968 in chips)

Everybody had no less than 35 big blinds to work with, and the 30-minute levels meant there has been quite a few room for patient play. As a result, it could take another hour before the following knockout came along. Lateski survived an all-in moment with K♥ K♠ against KKremate's A♦ Q♦, good for a double to 3.76M, then won another 2.2M pot from the Brazilian to transport into the chip lead. But rather then that the confrontations mostly stayed small.

There were not more all-in confrontations until 1:18 a.m. ET, at the 60K/120K/15K level, when KungKroon opened for 240K under the gun and FaceStealer jammed for 1.7M within the cutoff. KungKroon was the one caller and showed A♣ K♥, which had FaceStealer's A♦ T♦ dominated. Both players' kickers played at the 3♦ 8♣ 8♥ 5♥ 4♣ board. KungKroon's king won the 3.67M-chip pot, and FaceStealer was out in 6th place ($113,646).

The next 18 minutes saw GoToCa$hier grab three seven-figure pots to transport as much as the lead with 7.87M chips. Then the Portuguese player had the risk to knock out KKremate, calling for 1.3M total after opening for 270K and having the Brazilian move all-in from the small blind. GoToCa$hier's A♥ T♦ had the lead but lost out at the 2.79M-chip pot when KKremate's K♥ Q♦ caught good at the Q♥ 9♦ 8♣ 7♥ 9♥ board.

GoToCa$hier jumped right back ahead a couple of hands later with another seven-figure pot, this one won at the turn and not using a showdown. However the Portuguese player reached new heights on a hand with nearly identical action to the last big win. GoToCa$hier opened for 270K under the gun with 8♣ 8♥ after which called after IneedMassari jammed within the small blind for 2.64M with A♦ K♦. The eights were under siege from the J♣ Q♠ 4♣ flop, which gave IneedMassari eight outs twice. However the J♠ turn and 4♥ river were safe, and IneedMassari hit the rail in 5th place ($142,786).

The haves and the have-nots

That left the last four players broken into clear strata:

Seat 6: Lateski (6,758,840 in chips) Seat 7: GoToCa$hier (9,312,384 in chips) Seat 8: KungKroon (3,001,742 in chips) Seat 9: KKremate (2,782,034 in chips)

The remainder of the table set to the duty of chipping away at GoToCa$hier's lead, and two seven-figure pots, first for KKremate after which for Lateski, actually gave the latter the chip lead. From there the balance held until the break on the end of the hour, the fourth of the overall table. At the first hand back, which kicked off the 70K/140K/17.5K level, that lead would serve Lateski well.

The Finn opened the hand in question with a gap raise to 291K at the button, then called KungKroon's re-raise to 2.47M within the big blind. Lateski called with 3♦ 3♠, and the classic race with KungKroon's Q♦ J♥ was at the. board came down A♦ [invalid card] 5♣ 8♥ K♥, the treys were good, and KungKroon departed in 4th place ($198,152).

That gave Lateski 10.7M chips to GoToCa$hier's 8.09M and KKremate's 3.04M as a full of life period of three-handed play commenced. GoToCa$hier jumped into the lead way to a 7.7M-chip pot when both players caught top pair at the 2♠ 6♣ Q♣ flop, the Portuguese player with A♦ Q♦ and Lateski, out of position, with Q♥ T♠. Then KKremate survived a flip with A♣ K♣ against GoToCa$hier's 7♠ 7♥, doubling to 4.08M and bringing the 2 big stacks back to within a few big blinds of each other. Soon enough, KKremate had taken over the lead through steady aggression.

The key pot of three-handed play came when Lateski opened at the button for 297K and GoToCa$hier three-bet to 854K within the small blind. Lateski called with 5.81M behind, bringing a Q♦ 4♦ 6♦ flop. GoToCa$hier opened for 665K, then jammed for 7.6M after the Finn raised to 1.7M. Lateski called with Q♥ J♥ for high pair, and GoToCa$hier held A♦ 9♠ for the nut flush draw with additional outs to a couple of aces. The 6♣ turn and 4♥ river were safe for the pair of queens and Lateski survived to earn the 13.5M-chip pot.

Three minutes later the short-stacked GoToCa$hier survived a primary all-in attempt, calling with A♠ K♥ after Lateski bluff-raised from the small blind with T♠ 3♦. That got the Portuguese player back to 3.11M. Five hands later GoToCa$hier was at the button and raised the minimum to 320K, getting a lone call from Lateski within the big blind. Lateski checked the 4♣ 5♥ 3♦ flop before raising all-in; GoToCa$hier called for 2.05M total with A♣ 5♣ which had the lead and stayed there after the Q♥ flop, though not without generating a bevy of outs to dodge at the river. Unfortunately for GoToCa$hier, the 6♦ was a type of outs, and Lateski won the 4.89M chips within the pot with a couple of sixes. With that, GoToCa$hier was out in 3rd place ($269,545).

End of the line

Finland had the advantage over Brazil within the heads-up chip counts:

Seat 6: Lateski (15,488,800 in chips) Seat 9: KKremate (6,366,200 in chips)

The heads-up component of play stood out in comparison to the remainder of the overall table, because it took just 17 minutes and 27 hands to finish. Nevertheless it wasn't without its own drama.

KKremate was in a position to make a match of it with a 7.2M-chip win at the sixth hand of the match. The Brazilian called a Lateski raise with 8♦ 6♣, check-called a big gamble after picking up an open-ended draw at the 5♥ 3♦ 7♣ flop, after which led out when the Q♠ hit the turn. Lateski called that bet, however the deception disguised a nine-high straight after the 9♦ came at the river, getting the Finn to name a 2.07M-chip bet at the river. Lateski mucked, KKremate won the 7.25M-chip pot, and the 2 players were within 2.04M of every other.

