Poker Gorilla

Busy Weekend @ Borgata

2011-10-14T10:00:00.003-04:00

As the Borgata Poker Open hangover wears off and junkies wait for the newly minted Fall Poker Open, this weekend is the perfect time to scratch the tournament itch.

The headliner is the $300,000 Guaranteed Deep Stack Double Play (Sun-Wed), but you can get ahead start on the action Saturday.

The next qualifier is 4 pm Saturday ($330 + $50), as 1 in 5 players will win entry into the $1,650 Deep Stack DP.

Also on Saturday is the usual 11 am tournament ($150 + $30), and one player is using the day to raise awareness for two medically incurable illnesses.

Dan Skodol (Denver, CO via New Jersey) is back on the East Coast to help fight Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis as he's pledging 100% of his winnings to the the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America (CCFA).

"I have a personal connection with these diseases, as my younger sister has had Crohn's disease since a very young age," says Skodol, who's also raising funds as he trains for a half-marathon. "I'm hoping that the voluntary donations raised (Saturday) will help find a cure for these diseases."

On a personal note I have a good friend who suffers from ulcerative colitis and I've seen first hand how painful and debilitating the disease is. According to CCFA, approximately 1.4 million American adults and children have one of the diseases.

A quick internet research shows that many famous people have dealt with a form of these illnesses including Presidents Dwight Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy.

Others who are currently suffering with Crohn's or colitis include actress Shannen Doherty, Pearl Jam lead guitarist Mike McCready, and pro athletes David Garrard (NFL), Shayne Corson (NHL), and Theo Fleury (NHL).

Skodol is doing his part and accepting tax-deductible donations Saturday. You can spot him in the poker room wearing the grey Team Challenge training t-shirt.

Skodol & Sis

Championship Event Recap

2011-09-25T19:50:00.000-04:00

$3300 + $200 WPT Borgata Poker Open Championship NLH

Bobbi Oboodi - $922,441
WPT Borgata Poker Open Champion

A final table that featured two satellite qualifiers, a WSOP bracelet holder, and a trio of Borgata regulars comes down to the J♠ as it's Bobby's World for the WPT Borgata Poker Open Championship.

Bahbak 'Bobby' Oboodi (Morris Plains, NJ) is the last man standing in a record field of 1,313 entries as he takes down the $922,441 first place prize. "I'm just numb, the excitement hasn't hit me yet," said the 24 year old poker pro moments after winning the title.

"I feel like everyone else is more excited than I am, but I'm sure it's going to hit me later tonight when I realize I just won this tournament and nearly a million dollars."

Oboodi beat Jin Hwang (Gambrills, MD), a man who seriously doubted that he would make the final table and checked out of his hotel room on Day 4 before play resumed with 27 players.

"I'm so proud of myself, I think I did my best," said Hwang, who had no major cashes on his tournament resume, but pocketed $554,303 as runner-up. "I'm completely satisfied and happy with my play and ready to go on to the next tournament."

Heads up play began with each player holding at least 40 big blinds, but lasted only 18 hands. The J♠ was the key card that propelled Oboodi to victory on the final two hands.

On the penultimate hand, Oboodi hit a pair of jacks on the turn as his AJ bested Hwang's AQ to win a 10 million chip pot and extended his lead. The final blow comes when the one eyed jack hit the turn again giving Oboodi a flush and Hwang two pairs.

Oboodi had to sweat the river, but when Hwang missed his outs for a full house, the Borgata regular wins the championship with a queen high flush.

"My strategy for heads up was to small ball it. I didn't want to get into any big hands where I'm going to be put in marginal situations," he said while being congratulated from his rowdy rooting section, the Morris County Crew (MCC). "I was fortunate enough to make the flush against top pair on the last hand and it held up and here we are, champion."

Hwang, who didn't have any regrets on how he played the final two hands said, "I didn't think there was anyway he had a flush there," and that he expected Oboodi would have raised Hwang's flop bet with a flush draw. "He played it perfectly."

Hwang, the 56 year old self-employed financial agent, was happy to still be playing for a six figure cash as he was 27th out of 27 returning players on the final three tables with just 12 big blinds. But after surviving multiple all-in pots, he got a huge lift with quad jacks after his pocket hooks were dominated by the pocket queens of Will "The Thrill" Failla.

"That was the biggest turning point," said Hwang, who entered this tournament on a $400 satellite, "and that's when I thought I could do it. I was feeling comfortable and it was like someone was leading me to the final table."

When the final table of six resumed under the glare of the tv lights on Day 5, Hwang was once again the short stack with still only one dozen big blinds. But one by one, he moved up the pay scale.

The first to go was Ricky Hale (Cornwall, England), the other short stack, who turned a $100 satellite into $186,585 for his 6th place finish.

Darren Elias (Montclair, NJ), one of the three New Jersey players at the table, was 5th ($230,610) when his pocket jacks ran into Oboodi's pocket kings. The hand took Oboodi's stack to nearly 19 million and caused problems for Fred Goldberg (Hollywood, FL).

"I was sitting on Fred's left and he was put in a difficult spot being on my right because we were both chip leaders heading into the day," said Oboodi. "You really don't want to play too big of a hand out of position against the second chip leader. He was really unlucky with his seat because if he was on my left I'm sure I would have had just as difficult of a time."

Goldberg, a WSOP bracelet holder and the 10th place finisher in the 2006 Main Event, was frustrated throughout the day and finished 4th ($280,925) when he was out kicked by Oboodi on Goldberg's final hand.

Oboodi had more than half the chips in play while three-handed, as Hwang was second in chips and Daniel Buzgon (Marlton, NJ), the third local player, was third.

Hwang eventually knocked out Buzgon in third place ($335,433), setting up heads-up play, as the final two outlasted a world class field.

The tournament featured big names, bracelet holders and WPT champions. In addition to Failla (11th/$50,315), who was bidding to be the first back-to-back winner on tour and calls Borgata his "home" casino, notables who cashed in the $4,332,900 total buy-in included:

Jeff Madsen (60th/$11,740) 2x bracelet winner
John Racener (35th/$16,352) WSOP 2010 Main Event runner-up
David Williams (31st/16,352) WSOP bracelet
Vanessa Selbst (23rd/$18,868) - WSOP bracelet
"Miami" John Cernuto (14th/$35,640) 3x bracelet winner
Matt Glantz (12th/$50,315) who added to his nearly $4 million in career tournament earnings

In the end, Borgata is Bobby's World and with his new found wealth his goals are to play more poker and to start a business. "Poker is great, but I want to have some steady income that's not related to poker," he said while trying to figure out where he'll display the championship trophy.

Oboodi Celebrates with MCC

2011 WPT Borgata Poker Open Championship
Notable Participants

WSOP Bracelet Winners:

Robert Varkonyi (2002 Main Event Champion)
Allen Cunningham (5 bracelets)
"Miami" John Cernuto* (3 bracelets)
Jeff Madsen* (2 bracelets)
Matt Matros (2 bracelets)
Vanessa Selbst*
David Williams* (and WPT title)
Michael Mizrachi (and WPT title)
Gavin Smith (and WPT title)
Andy Frankenberger (and WPT title)
Fred Goldberg*
Kathy Liebert
Robert Mizrachi
Jason Young
Freddy Rouhani
Brian Lemke
Brock Parker
Ken Aldridge
Allen Bari
Mike "Little Man" Sica
Chris Bell
David Diaz
Hasan Habib

WPT Title Holders

Jonathan Little (two-time champion)
Cornell Cimpan (two-time champion)
Tuan Lee (two-time champion)
Will "The Thrill" Failla*
Yevgeniy Timoshinko*
Victor Ramdin
Lee Markholt

Recent Deep Runs in the WSOP Main Event:

John Racener* (2010 runner-up)
Chino Rheem (2008 Final Table/Inaugural EPL Champion)
Matt Affleck
Josh Brikis
Jerry Payne

* Cashed in this Championship

Final Table Results

Place-Name-Amount

1 Bahbak "Bobby" Oboodi (Morris Plains, NJ) $922,441
2 Jin Hwang (Gambrills, MD) $554,303
3 Daniel Buzgon (Marlton, NJ) $335,433
4 Fred Goldberg (Hollywood, FL) $280,925
5 Darren Elias (Montclair, NJ) $230,610
6 Ricky Hale (Cornwall, England) $186,585

Event 20: Day 3 Recap - Failla Leads

2011-09-23T00:52:00.001-04:00

$3300 + $200 WPT Borgata Poker Open Championship

Failla "Thrilling" his Fans

Moving day had lots of drama and even more big pots as Borgata regular Will "The Thrill" Failla has the chip lead with 27 players left in the WPT Borgata Poker Open Championship.

"The sick part about it is, I don't think I knocked out one person all day," said Failla, who bagged nearly 3.3 million chips. "I just played a couple of big pots and don't remember knocking anybody out."

Failla is ahead of three players, Doug Kim, Ricky Hale and Darren Elias, who are all in the 2.5 million range, but some big names are lurking around the 1.5 million chip average (49 BB).

