Enjoy.

More pics after the jump:

Post from: Poker From The Rail

2009 World Series of Poker – Days 1c and 1d Pictures

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1. 2009 World Series of Poker – Ante Up for Africa Pictures
2. 2009 World Series of Poker – Day 2b Pictures
3. 2009 World Series of Poker – Main Event Day 1b Pictures

I present to you the week in pictures from the Full Tilt angle.

The first is by far my favorite photo from the 2009 World Series of Poker. Photographer extraordinaire BJ Nemeth has been capturing some incredible images this year. This photo was taken from atop the bracelet ceremony stage as Phil Ivey picked up his 7th World Series of Poker bracelet. It illustrates the massive amount of players, fans, and media Ivey draws to any event. Click to enlarge and enjoy. More images after the jump.

Photo credit: BJ Nemeth

Rafe Furst playing in Event #38 $2,000 Limit Hold’em. Furst was a rare site in the early portions of the WSOP but has begun picking up steam.  He would go on to finish just short of the final two tables in 19th place.

Kristy Gazes and Amanda “Mandy B” Baker playing in Event #39 $1,500 No Limit Hold’em.  Gazes had a tough run to fall short of the money but Baker would end the day with her second cash of the WSOP.

Full Tilt pros Steve Zolotow and Chau Giang play in the Pot Limit Omaha World Championship.  Neither would figure in the final payouts but other Tilters were up and down the board.  Josh Arieh (7th) , Chau Giang (11th), Howard Lederer (12th), Marcus Golser (20th), and Erick Lindgren (27th) would all finish in the money.  Vitaly Lunkin lost a heads up battle with Matt Graham for his second bracelet of the year.

Phil Ivey facing off with Erik Cajelais in Event #41 $5,000 No Limit Hold’em Shootout.  Ivey had an excellent chance at his third bracelet of the year.  He needed to win a 6-handed Round 2 table and 5-handed final table but was unable to overcome some early troubles in the second round. Barney Boatman, David “The Dragon” Pham and Ivey finished 6th, 7th, and 8th respectively.

These two pictures side by side give you a little feeling of what it must be like to be sitting at the table with Ivey and subject to his stare downs.

Howard Lederer takes some time during the Mixed Hold’em event to sign some autographs for fans on the rail.  Lederer has 3 cashes during the 2009 World Series of Poker to date.  Five Full Tilt pros cashed in the tournament but unable to make the final table.  Allen Cunningham, Eric Froehlich, Andy Bloch, Eli Elezra, and Jeff Madsen.

Erick Lindgren playing in the Seven Card Stud Hi-Low World Championship.  Lindgren did not make the money in this event but he has 4 cashes in the 2009 World Series of Poker.

If a cage match broke out in the center of the Amazon Room, good money would go on both Scott Clements and Erik Cajelais.  Both big guns rarely find anyone willing to start chirping at them from across the table.  Some might even fear approaching them.  Throw in former hockey player Greg “FBT” Mueller and we would have the start of a good tag team match.  Cajelais has yet to cash during this year’s WSOP but Clements has two final tables finishing 2nd and 3rd.

The NHL Stanley Cup came to the World Series of Poker this week.  Their hockey awards were taking place across the street and the NHL held a charity poker game in the Amazon Room.  WSOP Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack is also the half-brother of NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman.  The Stanley Cup was brought to the bracelet presentation area and drew a huge crowd.

The “feature” table was converted for the NHL Charity Shootout Tournament from the standard green felt to a hockey rink.  The dealer button was replaced by a hockey puck.  Current and former NHL players battled against poker pros for their great charities.  Philadelphia Flyer (hometown of your humble blogger) Scotty Hartnell defeated Robert Luongo heads up to win this inaugural event.

Post from: Poker From The Rail

2009 World Series of Poker – Week 4 in Pictures

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1. 2009 World Series of Poker – Week 2 in Pictures
2. 2009 World Series of Poker – Week 5 in Pictures
3. 2009 World Series of Poker – Week 3 in Pictures

All images credited to IMDPI.

Pictures after the jump, click to enlarge.

Eli Elezra playing in the 2009 World Series of Poker Event #3 Limit Omaha/8.
He would go on to cash in 20th place.

