Most people can remember the iconic image of Chris Moneymaker sitting behind those thin, darkened shades, a table separating him from Sam Farha, and a monster robbery in progress on the felt.  As it turned out, Farha flinched first and was bluffed out by Tennessee’s most notable accountant, and his resulting victory unhinged the floodgates on the modern poker boom.  As I thought about a third segment in poker’s history, it occurred to me that it wasn’t just Moneymaker who contributed to the so-called Moneymaker effect.  Subsequent Main Event victories by Greg Raymer, Joe Hachem, Jamie Gold, and Jerry Yang had most of the world believing that the dream of winning the Main Event could be theirs, too!  The question remaining was, “How do I get there?”  The answer was and still is being found in the online qualifying series that almost every notable online poker room has been holding for the better part of a decade.

In reality, the final chapter of poker’s history cannot be told without the internet and the players who have grown up playing on the digital felt.  Its hard to guess what might happen if the best online players today were matched with the best players from the backrooms in Texas, but the point remains that you need both groups to tell the whole story of poker.  Online players have learned to process information faster, make more rapid decisions more often, and how to use complex software programs to chart their results and the results of other players.  Still, the game itself remains the same as the one that was played slowly, deliberately, and with very particular rules of etiquette in riverboats and saloons across the American West.  How poker is being played has changed, but the game itself remains intrinsically the same.

What is most interesting to note in the modern history of poker are the trends that we believe will likely continue for years and decades to come.  Some of those are, in no particular order:

1.  Tracking Software/Programs. No matter how they are used, the reality is that data-mining software has built a very math-conscious breed of young players, and they learn to read statistical tendencies based on long-term use of the programs.  Our guess is that even as the software changes, their approach will remain more or less the same.  They will stay highly aggressive, highly analytical, and capable of making rapid decisions for longer periods of time.

2.  Players who specialize in Tournament Play. It used to be that players like Doyle Brunson, Chip Reese, Barry Greenstein, Chau Giang, and others would show up at casinos hosting tournaments not to play in the tournaments themselves, but to reap rewards from the inevitable cash games that would spring up as players busted out.  Nowadays, though, players are growing up more focused than ever on tournament-specific concepts.  Twenty years ago, it was unthinkable that a player would ever be able to sustain a professional’s income solely from tournaments.  It will not be uncommon over the next twenty years to find young players who are generating most of their income from tournament play.  There is more action and opportunity than ever in tournaments, and younger players are beginning to cash in on it.

3.  A Fluctuation of Poker’s Popularity in the Mainstream Media. In the early to mid 2000′s, you could barely watch ESPN without a WSOP commercial or episode coming on.  As time has passed, so has poker’s televised popularity, but that isn’t to say that no one is watching.  Poker shows are flourishing on other networks, including GSN’s High Stakes Poker and NBC’s Poker After Dark.  Those shows tend to give visibility to lesser-known cash game players, and it is easy to believe that other shows like them will spring up in the years to come.  Poker will probably wax and wane in terms of its mainstream popularity, but at the same time its core base of fans/players will increase as television exposure goes up.

4.  An increase in Mixed Game formats, particularly in Live Play. The all NLHE, all the time players have figured each other out, and once you factor in the inevitable rake or seat rental it is fast becoming a negative sum game, even though their skill level has remained more or less constant.  What is happening as a result is that players are learning new games, or in some cases younger players are finding out what some of the “old games” are all about!  You can find players online learning both forms of Lowball (A-5 & 2-7), Badugi, 5 card draw, and other games that aren’t what they initially cut their teeth on.  They may be learning the games online, but they will no doubt take their skills into live play, and our prediction is that not too long from now, it will be mixed game tables that begin competing with Hold Em-only tables on the live casino floor.  Players are simply getting more diverse, that’s all there is to it.

As players who have the chance to play this game in 2011 and beyond, we have no choice but to be thankful for our past and the players who made it possible, but we’realso excited about our future!  There are a lot of unknowns in the future of poker, but what we do know is that wherever a few friends can find a deck and pull together the stakes to play over, there will always be a poker game going somewhere, and we are grateful for that.  I hope you enjoyed reading these as much as I enjoyed researching and writing them, and as always, Good Luck at the Tables!!

