Sunday, October 31, 2010

Tao of Pokerati Flashback - Two Years Ago Today

By Pauly
Atlantic City, NJ

Here's a flashback from the past... well, two years ago in Hungary when I was covering the EPT Budapest. It was also Benjo's birthday and I threw the after-party in my rented apartment a few blocks from the Danube.
2008 Tao of Benjorati - Budapest
Episode 3.1: EPT Afterparty feat. Benjo (3:39)
Episode 3.2: Hungarian Hooker Halloween feat. Benjo (4:14)
Episode 3.3: Competitive Apple Eating feat. Benjo (4:08)
Episode 3.4: Euro Core-tossing feat. Benjo (3:17)
For more episode, visit the Tao of Pokerati archives.

Thursday, October 28, 2010

Thursday Nugs: WSOP Conference, TWiP, 70s Fusion, and More Embedded with Hippies

By Pauly
New York City


I'm back in NYC for a brief stop before I finish off a month-long bender in Atlantic City of all places for my first non-poker sojourn in a very long time to that East Coast gambling Mecca. Ironically, even though this weekend marks the end of my holiday away from the poker grind, I'll actually be playing in a charity tournament at the Trop on Saturday to benefit the Mockingbird Foundation. The organizers even made me a bounty player. Stay tuned for a recap of the event.

But for now, enjoy a few super heady links (and one mind-blowing 70s fusion music mix) to kill some time...
Shamus waxes on the newest inductees to the Hall of Fame... From the Mayfair Club to Poker's Most Exclusive Club. (Hard-Boiled Poker)

Thanks to Jordan for the kind words in his review of Lost Vegas. (High on Poker)

The WSOP's own Ty Stewart appeared on This Week in Poker (last week's episode). Other guests included Matt Affleck, Matt Savage, and Trishelle. (Wicked Chops Poker)

I missed the most recent WSOP conference call because I was traveling from New Hampshire to Boston at the time. Anyway, here's the highlights of the conference call. (Pokerati)

Otis wrote a Halloween story... Walking Gray. (Rapid Eye Reality)

My buddy Jonas, an amazing drummer from Colorado, threw together another epic mix. This one is called 70s Fusion. And it's something that you gotta hear. (Coventry)

And if you're one of seven people who have been missing my half-baked poker scribblings, then check out a bit of music writing I've been doing this month. I penned recaps of four different Phish concerts sprinkled through New England...
Funkin Go Nuts (Providence, RI)
Oddballs, Screwballs, and Balls to the Wall (Amherst, MA Night #1)
Yacht Rocking) (Amherst, MA Night #2)
Live Free or Die (Manchester, NH)

And don't forget the other reviews I penned earlier this month...

Ten Ten Ten (Broomfield, CO)
Eurotrash Night (Broomfield, CO)
Off Kilter in Colorado (Broomfield, CO)
Barely Legal (Charleston, SC)
Double Fisting (Charleston, SC)
OK, that's it for now. I'll be back in the swing of all things poker in November and gearing up for the November Nine in Las Vegas next weekend. Until then... GTFOOMO.

Sunday, October 24, 2010

November Nine Full Tilt Commercials: Joe "subiime" Cheong

By Pauly
Northampton, MA

This is one of my favorite commercials of the November Nine featuring Joe "subiime" Cheong. Love his confidence.



For more of these November Nine Full Tilt commercials, head over to Full Tilt's From the Rail poker blog.

Friday, October 22, 2010

Rounders Reprise Part 3 and 4

By Pauly
New York City

I'm back on the train and headed to New England for a week of musical exploration. In the meantime, it's Friday, so fire up a fatty, and enjoy another installment (two actually) of Rounders Reprise with special snarky self-indulgent commentary from Change100 and yours truly.

Part 3: Mike McD Has a Shitty Girlfriend and Meet the Worm



Part 4: Worm and Mike McD = Old Partners



Inn case you missed it... here's Rounders Reprise Parts 1 and 2.

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

2010 Hall of Fame Inductees: Erik Seidel and Dan Harrington

By Pauly
New York City

This just in... the class of 2010 for the Hall of Fame will include Dan Harrington and Erik Sediel.





They beat out a tough ballot of ten potential Hall of Famers...
2010 Poker Hall of Fame Ballot:
Chris "Jesus" Ferguson
Barry Greenstein
Jen Harman
Dan Harrington
Phil Ivey
Linda Johnson
Tom McEvoy
Daniel Nereanu
Scotty Nguyen
Erik Seidel

* * * * *

At my first WSOP in 2005, I had no clue about the Hall of Fame ceremony. I knew that the HOF existed and could rattle off a few greats of the game who were enshrined in the hall, but aside from those poker gods, I was clueless about the overall HOF procedures. Heck, up until ten minutes before the press conference, I had no idea that Jack Binion and Crandall Addington were the ones who got the nod. I cite a wicked hangover as one of the contributing causes to my nonplussed behavior. But I was also tightly wrapped up in my own little world. If you've read Lost Vegas, then you know the kinds of behind the scenes stresses that I had to deal with during the summer of 2005. A result of that fallout was walking into the Rio and not having a fucking clue about the HOF.

At that point in the WSOP, I was exhausted and drained and sort of operated on vapors and pure instinct. I'm sure that Nolan Dalla sent me an email about the HOF ceremony, but it either got lost in the shuffle or I simply ignored it as I wandered around in a semi-translucent haze.

In 2005, the Hall of Fame ceremony took place on the same day as the Media/Celebrity tournament and WSOP press conference, which occurred on a day off before Day 1A. The media tournament was my biggest concern and the only reason I showed up at the Rio on a rare day off. The press conference was something that I knew I'd have to sit through before we got to play cards. But the HOF was an afterthought.

I showed up at the final table area, where I had been sitting for five weeks straight, and hoped to find my usual seat in between Otis and BJ. I arrived early, set up my laptop, and then went to the media room to chat with friends. The press conference was coupled with the Hall of Fame ceremony, so the folks at the WSOP killed two birds with one stone and was able to take advantage that all of the out-of-town and mainstream media had gathered in one place. When I returned to media row, the final table area was packed with clean-cut people with fresh badges, many of whom I had never seen before. My chair was also missing. Someone walked up to the media row and stole my chair. I had left a black sports jacket hanging on the back of the chair, and luckily, they didn't steal the jacket. Instead, they snagged the chair, but was kind enough to toss my jacket underneath the desk. I scanned the crowd but could not locate the chair thief.

I spent the rest of the press conference on my knees pecking away at my laptop. For one season in the South Riverdale Little League, I was the starting catcher for the Pirates. As a Yankees fan, I loved Thurman Munson, but he had just passed away in a tragic plane crash, so I had to look to Johnny Bench as a stand-in idol. Twenty plus years later, I did my best Johnny Bench imitation as I crouched in media row and frantically scribbled down quotes at the press conference and made sure I accurately got key phrases from the HOF inductees.

