Not What You’d Expect

Adam Small, co founder of PoketFives, was able to get some info on the matter from Ultimate Bet and Absolute Poker insiders. It would seem that the players will finally be able to receive their frozen funds which they were not able to withdraw right after the Black Friday incident. However, there is one sad fact about it. Small said that the players will not be able to get the full amount of their funds. “It seems like they are legitimately closing shop and paying out what’s left,” Small said about Ultimate Bet and Absolute Poker.

Poker Sites and Their Delayed Payments

Of course, there also has been news about the different online poker rooms, which are basically just about the fact that some are not able to pay out their players. One recently reported incident was when Breeze Zuckerman scored some winnings in an event held at Carbon Poker, but is still not able to receive the winnings for weeks now. There is also the issue that Carbon Poker is requiring its players a processing fee when making withdrawals of their funds. To its defence however, Carbon Poker tweeted that the processing of withdrawals can take anywhere from 5 to 8 weeks. Jeremy Taylor, of G-Poker however, says that the delay in the processing of the funds is suspicious. “After problems players experienced trying to cash out on sites affected by the shutdowns, including the ongoing Full Tilt Poker saga, it’s alarming to hear another site can’t process timely withdrawals,” Taylor said.

Just to Be On the Safe Side

Taylor went on to mention a couple of poker rooms that are still trusted today by thousands of players. Taylor encourages players to play only on established poker sites such as 888 Poker and PartyPoker in order to make sure that they are in good hands. Taylor even says that a good online poker real money site does not require the player to pay a “processing fee” when making withdrawals.

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Bodug Under a New Skin

Bodog announced that the US residents will no longer be able to access the Bodog.eu site, or any other Bodog websites as it is now rebranded as Bovada. The accounts for the already existing members however will be transferred on to the new site, where players will be able to log in using their usernames and passwords from the original Bodog site. Their funds will also be transferred to the new site, so there’s nothing to worry about. Well, maybe except for…

One of the biggest changes is the fact that the site will now only be catering to players from within the confines of US soil. This is a huge disappointment for those who moved to other places and non US players as the Rest of the World (ROW) players will no longer be allowed to play in the same community. So if you are out of the US and are looking forward to registering at the new site, then you had better not bother.

Benefits to it

Bovada poker will still be operated by the same licensee that took care of Bodog, Morris Mohawk Gaming Group (MMGG) and will still be on the same network. Also, it has been said that the poker traffic should be unaffected by the change by a serious degree. The rebranding of Bodog Poker to Bovada is said to have a number of benefits, one benefit being the fact that more players will be able to take part in the poker network. The result of having an increase on the number of players playing on the site and on the network will, without a doubt, make things a lot more interesting.

US poker players who are looking forward on playing at the new site will only need to download the game client from the new site to start playing. They can move on forward from where they were when it was still Bodog as their accounts, funds, usernames, and passwords will be unchanged and will be transferred on to the new site – Bovada.

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Appreciates the Offer

Of course, there was not a better player to hand the invitation to other than Doyle Brunson. Annie Duke, the Epic Poker League Commissioner, said that there was not a clearer choice than Brunson, due to his success in the decades of his career and also the contributions made to poker to make it more popular and accessible to the people. Doyle Brunson said that he appreciates the honor as a token to remember what players went through to make what the game is today. “It’s unnecessary but I guess it’s nice to be remembered for what we went through to get poker to this point,” Brunson said. “Most people just don’t realize exactly what all transpired… but we went through some pretty adverse things.”

Brunson’s Contributions

Back in the year, poker was not at all this popular of a game. Brunson, together with a group of card sharks dubbed the “Texas Rounders” then came up with an idea and came to Vegas in order to promote the game through limit and no limit Texas Hold’em games at the Golden Nugget Casino.

