News, Reviews And Interviews From Around The Poker World

Frank’s Poker Bill Passes Key Committee Vote
Industry Celebrates Rare Political Victory

In late July, the House Financial Services Committee passed Rep. Barney Frank’s poker-related legislation out of committee by a 41-22 vote.

The result was hailed by poker advocates as a historic vote in the battle to explicitly legalize and completely open up the markets for Internet gaming. The last time that an Internet gaming bill went to the committee for a vote was in 2008, when the legislation failed to garner enough support by virtue of a 32-32 tie.

Many industry officials were quick to declare the passage of the bill out of committee a major victory for the poker industry, and, indeed, the vote does represent a significant hurdle that has been overcome. However, those people who expect the laws to change immediately will likely be disappointed.

In a news article reporting the vote, The New York Times noted that the legislation is “far from becoming law” — citing the little time remaining on the legislative calendar before midterm elections, the fact that Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) has yet to hold a hearing on his equivalent legislation, and the Obama administration’s failure to identify its public position on the issue.

However, for an industry that has been focused on the House Financial Services Committee for so long, the result could not have been more welcome.

“The Committee’s bipartisan vote to approve Chairman Frank’s legislation is nothing short of historic,” offered Michael Waxman, a spokesperson for the Safe and Secure Gambling Initiative.

Alfonse D’Amato, a former U.S. senator and the chairman of the Poker Players Alliance, commended the legislators who voted in support of the legislation.

“I’m glad the Financial Services Committee today overwhelmingly chose to act and protect Americans, as well as preserve the fundamental freedoms of adults and the Internet,” said D’Amato. “This is a great day not only for poker players, but for proponents of Internet freedom and individual liberty.”

The next committee that will focus on poker-related legislation will likely be the Ways and Means Committee, where the attention will be on the taxation part of the equation. Rep. Jim McDermott (D-Wash.) has introduced companion legislation to Frank’s bill that would impose an 8 percent tax on gambling operators, with 2 percent going to the federal government and 6 percent going to the corresponding states or tribes.

The Ways and Means Committee is about to go on a legislative break along with the rest of the House of Representatives, so the earliest that McDermott’s bill can be discussed will be in September.

European Poker Giants Agree to Merger
PartyGaming and bwin Agree to Terms

By Brendan Murray

PartyGaming, owner of PartyPoker, and bwin, the Austro-German betting giant, recently agreed to terms on their long-rumored merger.

Pending shareholder approval, bwin will own 51.64 percent of the enlarged group, while PartyGaming will own 48.36 percent.

The companies said the merger would lead to “the world’s largest online gaming business, [with] market-leading positions in all key verticals, including online poker … ”

The company will be listed on the London Stock Exchange, and expects to achieve annual savings of €55 million through “synergies,” although the companies have yet to announce what the company will be called or what their plans for PartyPoker and the Ongame poker network are.

Jim Ryan, chief executive officer of PartyGaming, said, “This is a transformational opportunity for both our companies to create the world’s largest listed online gaming business. … The enlarged group will have a winning formula to exploit the growing online gaming market, supported by a strong balance sheet, significant cash flow generation, and a highly experienced management team.”

Norbert Teufelberger, co-chief executive officer of bwin, said, “This merger of equals makes great strategic, operational, and financial sense. We will be in pole position to capitalise on the wealth of opportunities that will flow from the continued evolution and expansion of the global online gaming industry.”

Both men will head the new company as co-chief executives.

Full Tilt Poker Signs James ‘Flushy’ Dempsey
His Reward for a Remarkable World Series of Poker

By Julio Rodriguez

One of this summer’s top performers has been rewarded with a new sponsorship deal at Full Tilt Poker.

James “Flushy” Dempsey tore up the 2010 World Series of Poker, cashing four times for more than $511,000. In the process, he picked up his first gold bracelet by winning event No. 9 ($1,500 pot-limit hold’em), and then followed that up with a runner-up finish to Sam Farha in event No. 25 ($10,000 Omaha eight-or-better).

The 27-year-old was a big part of the “Year of the Brit,” joining Praz Bansi, Richard Ashby, and Steve Jelinek in the winner’s circle. Dempsey will now join Bansi and Ashby as fellow red pros on Full Tilt.

“I couldn’t be more excited,” Dempsey said. “This is such a dream of mine. I’ve worked very hard for this over the years, and to have won a bracelet and now this, it’s just fantastic.”

Dempsey has accumulated nearly $1.1 million in tournament winnings over the course of his career, both live and online.

You can play alongside Dempsey and the rest of the team on Full Tilt. Check out CardPlayer.com for exclusive sign-up bonuses.

David Sands Becomes the Newest Member of the ‘Brunson 10’
DoylesRoom Locks Up its Eighth Player

By Julio Rodriguez

At the start of this year’s World Series of Poker, four players began a competition to win a spot as a member of the DoylesRoom “Brunson 10.”

Dan “djk123” Kelly, David “DocSands” Sands, Faraz “The-Toilet” Jaka, and Michael “Martine23” Martin all signed up to compete in the contest that awarded points based on WSOP performance.

After winning event No. 52, the $25,000 six-handed no-limit hold’em tournament for $1,315,518, Dan Kelly was automatically given the seventh spot on the team. That left a three-horse race between Sands, Jaka, and Martin that wasn’t all that close.
Sands vaulted past his opposition to win the competition with 2,269.10 points to lock up the eighth spot on the team.

Sands has more than $2.3 million in tournament winnings, mostly from online play in his stellar 2009 campaign. He finished second in the Card Player Online Player of the Year race behind current Brunson 10 member Steve “gboro780” Gross.

