Amanda “Mandy B” Baker came close to a Sunday final table for the second week in a row. If I put up another picture of her in this post I might be accused of bias. She went through nearly 9,700 players in the $200,000 Double Deuce only to finish in 20th place.  First the first time since I can remember, the $200,000 ran without reaching it’s guarantee meaning the tounament players were given a $6,000 overlay by Full Tilt.  More free money.

The 3 Big Money Sunday regular tournaments kept up their pace with a combined prize pool of over $1.5 Million.  ”TheBrain” was the biggest name at the Sunday Brawl final table finishing in 3rd.  Previous wins from “TheBrain” include an FTOPS win last August as well as a $1,000 Monday and $100 rebuy $65k Guarantee tournaments on FTP.

The biggest winner of the evening is also a past FTOPS winner who took down one of the biggest online tournaments ever run.  ”hAAydon” took down over $140,000 for his victory in the $750,000 Guarantee.  That is nearly $400,000 less than he earned for his victory in FTOPS IX Event #22.  His $540,000 payday for the two-day $2,500 tournament was one of the largest in history.

In live poker news, Team Full Tilt pro Roland De Wolfe is having a nice run in Spain.  They are moving quickly towards the final three tables of the EPT Barcelona tournament and he’s sitting near the middle of the field.  This summer De Wolfe claimed his first World Series of Poker bracelet in the $5,000 Pot Limit Omaha/8 tournament.  He was also the first to win the so-called “Triple Crown” which represnts a WPT, EPT and WSOP victory.

At the same time, you have the WPT Cyprus Main Event occurring with a field stocked full of Full Tilt pros.  Currently wading through the tournament are Allen Cunningham, Phil Gordon, Chris Ferguson, Howard Lederer, Andy Bloch, John Juanda, Mike Matusow and 2009 “November Nine” member James Akenhead.  That event is just kicking off and promises to have a fine representation from Full Tilt.

After the jump you can find a video with Roland De Wolfe and Poker from The Rail favorite Melissa Castello as well results from the Big Money Sunday events.

The Sunday Brawl
Entrants: 2,532
Prizepool: $506,400
First place: $102,799.20

1st – Van Wild3r – $102,799.20
2nd – jordankickz – $66,338.40
3rd – TheBrain – $49,120.80
4th – IPPharm – $36,967.20
5th – jbenya – $25,826.40
6th – Renanr0x – $17,217.60
7th – JaDuHorde – $11,647.20
8th – daplama150 – $8,102.40
9th – SlimsChicken – $6,076.80

The $200k Double Deuce
Entrants: 9,700
Prizepool: $200,000 ($6,000 overlay)
First place: $31,000

1st and 2nd made a deal:

1st – Shpadoones – $26,192.31
2nd – JaEs SiK – $25,807.69
3rd – JMOANY – $14,800.00
4th – DCLunatic – $10,640.00
5th – piulux – $7,800.00
6th – mnchubbs – $5,600.00
7th – amatveeve – $4,000.00
8th – floppietjuh – $2,860.00
9th – BoutTheBenjamins – $2,022.00

The $750k Guarantee
Entrants: 3,958
Prizepool: $791,600
First Place: $140,152.78

1st – hAAydon – $140,152.78
2nd – CThib – $84,701.20
3rd – littlebugga – $55,412.00
4th – FarSeerCantDie – $43,696.32
5th – Pececillo – $32,722.24
6th – Chances Cards – $24,302.12
7th – jason jiang – $18,206.80
8th – ILOKEPONIES – $14,248.80
9th – juanmoretime – $10,607.44

The Sunday Mulligan
Entrants: 1,247
Prizepool: $249,400
First place: $54,868

1st – Chong94 – $54,868.00
2nd – oldschool43 – $34,916.00
3rd – Towelfish – $25,688.20
4th – RJules – $20,263.75
5th – Babooyah – $15,587.50
6th – tong26 – $11,223.00
7th – JonnyMalc – $7,482.00
8th – Guzzinator – $5,611.50
9th – clotilda – $3,990.40

Post from: Poker From The Rail

Big Money Sunday – September 6th

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Sometimes things just go way over the top when you’re dealing with the biggest poker tournament in the world.  You’ll see some crazy things along the rails, loud player disagreements, whack jobs dressed in all types of getups looking for camera attention.  Then you have the times when a table pulls the attention of every player and media outlet in the room.

