PlayFish Does it Again

Facebook is one of the biggest companies that make flash games for Facebook. Its state of the art games have arguably the best graphics compared to all other games in the said social networking site, and they usually have a lot more features as well as regular updates. It’s really no wonder that it has millions of users, a large portion of which even spend real money on the seemingly simple but secretly addictive flash games. In fact, PlayFish got so big that it was just recently bought by EA Games for a whopping $400 million – that’s pretty impressive for a company that makes Flash Games. However, PlayFish is not without a rival. Zynga, another company that EA was considering for purchase, is PlayFish’s top competition when it comes to making games for Facebook. Zynga was first to create a farming game, and up until now, Zynga’s Farmville is more popular than PlayFish’s Country Story. Zynga was also first to create a poker game for Facebook, namely Texas Hold’em Poker. This game is highly popular, having amassed millions of users worldwide. Not one to be left in the dust, PlayFish answered with its own new poker game, Poker Rivals.

Playing Poker Rivals

As far as poker games go, Poker Rivals is already pretty impressive. The version of poker being played is, of course, the immensely popular Texas Hold’em. New players won’t have to worry, as the tutorial explains everything a beginner really needs to know.

However, Zynga’s Texas Hold’em has an edge because it had a head start in gathering a following. But Poker Rivals has a definite edge when it comes to style and graphics. Following PlayFish’s tradition of allowing its users to create very nice avatars, Poker Rivals too allows the players to create their own, along with some spiffy customizations like shirts, hats, hair, skin, and setting. You can even make your character wear a Chicken Costume if you so desire. Furthermore, the characters are animated. You can make your character look bored, you can make it look anxious, and you can make it bang the table. What’s more, you can buy drinks for other people’s characters (and see them drink, for that matter). And, with the quintessential chat box, it’s quite easy to make new friends. The graphics are simply gorgeous, especially the game’s rendition of the felt. All in all, Poker Rivals is a pretty entertaining game that promises hours of poker fun.

This post is from Complete Poker Rules. For more information on the Rules of Poker, Strategy Tips, and Poker Hand Analysis then be sure to visit us!

PlayFish’s “Poker Rivals” Invades Facebook

POKERprimaDIVAS on Winning at Love, Life, and Career

If you’re wondering exactly how anyone could come up with this connection between life and poker, then you should perhaps just listen to the life story of Leikind herself. Leikind was a very successful marketing executive who spent 15 years weaving in and out of the corporate web. When she decided to take a hiatus from the busy life of an executive, she decided to rediscover poker, a game she had learned and love when she was a teenager. The more she played the game, the more she realized that there are huge connections to be made between the game and life, particularly on the aspect of career. Realizing that this could potentially help women everywhere to advance in their own careers, she founded POKERprimaDIVAS, a company that specializes on teaching women to apply “poker strategies” in their careers. Seeking to widen her scope, she wrote the book, PokerWoman.

We’ve been Playing Poker our Whole Lives

PokerWoman, written by Ellen Leikind, is a book that teaches women to use various “poker strategies” in real life situations. Leikind’s philosophy hinges on the idea that there are big similarities between the game of poker and the game of life. This book encourages women to overcome any fears they may have and dispel any doubts, to find their own voices and learn to speak out, to figure out exactly what it is they want out of the game, and finally, to take their rightful places at the “felt”. To do this, women must employ the same strategies they use in order to play and win at poker. One example is “learning when to raise the stakes”. In life, you will have to know when you have the upper hand and get the best out of it. It also teaches women on the value of being “aggressive” and teaches them skills on how to “choose the right game”. The book also goes into much detail about assessing risks and realizing exactly how to use this information. Furthermore, the book uses the personal stories of several successful women to back up its point. It’s a great read that’s incredibly interesting and informative, a worthy addition to any shelf.

This post is from Complete Poker Rules. For more information on the Rules of Poker, Strategy Tips, and Poker Hand Analysis then be sure to visit us!