To this day, I'm bummed out that I let the chair thief tilt me because my ire overshadowed the significance of the HOF. That's one of my biggest regrets of the 2005 WSOP, but it was also a valuable lesson that I applied to subsequent WSOPs -- don't sweat the small stuff and enjoy special moments that don't happen every day.

In 2006, I was excited for the HOF ceremony and vowed to pay more attention, especially because Billy Baxter and T.J. Cloutier were the two players who got the nod. I showed up in much better condition (not even close to being as hung over from the year before) and I even arrived early. In 2006, the press conference and HOF ceremony got moved to one of the theatres inside the Rio. I sat in the back with Otis. That's when he snapped this infamous photo of me sharing how I felt about the situation...

I was let down because the HOF ceremony got rushed because of time constraints. The press conference went long because it was coupled with a press junket for Lucky You, the poker movie by Curtis Hanson that bombed. We knew it was going to be a dud after watching seven seconds of the trailer. Sure, we got to hear Drew Barrymore gush about Las Vegas and the poker scene, and it was kinda cool to hear Curtis Hanson discuss why he purposely chose specific unrecognizable locations to shoot certain scenes in order to show a different side of Vegas. Sadly, the Hollywood people ran long and as a result, the HOF speeches from Billy Baxter and TJ Cloutier got cut short. That might have been the most furious I had ever been with Harrah's, selling out their press conference to Hollywood types. I understand why they did it, but the movie was a utter bomb and did nothing to promote poker. Instead of hearing two greats of the game reflect upon their careers, we got ambushed by the Hollywood propoganda machine.

Yeah, my first two experiences with the HOF ceremony were bittersweet. I don't recall much about 2007. I know that I worked an insane schedule for Poker News that summer (the first year they had the official updates) and was caught up in my own personal hell, which I did my best to combat with coping aids. I think I was there (and I'm too lazy to sift through the Tao of Poker archives, which is another reason why I need an assistant, or at least get my own version of KevMath who will be the go-to guy when it comes to random Tao stats and moments), but I don't recall anything of significance from the ceremony. Most likely, I tuned out the chatter mainly because Phil Hellmuth was one of the inductees (along with Barbara Enright) and I was utterly miserable at the time working 110 hours a week for Poker News. My bad headspace and my reluctance to hear the Poker Brat brag about his greatness were among the reasons for huge gaping holes in my memory banks.

The 2008 HOF ceremony took place during the dinner break at the November Nine. Finally! A proper ceremony took place to honor that year's inductees: Henry Orenstein and Dewey Tomko.

Last year, the HOF ceremony was moved away from the November Nine theatre. It was still held during the dinner break, but Mike Sexton's induction occurred in the privacy of one of the ballrooms. The ceremony was limited to invited guests and specific media members. As a member of the HOF selection committee, I got an invite to the dinner. My +1 was my lovely girlfriend. We sat at the same table with Michalski and his date to the event (the younger sister of a known Dallas pro). We recorded a couple of episodes of Tao of Pokerati at the dinner, and we couldn't stop laughing at Fun Warren, who drew the rigorous assignment of keeping Padraig Parkison out of trouble, which was an impossible task with an open bar.
Tao of Pokerati at the 2009 Hall of Fame:
Episode 12.4: Hall of Fame Dinner: Voter Hesitation (1:13)
Episode 12.5: Hall of Fame Dinner: Touched by Sexton (2:45)
You can also read an expanded recap of the Hall of Fame Dinner that I penned for Tao of Poker.

Without a doubt, the Mike Sexton ceremony was my favorite HOF that I've attended since I became a part of the poker industry. Mike's acceptance speech was actually overshadowed by his brother Tom, who delivered a sensational introduction speech.

Flash forward to 2010. We're about two plus weeks away from the Hall of Fame induction ceremony. For a second year in a row, I was selected to be a panelist on the HOF induction committee. Last year, 30 people determined the outcome of the HOF, which included 15 living members of the HOF and 15 selected members of the press. This year, the committee expanded to 33 voters (16 living HOF members and 17 press geeks) and I got a nod once again. I don't think being on the HOF committee is like a judgeship where I'm appointed for life, so I have to be on my best behavior if I want to be invited back next year. I gotta say, getting tapped for the HOF committee was probably the coolest thing that happened to me in poker outside of the Poker Prof and Flipchip hiring me to cover my first WSOP.

The tone and levity of my writing might suggest that I take a not-so-serious approach to poker, however, I take the HOF with the utmost seriousness. Most of the time, poker writers are pretty much pointed in a general direction and told what stories to write (or more importantly, we learned which stories not to write about). However, in this instance, we're asked for our honest opinions about the players up for consideration, and the HOF ballot is one of the few times we can fully express ourselves without fear of retribution.

When voting for a specific player, we were asked to consider...
1. A player must have played poker against acknowledged top competition
2. Played for high stakes
3. Played consistently well, gaining the respect of peers
4. Stood the test of time
5. Or, for non-players, contributed to the overall growth and success of the game of poker, with indelible positive and lasting results.
If you take a close look, there is nothing about age. The unwritten age rule is something that some of the HOF voters took into deep consideration. You can call it the Chip Reese Rule if you want -- that no one under 40 will be elected to the Hall of Fame, because that was the exact age of Chip Reese when he got the nod in 1991.

The cool thing is that the powers to be allowed the committee to interpret the rules as we see fit. So if someone wants to base their votes on the best player regardless of age, without a doubt that's Ivey, but if someone wants to exclude Ivey because he's not 40 yet, then they had that right.

But the committee has spoken, and the two that will gain entry this year are Dan Harrington and Erik Seidel. Congrats to both gentlemen.
Current Poker Hall of Fame Members:
1979 Nick "The Greek" Dandolos, James Butler, "Wild Bill" Hickok, Edmond Hoyle, Felton "Corky" McCorquodale, Johnny Moss, Red Winn, Sid Wyman
1980 T "Blondie" Forbes
1981 Bill Boyd
1982 Tom Abdo
1983 Joe Bernstein
1984 Murph Harrold
1985 Red Hodges
1986 Henry Green
1987 Walter Clyde "Puggy" Pearson
1988 Doyle Brunson and Jack “Treetop” Strauss
1989 Fed "Sarge" Ferris
1990 Benny Binion
1991 David "Chip" Reese
1992 "Amarillo Slim" Preston
1993 Jack Keller
1996 Julius Oral "Little Man" Popwell
1997 Roger Moore
2001 Stu Ungar
2002 Lyle Berman and Johnny Chan
2003 Bobby Baldwin
2004 Berry Johnston
2005 Crandall Addington and Jack Binion
2006 Billy Baxter and T.J. Cloutier
2007 Barbara Enright and Phil Hellmuth
2008 Henry Orenstein and Duane “Dewey” Tomko
2009 Mike Sexton
2010 Dan Harrington and Erik Seidel
Photo credits: Flipchip

Monday, October 18, 2010

Monday Morning Nuggets: Urges and the Decline of Poker Writing, Weeds and Poker, and On the Road Embedded with Hippies

By Pauly
New York City

If you haven't figured it out by now...I took off the month of October to visit friends and family, follow my favorite band across America, and work/research my next non-fiction book. I get back int he swing of all things poker in November when I return to Las Vegas to cover the November Nine. In the meantime, expect a few more installments of Rounders Reprise with Change100 and maybe even a guest post or two along the way.

