Inside Straight -- News

Ante Up for Africa Shows Poker Players’ Generosity
Much of the Prize Pool Donated Back to the Charity
By Stephen A. Murphy

Actors, comedians, athletes, professional poker players, and a host of other celebrities were at the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino on July 2 for the third-annual Ante Up for Africa charity poker tournament.

The $5,000 event attracted some of the biggest names in Hollywood, with stars like Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Don Cheadle, Sarah Silverman, and Nelly all in attendance. Several current and former athletes, such as Charles Barkley and Mike Tyson, also played in the event.

At the end of the day, Alex Bolotin won the $176,449 first-place prize, and promptly donated half of it back to the charity.

Proceeds from the tournament will directly benefit Refugees International’s efforts in Darfur and Sudan. Ante Up for Africa has raised more than $2 million for the cause since its inception.

Cheadle and poker pro Annie Duke, who gained quite of bit of her own fame with a runner-up performance in this year’s Celebrity Apprentice television show, hosted the event. Cheadle, Duke, and Norman Epstein created the nonprofit organization in 2006. This was the third year that the event was played at the World Series.

For the first time ever, ESPN filmed the event for a future broadcast. The guarantee of TV time likely bolstered the size of the field with sponsored entries. The event welcomed 138 players, a big increase from the 88 players it hosted last year.

2009 World Series Features Sellout Events and Multiple-Bracelet Winners
Pros Come Out on Top as Several Tournaments Sell Out
By Stephen A. Murphy

Regardless of the results, the 2009 World Series of Poker was always going to be a historic one.

It was the 40th year of the tournament, commemorated by the first-ever $40,000 no-limit hold’em event and the inaugural Champions Invitational, in which all living main-event winners were invited back for a made-for-ESPN event.

But after the preliminary events had concluded, it was clear just how historic a World Series it had become.

The 2009 WSOP featured four multiple-bracelet winners, highlighted by Jeffrey Lisandro’s three-bracelet performance (see cover story) in three different stud-type events. And in spite of the uncertain economic times, several preliminary events were sellouts, as the first 56 events attracted 54,381 entrants. Last year, before the main event, preliminary events drew 51,876 entrants. There were, however, three fewer events in 2008.

The other major story line that developed was the number of multiple-bracelet winners in 2009. Phil Ivey, Brock Parker, and Greg Mueller were the two-bracelet winners.

That is the most multiple-bracelet winners in a single World Series since 2003 — just before the “Moneymaker Effect” increased field sizes exponentially — when six players captured two bracelets apiece: Phil Hellmuth, Johnny Chan, Layne Flack, Men Nguyen, Chris Ferguson, and John Juanda.

In total, players who identified themselves as “pros” or “semipros” won 46 of the 56 preliminary-event bracelets in 2009.

Many people credit the improved structure and added amount of starting chips as the reasons for the pros’ success. For the first time ever, the World Series gave each player three times the buy-in amount in chips (as opposed to two times the buy-in amount); so, for a $1,500 tournament, players received 4,500 in chips. Tournament organizers also added a couple of levels in most tournaments, to provide more play.

Mueller, for one, definitely believes that the improved structure helped pros achieve so much success this year. “The better structure allows for better players to use their skills,” he said. “The structure of the events was definitely great, especially at the end of the tournaments. There was no point where I really needed to panic or worry because of the blinds.”

Only time will tell if the new structure and amount of starting chips will have the same effect in the main event, or if a relative unknown will win the world championship for the seventh year in a row.

NBC Launches Newest Poker Show — Face the Ace
Contestants Can Face Three Poker Pros to Win Up to $1 Million
By Stephen A. Murphy

NBC is ready to go prime time with its newest poker series.

The network announced recently that it would debut a brand-new poker-themed game show this August, titled Face the Ace. The show, which will be hosted by Sopranos star Steve Schirripa, will give contestants an opportunity to battle some of the biggest names in poker heads up for as much as $1 million.

The series premiere will air on Saturday, Aug. 1, at 9 p.m. The Full Tilt Poker-sponsored show is currently contracted for seven one-hour programs. The second episode will air at 9 p.m. on Aug. 8, before the series is moved to a yet-to-be-determined Saturday afternoon time.

Each contestant on the show will have the opportunity to play heads up against one of the best poker players in the world. He will choose one of four cloudy doors and face whichever pro is looming behind it. If the contestant loses, he’s out. If he wins, he can take whatever money he earned and walk, or challenge a second pro. There are three potential matches in all, with the possibility of winning $1 million on the line.

Face the Ace pros include Phil Ivey, Patrik Antonius, Chris Ferguson, Andy Bloch, Jennifer Harman, Mike Matusow, Erick Lindgren, John Juanda, Howard Lederer, Allen Cunningham, Gus Hansen, Erik Seidel, and Phil Gordon.

Full Tilt players can earn a spot as a contestant on the show by playing in freerolls on the site. Prize packages will include a five-day, four-night stay in Las Vegas, with $500 in spending money and an audition for the show.

NBC is not new to poker programming. Its daily late-night poker show, Poker After Dark, airs at 2:05 a.m. Monday through Friday, and 1 a.m. on Saturdays, and it regularly televises the annual National Heads-Up Poker Championship in Las Vegas.

Jason Mercier and Marcel Luske Join Team PokerStars
PokerStars Pros Get Two New Teammates
By Rebecca McAdam

PokerStars.com recently made two fantastic additions to its team.

The first is 22-year-old Jason Mercier. This young gun is already a PokerStars SuperNova Elite, and has more than $3.2 million in live-tournament winnings. At such a tender age, and having been playing on the major tournament scene since only 2008, he has a European Poker Tour title, an EPT High Roller title, a World Series of Poker bracelet, and various final-table finishes and cashes to his name.

The second addition to Team PokerStars is Marcel “The Flying Dutchman” Luske. One of the best-dressed poker players around, this Dutchman, with over $3 million in lifetime tournament winnings, has proven that he has the skills to back up the suit.

David Bach Wins the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. World Championship
By Ryan Lucchesi

David Bach won the biggest buy-in event at the 2009 World Series of Poker, the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. world championship. Bach’s first gold bracelet netted him $1.27 million in prize money and the Chip Reese memorial trophy.

A total of 95 players entered the event, making it the smallest H.O.R.S.E. world championship field in history. In addition to Bach, several great players made the final table, including Ville Wahlbeck, Erik Sagstrom, John Hanson, Huck Seed, Vitaly Lunkin, Erik Seidel, and Chau Giang.

The final heads-up match between Bach and Hanson lasted close to seven hours. Bach finally defeated Hanson on the 480th hand of play, after 18 hours and 44 minutes at the final table.

Read all about this exciting event in a special feature story in the next issue of Card Player.