Chris Klodnicki has defeated 99 other Epic Poker League pros to take the $801K first place prize and the beautiful Champion's Ring. The formidable Andrew Lichtenberger, fresh from his ultra-deep 4th place finish in the WPT Five Diamond event, finished second for $501K. It was a unique and memorable event, featuring a "mix-max" format with fewer and fewer seats per table as the event progressed. Each of the 100 entrants paid $20K to play, and Epic Poker added a $400K overlay to bring the prize pool up to a massive $2.36 million. Congratulations Chris!

	EP final table coverage	Mix-Max Main Event Final Table
	EP event videos	Featured Videos
	Epic Poker on twitter	Follow @EpicPoker

 

Part of the allure of the World Poker Tour events is their mix of amateur and pro players, and the chance that any hometown hero could win. Edoardo Alescio was the WPT Venice's amateur winner, and he's the first to admit that he was the least experienced player at the final table. Signore Alescio faced the formidable Steve O'Dwyer heads-up, a familiar player to everyone on the WPT circuit at home and abroad. Congratulations Edoardo!

	WPT event blog	Edoardo Alescio Wins WPT Venice
	WPT event videos	Video: Edoardo Alescio
	WPT on twitter	Follow @WPTLiveUpdates and @WorldPokerTour

 

James Dempsey didn't go to Vegas to play the Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker Classic, but entered anyway, and he's certainly glad he did. Though at times he must have had his doubts. He faced a wildly diverse, incredibly talented, and extremely tough WPT final table. Mr. Dempsey defeated none other than Andrew Lichtenberger, Vanessa Selbst, and Antonio Esfandiari to take the $821,612 first place prize. Congratulations James!

	WPT event blog	James Dempsey turns favor into WPT Win
	WPT event videos	Video: Jess Wellman interviews James Dempsey
	WPT on twitter	Follow @WPTLiveUpdates and @WorldPokerTour

 

Andrey Pateychuk has had a fantastic 2011. The Muscovite has won the top prize of EU 468,200 at Prague's Corinthia Casino. And the reason he looks familiar is that you've seen him finish 15th in the World Series of Poker Main Event and win the EPT San Remo event soon after. Congratulations Andrey!

	WPT event coverage	WPT Prague at Corinthia Casino
	WPT event videos	Video: Jesse May interviews Andrey Pateychuk
	WPT on twitter	Follow @WPTLiveUpdates and @WorldPokerTour

 

FlopTech Engineering has released an update for their Twitter app for iPhone. Version 1.4 now has two "favorite users" lists that make it easy to see tweets from just your favorite Twitter users. You can add any user to either the general favorites or poker favorites lists, even if you aren't following them. There are several minor fixes and improvements as well.

Poker Tweeter 1.3 requires an iPhone 4 or later running iOS 4.3 or later, and is available
for $1.99 on the iPhone App Store.

	Poker Tweeter home page	www.floptech.com/pokertweeter
	Poker Tweeter App Store link	itunes.apple.com

 

Your 2011 World Series of Poker Main Event Champion is youthful German Pius Heinz. He played a strong unpredictable game, and though he took some serious hits in the see-saw battle with his heads-up opponent Martin Staszko, he never lost his composure.

Ben Lamb, the third remaining player on the final day of play, lasted only three hands. He lost most of his stack to Mr. Staszko on the first hand when his KJ failed to improve against Mr. Staszko's 77. And on the third hand, Mr. Lamb lost his last few million chips when he ran Q6 into Mr. Staszko's JJ.

The remainder of the 6+ hours of play saw the chip lead change many times, in stark contrast to last year's demonstration of big stack heads-up play by Jonathan Duhamel against short-stacked John Racener. All of this year's November Nine showed heart, skill, determination, and sportsmanship.

We look forward to seeing Mr. Heinz assume the unofficial title of "Poker Ambassador" over the next year.
Congratulations Pius!

Visit the official WSOP Main Event news page for event summary and interviews.
Visit the official WSOP Main Event results page for results.

