A Sunday Million winner, live tournament champions, and a historic loss feature in the UK & Ireland PokerNews Round-Up.
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Monday, February 29, 2016
The gambling world can sometimes produce really off-the-wall stories. Every month there are plenty of cases of individuals going to extreme lengths to pay back debts, or of simply bizarre behavior at casino properties around the globe. It can be entertaining and sometimes sad.
February was no exception, as there was plenty that happened in the casino world.
Here’s a look at some of the most colorful and noteworthy from the month that was.
TV Producer Blew $100M Fortune Gambling: Report
The creator of the hit TV shows NYPD Blue and Deadwood has a gambling addiction so severe that it resulted in him losing a $100 million fortune. A lawsuit related to his financial situation filed last year revealed that writer-producer David Milch lost $25 million just between 2000 and 2011. It is estimated that Milch earned $100 million over his career, but he now has debts totaling $17 million
Former NFL Player Accused Of Stealing Non-Profits’ Money To Fund Gambling Habit
A former Cleveland Browns player has been charged by the federal government for allegedly using charitable donations to fund his gambling. Reggie Rucker, 68, has been charged with one count of wire fraud and one count of making false statements to law enforcement, the FBI said in a press release. Rucker served as executive director of Amer-I-Can Cleveland as well as the president of the Cleveland Peacemakers Alliance. It was reported in July that he was under investigation for his charity work.
Poker Players Bet $1.2M On LA To Vegas Bicycle Ride
High-stakes poker players Dan Bilzerian and Bill Perkins have agreed on a prop bet that calls for the former to attempt a bicycle ride from Los Angeles to Las Vegas in a 48-hour time frame. A total of $1.2 million is on the line for the ride that must happen by the end of March. Bilzerian later said that Lance Armstrong is going to give him advice on the ride.
Burglar Caught After He Leaves His Casino Player’s Card At Crime Scene
A man from Biloxi, Mississippi ran bad when his casino player’s card helped put him behind bars. Edward Parker Eldridge, 61, was given eight years this month for a 2014 burglary where he decided it was a good idea to make himself at home by eating the victim’s food and drinking his wine. The homeowner discovered the mess when he got home. Though Eldridge was long gone, the homeowner found Eldridge’s casino player’s card left behind. With the identity of the suspect, police were later able to arrest him.
Buddhist Monk To Stand Trial For Stealing $200,000 From His Temple To Play Blackjack
The gambler, a Buddhist monk in the state of Louisiana, is set to go to trial for allegedly taking $200,000 from his Lafayette temple and dusting it off at the L’Auberge Casino in Lake Charles. Khang Nguyen Le was prepared to take a plea deal for wire fraud but he decided against it at the last minute. He told the judge through a translator that he didn’t understand how wire fraud applied to his case. The judge said it was applicable because he used an ATM to get the money.
Nurse Accused Of Reporting To Surgery Drunk After Night At Casino
An on-call nurse drunkenly stumbled into a Pennsylvania hospital, where he was needed for surgery, despite downing at least four beers at a nearby casino, authorities said. The nurse, Richard Pieri, bumped his car into a concrete barrier while parking outside the Wilkes-Barre VA Medical Center. The 59-year-old then fumbled his way through an emergency surgery for a patient complaining of stomach pains.
Detroit Casino Dealer, 6 Gamblers Charged With Cheating
A former poker dealer and six gamblers from across metro Detroit are facing criminal charges for allegedly running a cheating scheme at Detroit’s MotorCity Casino that allowed losers to walk away with money. The losers, authorities say, were the gamblers who were in cahoots with the dealer and stole from the casino with his help. The central figure in the alleged scheme is the ex-poker dealer, Darryl Green, 53, of Detroit, who is accused of making payouts on losing bets, or simply not collecting payment on lost bets.
