Poker News - Dan Schmiech defeats Gabe Kaplan to win WSOP Limit Hold'Em title
July 1, 2005A very healthy field of 269 players put up $5,000 of their hard earned money to compete in event # 28 of the WSOP, Limit Hold Em. Usually, in a limit event, you would have some healthy stacks, and expect a bit of a long night. Since this event had been made a three day event, the blinds had actually escalated to the point that the biggest stack on the board only had about 45 big blinds in their stack. Obviously, the blinds would escalate, and you felt like we could see a lot of action in the early going. Entering the final table the chip counts were: SEAT 1: Joe Sebok $184,000 SEAT 2: Annie Duke $150,000 SEAT 3: James Kwon $227,000 SEAT 4: Gabe Kaplan $209,000 SEAT 5: Dan Schmiech $219,000 SEAT 6: Young Phan $144,000 SEAT 7: Luke Neely $94,000 SEAT 8: Jeff Shulman $38,000 SEAT 9: Greg "FBT" Mueller $89,000 You would think that Jeff Shulman would have been the first one to go, but Jeff won the first pot of the night, and actually stuck around for a while. We did have a lot of early action, and it was only a matter of time until someone would go out. The first player to bid adieu to the final table was Greg Mueller, who charged into the lead for the bad beat of the day award on the following hand. After a three bet preflop, all the money went in on a flop of 7 4 K. Greg turned over pocket nines, and Young Phan turned over pocket eights. The turn card was a five, which gave Young 4 more outs. The river was one of those four additional outs, as a 6 hit, and Young had made a runner runner straight, and left Greg Mueller wondering where he went wrong. Greg Mueller - 9th place - $25,285. This win still left Young as the short stack on the table, and it wouldn't be long until Young was going to make his own case for bad beat of the day. Young made the grave mistake of messing with Mr Kotter himself. Gabe Kaplan, and Young some how wound up getting all the money in on a flop of 3 8 4, with hands of 10 3 for Gabe, and A 3 for Young. Young felt really good about the situation, until a ten on the river had Young suddenly feeling not so young. Young Phan - 8th place - $ 37,930. Jeff 'Happy' Shulman was the next to go. Jeff had done a really good job of walking the tightrope to get to this point, but with the blinds at these levels, Jeff had to go sometime. Jeff took the best hand into battle against Annie Duke. Annie's A Q of spades was good enough to get a runner runner flush against Jeff, which made Annie Happy. Jeff 'Happy' Shulman - 7th place - $50,570. Now down to six, the chip counts looked like this. James Kwon - 345,000 in chips Dan Schmiech - 260,000 Joe Sebok - 221,000 Annie Duke - 199,000 Luke Neely - 141,000 Gabe Kaplan - 88,000 Gabe Kaplan was all in three times over the next twenty minutes, but managed to escape both times. Still, it was a rush for the ages as Gabe went from only 28,000 chips at one stage to over 300,000 in chips. The next player to go was Luke Neely. At one stage, Luke actually folded with one big bet left in his stack, and a pretty big pot in front of him. The one big bet turned into a couple double ups, and it looked like Luke might be trying to pull his Gabe Kaplan impression. But Luke could not prevent the inevitable, and eventually Luke's time had come. Luke was back down to one big bet, and he and Annie flipped their cards up, and Annie's two pair sent Luke home to his father. Luke Neely - 6th place - $50,570. Next to go was Joe Sebok. Joe is top player Barry Greenstein's son, and Joe was trying to make the 2005 WSOP a father/son picnic. Barry had won the $1,500 Pot Limit Omaha tournament, and picked up his second WSOP bracelet. Joe was hoping to get his first WSOP title, but it was not meant to be. Joe had been all in a couple times already, and survived, but with the blinds so high, Joe had to pick a hand to go with, and he picked pocket threes. Annie was in the Big Blind, so she called the small raise with K 7. The flop of K 10 2 pretty much sealed Joe's fate, and when the turn & river blanked off, Annie had a big hug, and a smile for Joe. Joe Sebok - 5th place - $75,860. Now down to four, we had a bit of a situation, as the blinds were 5k/10k (playing 10k/20k), and the chip stacks were. James Kwon - 485,000 in chips Dan Schmiech - 371,000 Gabe Kaplan - 269,000 Annie Duke - 229,000 It was pretty clear that the action was going to have to pick up, as the bottom two stacks could play maybe two hands from here on out, and the blinds were going to go up again. Annie Duke held on as long as she could, but with the levels a dizzying 15,000/30,000, and only 1.3 million chips in play, it was going to get over, and get over quickly. Annie put her money in with Q J, and found a caller in Dan Schmiech with A 2. The board brought no Aces, Queens, or Jacks, and Annie Duke was free to go. Annie Duke - 4th place - $88,500. Now down to three, the chip counts were. Gabe Kaplan 575,000 in chips Dan Schmiech - 371,000 James Kwon - 300,000 With the players now playing 20,000/40,000, the biggest stack on the board had 14 big bets. You knew this would end soon, and we lost our next player in about 15 minutes. After doubling up a couple times, James Kwon made a stand with A J, and Dan called with A 5 of hearts. The flop brought a five, and James was off to count his Quan. James Kwon - 3rd place - $113,785. Now down to heads up, Dan had worked his way into a two to one chip advantage. Dan Schmiech - 885,000 in chips Gabe Kaplan - 400,000 For a minute, it appeared we might have our second WSOP champ in 72 hours known more for their TV and/or film career than their poker career. But it was not meant to be, and after Gabe was ground down a bit by Dan, Gabe put all his money in with top pair, and lost to Dan's two pair. We had a new WSOP Champ, and his name was Dan Schmiech. 2nd place - Gabe Kaplan - $222,515. Champion - Dan Schmiech - $ 404,585
Poker News - Doyle Brunson Wins 10th WSOP Bracelet
July 1, 2005 Event # 31 of the 2005 WSOP was the $5,000 shorthanded No-Limit Hold'Em. This is one of my favorite events for several reasons. Number one, the fairly large buy in thins the field, and insures there will be some top players at the final table. Secondly, the six handed format insures there will be more gambling, and as such a more entertaining final table.
