The Nightly Turbo: Negreanu on Lederer's Return, Full Tilt's $250K Giveaway, and More
On Tuesday, Howard Lederer played in his first tournament since Black Friday. What did Daniel Negreanu have to say about Lederer's return? We're bringing you that, plus a major promotion for Full Tilt Poker's relaunch, in this edition of the Nightly Turbo.
In Case You Missed It
The 2012 World Series of Poker was filled with exciting and unusual scenarios. Rich Ryan breaks down the top 10 moments from poker's biggest event.
The October Nine is right around the corner. What has Russell Thomas done to prepare for the biggest final table of his life? Find out in his interview with Chad Holloway.
Two gaming superpowers have joined forces to offer online poker in the U.K. Find out more about the deal between Zynga and bwin.party here at PokerNews.com.
Did you miss ESPN's coverage of the World Series of Poker on Tuesday night? Get caught up in our weekly recap.
Dan Smith is winning nearly everything he plays in 2012. Rich Ryan discusses that topic and more in his latest Five Thoughts piece.
On Wednesday, the sports book director for Cantor Gaming was arrested in Las Vegas. Read the full story here at PokerNews.
Negreanu on Lederer
Even though the $10,000 buy-in Festa al Lago event at the Bellagio isn't the high-profile tournament it once was with the World Poker Tour, it created quite a buzz on social media networks Tuesday evening. That's because former Full Tilt Poker exec Howard Lederer bought into the event and played his first tournament since Black Friday.
As PokerNews' Rich Ryan explained in his Five Thoughts piece on Wednesday, Lederer was heckled throughout the day at Bellagio and eventually called it quits after blowing through two buy-ins for $20,000. Lederer is facing a civil suit from the Department of Justice and could be on the hook for $42 million in illegal distributions he received as an owner of the online poker site. Meanwhile, Full Tilt's U.S. customers are still uncertain about when — or if-- they'll ever recoup their funds.
Daniel Negreanu has been one of Lederer's biggest nemeses since the whole debacle at Full Tilt Poker unfolded and voiced his opinion Wednesday about Lederer's return to the tables. In his blog at Full Contact Poker, Negreanu said he wasn't surprised to see Lederer rejoin the "Big Game" at Bellagio with his friends this month, but he was "shocked" to learn that Lederer played a tournament with people that detest him.
"I have yet to sit down in a game where Howard was there, and I've thought about what I would do if he did choose to play in a game I was in," Negreanu wrote. "There are a lot of variables to think about. First of all, the reason Howard feels comfortable playing there is because he is amongst friends who support him: Doyle Brunson, Eli Elezra, Huck Seed, and David Grey. This is the one place in the world where Howard can fit in at a poker table, order wine, drink, gamble, and laugh it up while players outside the glass look in ... Still without their money."
You can find Negreanu's full blog at FullContactPoker.com.
Deal Me In
We're less than two weeks away from the relaunch of Full Tilt Poker. On Nov. 6, 2012, non-U.S. players will again have access to more than $184 million in funds, and the once popular online poker room will reopen for business.
To help build the excitement around the return, FTP has announced a “Deal Me In” promotion which will see $250,000 given away in a series of freerolls from Nov. 6 through 11. The prize pools will increase in size on a daily basis, with $10,000 to be won in each of the ten tournaments scheduled for Sunday, Nov. 11.
In addition to the freerolls, each real-money player will be offered Full Tilt Poker’s "Deal Me In Bonus" package, which includes a cash bonus of at least $200 and a free Rush Poker Ring Game Ticket. New players will be extended their bonus offer, in addition to the First Deposit Welcome Package, once they make a deposit and begin playing real-money games.
The Deal Me In promotion will also feature Happy Hour Week, during which double Full Tilt Points will be available in select games around the clock. Players can then turn their Full Tilt Points into real-money prizes by purchasing discounted Ring Game Tickets and Tournament Tickets from the Full Tilt Store.
