Poker Blog

partypoker Starts 2010 WPT London Qualifiers

Posted on by giorgio

World Poker Tour London Poker Classic 2010partypoker has started its schedule of qualifiers for the 2010 WPT London, which will be the inaugural running of a World Poker Tour Main Event in London, England. The schedule for partypoker’s 2010 World Poker Tour London Poker Classic qualifier schedule starts on Monday, June 21st and runs through Sunday August 8th.

partypoker qualifiers into the WPT London 2010 are available at all different stakes levels, from daily freeroll tournaments and qualifiers with buy-ins as low as $1. All 2010 WPT London qualifiers at partypoker lead up to the weekly satellites into the big event itself, taking place every Sunday at 2:15 pm ET for a $600 + $40 direct buy-in, with one out of every 20 players competing securing themselves one of partypoker’s $12K WPT London prize packages.

The prize packages partypoker is giving away into this year’s World Poker Tour London Poker Classic Main Event include the event buy-in (worth $8,000 or £5,000 + £300), a seven-night stay in 5-star luxury accommodations, and $2,000 in spending money, for a total value of $12,000.

The eight-handed final table of the 2010 WPT London Poker Classic Main Event, the first WPT Main Event ever to take place in London, will be a televised event, of course, which means that partypoker’s own poker ambassador Mike Sexton will be commentating. The 2010 London Poker Classic takes place at Mayfair’s Palm Beach Casino between August 30th and September 4th.

Also on the 2010 WPT London schedule is the £15,000 high-roller event, running from September 3rd through 5th.

Already the 2010 World Poker Tour has kicked off to a great start with the WPT Grand Prix de Paris, the WPT Spanish Championship, the WPT Bellagio Cup VI, and the WPT Legends of Poker.

Following the London Poker Classic on the World Poker Tour 2010/2011 season schedule are the WPT Marrakech, the WPT Borgata Poker Open, the WPT Festa al Lago, the WPT Amneville, the WPT Foxwoods World Poker Finals, the WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic, the WPT Southern Poker Championship, the WPT Celebrity Invitational, and the WPT L.A. Poker Classic.

bwin Poker Hosts The Joker Sit & Go Promotion

Posted on by kurt

The Joker Sit & Go TournamentsBetween June 14 and July 25, 2010, bwin Poker will be hosting The Joker Sit & Go Tournaments.

This return of a previous player favorite, the wild and crazy Joker Sit & Go format, features double the freeroll prize pool from $500 to $1,000 and an additional $1,000 added to the total pot, claimable by way of the weekly leader board.

The prize structure for The Joker Sit & Go Tournaments is as novel as the tournament format, with 50% of the prize pool going to the 1st place winner, while 30% of it goes not to the runner-up but to the 5th place finisher, and the remaining 20% going not to the 3rd place finisher but to the player in 9th place.

For the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 6th, 7th, 8th, and 10th place finishers, bwin Poker offers as a consolation prize, an I Lost The Joker Freeroll entry granting them access to a $1,000 freeroll tournament that runs weekly at bwin Poker on Saturdays from June 19 to July 24 at 17:00 GMT.

First, fifth, and ninth place are the only places that pay out leader board points as well, with 3 points going to 1st, 2 points to 5th, and 1 point to 9th. The Joker Leader Board is weekly and runs from Monday to Sunday. First place on any given week’s Joker Leader Board gets $500, with 5th place getting $300 and 9th getting $200.

Neither in the leader board race nor in The Joker Sit & Go Tournaments themselves, no players other than 1st, 5th, and 9th pay out.

The Joker Sit & Go Tournaments are all 10-seat events with buy-ins of $2 + $0.20, a starting stack for each player of 1,500 in chips and with a Turbo game structure in which blinds jump every 3 minutes. All Joker Sit & Gos are in No Limit Hold’em.

Daily $50,000 Guaranteed Events At Celeb Poker

Posted on by giorgio

Celeb Poker Guaranteed TournamentsCeleb Poker has three different types of $50,000 guaranteed tournaments running – one of which runs daily, one of which runs weekly, and the other of which runs during the weekdays only.

  • $50,000 Daily Guaranteed – The Celeb Poker $50,000 Daily Guaranteed event takes place at Celeb Poker every day at 17:45 GMT.
  • $50,000 Guaranteed Freezeout – The Celeb Poker $50,000 Guaranteed Freezeout event takes place every Saturday at 18:30 GMT. The $50K Guaranteed Freezeout has a direct buy-in of $100 + $9. Qualifiers taking place through out the week previous have buy-ins as low as $8 + $0.80.
  • $50,000 Rebuy Tournament – The Celeb Poker $50,000 Rebuy Tournament takes place every Monday through Thursday at Celeb Poker at 17:45 GMT. The $50K Rebuy Tournament has a $50 + $5 buy-in, with qualifiers into the event taking place through out the week for buy-ins as low as $5 + $0.50.