KKremate slipped from there but kept things close enough that one double-up could seize the lead. Twelve hands later it would, way to another straight, this time turned in place of rivered, and an all-in river bluff by Lateski at precisely the wrong moment. The resulting 15.2M-chip pot gave KKremate the advantage and put Lateski at the defensive. But just two hands later, a turned flush for Lateski was ok to retake the lead after the Finn called KKremate's semi-bluff with a couple of fives and a straight draw that was drawing dead.

KKremate was left with 9M chips and still had most of it seven hands afterward the button. The Brazilian opened the pot for a minimum raise to 320K and called Lateski's out-of-position three-bet to 909K, bringing a 5♣ 2♦ J♥ flop. Lateski led there, at the 5♠ turn, and at the A♠ river, and KKremate called all of the way, showing A♣ 2♣ for 2 pair, aces and fives. But Lateski's pre-flop raise had fidguised 7♦ 5♦ within the hole, good for trip fives and the tournament.

KKremate's final prize as runner-up was $356,965, a brand new career best for the previous chess player. Lateski's prize, besides a spiffy WCOOP bracelet, was $488,095. Congratulations to both players for outlasting a tricky field, including a four-hour final table, on this latest high-dollar WCOOP event.

WCOOP 2014: Event #45, $2,100 No-Limit Hold'em1,457 entrants$2,914,000 prize pool198 places paid

1st place: Lateski (Finland) $488,0952nd place: KKremate (Brazil) $356,9653rd place: GoToCa$hier (Portugal) $269,5454th place: KungKroon (Sweden) $198,1525th place: IneedMassari (Brazil) $142,7866th place: FaceStealer (Costa Rica) $113,6467th place: thagrinda444 (Canada) $84,5068th place: AJacejackAJ (Canada) $55,4669th place: Team Online's Naoya "nkeyno" Kihara (Japan) $30,014.20

Jason Kirk is a contract contributor to PokerStars Blog.

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UKIPT Series 6 London Day 2 - Level 18-21(8,000-16,000-2,000)

5.31pm: Break time!With 19 players left, the tip of level 21 means the players have fifteen minutes to collect their thoughts and lock their targets on that final table.

We'll be back shortly!

5.25pm: Majewski doubleMario Trattou is apparently in every pot right now.

Most recently he tangled with Piotr Majewski, the Pole calling his shove on a 9♠8♣6♦ board with 9♦7♦.

Trattou could only table A♠8♥ for second pair and when turn and river bricked, he was left turning in 271,000 of his stack to his foe - Majewski as much as 550,000+ Trattou right down to 280,000...

The irrepressible Mario is riding the waves of variance

5.18pm: Murphy bowsers MarioMario Trattou just raised the cut-off with A♠T♣, just for Darren Murphy to transport all-in for 309,000.

Trattou vocalised his potential decisions before creating a peach of a decision with a slim edge - Murphy turning up K♥Q♦.

A board of Q♠2♣2♦6♠8♦ was met with an angry table thump from Trattou as he was outdrawn. Murphy quietly stacked his new 625,000 stack.

"How are you able to shove K-Q there?!" asked Trattou.

"Well you took the gamble," Murphy replied. Trattou wasn't pushing up the daisies just yet though and recovered a few of those chips, knocking out Michael Lee AK v A6 a couple of hands later. Trattou still has 380,000...

5.02pm: Re-draw!WIth 24 left, Luca is re-drawing the remainder players onto three 8-handed tables. Normal service may be resumed shortly...

4.56pm: The following echelonThese players pipped the boys below, having squeezed through to the upper cash tiers. That's an additional few drinks they may be able to enjoy in celebration. 26 players remain now...

32nd Farhan Khan £550.0033rd Clyde Rimando £550.0034th Eric Laboreux £550.0035th Joseph Craig £550.0036th Willie Tann £550.0037th Gladys Long £550.0038th Simon Randall £550.0039th Sandiep Khosa £550.00

LEVEL UP: BLINDS 8,000-16,000-2,000

4.42pm: Faces and placesHere are the primary men to line up and claim their booty from the money desk. Well played sirs!

40th Mark Thomas £500.0041st Michael O'Brien £500.0042nd Kelvin Mullis £500.0043rd Sundeep Sandhu £500.0044th Daniel Toffel £500.0045th Nicolas Berry £500.0046th Thomas Grundy £500.0047th John Crouchley £500.00

4.28pm: Awesome Wells caning citizensDominic Wells has just scooped a mighty pot to send him thundering up the leaderboard with a 400,000 stack in tow.

A four way pot preflop saw him duke it out with Niazi Suleman (K♠8♠), Leon Campbell (K♣J♣) and a 3rd player holding pocket fives. Wells though had A♥A♣ and although he was about to take a dip within the murky waters of variance, he re-surfaced safe and sound over the 7♣3♥8♥J♠3♦ board.

"I was waiting to pick out the easiest spot," said Wells as he collected his bounty. Meanwhile Suleman shocked to the money desk telling everyone he'd have won the pot if aces and king-jack had folded. Good game!

Wells on song

LEVEL UP: BLINDS 6,000-12,000-2,000

4.10pm: Chiang - fours to be reckoned withJen-Yue Chiang just swerved potential elimination. Having shoved for 95,000, the big-stacked Juan Ignacio Sanchez flat-called with around 400,000 behind.

This sent Mario Trattou into consternation. He clearly desired to become involved but was wary about tangling with a fellow big stack, eventually folding pocket jacks.

When Chiang opened pocket fours and SanchezA♠J♠, it turned out he would has been in great shape, but having folded it was left to Chiang to gather the pot over the 9♦7♦3♦T♥T♠ board.

Chiang doubles to 220,000 and with Trattou debating his fold, Chiang offered some words of encouragement.

"You made the appropriate decision," he said with a grin on his face and a twinkle in his eye.

