^

It was a long weekend in Australia and what better way to celebrate the birthday of Her Majesty than with a friendly game of poker. It's a game designed for royalty, as kings and queens were tossed around the felt with effortless precision this afternoon. Fifteen loyal servants came together, but they dropped away one-by-one until only one man remained. That man is Sammy Huang and he is now the King of Canberra!

As many kings and queens that we saw on the felt of the Casino Canberra today, it was the unnerving number of aces that ended up in the hands of Sammy Huang that ultimately was the story of the day. Flying the flag for the Canberra locals, Huang was a dominant force on a tough final table through a combination of aggressive play and plenty of those wicked aces! His win was well-deserved and it's great to see the ANZPT Canberra trophy staying in home territory.

We started out this afternoon with Germany's Khiem Nguyen leading the way with all eyes on the short stacks to see who would fall first. Naz Sabaei and Mario Ljubicic were quick to go, before young gun Jarred Graham made a surprisingly rapid fall from grace. Graham was unlucky when his ace-king was outdrawn by the ace-jack of Takahiro Morooka and never recovered. Morooka couldn't make the most of his chips after a ruling technicality went against him to see him next to the cashier. Brett Chalhoub was equally unlucky and when David Gorr was eliminated with a king-high flush against Khiem Nguyen's full house, our final table line up was set within 70 minutes of play.

Khiem Nguyen maintained the chip lead and was always a dangerous force on the final table. James Broom entered as the short stack but was relentless in his attack as he endured a rollercoaster ride that would give the weak heart palpitations. Broom had to come from behind on several all-in clashes including surviving with king-ten against Andrew Watson's ace-queen, and then king-queen against George Graziani's dominant ace-queen.

It was the latter hand that left Graziani crippled and led to our first elimination of the final table. Graziani was all in with [ac][6h] against Tristan Bain's [qh][qc] and Tony Kambouroglou's [kh][kc] with the Toothpick taking the pot to land an early double knockout blow.

Andrew Watson lost a race with [ah][qc] against Khiem Nguyen's pocket sevens to be eliminated in seventh place, before a card-dead Luke Edwards couldn't survive with [qc][jd] against Leigh Warne's [ks][5c] to depart in sixth.

While the number of players were quickly decreasing, Sammy Huang's stack was just getting bigger and bigger, as his overbetting style was playing havoc with the small ball approach of Khiem Nguyen and James Broom. Huang picking up pocket aces with some regularity was also helping the cause, as Nguyen was showing visible signs of frustration.

Leigh Warne was next to go went Toothpick Tony woke up with another big pair when his [qs][qh] proved too strong for Warne's [ah][qc] to leave us four-handed.

Huang was the big stack and Broom was still nursing the short stack as a tight four-way battle ensued. The shorties were forced to move all in on multiple occasions, but they couldn't find any callers as the status quo remained for over an hour. Something had to give.

As the blinds ticked over, it was Germany's Khiem Nguyen who finally cracked when he three-bet shoved with [4s][4d] but Sammy Huang woke up with his favourite hand, [as][ac] and made an easy call. Nguyen couldn't find a four as his impressive tournament was halted in fourth place.

James Broom found some swagger when play reached three-handed with his nemesis in Nguyen now on the rails. Broom opened up his game and caught Toothpick Tony red-handed when he squeezed over the top of a raise and call. Broom tabled [ad][8d] as Toothpick sheepishly showed [5d][4c]. The board ran out [9d][td][ks][jh][tc] to eliminate Toothpick in third place as we entered heads-up play with the title on the line.

James Broom had a two-to-one chip disadvantage against Sammy Huang and despite a quirky Canberra heads-up rule that has the blinds in reverse to normal, Broom was confident in his heads-up game. However he forgot that Huang held all the aces!

After a preflop raise, and bet on the flop, Huang overbet shoved all in on the turn on a [jh][9d][qh][7d] board. Broom deliberated for some time before making the call with [qd][5d] for top pair and flush draw, but Huang once again opened [as][ah]. Broom was looking for a queen, five or diamond but it wasn't to be as the [7s] bricked the board to eliminate him in second place and crown Sammy Huang as our ANZPT Canberra champion!

The Canberra local qualified for this event through one of the $22+R 3xTurbo online satellites on PokerStars for the investment of just $42. He's now turned that into a whopping $73,700 in prize money!

Congratulations to Sammy on a wonderful achievement which is sure to create a buzz for poker in our nation's capital.