These three types of $50,000 guaranteed tournaments offered at Celeb Poker are in addition to the site’s other major guaranteed tournaments, which include a $100,000 guaranteed weekly and a $250,000 guaranteed weekly.

Celeb Poker’s Major Guaranteed Tournaments

The Celeb Poker $100,000 Guaranteed Rebuy Tournament takes place each Friday at 18:00 GMT. This Celeb Poker event has a direct buy-in of $100 + 9 (just like the weekly $50,000 Guaranteed Freezeout) with qualifiers into the event happening through out the week prior for buy-ins as low as $1 + $0.10.

The Celeb Poker $250,000 Guaranteed Tournament takes place every Sunday at 18:00 GMT. Direct buy-in into this Celeb Poker event is $300 + $20, although players can win their seat in the event through out the week prior through qualifiers with buy-ins starting as low as $3 + $0.30.

To summarize, Celeb Poker offers a $50K, $100K, and $250K guaranteed tournament weekly, as well as another $50K each day Monday through Thursday, this one a $50K Rebuy, and still one more $50K event (not a rebuy) happening every day of the week over at Celeb Poker.

bwin Poker Running $1 Million World Cup Challenge

Posted on by kurt

World Cup Million Dollar ChallengeOn June 9 bwin Poker launched a promotion that will run through July 11 called the World Cup $1,000,000 Challenge.

To participate in the bwin Poker World Cup Million Dollar Challenge, you simply need to acquire betting tokens during the promotional period and then use those tokens to accurately guess the results of the various matches in the 2010 World Cup in Johannesburg South Africa, which just started on Friday, June 11 and runs through Sunday, July 11.

Each betting token qualifies a player to compete in a single One Hand Heads-Up Sit & Go tournament. For each match of the 2010 World Cup, three such Sit & Gos will be held, one for each team competing (which represents that team winning the given) and a third representing a tie.

A bwin Poker player places their bet by using the token to enter the respective One Hand Heads-Up Sit & Go representing their bet. Prizes are awarded based on a pair of factors, namely: whether the player entered the right or wrong Sit & Go, and whether the player won or lost the Sit & Go they did enter. The more matches the player accurately predicts the results of, the more money from the prize pool they are eligible to split with the other players who achieved the same accomplishment.

The qualifying period to earn a betting token toward the bwin Poker Million Dollar World Cup Challenge is two days (48 hours) prior to the start of the game they wish to bet on.

So far in the opening weekend of the 2010 World Cup, Ghana beat Serbia, Slovenia beat Algeria, and the U.S. and England tied. That gives Serbia and Ghana the lead with 3 points each and puts England and the U.S. in second with 1 point each.

$35k Guaranteed Weekdays At partypoker

Posted on by giorgio

partypoker Super WeekdaysWeekends are always so exciting at online poker sites usually, while weekdays tend to be more humdrum. But not at partypoker, where Mondays through Thursdays of every week are $35K Guaranteed Weekdays.

partypoker’s $35K Guaranteed Weekdays promotion is a No Limit Hold’em tournament held each Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at partypoker at 15:00 ET for a $162 buy-in and with a $35,000 guaranteed prize pool.

Players not wishing (or able) to pay the $162 direct buy-in for the tournament can win their way in through one of several different daily qualifiers.

  • The Super Weekday Qualifier for a $44 buy-in in which 1 in every 4 entrants will win a seat in the Super Weekday main event.
  • The Super Weekday Qualifiers for an $11 buy-in in which 1 person will win a seat in the Super Weekday main event for every $162 in the prize pool.
  • The Super Weekday Qualifiers Speed Rebuy events for a $6 buy-in in which in entrant for every $162 collected in buy-ins will win a seat in the Super Weekday main event.

There is also a Super Weekday Special Qualifier Turbo that takes place at partypoker every Sunday that has no direct buy-in, and each of which awards 5 seats in any day’s Super Weekday tournament of your choice. You can only enter these Sunday Super Weekday Special Qualifier Turbo tournaments by winning your seat through one of the following two ways:

  • The Super Weekday 25 Points Qualifiers for a buy-in of 25 PartyPoints in which the top 25 players will win seats in the Sunday Super Weekday Special Qualifier Turbo.
  • The Super Weekday 10 Points Qualifiers for a buy-in of 10 PartyPoints in which the top 10 players will win seats in the Sunday Super Weekday Special Qualifier Turbo.

Chase Those Chips Again With bwin Poker’s Chip Chaser

Posted on by kurt

Chip Chaser Sit & Gos at bwin PokerBetween now and June 28 players at bwin Poker are being given the chance to chase those chips again with an unparalleled fervor. The promotion is called Chip Chaser and it’s likely to be the speediest online Sit & Go tournament you’ve ever played.