The list includes Matt Glantz, another Borgata regular, who has $3.8 million in career earnings, WSOP bracelet holder Vanessa Selbst and Fred Goldberg, along with three-time WSOP Champion "Miami" John Cernuto.

The list of recognizable pros who are on the rail during Day 3 of the tournament included two-time WSOP bracelet winner Jeff Madsen, who finished in 60th place ($11,740) and David Williams, who was 31st ($16,352).

"It always hurts when you get knocked out of a tournament," said Williams who was the 2004 Borgata Poker Open Champion runner-up to Daniel Negreanu and began Day 2 as the chip leader. "But now I get to go home to my family so that's a good thing."

Williams at one point had his chip stack up to 2.5 million, but he twice lost big pots with pocket aces, including one to Failla. He was also instrumental in breaking the bubble in a huge hand that cost Mark Bramley his final 450k and a spot in the money as he was eliminated in 101st place.

A king on the river gave Bramley a straight, but he was bested by Williams' pocket kings for a full house. You can see the hand details here as Bramley's elimination sent the remaining 100 players into the money for a minimum cash of $8,386.

The chip lead changed hands throughout the night as Dan Colman, who was involved with this controversial hand, and Joe Dittmar both had the lead at different points. But in the end it was Failla, who recently won his first WPT title, with the lead heading into Day 4.

"When you win your first WPT (title) it's a feeling you really can't put words on. I keep using the word surreal," says the New York native, who cut his tournament teeth at Borgata.

"For me to win it in my home casino that would mean more to me than anything else because my family will be here for it," he said. "It will make a big difference to me."

Failla and the other 26 players return 11 am Thursday to continue their pursuit for the Borgata Poker Open Championship and the $922,441 first place prize. The field will play down to the final six before returning Friday for the televised final table.

Number of Entrants: 1,313
Players Remaining: 27
Chips In Play: 39.3 million

Average Stack: 1.46 million (49 BB)
Big Stack: 3.255 million (109 BB)

Blinds: 15k/30k/3k ante (49 minutes left on level)

Total Buy-In: $4,332,900
First Prize: $922,441
Places Paid: 100

Championship Event Preview

2011-09-20T01:39:00.002-04:00

$3,300 +$200 WPT Borgata Poker Open Championship

Defending Champion Dwyte Pilgrim Back at Borgata

On the eve of the WPT Borgata Poker Open Championship Event there's a buzz about not only the $3 million guaranteed prize pool, but the extra $5,000 bonus for the chip leaders at the end of Day 1A and Day 1B.

"I think it's great," says Lee Childs (Alexandria, VA), who's itching to get back to the tables after his 9th place finish ($62,000) in last year's tournament, his deepest WPT run.

"But, it's not something that I'll have shot at," he laughed while figuring out how to approach the re-entry format. "Maybe if they give away $5,000 for a chip stack just below average I'd have a chance."

Players who bust on Day 1A have the chance to play Day 1B which has some of the bigger names thinking with a gunslingers mentality. "I'm using two bullets," says Will "The Thrill" Failla (Commack, NY) who last month won his first WPT title for $758,000.

A guaranteed prize pool, a re-entry structure, and a bonus for the Day 1A chip lead is the perfect storm for lots of action and great value for this $3,500 tournament with 30k in starting chips and 75 minute levels.

"I think you're going to see some wild swings in the intermediate and late stages of 1A," says Gordon Eng (Cliffside Park, NJ), who has a dozen career Borgata cashes, including a 2010 win for $73,000. "The bonus gives guys incentive to be aggressive, especially knowing they can fire two bullets if they need to."

With eleven days of play and nineteen Main Events leading up to the Championship, big names have already been playing at the Event Center gearing up for a title run, including defending champion Dwyte Pilgrim (Brooklyn, NY).

"I'm here to shock the world again," says "The Short Stack Slayer," who took down the biggest win of his career with his $733,802 payday.

Last year's 1,042 players was the biggest in WPT history and with names like Allen Cunningham (5 WSOP bracelets), Gavin Smith (WSOP bracelet) Jeff Madsen (2 WSOP bracelets), Jonathan Little (2 WPT titles), and WPT title holders Victor Ramdin, Roy Winston, Failla and Pilgrim all confirmed for the event, another record setting day is right around the corner.

Pilgrim After Winning the Title and $733,802

Event 13: Deal Or No Deal

2011-09-14T01:32:00.000-04:00

$350 + $50 Big Stack NLH

Mary Beth Dealing at Borgata

One suitcase contained $1,000,000 the other $25 when Mary Beth Salmieri got one final offer from the banker on the hit game show Deal or No Deal.

"I truly believed I had the million," says the 28 year-old, who was named Holtzheimer at the time, "but I had to take it," she says when offered $341,000.

She knew it didn't matter what was in case #13, because a guaranteed 6-figure payday would be life changing. Salmieri's poker sense was to lock in the guarantee instead of rolling the dice and ending up with only $25.

In the end, Salmieri's initial instincts were right as her lucky number held the $1,000,000, which she sold to the banker for one-third of the amount. "I was heartbroken," she said when they opened the case and it revealed the show's top prize.

Salmieri's thrill of a lifetime happened in 2008 and money was just part of it.

Mary Beth & Annie Duke

During the show's three hour taping pro player Annie Duke made a guest appearance to help sweeten the pot and experience, "I had no clue," says Salmieri, who listed Duke as one of her poker idols during auditions. "My mouth dropped when she walked out, it was completely surreal."

Salmieri says she was the only person picked out of 10,000 hopefuls who lined up in Center City Philadelphia for a 30 second chance to impress the show's producers. Her spirited personality and story of how she would use the winnings to start a poker bankroll were enough to land Salmieri on the show three months later.

Salmieri was picking off cases one-by-one, when Duke appeared and tempted the Deptford, New Jersey girl who now calls Los Angeles home. The banker's offer was a total of $158,000, which included a $25,000 poker package featuring private lessons from Duke.

But Salmieri said, "no deal," and stayed the course until she was down to three fateful cases, which you can watch below.

In the end, Salmieri didn't take home the $1,000,000, but she did become friends with Duke who gave her lessons and helped launch Salmieri's poker career. "She taught me a lot about the math and odds and bet sizes," says Salmieri, who finished 22nd in this event for $952.

"A lot of what she taught me is in her new book," says Salmieri, who admits to plugging Decide to Play Great Poker any chance she gets, adding "I just read it again the other night."

Since winning big on the show, Salmieri gave up her job as a retail district manager and is in the business of planning weddings and playing poker because, "I can do what want," which she says confidently and with a smile.

Salmieri plays poker several times a week, but doesn't call herself a professional even though she dates one in "Hollywood" Dave Stann. For now she settles for the title of professional amateur and is focused on making the right decisions both in poker and in life.

"I don't regret it," Salmieri says about taking the banker's deal, "but I wouldn't go as far as saying I would make the same decision if I had to do it all over again. Annie compared it to folding pocket 5s when your opponent has aces and a five hits the flop. It was the right decision at the wrong time."

Deal or No Deal

March, 2008

Borgata Summer Poker Open - Hooked on Borgata

2011-06-24T19:18:00.000-04:00

$2500 + $200 Championship NLH

Hook2120 On-line at Borgata

Chalie Hook cut his teeth playing poker at Borgata when the room first opened in 2003, since then he's grown into an elite player.

"I love playing Borgata it's convenient, it's close to home," says Hook, a Philadelphia native, who's playing in the Borgata Summer Poker Open Championship Event. "I started playing $2-$5 no-limit and mixed a lot of live and on-line through college when I was around."

Hook, a Holy Family University grad, eventually moved to Florida and hunkered down to grind high stakes cash games as screen name Hook2120. But that all changed on April 15th, internet poker's black Friday when the FBI essentially shutdown U.S. players from playing on-line.

"It sucks," says the man originally named Charles, but even his mother drops the "r' and calls him Chalie. "Playing live isn't my first choice, but it's what I have to do."

As he sorts out his future, Hook doesn't mind returning to his roots and playing in the Summer Poker Open. "I think I have over $100k in earnings, probably more than that, at the Borgata lifetime," says Hook, who in 2009 alone scored $31,000 for winning the Borgata Summer Open Heads Up Championship and another $57,000 for a second place finish in the Borgata Winter Open.

"Borgata's been good to me. Most of my earnings have been at Borgata," he says with $226,000 in live career earnings. "I love the Borgata, the structure, the people here are great."

While Hook isn't a household name like Phil Ivey, Daniel Negreanu and Phil Hellmuth, he's earned himself a name among the top on-line players. Guys like Olivier Busquet, the 2009 WPT Borgata Poker Open Champion and Hook's good friend Tom Marchese, the 2010 CardPlayer Player of the Year.

"Definitely top players in the world know who I am. I've played with them live and on-line," says Hook, who's been having a tough day and still has his 30k starting stack at the dinner break.

