December 19 2011, Josh Bell

This week in the PartyPoker Weekly, we’ll introduce you to rake free tournaments, tell you all about how you can qualify for live events such as the World Poker Tour, GSOP Live, the Aussie Millions, and more!

Pay Zero Rake in Multi-Table Tournaments

The biggest new initiative from PartyPoker this January will be the introduction of rake free tournaments.

Paying rake in poker tournaments is one of those things that cannot be avoided. It is simply one of the aspects that comes along with playing poker. Thanks to PartyPoker, from Jan. 1 to Jan. 31 you will not have to pay any rake across the whole multi-table tournament schedule.

This means 100 percent of your tournament entry will go straight into the prize pool and therefore back into the pockets of the players. Thanks to this promotion, players could potentially save thousands of dollars throughout January as this huge value promotion is sure to get the forums talking.

In addition to paying no rake in tournaments throughout January, players will also have the opportunity to cash in on a generous reload bonus and a $50,000 freeroll.

To receive a reload bonus of 100% up to $100, existing PartyPoker players must deposit at least $50 using the bonus code “RAKEFREE” during the promotion period as outlined above.

If you make this minimum reload deposit using the bonus code above, you will also be eligible to take part in the $50,000 Depositors’ Freeroll. The freeroll will take place on Feb. 5 at 1100 ET, so make sure you don’t miss out!

Travel to Salzburg for the GSOP

You could be slaloming your way down the slopes of Salzburg, Austria, in 2012 as the GSOP LIVE makes its way to the luxurious snowy city.

Taking place in Salzburg Sportswelt, Austria’s largest skiing area, the GSOP Live Salzburg will take place beginning Feb. 2, and is set to combine a fantastic holiday experience with a great poker tournament, which will be a great way for players to start off their 2012.

PartyPoker is currently running daily qualifiers and weekly satellites, which will award great value tournament packages worth $3,600 each.

Each package consists of:

• $1,650 GSOP Live Main Event buy-in
• Five nights accommodation
• $700 spending money
• Entry to the GSOP Welcome Party

WPT Heads to Venice

The city of Venice needs no introduction as it remains one of the most iconic locations in the world. Thanks to PartyPoker you could be pocketing a $10,000 tournament package and be making your way to Italy this February.

The WPT Venice Grand Prix tournament is set to be one of the classiest events on the World Poker Tour schedule and you could win a tournament package which consists of a $6,700 Main Event buy-in, six nights hotel accommodation, $1,100 spending money and PartyPoker’s world renowned hospitality.

The event will take place from Feb. 6 to Feb. 11 and PartyPoker is currently running a plethora of daily qualifiers and satellites, so make sure you don’t miss out on one of the biggest events of 2012.

Win Millions Thanks to the Aussies

The $10,600 Main Event of the Aussie Millions has steadily risen to the top of the tournament food chain and is now considered one of the biggest and most prestigious poker events in the world. Head to PartyPoker and don’t miss out on your chance to win your way to Melbourne, Australia.

Taking place from Jan. 22 to Jan. 28, the Aussie Millions Main Event is expected to award $2 million to the eventual winner, just as it did to the local player David Gorr last year.

If you would like to become a millionaire just like Gorr and join the likes of Gus Hansen as an Aussie Millions champion, then make sure you start taking part in PartyPoker’s daily qualifiers and satellites. If you manage to take down a tournament package, you will be awarded a huge $16,000 worth of value.

$16,000 Aussie Millions Package

• $11,400 Aussie Millions Main Event buy-in
• Eight nights accommodation at the Crown Promenade Hotel, which is right next to the Crown Casino where the Aussie Millions is taking place
• $2,500 spending money

If the above isn’t enough reason to start trying to take down an Aussie Millions package then why not consider that if you do happen to win a package, you will be privy to a personally hosted feast from Tony G himself!

Last week, on his blog, Tony G told his fans that if they qualified for an Aussie Millions seat on PartyPoker they will be awarded with a feast.

