The buy-in for PartyPoker’s WPT Premier League V is $125,000. It is expected to attract a large number of high-rollers.

WPT Welcomes WPT Premier League V

According to some analysts, the WPT Premier League V may lessen the importance of WPT Vienna. However, the chief operating officer of Montesino Casino, Leon Groenewoud stated that he is extremely glad to include the event. The 16-player tournament will be a great source of excitement for poker enthusiasts across the world, according to Groenewoud.

Big Game VI of PartyPoker has also been included in the schedule. Groenewoud stated that along with WPT Vienna, the two PartyPoker events will offer a lot of poker action in Austria. An added attraction of the event is that it will be broadcast on television by Kara Scott, who is also an accomplished poker player. Scott had also been a part of the WSOP main event coverage by ESPN last year. This time, the event will be presented by Scott for Sky Sports.

Eminent Poker Professionals Registered for the Event

A huge prize pool has been declared for this year’s event. $200,000 has been added to the prize pool this time. The winner is offered a guaranteed seat to the WPT World Championship, which has a buy-in worth $25,500. It will be held at Las Vegas in The Bellagio between May 19th and 26th.

The lucrative prize pool and huge payout potential of the event have attracted quite a few eminent poker professionals. One of them is Sam Trickett. He has recently been crowned the Internet Player of the Year. Vanessa Selbst, Luke Schwartz and Andy Frankenberger have also registered for the event. Vanessa Selbst has been a bracelet winner of WSOP and Andy Frankenberger was the Player of the Year of WPT Season 9. Frankenberger had also been the champion of the Premier League Mixed Game held in November.

Eddie Hearn Delighted with Such a Strong Field

The managing director of Matchroom Sport, Eddie Hearn is delighted to see that WPT Premier League V has been able to attract high quality players. Eddie stated that he is excited to take one of the most entertaining televised tournaments to Austria. More well-known poker enthusiasts are expected to join the field to compete for the prestigious title of WPT Premier League V.

A statement has been released by PartyPoker recently describing how the tournament will operate. It has been mentioned in the statement that the field of 16 players will be divided into two groups. The top 3 players from each group will head to the final table.

The 2012 WSOP bracelet events will begin on the 27th of May and end on the 16th of July, when the top 9 players for the final event would be selected. The venue for the 43rd Annual WSOP in 2012 would be the Rio All-Suite Hotel in Las Vegas, and the events would be shown live on ESPN.

The Prelims

The run for the richest and the most prestigious annual poker championship officially begins on May 27, 2012. The first Gold Bracelet event takes place on 28th of May, which also happens to be Memorial Day Monday. The first bracelet event would be a $1500 No-limit Holdem event, followed by other bracelet events through the week. The first re-entry event would be in the first week of June (2nd and 3rd June). Even if you are knocked out on the first day, you can re-enter the event on the next day. Some of the other exciting events in this year’s tournament include:

• Event 3 – $3000 heads up event for no-limit Holdem and pot limit Omaha
• Event 6 – $5000 Mixed Max 4 day event, with 9 hands on day 1, 6 hands on day 2, and heads up on the 3rd and 4th days
• Event 28 – A four-handed no limit Holdem game with a buy-in of $2500
• Event 49 – The $1500 ante-only no-limit Holdem

For the first time, the WSOP will have an event called ‘The Big One for One Drop’, which has the highest ever buy-in of $1,000,000. Like the other bracelet events, this would be a three-day event beginning at 1.11 PM on July 1.

The last event (event 61) would be the $10,000 WSOP Main Event, which will take place from July 7 through July 16, at the end of which the 9 players for the final table would be selected. The main event will have three starting days – July 7, 8 and 9, and those who survive will go ahead to Day 2. While July 10 would be second day for those starting on 7th and 8th, July 11 will be the 2nd day for those starting on the 9th. Day 3 of the Main Event on July 12 will have all three groups playing their way to the final. On the whole, the Main Event will have participants playing 5 full levels every day. Players will have a chance to win 61 Gold WSOP bracelets during the tournament.

Early Final

This year, there won’t be any ‘November Nine’ in the WSOP. It doesn’t mean the WSOP is going to end without the final table! Instead, this year, the final round for the WSOP championship will be held in October, when the 9 finalists will come back to compete for the cash prize running into millions of dollars.