 

There is just one day left in the 2011 World Series of Poker Main Event, and it should be spectacular. The November Nine played down to the final three on Sunday, and tonight Pius Heinz, Ben Lamb, and Martin Staszko will play for the win. The event will be broadcast with an approximately 15 minute delay on ESPN and online as well.

Play will resume at 5:30pm Las Vegas (PST) time tonight, Tuesday November 8th.

We will be tweeting live as key hands are played.
Good luck to the final three!

Visit ESPN3 for near-live streaming video.
Visit the official WSOP Live Events page for live updates.
Visit the official WSOP Main Event results page for results and payouts.

 

FlopTech Engineering has released an update for their Twitter app for iPhone. Poker Tweeter 1.3 adds tweet saving features for saving drafts and for automatically saving tweets if sending fails. There are several minor fixes and improvements as well.

Poker Tweeter 1.3 requires an iPhone 4 or later running iOS 4.3 or later, and is available for $1.99 on the iPhone App Store.

	Poker Tweeter home page	www.floptech.com/pokertweeter
	Poker Tweeter App Store link	itunes.apple.com

 

Apple CEO Tim Cook took the stage today to announce all-time sales and earnings records for his company's fiscal fourth quarter. Total revenue of $28.27 billion was up from the year ago quarter's revenue of $20.34 billion. Mac, iPhone, and iPad sales were up over the year-ago quarter, but iPod sales were down.

Although Apple beat its own estimates this quarter, it did not beat Wall Street analysts' expectations. iPhone sales were down from FY Q3, most likely due to customer expectations of a new phone in the summer quarter. Mr. Cook predicts an all-time record-breaking holiday quarter, however.

	Apple Press Release
	Macworld Summary

 

Apple co-founder Steven Paul Jobs passed away today after seven years of declining health due to pancreatic cancer and its complications. His vision has changed our culture forever, and his passion has inspired us all.

We wish to express our heartfelt condolences to Mr. Jobs' family and friends.
He will be deeply missed.

Rest in peace Steve.

www.apple.com/stevejobs

 

Apple Inc. announced an upgraded version of the iPhone 4 today at a special event in Cupertino, California. The iPhone 4S boasts a new A5 processor for up to 2x the computing speed and 7x the graphics rendering speed of the older A4-based iPhone 4. In addition, a new 8MP camera with 1080p video capability and image stabilization has been added.

iOS 5 comes pre-installed on iPhone 4S, bringing over 200 new features including Siri, the "intelligent assistant" with voice-recognition. Other major iOS 5 features include Notification Center with improved notification management, iMessage with an alternative to cell carrier text messaging, and Reminders with location-aware notifications.

iPhone 4S is priced at $199 for the 16GB model, $299 for the 32GB model, and $399 for the 64GB model. All models will be available in black or white. iPhone 4S will be availble for pre-order on October 7th and in Apple Stores on October 14th. The two previous iPhone models are also still available at reduced prices. The 8GB iPhone 3GS is now available free with contract, and the 8GB iPhone 4 is available for $99.

	Apple iPhone page	www.apple.com/iphone
	Apple iPhone event video	events.apple.com.edgesuite.net/11piuhbvdlbkvoih10/event/index.html

 

FlopTech Engineering has released an update for their Twitter app for iPhone. Poker Tweeter 1.2 adds new tweet composition features, including adding @usernames and #hashtags with a single tap. Users can now favorite and unfavorite any tweet in any view. There are several minor fixes and improvements as well.

Poker Tweeter 1.2 requires an iPhone 4 or later running iOS 4.3 or later, and is available for $1.99 on the iPhone App Store.

	Poker Tweeter home page	www.floptech.com/pokertweeter
	Poker Tweeter App Store link	itunes.apple.com

 

FlopTech Engineering has updated their Twitter app for iPhone. Poker Tweeter 1.1 adds new convenience features, including tappable @usernames, #hashtags, and web links on tweets. Users can navigate to any user's profile, search for #hashtags, and browse web content. All with a single tap. Favorite / unfavorite and follow / unfollow have been added as well.

Poker Tweeter 1.1 requires an iPhone 4 running iOS 4.3 or later, and is available for $1.99 on the iPhone App Store.