"There are guys like Tony G (Antanas Guoga), he plays here on weekends and is a mid-stakes grinder on-line. I think he's probably one of the best players in the world and not everybody knows who he is. I'd say the same thing about Marchese, two years ago he was one of the best players in the world and nobody knew who he was."

After playing here in the Championship Event, Hook plans on meeting up with Marchese in Vegas to play in the WSOP Main Event. He'll then decide if he wants to move to Europe where he can fire up the computer and play the game he loves, legally, on-line.

"It'll be a different experience moving away and I'll probably do it." But wherever Hook plays, he'll always call Borgata home and know this is where his poker career began.

Borgata Summer Poker Open - The Defender

2011-06-24T19:16:00.002-04:00

$2500 + $200 Championship NLH

DiClaudio Stealing Blinds & Antes

In poker, not all chips are created equal, so defending the blinds doesn't guarantee the player a fair trial as the person will be out of position the rest of the hand. Fortunately for defense attorney Scott DiClaudio's clients, he's more committed to the Pennsylvania legal system than he is to his big blind.

DiClaudio had 5 separate court cases this morning which could have potentially detained him in Philadelphia, preventing him from playing in Day 2 of the Borgata Summer Poker Open Championship event. "It was fortuitous from me to get here on time as the Commonwealth's witnesses failed to appear," he said after working cases that included a bank robbery, shooting and assault.

DiClaudio says the "wrong judge" and it would've been "problematic" to arrive by the noon restart, especially since he began the day in the top 20% of the field with a well above average stack of 100,500 chips.

DiClaudio knew going deep in the Championship Event could conflict with his work schedule but, "we're poker players, we like to gamble." So far, so good for the defender who just applied capital punishment to an opponent holding pocket 5s against DiClaudio's pocket aces, and now has 225k.

With an above average stack, DiClaudio is eying the prize pool as 36 of the remaining 61 players will cash. DiClaudio hopes there won't be any courtroom conflicts for Tuesday's Day 3 finale and is a problem he'd love to have, as it means he'll be in the money.

But for now, DiClaudio is perfectly content stealing the blinds and antes where it's perfectly legal.

Borgata Summer Poker Open - Championship Recap

2011-06-24T19:14:00.002-04:00

$2500 + $200 Championship NLH

Three players with a lot of Borgata success are the last three players standing, but in the end it's Tyng Low (Flushing, NY) who's on the ultimate high as the Summer Poker Open Champion. Low defeated Farid Jattin (Miami, FL) heads up to take the title and outlasted Austen Johnson (Woodsboro, MD), arguably the most dominant player of the series.

"Good, great, tremendous, fabulous," says Low, who takes home his biggest poker payday at $211,484. "It means a lot," added the 27 year old, "I've been trying to hit one like this for five years."

On a board of 5♣ 6♠ 4♣, Low flopped a straight holding 7♥ 3♥, while Jattin hit top pair and a gutshot straight flush draw with the 6♣ 2♣. But when the board bricked out, Jattin, who was the chip leader after Day 1A and Day 2, was one place away from going wire to wire in the Championship Event.

"There's nothing I could do," said Jattin, who earned $117,481 as runner-up. "The hand played itself. I'm not uspet. I expected to win, so I'm disappointed."

"I was calling red, red," said Low, who dodged a club on the turn and river to win the title. "Fortunately the right black cards came out."

Jattin, who finished third ($15,045) in the $1,000 6-max (Event 15), began the day as the chip leader and held it the entire way, until Low closed the gap by knocking out Johnson in third place.

"Anything less than first place is a disappointment," said Johnson, who got $72,845 for third place. "But I think I locked up player of the series, which all-in-all isn't a bad month."

Johnson, who was the Event 1 ($450) Deep Stack winner ($64,734), didn't decide to enter the Championship Event until Sunday when his wife gave him a Father's Day gift of "permission to win $70,000." He also took a month off from work to pursue the Summer Poker Open Leaderboard Contest, where the winner earns a $3,500 entry into the WPT Borgata Poker Open Championship in September.*

"I was first in points and figured I might as well try and run it out," said Johnson.

Day 3, the final day, began with all 36 players returning in the money including Borgata regular Mike Dentale (Brooklyn, NY) who made the final table before being eliminated in 10th place/$10,183. He was joined by Nick Frangos (Mays Landing, NJ), who has nearly $900,000 in career earnings, and finished 6th/$38,380.

The biggest surprise of the final 10 was Anthony Sivolella (Florham Park, NJ) who returned as the short stack with 25k (4 BB). After a series of double-ups he rode the short stack to 8th place/$23,107.

Rounding out the top 10 were, Paul Freedman (Seabrook, NH) 9th/$15,666, Salah Siraj (New York, NY) 7th/$30,939, Brian Altman (Longmeadow, MA) 5th/$45,430, and Andrew Klein (Ocean, NJ) 4th/$58,746.

The tournament began with 323 players putting up $807,500 and after 4 long days, including two starting days, Low is the champion. The title, money and trophy are extra special for Low after he made a run in last year's Summer Poker Open Championship with a 19th place finish ($3,736).

"I didn't think I could get this far," the soft spoken winner said after the 2010 disappointment of missing the final table despite beginning the final day with the chip lead. "I didn't think my luck was that good."

But Low has the right amount of luck and skill to take this year's title.

*Leaderboard Contest final results will be finalized after the completion of Friday's Event 52

Borgata Summer Poker Open - Event 19 Recap

2011-06-24T19:11:00.000-04:00

$400 + $50 Six-Max NLH

The best hand in poker is the winning hand for Jose Montes (Bronx, NY) at the Borgata Summer Poker Open, but it’s the second worst hand that helped him most in winning the six-max title.

Montes open shoved 7 3 off suit with < 10 BB and was on the ropes for his tournament life when he turned a full house against Jim Burnett's A 3 to stay alive in four-handed play. That double-up led to a heads-up showdown between the two, and when Montes tabled A♠ A♥ on the final hand, it completed the comeback.

“I’m happy, excited and blessed to win,” says Montes who won $14,201, “this is great.”

Burnett (Pasadena, MD), who began heads up play even in chips, was decimated by a 400k chip pot when Montes hit two pairs on the river and never recovered.

“He ran like God at the end,” said Burnett, who earned $8,757 as runner-up. “He had a lot of pocket pairs and was getting hit with the deck, so that’s tough to beat. But he played well, it was a good game.”

Burnett ran pretty well himself throughout the day as he needed the same pocket aces before dinner break to stay alive. He proceeded to eliminate Arihan "Nipi" Rizaj (Brooklyn, NY) in 4th place/$4,825 with a full house, then hit an open ended straight draw on the river to bust Sahu Habibi (New York, NY) in 3rd/$6,509 to set the heads up stage.

The field had several familiar faces including Championship Event 10th place finisher Mike Dentale ($10,183), who grabbed the chip lead early, but was eliminated in 18th place, 5 spots off the money. The field also featured Borgata regulars Sheree Bykofsky, Matt “Muffins” Mazzeo and Abe Korotki.

The total buy-in was $48,800 as the field of 122 players fought for the 12 paid places.

Dan Rusignuolo (Nutley, NJ) was one of the first players to crack the 100k chip mark and rode the momentum to a 6th place/$2,603 finish. The final table of seven also featured Shaun Beymolla (North Babylon, NY) 5th/$3,669 and Michael Santora (Staten Island, NY) 7th/$2,012.

The six-max was the third short-handed game of the series and continues to grow in popularity. “For me it helps aggressive players and suits my game,” said Montes, who had a strong rooting section.

Montes was quick to add that the only other event he played during the Summer Open, was when he just missed the money in Event 1. He was anxious to get back to Borgata and called out of work just to play in the penultimate tournament of the series.

Inspirational Story

2011-02-01T23:08:00.003-05:00

The Borgata poker experience is one that makes players feel relaxed and comfortable.

The staff accommodates players with special needs, and last week was a perfect example when Ralph Marino (Waretown, NJ) needed an extra seat for his "arms and legs."

Kalyanov & Marino

Marino is a quadriplegic who's been playing poker for three years and says he's, "getting addicted to Texas hold'em."

Because he has no movement in his arms or legs, Marino gets an assist at the table from Artem Kalyanov, who does all the things Marino can't.

Kalyanov shows Marino the cards, puts up his blinds and antes and rakes in the pots. All the decisions are up to Marino as there's still only one player per hand.

"He makes me feel normal," says Marino, who played in the Event 16 Deep Stack at the Borgata Winter Open (BWO). Kalayanov also helps with daily routines like dressing, eating and driving.

Marino was an aspiring baseball catcher who was paralyzed in a home plate collision at age 19. With his dreams of playing Major League Baseball dashed, Marino, who was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates, changed his plans.

Marino has always wanted to help people and realized his life could be worse (a close friend died of cancer), so he got a degree in Social Work from Rampo State College. That led to a 26-year career at North Bergen High School in North Jersey where he also coached baseball and basketball.