Poker, when played as a uniquely American game, seems to be a pretty appropriate fit.  Nowadays it is played all over the world, but its American roots seem to match what Americans value most — competition, fair rewards based on better performance, the ability to earn as much as you are able based on merit, and so on.  Any variant of poker that you will play awards the pot to the best hand only (or splits it between the High and Low hands in some cases).  Its fair that way — no prizes for second, just the way we like it in the United States.  Come in 2nd in most places, and you get a silver medal.  But in poker, like the Super Bowl and every other quintessential American title match, 2nd place gets the same as everyone else who didn’t win — nothing.  (Obviously in Tournaments you get cash for second, this is meant in terms of individual pots.)

The next time you fire up your HUD and 24 tables of whatever limit you choose, understand that the fundamentals of your game were written not in computer code, but in backrooms and bars across the land.  If you look at the player lists from the first editions of the World Series of Poker (basically the entire decade of the 1970′s) you will find the names of road gamblers who had to carry knives, guns, and piles of cash to keep from getting robbed or caught in what they were doing.  Their chosen profession was frowned upon to the point where players like Doyle Brunson himself would tell his children and family not to tell the truth about “what daddy did for a living.”  Road Gambler wasn’t a box that you could check off under “Past Employment Experience” when looking for a job, but in all honesty that only added to the mystique of it all the more.  Men like Johnny Moss and ‘Amarillo Slim’ Preston would barely recognize the game today. Even though Preston still plays in some events, the game that he plays now has eschewed the shadows for the spotlight. The small circle of Texans who brought the game to Nevada’s glitziest desert have given way to a worldwide influx of poker players that know the game in a completely different way.

When poker first came to Las Vegas by way of the tiniest towns and smokiest rooms that Texas had to offer, the casinos resisted it simply because tables took up lots of space, and the potential revenue that could be generated seemed small.  After all, in poker unlike other floor games, the house does not gamble, it simply collects a portion of the pot as a rake, or charges seat rental for the privilege of sitting down at a given table. Slowly but surely, Poker made its way onto the floor, when casino executives decided that it could stay alongside of other new experiments, such as the in-house Race & Sports Books.  If you’ve played live poker in a reputable casino at any time, thank men like Benny & Jack Binion, or Sam Rosenthal — men who saw the vision for the game that the Texans imported to one day hold an unassailable spot on the landscape of the Las Vegas gaming scene.

Those men were right, and so it was that in 1970 the Binions and their Horseshoe casino in downtown Las Vegas hosted the finest players in a battle of the best, the inaugural World Series of Poker.  The players voted for the winner (freeze outs weren’t invented yet), and they unanimously voted on Johnny Moss as winner among those in the group.  It would be several years yet before the WSOP would evolve into a larger event, and ultimately into the world’s preeminent poker festival that we know it as today.  In Part 2 of this 3-part series, we will take a look at the rise of the modern tournament format, as well as players who made their mark on the game because of tournaments and the fame that they offered.  Until then, Good Luck at the Tables!

5. Humberto Brenes vs Chris Moneymaker (2003)

Click here to view the embedded video.

Moneymaker Ocho! Some of you younger guys might not remember this one, but Moneymaker had a hell of a run when he won in 2003, luckboxing left and right. Without him, though, poker might not have been the same. Here, Moneymaker goes up against Brenes with 88 vs Humberto’s AA. After a 30,000 chip bet from Brenes on the flop, Moneymaker raises enough to put Brenes all in.  The Shark calls and is devastated on the turn.

4. Phil Ivey vs Darvin Moon (2009)

Click here to view the embedded video.

Phil Ivey making the November 9 was the talk of the entire poker world. Ivey’s status, along with rumors of ridiculously sized prop bets, fueled fans every where to cheer for Ivey. Even with the huge contingent cheering him on, Ivey couldn’t outrun Moon’s luck. You gotta give it to Ivey, though. The dude didn’t even stop eating his apple.

3. Jen Harman vs Corey Zeidman (2005)

Click here to view the embedded video.

I debated putting this one on here. It was very early, so the magnitude of the hand was low. The hand was just so sick, though, and I can’t imagine anyone worse to lose to, after having to listen Zeidman’s post-hand comments.

2. TJ Cloutier vs Chris Ferguson (2000)

Click here to view the embedded video.

This was another one I debated. It very well could have been #1. The hand took place at the 2000 WSOP, with TJ Cloutier and Chris Ferguson heads up. Cloutier had battled back to nearly even in chips and this bad beat kept TJ Cloutier a main event title.

