https://betting.betfair.com/poker/news/2013/09/ Betfair Poker's talented team of poker enthusiasts bring you the very latest poker news from around the globe. Covering both online poker and the live poker scene, the Betfair Poker blog is your one-stop site for the very best in poker related news, views and gossip. Along with select poker news stories, visitors will also find detailed reports and results of major online and live poker tournaments, interviews with some of poker's key figures and players and bespoke poker articles and editorials. Join Betfair Poker Now en Copyright 2026 Mon, 30 Sep 2013 17:43:00 +0100 http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification The 10 nominees for the 2013 Poker Hall of Fame have been announced with a few new candidates as well as several back for another try at gaining entry into poker's most exclusive club. Those making it onto this year's ballot include Chris Björin, Humberto Brenes, David Chiu, Thor Hansen, Jennifer Harman, Mike Matusow, Tom McEvoy, Carlos Mortensen, Scotty Nguyen, and Huck Seed.   Starting in 2009, the World Series of Poker began inviting the public to nominate candidates each year, with the Poker Hall of Fame Governing Council then producing a list of finalists from the nominateds. From there a panel consisting of the current living Poker Hall of Fame members as well as invited members of the poker media will cast ballots to determine who among the group will join the 44 members of the Poker Hall of Fame. Once again I have been invited to participate as a voter. If the process remains the same as in past years, I will be able to vote for as many as three candidates among whom I'll have to distribute a total of 10 points. Ballots are due back by October 11, at which point the WSOP will add up everyone's votes and the two candidates receiving the most points will earn entry. A special ceremony will be held in November at the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino as part of this year's November Nine to honor the inductees. Here are the criteria by which candidates are to be judged: * A player must have played poker against acknowledged top competition
 * Played for high stakes
 * Played consistently well, gaining the respect of peers
 * Stood the test of time
 * Or, for non-players, contributed to the overall growth and success of the game of poker, with indelible positive and lasting results Last year another item was added to the list of criteria that required candidates to be at least 40 years old, a rule that excludes people like Phil Ivey or Daniel Negreanu from being nominated or voted in just yet. Interestingly, that last item regarding "non-players" doesn't really apply to this year's group, as all ten of the candidates are accomplished players who have enjoyed significant success. In fact, all ten of them have won at least two WSOP bracelets, with four of the candidates being WSOP Main Event champions (McEvoy, Seed, Nguyen, and Mortensen). As has been the case when I have voted before, the decision is not a simple one. Here's a look at all 10 nominees: Chris Björin is back on the ballot for a second straight year, one of six players out of the 10 who were born outside of the United States. Originally from Sweden, Björin now resides in London although the 65-year-old travels extensively to play a full tourney schedule. He's won two WSOP bracelets, has 68 WSOP cashes (dating back three decades), and has cashed in the Main Event seven times. He's tops the list of players from Sweden in tourney winnings with more than $5.5 million in cashes.  Humberto Brenes finds himself a first-time PHOF nominee this year after having earned two WSOP bracelets, more than 70 WSOP cashes, over $6 million in career tournament earnings, and served as an important ambassador of poker to Central and South America. The 62-year-old Costa Rican has cashed in the WSOP Main Event nine separate times, including finishing fourth in 1988. David Chiu is back on the ballot for a second year in a row, his candidacy having been bolstered by picking up a fifth WSOP bracelet last summer. Originally from China and now a U.S. citizen, the 53-year-old has also won a WPT World Championship while amassing nearly $7.7 million in total tourney earnings. Thor Hansen also makes a second appearance as a Poker Hall of Fame finalist this