Clinton Portis Allegedly Wrote Bad Checks To Borgata
Former NFL running back Clinton Portis owes $4.8 million to creditors, $170,000 of which comes from a gambling trip to the Borgata Hotel Casino in Atlantic City. Portis allegedly wrote bad checks to try to pay off the debt. The losses at Borgata come from January 2011. In a court filing, the casino says it extended $200,000 worth of credit to him, and over the next 10 months he only was able to repay $30,000. Portis is accused of stiffing the property on the rest.
Disgruntled Gambler Kills Employees At Casino, Fellow Gamblers Chase Him Down
A casino in Kenya was home to a grizzly and bizarre crime. According to a report from the BBC, a gambler who was refused credit at the City View Bar and Restaurant Casino in Nairobi’s Eastleigh district left the property only to return later with a sword and then kill two employees. The report said that fellow gamblers witnessed the crime and eventually chased the perpretrator down. They stoned him to death in a nearby street. The entire incident stemmed from a $300 loss at the casino.
Thai Police Bust Card Game Thanks To Law Against Having Over 120 Cards
A decades-old law in Thailand that says a person can’t be in possession of more than 120 playing cards at a time was used to arrest nearly three dozen card players. Fifty police and military personnel stormed a bridge game being held at the Thai beach resort of Pattaya, arresting 32 people. The investigation began as a crackdown of possible illegal gambling, but once police found that no money was being wagered, they used a 1935 law against playing cards to take the players, many of them elderly, into custody for roughly 12 hours.
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PokerStars.fr, the French-regulated client of PokerStars, announced last week to its Austrian player base that it will no longer be servicing players residing in the country starting at 10:00 ET on March 1, 2016. The notification informed Austrian players that a change in regulatory framework is the reason they will no longer be welcome to play on the French PokerStars client.
Upon the news, poker players flocked to poker forums, including TwoPlusTwo, to discuss the news along with the reasons this is taking place. The email Austrian customers received explains that players can still use their StarsCoin balances to purchase items in the VIP Store and the site will automatically convert tournament dollars and tickets into cash.
Here is the message players received last week:
We are writing to inform you that, due to the latest change in legal framework in Austria, starting at 10:00 ET on March 1 we will stop allowing players based in Austria to play on the PokerStars.fr site.
Your PokerStars.fr account will remain open and accessible, and your funds can be withdrawn at any time to your registered bank account. Any tournament tickets or T€ balance will automatically be converted into Euro when you visit the cashier.
You are welcome to use your StarsCoin to purchase cash rebates or any other items from the VIP Store, with the exception of online tickets. Please also be informed that your real money and StarsCoin balances cannot be transferred between accounts on different licenses.
Players speculated that the reason for the pullout could have related to a recent deal announced between Playtech, the owner of the iPoker Network, and Win2Day, owned by Austrian Lotteries and Casinos Austria, where the former would provide poker platform services to the latter could have been the reason of the pullout due to the timing. Even though Win2Day is currently the only online poker network licensed in Austria under its gaming regime, this news appears to be just coincidental and unrelated.
However, this is not believed to be likely the case, as Austrian TwoPlusTwo poster "DebtsNBooze" shared an email PokerStars.fr support sent when asking for an explanation.
On January 1, 2016, PokerStars started paying gaming duty taxes to the Austrian Government for play on PokerStars.FR by players who had a registered address in Austria.
This additional tax was in addition to the tax that PokerStars was already paying to the French government for play by all players on PokerStars.FR.
It was unsustainable for PokerStars to pay double tax – to both the Austrian and French Governments – for play by Austrians on PokerStars.fr. Consequently, we have little choice, and need to stop allowing players with a registered address in Austria to play on PokerStars.fr.
Please note this is only for Austian players.
We appreciate your understanding.
The double taxation issue is a sticky one. Due to French regulations, online poker operators are taxed approximately 37 percent on gross gaming revenues. The large tax already puts a significant dent into the profit margins for any online poker company providing regulated services under a French license.