Brunson then proceeded to writing the “Super System”, which was one of the most informative and definitive guides to playing poker and its variations, and is still considered to be a very helpful guide even today. Brunson’s objective was to provide a guide for the people in order for them to get a better understanding in the game, thus making sure that they become more interested in it in the process. “It stimulated poker in a way that I don’t think anything else could have,” Brunson said. “The game of poker is about people, and you have to be able to understand people to play poker.”

The success of poker today owes a lot to Doyle Brunson, and that is without any doubts at all. “He just has this secret sauce of every accomplishment you can imagine, big generosity to the poker community, incredible longevity, amazing ambassadorship,” Annie Duke said. “And then on top of that, he’s just an easy guy to really like.” Although Brunson will be able to take part in any of the EPL tournaments due to the lifetime membership card granted to him, Brunson believes that he will likely just stick to playing cash games for now, and will be steering clear of the live poker tournaments.

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The Mystery Isildur1

Of course, the player “Isildur1” was pretty much a mystery player for over a year, and other poker players even speculated as to who the mysterious Isildur1 was. Of course, Isildur1 then agreed to the terms of PokerStars and joined in with the rest of the Team PokerStars Pro, which revealed his real identity as Viktor Blom.

Back then during the times when he was still only known as the player who goes by the screen name of Isildur1, he would usually play at the high stakes tables of Full Tilt Poker, and would usually be on the spotlight winning huge bucks at instances and losing huge bucks at times. The Isildur1 screen name was famous for winning and losing millions of dollars in a single day, and is even known for playing against some of the world’s best cash game players such as Tom Dwan and Patrik Antonius.

Same Old Same Old

Blom now usually plays at PokerStars in high stakes games, but he has been absent for quite a number of months now. It was up until recently that the name Isildur1 was once again spotted playing at the online tables of PokerStars. Of course, his reappearance during the past week immediately put him on the spotlights as he was able to win a pretty huge $1.6 million in the weekend. Winning that huge of an amount of cash in three days does tend to get the attention of others. Of course, much like his usual antics, he later on proceeded to lose around half of what he won just on Tuesday. It would seem that Blom was playing a number of heads up matches against a number of players including Brian Townsend and Phil Galfond.

It is great to know that Viktor Blom is still hanging out in online poker rooms, still with his same old style of gaming, which is what he is known for – winning big, and sometimes losing as well.

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No Technology for Security?

Adelson last week told the leaders of the American Gaming Association that he does not believe that the technology today does not have the capability to prevent the minors from taking part in wagers made through the internet. Of course, Senior Vice Presiden Jan commented on the matter, saying that “The solution is fixing legislation, not looking the other way. His concerns are real, but I’m not sure he really understands the issue. Doing nothing is not being responsible.” Caesars Entertainment has long been one of the most active parties in regards to the legalization of online poker in the states.

Players Furious on Adelson

Of course, a handful of poker players have been expressing their anger at Adelson by posting in various online poker forums and have even verbally expressed it through radio broadcasts. Players have decided to go on a boycott of the Las Vegas Sands Poker Room. The players have been discouraging other player from going to the online poker room. The Poker Players Alliance have even addressed the matter on the radio broadcast, telling the listeners to send tweets directly to the owner of the casino to show that they do not agree with his standings on the matter.

Afraid Of A Little Competition?

Other people believe that Adelson’s reason for opposing online poker is the fact that he was not able to secure a place for himself if ever the legalization of online poker has come into fruition. “He is in opposition because all of his industry ducks are not in a row yet to compete in a new market,” poker writer Zach Tracy said. “I think he is trying to block competitors from getting a bill through.”

Whether or not Adelson is genuinely concerned about the minorities taking part in placing wagers, he has underestimated the players, who are very sensitive at the moment regarding the matter. The poker community right now is very conscious of how the federal legislation is proceeding, and Adelson might have overlooked this.

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For Newcomers

Of course, there are also special freeroll tournaments for new players. The new players of Carbon Poker will be able to take part in the freeroll tournaments offered by the online poker room that will be in motion daily, which offers a prize pool of a pretty nice $500. For the already existing members, they will be able to take part of a number of events.

