Sanremo - the Next Dream Destination on the European Poker Tour Schedule

The @European Poker Tour Season 10 list of venues reads like an “8 Places to See Before You Die” tourist guide. So where are our 'accidental tourists' from the #EPT headed next, before the grand final in Monte Carlo?

"Gorgeous', 'amazing', 'spectacular' - no interviewed #EPTVienna player spared their admiration and awe for the grand Hofburg Palace. @Jan Heitmann jokingly said in an interview that the only possible locations after the Imperial Palace in Vienna were the Buckingham Palace and… the Vatican. High Roller winner and @Everest Poker ambassador @Fabrice Soulier also shared his fascination with the Hofburg as a poker venue and the magic definitely worked for him :) Even if less fortunate, @Bertrand Grospellier and @Jonathan Duhamel were among the many who tweeted about the fabulous venue:

But if you think that the Hofburg Imperial Palace will be very difficult to match, think again :) The Italian Riviera will certainly delight all the participants with fantastic seaside atmosphere, delicious food and wine, and irresistible Italian charm.  

The Festival runs April 9-20 and the €4,600 + €300 Main Event will be taking place April 14-20, 2014. The schedule is on RankingHero and we will of course keep you updated as the festival approaches!

In 1951 Casino di Sanremo hosted the  very first edition of the famous Sanremo music festival and all the following ones until 1976, so the melodies probably linger on in this fabulous venue. Here is something to get everyone in the mood for #EPTSanremo :)

Everest Ambassador Fabrice Soulier with the EPT10 High Roller Victory

French WSOP bracelet winner and #Everest ambassador @Fabrice Soulier  was moved to tears yesterday when he accepted the trophy for the EPT10 Vienna High Roller event. “It is not the money,” he said, “It’s just… everything…”

It is at times like this that one realizes that poker truly is a sport and the victory does not at all boil down to the money alone. To a player like Fabrice, to whom the game has meant so much and for so long (his first recorded cash on RankingHero is from @Aviation Club de France and dates back to 1999!), winning such an event is an immensely rewarding and emotional experience - in terms of personal achievement and sense of fulfillment, and in terms of further recognition from one’s peers and the world poker community.

#EPTVienna broke many attendance records and the High Roller event was no exception, with as many as 181 entries! The Everest brand ambassador was the most experienced and decorated player at the table, as well as the biggest live tournament earner -  he has won a World Poker Tour event and made four World Series of Poker final tables, winning his bracelet in 2011, and with his latest win, his live earnings rose to $5,484,292.

Fabrice was short-stacked most of the tournament, “so I had nothing else to do but observe people.. I waited.. and took my time in the beginning and I observed a lot.” All the patience and observation definitely paid out in the end and Fabrice triumphed with an Ace of Spades that won him the last heads-up pot against @Anatoly Filatov and the first prize of Euro 392,900.

What's luck got to do with it?..

We never stop thinking about #luck and the role it plays in poker. So which is your favorite definition of luck (thank you to the Urban Dictionary!)?

Luck
The absence of skill
That was all luck baby!
by Obley September 17, 2004

Luck

something that I don't have.
Guy 1: Are you okay? You fell pretty hard. It looks like you broke yor spine and will never be able to walk again

Guy 2: Yeah, it's just my luck
by Who The Douce Are You? April 14, 2005

Phil Hellmuth is famous for saying "If it wasn't for luck, I'd win every tournament"

Luck

An indiscriminate phenomenon of chance or fate, which one comes to increasingly appreciate less with hard work.
Pretty much every time you get something you know you don't deserve
by nethcev! April 27, 2004

Luck

when something for once in your life doesn't end up being fucked up or bad
Man, so glad I didn't get shot again today. Must be my lucky day.
by Whatever doc September 01, 2003

Luck
Only getting wet when you should have drowned.
Like the handle on a piss pot, there but not in it.
by tootie January 11, 2005

Luck
life itself
count yourself lucky every day you're alive...
by Jester December 06, 2003

I myself am torn between 3 and 4; what's your definition of luck?..

EPT Vienna Final Table All Set for Tomorrow

There we are - a field of more than 900 entries in #EPTVienna went down to 9 today and Irishman @Gavin O'Rourke   bubbled with Euro 60,800 in prize money for the ninth place. 

Here are the eight finalists, by chipcount:

@Anthony Ghamrawi (AT) 5,150,000            @Frei Dilling-Kjaer (DK) 4,230,000

 @Pablo Gordillo Caballero  (SP) 4,075,000 @Timo Pfutzenreuter (DE) 3,740,000

 @Simeon Naydenov (BG) 3,550,000           @Rumen Nanev (BG)  2,765,000

 @Alexey Khorosenin (UA) 2,150,000          @Marko Neumann (DE) 1,685,000

Anthony will start the final table with the double advantage of being the chip leader and playing on home ground. The two Germans and the two Bulgarians are the most experienced among the otherwise largely unknown finalists, as you can see for yourself if you check their profile pages on RankingHero.

