Party Poker Blog

"Again, I find the blogs about poker hands extremely boring."
Doyle Brunson

Amen, Doyle, amen.

That's why Greg Raymer mentioned me first way back in the day when asked what poker blogs he read. Back when I mattered.

I just cracked open an ice cold Guinness and it sure feels like old times. I have a ton of out-dated poker notes and I'll be damned if I don't feel like cranking em all out.

But just to amuse BG, I won't. Not tonight.

A few thoughts. Anyone else getting stoked about the impending Vegas get together? This is the fifth year in a row that this stellar group of degenerates are getting together to do what we do. And we do it well, thank you very much.

A few links are in order. First of all, major kudos to April for taking care of our poker tourney at Ceaser's. Here's her post: WPBT Winter Poker Classic

And yes, the Hammer Trophy for the winner has been ordered. Did I mention that uber-blogger, Otis, came through per always as PokerStars is adding 2 grand to the prize pool for us? Too sweet.

CJ has been taking care of biz, as well, in his long awaited return to the fold. Here's his post from tonight: WPBT Sunday at the Sportsbook

I'm really looking forward to football Sunday. The Bengals meet the Vikings. Nuff said.

And I can't forget Al's post: Prepare yourself WPBT-style. Ignore it at your own peril.

Pauly has his yearly updated list: Invading Las Vegas Tips Reprise.

Quick update on MMAjunkie.com. Despite nearly every belt-holder sick or injured and not able to fight anytime in the near future, our traffic and market share is outstanding and we're looking to aggressively expand in 2010. Our iPhone app should be done in a few weeks as well as a few other goodies I can't write about yet.

I think most folks who have read this humble poker blog over the years realize that I'm much more comfortable being Oz behind the curtain than pimping myself out there on the interwebs. It comes with the territory when you are a Little Person.

But alas, the infamous Shoemoney has been trying to get me on his show for quite a while now. Being bashful (and terrified), I've always refused. He still is terribly confused why I wouldn't want to do this. Apparently no one has turned him down before. Multiple times.

So in his last request this week, he had set up a webcam video interview with me. His other featured interview? Ben, the guy who started LOLCats, or ICanHasCheezeBurger. Am I ashamed to state that I hit that site every day? Hell no.

Now I've partied down with Jeremy at the last UFC event here in Cincinnati, and he never once mentioned the fact that I was a dwarf and had obvious physical handicaps. In fact, quite the opposite. He had zero issues with giving me a boost into the tall bar chairs. A stand up dude who just loves/lives internet marketing, and to a lesser extent, the UFC. I won't point out here how the bastard tried to compete with me on his own MMA site and wisely gave it up because then I'd have to link to his shitty site and fuck that.

But once I realized that my tiny frame would be seen by God knows how many hundreds of thousands of people in the webcam video, I quickly articulated to him my concerns. He realized that my physical appearance would get in the way of the actual interview itself and agreed to do an audio interview instead.

Whew.

So anyway, I'm just sitting here waiting till next Thursday when I fly into Vegas and get to hang with my tribe.

I truly can't wait.

My apologies for repeating my Twitter, but honestly, people here in Ohio are going bonkers with delusion since the passing of legalized casinos on Tuesday.

Massive job creation! Looming wealth for everyone!

Good God, you know who else has casinos?

Fucking Detroit.

Just read that Lyle Berman has his fingers in future developments here. From today's Cincinnati Enquirer:

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Poker champ stakes claim in casinos

COLUMBUS, Ohio — The casino developer and poker champion who had a failed bid for an Ohio slots parlor in 2008 has staked a claim to all four Ohio casinos voters approved Tuesday.

Lakes Entertainment Inc. chairman Lyle Berman cut the deal just days before the election Oct. 29, according to a Wednesday filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Under the terms of the deal, Lakes agreed to fund 10 percent of the cost of the ballot initiative — which neared $35 million — borne by both Penn Ventures and Rock Ohio Ventures, the development businesses of Penn National Gaming Inc. and Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert. In exchange, Lakes has the option, but not the obligation, to a 10 percent share in each casino.

The filing said Lakes has already made an initial payment of $1.9 million to Penn Ventures, which is developing the Columbus and Toledo sites, and $2.4 million to Rock Ohio, which is developing the Cleveland and Cincinnati casinos.

