Poker Review

Guess who’s back, back again, shady’s back. No, don’t worry – I am not getting all Phil Hellmuth on you all – I have no desire to wear an ipod and sunglasses in a nightclub and waffle a load of Jay-Z/Eminem street talk.

Tony G is back and in the week they say they are making progress towards finding the higgs boson and making history with physics I am back with a very big bang!

Full of heart of commitment, and fresh from breaks in Nida and Palanga, I headed for Cardiff yesterday to play in the Poker Lounge – a $20,000 six-seater sit-and -go for television. I took it down for the $120k winner takes all first prize.

In my way was Mike ‘The Mouth’ Matusow, who like a greedy pacman was hungry to eat me alive. Also in the line-up was a very, very grumpy Jennifer Harman, who threw a fit in the taxi on the way to the studios as she hates mornings. It hardly made for a comfortable ride but I did have the pleasure of releasing her back to London to join her husband in Italy when I flushed her out the door.

Jesus was also in the house in the form of Chris Ferguson – he didn’t walk on water and even struggled to ride the bike due to the big waves from the G that were crashing around his feet. Brit James Dempsey was also in my heat – here’s a man with some serious form after recently winning a bracelet and taking down a second at the WSOP. Even he was no match for the rejuvenated G force. I was the captain, I owned them all at the table.

In fairness, I simply cruised it – I smashed up the Poker Lounge. I ended up heads-up with Mike the Mouth with a thin chip lead but I was too classy and a repeat of the famous WPT Bad Boys of Poker finale was set. I crushed Matusow then and I crushed him again but this time I wore no kimono!

Trapped Mike with a cool call on my big blind

In the final hand I trapped Mike with a cool call on my big blind when he raised on the button. I was holding A9 and he had A5. Once the ace was released on the flop Mike was confused and happy to ship the stack to the G. On ya bike! I picked up $120k that will keep me off the streets for a week or so as London is costly and there are crocodiles on the streets. Luckily Tony G is the Lounge Lizard!

I do think taking a break from playing means the return of my A game, or I should I say my G game! I have been watching developments In Vegas with a keen eye. I am sorry to have missed the WPT Bellagio Cup – Ivey was very close to making history after coming third after buying in after the 11th level. Complete madness!

I also had to chuckle when I saw the video of Hellmuth trying to make the latest entry into a poker tournament in history. The way that Durrrr just casually walks up to the cage at the Bellagio when the Poker Brat was surrounded by cameras and the WPT’s Royal Flush girls is classic…

Talking of the introduction of the Royal Flush Girls by the WPT – it seemed like a good idea to me. Like the beauty queens – here are some ladies in desperate need of the guiding hand of Tony G! On a more serious note, I was also happy to see the WPT appoint Matt Savage as Tour Director – an excellent move in my eyes.

I have been listening to Jesse May on the Poker Show and was amused when Hellmuth started talking about the letter I wrote to him after his melt down at Bay 101. He said I could throw mud at him continuously but he always brushed it off as I had big heart. That is true but don’t underestimate the menace of the lounge lizard Phil!

Russian parasailing donkey

I am now back in London getting ready for my Poker Milion heat on the 29th. I am also going to be playing the WPT London at the end of August.

The front page of the Sun newspaper today is all about a Russian parasailing donkey. I deplore the animal cruelty of these Russians but at the same time I got a phone call from one of Russian poker’s finest in the form of Alex Kravchenko.

Alex the Russian parasailing donkey is going to be joining me at WPT London – what would a Russian bike riding parasailing donkey look like? He’s going to find out! Bring it on! Come and join me by qualifying online at PartyPoker.com now.

Bluffing’s a true skill. The ability to mask weak pocket cards and trick the rest of the table into folding their stronger hands is a powerful weapon to have when playing poker. In fact, it’s essential.

Check out this clip from PartyPoker.com’s Premier League Poker IV where JC Tran beautifully shows the art of bluffing against none other than Phil Hellmuth. Not only does JC take a juicy pot, the bonus payoff is that he’s now put Phil on tilt.

Mission accomplished, JC!

Bluffing’s a true skill. The ability to mask weak pocket cards and trick the rest of the table into folding their stronger hands is a powerful weapon to have when playing poker. In fact, it’s essential.

Check out this clip from PartyPoker.com’s Premier League Poker IV where JC Tran beautifully shows the art of bluffing against none other than Phil Hellmuth. Not only does JC take a juicy pot, the bonus payoff is that he’s now put Phil on tilt.

Mission accomplished, JC!

We’re excited to introduce the second player to make it through to the live final of our poker promotion for petrol heads, Drive the Dream. Meet Stanislav Savchenko, a 43-year-old professional chess player from Ilvichevsk in Ukraine.

Read the profile of the first winner, Marek Sosnowski, here.