year. Much like Brenes is to his part of the world, the 66-year-old from Norway is known as an important figure in Scandinavia, sometimes referred to as the "Godfather" of Norwegian poker. Hansen has won two WSOP bracelets, has 48 total WSOP cashes, and has earned just over $2.9 million in tournaments while also having a long career of cash-game success. Jennifer Harman is a candidate again, having been nominated each of the last four years. Harman is the first woman ever to win multiple WSOP bracelets in open events, picking up two total. (Vanessa Selbst is the only other woman to do so.) Besides being a top cash-game player, the 48-year-old Nevada native has earned almost $2.7 million in tournaments over the last two decades. Mike Matusow won the NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championship earlier this year, then picked up his fourth WSOP bracelet over the summer and now finds himself nominated for the Poker Hall of Fame for the first time. Originally from California, the 45-year-old has amassed just over $9 million in tournament winnings in a career stretching back to the mid-1990s, including being one of the few players of the modern era to make the WSOP Main Event final table twice (in 2001 and 2005). Tom McEvoy is on the ballot again, and in fact has been a nominee every year since 2009 when the current voting process was initially established. The 1983 WSOP Main Event champion -- the first ever to win after having qualified for the tournament via satellite -- has four WSOP bracelets total and just under $3 million in lifetime career tourney earnings. The 68-year-old Michigan native has also authored and co-authored numerous poker strategy texts and pioneered efforts to rid poker rooms of smoking. Carlos Mortensen made it onto the ballot this year for the first time following a groundswell of support over the last year plus an impressive 10th-place finish at this summer's WSOP Main Event. That finish only added to his long list of accomplishments for the 41-year-old that includes the 2001 WSOP Main Event title, two bracelets overall, and career tourney earnings of more than $11.4 million. Born in Ecuador and having lived most of his life in Spain, the "Matador" also has had significant success on the WPT where he's won three titles including a World Championship in 2007. Scotty Nguyen, like McEvoy, is back on the ballot for a fifth consecutive year. The 1998 WSOP Main Event champion has five WSOP bracelets total (including one in the $50K H.O.R.S.E. event), plus a World Poker Tour title. Originally from Vietnam and now a U.S. citizen, the 50-year-old has amassed more than $11.7 million in career tournament winnings. Huck Seed rounds out the 2013 Poker Hall of Fame ballot after being nominated for a second time following his being a finalist in 2011. Originally from California, the 44-year-old has won four WSOP bracelets including a Main Event title in 1996 while earning almost $7.6 million in tourney winnings over the last two-plus decades. Unlike has been the case in recent years, none of these candidates seems obviously head-and-shoulders above the others, which should make this year's vote all the more intriguing. One would think McEvoy, Nguyen, and perhaps Harman might be favorites given the fact that they've appeared on the ballot numerous times before, but a result is harder to predict this time around than in years' past. Who among these 10 candidates do you believe deserves to be inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame? https://betting.betfair.com/poker/news/ten-finalists-for-2013-poker-hall-of-fame-announced-300913-77.html https://betting.betfair.com/poker/news/ten-finalists-for-2013-poker-hall-of-fame-announced-300913-77.html News Mon, 30 Sep 2013 17:43:00 +0100 The measure for success in the poker world is how much money a player has won. Take away the prestige of winning a bracelet or a major title, poker players play for the money, pure and simple.  https://betting.betfair.com/poker/news/the-top-10-european-all-time-money-list-260913-162.html https://betting.betfair.com/poker/news/the-top-10-european-all-time-money-list-260913-162.html News Fri, 27 Sep 2013 10:00:00 +0100 So you have won a satellite tournament at Betfair Poker and are looking forward to heading to a distant and exotic location to battle it out in a live poker tournament. The only problem is, you have never played in a live environment before and do not know what to expect.  