August 13 2012, PokerNews Staff

Five Colombians made the final table of the 2012 PokerStars.net Latin American Poker Tour Colombian National Poker Championship on Sunday. They were joined by a rock-solid Brazilian and a Spaniard who had more live tournament experience than the rest of the table combined. But an unheralded qualifier, Robbie Renehan of Dublin, Ireland, surprised everyone at the Allegre Casino in Medellin, Colombia by grinding his way home and claiming the top prize of 264,700,000 Colombian pesos (USD$147,877).

Last year, the CNPC was priced at a modest $1,100 and drew 681 players, exceeding the wildest expectations of tournament organizers but causing some tight quarters on the tournament floor. This year, the buy-in was increased to $2,500, helping to reduce the field to a more manageable 337 players. Forty-eight made the money, including a few Team PokerStars Pros: Angel Guillen of Mexico, who finished 47th for the minimum payout of $3,614, and Costa Rica’s Humberto Brenes, who continued his string of success on the LAPT by finishing in 22nd place ($5,028).

Renehan, 29, qualified for the CNPC on PokerStars. His previous live tournament earnings totaled less than $6,000. By making the final table, Renehan guaranteed a payout of triple those earnings because eighth place at the CNPC paid $17,441. But Renehan wasn’t interested in eighth place. He was patient in the early stages of the final table while other players were eliminated, and then used a timely knockout of his own to grab enough chips to begin to pressure other players.

On the final hand, Renehan’s heads-up opponent, Jayr Fregona of Brazil, moved all in with ace-eight. Renehan snap-called with pocket queens. Five cards later, he was the latest LAPT champion.

By all accounts, the LAPT’s return to Medellin was a success. The tour will seek to build on that success next month when it goes to Panama for the first time. From Sept. 26 to Sept. 30, Latin American poker action can be found at the Veneto Hotel and Casino in Panama City. Satellites are running now on PokerStars.

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March 22 2012, Brett Collson

On Wednesday, Groupe Bernard Tapie Lawyer Behnam Dayanim told us there was no update regarding the company’s purchase of Full Tilt Poker. We did, however, discover some news involving FTP on Thursday. We’ll bring you that story and more in this edition of the Nightly Turbo.

In Case You Missed It

The 2012 PokerStars.net ANZPT Sydney Main Event got under way on Thursday. Find out which players survived Day 1a in our ANZPT recap.

Reid Young is the author of The Blue Book: An Advanced Strategy Guide for No-Limit Hold’em Cash Games. This week, Young joined the Strategy with Kristy podcast to discuss advanced strategy involving showdown value, among other topics.

Last year, Stuart McDonald collected $87,129 at the Latin American Poker Tour event in Medellin, Colombia. PokerNews recently caught up with the Australian pro in Vina del Mar, Chile, to find out what he’s been up to since his big score.

Why are protesters fighting to keep “Eurovegas” out of Madrid? Find out in the latest Inside Gaming.

Andrew Lichtenberger cracked the Top 10 of the Global Poker Index this week. Mickey Doft takes a look at the biggest movers and shakers on the GPI.

Season 5 of the PokerStars.net Latin American Poker Tour kicked off in Chile on Wednesday. Get the details from Vina del Mar in our LAPT recap.

FTP, PokerStars and AP Given More Time to Respond

While the world continued waiting for the pending deal between Groupe Bernard Tapie and Full Tilt Poker to be completed this week, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York granted another extension to FTP and other respondents of an amended civil complaint regarding last April’s Black Friday indictments.

After the previous deadline of March 19 passed, PokerStars, Absolute Poker, Howard Lederer, Ray Bitar, Rafe Furst and payment processor Chad Elie were given until May 14, 2012 file a response. The extension is another on a growing list since the respondents’ original response date of the indictment passed on Nov. 30, 2011.

Read more at PokerNews.com.

Adios, Bodog

Bodog was back in the news this week after announcing that it is exiting the Spanish market ahead of the country’s new gambling market. The company released a statement to players in Spain about the decision:

“We would like to inform you that due to recent regulatory changes, we are no longer able to offer our betting or wagering services to residents of Spain or Spanish territories. Your account will be disabled on the 31st of March 2012 and as of today; you are no longer able to make any further deposits to your account.”

The new gambling regulations in Spain are expected to go into effect later this year. More than 60 companies have applies for operating licenses. Among the online poker rooms interested in the space include PokerStars, bwin.party, 888 and Ladbrokes. Groupe Bernard Tapie also reportedly submitted an application before the Dec. 14, 2011 deadline.

Bwin.Party Launches iPad App

This week, bwin.party digital entertainment became the latest online gaming operator to launch a real money poker app for the iPad. The release comes more than a year after the company unveiled a real money platform for iPhone and Android devices. The iPad software is based on those models.

“The bwin iPad Poker app gives bwin.com customers unrestricted access to the bwin poker account – now with the full iPad resolution of 1,024 by 768 pixels,” said Berthold Kao, head of bwin.party’s mobile, touch and video department.

“The bwin iPad Poker app extends our lead in mobile entertainment on tablet devices and builds on our hugely successful iPhone Poker app that bwin.party designs with its own mobile development teams. Together with the bwin Sports App for pre-event and live betting enthusiasts and several Casino games for Android and iPhone as well as Java based phones, we now offer our customers an exciting portfolio of games.”

The app can be downloaded from the iTunes Store or the Bwin website, with one download covering both the iPhone and iPad versions of the game.

Visit bwinparty.com for more information.

WSOP Circuit Heads to California

On Thursday, the World Series of Poker announced (albeit in bizarre, satirical way) that poker pro Gavin Smith will participate in the three-day $1,600 buy-in World Series of Poker Circuit Event at Harrah’s Rincon starting this Saturday, March 25. Smith, who has more than $4 million in live tournament earnings, is known for his easygoing personality and propensity for side bets at the table. He’s also been known to have a drink or two.

WSOP Media Director Nolan Dalla had some fun at Smith’s expense in a press release, saying “No matter what happens in the Main Event, Smith is certain to make a major impact at Harrah’s Rincon. Two extra bartenders and three additional cocktail waitresses have been hired for the occasion. The credit manager has also been put on alert.”

Last year, Seneca Easley took down the $1,600 Main Event at Harrah’s Rincon, besting a field of 188 players that included Dwyte Pilgrim, Jerry Yang, Allen Kessler, Phil Hellmuth, Dennis Phillips, Adam Levy, and Poker News’ Kristy Arnett. Easley won $70,384 and a seat into the WSOP Circuit National Championship freeroll, a prize that will go to this year’s winner, as well.

PokerNews will be providing live coverage of the WSOP Circuit event in Rincon, so check our Live Reporting page when the action kicks off on Saturday!

Welcome to Sydney!

The PokerStars.net ANZPT is in Sydney, Australia, this week. PokerNews’ Lynn Gilmartin toured the city to show off her favorite spots.

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