Savchenko’s route to the final table started when he bought into one of our qualifiers for just 25 PartyPoints.

“Qualification to the final game didn’t cost me anything,” he smiles, looking back on the hard-fought poker that’s taken him to within touching distance of the first prize: a 2010 Aston Martin DB9 Coupe.

The whole family was behind him as he played his way to victory. “My reaction and that of the people close to me… was the strongest delight. My son was next to me during the whole tournament, rooting for me, and we were the first who felt this joy.”

No slouch at the tables

Although he’s obviously no slouch at the tables, Savchenko’s never taken down a huge score. “This is my biggest poker win online; offline I played only with my friends,” he says.

His place in the final has given him his first chance to visit London since a trip in 1994, but Savchenko really has his eye on on the main prize. “Unfortunately, I don’t have a car yet… the Aston Martin is the dream of every person – and the legend from James Bond!”

Having said that, the Ukranian is taking a pragmatic approach to the possibility of owning one of the world’s most desirable motors: “If I won the car… maybe I will take the cash”. Phlegmatic perhaps, but we’re sure that if he gets behind the wheel for even a second, he’ll be travelling from London to Ukraine in higher style than he enjoyed on the journey out.

Drive the Dream runs until 12th September, so there’s still time for you to win your seat in the live final; there are six places still up for grabs. As well as the main prize, you could also win the chance to drive a Ferrari, Porsche and a Lamborghini plus loads of big cash prizes. Find out how to qualify today.

We’re excited to introduce the second player to make it through to the live final of our poker promotion for petrol heads, Drive the Dream. Meet Stanislav Savchenko, a 43-year-old professional chess player from Ilvichevsk in Ukraine.

Read the profile of the first winner, Marek Sosnowski, here.

Savchenko’s route to the final table started when he bought into one of our qualifiers for just 25 PartyPoints.

“Qualification to the final game didn’t cost me anything,” he smiles, looking back on the hard-fought poker that’s taken him to within touching distance of the first prize: a 2010 Aston Martin DB9 Coupe.

The whole family was behind him as he played his way to victory. “My reaction and that of the people close to me… was the strongest delight. My son was next to me during the whole tournament, rooting for me, and we were the first who felt this joy.”

No slouch at the tables

Although he’s obviously no slouch at the tables, Savchenko’s never taken down a huge score. “This is my biggest poker win online; offline I played only with my friends,” he says.

His place in the final has given him his first chance to visit London since a trip in 1994, but Savchenko really has his eye on on the main prize. “Unfortunately, I don’t have a car yet… the Aston Martin is the dream of every person – and the legend from James Bond!”

Having said that, the Ukranian is taking a pragmatic approach to the possibility of owning one of the world’s most desirable motors: “If I won the car… maybe I will take the cash”. Phlegmatic perhaps, but we’re sure that if he gets behind the wheel for even a second, he’ll be travelling from London to Ukraine in higher style than he enjoyed on the journey out.

Drive the Dream runs until 12th September, so there’s still time for you to win your seat in the live final; there are six places still up for grabs. As well as the main prize, you could also win the chance to drive a Ferrari, Porsche and a Lamborghini plus loads of big cash prizes. Find out how to qualify today.

It was 105 degrees in the shade on my last morning in Las Vegas, so on the one hand I was happy to be flying back to the cooler confines of Western Europe. On the other hand, always sorry to see Vegas in the rear view mirror.

This WSOP will take the usual sorting out, trying to get a grip on who the magical men are that make up the November 9. Who were the biggest winners of the summer, and whose stock took some downward dips.

For the cup is half full people, there is always next month to look forward to, the London summer of fun that begins in earnest at the end of August and will encompass major tournaments like the WPT London, EPT London, and the WSOPE, plus televised tournaments like the World Open and Poker Million. I’ll be turning my own attention to the silly season of European poker, but first some business to wrap up on the Vegas end.

Show 7 (July 21) featuring Phil Laak is online now! Click the play button to listen:

Prefer to download? Right click here and Save As.

London next month

One thing is for sure, and that is that London next month will see the debut of plenty of poker players who have become new stars. In addition to the November nine finalists, all of whom will be likely busy playing as many tournaments as they can for tax deductible reasons, Brits like Richard Ashby, Mike Ellis, James Dempsey, Steve Jelinek and Praz Bansi will be swaggering with newly acquired stature and attitude, plus the cash to do what they like on their home turf.

Speaking of taxes, I had an interesting conversation with a Swedish poker player over in Vegas who told me that the relative absence of Scandis from the WSOP halls this year is due to the oppressive government attitudes of those nations, who have launched attacks onto poker players with tournament results going back years and left the entire Swedish poker community broke and in deep debt to their government.

It’s an unfortunate state of affairs when the balance of power determines that depending on where you live, you have a much better shot at being and staying a poker professional.