Good news for poker fans in US

So how does this news matter to poker players in the US? Well, if the legislation is in favor of online gambling, the partnership between these companies will see the launch of a top-class real money online poker site for US players. And the best part is that this would not be illegal, so you won’t have to worry about a repeat of the Full Tilt Poker fiasco. That is because, as per the agreement between the two companies, the online poker platform will be launched only after state or federal government based licensing regulation is finalized.

About the deal

The announcement that 888 Holdings and Caesars Interactive Entertainment would be extending their licensing agreement to the US was made only recently. Earlier, in the month of March last year, the companies had entered into a deal to bring together the influence of Caesars’ brand name and the world class gaming platform of 888 to promote the WSOP (World Series of Poker) brand in the UK. While 888 is counting on the brand value that Caesars has in the US market, Caesars is looking forward to using the 888′s top-class gaming software and hardware for its poker sites.

According to the agreement, Dragonfish, which is a subsidiary of 888 Holdings, will be working with Caesars, to provide the necessary software and hardware to power the company’s private poker brands. 888 was also among the 5 companies that had applied for licenses, for gambling operations in Nevada state. After legalization of online poker, 888 US Limited, as it is registered in the US, plans to be a distributor and service provider in the industry.

Another good news is that 888 has already applied for a Service Provider license in Nevada. What’s better is that the Nevada Gaming Control Board has given its blessings to the partnership between 888 and Caesars.

About 888 and Caesars

888 is a name that is known to every online casino and poker player in the UK and some parts of Europe. 888 operates some of the best online gambling sites and offers online casino games, poker, bingo and betting services to millions of people around the world. The company is licensed in Gibraltar, and now owns 10% stake in Caesars Interactive Entertainment.

Caesars Interactive Entertainment is a popular private gaming brand in the US, which operates a number of casinos, hotels and golf courses under different brand names in the country.

Joe Hachem, who was not on the list last week, made his way back when he landed a big win at the felt in his hometown. While these players celebrated being on and making their way up the list, Sorel Mizzi saw a disappointing turn of events which pushed him down.

Seidel Retains Number One Spot

Seidel, who was at the top of the list last week, remains in the number one spot. His performance at the final tables in four events this January helped him cinch the place. Among the Top Ten, Seidel is the only one to have added points. He took 65 points after he landed a third place win at the $100,000 NLHE Aussie Millions event last year. His win moved into Period 3 of the GPI. Seidel had surplus points from both Period 1 and 2. These scores, when combined with two from Period 3, helped increase his net points.

This year’s High Roller $100,000 NLHE Aussie Millions third place winner appeared on the GPI after a two week’s absence. One of the key reasons behind this is the fact that he doesn’t play too many live tournaments. He landed 228 points after playing in the Melbourne cash game. This took him to the 177th place, among the Top Two Hundred.

The High Roller winner was Dan Smith, who made his way up to the 65th spot. This was a 90 spot leap which was possible because of the 354 points he made from the win. Since he made his first appearance on the list in the first week of December, Smith has quite consistently worked his way up the GPI.

Sam Trickett Stays Consistent in Top Ten

Another player besides Seidel who has stayed on in the Top Ten is Sam Trickett. He managed this even though he lost 146 points when the win he landed in the $100,000 NLHE Aussie Millions event aged. Trickett was able to do this because he has accumulated sufficient points to help him hold his place. For the first time, the GPI saw a champion of a main event get into its Top Ten list. The player who accomplished this was Jonathan Duhamel, who rose from the 11th place on the list to the 10th. Mike McDonald lost his 10th place and landed in the 11th when his €5,000 NLHE EPT Deauville third finish of 2010 aged.

According to the GPI, there are three players to watch this time. They are David Steicke with 1425.60, Isaac Baron with 1572.99 and Sam Trickett, with 2436.82 points. Joe Tehan took 122 points when he won the $1500 Southern Poker Millions NLHE. He made his way through 22 spots when he landed a place at 44 on the GPI.

Rettenmaier Starts as Leader but Looses to Karamalikis

Rettenmaier was able to stay in the lead for the first few hours of play. He landed triple kings on the fourth street. This helped him send Michael Benvenuti to the rail in the 10th place. Andrew Scarfe was eliminated in the 9th. This allowed Krost to work his way up the leaderboard quite easily. Alongside, Michael Pedley and Jonathan Karamalikis managed to add to their stacks.

Two players clashed at the final table. Rettenmaier and Karamalikis played an action-packed game against each other. It had a huge impact on the positions on the leaderboard. From the button, Rettenmaier raised. This was followed by a three bet by Karamalikis from the big blind. This did not deter Rettenmaier, who went ahead with a four-bet worth nearly 23,000.

