Robbie Strazynski

Inductions to poker’s Hall of Fame have become an annual ritual during the ceremonies surrounding the World Series of Poker main event final table. As the November niners prepare for combat on the felt, two legends of the game are preparing to be enshrined as poker Hall of Famers.

Perhaps London is where the poker pros shine brightest? Hot on the heels of Phil Laak’s 1st bracelet victory, 2009 World Series of Poker Player of the Year Jeffrey Lisandro scored his 5th career bracelet at the WSOPE in London, at the £5,250 Pot-Limit Omaha event.

The Unabomber? Wild? Crazy? Nuts? Insane? Call him what you will, but 1 thing is undeniable – Phil Laak is quite the character. Known more for his table talk, antics, prop bets, and friendship with Antonio Esfandiari, than his poker play, Laak had been atop an infamous list of “professional poker players without a World Series of Poker bracelet” – until now.

Okay – admittedly, it’s a bit surreal to be writing a poker blog entry about something that happened to me, as I mostly cover news in the poker world. But what happened to me last night simply begs for some sort of a headline.

Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi has already made a run for the ages. Earlier in this year’s World Series, Grinder took down the prestigious $50,000 Players Championship, winning his 1st World Series of Poker gold bracelet, the Chip Reese Memorial Trophy, and over $1.5 million in the process

Never far from center stage in the 14 years since his Main Event win at the World Series, Huck Seed has done it again, winning this year’s Tournament of Champions (TOC). Essentially a 27-person freeroll comprised of essentially the greatest assembly of bracelet winners poker has to offer, Seed emerged from this most loaded of fields to claim the $500,000 winner’s payday.

Ante Up for Africa, a joint venture of actor Don Cheadle and poker pro Annie Duke, was held for the 4th time at this year’s World Series of Poker. The duo has teamed up to raise millions of dollars over the past few years to benefit victims of the Darfur conflict.

Each article in this series will cover different aspects of online tournament poker. In this article I will be covering site selection and recommended bankroll management.

When you’re good, your good. As though determined to solidify (even more) his place and reputation as the best poker player alive, Phil Ivey claimed yet another World Series of Poker bracelet this week, giving him a career total of 8. This ties him with Eric Seidel for 4th on the all-time bracelet-winner list, behind poker luminaries Johnny Moss (9), Johnny Chan (10), Doyle Brunson (10), and the leader Phil Hellmuth (11).

Men “The Master” Nguyen joined Phil Ivey and Billy Baxter with 7 career WSOP bracelet wins (6th-most all time) when he took down the $10,000 buy-in 7-Card Stud World Championship.

At a star-studded final table, Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi emerged victorious to win his first ever World Series of Poker bracelet and over $1.5 million.

The Harrah’s and Rio’s casino staffs aim to improve the WSOP experience from year to year. This year, they’ve enlarged and set aside special sports bar areas from which soccer’s World Cup can be watched.