Bonomo Wins Championship Circuit Title
Justin Bonomo is a young upcoming pro with lots of strong poker knowledge and great skills to back him up. It is no surprise that he took down the WSOPC event at Caesars in Las Vegas. After three days of intense play, sixteen players returned to compete for the first place prize that included a championship title, Main Event seat, WSOPC championship ring, and the $237,692 in prize money. After an hour and a half, they were down to the final table. After some tough play at the final table, Dwyte Pilgrime went out 6th. Matt Graham went out 5th, and Men “The Master†Nguyen finished 3rd place behind the two younger pros. After four hours of final table play, it was heads up between Justin Bonomo and Michael “The Grinder†Mizrachi.
The battle between Mizrachi and Bonomo featured a lot of back and forth action. The play was intense as each player won and lost the lead. Bonomo finally took a chance with A 8 to double through Mizrachi’s A 6. This was detrimental to Mizrachi’s chip stack, so he made a move with bottom pair and a gutshot. Bonomo called his all in with top pair and a gutshot of his own. After a strong match between the two Bonomo would take it down, and Mizrachi took hope a respectable 2nd place prize of $143,512.
Sit-n-Go World Record
We often stress in our columns here the importance of patience and focus while playing highly competitive poker, but what one player accomplished recently goes so far above and beyond the average threshold for multitasking that he set a world record in the process. Online poker pro Bertrand “ElkY†Grospellier, while passing the time waiting for the EPT Grand Final event he was attending in Monte Carlo to start, decided to play in 62 online sit-n-go tournaments within the span of an hour.
Grospellier registered for 62 turbo-style SNG events, each with a $6.50 buy-in, and spread the games out among four widescreen monitors. At one point he was playing as many as 30 games simultaneously, frantically moving from one window to the next while making split second decisions to either fold, call or raise.
In order to qualify for the world record, ElkY had to post an overall profit at the end of 62 games, a mark he just barely set by coming in 1st place in the final SNG game he played. Overall, he nabbed just $23.67 for his efforts, but that was good enough to obtain the new world record.
Now personally I get headaches from trying to play matrix events (four tables at once) online, and I can’t even fathom playing in more than six at a time. Just wanted to let you all know that even poker world records aren’t going to be an easy way to get yourself into the history books.
Justin Bonomo Defeats Michael Mizrachi for the WSOP-C Championship at Caesars Palace Las Vegas
photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com
Justin Bonomo, 2009 WSOP Circuit Main Event Champion, Caesars Palace Las Vegas
It took more than four hours of heads-up play before a champion was declared in the World Series of Poker Circuit Main Event at Caesars Palace Las Vegas. When the final river hit the felt Justin Bonomo had all of second place finisher, Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi's chips, thus ending the 2009 WSOP Circuit Tournament at Caesars Palace for 2009.
The two seasoned pro poker players provided hours of exciting poker with each mounting a considerable chip lead over the other, then watch as they went back across the table again and again. For his victory Justin Bonomo received $237,692 in cash, the gold Championship ring, and a $10,000 seat in the 2009 WSOP Main Event at the Rio Resort in Las Vegas beginning at the end of May.
Michael Mizrachi takes home $143,512 as the first runner up. Men "The Master" Nguyen was eliminated in third place for $91,937, Jeremiah DeGreef grabbed $71,756 for fourth and Matt Graham collected $56,059 going out in the fifth spot.
photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com
Michael Mizrachi claimed second place in the 2009 WSOP Circuit Main Event Champion, Caesars Palace Las Vegas
WSOP Circuit Final Table Today at Caesars Palace Las Vegas
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First Day crowds in the tournament area of Caesars Palace poker room
Even thought the 187 buy-in's don't compare to last year's 334 entrants the field for this year's event included many of poker's best known players. Johnny Chan, holder of 10 WSOP bracelets including back-to-back wins in the $10K main event - 1987 & 1988, was among the pros taking a seat in the $5,000 buy-in championship. At another table was 1998 WSOP Main Event champion and 2008 $50K HORSE champion Scotty Nguyen with 5 WSOP bracelets.
This small, but elite field also included Men Nguyen, Dan Hannenmann, Gavin Smith, Erick Lindgren, Kathy Liebert, David SInger, Mark Seif, David Pham, Michael Mizrachi, Justin Bonomo, Ester Taylor, and Dwyte Pilgrim. Nothing small about the level of talent or their ability to win. By the end of day 2, late Tuesday evening, the field was reduced to 17 players, all in the money. The event is paying 18 places with the winner carrying away $237,692 in cash plus a gold WSOP Circuit championship ring. Second place will receive $143,512 and third collects $91,937. The event collected a $896,950 prize pool.