PokerStars.net ANZPT Canberra Main Event results

1st Sammy Huang (Australia) (PokerStars Qualifier) - $73,700
2nd James Broom (Australia) - $46,900
3rd Tony Kambouroglou (Australia) - $27,470
4th Khiem Nguyen (Germany) - $22,780
5th Leigh Warne (Australia) - $18,760
6th Luke Edwards (Australia) (PokerStars Qualifier) - $15,410
7th Andrew Watson (Australia) (PokerStars Player) - $12,730
8th Tristan Bain (Australia) - $10,050
9th George Graziani (Australia) - $8,040
----
10th David Gorr (Australia) - $6,030
11th Brett Chalhoub (Australia) (PokerStars Qualifier) - $6,030
12th Takahiro Morooka (Australia) (PokerStars Qualifier) - $6,030
13th Jarred Graham (Australia) - $4,690
14th Mario Ljubicic (Australia) - $4,690
15th Naz Sibaei (Australia) - $4,690

So now it's time to pack up and head home (subject to volcanic ash) following a fantastic long weekend in Canberra. We've really enjoyed our time here and the poker room seem to really embrace the ANZPT which is fantastic. Many thanks to the tournament staff, dealers and the hospitality crew at the Casino Canberra for making us feel welcome and a part of the team.

Also many thanks to Cole Bennetts for his superb final table photography.

That's all we have for you from Canberra. If you're craving more tournament action, you might have heard of a wee tournament happening in Las Vegas at the moment. They call it the World Series of Poker. Stick to the PokerStars Blog for all the latest news and updates from there.

On the local scene, we have a six-week break before we head to Melbourne's Crown Casino for the first event of Season 5 of the PokerStars.net Asia Pacific Poker Tour. The APPT Melbourne will be a spectacular event with the Main Event running from July 29th until August 1st with online satellites running now on PokerStars.

Thanks for following our coverage at home and we look forward to seeing you in Melbourne. Until then, so long from Canberra!

Top 10 NO deposit Bonus offers @

Read More... [Source: PokerStars Poker Blog :: Tournaments]

^

We are reviewing today's ruling. We remain committed to New Jersey and to contributing to its economy.

***

Eric Hollreiser is Head of Corporate Communications for The Rational Group

Top 10 NO deposit Bonus offers @

Read More... [Source: PokerStarsBlog.com :: Corporate Blog]

^

Admin, the world over it's a nightmare. You base a decision on a document only to find out that you've been given incorrect information. The poker world is no different. It turns out that the email I received regarding the World Cup of Poker didn't have the final version attached. Pah.

So, as it happens, the multi-table format actually pays out to all nine teams, not just the top five. This changes things entirely with Germany having just two players left in, and France just one, a swift turnaround in the league points is distinctly possible.

1. 50 points
2. 40 points
3. 35 points
4. 30 points
5. 25 points
6. 20 points
7. 15 points
8. 10 points
9. 5 points

One table has broken so far with three team captains being sent to the rail; David Williams (Rest of the World), Arnaud Mattern (France) and Humberto Brenes (Costa Rica). Another team captain, Noah Boeken, was the player to dispatch Brenes getting there with [qc][tc] against a raggy ace.

This is about survival, not just chip accumulation so things are looking good for Japan, the Netherlands and Tajikistan (three players left), very wobbly for France (one player left) and can go either way for the remaining teams (two players left). Should France bust first they would end the day on 71 points and as long as one of Costa Rica, Tajikistan, Germany, the Netherlands or Italy come seventh they'll be guaranteed to go through. That's if they do bust first.

Dutch team captain Noah Boeken

The team points at the beginning of this third and final round of the day are listed below. You can do the arithmetic yourself but suffice to say Japan will not be the team eliminated. We'll bring you the news as we get to the final table.

1. Japan, 79 points
2. Peru, 68 points
3. France, 66 points
4. Rest of the World, 64 points
5. Costa Rica, 58 points
6. Tajikistan, 57 points
7. Germany, 55 points
8. Netherlands, 55 points
9. Italy, 50 points

Breaking news: Italy are the first team out in round three confirming their exit from the World Cup. The reigning champions are out.

Top 10 NO deposit Bonus offers @

Read More... [Source: PokerStarsBlog.com :: World Cup of Poker]

Portuguese player João Costa built a massive chip lead during Day 1A of PokerStars Portugal Poker Series Figueira da Foz. After nine 60- minute levels, Costa bagged 204,700 chips, putting himself as a huge favourite to win this second event of one of the newest PokerStars tours.

That stack is even more impressive when you consider that, one of 54 starters on Day 1A of this €700+€70 tournament, he began with 15,000 chips. When he returns on Sunday for Day 2, blinds will be 500-1,000 (100 ante), which means he has a bit more than 204 big blinds. In total he has more than 25% of the 810,000 chips in play today, and his closest challenger, Eduardo Ferreira, has 83,700 chips!

