October 17 2012, Brett Collson

How long will Nevada have to wait for its first online poker site? We’ll cover that story, plus a sponsorship deal for a member of the October Nine, in this edition of the Nightly Turbo.

In Case You Missed It

Has poker lost the luster it had a few short years ago? Donnie Peters discusses his thoughts on the current state of the game.

With the World Series of Poker Main Event final table on the horizon, members of the October Nine are entering the spotlight. Rob Salaburu joined this PokerNews Podcast this week to discuss the break, his thoughts on the ESPN coverage, and the upcoming final table.

Did you miss ESPN’s coverage of the World Series of Poker on Tuesday night? Get caught up in our weekly recap.

South Point Launch Delayed

South Point Poker’s plans to launch the first real-money intrastate online poker site in Nevada could be in jeopardy due to technology testing delays and ongoing negotiations with gaming regulators.

South Point, which received interactive gaming licenses from the Nevada Gaming Commission in August, intended to have the online poker room up and running by October – months ahead of any other competitors in the new market. However, according to a report by VegasInc on Monday, the launch could be delayed until December or early 2013.

“We feel we could launch today,” South Point Poker CEO Lawrence Vaughan told VegasInc. “But you’ve got to go through the independent testing labs, you have to satisfy the State Gaming Control Board and because we are the first, we’re going to be under the microscope. They’re going to prod us every which way, and that’s good. We don’t want to come out and fall flat on our face and be an embarrassment for Nevada.”

South Point had an edge on competitors because it acquired its own interactive gaming system rather than relying on a service provider, allowing it to receive licenses both as an operator and a service provider of interactive gaming systems in Nevada. Companies like Bally Technologies and IGT, which were the first to receive licenses in the state, can only serve as business-to-business providers.

Boyd Gaming, Fertitta Interactive and the Golden Nugget are scheduled to meet with the Nevada Gaming Commission on Thursday to receive licenses. We’ll be providing a full report from the hearing, so stay tuned to PokerNews.com.

For more on South Point Poker’s delay in Nevada, check out VegasInc.com.

Ausmus Inks Sponsorship Deal

When the World Series of Poker presented the November Nine concept in 2008, it gave final table members the opportunity cash in on sponsorship deals leading up to their appearance on ESPN’s popular WSOP programming.

Obviously, most of those sponsors were online poker rooms that were forced to exit the U.S. on April 15, 2011. But the post-Black Friday players are still finding ways to make a little extra money.

On Wednesday, social media company TTAGIT Social Networks Inc. announced that it has sponsored Jeremy Ausmus for the 2012 World Series of Poker Main Event final table. Ausmus, who enters the final table last in chips, will compete for the $8.5 million top prize from Oct. 29 through 30 in Las Vegas.

“TTAGIT.com, a revolutionary leading-edge social media company, is ready to win the world over just like me in the world series of poker,” Ausmus said in a press release.

In addition to Ausmus, October Niner Steve Gee was able to ink a deal with PokerAce.com in August, and Jesse Sylvia and Russell Thomas have been donning 888poker gear in recent tournaments overseas. We’ll keep an eye on any new sponsorship as the Main Event final table approaches.

For more on Ausmus, read the press release at Yahoo.com.

Global Poker Index Player of the Year

The Global Poker Index Player of the Year standings were released on Wednesday with Dan Smith occupying the top spot for the eighth consecutive week.

There were no changes in the top five of the standings as Smith maintained a sizable lead over Kyle Julius, Marvin Rettenmaier, Phil Hellmuth and Andrew Lichtenberger, respectively. Justin Bonomo climbed back into the top 10, jumping five spots to No. 6 thanks to a deep run in the European Poker Tour Sanremo Main Event. Bonomo’s biggest result in 2012 also came on the EPT; he won the Monte-Carlo®Casino EPT Grand Final “100,000 buy-in Super High Roller in April for “1,640,000.

Appearing in the top 10 for the first time this week was Joseph Cheong, who recently finished fourth in the World Series of Poker Europe Main Event for “292,320. He also took fourth in a “10,000 buy-in side event at EPT Sanremo for “74,100. Cheong bumped Daniel Negreanu out of the top 10, leading “Kid Poker” by less than one point.