The action continues on Wednesday beginning at High Noon in the poker room at Caesars Palace on the Las Vegas strip and will continue until we have a champion. This is a great opportunity to see some of poker's best going wide open in their quest for the gold so stop by and stake out your spot on the rail, you'll be so close you can hear them sweat.
photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com
Johnny Chan playing in the WSOP Circuit at Caesars Palace
photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com
Scotty Nguyen
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Michael 'The Grinder' Mizrachi
photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com
Nancy Tyner
Thomas McTeer was the money bubble boy
Circuit Event at Harrah’s New Orleans
The only thing better than great food, good music, and endless entertainment is adding poker to the mix and wrapping it into one package. At the circuit event at Harrah’s in New Orleans, there is no better place to be to play poker if you are looking for great games and entertainment. The events will be held at Harrah’s New Orleans on Peters Street and will run from May 8, 2009 until May 20, 2009. There are multiple tournaments which range from $340 buy-ins to $5,000, and there are several Omaha, Pot Limit, and Limit events to choose from. Even for players that are not looking for tournaments, the cash games are juicy and they provide multiple games and limits. When taking a break from the tables New Orleans offers outstanding night life, food, and tours. For those who enjoy the unknown, the Vampire and Ghost tours are highly recommended. Below is the list of events for the 2009 circuit event:
5/8/09 $340 No Limit Hold’em- Event 1
5/8/09 $340 Limit Omaha 8 or Better- Event 2
5/9/09 $550 No Limit Hold’em- Event 3
5/9/09 $340 Pot Limit Hold’em- Event 4
5/10/09 $550 No Limit Hold’em- Event 5
5/10/09 $340 Pot Limit Hold’em- Event 6
5/11/09 $550 No Limit Hold’em- Event 7
5/11/09 $550 Pot Limit Omaha- Event 8
5/12/09 $550 No Limit Hold’em 6 Handed- Event 9
5/12/09 $340 No Limit Hold’em- Event 10
5/13/09 $340 No Limit Hold’em- Event 11
5/13/09 $550 Pot Limit Hold’em/Pot Limit Omaha- Event 12
5/14/09 $1,070 No Limit Hold’em- Event 13
5/14/09 $340 Pot Limit Omaha 8 or Better- Event 14
5/15/09 $340 No Limit Hold’em- Event 15
5/15/09 $250 Pot Limit Omaha w/Rebuys- Event 16
5/16/09 $550 No Limit Hold’em- Event 17
5/16/09 $1070 Pot Limit Omaha- Event 18
5/17/09 $340 Ladies Championship No Limit Hold’em- Event 19
5/18/09 $5,150 Circuit Championship Event- Event 20
Mixing Up Your Play
Against experienced opponents, there really is no weakness quite like predictability. Some players stick to a certain formula and strategy so much that knowing how to play against them becomes easy. A lot of beginning players will go with the Phil Hellmuth strategy of playing just the top 10 Hold’em starting hands, and while there is some strength to this method, it will quickly become apparent to the rest of the table what you’re doing if you only raise and turn over very strong starting hands throughout the night. The result of this will be that no one will get involved in a pot with you unless they have a monster hand.
In order to combat this common mistake, you need to learn to mix up your play a little, and this can be accomplished by opening up your hand selection when the time is right. Correct times to open up your hand selection in both cash games and tournaments are when you hold a stack larger than most of the rest of the table. This big stack will give you the opportunity to try and limp in with mediocre starting hands like KJ suited and small pocket pairs with the hope that you might flop something big. Occasionally, deep stacked players will come in with a even wider selection of hands to include suited connectors and sometimes complete trash, just to give the appearance that they aren’t sticking to any one particular strategy.
Your positioning plays an important role in opening your hand selection. Typically, you don’t want to try and limp with medium to weak hands in early position because it is likely that someone left to act will raise it up, which more often than not means you’ll have to fold your hand. However, if you’re sitting in late position and there haven’t been any raises yet and you’re stack is a monster, then come in with some average cards and hope that you hit it big. If you don’t, it’s easy enough to fold.
Calling raises with average hands pre-flop is tough, because you’ll need a strong grasp on post-flop strategy if you want to have any chance of taking down a pot if you don’t flop big. Knowing when a continuation bet is just an effort to pick up a pot when your opponent misses the flop is an important technique to learn, and until you do you’ll want to avoid mixing up your play to the extent to where you calling pre-flop raises with hands that will likely not hold up well.
The goal of opening up your hand selection is to give the other players at the table the impression that you are an unpredictable player and that they always need to be cautious when playing against you. Play a few extra hands in the right situations, and don’t let it get out of control to where you start making bad calls and start drawing at lots of hands.
National Heads-Up Poker Championship Sunday 10 AM on NBC TV
photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com
Money, trophy and fame awaits the winner
Sunday mornings mean one of two things, It's autumn and the NFL or it's spring and it's heads-up poker. The third installment of the 2009 NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championship played and taped at at Caesars Palace Las Vegas March 6 - 8 airs on NBC TV every Sunday morning at 10 AM EDT.
This week's first hour of matches will feature Gus Hansen vs Huck Seed and Sam Farha vs Peter Eastgate, while the second hour will showcase Daniel Negreanu vs Dario Minieri and Jeffrey Isbia vs Phil Hellmuth. Tune in for some of the year's best poker from the best poker players in the world. Considering the variety of countries represented by the original 64 players, maybe they should rename it the NBC International Heads-Up Poker Championship.
