The PND Weekly News Update is back! I’m your host Sean Gibson and we’ll be recapping the world of poker. Lets get right down to it!
A PokerStars SuperStar Showdown date between Viktor “Isildur1” Blom and Daniel Negreanu has been rumored for quite some time. Blom, who is four-and-one in SuperStar Showdowns and riding a four-match win streak, now gets a date with the PokerStars front man. In fact, the Blom/Negreanu match will stretch for two weeks.
On March 20th and 27th, Negreanu and Blom will battle in the first ever two-day PokerStars SuperStar Showdown. Both players will buy in for one hundred fifty thousand dollars and play twenty five hundred hands on March Twentieth. Once those hands have been logged, they’ll take a one-week hiatus and reconvene on March Twenty-Seventh for another twenty five hundred hands. May the best man win!
Right around the corner is the annual PokerStars Spring Championship of Online Poker, or SCOOP, will commence. This year’s running, the third overall, is monstrous. A total of thirty eight events will be held over the course of two weeks and, for each, three levels of buy-ins will be available: Low, Medium, and High.
Last year, a total of sixty three million dollars was ultimately distributed across thirty eight SCOOP events. This year, forty five million dollars is guaranteed and the actual prize pool is sure to soar much higher. The slate of tournaments starts off on May second with a No Limit Hold’em 6-max event that has a low buyin of $22, a medium buyin of $215 and a high buy-in of $2,100. The 2-Day Main Event will take place on May 16th.
Recently, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie dropped a bombshell on the poker industry by vetoing a bill proposed by State Senator Raymond Lesniak that would have created the first intrastate internet gambling market in the U.S. Now, the online poker industry has had a chance to digest the veto of the bill, which sailed through both chambers of the New Jersey legislature.
Poker News Daily has learned that no override of Christie’s veto is expected. Any override would require a two-thirds vote from the state’s legislature, but IMEGA Chairman Joe Brennan doesn’t see one coming. Brennan told Poker News Daily….
“I think the Governor spoke pretty firmly regarding his sentiments towards the bill. I don’t believe Republicans in the legislature would want to one-up the Governor.”
Another three hundred forty eight hands of the Durrrr Challenge played out this week in its first action since January. The battle waged on and Cates extended his lead to nearly a million dollars. A total of seventeen thousand hands have been played, which is one-third of the way through the fifty thousand required for completion. The challenge can be found exclusively at Full Tilt Poker.
With the Federated Sports and Gaming League set to kick off in August, organizers Annie Duke and Jeffrey Pollack are making some impressive hires to make sure Season One goes smoothly.
Matt Savage, who currently serves as the Executive Tour Director of the World Poker Tour, will be adding his years of experience as the Tournament Director of the League, a move that will certainly please the two hundred players selected for each event. Savage, who co-founded the Tournament Directors Association, will help design and manage all league tournaments, including structures, rules, and staff.
Last year, Erik Seidel fell to Annie Duke in the finals of the National Heads-Up Poker Championship. Despite the loss, the tournament marked a victory of sorts for Seidel, who had entered the two thousand ten running with an oh-and-five record in the event. Now, Seidel has won eleven of his last twelve National Heads-Up Poker Championship matches after taking down the two thousand eleven title and a seven hundred fifty thousand dollar payday last weekend.
Seidel swept PokerStars pro and World Series of Poker Main Event champ Chris Moneymaker in the finals. You’ll be able to see the action on NBC in the coming weeks.
Well, that does it for this week in the world of poker. Be sure to catch the latest updates here at Poker News Daily and as always we appreciate you tuning in. I’m Sean Gibson and have a great poker weekend!
