Some of the celebrities making an appearance were Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Jason Alexander, Brad Garrett, Sarah Silverman, Jennifer Tilly, and rapper Nelly. Athletes Marlon Shirley, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith, and Mike Tyson were also battling it out. Of course all the top poker pros donated their time and money to the cause.

I’ve posted a few pictures from the day for your entertainment.

Mike Matusow and Chau Giang kid around during the tournament

Good Will Hunting co-stars Matt Damon and Ben Affleck hang with Marco Traniello before the tournament began

WSOP Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack meets with Don Cheadle

More photos after the jump:

This tournament was a little more laid back than most. Jennifer Harman and Phil Gordon enjoy their time at the tables.

Don Cheadle, Jennifer Harman, and rapper Nelly before the tournament

Actor Joe Reitman plays in the tournament. In the background you can see part of the huge rail full of fans who came out to see their favorite stars and pros.

Chris “Jesus” Ferguson and Paralympic gold medalist Marlon Shirley

David Singer and Sarah Silverman

Charles Barkley joins poker power couple Marco Traniello and Jenn Harman

Post from: Poker From The Rail

2009 World Series of Poker – Ante Up for Africa Pictures

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Phil Ivey and David Singer head into Day3 of the 2009 WPT World Championship

The $25,000 buyin WPT World Championship is taking place this week at the Bellagio in Las Vegas with the kind of field you would expect for a premier event. The tournament started with some serious deepstacks that gave plenty of play in the early stages. Each player started with 1000 big blinds and a very slow structure.

This meant they played 2 full days (3 if you include Day 1a and 1b) and just over half the original 377 players were eliminated. Then they hit Day 3 and the field dropped an even 100 players, going from 162 to 62. Only 12 players remaining until the bubble bursts and players start making a profit on their buyin.

There are some big time Full Tilt pros still in contention and dreams of an all-FTP final table are floating around. Although I’m sure the pros hope not, they would prefer a softer table. Leading the way for Team Full Tilt are Phil Ivey and David Singer followed by Chris Ferguson, Mike Matusow and Jennifer Harman, as well as the Brothers Boatman. Barny Boatman and Ross Boatman.

The players return to the tables today looking to move up the leaderboard to position themselves to win the first place prize over $2 Million. Full chip counts for the remaining 62 after the jump.

Chip count courtesy of WorldPokerTour.com.  Click here to follow the 2009 WPT World Championship live.

1. Steve Billirakis 1,722,000
2. Matthew Hyman 1,663,000
3. Mark Seif 1,315,000
4. Nenad Medic 1,306,000
5. David Singer 1,116,000
6. Blake Cahail 1,059,000
7. Phil Ivey 1,036,000
8. Nick Binger 1,036,000
9. Dave Baker 952,000
10. Freddy Deeb 932,000
11. Jennifer Harman 828,000
12. Michael DeMichele 789,000
13. Eugene Katchalov 764,000
14. Javed Abrahams 760,000
15. Justin Young 732,000
16. Christian Harder 728,000
17. Jeff Madsen 712,000
18. Eric Liu 688,000
19. Andrew Lichtenberger 664,000
20. Ulises Roman 622,000
21. Andy Miller 604,000
22. Chris Bell 604,000
23. Scotty Nguyen 557,000
24. Marco Johnson 553,000
25.Barny Boatman 534,000
26. Chad Batista 515,000
27. Jonathan Aguiar 489,000
28. Philip Gurian 475,000
29. Yevgeniy Timoshenko 464,000
30. Ross Boatman 456,000
31. John Martin 418,000
32. David Grey 406,000
33. Markus Gonsalves 405,000
34. Steve Sung 392,000
35. Ran Azor 388,000
36. Elky Grospellier 378,000
37. Cody Slaubaugh 377,000
38. Brian Rast 365,000
39. Chris Ferguson 338,000
40. Hyon Kim 338,000
41. Sinan Yoyen 323,000
42. Steve Brecher 318,000
43. Boris Becker 306,000
44. Will Failla 305,000
45. Liv Boeree 299,000
46. Naseem Salem 296,000
47. Kathy Liebert 290,000
48. Bruno Fitoussi 286,000
49. Mike Matusow 272,000
50. David Benyamine 268,000
51. Jimmy Fricke 259,000
52. Dutch Boyd 253,000
53. Evan McNiff 234,000
54. Matthew Glantz 214,000
55. Quinn Do 211,000
56. Freddy Bonyadi 208,000
57. Ron Levi 204,000
58. Jimmy Tran 177,000
59. Owen Crowe 177,000
60. Steven Fung 135,000
61. Shannon Shorr 120,000
62. Sammy Farha 90,000

