'Tournament Reporter' Injects New Excitement into Online Poker Tournaments

Saturday, September 17th, 2005

Toronto, Canada - Tournament Reporter, a new online poker tournament ranking service, launched today introducing a new universal ranking system that assesses a player’s recent tournament performance. Now with Tournament Reporter’s TR Rank and Reports, players can set goals, track their progress, and gain insights about their play, including how they stack up against the competition.

Found at http://www.tournamentreporter.com, Tournament Reporter’s TR Rank and Reports provide real money multi-table tournament players with the most relevant-to-tournament performance measures, in an intuitive, visual, and well organized interface. Tournament Reporter is designed to be quick and easy to use.

“Our research indicates that real money tournament players play more for the competition and excitement rather than the money,” says Alex Antoniou, President and CEO of Tournament Reporter Ltd. “Tournament Reporter has the potential of growing the game of poker by enabling players to track and measure their performance. Tournament Reporter gives Tournament Poker players the extra excitement, challenge and competition they’re looking for when they play tournaments at Tournament Reporter Supported Sites.”

How The TR Rank™ Works

The TR Rank™ is unique because it varies based on your most recent performance relative to other players. The TR Rank™ is intuitive to use since it employs the card ranks i.e. Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10… to convey player performance. A player with an “Ace” ranking is a top ranked and a “4” is ranked below average.

Other poker reporting services consider a player’s performance to be a fixed trait - either you are a "shark" or you are a "fish". In contrast, the TR Rank™ recognizes that playing performance is in constant flux and may vary significantly over the course of time. For example in tournament poker, a novice player may rise to become a strong player in a matter of months or a strong player may lose focus and go on a bad run.

“We designed Tournament Reporter to be a place where tournament players could get the maximum amount of information and insights with the least amount of work,” says Adam Haines, Tournament Reporter Co-Founder and Director of Product Management. “At Tournament Reporter you’ll find a set of hundreds of highly visual charts that are organized in an interface that tournament players can easily navigate by simply pointing and clicking. Players wanted a wheel where they could easily track their player and opponents – so we added that too.”

Availability, Pricing and Licensing Information

Tournament Reporter is immediately available. Pricing and licensing information can be online at: http://www.tournamentreporter.com.

Make your game face your poker face

September 16, 2005

Poker's more than a game...its a sport
By Joe O'Connell, Assistant News Editor

Yes, it's not a bad dream anymore, school really has begun and summer is now just a fading memory. But don't lose all hope; you can still find fun and exciting activities to do in between your stressful college schedule. This article, which will run biweekly, will give you various ideas for activities and sports to break up the monotony of the school year. The sport that will be covered in this first article is the poker game No Limit Texas Hold'em.

Now surely a great number of you are scoffing and asking "How in the heck is poker considered a sport?" Recently on a televised poker tournament a player who had been holding back his bowls for a long period of time, jumped from his seat mid hand and sprinted to the bathroom all the while hurdling over ropes and other barriers. The announcers had a good laugh and said "Maybe he's running to show the world that poker is a legitimate sport." Despite the humor from the advocates, poker is considered a sport, not a traditional physical sport like football, or baseball, it is a sport in the sense that it requires a great deal of stamina and mental fortitude to play for any extended period of time. In some big tournaments participants may have to play 12 hours a day for a solid week, which can be mentally and physically grueling.
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Activision Releases Poker, Hunting & Pool Games

September 15, 2005

Activision has a host of sporting games with WORLD SERIES OF POKER, CABELA'S OUTDOOR ADVENTURES and THE HUSTLE: DETROIT STREETS.

WORLD SERIES OF POKER is the official videogame of the World Series of Poker (WSOP) tournament. Set around the main table at the Rio Casino in Las Vegas, the game authentically captures all of the high-stakes action - from the likeness and play styles of renowned pros like Chris "Jesus" Ferguson and 14 other top poker players to the accurate recreation of the WSOP poker room, down to the carpet and the wallpaper.