HORSE Tournaments

One of the events that the already existing players can take part of is the HORSE games. The players will be able to test their skill in Texas Hold’em and Omaha through the tournaments. The best thing about it is that the tournaments to take place are completely free. The players will be able to take part in the tournament without spending anything at all.

Big Freerolls

Of course, if you are looking for something bigger, then Carbon Poker has something in store for you. The weekly tournament with a huge prize pool of $100k will test your skills in the game. Of course, this is a tournament that you can enter for free. Well, not exactly totally free, but all you will need to spend is your VIP points. Players who wish to take part of the tournaments should have at least 110 VIP points in total. Of course, different types of freerolls are offered to the player depending on their VIP levels. Basically, the higher the VIP level of the Carbon Poker player, the bigger the tournament he gets to join. For example, Earth tier Carbon Poker VIP players will be able to take part in the $500 prize pool, the Wind level players will be able to take part in the $1,000 prize pool, and so on. The highest level being the Ether tier will let players take part in the freeroll worth $3,500 every month.

The Tourney King Promotion

Of course, another thing that Carbon Poker has announced is that the tourney King Promotion will grant the players with more points, whether they get it from Low Limit or High Limit games. The players’ tournament scores are to be recorded by the poker room based on thei performance and how high they go up the leaderboard every month. Achievers will be awarded points, and the winners will be granted some cash and other prizes.

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The Most Feared Player of the Poker World

Allen Cunningham, the winner of five World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelets, is the most feared player in the poker circuit. With live poker tournament earnings in the excess of $10.4 million, an amazing 42 money finishes in WSOP and, 12 money finishes and 2 final tables in the World Poker Tour, this player has proved beyond all doubt that he is one of the most talented poker players.

Early Years

Allen Cunningham was born on the 28th of March 1977 in Riverside (California). He was blessed with a loving and supportive family. He started playing poker as a small kid with his family. Having a natural talent for the game, Allen ended up winning most of these family games. His innate aptitude for card games was apparent to every one. He was already winning at games, when most children could barely tell the cards apart. But at this stage poker was just a hobby rather than a serious career option.

After completing high school, Allen went on to study Civil Engineering at the University of California in Los Angeles. It was while studying here that he started taking a serious interest in poker. By the time he was in the 2nd year of college, he was regularly playing at a number of Indian casinos. Initially he took part in low stake tournaments. Consistent wins in these games helped him to move to $10- $20 tables. This initial success convinced him to give up college at the age of 19 in the favour of a career as a professional poker player. But Allen was unable to take part in games in casinos outside the Indian property as he was still underage. He continued improving his game, honing his skills and building his bankroll so as to be able to make it big on reaching the age of 21.

A Brilliant Poker Career

Soon after turning 21, Allen started taking part in a number of poker events and tournaments. Success eluded him initially, but he did meet and befriend future poker legends like Daniel Negreanu and Phil Ivey. Playing with each other helped these players take their game a step further. At this stage they were still unaware that all three of them would make a place for themselves in poker history.

Allen made his presence felt in the poker world for the 1st time during the Legends of Poker tournament organized by Bicycle casino in 1999. He managed to win 2 events and made it to the final table of totally 5 events. For this achievement, he was awarded the title of ‘The Best All Around Player’. This was just the beginning of an amazing and a highly successful poker career.

Two years later, Allen earned his 1st gold bracelet in the 2001 World Series of Poker by winning the $5000 Seven Card Stud tournament. The following year, Allen once again succeeded in getting hold of a gold bracelet for the $5000 Deuce to Seven No Limit event. The 2005, 2006 and 2007 WSOP events brought 3 more gold bracelets for Allen from different Hold’em events. In 2005, he also received the title of Toyota / ESPN Player of the Year. He was a strong contender for the title in 2006 as well. He also has the honour of being voted as the ‘Best All Around Player’ under thirty-five by other professional poker players.