PokerWoman: Applying the Strategies of Poker to Real Life

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The Older Generation Rules this One

With the growing trend of poker tournaments being won by the younger members of the poker world, it was truly a wonder when it was Antonio Matias, age 54, who won the EPT Vilamoura, besting a field that contained some of the best poker players in the world. Following him closely as the runner up was Pierre Neuville, a 67-year old retired businessman from belgium who has just earned the record of being the oldest finalist in the entire EPT history.

But it was not only the wise old businessmen who ruled this tournament, as Jeff Sarwer, chess expert, made it safely into the third spot. This is his second deep run in the EPT, as he just came back from a 10th place finish in the EPT Warsaw held last month.

The three of them were able to best a field of 322 players, all of whom paid a nifty €5,300 to enter the main event – except, of course, for the 69 who were lucky enough to win their seats online. All in all, the prize pool was a very impressive €4,561,700 — €404,893 of which was shifted onto the new title holder, Antonio Matias.

This One’s for Portugal

When asked about his victory, Matias answered that he likes to think of himself as a “citizen of the world” but that it was very satisfying for him to win an EPT in his home country. Indeed, the whole of Portugal is cheering him on for his spectacular win – a win made even more spectacular by the fact that it was a star-studded field that he was able to beat. Even more impressive, though, was the fact that Antonio was not at all intimidated by the competition. He says that he plays with a lot of very good players in the cash games and that he merely decided to play the way he usually played. It was when he got the chip lead that he really set his mind on the title and on the grand prize.

This post is from Complete Poker Rules. For more information on the Rules of Poker, Strategy Tips, and Poker Hand Analysis then be sure to visit us!

Antonio Matias Wins the EPT Vilamoura

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The Young Millionaire

Deeb got his claim to fame when he emerged in the poker scene as a very young poker pro who specialized in playing multiple tables at once. He started out with a mere $30 deposit and turned it into a nice $33,000 in just a few weeks. In a few months, that amount had ballooned into millions. And by then, everyone knew “shaundeeb” in pokerstars and “tedsfishfry” in Full Tilt Poker. He also gained fame by playing about 20 tournaments per day, sometimes reaching even 30. He was a phenomenon, a true legend in the making.

Just recently, though, things began to change.

“Burn Out”

It’s no secret that Shaun Deeb has been nursing a bruised ego and an even more bruised bankroll after the not-so-stellar run he has been having. That is why, to those who know him and have played against him, his decision came as no surprise. To the rest of the poker world, though, Shaun’s decision was something of a shocker. When asked about his decision, Deeb said that he was “burntout” and that he hates the tournaments and is done with them. The depression was practically palpable when he said, “I can’t win live, everyone was always right. I can’t win online. I just ran good. Everyone was always right. I’m gunna take the rest of year off hopefully and go do something else yah. Poker was good for a while but **** I hate what I’ve become.” By the sound of things, the game just ran sour for the young pro. He clarified, though, that it was not poker per se that he was quitting, just tournaments.

Indeed, Deeb might have left the circuit, but he did not leave without leaving a bit of advice. He shared that doing what he did required lots of practice. New players should not try to jump from three tables to thirty tables at once.

That said, what we should all do now is to wish Shaun Deeb luck on his endeavors outside the world of poker.

This post is from Complete Poker Rules. For more information on the Rules of Poker, Strategy Tips, and Poker Hand Analysis then be sure to visit us!

A Sad Goodbye to Deeb

Marcello “luckexpress” Marigliano

The first challenger was Marcello “luckexpress” Marigliano, a sports bettor from Italy. Their 12-hour match was highly aggressive, with both players making outrageous bets at one point and another. The audience was of the opinion that one of the two players would lose all their chips by the end of the game at the rate they were playing. And it was anyone’s guess as to who the winner would be, as Marcello could obviously hold his own against Tom Dwan. Tom Dwan was also fighting back, showing everyone that extraordinary talent he’s known for. And in fact, Tom Dwan seemed to have the advantage over his opponent for a while. But in the end, the unexpected happened. With just an hour left on the clock, Marcello pulled his wits together and fought back. It was this last hour that decided the match, and Marcello won by a horsehair, taking home a meager $22,500 profit.

