Although the entire incident was caught on tape and broadcasted around the world through social media outlets like Twitter and YouTube, German police still have no leads and no suspects in the European Poker Tour (EPT) Berlin armed robbery.
According to the Berlin-based Berliner Zeitung newspaper, the suspects may have fled the scene in a swank black Mercedes. The Associated Press, a global media goliath, added that the crooks escaped through a nearby shopping mall before hopping into a getaway vehicle in a rare “Oceans 11”-like daytime casino heist. Meanwhile, as the story has gained attention around the world, the Toronto Star reported that the bandits looted EPT Berlin to the tune of $335,000. However, all prize money was ultimately paid out.
According to Bild.de, there are no new clues and no suspects in the case, which featured four gunmen assault the registration desk at EPT Berlin. No one was harmed during the incident, which marked one of the most bizarre series of events in modern tournament poker history. According to Berliner Zeitung, police in the German metropolis were busy examining every shred of evidence they could get their hands on, including footage from hotel surveillance cameras at the Grand Hyatt and a bevy of player and staff cell phone cameras.
Meanwhile, according to the same German news outlet, witnesses claimed that the gunmen threatened tournament staff with a hand grenade, although the PokerStars Blog reported that only pistols and a machete were present. Even claims of an inside job surfaced after The Local and the New York Times both reported that an accomplice inside of the Grand Hyatt might have tipped the assailants off as to the timing of the attack.
The German news media quoted a police spokesperson as saying that it was obvious from flyers and publicity material when the end of registration was and therefore an “inside job” may not be likely. The attack occurred at 2:15pm local time on Saturday as a roomful of poker players competed for a €1 million top prize in the EPT’s first visit to Berlin.
Meanwhile, Bild.de noted that a security guard who tackled one of the thieves was 6’8” tall and had a shoe size of 14. Tournament participant Frank Betsch told local media, “I could see everything very well since, at the time, I stood on the side of the room because I wanted to watch the ladies game that had just started. I have never seen such a crime scene. I heard a sound and thought, ‘That was a gunshot.’”
The Star revealed that German Police Chief Rainer Wendt chastised PokerStars, the tournament’s organizers, for not having enough security. Purportedly, its guards were unarmed and a bevy of cash was on-hand at the registration area.
A unique insight into the poker robbery came from 10-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner Doyle Brunson, who commented in a recent blog on DoylesRoom that he’s been through five heists during his lifetime: “The guys that robbed the EPT in Berlin made a nice score. They took 800,000 Euros at gunpoint. I’ve been there and done that 5 times in my life and believe me, it’s no fun. I’ll bet everybody that was there will remember it for the rest of their lives.”
American poker player Kevin “ImaLuckSac” MacPhee took down the EPT Berlin Main Event for €1 million. Then, MacPhee appeared in interviews on CBS’ “The Early Show,” BBC, and CNN. The burglary even received face time on ESPN’s original series “Around the Horn.” Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest on the EPT Berlin robbery.
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On Wednesday at 21:00 ET, the Mini version of the 15th Full Tilt Online Poker Series (FTOPS) will kick off. The schedule features 27 tournaments, culminating in a $55 No Limit Hold’em Main Event on March 21st.
The MiniFTOPS XV schedule mirrors the slate of events of FTOPS XV, but features tournaments with buy-ins that are one-tenth as pricey. The world’s second largest online poker site happily accepts customers from the United States and a flood of participants are expected. In the opening event of MiniFTOPS XIV, a parade of over 16,000 players turned out for a $22 No Limit Hold’em Six-Max tournament. Last time out, the Main Event field numbered 15,987.
The tournament series allows low-budget online poker players to compete in a wide variety of games including Hold’em, Omaha, HORSE, Seven-Game, Stud, and Razz. The priciest buy-in is $266 for the MiniFTOPS XV Two-Day Event, while several tournaments boast entry fees of less than $15. During MiniFTOPS XIV, a $13 No Limit Hold’em Knockout event generated a massive field of 22,240 players, the only tournament in FTOPS history to pass the 20,000-entrant mark.