Here’s a look at the Top 10 of the Global Poker Index Player of the Year standings:

The Global Poker Index Player of the Year, presented by PokerNews, honors the player who has the strongest performance in live tournaments during the calendar year, according to the USA Today Global Poker Index point system.

For the full GPI Player of the Year standings, head on over to GlobalPokerIndex.com.

Champ Crowned at HPT Daytona Beach

Andrew Denick won the $1,650 buy-in Heartland Poker Tour Daytona Beach Main Event on Tuesday, outlasting a field of 374 players to earn a payday of $138,187.

Dennick, a salesman from Rockledge, Florida, defeated local poker pro Jeremy Joseph heads-up for the title to collect the biggest payday of his career. On the final hand of the tournament, Joseph moved all in with on a flop of and Dennick snap-called with a set of sevens. Joseph missed his double-gutter straight draw on the turn and river, securing the title for Dennick.

Several notables made the money in the event, including October Niner Rob Salaburu, Darvin Moon, Harrison Gimbel, and Chad Batista. Salaburu, who will compete for the title of World Champ at the WSOP Main Event final table this month, barely missed out on a chance to get some final table prep as he finished in eighth place for $14,796.

Here’s a look at the final table results from the Heartland Poker Tour Daytona Beach Main Event:

Read the full event recap at HPTPoker.com.

Negreanu Has a Clue

On Tuesday, PokerStars announced that it will be adding a new pro to its Team online roster. Yesterday, Team Online member Randy “nanonoko” Lew offered a clue for the Guess the Next Member of Team PokerStars Online promotion. If that didn’t help, today’s clue comes from Team PokerStars’ Daniel Negreanu. Although, you may want to to grab some earmuffs.

Find out more about the next Team Online pro at the PokerStars Blog.

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October 09 2012, Brett Collson

Were you excited about the relaunch of Full Tilt Poker before this week? If so, you’ll love the news released on Monday and Tuesday. We’ll bring you that, plus October Niners preparing for the WSOP Main Event final table, in this edition of the Nightly Turbo.

In Case You Missed It

Would the federal online poker bill introduced by Senators Harry Reid and Jon Kyl be the best option for poker players in the U.S.? PokerNews’ Matthew Kredell gives his take.

On Tuesday, Full Tilt Poker announced that it has received an operating license in the Isle of Man. Read the full story here at PokerNews.com.

What steps did Full Tilt Poker need to take before it received its Isle of Man gaming license? PokerNews’ Rich Ryan spoke with Gambling Supervision Commission CEO Steve Brennan to find out that and more.

Dan Heimiller won the 2012-13 World Series of Poker Circuit Horseshoe Southern Indiana Main Event on Monday. Read about his road to victory in our WSOPC recap.

Many pros had success during the side events at EPT Sanremo. Chad Holloway takes a look at all of the winners.

Russell Thomas Hires Somerville

Since the inception of the November Nine in 2008, we’ve heard many stories about the training and studying players have done in the months leading up to the World Series of Poker Main Event Final Table. Phil Hellmuth, Daniel Negreanu and other high-profile players have even been hired as coaches for November Niners.

This year is no different. Chip leader Jesse Sylvia told the PokerNews Podcast crew last week that he’s hired Vanessa Selbst to give him pointers ahead of the final table. And on Tuesday, we learned that Russell Thomas has appointed Jason Somerville as his October Nine coach.

To make the experience more memorable, Somerville is filming the entire process and sharing it with the poker community. Said Somerville via Twitter, “I’ve spent more time on this project than anything else I’ve ever done and I’m really proud of it. My sincere thanks to all who’ve contributed!”

Thomas will enter the final table fourth in chips with 24.8 million. Here’s a look at Part I of his training process with Somerville and others:

FTOPS XXI Coming in December

With an operating license in its pocket and a relaunch set for Nov. 6, Full Tilt Poker is gearing up for the next edition of the popular Full Tilt Online Poker Series (FTOPS) in December.