Austria, who does not exempt online gaming from the EU VAT Directive levies a large 20-percent tax on all gaming transactions. It is therefore logical that PokerStars.fr came to the decision to discontinue services to Austrian residents.
This isn't the first time PokerStars.fr pull out of a gaming market due to double taxation. In December 2014, the United Kingdom began enforcing the United Kingdom Gambling (Licensing and Advertising) Act 2014 which includes a 15 percent Point of Consumption Tax to online gaming companies.
PokerStars.fr informed players in the United Kingdom in September 2014 its plans to pull out of the market ahead of the schedule plans being enforced.
Stay tuned to PokerNews for more news as it happens in the Austrian gaming marketplace.
Get all the latest PokerNews updates on your social media outlets. Follow us on Twitter and find us both Facebook and Google+!
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The Red Dragon spread its wings again today and now Day 1b is in the books.
Dwarfing the opening flight yesterday, today's proceedings had the room here at PokerStars LIVE Macau packed out. While Day 1a attracted a field of 205, we saw that smashed by the end of late registration this afternoon as another 358 pulled up seats in a bid to chase the best looking trophy in poker.
After eight hours at the felt those 358 had been knocked down to 83 and it was the Ukraine's Kamel Mokhammad who made a late charge to bag up the chip lead by the conclusion of play. Mokhammad ended with 210,600, comfortably in front of yesterday's chip leader Chao Yang who will bring 168,700 through to Day 2.
With only $3,850 in live earnings to his credit, even a small cash here in the Red Dragon will more than double his lifetime result. Mokhammad's only score to date came last month when he finished first in a $300 Nightly Hyper Turbo in Famagusta.
Another who survived the night was Team PokerStars Pro Kosei Ichinose. The Japanese Team Pro was the only of his teammates flying the flag for PokerStars here on Day 1b and he amassed 49,100 in chips throughout play. Also joining Ichinose on Day 2 will be Wing Cheong Chong (128,300), Garry Lam (109,100), Eric Ng (96,800) Long Meng (83,200) and Jianxun Wu (72,700).
For most of our other notables, however, Day 1b ultimately brought elimination. Kitty Kuo, Henrik Tollefsen, Alex Ward, Joe Hachem, Chen Hao, Russel Thomas and Lacey Jones all hit the rail over the 12 levels of play.
For those who survived though it's a day off tomorrow as the players in the third and final Day 1 flight battle it out. Those through to Day 2 will return come Wednesday to continue their quest for the prestigious Red Dragon title.
Here's how today's top ten finishers stack up.
MPC24 Red Dragon Day 1a Top Ten Chip Counts
Mokhammad Kamel (Ukraine) - 210,600
Houmao Hua (China) - 201,400
Weihang Chen (China) - 156,000
Xian Xiao (China) - 149,400
Chien-jung Huang (Taiwan) - 148,700
Chin Wei Lim (Malaysia) - 147,000
Valentyn Shabelnyk (Ukraine) - 141,600
Jin Chao Zhang (China) - 129,200
Chia-chi Liu (Taiwan) - 128,500
Wing Cheong Chong (Hong Kong) - 128,300
Click here for full end of day chip counts
So now it's on to Day 1c tomorrow. Hopes are high that with 563 entrants in the first two flights that we will eclipse the 1000-player mark with tomorrow's field.
We're scheduled for a later start this time around with Day 1c kicking off at 7:00pm local time. We hope you can join us again for what promises to be another great day of poker here in Macau!
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^
We've seen Kenny "LoneHixx" Hicks of Canada deep in big events on PokerStars before, including winning a Super Tuesday once back in 2010. We've also seen him at various live events sponsored by PokerStars where among his cashes he made the final table of the EPT10 Grand Final in Monte Carlo two years ago, finishing seventh.
Now we have another Hicks sighting to report, this time at the final table of the latest Sunday Million where he managed to survive to the final four, strike a deal at that point in which he asked for and received a little extra from his remaining opponents, then go on to win the whole thing for a big final payday of $133,405.67.
