So the biggest shiznit of the poker year is underway … please bear with us as some of us “old school” poker media try to find our place and purpose in covering an event that poker nuts can follow officially via WSOP.com, near-instantly on Twitter, and near-live (15 minutes, shmifteen minutes) on ESPNs 1, 2, and 3.

In the spirit of kicking things old-school, we’re going really new school … on the fly no less … and moving to SoundCloud, which we think will work in really neato ways.

November Nine – Evolution (Ep 1) by taopokerati

November Nine – Evolution (ep. 1)
Dr. Pauly and Dan are back with a new episode of Tao of Pokerati live from the Rio in Las Vegas. Dan showed up late, but watched some of the live feed at home. The WSOP coverage is evolving and the two discuss the latest nuances in poker reporting.

And of course to follow an old-school blogger with faster typing skills than mine, be sure to read actual writing from my partner in podcast crime at Tao of Poker.

The World Series of Poker Main Event final table saw the first elimination after over two and a half hours of play as Germany’s Pius Heinz has been the most aggressive player at the final table, and now holds the chip lead over the Czech Republic’s Martin Staszko. Ben Lamb had a rough start but he just eliminated Sam Holden with AK against Holden’s AJ, turning a flush to send the Brit home without any additional winnings. The remaining players are each guaranteed a seven-figure payday.

After an eventful level, three players in total were eliminated as Sam Holden, Anton Makiievsky and Bob Bounahra’s dreams of $8.7m and a WSOP bracelet were cut short. Meanwhile, Matt Giannetti nears the chip lead as Phil Collins and Ben Lamb each caught miracle cards on the river to double up.

The four remaining players are now on dinner break until 8:15pm PT, returning to blinds of 600,000/1,200,000 with an ante of 200,000.

Pius Heinz – 85,500,000
Matt Gianetti – 50,325,000
Ben Lamb – 46,300,000
Martin Staszko – 23,900,000

1st: $8,715,638
2nd: $5,433,086
3rd: $4,021,138
4th: $3,012,700

5th: Phil Collins -  $2,269,599
6th: Eoghan O’Dea – $1,720,831
7th: Bob Bounahra – $1,314,097
8th: Anton Makiievskyi – 1,010,015
9th: Sam Holden – $782,115

Some places to follow the action as it happens:

PokerNews:

Live updates

Live chat

ESPN:

Stream on 15-minute delay w/ hole cards revealed after the hand

Live blog with Andrew Feldman

Blogging:

Dr. Pauly including new Tao of Pokerati episodes

Jesse May from Amneville, France

Short-Stacked Shamus

LVRJ’s Howard Stutz

If you haven’t been railing on Twitter, you can follow these people who are live on the scene: @ESPN_Poker, @taopauly, @OskarGarcia, @CaseKeefer, @HowardStutz

6:15pm PT UPDATE: In consecutive hands,

Rock Paper Scissors? The last time a rich French dude came to New York to bail out the Americans was Rochambeau in 1781 — fewer than eight WSOPs before George Washington established the DOJ office currently trying to put the hurt on various Tiltboys.

Still trying to wrap my teeth around the latest chapter in the saga of the Rise and Fall of Full Tilt Poker, with the Bernard Tapie Groupe in France saying the DOJ has given them a thumbs up on the purchase of certain Full Tilt assets … with which they’ll supposedly be able to make-good with Full Tilt’s non-American players and resume non-American operations.

So if this is correct — and we can talk later why we presume more truth in this story than others before it — Preet Bharara and his top-ranked American prosecution office wouldn’t have to worry about the Euros … which would be good for the DOJ, I presume, because who needs to mess with the foreigners and the incredibly complex international litigation and trade wars they potentially bring … especially when the real prize Preet seeks is closer to $1 billion.

For a better understanding, be sure to check out Wendeen Eolis’s latest piece in Poker Player Newspaper — Decoding Full Tilt Poker – DOJ – Tapie Plans — which provides a much needed sobriety check and skillful reading between the lines. Even though she may not be on the frontlines like Subject:Poker, as a Manhattan legal consultant in her non-poker life, Eolis has been down to the battlefield a time or two … and seems to understand ways the Southern District of New York more intimately than most.

The Tapie deal does offer the first glimmers of light at the end of a long tunnel, but it seems American players might wanna hold off on calls for “ONE TIME!” lest they become self-fulfilling prophesies of disappointment and despair. Because for any justifiable exuberance over the likelihood that European and “rest of world” players might see PokerStars-style payouts before the end of 2011 … American players with online poker (bank?) accounts in limbo now know only that the DOJ will be looking at them separately in determining who’s a “victim” and who is Isildur1 who’s potentially a less deserving accomplice.