https://betting.betfair.com/poker/news/eight-signs-you-are-playing-in-a-live-poker-tournament-170913-162.html https://betting.betfair.com/poker/news/eight-signs-you-are-playing-in-a-live-poker-tournament-170913-162.html News Strategy Tue, 17 Sep 2013 12:08:00 +0100 It's 4 a.m on Monday morning and you are delighted to be awake. Why? Because you have secured a package to the St. Maarten leg of the Caribbean Poker Tour by winning a satellite at Betfair Poker.  https://betting.betfair.com/poker/news/nine-travel-essentials-for-the-travelling-poker-player-110913-162.html https://betting.betfair.com/poker/news/nine-travel-essentials-for-the-travelling-poker-player-110913-162.html News Strategy Wed, 11 Sep 2013 13:31:00 +0100 The first stop on the European Poker Tour has come to an end in Barcelona, with huge fields marking the launch of the EPT's 10th season. Highlighting the 27 different tourneys on the EPT Barcelona schedule were the €48,500+€1,500 Super High Roller, the €10,000+€300 High Roller, and the €5,000+€300 Main Event. Vitaly Lunkin took the Super High Roller title, Thomas Muhlocker outlasted Daniel Negreanu heads-up to win the High Roller, and Tom Middleton claimed the Main Event crown. Super High Roller: Lunkin binks one The festival at the Casino Barcelona -- inclusive of both the EPT events and several Estrellas Poker Tour tourneys as well -- kicked off with a three-day €48,500+€1,500 buy-in Super High Roller event that drew 51 entries total, including 11 players who rebought. Only the top seven finishers made the cash, with the Russian Vitaly Lunkin ultimately topping a stacked final table including Erik Seidel heads-up to win a big €771,300 first prize. Among those making the final table and the money were the young German Ole Schemion and November Niner David Benefield of the U.S. Both Schemion and Benefield earned the distinction of cashing in the Super High Roller, the High Roller, and the Main Event at EPT Barcelona. Seidel had the chip lead to start heads-up play versus Lunkin, and in fact increased his advantage to more than 3-to-1 before Lunkin doubled up once with Ah-7s versus Seidel's pocket queens after an ace flopped. Soon it was Lunkin building a big lead before finally taking the last of Seidel's chips when his Ac-5h outlasted Seidel's Kd-Qc. EPT10 Barcelona Super High Roller final table results: 1st:  Vitaly Lunkin (Russia) -- €771,300 2nd:  Erik Seidel (United States) -- €557,100 3rd:  Steve O'Dwyer (Ireland) -- €355,100 4th:  Mike McDonald (Canada) -- €269,400 5th:  David Benefield (United States) -- €208,150 6th:  Ole Schemion (Germany) -- €159,200 7th:  Fabian Quoss (Germany) -- €128,515 High Roller: Muhlocker comeback foils Negreanu The three-day €10,000+€300 High Roller played out from Thursday through Saturday, with stories of the start and finish dominated by Daniel Negreanu thanks to a bit of controversy early on Day 1 and his near triumph in the event, thwarted by the young Austrian Thomas Muhlocker who managed to overcome Negreanu heads-up.  The event ultimately attracted 180 entries, a huge jump over the 101 who played the same tournament a year ago. That total included 42 players who re-entered once (as permitted), one of those being Negreanu after busting in somewhat notable fashion during the second one-hour level on Day 1. Negreanu had already lost more than half of his starting stack when a hand arose in which he posted his small blind then had his hand killed when he was standing away from his seat when the first card was dealt. Upset at the dealer's decision to apply in this instance the "At Your Seat" rule that requires players to be at their seats when the first card is dealt or risk having their hand killed, Negreanu argued his case to the floorperson to no avail, then on the following hand went all in without looking at his cards, ultimately losing his stack. Negreanu would re-enter later on Day 1 and survive to the second day of the event with below average chips, then managed to build up his stack to sit third in chips behind Joni Jouhkimainen and Jean-Noel Thorel with nine left at the start of Day 3. Negreanu grabbed the chip lead early on the final day and would keep it right up until heads-up play with Muhlocker. Negreanu had 7.7 million to Muhlocker's 1.3 million to begin their battle, but Muhlocker won two flips in a row to grab the lead, then picked up Ac-Ks versus Negreanu's Ah-Qs which led to another preflop all-in. Again Muhlocker's hand prevailed, and he won the title.   