The Norwegian JanekJorgman was chip leader at the time of the four-way chop and in fact would take a little more from the prize pool ($135,141.73) before finishing third. But Hicks would be the one scoring the final knockouts of the night, and here's the story of his triumph.
With 5,727 entrants this week that meant a $1,145,400 prize pool, exceeding again the event's $1 million guarantee. It took almost five hours exactly for the field to play down to 855 players and the money. 2016 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure Main Event champion Mike "SirWatts" Watson had been sitting in first position as the bubble approached, and was still in the top five when it burst while Köstritzer83 moved ahead to lead the chip race.
Eventually Watson would fall back to the pack, then be ousted in 218th for a $595.60 cash. A couple of hours after that the field would shrink to under 100 players, with Köstritzer83 still above the average and one last red spade among the counts, Friend of PokerStars Felipe "mojave" Ramos sitting on the first page of the counts inside the top 20.
By the nine-and-a-half-hour mark they were down to just two tables with Ramos still in with a short stack, then soon after getting the last of his chips in with ace-king versus Armani1974's ace-jack. Alas for Ramos a jack came among the community cards, and the Brazilian hit the rail in 18th place for $3,207.12.
DuTTiFruTTi9 (17th) and Glenn_Dysja (16th) would soon follow, like Ramos earning $3,207.12. Then my1u (15th), artsi888 (14th), and jumbas1 (13th) were knocked out, cashing for $4,925.22 apiece. Jamie "pokerjamers" Armstrong (12th) and Artem "veeea" Vezhenkov (11th) next went out, picking up $6,643.32 each.
With 10 left, hand-for-hand play followed, then came simultaneous knockouts on each of the five-handed tables.
First it was Krouks all in and at risk with [Kh][5h] versus eventual winner Kenny "LoneHixx" Hicks's [7d][7s]. A seven on the flop meant Krouks was drawing dead by the turn, with a 10th-place finish equaling a $6,643.32 payday.
Then on the other table mo-big-big appeared in decent shape all in behind [Ks][Kd] versus JanekJorgman's [Tc][Td]. But a ten came on the turn, and mo-big-big was knocked out in ninth for $8,934.12.
With Köstritzer83 still there (though short), JanekJorgman the new chip leader with more than 20 million, and a seat already empty, the final table was underway.
Seat 1: empty
Seat 2: _m0ney2_89 (Russia) -- 3,217,146
Seat 3: p€troceli (Hungary) -- 5,244,080
Seat 4: Armani1974 (Germany) -- 3,153,952
Seat 5: Kenny "LoneHixx" Hicks (Canada) -- 11,635,491
Seat 6: Köstritzer83 (Germany) -- 1,065,810
Seat 7: pinkwins (Denmark) -- 4,187,316
Seat 8: slayertompa (Sweden) -- 8,225,628
Seat 9: JanekJorgman (Norway) -- 20,540,577
They were not quite an orbit into the final table when a hand arose that saw Kenny "LoneHixx" Hicks open-shove from the small blind, then Köstritzer83 call all in with the almost 1.71 million left after posting a 250,000 big blind.
Köstritzer83 had [Kh][Qc] and two live cards versus Hicks's [2c][2h], and the [7s][8h][Ks] flop hit one of them to put Köstritzer83 in front. But the [2d] fell on the turn to give Hicks a set, making the [4h] river no matter and knocking Köstritzer83 out in eighth.
A short while later leader JanekJorgman raised 3x to 900,000 from early position, then it was p€troceli three-bet shoving for about 3.25 million from a couple of seats over. The others folded and JanekJorgman called, turning over [As][Js] while p€troceli had [Kd][Kc].