Fellow Full Tilt blogger Michael Craig playing in Event # 4 “Stimulus Special”

2007 WSOP Main Event Champion Jerry Yang in The Champions Invitational, which was new to the 200 World Series of Poker.  The tournament featured former WSOP Main Event winners. Tom McEvoy eventually won the Binion’s Cup.

Poker legend Ted Forrest was eliminated in 9th at the final table of the $40,000 No Limit Hold’em Event #2.  An event to honor the 40th Anniversary of the World Series of Poker, the field was stacked with some of the best players in the world.

Prior to the 2009 World Series of Poker, there were thoughts that this would be the year of the Russian poker players.  Full Tilt pro Vitaly Lunkin started on the right foot by winning the $40,000 No Limit Hold’em tournament.

The $40,000 No Limit Hold’em tournament was one of final tables to be broadcast by ESPN.  Winner Vitaly Lunkin is sitting in front of his piles of cash and giving the traditional Norm Chad post-victory interview.

Jeff Madsen ponders his action during Day 1B of the $1,000 “Stimulus Special”.
Gavin Smith in the foreground.

Amanda “Mandy B” Baker playing on Day 2 of the $1,000 “Stimulus Special”.  She would go on a great run but finish in 33rd.  $22,000 return on her $1,000 investment.

Allen Cunningham ponders the action during the $1,500 Pot Limit Omaha tournament

Erick Lindgren starts Day 2 of the World Championship Seven Card Stud

Erica Schoenberg playing in the $1,500 No Limit Hold’em Event #7

Between hands in the No Limit 2-7 Draw tournament, Chris Ferguson takes time to play some games on his phone

Phil Ivey plays Day 2 of the No Limit 2-7 Draw tournament.
Bracelet number 6 is just days away.

Phil Ivey eyes up bracelet number 6 during NL 2-7 Draw final table.
He would win it eventually after a 3 hour heads-up battle with John Monnette.

Post from: Poker From The Rail

2009 World Series of Poker – The Week in Pictures

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2. 2009 World Series of Poker – Week 4 in Pictures
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Team Full Tilt member Erick Lindgren has organized a charity poker game to benefit the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society in memory of Mindy Trinidad.  The tournament is a great chance to throw chips around with some of your favorite pros and raise money to fight this terrible disease.  The game kicks off Wednesday at 19:00ET with the juice going to the charity.

There is another charity game being organized by fellow Full Tilt blogger Michael Craig benefitting the Relay for Life on Sunday, December 21st at 18:00ET.  Michael has the details up in this post.

Finally, there is a great chance to play live with your favorite pros at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in another tournament benefiting the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society on December 12th.

Full details after the jump.

Mindy Trinidad was a mother and poker player who lost her battle with Acute Leukemia just weeks after being diagnosed and is being remembered by her friends in the poker community. The first charity poker game will be online Wednesday, December 3rd at 19:00ET hosted by Erick Lindgren.  It is a $5+$5 No Limit Hold’em game featuring many of the top Full Tilt pros.  Full Tilt is donating the $5 juice to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and the $5 buyin goes to the prizepool.

Tournament: Leukemia & Lymphoma Society
When: Wednesday, December 3rd at 19:00ET
Game: NLHE
Buyin: $5+$5
Password: charity

The second event is a live poker tournament being held at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino on Friday, December 12th.  The list of pros playing in the event is endless, the lineup includes Full Tilt pros Erick Lindgren, Andy Bloch, Jennifer Harman, Lee Watkinson, Kristy Gazes and Beth Shak as well as former World Series of Poker Main Event winners Phil Hellmuth, Jamie Gold and Jerry Yang.  The day kicks off at 2pm with a cocktail party and the tournaments starts at 3pm.  The buyin is $200+$30, a good donation giving you a chance to rub elbows with the best.

Coincidentally there is a blogger gathering in Las Vegas that weekend so your humble blogger will make plans to play in the event instead of acting as a railbird.

Further information about the live tournament can be found here: Poker Jingle at the Hard Rock

Post from: Poker From The Rail

Upcoming Charity Poker Tournaments

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There, it’s done. Sorry Erick, you’re a nice guy and all, but I gotta go with my gut here. I mean, let’s look at EDog’s performance so far this year:

• Three final tables
• One bracelet (a career first, btw)
• Nearly $1.3 million in winnings in one month’s worth of tournament play

Sure, there are some other big names who have also had some deep runs during this year’s Series, but for my money, EDog has proven himself to be the leader of the pack.

