Lebanon Takes European Poker Tour London by Storm
By Brendan Murray
The PokerStars.Com
European Poker Tour London has been won by Joseph Mouawad from Lebanon, who beat 391 others to pick up the £611,520 first-place prize at the Grosvenor Victoria Casino. Mouawad, who qualified online with the sponsor, defeated Florian Langmann from Germany heads up, hitting first a pair of queens, then a third, to take down the prestigious title.
The day began with eight players:
The first to be eliminated was Cox, who got his short stack in while ahead with K-7, but caller Langmann, with K-3, found a 3 on the board. Cox received £57,075.
The next to go was Paul Mendes, whose K-10 ran into Lellouche's A-K and didn't improve. He received £77,459.
Lellouche was next to hit the rail when Mouawad called his all-in bet from behind with J-2 and made two pair. He picked up £97,843 for his sixth-place finish.
Haugen exited in fifth place when he called an all-in bet from Langmann with A-J. The German's Q-10 improved on the flop and the Swede was out, picking up £124,342.
New Zealander Egan busted out in fourth place when his K-J ran into Langmann's aces. He won £152,880.
Shortly afterward, Baran hit the rail when his 4-4 clashed with Langmann's K-7, which picked up a king on the flop. He won £203,840.
Mouawad and Langmann were virtually even in chips as heads-up play commenced, but the Lebanese player edged ahead, and an hour into their final push for the title, all of the chips went into the middle on a flop of Q
9
6
after Mouawad went all in over the top of Langmann's bet and was called. The German showed 9-8 while the Lebanese showed Q-3, hit another queen, and walked off with the £611,520 first-place prize, while Langmann had to settle for £346,528.
Thew Turns Screw at European Poker Tour Baden
By Brendan Murray
Julian Thew, from Nottingham, England, won the PokerStars.com
European Poker Tour Baden Open, collecting €670,800 after he called Hungarian Denes Kalo's all-in A-5 preflop push with A-8 in a marathon heads-up battle.
This was Thew's second major victory in as many months, coming on the tail of winning the Plymouth leg of the
Grosvenor UK Poker Tour in September, where he picked up £59,500.
The plush Congress Casino in the small Austrian town of Baden, just outside Vienna, attracted 282 top-class players, paying €8,000 each and creating a €2.14 million prize pool. The field was as tough as any poker player could hope to encounter, but when the final table of eight was determined, Thew must have fancied his chances, as the cards had been falling well for him, and he played them accordingly, over the first three days.
The final table consisted of:
The day started furiously, much to the chagrin of Allemann and Lawson, both of whom hit the rail in the first 15 minutes at the
hands of Poleshchuk. Allemann's A-K was bested by the Russian's K-9, as a 9 sent him packing with €60,000. In the next hand, Poleshchuk's A
9
made a flush against Lawson's K
Q
, and the
World Series of Poker bracelet holder from the U.S. was dispatched with €83,000.
The Russian was rampant. He nailed Hammer with A-9 versus 5-5, hitting an ace on the flop, and the German left with €105,000.
Fuller dispatched Van den Berg, calling the latter's J-9 with A-10, and the Dutch online qualifier was eliminated in fifth place for €132,900.
With four players left, things calmed down and the chip lead swung back and forth until Thew hit a middle pair and flush draw on the flop, and Fuller had bottom set. The flush filled on the turn, and soon afterward, Fuller filed for his €160,820 fourth-place prize.
Threehanded, Kalo KO'd Poleshchuk when his K-J filled a straight to bust the Russian's A-Q. He collected €225,000, and then there were two.
Heads-up play was a prolonged affair, but ultimately Thew triumphed, calling Kalo's A-5 push with A-8. Thew walked away with €670,800 and a €10,000 buy-in to the
EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo, while the Hungarian took down €375,000.
Tabatabai Gets Poker Pimped
By Brendan Murray
Pokerpimp, the UK-based clothing company, has signed
World Series of Poker Europe runner-up John Tabatabai. Managing Director Nick Ferro said, "We were looking to work with high-profile players. John is a fan of the product, so naturally we are delighted to set up an association. We are currently in discussions with other top professionals, who will hopefully be on board for 2008."
