Poker Blog and Poker Gossip

After Doyle Brunson discussed whom he thought would end up being the winner of the Poker Hall of Fame 2010, he turned to his Twitter page and posted a poll of very interesting questions, one of which asked his followers to name the poker player that they most wanted to “make whoopee” with. Poker babe Shannon Elizabeth won the poll although Vanessa Rousso and Jennifer Tilly were close behind.

Shannon Elizabeth, a beautiful and talented poker player who has also starred in movies like American Pie, was quite amused when she topped the charts of Brunson’s Twitter poll and tweeted back “Um..thanks?! RT @TexDolly: ok, enough. thousands want the results. Poker player you want to have sex with. 1.Shannon Elizabeth!”

Brunson, who is 77-years old and has over 355,000 followers on Twitter, proved that he wasn’t a dirty old man when he responded “[You] had it wrong about me voting you #1 fav for sex. I didn’t vote, but I can’t argue with so many (5300) voters:).” Doyle Brunson uses the handle “TEXDOLLY” while on Twitter.

As for the women, they voted in Gus Hansen, Patrick Antonius and Phil Ivey (in that order) as the poker players that they would like to “make whoopee” with.

Brunson’s other questions included asking his Twitter followers which poker player they would most want to hang out with and which poker player made them think bloody murder. Phil Laak wont he vote for being a hang out buddy and was followed by Gavin Smith and Daniel Negreanu, who is known for his straight talking.

Phil Hellmuth predictably won the title for inspiring homicidal thoughts in the majority of Doyle Brunson’s 355,000 followers on Twitter. He has the nick name the “Poker Brat” which seems extremely mild considering that the poll shows that the player has the ability to inspire that little red devil inside people. Russ Hamilton and Tony G came in at second place and third place respectively.

Lauren Kling is a beautiful and enterprising poker player who many players tend to underestimate as a result of her blond good looks. In an interview with CardPlayer, Kling talked about her love for poker and how she had been exposed to the game since her childhood. Kling is a good example of good looks and intelligence, which she uses to play poker.

She has been described as a poker machine looking to take money from unsuspecting players. Kling is currently 24 years old and has secured a poker bankroll of $500,000 that she has acquired by playing poker tournaments. Kling may have been exposed to poker when she was very little but has only started playing poker in a professional capacity for a few years now.

Lauren Kling was born in 1985 in the state of Washington D.C. but later moved to Florida when she was seven. Kling was first introduced to poker and blackjack by her father who was a high roller who played in Vegas. “My dad was kind of a high roller when I was younger. I remember plenty of trips to Las Vegas as a little girl and my dad was constantly being comped free rooms and meals because of how much blackjack he was playing,” she said.

Kling learned the tricks of blackjack and poker from her father, who was an MIT math expert. She was counting cards and winning at blackjack tables long before she was even 18 and had used her older sister’s ID to get into games. Kling also discussed a few tips and strategies during her interview; some of the tips that Kling gave out during her interview covered blackjack games. “When the count is good, you want to be betting big. When the count is bad, you want to be betting small,” she said.

It was only during her time at college that Kling was so focused on poker. She took courses on play the game until she eventually racked up enough confidence and good sized bankroll to turn pro.

Shannon Elizabeth was the hot foreign exchange student in the film American Pie, but she’s far more than a pretty face. She’s also a great poker player. She’s been Nadia in the first and second American Pie movies. She was Harriet in Love, Actually. In Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, she played Justice. In The Grand, a poker movie, Shannon Elizabeth played Toni. In the 2007 National Heads Up Poker Championship, she showed herself as a great poker player, proving herself against some real poker pros.

While she only reached the semi-finals, the list of those she managed to beat was quite impressive. She stayed in when Jeff Madsen, Humberto Brenes, and Barry Greenstein were already out of the game. Paul Wasicka managed to eliminate her, though. Shannon took second place at the Ante Up for Africa event at this years WSOP, taking home almost $80,000. She still plans to go for the main event, so it’s anyone’s guess how well she will come out.

Carbon Poker’s Spokesperson, Peter Hampton, had said that Carbon was looking for a face for their brand. They’ve certainly found a beautiful one. Carbon’s team wanted a recognized star and a poker player who is well-respected. Hampton said that “Shannon easily meets both criteria and offers a creative edge that we’re thrilled to have on board.”