When ESPN made the late night decision to switch the televised event from event # 29 ($2,000 No Limit Hold Em) to event #31, they were betting that the final six from this event would be much more TV friendly than the nine handed final table of event #29, which was particularly light on "star" players. ESPN's late night gamble paid off, and this final table would be star studded. A total of 18 bracelets were represented among the six players here, making the average BWPP* (*Bracelets Won Per Player) 3.0, which has to be an all time record. The players making up this all time BWPP record were.
Layne Flack - 350,000 in chips
Doyle Brunson - 309,000
Minh Ly - 305,000
Scotty Nguyen - 254,000
Ayaz Mahmood - 169,000
Jason Lester - 119,000
With the blinds only at 3,000/6,000, no one was super short, and you would have figured there would be some play, and no one would go out super quickly. So much for that idea, as we lost two players within the first 30 minutes, and lost both of them on consecutive hands.
First to go was Jason Lester. Lester is probably best remembered for finishing 4th in the main event of the WSOP in 2003, which was run over, and over on ESPN. His second ESPN appearance would not be nearly as long, as he moved over the top of Scotty's raise all in. Scotty thought for a minute, and called with two sevens. Jason showed A K, and although the flop brought a lot of outs with the J, Q, & 8 of spades all appearing, none of the outs came, and Jason Lester can look forward to seeing his brief ESPN appearance in the fall. Jason Lester - 6th place - $67,905.
On the very next hand, Layne Flack opened with a raise, and Ayaz Mahmood moved over the top for all his chips. When it came back around to Layne, he called right away with pocket Aces. Mahmood flipped over two queens, and when Layne made quad Aces, Mahmood left in a bad mood. Ayaz Mahmood - 5th place - $82,055.
Now down to four, the chip counts had been moving up and down faster than the stock market in 1999. One particular moment in time had the four players with the following stacks.
Minh Ly - 496,000 in chips
Doyle Brunson - 478,000
Scotty Nguyen - 326,000
Layne Flack - 208,000
For some reason, the action slowed pretty significantly, and we played about three hours four handed. Layne Flack had come back from the brink of disaster several times, doubling up on several occasions. When Layne had the bet of it against Doyle, he chose to put all his money in. On a board of 10 9 3, Layne moved in, and Doyle called. Layne showed K 10 for top pair, and Doyle showed K 9 for second pair. The turn card turned Layne's stomach, as Doyle hit a two outer 9 and ended Layne's night. Layne Flack - 4th place - $99,070.
At this point, Doyle began to lean on the shorter stacks, and use and ever increasing chip stack to wear his opponents down, and it was getting to them. One hand after spiking his cards down in frustration aftr Doyle came over the top of him, Scotty Nguyen moved in with QJ, and Minh Ly called with pocket fives. The board was brick after brick, and Scotty had come close to his fifth bracelet, but not close enough. Scotty Nguyen - 3rd place - $106,105.
Now down to heads up, Doyle was very close to winning his historic tenth bracelet, and catch Johnny Chan, who had pulled ahead just days earlier. Even thought it was approaching 4 am, the excitement in the air was palpable, and you got the sense that there weren't too many people rooting for Minh Ly. The chip counts when heads up play began were.
Doyle Brunson - 1,138,000 in chips
Minh Ly - 372,000
Once again, Doyle kept the pressure up, and ground Minh down very effectively. On the final hand of the night, Doyle must have misread his hand, because he moved in with 10 3...not 10 2. Minh Ly called with KQ, and you just got the feeling the poker gods were watching. The Poker Gods were watching, and Doyle paired his 3, and made history....again.
It was a pleasure to be in the room to watch Doyle make history, and I am proud to say....