"World Series of Poker is the #1 brand in poker and this title is the most authentic poker game on the market today," said David Oxford, Activision Inc. "By facing off against the game's advanced AI opponents, players will experience what it's like to pull up a chair at the WSOP tournament table a virtual unknown and leave with all the fame and fortune of today's most popular poker champions."

In WORLD SERIES OF POKER, players ante up to play seven variations of poker, including Texas Hold 'Em, 7 Card Stud, Omaha and Razz, where poker enthusiasts will bluff, fold and call their way to the top. The game allows players to develop their own strategies with the ability to customize everything from their poker faces, appearances and Vegas-style threads. Players can even choose their own catch phrases, also known as "table-talk," to bluff opponents. As players win pots, they can upgrade their clothing and take advantage of hotel upgrades, bringing the Strip to the privacy of their own homes.

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Poker, Poker, and More Poker - Tidbits of poker information and news

by Linda Johnson

linda@cardplayercruises.com

September 14, 2005

Someone recently told me that he reads my column because he never knows what I am going to write about; it could be anything from TDA rules, to "Play a Tournament With Me,” to poker cruises. Keeping this in mind, here is another miscellaneous poker tidbits column.

Online Poker Support Sites … I enjoy reading poker news and exploring various Internet sites that contain poker content. We all know that the recent explosion in poker's popularity has spawned a myriad of online poker sites. Riding on their coattails, it is interesting to see a burgeoning of online poker support sites, as well. These sites typically offer "how-to” instructional materials based on well-practiced poker concepts. At this early stage of online poker support site development, we often see somewhat cut-and-dried websites that teach the basics of the games.

In my research into some of these support sites, I recently came across an intriguing one that offers a fresh new twist to learning and practicing the game.

The brainchild of James Leitner, a Las Vegas computer consultant and an aspiring poker pro in his own right, www.PokerprosVsEarth.com promises to bring a poker professional level of gaming to the masses. The site's key draw is that it goes beyond the bland concepts and offers game play with a featured poker professional. The concept is this: A single player called "Earth” is comprised of the general public, and Earth plays heads-up in a tournament format against a poker professional. The current tournament professional happens to be Mark Gregorich, Card Player associate editor and columnist, and a very accomplished and respected player.

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"Winning isn't everything. Wanting to win is." - Catfish Hunter

September 13, 2005

Top poker pro T.J. Cloutier -- winner of 51 major tournaments and the leading all-time money winner at the World Championships -- is a former professional football player. A high-school athlete from Daly City, California, he attended the University of California at Berkeley on a football and baseball scholarship, playing in the Rose Bowl in 1959.

After a stint in the army, he played tight end in the Canadian Football League for the Montreal Alouettes and the Toronto Argonauts. A knee injury sidelined him, leading him to the poker table.

World Poker Tour commentator and expert player Vincent Van Patten started playing in his dad's (actor Dick Van Patten) regular home game while still in his teens. He followed in his father's footsteps before teaching himself to play tennis and reaching the highest professional level in the 1980s, ranking 25th in the world and beating the likes of John McEnroe. Upon retirement, he traded in his racquet for a stack of chips.

By The Poker Source Staff
Courtesy of ThePokerSource.com

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World Poker Tour Begins Rollout Of Global WPT Tours

Press Release

LOS ANGELES, California -- WPT Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ: WPTE) has announced the global expansion of its hugely popular World Poker Tour (WPT) with the signing of two licensing agreements to stage regional versions in Canada and the Philippines.

Steve Lipscomb, CEO and founder of WPT Enterprises, Inc. revealed that the company has concluded agreements with ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp., the largest integrated media and entertainment company in the Philippines, and Aidan Tracey, a respected Canadian marketing/ sponsorship/promotion expert, to offer multi-tournament WPT Tours in card rooms and casinos in their respective countries beginning in early 2006. The events will feature WPT-style Texas Hold'em tournaments expected to draw hundreds of players for increasingly growing prize pools at each stop. The WPT has been airing on television networks in Canada and The Philippines for the past two years, drawing a large following and hugely impacting the popularity of poker in those countries.

