Maxx Dansky decided to stop off for some poker at the Choctaw Casino Resort in Durant, Oklahoma, when he was on his way back home to Nashville, Tennessee. The 25-year-old poker pro emerged victorious, taking home the $152,008 payday, after four days of battling it out in the $1,000 Card Player Poker Tour main event.

Trying to make it work as a live player in Las Vegas, Dansky spent his summer and the better part of the last year. He and some buddies decided to make a drastic move so that they could continue playing online poker, after several close calls.

Dansky said that he is on his way back to Nashville, but in a few weeks, we’ll be living in Costa Rica. They plan on doing it until the next WSOP, so he guesses it will be like an eight-month working vacation. Dansky said that his win in the live arena gave him the ultimate sense of satisfaction, though he’s happy to be getting back on the virtual felt.

He said that there were just so many opportunities that he had in the last few months. He is just happy that everyone went his way this time and he can let go of all that other frustration.

During a quick heads-up match, Dansky defeated Miguel Hernandez, who earned $93,708 for his runner-up finish. Hernandez is a 28-year-old barber from nearby Dallas, Texas.

In another piece of poker news, the annual Arizona State Poker Championship returns to the ARENA Poker Room at Talking Stick Resort, Aug. 10-14, this summer. Talking Stick Resort will also welcome professional poker player, actress and TV personality, Tiffany Michelle as a special guest host of the thrilling competition, in addition to the more than 1,000 participants the tournament’s $1 million prize pool is expected to draw.

Director of poker at best casino online Canada, Kent Odekirk said the Arizona State Poker Championship is one of Talking Stick Resort’s biggest events, and this year they expect it to be even better, with the addition of Tiffany Michelle as their official host. He added that Michelle will truly add a new level of excitement she’s on hand to interview players before and after the tournament, as one of poker’s most prominent figures.

Michelle will serve host as for the final day of the five-day tournament for the Arizona State Poker Championship. A designated number will compete producing the semi-finalists who will compete on day four for a seat among the final 10, on days one, two and three. The top 10 players will bluff it out until a champion is crowned on day five.

Tags: , , ,


Casino games often feature additional bets, which can pay big prizes for an unlikely outcome such as being dealt a straight flush in poker or 4 aces in a row in blackjack. These small bets are popular by the lure of a potentially huge jackpot; however, they are often very expensive, with the house taking a large proportion of each bet.

A popular pastime commonly features a ‘progressive jackpot’ side bet is Caribbean Stud Poker, where for one additional dollar you make a different wager on the outcome of your hand which is independent of the dealers hand. This pays for a straight flush (any 5 consecutive cards of the same suit) and 100% of the jackpot for a royal flush (ten to ace of the same suit).

While the chances of being dealt a royal flush in 5 cards are actually tiny when compared to the cost of the bet, this jackpot sounds very enticing, especially with lower prizes for lesser poker hands included. Most players are surprised to hear that on 649,740 hands, you will only be dealt a royal flush one time. Now, if the jackpot pool is high enough it may be a worthwhile bet.

Next is one of the oldest and definitely one of the most popular casino table games around, Blackjack. This game can also include side bets, such as specials based on aces. If you are dealt 4 consecutive aces of the same suit, one casino we know of will pay a progressive prize. This can seem an enticing and fun bet to many players with 6 decks of cards, and lesser payouts starting from just 2 aces in a row. However, you will see that this is not always the good gamble that it seems when you look at the actual odds of being dealt 4 consecutive suited aces.

Of course, not all is negative in side-bets in casino games. An extra dollar can add some excitement to your play without being too big a proportion of your gambling money, if you are betting high-stakes. Great news for those players who are disciplined enough to only gamble with money they can afford to lose as Progressive jackpots also give players of smaller stakes that chance of a big win.

Tags: , , ,


World Series of Poker will begin in Las Vegas on May 27, 2012 with a $500 casino employee only No Limit Hold’em tournament. The $1,500 No Limit Hold’em tournament on May 28 will be the first event that is open to the public. A record field is expected once again as the this year will mark the 42nd anniversary of the World Series of Poker and as the popularity of poker continues to thrive even after some setbacks to the online poker industry.

Johnny Moss was the very first World Series of Poker Main Event champion, back in 1970. Earning roughly $30,000 for first place for each of his wins, he was actually won the event back to back in 1970 and 1971. In 1974, he would go on to win a third time and he was regarded as one of the greatest poker players of all time.

