WSOP 2010: The First Week – Rule Britannia

It’s been a fascinating week of poker at the 2010 WSOP in Las Vegas. We’ve had scandal in the form of chip stealing and, ultimately, a lifetime ban. We’ve seen the big names go deep in most events too. However, if the opening week of the “big dance” belonged to anybody it was the British.

UK players had a fine 2009 with dozens of cashes and bracelets galore, but it looks like 2010 could eclipse that as the British invasion of Las Vegas pays dividends once again.

Most recently, James “Flushy” Dempsey picked up the $1,500 Pot Limit Hold’em bracelet. The Brighton based pro’ picked up $197,470 for his efforts.

WSOP Update: Mizrachi Again? The Grinder Leads $10k 7-Card-Stud

Hot on the heels of his $50,000 Players Championship victory, Michael Mizrachi is perfectly positioned to pick up his second bracelet of the 2010 WSOP in the $10,000 7 Card Stud event.

Mizrachi, known as “The Grinder”, is chip leading the tournament into Day 2. In his current form you wouldn’t bet against him claiming his second braceket within a week but in close pursuit is Players Championship runner up Vladimir Schmelev. Schmelev, interestingly, is second in the chip counts and should these two heavyweights make the heads up stages again we could be set for a fascinating tussle.

Michael Chow Wins WSOP $1,500 Omaha eight-or-better

The WSOP is in full swing right now and another side event has just concluded. The $1,500 Omaha Eight-or-Better tournament attract a good field of Omaha specialists but none could match the eventual winner Michael Chow.

Chow claimed the bracelet after beating Dan Heimiller in an epic heads up struggle which lasted over three hours. The victory earned Chow a $237,463 pay day and the coveted WSOP bracelet.

818 players boosted the prize pool for this three day event to over $1 million. Several recognisable names cashed including; Andy Black, Chip Jett and Todd Brunson.

WSOP $50,000 Players Championship: Michael Mizrachi Leads after Day 3

Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi is currently chip leader with an impressive 1.48 million in chips going into Day 4 of the Player’s Championship at the 2010 World Series of Poker. There are just 21 players left in the event which continues tomorrow at the Rio Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. Vladimir Schmelev isn’t far behind Mizrachi taking 1.43 million chips into the next day of the event.

Notables such as Phil Ivey, Doyle Brunson, Barry Greenstein, Scotty Nguyen, Scott Clements, Scott Siever, Jeffrey Lisandro and the defending HORSE champion David Bach were eliminated during the six levels of poker played during Day 3 of the event.

Hoai Pham becomes the first WSOP Bracelet Winner of 2010

Hoai Pham, a Poker Dealer from San Diego, has become the first WSOP bracelet winner this year. The 43 year old Villiage Club Casino employee won the $500 No-Limit Hold’em Casino Employees Championship (Event #1) on Sunday and took home $71,424 for his victory. He outlasted a field of 721 runners in the event which was offering a total prize pool of $324,450

During the final hand of the heads-up stage Pham looked down to find pocket Aces. When a flop of Q-7-2 came down he moved all-in and was soon called by his heads-up opponent A.J Vea who showed pocket fours. A 5 on the turn and a 6 on the river didn’t help Vea giving Pham the winning hand.

Brunson’s Beer Pong Starts Today

The serious business of poker at the WSOP gets underway in a few days time but, perhaps unsurprisingly, not everything that happens in Las Vegas is of a serious nature. Over at Hogs and Heifers, at 201 North Third Street in Las Vegas, the Doyle Brunson sponsored “Brunson Beer Pong” gets started later today.

Some of the top names in poker are expected to turn up (and probably make fools of themselves) to the old frat party game favourite.

If you haven’t played Beer Pong before it involves tossing ping pong balls into plastic cups which are half filled with an alcoholic beverage (usually beer).

PokerStars Baltic Festival back in Tallinn

The PokerStars Baltic Festival heads back to Estonia this June as the luxurious Swissôtel in Tallinn plays host to the popular event between June 16-20.

Last October, 307 players made their way to Tallinn for a shot at the big prize. It was Britain’s Thomas Partridge (pictured) who came out on top for thed €75,000 first place prize. Despite the WSOP running during this year’s event, organisers are hopeful of an equally big turnout.

This year’s PokerStars Baltic Festival will cost a buy-in of €1,500. That is up from €1,100 from last year as PokerStars look to boost the overall prize pool.

Personalised Bracelets to be awarded to WSOP winners

For the first time ever, the World Series of Poker (WSOP) will be awarding unique personalised bracelets to the winner of each of the 57 official WSOP tournaments to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the WSOP.

On Tilt Designs Pty. Ltd will be creating branded apparel, headwear and accessories to cover players from “head to wrist”. The centrepiece of marketing the collection is the sponsorship of WSOP bracelets for the Las Vegas and European events, for which On Tilt selected Master Artisan and jewellery designer Steve Soffa.

“It’s a tremendous honor to be tasked with creating the foremost trophy for poker players worldwide,” said Soffa.

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