	Poker Tweeter home page	www.floptech.com/pokertweeter
	Poker Tweeter App Store link	itunes.apple.com

 

August is usually a slow month for tech news. Not this year. Google bought Motorola Mobile and its patent portfolio to help defend against patent lawsuits filed by Apple and Oracle. Then HP announced that it would be exiting the PC and webOS-based tablet businesses, essentially becoming an enterprise software integrator with a vestigial inkjet printer business. How the mighty have fallen.

Both of these evolutions were clearly forced by iPad's dominant position in the "post-PC" era. But the biggest Apple news, by far, is that Steve Jobs resigned as Apple CEO. He was appointed Chairman of the Board, Apple COO Tim Cook was promoted to CEO, and most of the speculation and uncertainty after Mr. Jobs' 2004 cancer operation ended.

	Google buys Motorola Mobility	Bloomberg - "Google to Buy Motorola Mobility for $12.5 Billion"
	HP to spin off PC and mobile businesses	BGR - "RIP webOS"
	Steve Jobs resigns as Apple CEO	Macworld - "Unfortunately, that day has come."

 

Will "The Thrill" Failla has beaten 756 other contenders at the World Poker Tour Bicycle Legends of Poker event. Mr. Failla began 6-handed TV table play with the chip lead, and started heads-up play with just 30% more chips than 2nd place finisher Ken Aldridge. This was no easy superstack cruise.

The Legends of Poker event at the Bicycle Casino in Southern California marked the beginning of U.S. event play in the World Poker Tour's 10th season.

	WPT event coverage	Hand #178: Will Failla Wins the WPT Legends of Poker
	WPT event videos	WPT Legends of Poker Videos
	WPT on twitter	Follow @WPTLiveUpdates for live WPT news

 

FlopTech Engineering has released their first iPhone app. Poker Tweeter is a Twitter app build by and for poker players. It makes tweeting poker hands easy and intuitive, with automatic conversion of card suits and optional win odds for multiple sets of hole cards.

Poker Tweeter 1.0 requires an iPhone 4 running iOS 4.3 or later, and is available for $1.99 on the iPhone App Store.

	Poker Tweeter home page	www.floptech.com/pokertweeter
	Poker Tweeter App Store link	itunes.apple.com

 

Twenty-two players started day 8 of the 2011 World Series of Poker Main Event, and fourteen hours later only nine remained. There were massive swings, as former chip leaders busted, short stacks doubled, and players bluffed off large portions of their stacks. And it certainly seemed like the overall caliber of play this year was better than that of many previous years.


This year's day 8 started without big name pros, and the last woman standing had been eliminated the previous day. But the surviving nine players just might comprise the most cosmopolitan WSOP Main Event final table in history. Seven nations are represented, and ages range from 21 to 49.

We were there to photograph the action, and we eagerly await the conclusion of this event.

Here are the November Nine and their stacks, courtesy of WSOP.com:

	Rank	Stack	Player
	1st	40,175,000	Martin Staszko
	2nd	33,925,000	Eoghan O’Dea
	3rd	24,750,000	Matt Giannetti
	4th	23,875,000	Phil Collins
	5th	20,875,000	Ben Lamb
	6th	19,700,000	Badih Bou-Nahra
	7th	16,425,000	Pius Heinz
	8th	13,825,000	Anton Makiievskyi
	9th	12,375,000	Sam Holden

Miscellaneous notes:

- Chip leader Martin Staszko's stack is only 3.2 times Sam Holden's short stack.
- Average stack is 22.9 million and level 36 blinds are 50k/250k/500k, giving an average M of 19.1 (45.8 big blinds.)
- The top four stacks are above the chip average.
- Chip leader Martin Staszko's stack of 40.175 million gives him an M of 33.5 (80.4 big blinds.)
- Short stack Sam Holden's stack of 12.375 million gives him an M of 10.3 (24.8 big blinds.)

Read our day 8 photo blog.

Visit the official WSOP event results page for information on all 2011 WSOP events.
 