Actor/comedian Brad Garrett drew a table that was far away from the rail and virtually in the center of the blue section.  5 time bracelet and 1984 Main Event winner Berry Johnston was also at the table.  Garrett was laughing it up with the players at the table and anyone who would listen.  To the point where his table was completely surrounded by every media outlet with a badge to get there.  Witness the picture above and below.

Before long players at the other tables were begging the floor staff to deal with the situation.  It will certainly make good TV for ESPN when it airs, but neither Garrett or Johnston would move on to Day 3.

Images from the rest of Day 2a after the jump:

96 year old Jack Ury continues to extend his record as the oldest player in the Main Event.
He would unfortunately exit early in Day 2a.

Greg “FBT” Mueller continues his WSOP hot streak.
He finished Day 2a with 287,300 in chips, good for 12th of 607.

One of the more entertaining tables of the day with Billy “The Croc” Argryos and Gavin Smith, neither player would survive to see Day 3.

Full Tilt stalwarts Chris Ferguson and Mike Matusow has different runs during Day 2a of the Main Event.  Matusow is signing copies of his new book after busting out while Ferguson will enter Day 3 with 76,000 in chips.

Beth Shak entered Day 2a with a respectable 25,000 in chips but was another victim of the day.

Both Fabrice Soulier and Roland de Wolfe were able to dodge the minefields of Day 2a.
Soulier will start Day 3 with 145,800 and de Wolfe with just 21,000.

Poker From the Rail favorite Amanda “Mandy B” Baker entered the day with over 56,000 in chips but was unable to make Day 3.  No more photo ops til the next time.

Post from: Poker From The Rail

2009 World Series of Poker – Day 2a Pictures

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Perry Friedman rocks the Full Tilt Poker “grill” to go with his corn rows

I’ve generally stuck to doing a “Week in Pictures” during the preliminary events of the WSOP but I now realize that I’ll be getting more photos than I know what to do with now that we’ve come to the Main Event.  So now we’re going to switch up to daily posts as long as we continue to get quality images.

Day 1a started with 1,116 and finished with 821 players.  A good number of Team Full Tilt survived to see Day 2.

More photos after the jump:

Post from: Poker From The Rail

2009 World Series of Poker – Main Event Day 1a 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.

Post from: Poker From The Rail

2009 World Series of Poker – Week 3 in Pictures

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Two new events will be starting today including another $2,000 No Limit Hold’em tournament to inflate the participation numbers.  5pm brings us another “World Championship” event with the $10,000 Seven Card Stud/8 tournament.  Brasilia Room will be star struck and railbirds stacked a dozen deep.

This kind of scheduling, only one new tournament tomorrow also, makes us think the planners understand a bunch of people have been slaving away for 20 plus straight days and might turn a little loopy.  We’ve seen some odd behavior from our dark elevated corner of the Amazon Room, most of the stories are not fit for public consumption or wouldn’t be amusing unless you spent 14 hours a day staring at a steady stream of button mashers playing live. The room will take this small slowdown in new events to gather ourselves for the big push from to the $50,000 HORSE onto the Main Event.

The biggest Full Tilt story going into Day 23 is Roland De Wolfe sitting near the top of the $1,500 No Limit Hold’em leaderboard.  He’s going for his second bracelet of the 2009 World Series of Poker and 7th for Team Full Tilt.  The $5,000 Pot Limit Omaha features an international field with more than half of the top 20 from the States.

