Online Poker News

American poker superstar Phil Ivey is 36 on Wednesday and it could be a double celebration for him. That day should see him return to the Global Poker Index (GPI) 300 after four months in the wilderness. He has made a spectacular start to 2012 after enjoying a highly profitable Aussie Millions, which was his first major event since November’s Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT) Macau held in Melbourne, where he took the top prize of $2,058,948 for winning the AUD$250,000 buy-in Super High Roller, not long after being knocked out in 12th place during the AUD$10,000 buy-in main event for $102,947.

Ivey did not manage in a single tournament cash all last year, largely due to his admittedly cut down schedule for 2011. On the top of that of course he boycotted the World Series of Poker (WSOP) in Las Vegas last summer in support of angry Full Tilt customers, who have still not been allowed access to funds in their accounts with the poker room.

Day 1b of the World Series of Poker Circuit Caesars Palace $1,600 Main Event saw 354 players take to the felt, creating a total field of 662 players between the two Day 1 flights. After 15 rounds of play, 76 players’ accumulated enough chips to progress to day 2 scheduled for Sunday. They will join the other 58 survivors from day 1a to hopefully return to the tables.

Jeff Fielder is the overall leader heading into Day 2 after building a stack of 437,500 chips on Saturday. Fielder ascended to the top of the leader board when he won a massive pot late in the day against Mark “P0ker H0″ Kroon, who at the time was second in chips. Some of the notables that registered only on Day 1b and failed to advance to Day 2 were Jamie Gold, Steve Billirakis, Frank Kassela, Eli Elezra, Gavin Smith and Bryan Devonshire. The 134 players will return Sunday at 4 p.m. local time, and they will play down to either a final table or through 12 hours of play, whichever comes first.

A whole host of British players have been nominated for an award in the 11th edition of the European Poker Awards takes place at the Aviation Club de France on January 25th 2012 There are a total of nine categories for this year’s awards including Internet Player of the Year, Europe’s Leading Lady, Rookie of the Year, Best Tournament Performance, and the coveted Player of the Year award.

Of the six nominations for the Player of the year award two Brits, Jake Cody and Sam Trickett. They are up against Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier, Eugene Katchalov, Andrey Pateychuk and World Series of Poker Main Event champion Pius Heinz. Cody and Trickett are also nominated for the Best Tournament Performance category, and the rookie of the year award see Sam Holden nominated. Victoria Coren and Liv Boeree are up for the Leading Lady award. Come the 25th January and we will find out who has been successful.

In the grand scheme of things Edoardo Alescio is a complete amateur, but he now has his name in lights alongside some of poker’s biggest names such as Phil Ivey, Daniel Negreanu and Gus Hansen as poker players who have taken down a prestigious WPT title. Two hundred and thirteen hopefuls started the event in Venice and then it came down to one, this young Italian is now the newly crowned World Poker Tour Venice Main Event Champion.

He started the day having no cashes in major live events, in fact we do not believe this may have been his first major lie event so his Return on Investment is now immense! At times throughout the tournament he made some quite questionable plays but he always did so with a big smile on his face and with a little celebratory dance, his earphones seemingly glued to the insides of his ears all day every day. Along with €175,000 in cash, he takes with him a replica of the Champions Cup, a solid silver card protector and a seat to the $25,500 WPT World Championship to be held in Las Vegas during 2012.

Sweeping aside 14 opponents Randy Lew went on to claim the prestigious 2011 Poker Stars Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT) Macau Main Event on Sunday night. The Canadian finished the final table with chip counts of 750,000, not the highest one but yet claiming the title in the end and winning a cool 3,772,000 Hong Kong Dollars.

So of the 575 players who took to the felt at the Grand Lisboa Hotel and Casino in Macau it was Lew who finally triumphed at the end of the gruelling tourney. Lew, known as an online super-grinder playing under the name “nanonoko”, can now add a major live title to his impressive resume as the 2011 APPT Macau Main Event becomes his first big triumph on the live felt.