Yeah, I’m approaching the $50K HORSE event from the wrong end, but as long as I don’t step in a big pile, who really cares?

Hold on – scratch that – what I meant to say is that this is the tourney that all the big names pros really want to win. Sure, the Main Event provides the big-ass payday that everybody wants, but the HORSE event is the bidness. 148 pros ponied up $50K each for a shot at what has become the game’s most prestigious title and, in the end, some really big names played their way to the Sweet 16, including Brunson, Bloch (15^th place), Negreanu, and Ivey (12^th place).

The final table was even more impressive, boasting names like Greenstein, Seed (7^th place), Lindgren (3^rd place) and Scotty “It’s All Over Baby” Nguyen. Lindgren, who started the final table with the chip lead, busted third and added more than $781K to his roll. Nice money to be sure. Oh, if you’re curious, second place pays more than $1.2 million while the winner grabs almost $2M.

Wow, what a shitty headline. I should apologize for that. Really, I should, but nah….

For those of you who don’t know to whom I’m referring, please meet Martin “I really need a nickname” Kläser, winner of WSOP Event 43. Why is Martin worth your time and effort? Simple – he’s a 21-year old kid with game.

Martin became a pro last October after winning our Million Euro Challenge Freeroll tournament and then beating both Chris Ferguson and Gus Hansen heads up to collect €350K. Not a bad way to start a career, if I do say so myself. Then, he followed that up by heading to Vegas last week, buying into his first ever WSOP event, and winning the whole damn thing. That’s more than another $200K in the coffers and one of those shiny bracelet things for his wrist.

!@#$% 21-year old ^%#$!# whipper-snapper punk kids. Uh, I mean, well done Martin, well done.

Now, if you’d all excuse me, I’m off to check my bankroll and cry in my beer.

Post from: Poker From The Rail

The Week at FTP: You Can’t Keep an EDog Down

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After Nenad Medic’s victory in Event ,#1 David Singer made it two out of three for FTP pros by taking down Event #3, the $1,500 Pot-Limit Hold ‘em. Hot on the heels of his win in the $25,000 Heads-Up World Championship, Singer was the last one standing out of 713 players, taking down Jacobo Fernandez heads-up to win $214,131 and his first bracelet. Singer obviously runs good at life – his very pregnant fiancée was there to drag his ass away at any moment support him with their baby due the next day.

Erick Lindgren finally got the monkey off his back by finally winning his first WSOP bracelet in Event #4, the $5,000 Mixed Hold ‘em (No-Limit/Limit). Lindgren overcame a pro-heavy field of 332 players and a stacked final table which also included Howard Lederer (6^th, $74,199) and Roland De Wolfe (4^th, $117,030) to collect the $374,505 first place prize and shiny (something shiny? Where? Oh sorry got distracted) new bracelet.

It’s not that we’re prone to conspiracy theories, but this little doozy popped up – David Singer and Erick Lindgren both just won their first-ever WSOP bracelet and they both did it in the exact same way. Oooooh spooky! On David’s final hand the chips were all-in on the turn with the board reading 3d-5s-7d-6c. Jacobo Fernandez turned over 7c-3h for two-pair, but Singer rolled over Qs-4s for a turned straight, which held up.

In Lindgren’s case, the chips were all-in on the river with the board reading Tc-5c-3d-4h-8h. Justin Bonomo showed 5s-4s for two pair while Erick had Ah-2d for the turned straight. Both losers had two pair and both winners hit their gutshots on the turn – feel the chills down your spine? Lol live-riggaments.

Chris “Jesus” Ferguson obviously didn’t get the memo that said a Full Tilt Poker pro must win every event, spoiling a clean sweep of the first four events by coming in third in Event #2 for $388,287. Greg “FBT” Mueller also narrowly missed a win and his first bracelet – taking second in Event #11, a $5,000 No-Limit Hold ‘em Shootout for $298,638. All in all, the pros have cashed for over $3.6 million so far – and we’re not even a quarter of the way through the Series.