His biggest cash win, $3,628,513, was in 2006 WSOP main event in which he managed to finish 4th. During this tournament, Norman Chad, commentator for ESPN, was often heard saying things like ‘It is Allen Cunningham, where what are they thinking?’. It made Allen famous as one of the most feared player on poker tables. In 2007, Allen won Poker After Dark’s $300,000 Mega Match and the main event of the $15,000 buy-in National Poker League Vegas Open Championship. In the 2008 WSOP main event, Allen finished 117th, but managed to win the Circuit event.

Other Interesting Facts

Allen Cunningham is one of the few players to have won a WSOP bracelet for 3 consecutive years. The list includes Doyle Brunson, Erik Seidel, Gary Berland, Bill Boyd and Johnny Moss, apart from Allen Cunningham. With live poker event earnings of over $10.4 million, of which more than $6.7 has been won at the WSOP, Allen ranks 9th in the all time winnings list. Allen has been a member of the Full Tilt Poker team since 2006. He currently stays with his girlfriend Melissa Hayden in Las Vegas, Nevada. He has a dog called Muffin. He continues to improve his game and hopes to win more titles and bracelets.

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Winning Four WSOP Titles with a Controlled and Balanced Style

Based in California, John Juanda is an Indonesian poker professional who has made a name for himself in the poker circuit by winning several prestigious titles. He has earned four World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelets. He is also the champion of the WSOP Europe Main Event of 2008. Juanda has been recognized as the Best All Round Player thrice. His career tournament earnings are approximately $11 million. Of this, nearly $4 million comes from his winnings in live tournaments. With 55 WSOP and 2 circuit cashes, Juanda is on the list of the players with the most cashes, and is placed 8th on it.

Learning Poker

Juanda shifted to the United States to pursue his college education. As an MBA student, he played poker at land-based casinos in Seattle when he could spare time on weekends. It was here that he gained experience and sharpened his skill at playing the game. He would spend twelve hours a day playing poker, and though tired, would look forward to playing again the next day.

Getting Noticed by the Poker World

Juanda became a professional poker player in the late 90s, after he finished his education. At that time he was one of the youngest and most promising players in the poker world. He funded his games with the money he had made by playing poker on weekends. In 1999, Juanda entered the first major tournament in his life. It was the WSOP Limit Hold’em event with a $1,500 buy-in. In this, he was placed ninth in a player field exceeding 600. Till this tournament, he had been cashing in tournaments with low buy-ins. The next week, Juanda went into the $3,000 buy-in Limit Hold’em event at the WSOP and placed seventh in it. He played against Humberto Brenes, Josh Arieh, Tom Franklin and Howard Lederer at this table, and the poker circuit noticed Juanda’s impressive skills.

Winning His WSOP Bracelets

At the 2000 WSOP, Juanda played in the Limit Hold’em event with a $3,000 buy-in in which he placed 10th. In the same event in 2001, he placed seventh. That year, he also participated in the Limit Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo in the Annual WSOP and came in third. Alongside, Juanda also played in $1,000 events and low-buy-in tourneys. In 2002, he picked up pace and cashed in five events at the WSOP. At Event 34 Limit Triple Draw in the Annual WSOP, he won his first bracelet and took back $49,620. Besides this, he came in 27th in one WSOP event, 8th in two, and 5th in one.

A fortnight later, Juanda went on to win the second place in the World Poker Tour (WPT) Five Diamond World Poker Classic. In this he took home $278,240, which is his largest cash win. In 2001, Juanda had a prosperous spell of making final tables at important tournaments. In 2003, he placed first at two WSOP events, which earned him the second and third bracelets of his career. At the Limit 7 Card Stud and Pot Limit Omaha events, he earned $130,200 and $203,840 respectively. In 2008, he earned his fourth bracelet at the WSOP Main Event, where he was named the champion.

In the subsequent years, he also entered numerous other tournaments in which he made cashes. Some of them are the Aussie Millions Speed Poker Million Dollar Challenge in which he beat a field of renowned poker players to come first, and Professional Poker Tour in 2004. Despite having reached six WPT final tables, a key accomplishment is missing from his portfolio – a WPT win. John Juanda is a member of Full Tilt Poker, where he plays online poker.

