Gus Hansen

Leading member of the Full Tilt Professionals, Gus Hansen, had a fantastic day playing poker yesterday. At both the 2-7TD and the FLO8 tables, Gus was on fire.

The beginning of the day didn’t look that great as he when started off at the 2-7TD $1k/$2k tables by losing $21,540 over 163 hands. Seemingly chasing his losses, Gus stepped up to the 2-7Td $1.5k/$3k tables, and his day started to turn in a happier direction.

The next 493 hands of lo-ball play saw Hansen win $203,873, with some of the action against fellow Full Tilt Professional, Viktor “Isildur1″ Blom. Blom wasn’t having as god a day as Gus, and a decent percentage of the money won by Hansen was taken from Blom.

With a daily profit standing at $182,333, Gus switched up to playing FLO8, and again, ended up playing some of his action against the High Stakes cash genius that is Viktor Blom. However, changing game didn’t help Viktor win any more money, but Gus wasn’t in that boat. He was in the other, much bigger, prettier boat that had all the winners on it, as he started to crush the FLO8 tables in the same way he had been crushing the 2-7TD tables. He was obviously still in Monte Carlo, as that’s those sort of boats tend to live.

Over the next 14 hours, Gus was playing FLO8 over a bunch of tables, and managed to play 2933 hands, with action against Phil “OMGClayAiken” Galfond, Kyle “KPR16″ Ray, “PostflopAction” as well Blom.

During this time, Hansen had managed to rack up $1,326,915 profit against these players at the High/Low Omaha format.

Gus stopped playing at around 11am Monte Carlo time, and I’m guessing went straight to bed while the rest of the poker players in Monte Carlo either went home via the airport, or were playing the during the final day of the EPT Grand Final festival at the local casino.

We caught some of Gus’s action, and have a little video for you below:

Hansen has been on a steady downswing since the return of Full tilt back in November, and at $1,509,248, this is his biggest winning 24 hours since then. Even after this impressive display, Gus is still down a total of $1,498,844 for the year. Maybe this is a turning point for “The Great Dane,” who was re-analysing his game when I spoke to him back in March when I spoke to him at EPT London. Maybe that process has started to bear fruit, and Gus will continue to dig himself out the hole he has found himself in. We’ll be keeping an eye on him over the coming months, and we’ll let you know where Mr Hansen’s profit line goes to.

Tom has been our in Macau enjoying the good fishing in the biggest Asian gambling hub, and has been playing at the highest stakes against other pros, and very rich Chinese Businessmen.

Last night, he started off at the $300/$600 No Limit Hold’em tables, with 4 tables up, playing SanIker. He ended this 4 table session up $17.5k, and stepped away from the screen for a few hours.

When he came back, he was playing $300/$600 PLO, against “Bttech86.” starting off with 4 tables, and with the session running nearly 6 hours. We didn’t catch many of the hands, but we did catch this one:

He ended up with a monster $490k profit from “Bttech86″, but the two are still playing as we write this article.

While durrrr was playing this mega session against Bttech, he managed to slip in a few No Limit 2-7TD hands at the top levels.

He faced down “benba” who dropped about $68k into Dwan’s lap over a relatively short 25 hand session.

Later on, Tom ended up playing the more traditional Fixed Limit version of 2-7TD, and in his biggest losing session of the day, dropped $113k. It seemed that “benba” was unhappy with his losses at the No Limit version, and won the re-match in convincing style.

Meanwhile, back with the PLO, Dwan and Bttech we still battling over ever growing chip stacks.

So as we leave it, Tom Dwan is up $392,757, and still playing at the $300/$600 PLO tables against “Bttech86.” How he ends up we’ll have to wait and see, but his return to Full Tilt is going to increase to focus on the High Stakes spectacular that Full Tilt offers. If you want to watch the games, or maybe even join in, you can download the client here, and join the growing show.

It’s an honor to be invited to join the Federated Sports & Gaming poker league. Annie Duke, league commissioner of Federated Sports and Gaming, made sure only the cream of the crop are allowed in. She says the players are picked based on their live tournament poker results, including cashes, wins, and total money won in the past three years.

The first crop of players invited will receive a five-year, three-year, or two-year tournament card. The players will be part of the poker league without their credentials ever being reviewed during whatever period is specified on the card.

