Poker Blog and Poker Gossip

Erica Schoenberg is the not only one of the sexiest poker players, she is also the wife of poker degen, David Benyamine.

So I was watching this soccer babe video (football for all our non-North American friends) and couldn’t help but think how much the 2nd girl looked just like Erica.

Anyway, the video is worth a watch regardless if you like sexy women, so check it out:

- Watch more free videos

Johnny Chan Ginger

In the latest edition of Mike Sexton’s “Sexton’s Corner“, Mike talks with Johnny Chan.  In the interview one thing that came up was how Phil Hellmuth used to stalk the top players to study their every move.  When asked about this Johnny replied:

“Johnny Chan: {(With a little smile)Johnny said yes very emphatically.} Phil studied me for a long time. He was a very hard worker. During my streak he was watching over my shoulder all the time! He followed me wherever I went. He was a good kid who would even jog with me around the Horseshoe occasionally. He is a good person and family man, even though he acts like a sissy person at the poker table, whining and complaining all the time.”

I guess this isn’t really anything new, as we have all seen Hellmuth whine like a baby at the table.  It is just funny because it is coming from Johnny “The Ginger” Chan.

Maybe Johnny is just bitter about Chan Poker closing?  Who knows…

Binions Million Dollar Display

Dutch Boyd reportedly planning heist to get his poker career off life support.

Recently it was announced that Binions has brought back a beloved icon of the casino’s rich history:

Courtesy of the Las Vegas Review Journal -
“The appearance of a $1 million display similar to the one that entertained millions of Las Vegas tourists from the 1950s until 2000 is the latest gimmick by Binion’s Gambling Hall & Hotel owner Terry Caudill to revive some of the spirit from the casino’s heyday.

The money is encased in an acrylic pyramid on top of a poker table in the middle of the casino. Casino workers brought it out last week to the surprise of tourists who happened to be there when they installed the display.

“It was pretty wild,” said Binion’s general manager Tim Lager. “People were taking pictures with their phones.”

Unlike the version of the stack on display from 1964 to 2000, the new display isn’t made of rare $10,000 bills. It is $270,000 in $100 bills, $688,000 in $20 bills and $42,000 in $1 bills.”

A now-removed blog post from Dutch Boyd’s often rambling, incoherent blog revealed his thoughts on the new gimmick:

“I’ve often considered using my special ‘invisible powers’ to walk around and watch women undress, you know, things like that. But now that Binion’s is bringing back this type of display I’m thinking of putting my powers to better use. Ever since I stopped taking my meds, my powers continue to grow stronger by the day.”

No word on whether Dutch plans on using the stolen funds to pay back victims from his first stolen funds disaster with the now defunct site Poker Spot.

The whole world was abuzz when Michael Phelps, 8 time Beijing Olympic gold medal winner, revealed that he is a big poker fan and has his eye on adding some new hardware to his collection, a WSOP bracelet.  This revelation has led to Phelps receiving an invitation to play in the Asian Poker Tour (APT) in Macau next week.

The second leg of the Asian Poker Tour in Macau launches on August 27th and wraps up August 31st and features the largest first prize to date in Asia of US$500,000 and a guaranteed prize pool of US$1,500,000.  If Phelps accepts the offer he would join some of the world’s poker greats such as Doyle Brunson, Todd Brunson, John Juanda, Kenny Tran, J.C. Tran, Quinn Do, Steve Sung and Nam Le.  Phelps just might feel like a fish out of water when surrounded by those poker sharks.

Below is the open letter written by Jeff Mann of the Asian Poker Tour:

Dear Michael,

First of all, congratulations on your eight gold medals and world record breaking feats – what a supreme sporting achievement and I hope superstardom treats you well. However, I write this open letter to you to say that I am in a position to add weight to the argument that you should be crowned history’s ultimate sportsman.

I noticed recently that you have told your local newspaper that you were a big fan of poker and look forward to playing again. By a strange twist of fate, I represent the Asian Poker Tour and we are running Asia’s largest ever guaranteed tournament NEXT WEEK in Macau. It starts on the 27th and runs until the 31st and guarantees a prize pool of $1,500,000 and a first prize of $500,000. This is the biggest prize pool ever offered in Asia! While you are already in China, why don’t you give it a go? It would be our pleasure to fly you in, organize your accommodation and buy-you in to the tournament!

