Instead of boring you with my words, you can have a look for yourself in the latest “Week in Pictures”. More photos after the jump.

This year’s Ante Up for Africa charity tournament drew a huge gathering at the rail.  They were there to see their favorite celebrities and poker players.  There was much yelling and screaming for photos and autographs.  Even though this is not a bracelet event, Full Tilt will be will represented when ESPN shows the broadcast.  The final table included Rafe Furst, Erik Seidel, Chris Ferguson, Phil Gordon and Jennifer Harman.
Photo credit: Gene Bromberg

Lee Watkinson came into the Pot Limit Omaha/8 tournament looking to make up for a less than explosive 2009 World Series of Poker.  The only cash Watkinson had to date was in the $1,000 “Stimulus Special”. By the end of Day 2 in the PLO8 game he would have his second cash.  He would in fact go all the way to the final table of the event and finish second to Brandon Cantu.

The $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. World Championship was a marquee draw for players and spectators.  Numbers for this event were way off from previous years.  No tables are easy in this event, but Scott Clements seemed to get his fair share of killer lineups.  His second day table consisted of Allen Kessler, Erik Seidel, Daniel Negreanu, Andy Black, Chau Giang, and David Grey.

Actor Joe Reitman and Full Tilt pro Allen Cunningham play in the $1,500 Limit Hold’em Shootout.  Combining Limit and the shootout format made for long days and little sleep.  Neither player would cash in this event.  Reitman cashed in his next event.  Cunningham has only two cashed for his 2009 World Series of Poker.

Erick Lindgren ruled the 2008 World Series of Poker taking Player of the Year honors for his effort.  He only cashed 5 times last year but those included 3 final table and one bracelet.  Going into the Main Event this year he has gone to the cage 4 times but his best finish was 20th in the $2,500 Deuce to Seven tournament.

Gus Hansen and Phil Ivey playing in the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. World Championship.  Hansen would come into Day 3 with the chip lead but would exit just one spot of the final table.  Phil Ivey did not figure in the results but Team Full Tilt would fill half of the final 8.

The $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. World Championship final table was loaded with Team Full Tilt pros.  Representing the colors were Vitaly Lunkin, Huck Seed, Chau Giang and Erik Seidel.  Even with half the final table, Full Tilt was unable to add to the bracelet count with Vitaly Lunkin going the furthest in 4th.  Lunkin final tabled the two biggest buyin events of the 2009 World Series of Poker, winning the $40,000 No Limit Hold’em 40th Anniversary tournament.

Greg “FBT” Mueller entered the 2009 World Series of Poker with a number of close calls trying to earn his first WSOP bracelet.  He finally got the monkey off his back with a victory in the $10,000 Limit Hold’em World Championship earlier in the series.  He added a bracelet to his other wrist when he took down the $1,500 Limit Shootout. Mueller was the four player this year to record multiple wins.  Jeff Lisandro, Phil Ivey, and Brock Parker also accomplished the feat.  For the record, “FBT” stands for Full Blown Tilt.

Matt Hawrilenko might have the distinguish of winning the quiestest 2009 World Series of Poker bracelet.  He won the $5,000 6-max No Limit Hold’em event, the final preliminary tournament before the Main Event.  Their Day 3 was completely overshadowed by the Ante Up for Africa charity tournament going on just across the room.  The rail was completely stacked with fans and autograph-hunters, not many were paying attention as the next-to-last tournament was being played out.  Hawrilenko went on to win the event and add bracelet number 8 for Team Full Tilt.

Post from: Poker From The Rail

2009 World Series of Poker – Week 5 in Pictures

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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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It’s Friday so that means it’s time for the Week in Pictures.  These are just some of the collection that did not make any posts during the week but are worthy of your time

View of the final table of Event #27 Pot Limit Omaha/8.  Three Full Tilt members were present but Roland De Wolfe would defeat Omaha-guru Scott Clements for the title.

More pictures after the jump:

Perry Friedman and John Juanda would find themselves seated next to each other to start the $3,000 H.O.R.S.E. Event #21.  Juanda and Ivey have the unofficial lead in the massage therapist challenge.  Neither Juanda or Friedman would cash in this event.  Gavin Smith would go the furthest for Team Full Tilt just missing the final table. Blogger CK31 would take her Battle of the Blogger tournament prize and ride it to a 39th place finish in the money.

Lee Watkinson playing in Event #24. One of the $1,500 No Limit Hold’em tournaments where the big guns are generally looking to double up or prepare for the big 5pm game.  Watkinson has one cash during the 2009 WSOP for just over $22,000.

Jon “Pearljammer” Turner starting in the $2,500 Omaha/Stud Hi-Low tournament.  Turner would make the final table which was loaded with names like Phil Ivey, Carlos Mortensen, and Dutch Boyd. Ivey would get the glory at the end of the day winning his 2nd WSOP bracelet in 2009.

Richard “Quiet Lion” Brodie did not make his appearance at the 2009 World Series of Poker until early this week.  Wasting very little time, he entered the $1,500 Limit Hold’em Event #26 and came just one spot from making his first WSOP final table.  He finished 10th for a cool $13,000 and change.