Karamalikis, who held J-J, went all-in and this was called by Rettenmaier with an A-9 suited. The flop brought a 9, the river a Q and turn a J. None were of any help to Rettenmaier. He lost his lead with less than 23,000 in chips and was replaced on the leaderboard by Karamalikis. Rettenmaier was eliminated after his A-Q failed to beat the Q-Q in Krost’s hand.

Kelley Sends Three Players to the Rail before Elimination

After raking in a lot of chips after the hand against Rettenmaier, Karamalikis made the best of his stack. Initially, Karamalikis had a 2:1 lead against the next player on the leaderboard, Pedley. At this stage, three other players were trying hard to stay in the game. It was hard to determine whether Watson, Collopy or Krost would get back in.

Collopy was the next to go, when Kelley played against him. Kelley followed this with a move that sent Watson to the rail. Following this, Kelley was in the fifth place, and one among the top players of the day. From here, he continued his success in eliminating players, when he took down Krost. A few hands down, Kelley was the next to go.

When the event had just three players, Pedley and Karamalikis did their best to bring down Kelley. Pedley doubled through twice in one hand – first through Kelley and then through Karamalikis. He then had the chip lead, which he did not give up. Pedley knocked out Kelley and in no time had a chip lead of 4:1 over Karamalikis, the only opponent remaining in the game.

In the next 25 minutes, Pedley reduced Karamalikis’ stack. Karamalikis held a K-T, while Pedley had a winning hand with K-J. When the board did not bring a card to improve his hand, Karamalikis lost to Pedley. At then end of the event, Pedley had taken home his Aussie Millions Championship for the $1,000 event.

How Do I Participate in the $100K Depositor Freerolls Promotion?

All players need to do in order to participate in the Depositor Freerolls is make a deposit into their account. Once you’ve made a deposit into your account using the bonus code listed below you’ll receive access to four daily $1K Freerolls for 31 days. In total you’ll have the chance to play for over $100,000 in 31 days at PokerStars without spending a penny on a buy-in. If you’re ready to make a deposit to claim access to the Depositors Freerolls you need to use one of the bonus codes below.

• If you’ve never played at PokerStars make sure you use the bonus code “STARS600”. Not only will you receive entry into the Depositors Freerolls for 31 days, but you’ll also be able to earn a 100% bonus for up to $600.

• Players that already have accounts at PokerStars can still participate in the promotion. You need to make a qualifying deposit into your account using the bonus code “100K” when you make your deposit.

The Depositors Freerolls will be using a special freebuy tournament format. The tournament is free to enter for players that have made a qualifying deposit, but for the first hour of each freeroll players will be able to rebuy for $.30. The $.30 will be added to the $1000 prize pool, so PokerStars isn’t making anything off of these tournaments. I like the freebuy method because it allows you to have a few chances at winning each of the $1K Freerolls.

The freeroll tournaments will be hosted four times everyday and each of the freerolls will have a $1000 prize pool. The tournaments will start at 4:00ET, 10:00ET, 15:00ET and 21:00ET, so everyone will have a chance to play in the freerolls regardless of what time zone you live in. The freerolls will be listed under the “Freerolls” tab in the tournament section of the PokerStars lobby.

PokerStars has stated that the freerolls will be running until May 20th 2012 for now. This could change, but for now this is when the last freerolls will be hosted. If you make a deposit after April 19th you won’t receive 31 days access to freerolls, but you’ll still be able to play in the freerolls until May 20th. If you make a deposit today, once the 31 days is up you can make another deposit using the bonus code above to receive another 31 days access to the Depositors Freerolls.

Interest for Poker Developed After Seeing her Brother’s Success

Weisner developed interest for poker through her brother’s success in the game. Weisner was studying Musical Theatre prior to entering the world of poker. At the onset of her poker career, Weisner played low-stakes ring games. At the initial stage, the player did not experience much success. However, her determination to excel in the field was strong. She started taking part in multi-table tournaments and won a $3 event. Following the victory, the player devoted herself completely towards learning strategies for multi-table tournaments.

