Daily Archives: June 20, 2022

I see guys winning their fourth or fifth, and I'm like, 'Man, if I just played the last five years, I would have like 15 [gold bracelets].'

Five-time WSOP gold bracelet winner Jason Mercier burst onto the poker scene in 2008 with a victory in the European Poker Tour Sanremo Main Event for nearly $1,400,000. An unknown youngster on the poker scene, it was the first-ever live tournament cash he recorded and put him firmly on the poker map. Weve seen many players over the years come in, make a splash, and then fizzle out or simply linger, but that wasnt the case with Mercier.

MORE: Stream the WSOP on PokerGO | Full World Series of Poker Schedule

Mercier quickly rose to the top of the game, winning the first of five WSOP gold bracelets in 2009 as he began to rack up big score after big score in tournaments all around the world. Mercier was one of the faces of PokerStars Team Pro, he appeared on High Stakes Poker, and almost won an unthinkable bracelet bet against Vanessa Selbst in 2016. Life was good for Mercier, and poker mightve been better, but then he settled down and spent more time away from the tables than at them.

I miss it a lot, honestly, Mercier said, who was back at the WSOP in Las Vegas for the first time in a few years. The last time I was here, I was leaving the World Series of Poker in 2019. My wife Natasha was pregnant with our second child. She gave birth in September of that year, and then, the pandemic hit and we just never ended up coming back. Plus, the World Series didn't happen in one year. And then, you know, it was during the winter and just ended up skipping.

If you look at Merciers live tournament record as tracked by HendonMob.com, youll see a noticeable drop-off in results after 2018. From August 2018 until now, Mercier has just five live tournament results. Even in 2018, his volume was down and his cashes fewer as a result.

I've really played a lot less than I did in the last five years, Mercier said. The last five years I played almost as a part-time player since having kids. During the last three years, I played a little bit online here and there. There were points where I was playing a lot. You know, there was a game running where it was an online club and I played 40 hours a week for a few months. But there's been times when I've gone months without playing any hands of poker. I would say that I'm not rusty because of that, you know, staying fresh. But for me, poker in the last decade has always been like riding a bike. Even if I take a long break, I still feel super comfortable playing.

When speaking to Mercier, he was on dinner break in the 2022 WSOP $50,000 Pot-Limit Omaha High Roller event. The event had 106 entries to create a prize pool larger than $5,000,000. He went on to finish sixth in the event for $260,815, pushing his career live-tournament earnings to more than $20,000,000.

MORE: Daniel Negreanu's Quest for a Third WSOP Player of the Year Award

Mercier knows a thing or two about PLO tournaments. His first-ever WSOP gold bracelet came in the $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha tournament at the 2009 WSOP. He also won the $5,000 PLO Six-Handed event at the 2011 WSOP and placed second in the $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha Championship in 2015. With more than $2,000,000 in prize money, Mercier currently sits fourth on the WSOPs all-time Omaha money list, per HendonMob.com.

Now a husband and father of three, Mercier said that dad life has changed his outlook on poker, as it has for many before him. The days of long sessions grinding cash games for days and days have ended, as have flying all around the world to play whatever major tournament series is running at the time. Maybe we shouldnt say those days have ended, but rather, theyve been put on pause.

I'm not playing any 48-hour sessions, that's for sure, Mercier said. I'm exhausted right now. I could sleep in two seconds if I laid down. You look back at those times and you're like, 'Man, what was I doing? That was kind of crazy.' But also, I was young, I didn't have any kids, and no real responsibilities. Back then I was playing a lot of hours, trying to make a lot of money, and now I take it easy a little more; enjoy the time that I'm able to play when I get to play, and mostly focus on my family and raising my kids.