Doyle “Texas Dolly” Brunson is another famous past winner. Brunson earned a total of $560,000 for his efforts by winning back-to-back titles in 1976 and 1977. Brunson would be considered the grandfather of Texas Hold’em. He would go on to have a long and illustrious poker career.

The number of repeat champions dropped considerably once the field size of the Main Event grew. Back in 1987 and 1988, when Johnny Chan won his two Main Event titles, it was the time these World Series of Poker had a repeat champion. Chan only had to beat 151 and 166 other poker players to win his two titles, while this is still an amazing accomplishment. This is a much easier feat when one compares it to today’s fields where there are thousands of players and this has been the main reason why we have not seen a repeat winner since Chan.

In the modern era of poker, still one of the most notable World Series of Poker winners is Chris Moneymaker. His 40 entry-fee at an online poker site into $2.5 million and a Main Event bracelet is what made him the most popular. The field sizes at the Main Event exploded in the following years, after Moneymaker won his Main Event title. Year 2003 saw 839 entrants when Moneymaker took home the title and the following year saw 2,576.

The 2006 World Series Main Event drew 8,773 poker players, the largest number of entrants putting up $10,000 each to compete in the tournament. In World Series of Poker history, this enormous field of players led Jamie Gold to become the single largest prizewinner. The field sizes level out around 6,800 entrants in the last five years, which is what the tournament is estimated to draw yet again this year.

Tags: , , ,


Scott Stanko of Nebraska topped a field of 290 in the Main Event to earn the WSOP-C ring and $101,266 first prize, as the latest stop on the World Series of Poker Circuit ended late in Council Bluffs, Iowa.

Following a couple of Day 1 flights the money bubble burst on Day 2 as the top 30 finishers made the cash in this $1,600 buy-in event. Jim Devaney (10th, $7,523), Eriquezzo (13th, $6,182), Allen Kessler (15th, $6,182), Huy Nguyen (20th, $4,355) and Kevin Saul (28th, $2,861) were among those making the money but not quite getting to Tuesday’s final nine-handed table.

Sitting with over 1.48 million or about one-fourth of the chips in play with nine left, it was Stanko carrying the chip lead to the final table. Stephen Ma was Stanko’s closest challenger with 928,000 when the final table began, with Pejman Niyati not far back in third with 875,000.

Iowa Main Event to claim the Circuit ring and the $101,266 first place payday, Stanko defeated a field of 290 players in the $1,620 WSOPC Council Bluffs. The event still managed to see growth over last year in spite of the schedule. It ran over Easter weekend and even took Sunday off so players could celebrate the holiday. In 2011, champion Blair Hinkle earned just over $88,000 for the victory and the event drew 252 players. This year, on the WSOPC schedule, the field saw 16% growth after moving from the fall to the spring.

Dennis Phillips, Jacob Bazeley, Chris Bell, Scott Clements and Kevin Saul were some of the notable names who made the trek to Iowa. Saul finished in 28th place and managed to make the money. Ryan Eriquezzo (13th), Allen Kessler (15th), WSOPC Ring Winner Huy Nguyen (20th) and Will Souther (22nd) also finished in the money. A piece of the $421,950 prize pool was earned by the top 30 finishers.

Stanko, before claiming his ring and his title had to deal with a formidable foe heads-up. He was contesting against Charles “Woody” Moore. Stanko defeated Moore after a nearly two-hour heads-up battle. Moore added yet another big score to his WSOPC resume and he earned $62,584 for the runner-up finish.

The next stop for the WSOPC is already underway in St Louis. From April 21st thru April 23rd, the Main Event of that series is scheduled to run. For the series over last year, the attendance at the 2012 WSOP Circuit Council Bluffs was up 35 percent, with the main event seeing a 16 percent increase.

Tags: , , ,


Veronika Pavlikova is the latest winner of the France Poker Series. Pavlikova, an 18-year-old, finished atop the 296-player field and a she got hold of the FPS trophy and €70,000. In an event featured many seasoned players, including Team PokerStars Pro Matthias de Meulder, Thibaud Guenegou and Guillaume Darcourt, the PokerStars qualifier scored her first major victory.

Casino d’Evian on the French side of Lake Geneva was where the third and final day of the 2012 PokerStars.fr France Poker Series Snowfest Evian Main Event kicked off. the final 13 players were led by Gilles Mellet and the 13 players’ day began with hopes of taking home the trophy and €70,000 first-place prize. 18-year-old Veronika Pavlikova had topped the field by the end of the day.