1. Matt Affleck vs Jonathan Duhamel (2010)

Click here to view the embedded video.

I couldn’t justify not putting this one at #1, over the Cloutier/Ferguson hand, for a couple of reasons. Affleck, known as mcmatto online, had a deep run the year before, making this run impressive and horrid to be cut short in this fashion. The hand would have also given Affleck the chip lead with 15 left, putting him in a comfortable position as the action headed down to the final table. Also, in 2000 Chris Ferguson won $1.5 million for winning, while in 2010 the top prize was nearly $9 million! All of this, plus the beat coming on the river, makes this one the most brutal beat I’ve seen. Vomit-inducing.

The one millionth post solidifies FTR’s spot amongst the elite poker forums. Veteran posters have seen their careers thrive. Prolific posters Adrian “Chardrian” Dressel-Velasquez and Max “Numbr2intheWorld” Steinberg have WSOP Final Table appearances. Steinberg also finished runner-up in a LAPT event. Tournament wizards Maxxscam and drmcboy both own coveted gold jerseys in recognition of taking down an FTOPS Event.

Perhaps the most famous poster at FTR is Rich “nutsinho” Lyndaker. Lyndaker’s career took off after he he finished second in the 2008 WSOP 6-max event, pocketing over $570,000. Soon after that  Nutsinho began to dominate the $25/$50 game on PokerStars and took on the likes of Tom “Durrrr” Dwan at $200/$400. His expert advice can be seen in the Short-Handed NL Hold’em and High Stake NL Hold’em forums.

FlopTurnRiver.com is not just a poker forum; it is a poker community. Players can bond and learn the game in the helpful Beginners Circle. If you feel like talking about current events or the most random thing in the world, head over to the FTR Community. We even have a Werewolf Village inspired by the Mafia party game.

FTR knows we could not have reached the 1,000,000 post mark without you. Thank you! We love watching you succeed  as your poker careers flourish. Here’s to post 2,000,000! Cheers!

Phil Laak enjoying a well deserved shuteye

It’s official: the world is ending soon. Phil Laak gave it his best effort to have a record to his name, in this case the “Longest Poker Game”, which was previously officially in the hands of Larry Olmsted. Larry Olmsted’s official time was 72 hours and 22 minutes, which he set at the Foxwoods Casino in Connecticut in 2004. The unofficial record, as in the one not sanctioned (yet) by the Guinness people, stood in the hands of Paul Zimbler who played poker nonstop for 78 hours and 25 minutes.

As FlopTurnRiver has previously reported, Phil Laak was not content with just edging out his nearest competitor, and decided to completely and totally decimate the previous record. In a herculean effort that I’m not sure will ever be matched until someone who has a permanent and possibly mutant sleeping insomnia disorder and a mean poker game will attempt to do, Laak now holds the record. The final tally? 115 hours exactly.

Most of us have trouble playing (winning) poker for 3 hours straight. This guy did it for 115 hours. That’s 5 hours short of 5 days, and even Jack Bauer, the fictional protagonist of the hit TV series 24 is going to be amazed at this feat. Phil Laak has been on a strict no sweets and low-fat diet since January to prepare for his attempt. His nutritionist was on hand to provide him meals every 5 hours to keep his wits sharp, and possibly for him to not go insane. His game of choice was $10/$20, and the reports indicate that he finished the ordeal being $6,766 in the black. Half of those proceeds will go to a charity for children with life-threatening diseases, so Mr. Laak shows he has a big heart as well.

For a guy who has won over $2,500,000 in lifetime tournament winnings, those are pretty small stakes, but it was a wise move as losing a very significant part of his roll (read: go broke) was totally possible if he would play at his usual cash game stakes.

For the record to be valid, the whole thing had to be videotaped, witnesses had to be present to ensure he did not have a quick nap or equipment malfunction in which some minutes of footage would be mysteriously missing. A variety of ways come to mind in which this effort could be cheated. The guys of Guinness World Records still have to verify all the proof, documentation and videotaping for this record, which means that the record won’t be certified for months.