Some of the biggest names in poker are on the list of invitees. The list of players that received a five-year card includes Daniel Alaei, Johnny Chan, Allen Cunningham, Freddy Deeb, Barry Greenstein, Phil Ivey, and Daniel Negreanu. Other names such as Tom Dwan, Chris Ferguson, and Greg Raymer are also on the list.

Some big names didn’t make the cut. The criteria requires consistency in tournament players which means one big win is not good enough for guaranteed entry. Each player’s top tournament win is capped at $2 million and six cashes of at least $300,000 since 2008 are also required. This eliminates the likes of players like Jamie Gold and Jonathan Duhamel.

It will be very interesting to see how the Federated Sports and Gaming poker league pans out. With only the best of the best competing, expect to see huge matches between old rivals!

Blom exploded onto the online poker scene a few years ago by taking on any and all comers up to $500/$1000 stakes on FullTilt Poker.  He saw great success against the likes of Tom Dwan who he won more than $4,000,000 against in a short span. However, his success was short lived as he soon dropped a large sum against a group of players including Brian Hasting, Cole South, and Brian Townsend.  The three professionals who had created CardRunners were soon the target of online attacks as they foolishly bragged about studying hands together from their various matches with Blom.  Quite the ethical debate ensued but in the end it left them with the money and Blom scratching his head.  The high-stakes Swede disappeared for a short while before reappearing online again as a Team PokerStars Member.  Since then he has been challenging players to $50/$100 heads-up matches on the world’s largest poker site often times getting the best of his opponents.  He played Daniel “KidPoker” Negreanu heads-up over 5,000 hands winning more than $120,000 in the process.  He has also played Isaac Haxton, Daniel “Jungleman” Cates, Scott “URNotindangr” Palmer, and Eugene Katchalov splitting those matches.

This match against the online qualifier ended up being much more difficult than Blom might have imagined.  Here are a few of the more interesting hands as the challenge wound down:

In this hand Blom gets some good fortune hitting three-of-a-kind on the river and is called by Pocket Jacks for a nice $3,390 pot:

Isildur1: raises $20 to $30
Mastermixus: raises $70 to $100
Isildur1: raises $120 to $220
Mastermixus: calls $120
*** FLOP *** [Kh 3d 8h]
Mastermixus: checks
Isildur1: bets $220
Mastermixus: calls $220
*** TURN *** [Kh 3d 8h] [5s]
Mastermixus: checks
Isildur1: checks
*** RIVER *** [Kh 3d 8h 5s] [8s]
Mastermixus: checks
Isildur1: bets $1255 and is all-in
Mastermixus: calls $1255
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Isildur1: shows [8d Qc] (three of a kind, Eights)
Mastermixus: shows [Jh Jc] (two pair, Jacks and Eights)
Isildur1 collected $3390 from pot

Throughout the match both players were three and four-betting a lot leading to quite a standard stack-off here with Pocket Kings vs. Ace-Queen offsuit:

Table ‘Showdown 6′ 2-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: Isildur1 ($1215 in chips)
Seat 2: Mastermixus ($2360 in chips)
Mastermixus: posts small blind $5
Isildur1: posts big blind $10
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Mastermixus: raises $10 to $20
Isildur1: raises $60 to $80
Mastermixus: raises $160 to $240
Isildur1: raises $975 to $1215 and is all-in
Mastermixus: calls $975
*** FLOP *** [Th 8s 9c]
*** TURN *** [Th 8s 9c] [Td]
*** RIVER *** [Th 8s 9c Td] [Qd]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Isildur1: shows [Qs Ah] (two pair, Queens and Tens)
Mastermixus: shows [Kc Ks] (two pair, Kings and Tens)
Mastermixus collected $2430 from pot

Finally, in this spot Blom flops a flush draw and gets in two streets of big value when he hits on the turn.

Seat 1: Isildur1 ($7220 in chips)
Seat 2: Mastermixus ($3355 in chips)
Isildur1: posts small blind $5
Mastermixus: posts big blind $10
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Isildur1: raises $20 to $30
Mastermixus: calls $20
*** FLOP *** [4c 2d Ad]
Mastermixus: checks
Isildur1: bets $50
Mastermixus: calls $50
*** TURN *** [4c 2d Ad] [Kd]
Mastermixus: checks
Isildur1: bets $140
Mastermixus: calls $140
*** RIVER *** [4c 2d Ad Kd] [Ah]
Mastermixus: checks
Isildur1: bets $1000
Mastermixus: calls $1000
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Isildur1: shows [4d 7d] (a flush, Ace high)
Mastermixus: mucks hand
Isildur1 collected $2440 from pot

Overall the online qualifier did quite well for himself but was just unable to hold off an overly aggressive opponent.  While the experience might be termed “invaluable” there is no doubt “Mastermixus” would have rather taken home more than just a lesson from this challenge.  Blom will continue to play these heads-up challenges from time to time on Sundays, be sure to keep up with the FlopTurnRiver News Section for any and all updates on the big pots, big names, and big score in the Isildur1 Challenge.