According to a recent press release, Shannon Elizabeth’s fans will have a chance to play against her and get to know her both in and out of the poker game in the upcoming weeks and months. Anyone who is in Vegas for the WSOP main event can try to get tickets for Carbon’s private party Sunday night. And for those who are clinging to Ms. Elizabeth’s every word, she’ll be writing on Carbon Poker’s blog now whenever there’s anything interesting to report.

At this year’s WSOP Women’s Championship game, not all of the women were, well, women. In fact, eight of the contestants were men. In particular, Shaun Deeb was noted for having shown up in drag. Due to laws against discrimination, the WSOP organizers couldn’t count the men out of the tournament, but that didn’t mean that the women who had lined up to play were pleased. Shaun Deeb put up a video on YouTube explaining that he’d lost a bet and he had to play in the tournament. He also promised to give any winnings to charity. Moreover, he claimed that since poker is a mind sport, rather than one of physical prowess, there shouldn’t need to be division of the sexes.

Linda Johnson, one of the pioneers in women’s poker, disagrees. She said that many women view poker as the territory of men, and having a women’s only tournament helps them overcome the feeling of intimidation felt when stepping into a man’s world. Moreover, the socialization during a women’s tournament is different. By having women’s tournaments, top women poker players get to meet, socialize, and experience poker without feeling like outsiders. For Johnson, her first Women’s Championship thirty years ago was a turning point. Although she only placed fifth, it gave her the confidence she needed to move into the world of professional poker.

Annie Duke, one of the best known women in poker, took the opposite stance, though. Duke claims that having separate tournaments for women implies that they are not up to the level of competing with men, and she would prefer to do away with them.

If anyone is concerned as to whether women and men can compete on a level playing field in poker, there’s no need for concern. The top ranking man in the WSOP Women’s Championship took 103rd place. Vanessa Hellebuyck from France took the bracelet and $192,132.

I haven’t done a “poker Babe” post in a while, mainly because i dont
want to just put another pretty face who happens to play cards now and
then as a “Poker Babe.”  If you wanted random chicks..well..you are
currently surfing the web…

That’s why this weeks Poker Babe is a bonified, tournament winning Poker Babe…..and she’s British to boot!

Olivia “Liv” Boeree
did not start out with intentions of being a pro poker player.  She in
fact, attended the university of Manchester to study physics with
astrophysics.  She then moved to London, where she of course became a
TV presenter and Model (shock..i say again..it seems like a right of
passage to be a model, then tv presenter, then pro poker player….for gal’s anyway..).

She got introduced to the world of poker by being selected as a contestant on the British reality show “Ultimatepoker.com Showdown.”  While on the show, Phil Hellmuth
helped her with her poker skills, and after the show she began taking
poker a little more seriously.  In 2006 she became a presenter and
journalist for Gutshot TV at the WSOP, and currently she writes a regular column in poker magazine “Bluff Europe.”

Liv has been playing poker and winning since 2007, with a first place finish at Ceasers Palace, winning her entry to the 2007 Five Diamond Poker Classic at Bellagio.  Recently, in 2008 Live won the Ladbrokes European Ladies Championship ($30,000) and cashed in 2 2008 WSOP Events: $2000 PLHE (49th $4,074) and $1500 Mixed LHE (64th
$2793).  More recently, on April 21 2010 Live won the European Poker
Tour and cashed €1,250,000. She became the third woman ever to win anEPT title.

Keep up the Great Work Liv! 

Oh MY God! I love poker “babes” that were born after 1980.  Tara Rice was born in 1982, and with her Blond Hair and 5’9 frame she is an obvious pick for a professional Actress / Model. Fortunately for us, she also likes to report on and play poker at all the major events.

Tara’s major poker win was placing 35th in the Legends of Poker Ladies No-Limit Holdem Tournament at the bike in 2005, she was also involved in the Miss Absolute Poker Tournament and the Bluff Reality Poker Cruise. She continues to play in live cash games as well as smaller tournaments around the California area.  Tara is also very active on Bombshell Poker, a website dedicated to playing poker directly against..well great looking girls. (which is a brilliant idea when you think about it…if there arewebcams involved.)

As mentioned above, Tara is also a model, and actually won the 2000 Miss Teen California; the first contest she had ever entered.  She has also done modeling for Askmen .com, and has also had the honor of serving as a Barbie model for Mattel.  She is not a slouch when it comes to acting either having appeared in The Fast & The Furious, American Pie II and Austin Powers in Gold Member.

When she’s not playing cards or acting, she’s been pursuing a liberal studies degree from the University of Cal State Northridge, and she admits to taking a yoga class at least once a week to stay flexible (but i’m sure that doesn’t help at all with the poker…)
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