For now, sit back and take a gander at these heady links to help brighten up your Monday...
F-Train lays out the straight dope about The Decline of Poker Writing. (Riding the F-Train)

The creator of Weeds is a huge poker fan and the show has been peppered with poker references over the last four seasons. And now, a new poker-themed show is in the development stages. Who knows if it will get green lit or if it will remain in limbo? (Wicked Chops Poker)

Stu Hoegner recently joined the Pokerati team as a political correspondent. Take a peek at GamingCounsel's Weekly Briefs. (Pokerati)

Has Shamus hit the wall? Or has he exhausted every possible topic in poker? I feel his pain because I've been struggling with similar issues since 2007. It's not easy creating original content (for multiple outlets) on a daily basis without repeating yourself and burning out. Obviously, you've seen the direction that I've gone in -- taking extended breaks from poker (to write Lost Vegas, delving into fiction or music writing, and occasionally opting to say nothing rather than beat a dead friggin' horse). Those breaks allow me to re-emerge into poker with a fresh perspective. Check out Shamus' two-part piece titled... The Urge to Keep Writing and The Urge to Keep Writing, Continued. (Hard-Boiled Poker)
* * *


Saturday night rager in Charleston

If you dig music or you're interested in reading music-related scribblings, then you should read five different pieces I wrote in the last week while covering five Phish concerts in Colorado and Charleston, SC.
Ten Ten Ten (Broomfield, CO)
Eurotrash Night (Broomfield, CO)
Off Kilter in Colorado (Broomfield, CO)
Barely Legal (Charleston, SC)
Double Fisting (Charleston, SC)
You can always follow @CoventryMusic on Twitter.

By the way, if you though 2+2 was harsh, man oh man, the Phish forum equivalent of Phantasy Tour is friggin' brutal and makes 2+2 act like a bunch of altar boys. I got totally reemed for my honest and merciless review of the last night in Colorado titled Off Kilter in Colorado. Just like poker, I call it like I see it.

OK, that's it. Have an awesome week. I know I will. NGTFOOMO.

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Rounders Reprise Parts 1 and 2

By Pauly
Denver, CO

A couple of weeks ago, I sat down with Change100 and we watched Rounders, like we usually do -- with lots of heavy smoking and snarky commentary because we've seen the movie too many times to count.

Anyway, I hope you dig our version of Rounders Style MST300...

Part 1: Mike McD loses his roll at Teddy KGB Game



Part 2: Joey Knish is a stoner and the Judges Game



Enjoy.

Monday, October 11, 2010

Casino Magic

By Pauly
Denver, CO

A car stopped abruptly in front of the house, and Teddy B pounced out of the back. He had been missing for two days. The last time we saw him was in New Orleans on Bourbon Street -- he was being carried the opposite direction (toward the gay part of town) by the throngs of Mardi Gras revelers. That was Tuesday, or Fat Tuesday as it was called. We all shook off our hangovers and drove back to Atlanta on Wednesday but Teddy B never made it back to the house. He was missing as of that Friday morning... until he stumbled up the front lawn.

Picture a huge sloping lawn in front of a classic southern style mansion. The Grateful Dead's version of Stagger Lee echoed down Fraternity Row. A bunch of us sat on frayed couches on the front porch and drank cans of warm schwill or some sort of Jim Beam and diet Coke combo, which was the the Friday routine to kick off the weekend. As guys and girlfriends got off from class, they migrated to the porch and the vibe of party slowly picked up. I was one of those slackers who ditched classes altogether on Fridays and headed right to the porch after waking up. The house wasn't wired for cable TV, and the internet had yet to take over our lives in Atlanta the early 1990s, so we sat outside, drank, and swapped stories, while we weren't making crude cat calls at female joggers, who were brave enough to run up and down Fraternity Row.

Teddy B stood in front of us with the same clothes he had on when we last saw him, unfurled a wad of cash, and regaled us with his detour at a casino in Biloxi -- how he won almost a grand playing blackjack at a joint called the Biloxi Belle, an actual old school gambling boat just like the ones we used to see in the movies, and he drank for 24 straight hours for free while he played blackjack and shot craps with a couple of pilots, then later met a cocktail waitress named Desire, fingered her in the parking lot of Waffle House, and she gave him a handjob while he devoured a plate of hashbrowns -- scattered, smothered, covered, topped, chunked, and diced. Always diced. That's how Teddy B loved his hashbrowns.

Teddy B was one of the most popular guys at my college, and the coolest guy in the history of my fraternity. I lived next door to Teddy B one year, and everyone thought that was awesome because my roommate and I would get all of Teddy B's spillovers. Which could have been true if we were slick enough, because the trickle down economic theory of horny sorority girls can be manipulated with grain alcohol-infused Jello-O shots.

During my sophomore year, I lived in between two rooms that attracted a cavalcade of soused sorority girls. Sadly, my batting average was rather low, despite the more than optimal circumstances. Teddy B lived to my left and the Brazilian lived across the hall. He was like a suave micro-version of Ricardo Montalban, but maybe that's a little too obscure of a reference, so the Brazilian was more like a younger version of that guy in the Dos Equis commercial, you know, the "most interesting man in the world." The girls in Theta (the sorority with all the hot Southern girls) swooned over the Brazilian, and they loved everything about him, especially his his impeccable neatness because he compulsively wore a white Polo dress shirt, with sleeves rolled one quarter of the way up his forearm and perfectly tucked into a pair of khaki pants. On random afternoons, the Brazilian blasted the soundtrack to Phantom of the Opera and drank an exotic cocktail called a Mojito, which he made with limes and a special bowl and tool that he had brought back from his last trip to Rio de Janeiro. I'd walk down the hallway and peek into his room and he'd be mixing a cocktail in one hand, dragging a Dunhill in the other, as a dozen Thetas somehow squeezed onto his couch and uncontrollably giggling and groping one another. I was perplexed. We were in awe of the Brazilian's ability to attract swarms of gyrating women. A decade later, the Brazilian came out of the closet which explained the fancy cocktails, show tunes, and the fact his room was Mecca for all the Southern fag hags at my school.

