Featured Articles Archive - Page 498

A betting preview of the World Series of Poker's 2009 Main Event

LAS VEGAS – The energy that rushes through the cabin of an airplane about to land in Las Vegas never ceases to amaze me. There is hope. There is excitement. There is optimism. And you can feel it oozing out of everyone around you as soon as the bright lights of the Strip come into sight. But every time I fly to Vegas and start to hear the enthusiasm boil throughout the aisles as my plane make its descent, I am reminded of a conversation I once had with a guy sitting next to me during a flight to Sin City. "You know why those casinos are so big and shiny?" Max from Phoenix asked me as he peered over my right shoulder as the pilot announced to the flight attendants to prepare for landing...read more

A 'woozy' Miami John Cernuto unsure if he'll play in Main Event

LAS VEGAS – Eight days after collapsing at the poker table during the World Series of Poker, "Miam John" Cernuto is unsure whether he will be able to play in this year's Main Event. Last Tuesday during Day 2 of the $2,500 Seven Card Razz Tournament (Event 44), Cernuto -- one of the more popular players in the game -- passed out at the table and had to be wheeled out on a stretcher...read more

Razz, Lunkin provide the entertainment at the 50k H.O.R.S.E. final table

LAS VEGAS -- The final table for the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. event at the World Series of Poker began at 2:43 p.m. It ended at 9:57 a.m. the next day when David Bach beat John Hanson after seven hours of heads-up play. The 480 hands played out over 18 hours and 44 minutes of poker made this a final table for the record books – it ranks second in elapsed time and hands played behind the last year's World Series of Poker Europe Main Event final table...read more

Fatherhood adds new perspective to the life of Mike Sexton

LAS VEGAS – Poker is no longer the top priority in Mike Sexton's life. That may come as a surprise, considering his stature in the game and the fact that he's long been considered "The Ambassador of Poker." But Sexton's perspective changed dramatically about 10 months ago when his son Ty Michael Sexton was born. "I'm a father for the first time and all of a sudden parenting is far more important to me than poker," Sexton admitted Tuesday afternoon as he stopped to chat with us during a visit to Day 33 of the 2009 World Series of Poker...read more

Turning the WSOP into art

LAS VEGAS -- For more than a century, the nexus between the art world and poker has been "Dogs Playing Poker," which began with a series of oil paintings by C. M. Coolidge. In the decades since Coolidge first released his painting, artists everywhere have taken the "Dogs Playing Poker" genre into their own hands, adding new twists and storylines – like dogs cheating at poker...read more

World Series of Poker proving to be an oasis in the desert

LAS VEGAS -- The Las Vegas heat, which clocked in today at a stifling 105 degrees, hasn't changed. But until I reached the World Series of Poker tournament site at the Rio, that was the only thing about Vegas that seemed familiar. The cab lines, which used to snake back and forth ages along the curb of McCarran International Airport, were virtually empty this morning after I landed...read more

The Mouth has mellowed out

LAS VEGAS, Nevada –- Mike Matusow has mellowed, which may disappoint the legion of poker fans who have come to cherish his well-documented profantity-laced meltdowns, verbal tirades and constant chattering at the table which earned him the nickname "The Mouth." They may also be surprised to know that Matusow is a happier person because of the change. Matusow, 41, has earned more than $6 million playing poker since the mid-1990s...read more

Playing It Smart: Blackjack can have a low edge, but you have to know how to lower it

House edge in blackjack arises because the dealer goes last. Players who bust by exceeding 21 lose, no matter what later befalls the dealer. The inherent advantage of this effect would make the game unworkable without provisions to curb it. One way this is done is to impose restrictions on dealers' actions...read more

Cantu survives exhausting final table

LAS VEGAS – Less than 15 hours after capturing his second-career World Series of Poker bracelet in one of the most riveting final tables of the year, Brandon Cantu looked like one drained and exhausted poker player on Sunday afternoon. Nonetheless, the 28-year-old pro from Washington was back inside the Rio's Amazon Room at 2:15 p.m...read more

Lack of TV presence drops WSOP's H.O.R.S.E. field to 95 players

LAS VEGAS – As he watched the action of the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. World Championship early Saturday night, World Series of Poker Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack had a wide smile on his face as he motioned to the crowd hovering along the rail. The fans were standing two and three deep in most spots and the amount of camera bulbs that were flashing made it look like a red carpet at the opening of a blockbuster motion picture. "How can anyone stand here and see this and say that this event isn't already a spectacular success," Pollack said...read more