Professional poker player, and World Poker Tour standout Tony G (real name Antanas Guoga) has launched a website www.tonygpoker.com.
Los Angeles, CA -- Professional poker player, and World Poker Tour standout Tony G (real name Antanas Guoga) has launched a website. Tony's website www.tonygpoker.com will allow fans to follow along the tournament trail with Tony, and read his thoughts on his tournament finishes, opposing players, and tournament venues. In addition, fans will be able to ask questions of Tony, see when and where Tony will be playing, and much more.

"I'm really pleased to be able to share my thoughts, and experiences along the tournament trail with fans of the great game of poker." Comments Tony. "I think www.tonygpoker.com will give readers a taste of what it is like out on the poker circuit, and will allow me to share the highs, and lows of playing poker for a living. I hope to update it nearly every day while I am in a tournament."

Tony G will be making waves this Wednesday night, as he makes another appearance on the World Poker Tour. Tony is known for his talkative, and teasing nature. In his second consecutive WPT Paris final table, Tony was in rare form, being more outspoken than normal, and walking a thin line between teasing, and outlandish.

"Its never personal at the table. I respect all players" comments Guoga "But I want to win very badly, and if you are at a WPT final table with me, then you should prepare for war"

The World Poker Tour season three Paris show will air on the Travel Channel, this Wednesday, March 23rd at 9pm EST.

Born in Lithuania, Tony G spent most of his formative years in Melbourne, Australia, until returning to Europe to focus on poker. Winner of the 2002 World Heads Up Omaha Championship, Tony G has played in eight World Poker Tour events, cashing in five, making two final tables, and missing a third final table by one spot (7th place at 2004 WPT Mirage Poker Showdown). In addition to his website, Tony is a writer, and frequent contributor to www.pokernews.info one of the web's top poker news portals.

For inquiries, or more information, please contact:

John Caldwell
J-Cent
jcentmanagement@hotmail.com

By emily, Online Casino News
Annie Duke, winner of the $2 million World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions Event, has signed an exclusive DVD deal with Masters of Poker (MOP).

The series of DVDs, which is being filmed this week at the Commerce Casino, will be distributed and marketed through MOP's exclusive partnership deal with video label, Big Vision Entertainment.

"Getting a star like Annie, whose beauty and skill is helping to take poker to a new level, is a real coup for Masters of Poker," says Big Vision CEO Houston Curtis. "My partner, Jon Moonves, and I are pleased to add Annie to our best-selling series of poker DVDs which already includes 9-time World Champion, Phil Hellmuth." Andy Bellin, author of the best-selling Poker Nation, serves as co-executive consultant on this project.

Annie Duke, whose appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman remains the only visit to that program by a female poker player, is widely hailed as being one of the best and most beautiful poker players in the world.

NEW YORK, /PRNewswire/ -- A new version of "Hold'Em" has been invented. It has the potential of supplanting the existing game that's being played today. The status of the game is patent pending, US60/654,786.

The new version of "Texas Hold'Em" should be of great interest to the public in general, and especially to the many millions watching the "Hold'Em" Tournaments on several National Networks, virtually every day of the week. Obviously, the invention has to be of even greater interest, specifically, to all the "Hold'Em" players as well as to the estimated fifty- to sixty-million poker players in the US alone. The interest is so intense that it is rumored that a major network may be coming out with their own Poker Tournament Show.

This version of "Hold'Em", named "Triple-Flop Hold'Em", could potentially revolutionize the "Hold'Em World", or at the very least, co-exist with the present game, which has been around since the 1920's. The new version is more beneficial to the players, and more profitable to the Gaming Establishments, because their total "rake" from each hand could double, at least. This is possible because of a "buy" option. It is an option and not an integral part of the game, per se.

In "Triple-Flop Hold'Em", a maximum of three cards may be used from the board and, two cards (or 1) from the hand. Therefore, making the face-down cards more valuable. This reduces time consuming pot splitting dramatically, thus allowing more hands to be dealt.

Furthermore, in the new version, the board consists of six cards, dealt in three flops of two cards each. This means the chance of improving the hand doubles, because the third flop (or exposure) consists of two cards, as compared to one card in the existing game. Additionally, the "buy-a-card" option, a new and fresh element in the game, could come into play, giving the players one LAST chance to make a winning hand out of a possible losing one. The price of the "buy" is to be determined by the Casino. However, the author suggests, double the highest bet allowed, in a limit game. It is noteworthy that the total number of bets is four, with or without the "buy".
Source: Anthony Coussa

Conrad Defiebre, Star Tribune
Sen. Dave Kleis lost at Texas Hold'em on Monday but won committee passage of his bill to make sure the popular form of poker is legal in Minnesota.

The St. Cloud Republican was abetted in both cases by Phil Gordon, a star of the Bravo cable channel's "Celebrity Poker Showdown." Gordon dusted Kleis in a made-for-TV game of Texas Hold'em at a State Capitol news conference, then testified for Kleis' legislation before the Senate State and Local Government Operations Committee.