Marino, 55 and retired, is now a motivational speaker who tells a story of hope and inspiration. His motto: "Tough times don't last, tough people do."

As for poker, Marino's still learning the game, "when I'm playing poker I feel very competitive and I try to concentrate to the best of my abilities. Unfortunately, I tend to socialize and talk too much for tournament play."

Marino busted during Level 5 of the Deep Stack and looks forward to returning to Borgata to play more tournaments and says he's, "trying to become more competitive and patient."

In the meantime, Marino will continue giving speechs and preaching that "mind and heart, plus taking action will put you "Above the Rim." That, the name of his speaking program where more information is available at abovetherimm.com.

Marino Likes Catching Cards

Super 76 - Expansion That Makes Sense

2010-03-11T17:19:00.016-05:00

There's been a lot of buzz about the possible expansion of the best tournament in the world. And with that, there's speculations and proposals on how the NCAA and big money networks will incorporate more teams into the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament.

Doubling the bracket from 64 slots to 128 is absurd (or is it 65 teams to 130?), but the other alternatives aren't much better, including an increase to 96 teams.

In this proposal, 32 teams get a bye while the remaining 64 teams play in an opening round that is cut in half before joining the Main Bracket. I know the the "Nifty 96" has a nice ring to it, but seriously, 96 teams?

My proposal incorporates the two best parts of March Madness, the bubble and the brackets. The working title right now is the "Other Sweet 16" and makes all the current bubble teams play their way into the main field. (I don't think the "Sour 16" will go over too well when it comes to marketing the expansion).

Everybody Loves the 5 - 12 Game

When you're filling out your bracket, how many times have you picked the 12th seed to knock off a #5 seed? One reason we love the match-up is because, over the last 6 seasons, the record is only a few games away from being a 50/50 split (See Table 1), with Arizona, Wisconsin and Western Kentucky pulling it off last year.

Historically the 12 seeds are legitimate competition because they're either the last at-large teams in the field or strong mid major conference winners. On the flip side, the 5 seeds aren't upper echelon teams, meaning the 5-12 gap isn't as large as the numbers suggest, giving us some of the most entertaining first round games.

My proposal uses this template, but instead of having the Indianapolis, suit wearing committee hand the 12 seeds to the last teams in the tournament, I want bubble teams to fight their way into the main bracket.

Bracketology 101

Die hard hoop fans are dialed into Joe Lunardi's Bracketology all season, but this is the week when the ESPN servers work overtime. Last Four In, First Four Out and Next Four Out are the lists where bubble teams focus their attention.

Lunardi's list from the start of play on 3/12 has the following:

Last Four In - San Diego St., Illinois, Washington, Ole Miss

First Four Out - Arizona St., Memphis, Rhode Island, Seton Hall

Next Four Out* - Dayton, Mississippi St., Minnesota, UAB

*3/12 only has three teams, but UAB had been on previous Next Four Out lists.

My plan is take take these 12 teams and add 4 more to create a mini tournament.

For the sake of argument I'm including Wichita St., William & Mary, South Florida and Charlotte to fill out my field.

The Other Sweet 16

Using real life Bracketology, here's how current expansion would look.

1 San Diego St. vs 16 Charlotte
8 Seton Hall vs 9 Dayton

1/16 winner vs 8/9 winner = East 12th seed

2 Illinois vs 15 USF
7 URI vs 10 Miss. St.

2/15 winner vs 7/10 winner = South 12th seed

3 Washington. vs 14 William & Mary
6 Memphis vs. 11 Minnesota

3/14 winner vs 7/10 winner = Midwest 12th seed

4 Ole Miss vs 13 Wichita St.
5 ASU vs 12 UAB

4/13 winner vs 5/12 winner = West 12th seed

Net Impact - 12 More Teams

While the mini bracket may look convoluted, the process is relatively simple and only adds 12 teams to the field, while creating an exciting way for bubble teams to earn their keep.

Step 1

Set the Main Bracket with 60 teams (31 Automatic Qualifiers, 29 At-Large Bids), leaving the four #12 seeds vacant.

Since more teams will eventually be added to the extended field, the stupid Play-In game or, as the NCAA likes to call it, the Opening Round Game can be eliminated. If this is done, only 11 teams need to be added.

Step 2

Create four mini pods (4 teams each), playing two rounds to produce 4 teams that will become the 12 seeds.

Step 3

The remaining 64 teams play out the traditional bracket.

Housekeeping

The naysayers may doubt the simplicity of keeping the 12 seeds vacant without upsetting the natural balance and integrity of the present bracket structure.

Using current Bracketology (before 3/12 play), the 12 seeds are:

San Diego St. (Last Four In), Illinois (Last Four In), Siena (MAAC Champ) & Florida

San Diego St. & Illinois are removed from the Main Field and placed in the "Other Sweet 16," while Siena & Florida become lower seeds.

Why? Because Washington (13 seed) & Ole Miss (14 seed) are also removed from the Main Field as the other two teams currently on the Last Four In list. Their removal creates two holes that are easily filled by Siena & Florida.

The Mission

My proposal accomplishes a couple of things.

1. Limits expansion and forces bubble teams to play their way into the Main Bracket.

It maintains the integrity of the regular season and instead of comparing paper resumes, it allows bubble teams to settle things on the court.

2. Keeps Automatic Bids in the Main Bracket.

I think it's important that auto qualifiers should be rewarded for their success and not have to play any extra games (like the current Opening Round game). In a proposed expansion, with 32 teams getting byes, a slew of conference winner will be demoted into playing an extra round.

3. It mimics what we already see in the ESPN BracketBuster games.

Every year the world wide leader pits potential bubble teams and quality mid major programs against each other so they can build, or hurt their tournament chances. Instead of only cannibalizing each other in February, these tournament caliber teams get the chance to show their worth in March, in real, meaningful games.

Scheduling Conflicts

Any expansion will require the NCAA to adjust the beauty of today's current March Madness schedule, so until a proposal is finalized we'll leave those headaches for another day. But here are some general thoughts.

This proposal extends NCAA tournament action by only one weekend (two rounds). Two sites, using day/night double headers, like we currently see in the first round pod setups, can easily be created. Imagine the excitement of an extra weekend of meaningful games at Madison Square Garden.

What about the Main Bracket having to wait to start play?

Right now the NCAA and ESPN don't have a problem with having teams sit around before playing a tournament game. Just ask East Tenn St. (Atlantic Sun), Murray State (Ohio Valley) & Winthrop (Big South), which all punched their tickets as automatic qualifiers March 6th, nearly two full weeks before their first round NCAA Tournament games.

An expanded tournament, in any form, won't be any different than what these teams currently experience.

Not to mention Main Bracket games could be staggered so that you have a bevy of games spread out over this extra weekend to keep teams and fans interested while the Other Sweet 16 plays down to determine the four #12 seeds. In any expansion, the tournament will eventually sync up when 64 teams remain.

Super 76

The elimination of the Opening Round Game, the extraction of four bubble teams from the Main Bracket and the addition of 11 more teams = a tournament of 76 worthy qualifiers.

It's understandable that coaches and administrators want to see more teams make the NCAA field, especially as more and more Division 1 teams are added. Nobody wants to see the tournament become a joke or have the regular season become meaningless.

So I say, this is expansion worth talking about.

Table 1 - 12th Seed Stats
Year - 1st Round Record

’09 (3-1)
’08 (2-2)
’07 (0-4)
’06 (2-2)
’05 (1-3)
’04 (2-2)
___________
Record: 10-14

BWO Championship Interview

2010-02-05T21:31:00.001-05:00

Jeff Madsen (Las Vegas, NV)
Borgata Winter Open Champion - $625,006

Full Blog can be found here

Day 1B Video Montage

2010-02-02T00:40:00.001-05:00

Event Championship Clips:

Lee Childs, Cathy Dever, Jesse Yaginuma,
Alex Lindh, Michael Binger, George Medrano,
Jason Mercier, Tab, Mike Leah, Dave Fox &
Andrew.

Day 1A Video Montage

2010-02-01T00:25:00.002-05:00

Championship Event Featured Players:

Olivier Busquet, MikeDentale, Billy Gazes,
Johanssy Joseph & chip leader Al Grimes.

Not Just An Avatar

2010-01-29T17:13:00.000-05:00

Event #16, Heads-Up ($2000 +$150)
NL, Double Elimination

On-Line Olivier, Live and in Person

On-line high-stakes heads up sit and go specialist, Olivier Busquet is still alive in the losers bracket after winning three Friday matches. After losing to September heads up champion Jesse Yaginuma in the third round of the winner's bracket, Busquet's won four in a row and is now playing Jason Lufkin in the money round, as all 6 remaining players will cash.

"It's a really different experience," says Busquet, who won Borgata's Championship Event at September's Poker Open. "I've played a million hands on-line, but maybe only 10-thousand in live action. I'm learning to trust my reads a lot more."

Busquet, who has more than one million dollars in career earnings, and countless more on-line, says that it's been a tough field of 64 at Borgata and is slightly disappointed he didn't get to play Olympic Swimming Gold Medalist Michael Phelps in the last round.