Apparently, there are a few hardy souls out there who are looking to write their way to Vegas for the Big Dance. The entries that we’ve received thus far have been entertaining and it’s clear that folks have put a lot of effort into their work. In fact, check them out for yourself:

katiemother – Post 1 and 2

TuscaloosaJohn – Post 1 and 2

lightning36 – Post 1 and 2

Looking at this list, it’s definitely worth noting that katiemother, TuscaloosaJohn, and lightning36 scored big-style in Battle of the Bloggers tournaments. Each of them took home a $2K WSOP prize package – well done and congratulations.

If you’ve not entered yet, you’ve still got a few days to take a shot at being our “Blogger on the Rail.” Check out the Write Your Way to the WSOP page for full details.

Post from: Poker From The Rail

The Week at FTP: Yes, Still WSOP

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1. The Week at FTP: A Friendly WSOP Reminder
2. WSOP Edition
3. The Week at FTP: FTOPS VII – What Else?

So in lieu of Big Donkey giving you The Week at FTP, I’ll be giving you the rundown on the first nine amazing FTOPS VIII events. We’ve had some good laughs so far, shed some salty tears, and ingested many cans of Coke Zero in an attempt to bring you all things FTOPS. Here are the highlights thus far:

Winning isn’t everything, but losing is for losers.

Here’s to all nine of our FTOPS winners so far – congratulations on a job well done. May you use your newfound pocket change to buy a little piece of happiness for yourselves, or at least avoid donking off all your winnings to Phil Ivey on the high-stakes tables. In no particular order, here are the winners and their winnings from events one through nine:

Event #1: the guru 11 – $158,852.23

Event #2: whothedonk – $48,150

Event #3: BOP B 3AKOHE 1 – $76,545

Event #4: EMSBas – $48,420

Event #5: voguepergola – $27,735

Event #6: mmmadd – $68,477.50

Event #7: jornx – $102,249.50

Event #8: GoToChurch – $51,200

Event #9: _FlaXmar Z_ – $263,438.04

Is a shootout really a shootout if there are no guns involved?

The arrival of FTOPS VIII has surprisingly coincided with the launch of our new shootout tournament feature. We’ve had two FTOPS shootout tourneys so far – Event #3 was a 3X full table shootout that maxed out at 729 players. That meant that the winner had to take down three full tables in a row to win the top prize.

Event #8 was a heads-up shootout with 512 players in the running, meaning the winner had to take down nine heads-up matches to capture the crown. If you want to get in on all the excitement that shootout tourney action has to offer, we still have one more FTOPS shootout on the schedule – look for Event #17 on Thursday, May 15^th at 14:00 ET. And please people; leave your guns at home. Remember that guns don’t kill people, coolers do…

A screen name can say a lot about what kind of player you are. With that in mind, I’d like to take the time to point out a couple of the winning screen names so far. I mean, is anybody surprised that a player named whothedonk took down Event #2, a PLO KO tourney? PLO is the game of donk champions, and when you add the knockout factor into that mix you better watch out. That’s what we call suck out city, baby! (Pardon me; I seem to have channelled Dick Vitale momentarily.)

In other surprising news, Event #9 (a HU shootout tourney) was won by a player named GoToChurch. That one seems spot on, as you’d have to do a lot of praying to win nine straight heads-up matches. I’m not a religious person, but I might have to sign up at the Church of Jerry Yang if it means that I might someday win myself a donkament of such prolific proportions.

To all the Full Tilt Pros out there, keep up the good work. Being highlighted in red makes you a target to every donk near and far, especially with that extra bounty placed upon your cartoon avatar heads. But it should come as no surprise that the pros are making a strong showing at this FTOPS. We have yet to have a repeat of the feat Erick Lindgren pulled off in FTOPS VII when he won his own event, but we’ve got plenty of events to go.

Speaking of E-Dog, he’s having another strong run this FTOPS, as he’s had the highest pro finish in two of the nine events thus far. But the title of pro MVP so far has got to be Scott Fischman. The Fish Tank has had three top pro finishes so far and is ranked 10^th on the FTOPS VIII Leaderboard. Hey, maybe he’ll win a custom avatar. Oh wait, he already has one. That sucks for him.