Young single players are moving to Malta, moving to Gibraltar, and like the American Quinn, setting up luxury shops in Thailand to grind their days away on the Internet.

One of my top poker and philosophical heroes

Phil Laak has grown on me to the point where he is now one of my top poker and philosophical heroes. First you think he’s playing a game, and then you realize that he buys into it.

And then, much later, you realize the positive effect that his words and philosophy have had on his life and you think, maybe I’ve got to get me some of that Phil Laak “Kung-Fu”. He’s hopped up on adrenalin and serotonin, and talked about all that plus the aftereffects of his 115 hour record breaking poker session when I sat down with him at the Bellagio last week.

Show 7 (July 21) featuring Phil Laak is online now! Click the play button to listen:

Prefer to download? Right click here and Save As.

It was 105 degrees in the shade on my last morning in Las Vegas, so on the one hand I was happy to be flying back to the cooler confines of Western Europe. On the other hand, always sorry to see Vegas in the rear view mirror.

This WSOP will take the usual sorting out, trying to get a grip on who the magical men are that make up the November 9. Who were the biggest winners of the summer, and whose stock took some downward dips.

For the cup is half full people, there is always next month to look forward to, the London summer of fun that begins in earnest at the end of August and will encompass major tournaments like the WPT London, EPT London, and the WSOPE, plus televised tournaments like the World Open and Poker Million. I’ll be turning my own attention to the silly season of European poker, but first some business to wrap up on the Vegas end.

Show 7 (July 21) featuring Phil Laak is online now! Click the play button to listen:

Prefer to download? Right click here and Save As.

London next month

One thing is for sure, and that is that London next month will see the debut of plenty of poker players who have become new stars. In addition to the November nine finalists, all of whom will be likely busy playing as many tournaments as they can for tax deductible reasons, Brits like Richard Ashby, Mike Ellis, James Dempsey, Steve Jelinek and Praz Bansi will be swaggering with newly acquired stature and attitude, plus the cash to do what they like on their home turf.

Speaking of taxes, I had an interesting conversation with a Swedish poker player over in Vegas who told me that the relative absence of Scandis from the WSOP halls this year is due to the oppressive government attitudes of those nations, who have launched attacks onto poker players with tournament results going back years and left the entire Swedish poker community broke and in deep debt to their government.

It’s an unfortunate state of affairs when the balance of power determines that depending on where you live, you have a much better shot at being and staying a poker professional.

Young single players are moving to Malta, moving to Gibraltar, and like the American Quinn, setting up luxury shops in Thailand to grind their days away on the Internet.

One of my top poker and philosophical heroes

Phil Laak has grown on me to the point where he is now one of my top poker and philosophical heroes. First you think he’s playing a game, and then you realize that he buys into it.

And then, much later, you realize the positive effect that his words and philosophy have had on his life and you think, maybe I’ve got to get me some of that Phil Laak “Kung-Fu”. He’s hopped up on adrenalin and serotonin, and talked about all that plus the aftereffects of his 115 hour record breaking poker session when I sat down with him at the Bellagio last week.

Show 7 (July 21) featuring Phil Laak is online now! Click the play button to listen:

Prefer to download? Right click here and Save As.

It must be a tough decision.

Phil Ivey’s been in the tank for six minutes already while the chipleader from Sydney Australia has spent three minutes looking at the ceiling, two minutes looking at Phil and one minute sitting back in his chair, slightly vexed. Which is apparently what Ivey was waiting for, because now he calls.

Show 6 (July 18) featuring Phil Ivey is online now! Click the play button to listen:

Prefer to download? Right click here and Save As.

Ivey has done it again

The river card is a blank, a red four joining the three spades and club on the ace high board, and your man from Australia fires into Phil Ivey once again. He’s raised preflop and now launched three barrels large. This last one is 500,000, more than half of what Ivey’s got left. Phil has not called quick, he’s not called quickly once and during his dwells he’s peered across the table, deep eyes, the long stare, no hurry at all, looking and watching and waiting.

He’s finally made up his mind and sticks in the chips. Your man’s got two sevens, just a bluff. And Phil has caught him with a weak top pair. The crowd goes wild. Ivey has done it again.

Phil Ivey is standing on the rail eating an apple. It’s a TV break 4-handed and Ivey is as relaxed as can be. He’s chatting with a group in the front row, none of them poker players, just friends or family who have come to cheer him on. Between bites of the bright red fruit he talks animatedly with a buddy in the front row. They are laughing. It’s not about poker. The money sits in front of the table, on display, almost a million dollars in bundled cash. But Ivey hasn’t given it a second glance. Nor would he. It’s the crystal cup in the center and what it represents. Another title, another step towards history.

I sat on the rail for every minute of Ivey’s final table run at the WPT Bellagio, Season 9. I even got a chance to ask him some questions. Tune in to The Poker Show to hear what he meant when he said, “Impossible? I don’t like the word impossible!”