The [3s][Ac][2c] flop was bad for p€troceli, giving JanekJorgman the edge, and after the [6s] turn and [Jh] river, p€troceli was done in seventh.
pinkwins next became the table's short stack and would be all in for less than a big blind shortly after with [9s][6d] and up against _m0ney2_89 in the big blind with [Qh][9h]. A [Kc][5s][3c][3d][8d] runout didn't help pinkwins who was ousted in sixth.
The remaining five played on a short while, then agreed to stop the tournament to discuss a possible deal with JanekJorgman still on top with about 25.5 million, _m0ney2_89 next with 10.1 million, slayertompa third with about 9.1 million, Armani1974 fourth with just over 6.8 million, and Kenny "LoneHixx" Hicks the shortest with almost 5.7 million.
"ICM"-based figures were produced (leaving $20,000 for which to play) and all agreed except for Hicks who wanted $10K more than what he was being offered. The others were not interested in considering that, and soon cards were back in the air.
It wasn't long before Armani1974 had slipped back to become the short stack, then a hand came up that saw the table fold to Armani1974 in the small blind who pushed for about 4.28 million (about eight-and-a-half BBs), and Kenny "LoneHixx" Hicks called from the next seat. Armani1974 had [7d][6s] and needed help against Hicks's [As][Qs], but the [9s][5h][Qc][Ts][Js] board gave Hicks a flush and ended Armani1974's run in fifth.
Deal talk immediately began again, and soon the tourney was stopped again with JanekJorgman at almost 30.5 million, Hicks now second with about 9.8 million, slayertompa third with 8.9 million, and _m0ney2_89 fourth with just over 8 million even.
"ICM"-based numbers were presented again (again saving $20K), and once more Hicks asked for more than what he was being offered -- specifically $2,500 more from each of the other three. The others agreed this time, Hicks got his extra, and the deal was made.
The final four battled on and after a while Hicks managed to wrestle the chip lead away, then slayertompa grabbed the top spot after doubling through JanekJorgman. The latter then appeared about to go out in fourth, but JanekJorgman doubled up to leave _m0ney2_89 the short stack.
Soon _m0ney2_89 was reraising all in for almost 2.74 million (about 4.5 BBs) over a Hicks UTG open and Hicks called, showing [Qc][Js] while _m0ney2_89 had [8d][8s]. The board then came [5c][7d][3c][Qh][Jd] to give Hicks two pair and knock _m0ney2_89 out in fourth.
About five minutes later JanekJorgman min-raised to 1.6 million from the small blind, Hicks reraised to 4.8 million from the big, JanekJorgman shoved for about 18.1 million total, and Hicks called.
JanekJorgman had [As][9d] but Hicks had that dominated with [Ad][Qc]. The board came [7h][Td][7s], then [2h], then [Kd], the kickers played, and JanekJorgman's run was over in third.
With that pot Hicks had a commanding lead to begin heads-up play with 43,771,350 to slayertompa's 13,498,650. The pair played 17 hands for small pots, with slayertompa getting whittled to just under 10.5 million. Then on the 18th hand between them, the end finally arrived.
With the blinds 400,000/800,000, slayertompa open-pushed for 10,378,650 from the button and Hicks called, and their hands were revealed:
LoneHixx: [Ah][7d]
slayertompa: [Qc][2c]
The [2h][Jc][Tc] flop was great for slayertompa, making a pair and providing a flush draw, and the [8d] turn card was fine as well. But the river brought the [As] to give Hicks the better pair, the final pot, and a Sunday Million title.
Congratulations to Kenny "LoneHixx" Hicks for outlasting more than 5,700 opponents to win this week's Sunday Million, and kudos as well to slayertompa, JanekJorgman, and _m0ney2_89 for making it to the four-way deal and ensuring themselves handsome cashes as well.