We’ve only had one pro make a final table so far, as Berry Johnston took fourth in Event #4, a Stud Hi/Lo tourney. They say that Stud is an old man’s game, and I guess they’re right (whoever the hell they may be). I’m not saying that Johnston is old, but rumor has it he was playing cards with Doc Holliday back in the day. I joke, I joke, I kid, I kid. Johnston is one of the classier players remaining in the game today, a throwback to the old school when playing cards was done properly. Congrats on a great run, Berry.

Congratulations, you’ve won a free entry into the Bouncebackability Freeroll!

To all the bubble boys out there – ouch, I’m sorry man. There’s no way to take the sting out of just missing the money in a major tourney such as the ones we provide during FTOPS. On the bright side, you do get to play in the Bouncebackability Freeroll for a shot at winning a seat to this year’s WSOP Main Event. So you’ve got that going for you. Here’s the list of all the awe inspiring bubble boys, we feel your pain:

Event #1: CrazyMonkey13 (no relation to One Angry Monkey, thank god)

Event #2: skjervoy

Event #3: todaywewin (then again, there’s always tomorrow)

Event #4: Fluke_2001

Event #5: KCBlitzz

Event #6: 1sneaky (but not sneaky enough)

Event #7: Stuart Patterson (a pro as bubble boy, inconceivable!)

Event # 8: 2mints

Event #9: CHARLES OAKLEY (my all time favorite Knick, a man with elbows so sharp they could poke your eyes out)

One final note as I do my corporate duty for the day. We’ve put together some pretty cool video highlights from each FTOPS final table with commentary by Poker After Dark’s Ali Nejad. Check them out if you want to see all the action for yourself.

That’s it for now, I’ll be back on Thursday with some more FTOPS related madness, so be sure to check back then. As for me, I’m back to daydreaming about having enough money to buy-in to tonight’s $1K NLH tourney, but let’s get real – that ain’t never gonna happen. I’ll now be crying myself to sleep on my extra large pillow…

Post from: Poker From The Rail

The Week at FTP: FTOPS, FTOPS, FTOPS

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3. FTOPS XII Week 1 update

As we examined several agreed-upon “sports,” we actually identified a couple of them that could be both. One of these happened to be golf. I’m of the firm opinion that golf is an activity that can go either way. Poker, on the other hand, is clearly a game. Yes, my friends, I’d be glad to elaborate on this.

If you’re at the top of any “activity” and demonstrate skill and athleticism well beyond that of the average participant, you’re a professional and recognized accordingly. The obvious golf example is Tiger Woods. The man is at the top of the game – when he plays golf, it’s a sport. When Erick Lindgren went out went out in 100+ degree heat, carried his own clubs, and shot under 100 for four consecutive rounds on a tough course, that was golf as an extreme sport.

That said, if you cruise around in a cart, slugging beers, and whacking the dimpled spherical tormentor about the greens, it’s an activity. Don’t get me wrong (like almost anything with beer) it’s a fun activity – but it’s not really a sport at that level. To go one step further, if you’re Big Donkey lying on the couch in your briefs watching golf on TV…well, I’ll let that one go.

Poker is another animal altogether. To be at the top of the game, you’ve got to demonstrate mastery of a lot of concepts and be able to employ everything correctly in a matter of seconds. And you’ve got to be able to do that consistently for hours – if not days – on end to be at the high end of the game. This clearly requires mental and emotional stamina. However, it doesn’t require a level of physical athleticism comparable to that of a professional athlete.

That’s not to say that poker pros aren’t athletic. Guys like Scott Clements clearly work out – hell, he probably has to exercise just to maintain his skull-piercing stare. In any case, a lot of the pros are fit, and that’s obviously good for their game – but it’s not imperative for successful play. I asked Chris Ferguson about this, and he assured me that was the case: “Yeah, I train – I lie on the couch and watch TV.” There you have it. What other proof do you need? 

While my esteemed colleagues aren’t sure what to make of it*, I’ve got some thoughts on making poker a sport – an extreme sport at that. I’m of the firm opinion that there should be new multi-disciplined mixed games added to the bigger tournaments. Specifically, I’d love to see H.U.H.M.M.A.: alternating rounds of heads-up Hold ‘em and Mixed Martial Arts.