Chip leader João Costa

Day 1A saw the demise of two Portuguese Team PokerStars Pros. Henrique Pinho lost his last chips in the end of the penultimate level of the day, just a little bit after Nuno Coelho had pocket kings... twice! First he lost half of his stack pre-flop against A-K, then he found himself on the wrong side of a K-K vs. A-A cooler.

Team PokerStars Pro Nuno Coelho

Satursay saw another Team PokerStars Pro in play. João Nunes plays, but after a special heads-up challenge against Paulo Futre, one of the best Portuguese footballers ever, whose popularity levels in Portugal are, nowadays, higher than ever.

If you want to practise your Portuguese, visit our fellow PokerStars PT Blog, where you'll find all details of this Day 1A on the Live Coverage. While you do that, check out the Portugal Poker Series official website to learn more about this tour.

Top 10 NO deposit Bonus offers @

Read More... [Source: PokerStarsBlog.com :: Portugal Poker Series]

D-Link introduced a new line of surveillance cameras starting with the Vigilance Full HD Outdoor Dome Network Camera (DCS-4602EV) and the Vigilance HD Outdoor Mini Bullet Network Camera (DCS-4701E).

“Our new Vigilance line addresses changes in the market place over the last year for key IP camera features at a more affordable price point,” said Vance Kozik, director of marketing for IP Surveillance, D-Link Systems, Inc. “More and more businesses are looking for value-oriented surveillance cameras that are easy to use while at the same time maintain professional HD video quality in a rugged compact form factor.”

The Vigilance DCS-4602EV is an indoor/outdoor dome camera offering full HD 1920 x 1080 resolution, integrated infrared illumination for seeing in complete darkness, and a rugged housing that is rated for both weather and vandal resistance. Additional features include 3D noise filtering for enhanced low light performance and PoE (Power over Ethernet), allowing for convenient single cable installation.

The Vigilance DCS-4701E is an indoor/outdoor mini bullet camera that offers HD 1280 x 720 resolution, integrated infrared illumination, and an integrated cable management bracket for additional protection against vandalism. Other features include lowlight+ technology which dramatically increases low light performance.

More about the DCS-4602EV:

·        Two megapixel full HD 1080p resolution (1920 x 1080)

·        Infrared LED night vision with viewing up to 60 feet in complete darkness

·        2.8mm lens (96 degree field of view)

·        Video motion detection

·        IP66 weatherproof rating

·        IK10 vandal-proof rating for public environments

·        Built-in 802.3af compliant PoE module for easy installation in a variety of locations without the need for supplemental power cabling

·        ONVIF compliance for 3^rd party VMS and NVR support

More about the DCS-4701E:

·        One megapixel HD 720p resolution (1280 x 720)

·        Infrared LED night vision with viewing up to 90 feet in complete darkness

·        2.8mm lens (96 degree field of view)

·        Video motion detection

·        IP66 weatherproof rating

·        Built-in 802.3af compliant PoE module for easy installation in a variety of locations without the need for supplemental power cabling

·        ONVIF compliance for 3^rd party VMS and NVR support

Top 10 NO deposit Bonus offers @

Read More... [Source: Featured Products]

The Top Online Casino Gambling News Reporting Site Since 2002!

Published on January 2, 2014 by Terry Goodwin

The city of Macau has had a quick rise to fame within the casino gambling industry over the past decade. What was once a monopoly held by casino tycoon Stanley Ho, has turned into the largest gaming market in the world.

The revenue figures have been released for 2013, and what was once a small gap between Macau casinos and the next largest worldwide market, Las Vegas, has grown to never before seen gaps. Macau casinos brought in $45 billion, a figure even gaming companies could only have dreamed about five years ago.

Macau has not only surpassed Las vegas in terms of overall gaming revenue, but for the first time in history, the city outpaced the entire US casino market. The approximately 12,000 casinos in the US brought in $37.3 billion in 2013. The US figures do not count tribal casinos that are operated on reservations and not regulated by individual states.

It was only a few short years ago when Macau was facing a stiff challenge from the Chinese government. The government placed a restriction on visas coming from the mainland. That left many of the largest gamblers in the world stuck away from Macau. The visa restriction, however, has since been lifted and Macau has thrived since.

Record revenue figures have been seen for several years, and in 2013, the $45 billion was the most seen in one market in any given year. Analysts expect that figure to grow even higher in 2014, as many of the biggest gaming operators in the area are renovating or expanding with new properties.