Like FTOPS XV, MiniFTOPS XV tournaments will feature a Full Tilt guest host. Top female pro Jennifer Harman will serve as the face of the Main Event, while 2008 World Series of Poker (WSOP) November Nine member Scott Montgomery will host the Two-Day Event. Other hosts include CardRunners instructors Taylor Caby and Andrew Wiggins, Robert Williamson III, John “The Razor” Phan, and Portugal’s Joao Barbosa, who will take to the felts in Event #1.
All told, at least $6 million will be on the line. Let’s get down to business. Here’s the schedule for MiniFTOPS XV on Full Tilt Poker:
Wednesday, March 10th at 21:00 ET
Event 1: $22 No Limit Hold’em
$350,000 Guaranteed
Thursday, March 11th at 13:00 ET
Event 2: $26 Pot Limit Omaha High/Low Knockout
$75,000 Guaranteed
Thursday, March 11th at 21:00 ET
Event 3: $55 No Limit Hold’em 3X Shootout
$35,000 Guaranteed
Friday, March 12th at 13:00 ET
Event 4: $22 No Limit Hold’em Cubed
$300,000 Guaranteed
Friday, March 12th at 21:00 ET
Event 5: $22 Limit Hold’em Six-Max
$75,000 Guaranteed
Saturday, March 13th at 13:00 ET
Event 6: $55 Pot Limit Omaha Six-Max
$150,000 Guaranteed
Saturday, March 13th at 15:00 ET
Event 7: $11 No Limit Hold’em with Rebuys
$350,000 Guaranteed
Sunday, March 14th at 13:00 ET
Event 8: $13 No Limit Hold’em Knockout
$250,000 Guaranteed
Sunday, March 14th at 15:00 ET
Event 9: $55 No Limit Hold’em Heads-Up
$200,000 Guaranteed
Sunday, March 14th at 17:00 ET
Event 10: $33 No Limit Hold’em
$600,000 Guaranteed
Monday, March 15th at 13:00 ET
Event 11: $22 Omaha High/Low
$60,000 Guaranteed
Monday, March 15th at 21:00 ET
Event 12: $109 No Limit Hold’em
$400,000 Guaranteed
Tuesday, March 16th at 13:00 ET
Event 13: $33 No Limit Hold’em 4X Shootout Six-Max
$150,000 Guaranteed
Tuesday, March 16th at 21:00 ET
Event 14: $55 HORSE
$100,000 Guaranteed
Tuesday, March 16th at 21:00 ET
Event 15: $22 No Limit Hold’em Turbo
$200,000 Guaranteed
Wednesday, March 17th at 13:00 ET
Event 16: $22 Seven-Game
$50,000 Guaranteed
Wednesday, March 17th at 21:00 ET
Event 17: $33 No Limit Hold’em Six-Max with Rebuys
$350,000 Guaranteed
Thursday, March 18th at 13:00 ET
Event 18: $22 No Limit Hold’em Cashout
$60,000 Guaranteed
Thursday, March 18th at 21:00 ET
Event 19: $22 Stud
$40,000 Guaranteed
Friday, March 19th at 13:00 ET
Event 20: $22 No Limit Hold’em Six-Max
$200,000 Guaranteed
Friday, March 19th at 21:00 ET
Event 21: $33 Razz
$50,000 Guaranteed
Saturday, March 20th at 13:00 ET
Event 22: $266 No Limit Hold’em Ante from the Start Six-Max Two-Day Event
$600,000 Guaranteed
Saturday, March 20th at 15:00 ET
Event 23: $11 Pot Limit Omaha with Rebuys
$150,000 Guaranteed
Saturday, March 20th at 21:00 ET
Event 24: $53 No Limit Hold’em Super Turbo Six-Max
$75,000 Guaranteed
Sunday, March 21st at 13:00 ET
Event 25: $26 No Limit Hold’em Knockout Six-Max
$300,000 Guaranteed
Sunday, March 21st at 15:00 ET
Event 26: $22 Pot Limit Omaha Heads-Up
$40,000 Guaranteed
Sunday, March 21st at 17:00 ET
MiniFTOPS XV Main Event: $55 No Limit Hold’em
$800,000 Guaranteed
Visit Full Tilt Poker for details.
