The poker world has lost another talented, well-respected, player this week after long-time poker pro and author Barry Tanenbaum lost his battle with a Kidney Disease. Tanenbaum was 66 years-old. He leaves behind his wife Betty.
For anyone who became interested in poker prior to the poker boom, Barry Tanenbaum was one of the best-known figures in the poker community. Tanenbaum was a long-time strategic columnist for Card Player, specializing in Limit Holdem, and had written two recent books on Limit Holdem: Advanced Limit Hold’ Em Strategy, and as the co-author of Limit Hold’em: Winning Short-Handed Strategies along with Terry Borer and Lawrence Mak.
Tanenbaum was also a constant in the mid-stakes Limit Holdem games for decades, and could be found at the Bellagio playing $30/$60 and $40/$80 Limit Holdem tables. Tanenbaum was a true professional and ambassador for the game of poker.
Tanenbaum’s friend and long-time colleague at Card Player Magazine, Jan Fisher, summed up Tanenbaum’s life perfectly in the following passage from a recent column at pokerplayernewspaper.com:
“The poker world has lost a true hero, a real champion of the game, who “had it all” going on. Always a gentleman, even during his rare defeats, he inspired me to be a good person both at and away from the table. He always respected the game and the people around him. A class act, he will be missed more than words can describe.”
Nov 25 2011
Online poker numbers are in and iPoker seizes #2 spot
written by: Steve Comments: Comments Off
Since Black Friday there has been little doubt about who the #1 poker site in the world was, as PokerStars seems to have a complete monopoly on the industry at the moment. But unlike before Black Friday the #2 spot is completely up for grabs. Before the US DOJ actions on April 15th there was a clear #2 online poker room in Full Tilt Poker, but the site’s fall from grace has left the door open for many contenders looking to claim the #2 spot.
Since Black Friday the #2 spot has been switching hands between Party Poker and the iPoker Network; until Party Poker seized control and had been maintaining the #2 spot over the past few months. However, the most recent weekly update from the tracking site www.pokerscout.com has iPoker back in the #2 hole, once again leapfrogging Party Poker.
The report came out on November 21st, and shows PokerStars still way out in front with nearly 6x more traffic than its nearest competitors, followed by the iPoker Network, Party Poker, 888 Poker, and the OnGame Poker Network.
The few US-Friendly online poker rooms/networks have been holding steady, with the Merge Gaming Network still the largest coming in at #10 on PokerScout.com’s list, Bodog at #12, the Cake Poker Network at #21, the Everleaf Poker Network at #26, and the Yatahay Poker Network at #32.
You can see the complete list of online poker traffic at pokerscout.com, or view their most recent traffic report at the following link: Weekly Traffic Report
The battle to prove who is not the worst of the four MMA practitioners we know of in the poker world has taken place, and Lex “Raszi” Veldhuis has proven himself to be at least the third best fighter in the poker world (of the four practitioners we are aware of, Veldhuis, Bertrand Grosspellier, Terrence Chan, and Andrew Robl) after defeating Bertrand ElkY Grosspellier by knock-Out in the second round.
It took nearly two years for the combatants to meet in the ring, after first discussing the idea during a break at the 2009 EPT Barcelona, due to scheduling conflicts, Black Friday, and a series of injuries. Veldhuis was the more confident (maybe cocky is a better word) of the two, and his confidence was born-out after landing a decisive kick in the second round that knocked ElkY to the ground– after what onlookers called an even first-round between the two.
The match was run in a very professional manner, overseen by a referee and using the following rules:
- Five 3-minute rounds using 10 oz gloves and NO helmets or shin pads
- There will only be a winner if there is a knockout or TKO; or if one of the two quits (there will be no scoring)
- Three knockdown rule in any round and four knockdown rule in the match
- Head-butts and rabbit punches are not allowed, Kicks to the groin, knees to the groin and in the clinch (”Thai-Boxing”) are not allowed, and elbows are not allowed
The match was videotaped, and will eventually be available for mass consumption in the near future –At which point we will either get a good chuckle, or be pleasantly surprised by the athleticism of the two poker pros.
Nov 23 2011
Anthony Ruberto Heads Final Table at WPT Jacksonville
written by: Will Comments: Comments Off
Day 3 of the World Poker Tour (WPT) Jacksonville Main Event is now in the books, and Anthony Ruberto has emerged as the final table’s chip leader. A field that began with 393 hopeful runners was whittled down to just 42 by the time Day 3 began, though only the top 40 spots were eligible for money prizes.
As players took to the tables in the morning, Vitor Coelho held a massive chip lead over his closest rivals, including Allie Prescott, Sam Soverel, Darryll Fish, Connor Drinnan and Alex Venovski. Jacob Naquin and Deshun Boone started with the shortest stacks, and were quickly eliminated just shy of the cash. The room let out a cheer combined with a sigh of relief as the 40 remaining runners knew they’d be taking home at least $7,510 each.
The rail received a number of talented players early on, including Corey Burbick, Brandon Steven, Nick Grippo, Mike Beasley and Dan Buzgon. After the eliminations of Allie Prescott and Brian Hawkins, only 17 runners remained to play down to a final table following the dinner break.
Ben Zamani hit the rail next, followed closely by fan-favorite Dwyte Pilgrim. Pilgrim liked his chances with K-Q, but couldn’t hold on against the J-J of Coelho who improved to trips on the flop.
Ruberto went on a tear at this point, ejected Connor Drinnan, Doug Raney and Barry Wiedemann to bring the field down to just 10 players. Ruberto was also responsible for the elimination of Chris Tryba, leaving only 9.
Lisa Hamilton then took her turn in the executioner’s role, knocking out Michael Messick with K-K over 10-10.
Ruberto has a 2 million chip lead over the Coelho in second place. Of the final six players, expect short stack runners Artie Rodriguez and Darryll Fish to be eliminated first on Day 4. Hamilton and Sam Soverel still have fighting chances with stacks not far behind Coelho’s.
After three days of grueling action, Bryan Schultz emerged victorious in the World Series of Poker Circuit Harveys Lake Tahoe Main Event, winning a championship ring and just under $112k in the process. A total of 327 runners registered for the event.
Just 11 players remained on Day 3, allowing a final table to be established within 30 minutes. Dennis Pevarnick and Ron McMillen were the first players ejected.
The first runner booted from the final table was Casey McCarrel, who drew to a flush with a diamonds only to find a heart and a club on the turn and river. Chris Clark was then eliminated in eight place when his A-J suited went up against the pocket queens of Joe Fernandez. Despite a J on the flop, the turn and river offered no help, sending Clark packing with $13k.
Fernandez himself was then eliminated despite completing trip aces. Daniel Lowery held pocket 10s, giving him aces full of 10s and the superior hand. David Clark hit the rail shortly after in 6th place, bagging a respectable $21k after his A-10 offsuit failed to improve against the A-Q offsuit of Schultz.
Jim Atwood was sent to the cash cage in 5th place when he failed to seal the deal on a flush draw, losing on an all-in bid to the two pair of Schultz. The next elimination was delivered not by Schultz, but by Daniel Lowery, who booted Hank Czarnecki with pocket 2s despite Czarnecki’s A-K suited.
Three-handed play only lasted for four hands, with Ron Segni eventually bowing out in 3rd place for $50k. In the final hand of the day, it was Lowery versus Schultz heads-up. Schultz held A-9 offsuit against the Q-8 offsuit of Lowery. Both an 8 and a 9 came up on the board, giving Schultz the superior pair and the victory, while Lowery took $69k for his excellent run.
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