Praise from Contemporaries

Years after having become a professional player, Juanda is respected by his peers. Daniel Negreanu, another professional poker player, credits Juanda with being the most successful player in tournaments over the past five years. According to Negreanu, Juanda is an extremely consistent player, who can make a final table without a doubt.

Playing Style

A Buddhist by religion, Juanda is a calm and composed player at the felt. He believes that balance is extremely important for a player. As a result of adopting this view, he successfully avoids tilting. Juanda developed a keen eye for observing his opponents when he started learning the game. As he spoke little English back when he moved to the United States, he had to rely on the impressions he got from his opponents, to judge and make moves.

The Table’s Big 3

Eliminations during the day 5 were pretty harsh, and the final table players were decided as soon as Larry Wells was eliminated on seventh place by Soi Nguyen. Nguyen has done pretty well for the day as he managed to bag a stack that nears the 5 million mark, just being 5k chips short. Of course, Nguyen should not at all rest easy as there are still players with big stacks to play at the final table for the next day including his closest competitor in chip holdings, James Dempsey, with a stack totalling jsut a little over 3.8 million. Of course, another player close to the 4 million mark is Andrew Lichtenberger, who has a total of 3.6 million chips sitting right on the third spot.

Formidable Opponents

As we proceed on to the list of chip holders, you will notice that these following players are not to be taken lightly. Vanessa Selbst for example, has played consistently well throughout the days of the event, not to mention she also has a nice overall earnings in her career, and managed to come in on fourth, with a pretty strong 2.25 million chip stack. Right on fifth is Antonio Esfandiary, who also has respectable overall tournament earnings to show. And of course, right on the sixth spot as the final table’s short stack is Vitor Coelho, who has been doing great lately in recent poker tournaments.

The Seats

James Dempsey is up on seat 1 with his 3.86 million chips followed by Vitor Coelho on seat 2, with 560k, just around 9 big blinds. On seat 3 is Antonio Esfandiari, with 1.255 million chips followed by Andrew Lichtenberger, with a pretty solid 3.605 million chips on seat 4. On seat 5 is Vanessa Selbst, having a total of 2.25 million chips for the final table, followed by the final table starting chip leader, Soi Nguyen, with a total of 4.995 million on seat 6.

Google TV’s Trouble

Google TV is a Smart TV platform that is designed to let users enjoy applications, sites, and other contents including one of the most popular contents which is Netflix.

Of course, there have been some bad reviews of Google TV, and for a moment, things were not going too well. Logitech, one of Google TV’s hardware supporters even backed out of the platform due to the reason that it lost over $100 million on operating profits on the Logitech Revenue Google TV device.

Google TV has been struggling in the market due to a number of problems and the lack of content, but with the recent addition of a number of applications, including the highly popular Zynga Poker, things can change. Although Google TV already supports Flash based sites, which gives its users the ability to play Flash games including Zynga Poker, the Google TV version of Zynga Poker will be superior in regards to the aesthetics and the gameplay.

An Enhanced Experience for Zynga Poker Players

Of course, Zynga Poker will receive a number of changes to it in order to make the experience of the users as best as possible. The graphics will be revamped and the control system will also be changed in order for the application to take full advantage of the Google TV remote. Users will now be able enjoy the game with a better experience.

“Especially optimized for playing poker from the comfort of your own couch, Zynga Poker for Google TV features custom graphics and a new way to control the game with Google TV remote,” a Zynga representative said in a blog post released by Google. “Up the ante and play Zynga Poker from just about anywhere, whether you’re commuting to work or taking a break to connect with friends.”

With that said, there is no doubt that both Zynga Poker and Google TV will benefit much from the agreement. Zynga Poker will be able to expand to a new platform, while Google TV will be able to attract the attention of the aspiring poker players out there and gain new users.

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