Twenty-nine year old veteran poker pro Brian Rast has won the World Series of Poker's most prestigious event. Mr. Rast defeated Phil Hellmuth in heads-up play and has earned a spot in history. Until the final table, play alternated between rounds of Limit Hold'em, No-Limit Hold'em, Pot-Limit Omaha, Omaha Hi-Low Split - 8 or Better, Seven Card Stud, Seven Card Stud Hi-Low Split - 8 or Better, Seven Card Razz, and 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball. Final table play switched exclusively to No-Limit Hold'em for the benefit of the television audience.

At one point, Mr. Rast faced a more than 5.5:1 chip disadvantage in heads-up play. He overcame the odds (and the formidable Mr. Hellmuth) to win more than $1.7 million for his efforts as well as his second bracelet in this year's WSOP and the beautiful gold top portion of the David "Chip" Reese memorial trophy. And, perhaps most importantly, his name will be engraved on the perpetual base of the trophy for the rest of human history.

• Complete WSOP.com coverage
• Our photoblog

 

Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced several major software updates at Apple's yearly World Wide Developer Conference in San Francisco. Mac OS X 10.7 "Lion" will incorporate many features from iOS, including improved multi-touch gestures, AirDrop file sharing, a full-screen app Launchpad, and full-screen apps themselves. In addition, apps will be able to automatically save their state and resume from where they left off. Lion will be released next month on the Mac App Store for $29 USD.

iOS 5 will be released in September, with deep Twitter integration, "PC Free" activation, and improved usability. The new Notification Center feature and iMessage app will give users better control of alerts and text-based communication. Wireless sync will simplify data syncing, and AirPlay Mirroring will allow iPad users to stream their iPad's screen image to an Apple TV. iOS 5 will be available in September as a free download.


iCloud will provide media streaming and easy data syncing between users' Apple devices. It will serve as Apple's "digital hub" going forward, and will replace MobileMe as Apple's push notification and user data storage service. iTunes will become iCloud-based as will many other built-in iOS apps, and third party apps will also be able to connect to iCloud. The basic iCloud service will be free with iOS 5 devices.

• Apple Mac OS X 10.7 "Lion" page
• Apple iOS 5 page
• Apple iCloud

 

The World Poker Tour has concluded its ninth season in high style at Bellagio. WPT veteran Scott Seiver started six-handed TV table play with just a few chips less than leader Galen Hall, but it seemed as though Seiver was pre-destined to win. He played with confidence and controlled aggression and made the fewest mistakes.

It was almost like a tournament poker clinic, except for the loud and active Seiver fans in the grandstand. And, of course, the $1.6 million first place prize and $25k entry into next year's WPT Championship. Congratulations Scott!

	WPT event coverage	"Scott Seiver Laughs Last"
	WPT event videos	WPT Championship Videos
	WPT on twitter	Follow the World Poker Tour for live event news

 

Taylor Von Kriegenbergh wasn't exactly a household name, but if Mr. Von Kriegenbergh wins a few more high-profile tournaments it could become one. He beat 2009 WPT Festa Al Lago champion Tommy Vedes among others to take down the $1.2 million first place prize. The TV table of the Seminole Hard Rock Showdown was quite the high-variance ride according to World Poker Tour reporters, and we look forward to seeing these episodes.

	WPT event coverage	"Taylor Von Kriegenbergh's Long and Winding Road to Victory"
	WPT event videos	Seminole Hard Rock Showdown videos
	WPT on twitter	Follow the World Poker Tour for live event news

 

Briton Rupert Edler beat a formidable and diverse final table to win €930k, a really cool Shamballa bracelet, and a seat in the Champion of Champions event at the end of the EPT season. The EPT San Remo event drew 987 players, each of whom paid €5k for the experience. Attendance was down 20% from last year's 1,240 runners, but the EPT is clearly going strong.

PokerStars BLog EPT coverage

"Elder Flowers to Win EPT San Remo and €930,000"

 

FlopTech Engineering has released an update to FlopZoom, their poker tracking, analysis, and playback app for Macs. FlopZoom 1.6.2 resolves several issues in playback, hand history importing, and memory usage. This update is a free update for all registered users and new users may try FlopZoom free for 30 days.