How cool would that be? Picture it: ten minutes at the table followed by ten minutes in the Octagon. If you lose your stack, you’re done. If you get knocked out, you’re done. I clearly see heads-up matches already, like Mike “Quick” Swick versus Michael Craig. This could be absolutely epic: Craig hits his gut-shot on the river and cripples Swick at the table. In round two, Swick lands a gut-shot Muay Thai style and just cripples Craig. If you followed that up with Clonie vs. Beth, it would be a ticket that would draw coverage like no other event. This, my friends, would unquestionably propel poker into the realm of true sport.

The Ultimate H.U.H.M.M.A. Series: I’m going to add this to my list of suggested promos for Full Tilt Poker. Hold your breath my friends, it might happen. Then again, you’re more likely to suffocate. Either way, who wouldn’t love The Ultimate H.U.H.M.M.A.?

*To be fair, this is a perfectly standard reaction to most of my ideas. More often than not, my colleagues’ responses are usually that of mild amusement, shock, and abject horror.

Post from: Poker From The Rail

Poker, Sports, and Real Mixed Games

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Category	Erick Lindgren	Steve Brecher	Survey Says
Career Earnings	Nearly $6 million	Nearly $700K	Who let E-Dog out, woof, woof, woof woof. We apologize, that’s the only time we’re bringing up that song. Kind of catchy though, huh? Lindgren takes the early lead.
Major Titles	Two WPT titles	Zero	Brecher did almost take down the USPC in 2005. Even if he had won, the words “major title” and “Atlantic City” just don’t go together. Ah, New Jersey – New York’s trash dump. Lindgren two, Brecher nada.
Tournament Play	One of the most feared tourney players on the circuit.	One of the most unknown players on the circuit.	Surely there are some people who might recognize Brecher; I’m just not one of them. This gives me the freedom to rag on him as hard as I feel like (or at least as hard as I can without getting fired). Say what you want about good old Brech-ster, he’s just not in the same league as Lindgren when it comes to tourney play. E-Dog takes another bite out of his competition (let’s keep track – dog joke number two).
Cash Game Play	There’s more than just bark to E-Dog’s cash game play (wincing, number three).	Not known as a cash game expert, but who am I to judge? Oh, right. I get to judge this competition. Sucks to be you, Brecher.	Well, they say you can’t keep a good dog down (number four). Which has absolutely nothing to do with anything, but I thought it sounded cool. E-Dog four, Brecher zero.
Playing Style	Downward Dog (number five)	Hungry Hippo	A yoga joke in a poker blog? I’ve really outdone myself this time. For those of you who don’t know, the Downward Dog is a yoga position. Hey, don’t judge me man. I’m not one to pass up the opportunity to see spandex clad women putting themselves in compromising positions. What was I saying? Let’s give this one to Brecher – everyone loves a hungry hippo.
Best Game	No-Limit Hold ‘em	No-Limit Hold ‘em	Well, they say every dog has his day (number six). Which has absolutely nothing to do with anything, except that I needed to fill up some space on the page. This one’s a wash; let’s move on to greener pastures.
Nickname	E-Dog	Brec	Steve “Brec” Brecher, huh? Well, that’s original. Whereas E-Dog sounds like the name a rapper might use. We’re all about the rappers around here, except for The Captain and his frightening fascination with Neil Diamond (shudder). For shizzle my whizzle, E-Dog takes down this bizzle (god bless Snoop Dogg for teaching an entire generation of young white males to talk like they’ve got a kazoo in their mouth).
Outside Poker	Wrote a book – about poker.	Former software programmer, which is code for someone who made a lot of money.	I once dreamed of becoming a software programmer, but then I remembered that I’m an idiot. Sucks to be me, huh? I have a small soft spot in my heart reserved for anyone who attempts to be a writer (although I could just be having a heart attack – maybe I should get that checked out), so I have to give this one to E-Dog. They say you can’t teach an old dog new tricks (banging my head against the wall, that’s number seven), but don’t tell that Lindgren. The score stands at 6.5 to 1.5 for Erick.
Prop Bet, Anyone?	Bring it on! (Thank god for movies about cheerleaders, where would I be without them?)	Maybe later.	E-Dog once took part in a famous prop bet where he had to play four rounds of golf in one day, carrying his own bag in the scorching Vegas sun. Now, I know not everyone who reads this blog has been to Vegas, so I’m going to let you all in on a little secret about Sin City – it’s hot. Like, dear God I think my skin is melting off my body hot. So for E-Dog to finish this prop bet was no small feat. Mad props to the prop bet master, Lindgren finishes off Brecher with style.

