Risk’s Reward

Congratulations to young Canadian Nick Abou Risk who won the PokerStars.com UK & Ireland Poker Tour Galway event in early December.
While it is unusual for us to congratulate individual winners in our editorial, Risk’s win was an unusual event – it was his second UKIPT title in three months.
If his name sounds familiar it is most likely because you’ll have read about him in Card Player not long ago when he won the UKIPT stop in Edinburgh.
He followed that up with his victory in a 266 player field in Ireland to take home £67,000 to add to his £50,000 haul in Scotland.
A quite remarkable feat in such a short space of time. Especially for a Canadian!
A New Year, a New Home
Back in the mists of time, your humble editor worked in communications for an online poker room which migrated from one network to another (yes trainspotters it was a Tribeca room moving to iPoker).
I recall it as a stressful and busy time tinged with both regret at losing a familiar friend and excitement at developing a new relationship and I’ve always wanted an opportunity to explore in print the complex machinations of such a move.
Lo and behold another of the old-school Tribeca rooms, Victor Chandler Poker, has decided it is time to move on again, taking up residence on the Entraction network.
Card Player was lucky to be granted a revealing interview with head of poker at the site, Andy Horne, where we teased out the raison d’etre for such a move, the pros and cons, and what the future might hold.
The conversation brought with it a small wave of nostalgia for this writer, yet served to remind that no industry or player therein can afford to rest on its laurels and stagnation is not an option for online poker rooms in the current competitive climate.
Speaking of which…
Out With the Old …
A change is as good as a rest the proverb tells us. So it is with a jaunty step and a fresh outlook we give your favourite poker magazine a bit of a makeover with the launch of a new section this month – online poker news – to bring our loyal readers the biggest stories from the world of high-stakes online poker.
Additionally we wave goodbye to our no-limit hold’em strategist Daragh Thomas after three years solid service. He is moving on to a top secret role within the industry and has to discontinue his column. It will be sadly missed. Many thanks for your contributions Daragh.
However, his departure leaves the door open for a further freshening of content and from next month we’ll have a new columnist, recent World Series of Poker bracelet winner Matt Matros, to discuss contemporary poker strategy.
Finally, as is traditional at this time of year, we wish all our readers a peaceful and prosperous 2011.
Good luck at the tables. ♠