Full Tilt Poker recently ramped up its marketing efforts by signing Gus Hansen, Tom Dwan and Viktor Blom to its team of sponsored pros called "The Professionals." The site is also bringing back the Full Tilt Online Poker Series (FTOPS) in December. We expect many more announcements leading up to the relaunch date next month.
For more information about the site, check out the TwoPlusTwo thread created by FTP poker room manager Shyam Markus.
All-Star Showdown
On Wednesday, PokerStars unveiled a new high-stakes competition that will involve some of the toughest online cash game players in the world.
From Oct. 27 through Nov. 4, eight players will put $100,000 on the line to play in a heads-up single elimination tournament at PokerStars. Matches will be played simultaneously over four heads-up tables and won't end until someone goes broke on all four tables. The winner will pocket more than $500,000.
PokerStars is calling the competition the All-Star Showdown, a fitting name considering the level of talent already committed. Team PokerStars Online member Isaac Haxton will be joined by Phil "mrSweets28" Galfond, Alexander "Sussie Smith" Roumeliotis, Alexander "Kanu7" Millar, Benjamin "Sauce123"Sulsky, and Tobias "KTPOKP" Kuder, as well as two players to be named later.
“I’m excited to start my tenure with Team PokerStars with the chance to win a big title and a lot of money in my favorite form of poker," said Haxton. "There are no titles or champions in heads-up cash games, just winners and losers. This tournament will change that by crowning the first All-Star Showdown champion.”
For more information, visit the story here at PokerNews.com.
Discount!
If you've considered making the switch from Hold'em Manager to the new Poker Tracker 4 in recent weeks, now may be the time. From today until Oct. 28, Holdem Manager and Holdem Manager 2 users can take advantage of a special offer to switch to the highly acclaimed PokerTracker 4 at a 50 percent discount off the normal retail price.
The new and improved PokerTracker 4 delivers the opportunity to attain an extra edge over opponents, as users have more information and greater resources at their fingertips. The built-in Heads-Up Display (HUD) makes playing multiple tables much easier by displaying statistics gathered in-game with your opponents at the poker table for analysis and optimal counter-strategy.
For the full terms of the promotion, visit PokerTracker.com.
Global Poker Index Player of the Year
The Global Poker Index Player of the Year standings were released on Wednesday with Dan Smith leading the way for the ninth consecutive week.
Smith didn't extend lead since last week but did manage to pad his bankroll by nearly $220,000 with a victory in the PokerStars Sunday Million. While his online exploits don't count toward his GPI total, the nine final tables and six victories on the live circuit may be enough to secure the Player of the Year honor. Smith has more than $3.6 million in cashes around the globe this year.
Daniel Negreanu re-entered the top 10 this week, climbing three spots to No. 8. Negreanu recently finished third in a $5,000 preliminary event at the Festa al Lago tournament series in Las Vegas, collecting $38,679. The result pushed "Kid Poker" past fellow Team PokerStars Pros Jason Mercier and Bertrand Grospellier, and removed Joseph Cheong from the top 10.
Here's a look at the Top 10 of the Global Poker Index Player of the Year standings:
| Place | Player | Total Score | Change in Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dan Smith | 1098.79 | -- |
| 2 | Kyle Julius | 906.02 | -- |
| 3 | Marvin Rettenmaier | 891.34 | -- |
| 4 | Phil Hellmuth | 846.83 | -- |
| 5 | Andrew Lichtenberger | 819.75 | -- |
| 6 | Justin Bonomo | 798.33 | -- |
| 7 | David Baker | 790.71 | -- |
| 8 | Daniel Negreanu | 768.40 | +3 |
| 9 | Jason Mercier | 766.71 | -1 |
| 10 | Bertrand Grospellier | 752.53 | -- |
The Global Poker Index Player of the Year, presented by PokerNews, honors the player who has the strongest performance in live tournaments during the calendar year, according to the USA Today Global Poker Index point system.
For the full GPI Player of the Year standings, head on over to GlobalPokerIndex.com.
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