Ilari “Ziigmund” Sahamies

Fresh from a loss, Tom Dwan had to face a fellow PLO expert, Ilari “Ziigmund” Sahamies. Their session, too, lasted for 12 grueling hours. It was a tough game, with both players hell bent on winning. There were several large pots which made their game much more exciting. Like round 1, round 2 was to be anyone’s game. But at the last half hour, Sahamies began making some very bad calls, allowing Dwan to get a firm footing on the victory. At the end, Dwan took home $68,000, making him the winner of Round 2. And at that, the pressure was certainly on, as the last round would determine if Dwan would win in his own challenge.

Sammy “Any Two” George

The last round was epic – as the audience will attest to. There was a flurry of raising and calling, and there were a couple of very large pots. Sammy “Any Two” George played valiantly. But Tom Dwan was truly in his element. At the very end, Tom Dwan had a whopping 1 million dollars in chips in front of him, his opponent zero. It was a truly explosive finish for the 1 million dollar challenge, with Tom Dwan as the ultimate victor.

This post is from Complete Poker Rules. For more information on the Rules of Poker, Strategy Tips, and Poker Hand Analysis then be sure to visit us!

Full Tilt Million Dollar Challenge: The Conclusion

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Isildur1’s Outrageous Bets

Just recently, Isildur1 delivered a sound beating to the bank account of Tom “Durrrr” Dwan, costing the latter close to $3 million dollars. It was in these recent sessions with Dwan that the third largest pot in online poker was won by the mysterious dark horse, Isildur1. Dwan, despite his famed prowess at the game, failed to retaliate. Antonius, however, was like an avenging angel for his new Full Tilt Teammate with this most recent win. Effectively earning a place in the record books for winning the largest pot in online poker – a massive $878,958.50 – Antonius managed to cut the enigmatic Isildur1 down to size. They were playing four $500/$1000 heads-up deep pot-limit Omaha at a time – very, very high stakes. Almost all of their bets reached stunning six-figures. Both parties started out with approximately 500,000 each. The most outrageous pot that occurred, however, was when, after a flurry of hands and a series of checks, Antonius pulled an all-in with his $415,479.50. You can probably imagine how intimidating an all-in move this humongous would be. But, to Isildur1, the decision only warranted a slight pause before he finally made the call, giving birth to the monster $878,958.50 pot. On a board of 5h-7h-Qs-Ad, Isildur1 had As-Ks-Qd-10h while Antonius had Ah-Qc-9s-6h. The world stood still as the two players waited for the river. It could go either way. With any card with from the suit of hearts, Antonius could get a heart flush. And with an 8 of any suit, he could go for a straight. Isildur1, however, only needed any king or jack that wasn’t of the suit of hearts. Then, when the turn was revealed, and an 8d came out, the monster pot was immediately shifted to Antonius.

Former Record Eclipsed

Tom Dwan’s records, $702,925 for online pot-limit Omaha with Ilari Sahamies and $723,938 with Di “Urindanger” Dang, were immediately eclipsed by the gigantic $878,958.50 pot. This time, Antonius and Isildur1 would be the new record holders for both categories.

This post is from Complete Poker Rules. For more information on the Rules of Poker, Strategy Tips, and Poker Hand Analysis then be sure to visit us!

Largest Pot in Online Poker Shipped to Antonius

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Lights, Camera, Action

The plot of “Shark out of Water” is one that hits too close to home. Gambling addiction is something that several poker players struggle with. And the essence of this struggle was captured brilliantly by the movie. The theme revolves around the question, “is skill enough when your luck runs dry?”. It explores the uncontrollable aspect of poker, and that is luck. But more importantly, it explores the effect of the game on players in a no holds barred manner, a true tell-all film that most, if not all, poker players can definitely relate to. Directed by Juan Redienger and produced by “Made in the Shade” and “Strangeways”, “Shark out of Water” is an indie film starring Matty Finochio as Bobby, Artine Brown as Abe, and Kristine Cofsky as Lisa.

