Online Poker News From PokerStars
Here are the latest online poker news updates from PokerStars.com.
Marching on Moscow
It'll be on us before we know it. While the World Series keeps the poker world's attention plans for what comes next in August, to ease any WSOP withdrawal, are already in place. That plan is the start of the European Poker Tour's (http://www.europeanpokertour.com) sixth season. Aside from being the world's premier poker tour, season six has something unique in store, kicking off as is does for the first time in Moscow, Russia on August 18 at the Radisson SAS Slavyanskaya. Places at this new stop are being snapped up fast but there's still opportunity to bag your seat in time for the August festivities. The easiest way is on a PokerStars.com satellite with winner's packages including seat, accommodation and expenses. Satellites are running now with full details on the PokerStars (http://www.pokerstars.com) client and the EPT (http://www.ept.com) website. Udachi!
Room please
We've all been there - you're involved in a key hand playing on PokerStars (http://www.pokerstars.com) and someone tries to interrupt just at the wrong time. You get a little grumpy, right? That's exactly what happened to Team PokerStars Pro Joe Hachem (http://www.pokerstars.com/team-pokerstars/joe-hachem/) during his time as a motel operator and some guests arrived to check in when he was in a big pot. Wait a second. Joe Hachem? Motel? Of course not. But in the world of cinema anything can happen and the director of a new horror flick Prey (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prey_(2008_film)) wanted his man Hachem for a cameo role. Film goers will see Hachem playing on PokerStars as the main character arrives to enquire about a room. The film just had its Australian release and its US premier last week at the Brenden Cinemas at the Palms Hotel in Las Vegas. You'll have to watch it yourself to find out the rest.
Across the Pacific
First there was news about the new European Poker Tour (http://www.europeanpokertour.com/) season starting in Moscow (http://www.europeanpokertour.com/moscow/how_to_enter/index.html) in August, then came news of the World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) (http://www.pokerstars.com/wcoop/) and the $40 million up for grabs. Now it's the turn of the PokerStars Asia Pacific Poker Tour (http://www.appt.com/news/index.html) and the details of its third season. Just two years ago nobody seemed sure just how popular the APPT would prove. All except PokerStars who had inkling it would become the biggest tour in the region. They were right. The action kicks off in Macau August 24-30 at the Grand Lisboa, and then it heads from Seoul to Auckland to Cebu and finally Sydney, home to the Grand final where last year Martin Rowe took down the AUD $1,000,000 first prize. Naturally PokerStars (http://www.pokerstars.com) will host satellites, details of which can be found in the APPT section in the tournament Lobby. See you in Macau.
Greenstein falls foul of fourth
The main business of the summer is, of course, the World Series of Poker and Team PokerStars Pro (http://www.pokerstars.com/team-pokerstars/) have so far continued to score big in event after event. The past seven days have been no different. In the $10,000 pot limit Omaha Barry Greenstein (http://www.pokerstars.com/team-pokerstars/barry-greenstein/) reached the final table chasing a $679,379 first prize and a fourth WSOP bracelet. Ultimately Greenstein was busted by $40,000 no-limit hold'em winner and RPT Moscow (http://www.pokerstars.com/rpt/) Champ Vitaly Lunkin (http://www.pokerstarsblog.com/rpt/2009/vitaly-lunkin-wins-pokerstars-rpt-moscow-039976.html), who dodged the Team PokerStars Pro's out draws. Greenstein's results didn't stop there. Both he and 2008 main event finalist Ylon Schwartz (http://www.pokerstars.com/team-pokerstars/ylon-schwartz/) made the final of the $2,500 mixed hold'em event (http://www.pokerstarsblog.com/wsop/2009/wsop-event-47-schwartz-runs-out-of-steam-046857.html) and for a while looked like they'd face off against each other for the bracelet. Then the collapse occurred. Citing bad decisions Greenstein crashed out in fifth. Schwartz thrived for a while before busting in third for $112,000.
World Series notables
It was almost a second bracelet for Team PokerStars Mexico when JC Alvarado (http://www.pokerstars.com/team-pokerstars/jc-alvarado/) made the final of the $10,000 pot limit hold'em event. But Alvarado was unable to emulate countryman Angel Guillen (http://www.pokerstarsblog.com/wsop/2009/wsop-event-32-pokerstars-angel-guillen-w-046694.html), eventually finishing fifth, busting on a coin flip (http://www.pokerstarsblog.com/wsop/2009/wsop-event-45-pokerstars-jc-alvarado-5th-046838.html). Elsewhere Lex Veldhuis from the Dutch PokerStars contingent cashed in the $5,000 shootout while countryman and Team PokerStars Pro Noah Boeken (http://www.pokerstars.com/team-pokerstars/noah-boeken/) cashed in the $1,500 pot limit Omaha. The Dutch theme continued when two PokerStars player also reached the final of the $1,500 limit shootout. Argentinean Jose Barbero would exit first, followed by Dutch pro Josephus Van Den Bijgaart in seventh.
Who needs cash when you're playing for pride?
It was billed as the biggest rematch since Rocky Balboa and Apollo Creed went into the ring a second time. The pairing together of last year's World Series main event heads-up players, a battle for bragging rights and $10,000 to the charity of their choice, was buzzing on the internet all week. While World Champion Peter Eastgate (http://www.pokerstars.com/team-pokerstars/peter-eastgate/) and Ivan Demidov (http://www.pokerstars.com/team-pokerstars/ivan-demidov/) may not have been playing alongside a stack of notes amounting to a $9 million, they didn't disappoint the fans railing them online, dueling to the last and quashing any suggestion that it would be merely a quick fire exhibition match. Starting with the same stacks they had back in November, some hefty swings ultimately led Demidov to victory, the Russian avenging his defeat last November. However, as Eastgate's bracelet still sparkles, whether it made for complete consolation is unclear.
Prague welcomes Czech-Slovak Poker Tour
The inaugural PokerStars Czech-Slovak Poker Tour (http://www.pokerstars.com/cspt/) event kicked off in the Czech capital Prague last week, with 122 players creating a prize pool of more than 1.4 million CZK. The four stop tour takes in stops in Ostrava, Brno and finally Bratislava in December. Looking forward to all of them will be Prague winner Lukas Horak who took the chip lead into the final and kept it till the end, collecting 340,000 CZK. He beat Martin Pecha into second place. Then event brought together the best of the local poker talent, among them famous Czech actor Martin Trnavsky. Next stop is Casino Kartac in Ostrava in September.
Prague welcomes Czech-Slovak Poker Tour
The inaugural PokerStars Czech-Slovak Poker Tour (http://www.pokerstars.com/cspt/) event kicked off in the Czech capital Prague last week, with 122 players creating a prize pool of more than 1.4 million CZK. The four stop tour takes in stops in Ostrava, Brno and finally Bratislava in December. Looking forward to all of them will be Prague winner Lukas Horak who took the chip lead into the final and kept it till the end, collecting 340,000 CZK. He beat Martin Pecha into second place. Then event brought together the best of the local poker talent, among them famous Czech actor Martin Trnavsky. Next stop is Casino Kartac in Ostrava in September.
PokerStars.tv for WSOP V Blogs
Check out pokerstars.tv video blogs from 2009 WSOP. See the game's greatest players in action, interviews as well as much more. Watch ElkY put through his paces by Kickboxing world champion Dewey Cooper in his home gym. (http://www.pokerstars.tv/movies/7EM/wsop-2009-elky-fighting-like-a-champ.html) and two Italians sky dive (http://www.pokerstars.tv/movies/7EW/wsop-2009-the-italians-sky-dive.html)