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The world of poker is dominated by men for the most part, but there are women who have made their mark on the felt. On many poker forums, there has been a debate as to who the “hottest” poker player in the game is – and that debate goes for the men in the game as well. A top men’s magazine, Maxim, has recently taken on the challenge of naming the 20 hottest women in poker, albeit with some liberties taken along the way.
Topping the list are two players who have earned their stripes on the tables and are sponsored poker players in their own right. UB.com’s Tiffany Michelle heads the list. She made her mark on the poker world in 2008 when she was the last woman standing in the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event. Since that time, she has continued to excel at the poker tables and has appeared on “The Amazing Race” with fellow poker pro Maria Ho. Other movie and television credits for Michelle include the movie “Semi Pro” with comedian Will Ferrell and the FX series “Nip/Tuck.”
Along with Michelle, poker professional Vanessa Rousso was included in the 20-woman lineup for “hottest woman in poker.” Rousso, who currently carries a sponsorship with website hosting company GoDaddy.com along with PokerStars, also appeared in last year’s Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue. Rousso is one of the preeminent women in the game today, with several six-figure cashes in her career that include a victory at last year’s European Poker Tour (EPT) Monte Carlo Grand Final High-Roller event and a runner-up finish to Huck Seed at the 2009 National Heads-Up Poker Championship. She recently cashed at the World Poker Tour’s (WPT) L.A. Poker Classic, finishing in 59th place.
Three other women have had or continue to have an intimate involvement with poker as well as maintaining an active career outside of the game. Top model Joanna Krupa is on the Maxim list, as she maintains her modeling career alongside hosting duties for the PokerStars North American Poker Tour (NAPT). Former Absolute Poker spokesperson and model Serinda Swan makes the list along with actress Shannon Elizabeth, who has held sponsorship logos with both Full Tilt Poker and DoylesRoom in her poker career.
For those who wonder where 2005 WSOP Women’s Champion Jennifer Tilly is on the Maxim list, she is included along with other poker playing actresses such as Playboy model Jenny McCarthy and former “That 70s Show” performer Laura Prepon. Maxim also puts former “Baywatch” actress Pamela Anderson on the list, the second oldest member of the “hottest women in poker” behind Tilly. Anderson once was the face of her own online poker room, PamelaPoker.com, and allegedly settled a poker debt by marrying her opponent, former Paris Hilton paramour Rick Salomon, in a marriage that was later annulled.
For those who remember the Bravo television show “Celebrity Poker Showdown,” many of its alumni appear on the Maxim list. Academy Award winner Mena Suvari, comedian Sarah Silverman, former “Beverly Hills 90210” actress Jennie Garth, “Austin Powers” star Heather Graham, “Party Of Five” actress Lacey Chabert, “The Office” star Jenna Fischer, and actress Rosario Dawson all make their mark on the Maxim hot list and continue to play in charity events across the country. Rounding out the “hottest women in poker” are Jennifer Love Hewitt, Traci Bingham, and Odette Yustman.
While it may not settle the arguments across the online forums, Maxim’s “Hottest Women In Poker” definitely adds fuel to the fire. Were there any ladies that the magazine missed on their list? Poker News Daily would like to know, so be sure to inform us of who Maxim should have featured on the list and who shouldn’t have been there by leaving a comment below.
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Tuesday, ESPN.com released the March version of “The Nuts,” its ranking of the top ten poker players in the world. The list does not simply rank the best living players, but rather aims to determine who is currently playing the best poker. All variations of poker are considered – live and online, tournaments and cash games. Poker News Daily’s own Dan Cypra is one of the members of the voting panel, along with ESPN.com writers Gary Wise, Andrew Feldman, and Poker News Daily Guest Columnist Bernard Lee, Bluff Magazine’s Editor-In-Chief Lance Bradley and Senior Writer Jessica Welman, PokerNews Editor-In-Chief Matthew Parvis, and tournament reporter Don Peters, and PokerRoad’s Court Harrington.
This is the fourth month for “The Nuts” and for the fourth month, the seemingly peerless Phil Ivey sits atop the rankings. He did not have any significant live poker tournament success in February, but his cash game prowess is still second to none. While the rankings are a measure of who is the best “right now,” the panel’s focus is not so narrow as to limit evaluation to just a single month. Ivey gets credit for his outstanding results in the months leading up to the most recent vote.