Chip counts for the restarts after the jump:

Erik Seidel playing in Event #35 $5,000 Pot Limit Omaha

Event #34 No Limit Hold’em
Buyin: $1,500
Number of Entries: 2,095
Net Prize Pool: $2,859,675
First Place Prize: $521,991
Total Spots Paid Out: 216
Players Remaining: 21

Event #35 Pot Limit Omaha
Buyin: $5,000
Number of Entries: 363
Net Prize Pool: $1,706,100
First Place Prize: $409,484
Total Spots Paid Out: 36
Players Remaining: 64

Top 50 chip stacks:

Post from: Poker From The Rail

2009 World Series of Poker Day 23 – Slow Ride

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Roland De Wolfe wins his first WSOP bracelet in the Pot Limit Omaha/8 Event
Photo credit: IMPDI

A day after Phil Ivey won his 7th WSOP bracet and 4th for Team Full Tilt, Roland De Wolfe added another to the collection.  De Wolfe won his first WSOP bracelet in the Pot Limit Omaha/8 event and nearly $250,000.  It was a talented final table that included Omaha-guru Scott Clements (making his second Omaha final table this year), Alex Kravchenko, Andy Black, Brett Richey and John Racener.

He accomplished his feat at a relatively short final table, finishing just after 8pm. Players continued to drop and he kept building up his chipstack to a 4-to-1 chip lead once heads up with Brett Richey. That battle did not take very long and De Wolfe was soon smiling for the media photogs.

Roland De Wolfe adds his name to an exclusive list that just includes himself and Gavin Griffin as the only players with World Series of Poker, World Poker Tour, and European Poker Tour victories. Come Monday afternoon we’ll get to hear God Save the Queen throughout the Amazon Room one more time.

Scott Clements made his second Omaha final table of the year

Post from: Poker From The Rail

2009 World Series of Poker – Roland De Wolfe delivers another bracelet

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Category	Roland de Wolfe	Aaron Bartley	Survey Says
Career Earnings	Almost $4 million	Over $200K	To be fair here, Bartley mostly plays online and those results are not included in The Hendon Mob database, so he’s probably earned a bit more than $200K in his career. Nonetheless, the writing is on the wall for this one folks – Roland jumps out to an early lead.
Major Titles	1 WPT title	None	Bartley did make the final table of a WSOP-C table in 2005, but came in fifth. Too bad for him on that one, otherwise this might’ve been a closer call. As it is, de Wolfe takes down another category and leads 2-0.
Tournament Play	In addition to his WPT win, de Wolfe also won the EPT Dublin event in 2006, becoming the first player to win both a WPT and EPT title. So yes, you could say that Roland knows a thing or two about playing donkaments.	Bartley is almost strictly a tourney player online and has done very well in several major online tourneys.	So the big question here is a how do we compare a live tourney player with an online tourney specialist? It’s a fairly hard comparison to make, and either way I’m going to end up screwing someone over here. Both of these guys are good tourney players, they just happen to exist in different universes. With that said, I think I have to go with de Wolfe on this one – this difference in the money being won in live tourneys versus online ones is just too great. Roland continues his hot streak and now leads 3-0.
Cash Game Play	On occasion.	Only if there’s nothing to do before the next big online tourney goes off.	Yeah, so neither of these two are big into the cash game scene. I’d love to call this one a tie and move on, but my gut is telling me that if de Wolfe and Bartley sat down at the cash game table together Roland would probably eat Aaron alive. Unfortunately, the beat down continues as de Wolfe marches onward towards victory.
Best Game	NLHE	NLHE	This would normally be the place in one of these posts where I’d make some crap up just to make sure there’s not too much white on the page. You know, because there’s really not much to say in this category. But I’m not going to do that. I vow right now to make this as quick and painless as possible. I will not waste your valuable time spouting nonsensical drivel about whatever happens to be on my mind. You know, cause I’m nice like that. At any rate, even though these two both excel at the same game, I’m going to give this one to Bartley. I just can’t stand to see a beat down like this happen to someone that we here at The Rail actually like and think is cool. So this one’s for you Aaron. Don’t call it a comeback, but the score now stands at 4-1 for de Wolfe.
Playing Style	Live LAG	Online LAG	Both of these guys probably fall into the loose, aggressive (otherwise known as LAG) category of playing style. Another tough call to make here, but Bartley’s on a roll and I don’t feel like putting a stop to it. Besides, the LAG style is probably better suited for online play anyway. The comeback continues − Aaron now trails Roland by two points.
Nickname	The Sheep	Gamble AB	I think Roland is called The Sheep because he’s a wolf in sheep’s clothing – get it? Yeah, it’s kind of lame. And I’m not saying that Bartley’s nickname is really that cool, but at least it doesn’t make you cringe. Looks like Aaron wins this one by default − the score stands at 4-3 for Roland heading into the final two frames of action.
Outside Poker	Former writer for a poker/gambling magazine.	Former nothing, Aaron went straight from school into the business of donkaments, coolers, and bad beats.	As much respect we have for writers around here (which is about none, so you can imagine the level of self-loathing going on), how cool would it be to go straight from school into poker. I mean, no real job, no BS, just poker all day, every day. That sounds like the life to me. Amazingly enough, we can now call this one a comeback as Bartley has evened the score at 4 apiece.
Best Pro Tip	Getting Paid on a Monster	Holding On To Your Winnings	Hmm – so we have a tip about making more money versus a tip about how not to lose your money. Guess which way I’m going with this one? That’s right, bankroll management be damned, all I care about is getting me some more Benjamins. Sorry Aaron, I tried my best to get you the win here, but it just wasn’t meant to be. Roland takes down the final category – the match is his.