4.01pm: Majewski at the upPiotr Majewski is showing his fellow shortstacks the best way to turn an uneviable shortstack into something challenging as he has risen to around 350,000 lately. Winning flips helps of course...

First off he removed a bit from Farhaan Khan when his T♥T♦ held versus Khan's A♣J♣ on a worrying-looking-but-ultimately-safe board of 5♥4♥2♣9♣K♦ Khan lasted only some more hands before being eliminated.

Next up Majewski saw Eric Laborieux on his way - isolating the Frenchman's shove with A♣Q♦ and besting his pocket threes when an ace hit the flop.

Good times for the Pole - the poker gods love him right now.

3.35pm: The floodgates have openedThe pressure is off, the sword of Damocles now not hangs over the shortstacks with some type of cash payout assured. In consequence they're gambling with gay abandon, trying to chip up and provides themselves a shot on the bigger payouts on offer or go home.

Sundeep Sandhu and Kelvin Mullis are two who've succumbed recently - either one of them to the rampaging Spaniard Juan Ignacio Sanchez, who's accumulating an ever-increasing stack (around 460,000 at present).

Sandhu shoved A♥4♠ and lost out to Sanchez' A♠J♣ over a 8♥6♦3♦3♠7♣ board whilst Mulllis was unable to flip the appropriate side of variance - his A-Q losing out to Sanchez' pocket eights on a child board.

Good game, both can return home with a tangible cash for his or her efforts.

LEVEL UP: BLINDS 4,000-8,000-1,000

The painful moment Rob Ayton's dream died

3.23pm: Rob Ayton bubblesSadness for Rob Ayton, contrasting cheers from the rest competitors, all of whom have become paid!

Ayton's exit was somewhat cruel, having shoved his last 36k into the center with A♣7♦ and been called by A♠J♦, he looked to have slipped the noose, the board peeling off 8♦8♣4♥7♥ - leaving him taking a look at a welcome double-through.

"Ooooh" the group gushed as that seven spiked to apparently save him. More drama was to return however because the J♣ arrived at the river to scupper his attempted recovery. The gang were stunned.

The ignominy of 48th spot for Ayton then and the remainder of the sector are happy to be getting paid. Congratulations all!

2.58pm: Dewan delivered painful exitKarun Dewan has just departed in painful circumstances. Having shoved with pocket K♥K♦, he found Rahul Sachdev calling within the blinds with A♣5♦.

"Don't worry, you'll hit your ace," Dewan told Sachdev and this proved prophetic because the board fell J♥2♣5♥6♣A♦ - elimination delivered with the last card.

Dewan walked away shaking his head.

"It's always the best way isn't it. The rag ace always hits the river!" a tablemate commented, echoing the lament of 1,000,000 poker players worldwide.

That hand leaves us with just 48 players left. Only one more elimination till the money and we're now hand for hand...

2.55pm: Jordana crushedJoel Visa Jordana has also missed out at the payouts, going for broke with pocket jacks and succeeding when Khashayar Zarghampour called him with aces.

A board of 4♠2♥9♠8♠K♣ saw the Spaniard hit the rail in 50th spot. Ouch, so close

2.52pm: Bad times for Wright and WatersNick Wright and Brent Waters have both busted just shy of the cash - Wright departing when his ace-king lost out in a flip to Aleksandar Spadijer's pocket eights whilst Waters desperate shortstack shove with J♠9♠ was picked off by Farhad Jahanshahi's Q♠T♦.

No improvement for both sees us draw ever toward the money. Just 50 remain now with 47 paid...

Cheers, tears and heartache - the bubble has it all

2.44pm: Back on the felt. Let's get paid!This is among the tensest periods of a poker tournament. 53 players remain but just 47 may be paid. The quick stacks can be silently hoping they are able to negotiate this era into the cash and the large stacks is normally wielding their chips like sledgehammers, applying maximum pressure to the medium and short stacks.

To read updates from levels 13-16, click here.

PokerStars Blog reporting team at UKIPT Series 6- London: Rod Stirzaker. Photos by Neil Stoddart.

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ANZPT6 Melbourne: Chua takes it to overtime on Day 1b

It was a gorgeous sunny Saturday afternoon in Melbourne. The sun was shining, the birds were singing and the records were tumbling.

Day 1b of the ANZPT Melbourne Main Event saw a field of 274 come together to swell the prize pool to record-setting proportions for the ANZPT. The full field of 516 is a record for a $2,200 ANZPT Main Event and it is the first time that we have seen a $1,000,000+ prize pool in ANZPT history. It's a superb result for everybody considering the event.

It was a who's who of the Australian poker world in action today with the likes of former ANZPT champions Michael Kanaan, Martin Kozlov, Pete Matusik, Dave Allan and Jono Bredin, APPT Sydney champ Aaron Benton, previous ANZ Player of the Year winners Danny Chevalier and Mishel Anunu, WSOPE bracelet winner Jackie Glazier, the "Poker Star" Amanda De Cesare and of course, 2005 World Champion Joe Hachem.

That's a powerful list of champions, but that only scratched the skin with quality players corresponding to Jesse McKenzie, Liam O'Rourke, Ricky Kroesen, David Yan, David Steicke, Anthony Aston, Tony Kondevski, Matt Wakeman, Luke Edwards, Patrick Crivell, Ash Warner, Tam Truong, Jazz Mathers, Dean Blatt and Tony Targalia also a number of the field today.

There was also somewhat international flavour, headlined by the lone Team PokerStars Pro within the field in Singapore's Bryan Huang.

After winning an aspect event through the week, Huang was filled with confidence heading into the primary Event. That confidence, in addition to a flopped set against pocket aces, enabled Huang to rake in quite a lot of pots on his strategy to a commanding stack of 123,800 after eight levels of play.

That was an outstanding number, but not as impressive as that of Shy Jachimowicz. He could have been shy by name, but there has been nothing shy in regards to the size of his chip stack. Jachimowicz shot out to a monstrous chip lead with a rivered full house against two opponents and didn't look back.

