This week RankingHero brought you several exclusive interviews: @Nicolas Levi spoke to @Sean Yu, who took our patch to the final table and all the way to 1st place in the inaugural #WPT500 $1 Million GTD; @Pedro Canali interviewed the amazing @Jon Finkel - recognized as one of the greatest players of Magic:The Gathering, but also a successful poker player, sports bettor, finance genius, and - we are so proud to say! - RankingHero member. Make sure you follow the #MTGpoker hashtag and MTG Poker page on RKH for future interviews and posts! In addition, @Bruno Fitoussi - one of the 'founding fathers' of poker in France is Dans le carré and talks about the past, present, and future of poker. Last but not least, you will find a link to an interesting 2013 interview with Mark Newhouse - the back-to-back November Niner.
Meanwhile, the Main Event played down to the #NovemberNine and #WSOP2014 players were leaving Las Vegas - find out how some of them said goodbye in the social media.
@Daniel Colman has been the talk of the poker community ever since he won $15 million in the Big One for One Drop and - after declining to talk to the media - shared his ambivalent feelings about the game in a forum post. However, this hasn't stopped him from scoring another 6-figure cash in a 100K #SuperHighRoller at the @ARIA Resort & Casino, which took him one place up - to fourth position - in the all-time US ranking.
Check out the #PokerCrimeFiles hashtag on RKH for news about Macau Millionaire Paul Phua's arrest in Vegas on illegal sports betting charges and about his famous lawyer - 'the Phil Ivey of attorneys', David Chesnoff.
We are very happy that @Flaminio Malaguti (find out more about his extraordinary live tournament record here) has officially joined RankingHero! Please also welcome and give distinctions to @Nancy Birnbaum @Marius Pospiech @James Akenhead @Jeffrey Ray @Christophe Thirion and all of the new members of our community.
Thanks to the #M1debut participants who shared stories about their poker beginnings and to our own @Elena RKH for organizing and moderating this fun contest! We hope the winners will take the RankingHero patch to the felt and help us expand the photo gallery RankingHeroes in Action.
Wishing you another good week of poker playing & winning & learning & sharing. We'll be looking foward to your updates here on RankingHero and on our Facebook page!
Yours truly,
Colman Continues Fantastic 2014 Run with Six-Figure Score at the Aria
Whatever @Daniel Colman's views and feelings about the game and its dark side, the poker gods sure seem to be doing everything in their power to keep him in the bright half. Last week the 2014 Big One for One Drop winner added another six-figure score to his resume by finishing third in a 100 K #SuperHighRoller at @ARIA Resort & Casino.
With the latest $796,821 win, Colman not only cemented his top position as the world's number one by live earnings in 2014:
..but also overtook @Phil Hellmuth in the 4th position in the all-time US ranking!
More on RankingHero:
Second-Biggest Winner in Poker History Refuses to Promote the Game
Dan Colman Speaks Out on the 'Ugly World' of Poker, Daniel Negreanu Looks on the Brighter Side
The Monte-Carlo EPT Super High Roller - a Clash of Cultures, Generations, and Poker Styles
Annie RKH 18 Jul 2014
And here are some other 100K events that moved the rankings this summer:
Millionaires Made at the Bellagio in 100K Super High Roller, Dan Smith Second Only to Ivey in 2014
Annie RKH 5 Sep 2014
Google Comes to the Aid of Tilted Poker Players
Love it or hate it, Google offers unexpected help with poker tilt, just type in 'tilt'. And if it doesn't make you smile and you're really, really 
and bad beaten, tell Google to 'do a barrel roll'
If you need a change from poker, play another game - type in 'Zerg Rush' .
You'll be ready to go back to your favorite poker room after 30 minutes; just set the timer in Google:
Ina Rkh 17 Jul 2014
Thank you for the interesting information. Really fun! How did you find this out? 
Annie RKH 17 Jul 2014
While looking for insightful, useful and/or funny articles about tilt in poker, such as this one: Staying off Tilt in Poker with Zen
SuitedAce 18 Jul 2014
Haha... This is cool!
'The Phil Ivey of Attorneys' and Vegas Legend David Chesnoff Represents Millionaire Paul Phua
'Who you gonna call' is not really a question for gamblers and jet-set thrill-seekers who get into trouble in Sin City, nor for the casinos where the trouble may have started. The obvious choice is David Chesnoff, who has been practicing as a criminal defense attorney in Vegas for nearly 35 years.