2/28/16 Sunday Million ($215 No-Limit Hold'em, $5M Gtd) results
Entrants: 5,727
Prize pool: $1,145,400
Places paid: 855
1. Kenny "LoneHixx" Hicks (Canada) $133,405.67*
2. slayertompa (Sweden) $100,420.20*
3. JanekJorgman (Norway) $135,141.73*
4. _m0ney2_89 (Russia) $97,384.80*
5. Armani1974 (Germany) $48,106.80
6. pinkwins (Denmark) $36,652.80
7. p€troceli (Hungary) $25,198.80
8. Köstritzer83 (Germany) $14,317.50
9. mo-big-big (Netherlands) $8,934.12
* = denotes a four-way deal leaving $20,000 for the winner
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Martin Harris is Freelance Contributor to the PokerStars Blog.
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A bill cleared Maryland’s House of Delegates last week that would remove criminal penalties that are rarely, if ever, enforced on these type of poker games. The law on the books right now says that you can go to jail for up to a year and be hit with a $1,000 fine simply for playing in a home game, no matter how small the stakes are and even if there is no rake or fees of any kind.
House lawmakers on Thursday voted 139-0 in favor of getting rid of the criminal penalties.
House Bill 127, sponsored by Delegate Kirill Reznik, would allow those 21 years of age and over “to conduct a home game” if the game is not held more than once a week in an individual’s home. The bill says that the game must be among players who “share a preexisting social relationship.”
Reznik told Card Player Friday that the “chances are good” for the Senate approving his plan as well, adding that he thinks the issue has “broken thru the wall” after he successfully brought other delegates “up to speed” on the existing problem.
The legislation adds that no one can benefit financially from the poker game except by winning as a player in the game. The bill also says what a legal buy-in would be.
According to the bill, the game must have “a limit of $500 on the total amount of money, tokens representing money, or any other thing or consideration of value that may be wagered by all players during any 24-hour period.”
Reznik told Card Player that the language means there is a limit of $500 that can be on a poker table, between all the players, at any given time. While the provision is clear about a dollar amount, he said that he “highly doubt[s] if you go over by $40 the cops will be at your door.”
The point of the bill is to make the “act of playing at home” legal, he said.
In an earlier version of the bill, Reznik wanted $2,000 as the table limit, but fellow lawmakers wanted it reduced. “Something is better than nothing,” he said of the compromise.
Card games taking place in common areas of 55-and-older residential communities would also be made legal under the bill, if they meet certain conditions as well. “We actually had an incident where a retirement community was busted,” Reznik said. “The public got engaged.”
It would be illegal to advertise the games, according to the proposal.
Even though Maryland’s casinos haven’t cared at all about the bill, Reznik said, their presence has actually slowed down its progress because some lawmakers see his bill as another form of gambling expansion in the state. Maryland legalized table games at casinos less than four years ago. Some people were saying that because casinos can offer poker for high stakes, it doesn’t make sense that people can’t play friendly card games in their homes, Reznik added.
The legislation has 17 sponsors in the House. A companion bill is in the Senate.
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No Limit Omaha, some have called it four card bingo but that doesn't stop players from turning up for the game. It may encourage some of them. MicroMillions 6 Event #77 is the only No Limit Omaha Hi game on the schedule and 6,252 players showed for the tournament.
The action game was also a 3x-Turbo with a fast structure and three times longer for the players to hit the rebuy button. They hit the rebuy button 27,955 times and the remaining players bought 2,885 add-ons after the rebuy period. It combined to create a $74,184 prizepool with $11,317 schedule for the winner.
The game has a lot of gamble involved with the added cards in play with a lot of hands get big after the flop with drawing combinations and big flopped hands. Combined with a 6-Max format and it took just five hours to play down from the starting 6,252 entrants to the final six players. No one player began with a significant chiplead or shortstack, setting up for competitive final table.
Final Table chip counts:
Seat 1: 121sashka@ (30,095,275 in chips)
Seat 2: Nels316 (33,349,500 in chips)
Seat 3: DelokPOK (21,060,316 in chips)
Seat 4: henkk234 (34,794,646 in chips)
Seat 5: ComptonMasta (43,033,754 in chips)
Seat 6: Radrigues (26,837,509 in chips)
Blinds: 500k/1m with 100k ante
Radrigues trips into a boat, eliminated in 6th
With all six players sporting healthy stacks, play at the final table was measured and careful. The table played for more than 30 minutes before they put together a big hand to get a lot of chips in the middle.