Jachimowicz shot as much as well into triple digits half way during the day and just about maintained that position for all the day. It was enough for Jachimowicz to bag up 170,000 which looked good for the end-of-day chip lead when a few of the tables had bagged, tagged and headed off for dinner.

However Table 10 had other ideas.

In a hand that went for a fair ten minutes beyond the scheduled close of play, it was Vincent Chua who managed to urge a tremendous call from Ben Pockett on a board of J-7-5-8-T. Chua had moved all in and Pockett agonized before committing himself with jack-ten for 2 pair, but Chua's nine-eight was good for a straight to tug within the massive pot and bag up a tournament leading 210,100 chips.

A total of 94 players would survive Day 1b with Fabian Craib (129,500), Luke Edwards (115,300), Joe Hachem (93,800), Anthony Aston (76,900), Jazz Mathers (67,500), Martin Kozlov (50,900), Matt Wakeman (50,300), Jackie Glazier (36,000), Liam O'Rourke (30,000) and Aaron Benton (20,900) among individuals who will return on Day 2. Head to the live reporting portion of the blog for the entire chip counts and Day 2 seating draw.

A total of 179 players will return to the Crown Poker site at 12:30pm on Sunday with another nine levels to be played. If you want to see us well within the money, in need of reaching the overall table but out the door just in time to hit the player's party at Lumia Lounge!

Until then, enjoy your Saturday night if you are a Richmond supporter, and drown your sorrows if you are everyone else. We'll see you again tomorrow!

Heath "TassieDevil" Chick is a contract Contributor for the PokerStars Blog.

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Five Thoughts: Ultimate Gaming Exits NJ, WSOP.com Celebrates, and Elias' Big WPT Win

Friday was a polarizing day for online poker within the Usa. One operator, Ultimate Gaming, announced that it was withdrawing from New Jersey, while another, Caesars Entertainment, celebrated the one-year anniversary of WSOP.com in Nevada.

While Ultimate Gaming was on the point of exit Atlantic City, New Jersey, the fourth-largest World Poker Tour Main Event was about to conclude across town at Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa. Borgata continues to peer sustained success while the remainder of Atlantic City continues to disintegrate around it.

We'll also comment on the approaching World Series of Poker Asia-Pacific, reported progress in California for online legislation, and real money deposits at Nevada convenience stores on this week's Five Thoughts.

1. Ultimate Gaming Exits, WSOP.com Celebrates

Ultimate Gaming terminated its contact with Trump Taj Mahal Associates LLC on Friday, 10 days after the casino filed for bankruptcy, because of “multiple breaches by Trump Taj Mahal Associates.” The net poker site and casino ceased operations on Sunday, Sept. 21 at 11:59 p.m. ET.

Players can have access to their accounts online until Oct. 5, and can receive refunds for all U-Dollars and tournament tickets.

The New Jersey Department of Gaming Enforcement requires online gaming providers to partner with land-based casinos, so Ultimate Poker was left stranding once Trump Taj Mahal announced it was closing its doors in November. Trump Taj Mahal is the fifth Atlantic City casino to announce its closure in 2014.

While Ultimate Gaming was on the point of exit the brand new Jersey Turnpike one last time on Friday, WSOP.com celebrated its one-year anniversary in Nevada. Upon launching in 2013, WSOP.com quickly took the lead because the most well liked site within the state, edging out Ultimate Poker. Within the last year, WSOP.com has registered greater than 100,000 accounts, has dealt greater than 15 million hands of real money poker, and has hosted greater than 14,500 tournaments in Nevada.

The World Series of Poker announced on Friday the signing of 2012 WSOP Main Event champion Greg Merson because the site's first brand ambassador. Merson earned $8.5 million and Player of the Year honors for taking down the largest tournament in poker, and has raked in nearly $1.1 million in live tournament earnings since.

"WSOP is probably the most exclusive brand in all of poker, and i'm honored so as to help them promote online poker back to its full potential," Merson told PokerNews after the inside track broke.

During the summer, PokerNews Editor-in-Chief Donnie Peters read the tea leaves and predicted this outcome:

Merson even favorited the tweet on the time.

The WSOP's decision to bring forth a brand ambassador makes sense, and there are several other qualified players (cough, Phil Hellmuth, cough) who may also promote the brand, but it is a bit contradictory. When WSOP.com launched, Caesars officials explicitly stated that they weren't going to bring about any "pros" to be able to avoid conflict.

In the end, they got it right. Brand ambassadors, when chosen correctly, could have an excessively positive impact, and Merson is an overly driven and very bright individual who will represent the WSOP well.

On the whole, I DON'T THINK this was a favorable weekend for online poker in America. State-run regulatory bodies continue to suppress the expansion of online operators, and, although they were fourth in traffic in New Jersey, Ultimate Gaming was forced to cease operations because their partners failed, not because they selected to. For the past few years many industry members and players have looked to PokerStars as a savior as a way to come galloping into the us and save us all, but they too might be suffocated by bureaucracy regardless of where they go.

2. Darren Elias Wins Fourth-Largest WPT Main Event

As a fifth Atlantic City casino prepared to close its doors, Borgata continued to crush. The Season XIII WPT Borgata Poker Open attracted a complete of 1,226 entries, making within the fourth-largest Main Event in WPT history. Eight of the ten largest WPT Main Events have now taken place at Borgata.

Darren Elias took down the large event, besting Kane Kalas heads as much as earn $843,744. For his efforts, Kalas, the son of the late great Philadelphia Phillies and Eagles announcer Harry Kalas, pocketed $500,364.

Elias, 27, is the unique" End Boss" in line with the aforementioned Greg Merson. Mutual friend Tony Gregg could also be known as "End Boss," and i am unsure how this result affects the tip Boss Power Rankings. At this time I've got:

Mike Tyson in Mike Tyson's Punch Out!!