The only word that comes to mind to describe what happened is: Epic. Who knows what’s next for Phil Laak… maybe he will try to emulate the fabled Nick Dandolos versus Johnny Moss HU grudge match of ’49 that lasted for a whole 5 months? All you need is to find a willing participant and … wink wink…

It would seem only fitting that another Italian would win this particular event, but we’ll get to that in a second. 2,274 hopefuls showed up for this event, which upped the $600K guaranteed prize pool to about $668,200! Tons of money up for grabbing in this one, so read on to know how it went down!

Final Table Bubble:
2264 down, just one left to bust out so we could have the final 9. Agentu23 got the short end of the stick here versus Chezzeby, and you know how it goes when you are shorter stacked, but dominating your all-in opponent.

And Agentu23 went home in 10th place, and the final nine were set. His consolation prize for almost making the final 9 was $5,011.50.

9th:
Pretty soon after the bubble was over, the shortest stacks on the FT went at each other’s throats. Standard pf allin with suckout included.

The best hand just wouldn’t win, and crouts left us in 9th place, taking home $8,018.40 for his efforts for the tournament. Congrats!

8th (and 7th):
The next hand was kind of odd, but unavoidable. Odd because the best hand preflop actually won. Unavoidable because no one will ever fold AK suited or unsuited to an overaggro chip leader.
Just another 3-way preflop race with expected results:

AKTRE (can you spot the pun?) and thechad78 both go out in the same unfortunate way versus the guy who would not lose a flip, chessazhole1. They are rewarded with $10,781.20 and $15,368.60 for their efforts during the tourney. Congrats!

6th:
As mentioned before, chessazhole1 just would not lose a flip. Standard “I don’t believe you” postflop play with expected results:

And YanaSchv took his beat in stride and was rewarded with $22,718.80 in cold hard cash to buy Kleenex to wipe his tears. Congrats!

5th:
Chezebby, who had a pretty quite final table participation, went allin with his small pair only to find out that the current Top Chip had woken up with a premium pair. Warning: HE DOES NOT LOSE FLIPS!

And Chezebby found out the hard way that chessazhole1 was in the driver’s seat of the steamroller, and took home $34,746.40 for his moment of clarity. Congrats!

After this elimination, the players decided to take a moment to try and come to terms in a deal that would satisfy everybody. Obvious disagreement ensued, but after a while of nipping and tucking for 1K here, 2K there, and making use of he-who-would-not- lose-a-flip’s monster stack, the following deal was reached:
(quoting the FTP Tournament dealer)
Dealer: The tournament deal was made successfully.
Dealer: VeryEuropean was awarded $64,000 from the deal.
Dealer: Toms2up was awarded $81,000 from the deal.
Dealer: chessazhole1 was awarded $97,737.42 from the deal.
Dealer: Bbuddy4brkfst was awarded $79,000 from the deal.
And 17K left on the table to be awarded to the winner.

4th:
A very entertaining hand, worthy of tv time imo. We have a suckout plus resuckout for your perusal.

And VeryEuropean tournament life was VeryExtinguished in 4th place, and he got a prize of $64,000 exactly (thanks to the deal) to cruise around in Paris, London, Milan and Barcelona. Congrats!

3rd:
Ah well. Luck eventually runs out, it happens to the best of us. He-who-would-not- lose-a-flip would finally lose a flip, a very costly one, sending him home in 3rd place.

Good thing that when the deal was made he was the chip leader, and this earned him a massive $97,737.42 for his efforts tonight. Congrats chessazhole1 for an excellent showing in this particular FTOPS event.

Only Toms2up and Bbuddy4brkfst were left to dispute the top prize of 17K and the yellow jacket. They each had already secured their paydays at $81,000 and $78,000 respectively.

HU Crucial Hand:
Snap call on turn, and we were back to even. Q8 beats 67 on that turn and blank river anyday.

HU Final Hand:
Overvaluing mid pair (or bad bluff, depending on who you ask)? The action on this hand took place on the river, with Bbuddy4brkfst shoving about 3 and a half million chips into a 2.3 million chip pot, and Toms2up snapping him up with TPTK.

And Toms2up from Italy took down the top prize of the current FTOPS event #7. Congrats to all who played, and remember, if you did not cash or place, there is always next event! God Bless Internet Poker!

ISLE OF MAN, UK, SEPTEMBER 28, 2009 – PokerStars.com, the world’s largest poker site, has shattered its own world record for hosting ‘THE MOST PLAYERS AT AN INTERNET POKER ROOM’ – an achievement that’s been certified by the Guinness Book of World Records. On Sunday September 6, 2009, PokerStars.com recorded 307,016 players at 42,814 tables playing online poker simultaneously – smashing the old record by over 100,000 players.