Don't forget to check broadcast times in your areas then set out the snacks, open a brew, and set back to enjoy some great poker.
photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com
Inside the Caesars Palace poker room & tournament facility
More photos from the event are waiting after the jump.
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Gus Hansen
photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com
Huckleberry Seed
photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com
Sam Farha
photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com
Peter Eastgate
photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com
Daniel Negreanu
photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com
Dario Minieri
photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com
Jeffrey Isbia
\Phil Hellmuth
photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com
Daniel Negreanu always has time to pose for the hundreds of fans gathered at the Caesars Palace poker room for the 2009 NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championship
Weekly Sit & Go Tip: Slow Playing For Max Value
One of the most frustrating aspects of a Sit & Go tournament is that you don’t often get that many opportunities to play big hands for big pots. Players like to step back and keep to a very tight strategy and often will only call pre-flop raises with very premium hands. What this means is you won’t likely get any sizeable action when raising pre-flop with premium hands, and even medium strength hands like middle pocket pairs. Because of this, I try to use many of these situations to try to flop big and slow play for a turn or two in order to try and maximize my value, as lots of Sit & Go players like to bet to try and pick up a pot post-flop whether they have something or not.
Now obviously you can’t do this with pocket aces in first position, as basic poker strategy tells you that you must put out at least an average-sized raise in order to scare away all the drawing hands. However, I will often just limp in pre-flop with hands like 8-8, hoping to flop a set, which might net me an entire stack of chips off a player who flopped top pair and has no problem playing it for all their chips, which is surprisingly common.
At the same time however, you don’t want to put yourself in unnecessary danger either. Flopping a set is great, but if there are multiple players in the pot and the board has at least two matching suits, you’re going to need bet if the action is checked around to you, and you might also consider a raise if someone bets prior to your turn. Who you’re playing against and how much you know about them will also aid in knowing when to try and slow play a pot, as hyper aggressive players will happily bet out with nothing on every street in an effort to get you to fold, however at the time a very tight player might need to see a free card or two before they’re willing to put out a feeler bet and try to pick up the pot.
As I always say, you need to be playing to win with S&G tournaments, and picking up the blinds with the one time you’re dealt K-K throughout the whole 45min session is not the best way to accumulate chips. Is there a short stack still left to act after you? Limp with your K-K and see if they don’t push in their chips in an effort to pick up the blinds. This unorthodox style doesn’t play well in long, deep-stacked tournaments, but it can open up some opportunities for you during short, single table Sit & Go’s.
2009 WSOP Final Table Set For November
This post was originally published on the LasVegasVegas News Blog by staff writer R.C. Clark.photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com
Event #1 of the 2008 WSOP
This year's 40th anniversary World Series of Poker final table will once again be delayed.
We're a fan of poker as a stamina sport, but apparently Harrah's (which owns WSOP) crunched the numbers and found delaying profitable, so we have it again.
The $10,000-buy-in main event will also again run through the July 4th holiday, which in Las Vegas, isn't that big (in fact, there are barely any fireworks, at least not as many as New Year's Eve).
The WSOP main event starts July 3 with multiple first and second days, then dwindles to the final table on July 15.
Then ESPN will swarm the 9 remaining players (maybe they'll do a reality show this time) as they cover what they're up to in the months-long intermission.
The players will regroup on Nov. 7, and play will continue until there's one winner.
Making Player Notes Online
Friend of mine asked me recently if I keep notes on players while playing online and if he should start doing the same. Maybe it was just me being naive, but I was under the impression that the majority of online poker players use all the tools and software laid at their fingertips in order to maximize their advantage at the table, but upon some further digging and Q&A sessions with other online players, this turned out not to be the case.
Simply put, there is ZERO reason for you to not be making notes and keeping tabs on the players you play against, especially if you play often and for the same stakes. Here’s an example why. When I’m feeling averagely competitive, I stick to the $10 buy-in Sit & Go’s at my fave online card room. I’ve played dozens of these tournaments, and since I make notes every single event, I know that I’m constantly running into the same people when I play these S&G’s.
Why is it important to know this? Well if I see “DarkAces†sitting at my table and I have notes listed for him, I can find out with a couple clicks of a mouse what kind of player I’ve classified him as, what types of plays he makes, is he a weak/aggressive player, etc. Knowing these things about a player is everything, especially in pressure situations. If I’m playing DarkAces in a big pot and I know he likes to bluff a lot, I will play the hand differently and more correctly than if I was up against someone I know nothing about. Maybe I’ve labeled another person as very weak and that they always fold when raised unless they have a very strong hand. Well if that person is seated to my left I am going to try and steal as many blinds and antes from him as possible, while I may not try that against a unknown player.
The point is, information is power, and there is hardly any sport where that means more than in poker. Start using the note-taking software provided by your favorite online site and you will instantly start to see all the ways it benefits you in all aspects of your game.
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WSOP Info is your source to online poker news and information regarding the WSOP 2008. The World Series Of Poker is the largest Poker event in the world.
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