World Poker Headlines June 19th 2008
World Series of Poker Daily Summary for June 17th, 2008
A couple of well-known poker pros added missing pieces to their respective poker résumés on Tuesday at the 2008 World Series of Poker. Both John “The Razor” Phan and Dutch star Rob Hollink claimed their first gold bracelets during the day.
Phan’s first bracelet came in Event #29, $3,000 No-Limit Hold’em, where he came from behind to take down the win after negotiating a large starting field. Phan pulled past Day 2 leader Matt Vengrin and survived a lengthy heads-up duel against Johnny Neckar to secure the victory, finally taking down the $434,789 winner’s share. Neckar’s second-place finish brought him $277,452.
Titan Poker VIP Players Prepare for $30,000 Freeroll Challenge
Titan Poker, the largest poker room on the iPoker Network, will award $30,000 in prizes to players as part of its June Challenge promotion, which will take place between June 16 and June 25, 2008. This exclusive event is open to Titan Poker’s elite VIP players who are Silver level and higher.
Online poker players have two possible courses this month to qualify for Titan Poker’s $30,000 Challenge Freeroll, which will be staged on June 27. Players can receive free entry into this thrilling tournament either by accumulating at least 1,000 Titan Poker Points on any six days during the June Challenge or by earning at least 7,000 Points in total over the entire ten days of the promotion.
This is the second consecutive month that Titan Poker has offered a promotion of this magnitude to its ever-expanding VIP club. Last month, VIP Silver players and higher were able to race for a share of a $30,000 prize pool, distributed in daily races over ten days. “Our VIP players are extremely important to us and we are constantly searching for new ways to offer unrivaled benefits to the loyal members of our VIP program,” declared a spokesman for Titan Poker.
Titan Poker recently announced its unprecedented $2,500,000 Guaranteed Prize tournament. This is the most abundant prize pool Titan Poker has offered to date. Players have until September 7th to qualify for the main event where this generous cash prize will be doled out to Titan Poker’s top players.
Bodog Poker testing resizable tables
Bodog Poker announced this week that it has released a new version of its software, with several player-requested features, for testing.
Bodog players can test the new, resizable beta client by going to poker.bodoglife.com. There they will find that the new software includes full-screen mode, resizable tables, embedded chat and game details, and on-demand player tools.
The ability to resize tables is one of the most requested features, according to Bodog Poker.
“Offering players the most secure and enjoyable online gaming experience possible is paramount to Bodog,” says Morris Mohawk Gaming Group CEO Alwyn Morris.
“When Bodog Poker players asked for new features like resizable game play windows and full-screen mode, we listened, integrating those features into the new beta client. These new features are just another step in Bodog’s ongoing evolution and players can look forward to much more in the future.”
Betting on a World Series of Poker Bracelet
“Negreanu, one — Ivey, zero,” Daniel Negreanu shouted just moments after winning his fourth World Series of Poker bracelet in a $2,000 limit hold’em event. He added almost $205,000 to his lifetime tournament winnings, but also added an extra $200,000 to his bankroll thanks to a bracelet-bet that he had with Phil Ivey.
Whether it’s for added excitement or the love of gambling, some pros believe that their edge to win a bracelet is so great at the WSOP that they figure, “Why not bet on it?” This year, there is a wide range of bets between some of poker’s biggest names, all with different stipulations, odds, and prices. Some bets are so lucrative, in fact, that they can eclipse even an event’s first-place prize.
“I have a standing bet with Ivey that anytime we both play in the same tournament, we have $200,000 bet on it,” explained Negreanu. “It’s interestinPhil Iveyg, though, because we also have a rule that if you show up late and the other guy is short, it doesn’t count. Well, I showed up with a fresh stack, and he had lost half of his stack already, so we were off. Then, he got up to 3,200, and I had 3,600. He said, ‘OK, we’re back on.’ Ha!”