Darren Elias

Tony Gregg

Sorry boys, but you cannot top the hardest End Boss of them all.

Here are the effects from all of the WPT Borgata Poker Open final table:

PlacePlayerPrize

1	Darren Elias	$843,744
2	Kane Kalas	$500,364
3	Jose Serratos	$308,067
4	Aaron Overton	$259,012
5	Blake Bohn	$213,999
6	Ray Qartomy	$174,637

Aaron Overton and Blake Bohn are two names that truly stick out to me. Bohn seems to have quadruple the common in the future in every Mid-States Poker Tour event, accumulating chips left and right with an excessively aggressive style. His aggression and confidence doesn't take successful when he plays bigger buy-in events against more qualified players - he plopped down six figures in 2013 to play within the $111,111 ONE DROP High Roller and finished in 15th for $208,968. In advance of making the WPT Borgata Poker Open final table, Bohn finished seventh within the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open $10 Million Guarantee for $213,999.

Overton also sticks out to me because he's a classic East Coast grinder. I've covered him several times in Atlantic City at WSOP Circuit events, and it is usually fun to peer someone who have been grinding for a long time get away. Previous to this final table, Overton's biggest score came in 2011 when he finished seventh at NAPT Mohegan Sun for $50,000.

As all of us know, the day after that NAPT final table was Black Friday.

Two days after Elias' victory, Borgata played host to the inaugural WPT Monster Invitational. This made-for-TV, winner-take-all event featured six poker icons with over $60 million in combined live tournament earnings: Vanessa Selbst, Phil Laak, Antonio Esfandiari, David Williams, Tony Dunst, and Scotty Nguyen.

In the end, Williams bested Laak in a wild heads-up match to win a Hublot King Power Unico watch; seats into the WPT World Championship, WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic, and WPT L.A. Poker Classic; a couple of Monster 24K headphones; and $20,000 in cash.

Photo courtesy of the sector Poker Tour

Williams joined the PokerNews Podcast this week to talk about the victory, the table, and the entertainment value of invitational events.

These made-for-TV events are gold, because they showcase superior talent and the players are encouraged to entertain the audience. Donnie and i've both discussed the shortage of fun in poker, and our worries directly correlate with the lack of shows like Poker After Dark, High Stakes Poker, and The PokerStars Big Game. These shows, while they highlighted great players, were all about entertainment, and a few of the most well liked poker videos on YouTube are from invitational events, not your average live event.

Hopefully the arena Poker Tour can continue to host these entertaining invitational tournaments, and great sponsors like Monster Products can support the cause. With a view to be truly successful, poker must adopt a PGA or NASCAR-like model, and it starts with sponsorship exposure.

3. WSOP APAC every week Away

The WSOP Asia-Pacific kicks off in barely over a week's time at Crown Melbourne, and PokerNews can be to be had to offer live updates from all 10 of the bracelet events.

The action begins with the AU$1,100 No-Limit Hold'em Accumulator on Oct. 2, and is highlighted by the AU$10,000 Main Event in Oct. 12. There's also the AU$1,650 Dealer's Choice 8-Game, AU$5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha, and AU$25,000 High Roller.

The main storyline heading into WSOP APAC is the 2014 WSOP Player of the Year race. Both Brandon Shack-Harris, who leads with 752 points, and George Danzer, who trails slightly with 745.2 points, may be at Crown to contend for the title. There's also Daniel Negreanu, who sits at No. 4 with 519.08 points. Negreanu would have to rattle off some big results, but he's no stranger to WSOP success outside of Las Vegas, winning a bracelet at both WSOP APAC and WSOP Europe en path to winning the 2013 WSOP Player of the Year award.

Whoever wins the WSOP Main Event in November will earn 500 points, that is currently good for fifth place within the Player of the Year standings, but there'll be several members of the November Nine MIA in Australia. PokerNews has independently confirmed that Jorryt van Hoof, Felix Stephensen, Martin Jacobson, Billy Pappas, and Daniel Sindelar don't plan to wait the WSOP APAC. As of right now, Brazilian Bruno Politano is the one confirmed November Niner.

Van Hoof, Jacobson, and Stephensen will likely play within the EPT London poker festival as it is far in the direction of their respective homes. As for the yank players, I AM NOT sure why they might decide to skip the development. At the whole, it's unfortunate that these players may not be in Australia to compete for Player of the Year points and a possible bracelet before the primary Event final table. It would've been an excellent opportunity for a few of these players to get some exposure, and maybe help them build a little bit a brand before November.

Crown has a distinct place in my heart, and that i know that Director of Poker Jim Preston, Corporate Affairs queen Natasha Stipanov, and the remainder of the workers on property will deliver another great series.

4. California Tribes and Horse Tracks Make Progress

Our own Matthew Kredell joined the PokerNews Podcast last week to talk about the legislative landscape within the United States, and he hinted at some progress in California. He later confirmed these statements in a subsequent article, highlighting some discussions between Indian tribes and native horse tracks.

Kredell spoke with Robyn Black, a lobbyist for the California Thoroughbred Breeders Association, who forecasted some positive news for the approaching New Year.

“We've been communicating with tribes and that i think in the future in 2015 we're actually going to look this type of bills move, and that i expect horse racing to join that,” Black said. “It's probably going to happen in 2015, or it's not going to happen.”

The latter a part of that quote is a bit of ominous, but sometimes ultimatums spark urgency and progress.

Initially, the California tribes were staunchly against racetracks offering online poker because they believed it's a selection of gambling that violates tribal exclusivity. However, internet gaming is a brand new entity, and horse tracks in California have offered online horse betting for over a decade.

Black tells Kredell that the tracks weren't excited about the legislation process at the beginning of 2014 because they saw that the tribes themselves were divided. Once the tribes came to a consensus, then the tracks entered the conversation.