On the opposite side was Teddy B's room, which he shared with my good buddy Jerry. If you ever wondered about the location of the pre-party and post-party, all you had to do was show up at Teddy B's room. Teddy B was a definite "face man" is the term that they used to describe guys like him. He even enticed few stuck up hotties from Tri Delt to party down at our house. He was the pussy magnet on campus and one of the biggest gamblers that I've ever known in my life. He sounds larger than life in this entry, and you know what? He was. Everyone knew a guy like Teddy B in high school or college. I was just lucky enough to be a satellite in his universe.

Teddy B was also an early adopter of all things cool. Had anyone else but Teddy told us about Biloxi, we would have dismissed it as a po-dunk town. However, Teddy B's trip report got us all fired up.


I can't remember the first time I gambled in Biloxi, but I had been doing the Atlanta-New Orleans run since I was 18 years old. 420 miles. No joke. As soon as we passed the Georgia-Alabama border, we'd howl with the instant time change as we slipped out of the Eastern time zone and entered Central time.

"An extra hour to gamboooooooooooooool!"

That was our take on the matter of time zones. We loved the fact that the trip should take seven hours, but that extra hour made it six hours. Biloxi was about 30-40 miles east of New Orleans. The name of the town reminded me nothing except random lines from Neil Simon's play Biloxi Blues. It used to be just another town we whizzed through on our way to Mardi Gras or Jazz Fest. I dunno when the state lawmakers permitted casino gambling in Mississippi, but we caught the Biloxi bug as soon as Teddy B told us about his detour.

Atlantic City was too far for us to drive, but a six-hour sojourn to Biloxi to gamble was more than reasonable. We made the Atlanta-New Orleans/Biloxi run over a dozen times. We always made an effort to stop in Biloxi to play a few hands on the way home from New Orleans. When I'd go broke at blackjack, I'd take my last few dollars and play Stud. That was my introduction to casino poker.

By my senior year in college, we made runs to Biloxi and skipped New Orleans all together. That's when we knew we caught the gambling fever. One night, a group of friends ate dinner at Wendy's and toward the end of the meal, one of us suggested that we "go to the boats", which was code for a Biloxi run. We drove to our house, picked up a bag of weed and rolling papers, got back in the car, hit up an ATM, and then got on the highway headed to Mississippi.

The casinos in Biloxi were nothing like I had seen in Atlantic City. The boxed casinos were semi-floating on water (that they assumed at the time were Hurricane-proofed). We parked in a parking lot on land and walked onto the barge or floating gambling hall, but it hardly felt like you were on water. It was a mere technicality. Who cares, right? The legality issues were left up to the used car salesmen cum politicians, and the moralists can debate the evils of gambling all they want. We were there to gamble.

On one of the trips, Gator found out why you should eat a sandwich out of a gas station, especially in Alabama. He took two bites and tossed it out the window as he raced down I-65.

On another trip, Chicago Bob got recognized by a floorman from a previous bender when he shot dice until sunrise. Our entire group got hooked up with a comped meal, and we're not talking Taj's greasy noodle bar. Shit, we were 20 years old and thought we were Gods among mortals because we got a free steak and eggs, including a dessert.

On the way back from Mardi Gras (the year eight of us rented an RV and parked two blocks off Bourbon Street), we drove the RV to Biloxi before returning home to Atlanta. Whatever money I had leftover from Mardi Gras got pissed away at blackjack.

The Casino Magic is one of those places that gives me goose bumps when I hear the name. During one gambling adventure, I played three hands of blackjack simultaneously at a table by myself. It was 5am and went on a heater that to this day has yet to be replicated. I won $1,200 or maybe $1,300 in ninety minutes. At the time, I thought that was all the money in the world and lived off that roll for the summer of 1994.

The blackjack binge at Casino Magic earned me my first comp, which I blew on breakfast for my crew at the adjacent McDonald's. That sausage biscuit never tasted better as the greased rushed through my veins.

I can only imagine how much trouble I'd get in today if I was going to school in 2010, instead of my stint the 1990s when Kurt Cobain was still alive and the first Bush held watch in the the Oval Office. I'm sure all of my buddies would have been addicted to online poker or online casinos like casino.org, and we would have turned the basement of our fraternity house into a casino and sports book, like the kid in Boiler Room. Instead of spontaneous road trips to Biloxi, we'd be more tempted with flights to Vegas, or jetting off to the Bahamas to play in the PCA.

We're all older now with a lot less hair. Most of my friends would never dare withdraw any money without consulting the wife, let alone taking money out to gamble or risk the last of their family's cash and bet it on the turn of a card, or the outcome of a pair of dice dancing on the felt. Yet, that's what we did before more important responsibilities to root and we carved out lives of our own. For a brief period of time, we were fearless young men and I'd take out my last $80 and didn't even think twice about doubling down at a blackjack table in Mississippi, of all places.

You'll never have the set of balls like the ones you had when you were 20, and you sprinted to the edge of the abyss and wanted to see which one of you could get the closest without vanishing into the void.

Sunday, October 10, 2010

Lost Vegas e-Book Available

By Pauly
Denver, CO


Heya gang, this is good news if you've been waiting for an electronic version of Lost Vegas. However, the bad news is that at the present moment, only a PDF version is available. An ePUB version will be out in a couple of weeks (Halloween the latest). These things matter to a small section of uber-geeks, so, if you're someone who has a device that only reads ePUBS, then you'll have to wait a little longer (that includes iPads, iPhones, iTouches, and the Nook).

Click here purchase a PDF of Lost Vegas for $10.

Friday, October 08, 2010

Bonus Tribute Episode of Tao of Pokerati and R.I.P. Alley (aka Michalski's Dog)

By Pauly
Los Angeles, CA


Alley (1995-2010)

The last time I wept was over five years ago after my grandmother's funeral, but I shed a tear this morning when I discovered that Dan Michalski's dog, Alley, passed away at 15 (that's 105 to you an me). The sudden news that KevMath departed Pokerati was so devastating to Alley, that she dropped dead on the spot when Dan read aloud KevMath's farewell post. My condolences to Dan for losing his trusted henchman and his dog in the same day.