UltimateBet to Send Record Number of Online Poker Players to Aruba through Giveaway Contest
If your local drugstore runs out of sunblock this weekend, blame UltimateBet. The online poker site today announced a promotion that promises to give away a record number of seats to the 2008 Aruba Poker Classic, UltimateBet’s signature island poker tournament.
“In an effort to make this year’s Aruba Poker Classic the best one yet, we’re sending a huge number of UltimateBet players to the island tournament for free,” stated Annie Duke, UltimateBet’s Cardroom Consultant. “Best of all, winning an $8,500 Aruba Poker Classic prize package is as easy as relaxing on the beach under a palm tree.”
The Ultimate Aruba Givaway promotion hits the site on the heels of two back-to-back WSOP* leader board contests where online poker players battled it out for spots in the Main Event just by playing the game they love. The new Ultimate Aruba Giveaway promotion works the same way as the two World Series of Poker* contests, only instead of Vegas seats, Texas Hold’em fans will be competing for $8,500 Aruba Poker Classic prize packages.
To qualify for the online poker promotion, online poker players must simply play in any real-money poker Sit ‘n Go, ring game or multi-table tournament at UltimateBet.com between June 20th and July 17th and climb their way up the Aruba Giveaway leader board.
At the end of the qualifying period, the poker player who has earned the most RAI$E status points will automatically secure an $8,500 Aruba Poker Classic prize package featuring the $5,500 Main Event buy-in and $3,000 for travel accommodations.
Players ranking 2nd through 70th on the leader board will play in an exclusive freeroll that features a prize pool of seven additional $8,500 Aruba Poker Classic packages.
Those eight prize packages are just the beginning. On Saturday, July 19th, the online poker site is holding a 50-seat Guaranteed Tournament where at least 50 Aruba Poker Classic prize packages will be won. Players ranking 71st through 225th on the leader board will win their spot in the $500+30 tournament. Those ranking 226th through 1025th will play in a freeroll where hundreds of seats in the 50-seat Guaranteed Tournament are on the line.
The 2008 Aruba Poker Classic takes place from September 27th through October 4th at the Radisson Aruba Resort & Casino. With more than 750 players expected to play in the tournament, UltimateBet is estimating a prize pool of over $4 million and the online poker site is guaranteeing a first place prize of $1 million.
More information on UltimateBet’s Aruba Giveaway can be found at www.ultimatebet.com.
Daniel Negreanu’s new poker book ‘Power Hold’em Strategy’
Power Hold’em Strategy is expected to be right up there with Super System 2 and Daniel “Kid Poker” Negreanu will then be placed alongside some of the most popular authors in poker including Doyle Brunson, Mike Caro, Bobby Baldwin and T.J Cloutier.
The book will be launched by Cardoza Publishing, which has been serving in the business for over 25 years, and is believed to be as important as any other Cardoza has released.
“The tons of excellent information in this book will help your no-limit hold’em game improve immensely, whether you are an online grinder, a low-limit tournament player, or even an aspiring pro looking to play on the big-time poker circuit,” Negreanu said. “We tried to fit in as many helpful hand examples as we could without creating a 1,000-page monster! When you apply the advice we’ve given you to your own game, I have no doubt that you will improve rapidly. Equally important, this book should help you understand the mindset of small-ball players so that when you face off against one, you won’t be confused by his approach. Instead, you will be able to exploit him.”
Contributing to this masterpiece of poker strategy are some of the “Hottest” players in poker today, including Todd Brunson, David Williams, Erick Lindgren, Evelyn Ng and Paul Wasick.
These professionals share the moves and secrets that keep them winning. The book covers short-handed and heads-up play, high-limit cash games, a beginner’s strategy to neutralize professional players, how to mix up your play, bluff, and win big pots.
“It has always been our philosophy to publish books by the world’s top poker authorities and champions,” said Avery Cardoza, owner of Cardoza Publishing. “Power Hold’em ticks all the appropriate boxes and I am sure will provide the perfect platform for all levels of player’s to improve their game.”
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