From a layman's perspective, it kind of feels as though both the tracks and the tribes remember the fact that online poker has great potential in California, and the one method to maximize that may be to interact. Of course, one side may not be concerned about sharing a big component of the pie with the other, but in place of in-fighting and stunting progress altogether, they take into account that it's going to take compromise with the intention to induce change.

From a regulation perspective, including tracks can have a good impact because they've been offering some kind of "online gaming" for the decade. They understand what it takes to forestall underage gambling and agree to the entire necessary regulations from the state.

“We've been taking wagers on the web for a decade and feature a superb record in keeping out underage children, protecting consumer info and handling problem gamblers,” Black told Kredell. “Anyone with those concerns, just take a look at what horse racing has done in a decade of Internet wagering.”

5. Grinding at 7-Eleven

While Ultimate Poker was the primary regulated online poker room to launch in Nevada, SouthPointPoker.com, now Real Gaming, was the primary company to receive a web-based poker license in Nevada. Now, you'll be able to deposit on their site from any 7-Eleven or Family Dollar store within the state using the PayNearMe network.

In order to deposit, players must print or download a payment barcode from RealGaming.com. This barcode can then be scanned at any 7-Eleven or Family Dollar store, and the funds can be immediately credited to their account.

This is pretty brilliant, and a straightforward way for players to get funds online in the event that they don't live near Las Vegas or their banks are still hesitant to trust a web based gaming site. Payment processing remains one of the most biggest hurdles for online gaming, and third-party providers like PayNearMe, Skrill, and Neteller will play massive roles going forward.

The only unfortunate a part of this news is that withdrawals don't seem to be included. Now, while I DO NOT expect players so that you could visit 7-Eleven and take a couple of hundred bucks from the money register, there need to be some more or less reverse method where they may be able to scan a separate bar code and get some small amount of cash back. With no proper withdrawal process that is somewhat useless.

Still, it is a step within the right direction. We want our online poker operators to be innovative help their customers however they are able to. Albeit simple, this will likely help Real Gaming drive traffic to their site and make players in Reno, Carson City, and Spring Creek more than happy.

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State Lotteries Among Most Abusive Type of Gambling, Study Says

A study shows that lottery gambling is disproportionately supported by poor and minorities, but foes of casino gambling are relatively silent.

A survey in South Carolina shows that minorities and the poor are essentially the most prone to take part in state lotteries. Many states and spiritual organizations blithely support lotteries, that are returning them revenue, while damning other kinds of gambling less harmful to the economically disadvantaged.

South Carolina's statistics, kept in the beginning by law but recently continued voluntarily by the lottery operators, shows that, while lottery players comprise the similar percentages racially and economically because the general population, the numbers become skewed when adjusted for frequency of play.

Blacks make up lower than 20 percent of the state's population, but 38.4 percent of frequent lottery players, who participate greater than once every week. People in households earning not up to $40,000 a year make up 28 percent of the state, while accounting for 53.4 percent of frequent players.

Some lottery spokesmen suggested a cultural link some of the frequent lottery players existed to the old numbers racket.

What remained unexplained was how state lotteries, with their odds removed from true and their possibilities of winning some of the worst this side of three-card monte, are given the sort of free pass by anti-gambling groups while far safer games are demonized. Surely the revenues that churches and states receive from lotteries has nothing to do with the silence of the ethical police.

Published on July 26, 2009 by VirginiaMaddox

Read More... [Source: Religious Gambling News]

LIVE bettings Lines

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This Summers Winktastic Big O For BingO

^Wink Bingo has just announced an enormous promotion for the tip of the summer. Wink Bingo’s Winktastic Big O may be hung on September 13th, 2009. Online bingo players have a chance to receive free bingo tickets to the development within the summer. The Winktasic Big O is offering a prize of £25,000 guaranteed. Players [...]

Read More... [Source: Online Casino Reviews » Online Bingo News | UK & US Bingo News Online]

2014 CarbonPoker Card Player Player of the Year Update -- Madsen and Elias Make Moves

After a late-summer frenzy things have settled down slightly within the 2014 Card Player Player of the Year race, sponsored by CarbonPoker. There have been still a variety of POY points and massive payouts to be awarded this week though. Here's a have a look at what went during the last seven days:

Heartland Poker Tour Commerce Main Event

A total of 583 $1,650 entries were made within the 2014 Heartland Poker Tour main event on the Commerce Casino. Because of this the full prize pool for the development climbed to $845,350. Just five months after winning the HPT California State Poker Championship main event on the exact same casino, Jeff Madsen returned to the general table searching for his second HPT title on the Commerce.

Madsen was unable to return out on top this time, finishing in eighth place for $21,300 and 140 Player of the Year points. This was his fifth final-table finish of the year, with the aforementioned win and another that came in a $1,000 prelim on the World Poker Tour Championship on the Borgata in April. Because of his continued success all year long Madsen now sits in 43rd place within the overall POY rankings, with 2,012 points and year-to-date earnings of $360,827.

While Madsen fell short, Jonathan Chen went directly to take the title, the $159,780 first-place prize and 840 POY points for the win.

World Poker Tour Borgata Poker Open

The 2014 World Poker Tour Borgata Poker Open $3,500 no-limit hold’em main event featured a $3 million guaranteed prize pool this year, but if a complete of 1,226 entries were made the overall prize pool ballooned to $3,924,426. The sizable prove mean that this year’s champion would win the fourth largest WPT event in history in relation to field size.

Just an afternoon shy of per week after the primary hand was dealt on this event a winner was indeed decided. That winner was none rather than Darren Elias, who had finished in fifth place on this exact same event in 2011. This time around he survived to heads-up play against Kane Kalas, who had knocked out all of the other four opponents on the six-handed final table and held a 2-to-1 chip advantage.

