January 09 2012, Brett Collson

We hope you all enjoyed your weekend. Now, back to business. In the Monday edition of the Nightly Turbo, we bring you a Guinness World Record by Team PokerStars Online member Randy “nanonoko” Lew, reality TV appearances by Beth Shak and Tiffany Michelle, and more.

In Case You Missed It

The PokerNews Podcast crew is still in the Bahamas for the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure. This week, the team caught up with Eric Baldwin and Randy Lew and discussed the big stories taking place at the PCA.

A victory at the European Poker Tour San Remo Main Event in 2010 changed everything for Liv Boeree. She discussed that and more in Part 2 of the Seat Open series.

For the first time ever, the Bicycle Casino is hosting a World Series of Poker Circuit event. Chad Holloway previewed the the $1,600 Main Event, which begins Tuesday, Jan. 10.

How did the Sunday Majors play out on PokerStars? Who took home the biggest win? Find out in the Sunday Briefing.

Day 1b of the 2012 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure Main Event concluded Sunday night. The second flight attracted 654 entrants, with Alex Venovski finishing on top.

The first World Poker Tour stop in Ireland wrapped up Sunday evening. Dave Shallow cruised to his first live victory and a $289,031 payday.

The Fastest Clicker on the Interweb?

Team PokerStars Online member Randy “nanonoko” Lew is considered by many to be the fastest poker player in the world. On Sunday, Lew set out to prove it.

Lew set a new Guinness World Record Sunday by playing the most hands ever recorded in eight hours while making a profit. Lew logged 23,493 hands while turning a profit of just $7.65, creating a tension-filled atmosphere in the corner of the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure tournament floor late Sunday evening.

“This is a great feeling. I finished it,” Lew told the PokerStars Blog after achieving the feat.

“I had a crowd. Everyone clapped for me. I was reading chat while I was playing. I probably shouldn’t have. But people were like ‘Go, Randy, go!’ So, it kept me pumped, and it is a good feeling when people want you to win.”

Read more about Lew’s record at PokerNews.com.

Poker Players or Reality TV Stars?

Beth Shak and Tiffany Michelle call themselves poker pros. But lately it seems like the two ladies spend more time on the sets of reality TV shows.

Shak, who appeared on Bravo’s Millionaire Matchmaker in November 2010, will be featured in an upcoming episode of TLC’s NY Ink. The following chip shows Shak playing a hand of hold’em for a free tattoo:

If you look carefully, the tattoo artist’s cards actually changed midway through the hand. Reality TV poker is so rigged.

Meanwhile, Michelle has parlayed her sixth place finish on The Amazing Race into an appearance on The Food Network’s Worst Cooks in America. Michelle will compete against seven other “recruits” trying to transform into skilled cooks. The first episode of Season 3 will premiere on Sunday, Feb. 12.

We know one thing: If french fries are on the menu, we’re betting the house on Tiffany.

Read more about Michelle at multivu.com.

Dancing Isildur

Viktor “Isildur1″ Blom has more than a million reasons to celebrate after winning the $100,000 Super High Roller at the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure on Saturday. So, how is the Swede letting loose after his big win?

By dancing!

Well, kind of. While browsing TwoPlusTwo.com we came across an interactive site that allows users to take control of a virtual version of Blom on the dance floor. Among his wide array of moves: the robot, the twist, and even some disco.

The site has been around for a while and there have even been spinoffs featuring Phil Ivey and Howard Lederer. However, since this is the first time we’re seeing it, we had to share.

Check out the dancing Viktor Blom.

U.S. Crimes Against Online Poker

Last April, the U.S. Department of Justice deemed that the three major online poker sites had been breaking the law on charges of bank fraud, money laundering, and illegal gambling. PokerWorks.com writer Linda R. Geenen recently took an alternate approach to Black Friday by suggesting that the government committed crimes against U.S. citizens, using online poker as a front.

In the article, Geenen examines several instances of corruption committed by the government involving the World Trade Organization, Neteller, Firepay and more. She also questions why it took nine years before Bill Frist snuck the UIGEA onto the Port Security Act.

Writes Geenen, “Frist should be arrested for creating a massive can of worms that still has never been sorted through, regulated, or enforced and has cost literally tens of thousands of dollars in slipshod enforcement by expecting banks to shoulder the cost of upgrading and changing their banking regulations and software to stop money transfers. Banks are not law enforcement agencies but apparently the US government still hasn’t recognized this.”