This new record comes less than two months after PokerStars.com destroyed another of its own Guinness World Records; the ‘Largest Online Poker Tournament’, officially certified by the Guinness Book of World Records. The largest online poker tournament was held on Sunday July 19, 2009, when a total of 65,000 players from 155 countries came together to play in the same tournament.

###

About PokerStars:

As the world’s largest poker site PokerStars.com has more than 27 million members around the world. It’s the first choice of the world’s top players, with more daily tournaments than anywhere else and the best security online. More hands have been dealt on PokerStars.com than any other site; over 33 billion to date and more than 190 million tournaments played.

PokerStars.com operates worldwide under the license from the Isle of Man Government. A recent addition to the PokerStars family, PokerStars.it, possesses an Italian Government license for the  Italian market

PokerStars regularly sets the bar high, staging some of the biggest online and live poker tournaments in the world:

• The World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) (www.wcoop.com) is the premier yearly online poker tournament series in the world. The 2009 WCOOP generated a total prize pool of more than $51 million
• The European Poker Tour (www.ept.com) attracts the best players and currently generates the biggest prize pool of any poker tour
• The PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA) is staged on the shores of Paradise Island in the Bahamas and is where thousands of players compete for a share of millions in prize money
• The Latin American Poker Tour (www.lapt.com) unites the best players in South America
• The Asia Pacific Poker Tour (www.appt.com) does the same across the Pacific
• The World Cup of Poker is a unique fixture on the poker calendar that combines the online and live poker worlds for a team challenge that pitches nation against nation

Stupak, better known for constructing part of the Vegas skyline and making outlandish bets, was also an accomplished poker player.  Over his lifetime, he made several tournament cashes in the World Series of Poker and World Poker Tour.  In 1989 he won a WSOP Deuce to Seven Lowball championship bracelet, and also appeared on the first season of High Stakes Poker and at the final table of the first World Poker Tour season.  His lifetime tournament winnings exceeded $850,000.

More famous than his poker success though were his wild gambling antics.  In 1989, Stupak won a cool $2,050,000 after placing a $1,00,000 bet on the outcome of SuperBowl XXIII. In the same year he also bet Donald Trump $1 million that he could beat Trump at his new board game.  Trump declined.

Forever marking the Vegas skyline and the visionary life of Bob Stupak is the 1,049-foot Stratosphere.  Stupak designed the tower to be an icon of Vegas and the tallest structure in Nevada.  It opened in 1996, earning him the title of “Mr. Las Vegas” by the Las Vegas City Council.  Though it was sold to Carl Icahn in 1998 after going bankrupt, the Stratosphere is now profitable and one of the cornerstones of Vegas.

The Stratosphere was only one of the creations of Stupak.  He also created the Bob Stupak’s World Famous Historic Gambling Museum, which burned down on May 21, 1974.  In 1974, he opened the casino Vegas World where new twists on games, such as “crapless” craps, Polish roulette, and experto, were introduced.  Some ideas of Stupak’s that never materialized included a hotel designed like the RMS Titanic and the purchase of the Moulin Rouge Hotel.

The Stratosphere released the following statement. “Bob Stupak was a true visionary and he will be sorely missed.  He was instrumental in developing the Stratosphere Casino Hotel and Tower – an icon in Las Vegas, as Mr. Stupak was himself.  He will be remembered for his many community initiatives and his many innovative projects within the gaming industry. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family.”

Well, enough with the preliminaries and on to the actual action!

Bubble:
The bubble was literally interminable. After more than an hour of 10-man play on two tables, it t
Finally, its Andy Alleman, team pokerstars pro, who got impatient and lost a bubble race.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, 10300 Tournament, 3000/6000 Blinds 750 Ante (5 handed) – Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

saw flop | saw showdown

SB (t319326)
A. Allemann (BB) (t281072)
UTG (t275804)
MP (t374475)
Button (t406750)

Preflop:
2 folds, Button bets t13650, 1 fold, A. Allemann calls t7650

Flop: (t34050) 8, 3, 4 (2 players)
A. Allemann checks, Button bets t20250, A. Allemann raises to t48000, Button raises to t106250, A. Allemann raises to t266672 (All-In), Button calls t160422

Turn: (t567394) Q (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: (t567394) J (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t567394

Results:
Button had K, K (one pair, Kings).
A. Allemann had J, 9 (one pair, Jacks).
Outcome: Button won t567394

Andy Allemann receives a pretty good $47K award for being the bubble boy. Congrats!