"We are very pleased to be able to bring the WPT to the fans in other countries who have been itching to try their hand at making a WPT Final Table," said Lipscomb. "Through these regional WPT Tours with ABS-CBN and Aidan Tracey, we have begun to create a global network of WPT Tours that will inspire the players in those countries and grow our brand internationally. It will be fun to see local players evolve into regional poker stars, just as our primary WPT Tour players over the past few years have garnered international recognition, and are now recognizable everywhere they go."

Lipscomb anticipates additional regional WPT Tours to be licensed in the future, as the skyrocketing popularity of the show continues to create worldwide fans. The WORLD POKER TOUR show, which has achieved worldwide viewership, is currently licensed for broadcast in 116 countries and territories around the world.

ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp., is involved in television and radio broadcasting, as well as the production of television programming for Filipino domestic and international audiences. The company's largest business, its VHF television network, consists of its flagship channel in Manila--Channel 2--together with 23 other owned and operated television stations and ten affiliated stations, forming the leading television network in the Philippines. The company also operates Studio 23, the leading UHF television network in the Philippines with 35 televisions stations. The two networks reach an estimated 97% and 50% of all television-owning households in the Philippines, respectively. The estimated market population for the region is 76 million people.

"We wish to introduce poker among the Filipinos served by ABS-CBN, locally and globally, and to the skills, art & excitement that it generates both as a program and as a game," said Peter A. Musngi, Vice President for ABS-CBN Sports. "As a television show, we are hopeful that we can duplicate the success of WPT USA in the Philippines and the region given the reach and equity of ABS-CBN. We are confident that this is not a far-fetched reality."

ABS-CBN is being granted the right to create four episodes in the first year, five in the second and six in the third-and to air them exclusively for four years total. The show will air in both English and Tagalish (a mix of Tagolog and English). The winner of the Filipino WPT Tour will also have a seat in the WPT Championship™ at Bellagio each April.

In Canada, Aidan Tracey, who has previously assisted the WPT to secure sponsorship tie-ins north of the border, will develop, stage and market a regional tour. Tracey is currently President of Mosaic Sales Solutions Field Marketing, the leading experiential event marketing company in Canada. Mosaic Field Marketing handles consumer promotion events at malls, community events and large festivals for many blue-chip Fortune 100 clients. The company does product sampling, creates brand experiences, and runs large mobile 18 wheel rigs that go to major events to bring brands to life. Tracey has also produced the World Beer Games, which aired on TV in 2002 and 2003 in many markets outside the USA, including Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia.

"Aidan's deep knowledge in helping to build global brands, along with his own experience as a founder and executive producer of a successful international TV event special made him a natural choice," noted Lipscomb.

Tracey will work closely with WPTE to build out events across the country to establish and grow the WPT Canada sub-brand and at the same time educate players through the WPT educational website www.wptonline.net.

"It is going to be a ton of fun helping the WPT to build the leading poker brand in Canada," said Tracey. "By utilizing a network of host casinos, TV partners, Mosaic field marketing, and client sponsorships we should be able to get the WPT Canadian Tour off to a great start in 2006."

The WORLD POKER TOUR, which reinvented poker as a televised spectator sport, airs tournaments filmed at leading casinos from Paris to Las Vegas, and will begin the broadcast of its fourth season in March 2006. Airing every Wednesday night in the U.S. at 9 p.m. ET/PT on The Travel Channel, the WPT is the highest-rated series in the network's history. WORLD POKER TOUR is now seen in 116 countries and territories worldwide.

About WPT Enterprises, Inc.

WPT Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ: WPTE) is a company engaged in the creation of internationally branded entertainment and consumer products driven by the development, production, and marketing of televised programming based on gaming themes. WPTE is the creator of the World Poker Tour(R), a television show based on a series of high-stakes poker tournaments that airs on the Travel Channel in the United States and more than 100 markets globally. WPT Enterprises currently licenses its brand to companies in the business of poker equipment and instruction, apparel, publishing, electronic and wireless entertainment, DVD/home entertainment, casino games, and giftware.