According to FTP poker room manager Shyam Markus, FTOPS XXI is scheduled to run from Dec. 2 through 16. The quarterly series became a staple on the poker site’s annual calendar and the company is wasting little time in restoring it to the schedule.

The official slate of events for FTOPS XXI hasn’t been announced, but players can likely expect a similar variation of games and buy-in, as well as the flagship Main Event to round out the series. Earlier this year, more than $9 million was awarded in the $640 buy-in FTOPS IX Main Event alone, with Blair Hinkle collecting the largest share ($1.1 million) after negotiating a deal at the final table. The most recent series, FTOPS XX, ran post-Black Friday and saw much small prize pools because of the absence of U.S. players.

For more information on the relaunch of Full Tilt Poker, visit Shyam Markus’ thread at TwoPlusTwo.com.

ESPN’s The Nuts

The latest edition of ESPN’s The Nuts was released on Tuesday. The monthly blog post ranks the best poker players in the world at the moment. The 10-person panel includes Elaine Chaivarlis, PokerNews’ editor in chief; Don Peters, PokerNews‘ tournament reporting manager; and ESPN’s Andrew Feldman, Gary Wise, and Bernard Lee, among others.

Phil Ivey maintained the top spot again this month, but his reign is being threatened by the game’s all-time WSOP bracelet leader. Phil Hellmuth won his 13th bracelet at the WSOP Europe Main Event last week, giving him two bracelets in 2012 and an excellent shot at WSOP Player of the Year. Hellmuth received two first-place votes from The Nuts‘ panel; Phil Ivey received seven, and Jason Mercier earned one after his victory in the $10,300 WCOOP 8-Game Championship at PokerStars last month.

Antonio Esfandiari climbed into the top 10 this month following his own second bracelet win of 2012. Esfandiari sits at No. 6 in the rankings after winning the ” 1,100 re-entry event at the WSOP Europe. Esfandiari won the $1 million buy-in Big One for One Drop this summer for $18 million, making him the game’s all-time tournament money winner.

Here’s a look at the top 10 for October.

For more analysis on The Nuts rankings, check out ESPN.com.

Lo Toney Leaves Zynga

On Tuesday, PokerNews learned that Laurence “Lo” Toney has left his position as general manager of Zynga Poker. Toney spent three years at Zynga, two as the manager of the poker division, before making his exit this year.

In an interview with All Things D, Toney said his departure is less about Zynga and more about other opportunities that have been offered to him. “I have been approached by several organizations to lead teams and companies that I find exciting and compelling,” he said. “It is the right time for me in my career to move on.”

Toney leaves the company while it is still a free-play service, but Zynga CEO Mark Pincus said earlier this year that that real-money gaming would be a “natural fit.” The company, which currently raises revenue through advertising and the sale of virtual goods, has been in discussions with several partners about a shift into the real-money online gambling market.

Read more at AllThingsD.com.

WSOP on ESPN

ESPN’s coverage of the World Series of Poker continues Tuesday night with action from the penultimate Day 7 of the Main Event. The broadcast begins at 9:30 p.m. ET and will focus on the remaining 27 players battling for a spot at the final table.

The coverage will feature two women – Elisabeth Hille and Gaelle Baumann – reaching the final 27 players for the first time since 2000, when Annie Duke and Kathy Liebert made deep runs, only to fall short of the final table. They’ll begin the broadcast chasing French-Canadian Marc-Andre Ladouceur, who began Day 7 as the chip leader. Others still in the field entering the day were Greg Merson, Paul Volpe, Jamie Robbins, Daniel Strelitz, Yuval Bronshtein and Steven Gee.

If you happened to miss any of the action during our Day 7 coverage in July (spoiler), here’s a teaser of tonight’s broadcast:

ElkY, Katchalov Pedal into Sanremo

A lot of players made the trip from Cannes to Sanremo to play in the European Poker Tour Main Event. But Team PokerStars Pros Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier and Eugene Katchalov did it on bikes! Sarah Grant caught up with Katchalov, Grospellier, and their trainer to discuss the unusual trip to Italy.

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