Meanwhile, Negreanu moved into third place on the all-time tournament winnings list -- jumping back ahead of Seidel who'd passed him thanks to his Super High Roller finish -- and into first position in the Global Poker Index Player of the Year race. EPT10 Barcelona High Roller final table results: 1st:  Thomas Muhlocker (Austria) -- €390,700 2nd:  Daniel Negreanu (Canada) -- €263,800 3rd:  Jean-Noel Thorel (France) -- €181,500 4th:  Joni Jouhkimainen (Finland) -- €148,000 5th:  Jonathan Duhamel (Canada) -- €118,000 6th:  Ole Schemion (Germany) -- €90,700 7th:  Richard Yong (United States) -- €66,000 8th:  David Benefield (United States) -- €47,850  Main Event:  Nearly nine-fiddy for "Middy" Finally the €5,000+€300 EPT Barcelona Main Event also crushed records with a largest ever field of 1,234 for the event. That turnout produced a huge prize pool of nearly €6 million, with U.K. online star Tom "hitthehole" Middleton finishing a remarkable streak of end-of-day chip leads to win the title and a €942,500 first prize. Middleton had the chip lead to end Day 3 with 79 players left, led the 24 who made it to the end of Day 4, and also led to start the eight-handed final table. He'd lose the lead each day before gaining it back, including on the last day when Kresten Nielsen of Denmark enjoyed the lead for much of the afternoon and evening. By the time they reached four-handed on that final day, Italy's Luca Fiorini had nudged into the lead although all four players were close. That's when the four tried to come to terms regarding a four-way chop but ultimately could not, then Fiorini soon was eliminated in fourth after losing most of his stack to Kimmo Kurko of Finland, then the rest to Middleton. Nielsen went out soon thereafter in third, setting up heads-up between Kurko and Middleton. Those two did manage to come to an agreement to even out the remaining prize money somewhat, then battled for more than three hours before Middleton prevailed. Finally pushing out to a better than 2-to-1 advantage, the pair got all of Kurko's chips in the middle with Ac-4s versus Middleton's 5s-5h, and when the board came 10h-6c-7c-Kh-8h, "Middy" had won. EPT10 Barcelona Main Event final table results: 1st:  Tom Middleton (United Kingdom) -- €942,000* 2nd:  Kimmo Kurko (Finland) -- €750,000* 3rd:  Kresten Nielsen (Denmark) -- €440,500 4th:  Luca Fiorini (Italy) -- €328,000 5th:  Pasi Sormunen (Finland) -- €253,000 6th:  Benoit Gury (France) -- €188,000 7th:  Eduard Bhaggo (Netherlands) -- €143,000 8th:  Andreas Christoforou (Cyprus) -- €102,430 *reflects two-way deal Join Betfair Poker Now. https://betting.betfair.com/poker/news/main-event-champ-tom-middleton-headlines-ept-barcelona-winners-100913-77.html https://betting.betfair.com/poker/news/main-event-champ-tom-middleton-headlines-ept-barcelona-winners-100913-77.html News Tue, 10 Sep 2013 17:35:00 +0100 As has been discovered over the last decade during the "boom" of televised coverage, as fun as poker is to play, it can also be quite entertaining to watch. Of course, filmmakers long before realized the potential for poker to provide a ready context in which to develop characters, advance plots, lighten or darken the mood, and/or create tension and suspense while telling their stories. Anthony Holden once wrote that "a man's character is stripped bare at the poker table." Such a truth which makes the poker table a great place for directors and screenwriters to reveal something meaningful about their characters. Even in films that aren't really "poker movies" one often encounters scenes involving poker in which filmmakers are taking advantage of poker's ability to communicate a lot of information about their characters very quickly -- perhaps even in the space of a single hand. Here are six examples of films that aren't specifically about poker but which include poker scenes to great effect. https://betting.betfair.com/poker/news/six-great-poker-scenes-in-non-poker-movies-210813-77.html https://betting.betfair.com/poker/news/six-great-poker-scenes-in-non-poker-movies-210813-77.html News Tue, 03 Sep 2013 10:14:00 +0100