Weisner primarily learnt poker through by herself. She took part in a host of prestigious online tourneys and climbed the ladder of success fast. In addition to multi-table tournaments, Weisner also developed an interest for heads-up poker. Weisner played various types of hands in heads up tournaments. Currently, the player is known in the world of poker as a pro who excels at online tournaments and as a specialist in heads-up. The player was ranked No.1 for her performance in Sit n Go and heads-up across several sites. Weisner has earned a total of $1.2 million through her wins in online poker tournaments.

Weisner Ranks #84 in the Global Poker Index

In the scenario of live tournaments held across the world, the player has achieved quite a few successes. In WSOP last year, Weisner made as many 5 cashes. She also has EPT Ladies’ Event titles to her credit. The player holds #84 rank in the GPI Global Index, which ranks the top 300 players across the world in online poker tournaments. When she was only 25, her tournament winnings exceeded $397,000.

Jennifer Larson – Melanie Weisner is a Good Fit for Lock Poker

The CEO and owner of Lock Poker, Jennifer Larson, stated that Weisner is a good fit for Lock Poker. She has relentlessly dedicated her time to the field and she is passionate about the game. In addition, the player is also incredibly intelligent. She has the perfect qualities to be a poker star. According to Jennifer, partnering with talented players like Weisner, will play a big role in the site becoming successful.

Joining Lock Poker a Good Step

Melanie Weisner stated that she is extremely glad to have joined the reputed poker room, Lock Poker. It will offer her a platform to compete with some of the greatest poker pros like Leo Margets, Matt Stout and Chris Moorman. Lock Poker is a reliable poker site and has an increasing player-base. She is extremely proud to be a part of it. Weisner looks forward to representing the poker site around the world.

Lock Poker is a part of the Merge Poker network. With distinct features like custom hand re-player and live stats, Lock Poker has an edge over various poker rooms operating in the online poker world.

2012 EPA to be Held in Paris

EPA 2012 will be held in Paris on January 25 at the Aviation Club de Paris. In the previous year, some of the biggest poker pros had been nominated in more than 10 categories. This year, Cody, Trickett and Heinz have been nominated for two prestigious awards – Best Tournament Performance and Player of the Year.

Cody Achieved Triple Crown in 2011

Cody, who won two trophies in last year’s EPA, is one of the top contenders for the award. This year, he has been nominated in the category of the ‘Player of the Year’. The player had won a WSOP bracelet, the World Poker Tour and the European Poker Tour in 2011. The Triple Crown victory is undoubtedly the best achievement of the player. It earned him the nominations. He is one of the fastest players to have won a Triple Crown in the industry.

Trickett Earned about $4.5 million in 2011

Trickett took home a total of $4.5 million during the course of 2011. Sam had won the Aussie Millions $100K High Roller event. In addition, the player also has a championship at the Partouche Poker Tour Main Event to his credit.

Heinz won the Biggest Poker Championship

Heinz has been nominated in the Player of the Year category due to his magnificent win in the WSOP Championship. Other players who have been included in the same category are Bertrand Grospellier, who had been a Triple Crown winner, Andrey Pateychuk and Eugene Katchalov. These players also earned nominations in categories such as the Best Tournament Performance in 2011. Other nominations in this category are Benny Spindler from Germany and Fabrice Soulier from France. Spindler had been the winner of European Poker Tour, London.

In addition to the ‘Player of the Year’, Heinz has also been nominated for the Rookie of the Year awards. The player has strong chances of winning it. In addition to Heinz, other players nominated in this category are Adrien Allain from France, Oleksii Kovalchuk from Ukraine and Sam Holden from England.

Choice for Europe’s Leading Lady will be Difficult

Another award category in the EPA is the Europe’s Leading Lady. With so many deserving candidates, choosing the winner for this award is likely to be difficult. Victoria Coren and Live Boeree are some of the strongest contenders. However, they will face competition from other nominees such as Barbara Martinez, Nesrine Kourdourli, Natalya Nikitina, the regional champion of WPT Russia and Cecilia Pescaglini, the runner-up of WPT Malta.

Familiar Faces Nominated for the Internet Player of the Year

For the Internet Player of the Year awards, well-known players from the online poker world have been nominated. Some of them are Chris Moorman, the runner-up of WSOP 2011, Viktor Blom, who had been the champion of the PCA Super High Roller 2012, Ilari Sahamies, Jude Ainsworth and a new comer from France, Rui Cao.

Poker Channel to cover EPL from January 15th

EPL’s coverage on the Poker Channel started on January 15th. It was broadcasted on networks such as UK’s Sky, Germany’s Martens and Finland’s Canal Digital. The EPL has already acquired broadcast rights in the US on the channel ‘Velocity’. It will also be covered on CBS – a regular airwave.