Bobby is a poker player who, with a toy shark as his companion in the felt, struggles to keep afloat despite the staggering influx of extremely bad luck. He is skilled and talented, but all luck has abandoned him, and this puts him at the precipice of his career. Out of money and pressured to get a “real” job, he borrows some cash from his friend Abe, and from this stems the portrayal of a drama so real and so human that poker players everywhere will no doubt be able to relate.

Cameos from the Real Poker World

An extra treat for poker fans is the cameo appearance of two poker pros, namely Brad Booth and Phil Hellmuth Jr. of Ultimate Bet. Phil Hellmuth plays a poker player who bullies the main character. He acts surprisingly well and the “sinisterly sarcastic” role that the directors and producers gave him fit him like a glove. If you want to see a sample of Phil’s acting, then you can watch the trailer and view a snippet of conversation between him and the main character. As payment for the cameo role, Phil simply had to fight the director in a heads-up battle. It was no sweat at all for Phil, easily beating his opponent within just three hands.

This post is from Complete Poker Rules. For more information on the Rules of Poker, Strategy Tips, and Poker Hand Analysis then be sure to visit us!

Shark Out of Water: A Poker Film

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An Exciting Interlude

Day 4 of the APPT Cebu coincided with one of the most important and most awaited for events in the Philippine’s sporting history. It was the day when Manny Pacquiao, World Champion in various weight divisions in the sport of boxing and also the country’s favorite athlete, would fight with Miguel Cotto, holder of the WBO Welter Weight Title. It was a big fight as Pacquiao, who had gone on to claim titles in six other weight divisions, would be vying for his seventh title and would possibly be breaking new ground in the history of boxing. So it was that poker took a backseat as everyone in the Shangri-La Mactan, and also in the whole Philippines, stood still and watched the fight. The poker players, as well as the audience, were treated to a large screen projection of the match and, of course, of Pacquiao’s subsequent victory. Cotto took a beating so severe and so thorough that no room was left for argument. It was, perhaps, this fight which Han drew inspiration from as he went on to grab the APPT title with as much ruthlessness and speed as the new Welter Weight champion.

A Thorough Victory

After watching the match, the nine players sat down on the final table to fight their own battles. Eliminations started early, and the crowd saw Alexandr Tikholiz, Philip Willcocks, and Nick Pronk leave the table in defeat. Mark Pagsuyuin, the only Filipino who made it to the final table, was treated to much cheering from the crowd but ultimately had to leave early too when his AD9C clashed with Han’s AS10H. Terry Fan, Kevin Clark, and Sim Somyung went next, leaving Hilton and Han for the heads-up match. Hilton started out strong, pitting his full house with a trio from Han and leaving the latter with a 3 to 1 disadvantage. Han was aggressive though, and left Hilton little room for maneuvering. Pretty soon, Han was hammering away at Hilton’s chip stack, and not once putting his own in any mortal danger. Finally, Hilton’s QCJS rammed into Han’s QSQD. The turn was revealed and so was the river, with neither one giving Hilton a break. It was at that moment, with victory safely in his grasp, that Han earned the APPT Title and the grand prize of $148,200.

This post is from Complete Poker Rules. For more information on the Rules of Poker, Strategy Tips, and Poker Hand Analysis then be sure to visit us!

Dong-Bin Han Bags the APPT Cebu Title

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Who is Trishelle Cannatella?