So there you have it, Roland de Wolfe narrowly edges Aaron Bartley by a score of 5-4. It was an exciting match with a lot of ups and downs, highs and lows, and some paranoia and psychosis to boot. Check back next week for another round of action. Until then, you stay classy Pokerland…

Post from: Poker From The Rail

Heads Up: Roland de Wolfe Versus Aaron Bartley

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Why is the One Angry Monkey so sarcastic? People ask really good legitimate questions and I would like to read a proper answer.

Ah the age-old question – what makes people the way they are? We’re not sure if it is nature, nurture, or a severe lack of both, but the One Angry Monkey certainly lacks a softer side.

Even if my sullen fellow scribe wanted to provide some genuine advice, I’m not sure he could. “Poker From the Rail” isn’t just a blog name to One Angry Monkey, it’s the story of his poker-playing life. If you’re not picking up what I’m putting down, searching for sage poker advice from someone who has a bankroll equivalent in value to a cheeseburger is not the way to go.

As a tribute to the One Angry Monkey, I will say most people have the sense not to ask questions when they know they won’t like the answers. Sure that means we don’t get a lot of questions but whatever buddy, this isn’t the Care Bears factory – go find a more gentler poker forum like hmm, NWP, wait no 2+2, hold on umm, FCP and voice your opinion there.

I think I’m pretty hot stuff, how do I become a Full Tilt Poker pro?

Hey there hot stuff, welcome to the FTP stable. Ha, gotcha! You really thought it was going to be that easy didn’t you? I’m not saying we don’t share the same sentimonies but apparently there is a little more to it.

Given that none of us are qualified (or will ever be qualified) to give you an answer, I think a good start might be to win stuff. And by stuff I don’t mean a $7 pot in .05/.10 NL, I’m thinking some kind of unmentionable event where they give you a bracelet and a pile of cash at the end, or a tournament with a 3-letter acronym – they’re all the rage these days.

Lucky for you Roland de Wolfe wrote a comprehensive guide on winning those pesky Main Events – put it to good use and come back to us when we can look up your name on The Hendon Mob and actually find something.