Prefer to download? Right click here and Save As.

It must be a tough decision.

Phil Ivey’s been in the tank for six minutes already while the chipleader from Sydney Australia has spent three minutes looking at the ceiling, two minutes looking at Phil and one minute sitting back in his chair, slightly vexed. Which is apparently what Ivey was waiting for, because now he calls.

Show 6 (July 18) featuring Phil Ivey is online now! Click the play button to listen:

Prefer to download? Right click here and Save As.

Ivey has done it again

The river card is a blank, a red four joining the three spades and club on the ace high board, and your man from Australia fires into Phil Ivey once again. He’s raised preflop and now launched three barrels large. This last one is 500,000, more than half of what Ivey’s got left. Phil has not called quick, he’s not called quickly once and during his dwells he’s peered across the table, deep eyes, the long stare, no hurry at all, looking and watching and waiting.

He’s finally made up his mind and sticks in the chips. Your man’s got two sevens, just a bluff. And Phil has caught him with a weak top pair. The crowd goes wild. Ivey has done it again.

Phil Ivey is standing on the rail eating an apple. It’s a TV break 4-handed and Ivey is as relaxed as can be. He’s chatting with a group in the front row, none of them poker players, just friends or family who have come to cheer him on. Between bites of the bright red fruit he talks animatedly with a buddy in the front row. They are laughing. It’s not about poker. The money sits in front of the table, on display, almost a million dollars in bundled cash. But Ivey hasn’t given it a second glance. Nor would he. It’s the crystal cup in the center and what it represents. Another title, another step towards history.

I sat on the rail for every minute of Ivey’s final table run at the WPT Bellagio, Season 9. I even got a chance to ask him some questions. Tune in to The Poker Show to hear what he meant when he said, “Impossible? I don’t like the word impossible!”

Prefer to download? Right click here and Save As.

The World Series of Poker was a great experience but alas, as the final 600 or so runners head deep into the money, I’m watching the updates online from home. I say ‘alas’ but honestly, after a very long summer in Vegas it’s fantastic to be home again.

The Main Event ended for me on Day 3, somewhere at about 1700 people out of 7500 when I ran top pair and a double gutshot into a set.

It always hurts to go out

It’s a pretty similar story to a lot of other stories you’ll hear from the Main Event: pretty standard hand, not much I would do differently etc, etc.  It always hurts to go out but sadly, it has to happen to 99.99% of the people in the tournament in order for someone to win!

It was a lot of fun to represent Party Poker for the WSOP and I’m really proud to have worn the patch. I lost count of the number of Americans who saw the Party logo on my shirt and told me that they got their start in poker, playing on Party and that they really miss it.

Once my WSOP main event was over, I headed over to Binion’s Steak House for dinner with my friend Nick Wealthall. He is the first person who really introduced me to Vegas years ago and we try to get to Binions for our pilgrimage every year. It’s a fantastic place to eat and really soak in some ‘old Vegas’ style where the wait staff are utterly amazing. It’s the sort of place where you expect Dean Martin or Frank Sinatra to walk around the corner with a glass of scotch and a beautiful lady on his arm, at any moment. It’s all dim lights, red velvet banquettes and soft glamour.

Tip well please, they really do earn it

The least senior waiter at Binions has only been in the job for 15 instead of 20 years. Their knowledge of Vegas, their stories and the sheer elegance of their service is a throwback to very different times. I’d heartily recommend any of you people who are still in Vegas, go there. And tip well please, they really do earn it.

Sadly, we heard the news that the hotel at Binions has closed down now so it may only be a matter of time before the steak house at the top of their tower goes too. This makes visiting there such a melancholy but really important part of our yearly Vegas trip.

Once dinner was over we headed over to the Wynn for some pointless gambling and ran into a gaggle of Brits at the Pai Gow table. Pai Gow has become my new favorite table game, mostly because it seems to be one of the slowest ways to lose money!

I said goodbye to Vegas for another year

It was a great way to finish off the trip; exchanging stories with Jesse May, Vicky Coren, Neil Channing, Anne Laymond and the Black Belt poker lovelies. I was loathe to leave but my eyes seemed to be closing all by themselves so Nick and I took the meager chips we had left from Pai Gow over to the roulette tables for one last desperate gambler’s gasp.

We pushed our way though the crowd to place our bets and caught the eye of the man sitting opposite us. He seemed to think we were incredibly good luck as he smiled widely at us and then covered all of our tiny bets with his own heavy stacks. When our numbers managed to hit 4 out of 7 times, we decided to call it a night and after a spirited round of ‘high fives’ with the man across from us (he spoke no English but delight is universal!) we straggled off to our different homes around Vegas. I had a flight to catch the next morning, after all.

And so I said goodbye to Vegas for another year.