"It would've been cool," he says. "I know he plays a lot of poker and would've been a tough match. The fact that he's an expert, I would've liked to have seen how the competition transferred to poker. Because really, that's what this is competition."

Phelps lost to Basilios Diakokomninos in the double elimination format, who then lost to Busquet in the 7th round of the losers bracket.

Busquet's guaranteed to earn at least $6,208 for a 5th/6th place finish, as nearly $50,000 is up for grabs to the heads up champion. "This format is great," he says, "the fact that you're only playing a person one time, really lessens whatever edge I may have and forces me to focus and step up my game."

Lufkin vs Busquet
Losers Bracket Quarterfinal

Sean's Ski School

2009-12-29T20:49:00.000-05:00

Video montage of my nephew Sean's debut on the slopes!

Stick A Cork In It!

2009-10-14T13:04:00.009-04:00

Savoring a First Round Win

What's the deal with baseball celebrations? The 2009 postseason versions started with the Dodgers sweep over St. Louis, followed by the Angles, Yankees and Phillies, as all four teams basked in the bubbly after first round wins.

Don't get me a wrong I'm all for celebrating, but cracking open the Cristal for advancing? In a best of 5, no less. Give me a break!

Here's a look at teams recently moving on in the playoffs:

Remember the Penguins popping Dom Perignon corks in Philadelphia after beating the Flyers in the first round? What about the Orlando Magic savoring Asti Spumanti when they ousted Boston in the second round? And who can forget the Eagles spraying Moet & Chandon all over the Meadowlands locker rooms on their way to the NFC title game?

Of course none of those playoff parties happened because it would be ridiculous if they did.

Memo to Major League baseball: A first round win doesn't warrant a championship celebration. It makes the league, the teams and the players look ridiculous.

Here are the official Gorilla Guidelines on appropriate champagne (and/or Brett Myers Budwieser) celebrations.

* Playoff Clinching Wins (It's a long regular season, congratulations!)

* World Series Championships

That's it!

The primate committee considered allowing teams to hang plastic in the clubhouse following League Championship Series clinchers, but that's just as tacky as the 2009 N.L. East Division t-shirts I see in suburban Philadelphia.

Unfortuately these guidelines are too late for this year's playoffs, but hopefully someone will get the word out for next season.

Wild Weekend Spin

2009-09-20T23:01:00.001-04:00

Championship Event

Sikyala Watches the Ups and Downs of Muhammad

It's a Hollywood script and a miracle in the making, but unfortunately for Hakima Muhammad, there's no fairy tale ending. It's a story of early success spiraling into the abyss, divine intervention resurrecting the dream, only to have fate deal a cruel conclusion to a whirlwind weekend.

It starts Thursday night when Muhammad picked up $2,800 in a Second Chance tournament, more than three quarters of the $3,500 she needs to play in the Championship Event. "I wanted a story where you could use my nickname," Kima "Slice" says, a play on the name of mixed marital arts phenom Kimbo Slice.

But instead of sitting tight and ponying up the balance, Muhammad trys to win the rest.

A $550 Survivor Tournament entry gone here, a $230 Second Chance bust there, and a first-hand elimination of a 1 in 5, $750 automatic qualifier, and the well is dry. "I lost it all," Muhammad laments, "I played in at least four other events and couldn't get it done. Late last night (Saturday) I was hoping for a $350 sit and go, but we couldn't get 10 players."

Poor planning and weekend banking hours make it tough for Muhammad to withdraw the entry fee and she's resigned to missing the Championship Event.

But that's when fate takes over.

Muhammad and her "poker companion" Muk Sikyala, both of the Baltimore/Bowie, MD area, misplace the car keys creating a revelation. "I told her, 'we're still here and roulette's the only answer,' " says Sikyala, "one lucky spin and you're in."

So Muhammad sat by the red and black wheel and waited, and waited, and waited. Thirty minutes passed and she got the feeling. "It just came to me, a message from above, the number 10."

She took a single, $100 chip, and placed it in the first row, the black square, four away from the green single zero. The number 10. After the floor confirms the large bet, the ball hovers over the twirling colorful pie shaped slots and then it happened.

"I couldn't see it," says Muhammad, as the white ball danced around the circular grid, "I was at the other end of the table, but I saw the dealer's face," she said, as the sphere settles on the number 10. There's a roar from the players and bystanders who are celebrating the win, Muhammad's dream is alive again.

A less than 3 percent chance hits, 35 to 1 odds come true, and the dealer stacks 35 black, $100 chips. A big win and the exact total for Muhammad's entry into the Championship Event.

After flipping her initial bet to the dealer as a tip, Muhammad hustles to the Event Center and calls Sikyala while on-line to register. "I couldn't believe it, I simply couldn't believe it," he said after leaving the poker room to join the party at the opposite end of the casino.

Muhammad is at the table just twenty minutes before the field is closed, with Sikyala hanging over the rail. He's just over Muhammad's shoulder while she plays at Table 3 - Seat 10.

Then disaster.

Just back from the first break, it's pocket kings against pocket aces. All the money's in the middle and aces hold. Unfortunately for Muhammad, her kings are crowned and she's out the door.

"I can't believe it," she says, "after all that, for it to end this way."

Up and down, in and out, highs and lows. A wild weekend spin for one player in the world of Borgata poker.

Last Woman Standing

2009-09-13T05:45:00.004-04:00

1st Woman, Nicole Rowe - $11,889

Nicole Rowe (New Windsor, NY) outlasted 267 other ladies to be the last woman standing in the Ladies Event, unfortunately a man kept her from winning the tournament.

Abraham Korotki (Ventnor City, NJ) in a controversial move, entered the field and won the title. For Rowe, not winning the event is disappointing, but not devastating. "It doesn't matter," says Rowe, who was recently diagnosed with breast cancer. "It was 16 hours of being cancer free, a diversion from my reality."

Rowe will have a double mastectomy in the next two weeks and used the tournament to, not only escape the emotional drain, but to help inform the women. "I told everyone at all my tables, 'if your under 50, make sure you get a sonogram along with your mammogram, or else your mammogram is useless.'"

"It's a shame she didn't win," says 5th place finisher Jena Ross, "but our thoughts and prayers are with Nicole."

Rowe says she'll donate $500 to breast cancer research and will need the rest of her winnings to help cover expenses for the 6 weeks she'll be off from work.

Korotki says he'll also donate part off his $20,982 winnings to the cause. "That's very nice of him," says Rowe, when told the news. "Even just to think of that is very nice."

"We know who the real winner is," adds Ross. "She (Nicole) was the last woman standing."

Originally posted on Borgata Poker Site (where you can find comments)

Ladies "Champion"

2009-09-13T04:45:00.005-04:00

1st, Abraham Korotki - $20,982

They only play a few hands heads-up, when Abraham Korotki eliminates the last remaining woman, Nicole Rowe to win the Ladies Championship.

Rowe bets 200k preflop, Korotki raises to 600k. Rowe shoves all-in, which Korotki calls. Rowe tables (A 9) vs. Korotski's (10 10). The board is no help to Rowe and she's eliminated in second place.

"I wanted to win the title," says Rowe who earns $11,889 for second place. "I came in second already," referring to her finish in the Ladies event at the 2007 Borgata Winter Open. "I can't believe I lost a ladies event to a guy."

This finale was the last thing the ladies in the field wanted to see, but Korotki was respectful after 16 hours of play.

"It's always nice to win a tournament," says Korotki, who takes home $20,982. "The ladies played very well and it's always nice for the weaker sex to have a victory."

Korotki says he's going to split his winning's between three, yet determined charities. The causes will focus on breast cancer research, children and animals.

Originally posted on Borgata Poker Site (where you can find comments)

Dude Looks Like A Lady (Event #7)

2009-09-12T20:00:00.005-04:00

Korotki (left), Playing in Ladies Event

Borgata strives to put on the best tournaments, and has successfully incorporated specialty events in their series, including the highly anticipated and well-attended Ladies No Limit Hold'em tournaments.

Here's a Borgata first, someone other than a female has entered this event, much to the dismay of Borgata and to the field of 269 women. And while this specific individual, who's known as Abraham Korotki (Ventor City, NJ), must have some reason for playing in the Ladies event, Borgata management is less than thrilled with his participation.

"I got tired of going home early," says Kortoki after getting knocked out of Event #6 ($1,000 +$90), "I hadn't had enough poker time."

Despite the fact that there were two other tournaments running later in the day, along with a myriad of continuous sit and goes, and a full 85-table poker room for cash games, Korotki opted for the Ladies Event, causing quite a stir.

"Any gentleman that comes to play, on the face of it, is doing it with disrespectful intent," says Alyson Parker (Planesboro, NJ), who's seated at Kortoski's table.

"He wasn't just there for fun, he was obnoxious," says one anonymous player, who started at Kortoki's table. "Every hand he needled people."

