The Nightly Turbo: Team PokerStars Pro Cuts, Online Poker Traffic Numbers, and More
Nick Diaz was slated to fight Georges St. Pierre in October but after not appearing at the press conference held in Las Vegas on Wednesday, he might just suffer the same fate that three PokerStars sponsored players did. We've learned that the Team PokerStars Pro roster has gotten a little lighter. We'll tell you who's no longer wearing the red spade, what the online poker traffic numbers are looking like, and more in this edition of the Nightly Turbo.
In Case You Missed It
On Tuesday, the Epic Poker League Main Event #2 concluded with 51 players remaining of the 96 who entered. Jamie Kaplan received his seat in the EPL Main Event through a twist of fate and rode that luck to the top of the chip counts on Day 1.
The World Poker Tour Grand Prix de Paris held Day 1b of the €7,500 buy-in Main Event on Tuesday. Topping the field on Day 1b was Guillame Darcourt.
In the latest PokerNews Podcast, Rich Ryan, Donnie Peters and Elaine Chaivarlis discuss the top poker headlines of the week.Tony Dunst then joins the program to discuss the World Poker Tour and more.
On Day 3 of the PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker, two champions were crowned. Who walked away with WCOOP glory and which players are on to Day 2 of Event #9? Find out in our daily WCOOP recap.
Did you miss ESPN's coverage of the World Series of Poker and your DVR was full of Real Housewives episodes so it didn't record? Bummer. Lucky for you, that didn't happen to us and we can bring you this recap of the action.
The Culinary Union has a beef with the UFC. We'll tell you what's up with that, which casino in downtown Las Vegas reopened and more in the latest edition of Inside Gaming.
We know how taxing the grind of the live tournament circuit can be. In our most recent Stay Stacked series, we spoke with Jesse McKenzie to find out how he stays focused and healthy on the road.
Not on the Team
We don't check the Team PokerStars Pro roster every day, and we're sure you don't either, but a quick look today will show you that a few players are missing.
It seems that Dennis Phillips, Tom McEvoy, and Bill Chen are no longer on the Team PokerStars Pro roster — or there's a pretty big computer glitch going on.
We're not going to speculate on who's decision it was, or why the three players are no longer on the roster. This was just an observation, and now we're passing along the information.
There has been no comment has been made (that we're aware of) from either of the players — or PokerStars.
Numbers, Numbers, Numbers
Another week has gone by, so we're bringing you a look at the latest online poker traffic numbers from PokerScout. The number wizards at PokerScout reported that overall traffic saw a 0.6 percent decrease for the week of Aug. 29.
PokerStars may have a stranglehold on the top spot of the traffic report, but the site saw a decrease in traffic for the same week last year. Traffic for the online poker giant fell 2.4 percent, after a gain of 1.8 percent in the same week last year, according to PokerScout.
The Merge Gaming Network has been knocked out of the top 10 with a 5 percent traffic decrease. PokerScout reports that with Merge being out of the top 10, this is only the second time in online poker history that the list of top 10 sites has not included a U.S.-facing site.
Merge may be out of the top 10 in the latest reports, but year-over-year the site has seen a 62 percent increase in traffic. Bodog (up 55 percent), 888poker (up 124 percent) and the iPoker Network (up 22 percent) have all seen increases in their year-over-year traffic. As a whole however, online poker traffic has decreased 26 percent year-over-year.
PokerScout.com has the recent online traffic numbers, as well as an updated look at current numbers.
BPA Results
The British Poker Awards were held over the weekend, and we're sure you were wondering which one of your favorites walked away with awards. Jake Cody won both awards he was nominated for and was the only multiple-award winner. And even though these were the British Poker Awards, Jason Mercier managed to walk away with a win, as well. #whenwillitend
Best International Player: Jason Mercier
Best Tournament Player: Jake Cody
Best Cash Player: Sam Trickett
Best Mixed Game Player: Richard Ashby
Best Pot-Limit Omaha Player: JP Kelly
Best Online Player: Chris Moorman
Best Poker Forum: TwoPlusTwo
Best Blogger: Neil Channing's Blackbelt Poker Blog
Best Social Media User: Vicky Coren
Best Poker League: Champions Poker League
Poker Personality of the Year: Kara Scott
Outstanding Contribution to Poker: John Duthie
Best Breakout Player: Matt Perrins
Lifetime Achievement Award: Roy Houghton
Player of the Year: Jake Cody
Read more at UK.PokerNews.com.
Third Annual Queen City Shootout
If you're in Charlotte, North Carolina, in October, you may not want to miss this charity poker event. The Third Annual Queen City Shootout will be held at Whisky River on Oct. 12. Wondering what Whisky River is? We were too. It's a bar owned by NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. that mixes "two ounces of rock and roll, an ounce of country, and a splash of southern hospitality."
The Queen City Shootout charity poker tournament will benefit the Juvenile Diabetes Research Fund. On top of the charity poker tournament, a live auction will be held to benefit the Alexander Youth Network, an organization that "provides quality professional treatment to children with serious emotional behavioral challenges."
For those who wish to attend, individual and spectator tickets go on sale Sept. 12. This could be your shot to not only help children in need, but to rub elbows with NFL players and NASCAR drivers and win a seat to the 2012 World Series of Poker Main Event.
To find out more, check out QueenCityShootout.com.
The Future of Moneybookers
We know EPT London isn't until the end of the month, but we don't like to wait until the last minute to make plans and we don't want you to either. Last month we told you that Skrill, the new name of Moneybookers, became an official sponsor of the PokerStars European Poker Tour. While in Barcelona, Kristy Arnett caught up with Skrill's spokespersons shown here to get the scoop on the company, the last-longer bets, and what to expect from Skrill at EPT London.
Follow us on Twitter for up-to-the-minute news.
