The second season of Poker in the Pub is well under way, and we are looking forward to bigger and better things for the coming year. After the success of the first year that culminated with our sending five people on a luxury holiday to Las Vegas, things are only going to get better this time around. Our
National Final runner-up Andy Price managed to defeat two poker professionals in the sixhanded challenge game sponsored by Card Player, including bracelet winner Diego Cordovez, to claim a seat in the
World Series of Poker. His luck was not as good in the tournament proper, as he ran into pocket aces twice in the first three hours, but he was able to come back with plenty of stories. I am sure that the locals in his pub are sick and tired of hearing about how he took down a big pot against poker legend Barry Greenstein.
Our winners at the next
National Final can look forward to taking part in the first-ever
World Series of Poker in the Pub in Las Vegas, where they will be able to compete to see who will be crowned the world champion of pub poker and get a chance to try their luck in the 2008
WSOP. We also will be giving out seats in major UK poker festivals at our regional finals, and we already have given out more than £4,000 in festival buy-ins in the last few months.
At press time, Barney Barnes was leading the national standings, with Christine "Twinkle Toes" O'Connell snapping at his heels. The Woodpecker pub in Birmingham started playing only at the start of season two, but already it has 24 players battling it out for a place in the regional finals. Lloyd "Longshot" Lewis could soon be changing his nickname to "Sure Thing," as he leads the standings after five games. Nearby is another new venue, The West Heath Snooker Club, and once again, Lloyd is in contention, just 1,400 points behind the league leader Paul "Gorgeous" Phillips.
In Burton on Trent, a host of new venues have sprung up, including the local Angling Social Club. There is certainly nothing fishy (sorry, I couldn't resist!) about Darren "The Gooner" Peach's play, as he heads the standings after six games. Elsewhere in Burton, Des "Hitman" Page is leading the pack at The Dog, and at The New Inn, Bob "Yorkie" McEwan is all alone at the top of the table. Things are much closer at the top of The Foresters Arms leader board, with Ricky "Gervais" Heath and John "The Joker" Horton separated by just 100 points.
We also are looking to start a pub-versus-pub online league that will enable our players to find out which pub has the best players in the UK. Many of our players and pubs have asked us about the possibility of this kind of competition, and we think that it will add a new dimension to the league. As well as being able to win some great prizes, players also will be able to benefit from being part of
WSOP Europe - the first loyalty club that enables players to earn points for their online play across multiple networks.
In other exciting news, we now have a team of salespeople recruiting pubs across the UK, and this can be only good news for the league. We are always looking for enthusiastic salespeople, and the position includes a company car and an initial OTE of £20,000. For more information, you can contact us at
[email protected].
The next regional finals are just around the corner and we will bring you all of the details on the winners and losers in the next issue. You can get more information on our free-to-play pub poker league at www.pokerinthepub.com.
The Poker in the Pub League, sponsored by The Rivercard, has been created to give poker players a chance to enjoy a game of cards in pleasant and familiar surroundings with friends and colleagues.