Post from: Poker From The Rail

2009 WPT World Championship update

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Category	David Benyamine	David Singer	Survey Says
Career Earnings	Over $1.2 million	More than $3.8 million	I could be wrong here (it certainly wouldn’t be a surprise), but I believe this is the first time a lower seed has had more career earnings than the higher seed. Then again, Benyamine makes most of his money from the cash games, so who knows how much money he’s actually won (or lost) in his career. At any rate, Singer gets off to the early lead.
Major Titles	One WPT title	None	Benyamine announced himself to the poker world as a force to be reckoned with after winning the 2003 WPT Grand Prix de Paris. Singer has had some strong showings in major events, including back-to-back final tables at the WSOP $50K HORSE event, but has never gone all the way. Benyamine ties the score at one apiece.
Tournament Play	Only if it doesn’t take away from his time on Full Tilt Poker eight-tabling $50/$100 PLO.	Yes please!	As proven by his WPT victory, Benyamine is no slouch when it comes to tourney play. But it’s still not his main bag, baby. Singer, on the other hand, has become one of the most successful players on the tourney circuit today. This round has to go to Singer; he leads by a score of 2-1.
Cash Game Play	Anytime, any place.	As long as it doesn’t interfere with any tournaments.	Benyamine is the very definition of a degenerate cash game player. He’s utterly insatiable and just can’t get enough no matter if he’s winning or losing. Singer is certainly a formidable cash game player (especially when it comes to 7-card stud), but not on the same level as Degenyamine. The score is now even at two all.
Best Game	A close call between NLH and PLO, but his game of choice seems to be PLO most of the time.	Another close call, this time between NLH and 7-card stud. But since 7-card stud was Singer’s first love, we’ll go with that one.	Hmm, this is a tough choice between two games that aren’t NLH. Then again, it’s really not. PLO is the action junky’s game, whereas stud is simply boring. Which way do you think I’m going to go here? PLO for the win, no doubt. Benyamine takes the lead for the first time in the match.
Playing Style	Loose and wild.	Tight but aggressive.	When it comes to playing styles in poker, there really is no right or wrong (unless you’re weak-tight, then you’re simply up a creek without a paddle). So in the name of keeping this a close match, I’m going to give this one to the tight but aggressive Singer. The score now stands at 3-3.
Nickname	The Luckiest Man on Earth	Nickname N/A	I can’t believe it has taken me this long to mention this, but in case you didn’t know, Benyamine is engaged to “Poker Babe” Erica Schoenberg. And that’s why he just may be the luckiest SOB walking the face of the earth today. I both hate him and admire him at the same time, and it’s seriously screwing with my head. Needless to say, this round has to go to the Degenerator. He grabs the lead back heading down the stretch.
Country of Origin	Just like those good old Coneheads, Mr. Benyamine comes from France.	Land of the free and home of the brave, America the beautiful.	USA! USA! USA! I will try my best not to say anything disparaging about the French here since they are the land of wine and stinky cheese, both of which are very close to my heart. But let’s get real people, it’s USA all the way on this one. Singer ties the score at 4 apiece going into the final frame of action.
Past Lives Pavilion	Former tennis pro.	Former lawyer.	Another tough one here. On one hand, tennis is a sport that we can appreciate when played at its highest levels. On the other hand, we never ever want to imagine Degenyamine running around a tennis court whacking a ball around. Plus, Singer was actually the good kind of lawyer who tried to help out the environment and crap like that. So it’s a really close call here. I guess the deciding factor here has to be that Benyamine is engaged to the “Poker Babe.” Ah, Erica Schoenberg, is there anything you can’t do?

And there you have it – Benyamine takes down the battle of the Davids by a score of 5-4. It was a tight match that really could have gone either way. Good thing for Benyamine that he’s got Erica on his side, otherwise he might’ve found himself an upset victim. Check back next week for more fun and games as we march onwards in the quest to determine the number one Full Tilt Poker pro…

Post from: Poker From The Rail

Heads Up: David Benyamine Versus David Singer

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