While a bulk of the players are upset and disappointed with Kortoki's presence, not everyone takes offense, including Shalanda "Diva" Nix (Newark, NJ), who's one of the chip leaders. "We all feel that we should have a secluded event for the ladies, but if he's going to play, tell him to bring it on because we welcome him."

Kortoki is also an unofficial chip leader and the deeper he goes in the tournament, the more frustrated some players are getting.

"If there weren't other men's events that he could enter, that would be a different story," says Nancy Martin (Washington Crossings, PA).

"I think the important thing is that had I been knocked out already, they would've been happy to have my 300 bucks in the kitty." says, Kortoki.

Professional player Lacey Jones (Manhattan Beach, CA) adds, "the more people in the tournament, the more money I get."

Whatever Kortoki's real intentions are, he says that if he's fortunate enough to win something in the Ladies event, he'll donate it to charity.

We'll see.

The Ladies Event is on dinner break.

Parker Feels Disrespoected by Lady Korotki

Originally posted on Borgata Poker Site (where you can find comments)

Carl Lewis....

2009-09-08T13:32:00.005-04:00

.....cordially invites you to celebrate the launch of

FITFOREVER

Wednesday September 9, 2009

7:00pm – 10:00pm

Chickie’s & Pete’s

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Philadelphia, PA 19145

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Here are some things you can expect:

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Ramp Up Your Social Life

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Worn Out Your Workout?

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That’s right the date has been set! Full site launch from 9-time Olympic gold medalist, Carl Lewis, is scheduled for 9.9.09! Prepare yourself for a life-changing transformation!

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College Collage

2009-09-05T16:24:00.017-04:00

After watching the horrifying right jab by Oregon's LeGarrette Blount late Thursday night, it was great to see Saturday's full slate of college football games. Here are some random thoughts while flipping around the dial.

Minnesota @ Syracuse

They day kicked off with the intriguing debut of Greg Paulus as the Orange's starting QB. I'm really impressed with Paulus' God given athletic ability as he smoothly made the switch from hoops to the huddle. The O-Coordinator called a great game and put Paulus in a position to succeed with mostly short, effective passes. The second half was a snooze and college overtime continues to be a farce (not that it had any impact on the outcome of the game). Other than one terrible decision, which unfortunately cost SU the game, the former Dukie played well.

Paulus Played Well, But Doesn't Pass Gophers' Test

As for the broadcast itself, Pam Ward has improved a lot over the last couple of seasons and I think she calls a crisp, accurate game. Ray Bentley, on color, was good too, making this a pretty good combo.

The Donovan McNabb in-game interview was completely misplaced. They had him in the booth while the Orange was on defense, making it awkward for D-Mac to talk about Paulus. Bottom line, keep McNabb's name out of the booth for one series, or keep him around for one Syracuse offensive possession.

BYU @ Oklahoma

You have to feel for Sam Bradford, as the OU QB passed on NFL millions, only to be in a sling by halftime. Fortunately it's not career threatening, but his Heisman hopes are out the window as he'll miss a couple of games. What about the Sooners season? They can still run the table and hope a Big 12 Title earns them a one loss spot in the BCS Title Game, but it's not likely.

The flip side is kudos to BYU for pulling off the upset. The Cougars are in a single elimination format and like many teams (any from the WAC, Mt. West & Big 11) can't afford any loses if they want to play for the title. The lack of a playoff continues to be the main reason why college football will never surpass the NFL in popularity.

Northern Iowa @ Iowa

Too bad Kurt Warner's Alma mater couldn't pull off the FCS (Div 1-AA) over FBS (D-1) upset. The most interesting part of this game was that the refs got the call right on Iowa's first blocked FG. Had the zebras not been on top of things, the game would've ended there. Instead the stripes sorted through the mayhem and correctly ruled that UNI was to keep possession, thus giving the Panthers another crack at the game winner. Unfortunately no storybook ending for the Northern Iowa, as props go to the Hawkeyes for blocking the re-kick.

Navy @ Ohio State

I could rip Jim Tressel for allowing quarterback Terrelle Pryor to talk him into going for it on 4th down, or criticize the young QB for allowing the Midshipmen back in the game. I could even blast the Navy staff for a horrible play call on the conversion to tie the game, but there was something else on the Middies sidelines that caught my ire.

I don't know if it was a trainer, team manager, grad assistant or intern, but somebody holding a towel and water bottle is important enough to warrant wearing a head set. Seriously!?!?! I did a double take and rewound the DVR to confirm what I only caught a glimpse of, and sure enough, standing next to the coaches, there's a girl with a drive-thru like head piece.

"May I Take Your Order?"

Are you kidding me...a sideline filler with a headset!?!?!?! Who could she possible be connected to?

Maintenance? "We need more pressure!"

The boys in the booth? "We should use our two-point pass play."

The quarterback? "Try to look off the linebacker."

Even though college football doesn't use the sideline to quarterback communication, you can assume if they did, the water girl would have advised Ricky Dobbs to NOT throw into triple coverage.

In the end I've concluded this girl's pretty important and runs a tight ship when it comes to having her minions fill the water bottles.

LSU@ Washington

The Tigers are off to a good start with a solid road win. I didn't know much about Huskies QB Jake Locker, but was impressed with his size and mobility.

Trading Places

Glad to see Joe Paterno back on the sidelines (Akron @ PSU) and Matt Millen back in the booth (ABC - Georgia @ Ok. St.). JoePa's health has been in question for a couple of years, so if he's not healthy enough to be on the sidelines, then he should hang it up.

As for Millen, he should've never left broadcasting, which he excels at. I was covering the Lions when he arrived in 2001 as Detroit's GM. He was an arrogant SOB from day one and proved he knows nothing about running a franchise. Those who can, do, those who can't, should stick to talking about it.

Roy's The Big Cheese

2009-08-24T18:00:00.002-04:00

Winston Puts a Bad Beat on Hunger

You could say Roy Winston winning the Put a Bad Beat on Hunger tournament was a cheesy ending to a cliched Hollywood script, but organizers wouldn't want it any other way.

Winston, one of two notable professional poker players in the field, beat amateur Marc Eckert of Robbinsville, NJ to win the top prize which included an entry into the Borgata Poker Open Main Event.

"Having Roy win is the best thing that could've happened for us," said Roberta MacDonald of Cabot Creamery Cooperative, which sponsored the tournament. "He's a recognizable player and when he plays in the main event, he'll continue to bring attention to our cause."

Cabot, best known for it's line of cheese, partnered with Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa to help support the Community Food Bank of New Jersey, Southern Branch . "We're looking forward to a very long relationship with Cabot," said Margie Barham, Executive Director of the Southern Branch, who was estatic with this unique first time event.

In addition to receiving a $20,000 donation from Cabot, the food bank collected donations from the players, including half the prize money won by Winston. "I played really well," he said. "I'm glad to help."

Winston has also pledged a portion of any money he wins during Borgata's September Main Event. "I'm stunned by the generosity of the players who continue to make donations to the food bank from their winnings," said MacDonald, Cabot's Senior Vice President of Marketing."

The field featured Steve Dannenmann, the 2005 WSOP runner-up and first year pro James Boyle. Borgata regulars Jason Warriner and Ahmad Wardak also played and everyone was excited to have a chance at the top prize.

"I'll take the seat, that's what I really want," said Warriner while sampling some Seriously Sharp Cheddar Cabot cheese during a break. "A chance to play for a $2 million prize pool at a televised final table. You can't go wrong there."

"It's really good cheese, I think I've had 12 helpings," joked Evelyn Ankers who made a last minute decision to make the trip to Atlantic City from suburban Philadelphia. "I just got moved to Dannenmann's table. I'm thrilled I get to play with a pro. That's worth the price of admission right there."

Ankers thrill was even more intense when she played against Winston at the final table. She was one of three woman at the table on her way to finishing 5th.

Eckert also made a late decision to play in the tournament after he initially started playing at one of Borgata's cash tables. "I signed up today," he said, and with his second place winnings will consider playing in the main event. "The opportunity is there, I have some time to decide."

All of the top seven finishers made a donation to the food bank which serves thousands of impoverished families in Cape May, Atlantic, Cumberland and Burlington Counties. "You can make an immediate impact in someone's life," said Barham. "You give them food and make a difference right then and there. Times are tough and people need our services."

Winston isn't only impressed with what the food bank does, but also how the Cabot Cooperation works. "The more you hear about the co-op the more you like it," he said. "It sounds like a great system with 1,300 farms owning Cabot. The more I've learned, the more pleased I am to be a part of this."

And the organizers are glad he's part of it as well. "I'll be cheering for him," said Barham as everyone looks ahead to the Main Event.

And who knows, the sequel might even be bigger and better. Winston won the Borgata Poker Open Main Event in 2007 and would love another title, another donation and more awareness for the food bank.

Winston, Barham & MacDonald

Cabot's Cooperative Effort

2009-08-19T23:50:00.011-04:00

Bad beats in poker are like opinions, everyone has one. Players will quickly lament the times they were victimized, but rarely do they brag about dishing out a bad beat.