There was numerous play left, however, with Elias still sitting behind roughly 50 big blinds. Elias, who had greater than $3.7 in million in live and online tournament winnings previous to this event, was in a position to demonstrate why he's a highly respected pro at the tournament circuit when he began to use his experience to show across the chip counts. Thirty hands into heads-up play he had overtaken the lead, and soon after he emerged victorious. For the win Elias secured his first WPT title, the $843,744 first-place prize and 1,440 POY points. This was his third final table of the year, moving him into 79th place within the rankings with 1,584 points and $864,134 in year-to-date earnings.

Kalas took home $500,364 for his runner-up showing.

Here is a glance on the current top 20 within the POY standings:

Rank	Player	POY Points	Earnings
1	Daniel Colman	4,770	$20,980,768
2	Mustapha Kanit	4,514	$1,234,776
3	Mike Leah	4,174	$1,512,026
4	Jake Schindler	3,700	$2,156,184
5	Ami Barer	3,580	$1,930,121
6	Dylan Wilkerson	3,316	$1,076,307
7	Dominik Panka	3,315	$1,840,936
8	Mike McDonald	3,312	$4,357,089
9	Dan Smith	3,270	$2,671,809
10	Keven Stammen	3,262	$1,655,439
11	Jason Mercier	3,106	$2,778,584
12	Doug Polk	3,010	$3,503,603
13	Joseph Mckeehen	2,924	$1,193,232
14	Brandon Shack-Harris	2,890	$1,405,740
15	Kevin Eyster	2,874	$899,019
16	Joe Kuether	2,636	$762,856
17	Davidi Kitai	2,588	$1,377,077
18	Mukul Pahuja	2,514	$1,060,582
19	Isaac Baron	2,500	$1,508,968
20	Sorel Mizzi	2,495	$1,151,301

Read More... [Source: CardPlayer Poker News]

Sports Betting CEO Accepts Job as Soccer Chief

Ralph Topping, the CEO of sports betting operator William Hill, took on a second job as chairman of soccer's Scottish Premier League.

In a move that illustrates how nonsensical NFL arguments against gambling are, Ralph Topping, the CEO of bookmaker William Hill, was offered and accepted a concurrent post as chairman of the Scottish Premier League, the nation's top soccer organization. The top of the sports betting operator was named to the post with out a worry expressed about potential lack of league match integrity.

The NFL has successfully denied US citizens the best to play at sports gambling by insisting that permitting such, outside of Nevada, would irrevocably harm the general public perception  of the football league and its games. Nevada is treated as a mystical land by NFL spokesmen, the invisible place which somehow operates without corrupting influence, while all other attempts to legalize sports betting are met with shudders.

Meanwhile, the realistic European attitude openly recognizes the symbiotic relationship between gambling and sports, one the NFL says doesn't exist while they supply daily injury updates to the players feeding hundreds of billions to illegal sports books. The ecu sports leagues see no conflict inspite of the pinnacle of its top sports betting group also running a top soccer league.

"It is comforting to grasp that, with the hot appointment of Neil Doncaster as chief executive and the appointment today of Ralph Topping as chairman, the SPL may be in good hands," said outgoing chairman Lex Gould.

"I am very excited to be joining the SPL in a job that marries three of my greatest passions: business, Scotland and football," said Topping.

Published on October 16, 2009 by JoshuaMcCarthy

Read More... [Source: Sports Betting News]

US Players welcome Visa and Mastercard

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ANZPT Canberra Final Table Player Profiles

The PokerStars.net ANZPT Canberra has produced a field of 134 players for the $2,200 Main Event to create a prize pool of $268,000. The nation's capital and the Casino Canberra played host to a few days of intense poker action, as our field was reduced to our final table of nine.

It's an improbable line up and will produce an exciting finale. Here is a little more background about our ANZPT Canberra final table participants...

Seat 1: Luke Edwards (PokerStars Qualifier) - Barwon Heads, Victoria

Luke Edwards is a 26-year old who works within the IT industry. He was playing poker for 5 years after being inspired by none instead of the nice Tony Hachem. Luke isn't any stranger to ANZPT final tables after finishing second to Brotha D in last season's ANZPT Darwin event. Luke claims he's a nit who have been running like God, so he'll be trying to bring that form into the overall table and depend on his previous experience to move one place better!

Seat 2: George Graziani - Sydney, New South Wales

George Graziani is a 38-year old motor mechanic from Sydney who describes himself as a "top bloke". We love top blokes so it's great to look this amateur reach his first major poker final table. He was playing poker for four years after his mates got him into the sport. George credits "solid play" as helping his reach this stage of the tournament and he's going to be keen to head the entire way!

Seat 3: Tony Kambouroglou - Sydney, New South Wales

One of the cult heroes of Australian poker, Tony Kambouroglou is well identifiable in any poker tournament by his trademark toothpick. A painter by trade, "Toothpick" have been playing poker for 5 years in both cash games and tournaments. With over US$200,000 in career tournament earnings, Tony has quite a few experience and support at today's final table as he strives to become the primary toothpick to win an ANZPT title.

Seat 4: Andrew Watson (PokerStars Player) - Wollongong, New South Wales

Another fine fabricated from the 'gong, Andrew Watson is a 24-year old with an excellent online and live poker resume. Andrew is understood for his runner-up finish in last season's ANZPT Queenstown event, but he's also one of the vital country's finest online poker talents. Under the moniker "higher wattage", Watson is currently ranked 3rd online in Australia and can be an actual threat here in this final table.

Seat 5: James Broom - Melbourne, Victoria

One of essentially the most dangerously talented players within the country, James Broom is understood for enjoying any two cards, anywhere, anytime. The 2008 Melbourne Championships Main Event winner has one previous ANZPT final table to his credit, a ninth place on the inaugural event in Adelaide back in 2009. Interestingly, that is the primary tournament cash for Broom since that result, so he'll be keen to make this a large one. He has also final tabled the PokerStars Sunday Million and Warmup amongst an excellent online resume.