With $865,484 in live earnings since 2009 and a WSOP bracelet, Simeon Naydenov can easily be regarded as a favorite. Bulgarians have had a massive presence and impressive results here in Vienna - the numerous fans of poker in the country are already overjoyed at their countrymen's performance. Rumen actually lives in Portugal and can rely on both Bulgarian and Portuguese support in the rail. 

Chopping has traditionally been quite common at EPTs and seems particularly likely with this national configuration - we'll just have to wait and see. Final table begins at 1pm CET Saturday. 

If you missed the livestream:

Are Poker Home Games Legal in Your Country?

Next time you log onto Facebook to ask your friends over for a home game of poker make sure you check the legislation in your country first - the police is on Facebook, too :)

A Tasmanian was recently put on trial after the police found out he had organized a private poker tournament in his home using Facebook. The man had invited 25 friends to play with a $150 buy-in. The court ruling was announced this week. He escaped conviction but "must be of good behaviour for two years" (and has returned the contributions to the prize pool made by his guests).

Australia is tricky as legislation differs from one state to another and private home games are tolerated in some of the states as long as there is no rake or entry/registration fee. The good news is that gambling wins are not taxed provided they are not the main source of income.

The UK has the most liberal and poker-friendly legislation in most respects, including private games. (In the UK gambling winnings are not subject to taxation and UK professional players do not pay taxes on their poker earnings.) 

As usual, in the U.S., the laws vary from state to state, but in most places friendly home games are ok as long as there is no rake (then again, in Richmond, Virginia it is apparently even illegal to flip a coin to decide who pays for pizza!..) 

Spiderman @Tobey Maguire  was famously sued (and settled the lawsuit iin 2011) over secret, high-stakes, celebrity-packed home games in Hollywood.

In Germany, too, regulations may vary among the 16 provinces but it is generally illegal to host any cash games or tournaments outside a state casino.

In January 2014 the German Federal Administrative Court ruled that tournaments with very low buy-ins (around €15) do not constitute illegal gambling on condition that the buy-ins go towards covering the cost of the event itself and there is no prize pool distributed among the players.

In France only licensed gaming establishments can host cash games or tournaments open to the public. Home games for money are tolerated as long as they are truly private and with restricted access (cannot be held in a public place).

In sum, wherever you are, to be on the safe side:

• Don't advertise your weekly #HomeGame and use private messages on FB rather than wall posts;
• Make sure you don't disturb the neighbors with loud music or noise as you don't want a visit by the local police during your game;
• Keep the number of players limited and the buy-ins low;
  
• Make sure you're well-stocked on beer and good mood :)

Happy Birthday, Dominik Panka!

If we could present @Dominik Panka with a gift on his 23rd birthday it would be the title of 2014 Champion of Sportsmanship :)

We hope to see him just as positive, friendly, humble and gracious to his opponents!

Dominik Panka previously on RankingHero

Bulgaria - the Next Country on the PokerStars Map and an Emerging Force in Poker

Bulgaria had its own mini #BlackFriday last June, with a government blacklist of sports betting sites and online poker room domains. After a few months of uncertainty, new legislation and a change in taxation, the license application procedures were set in motion and the State Commission on Gambling has already issued licenses to PokerStars and Betfair. 

In February 2014 PokerStars became the first Internet poker operator with a Bulgarian license and should launch any time now. While Bulgarians never actually found themselves in the hopeless situation of U.S. poker players, and were not left completely without recourse to online poker and without access to their funds, it will certainly be a relief to be able to play, deposit and withdraw freely again.

@Dimitar Danchev  - Bulgaria's top live money earner - won the 2013 PCA Main Event.

Bulgaria is 11th on the European list of the Rational Group (operating PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and the European Poker Tour) which already has gaming licenses for Estonia, Italy, Denmark, France, Germany, Spain, Belgium, the Isle of Man and Malta. PokerStars Head of Corporate Communications Eric Hollreiser was reported saying:

“Bulgaria is full of promise; poker is extremely popular in the country. We are looking forward to work with the Gambling Commission so that we can launch as soon as possible.”

This seems to find confirmation in the rather impressive representation of #BGPoker at the #Eureka  and the #EPTVienna. Vienna is a popular destination for East Europeans and they are traditionally numerous to attend EPT events in the friendly and accessible Austrian capital. In fact, as many as 12 Bulgarians made it to Day 2 of the Main Event and 4 started Day 4 when only 50 players were left.

Four Bulgarians were seated at the same table on Day 3: @Simeon Naydenov , @Atanas Kavrakov , @Rumen Nanev , and Ivan Neytchev. As we write two are still playing: WSOP bracelet winner Simeon Naydenov was 3rd in chips at the start of level 22 after eliminating @Ludovic Riehl and Rumen Nanev was 15th out of 30.