Pokerpimp launched one year ago, selling high-quality T-shirts, hoods, and sweats. One of the most popular designs "doubles up" as a Texas hold'em layout. To see more, visit www.pokerpimp.co.uk.
Extreme Poker Down Under
By Brendan Murray
The latest installment of the Extreme Poker series took place in October on the cliffs of North Head, Manly, Australia.
Six players were perched on a platform 90 meters above the ocean. The only way for them to exit the platform was to jump when they lost their chips. The winner was Hugo Asenjo from Dee Why, New South Wales; he was permitted to walk off the platform onto solid land, as he won the title of Extreme Poker Champion.
"I'm surprised and ecstatic to win," he said after the event. "The fear of having to jump off the platform kept me going with grit and determination - and it worked … now for my next challenge, I need to learn to scuba dive and get myself a passport!"
Peter Marcus, founder of Extreme Poker, which has also taken place in the Caribbean, the Arctic Circle, and over the Nevada desert, said, "Sydney has been the most extreme game yet, and exactly what I had expected from a country that invented extreme sports. We're definitely coming back next year … we just need to find the challenge … and would love ideas from the public."
Landmark Legal Victory for UK Poker Club
By Brendan Murray
History was made recently at Nottingham Magistrates Court when Dusk Till Dawn (DTD) was issued a casino license, making it the UK's first legal poker club and the largest in western Europe. It will open on Nov. 29.
Rob Yong, managing director of DTD, was delighted with the result. "It's been a lot of hard work these last two years, but we've crossed the final hurdle and we can look ahead to when we open later this year to make DTD the best poker club in Europe."
It was not all smooth sailing for the club, though, as it was objected to by three casino chains - Gala, Stanley's, and London Clubs International - on the grounds of "insufficient demand."
The objection caused the original case in April 2007 to be adjourned until Sept. 24.
At the eleventh hour, London Clubs dropped out, but barristers for both Gala and Stanley's (Mr. Walsh and Mr. Harper, respectively) fiercely contested the bid. They argued that there was not enough demand in the local area and the club was not financially viable.
However, arguments from DTD barrister Mr. Andrew Woods and two letters of support from the Gambling Commission, in itself an unprecedented event, swayed the magistrates in DTD's favour.
The chairman of the Betting and Gaming Committee said in his verdict, "I can safely say that if you had come to us with the intention of obtaining a full gaming license, we would have denied it. We would have been finished by lunch.
"However, as you wish to open a poker-only club, we feel there is demand for the facilities you offer. As such, we will issue you a license with the condition that only poker can be played there and no slot machines will be allowed."
This was the last case heard under the 1968 Gambling Act, which has now been replaced with the 2005 Gambling Act. Under the 1968 Act, it is possible to apply for a gaming license with certain restrictions, such as DTD had imposed on it, including having no slot machines.
However, under the 2005 Act, a gaming license automatically gives the licensee the right to host all casino games. Due to the 1968 Act being replaced with the 2005 Act, all licenses are now automatically converted, effectively allowing DTD to host all casino games despite the magistrates' restrictions, which has been an argument of the casinos.
Yong said, "Though we did consider having slot machines at the club, we have now reconsidered, and despite the conditions not being legally binding, we will abide by them as a sign of good faith."
Record Turnout for Tournament in Europe
By Brendan Murray
The
International Poker Open, hosted by Mermaid Poker and Poker Ireland, attracted a field of 1,072 players in Dublin recently, smashing the previous record of Europe's largest tournament of 708 set by the
Irish Open earlier in the year.
The record turnout was remarkable, as it was achieved almost entirely by word of mouth, and the tournament was unique, as it may have been the first live tournament in the world to register all players online days before the cards were in the air. The buy-in was €125 plus €25 and the prize pool totaled €134,000.
Furthermore, the tournament almost certainly unleashed on the poker world the youngest-ever dealer for a major tournament in the form of Jack "The Dealer" Williams, the 11-year-old son of one of the organisers. At one point he caused a stir by dealing his brother quad aces. No foul play was suspected, though a few eyebrows were raised.
Seventeen countries were represented at the tournament held in the RDS, Ballsbridge, Dublin. Day two was completed at the Jackpot Club and was won by Irishman Colin King. David Pook from the Netherlands came second.