Seat 6: Khiem Nguyen - Wiesbaden, Germany

Khiem Nguyen is the one International player in this final table. Originally from Germany, Khiem is currently based out of Brisbane as he travels all over the world on a backpacking-poker adventure. Khiem was playing for 5 years and has built up an excessively impressive poker resume that features a 2010 EPT Germany side event trophy, a 3rd place within the 2010 Master Classic of Poker in Amsterdam worth over €140,000 in addition to a 3rd place within the Macau Millions this April for HK$200,000. Khiem was the chip lead entering the general day of play and can be hard to stop!

Seat 7: Xiuming "Sammy" Huang (PokerStars Qualifier) - Bonner, Australian Capital Territory

Sammy Huang is the lone local in this final table after being introduced to the sport six years ago by his friends. Sammy enjoys both No Limit Holdem and Pot Limit Omaha and has several tournament results to his credit including runner-up within the 2009 Macau Poker Cup Red Dragon for HK$268,465 in prize money. Sammy was inspired by the greats of the sport in Johnny Chan and Doyle Brunson and can be seeking to replicate their greatness with victory here this afternoon.

Seat 8: Tristan Bain - Melbourne, Victoria

Tristan Bain is another of the talented, young guns at this final table. At 25-years of age, Tristan was playing poker for four years after previously working as a dealer at Crown Casino. Interestingly, he's coached by none rather than James Broom. That explains his aggressive style which was highlighted by his shove with six-eight offsuit to burst the bubble late last night. Clear of poker Tristan enjoys AFL and golf, and he has ambitions to 1 day play high stakes poker everywhere in the world.

Seat 9: Leigh Warne - Melbourne, Victoria

Leigh Warne is a 33-year old salesman from Melbourne who's another from the James Broom brood. The nice mates has been playing together for several years, with Warne normally present in the money games as much as $5/10NL. Warne did final table the Melbourne Championships final table back in 2006, but he'll be seeking to go a bit further than his sixth place finish on that occasion.

Read More... [Source: PokerStars Poker Blog :: Tournaments]

Introducing the 59 events at the EPT11 Prague schedule

PRAGUE. What involves mind whilst you call to mind Prague? Is it the pretty Castle? The Charles Bridge? The Christmas Market or the Old Town? Perhaps Mala Strana? For poker players across Europe and across the world, an increasing number of it's coming to intend the PokerStars EPT Poker Festival every December.

The Christmas market in Prague

Almost 9,000 entries combined to create slightly below €13,000,000 in prize pools during a record setting Season 10 stop in Prague. After the incredibly successful launch of EPT Season 11 in Barcelona--which smashed virtually every existing record for PokerStars Live Events--the EPT will close out 2014 standard at the banks of the Vltava River within the Czech capital. We've wonderful new tournament formats, great activities, 40 more tables (for a complete of 140+), cash games going 24/7... everything players have come to expect from the ecu Poker Tour.

The festival schedule kicks off with the Season 4 Grand Final of the Eureka Poker Tour. Last year's Eureka Main Event (€1,100) broke records with its 1,315 players and greater than doubled the sector from Eureka Season 2. This year the Eureka Main Event has its sights set at the coveted 2,000 number.

Another tournament which can threaten the elusive 2,000 barrier is the Eureka Prague Cup (€330). With its three Day 1's and single re-entry there is not any reason to believe that the 2,096 record from Barcelona is safe from this event.

The tournament room in full swing

As we push deeper into the schedule, the Eureka High Roller (€2,200) could be seeking to crack the five hundred mark for the primary time (it reached 430 last year). Meanwhile the €50,000 Super High Roller will bring the world's best to the tables before the EPT Main Event (€5,300) takes to the feature table and really likely any other table within the room. The primary Event drew 1,007 players in 2013 and this year will attempt to become the second one event of the brand new season to damage Sanremo's previous record of 1,240 for Europe.

Special events galore are staggered within the eleven days of the festival with the Finnish Championships making its Czech debut from December 13 - 15 (you need to have Finnish passport or ID to play). The WCOOP Bracelet ceremony makes a return engagement as we award all that lovely hardware from greater than $40,000,000 in WCOOP tournaments. Full Tilt is bringing their Flipouts to Prague besides.

Because we take laying on new variants of poker to our live events as a challenge, I dug into my Big Book of Poker for Super Hold'em and Irish Hold'em.

If you will have always been bored by only having two hole cards, then we'll come up with three and allow them to all play together (Super Hold'em!). In the event you enjoy Omaha but hate working out all of the odds, we'll come up with four hole cards, but you must give two of them back after the flop (Irish Hold'em). That is after all along with our 'normal' hold'em events like "Win the Button" and "Deuces Wild".

Grasel Sweets brings their chocolate caravan into town again for the EPT Superstack with quite a few goodies for the interior child in we all. For those closer in actual age to their inner child than others, now we have the primary ever EPT Junior's event for players who're 21 or under. For those slightly further away, chronologically, from their inner child, we've got the Senior's Event where it's a must to be 50 years or older. Finally, for the insomniac in we all regardless of the age, we can be launching midnight Turbos for the primary time within the ten years of the tour.

About the one thing we won't guarantee is snow...

We can expect Eureka records to fall left and right as EPT records look over their shoulder as Prague hosts 59 tournaments in a single of the most important festivals in PokerStars history. We're pulling out all of the stops with Omaha Championships, WCOOP bracelets, Finnish Championships, Flipouts, Super Holdem, Irish Holdem, Deuces Wild, Win the Button, High Rollers, Super High Rollers and probably a partridge in a pear tree. It's going to be a Christmas to remember!

See you there!

Full schedule are available here.

Read More... [Source: PokerStarsBlog.com]