Want to Be the Next World Series of Poker Superstar? Poker Genius Finally Reveals How To Make $300/h Playing Texas Hold'em

Press Release

World renowned poker player Giorgio Maldini announces the release of his “Maldini Texas Hold’em Secrets” ebook from maldiniholdemsecrets.com.

(PRWEB) -- World renowned poker player Giorgio Maldini announces the release of his “Maldini Texas Hold’em Secrets” ebook – a comprehensive, step-by-step guide designed to help poker players increase their earnings per hour, eliminate rookie mistakes, keep other players from taking their pots and gain a colossal edge over the competition – all in just two hours or less.

Get free tips from Giorgio at http://www.maldiniholdemsecrets.com.

“I know many people - some are friends and some are just suckers - that believe that if they play once a week, or two-three times a week, they will eventually become as good as the professional poker players on ESPN,” Maldini said. “Listen, you can practice all you want. But if you're practicing the wrong techniques, you're only implanting terrible decisions, plays, and losing poker on your brain.”

“The secret to stopping Phil Ivey and other pros in their tracks is to eliminate rookie mistakes and add stealthy professional moves to your game,” Maldini continued. “You need to be trying out proven techniques that are guaranteed to increase the cash you bring in each hour. You need to experiment with expert strategies that only the poker pros behind the high stakes table ropes know about. You need to read ‘Maldini Texas Hold’em Secrets’.”

Players who read Maldini’s book will learn, among other things: how to win the most from your opponents when your hand is tops; when to never fold your hand - even if at first you don't think you can win; an amazing truth that proves a straight is sometimes more valuable than a flush; the secret to getting other players to fold their drawing hands after the turn; the professional's secret to catching a player when they try and bluff you out of a pot; how to play mind games with the players who are better than you; how to take down pots without a hand; the secret to using your chip stack and dealer position as weapons in a No Limit game; what the pros do when a player has caught on to their strategy; how to deceive your opponents by the bets you make; how to bet your hand before the flop like a pro; how to spot a cheat before he takes off with your money; 10 basic tells you will see at your next poker game; and much, much more.

“I carefully crafted this guide to contain everything a poker player needs to know to be successful,” Maldini said. “Readers get 80 dense pages of tips, tricks, and tactics. Each page is full of winning strategies that will steadily increase a player’s edge over the competition. Any player who reads this guide, even beginners, will soon be a walking, talking Bellagio casino.”

“Maldini Texas Hold’em Secrets,” which features at its heart a simple 11-step system for making winning at Hold 'Em a reality no matter what your experience level, is currently available for immediate download at www.maldiniholdemsecrets.com.

ABOUT GIORGIO MALDINI
Mr. Maldini has been a Professional Poker Player for years. He has won numerous tournaments and has made a fortune during his career – so much in fact that he is often referred to as one of this country’s “high rollers.”

Now, while still playing poker professionally, he also likes to devote his time to teaching the simple secrets that he has discovered that will enable anyone to become a feared poker player. Among the many secrets he reveals are: the professional's secret to catching a player when they try to bluff you out of a pot; the secret to getting other players to fold their drawing hands after the turn; where developing card players should go online when they need to brush up on their skills; how making one change to your game can save you thousands of dollars at the poker table; and much more.

Some other tips of Giorgio's can be found at: 10 Tips

World Championship of Online Poker on PokerStars.com Begins With Largest Online Tournament in History!

Press Release

First of 15 Scheduled Events Attracts a Record 3,062 Players, Doubling Participation From 2004

LOS ANGELES, If anything can be compared to the hugely-successful World Series of Poker and World Poker Tour, it is certainly the World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) at PokerStars.com. Now entering its fourth consecutive year, the WCOOP attracts poker players from more than 50 countries around the globe, making this the most accessible and international of all poker competitions.

