February 10 2012, Brett Collson

The World Poker Tour crowned a new champion Friday when Rinat Bogdanov won the 2012 WPT Venice Grand Prix. Bogdonov, a financial trader from Russia, outlasted a field of 155 players to claim the $302,065 top prize, which includes a seat to the WPT World Championship at the Bellagio in May.

Bogdonov entered the “unofficial” nine-handed final table as one of the short stacks, but dug out of a hole and was near the top of the leaderboard as the final table was reached Thursday night. The man he was chasing, Andrea Dato, secured his second straight seat at a WPT Venice final table and was the chip leader with nearly 1.6 million. Simon Ravnsbaek was second with 922,000, and Bodgonov was lurking with 907,000.

The televised final table kicked off at 1400 CET (0500 PST) on Friday as the final six prepared to play down to a winner. Andrea Carini began the day fifth in chips with 343,000 and wasn’t able to gain any momentum during his first appearance on the big stage. His run ended less than two levels into the day when his was unable to catch up to Dato’s after all the chips went in preflop. Carini earned $42,319 for his five days of work.

The next player to hit the rail was Gianlucca Trebbi. After moving all-in several times and not getting any action, Trebbi pushed his chips in preflop again with . This time, though, he found a caller in Alessandro Longobardi, who turned over . The board spelled doom for Trebbi, who collected $56,134 for fifth place.

Bogdanov was quiet during the early stages of the final table, but he gained some steam with a timely double-up courtesy of Dato. According to the WPT Live Updates team, Dato raised to 60,000 on the button (blinds 15,000/30,000) and Bogdanov moved all-in for 515,000 from the big blind. Dato thought for less than a minute before deciding on a call, and the cards were revealed:

Bogdanov:
Dato:

Bogdanov was at risk of elimination, but the board gave him the win on the river, increasing his stack to just over 1 million. Dato, meanwhile, had his stack carved down to 1,470,000, but he still had a slight lead over Longobardi for the chip lead.

Moments later, Ravnsbaek found himself at risk and in trouble against Bogdanov. Ravnsbaek moved all-in for about 15 big blinds with and Bogdanov called instantly with pocket tens. The board came up empty for Ravnsbaek, and he began his trek to the cashier to pick up a $69,095 paycheck.

Dato’s reign over the table ended after a few ill-timed three-bets, which shifted the chip lead over to Longobardi. Then, after passing more chips back and forth with Longobardi, Dato shoved his short stack all-in preflop with . Bogdanov called with , and the board sent Dato out the door in third place with $95,003. The result is a slight improvement over Dato’s previous finish at WPT Venice in December, where he took fourth place for $56,822.

Dato’s exit left Bogdanov and Longobardi dueling for the title, and it didn’t last long. After scooping a small pot on the first hand, Bogdonov got the rest of his opponent’s chips on the second hand. With the blinds at 40,000/80,000, Longobardi raised to 200,000 with and Bogdanov called with . The dealer revealed a flop of and Bogdanov check-called a bet of 60,000. The fell on the turn and Bogdanov check-called again, this time a bet worth 240,000. The river gave Bogdanov a full house and he slyly checked again, which prompted Longobardi to fire 300,000 into the pot. Bogdanov moved all-in, and Longobardi checked his cards one last time before making the call with his pair of queens.

Bogdanov revealed his monster hand and Longobardi stood up from his seat to shake hands with the new WPT champ. Longobardi earned $146,826 for his runner-up finish, while Bogdanov collected $302,065, the largest score of his career.

WPT Venice Grand Prix Final Table Results

For more on the WPT Venice Grand Prix, be sure to visit the PartyPoker Blog to see what Tony G and Mike Sexton have to say from the Casino Di Venezia.

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*Photo courtesy of the World Poker Tour.

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February 09 2012, Brett Collson

If you like good fodder for debate, this Nightly Turbo is just for you. Online poker was among the topics discussed during a Senate Committee on Indian Affairs hearing on Thursday, and a gambling legend stated in an interview that sports betting takes more skill than playing poker. Read on to find out more.

In Case You Missed It

The 2012 World Poker Tour Venice Grand Prix reached a final table on Thursday. Andrea Dato made his second straight final table at WPT Venice and is leading the way heading into the final day.

The Global Poker Index didn’t see any change in the top 10 this week. Vadzim Kursevich made the biggest jump in the rankings after his victory at the EPT Deauville Main Event.

Need a new book to read at the tables? Check out our review of Crushing the Microstakes by Nathan “BlackRain79” Williams.

Plans for a Vegas-style casino complex in Miami, Florida, were put on hold last week. Inside Gaming has the details on why the vote on a required bill was postponed for at least a year.

Quinn Sivage joined the Strategy with Kristy podcast this week. Sivage discussed using statistics for optimal preflop strategy in six-max no-limit hold’em games.

Poker vs. Sports Betting

Which activity involves more skill: poker or sports betting?

We’re pretty sure we know your answer. But renowned sports bettor Billy Walters disagrees.

In an interview with Covers.com this week, Walters argued that sports betting should be included with skill games like poker in discussions about legalizing online gaming. Walters, who has allegedly won hundreds of millions wagering on sports contests, says that sports betting is a more skillful form of gambling than poker.

“I used to be a professional poker player,” Walters said, “and, they’re right, if you’re a good poker player, it’s a game of skill. Well, betting sports is much more of a game of skill than poker. I’m living proof that betting sports is a game of skill. I’ve won 37 years in a row. If that’s not a skill, then I don’t know what is.”

We’re curious to know what poker player and highly regarded NBA bettor Haralabos Voulgaris thinks about this. Paging Haralabob…

What are your thoughts? Be sure to leave them in the comments section below.

Senate Revisits Online Gaming

On Thursday, the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs held an oversight hearing entitled, “The U.S. Department of Justice Opinion on Internet Gaming: What’s at Stake for Tribes?” The hearing focused on the how the DOJ’s new interpretation of the 1961 Wire Act will affect the gaming interests of Indian tribes.

Thursday’s list of witnesses included Poker Players Alliance Litigation Support Director Patrick Fleming, who was speaking on behalf of poker players. During his testimony, Fleming stated clearly that online poker is very different than online gambling. He also said that Indian tribes are very important to the potential legalization and regulation of online poker, and that Internet poker can help bring patrons to land-based Indian casinos.

Stay tuned to PokerNews for a detailed recap of the oversight hearing.

Shoryuken!

Randy “nanonoko” Lew is a legend – and a Guinness World Record Holder – in the realm of online poker. However, Lew first made a name for himself on the video game scene, where he played Marvel vs. Capcom 2 on the national circuit throughout his time at college.

It appears Lew misses his college days. Terribly. The Team PokerStars Pro is auditioning for a new Internet reality show called Cross Assault, where contestants compete against each other in Capcom’s new game Street Fighter X Tekken. Take a look at Lew’s hilarious audition tape:

Get the Inside Shuffle

If you’re looking for another place to get reliable poker news, we recommend checking out the Inside Shuffle over at PokerWorks.com. The Inside Shuffle runs every Monday and Thursday and brings readers up to date on everything from poker politics, to business ventures, to tournament results from around the globe.

We like to think of the Inside Shuffle as the younger sibling of the Nightly Turbo, only without the constant bickering and abuse.

Check it out at PokerWorks.com!

“This is just a Bad Copy of the Venetian in Las Vegas”

You can’t ride your bike on the Venetian Lagoon, so Tony G was forced to take a Gondola ride to the Casino Di Venezia for the World Poker Tour Venice Grand Prix.

As you’ll see below, he wasn’t impressed. And his new personal assistant took the brunt of the blame.

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