That all changes this Thursday at Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa, as it teams up with Cabot Creamery Cooperative to Put a Bad Beat on Hunger, as they stage a unique tournament.

The Vermont based organization, best known for Cabot Cheese, is looking for hundreds of bad beat stories, one from every player who turns out to play in the Atlantic City event benefiting the Community Food Bank of New Jersey, Southern Branch.

Cabot's Senior Vice President of Marketing, Roberta MacDonald, is excited about this first time venture, "we make food and want to help others who give food away," she said.

MacDonald and a dozen Cabot Creamery representatives were at Wednesday's kickoff reception, along with food bank dignitaries and state officials. Also on hand were professional poker players Steve Dannenmann and Roy "The Oracle" Winston.

"Most people go to their refrigerator and there's food in it," said Dannnenmann the 2005 WSOP runner-up, "but some people don't have a refrigerator or even a place to call home. These are tough times and it’s nice to give something back and help others make ends meet.”

The Southern Branch of the New Jersey Food Bank is the lifeline for thousands of impoverished families in Cape May, Atlantic, Cumberland and Burlington Counties. Last year the branch gave out 5.1 million pounds of food, a 29% increase from the previous fiscal year. It's great the bank is helping those in need, but it's alarming that the numbers continue to climb.

"We're very thankful of Cabot," said Margie Barham, Executive Director of the Southern Branch, "they're a valuable resource in our fight against hunger." Barham added that this time of year is when food bank supplies are at their lowest and the current economy is making things worse than usual.

In addition to hosting the Put a Bad Beat on Hunger tournament, Cabot donated $20,000 to the Food Bank. "We not only want to contribute financially, but we also want to bring awareness to people in need," said MacDonald.

"You see (the charity event) Ante Up for Africa, but we have our own problems at home and right here in New Jersey." She added, "if it were up to me, we'd be doing this in every poker room across the country."

As a cooperative, farmers own Cabot Creamery and 100% of the profits go to the dairy farmers who help make the cheese. That same philosophy impacts how the co-op spends its money on marketing and advertising. Instead of using the $20,000 on a big ad campaign or a catchy new jingle, Cabot Creamery feels it gets more value by donating the money to the food bank.

Members of the Community Food Bank of New Jersey, Southern Branch accept Cabot's $20,000 donation.

"I think it's a great event," said Winston, the 2007 Borgata Poker Open Main Event Champion. "I've had a good life as a doctor and as a poker player, and anytime I can give back I try to do it," and added, "this is a cause I believe in, I'm glad to be here."

Thursday's tournament starts at 2 pm and is a $300 entry fee ($260 + $40). Dannenmann and Winston will both be in the field competing with Borgata regulars. As an added prize pool bonus, Cabot is tacking on to first place an entry into the Main Event of Borgata's Poker Open in September, a $3,500 value.

"We're going to introduce hundreds of poker players to the world's best cheese and once they taste it they'll want to go home and buy it," boasted MacDonald.

During Wednesday’s reception Cabot honored local ShopRite stores for their contributions to the Southern Branch of the food bank. “Without them we couldn’t provide the services that we do,” said Barham.

We've all heard the story of how the villain hit a two-outer on the river, ending the hero's day. But what about the story of a single mother of two children who depends on food banks for day to day survival?

Cabot Cooperative and the New Jersey Food Banks know it all too well and Thursday they're hoping to hear a lot of bad beat stories at Borgata as they try to send hunger to the rail.

Blown Coverage

2009-08-17T18:00:00.011-04:00

It's been nearly a week since the bombshell announcement of Michael Vick's return to the NFL. And while Philadelphia fans struggle to balance moral outrage with the football intrigue of a gifted athlete on the roster, I want to focus on a blown opportunity by the Eagles brass.

The news came down around 8:35 Eastern time Thursday night with ESPN's Chris Mortensen first reporting the story during the Steelers/Cardinals exhibition game. Across the state just 300 miles away, the Eagles were closing in on halftime of their preseason game with New England unaware of the shock waves reverberating around the league.

The breaking news caught everyone off guard in Philadelphia, including the Eagles Television Network, which apparently had no knowledge of the story until the wildfire was nationwide and burning through Lincoln Financial Field.

ETN finally broadcast the news 12 minutes later. At this point the crew of Kevin Reilly, Herm Edwards and Hugh Douglas was merely parroting the information reported by ESPN.

Because of the flow of the game, the preplanned halftime show and lack of information, the trio didn't get a chance to process, digest and present analysis until the second half, nearly an hour after it was announced on another network.

I don't blame the ETN broadcasters, producers or anyone on the crew, as this story was kept under major wraps and was a bomb shell dropped on them in the middle of what is already a chaotic and fast paced environment. The network did the best it could considering the circumstances.

As a broadcast veteran of 16 years, I have empathy for the broadcast team's situation, but it didn't have to be this way. The same leaders that stealthy debated and negotiated adding a convicted felon to the team, could have just as discretely worked with one or two of the key ETN personnel to help the organization lead the way on the story.

Preseason football broadcasts are always bought and paid for by the home team, meaning they control everything from the broadcasters to the content. The three former players in the booth all referred to the team as "we," as in "we need to do a better job protecting the quarterback." Unfortunatley for them they didn't get to say with confidence "we signed Michael Vick."

These aren't regular season games where the team has to work with the network crews and the organization has little or no control over the flow of information. These broadcasts are the mouthpiece of the entire franchise, complete with in-house "reporter" Dave Spadaro patrolling the sidelines.

I think it's an outrage and a disgrace that the Eagles Organization had a platform to be leaders in the Vick announcement, but instead forced ETN to play catch-up. I understand if they didn't want three part timers guessing how things unfolded and being the initial spokespersons, but there are ways around that.

The brass should have made it a priority that the Vick news was first announced by either Chairman/CEO Jeffrey Lurie or President Joe Banner DURING the game. In addition to puff piece player interviews, Spadaro should have been tossing softball questions to somebody with inside knowledge of the process.

Obviously any extra involvement from the crew are potential leaks, but vague instructions to "leave 5 minutes available for a special half-time announcement," would have given the crew a chance for proper coverage.

Can you imagine having Lurie in the booth offering a meaningful and heartfelt explanation as the third and fourth stringers continued to play? The owner would've had a captive audience while scoring major points for his candor and honesty.

Even if Mortensen broke the news before a planned in-game announcement, the crew would've been in position to read and react to the breaking news instead of having to play from behind. Advance planning would've already had the wheels in motion so Lurie and/or Banner were available to make an imediate statement detailing the particulars that would have helped stem the tidal wave of initial reaction.

Their perspective would have helped mute knee jerk reactions, while demonstrating complete control with a game plan of how things would play out over the next 24-48 hours. Instead Philadelphia fans were in the dark for a couple of hours waiting for answers.

The one time the home team had complete control over the product, they failed to use the platform to get out ahead of the story. Instead, the head honchos sat back and watched the news blow up around the country.

Even if there were a snag in the negotiations and a deal wasn't imminent, it would've been much easier for the producers and talent to replace the 5 minutes of potential coverage with a back-up plan, than to be completely caught off guard.

Angry and bewildered fans called the local talk shows, national pundits spewed speculation and everyone wondered how this all happened. Instead of squelching some of the ambiguity with an in-game announcement and taking air out of the speculative balloons, the Eagles put its broadcast at a disadvantage and left their fans hanging.

There was no normalcy in the second half as the fans and media were left rooting for the clock to run out. Everyone was more interested in hearing Andy Reid's postgame comments on Vick than watching to see if defensive end Jason Babin could beat the Pats third string double team.

The front office's lack of planning left Reid hanging out to dry as he was the first representative to address the breaking news. This was an organizational decision that effected people on many levels and it wasn't fair that the coach had to face philosophical questions along with explaining the football reasons for the move.

An in-game statement or interview would've taken some of the heat off Reid, especially since the franchise is just as concerned with Vick's personal rehabilitation as they are with his football impact.

Reid handles on the field issues and had to sell Vick's addition to ownership. In turn, ownership should've been selling the decision to the fans. Instead Reid did all the intial heavy lifting.

To make matters worse, not only did ETN not get the benefits of having a spokesman on the air during the game, the network signed off after the final gun and didn't get to carry the postgame explanations. The captive audience the Birds had for more than three hours quickly switched to Comcast SportsNet, ESPN or the NFL Network to get the skinny from the podium.

Over the next day fans finally got to hear from the principals as Vick and Lurie took the stage at Friday's news conference. The speculation, results and ultimate explanations wouldn't have been much different than what could have been offered the night before, but at least the Eagles would've been in control.

The organization could have sealed the deal of keeping things under wraps by presenting a public statement on THEIR terms. Instead they opted to play a prevent defense and were forced to react to speculation and misinformation for a longer period than was necessary.

The Eagles secondary will have lots of break downs during the season, but nothing like the blown coverage the front office had concerning Michael Vick.