Allegations of Berman's involvement were made by the anti-casino TruthPAC early in October. They were denied at the time by the pro-casino Ohio Jobs & Growth Committee.

Bob Tenenbaum, a spokesman for the pro-casino ballot campaign, said the deal was struck after that time.

"At the time this was raised as a campaign issue, which was Oct. 6, Berman had no role in any of this," Tenenbaum said. "He never became involved in the campaign, but he did reach out to both Penn National and Rock Ohio Ventures in the last week of the campaign and asked if he could become involved."

A message was left with Berman seeking comment.

"Speaking of uberposts, god damn it. September 13th? Bonus Code Iggy!"
AlCantHang

Wow, this is easily the longest I've ever gone without writing on this here humble poker blog. By far. Thank you, Al, for the nudge.

I also missed the 6 year anniversary of starting this damn monstrosity. Happy belated blog birthday to me. 6 freaking years.

I'll prolly be back on here in poker mode in a few more days, if only to get some old links out and to comment on the looming WSOP final table. Sadly for me, the ESPN coverage this year has been Meh.

I mentioned how I went part-time at the ad agency a few months ago in an effort to focus more on MMAjunkie.com and its insane popularity. It's funny, but somehow my brain tricked me into thinking I'd have a lot more free time for things (like poker). But alas, it's quite the opposite. I've never been busier.

And speaking of MMAjunkie.com, every Sunday we run a readers write in contest about the sport. And imagine my surprise when this Sunday, poker celeb and original TiltBoy, Perry Friedman, won.

Not only did Perry win but he also came on our radio show from the Mandalay Bay Sports Book yesterday to discuss his suggestions for improving the MMA scoring system. I'm pretty sure we need a regular segment from him every week.

Worlds colliding!

So hell, I need to revive my ancient idea of running poker tournaments over on that site. Any help anyone?

Played some in the main game this weekend at the Hollywood. Loser $1 after 6 hours. Didn't play very well -- felt like I was the soft spot which was disconcerting. Maybe cause it was all old guy nits. Took a runner-runner beat early, but fought back to even, so no harm, no foul. Looking forward to playing again.

Anyway, after the Bengals magnificent loss today, I thought I'd share a local sportswriter's view on this:

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Bengals find newest way to lose

By Paul Daugherty

A man could spend a lifetime in the Cincinnati Bengals gulag and never see a Siberia like the one that visited Paul Brown Stadium Sunday.

Over the decades, the Bengals have discovered any number of new and interesting ways to lose. Never like this.

It was so over. The Denver Broncos faced second-and-game from their 17-yard line. Twenty-eight seconds remained. The Bengals led, 7-6. Broncos QB Kyle Orton could accomplish some things in 28 seconds: Throw a pick, take a sack, bounce one off the shoes of Brandon Marshall.

Just Sunday morning, the New York Times had called Denver’s quarterback “non threatening.’’

In 28 seconds, Orton might threaten himself, but not the Bengals win.

It was so over. The Bengals had just driven 91 yards in six minutes to take the lead.

A day’s worth of ineptitude had yielded to the strange alchemy of talent and desperation. Carson Palmer rediscovered brilliance, Ced Benson barreled in from the 1.

Seventy-five percent of the 62,831 in attendance spilled onto concourse and into the street, offering happy ‘’whews’’ to their buddies and trying to beat the traffic.

It was so over, players on both sidelines weren’t even watching. “Did you think it was over?’’ someone asked Cedric Benson.

“Of course,’’ Benson said. “Everybody did.’’

It was so, so over, a certain columnist was writing in his notebook, “The win wasn’t impressive. The loss would have been disastrous.’’

And then. . .

Orton threw to Marshall, near the left sideline at the Denver 35. Bengals cornerback Leon Hall tipped the ball high into the air. Brandon Stokley caught the tip at the Broncos 45. And then he ran.

“I heard them tip the ball,’’ said Bengals defensive end Antwan Odom. “I seen Stokley sitting right there. I said, ‘No.’ He caught it and that was that.’’

And you thought Hard Knocks was a cable show.