Jason Mercier, one of the best players that the general poker public may have never heard of, moved up one spot to number two. In February, the Floridian made the quarterfinals of the National Heads-Up Poker Championship and placed third in the WPT L.A. Poker Classic’s High-Roller event. When he found out that he had climbed to the second spot, Mercier was excited, telling ESPN.com, “It’s pretty cool [to be No. 2]. I think that I’ve reached as high as I can go. I don’t think I have any chance of beating out Ivey.”
The biggest riser among last month’s top ten was Tom “durrrr” Dwan, who was number eight in February and is now number three. Dwan doesn’t have any notches in his tournament belt recently, but he has been destroying the online cash games, as he usually does. He made $2.7 million in the month leading up to the current vote, much of it off Patrik Antonius in the Durrrr Challenge.
Speaking of Antonius, his poor cash results resulted in him dropping in the rankings from second to fifth.
New to “The Nuts” this month are Cole South and Scott Seiver. South has been tearing up cash games to the tune of $2.5 million in profit this year, while Seiver won the L.A. Poker Classic High-Roller event and placed fourth in the North American Poker Tour (NAPT) Venetian High-Roller Bounty Shootout.
Dropping from the rankings were Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier and Jeffrey Lisandro, who were ninth and tenth, respectively, in February.
ESPN.com “The Nuts” Poker Player Rankings – March 2010
- Phil Ivey
- Jason Mercier
- Tom “durrrr” Dwan
- Daniel Negreanu
- Patrik Antonius
- Yevgeniy “Jovial Gent” Timoshenko
- Daniel Alaei
- Eric “basebaldy” Baldwin
- Cole South
- Scott Seiver
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A German national residing in Naples, Florida was arrested last month for running online gambling payment processing businesses out of his home. According to the criminal complaint filed in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida, 29 year-old Michael Olaf Schuett “did knowingly conduct, control, manage, supervise, direct and own an unlicensed money transmitting business.”
In fact, Schuett owns hundreds of business, nine of which are tied to payment processing. Those nine are MCM Capital Management Corp, MI Global Inc., South Naples Escrow Co., Southwest Florida Payroll Co., Woodhouse Systems, Mathew’s Trade Corp., and Internet Payment Services Group Inc. Schuett would receive wire transfers from two companies – the British Bluetool Ltd. and the German International Payment Systems – and then send cashier’s checks, personal checks, or wires to customers located in the United States and Canada. While the exact composition of Schuett’s customer base is not exactly known, it is presumed that most, if not all, of his customers are online gamblers.
It was the suspicion of shipping companies and bank employees that eventually led to Schuett’s arrest. Examples of activities that raised red flags included:
- Schuett’s shipping of over 150 FedEx parcels from his home every week. FedEx employees opened some of the packages and discovered that each contained a check.
- Unusually high volume of wire transfers going in and out of Schuett’s bank accounts, all with overseas companies.
- Some bank customers who attempted to cash checks written from an MCM Capital account told bank officials, when asked, that the checks were proceeds from playing online poker.
- Schuett told employees at one bank he used, Shamrock Bank, that his new account was to assist German nationals in purchasing real estate in Florida. The account’s activity was not consistent with what would normally be associated with real estate transactions.
All told, Schuett filtered millions of dollars from online gambling companies through his companies and bank accounts to customers in North America. An example of the sheer dollar volume involved can be seen with his Bank of America accounts. Since November 1st, 2007, Schuett opened approximately 40 accounts at the large national bank and transferred approximately $70 million in and out of them to about 23,000 customers.
Schuett is specifically charged with violating United States Code Title 18, Section 1960, which in part states, “whoever knowingly conducts, controls, manages, supervises, directs, or owns all or part of an unlicensed money transmitting business, shall be fined in accordance with this title or imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both.”
He is currently being held without bond in Lee County jail. Judge Sheri Polster Chappell denied bond because she believed Schuett could be a flight risk, as his visa expires in April, he is a German citizen, and he has no employment in the United States. In addition, one of the few reasons that someone might stay in the country, a spouse, may not be significant in this case. Schuett has only been married to his wife, 28 year-old Jennifer Sherman, for one month and has only known her for nine months.