Poker is destroying my marriage. Please help.

At last check none of us Poker From the Railers have ever been married. Nor have we ever played anything that could be classed as poker (boom-tish). Given how under-qualified I am to provide advice on this topic I really should stop here but I just can’t let a loyal reader down.

All I can say is live in the moment – games are certainly tougher than they used to be, and with all the information available on the inter-webs, even my micro-stakes NL tables are filled with crazy 3-betting TAGs and LAGs. Load up six tables of $2/$4 NL and isolate those 63/5/1 donks like there’s no tomorrow.

Remember– there’s always plenty of fish in the sea.

P.S. Please send us a trip report.

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Reader Mail: One Sarcastic Monkey

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If you’re going to win the main event, you might want to think about bringing your “A” game. You have to be able to maintain your focus for not only hours on end but days on end. I’m the first to admit that staring at a bunch of other men day after day isn’t always fun, but paying attention to your opponent’s tendencies will pay off. Noticing that your opponent always continuation bets means you can often take pots away from them with a raise. Watching what they do with their hands after a bet may tip you off to the strength of their cards.

You will be surprised at how poorly many people play in the main event. An average player probably has an edge, and you should try to exploit it. You can do this by playing small pots and avoiding coin flips. It is truly bizarre just how many people are willing to race for all of their chips on the first day of the main event. With two hour levels, you should let your ability to outplay your opponents after the flop dictate the action.

As time goes on and the blinds get higher, sooner or later you are going to have to gamble—even if you’re playing as good as Phil Ivey. That’s why you can’t forget about #2:

There does come a time in every tournament when you have to be willing to put in all your chips with J-J, knowing that your opponent will probably call you with A-K. If you plan on winning the main event, then you better plan on winning your coin flips. I recommend watching reruns of the 2006 main event to practice for this stage. And don’t forget that it’s always much more dramatic to hit the card you need on the river. If you’ve got A-K against Q-Q, why would you want to hit an A on the flop? It’s terribly anti-climatic.

Running good doesn’t just mean winning coin flips. It’s also important that when you pick up a big pair, make sure your opponent does too. For example, don’t waste pocket aces against someone with fours. You should really wait for aces until your opponent has kings. That way you can get all-in before the flop and either double up or bust them. 

Another part of running good is mastering the suck-out. There are many types of suck-outs, but I prefer to save them up for when it really counts. If you move all-in on a flush draw, make sure it’s going to hit before you do it. That way you can show no fear, even if you’re called by a set or two pair. 

Last year, I made the mistake of using up all my suckouts before heads-up play started at the Irish Open, while my opponent held onto his “get out of jail free” card for when it counted. When he moved in on me with pocket twos, I knew my threes were good but I forgot to keep my streak of running good alive in this hand and he spiked a deuce. Most importantly, you should do your best to save the one-outer for late stage play—when the pots are really, really big. 

To sum up: pick up the right cards at the right time and you will the main event. Also, if you are going to experience a bad beat, make sure it’s one you put on someone else. 

3. Look as good as Roland de Wolfe

I understand that this one might be tough for some of you. Actually, it’s going to be tough for all of you. But, truthfully, what good is winning the main event if you don’t look good while you are doing it? 

Some people resort to gimmicky clothing like superhero costumes, lots of jewelry, or even bathrobes. Anyone can look silly, but it takes a sharp eye to dress properly. It doesn’t take a lot of clothes to look good, just the right ones. Two nice collared shirts—think floral prints—and one lucky t-shirt should be all you’ll ever need. Throw in some comfy jeans and white leather shoes and you are well on your way to winning the main event.

Three simple steps: Play good, run good, look good. If you put these into action, I’m sure we’ll be seeing each other at the 2008 main event final table. But—on the off chance these aren’t working for you—can always try to pray as hard as Jerry Yang.

Post from: Poker From The Rail

The Pros Speak: Roland de Wolfe

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