Sheldon Adelson, CEO of Las Vegas Sands, was the first to take a chance on Macau during the economic recession of 2008. In the years since, MGM Mirage and Wynn Resorts have joined several other US companies in entering the Macau market. All companies have thrived in what has become the model for other Asian gaming territories such as Malaysia and Singapore.

Top 10 NO deposit Bonus offers @

Read More... [Source: Casino Gambling News]

Covering live poker tournaments for a living affords me the opportunity to see countless thousands of hands played out, many of which offer interesting and potentially valuable insights into how players — both amateurs and professionals — play the game. In this ongoing series, I’ll highlight hands I’ve seen at the tournaments I’ve covered and see if we can glean anything useful from them.

The Scene

Over the last two weeks, we’ve diverted from discussing hands I’ve observed while live reporting and instead talked about hands I played in the World Series of Poker Circuit Main Event at Horseshoe Hammond (pictured above). This week, we’ll take a look at one more hand I played from that same locale, although this one comes from a very different tournament.

I arrived in Hammond on Thursday night and was all set to play Day 1a on Friday. Unfortunately, the convergence of a few factors prevented that from happening, and I ended up getting to the venue a little later than I would have liked to be comfortable registering. But there was a $250 Mega Satellite running in the corner of the room, so I hopped in that instead.

The early levels had not been going great for me when the following hand occurred. Our table was playing seven-handed, and my 5,000 starting stack was down to 4,300.

The Action

With blinds at 200/400/50, Michael Sanders, a circuit regular, opened to 1,000 under the gun with a stack of about 35,000-40,000. I looked down at in the next seat and put it all in. Action folded to the player in the small blind, who shoved all in as well for about 13,000. Sanders thought a while and called.

Sanders:
Small blind:
Me:

The board ran out dead for all three of us, leaving the kings best. That player doubled up and then some, while I busted out and Sanders headed back to the grind.

Concept and Analysis

The important thing to keep in mind for this hand is how different satellites play from regular tournaments. Under normal circumstances at a seven-handed table, Sanders would probably be opening a lot of hands that are flipping against two fives. However, because we are playing a satellite, the situation is quite a bit different.

Michael Sanders

In this particular satellite, roughly one in every eight players was going to win one of the seats. It’s usually correct to play a little tighter in satellites anyway because you aren’t trying to get all of the chips, only to survive long enough to win one of the seats. It makes no difference if you get there with 1,000 big blinds or one.

Because Sanders had more than seven starting stacks, he was already pretty close to the stack needed in this satellite to secure a seat. Therefore, there’s really no reason for him to get involved unless he has a premium holding. He should be playing even tighter than everyone else and likely has a pretty snug opening range here.

Pocket fives is pretty borderline in a regular tournament to shove in this spot, as you’re likely gambling without too much fold equity. But in a satellite, it’s a pretty easy fold. I was just on autopilot here waiting for a decent hand to get the last of my chips in and shoved without really thinking.

Really, I should probably be folding hands quite a bit stronger than fives here after Sanders opens. The combined likelihood that Sanders has a really strong hand plus the chance of someone else picking up a hand behind me — which is, of course, exactly what happened — means it’s correct to play super-tight in that spot. I’m not an expert on satellites by any stretch, but even might be a fold here.

Want to stay atop all the latest in the poker world? If so, make sure to get PokerNews updates on your social media outlets. Follow us on Twitter and find us on both Facebook and Google+!

Top 10 NO deposit Bonus offers @

Read More... [Source: PokerNews]

Las Vegas casinos seemed to be on the upswing for investors, but now may be in more of a holding pattern.

After plummeting for over a year, casino stock prices seemed to have bottomed out and begun recovering in the last couple months, but are now once again fluttering. Gaming industry analysts are saying that there are certainly bumps ahead on the path for gambling companies, and optimism should be guarded, if allowed at all.

The Las Vegas Journal-Review is reporting that Applied Analysis of Las Vegas found that is monthly computation of composite gaming stock value had declined in June, after two positive months. Industry operators had hoped the good returns in April and May would mean an escalating rate of recovery, but that has now been dashed.

"The V-shaped recovery is off the table," Rich Moriarty of Union Gaming Group told the Review-Journal.  "The worst is over, but we're certainly not out of the woods yet."

Applied Analysis employs it monthly gaming index to measure overall market movement. The index figures in the prices of the major Las Vegas gaming operators' stock.

The index has been as high as 667.09 in October of 2007, and fell as low as 189.50 in March. June's index was 233.03, 7 points down from May.

Interestingly, the index found manufacturers' stock to be rising, as new gambling areas are legalized, creating new demands for product.

Published on July 2, 2009 by MattMiller

Top 10 NO deposit Bonus offers @

Read More... [Source: Las Vegas Casinos in the News]