Trishelle Cannatella is a model and actress who found her claim to fame through reality shows. She also works as a playboy model and has also appeared in other magazines like Maxim and Elle Girl. She has appeared in several shows such as Punk’d, Criminal Minds, Dr. Steve-O, and Fear Factor. Trishelle is no stranger to the movie industry either and has appeared in films such as Ninja Cheerleaders, The Hillz, and The Dukes of Hazzard: The Beginning. She is, however, most famous for her role in the reality show, Real World: Las Vegas. In this show, she perfectly portrayed the role of sexy party girl. Her most memorable scene was when she had a three-way make out session with two of the other contestants. It was shocking, almost taboo, but it was TV material and it boosted her popularity instantly. The Real World not only opened the doors of the TV industry for her, but for the Poker World as well. Poker became one of her favorite pastimes during the show and she quickly learned the ropes of the game. It was apparent that she had a real talent for it, and she continued to pursue it even after she left the show.

Trishelle as a Poker Player

Trishelle’s participation in the poker community includes joining several tournaments and even a charity run. She appeared on the game show called Celebrity Poker Showdown, where the celebrities played poker all for the sake of charity. She also participated in the World Poker Tour Celebrity Invitational in 2008 and 2009. Most impressive, however, was her participation in the tournament at Caesars where she won the Caesars Palace Classic Title. It was the first ever poker event she entered and she actually managed to win it. Her various achievements have apparently caught the eye of those at PokerStars and had her sign an endorsement deal with them.

In an interview, Cannatella reveals that she is “very excited to be AbsolutePoker.com’s new celebrity endorser”, and further goes on to say that Poker is one of her passions and that she can’t think of a better team to be part of.

This post is from Complete Poker Rules. For more information on the Rules of Poker, Strategy Tips, and Poker Hand Analysis then be sure to visit us!

Absolute Poker Welcomes Trishelle Canatella

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How it all started

Many will remember how poker players have started to infiltrate the other sectors of the media. Just recently, Tiffany Michelle and Maria Ho have been participants in the Amazing Race. Most memorable, however, was the participation of poker sweetheart, Annie Duke, on Celebrity Apprentice. It was here in this show that she met the not-so-gracious Joan Rivers. Joan Rivers, who arguably built her career by passing rude remarks in the guise of comedy, called Annie Duke “Hitler”. As if this insult was not enough, she went on to call poker players “worse than white trash” and “individuals with no last name”. She also called poker players “tax evaders” and some other insulting remarks. Yes, she certainly did not keep her contempt for the poker world a secret. And the situation was made worse by the fact that Joan Rivers’ comments were unsolicited and unwarranted. It was a low blow that she dealt, one that the poker community certainly did not deserve.

The Godfather

The poker world did not take her insults lying down, however, and many fought back. Doyle Brunson, true to his role as the Godfather of Poker, decided to defend the game and the community that he loved so much and worked so hard to uphold. He demanded an apology from Joan Rivers, saying that he would mete out some much-deserved vengeance through his twitter account. Doyle Brunson, who apparently had his own comedic side, gave Rivers a taste of her own medicine with remarks like “Joan Rivers went to the doctor for a zit on her butt. He told her it was a brain tumor.” Their feud is ongoing, as Rivers does not seem likely to fork over an apology any time soon. And when she appeared at a Miami sports radio show and was asked a question about Doyle Brunson, she spat out some statements like “Who the hell is Doyle Brunson?” and “Die under a deck of cards!”

Doyle Brunson had a slot later on in the show and, not one to let an insult pass, he responded to Rivers’ comment, saying that she would die under a pile of manure. But then, he said seriously, “She had no call to berate the poker community the way she did. It showed she had no class. Joan Rivers don’t need us and don’t need her.” Indeed, the words rang too true. Verbal Battles are amusing for a while, but they tend to get stale too fast. Hopefully, this little feud between Rivers and the poker world will end without any further damage to both sides.

This post is from Complete Poker Rules. For more information on the Rules of Poker, Strategy Tips, and Poker Hand Analysis then be sure to visit us!

Joan Rivers Rants about the Godfather of Poker

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