Isildur1 has had a huge impact on poker ever since he came onto the scene months ago. Nobody knows for sure of Isildur1′s identity, but it is rumored to be Swede Viktor Blum. He has had multi-million dollar swings and has been involved in the biggest pots ever played in online poker. With his action-packed style of play, the world’s best line up to take a seat next to him. Railbirds will be watching the PokerStars nosebleed tables to see Isildur1 play against the world’s best.

PokerStars has set up the SuperStars Showdown to welcome Isildur1 to their poker room where any poker player may apply to challenge Isildur1 to a heads-up match. Players that have the bankroll are urged to email showdown@pokerstars.com to challenge Isildur1 to a heads-up match. The SuperStars Showdown will consist of a single session of 2,500 hands played across four tables of No Limit Hold ‘Em or Pot Limit Omaha. The stakes will be no lower than $50/$100. The winner will be the player that profits after the 2,500 hands or wins their opponent’s match bankroll.

PokerStars will be running online qualifiers for players looking to play against Isildur1 but do not have the bankroll to do so. PokerStars is set to host SuperStar Showdown qualifiers every day from December 13th to April 3rd, 2011 at 14:00 and 19:00 ET for a small buy-in of $10 + $1. The winner will advance to the SuperStar Showdown Final and win a share of the prize pool. For players that cannot afford the $10 + $1 buy-in, two SuperStar Showdown Freerolls will be held every Saturday from December 18th to April 2nd, 2011 at 13:45 and 17:45 ET. The winner will also advance to the SuperStar Showdown Final which will be held either on February 13th, 2011 or April 10th, 2011 at 16:10 ET. The winner of the Final will win a $15,000 bankroll to play against Isildur1 in the SuperStar Showdown for 1/10th of the stakes ($5/$10). The format will remain exactly the same. Places 2-16 of the SuperStar Showdown Final will win a piece of $3,900 in cash.

Heads-up specialists are urged to try their luck against the maniacal Isildur1. It will be interesting to see who the first challenger will be for Isildur1′s first SuperStar Showdown on December 19th at 6pm ET. Railbirds will surely be watching and FlopTurnRiver will supply match updates to all of its members.

Pot-Limit Omaha is an exciting, action-packed variation of poker. Stacks enter the pot at more frequently than No Limit Hold ‘Em. It has been the game of choice among Full Tilt Poker nosebleed players. Only four players are confirmed for this season’s Poker After Dark: Brian Hastings, Phil Ivey,Tom “durrrr” Dwan, and Phil “OMGClayAiken” Galfond. With two seats left, rumors have been swirling as to who will be occupying the other two seats. The two will most likely be one of Patrik Antonius, Sam Farha, Brandon Adams, or Jared “harrington25” Bleznick. It will be interesting to see who Poker After Dark producers choose to invite to their huge televised poker game.

In the biggest hand of the week, Isildur1 raised to $1,200 on the button with KcJd9c8d. With 4c3s2s2c and effective stacks at approximately $75,000, Ziigmund called out of position. The flop was Kh5h2d, giving Isildur1 top-pair and Ziigmund a set of twos. Ziigmund check-raised Isildur1’s $2,400 bet to $9,600 and Ziigmund called. The turn, a 9d, improved Isildur1’s hand, giving him a flush draw along with top two-pair. The turn induced both stacks into the pot and Isildur1 saw he was behind. Luckily for him, the Ad gave him the flush and the $147,588 pot.

Ziigmund and Isildur1 continued to battle it out in the second largest hand last week. Isildur1, on the button again, raised to $1,200 with Kc8h7s5c and Ziigmund called, out of position, with Kh6c3h2c. The Kd5h4c was sure to get a lot of action with Isildur1 hitting two-pair, but Ziigmund hit a huge straight draw along with his pair of kings. Ziigmund donked the flop with a pot-size bet that Isildur1 raised. In response, Ziigmund three-bet the flop to $31,200 and Isildur1 called. The Ah on the turn completed Ziigmund’s straight and gave him a flush draw. Stacks quickly went into the pot. This time, however, Isidlur1 received no help on the river; it was a 6h which gave him a straight, but also blessed Ziigmund with a flush draw. The $140,393 pot was Ziigmund’s.