The first event of the 2005 WCOOP kicked off with a $500 buy-in No-Limit Texas Hold'em tournament. An all-time record 3,062 players entered the event, making the event the largest major online poker tournament ever. In fact, the staggering number of entries makes the WCOOP one of only two major poker events which has attracted more than 3,000 players. The main event of the 2005 World Series of Poker remains as the other.

"I am thrilled with the response to this year's WCOOP," said Nolan Dalla, Director of Communications for PokerStars.com. "Poker continues to boom and shows absolutely no signs of slowing down. This is especially true for online poker. WCOOP gives all players a unique opportunity to compete for a world championship title from any computer in the world. With so many players and so many different tournaments -- this is the Olympic Games of poker. "

Until now, the previous record turnout for a major online poker tournament was 1,642 participants, which was set by the same PokerStars event last year. By nearly doubling in size, the total prize pool amounted to a whopping $1,531,000. First prize paid $306,200. In all, 324 players received prize money -- second in number only to the 2005 World Series of Poker.

The 2005 WCOOP will continue to run through September 18 at http://www.pokerstars.com. The guaranteed $8 million dollar prize pool offers the single-largest guaranteed prize in online poker history, making the tournament one of the richest sporting events in the world. Poker fans everywhere can watch the excitement of each final table from their personal computers simply by logging in. PokerStars.com also offers live radio coverage of all final tables at: http://www.pokertalkshow.com/html/wcoop.html. Guest commentators will include former World Series of Poker champions Greg Raymer (2004), Chris Moneymaker (2003), and Tom McEvoy (1983). Other popular guests will join the broadcast during the two week run of the WCOOP.

The WCOOP concludes with the main event on September 18, a No-Limit Texas Hold'em Tournament with a $2,500 entry fee and a guaranteed minimum $2.5 million dollar prize pool.
For more information, visit the 2005 WCOOP Information Page at:
http://www.pokerstars.com/2005wcoop/main.html

About PokerStars
PokerStars (http://www.pokerstars.com), is the world's most innovative online poker site. PokerStars was the first site to introduce features that became industry standard such as sophisticated multi-table tournaments, integrated game statistics, players' notes, personalized images, time bank for tournaments and big bet ring games, satellite tournaments, multi-table sit and go tournaments, and much more.

To date, PokerStars has dealt over two billion hands and run more than twelve million poker tournaments, awarding over $1 billion in prize money. PokerStars' support team is truly unique, as help and assistance is available around the clock from people who know and understand the game of poker and the importance of impeccable customer service.

The PokerStars.com site is also one of the most secure. PokerStars uses industry-leading security software to ensure the integrity of the system, including encryption, card shuffle randomness and preventative measures against cheating and collusion. Money covering player's balances is held in segregated accounts managed by the Royal Bank of Scotland, ensuring that PokerStars can fulfill its obligations to players at all times.

PokerStars is an official member of the World Poker Tour, and the title sponsor of the European Poker Tour (EPT) and the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure. PokerStars is the site where the 2003 and 2004 World Champions of Poker won entries into the World Series of Poker, thus earning the trademark, "Where Poker Players Become World Champions."

SOURCE PokerStars

Web Site: http://www.pokerstars.com

WSOP Circuit Poker Tournament Canceled Due to Katrina Damage

Press Release

In light of the widespread devastation caused by the Hurricane Katrina disaster, Harrah's Entertainment, Inc. has canceled an upcoming World Series of Poker (WSOP) Circuit event. The poker tournament in question was originally slated to take place late this month at the Grand Casino Biloxi in Biloxi, Mississippi, which suffered considerable damage in the hurricane.

Explaining the decision to cancel the WSOP tournament, Ginny Shanks, senior vice president of brand management for Harrah's Entertainment commented, "Our focus at this time is on ensuring the safety of our employees and their families and helping them and the communities in which we operate recover from the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina."

As of now, Harrah's is not planning a replacement poker tournament. The next WSOP Circuit event is scheduled for October 19 at Caesars Indiana.

