Sports and poker have a lot in common whether you're on the ice or at the poker table, if you want to win, you start by hitting PokerStars.net today! PokerStars.net announced that it has renewed its sponsorship agreement with Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Ltd. (MLSE) as a sponsor...more
Season 4 of the PokerStars.net Latin America Poker Tour (LAPT) is already in full swing, with spectacular events this year already completed in Brazil, Chile and Peru. Players should take note that the fourth stop of the year has been shifted to Punta del Este in Uruguay from the previously...more
If ever there was someone destined to win a poker tournament, it was Sergey Ilyin. So dominant was he of this final table that some wag in the audience shouted to the other players: "It is better to give up!" Of course they didn't, but the result was same. Ilyin...more
The chips are packed up, the advertising banners have been pulled down and the dealers are off to the bar to kick up their heels as the 2011 PokerStars.net ANZPT Gold Coast Main Event has officially wrapped up for another year. And what a great event it was! A thrilling...more
Peter Matusik wins ANZPT Gold Coast! A big congratulations to Peter Matusik, winner of the PokerStars.net ANZPT Gold Coast Main Event. Matusik entered this final table as the chip leader, but struggled with a bad run of cards for lengthy periods. He was frustrated, but maintained his composure to find...more
6:35pm: Ten-minute break 6:30pm: Grange finds heart The short-stacked Anthony Grange has found a double up with a perfect river to the roars of delight from the locals on the rail. Grange was all in preflop with A♥T♥ against the Q♦Q♠ of Kamel Bekhaled, but the 5♥7♥8♣ gave him hope...more
4:20pm: Ten-minute break 4:10pm: Small one for Grange After some recent eliminations, the players have settled back into their groove with quite a bit of limping and a lot of passive play. We did see one recent all in when Peter Matusik opened to 75,000 and then called the three-bet...more
2:10pm: Ten-minute break 2:00pm: Norah Greer eliminated in 9th place It took almost two hours but we finally have our first elimination of the day, and unfortunately for the Gold Coast locals, it's their favourite lady Norah Greer. After getting herself back above water, Greer moved her last 159,000 into...more
The PokerStars.net ANZPT Gold Coast produced a field of 245 players for the $2,500 Main Event. After three days of flops, check-raises and bad beats, our field has been reduced to a final table of nine. It's an interesting mix with five locals, a couple of Internationals, a previous ANZPT...more
After getting spoilt yesterday with a rather short day, we always knew we were going to have to buckle in for the long road ahead in the Jupiters Poker Room today. It was Day 3 of the ANZPT Gold Coast Main event and the objective was simple. Much like a...more
Final Table Lineup Seat 1: Kamel Bekhaled - 850,000 Seat 2: Norah Greer - 84,000 Seat 3: Paul Hockin - 674,000 Seat 4: Blain Robertson - 267,000 Seat 5: Julian Cohen - 460,000 Seat 6: Savvas Zenonos - 384,000 Seat 7: Leo Boxell - 923,000 Seat 8: Peter Matusik -...more
8:45pm: Twenty-minute break Some growling stomachs have demanded an extended break, so they've been given a twenty-minute one to grab a quick bite. 8:40pm: Matusik chews up Gorr Speaking of nicknames, we've just been told that Peter Matusik likes to be known as "Chewing Gum Pete". He'll be chewing pretty...more
6:30pm: Ten-minute break With the stalemate between the final 18 players still yet to be broken, it must be time for a break. 6:25pm: Kings collide Leo Boxell and Peter Matusik just went to war preflop but it ended rather anti-climactically as Boxell opened K♥K♠ and Matusik showed the same...more
4:10pm: Ten-minute break 4:00pm: The bubble bursts on Andrews The bubble has burst! The unfortunate bubble boy of the ANZPT Gold Coast is Danny Andrews. He was down to his last 20,000 which he moved in preflop with Q♦J♥ with Kamel Bekhaled making the call with 3♥3♦. The board bricked...more