FlopZoom is priced at USD $45 and may be purchased from within the application.
FlopZoom requires Mac OS X 10.6.6 or later.

• Click to download FlopZoom
• Learn more about FlopZoom

 

FlopTech Engineering has released FlopZoom Lite 1.2, an update to their poker hand playback app. FlopZoom Lite now has all of the features of its bigger brother FlopZoom's playback pane. It allows users to search for and automatically play back poker sessions they have played online. FlopZoom Lite shows hand odds for each player in every hand, has full session and hand search features, and includes four colorful themes.

New in 1.2: Made hands are indicated on flop, turn, and river, and winning cards are highlighted at the end of each hand.

FlopZoom Lite is priced at USD $4.99 and is available only on the Mac App Store.

• Click to view FlopZoom Lite on the Mac App Store
• Learn more about FlopZoom Lite

 

Relative unknown Mike Scarborough bested old- and new-school opponents on his way to victory at the Hollywood Poker Open at the Hollywood Casino Lawrenceburg in Indiana. The "TV Six" included Erik Seidel, Cardplayer 2010 Player of the Year Tom Marchese, and rising star William Reynolds. Seidel and Scarborough played heads-up for the win, but Scarborough started heads-up play with nearly four times Seidel's chips.

Mr. Scarborough took the lion's share of the money ($274k) and an entry into next month's World Poker Tour championship. Congratulations Mike!

	WPT event coverage	"The Cincinnati Kid Shows Up the Pros"
	WPT event videos	Hollywood Poker Open videos
	ESPN Poker Blog	Andrew Feldman's summary
	WPT on twitter	Follow the World Poker Tour for live event news

 

FlopTech Engineering has released an update to FlopZoom, their poker tracking, analysis, and playback app for Macs. FlopZoom 1.6.1 now features chip animation as first introduced in FlopZoom Lite. In addition, the 1.6.1 update adds two new hand indication features. Each player's made hand is shown on all streets, and the winners' cards are indicated at the end of each hand.

The demo sessions from FlopZoom Lite have been added to FlopZoom 1.6.1 as well, so new users can immediately use FlopZoom's features even if they haven't yet played any sessions of their own. This update also resolves several issues and improves overall stability. FlopZoom 1.6.1 is a free update for all registered users.

• Click to download FlopZoom
• Learn more about FlopZoom

 

FlopTech Engineering has released FlopZoom Lite 1.1, an update to their poker hand playback app. FlopZoom Lite now has all of the features of its bigger brother FlopZoom's playback pane. It allows users to search for and automatically play back poker sessions they have played online. FlopZoom Lite shows hand odds for each player in every hand, has full session and hand search features, and includes four colorful themes.

New in 1.1: FlopZoom Lite smoothly animates all chip, card, and dealer button actions as hands are played.

FlopZoom Lite is priced at USD $4.99 and is available only on the Mac App Store. It requires Mac OS X 10.6.6 or later.

• Click to view FlopZoom Lite on the Mac App Store
• Learn more about FlopZoom Lite

 

Alan Sternberg showed amazing self-control and heart on his way to victory. He defeated Mike Sexton, Vivek Rajkumar, Mike Matusow, Steven Kelly, and Casey McCarrel to take the $1.04 million first place prize and win his entry into the $25k WPT Championship at Bellagio in May.

All players at the final table showed masterful play, and we expect the two WPT episodes of this event to be some of the best ever. Congratulations Alan!

	WPT event coverage	Satellite Qualifier Ascends Above the Stars in San Jose
	WPT event videos	Bay 101 Shooting Stars videos
	WPT on twitter	Follow the World Poker Tour for live event news

 

Gregory Brooks has bested Carlos Mortensen and Vivek Rajkumar to become the World Poker Tour's newest poker-made millionaire. He denied Mr. Mortensen a record-breaking 4th WPT title and Mr. Rajkumar a 2nd WPT title, and it all happened rather quickly. Mr. Brooks needed only 96 hands and 6 hours to take all the chips on the TV table felt to win the $1.65 million first place prize. Congratulations Gregory!