GL to all in Vienna and in the regulated online poker market at home and we hope we'll have many occasions to update their player profiles with new tournament cashes in the future!

Anti Internet Gaming Bill Introduced in U.S. Congress - Don't Let the Sky Fall on Poker Again

Since January a draft bill proposing a federal ban of Internet gaming backed by Adelson has been circulating and there have been frequent reports of imminent introduction of the bill in U.S. Congress. This has now become a reality as Congressman Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) and U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) yesterday introduced their bipartisan legislation, Restoration of America’s Wire Act,  “to restore long-standing United States policy that the Wire Act prohibits all forms of Internet gambling” (with the single exception of horse-racing).

From the very start of the online gaming regulation process in the U.S. we have been witnessing a mobilization of its opponents, championed and generously funded by the casino magnate Sheldon Adelson. Adelson established the Coalition to Ban Internet Gambling and vowed to do anything in his power to prevent regulation.

Whether or not his vehement attack on online gaming has more to do with manic obsession, with some secret personal feud, or is driven by straightforward business interests, it should not be taken lightly.

One person who cannot, and will not, take this lightly is @Danielle Moon-Andersen, aka dmoongirl, star of the Bet, Raise, Fold documentary that told the pre- and post-  #BlackFriday story of online poker in the United States.

She knows what it is to wake up and find your whole world changed overnight, your funds frozen, your livelihood taken away. Because to Danielle, a young mother of a 6-year old son, “It’s not just a game, it’s my livelihood,” and it’s been that way ever since the day she left her job at a local shoe store and dropped out of college to pursue poker full-time.

"BTW: for those that just don't give a shit about online poker, that's totally fine and understandable. But, don't get caught up in the logistics of WHAT the government is interfering with. Focus on the fact that they continue to interfere more and more on personal freedoms. It might not be your life or interest that's directly impacted this time, but it could be next time.

I'll stop ranting now. For a little while anyway…"

Poker players and industry professionals in Europe should not brush aside the latest developments in the U.S. as we are equally concerned if we ever want to see something like the online poker boom of the 2000s again. The American market is key to worldwide industry growth not only in terms of sheer numbers of potential paying players but also in view of the huge power of the American entertainment & media arsenal.

I, too, will stop ranting now on this final note: #FreeOnlinePoker :)

Stay on RankingHero and read more about Danielle and Sheldon Adelson or share your own #BlackFriday story!

New Insights on Self-Control

Self-control is probably the single most discussed and valued quality that makes a good poker player; moreover, its absence renders all other skills -  logic, maths, memory, psychology, etc - quite meaningless or at the very least, unproductive, since we would lack the concentration and willpower to exercise them consistently. That is why all of us here on RankingHero are always on the lookout for tips on improving our self-discipline and focus.

And since poker mimics life and is a veritable 'microcosm of life' such tips and insights can come from unexpected sources, from everyday situations, and even completely unrelated to poker, self-help books. Now we can add one more title to the dozens of books under the bed (because the pile on our bedside table has grown too menacingly tall even by gambler standards): 

Psychologist Jeremy Dean is the founder and author of the popular website 'PsyBlog' http://www.psyblog.co.uk Brought to our attention by another excellent review on brainpickings.org. Thank you, Maria Popova :)

"People naturally vary in the amount of self-control they have, so some will find it more difficult than others to break a habit. But everyone’s self-control is a limited resource; it’s like muscle strength: the more we use it, the less remains in the tank, until we replenish it with rest. In one study of self-control, participants first had to resist the temptation to eat chocolate (they had a radish instead); then they were given a frustrating task to do. The test was to see how long they would persist. Radish-eaters only persisted on the task for about 8 minutes, while those who had gorged on chocolate kept going for 19 minutes. The mere act of exerting willpower saps the strength for future attempts. These sorts of findings have been repeated again and again using different circumstances."

"We face these sorts of willpower-depleting events all day long. When someone jostles you in the street and you resist the urge to shout at them, or when you feel exhausted at work but push on with your email: these all take their toll. The worse the day, the more the willpower muscle is exerted, the more we rely on autopilot, which means increased performance of habits. It’s crucial to respect the fact that self-control is a limited resource and you are likely to overestimate its strength. Recognizing when your levels of self-control are low means you can make specific plans for those times."

In poker terms, this would suggest that rather than think about whether we should stop while winning or stop when losing, what really matters is to stop while our level of self-control is still high enough. And if you've been gritting your teeth for an hour at the idiotic comments of your right-hand neighbor, or the endless tanking of the one to your left, consider it dangerously depleted even before that crucial hand that might draw you into a lose-lose situation before you know it!..

PS

Any jokes, gifs, memes and demotivational posters on self-control for my personal collection are most welcome, thanks :)