Organiser Derek Williams said, "Colin was a very deserving winner. The money will allow him to return to college this year, and he very generously made a donation to Simon Poker Day as soon as the tournament ended. We'd like to thank Vegas Nights, JP Poker, and Big Slick Poker for riding in behind us on the day and helping out with dealers, tables, and chips. Andy Black popped in and said a few words, and was very supportive. We're trying to do what we can for Irish and European poker, and they supported us without asking for anything in return, and that does your heart good."
Pro for a Year With Everest Poker
By Brendan Murray
Everest Poker is hunting for 10 amateur poker players to represent the company for one year at poker tournaments around
the world. The "pro-for-a-year" deal is worth $100,000 to each successful player, and covers the buy-ins and travel expenses for eight major live tournaments.
The company is looking for talented players who embody the Everest Poker brand in terms of integrity, character, passion for poker, and helping others improve their poker.
Beginning in November 2007 and running until March 2008, Everest will run a series of online tournaments every Tuesday, with the top 10 of the 20 direct entrants securing spots for a live casting in which 200 players will be interviewed and selected by a judging panel. At the end of this audition, 10 players will be selected and will receive the package worth $100,000.
Jennifer Joyce, vice president of marketing for Everest Poker, said, "We have helped bring poker to Europe, providing amateurs with many learning opportunities and live events for players to improve their skills, so it seemed only natural for us to seek out spokespeople from within the amateur poker community."
Shaundeeb Takes Advantage of a Weak Mindset in the World Championship of Online Poker Main Event
By Craig Tapscott
Want to study real poker hands with the Internet's most successful players? In this series,
Card Player offers hand analysis with online poker's leading talent.
Event: $2,500 PokerStars
World Championship of Online Poker no-limit hold'em main event
Players: 2,998
First Place: $1,378,330
Stacks: shaundeeb - $21,125; Villain - $20,850
Blinds: $50-$100
The Villain limps in from middle position. Shaundeeb checks his option with the 10
7
from the big blind.
Craig Tapscott: What's the feel of your table at this point, so early in the event?
Shaun Deeb: The Villain has been the tightest player at the table. I've been quite active, because with this big a buy-in, people were afraid to go broke and play large pots without the nuts.
Flop: A
9
8
($250 pot)
Shaundeeb checks. The Villain bets $200, and shaundeeb calls.
CT: You're out of position with this draw. What else are you thinking here?
SD: It is usually incorrect to check-call from out of position with draws, but our stacks are deep here. Also, the likelihood of him two-barreling here if he has a weak ace or worse is quite low. So, I call with plans of stealing the pot on the river when he checks behind on the turn.
Turn: J
($650 pot)
CT: You forgot to say that you are psychic and run well.
SD: (laughing) That too.
Shaundeeb bets $500.
CT: Why that amount? Many players have a hard time choosing bet amounts. Can you elaborate here?
SD: Well, I lead here for about three-quarters of the pot since there are a lot of draws out, and I think he wouldn't two-barrel many times in this spot. He may check behind with his flush-draw hands, so I want to charge them and also build a pot versus A-X and stronger hands.
The Villain raises to $1,200.
CT: That's a weird raise, almost a miniraise.
SD: The $1,200 is quite the small raise. I have the second nuts, so I three-bet him. There's no way that he folds aces up, sets, and so on to this bet, and he may even push them, never putting me on a straight.
Shaundeeb raises to $4,600. The Villain calls.
River: J
($9,850 pot)
CT: That's not a great card, obviously. Can you value-bet?
SD: Yeah, it's really an interesting card. The pot is almost $10,000 and we have effectively $15,000 behind. Due to my thinking that people have been playing so weak-tight in this tourney, I decided to check the river. I don't think an unknown has the intelligence or guts to bluff this river after the turn action. I contemplated value-betting around $5,000 and folding to a shove, but I think if he has a negated two pair, he's not calling the river anyway.
Shaundeeb checks. The Villain checks. The Villain shows two pair with the A
8
. Shaundeeb wins the $9,850 pot with a straight.
CT: How should you be thinking in a tournament like this with so many players in from satellites and others who are simply dead money?