2:00pm: Ten-minute break 1:55pm: Ivin out as Hockin extends lead Mike Ivin has been eliminated as Paul Hockin's giant-killing run continues. Ivin held pocket fours against the king-queen of Hockin as the board ran out J 3 9 2 K . As the players head for the first break of the day, Hockin is now...more
Table 5 Seat 2: Jesse McKenzie - 85600 Seat 3: Harris Pavlou - 43600 Seat 4: Sam Adams - 66900 Seat 5: Ricky Kroesen (PokerStars Qualifier) - 112300 Seat 6: Tim O'Shea - 286400 Seat 7: Zoe Chakley - 46500 Seat 8: Paul Gibson - 44900 Seat 9: Savvas Zenonos...more
It was an abbreviated day of poker, but some big stacks have emerged as Day 2 of the ANZPT Gold Coast Main Event has seen 117 players reduced to the final 52. Among them are ANZPT champions, POY leaders, Aussie Millions gold ring winners and some of the finest young...more
It was abbreviated day of poker, but some big stacks have emerged as Day 2 of the ANZPT Gold Coast Main Event has seen 117 players reduced to the final 52. Among them are ANZPT champions, POY leaders, Aussie Millions gold ring winners and some of the finest young players...more
5:20pm: That's it! We're done! As we ticked down to our final 54 players, the call was made to play four more hands on every table and that would be enough for today. It appears that the impressive stack of Tim O'Shea is going to be good for our chip...more
4:10pm: Ten-minute break 4:05pm: Woodbine stays alive Graham Woodbine continues to fight hard with his short stack as he's landed yet another double up. He was all in with A♠Q♠ against K♦J♦ and held the advantage through the board of Q♦J♣5♣3♣T♠. Woodbine doubles to 20,000. 3:55pm: Natural nines for Tartaglia...more
2:00pm: Ten-minute break 1:55pm: Down and out Irish PokerStars qualifier Brian Downey came into day two with just 10,675 in chips so it was always going to be a tough road ahead. However he was unfortunate to be eliminated after a cruel river went against him. Downey was racing with...more
Table 4 Seat 1: Peter Matusik - 44150 Seat 2: Harris Pavlou - 26975 Seat 3: Danny Chevalier - 10425 Seat 4: David Armstrong - 31550 Seat 5: Ashton Cartwright (PokerStars Player) - 17500 Seat 6: Peter Sun - 20525 Seat 7: Luke Gladman (PokerStars Qualifier) - 25675 Seat 8:...more
There's a popular debate in modern day poker circles, and it's not about polarizing hand ranges or four-betting light. The question hot topic is...do you go hard the night before a big day of poker? Some subscribe to the theory that there is only one way to approach any evening...more
7:30pm: Day 1c is in the bag The final three hands have been dealt and the player have bagged, tagged and called it a night. It was a day for the old guard with several veterans prominent throughout the day, but in the end it was none other than Leo...more
6:20pm: Ten-minute break 6:15pm: Scarf eliminates another Andrew Scarf opened with a raise to 1,325 before Tommy Yi moved all in for a total of 5,800. Scarf made the call with A♠9♥ as Yi tabled K♥7♦ for live cards. However Scarf connected on the board of 5♦A♣J♥4♠8♦ to eliminate Yi...more
4:10pm: Ten-minute break 4:05pm: Croc devours Kemp's aces Billy "The Croc" Argyros has jumped to the top of the chip count leaderboard with the dramatic elimination of Jai Kemp. Argyros started things off with a limp from under the gun. Two limpers followed before Jai Kemp raised it up to...more
2:00pm: Ten-minute break 1:55pm: Crocky chomps some chips Billy "The Croc" Argyros has chipped up with a nice run of cards so far today, but he hasn't got a whole lot of action. Argyros got a walk with pocket aces, before raising with ace-king to take the blinds and antes....more