Naturally, concerns have been raised within the online poker community about what this means for players looking to receive funds from poker rooms. In the long-run, many speculate that there will be no negative effect. Other poker rooms have experienced troubles with their payment processors in the past, and while it does create payout delays in the short-term, they typically find other processors.
What could result is the notion that payment processors, which poker players imagine to be “legitimate” companies, could really just be individuals receiving money from poker rooms and mailing checks to players from their own residences.
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The annual UB.com Aruba Poker Classic will take a leave of absence in 2010, according to officials from the USA-facing online poker site. Instead, UB.com plans to increase its presence at other live events and expand its online tournament offering.
In 2009, Brandon “AreTheseUtz” Hall defeated a field of 475 players in the UB.com Aruba Poker Classic Main Event to collect a $753,000 first place prize. The $5,500 tournament’s prize pool swelled to well over $2 million and a throng of online poker players flocked to the Radisson Aruba Resort and Casino to partake in the annual pilgrimage. Now, the tournament will be put on the shelf for 2010.
In lieu of the annual gala in paradise, UB.com will focus its efforts on expanding its live and online tournament schedules. In the virtual world, a monthly $500,000 Guaranteed is in the works. As it stands now, UB.com and its sister site, Absolute Poker, hold a weekly $200,000 Guaranteed that regularly draws over 1,000 entrants. Last week, 2008 PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) winner Carter “ckingusc” King took down the contest and earned $48,000.
The Ultimate Bet Online Championship, or UBOC as it’s commonly referred to, will be expanded to run twice per year. It last appeared in January and featured two $1 million prize pool events, the first of which saw its purse grow to $1.5 million. When a second UBOC would occur is not yet clear. Full Tilt runs its Full Tilt Online Poker Series (FTOPS) four times per year, while PokerStars’ WCOOP and Spring Championship of Online Poker (SCOOP) take place in September and May, respectively. The $500,000 guaranteed UB.com tournament may ultimately grow to become a $1 million event.
Tokwiro COO Paul Leggett commented in a press release on Wednesday, “It is with great regret that we are announcing that the Aruba event will not run this year, but 2010 is going to be an exciting year for UB and its players. Over the last year, we’ve been redefining the UB brand in every way. We love the Aruba Poker Classic event, but we think we can do a lot more for our players by investing in new events and rewards.” Tokwiro is the parent company of UB.com and Absolute Poker. Both sites happily accept customers from the United States.
UB.com will also continue to qualify players for land-based tournaments on the World Poker Tour (WPT) as well as the World Series of Poker (WSOP), which kicks off in late May from the Rio in Las Vegas. In addition, “major WSOP incentives and additional loyalty benefits for top players” are being planned, according to the same press statement.
In 2002, Juha Helppi defeated Phil Gordon in the first ever running of the UB.com Aruba Poker Classic, which appeared as part of the WPT schedule during Season 1 in 2002. One year later, Erick Lindgren took down the $500,000 top prize in a final table that also featured Barry Shulman. During Season 3, Eric Brenes tangled with Layne Flack and came out on top for $1 million, with Mike Matusow and John Juanda also reaching the final table. In 2005, Freddy Deeb took down the Aruba Poker Classic title in the tournament’s final year as a stop on the WPT circuit.
The 2006 installment featured Cliff “JohnnyBax” Josephy battling heads-up against Devon Miller. The pro ultimately fell short and Miller banked $775,000. In 2007, Travis “TravestyFund” Rice emerged victorious, while Matt Brady took down the 2008 UB.com Aruba Poker Classic. Whether the tournament will reappear in 2011 remains to be seen.
Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest on this breaking story.
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A total of 196 players took to the felts in San Jose, California for Day 1B of the World Poker Tour’s (WPT) Bay 101 Shooting Star tournament. Eugene Katchalov came out on top after the second starting day, earning a $10,000 cash bonus.
Katchalov finished with 131,500 chips, which will be the third largest stack after the survivors of Day 1A and Day 1B are combined for Day 2. When the cards hit the air today in the West Coast casino, 126 players will be seated. Overall, the tournament drew 333 entrants, down 15% from last year’s tally of 391. In 2009, Kathy Liebert took second to Steve Brecher and heading into Day 2, another female leads the way, Vanna Tea.