Chesnoff is now in the news again with a high-profile case after the arrest of millionaire @Paul Phua. Well-known to poker fans from super high-roller events and the Macau Big Game, Phua is allegedly connected to a Chinese crime syndicate - the Hong Kong-based 14K Triad - and is accused of running an illegal sports betting ring from Ceasar's Palace. His lawyer denied these charges. “This is a very sophisticated, intelligent individual who wants to defend himself,” Chesnoff was reported saying by the Las Vegas Review Journal.
Bruno Mars, Myke Tyson, Paris Hilton - just a few of his famous Vegas clients.
In view of the dazzling string of celebrities whom Chesnoff has represented successfully since 1980 (when he first arrived in Vegas), we have no doubt Phua will get the best possible defense. A great article about David Chesnoff by Michael Kaplan - Busted in Vegas? Gotta Call David Chesnoff - cites some of the stars of poker that have profted from his advice over the years:
"He also represented poker pro Mike “The Mouth” Matusow on a drug charge. “Mike was in deep trouble,” Chesnoff says. “He wound up going from facing state prison time to a very short sentence in the jail downtown”—where @Mike Matusow still managed to lose a six-figure sum by placing sports bets with bookies on the outside. “His whole life would have been unfairly different if I hadn’t been able to convince the court that this was really aberrant behavior on his part and that he really wasn’t a drug dealer.”
Chesnoff established himself as a favorite of poker stars, advising @Phil Hellmuth, @Johnny Chan, and the late @David 'Chip' Rees, among others. When @Jamie Gold won the World Series of Poker in 2006, there was a dispute with a card-playing TV producer who claimed to have been promised half of Gold’s winnings; Chesnoff went to bat for the producer and the suit was eventually settled. After poker great @Phil Ivey Phil Ivey enlisted Chesnoff to represent him in his 2009 divorce, the line at the hold’em tables was that Ivey had hired the Phil Ivey of attorneys. These days, every casino boss in town has Chesnoff flagged on his iPhone. “I get calls from casino executives to help big customers of theirs, and it isn’t to help because they want to see the guys go away,” he says. “Casino management understands that people are in Vegas and things will happen."
Read more at http://vegasmagazine.com/personalities/articles/busted-in-vegas-gotta-call-david-chesnoff#D9HT4GymyTGVGoqB.99
Annie RKH 18 Jul 2014
Macau Big Game Millionaire Paul Phua Arrested in Vegas
For many years @Paul Phua has been a familiar name to poker fans as one of the few non-anonymous businessmen among the regulars in the mythical Macau Big Game. In fact, he is often referred to as the key figure behind those mind-boggling cash games where a few, select pros are invited to play with a group of Asian millionaires and poker aficionados.
As for live tournaments, Paul Phua entered the first edition of the biggest buy-in tournament in history - the 2012 Big One for One Drop and has played (and occasionally cashed) in other super high-roller poker events in the past years. Most recently he managed a deep run in the widely publicized, star-studded Eur 100,000 buy-in EPT Super High Roller where he and fellow Asian millionaire @Richard Yong made the final table and finished 4th and 6th, respectively.
Paul Phua's name surprisingly never appeared on the registration list for the 2014 Big One for One Drop or any other WSOP event and now we all know why - he was busy in a different high-stakes game :) Phua (and his 22-year-old son) were among eight people taken into custody in connection with a multimillion-dollar illegal World Cup betting operation. Both the father and the son were released from custody on condition of putting up $2 million and $500,000 bail, respectively, as well as their private jet as collateral.
As reported by the Las Vegas Review Journal:
Phua and more than 20 other people were arrested June 18 in Macau for running a large gambling operation that took in hundreds of millions of dollars in illegal bets on the World Cup tournament, the Las Vegas FBI complaint alleged.
Last month, the South China Post in Hong Kong reported that police broke up an illegal betting ring at a Macau hotel involving roughly $645 million in wagers on the World Cup, including a single wager of $51.5 million. The hotel was not named in news reports.
Following his arrest in Macau, Phua was released on bail and flew to Las Vegas on his private jet, where he and his associates are alleged to have resumed their illegal gambling at Caesars Palace, the complaint alleged.