If you've travelled to any PokerStars event, anywhere in the world, you'll know that they know how to throw a party! It's always one of the highlights of the week. At the World Series of Poker we've seen stars such as rap artist Snoop Dogg and burlesque sensation Dita Von...more
7:30pm: That's a wrap! The final five hands have come and gone as approximately 36 players have survived to see day two action. Simon Barbaro is going to be our chip leader with an impressive stack of 153,400. Jame Burgoine (119,050) and Greg Shillig (117,725) are also above the 100k...more
7:30pm: That's a wrap! The final five hands have come and gone as approximately 36 players have survived to see day two action. Simon Barbaro is going to be our chip leader with an impressive stack of 153,400. Jame Burgoine (119,050) and Greg Shillig (117,725) are also above the 100k...more
6:20pm: Ten-minute break 6:15pm: Vos out While Simon Barbaro has continued the momentum on his new table to extend his stack to around 140,000, the same can't be said for tablemate Mark Vos who was unable to find another double up. It wasn't for the lack of cards as Vos...more
4:10pm: Ten-minute break 4:00pm: Barbaro straight to the top! We have a new chip leader in the house! Simon Barbaro has jumped ahead courtesy of a very favourable flop. We don't have a lot of details of the action but we believe it was a multi-way pot with Barbaro flopping...more
2:00pm: Ten-minute break 1:50pm: Benton blues Aaron Benton has just taken a big hit after Jesse McKenzie caught a perfect river to double through. It all started with McKenzie raising from under the gun and Benton defending his big blind to see a flop of 3♦4♥4♣. McKenzie's continuation bet was...more
Arriving on the Gold Coast brings back many fond memories of years gone by. Growing up as a young Taswegian, the Gold Coast was the ultimate family holiday destination to escape the winter blues of the south. The Gold Coast was exciting. Great weather, theme parks, incredible beaches, bright lights...more
7:35pm: Play concludes The final few hands came and went without further incident as approximately 30 players have survived the Day 1a carnage here on the Gold Coast. It was a day for the locals with Matthew Pilat dominating from the get-go to amass a stack of 112,550 by the...more
6:25pm: Ten-minute break 6:15pm: Big draw delivers for Hodgson Chris Hodgson is now up to 40,000 after his big combo-draw delivered to crack his opponent's pocket kings. All the action went down on a flop of 8♠6♣T♠ with Hodgson showing J♠9♠ for an open-ended straight-flush draw. The turn brought the...more
4:15pm: Ten-minute break 4:05pm: Quads on board Vuong Van Le has just taken out a short-stacked opponent in rather interesting circumstances. His opponent opened to 1,200 before Le moved raised enough to force his opponent to call off his last 4,000 chips. It was Q♠T♠ up against Le's A♦K♣ and...more
2:05pm: Ten-minute break 1:45pm: Old school move snags new school victim The old limp-re-raise. It's a classic move. It looks like aces, but then again, how can it be aces? That was going through the head of Jack Drake as he was faced with a big raise from Ivan Pesut....more
In its quest to give poker players from Southern states an opportunity to escape the chill and see a little sunshine, the PokerStars.net ANZPT has moved to the warmth of Queensland as the fourth stop of Season 3 brings us to the popular Gold Coast! It hasn't been an easy...more
What a difference two months make. Back in March, Antonio Dieguez Rodriguez looked crestfallen having finished second in the inaugural Eureka Poker Tour event in Prague. At the end of this tournament he fell too, but to his knees, face on felt, only moving it to wipe away tears...more
1.25am: Antonio Dieguez Rodriguez wins Eureka Poker Tour, Nova Gorica (€40,010) On the button Antonio Dieguez Rodriguez made it 125,000 to play and Plamen Todorov called from the big blind. On the flop of J♦5♦7♥ Todorov led for 160,000, Rodriguez moved all-in and Todorov called. On their backs: Todorov:...more