Some have said you are a ‘human dolphin’ but we’re keen to know if history’s greatest swimmer is really a fish. You may have feet that can reach angles others cannot to give you the ultimate swimming technique but just you wait until you’ve got sharks like Vegas poker legend Doyle Brunson chasing you. We’ll see how fast you really are then when they smell blood - get some flippers on those size 14’s!

Don’t bring your goggles, bring a pair of sunglasses – dive in at the deep end and we would love it if you showed us your hand. You’ve almost certainly got more chance of making good money from our $1,500,000 prize pool than securing any commercial deals! Your homecoming to a delirious country can wait.

Go all-in Michael! We’ll even get some special one-on-one lessons for you from poker’s greatest players. If it makes you happier we’ll even bring in Mark Spitz too and you can play heads-up! Some have campaigned for poker to become an Olympic sport. The fact that you are a ‘human dolphin’ doesn’t mean you will necessary get a gold medal for Texas Hold’em!

In all seriousness, come join us, you may as well while you are there! We’ll definitely show you a good time and would be honored with your presence. Get the closing ceremony over and done with first though!

Best Wishes,

Jeff Mann

The Asian Poker Tour

Okay, this story is from the Wicked Chops Poker Forum, but apparently one of their readers caught a Chris Ferguson look-a-like (or possibly the real Chris) at Tommy Rocker’s Strip Club.  This strip club is about a block and a half away from the Rio (home of the 2008 WSOP), and the picture was taken during the WSOP.

Its difficult to say whether this is the real Chris Ferguson or not.  The real Chris Ferguson has a mole by his right ear.  The guy in this picture does have something by his ear, but it doesn’t look like his mole.

Whoever got this picture I do have to say, “Bravo!”.  Most strip clubs in Vegas won’t even let you walk in the door with a camera.  I’d hate to see what they’d do to you if they caught you snapping this!

Anyway, here is the SFW version of the picture:

With the Absolute Poker and UltimateBet cheating scandals still fresh on everyone’s minds, it isn’t surprising that the people allegedly involved have attracted media attention whenever they turn up.  “AJ Green” also known as Allan Grimard is the subject of much speculation of the “hole card” fiasco which many players are still seeking closure on.   Many people belive it was Grimard that played under the infamous POTRIPPER account.

It has been reported that this week by Gambling911.com that Grimard is living it up in Costa Rica, home to several online gambling companies.  He is reported to be building a large home in Los Suenos, an upscale resort in the area, driving an expensive new SUV and sailing a yacht.

Grimard, once a low level supervisor at an online gambling company, has mysteriously amassed enough wealth to partake in these ventures but how he has done that is anyone’s guess.  It should be mentioned that despite in-depth investigations by Gaming Associates and the Kahnawake Gaming Commission, Absolute Poker has not publicly named Grimard as being involved in the scandal.

It has been alleged that the Canadian-born Grimard is a close college friend of the widely regarded founder of Absolute Poker, Scott Tom whose name has also surfaced in reports.  It has also been reported that there is a sealed US indictment being held for Tom’s father who is said to be an Absolute Poker investor.  What charges are involved is still unknown and surprisingly has not attracted much public attention or coverage despite the multi-million dollar makeup of the Absolute Poker hole card cheating scandal.

Insiders have claimed that none of Absolute Poker’s investors or management are to travel to the United States fearing further indictments despite the fact that Scott Tom is no longer involved with the company.  AP is now owned by former Kahnawake chief Joe Norton’s Tokwiro Enterprises group.  It was recently announced that Absolute Poker and UltimateBet is planning a merger into a new super-network titled Cereus.

In more positive news developments, the Kahnawake Gaming Commission, who licenses both Absolute Poker and UltimateBet, has hired Frank Catania, former New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement director and respected online gambling regulatory consultant, to lead the team probing the cheating scandals at both sites.

To date Tokwiro has paid a rather minuscule fine in the amount of $500,000 to the KGC in regards to the Absolute Poker scandal but doubt still lingers due to the lack of public exposure or prosecution of the fraud perpetrators.  The initial denial of both sites when players complained of cheating further complicates the issue.  Tokwiro finally took action after the allegations were proved conclusively by an expert player investigation at a major online poker forum.