In a criminal complaint unsealed Monday, Las Vegas FBI Agent Minh Pham said the elder Phua, who was charged under the name Wei Seng Phua, was “known by law enforcement to be a high-ranking member of the 14K Triad,” one of the largest criminal syndicates in the world. Hong Kong-based 14K Triad specializes in drug trafficking and traditional forms of criminal activity, including illegal gambling, prostitution and loan sharking.
Curiously enough, Paul Phua's lawyer is the famous Vegas criminal defense attorney David Chesnoff, who notably represented @Phil Ivey in his protracted divorce case and has been called 'the Phil Ivey of attorneys'. Chesnoff has told the media that @Andrew Robl was prepared to advance $1.5 million towards the bail and that other members of the poker community have offered to help. One wonders if Ivey (himself a Macau regular) is one of those who will chip in or if he will avoid any involvement due to his own legal problems of late (see Did Phil Ivey Cheat or Outsmart the Casinos?).
More on RankingHero:
The Monte-Carlo EPT Super High Roller - a Clash of Cultures, Generations, and Poker Styles
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Jodie Tina 18 Jul 2014
The sportsbook that was allegedly involved in illegal wagering have released a statement a few days ago:
An update from SBOBET themselves:
Global online sportsbook SBOBET wishes to make it clear that recent press reports linking its name to a Wei Seng Phua (or Phua Wei Seng) who was arrested in the US for illegal online sports betting on the 2014 FIFA World Cup conducted out of a Las Vegas casino base are entirely without foundation.
Neither the accused nor those arrested with him have any involvement or association with the ownership or management of SBOBET, or with its operators, Celton Manx Limited and Richwell Ventures Limited.
Additionally SBOBET wishes to clarify that the US is one of more than 30 jurisdictions worldwide from which it does not accept bets from and that any alledged wagers placed via SBOBET.com by the accused could only have been made illegally, as press reports confirm.
Got it from the source below:
Las Vegas Illegal Wagering: A Statement From SBOBET
http://www.sbobetimes.com/index.php/8413-las-vegas-illegal-wagering-a-statement-from-sbobet
Annie RKH 21 Jul 2014
Remote Gambling Operation Behind Paul Phua Caesars Palace Arrest
"This Malaysian report states that he was deported from Macau, which makes his participation in the future nose-bleed poker games there (including at Wynn Macau) in which he was a primary participant an unlikely future occurrence."
Back-to-Back November Niner Mark Newhouse 2013 Interview
Only two players in history have made the #NovemberNine in two consecutive years: @Dan Harrington (2003, 2004) and now, the WPT Borgata Main Event champion of 2006, @Mark Newhouse (2013, 2014).
Mark Newhouse was eliminated in 9th place by @Ryan Riess when his 9♣ 9♠ didn't hold up against Ryan's A♠ K♥. Entering the Main Event this year, Mark vowed not to finish 9th again:)
Check out the in-depth interview he did on the Bernard Lee Poker Show last August, where he talks about his poker beginnings, his breakthrough in 2006, about being broke for years and 'climbing out of the hole'.
The WSOP 2013 November Nine.
Adrien Bacchi 15 Jul 2014
The November Nine Line-Up for Most Coveted Final Table in Poker
The bubble has burst and the #WSOP2014 Main Event field of 6,683 entrants played down to the #NovemberNine line-up. Here are the #MainEvent2014 players who made it to the most coveted final table in poker:
Photo: Joe Giron, PokerNews
@Jorryt Van Hoof Netherlands 38,375,000 (seat 3)
@Felix Vincent Stephensen Norway 32,775,000 (seat 2)
@Mark Newhouse USA 26,000,000 (seat 4)
@Andoni Larrabe Sanchez Spain 22,550,000 (seat 5)
@Daniel Sindelar USA 21,200,000 (seat 7)
@William Pappaconstantinou USA 17,500,000 (seat 1)
@William Tonking USA 15,050,000 (seat 6)
@Martin Jacobson Sweden 14,900,000 (seat 8)
@Bruno Politano Brazil 12,125,000 (seat 9)
Totoro 15 Jul 2014
Adrien Bacchi 15 Jul 2014
A lot of "new" faces that's great ;)
Can Europe Take Down the World Cup of Poker, Too?
Just as the spell was broken in Rio de Janeiro last night and Germany became the first European football team to win the World Cup on South-American soil, chances are improving for Europe in the #WSOP2014 #mainevent, with a chip leader from Sweden and many other players from all parts of the continent.
