The Nightly Turbo: WSOP Circuit Schedule Announced, PokerStars Milestone, and More
We know your eyes and ears are on the 2011 World Series of Poker Main Event, so we won't take up too much of your time. You'll definitely want to keep reading because you'll learn more on the 2011-2012 WSOP Circuit schedule, which PokerStars milestone is coming up, and more.
In Case You Missed It
Wondering what the high-stakes online poker action has been like lately? You can find out in the Online Railbird Report.
Federated Sports + Gaming recently announced its ranking system for the top poker players in the world. Find out more about the Global Poker Index.
All the players in the 2011 World Series of Poker Main Event got to play together on Thursday for Day 3. Ben Lamb may have gone into the day as the chip leader, but he didn't come out of the day in that spot. Find out where he finished and more of the Day 3 action in our daily WSOP recap.
The 2011 World Series of Poker Main Event is in full swing and we got to thinking about a few things. Here are our five thoughts on the WSOP Main Event.
12 Rings in 12 Days
The 2011 World Series of Poker Main Event is still trucking along, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't start planning your Circuit schedule. The WSOP announced the the 2011-2012 WSOP Circuit schedule on Friday.
The Circuit kicks off in Bossier City, Louisiana, on Sept. 8. Each stop will begin on a Thursday and end on the second Saturday, giving players 12 days of play, unofficially making the motto of the Circuit - 12 Rings in 12 Days.
There are 16 stops on the 2011-2012 WSOP Circuit. The $1,600 Main Event will be played as a re-entry for the first time and will consist of two starting flights, a morning and evening flight. There are no $10,000 Regional Championships on this Circuit tour. The National Championship is on the schedule again this year, and the automatic bids will be given to the player with the most points at each stop and the Main Event winners. Also, the top 100 players from the WSOP's World Rankings will be able to buy into the National Championship for $10,000.
“We made great strides with the WSOP Circuit tour last year,” said WSOP Executive Director Ty Stewart. “But we also learned a lot. We’ve rid ourselves of the things that didn’t work and added several new exciting wrinkles that will pit the best American tournament grinders against top performing worldwide players in a culminating championship befitting the grandest stage the World Series of Poker can offer.”
Check out the press release and the entire Circuit schedule on WSOP.com.
On the Road to 100 Billion
In March, PokerStars dealt its 60 billionth hand. Four months later, the online poker giant is close to dealing its 65 billionth hand, and, of course, that's cause for a party. Beginning with hand 64.7 billion, all the way to 65 billion, each player dealt into every one-millionth hand will be awarded a prize.
For each of the milestone hands (there are 300 of them) players, if dealt in, will be awarded $50 plus $50 for every VPP they earned in the preceding 50 hands. The winner of the milestone hands will also have his or her prize money doubled.
As for the Mega Milestone hand (read: No. 65 billion), the calculation will be the same, just multiplied by 10. The winner gets their prize doubled but will be awarded an additional prize - $65,000. That's all?
Head on over to PokerStars.com to check out the real-time hand counter. It's forecasted that the 65 billionth hand will be dealt on Tuesday, July 25.
UKIPT Brighton
The PokerStars UK & Ireland Poker Tour Brighton kicked off on Thursday with Day 1a of play. Out of the 248 players who entered Day 1a of this UKIPT stop, 63 remained at the end of play. Chris O'Donnell, no not Robin, ended the day as the chip leader.
On Day 1b of the UKIPT Brighton Main Event, 353 players plopped down the £500+£60 buy-in for their shot at the title. Roberto Romanello, Toby Lewis, Jude Ainsworth, and Nick Wealthall were all part of the field on Friday.
If you want updates on the action, head on over to the PokerStars Blog.
Poker in the Park
The dates of Europe's largest poker festival, Poker in the Park, have been announced. It all kicks off on Friday, Sept. 2, at Hanover Square in London.
Last year, 20,000 players and enthusiasts joined the festivities. The festival is in its fifth year, and organizers are promising that the 2011 event will be "bigger and better than ever." There will be 13 tents set up to house plenty of lectures, activities and seminars, as well as live poker tournaments.
PokerInThePark.com has more.
Turning the Tables
Our hostesses call the clock on unsuspecting poker players all the time, but what happens if the tables are turned and the clock is called on them? Find out when Tony Hachem took over the mic and called the clock on Lynn Gilmartin.
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