Party Poker Blog

Damn, I got knocked out by the flu.
Nearly three whole days without nary a hand of poker. Inconceivable!

I'm going to reward myself by going to the boat tommorrow.

It takes a lot to get me off the tables at Party Poker but meeting one of my favourite poker bloggers will do it.

Bonus Code IGGY, damnit, on Party Poker

A quick note: many poker bloggers are getting together in early December for yet another insane Gathering. Even though I haven't yet gotten my tickets, I'll likely be there.

Bill Rini has been fantastic (along with Hank & the Poker Prof) about doing all the background work for us. He's got a page up called The WPBT Winter Classic Information Page that contains all the latest news.

Geepers, I saw that Bill just posted this latest news:

WPBT Cutoff
November 2nd, 2005

Just a quick note to let folks know that we’re starting to approach our threshold for the WPBT event in terms of number of players (we’re just under 90 players as of this morning). We’ve got about 5 spots left before we would have to start changing our plans around at the IP (i.e. bigger room, etc). It’s not totally impossible but it would require a pretty substantial effort to change things around this late in the game so unless I get barraged by last minute requests, I’m cutting it off after 5 more.

So if any of you were dawdling - time to get off your ass.
Or even if it's a coin flip, please email Bill and let him know.
You'll be sad if you end up going (and you know you will) and you don't give notice.

Might as well regurgitate the latest outdated silly poker news.
The image of professional baseball is tarnished forever.
I'll be back soon, with Good Stuff, I promise.





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Report: A-Rod warned about playing poker
Selig 'very unhappy' Yankee star betting in illegal clubs, newspaper says

Early last month, the New York Daily News reported that Alex Rodriguez had attended games at an underground club with professional card player Phil Hellmuth.


NEW YORK - Alex Rodriguez was cautioned by the New York Yankees that playing poker in illegal clubs could be dangerous and harmful to his image, according to a newspaper report.

On Oct. 2, the Daily News reported the star slugger had attended games at an underground club with professional card player Phil Hellmuth.

Scott Boras, the third baseman’s agent, denied that the Yankees had warned his client.


“The Yankees have never addressed or spoken with me in regard to any off-field activities regarding Alex Rodriguez. And the Yankees have never spoken to Alex regarding any of his off-field activities,” Boras was quoted as saying in a story published Wednesday.

Playing at such clubs is not illegal, though it can be against the law to operate them, the Daily News reported.

Rodriguez was not punished or ordered to stay out of the clubs, but commissioner Bud Selig was "keeping an eye" on A-Rod and would step in "if necessary," the Daily News said.

"There's nothing he's doing that violates the morals clause," one baseball lawyer told the newspaper. "Mostly it's just stupid. Why put himself in a position like that? Why doesn't he go play in an apartment somewhere?"

Sources told the Daily News that Selig is "very unhappy" about the message that A-Rod might be sending to kids, with him playing poker in illegal clubs.

"Kids look up to (Rodriguez)," a source told the newspaper. "It isn't good for anybody."

The Daily News said that MLB officials are concerned that one of their top stars is possibly associated with an illegal gambling operation and hanging out with gamblers, who could be betting on baseball games, something that could get Rodriguez banned from baseball should he do the same.

These clubs also are often raided by New York City policemen and even gunmen, the Daily News said.

"What in the world is he thinking?" a high-ranking MLB official told the Daily News. "He can do what he wants in the off-season and he isn't breaking the law — we checked — but why do it?"

Gambling has been a sore spot for baseball ever since the Black Sox scandal in 1919, when several Chicago White Sox players admitted they deliberately lost the World Series over a gamble.

Legends Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays were banned for two years when they accepted public relations jobs with casinos in 1983, and Pete Rose has been banned since 1989 and later admitted betting on baseball games while managing the Cincinnati Reds.