To honor Alley, I wanted to post a special episode of Tao of Pokerati. This could be considered a "lost episode" that we recorded this summer, but never uploaded. A couple of episodes don't make the air for a multitude of reasons including quality of sound and quality of content. This episode fell into both of the categories because we recorded it outside (minor wind issues) and I was simply too wasted -- I sounded awful and it wasn't up to snuff. The episode got buried into the vault, but when I heard about Alley's passing, I couldn't think a better tribute to her by posting an episode in which she actually appears!
The "Alley" Tribute Episode of Tao of Pokerati

The Alley Tribute Episode: Party Animals - Your intrepid poker podcasters turn on the recorder at the PokerListings/Lara Miller ranch-house keg-party. Dan and his dog arrive so late and Pauly's soooo faded that they have almost little to share about a gathering of poker personalities at what has become one of the parties of the summer. This year's festivities came complete with two fights, a guitar-strumming Euro, and surely someone was having sex somewhere in the shadows of the vast property. It's been a long haul and Dan's dog picks up a scent in Pauly's pocket.
My heart sinks whenever I hear the part about Alley sniffing my pocket while recording the episode. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it.

R.I.P. Alley.

For more episodes visit the Tao of Pokerati archives.

Friday Nugs: Change100's Exit Interview, Classic Wall Street Quotations, This Week in Poker, and October Truckin'

By Pauly
Los Angeles, CA

It's Friday. Enjoy a few of these tid bits while you count down the clock to the weekend, which includes the baseball playoffs and Week 5 of the NFL season. Have a good one.
Change100 posted her Exit Interview which eloquently explained the new world order of poker media. (Pot Committed)

The latest episode of This Week in Poker features Ali Nejad, Liv Boeree, and Tony Dunst. (Wicked Chops Poker)

This one is a massive inside joke with my Wall Street buddies. Thanks to KD for pointing it out... Classic Wall Street Quotations. Please note, the humor lies within the fakeness of said quotes. (The Reformed Broker)

Congrats to Expensive Wino who won Week 4 of Sundays with Dr. Pauly. (Fantasy Sports Live)

The October issue of Truckin' is out. The monthly lit rag features the debut of Short-stacked Shamus, who shared a piece of pulpy fiction. The rest of the roster includes stories from Johnny Hughes, Wolynski, and Mark Verve. My contribution this month, The Wait, is something that I wrote that may or may not be included in the novel that I'm writing about druggies in the City of Angels. (Truckin')

By the way, here's an updated index of almost 200 short stories that I've written since 2002. (Truckin')

I rambled on about Chaka from Land of the Lost, my new neighbors, and why Hollywood studio heads are spineless bettors in something titled In the Land of the Lost Violinists. (Tao of Pauly)
OK, that's it for now. Have a groovy weekend. NGTFOOMO.

Thursday, October 07, 2010

2010 WSOP November Nine Odds

By Pauly
Los Angeles, CA


The 2010 November Nine

Johnny Walker shot me a text the other day officially settling the "is poker a sport?" debate. He cited evidence the poker is officially not a sport because the online sportsbooks list the November Nine odds under "entertainment props" and not given its own page in the the sports section.

Sportsbook.com lists the November Nine odds under the "exotics" section, which sounds like a corner of craigslist to buy a pet oceleot or dig up a tranny hooker to hammer a spike through the opening in your penis.

Anyway, if you like to gamble on random things, or if you're curious on who the online oddsmakers think are the favorites to win, then here's the current odds courtesy of Sportsbook.com...
2010 November Nine Odds:
Jonathan Duhamel +180
Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi +250
John Dolan +250
Joseph "subiime" Cheong +350
Matthew Jarvis +700
John Racener +700
Soi Nguyen +1200
Filippo Candio +1200
Jason Senti +2000

Final Table Seating Assignments:
Seat 1: Jason Senti - 7,625,000
Seat 2: Joseph 'subiime' Cheong - 23,525,000
Seat 3: John Dolan - 46,250,000
Seat 4: Jonathan Duhamel - 65,975,000
Seat 5: Michael 'The Grinder' Mizrachi
Seat 6: Matthew Jarvis - 16,700,000
Seat 7: John Racener - 23,525,000
Seat 8: Filippo Candio - 16,400,000
Seat 9: Soi Nguyen - 9,650,000

Final Table Chip Counts:
Jonathan Duhamel - 65,975,000
John Dolan - 46,250,000
Joe Cheong - 23,525,000
John Racener - 19,050,000
Matthew Jarvis - 16,700,000
Filippo Candio - 16,400,000
'The Grinder'- 14,450,000
Soi Nguyen - 9,650,000
Jason Senti - 7,625,000
Some quick analysis...

No love for Candio from the bookies. The Grinder's odds opened at +700 and his line moved the most out of any of the November Niners. It appears that the Grinder is an obvious fan favorite and a highly popular pick, which is why the bookies lowered his odds -- to capitalize on the Grinder's popularity and to entice (slicker way of saying 'trap') amateur punters to blindly bet on the Grinder even at ridiculously lower price than he's worth. At the same time, the bookies lowered the line to save face -- just in case he wins and they'd have to pay out a shit ton of bread on the Grinderheads.

Right after the November Nine was set, I put in small bets on Joe "subiime" Cheong (+600) and John Racener (+900). I'm pretty pumped that I locked in those prices because their lines were both lowered in the last two months.

In case you were wondering, Joe Cada was an 18-1 favorite to win the Main Event last year.

Photo courtesy of Benjo

Wednesday, October 06, 2010

Recap: 2010 WSOP Day 6 Main Event (Continued) - The Surging Scandis and the Lone Mizrachi

By Pauly
Los Angeles, CA

Day 6 at the WSOP included a surplus of action, so much so, that the crew at 441 Productions spliced together four episodes to show you what transpired on one of the most crucial days at the 2010 Main Event. We were treated to the third and fourth installments of Day 6, and just like last week, I watched the episodes on ESPN with my laptop handy and following along with the Day 6 semi-live blog on Tao of Poker and the list of Main Event money winners, which I used to guess which bust out they were going to air next.


The crowd gathers for Day 6

Day 6 began with 205 players and Evan Lampera held the top spot. By dinner break, half the field had busted and John Racener jumped out of nowhere to snag the lead. When the day ended, Theo Jorgensen, a silent Scandi sat on the top of the mountain and the Grinder close behind with the second biggest stack. But we're getting a little too far ahead of ourselves. Here's the highlights and lowlights of the last bits of Day 6 that focused on the Brothers Mizrachi...

* * * *

Houses of the Holy

The Mizrachis are sort of like the Medicis of poker at this point (after all, the Medici clan cranked out four popes and a banking empire). Two of the brothers remained at the onset of Day 6 -- the Grinder and older brother Robert. The youngest Mizrachi, a magician named Donny, stood on the rail as a spectator and part of the support staff along with the Grinder's twin, fellow pro Eric. The Grinder and the Robert were conveniently situated on the two featured tables because the beef jerky lounge provided a perch that allowed you to keep an eye on both tables. That's where the Mizrachis gathered and nervously awaited the fate of their beloved family members, especially the Grinder, who seems to be destined for greatness and a favorite son of the fickle poker gods. Two Mizrachis brazenly ventured into the killing fields and managed to survive the brutality longer than anyone imagined.