SD: You have to recognize how the buy-in is affecting your opponents' mindsets. It will definitely alter their bluffing frequency. Many players will be very scared during the first few levels. I use that to my advantage to build up a nice stack with very few showdowns.
Shaun Deeb, 21, is known as one of the most active players on the Internet, playing hundreds of tournaments each month. He has won more than $500,000 online and recently cashed four times at the 2007 World Series of Poker.
One Size Does Not Fit All
By David Apostolico
There is an enormous amount of poker literature on the shelves these days. Couple that with the ability to play online anytime and the availability of computer programs to analyze your play, and the learning curve for poker has been shortened tremendously. Of course, not all learning tools are created equally. There is plenty of good advice out there, and some advice that is not as good. How do you determine what's good or not?
Well, you can look at reviews and ask those you trust for some recommendations, but ultimately, you are the only one who can decide what's good for you. You may get a lot of out a book that others don't like at all. Of course, the reverse could be true, as well. That's because each of us has our own individual strengths and weaknesses, and playing styles. We each also input and process information differently. What's good for the goose may not be good for the gander.
I will caution against one type of advice that I see quite frequently, and it's a personal pet peeve of mine. That is, absolute advice. There are no absolutes in poker, so there should be no absolutes in poker advice. Yet, I see it all the time.
"Never open-limp into a pot."
"Never slow-play aces."
"A-K is such a strong hand that it should never be folded preflop."
"If you're going to call, you should always raise."
These are just a few of the oft written things I come across that are stated in absolute truths. Of course, there is a lot of truth to each of the above, but I wouldn't call any of them absolutes. I recently played a deep-stack tournament in which the very first hand, I received pocket fours under the gun. I limped in. A player in middle position made a standard raise of three times the big blind, and there were three callers before the action got to me. Since no one was left to act behind me, I called and we saw a flop fivehanded. I flopped a set, but there were three spades on board. I bet out and two players called. The turn brought another 4, giving me quads. Another player had a full house and yet another one had the nut flush.
Needless to say, I won a huge pot. Of course, I got very lucky, but I put myself in a position to get very lucky by limping in the first place. The hand could have turned out very differently had I raised. I most likely would have faced a reraise, and then would have been either forced to fold or heads up with a player who wouldn't have paid me off. Based on what they were holding, it is unlikely that either the nut flush or the full house would have seen a flop. The point of this example is that to me, this was an obvious open-limp situation, even though I agree that open-limping is generally not a good idea. That's why I would avoid blanket statements such as never open-limp.
Everything in poker is situational. What you should do is dictated by numerous factors, including your position, your opposition, relative chip stacks, blind levels, and so on. The permutations are endless, although with experience and paying attention, you'll know what to do in most situations. I'd encourage everyone who wants to improve his game to learn as much as possible from outside sources, including reading. I would caution you, however, to read critically, not to take advice in absolute terms, and discern what is (and is not) helpful for your particular game. When it comes to advice, one size does not fit all.
David Apostolico is the author of numerous philosophical poker books that help the reader develop the right mindset to make correct decisions, including Tournament Poker and The Art of War and Machiavellian Poker Strategy.
Aggressive Play Pays Off for Sumner
By Mike Sexton, the 'Ambassador of Poker' and Commentator for the World Poker Tour
Players from all over the world enjoy going to Tunica, Mississippi, for the
World Poker Open. That's primarily because of the appreciation and Southern hospitality shown to them by the Gold Strike Resort and Casino. With terrific fields and large payouts, invariably, the final table of the
WPO features a strong lineup, and entertaining, exciting, and excellent poker. And with two
WPT players of year at this table (Daniel Negreanu and J.C. Tran), this event was no exception.
This hand took place early on at the final table. With antes of $2,000 and blinds of $10,000-$20,000, Brian Sumner (with $786,000) raised it to $60,000 from the cutoff position with the 7
5
. The button and small blind folded, and Negreanu (with $1.46 million) called from the big blind with the Q
9
. In case you've been living in a cave and don't know it, Daniel likes to see a lot of flops - as he should - because you can't count on one hand the number of players in the world who play post-flop better than Daniel Negreanu.
