Tiltboy Rafe Furst was the feature guest on Wednesday’s episode of the UB.com sponsored poker news show “Poker2Nite,” which airs weekly on Versus at 11:00pm ET. Furst is the founder of “Put a Bad Beat on Cancer.”
The show opened with a recap of the World Poker Tour (WPT) Championship, which wrapped up last weekend with Bodog pro David Williams scooping the title and $1.5 million. “Poker2Nite” host Joe Sebok shared his thoughts on Williams’ poker prowess: “In my mind, David Williams has always been a bit of an enigma. Are we going to get the guy who comes in and finishes second in the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event and wins a bracelet or ‘DW,’ the guy who wants to ride around in his Bentley, hang out with Jay-Z, and talk about clubbing?”
Williams later joined the show via Skype, sans the diamond-encrusted toothpick, and told Sebok and co-host Scott Huff about a dream he had prior to the WPT Championship: “I had this really strange vision that I was going to win. If you put your mind to something and really believe in it, it really helps.” Williams sports a new look, but questioned whether he’ll be keeping it in the 120-degree Las Vegas summer heat.
The WPT Championship featured WSOP Main Event champs Phil Hellmuth and Scotty Nguyen being eliminated on the TV bubble. On his competition, Williams admitted, “The final 10 was ridiculous. It was a TV producer’s dream. To win that event makes me feel really confident in my abilities and what I was able to pull off.” Williams bested UB.com pro Eric “basebaldy” Baldwin heads-up.
Liv Boeree took down the European Poker Tour (EPT) San Remo Main Event for $1.7 million. A reporter from PokerNews.com caught up with the female sensation shortly after her win and Boeree shared her elation with “Poker2Nite” viewers: “My mind is just a blur of white noise. I can’t believe I won. I’m ecstatic. This is the biggest thing ever.” Boeree was a guest on “Poker2Nite” three weeks ago and is a sponsored pro of UB.com.
2010 is shaping up to be the Year of the Woman. Just four months into the new stanza, Annie Duke took down the National Heads-Up Poker Championship, Vanessa Selbst won the North American Poker Tour (NAPT) Mohegan Sun Main Event, and Boeree won the end-of-season EPT title. On the ladies’ success so far, Sebok explained, “It really is incredible. As far as who I’m looking for at the WSOP, a lot of people are looking to Annette Obrestad. It’s certainly shaping up to be a big year for the ladies.” Obrestad will make her Las Vegas WSOP debut in 2010. She won the WSOP Europe Main Event three years ago at age 18 to the tune of £1 million.
“P2N Online” brought viewers the latest buzz from online poker forums and social media. Reaction to Boeree’s win on TwoPlusTwo was plentiful and “P2N Online” host Dana Workman replayed the infamous interview where Boeree asked porn star Ron Jeremy if he preferred a starting hand of 6-9 of J-K off. Then, one poster asked if the top 20 in the WSOP Tournament of Champions voting resulted from a heading atop the ballot that read, “Name everyone who was famous in poker in 2005.”
Furst joined the set and described the origins of the Tiltboys: “It was just a home poker game. Perry Friedman, Phil Gordon, and I started it in college and it continues to this day.” Furst donned a green patch signifying his pledge to donate 1% of potential WSOP earnings to the Prevent Cancer Foundation and promptly challenged Sebok to a best-of-five Roshambo match. Sebok won the first three throws and, as a result, you’ll be seeing Furst dressed in women’s clothing during Day 1 of the WSOP Main Event in July.
Finally, Thuy Doan appeared via Skype. Late last year, pros including Doyle Brunson and Tom “durrrr” Dwan shaved their heads in support of Doan’s battle with cancer. She has since undergone a partial amputation of her left leg, but appeared upbeat. Doan gleamed, “I’m excited to get back into poker. It’s the one thing that I miss the most.” She’ll be headed to the Rio for the 2010 WSOP.
Next week, Mike Matusow will be the feature guest on “Poker2Nite.” Catch the series every Wednesday at 11:00pm ET on Versus.