“My mind is already turning to the Aussie Millions in January. I have serious business out there and Crown recently confirmed there will be a AUD$250k buy-in tournament which I am considering entering. My good sponsors PartyPoker.com have given me responsibilities for the event Down Under, however, and I am going to host an exclusive meal for the online qualifiers – if you qualify you get a feast!”

Start Your Bankroll for Free

If you would like to start qualifying for great live tournaments like the above events, but don’t quite have the bankroll to get started, don’t fret because PartyPoker is here to save the day.

Thanks to the special relationship between PokerNews and PartyPoker, you can do just this when you cash in on a free $50 poker bankroll.

All players need to do is sign up for a PartyPoker account through PokerNews, and you will get an immediate free credit of $25 into your account. When 200 PartyPoints are earned, you will receive an additional $25! It really is that easy.

To receive your free bankroll, head to our Free $50 No Deposit Page and use the bonus code “PN50Free” as outlined in the walkthrough guide.

If you experience any problems with this or any of our promotions, please contact our Ticketed Promo Support System.

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December 18 2011, Donnie Peters

The 2011 World Poker Tour Venice had its final table on Sunday and the final six players were vying for the title plus “175,000 in first-place prize money. Leading the way into the last day was Michele Caroli, but he wouldn’t be the one walking away with the title. The man who claimed victory at the end of it all was Edoardo Alescio after he defeated Steve O’Dwyer heads-up.

Alexander Dovzhenko was the second-shortest stack coming into the final table, but ended up as the first one out. According to the WPT Live Update Team, during Level 23 with the blinds at 10,000/20,000/3,000, Dovzhenko raised from early position before action folded to O’Dwyer in the big blind. O’Dwyer reraised all-in and Dovzhenko made the call.

When the hands were revealed, it was Dovzhenko’s versus O’Dwyer’s . From there, the board ran out and Dovzhenko was eliminated in sixth place.

Next to go in fifth place was Andrea Benelli. He was very short-stacked, with just 76,000 in chips, when he moved all-in preflop. O’Dwyer made the call and then Caroli called as well. Both O’Dwyer and Caroli checked down the board before all three players opened their hands.

O’Dwyer tabled for trip queens, Caroli showed for king high and the at-risk Benelli showed for king high as well. O’Dwyer’s hand was the winner, eliminating Benelli and leaving four players at the table.

O’Dwyer also eliminated the fourth-place finisher, Andrea Dato, during Level 24 with the blinds at 12,000/24,000/4,000. Dato raised all-in preflop with 249,000 on the button and O’Dwyer called from the small blind. Dato held for a worse-but-live hand against O’Dwyer’s . The board ran out and O’Dwyer’s ace high held up to give him the win.

With three players left, Alescio was doing a lot of shoving, oftentimes over a raise from one of his opponents. Eventually, Caroli decided to make a stand and called holding . Unfortunately for him, Alescio held . The flop didn’t give much help to Caroli, and neither did the on the turn. The river also missed Caroli, and he was sent out the door in third place.

With the tournament down to just two players, O’Dwyer was pitted against Alescio for the title. This was the 12th final table of the year for O’Dwyer and a big one at that. In the previous 11 contests, he had made it to heads-up play a whopping five times, winning three of them. He went into the battle with Alescio holding a big lead in chips and even drew first blood, but things didn’t go his way from there.

After grinding back a bit, Alescio was all-in against O’Dwyer on the board with . O’Dwyer held and just needed to fade the river card in order to win the title. The dealer smacked the on the river, giving Alescio the winning flush he needed to spike a big double and take a two-to-one chip lead.

On the final hand, the blinds were 40,000/80,000/10,000 in Level 29. Alescio and O’Dwyer put all the money in preflop to flip it out. Alescio held and O’Dwyer . Although O’Dwyer hit an ace, Alescio also hit a five to seal the deal and walk away as the winner.

Final Table Payouts

*Winner also awarded a $25,500 WPT Championship Seat

*Photo courtesy of the World Poker Tour.

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