 
On this episode of DD Radio’s “The Cold Call Show” Ari Engel joins us in studio for the entire fun filled episode.  We disect a Michael Clemente scammer phone call, and are joined via cell phone by SUNKIMSTONE and she gives her side of the scam.  We get Menachum’s latest NFL picks, and the “Stump the Schoenfeld” progressive rolls over to $20 next week!
 

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This autumnal winds of Dorset attempted to blow me out to sea, but I stayed rooted to the shore like defiant bollard. I knew that without their weekly dose of un-American gambling news, Pokerati readers might immediately expire. I couldn’t live with that on my conscience, so I’m back from my holiday with a suitcase full of facts.

# 888’s Third Quarter Upswing

While you Americans were outdoors being adventurous, we Brits carried on our time honoured tradition of ‘staying indoors and being poor’. At least that’s what 888 Holdings Plc credit for the massive boost in revenue they’ve been enjoying recently. The company banked $86 million in the third quarter and grew their userbase to over 10 million. [Reuters]

# Spain say eCOGRA are A-Okay

Spain have opened their doors to fully regulated online gambling, but before you can get your hands on a shiny Spanish license, you need to have your software thoroughly examined by an accredited agency. eCOGRA – whose seals are sported by the likes of Party Poker – have been given the blessing of the local government to carry out these inspections. eCOGRA’s CEO made happy noises at the news, but also took the chance to moan about EU nations being allowed to develop contrasting systems. [eCOGRA]

# MacPhee Takes Aim at the Hendon Mob

Veteran British grinder Barny Boatman kept his upper lip fully stiffened this week after enduring a verbal barrage from American pro Kevin ‘ImaLuckSac’ MacPhee. The fracas took place on Twitter, in the aftermath of the latter’s exit from the EPT San Remo. MacPhee, who is not a qualified physician, branded Boatman a “f*cking r*tard” for eliminating him from the event. In reaction, Boatman took the Hendon Mob forums to present an eloquent defence of his play. [Poker News Report]

It’s not been the most thrilling week in worldwide poker. America has clutched all the big news to its bosom like a greedy news-clutching monster. Even going so far as to steal away reliable Euro headline makers bwin.party. Nevertheless, I shall continue to sift through the bins of the internet, searching out the choicest morsels for your delectation. Until next week…

Full Tilt Poker is about to be sold…can it be? Mark and Matt take a look at the latest to come out of the site, as well as taking a look at how Pokerstars and UB are doing. Also, the two look at the Poker Hall of Fame inductees and speculate on who has a shot next year.

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Subject:Poker is reporting that the US Department of Justice and Groupe Bernard Tapie have reached an agreement regarding the sale and fate of Full Tilt Poker. According to an email from Ray Bitar, the indicted CEO says that upon a payment by the Tapie group and a commitment to assume responsibility to repay non-US players, the DOJ will reimburse US players and settle litigation with FTP-associated companies. The Tapie group will then work on becoming licensed once again by a gaming authority and eventually resume business.

Any deal still needs to be approved by 2/3 of Full Tilt ownership, expected to be a formality.

More perspective can be found at Wicked Chops Poker.

Yesterday, MGM Resorts International (NYSE:MGM), Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD), and bwin.party digital entertainment (LSE:BPTY) announced a joint venture in the United States. This as-yet-unnamed entity – to be owned 65% by bwin.party, 25% by MGM, and 10% by Boyd – would, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, ”offer poker to U.S. customers under bwin.party’s brands.”

There appear to be the usual outs for the parties if Congress doesn’t legalize Internet poker. While it may seem that these three are hitching their wagon to federal legislation (no particular surprise for Boyd and MGM), the release from bwin.party mentions the possibility of a state-by-state strategy being adopted. Unlike the federal JV, if the US goes state by state, “[t]he shareholders and shareholdings in a State NewCo may vary, depending on the state concerned and reflecting the contributions to be made by each shareholder. In addition to bwin.party, shareholders in State Newco may include MGM, Boyd and other partners.” Bwin.party seems to be leaving its options open, which is smart for them at this stage.

The various media stories also suggest that the deals are contingent on regulatory approval, i.e., sign-off from Nevada gaming regulators, who are expected to be key regulators under a federal ipoker regime. Will Nevada conclude that bwin.party is a suitable partner? It’s unclear. Bwin.party says it’s “preparing to enter into a suitability review with the Nevada Gaming Control Board in order to secure an advanced finding of suitability in anticipation of future US-facing real money poker opportunities.” Presumably it’s confident that it will succeed.

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