The PokerStars qualifier overcame all odds to defeat several seasoned adversaries in the 296-player, €1,100 buy-in event, which was an unexpected, though relentless rise to victory. no one was able to stop her on her way to the title, once she ousted French favorite and WPT champion Guillaume Darcourt. This win marks her first major victory.

Team PokerStars Pro Matthias de Meulder (ninth, €4,200) and Thibaud Guenegou (10th, €4,200) did not made it to the official final table. With the big players eliminated, the road to victory was wide open for Darcourt. He ousted Damien Denis (sixth, €12,000) and soon took the lead, thanks to an ace on the river. This was the last time of Darcourt’s exploiting. Pavlikova took him over with a straight, and then eliminated him later by making a flush on the turn, ending the pink-haired Frenchman’s run in fourth place.

Pavlikova did not flinched and she was unstoppable while she ran over her last two opponents, snatching the win after a one-sided heads-up match. She crushed Ludovic Marguerat’s preflop. She had a fearless run to victory with a well-deserved €70,000 payday.

At the end of the event, standing were – Veronika Pavlikova – €70,000; Ludovic Marguerat – €43,500; Serge Didisheim – €27,500; Guillaume Darcourt – €21,160 ; Gregory Raffalli – €16,000 ; Damien Denis – €12,000 ; Gilles Mellet – €8,500; Morgan Franz – €6,000.

Tags: , , ,


EZ Pai GowLaunch of no commission Pai Gow game, EZ Pai Gow was recently pronounced by DEQ Systems. In Missouri casinos, EZ Pai Gow is doing better than all other forms of Pai Gow.

In the market, Deq’s EZ Pai Gow Poker is the only stand-alone commission free Pai Gow game. Official state statistics have shown that EZ Pai Gow has been the players’ favorite game, since its introduction in late August 2010 in Missouri.

President and CEO of DEQ, Earle G. Hall stated that when compared to all other forms of Pai Gow, EZ Pai Gow has dictated the floor wherever it is deployed. He added that it is the only true non-commission form of Pai Gow, where by a very alluring optional side bet, the push mechanism is offset.

He added that from the clients and the operators, the response has been very encouraging and he would like to congratulate Lubin-Jones for this groundbreaking invention. Within the scope of Lubin-Jones no commission Pai Gow intellectual property portfolio, these methods are protected.  He added that he is very thrilled about the future placements of this game all over the USA.

According to the company, in EZ Pai Gow, by eliminating the 5% commission on winning hands, this revolutionary method of accelerating the speed of Pai Gow poker has been introduced. When the dealer gets a Queen High Pai Gow (Queen high hand), the commission is substituted by imposing a push. The side bet is trademarked as the “Queens’ Dragon” and players can side bet on the occurrence of the dealer’s Queen high Pai Gow.

This side wager produces an additional way for the player to win and it pays 50 to 1. It has also been a new revenue source for the casino.

Tags: , , , ,


CasinoOn a desert casino-hopping trip, came a retiree from Hemet, CA, George Hayes with a friend. A 1¢ Super Spin Wheel of Fortune machine was the one that George simply walked up to and put in $40 or $50. Not long after that, he watched across the centerline, five Wheel of Fortune symbols lined up and he knew it had to mean something big. It turned out to be $1,127,123,88. At Fantasy Springs Resort Casino, Claude Dickerson of Indio, CA says he and his wife have been playing for years. In case Claude was dealt a straight flush, he placed a side bet on a Pai Gow Poker table and he took home the huge progressive table jackpot of $16342588.

Claude Dickerson and his wife decided to kill some time playing their favorite games in the casino after enjoying dinner at the POM restaurant at Fantasy Springs. Claude sat down at a Fortune Pai Gow Poker table. Always making sure to place a side bet on the progressive jackpot, he began with $100 and eventually increased his take to $200. Claude could not believe the hand he was dealt, a straight flush – 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 of Hearts, after about 30 minutes at the table. Claude said he was awestruck that on one hand, he won $163,425.82.

Featuring 30 “Best of Gaming” awards from Casino Player magazine, Fantasy Springs Resort Casino provides an oasis in the desert. Fantasy Springs Resort Casino stands to meet and exceed the needs of its guests and the community by offering world-class table games, 2000 of the hottest slots, hotel, dining, entertainment and golf at Eagle Falls.