Check out the entire piece at PokerWorks.com.

Let the Moose Guide You

The Aussie Millions isn’t the only major tournament hitting Melbourne this month. The rankings for the Australian Open were released on Monday, and SportMoose.com is the place to go for odds and betting advice during the first tennis Grand Slam event of the year.

Novak Djokovic and Carolina Wozniacki claimed the top seeds on the men’s and women’s sides, respectively. Djokovic is the defending champ and was listed as a 2.56-to-1 favorite by Betfair to defend his crown. He was followed in the rankings by second-seeded Rafael Nadal, although the Spaniard is listed as the fourth favorite by Betfair with odds of around 8-to-1.

Despite receiving the top seed on the women’s side, Wozniacki was listed at just 15-to-1 by Betfair to win her first Australian Open. Reigning Wimbledon champ Petra Kvitova is listed as the favorite by most sports books at around 4-to-1, and bettors can take defending champ Kim Clijsters at around 10-to-1.

In addition to the tennis coverage, you can find the latest odds on up to 20 sports and reviews for a number of online sports books at SportMoose.com.

What Makes a Poker Player Nervous?

Poker pros have to deal with high-pressure situations all the time. PokerNews’ Sarah Grant set out to discover what makes poker players nervous.

Are you following PokerNews on Twitter? Like us on Facebook while you’re at it, and sign up for the newsletter. You know you want to.

Follow Brett Collson on Twitter – @brettcollson

January 08 2012, Chad Holloway

On Sunday, the inaugural World Poker Tour Ireland concluded as the final table of five played down to a winner. WPT final tables are usually played six handed, but thanks to a double elimination on the bubble, action resumed Sunday with five. David Shallow, who was responsible for the double elimination on Saturday, entered play as the overwhelming chip leader. He put his stack to good use and ultimately conquered the 338-player field to capture the title and $289,031 first-place prize.

Given Shallow’s chip lead, which was about 6-1 over his closest competition, the action was wanton. According to the WPT Live Reporting Team, the first elimination came when Ronan Gilligan raised on the button only to have Steve Watts move all-in for a little over 1.1 million. Gilligan made the call and it was off to the races.

Showdown
Gilligan:
Watts:

Watts was ahead with tens, but didn’t want to see another one after the flop, because it would give Gilligan a straight. The turn was of no consequence, but the river put a dagger through Watts’ heart and sent him packing in fifth place for $40,465.

Not long after, Patrik Vestlin raised from the cutoff and found a caller in the form of Gilligan in the big blind. The latter checked the flop, opening the door for Vestlin to put out a bet. From there, Gilligan check-raised to 450,000, Vestlin moved all-in for 1.75 million, and Gilligan made the call.

Showdown
Gilligan:
Vestlin:

Gilligan was ahead with top pair, but needed to sweat the overs and nut-flush draw of his opponent. Unfortunately for Vestlin, the turn and river blanked and he was dispatched in fourth place for $51,063. With that, Gilligan overtook the chip lead with 4.8 million to Shallow’s 4.2 million, while Chaz Chattha sat with 1 million.

Surprisingly, Gilligan was unable to hold on to the chip lead and was the next to go. It happened when Shallow raised from the small blind holding and Gilligan called from the big with . The flop gave Shallow top pair and Gilligan an open-ended straight draw, so it was only natural that there was going to be a big pot. Sure enough, Shallow fired out 215,000, Gilligan raised to 525,000, Shallow moved all-in, and Gilligan made the call. The turn was no help to Gilligan, and neither was the river. He was eliminated in third place for $96,339, while Shallow took a 7,280,000 to 2,860,000 chip lead into heads-up play.

Chattha made a go of it, even taking over the chip lead at one point, but he couldn’t secure the victory. Instead, Shallow battled back, reclaimed the chip lead, and won the final hand. It happened when he raised to 135,000, Chattha three-bet to 380,000, Shallow four-bet to 825,000, and Chattha moved all-in. Shallow made the call and was in a great spot.

Showdown
Shallow:
Chattha:

The board ran out and Chattha finished as runner up for $144,502; meanwhile, Shallow, who is known as “CrabMaki” online, added his name to the WPT Champion’s Cup, won a $25,500 seat to the WPT World Championship, and claimed the $289,031 first-place prize.

World Poker Tour Ireland Results

*Photo courtesy of the World Poker Tour.

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Follow Chad Holloway on Twitter – @ChadAHolloway