	WPT event coverage	First Time's the Charm for Gregory Brooks
	WPT event videos	Los Angeles Poker Classic videos
	WPT on twitter	Follow the World Poker Tour for live event news

 

Apple CEO Steve Jobs and other Apple Executives have announced iPad 2, the first update to their groundbreaking pad computing device. It is faster, lighter, and thinner than the original iPad, and will be available with a black or white bezel option. New features include front- and rear-facing cameras for FaceTime video calls, 720p HD video recording, and still photography, and a 3-axis gyroscope as used in iPhone 4.

As had been widely expected, iPad 2 is powered by a new dual-core "A5" system-on-chip custom-designed by Apple and based on the ARM Cortex A9 reference design. Apple claims that its new graphics chip provides nine times the speed of its precedessor.

Apple also claims that iPad 2 has the same 10 hour battery life as the original iPad despite its increased computing power and lower size and weight. And although there were rumors that iPad 2 would have a higher resolution screen, its screen size remains at 9.7" diagonal with 1024x768 pixels.

iPad 2 will be available on March 11 at the same price points as its predecessor, and will come with iOS 4.3 pre-installed. iOS 4.3 itself will be available as a free download on March 11 for iPod touch, iPhone, and iPad 1. iTunes 10.2, which will be required for iPad 2, is now available as a free download.

• Macworld's first iPad 2 hands-on
• Apple's iPad 2 page

 

FlopTech Engineering has released FlopZoom Lite 1.0, a poker hand playback app. It has most of the features of its bigger brother FlopZoom's playback pane, and allows users to search for and automatically play back poker sessions they have played online. FlopZoom Lite shows hand odds for each player in every hand, has full session and hand search features, and includes four colorful themes.

FlopZoom Lite is priced at USD $4.99 and is available only on the Mac App Store. It requires Mac OS X 10.6.6 or later.

• Click to view FlopZoom Lite on the Mac App Store
• Learn more about FlopZoom Lite

 

FlopTech Engineering has released FlopZoom 1.6, with major performance and feature upgrades. This release speeds up statistics calculations in the HUD and statistics panes by as much as 60 to 100 times. In addition, hand playback now animates hole cards, player backgrounds, board cards, and hole cards on Macs running Mac OS X 10.6 "Snow Leopard."

FlopZoom 1.6 no longer supports PowerPC Macs or Mac OS X 10.4 "Tiger." It and all future versions of FlopZoom are only for Intel Macs running Mac OS X 10.5 or later. FlopTech plans to release a final version of FlopZoom 1.5 for legacy Tiger systems in the near future.

This is a free update for paid users, and it starts a new 30 day trail period.

• Click to download FlopZoom 1.6
• Learn more about FlopZoom

 

Jonathan Duhamel wins EPT Super High Roller

Poker Stars Blog

PokerStars Blog

Lucien Cohen wins EPT Deauville

	European Poker Tour	Lucien Cohen wins EPT Deauville and €880,000
	Poker Stars Blog	Rat Man takes EPT Deauville

Alexander Kuzmin wins WPT Southern Poker Championship

	World Poker Tour	Alexander Kuzmin wins at Beau Rivage
	Poker Listings	Poker Listings live coverage

Macworld Best of Show Award Winners

Macworld

Macworld Expo 2011 Best of Show winners

 

FlopTech has released an update to FlopZoom, the integrated Mac poker tracker. Version 1.5.3 addresses several playback and HUD issues, and overall performance and stability have been improved. This is, as always, a free update.

• Click to download FlopZoom 1.5.3
• Learn more about FlopZoom

 

It's a new year, and there's some big poker and Apple news already. Here are a few stories to start off 2011.

Apple announces record sales and earnings over the holiday quarter

	Macworld	Apple's record quarter
	Fortune	Apple COO dismisses iPad competitors

Apple CEO Steve Jobs takes another medical leave. Get well soon Steve!

	Fortune	Steve Jobs takes another medical leave
	Fortune	Who is Tim Cook?

Galen Hall wins PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (and $2.3 million)

	PokerStars Blog	Galen Hall makes historic comeback to win
	PokerStars Blog	PokerStars Caribbean Adventure wrapup