The big twist to the bwin Poker Sit & Go Chip Chaser format is that there are no blinds, only antes, and the game has a strict time limit. Giorgio might have exaggerated a little bit by saying that this format is “expected to become one of the most popular Sit and Go poker games”, however you will definitely have some fun while playing them, and they are a nice addition to mix up your regular poker game selection.

Chip Chaser Sit & Gos

In bwin Poker’s Chip Chaser Sit & Gos, players start with a chip stack of 1,000 chips. The game is made up of 100 antes, no blinds, and lasts for only 10 minutes and not a second longer. At least, not a second longer within the players’ control. Because at the end of the 10 minute countdown, all players in a bwin Poker Chip Chaser Sit & Go are put all in. From there, players continue to be placed all-in until only two players are left, at which point the player that has the largest chip stack is declared the automatic winner.

The winner of the bwin Poker Sit & Go Chip Chaser gets 70% of the prize pool and the runner-up gets 30%. bwin Poker Chip Chaser Sit & Gos are offered with a range of buy-ins: $20 + $2, $10 + $1, $5 + $0.50, and $1 + $0.20. All games are 10-handed No Limit Texas Hold’em.

But even though bwin Poker is calling the Chip Chaser its new Sit & Go format, the site is only promising to run Chip Chaser Sit & Gos every day until June 28, so if these fast-paced online poker tournaments sound exciting to you, you’d better hurry to bwin Poker and play.

Celeb Poker Has Soccer Mania With Soccer Millions Promotions

Posted on by giorgio

Celeb Poker Soccer MillionsThe 2010 FIFA World Cup of football (or soccer to Americans) has finally started and will be running through July 11. And while teams from around the world will be converging in South Africa, to compete for the world’s biggest accomplishment in soccer, online poker players from around the world will be converging on Celeb Poker to compete for big winnings in league with their favourite teams.

The Celeb Poker Soccer Millions promotion is a part-online poker, part-online sports betting contest. At stake is $1 million. The structure of the competition is a little bit complicated, so follow closely.

First, you play as you as always do at Celeb Poker’s tournament tables and ring games, all the way accumulating betting tokens. Betting tokens are accumulated based on your level in the Celeb Poker VIP Club (Bronze, Silver, Gold, or Platinum), whether you’re playing in a cash game or a tournament, whether you’re playing low stakes or medium-high stakes, and whether you’re playing Fixed Limit, Pot Limit, or No Limit. Based on all these factors, you will be required to either play in a certain number of raked hands (if a cash game) or pay a certain amount in fees (if a tournament) to earn each betting token.

Then you take those betting tokens and, 48 hours before the start of each given world cup match, place your bet on what the outcome will be. The way you bet is by using that token to register for one of three different Sit & Go tournaments, either for one world cup team winning, the other team winning, or if you believe the teams will tie.

Then you play in the respective Sit & Go against one of the other players who bet the same way as you. Each Sit & Go lasts for a single, all-in hand. Cash prizes and freeroll entries will be awarded to players based on whether or not they bet correctly (by entering the Sit & Go associated with the correct outcome) and on whether or not they won their heads-up Sit & Go, as well as their VIP Club status. Cash prizes range from $5 to $150 and freeroll entries range from $1,000 to $5,000.

From there, players who bet correctly on the outcome of at least one World Cup event will be added to a leader board. At the end of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the players with the most number of correct bets will win even bigger cash and prizes. Bet correctly on at least 7 matches and win a share of a guaranteed prize pool, ranging from $7,500 for 7 correct guesses up to $1 million for guessing right on all 25 World Cup matches.

Chino Rheem Beats Phil Ivey In Bounty Poker Tournament

Posted on by renee

The Aria Resort and Casino, located in CityCenter in Las Vegas, celebrated the inauguration of its brand new poker room, which was set up in honour of top professional poker player Phil Ivey. Aria organized a $1 million freeroll, a bounty tournament with a fabulous prize of $100,000 for the talented player who successfully knocked off Phil Ivey. After that the winner of the tournament was to compete in a heads-up poker game against Ivey for another $250,000 as part of the inauguration ceremony.

Chino RheemTop poker professional Phil Ivey ended up being defeated in the very poker room established in his honor. David “Chino” Rheem, who had successfully reached the final tables of the main event of WSOP in 2008, took Phil off the table and walked away with the huge bounty of one hundred thousand dollars.

Larry Linton however was able to win the tournament and bagged the first prize of $250,000. Afterwards he engaged in the heads-up poker battle against Phil Ivey for another $250,000 but had to realise that Phil wasn’t going to be defeated twice the same day. In his own poker room Phil Ivey dominated the heads-up and Larry Linton was denied the additional $250,000.