There have only been two European champions in the past ten years: @Peter Eastgate (2008) and @Pius Heinz (2011). Day 6 chip leader @Martin Jacobson may well be the next one.
An unusually colorful group of 27 players are advancing to Day 7 and will play down to the final #NovemberNine; here are the European hopefuls:
| @Andoni Larrabe Sanchez | @Felix Vincent Stephensen | @Jorryt Van Hoof |
| @Maximilian Senft | @Andrey Zaichenko | @Yorane Kerignard |
| @Craig McCorkell | @Iaron Lightbourne | @Oscar Kemps |
Photos: WSOP photo gallery
Adrien Bacchi 14 Jul 2014
Rooting for @Yorane Kerignard !!!!
Three Women Who Inspired Us in WSOP 2014
The only woman who won a bracelet in an open event this summer; the only woman to survive to Day 6 in the Main Event; and the first woman in history to cash AND to make it to the final table in the 50K Poker Players Championship - these are just some of the achievements of these three great players who inspired us during #WSOP2014 : @Vanessa Selbst @Maria Ho @Melissa Burr.
Photos: Jayne Furman, PokerNews
Maria Ho tops the 2014 WSOP women by cashes list with her EIGHT ITM finishes, of which three in the top 20. Her biggest cash was $85,812 for her 77th place in the Main Event where she was the last surviving lady on Day 6. Her deepest run was in #wsop14 Omaha Hi/Lo 8 or Better, where she finished 13th for $12,811.
Vanessa Selbst is the only woman who won a bracelet in an open event this summer - the #WSOP2 25k Mixed Max (The Mixed Max - Third Most Expensive Buy-In Event in 2014 WSOP). She earned the third-biggest cash in her career - $871,148 and most notably - her THIRD gold bracelet! The only other female player in history to have accomplished that is @Barbara Enright. Vanessa was the only woman to play the unique $1 million buy-in Big One for One Drop (even if she didn't make it beyond Day1). Finally, to complete the picture of her WSOP summer, Vanessa Selbst celebrated her 30th birthday this year:
Melissa Burr is one of this summer's discoveries for poker journalists who were delighted by her gracious, eloquent, and smiling presence. In fact, she is well-known in the poker community as a mixed games specialist and seemed to be in her element this summer, with five ITM finishes, three final tables, and one 9th place in the inaugural Dealer's Choice event (#wsop41 ). The deep run in the latter was immediately followed by a great performance in the Poker Players Championship (#WSOP46 ). Melissa made history by becoming the first woman to cash in the 9-year history of the 50k buy-in event and, along the way to the final table, won a side bet with Robert Mizrachi who didn't think she'd make the money :)
Weekly RankingHero Highlights
This week we followed the inagural #WPT500 $1 Million Guaranteed at the @ARIA Resort & Casino and the Last Longer competition organized by RankingHero for our promotional U.S. launch. It was fantastic to see so many RankingHero members among the top 30 and our lucky patch worn by two players at the Final Table, including the eventual winner, Sean Yu.
The WSOP reached its culmination with the Main Event and we looked at some former champions who survived Day1. None of them got very far and it was interesting to see how they were taking their defeat and making their goodbyes to Vegas and the WSOP. We are happy for the deep runs of our #vegashero @Maxence Dupont and RankingHero co-founder @Pedro Canali who both made the money finishing 224th and 141st, respectively!
The 'Colman debate' is still a hot topic and you can read his post on 2+2, as well as Daniel Negreanu's response.
Another star of poker came out with 'an answer to Colman's dilemma' and you can read about it in our article on Phillipp Gruissem and the Raising for Effective Giving charity program.
Elsewhere in Vegas, Douglas Polk won $1,648,350 at the @Bellagio and Italian Flaminio Malaguti continues his amazing collection of 1st places in live tournaments, with as many as 26 consecutive wins in 2014!
We are happy to welcome the many hundreds of players who joined us in the course of the week, among whom @Joe Nguyen @Matthew Damadeo @Barry Kruger @Elie Payan @Nadim Shabou and many,many others with hundreds of thousands $ worth of tournament ITM finishes!
Special welcome to our new friends from the UK - @Paul Rimmer and MyPokerPal fan club, we'll be looking forward to news and updates from their community!
Meanwhile, we've exceeded 9,000 likes on Facebook and look forward to overcoming the next threshold of 10,000 with your help :)
Yours truly,