Ziigmund continued to thrash Isildur1 in this next hand. Isildur1, once again on the button, raised to $1,200. This time, with only a $66,398 stack, Ziigmund three-bet to $3,600 with AsKsJc9c. Isildur1 called and saw the KhTs2s. This flop was huge for Ziigmund giving him top-pair, top-kicker and the nut flush draw. He lead the flop with a $6,400 bet that was called. The turn was a 3d and Ziigmund bet the pot, $20,000. Isildur1 once again called and saw the board pair with a 2h on the river. Ziigmund shoved the rest of his $36,798 stack into the $60,000 pot. Isildur1 called again, but when he saw Ziigmund’s hand, he mucked and gave Ziigmund the $133,595.50 pot.

However, in the last pot we will look at this week, Isildur1 won some of that money back. On the button, he raised to $1,200 with Jh9d8c4d, and effective stacks at $60,191. Ziigmund raised with his double-suited KsKc8s5c. Isildur1, using position to his advantage, called and saw the QsTs5h flop fall. This flop was great for both players; it gave Ziigmund a flush draw (along with his overpair of kings) and Isildur1 a big straight draw. Ziigmund lead this flop with a pot-sized bet of $7,200 which was called by Isildur1. Ziigmund’s second barrel, a pot-sized bet of $21,600, was also called on the 2d brick of a turn. The 9c river, on the other hand, hit Isildur1 with a straight. Ziigmund shoved the rest of his stack in and Isildur1 made the $27,791 call. He showed his queen-high straight and won the $120,382.50 pot.

This last week was one of the calmer weeks in high stakes poker. Expect weeks similar to this as the World Series of Poker continues this summer.

Sometimes, no matter how much preparation and anticipation go into an event, things don’t work out the way we plan.

Such was the case with the opening of Phil Ivey’s poker room, hosted by the Aria Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. The initial event, a $1,000,000 Freeroll was attended by some of the biggest names in the game. Chino Rheem, a member of the 2008 WSOP’s Main Event Final Table, took home an extra $100,000 bounty for taking out Ivey.

Not to be outshone, however, the room’s namesake did manage to defend his home court. Part of the freeroll prize package was an immediate $250,000 heads-up battle with the night’s host, in which Ivey triumphed over Larry Linton.

“I love Aria,” said Ivey, “and I’m looking forward to playing here regularly. It’s my new No. 1 in Las Vegas, and I think my room will bring the same kind of magic to the game that the hotel itself has to the Strip.”

The room itself has all of the trappings players will need for a high stakes poker hangout: One table, a single 42” flat-screen TV, and immediate access to the cashier’s cage (and their 480 safe deposit boxes). Among its other amenities are 24-hour tableside dining, which will provide players with almost everything they need for an extended session.

The guest list sported a veritable who’s-who of the game, with names like Doyle Brunson, Jennifer Harman, Johnny Chan, Erick Lindgren, Jennifer Tilly, and Phil Laak (who apparently raved over the croissants), just to name a few.

So, congratulations to Phil Ivey, who seemed genuinely honored by the event. His rise to poker stardom has been well documented, coming up from nothing to become the best player in the game.

The bad luck continues for Hastings as can be seen in last week’s biggest pot in online poker. Ziigmund raised on the button to $3,000 with AhQc7d5c and was three-bet to $9,000 by Hastings’ double-suited AsJh6h4s. Ziigmund made the call and saw the Jd4c2h flop come down. This flop gave him a gutshot straight draw while giving Hastings two-pair, jacks and fours. Ziigmund check-called Hastings’ $13,000 bet and hit a pair of aces & a flush draw on the Ac river. Unfortunately for him, Hastings also hit the ace, giving him top two-pair. Ziigmund check-raised Hastings all-in and Hastings quickly called. The pot inflated to $208,999. Ziigmund was looking for any non-jack club or three to help him improve. His wish was granted on the turn when the 9c hit, giving him the pot and elongating Hastings’ downswing.

