News this morning from Germany that a third suspect has been arrested in connection with the armed robbery at EPT Berlin that took place two weeks ago today. According to the Associated Press, Mustafa Ucarkus, aged 20, was arrested at Tegel airport after his lawyer informed authorities of his whereabouts.
Earlier this week one member of the group of alleged thieves — a 21-year-old man of Turkish origin — turned himself in and identified his three accomplices. One, 20-year-old Ahmad el-Awayti, was arrested on Wednesday. The fourth member of the group, Jihad Chetwie (aged 19), remains at large.
Back from Barcelona and feelin’ feisty, we revisit the stupid stunts of the Governor of Kentucky in a not- so-respectful way. But don’t forget there’s other news, too… including updates on Barney Frank’s PSPA Bill which was passed a few weeks ago. Also, the status of the continuing iMEGA court case. Lastly, a brief musical look back at the CAP Convention… this show is a real “hoot”! LOL!
It feels good to run good … and because it’s important to know whom you’re up against, here are six players you may wanna congratulate/look out for at the tables live and online, as their most recent noteworthy successes suggest they are running particularly well.
Mary Joe Belcore-Zogman Heartland Poker Tour’s “The Grand Series”
Onamia, Minnesota
Bested 201 players to take down $85,723 — making her the second woman to win an HPT event, and part of the first husband-wife team to both win on the Heartland Poker Tour. Dan Zogman won $220k in Gary, IN, last year. The Zogmans hail from McHenry, IL, about 60 miles outside of Chicago.
Phil Ivey Full Tilt Million Dollar Cash Game
London
Made a stab at his 6th bracelet in the £2,500 HORSE at WSOP-Europe (banking more than US$25k for 6th place), and while overseas was the big winner in the million-dollar cash game against his fellow Full Tilt pros and other highest-stakes players. Finished +$536,400, dominating the competition for the second time in the event’s 3-year history.
With a 24-year-old Jesper Hougaard’s bracelet win in £1500 NLH, Denmark steps up to a higher tier of poker dominance in the world. And Ohio (one of four American states with a 2008 WSOP-E cash thus far — the others being Washington, California, and Nevada) scooches past Georgia (the state, not the former Soviet republik) in the standings.
There’s a lot of action going on, now and into this weekend …
First off, in the online world, the WCOOP (World Championship of Online Poker) is going on on PokerStars. You can rail it live as an observer on PokerStars itself, of course, or if you’ve got an offline life you can follow it semi-live on the PokerStarsBlog in the capable hands of our own California Jen and some of your other favorite bloggers (Change100, Tuscaloosa Johnny, Otis).
Believe it or not, they’ve also got “TV” coverage of these big online tourneys — they’re about halfway through 33 of them. Check it out right here if you’ve got a half-hour to kill:
The new PokerStars TV will also be all over the EPT Barcelona, which just got underway — including some live video coverage viewable on the internet, along with more traditional blog-coverage and chip updates.
On the salty side of the pond, the Borgata Poker Open is getting heated in Atlantic City. That’s where Pauly’s at. And he’s covering all the action (along with the ever-illustrative Tropical Steve and poker-media journeyman Michael Friedman) on the official Borgata Blog. The WPT main event kicks off on Sunday. The WPT has their own blog-crew coverage, too — something called “The Muck”.
Meanwhile, I’m stuck here in Vegas, where it’s a Freerollin’ Saturday for me:
I start the day in Event #2 of the PokerListings Run Good Challenge. Supposedly we’re having some blind-structure issues with PokerStars, but regardless, it will be a chance to redeem myself from my lackluster Event #1 performance.
Then, later tomorrow evening, it’s the grand-opening tourney at the Hard Rock, where I’ll be playing against Phil Hellmuth, Anjela Brunson, Rick Fuller, Scott Fischman, Scott Ian (of Anthrax), Jeremiah Smith, Andre Agassi, Montel Williams, Randy Couture, Jermaine O’neal, Paul Pierce, and others for an important motorcycle. Will be texting in updates via CSR should you care to follow my quest against a field that should be a combination of great and terrible, with a less-than-skill-friendly blind-structure.
Click below for more detailed info on the event itself, and the motorcycle.
It really is shaping up to be a Good Poker September.