7.15pm: End of the level You'll find the next level's updates in a new post. 7.05pm: Viliyan Petleshkov doubles through Dorde Jovanovic Down to just 80,000 he moved all-in with pocket kings from the small blind after Dorde Jovanovic had opened from under-the-gun+1, the latter calling the extra with pocket...more
A total of 92 players sat down at the start of Day 2 of the Eureka Poker Tour, Nova Gorica main event. All with the hope of reaching the money (top 24) and then the final table (top eight). As it was play would end bang in the middle...more
2.50am: Chip counts Here's the chipcounts of the remaining players: Visraeliyan Petleshkov, Bulgaria, PokerStars qualifier, 495,000 Tadeas Kozdon, Czech Republic, PokerStars qualifier, 355,000 Alain Medesan , Romania, 303,000 Senadin Cosic Bosnia Herzegovina, 270,000 Dieguez Rodriguez, Spain, 258,000 Miha Staric, Slovenia, PokerStars qualifier, 237,000 Plamen Todorov, Bulgaria, 208,000 Libor Behro, Czech...more
11.35pm: Break Time For the next 15 minutes players are on a break. You'll find the next levels updates in a new post. 11.30pm: Berka out in 21st Pavel Berka, who finished 20th in Prague is the 21st place finisher here in Nova Gorica. Down to under 40,000 he re-raised...more
6.25pm: Break time Players are now on a 10 minute break. You'll find level 13 updates in a new post. 6.15pm: More chip counts There are currently 43 players left in, here are a few more chip counts. Sasa Stancic - 79,000 Michal Kadziela - 54,000 Mitch Johnson - 55,000...more
When late registration slammed shut on the Eureka Poker Tour, Nova Gorica main event at approximately 4.30pm local time it was confirmed that 211 players had all put up €800 for a shot at winning the second ever Eureka Poker Tour main event. They created a prize pool of...more
11.45pm: Aces ensure double for Bevac On one of the last four hands of the day Daniel Bavec doubled up getting his last 20,000 in with pocket aces against pocket kings. Aces...upped Bevac's chip stack at the death 11.45pm: Done for the day Play is done for the day, a...more
6.30pm: End of the level That's the end of level four, players are now on a 10 minute break. 6.15pm: Exposed card changes course of the hand Pre-flop a five was exposed but that didn't stop three players including Zsolt Pentek (MP) and Ferrara Massimiliano (SB) seeing a flop of...more
Amid jubilant scenes in the Casino Gran Madrid, Ivan Freitez was crowned EPT Grand Final Champion tonight, an unstoppable force at a most unique EPT final table. Broadcast on live television across Europe (albeit with a two-hour delay) and across the world, and those watching on EPT Live, watched Freitez...more
The Eureka Poker Tour rolled into Nova Gorica, Slovenia and 96 players in total took to the felt on Day 1A. Slovenia is the smallest country, in terms of population, to ever qualify for the Football World Cup and it looked as if they would be outnumbered here too. There...more
12.10am: Miha Staric leads the way The overnight chip leader is Miha Staric. The Slovenian PokerStars qualifier takes 97,500 through to day two. A full wrap of the day's play to come and I've been promised full chip counts will be with me within an hour. 11.55pm: Play is done...more
6.35pm: Break time That's the end of level four and players are on a 15 minute break. You'll find level five updates and beyond in a new post. 6.30pm: Snowmen don't melt for Maryska I joined the action to see a flop of 3♠3♥7♥ and three active players, first to...more
Definition of man envy: when one man sees another constructing something impressive and wishes he could do the same. I have man envy right now, and the subject of my man envy-ness is Bertrand 'ElkY' Grospellier. I'd like to build enough chips to bag just one five-figure score, but instead...more
To contact the PokerStars Blog team, simply email blog@pokerstars.net. To subscribe to the PokerStars Blog RSS feed, click here. Brought to you by PokerStars.net.