Shooting Stars, who have $5,000 bounties on their heads, doubled up left and right to close play on Tuesday at Bay 101. Full Tilt Poker front man Howard Lederer was all-in with A-J of diamonds and up against pocket kings, but flopped one jack and turned trips to advance to Day 2. Lederer will have a stack of 20,600 chips when play resumes, the 109th largest tally.
Also doubling up late in the day was 2007 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event champion Jerry Yang, whose 74,300 chips make up the 27th largest stack. Yang is fresh off an Elite Eight appearance in the National Heads-Up Poker Championship, where he fell to eventual champion Annie Duke.
Not as fortunate was 2008 WSOP Europe Main Event winner John Juanda, whose pocket fours could not hold up against the A-K of Tyler Cornell. When the smoke cleared, Cornell made a Broadway straight to collect Juanda’s $5,000 bounty and autographed Shooting Star shirt.
Also falling short on Day 1B was Victory Poker pro Antonio Esfandiari, who was all-in pre-flop with a wired pair of nines against the pocket kings of Betfair pro Sorel “Imper1um” Mizzi and the A-3 of another player. The board ran out J-8-8-5-3, ultimately giving Mizzi a king-high flush, and Esfandiari was relegated to the rails. “The Magician” had tripled up earlier in the day with pocket kings against A-K and pocket nines. Meanwhile, Mizzi busted two players in the hand and owns the ninth largest chip stack entering Day 2.
UB.com pro and 11-time bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth was all-in on a flop of J-5-3 with two spades holding A-Q of spades for the nut flush draw and two overcards. His opponent held 4-5 for a pair. The turn came a queen, saving the day for “The Poker Brat,” and a harmless nine fell on the river. Hellmuth ended the day with a stack of 62,800 chips, the 42nd largest tally in the WPT tournament. His talented company at Table 22 on Wednesday will include Phil Laak, Faraz “The-Toilet” Jaka, Justin “Boosted J” Smith, and Corwin “mig.com” Mackey. Talk about a tough draw.
Here are the top 10 chip stacks in the WPT Bay 101 Shooting Star event as play enters Day 2:
1. Vanna Tea – 143,900
2. Greg “FBT” Mueller – 132,800
3. Eugene Katchalov – 131,500
4. Timothy McDermott – 118,100
5. Grantland Hillman – 115,100
6. David Sands – 106,900
7. Oddie Dardon – 105,500
8. Scotty Nguyen – 99,900
9. Sorel “Imper1um” Mizzi – 97,600
10. Yevgeniy “Jovial Gent” Timoshenko – 97,600
The winner of the event will take home an $878,000 grand prize, with the top 36 players finishing in the money. Here are the payouts for the six-handed feature table:
1st Place: $878,500
2nd Place: $521,200
3rd Place: $292,800
4th Place: $234,300
5th Place: $175,700
6th Place: $117,000
Other notable names appearing in the top 50 after two starting days include:
13. J.C. Tran – 93,100
15. Hasan Habib – 89,700
16. Nick Schulman – 88,100
18. Scott Montgomery – 84,800
19. Chris “Fox” Wallace – 84,100
26. “Miami” John Cernuto – 76,700
27. Jerry Yang – 74,300
30. Phil Laak – 72,700
35. Chau Giang – 68,500
41. Steve “gboro780” Gross – 64,200
42. Phil Hellmuth – 62,800
45. Matt “All In At 420” Stout – 61,000
47. Brandon Cantu – 58,100
The WPT Bay 101 Shooting Star tournament will crown a champion on Friday. Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest WPT results.
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The weekend robbery of the European Poker Tour (EPT) Berlin event has garnered headlines around the world. On Monday morning, the tournament’s champion, Kevin “ImaLuckSac” MacPhee, appeared on CBS’ “Early Show” to break down the heist.
In one of the most bizarre events ever to take place during a poker tournament, masked gunmen stormed the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Berlin, nabbing a portion of the EPT’s prize pool. According to a Monday update issued by the Associated Press, the four thieves are still on the run and police have “no clear leads.” The perpetrators robbed the poker tournament’s registration area just after 2:00pm local time on Saturday in a midday assault and, according to the news outlet, escaped with a “low six-digit figure” of cash into a nearby mall. No one was harmed.