The Grinder's featured TV table included Canadian pro Peter Jetten (you know, the button guy), and Russian young gun Alex Kostritsyn. On the first hand of the episodes, Jetten and the Grinder rumbled. Jetten, the former philosophy major dropped his studies to play poker, which is a wise choice because philosophy degrees pay jack shit in the real world. The Grinder tried to push around Jetten with a nut flush draw against Jetten's flopped second pair. The Grinder missed on the river, yet fired anyway, and Jetten sniffed out the river bluff.

Randy "The Dorf" Dorfman, a former options trader on Wall Street, didn't shy away from a gunfight with the Grinder, who held just had two pair with A-Q on a paired board. The Grinder fired a shot on the river and The Dorf responded with an all-in shove. The Dorf was way ahead and had flopped a set of nines and turned a boat, but the Grinder knew something was rotten, fishy, and out of place.

"Too much acting," said the Grinder, suspicious on Dorf's body language, as he released his two pair.

The Grinder jumped into the overall lead after he sent Matthew Schreiber packing. The Grinder's Js-10s was no match for Ace-rag. That's what happens when you're path to salvation has been paved by the poker gods.

The Grinder and the Dorf got into another spat. The Grinder opened up a pot with Ad-10c. Two other players were along for the ride when action came to the Dorf in the blinds. He woke up with Kings and shoved. Everyone bailed, including the Grinder and the Dorf was unable to get any action with his cowboys.

The second hour of episodes began with the Grinder holding court at the featured table and all three of his brothers proudly sitting in the stands, but with a glint of competitive dejection in their eyes. It was an All-American Norman Rockwell moment, including an underlying tinge of somberness, knowing that the Grinder's success was indirectly a result of his brothers' collective failure. Hey, at least they all cashed, right?

The Brothers and extended family members watched the Grinder hunker down and attempt to win $9 million by playing cards. Sounds simply absurd, but that's what was happening. More absurd was that I was getting paid to write about it -- when it happened. What is even absurder, is that I'm writing up a report about something that happened a couple of months ago, but replayed via television, so it's sort of like living the past through someone else's eyes, while using my original notes as a guide. That's just super trippy if you really sit down to think about it.

Anyway... enough post-modern verbal jousting...

Duy Le, (who has one of my favorite names in poker pronounced Dewey Lee) attracted a bevy of delicious Asian tail on the rail. Too bad he did not advance to the November Nine. Anyway, Le got involved with a Russian and a Mizrachi. Nothing good could come with that! And Le had to bail out of that hand, as Alex Kostritsyn's pocket sevens prevailed over Grinder's Ace-rag.

The Grinder maintained his big stack after winning clutch hands like one against the Dorf that started out four-way, but ended up heads-up with the Dorf and the Grinder. Both were on draws -- the Dorf made a straight on the turned, but the Grinder caught running cards to flush him out on the river. The Dorf was pissed, but the Grinder smirked as he dragged in the pot.

* * * * *

The Rover


Tony "Bond_18" Dunst

Former chipleader Tony Dunst had a rough Day 6, which got worse when he had his Aces cracked by Ah-Qd, after two Queens flopped. An upbeat Dunst as he shook off the bad beat.

During his couch interview, Dunst explained his deep interest in looking presentable at the poker tables, which is why he always wears a suit when he plays. Change100 was fascinated in how he matched his ties with suits, but I sorta tuned out that part because I'm not that into fashion and stopped wearing suits after my last stint on Wall Street. But it's good to see someone in poker who looks classy. I first met Dunst at the Crown Casino in Melbourne in 2007 and he was wearing a suit then. The only thing that has changed is that his suits are getting better and he's spending some of his bankroll on high-quality accouterments.

* * * * *

The Wanton Song

Italian fun factory Filippo Candio won a hand and unleashed an orgasmic scream of joy right in front of the press box. You would have thought that he lost his virginity to Sasha Grey or something, the way he erupted with an enthusiastic response after his Aces held up against Queens. I didn't see the hand, but looked up from my laptop the moment that he jizzed in his pants and let everyone in Las Vegas know that he was feeling groovy. The Italian got a penalty for his over exuberance.

"I don't know these rules," he sputtered in broken English and apologized to the floor guy.

Norm didn't like the penalty, and he should blame Hevad Kahn. I'd be pissed if I was at the table or in the hand, but from a spectator standpoint, the occasional freak out livens up the tense mood inside the room. Let's be frank, at this stage, the Main Event is a TV show, and any sort of bizarre incidents are welcomed by the producers to spice up the standard poker telecast. Besides, the Italian was not shticking it up for the cameras like a starlet showing her snatch to a TMZ camera crew. We witnessed a genuine display of raw emotion for someone who is on the verge of becoming a millionaire. Hey, but that's what we love about demonstrative Italians. They are the opposite of the stoic Scandis, who look good, but don't utter a word other than "raise" and "all-in."

Candio took his one-round penalty, and the citation quieted down the Italian for sure. At one point, he was resorted to singing softly to himself when he got involved in a big pot and need something to do to quell his nerves.

Toward the end of Day 6, Candio five-bet shoved with Big Slick and Manny Davidian tank-called with pocket tens. You could not have scripted it better for Candio with a King on the flop... and an elated, but subdued Candio surged to over 5 million as he quietly sung to himself. Wonder if it was Queen's We Are the Champions in Italian? Or perhaps Bron-yr-aur from Zeppelin?

* * * * *

In the Light

Future November Niner, John Racener, began the clock on his fifteen minutes of fame with his couch interview, which became an eloquent homage to his father, who passed away last year.

"Dreaming about winning..." was a phrase that he uttered, which allowed us to glimpse into his goals as a poker player.

In previous years, Racener watched episodes of ESPN with his father, who predicted that his son was good enough to make the big time. Racener's old man taught him how to play the game of poker, in addition to other competitive card games. Up until his death, Racener's father supported his quest for poker glory.

Racener gave a short, but touching interview, which made it hard to hate the youngster. You have to root for Racener now, because he wants to win while evoking the spirit of his deceased father.

Racener sorta came out of nowhere just before the dinner break, when he took the lead. Despite his upswing, he couldn't knock out pesky Theo Tran. A short-stacked Tran opened-shoved with Ad-9h and Racener called with 2h-2d. The board ran out K-10-4-4-10 and the deuces were no longer good when the ten counterfeited on the river. Tran doubled up with his Ace high. That would be one of the few times Racener was on the shit end of the stick.

Racener later on got the Italian Orgasm Machine to pay him off after he flopped trips with A-Q. With two Aces on the flop, Candio did not believe him and called all the way to the river with a marginal pair of sevens. Racener happily tabled his trip Aces and dragged the pot.