So that’s that. Lindgren takes down Brecher by a score of 7.5 to 1.5. Man, E-Dog just treated Brec like a common fire hydrant (number eight, thank god it’s over). Have a great day and please, remember to spay and neuter your pets, lest we someday live in a world that’s controlled by dogs and cats. Until next week…

Post from: Poker From The Rail

Heads Up: Erick Lindgren Versus Steve Brecher

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Recently, and after only moderate haranguing, Aaron was good enough to actually chat with us and share his thoughts on poker as well as what he’s up to in general. Here’s what he had to say:

What’s an “average” day consist of for you?

When I’m not involved in a tournament, I get up in the morning pretty much whenever the mood strikes. I usually go through my morning routine, turn on the computer and check emails, and log onto Full Tilt Poker. I’ll play some tournaments or cash games for a couple of hours while I’m catching up on all of my TiVo shows from the night before. By then one or two of my roommates  are up and we’ll usually play some more poker and video games – we play Halo just about every day. Later on we might go to a bar or a casino and chill out. It’s a very laid back routine.

This all changes when I’m getting ready for a tournament. Since I have such a sporadic sleep schedule, I’ve got to adjust it about a week in advance. For the WSOP, I’ll start this as much as a couple of weeks in ahead so that I’ve got a routine down before it starts. If I’m on a regular schedule, I’ll be able to play comfortably and avoid making mistakes. With a big online tournament like an FTOPS event, I’ll make sure that there isn’t anything else lined up while it’s going on and that there’s food in the house so that I can settle down and do what I have to do. I’m completely focused on that and nothing else for the duration.

As a pro, what are your thoughts on the “poker lifestyle?”

You know, it’s pretty much like being at the “cool kids’” lunch table in a prep school. In that small community, you’re the man. But if you zoom out a bit – you’re still just a prep school kid. If you go to the Bellagio with a bunch of professional poker players, it really gives you a sense of self-worth. But when you go anywhere else, it’s like “who the hell are you?” It’s a very humbling experience when you step outside the poker life, which is why some of the bigger names never seem to get away from it. They’re always in the casino and totally into that type of “degenerate” lifestyle.

Where do you fit into this? Do you still enjoy it?

Don’t get me wrong, it’s better than doing almost anything else that I can think of. I just don’t get so wrapped up in it that it consumes 24 hours of my day when I’m not playing. I used to, but it goes back to the prep school example – there’s more to it than that. If I didn’t get a sense of enjoyment out of it, then what I’m doing would be no different than if I’d finished a degree and got a “real job.” Every time I play, I still get a sense of enjoyment out of it.

It’s all just a matter of keeping things balanced. I spend a lot of time hanging out with friends, whether we go to a movie or to the local bar for a few beers and some Golden Tee or trivia. Like I said before, it’s all very low-key – jeans and a t-shirt, just relaxing and talking with people.

Looking at other professional poker players, are there any in particular that you admire or think of as a “true professionals?”

As far as other professional poker players are concerned, I have great respect for Erick Lindgren and Allen Cunningham. They’re probably two of the best tournament players in the world today. In fact, I’ve always thought that Alan is the best player ever – it doesn’t surprise me that he’s won the bracelets he has and taken down millions every year. They’re both awesome people as well as poker pros – they’ve both influenced me professionally.

Another person who’s really influenced me – especially from a work ethic standpoint – is Jon “PearlJammed” Turner. We’re the same age, both from Raleigh, and we moved out to Vegas at the same time. His work ethic is inspiring – he’s able to work 4 to 8 tables at a time for 10 hours a day every day. He never tilts, he never blows up at people in chat, and he never loses his cool. He’s a solid player that puts in his time every day and wins his share of tournaments. I think that Jon’s one of the best online tournament players today, in terms of consistent solid play as well as lifestyle. And he’s really tall, too.

Post from: Poker From The Rail

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