Ah, the "Internet Player," bane of the professional poker player’s existence. Expect now that the WSOP is all over ESPN, that the pros will be getting a little more media attention than usual, and will be focusing their ire on the legions of idiots and morons that chopped them off at the knees in the Main Event. From Steve Rosenbloom’s column, posted at the Jackson Hole Star Tribune:

"Instead, Negreanu was all in.

Read More » Poker Pros Complain About Donkeys Too

Clear your schedule kids, we’ve got history being made on ESPN tonight. Well, history was made this summer in WSOP Event #31, when Doyle Brunson took down his tenth bracelet, catching up to Johnny Chan who passed him earlier in the WSOP - we’re just getting to see it televised tonight. Doyle’s event is hour two, the NL Hold ‘Em short-handed event (six to a table). Hour one is Event #28, the $5K Limit Hold ‘Em event featuring one of the owners of Card Player

Read More » WSOP 2005: Ten Is The Magic Number, and Welcome Back Kaplan

What would a Tuesday be without a little WSOP action on ESPN? Well, it’d be just like a Wednesday, but that’s a lousy punchline. Anyway, two new episodes of poker grace the tube tonight, highlighted by a classic match between Robert Williamson and Phil Ivey in the $2500 Pot Limit Omaha with rebuys tourney.

Read More » WSOP 2005: Woke Up This Morning, Won Myself a Bracelet

Professional poker player Paul Phillips examines a hand from ESPN’s Tuesday night telecast of the Lake Tahoe WSOP Circuit Event, and comes away a little more than skeptical:
…on the first hand they show jeff lisandro raise with TT and ivey call with 99. The flop comes 444, lisandro bets and is called. The turn is […]

Read More » ESPN Poker Coverage Is Rigged?

Tonight’s ESPN World Series of Poker telecast is - again - not an actual WSOP event not-so-plausibly live from the Rio, but another one of those "circuit" events, this one from Harvey’s Lake Tahoe Resort back in May. We won’t spoil it for you, but wunderkind of poker Phil Ivey is sitting at the final table. He’s pretty good at playing cards and all, but we’d beat the shit out of him in Slap Jack until his fingers swelled to the size of a Ball Park Frank. Bring it on Tiger Woods. ESPN Presents WSOP Poker Tonight [Las Vegas Vegas] (spoilers)

Read More » WSOP 2005: ESPN Says “We’re Almost There”

Are you as confused as we were when ESPN started in on their WSOP coverage, only it wasn’t the WSOP from the Rio in Vegas, but some sort of circuit event instead? Really? Just us? Never mind. Anyway, if you happen to be in Mississippi in the next couple of weeks, […]

Read More » WSOP 2005: World Series Series Circuit Series… Series

So are we finally getting actual honest-to-god ESPN WSOP coverage from the Rio tonight? No, not yet. Instead, they’re trotting out another circuit event featuring a star-studded final table. We put our crack research staff on the case to dig up information on the participants: · Prahlad Friedman - the world’s eleventh-ranked Hindi-Hassidic poker player. · Jim Worth - heir to the Little League equipment-maker fortune. · Chad Brown - former pass-rush linebacking Seahawk, now savvy Patriot veteran. · Chris "Jesus"

Read More » 2005 WSOP: Come To Jesus

Here’s a piece of WSOP reporting you’re not likely to see written up in the mainstream: PokerStars satellite winner Bernard Lee is recapping his World Series experience on The Poker Stars Blog. How does it feel to be one of the last 27 people to walk into Benny’s Bullpen at Binion’s with a chance to win the last gold bracelet and World Championship they’ll ever award there? Ask Bernie:

We headed upstairs to the tournament room. As we walked down the hallway, people started to recognize me and the other players. In some ways, I felt like I was entering a boxing match with my "entourage" leading the way.

Read More » 2005 WSOP: First Hand Perspective

Wait, Cyndy Violette didn’t make the final table? Then why are we leading with a pic of her on this story? Will you look at that rack? We got some comments from readers over the past couple of days about our inclusion of Cyndy in that journalistically integrityish expose on the websites of various pro poker babes, and to answer, we’ll just point you to that picture courtesy of Las Vegas Vegas. Cyndy’s like your mom’s best friend that you’re not entirely sure hasn’t been making eyes at you every time she makes a flimsy excuse to stop over to your mom’s house.

Read More » Not 2005 WSOP: Ultimate Poker Challenge Crowns a Champ

We’re down to the final table for the $10k main event at the Plaza’s Ultimate Poker Challenge. Interestingly, they’ve played seven-handed at the tables, which will probably make for looser play and pretty decent television once this thing gets picked up for broadcast. 55 players started, all vying for the $167,500 first prize and gold bracelet. Here’s your final seven, with chip counts courtesy of Las Vegas Vegas. 1. Mike Wattel $351K 2. Senthil Kumar $331K 3. Andy Bloch $305K 4. Chau Giang $234K 5. Blair Rodman $169K 6. Scott Fischman $139K 7. Ted Forrest $124K The tournament should finish up sometime late today. Ultimate Poker Challenge day two recap

Read More » Not WSOP 2005: Ultimate Poker Challenge