Daniel Negreanu spends €1 million on buy-ins so far in 2014
In today's Daily Rewind we review the year's biggest winners and consider the prospect of sports betting at PokerStars.
Negreanu spends €1 million on tournaments
 |
| "Doh" |
2014 might only be a few weeks old but already PokerStrategists Philipp 'philgruissem' Gruissem and Igor 'lechuckpoker' Kurganov are down more than €600,000.
According to a recent report compiled by PokerOlymp, both Gruissem and Kurganov are the biggest losers when it comes to high roller events in 2014.
In contrast, Phil Ivey is the biggest net winner with an outlay of €229,950 and prize money totalling €2,628,000 for an overall profit of €2,398,050.
Just behind Ivey in the net profit rankings is Mike McDonald (€1,761,346) and Fabian 'fabstinho' Quoss (€1,252,846); while the year's top spender, Daniel Negreanu (€1,041,150 in buy-ins), is down in 14th place with an overall haul worth €141,450.
Poker's Big Brother
 |
It appears that for three seasons French audiences have been enjoying a Big Brother style poker show called La Maison du Bluff.
Sponsored by PokerStars and featuring Gaëlle Garcia Diaz (pictured left) as the new host, the show puts contestants in a communal house and forces them to compete in a series of poker and non-poker related challenges.
In a similar format to Big Brother, the contestants are whittled down one-by-one until a single player is crowned the champion and handed a cheque for €150,000.
Season 4 of the show is set to air on French TV on March 17 and, aside from Diaz making her debut as host, it's believed that Ronaldo will also be making regular appearances.
PokerStars considering sportsbook
 |
| Sports betting on PokerStars |
The Rational Group, the company behind PokerStars, has recently told eGaming Review (subcription needed) that it's considering launching an online sportsbook.
Despite being one of the most influential operators in the poker industry, the Rational Group seems keen on diversifying its portfolio to include the full spectrum of virtual betting options.
Although the plans are still in an embryonic stage, a spokesperson for the company told eGaming they are "exploring opportunities to enter global sports betting markets" in order to "enhance [their] online offerings."
More information will apparently be forthcoming in the future, but industry insiders are predicting that if anything is going to happen it won't be until 2015.
Question of the Day
With the Rational Group looking at new online ventures, we want to know:
"Is a sportsbook at PokerStars good for the industry?"
 |
Yesterday's top winners barely broke into a canter before calling time on their sessions and locking up a small but adequate profit.
On a day when huge profits were scarce, 'PimpyLimpy' managed to claim the top spot on the daily leaderboard after raking in $31,131. That haul was enough to end the day ahead of Alex Millar and Alexander Kostritsyn, despite being significantly lower than the high stakes scene's usual standards.
Falling to the largest loss of the day after just 189 hands was 'theidolist'. The online pro found himself skipping ahead of 'Flufferd' and 'CASINO ROYAL' after $49,849 disappeared from his bankroll.
Daily Signoff
With Daniel Negreanu spending more than €1 million on tournaments this year, we thought we'd relive his live misclick during EPT Barcelona's High Roller.