Both Parties Excited about bringing EPL Events to New Audience

Both the EPL and the Poker Channel are excited about the fact that the event will now be brought to a large number of new overseas audience. According to EPL’s Federated Sports& Gaming’s Vice President of League Operations and Programming, Katherine Kowal, expansion of the television coverage in Europe will result in the formation of a global fan base for EPL. She added that the Poker Channel Europe is known for its broad reach and quality distribution. With the help of the channel, EPL will be introduced in Europe, a lucrative market for poker.

EPL’s First Three Events were Great Success

The first three events of the EPL were highly successful. The tournaments were broadcasted in the United States. The inaugural event recorded about 137 entries. Some of the biggest names in the world of poker were associated with the event. The inaugural event featured a Six Handed No Limit Hold’em worth $20,000. David “Chino” Rheem, walked away with the first prize after eliminating Erik Seidel. David received cash prize worth a million at the tournament’s end. Other players, who made it to the final table, are Huck Seed, Gavin Smith, Hasan Habib and Jason Mercier.

The second event of the EPL was also action packed. It featured an Eight Handed No Limit Hold’em tournament worth $20,000. The field had a total of 97 players. Seidel was the first to make it to 2 final tables. The player finished at the fourth place. The championship was won by Mike McDonald.

The third tournament was worth $20,000. It was based on Mix-Max No Limit Hold’em. The event was won by Chris Klodnicki, who defeated Andrew Lichtenberger to win the championship. Other players in the final table were Scott Clements, Michael Mizrachi and Joe Tehan.

Chris White stated that the EPL is the Most Appropriate Partner of the Poker Channel

The owner of the Poker Channel is the Gaming Media Group. Its Director of Business Development, Chris White stated that the EPL’s first three events proved to be grand successes. This makes EPL the most appropriate partner of the Poker Channel. Chris White added that his company is proud to have signed this partnership through which tournaments featuring the world’s greatest poker pros can be brought to millions of channel viewers.

The last event for the Euro Finals of Poker Festival will be a Championship freezeout featuring Omaha Hi-Lo. It is a €250 buy-in event to be held on January 29th, Sunday. The opening day will feature a Ladies Championship tournament. It is freezeout event with a buy-in worth €150.

Biggest Tournaments of Euro Finals

Some of the biggest tournaments in the world of online poker will take place in the 17 days of Euro Finals of Poker Festival. Among them, the Diamond Championship is likely to attract the maximum players. The buy-in for the grand event is €5,000. The tournament will start on 26th January. The four-day event will end on 29th January.

A High Roller event with a buy-in worth €10,000 is also expected to attract a large number of players. It will run on 28th and 29th January. In addition to these events, several tournaments featuring No-Limit Hold’em, H.O.R.S.E. Poker and Pot-Limit Omaha will be held.

Starters Likely to Follow Natalia Nikitina

New players are likely to follow Natalia Nikitina in the Euro Finals of Poker Festival. The 24-year poker pro showed great skills and managed to offer stiff competition to players like Sam Trickett and Benjamin Pollak.

EPA Awards to Take Place on January 25th

The European Poker Awards (EPA) is also taking place on January 25th. The event will be held in the Aviation Club de France. Englishman Nic Szeremeta will be hosting the event. Nic Szeremeta received the EPA lifetime achievement award in 2010. In this year’s ceremony, some of the best players in the world of online poker will receive awards in various categories.

A committee of 8 members decided the award categories that will feature in the event. Some of these categories are the Leading Lady of the Year, Player of the Year, Internet Player of the Year, Best Tournament Performance, Rookie of the Year, the Lifetime Achievement Award, Best Poker Event of the Year, Casino Staff Person of the Year and the Gardner Memorial Award for the Poker Personality of 2011.

Tough Choices for the EPA Awards

It will be difficult to select the right candidates for awards in various categories. The toughest will be to select the Player of the Year as quite a few players are eligible to receive the award. Some of them are Chris Moorman, who had been the runner-up of the six-Handed World Championship with a buy-in worth $10,000 in WSOP 2011.

Trickett is another player eligible for the title. He has been the winner of a High Roller event with a buy-in worth $100,000 in the Aussie Millions. WSOP’s Main Event winner, Pius Heinz is another strong contender for the awards. The player took home a total of $8,715,638 this year.