Champion - Doyle Brunson - $367,800
2nd place - Minh Ly - $203,715
The World Poker Showdown is making another appearance due to last year's great success and this year just it's just in time for Christmas. This year the turnout for the Poker Tournament's Caribbean Cruise is expected to double and maybe even triple last years count. So, if you haven't made any Christmas plans yet, stop on by the website, www.worldpokershowdown.com and signup for your Christmas Vacation of a lifetime.
Poker News - Poker becomes the most searched word on the web
June 30, 2005 Poker in the news. Poker interest continues to explode around the world. People are paying more attention to the game now then ever before. Recent popularity has propelled the word poker to the number one spot on the Lycos 50, a list of the top search words used during the course of a particular week.
Lycos is a one of today's most popular Website search engines, featuring content about technology, lifestyle, and entertainment.
Recent interest in poker has proven to be no fluke. Bolstered by the enormous success of ESPN's broadcasts of the 2004 and 2005 World Series Of Poker and the Travel Channel's World Poker Tour, poker has come to the forefront of the American sporting landscape and continues to be one world's favorite games. Even The New York Times has joined the poker craze with its recent addition of a poker column.
If you search for "Poker Cruise", you'll find that World Poker Showdown makes the top 10 on Google. The World Poker Showdown is making another appearance due to last year's great success and this year just it's just in time for Christmas. This year the turnout for the Poker Tournament's Caribbean Cruise is expected to double and maybe even triple last years count. So, if you haven't made any Christmas plans yet, stop on by the website, www.worldpokershowdown.com and signup for your Christmas Vacation of a lifetime.
Poker (yes) Vs Poker (no) - the Continuing Saga of Poker Illegality in the US
June 27, 2005 LONDON (MarketWatch) - Shares of online gaming company PartyGaming PLC jumped Monday in a successful debut on the London Stock Exchange.
The Gibraltar-based company's (UK:PRTY: news, chart, profile) shares surged 8% to 125 pence, up from its initial offer price of 116 pence. The trading is only between institutional investors; full trading starts Thursday.
The IPO price gives PartyGaming a market capitalization of around 4.64 billion pounds ($8.47 billion) and qualifies it for inclusion in to the benchmark FTSE 100 index of the U.K.'s largest 100 companies. The company sold 20.6% of its share capital.
PartyGaming operates the world's largest online poker brand, PartyPoker, as well as the Starluck Casino and PartyBingo brands.
John Clark, an analyst at Brewin Dolphin, said the debut is "quite encouraging." There were concerns of restrained interest due to the possibility of legal action related to online gambling in the U.S.
"I think an awful lot of people are willing to override the risk, and are looking for the U.S. legal regime to change and recognize reality," Clark said.
U.S. regulatory concerns
PartyGaming's offer price was towards the low end of its indicative range of 111 pence to 127 pence per share because of the U.S.-related concerns. PartyGaming derives close to 90% of its revenue from the U.S., where online gaming is still illegal.
The indicative price range itself was lower than some had expected, following intense media speculation about PartyGaming's exposure to prosecution.
The U.S. Justice Department says online gambling is illegal and that the people behind PartyGaming face prosecution under the Interstate Wire Act, the Illegal Gambling Business Act and the Travel Act.
A senior Justice Department official told the Guardian newspaper in early June: "Any business offering online gambling services that are in the United States or can be accessed in the U.S. are illegal."
He added: "If they're taking bets in the U.K., and it's legal there, that's fine; but if they're taking bets in the United States, that's illegal, and they will be prosecuted."
PartyGaming disputes this view, though it concedes that online gaming has an "uncertain regulatory position."
Because of U.S. regulatory concerns, PartyGaming did not conduct a U.S. investor roadshow, and lead bank Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein isn't selling the shares to onshore U.S. investors.
Its tax status is another potential worry. The company benefits from being in the tax haven of Gibraltar, where it generates little revenue. Some are concerned the British government may challenge its status there.
Founders, figures
Two of the company's founders, Anurag Dikshit and Vikrant Bhargava, are Indian technology graduates who are set to become billionaires in this initial public offering. Dikshit designed the proprietary software behind the company's PartyPoker.
The other two founders are American Ruth Parasol, who formerly became rich through Internet pornography, and her husband, Russ de Leon.
Over 90% of the company's 1,000 employees work in India in customer support, transaction support and software development.
The gambling group had 2004 pretax profit of 371.7 million pounds, up from 89.2 million pounds. Revenue increased to 601.6 million from 153.1 million pounds.
The group said in early June that current trading had begun well. "Player signups have been encouraging and marginally ahead of expectations," PartyGaming said. Pretax profit for the first quarter rose 77% to 125.6 million pounds from last year.
PartyGaming also said it intends to adopt a progressive dividend policy and will pay a first dividend in May 2006, expected to amount to $200 million in total.
Shares in online gaming peer Sportingbet PLC (UK:SBT: news, chart, profile) , which owns rival brand Paradise Poker, are up 77.8% since the start of the year, though the shares slipped 3.4% Monday.
Empire Online PLC (UK:EOL: news, chart, profile) shares slipped 2%. The Cyprus-based online gaming company had its IPO earlier this month and uses PartyGaming's technology for its own online poker games.
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