The inaugural of the Phil Ivey Poker Room was a grand success, and all the talented poker players who participated in the events enjoyed themselves thoroughly. “Even the croissants served were awesome”, as aptly pointed out by Phil Laak. In the meantime, David Williams told everybody about how he is waiting for the day someone would think about establishing a poker room in honour of him.

Phil IveyPhil Ivey was deeply touched by the event and the fact that Aria had established a room in his honor. Recalling that he had come from nothing, he said that he was indeed honoured to have a room in his name.

Prominent guests such as Jennifer Harman, Doyle Brunson, Tim Phan, David Benyamine, and Vanessa Rousso were present for the inauguration of the Phil Ivey Room. The new high-stakes poker room, especially brought into existence for the benefit of rich and influential players, has already gained a reputation for top poker action, a state of affairs that appears to be long lasting.

Phil Ivey, winner of seven prestigious WSOP bracelets and one World Poker Tour title, is considered to be the world’s best poker player. Ivey was also listed as the world’s number one tournament money winner following his runner up finish at the Aussie Millions $100,000 poker event this year.

Annette Obrestad To Participate In WSOP 2010

Posted on by renee

Annette Obrestad wasn’t able to participate in the WSOP not because she lacks talents, but because she was too young. This amazing poker player started playing at the tender age of 15, as revealed by her user name “Annette_15”. However, now that Annette has turned 21, nothing can stop her from participating in the World Series of Poker (WSOP), the most prestigious international poker event of the world.

Annette ObrestadAnnette’s poker career began the day a friend sent her some money to become a funded player at an online poker room. Annette turned out to be so talented at playing poker that she did not have to make another deposit. She found herself winning game after game and was soon confident enough to participate in multi table tournaments. Next, she participated in the World Series of Poker Europe (WSOPE) and claimed the title and the fabulous WSOPE main event prize.

Although Europe openly acknowledged Annette’s talent and allowed her to participate in the WSOP, US laws prevented her from participating in the WSOP because she was underage. But now that she is 21, no law in the world can stop her from dominating the WSOP tables. Annette attracted attention in the poker gaming world not only because of her talent, but also because of her age. Last Sunday, she won $87,000 in the PokerStars Sunday 500, which she plans to spend on the buy-in for WSOP 2010.

Poker buffs are already looking forward to watching Annette’s performance in the WSOP. Annette might be having an amazing record of tournament wins; however, the WSOP brings together some of the toughest poker players in the world. As usual, this year’s WSOP will witness the usual poker pros as well as a sprinkling of amateurs fighting for the titles. One of them will be Phil Ivey, who reached the final table last year, but could not last till the end. This year, the regular pros will have to compete with Annette too.

Celeb Poker gives players a chance to compete with Annette and get a WSOP 2010 qualification. The site also offers a cool deposit bonus of 150% up to $500 to all players that sign up through Max Poker Bonus. Bright readers will instantly notice that this offer is 50% more than regularly advertised!

World Cup Warm Up At bwin Poker

Posted on by kurt

bwin Poker World Cup Warm-UpMost of the sports enthusiasts of the world are fond of soccer, a game that promises the thrill of competition, plenty of excitement, wealth, and fame. A number of soccer teams are currently getting ready to fly to South Africa to participate in the prestigious World Cup Soccer Tournament, which offers a chance to one talented team to emerge as the champions.

bwin Poker seeks to reproduce the excitement of this prestigious soccer event by offering a thrilling two-week long poker event called World Cup Warm Up. The site hopes to provide its loyal poker players, who also happen to be soccer enthusiasts, the thrill of competition similar to that of the World Cup Soccer Tournament right in the comforts of home.

The World Cup Warm Up will last for two weeks, providing plenty of poker action and excitement and the unique opportunity for talented bwin Poker players to fight for the championship title. However, just as a soccer tournament allows only one champion, this bwin Poker event also permits only one talented poker player to emerge as the champion.

bwin Poker will first organize 4 World Cup Warm Up Semi Finals at 8 pm on May 5, May 27, June 1, and June 3. These semi finals will help talented players to qualify for the prestigious and lucrative World Cup Warm Up Finals. In the first place, bwin Poker will classify interested players who wish to participate in eight groups from A to H based on their geographic locations. Four players of each group can qualify for the finals. Each lucky semi final winner will receive an attractive cash prize plus a ticket to the finals.

The World Cup Warm Up Final will be organized on June 5 at 8 pm with a guaranteed prize pool of $50,000. Players who enjoy the competitive spirit of the World Cup can fight for the title of champion at this awesome World Cup Warm Up event organized by bwin Poker.

bwin Poker is also offering exciting promotions such as Chip Chaser Sit & Gos, Weekly Country Showdown, and Contender Series, giving players the exclusive chance to win plenty of cash.