MacPhee told the millions of “Early Show” viewers live from Berlin, “It was one of the craziest days that I’ve ever experienced. There was a lot of panic in the room that day and then we were asked to come back and play for €1 million. It was very unusual.” Video of the robbery aired concurrently with MacPhee’s interview. A few hours later, participants returned to the tournament room and resumed their pursuit for the €1 million top prize.
MacPhee was seated at the feature table with the scuffle began and recalled, “We weren’t really sure what was going on. I just saw a wave of people headed for the back exit. There was a lot of panic and the actual TV stage started to collapse. When that started to happen, all of the players got up out of their seats to see what was happening.” The commotion began out in the hallway and players made their way to safety in the tournament room, some seeking cover under tables.
The tournament’s eventual winner knew that someone with a gun was likely to blame for the near riot: “My first instinct was just to get down on the ground. I figured that only someone with a gun in the room could cause that kind of panic. The gunmen didn’t even enter the poker room. They stayed near the tournament registration area, which was where the cash was. Thankfully, they didn’t come into the poker room and make it worse than it already was.” The tournament drew nearly 500 players.
News of the rare casino heist has made waves across the world’s largest media outlets. Media outlets including the Sydney Morning Herald, Wall Street Journal, Huffington Post, and Toronto Star have all reported on the story, as have a variety of poker news outlets. According to The Local and reprinted in the New York Times, another assailant may be to blame: “Because the well-timed heist bore the signs of an amateur job, police told Berlin daily Berliner Zeitung that they now believe there was at least one other accomplice already inside the hotel who gave a signal to begin the raid.” Whether the accomplice worked for the Grand Hyatt Hotel remains to be seen.
Despite the financial loss, all players received their prize money and the tournament carried on to a conclusion. As for what MacPhee did to celebrate his rather eventful live win, the online poker player told “Early Show” viewers, “Sundays are our busiest day, so… I celebrated by playing more poker. I think I’ll get out in Berlin the next couple of nights and try to celebrate a little bit more.”
Check out the complete CBS News interview with Kevin “ImaLuckSac” MacPhee.
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Over the weekend, UB.com pro and Poker News Daily Guest Columnist Annie Duke became the first female winner ever of the National Heads-Up Poker Championship, which will air next month on NBC. Duke sat down to discuss her monumental win.
Poker News Daily: Your breakthrough match came against 2007 National Heads-Up Poker Championship winner Paul Wasicka, which featured you drawing out with A-10 against pocket aces and 8-5 against pocket jacks. Talk about the roller coaster of a match.
Annie Duke: I had Paul Wasicka ground down and then he doubled through me. We were about even in chips and then I was slightly behind before I won with A-10 against aces. I sucked out and made a Broadway straight and he was crippled. I was horrified when I won that hand. It was an epically long battle. He said that whichever way this goes, we could both sleep well. He was so gracious and it was an amazing match.
PND: In a Guest Column on Poker News Daily, you lamented that neither Erik Seidel nor you had much success in the invite-only tournament. How surreal was it to be playing against each other for the title?
Annie Duke: That was storybook. After I won my match against Wasicka and Erik won his match, we talked on the phone. I realized how close we were to playing each other in the finals. What an incredible feeling to know that you’re in the finals and whatever the result was, you’d be very happy. He said that this was the happiest he’s ever been coming in second and I’d have felt the same way. It was a very relaxing feeling and not the same as in the other matches. Erik Seidel might have the best poker mind out there.
PND: You drew 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event runner-up Darvin Moon in the second round. How is Moon’s game?
Annie Duke: Darvin Moon was really nice. He’s just a good guy and he was talking about how happy he was to be there and how he’s living the dream. It was really pleasant to play with him. He knows that he doesn’t have the game of a player like Huck Seed. I was happy to draw him, of course, but he wasn’t a pushover.
PND: You’re a former WSOP Tournament of Champions winner and have also captured a bracelet. Where does this rank among your various poker accomplishments?
Annie Duke: This is second to the Tournament of Champions. I’ve always ranked the Tournament of Champions above the bracelet and I would put this above the bracelet as well. It’s the timing. Given that I had just taken five months off, the timing was big. I feel like I’m standing with some pretty cool winners of this event, so I am pretty happy. I’m standing shoulder to shoulder with Huck Seed, Phil Hellmuth, Ted Forrest, Chris Ferguson, and Paul Wasicka. To have gotten to play Erik in the final was a really memorable experience.