As we arrive at the final table, the chipstacks and seat positions looked as follows:
Seat 1: Sowerss (440166 in chips)
Seat 2: John Duthie (242238 in chips)
Seat 3: Belabacsi (315576 in chips)
Seat 4: Sumpas (275054 in chips)
Seat 5: KevBoyStar (227947 in chips)
Seat 6: DDBeast (185691 in chips)
Seat 7: Festivuss (236531 in chips)
Seat 8: BeL0WaB0Ve (693072 in chips)
Seat 9: SCTrojans (373725 in chips)
And play was underway.

9th:
DDbeast… ahhh… ATo. Kinda like KQo, its also a Mike Tyson glass jaw kind of hand.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, 10300 Tournament, 3500/7000 Blinds 875 Ante (9 handed) – Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

saw flop | saw showdown

Sowerss (UTG) (t478736)
John Duthie (UTG+1) (t194813)
Belabacsi (MP1) (t275951)
Sumpas (MP2) (t418483)
KevBoyStar (MP3) (t272497)
DDBeast (CO) (t203149)
Festivuss (Button) (t162224)
BeL0WaB0Ve (SB) (t679150)
SCTrojans (BB) (t304997)

Preflop:
3 folds, Sumpas bets t17000, 1 fold, DDBeast calls t17000, 1 fold, BeL0WaB0Ve raises to t56225, 2 folds, DDBeast raises to t202274 (All-In), BeL0WaB0Ve calls t146049

Flop: (t436423) 8, 4, 3 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Turn: (t436423) 8 (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: (t436423) J (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t436423

Results:
BeL0WaB0Ve had Q, Q (two pair, Queens and eights).
DDBeast had A, 10 (one pair, eights).
Outcome: BeL0WaB0Ve won t436423

DDBeast gets a $56K prize for being the first final table casualty. Congrats!

8th:
Kevboystar knocks out the sole remaining pro

PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, 10300 Tournament, 3500/7000 Blinds 875 Ante (8 handed) – Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

saw flop | saw showdown

Sowerss (SB) (t486375)
John Duthie (BB) (t227563)
Belabacsi (UTG) (t218698)
Sumpas (UTG+1) (t556329)
KevBoyStar (MP1) (t253247)
Festivuss (MP2) (t141363)
BeL0WaB0Ve (CO) (t876675)
SCTrojans (Button) (t229750)

Preflop:
1 fold, Sumpas bets t17000, KevBoyStar calls t17000, 4 folds, John Duthie raises to t77000, 1 fold, KevBoyStar raises to t252372 (All-In), John Duthie calls t149688 (All-In)

Flop: (t480876) 8, 5, 10 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Turn: (t480876) Q (2 players, 2 all-in)

River: (t480876) 4 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Total pot: t480876

Results:
John Duthie had A, Q (one pair, Queens).
KevBoyStar had A, A (one pair, Aces).
Outcome: KevBoyStar won t480876

And John Duthie, the last remaining PokerStars pro, goes home in 8th with a $74K prize. Congrats!

7th:
Festivuss still had a ton of chips when compared to the blinds, but decided he needed more. Bad timing though, since Kevin “BeL0WaB0Ve” Saul got the better ace and won the race.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, 10300 Tournament, 4000/8000 Blinds 1000 Ante (7 handed) – Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

saw flop | saw showdown

Sowerss (CO) (t458625)
Belabacsi (Button) (t388794)
Sumpas (SB) (t800033)
KevBoyStar (BB) (t351560)
Festivuss (UTG) (t122738)
BeL0WaB0Ve (MP1) (t630000)
SCTrojans (MP2) (t238250)

Preflop:
Festivuss bets t121738 (All-In), BeL0WaB0Ve calls t121738, 5 folds

Flop: (t262476) 9, 10, 5 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Turn: (t262476) 2 (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: (t262476) K (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t262476

Results:
Festivuss had J, A (high card, Ace).
BeL0WaB0Ve had K, A (one pair, Kings).
Outcome: BeL0WaB0Ve won t262476

Festivuss got outrunned with the weaker ace in 7th place, and now has an extra $104K to spend on delicious Argentinian meats. Congrats!