The next largest pot of last week happened during the same session between Ziigmund and Hastings. With effective stacks of $200,000 and Ziigmund on the button, he would raise to $3,000 with his AsAc9h6h and Hastings would flat. The AdQd5s flop was huge for Ziigmund, giving him a set of aces. Hastings check-called a pot-sized bet of $6,000 and saw the Qc turn drop. Ziigmund had a full-house and was almost fearless in his betting as Hastings check-called another pot-sized bet. A Js landed on the river. Again, Hastings check-called a pot-sized bet of $54,000. He saw the news of the full house and mucked his hand. The $161,999.50 pot was Ziigmund’s.

The session, however, was not all Ziigmund’s. Hastings also won a huge pot in the session. With Ziigmund on the button and effective stacks at $329,497, Ziigmund raised to $3,000. Hastings called and saw the 8s5d2c flop with the pot at $6,000. Hastings check-called a pot-sized bet from Ziimund and saw a 4d turn drop. The 4d may seem like a brick to the untrained eye but poker players know this card is dangerous in conjunction with the flop as it completed many straight draws. With Hastings checking again, Ziigmund put out another pot-sized bet of $18,000. This time, however, Hastings would raise to $67,000. Ziigmund made the call and the pot inflated to $152,000 by the river. A Kh hit the river and Hastings lead with a $119,000 bet. Ziigmund folded and Hastings took the large pot. Perhaps his luck is turning around?

Stay tuned to FlopTurnRiver’s High Stakes Rail for more high stakes action. We will keep you posted on Brian Hastings’ downswing and any other developments. Good luck on the felt!

Last week’s largest hand was played at $500/$1000 Pot-Limit Omaha between durrr and theASHMAN103 with effective stacks at $187,986.50. Durrrr raised to $3,000 on the button, theASHMAN103 three-bet to $9,000 with KdKhTc8h, and durrrr called with position. The Qd9h7h flop couldn’t have hit theASHMAN103 any harder giving him an overpair, a king-high flush draw, and an open-ended straight draw. TheASHMAN103 continuation bet $16,000 into the $18,000 pot and durrrr called. The 6d on the turn gave theASHMAN103 a straight which prompted a $43,000 bet into the $50,000 pot which durrrr also called. The Jh river completed theASHMAN103’s flush draw. He bet pot ($136K) which put durrrr’s entire $119,986.50 stack into the pot. Durrrr called, saw theASHMAN103’s monster hand, and mucked his card. theASHMAN103 added the $375,972.50 pot to his stack.

Durrrr and Patrik Antonius were at it again in last week’s second-largest poker pot. At a $200/$400 Pot-Limit Omaha table with effective stacks at $183,583, Antonius raised on the button to $1,200 with Qs8s7h3d and durrrr three-bet to $3,600 with KsKcTh2c. Anotnius called and both players saw the Kd3s2s flop. This flop was huge for durrrr giving him a set of kings while Antonius hit a pair of threes and a queen-high flush draw. Durr check-raised Antonius’ $6,000 continuation bet to $19,800. Antonius called and hit a disastrous two-pair on the Qc turn. Durrrr check-raise again and this time got both stacks into the pot. The Tc river missed Antonius and Dwan was awarded the $367,166 pot.

Antonius and durrrr were also part of last week’s third-largest pot during the same session with effective stacks at $158,144.50. In position, Antonius raised his As6d5d3c to $1,200, was three-bet to $3,600 by durrrr’s KsQdJhTs, four-bet to $6,000, then called durrrr’s $18,000 five-bet. The Jd5c2d flop gave Antonius a gut-shot straight draw and a flush draw while giving durrrr a pair of jacks. Durrrr check-called Antonius’ $36,000 pot-sized flop continuation bet. Durrrr chose to lead-shove the 7s turn and Antonius called with his draw. Antonius missed his flush and straight draws on the river but hit a 6c to give him two-pair. The $317,089 pot was his.

The last pot The High Stake’s Rail will look at this week was between Phil Ivey and durrrr at a $500/$1000 Pot-Limit Omaha table with effective stacks at $144,978. On the button, durrrr raised to $3,000 with AdAhJs6s and Ivey called with JdJh6h3c. The Jc4h3s gave Ivey a set of jacks while durrrr had a dangerous overpair of aces. Ivey donked $5,000 into the $6,000 pot and durrrr raised to $17,000. After a few more raises, both stacks were in the pot and the hands were flipped over. The Kd turn and 5d river missed Dwan and Ivey was $295,955.50 richer.