In the Tournament of Champions, I was three-handed with my brother and Phil Hellmuth. Now, being able to play with one of my best friends and be among those winners is incredible. I think I needed the win and have been really focused since I got back into poker. I had a nice run at the L.A. Poker Classic leading up to this.
PND: In the L.A. Poker Classic High-Roller event, you were seated alongside Faraz “The-Toilet” Jaka. Tell us about his poker skill set.
Annie Duke: Playing heads-up against him helped me in the event I won. He’s very good at leveraging the chip stacks of his opponents. He’s good at changing up his play and I watched what he was doing. I learned a lot from my match with him.
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Two players on recent hot streaks are among the chip leaders after Day 1A of the World Poker Tour’s (WPT) Bay 101 Shooting Star tournament. A total of 17 bounties took to the field on Day 1A, with 25 more expected today.
Greg “FBT” Mueller won two bracelets during the 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP), coming out on top in the $10,000 World Championship of Limit Hold’em for $460,000 and a $1,500 Limit Hold’em Shootout for another $195,000. Moreover, he made a third final table, taking seventh place in the World Championship of Seven Card Stud for $53,000. All told, Mueller logged one of the most successful WSOP showings in history and is up to his winning ways once again in San Jose, California, the site of Bay 101.
Mueller sent Shooting Star and recent WPT Southern Poker Championship winner Hoyt Corkins out on Monday. The DoylesRoom pro was all-in before the flop with A-K, but Mueller, who is also a Shooting Star, picked up pocket aces. The board ran out Q-8-4-9-9 and Corkins signed over a commemorative shirt. Mueller also laid claim to the $5,000 cash bonus. The former hockey player has the second largest chip stack after Day 1A at 132,800, trailing only chip leader Vanna Tea’s 143,900.
Yevgeniy “Jovial Gent” Timoshenko is the reigning WPT Championship winner and also took down the 2009 PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) Main Event for $1.7 million. In 2008, Timoshenko found the winner’s circle of the Asian Poker Tour’s (APT) Macau Main Event for $500,000. Timoshenko, a Shooting Star, owned the fourth largest stack when play wrapped up for the night on Monday at 97,600. A total of 53 players remained of the 136 who entered.
Timoshenko dropped a portion of his stack late in the day. He led out for 6,900 into a pot of 10,000 on a board reading K-8-4-6-5. Team PokerStars Pro front man Daniel Negreanu made the call and turned over 5-4 of hearts for two pair. Timoshenko had K-J for top pair and was a victim of a less-than-stellar river card. The hand boosted Negreanu to 50,000 in chips, but he ended the day with just 19,600, the 48th largest stack.
The first Shooting Star to depart was T.J. Cloutier, who shoved on a flop of A-J-4 holding pocket queens. Wade Griffith held A-J in the hand for top two pair and Cloutier failed to improve on the turn or river. Griffith finished in 42nd place after Day 1A with a stack of 30,000 chips.
Besides Mueller, Timoshenko and Negreanu, the Shooting Stars who survived the day were Mike Matusow (39th place with 35,100), Freddy Deeb (41st place with 30,800), and Steve Brecher (51st place with 10,800). Here are the top 10 chip stacks after the first of two starting days at Bay 101:
1. Vanna Tea – 143,900
2. Greg Mueller – 132,800
3. Oddie Dardon – 105,500
4. Yevgeniy “Jovial Gent” Timoshenko – 97,600
5. Joseph Elpayaa – 87,300
6. Scott Montgomery – 84,800
7. Chris “Fox” Wallace – 84,100
8. Bruce Kramer – 81,200
9. Daniel LaFrance – 79,400
10. Tyson Marks – 74,000
When play wrapped up for the day, the action was in Level 9, where the blinds were 300-600 with an ante of 75. No Shooting Star has ever won Bay 101 since it became part of the WPT in 2004.
As an added bonus, Tea pocketed a $10,000 cash prize for leading the pack after Day 1A; the leader after Day 1B will also collect $10,000. The cards hit the air at 10:45am PT this morning.
Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest WPT results.
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