The measure would add Texas Hold'em to a list of "social skill games" for which tournaments are legal in Minnesota if prizes do not exceed $200. Currently covered by the law are bridge, cribbage, euchre, 500, gin, pinochle, sheepshead, skat, smear and whist.

Kleis contends that Texas Hold'em, enjoying immense new popularity thanks mainly to TV shows such as Gordon's, already is legal in Minnesota, just like darts, softball or Trivial Pursuit tournaments often promoted by bars.

"There's no betting, no money being exchanged," Kleis said. "This bill is not in any way an expansion of gambling."

In addition, he said, Texas Hold'em is a game of skill, not of chance, as proven by his loss to Gordon on Monday. That also would differentiate it from games the state regulates or outlaws.

But after police raided a Texas Hold'em tournament at a St. Cloud bowling alley last year and the county attorney subsequently declined to bring charges, promoters say the law needs clarifying.

Some legislators, however, remain wary of opening the door wider to anything that smacks of gambling. That's why Kleis has vowed to withdraw the bill if amendments were to broaden its scope.

"I'm not bluffing," he said.

A companion bill has been heard but not voted on by a House panel. As Kleis' bill advanced on a lopsided voice vote to the Senate Crime Prevention and Public Safety Committee, it added two new restrictions: Cities or counties could require promoters of Texas Hold'em tournaments to obtain permits costing up to $200, and people under age 18 would be barred from participating.

Conrad deFiebre is at cdefiebre@startribune.com.

Poker Pro Annie Duke's efforts to organize a charity tournament for the benefit of Portland, Oregon's public schools were recently shot down by the State Attorney General's office, citing that charity poker tournaments are against the law in the state. Duke, who currently has four children attending Portland's public schools, anticipated that poker tournaments would earn $25,000 for the schools.

Even if the state had approved the event, the Oregon Public School system would have refused to endorse it, as they have a policy against promoting games of chance. Had the tournament been approved by the state, either the PTA or the Schools Foundation would have been able to sponsor it.

Duke has questioned the logic of the state's policies against charity poker tournaments, considering that it gains a significant portion of its funding from the Oregon lottery, which even features an online gambling capacity. The legality of charity poker tournaments is to be discussed this month in Oregon's State Legislature.
Source: OPN Staff

ANTIGUA, England, /PRNewswire/ -- World Poker Exchange has engaged poker legend Matt Savage as tournament director of the Aug. 3-6 London Open. The gaming and lifestyle event, produced by one of the world's fastest-growing online poker sites, will incorporate an exciting array of lifestyle events framed by the allure of United Kingdom landmarks.

"Destination poker tournaments such as this signature World Poker Exchange competition are the future of this game. Europe is experiencing a huge boom in interest and play, both on-line and off line. My involvement is especially exciting as World Poker Exchange is both bringing poker to the center of this continent and establishing a more sophisticated expectation with players in the global poker arena," says Savage.

The World Poker Exchange is elevating poker tournaments to an entirely new level with this summer's highly anticipated event. Every element of the London Open will convey the organization's distinctive approach from the setting at the Old Billingsgate Market -- a nineteenth century landmark building in a prime position on the River Thames with views across to Tower Bridge, London Bridge and the South Bank -- to the celebrity mix and memorable atmosphere. Designed to be the first lifestyle poker tournament of its kind, The London Open incorporates exclusive outings each night of the tournament and will feature a $2 million prize pool. Among the evening excursions are a Kensington Palace private tour, backstage passes for The Producers, a champagne reception in the Millennium Wheel, a private tour of Saatchi gallery, and a Savile Row custom tailor tour.

Haden Ware, CEO of World Poker Exchange, explains "By including the impressive array of exclusive, non-poker activities for the players and their guests, the World Poker Exchange London Open marks a new era in gaming and truly makes the London Open a lifestyle tournament. Not only do we envision the London Open to become a perennial event that will be part of the professional circuit for years to come, but a unique holiday opportunity for the players' loved ones to also share. The participation of Matt Savage as our tournament director further reflects our commitment to host the most professionally run tournament possible at the heart of the overall event."

The offline poker tournament will be held in conjunction with marketing partner, FHM UK, and The Bravo Channel, the UK's leading men's entertainment network. The event promises to attract both world-renowned poker players and international celebrities. The overall tournament will be filmed as a primetime TV special, World Poker Exchange London Open which documents the highs and lows of 10 FHM qualifying players as they play for the $2 million prize pool. It will be broadcast on Flextech's Bravo and freeview channel Ftn, in addition to multinational syndication.

About World Poker Exchange

The World Poker Exchange (www.worldpx.com) is a licensed and regulated multi-player internet poker room that has served the online community since the outset of online poker play. Based in Antigua and established in spring 2001, World Poker Exchange is one of the world's fastest growing online poker sites.
Source: World Poker Exchange