Ten Dimes, or the Price of Admission

Sunday, September 11th, 2005

By JAMES McMANUS
NYTimes.com

A nice round number, $10,000. A magic number, even. In poker, it buys you a ticket into the Big Time, a chance to win $7.5 million, as Joe Hachem did at this year's World Series. Somewhat less gaudy amounts are also winnable in an increasingly crowded calendar of tournaments on the World Series of Poker Circuit and the World Poker Tour. A few of these events still require "only" a $5,000 buy-in, and the World Poker Tour championship in April requires $25,000, but the fee to all the others remains the iconic $10,000.

By hook or by crook, ambitious optimists do their best to come up with it. Thousands have earned it in satellites, either online or in the brick-and-mortar casino hosting the televised main event. Some fortunate - and affluent - players receive it as a birthday or Father's Day gift, often with a hotel reservation and airline ticket. Others take a cash advance on a credit card, hoping to win back the money before the first notice comes due.

Reckless behavior, perhaps, but many consider it a fair price to pay for a chance to compete against the best in the game. No amount, after all, can purchase a Sunday golfer the chance to reach the 15th green at Augusta National in two, at least not during the Masters. A church-league two-guard might be able to post up Michael Jordan at a fantasy camp, but never with a ring on the line. But average pokeraticians who win (or write a check for) $10,000, routinely face off with John Phan, Chris Ferguson or Doyle Brunson in prestigious tournaments. And not just face off with, but vanquish.

The magic number was actually set in 1949, during the five-month, winner-take-all showdown between Johnny Moss and Nick Dandalos that became the precursor to the World Series. The impresario, Benny Binion, had positioned the Moss-Dandalos table near the entrance to his casino in downtown Las Vegas. To sweeten the pot for the two professionals, affluent wannabes were permitted to "change-in to" the game for a minimum of $10,000, the price of admission to what Binion was billing as "the biggest game in town." None of these interlopers lasted more than a day or two, and Dandalos finally succumbed with the famous line, "Mr. Moss, I have to let you go" after losing every dollar he had.

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FullTiltPoker will match 100% of player donations in Hurricane Katrina charity poker tournaments again this weekend

Press Release

(Editor's Note: There is still time to register for the 4:30PM ET, Sunday, September 11th tournament) Good Luck, and thank you.

FullTilt Poker would like to thank everyone who helped make last weekend's charity relief tournaments such overwhelming successes. Between the 19 pros and the nearly 2,000 Tilters who played in our Friday and Sunday night tournaments, we raised $19,280 to aid the victims of Hurricane Katrina. And, because Full Tilt Poker matched 100% of your donations, together we have already sent $38,560 to the American Red Cross' Hurricane 2005 Relief fund.

Considering the overwhelming scope of this disaster, we believe there's more we can do. That's why we're asking you to join us again this weekend when we hold two more charity tournaments to assist the victims of this devastating storm. Please keep reading for details.

In addition to these worthy charity tournaments, we have a lot going on this weekend. On Saturday, we're holding our $200K Guarantee tournament and our final qualifier for the WPT's Borgata Poker Open. On Sunday, please join us for our last satellite into our "Need For Speed"™ heat at the World Speed Poker Open in London, England.

Details on all of this week's events can be found below. And remember to take advantage of our 100% Sign-Up Bonus so that you can play all the ring games and tournaments you want.

Hurricane Katrina Relief Tournament

As we already mentioned, we have already sent more than $38,000 to aid the victims of Hurricane Katrina thanks to many of you and our Full Tilt Poker pros.

Based on the success of those events and the ongoing need of those whose lives were so severely impacted by the storm, we are hoping to do even more to help. Our goal is to surpass last week's results, and we are again asking that you take some time out of your weekend to help those who cannot currently help themselves.

Please join us at one – or both – of our next two charity tournaments scheduled for 9:15PM ET on Friday, September 9th and 4:30PM ET on Sunday, September 11th. Like last week, registration for each of these events will be $20 + a $10 donation to the American Red Cross' Hurricane 2005 Relief fund. Also like last week, Full Tilt Poker will match 100% of the money donated to the relief fund by our players. Together, we can make a difference.