The flop was K-6-4 with two spades. Negreanu checked and Sumner bet $90,000 with an open-end straight-flush draw. Daniel, a guy who likes to fight for every pot, raised it to $230,000! Knowing that he had a lot of outs to win the pot regardless of what Daniel held, Sumner reraised all in and won the pot.
I really like the way both of these guys played this hand. First, Sumner didn't limp in; he raised the pot coming in (thus camouflaging his hand). Negreanu, with plenty of chips and being a great post-flop player, made the call from the big blind. After the flop, Daniel check-raised, hoping that Sumner was making a continuation bet and that he didn't have a king in his hand. If, for example, Sumner had A-J or two nines, chances are good that Negreanu would have picked up the pot by check-raising on the flop. Unfortunately for Daniel, Sumner flopped a big duke, went all in, and took down the pot.
Hats off to both players for the way they played this hand. Both were bold and aggressive and did their best to win the pot. It was a great tournament and another well-played hand at the
World Poker Open.
Its Mantra: 'Plan Your Hands'
By Tim Peters
Professional No-Limit Hold'em: Volume I by Matt Flynn, Sunny Mehta, and Ed Miller (Two Plus Two Publishing; $29.95)
A lot of amateur players seem to believe that no-limit hold'em is a game dominated by feel and aggression instead of mathematical rigor and brutal rationality, but this powerful new book dispels that notion in no uncertain terms. "It's not the one gut-wrenching decision for all the chips that counts most," the authors write. "It's the thousands of small strategic decisions that the pros get right and the amateurs don't."
Don't misunderstand. Feel and aggression are
critical to success in no-limit hold'em. But, the most consistent winners use analytical skill to complement their decision-making, and in no-limit hold'em, the math is a lot more difficult than it is in the limit game. In limit, you're playing for one, two, or three more bets; in no-limit, your entire stack may be on the line in every hand. And that makes the analytical aspects of no-limit hold'em a lot more complicated.
It's no surprise, then, that the book includes a lengthy discussion of stack sizes, which "are critical to most no-limit decisions."
Stack size effectively determines your risk/reward possibilities, and that idea prompts a long and very valuable analysis of "commitment." "'Am I committed?' is the first question you should ask yourself on every street," write Flynn, Mehta, and Miller. If you understand the concepts in this book, you'll know how to answer that crucial question. But here's the real challenge: You have to make the all-in decision
before you play a large pot. You must know if you're at the "commitment threshold" and how you're going to respond if you're facing an all-in bet. Those are the situations that can build - or destroy - your bankroll, and you have to be prepared for them.
The book is primarily about the analytical (that is, mathematical) aspects of no-limit hold'em, but Flynn et al. do a good job of illuminating topics like hand-reading. It's not mystical (unless your name is Kenny Tran), but it's not purely rational or logical, either. In particular, the book points out the folly of putting someone on a
specific hand instead of
range of hands. And that leads directly into the meatiest concept of the book, "the REM Process": "Range, Equity, Maximize."
Range, of course, refers to the spectrum of hands that your opponents could have (we all know players who raise only with A-A or K-K, but most raisers have a much wider range of potential hands). Observation of showdowns will help you assign a range to a specific player, and of course you'll add physical tells and intangibles (is someone on tilt? stuck big-time? flush with chips?) to your analysis.
Equity is the value of your hand compared to the range of hands that your opponent has (Harrington fans will recognize this concept in his "Structured Hand Analysis" in
Harrington on Hold'em, Volume II). Only a savant could perform these calculations at the table, but you'll learn some shortcuts to getting there.
Finally,
maximize "means choosing the action or series of actions that makes you the most money in the long run." What's the optimum size of a value-bet (which, of course, depends on the size of the pot and the size of the stacks behind)? Of a bluff?
If this makes no-limit hold'em sound complex, well, that's the reality. Get used to it or get used to going broke. The mantra of this book is "Plan your hands." But you can't plan effectively if you don't understand REM, if you don't understand the concept of relative stack sizes and the stack-to-pot ratio, if you don't understand when you've reached the commitment threshold. And that's why you need
Professional No-Limit Hold'em - and the tenacity to learn what it has to offer.
I continue to be surprised by the popularity of no-limit hold'em cash games, but, clearly, books like this one are riding that particular wave. What's your favorite no-limit hold'em strategy book? E-mail me at [email protected].