Meanwhile, a lot of people have finally read and are talking about the more pokery Harrington’s new(ish) back-to-back cash game books. Supposedly they’re great — that’s what everynone’s saying. I’m starting to wonder if one of the reasons I’m doing so poorly in golf tournaments these days isn’t because I’m one of the few players who hasn’t read his Iliad on tournament play yet.
Some numbers coming in over the Batpod … about deals surrounding the November Nine as they made their way to the main event final table:
According to super-duper-secret well-connected, highly reliable inside sources some guy in Colorado, Peter Eastgate, the 22-year-old from Odense, Denmark, currently sitting 4th in chips was originally a Ladbrokes qualifier. Upon his making the final 72, Ladbrokes offered him $1 million to patch up. Full Tilt then came over the top with $1.75 million, and in the end, PokerStars took it down for $2 million.
(NOTE: What I’m not sure of are any “contingencies” in these deals — whether that’s $X million up front even if you finish 71st, or $Ythousand right now, and $Z million if you make the final table.)
It’s been fun keeping track of the 2008 WSOP by city-nation-state … taught me a lot about something — what exactly, I’m not yet sure. But I did get a clearer picture of just how significant the main event really is compared to all other poker tourneys. Just a little more than a week ago, I wrote:
Unless something really funky happens in the main event, it looks like Nevada has the edge on California when it comes to home base for the best poker players in the world.
Well I guess something funky did happen, because even with the biggest prize-pool distributions TBD, California poker players absolutely dominated in the 2008 main event (93 cashes, 2 final tableists)… while the Nevadans (mostly Las Vegas-based, of course) seemed to be napping, or perhaps just resting on their laurels (49 cashes, 0 final tableists). Regardless, looking at the 55 events that comprised the 2008 WSOP, I think it’s clear that the visitors can stake their claim: California is the Poker Capitol of the World … at least for now.
GREAT DANES: Another big surprise (to me) — apparently the Scandis aren’t so overrated after all. Denmark in particular showed up at the main event ready to play, and not only did they get one of their own on the final table, but also they performed so well in the latter events that they scooched past a bunch of other supposed Europoker powerhouses in the money won. The best non-American players, according to these results, in order: Canadians, Brits, and then the Danes … who actually could move past the Brits come November … and if you add the Danish in with the rest of the Scandis, it’s clear that Scandinavia and the UK are like the California and Nevada of European poker.
Recorded a couple days ago, as we were nearing the bubble … Benjo dropped by Tao of Pokerati studios to give his opinion on poker agents (they suck the blood out of the poker economy), France’s best WSOP hopes (they’re all gonna make the money), and how bad at poker Polacks are (can’t even win their own tourneys … zee eediotes).
After much consideration and prospective gerrymandering, upon the next update of the WSOP World Standings, we’re gonna make some switches … regardless of what they put on their official WSOP registrations, David Benyamine is soon to become fully French and Shannon Shorr will be screamin’ “Roll Tide!”
With that said, is there anyone else we should be considering for statistical reclassification? For the most part, we’re gonna defer to the Hendon Mob db … but I can think of three that are close calls:
Gus Hansen — Denmark or Vegas?
Hoyt Corkins — Alabama or Vegas?
Patrik Antonius — Finland or Monaco?
WCP boycrush Dario Minieri gets the goods that show he can compete in a brick-and-mortar world — winning a bracelet that doesn’t fit his dainty little wrists in the $2,500 6-Handed NLH event.
[photo: Flipchip / LasVegasVegas]
Jon Kyl is Facing Reality! It’s Lonely at the top of Morality Mountain…
There are still no regulations for UIGEA… Banks don’t want to police UIGEA… and others in Congress want to overturn UIGEA… I guess it’s time to face facts, Jon.
Chuck E Cheese is Facing Prison? Pizza Selling Rat also promotes illegal gambling…
The great legal minds of South Carolina have concluded that the Skee ball and Whac-a-Mole games at Chuck E Cheese are a slippery slop to illegal gambling… and they must go!
News from both sides of the Atlantic Lottery to Tennis… Texas to France…
In Texas, lottery officials are warning consumers about buying tickets online… and with good reason! And out of France, a judge has returned a ruling in the French Open vs Online Gambling case.
Mary Joe Belcore-Zogman
Phil Ivey
. Supposedly they’re great — that’s what everynone’s saying. I’m starting to wonder if one of the reasons I’m doing so poorly in 
