Welcome back to the Poker News Daily Weekly News Update! I’m your host Sean Gibson and in this show we’ll be reviewing the top news for the week in the world of poker. Let’s get right to it!
Our first news story is about a comeback for one of poker’s biggest names. 2008 WSOP Main Event winner Peter Eastgate is back after a Quote UnQuote retirement which didn’t even last one year. PokerStars, who is officially no longer Eastgate’’s full time sponsor, will sponsor him for the next two events he plays in. Eastgate informed the public of his return in a press release by stating:
“Over the last eight months, I have had a chance to reconnect with my friends and, most important, my family … I have spent quality time with my family and really had an opportunity to figure out who I am and what I want to do with the rest of my life. When there is no financial pressure, it can sometimes be hard to get motivated to move forward as a person.”
Eastgate went on to say that the first event he will be playing in will be the PokerStars EPT Copenhagen event, which will be played in his home country. The next event that Eastgate will play in will be the NBC Heads-Up Championship.
Speaking of that NBC Heads-Up Championship, the field is taking shape rather quickly. A partial list of the entrants has already been released. This time one point eight million dollars will be on the line with the winner taking in three quarters of a million dollars. Notable participants that have been confirmed include Eastgate as well as this year’s WSOP Main Event winner Jonathan Duhamel. Other names include Phil Ivey, Doyle Brunson and Daniel Negreanu. Jon Miller, President of NBC Sports, said to the media,
“We are proud to broadcast the National Heads-Up Poker Championship for a seventh consecutive year for our viewers to see some of the most exciting poker in the world. You never know what match-ups you are going to get in Heads-Up.“
In big news from the World Series of Poker, it’s been announced that the WSOP Europe has been moved from England to France in 2011. The cramped Empire Casino in London will no longer play host to the event, as it will be moved to the Casino Barriere de Cannes Croisette. The event will be played out starting October 7th and conclude on October 21st. There will be seven qualifying stops for the WSOP Europe Canne event, to be held in various cities inside France.
Moving over to online poker in France, the government body that oversees online poker has suspended PokerStars home games pending an investigation into whether it violates French law. The announcement informed French customers, stating:
The Regulatory Authority of Online Games (ARJEL) decided to make a system analysis of Home Games to be able to ensure compliance with French law… We apologize for this temporary inconvenience and appreciate your loyalty to PokerStars.fr. Home Games.”
The latest issue with the PokerStars Home Games, which were introduced last month and appear to have been well received, marks the first time that ARJEL has brought up questions about PokerStars’ conduct in the French market.
Well congratulations goes out to the Yatahay Poker Network who just welcomed in Doyle’s Room. Their traffic is up 150% with the new site since the switch over. According to PokerScout.com, the Cake Poker Network, which lost Doyle’s Room, has seen its traffic decrease by around 19 percent. Now you might think that a 150% increase is an awesome deal but let’s not forget we’re talking about the 38th largest poker network in the world with a 24 hour peak traffic amount of 114 players.
The next person in line for a shot at isildur1 in a SuperStar Showdown will be tournament poker pro Eugene Katchalov, who will face off in the showdown this Sunday at 3pm eastern time.
Katchalov’s live tournament history dates back to 2004, when he earned his first cash in a preliminary event at the Five Diamond World Poker Classic at the Bellagio in Las Vegas. Since that time, the Ukrainian born Katchalov has gone on to amass 18 cashes in World Series of Poker tournaments. “Isildur1” isn’t about to cower in fear over facing Katchalov in the SuperStar Showdown. Blom has been able to move into a 2-1 lead in the previous three SuperStar Showdown events, which started back after he was signed to Team PokerStars Pro in December.
Our last story is a sad one as we remember the oldest man to ever play in a WSOP Main Event, Mr. Jack Ury, who passed away at age 97.
He was able to make Day 2 of the Main Event every year for the last four years, but never cashed, although he did inspire quite a few of us along the way. He is survived by his rather large family which includes 11 grandchildren and 14 great grandchildren.
Well, that does it for this week in the world of poker. Remember to come back to PND every single day for the latest in poker news. I’m Sean Gibson, and I just want to thank all of you who have been tuning in here at Poker News Daily and watching our weekly news recaps and other features. We absolutely appreciate all the great feedback. Best of luck at the tables!