* * * * *

Custard Pie

Robert Mizrachi (aka the Robert aka the brother of the Grinder) was rocking a patio store furniture patch during close ups on the secondary table. That was the same company that the Grinder was pimping during the 50K final table. Hey anything counts, right? Even if it is a patio store in Vegas. I'm sure if Don Draper was at the helm, he would have the Mirazhis pimping something other than patio furniture. I dunno why everyone is giving them shit for shilling patio furniture. Isn't that one of the points of televised poker, especially the November Nine -- to attract non-poker and non-gambling advertisers who will purchase the heads and chests of poker pros? So, the patio furniture wasn't your typical online poker room, but a legit real life business and nothing involving internet commerce. That should be a big deal, but because it's patio furniture and not a major soft drink company, we're dismissing the legitimacy of their brand. Ah, if I'm the folks who own the patio store, I'd be saying, "T'was fun while it lasted!" Because I doubt the Grinder will be sporting their patch come the November Nine, and if he magically wears their patch, then that's a bug coup for the patio people. If that's the case, I predict a huge upswing in patio furniture in the days after the November Nine. If you'd like to manipulate the market and profit on this upsurge, I know a penny stock that specializes in patio furniture cushions. I have seen the future and it's in patio cushions.

Anyway, the Robert's demise was foreshadowed after a nearly fatal hand with John Racener. Two of the other Mizrachi brothers watched the ugly hand from up above. Robert flopped the joint with 9h-8h against Racner's As-10s and TPTK. But the board ran out Js-10d-7h-7d-10c and gave Racener a runner-runner boat. Robert sheepishly fired out on river only to face an ominous raise from Racener. The Robert's straight was no good and knew that he got torpedoed by the fucking boat. The Robert folded and as he eyed his gaunt stack, al he could muster up a dejected sigh and a "Soooo sick."

On his final stand, the Robert got it all in with Ah-10h against an Eurodonk's As-Ks. The Robert could not catch a miracle, and his run at the Main Event had come to an uneventful finish. The eldest Mizrachi fizzled out in 112th place, and was the third brother of the Mizrachi clan to cash in the Main Event. The Grinder won the family last longer as the Robert headed to the cage to sign for his winnings, and eventually made his way into the stands to sweat his younger brother.

* * * * *

In My Time of Dying

Here's a mish-mash about people who busted on Day 6...

- A couple of Euros were among the players who didn't get their eliminations aired. That's sort of like not being famous enough to get your obit in the New York Times. Anyway, we didn't see the exits of Jesper Hougaard (who got super short in last week episodes) and British pro JP Kelly ( who has two bracelets or one if you don't count WSOP-E bracelets). The Brits had a fantastic summer, but JP couldn't capitalize on the British run good and advance to the final table like his pal James Ankenhead pulled off in 2009.

- Breeze Zuckerman, aka the last woman standing, busted out when her K-10 ran into Eric "Basebaldy" Badlwin's pocket Aces. She hit the road in 121st place and took home the cup presented by Wicked Chops Poker.

- Russian backing guru Sergey "gipsy" Rybachenko knocked out Nick Rainey, who we learned got fired as Patrik Antonius' assistant.

- Theo Tran eventually found his fate at the hands of Manny Davidian, who flopped Broadway with Q-J to knock out Tran in 105th place.

- James Carroll lost a hefty chunk of his stack on a monster draw. The flop was Qd-8c-6c. Carroll decided to push his luck with a straight flush draw holding 10c-9c versus Pierre Canale's Ac-Ad. Canale faded the plethora of outs and doubled up with Aces, while Carroll slid to the bottom of the pack. Carroll eventually busted in 98th place when an Eurodonk took him out.

- This is not a bustout blurb, as much as I didn't have anywhere else to write about the hoopla surrounding Men the Master's bracelet ceremony. ESPN aired a clip of his ceremony, you didn't get to hear the chorus of boos that filled up the Pavilion as he hoisted up his bracelet. The crowd was reacting to Men's checkered past with numerous cheating allegations, and they were also admonishing Men for his incorrigible behavior against Brandon Adams en route to his bracelet victory.

* * * * *

Night Flight

OG David Baker doubled up with a set of Jacks against Basebaldy. Baker got to speak about his common name during a couch interview. David Baker is often confused with David "Bakes" Baker, who won a bracelet this year and is much younger than David Baker, which is why we call him OG for Original Gansta, or ODB for Old David Baker. Either works, and it's simple to call the other guy Bakes. I got it down, but it can get confusing when you're looking at the tournament on paper and trying to figure out which Baker is playing.

OD Baker got it all in with 10d-9d against French-Canuck Assouline's As-Jc, but ODB flopped a nine and doubled up. He also chipped up when he won a heady pot against Basebaldy.

Canada's Gary Kostiak was all-in for his tournament life with Ac-Qs against Gipsy's 9c-4c. The Russian turned a four to take the lead, but a fortuitous Kostiak rivered a straight and doubled up, something that he had done three times against Gipsy on Day 6 alone. He better stop that behavior otherwise he'll end up a floater in the Moskva River.

Kostiak played his final hand when his tens couple not run down Brandon Steven's Kings. Man, that's how you get some bad juju on your soul -- by knocking out the guy with MS in the wheelchair. I read a theory on Donk Down forums that Steven bubbled off the final table in 10th place because the poker gods were punishing him for picking on a guy in a wheelchair. Draw your own conclusions.

Alas, an inspirational Kostiak got as far as 85th place in his first ever Main Event. Kudos, sir.

* * * * *

Kashmir

Alex Kostritsyyn showed off his vast range when he opened with 8h-6d. The Dorf put Alex on a button steal, and popped him back with a re-steal against the young Russian with 6h-5d. Alex did not hesitate and four-bet the former broker. The Dorf could do nothing but fold. The Russian won and defeated the capitalist.

The Grinder needled Alex seeking Alex's opinion on the "Best Russian" player, but Alex was sort of evasive. He did not want to offend any of his fellow countrymen. Many would say that Alex is considered one of the best young players from behind the Iron Curtain. He's won the Aussie Millions and even shipped a WCOOP event proving that he can win in both live events and online. His deep run was finally chronicled when he took a seat at the Grinder's table. A seat was not all that he took, he eventually took the lead and had to go through the Grinder's stack to get there.

Alex won a few pots to thrust him into the top spot, but then lost the lead to the Grinder, who dragged a pot with 7h-6h after he flopped trip sixes.

Alex added more chips to his stack when he went to war with pocket tens versus a Eurodonk's suited Slick. Alex flopped a set, but couldn't get the Eurodonk to fold his flush and Broadway straight draws. When the Eurodonk shoved on the turn, Alex insta-called. The river was the blank, Alex's set held up, and the Eurodonk busted in 95th place.

