Daily Rewind - WPT Hard Rock, Sexton Blogs & Bharara Top
In today's Daily Rewind we check out the action at WPT's Hard Rock event, hear Mike Sexton talk about professionalism and see why Preet Bharara is a top guy.
The Daily Rewind is your one-stop-shop for a sharp review of the day in poker. Join us here for a mix of the latest news and a more irreverent insight into the poker world. Today we discovered the following topics for you:
WPT Rocks in Florida and EPT Berlin
A slow day for eliminations at the first day of the WPT Seminole Hard Rock Showdown left David Nicholson and John Dolan leading the way with 132,300 and 120,200 respectively.
A total of 280 players made their way to the Florida for Day 1 of the $10,000 event, which last year attracted 433 runners. Tyler von Kriegenburgh took the honours that time around, banking $1,122,340. The American is still in the hunt this year but is treading water in 168th place with 20,525 chips.
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| Rocking at the WPT |
Late registration is still open going into Day 2 and the organisers are expecting an influx of players before the cashiers call time on the buy-ins.
Because the gambling laws in Florida allow 18-year-olds to participate, there is expected to be another rush of youngsters today. The highest-finishing player under 21 will receive an exclusive Hard Rock gift basket complete with an electric guitar.
The action will commence later today with live updates available at WPT’s website.
Across the pond, the Europeans have been busy completing Day 2 of the EPT Berlin.
When the tournament director called time on yesterday’s proceedings it was Anton Wigg who stood atop of the chip counts, just ahead of PokerStrategists: Vladimir beyne Geshkenbein and Mario maddyhh Puccini.
Check out our full report on Day 2 and visit our Live Ticker for updates from the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Berlin.
Sexton on Professionalism
Always immaculately turned-out and never seen without his million dollar smile, Mike Sexton is one of the industry’s most polished professionals. Indeed, having headed the World Poker Tour since its inception, the show’s host has seen it all.
However, it seems he’s seen just about all he can take in recent times, with his latest blog dedicated to the lack of professionalism some players display at the table. His impassioned post points out that many players are failing to respect the game and are damaging its public image.
He ends the blog with some tips on how players can improve as well as closing with a succinct appraisal of the situation: “Poker Pros – Wake up and smell the coffee!”
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| Sexton is Dressed to Impress |
Bharara is Top
If you're prone to tilting then turn away now, as the man sticking the legal knife into the poker industry has just been publically praised.
Preet Bharara, the legal genius involved in the Black Friday case, has just been named in Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world.
The man who sent a large portion of the poker world on tilt has received the accolade thanks to his work taking down some of the world’s toughest cases.
High Stakes Corner
Ilari “Ilari FIN” Sahamies made a nice comeback yesterday after a few days on the wrong side of variance. The Finnish Omaha player earned $268,313 at the virtual felt; a figure that was over $110,000 more than the day’s second biggest winner Alexey “LuckyGump” Makarov.
Someone who couldn’t find a positive run yesterday was Ben “Sauce123” Sulsky. The American dropped $157,030 over the course of 1,422 hands. Ben was closely followed in the loser stakes by Alex “Kanu7” Millar who lost $95,296.
Daily Signoff
When he’s not worrying about poker players' attire, Mike Sexton can be found at the felt making sick calls against the likes of Mike Matusow.