At yet another Full Tilt stacked final table, Roland De Wolfe overcame all others including Scott Clements (above) and Andy Black.  It always seems Clements is ready to come over the table and take your chips personally.  De Wolfe appears to be eyeing up the bracelet, which he would collect at the end of the tournament.

Kelly Kim plays in a $1,500 No Limit Hold’em tournament (Event #28).  Kim would cash in the tournament, his first cash since finishing 8th in the 2008 World Series of Poker Main Event.

Coming into the 2009 World Series of Poker many thought this would be the year Vivek Rajkumar made a huge splash, your humble author included.  Rajkumar has collected nearly $2,000,000 in tournament earnings since September.  Unfortunately Rajkumar has found himself on the wrong end of coolers and bad beats with no cashes in the series so far this year.

Hendon Mobster Ross Boatman made the $2,500 Pot Limit Omaha final table as well as John Juanda.  Boatman started with the chip lead but would leave the tournament is 4th place.  Also in the picture is eventual winner J.C. Tran.

French favorite Fabrice Soulier playing in the $1,500 H.O.R.S.E. tournament.  Soulier would go on to make the final table and finish in 7th.  To date he has 5 cashes during the 2009 World Series of Poker.  Blogger Lana “LJ” Maier would make another deep run and represent well.  She finished just short of the final table.

Team Full Tilt members Josh Arieh and Steve Zolotow playing in the $10,000 Limit Hold’em World Championship.  The tournament would eventually be won by fellow Team Full Tilt member Greg “FBT” Mueller after a long, grueling final table.

Allen Cunningham is another Full Tilt pro who made a late appearance at the series this year.  He is playing in Event #34 $1,500 No Limit Hold’em tournament which he would go on to finish in the money.

Nick Schulman considers his action during the No Limit Deuce to Seven Draw World Championship final table.  Schulman would go on to win after handling a very tough table that included John Juanda, David Benyamine, Michael Binger, Archie Karas and Ville Wahlbeck.

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2009 World Series of Poker – Week 3 in Pictures

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While all this is going on, the good folks at Image Masters continue to provide us with some great action shots during the tournaments.  Every morning I receive pictures from the day before that I use to enhance the stories I try to bring the readers.  I hope they’ve added to the experience.

Today I bring you some photos from Week 2 of the 2009 World Series of Poker without my ramblings.  A small taste of what we have available, look for a full gallery coming in the next few days.  All pictures courtesy of Image Masters.

Pictures after the jump, click to enlarge:

The Two Faces of Andy Black
Andy Black started off the 2009 World Series of Poker with players talking about his play AND his appearance. He seemed to be rocking the beard and laid back look at the beginning and looked completely different during Week 2. Your investigative blogger will get to the bottom of this before the end of the series.

Phil Ivey collects World Series of Poker bracelet #6 at the daily ceremony from WSOP Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack.

Phil Ivey wasted no time after winning his 6th WSOP bracelet. He hopped right back into action.  Full Tilt pro Beth Shak in the foreground and may be the recipient of the Ivey stare.

Legends side-by-side.  Erik Seidel and Mike Sexton grinding away in Event #15 of the 2009 World Series of Poker.  Seidel came close to winning his 9th WSOP bracelet in the Pot Limit Hold’em tournament had to settle for a seventh place finish.  Seidel is tied with another legend, Johnny Moss, with 8 WSOP bracelets.

Svetlana Gromenkova and Karina Jett were just a few of the Full Tilt pros to represent in the 2009 World Series of Poker Ladies Championship. Gromenkova won this event in 2008 but was unable to defend her title.

“Miami” John Cernuto and John Juanda playing in Event #16 $1,500 Seven Card Stud tournament.  “Miami” John would put up a great fight ending up in 11th.  Juanda had his first shot at bracelet number 5 by making the final table. Juanda’s run ended with a 5th place finish.

Howard Lederer playing in the $10,000 Mixed World Championship.  It’s been a slow start to the series for “The Professor” this year with only one cash to date.  No doubt he’ll be a factor as the series progresses.

Both David Chiu and Huck Seed won their way to the final table of the $10,000 Mixed Championship with a chance to add to their jewelry collection.  Seed collected over $102,000 for his 5th place finish and Chiu was the runner up for $304,000 but no new trophies on his wrist.

Erica Schoenberg only has one cash in the 2009 World Series of Poker but continues her search for a WSOP bracelet.  As a railbird favorite, she is always easy to find in the poker room.

It’s never a dull moment when Perry Friedman is in the poker room.  He started the series by sporting a “Full Tilt Poker grill” (gold hip hop teeth things for us uncool folk) and he added a little twist in Week 2.  It’s tough to see but he rocking the cornrows on each side of his head with Full Tilt spelled out in beads.  Who knows what to expect in Week 3.

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2009 World Series of Poker – Week 2 in Pictures

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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.

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2009 World Series of Poker – The Week in Pictures

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