Sands will now join Brunson 10 members Kelly, Gross, Zachary “Crazy Zachary” Clark, Dani “ansky” Stern, Amit “amak316” Makhija, Chris “Moorman1” Moorman, and Alex “AJKHoosier1” Kamberis.

Matt Affleck Makes Back-to-Back Deep WSOP Main-Event Runs
Reflects on the Brutal Beat That Ended His 2010 Tournament

By Julio Rodriguez

ESPN’s coverage of the 2010 World Series of Poker main event is under way. Although the members of the “November Nine” will undoubtedly be the focus of much of the broadcasts, another likely star in the making will be 23-year-old Matt Affleck, who was on the receiving end of one of the most soul-crushing moments ever caught on televised poker.

For the second year in a row, Affleck navigated his way through a massive main-event field and into the top 100. After surpassing his best-ever finish of 81st place in 2009, he found himself among the chip leaders with just 15 players remaining. Then, disaster struck. He was just one card away from the chip lead and a guaranteed spot at the final table when his whole world came crashing down, and the TV cameras were there to document every second of it.

A Career in Bloom

Matt “MCMATTO” Affleck has more than $1.7 million in career tournament earnings, with the highlight being a $550,000 score for winning a PokerStars Spring Championship of Online Poker (SCOOP) two-day event back in April of 2009. Despite that success, it was just two months ago that his mother began pestering him about getting a “real job.”

“I just graduated from the University of Washington in June, and she was already asking me if I had applied for any jobs yet,” said Affleck. “She knew that I wanted to continue being a professional poker player, but I guess she was just holding out hope that I’d change my mind.”

Affleck grew up just outside of Seattle, and started playing poker as a freshman in high school, but he’s come a long way in the game in those eight years. One thing that hasn’t changed is the confidence that he has in himself.

“I’m not afraid to put chips in the pot,” he stated. “I’ll go with my gut more times than not. You’ll see a hand on ESPN where I called William Thorson down with king high, just because I thought he missed a straight draw. I was wrong, but it showed that I wasn’t afraid to follow my reads.”

When asked to describe his playing style, Affleck had a quick response: “My playing style changes a lot. I go through stretches where I’m playing really tight online and getting paid off, and then I’ll change it up and start getting really aggressive. It’s all a balancing act. You have to be able to do both in order to be successful.”

Main-Event Madness: The Hand

Affleck credited his most recent main-event run to a change in strategy. “The biggest difference between 2009 and 2010 was my patience,” he said. “In 2009, I had the chip lead, and for some reason, I felt that I had to bully the table and win every single pot. It was a very high-variance style of play, and I ended up getting myself into trouble. This year, I did the opposite once I got some chips. I was constantly testing my tables. If they let me run them over, I would. But if they were playing back at me, I had the patience to slow down and let the game come to me.”

That game plan worked perfectly, and he was in great shape to make the final table with just 15 players remaining. Then, Jonathan Duhamel opened with a raise, and Affleck looked down to see pocket aces.

“It was pretty much a dream situation for me to wake up with aces on the button against his open from the cutoff. I decided to three-bet, and I fully expected him to four-bet with most of his range. He did exactly that, and then I had to decide what to do. My initial thought process was that if I five-bet, he may fold anything but kings or aces. In order to disguise the strength of my hand, I decided to just flat-call.”

The flop came 10 9 7, and Duhamel checked. “I wasn’t that surprised that he didn’t continuation-bet. When I fired out my bet, I figured that he’d either fold or move all in. But when he just called, he honestly had me a little confused. After thinking about it for a while, I realized that his range was almost narrowed down to jacks, queens, or kings.”

The turn was the Q, and Duhamel again checked. “I thought a little bit before shoving, but I did so while fully realizing that I could get snapped off by a set of queens or maybe even 10-9. After the first two minutes in the tank, however, I was actually rooting for him to call, because I had convinced myself that he had kings.”

After a few more minutes of thought, Duhamel called with pocket jacks, creating a pot of 42 million. The winner would almost be assured a seat at the final table. “The brutal part was that I had to wait a couple of minutes for ESPN to allow the dealer to turn over the river,” recalled Affleck.

The 8 hit the felt, Duhamel made his straight, and Affleck was understandably crushed. He quietly made his way from the tournament room to an adjacent hallway, but the cameras followed him out to capture more of his torment. “That hand was probably worth somewhere between $3 million and $4 million in equity, so I clearly had a reason to be upset. I wasn’t happy that they were filming my pain, but I’m sure that it will make for some exciting television when it comes out.”

Taking the Beat Like a Champion

Despite being kicked while he was down, Affleck made a full recovery. Just a short while after being eliminated, he had a few drinks and even made it back to the tournament area to shake hands and wish everyone the best of luck … even Duhamel. “I don’t hold any grudges on anybody. I know that I’ve put worse beats on people before.”

Affleck wouldn’t point out a clear favorite to take the title, but he did share who he wanted to win come November. “I’m rooting for Joseph Cheong. He took a brutal beat early on the last day of play against Filippo Candio, but he handled it great and was able to bounce back nicely before the final table.”

Although the nearly $9 million that is earmarked for first place would have been nice, Affleck puts it all into perspective. “If I had won the main event, what else would there have been to accomplish?” he asked. “Peter Eastgate just decided to quit poker, and I honestly can’t blame him. Everything happens for a reason. If anything, this experience has just given me the motivation that I need to keep improving and playing my best. I’m ready to go. There’s still a lot to look forward to in the poker world.”

When asked if there was any silver lining to his experience, other than the $500,000 that he earned for 15th place, Affleck pointed out that at least he’d get some sympathy from the other multitable-tournament regulars online.

“I used to be known online for running better than everyone else,” he said. “I got a lot of crap from other players, who accused me of being on the good side of variance for most of my career. Well, at least now, I don’t have to take that anymore.”