Tags: , , ,


Randy DorfmanWorld Poker Tour Seminole Hard Rock Showdown no-limit hold’em main event caught the attention of field of 406 players. By the end of Day 1, just 290 players remained. Randy Dorfman with 160,000 was the overnight chip leader. Until the start of play, registration was kept open so the field size could grow even more before the official prize pool is pronounced.

With 130,925, James Carroll is also near the top. Florida poker has been great so far for Dorfman. At the Seminole Hard Rock, he ended Day 1 first in chips with 160,000 from his 30,000-chip starting stack. It is too early to tell, for the BLUFF Player of the Year contender if this will be yet another final table, but his latest record of achievement plus his big stack could mean big things for Dorfman in the next few days.

In the event, several other big names are faring well too, including former online poker pro Nick Grippo, who bagged up 149,375. Ending with 124,975, Todd Terry also had a productive day. The event has other distinguished Floridians, including Jason Mercier, Matt Waxman, Rob Mizrachi, young Harrison Gimbel and Adam Levy. Taking advantage of 18, Gimbel is one of a handful of players and he ups being able to play on the property.

With $602,006 in live tournament earnings just four months into 2011, Dorfman has matched his $552,239 score, which still marks his career best.

The WPT Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown runs through May 2.

Tags: , ,


Vanessa Selbst, for the second year in a row, has won the NAPT Mohegan Sun Main Event. With $4,562,979 in live tournament winnings, she now lies in second spot on the ‘Woman’s All Time Money List’.

A prize pool of over $1.23 million was created by the $5,000 buy-in event. To all of the final poker tablists who were playing in front of the televised final table, the prize pool was still up for grabs.

On the other hand, from live tournaments since 2001, Michael Bernstein has made $318,652. Selbst recently on his Cardplayer blog post just accounted for the scathing write-up Bernstein gave Selbst.

Steve O’Dwyer got himself caught up in trouble against Selbst after only three hands had been played. From the big blind, he opened to 60,000 and Selbst three-bet to 215,000. The call was made by O’Dwyer and the flop came down Jc-9d-6s. The Kh turn saw Selbst bet 220,000 and O’Dwyer made the call and the two players checked. Selbst moved all-in and the river bricked. O‘Dwyer, crippling his stack in the process eventually folded, although he tanked for several minutes.

The televised final table was reduced from the field of 387. To the final hand that was dealt, Selbst’s experience and class shone through. She put Steve O’Dwyer to an early decision for all of his chips from the early stages.

In the all time money list, the win bumped Selbst up to third, ahead of Annette Obrestad and behind Annie Duke and Kathy Liebert. One would not bet against her with the WSOP right around the corner, thereby adding a second bracelet to her tournament haul in 2011.

Tags: , , ,


Russian Dmitry Gromov reached the final table and went strength to strength against other rivals to claim the WPT Vienna title. He is no stranger to the winner’s circle, even though the €447,840 first-place prize marked his largest career score. At the PokerStars Russian Poker Series Kiev Grand Final last December, he posted a first-place finish for $201,363. Last July, he won $316,759 at the 2010 Venetian Deep Stack Extravaganza III in Las Vegas. In career live tournament earnings, he now has well over $1 million.

Creating a €1,776,000 prizepool, WPT Vienna drew 555 Players, thereby shattering the previous record for entrants in a European WPT event set at WPT Amneville last November. The winner of this event is entitled to a nice bonus of € 447,840.

24-year-old Italian Alessio Isaia’s name was on the marquee, even though Gromov came into the final holding the chip lead. Last month, Isaia completed as a runner-up on the Malta leg of the PokerStars Italian Poker Tour and he had booked a win at WPT Venice for €380,000.

Gromov held the lead all the way through and Isaia could do no better than seventh place. In just five hands, Gromov beat fellow Russian Maksim Kolosov heads-up.

Gromov started the final table and he aimed to conclude it with all the chips. In the ultimate day, the leader became the winner and the top three players on the leader board would be the last three players standing. The third day of the WPT Vienna meeting also marked the elimination of all French players like Yohann comotyelavinia Aubé and Marc LocSta Inizan, who were still in the race. The former player finished at 13 and won € 15,500, while the latter player was eliminated from this poker tournament at the 30th rank.

The World Poker Tour now moves on to Bratislava. The main event begins at the Golden Vegas Casino.

Tags: , , ,