Radrigues and DelokPOK were on the down side of that hand and both held less than one big blind. Radrigues was the first to take a shot and called all-in under the gun with 121sashka@ and henkk234 calling behind before ComptonMasta isolated with a shove from the big blind to get heads up.
Radrigues: [Ac][Qc][Js][8h]
ComptonMasta: [As][Qd][Ts][2d]
Radrigues found a good hand to go with and hit the [Qh][Th][6s] though ComptonMasta was better. The [Qs] gave ComptonMasta a full house leaving Radrigues looking for the three Jacks left in the deck. The [2c] river was a miss and Radrigues was the first eliminated at the final table in 6th place for $1,112.
DelokPOK hits straight, eliminated in 5th
It took exaclty one more hand before the next player was all-in looking at the prospect of hitting the rail. DelokPOK called all-in with less than the big blind with ComptonMasta and 121sashka@ coming along to the [9c][5h][2d] flop. ComptonMasta bet after the flop with [Jd][Td][9d][2c] and was against [Ad][6d][5d][4h] for middle pair.
DelokPOK hit the gutshot on the [3h] for the 6-high straight and was looking good for the double up until ComptonMasta spiked the [2s] on the river to hit the boat. DelokPOK came one card from a double up but was knocked out in 5th place for $2,103.
henkk234 takes a shot, eliminated in 4th
The final table went 30 minutes without an elimination and then the table had three knockouts within four hands. henkk234 was the next in trouble after ComptonMasta opened for a min-raise under the gun and henkk234 responded with a shove from the big blind for just over 25M.
ComptonMasta was slightly ahead with [Kd][Kc][Qs][6h] against [Ac][Jd][Tc][2s] and the [Js][5d][5c] increased the lead. The [Ts] turn gave henkk234 a smaller two pair and was left with just four outs to the river. The [3d] was not the magic card and henkk234 was the next player out in 4th for $3,523.
121sashka@ runs into Aces, eliminated in 3rd
121sashka@ was getting blinded down during three-handed play and found a good hand to shake a shot at doubling up. ComptonMasta kicked off the action with a min-raise from the button and 121sashka@ moved all-in for a little over 38M with [Kh][Kd][Qs][9s].
Nels316 responded by moving all-in over the top and ComptonMasta folded and showed [As][Kc][Js][4c]. Nels316 tabled [Ac][Ah][6s][3s] leaving 121sashka@ needing help to stay alive. The [Td][7s][4h] changed little in the hand but the [Qc] added a few outs for the save. The blank [6d] river left 121sashka@ with the second best hand to be knocked out of the tournament in 3rd place for $5,739.
Nels316 stays strong to capture crown in Event #77
Nels316 (105,873,748 in chips)
ComptonMasta (83,297,252 in chips)
Heads up play began with Nels316 ahead but not before the two of them negotiated a deal to chop up the last two payout spots. They battled it out without the chiplead making much movement until they both shot for the title.
ComptonMasta shoved from the button for just under 62M with [Ks][Js][5c][5d] for a small pair and big suited cards. Nels316 made the easy call with [Qh][Qs][8s][6s] for the bigger pair and taking away three flush outs. The [9c][3c][2h] flop did nothing to improve ComptonMasta's situation and the [8h] turn left him with five outs to stick around.
The tournament ended with the [4h] river sending the pot to Nels316 with the unimproved Queens. ComptonMasta did a lot of work at the final table but had to settle for runner-up status and $9,246 while Nels316 was the next MicroMillions champion and the $10,046 that went along with the title.