Barrage Of Bullets

2009-08-01T20:13:00.023-04:00

You don't hear it often, but I laugh when players lament pocket aces.

"I hate aces" and "they always get cracked" are two of the popular cries, along with "I'll take what's in the pot," after a ridiculous over bet gets them seven bucks.

This post isn't to preach how it's ridiculous to hate the best starting hand in poker. It's not to explain that even though you lost a boatload of chips to a flopped set, that even in this economy, aces still have a postive EV. And it's not to give you tips on how to handle being check raised on the turn.

No, this is to relish my recent run of pocket aces.

It's a statistical anomaly, but I haven't lost with aces the last 20 times I've had them! How do I know it's 20 in a row? Because with my touch of OCD, I've been keeping track during my live play (not much on-line for me).

The bullets have been on target, pocket rockets are blasting my profits to the moon and American Airlines has me flying in first class.

It doesn't matter if it's a cash game or a tournament, if I take it down with a standard preflop raise or if I'm all-in and we see the river. 20 in a row!

Unfortunately I can't say I've WON all 20 hands because of an unfortunate chop when my tournament opponent also had bullets. The nerve of that guy, dropping my record to 19-0-1. He should've been scared that I was going to four flush him out the door, that's how good my rockets have been running.

I started keeping track after last year's Sahara-like drought, when I didn't see aces for, something like, 20 hours of play. If you figure there's an average of 30 hands per hour in live play, and the odds of getting dealt pocket aces are 220-1, I should've had Alan Alda at least twice in the 600+ hands I played.

Fast forward to 2009 and the streak started with a couple of AA wins in a 4 hour session and continues to build. The official stats break down like this:

15-0 in casino $1/$2 NL play,
1-0-1 in casino tournaments
3-0 in free rolls (Riverchasers)

My most satisfying win was at Borgata when I did all the betting, on all the streets, and the dude kept calling. Finally on the river, he goes all-in and I snap call.

"Do you have aces?" he asks. I motion that I called him and I wanted to see his hand.

"Do you have aces?" he repeats in a more irritated tone.

Finally the dealer makes him turn over his AK, which gave him top pair, top kicker on the king high flop.

Dude is ticked when I show AA and take him for $250. It prompts him to call me a feminine hygiene product, followed by a homophobic slur, which another player brings to the floor manager's attention.

I just smile while stacking his chips.

I'm not arrogant enough to keep track of all the money I've won during my good fortune and I'm not afraid of jinxing future results.

It's simply an amazing run.

I've got another Atlantic City trip scheduled and just want to keep flying first class as long as possible. Hopefully the players whining in coach don't disrupt my friendly skies.

Moon Walking Through History

2009-07-20T17:59:00.003-04:00

Armstrong & Aldrin
(but who took the photo?)

The 40th anniversary of man walking on the moon is one of the most historic events in United States history. Apollo 11's landing is even more remarkable when you consider the Wright brothers first took flight in 1903.

In a span of 66 years we went from Kitty Hawk to Cape Canaveral to Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin sipping Tang on the moon!

The anniversary makes me think of all the amazing achievements of the last century and the early part of the this one. I wonder, how does landing a man on the moon compare to the historic election of Barack Obama as the first African-American U.S President?

After all, the Supreme Court didn't make segregation illegal until its 1954 decision in Brown vs. Board of Education. Less than six decades after the ruling, Obama wins the 2008 election for our nation's highest office.

Think about it, which feat is more remarkable? It's science vs. social behavior, a space race vs. the human race, a moon walk vs. a walk through civil rights.

Obama, 44th U.S. President

I've asked my respected elders for their assessment, and have heard compelling arguments for both sides. Some say changing a mindset that goes back to slavery and the civil war is more remarkable than advances in technology which can be quantified and built upon with tangible results.

The flip side is that science is a mysterious unknown that requires patience through trial and error and that lab work is more remarkable than a human being changing behavior through thoughts and reason.

I've always said my grandparents lived through one of the most incredible times in U.S. history. This country was still using the horse and buggy as the preferred choice of short transportation until 1915. 54 years later it was glued to a grainy black and white picture beamed back from space.

For my parents, their 54 year span takes them from the Supreme Court ruling to Obama's platform of change, keeping in mind MLK was assassinated in 1968 and race riots continued into the late 70s.

Depending on my mood and the day, I go back and forth and truly straddle the fence I propose!

Check out these links from Wikipedia on the civil rights timeline and the history of aviation, and you'll get more depth and background on two remarkable feats that are worth discussing.

Bottom line, you can't argue with gravity and you can't predict when ideologies will change.

T-Dubs x 2

2009-07-17T16:45:00.006-04:00

Watson & Woods

It's a shame the biggest story coming out of the early British Open coverage is Tiger Woods missing the cut, because the original TW would have all the headlines if it wasn't for the other T-Dubs dud.

A rare weekend off for Woods is big news, since it's just the 5th time in Woods' PGA Tour career he's missed the cut, but Watson leading at the half way point is something as nearly remarkable.

A guy who shoots a few strokes over his age, like the 59-year-old Hall of Famer did in his opening round of 65, is either playing very good or is very old. In PGA parameters, it's a bit of both.

We're not talking about Buzz Magill undercutting his age by three shots with a round of 81 from the gold tees at the local muni, we're talking about an old war horse going for one last gallop in a Major Championship!

If an aging veteran is going to pull off the impossible against a stable of 20 and 30-something bombers, it's going to be across the pond. We saw it last year with 53 year old Greg Norman who led after three rounds, only to melt down and shoot a 77 at Royal Birkdale.

The young studs aren't used to relegating the driver to the back of the bag while focusing on the bump and run. Links golf dictates you place priority on the short game and the mental game, especially when dealing with mother nature.

Something Watson still has to do Saturday before he can realistically think about winning a 6th Claret Jug.

And why not think this T-Dubs can do the unthinkable this weekend? The British Open, after all, is the place where unlikely champions are crowned. The list includes: Paul Lawrie (thanks Jean Van De Velde!), Ben Curtis (2 other career wins) and John Daly (9th and final alternate of his PGA rookie year).

Tiger's Turnberry topple will hurt ABC's weekend ratings, but his absense is actually a blessing. We won't have to sit through the agonizing recaps of how well/poor Woods' played, when even a great performance will only give false hope he can actually win the tournament.

How many times have we seen Woods' struggle in the first two rounds, blister the course Saturday or early Sunday, only for it to be too little, too late? When Tiger wins a major he does it with the lead, he boat races the field and pummels the players into submission.

During his 14 major wins Woods has never trailed entering Sunday's play. Never

Woods is the greatest of all-time and it's a quirky statistical anomaly, but it's the truth. With Tiger out of camera range, the network can focus on the only TW playing this weekend. (Unless Anthony Wall, starts going by Tony!?!?!)

Hopefully, for nostalgia's sake, Watson will keep it rolling in the third round. I'd hate to see the old guy relegated to secondary story status, again.

November Nine

2009-07-16T02:46:00.004-04:00

Less than one hour since the WSOP Main Event stopped play until November, and I'm compelled to write my first real post.

I don't have a problem with shutting things down for four months, after all I've been in broadcasting for more than 15 years....so I get the reasoning for having a November Nine, but I do have a problem with only 9 players coming back to compete for the $8.5 million top prize.

Why not a final table of 10? Is it simply because of alliteration? While November Nine is cooler to say than November Ten or the Rios' Rich River Rats, anyone who makes a final table, in any tournament, should be recognized for the accomplishment.

Unfortunately Jordan Smith wins the Miss Congeniality Award award of this pageant and is the first one out at the final table. And to pour sulfuric acid into a ruptured aorta, Smith is busted with pocket aces!

I feel the final 10 should all be back in November...there's just something cruel in reaching the final table and not get the accolades the other nine players will receive for the next few months.

Nine instead of ten can't be because of the drama of one more elimination..can it? Anyone who's watched or played at the last two tables (6 and 5 players) going hand for hand to decide the final table, knows it's some of the highest drama in a poker tournament.

How many times have you told the story of how you made the final table on-line, at a fund raiser or at the daily tournament at your local casino?

"So I was at the final table with blinds at 1 million/2 million...," is the best stage setter for rehashing how you lost set over set.

Jordan Smith's story will go something like this..."So I made the final table at the WSOP Main Event in '09 and had my aces cracked. But on the bright side, I didn't have to put up with all the B.S. of waiting forever to play my next hand. I was really in a zone and would've hated to trade my momentum for months of poker celebrity status. It was a true blessing."

Don't worry Jordan I'll remember you and your accomplishment of making a Main Event final table...you and that other guy from last year.

Opening Salvo!

2009-07-16T02:30:00.006-04:00

After spending three weeks blogging the Borgata Summer Poker Open , I'm now taking the plunge into a personal blog.

It'll take time to work out the kinks and clean up the site, but I'm hoping that it'll evolve into something enjoyable for both myself and the readers.

So, if you're following along...thanks for taking the time and I look forward to the process!