6th:
Trainwreck for KevBoyStar in 6th place. It truly hurts when you hit your outs while you were already drawing dead, and especially with hundreds of thousands of dollars on the line.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, 10300 Tournament, 4000/8000 Blinds 1000 Ante (6 handed) – Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

saw flop | saw showdown

Sowerss (Button) (t660600)
Belabacsi (SB) (t479444)
Sumpas (BB) (t799566)
KevBoyStar (UTG) (t352440)
BeL0WaB0Ve (MP) (t532700)
SCTrojans (CO) (t165250)

Preflop:
KevBoyStar bets t19800, 4 folds, Sumpas raises to t48700, KevBoyStar calls t28900

Flop: (t107400) 5, 8, J (2 players)
Sumpas bets t42000, KevBoyStar calls t42000

Turn: (t191400) Q (2 players)
Sumpas bets t707866 (All-In), KevBoyStar calls t260740 (All-In)

River: (t712880) 6 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Total pot: t712880

Results:
Sumpas had J, J (three of a kind, Jacks).
KevBoyStar had A, Q (one pair, Queens).
Outcome: Sumpas won t712880

KevBoyStar takes $134K with him to spend on booze in Stavanger. Congrats!

5th: That’s a very ugly board for pure value from your overpair. Your opponent should know better than calling for split if he has an A and thinks you do too. C’mon!

PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, 10300 Tournament, 5000/10000 Blinds 1250 Ante (5 handed) – Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

saw flop | saw showdown

Sowerss (MP) (t486000)
Belabacsi (Button) (t282794)
Sumpas (SB) (t1554256)
BeL0WaB0Ve (BB) (t472200)
SCTrojans (UTG) (t194750)

Preflop:
1 fold, Sowerss bets t25000, Belabacsi calls t25000, 2 folds

Flop: (t71250) 9, J, J (2 players)
Sowerss bets t29750, Belabacsi calls t29750

Turn: (t130750) 9 (2 players)
Sowerss bets t100000, Belabacsi raises to t226794 (All-In), Sowerss calls t126794

River: (t584338) A (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t584338

Results:
Belabacsi had K, K (two pair, Kings and Jacks).
Sowerss had J, 8 (full house, Jacks over nines).
Outcome: Sowerss won t584338

Belabacsi’s 5th place finish was good enough for a $173K prize. Definitely not bad for his first 6 figure prize online. Congrats!

4th: Just two hands after our previous elimination:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, 10300 Tournament, 5000/10000 Blinds 1250 Ante (4 handed) – Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

saw flop | saw showdown

Sowerss (BB) (t786294)
Sumpas (UTG) (t1546756)
BeL0WaB0Ve (Button) (t454700)
SCTrojans (SB) (t202250)

Preflop:
2 folds, SCTrojans bets t201000 (All-In), Sowerss calls t191000

Flop: (t407000) 6, Q, Q (2 players, 1 all-in)

Turn: (t407000) 10 (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: (t407000) 9 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t407000

Results:
SCTrojans had 7, A (one pair, Queens).
Sowerss had J, J (two pair, Queens and Jacks).
Outcome: Sowerss won t407000

SCTrojans is now a good $254K richer. Congratulations!

After this hand, the tournament was paused so that the remaining players could reach a deal. The preliminary numbers, which have $40,000 left to play for, would be as follows:
Sowerss $449,802.50
Sumpas $511,733.80
Bel0wab0ve $396,288.70

On order of tip stack to shortest stack. The players would have an approximately 3:2:1, with the biggest stack in possesion of Sumpas with about 1,500,000 chips. Kevin Saul decided he would need $430,000 at least to accept a deal, but the other players thought he was crazy and a deal could not be reached. Play resumed.