MicroMillions-077: $2.20+R NL Omaha [6-Max, 3x-Turbo
Entrants: 6,252 (27955 re-buys, 2885 add-ons)
Prize pool: $74,184
Places paid: 840
1. Nels316 (Mexico) $10,046.05*
2. ComptonMasta (Canada) $9,246.06*
3. 121sashka@ $5,749.26
4. henkk234 $3,523.74
5. DelokPOK $2,103.11
6. Radrigues $1,112.76
* - denotes heads-up deal
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Yggdrasil Gaming’s first new video slot of 2016 is Incinerator, a fast-paced avalanche reel game where players control the biggest incinerator in the universe.
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A total of 947 players turned up a few days ago to play the IPT Main Event, and here on a Sunday evening, just one man was left standing. Natan Chauskin defeated Govert Metaal in a relatively short heads up battle to claim the trophy and €149,560.
Chauskin entered the day as clear chip leader and, taking that stat (alone) into account, was expected to win. Metaal came in to the final table as the short stack so was never expected to get as far as he did, so can be very proud of his achievement.
Asked if he was happy and expected to win, he responded with, "Yes, very, and I came to win, and I was sure I would. When back in Belorussia, we were in a bar with our team and my coach, Jenya Gavrilovich, winner of EPT12 Barcelona €2k, asked me, when shooting a video, "What about this IPT Malta?" and I said: "I'm going to win it! Go there and win it for sure!" This is what happened, so I can say I was just looking forward to it."
He went on to say, "It's not the amount of money that changes my life, and plus, I don't play just for the money, I play to become a sportstar, because poker is a sport, where the competition is the most important thing. I will play the EPT Main Event tomorrow and win it too!"
The final hand saw Metaal three-bet all in with pocket fives and Chauskin call after he had raised with king-queen. The Belorussian took the lead when he turned top pair and victory was confirmed when he improved to a flush on the river.
Meetal won the €10,000 High Roller event at EPT Campione back is Season 8 and was so close to claiming a second major trophy on tour. The €124,080 he won today tops the €110,000 he won back in 2008 and, after the tournament had ended, he had this to say on both achievements, "The field was harder here so this result is more valuable to me."
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Day 3 started with two quick eliminations and a bustout (on average) every 12 minutes throughout the day, whereas today it took around two hours for the first player to bust. Denis Timofeev, short stacked at the time, made his move with pocket fours but failed to stay ahead of Chauskins ace-jack. The Belorussian only took five more minutes to claim another scalp and this time he didn't event need coin-flip odds to get the job done. After raising with ace-seven, he called James Grogan's shove with big slick and rivered a seven.
They say bad things come in threes and Tobias Garp will agree with that sentiment. He three-bet all in with pocket sevens after Metaal -who was midway through his rush up the leader board - had raised with pocket aces. An easy call and an ace high board later saw Garp leave stage-central. A period of consolidation followed before the second Dutch representative at the final table, Joep Raemaekers, was given his marching orders. He moved all in with jack-eight suited from the button but Chris Brammer, and his pocket queens, lay in wait in the small blind.
David Gomez helped start Metaal's resurgence at the beginning of the day and, ten minutes after Raemaekers bust, his nemesis came back to finish off the job. Metaal opened with ace-king and called the Spaniard's shove with pocket nines. The board ran ace high and just three remained.
The second period of consolidation kicked in and chips were passed around the table before Metaal, who was left short after an end of level confrontation with Chauskin, returned from break and made his second recovery of the day to the ultimate cost for Brammer. First he doubled his very short stack through Chauskin and then, when armed with more chips, took most of Brammer's when his pocket jacks stayed ahead of his king-queen.
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Before heads up play began, the two player struck a deal that meant they were effectively playing a €20,000 heads up sit and go. Chauskin held a 13.8 million to 9.8 million lead and only extended it until he had all the chips. He proved over the last two days that he's a phenomenal front runner and has made a very impressive start to his live poker career.
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Updates provided by Marc Convey, with photos coming from René Velli and Tomáš Stacha.
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