Stokley even had the presence of mind to stop just short of the goal line and tightrope the visible plane, jogging left to right along the line, so as to eat up as much time as possible. It took the nearest Bengal three seconds to make him scoot into the endzone.

Broncos, 12-7.

This only happens in video games and volleyball. And here. It happens here. A black cloud lingers, on the bluest of days. The Bengals are a shrink’s life’s work, their fans make Sisyphus look like a girly-man. What happened Sunday amounted to cruel and unusual, though. Even here.

“We didn’t do enough things correct to win the game,’’ Marvin Lewis judged afterward.

Point taken. This week, please spend more time with the defense, working on the knock-the-ball-down-instead-of-tipping-it-with 28 seconds-left-and-the-ball-83-yards-from-the-endzone play.

Actually, what the coach meant was that somebody had to be close enough to tackle Stokley. Do that and you’re still looking good. Denver had one timeout and less than 20 seconds to get another 20 yards at least, for a legitimate field goal try.

“You’re two tackles from winning the football game,’’ said Lewis.

Now, the Bengals are six days from trying to must-win at Green Bay. They don’t want to come home 0-2 with Pittsburgh barging in. Sunday was a huge loss for a team that wants to be good, but maybe doesn’t know how. The spirit is more willing than it has been in years. The flesh lags.

The defense played very well, but give that an asterisk, given the opposition. Orton has won lots of games like this one, by staying out of his own way. Fret for the offense, which Carson Palmer called “embarrassing’’ and which straddled the line between ineffective and inept until the late TD drive.

Its 307 yards should have produced more than six points, but it’s hard to score when you’re shooting off your toes, one by one.

Palmer had his moments, but the greatness of ’05 and ’06 is still a snapshot in the scrapbook.

A fluke loss is still a loss. The Bengals can take some comfort in knowing they’ll never lose like this again. Then again. . .

Just saw this at Wired magazine:

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A move to scuttle legislation outlawing online gambling suffered a major setback when a federal appeals court set aside constitutional and other legal challenges to the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006.

A three-judge panel of the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals brushed aside assertions that the act (.pdf) breached the privacy rights of gamblers to be free of government regulation in their own homes. The court also set aside a challenge that the law was too vague.

“Here you have the government targeting something solely because it was on the internet. Every right and civil liberty in the offline world should convey in the online world,” said Joe Brennan Jr., chairman of a trade group of gamblers, affiliated marketers and offshore online casinos that brought the case.

According to the 2006 act, Congress adopted the regulation forbidding financial institutions from transacting in gaming revenues because “traditional law enforcement mechanisms are often inadequate for enforcing gambling prohibitions or regulations on the internet, especially where gambling crosses state or national borders.”

The decision comes as Congress is considering softening the ban in order to tax gambling proceeds, which could generate billions in federal gambling receipts annually.

The lawsuit decided Tuesday was brought by the Interactive Media Entertainment and Gaming Association. The group, Brennan said, is considering its legal options, including going to the Supreme Court or asking the Philadelphia-based appeals court to reconsider.

Brennan pointed out that some form of non-virtual gambling — such as lotteries, casinos, horse and dog racing — is allowed in all states but Hawaii and Utah.

The group, in its privacy argument, cited Lawrence v. Texas, a 2003 Supreme Court decision reversing a state law outlawing homosexual sex.

“As the Supreme Court explained in Lawrence, such laws ‘touch upon the most private human conduct, sexual behavior, and in the most private of places, the home,’” the appellate court responded. (.pdf) “Gambling, even in the home, simply does not involve any individual interests of the same constitutional magnitude. Accordingly, such conduct is not protected by any right to privacy under the Constitution.”

Despite the act barring banks from transacting in online gaming wagers and proceeds, the Poker’s Player Alliance estimates as many as 10 million Americans wager about $6 billion online annually. Many overseas internet gambling sites have blocked access to the United States, while others have not.

John Pappas, the alliance’s executive director, views online gambling no different than Wall Street derivative trading – a lawful method to bet for or against commodity prices and mortgage foreclosures, for example – all on the internet.

“The idea that one area is now unlawful but the other activity is permissible and acceptable seems a bit inconsistent, especially when you consider the activity in the financial markets can have significant impact worldwide or nationwide,” Pappas said.