Alex would end Day 6 with over 5 million and among the Top 10 in chips.

* * * * *

Trampled Under Foot

Theo Jorgensen acquired most of his chips in a wild wacky hand against the guy with one of the craziest names I have ever come across in poker... Fokke Buekers. Fokke's A-K lost to Theo's K-6 sooted. Call Interpol, because a Dutchie got robbed by a Dane. Theo's stack grew larger and larger as he rocketed toward the top.

By the way, listen to this gem and fan favorite episode of Tao of Pokerati featuring everyone's favorite French journalist.
Episode 68: Fun with Names: Fokkin Bonkers with Benjo - After realizing that Dutch pro Fokke Beukers has the best name left in the Main Event, Benjo and Pauly search the remaining players list and attempt to pronounce the truly obscure and difficult names.
Theo Jorgensen got moved to the featured TV table, and the three biggest stacks (Theo, Alex the Russian, and the Grinder) sat at the same table. It didn't take long before Theo asserted his power and got into a fracas with the Grinder. The Grinder opened with Kh-9h and Theo called with Ks-2s. Beware of a Scandi holding King-rag soooooted! The flop was 8h-6s-2h. Action. Of course there was gonna be action on the flop, whenever a Scandi hits bottom pair and the Grinder with a flush draw, you're gonna have a recipe for a thermonuclear hand. The turn was the 7c, giving Grinder more outs for a straight, but he whiffed when the Qs fell on the river. Theo checked his deuces, Grinder bet small, Theo check-raised, and Grinder folded his busted draws. Theo dragged the decisive pot, which propelled him into the lead.

Beware. The Scandis hath snagged thy lead.

And they barely showed the Day 6 progress of two uber-famous Scandis, Sweden's William Thorson and Norway's Johnny Lodden. Both were still alive and survived a hand against each other in the solo shot of them in either broadcast. Scandis are not like piranha. They will go after each other at any given time. The slang for "soft play" in Swedish is the same as the word "tampon."

* * * * *

Thanks to Flipchip for the WSOP photos.

Here's previous Tao of Poker recaps of the Main Event on ESPN:
Day 2A - March of the Mizrachis and Dannypalooza
Day 2B - Happy Jacks, Action Dan, the Jenny Crank Diet, and Pancakes with the DonkeyBomber
Day 3 - Scotty Nguyen and the Rudiments of Gruel
Day 4 - Money Money Money
Day 5 - Wie Geht's Detlef Schrempf and OMG Runs Good
Day 6 - Life Is Just to Die
For in depth coverage of Day 6, read about the straight dope on Day 6 Semi-Live Blog, and don't forget about the end of day recap of Main Event Day 6 - Never Mind the Scandis, Here Come the Mizrachis.

And don't forget about other episodes of the Tao of Pokerati podcast that Michalski, Benjo, and I recorded live from the floor of the Rio.

For more of your WSOP fix, visit the Tao of Poker's Index of WSOP coverage.

I'm gonna be away next week on Phish tour in Colorado, but I'll be able to catch up eventually with the episodes. It might be a day late, but don't worry, I'll be back next week to recap Day 7 of the Main Event on ESPN. Until then...

Tuesday, October 05, 2010

Radio Free Pauly: Pimping Lost Vegas on The Hardcore Poker Show

By Pauly
Los Angeles, CA


On of my favorite poker-themed radio shows is The Hardcore Poker Show hosted by Chris Tessaro and Rob Pizzo. I was fortunate enough to have been invited to their weekly show to discuss Lost Vegas.

Their radio show is broadcast on Mondays at 8pm ET on the Sirius radio network. I'm partial to the Jam On station (and my dream is that my friends over at Coventry Music get our own radio show some day). Sirius also has a few pokery shows over on the sports end of the dial, with The Hardcore Poker Show leading the way.

Chris and Rob are among the best in the business when it comes to being objective journalists, especially in the radio genre. And thank God that Canadians read books! Chris even read Lost Vegas in one day. They scheduled me on the same show as Mike Sexton! So it was definitely cool to be on this show and on this particular episode. Thanks for having me on guys.

If you'd like to listen to this current episode or older episodes, visit the The Hardcore Poker Show archives. I appear at the 10 minute mark, and they even played some Grateful Dead as my intro/outro music!

Thanks again to Chris and Rob to having me on, and for the Shakedown Street shoutout.

Click here to buy a copy of Lost Vegas.

Monday, October 04, 2010

Lost Vegas - Special Annoucement

By Pauly
Los Angeles, CA

This is the news some of you have been eagerly awaiting...


For more info, follow @LostVegasBook on twitter, or visit the site at vwww.lostvegasbook.com.

Click here to buy a regular copy of Lost Vegas.

Sunday, October 03, 2010

Sunday A.M. Nuggets: KevMath Revealed, WSOPE Bracelets, Another Bad Beat for Washingston State Online Poker Players, and the Alley Cat Wars

By Pauly
Los Angeles, CA


It's that time of the week again, as I scramble to throw together my fantasy football team based on injury reports and whatnot, and settle into a mind-numbing day as my assprint settles into the couch for a long day of shouting at the TV. Anyway, if you're looking for a few bits of pokery news to read at halftime, or if you're looking for something to kill during the grind of Sunday tournaments, here's a few poker and non-poker bits for you to masticate upon.

Let's start with poker stuff...

If you dug my most recent post on bracelets, then you have to read Shamus' take on WSOPE bracelets in something he wrote Are WSOPE Bracelets 'Real'?

Kevin Mathers made his first official appearance as a guest on This Week in Poker. Awesome job, KevMath, and thanks for the bit of praise you tossed my way! (Wicked Chops Poker)

I'm not one to sound off on political matters, especially when it comes to poker, but thankfully, Michalksi and crew are better educated than me in those matters, plus they cover that beat much better than anyone else in poker. Read how PokerStars is sticking it to real money players from the state of Washington.(Pokerati)

And in non-poker section...

Congrats to Prohel for winning Week 3 of Sundays with Dr. Pauly. (Fantasy Sports Live)

Otis eloqiently writes about dogs, but with an astute writers there's multiple stories being told there. (Rapid Eye Reality)

Thanks to Marty Beckerman for pointing out this gem about a letter that Hunter Thompson once wrote about seeking employment to a Vancouver newspaper. (Leader-Post)

I'm back to writing almost semi-regularly at my main joint. I cranked one thing out that was one of the more favorite things I scribbled down in while that only took five minutes to write.... The Alley Cat Wars, Vol 1. And for you documentary film buffs, or those who have a love/hate relationship with the shittards in Hollyweird, then I encourage you to let my review of I'm Still Here sink in. (Tao of Pauly)

Yep, that's it for now. Kick off is moments away and I got some money to make and brain cells to kill. NGTFOOMO!