Archive for October 2008
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Choosing an Online Poker Site
Online Poker site – several top poker rooms to choose from
There are numerous online poker rooms to choose from. Some differences among the sites include; software features, game types, graphics, character and avatar features, and number of players at the site.
The best way to choose an online poker room is to try it out. It’s [...]
#576 – World Series Final Table Profile #2 – Scott Montgomery – Tournament Star
This is my second in a series of three profiles of Full Tilt’s final table trio. See also my profile of Craig Marquis and my coming profile of Kelly Kim. Also, check out the contests accompanying the Marquis profile – Cash Game Killer – and this one – Tournament Star. Kelly Kim’s profile will also [...]
#575 – CONTEST ANNOUNCEMENT – 3B – TOURNAMENT STAR
I’m trying to get a few things confirmed with Scott Montgomery before I post my profile of him, but I didn’t want to delay the contest suggested by his tournament prowess. This is a slightly modified version of the “Buy the Coach” contest. It replaces that contest.
You’ve made the Final Table of the Main Event [...]
#574 – CONTEST ANNOUNCEMENT – 3A – CASH GAME KILLER
Apologies for any inconvenience and delay resulting from my suspending/modifying the contest announced last week. But I realized that it could be even better if I replaced that contest with THREE contests, each geared toward a characteristic about one of Full Tilt’s WSOP final table trio. This contest, inspired by Craig Marquis, is titled CASH [...]
#573 – World Series Final Table Profile #1 – Craig Marquis – Cash Game Killer
New Year’s Eve, 2007 – Craig Marquis, 21, attends the New Year’s Eve party of Tom Dwan and David Benefield, a pair of even younger men who recently bought a house in Forth Worth, Texas. Marquis is, like most 21 year-olds, just beginning the journey to get to where he wants to go: he was [...]
#572 – Stop the Presses (and Stop the Depression)!
First, I am changing the contest rules to Buy the Coach.
Second, I am officially over my spiralling depression.
I had a nice talk with my dad – he’s always there when things are messed up in my life and I think I’m always there for him, though I routinely miss birthdays and anniversaries and neglect to [...]
Hey, I’m GIVING AWAY buy-ins to FTOPS X!
A couple days ago, I announced the start of the Blog’s third essay contest, Buy the Coach. Maybe the process of explaining how you’d prepare for the final table of the WSOP Main Event is a daunting one or you’re taking admirable care in crafting your entries, but I haven’t gotten very many responses.
I’m giving [...]
#571 – Dispatches – Part II – Life on a Losing Streak
I’m trying to maintain some equilibrium in my life because, after all, results-oriented thinking should be discouraged in poker. The key is to play well all the time. The results will follow, but not always equal to the quality of your play.
That’s the theory, anyway. But results feel good – or bad. Getting aces cracked [...]
#570 – Dispatches from an Uncommunicative Correspondent – Part I – A Wayward Son Seeks Forgiveness
Dear Uncle Tilty:
Nobody can say it hasn’t been a rocky road for us lately. The World Series was a disjointed mess. London was a disaster. When I look back on it, I think some of the writing was good, but there were definitely times I wanted to quit, and probably some times where I should [...]
EPT Budapest: Major movements
Level 12 has recently just ended, and there have been some major movements in the past couple of hours.
In the literal sense of that word, Johnny Lodden has been relocated to sit next to Sorel Mizzi and opposite Luca Pagano, offering a real treat for the online poker-obsessed rail bird. Meanwhile the big movers [...]
EPT Budapest: Attacking the leader
Like the blaze of glory performed at times yesterday by Team PokerStars Pro Dario Minieri, Arnaud Mattern is displaying similar flare at his table which features Danny Ryan, Paul Testud and the last remaining Polish player Jecek Ladny. The Frenchman just won three of four pots simply by raising in late position (and once from [...]
EPT Budapest: National pride
The Irish player Fintan Gavin scored the biggest success of his poker career when he came second to Sebastian Ruthenberg at the recent EPT event in Barcelona, earning him €792,000. He did so by endearing himself to the Catalan poker gods by kitting himself out in the immediately distinctive red and blue of Barcelona FC [...]
EPT Budapest: The state of play
Play is progressing at a breakneck pace, with players sliding out the door like greased pigs down a fireman’s pole. Among those notable fallers are William Thorson, Alan Smurfit and Denes Kalo, all of whom started with small stacks, and Pierre Husson, who was one of the overnight leaders but had a catastrophic day two. [...]
EPT Budapest: What is, what could have been, what was…
The Paganos, or “Pagani” as one person quipped, are still in contention albeit with stacks at opposite ends of the favourable scale. Whilst son Luca is one of the short stacks at a table that features tournament leader Sorel Mizzi, father Claudio just escaped elimination with a fortunate double-up against Pierre Husson, whose day has [...]
EPT Budapest: Around the tables
With the blinds getting steeper the pace of the action seems to be increasing. Team PokerStars Pro Alex Kravchenko just pulled off one of those world class calls, holding A-5 against A-Q. When the A-Q player bet on the five river card, Kravchenko’s read told him that his opponent had nothing. With a pair of [...]
EPT Budapest: There’s a gambler in town
“My name is Kenny Rogers! I’m the gambler!”
Actually his name is Ivo Donev and he was talking to one of the chip leaders, Annette Obrestad, explaining to her his intention to raise from the button regardless. Obrestad was in the cut off and made a bet of 1,800. The gambler, true to his word, re-raised [...]
EPT Budapest: Speaking volumes
Often poker is a non-verbal pursuit. As long as you make your intentions clear, don’t under-raise, don’t act out of turn, and don’t get embroiled in any unnecessary controversy, then you can pretty much play as a mute. Plenty of players like to talk around the table, of course, but it’s really not essential – [...]
EPT Budapest: Thorson watch
Someone had to do it, hang around to see whether William Thorson’s 3,400 day two starting stack would be the beginning of something great, or the end of something that could have been. Sadly it was the latter.
Not that Thorson had much choice on a table featuring Alex Kravchenko and blinds starting at 400/800 with [...]
EPT Budapest: Preparing for a new adventure
Day two on the EPT, and here are a few facts about today’s play, sprinkled with fairly safe predictions:
The remaining players from the two day ones are now merged in the ballroom of the Las Vegas Casino, Budapest. That’s a total of 182 in the field, who will hope to play the eight, one-hour levels [...]
Durrr wins biggest pot in poker history
The largest pot in online poker history has been broken once again for the third time in recent week. This time it was a $617,968.50 pot played between Tom Dawn, known better in the poker community but his handle Durrr and his opponent LarsLuzak. The hand ended with Durrr making a sick all in call [...]