3rd: Should’ve taken that deal! Wrong time for a big call on the river 4-outer.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, 10300 Tournament, 5000/10000 Blinds 1250 Ante (3 handed) – Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

saw flop | saw showdown

Sowerss (BB) (t527500)
Sumpas (Button) (t1779720)
BeL0WaB0Ve (SB) (t682780)

Preflop:
Sumpas bets t21400, BeL0WaB0Ve raises to t56530, 1 fold, Sumpas calls t35130

Flop: (t126810) Q, A, 3 (2 players)
BeL0WaB0Ve checks, Sumpas bets t46500, BeL0WaB0Ve calls t46500

Turn: (t219810) 3 (2 players)
BeL0WaB0Ve checks, Sumpas bets t125000, BeL0WaB0Ve calls t125000

River: (t469810) 10 (2 players)
BeL0WaB0Ve checks, Sumpas bets t1550440 (All-In), BeL0WaB0Ve calls t453500 (All-In)

Total pot: t1376810

Results:
Sumpas had J, K (straight, Ace high).
BeL0WaB0Ve had 8, A (two pair, Aces and threes).
Outcome: Sumpas won t1376810

Kevin “BeL0WaB0Ve” Saul takes home a healthy $337K for his efforts tonight. Congrats!

Add to that the following critical hand HU, in which Sumpas demonstrates how his rungood continues. Just a few hands since Kevin “BeL0WaB0Ve” Saul’s elimination:
HU-rungood:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, 10300 Tournament, 5000/10000 Blinds 1250 Ante (2 handed) – Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

saw flop | saw showdown

Sowerss (BB) (t527500)
Sumpas (SB) (t2462500)

Preflop:
Sumpas bets t22000, Sowerss calls t12000

Flop: (t46500) 7, 5, 8 (2 players)
Sowerss checks, Sumpas bets t25000, Sowerss calls t25000

Turn: (t96500) Q (2 players)
Sowerss checks, Sumpas bets t57000, Sowerss calls t57000

River: (t210500) J (2 players)
Sowerss checks, Sumpas bets t125000, Sowerss calls t125000

Total pot: t460500

Results:
Sumpas had 10, 9 (straight, Queen high).
Sowerss didn’t show
Outcome: Sumpas won t460500

Sumpas now held an over 8:1 chip advantage. It was just a matter of time before he would finish this one off, and take home the WCOOP 009 Event #10 bracelet.
Despite the huge chip deficit, Sowerss made a valiant effort to come back. But his efforts were cut short, and all because of this hand, wherein either heavy levelling or fatigue played a key role:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, 10300 Tournament, 7000/14000 Blinds 1750 Ante (2 handed) – Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

saw flop | saw showdown

Sowerss (BB) (t780000)
Sumpas (SB) (t2210000)

Preflop:
Sumpas bets t30000, Sowerss calls t16000

Flop: (t63500) 4, K, 4 (2 players)
Sowerss checks, Sumpas bets t30000, Sowerss raises to t90000, Sumpas raises to t165000, Sowerss raises to t748250 (All-In), Sumpas calls t583250

Turn: (t1560000) 7 (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: (t1560000) 3 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: t1560000

Results:
Sumpas had K, 10 (two pair, Kings and fours).
Sowerss had J, 10 (one pair, fours).
Outcome: Sumpas won t1560000

Sowers takes home $448K for his 2nd place finish. Player Sumpas, fresh of a 6th place finish in last years WCOOP Main Event, this time takes home the WCOOP 2009 Event #10: $10,300 High Rollers for a little north of $611K, the WCOOP Bracelet, and endless bragging rights. Congrats to all who played, and remember, if you did not win this time there is always next time!

PokerRoom.com is, or rather, was one of the most famous and longest-running online sites.

Yesterday, players on the PokerRoom.com site were greeted with the message of its shutdown, and were encouraged to play at its parent Bwin.com instead.

From the PokerRoom.com blog:

Well folks, after almost ten years of fun and games, it is with a heavy heart and a tear in my eye that I have to announce that this is it; as of 11:00 CET today, Tuesday the 14th of April 2009, PokerRoom.com will no longer be open for online poker.

The pending closure was announced a while ago, and players have been encouraged to transfer their account money to Bwin.com since March 12th.

PokerRoom.com was founded by Oskar Hörnell and Claes Lidell in 1999. It was, at its popularity peak, one of the most famous rooms online and is also the precursor (or granddaddy) of the fish-rich OnGame network, which offers its software in a multitude of languages. Tower Poker, Mansion Poker and of course Bwin itself are also prominent rooms on the network.

The OnGame network itself continues to operate as usual, unaffected by the cease of operations at PokerRoom.com. Game on, guys! In the immortal words (translated) of the French: The King is dead, long live the King!