The pause on playing full time could be over sooner rather than later for Mercier. During the $50,000 PLO High Roller, Mercier mentioned to others that hell likely be back full time at the WSOP in two years. His kids will be older and family life will be a little more settled in. Weve already witnessed the return of Phil Ivey at the 2022 WSOP after taking some time off from playing WSOP events every single day during a series, and now it seems the countdown is on for Mercier getting back into the mix in a similar fashion.

I'm not positive what the future holds for how much I'm going to play, Mercier said. I could definitely see myself playing a full schedule in a couple of years, maybe in two years from now, when my kids are a little older and they don't need as much attention. For right now, it's hard to even leave them for a few nights I would love to play every single tournament here. I would love to make bracelet bets again. It would be a lot of fun, but it's a big, big time commitment and something that I hope to do maybe later on in life.

PokerGO is the exclusive home to watch live coverage of the World Series of Poker. PokerGO is available worldwide on Android phone, Android tablet, iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Roku, and Amazon Fire TV. You can also stream PokerGO on any web or mobile browser by going to PokerGO.com.

PokerGO is a subscription service with monthly, quarterly, and annual plans available. For a limited time, poker fans can sign up for an annual PokerGO subscription using the promo code WSOP22TSN to receive $30 off the annual price and get all access for less than $6 per month.

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Once on top of the Poker world, where has Jason Mercier been? - Sporting News

Scurrying down the hallway as another one of his 2022 World Series of Poker (WSOP) tournaments enters break, Daniel Negreanu weaves through the crowd of people in the Paris Las Vegas Convention center as his iPhone is in the midst of recording a segment for the next days YouTube vlog.

MORE: Stream the WSOP on PokerGO

MORE: Full World Series of Poker Schedule

YouTube is always a good way to promote whatever youre doing, Negreanu said on his daily YouTube vlogs throughout the WSOP. Now that Im with GGPoker, Im promoting ClubGG and GGPoker. People just started to enjoy the game, and I enjoyed doing it. Theres nobody playing all the big buy-in ones that are willing to do these.

For more than a decade, Negreanu was a member of Team PokerStars Pro, but in 2019, the two parted ways. Later in the year, GGPoker signed Negreanu to be one of their brand ambassadors, and in the time since, GGPoker has emerged as one of pokers powerhouses around the world.

Negreanus career began in the late 1990s when he attended the WSOP at Binions Horseshoe in Downtown Las Vegas. Negreanu won the first three of his six WSOP bracelets at Binions before the WSOP outgrew its first home and relocated to the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino for the next 17 years.

Im surprised to see how big it got, but I wasnt surprised to see it be cool, Negreanu said about how poker has evolved to where it is right now. I remember as a kid watching on ESPN when Phil Hellmuth and Johnny Chan played. I said this is the coolest thing ever. Im not surprised people found interest in it. Im just surprised it grew like this.

From humble beginnings and small fields, the WSOP has grown to see tournaments attracting more than 20,000 entrants. The 2022 Housewarming was the fourth-largest field in WSOP history last week, while the biggest event in WSOP history occurred in 2019 with The BIG 50 attracting more than 28,000 entrants.

I definitely saw that coming post-Moneymaker, Negreanu said on seeing the 20,000-entrant fields eventually happening to the WSOP. After Moneymaker, all of a sudden theres a whole new market of players that want to play the World Series of Poker. What that means is that buy-ins start to lower. When you have the $400 Colossus and all these kinds of things, youre going to see crazy-big fields.

There is no argument that Negreanu is the most fan-friendly poker player the game has ever seen. Whether its a request for a selfie or to sign one of the poker books he has authored, Negreanu always has time for his fans. Except on tournament breaks.

Negreanu uses his breaks to rush back to his private room so that he can refuel, reset, and review the hands he played.

I dont think it hurts my poker, Negreanu said about vlogging on breaks during the WSOP. It forces me every break to go over each hand and think about it on a deep level. Im learning while I do that. Im allowing myself to vent. Its similar to what you would do if you were journaling.

The first-ever WSOP Player of the Year award went to Negreanu at the 2004 WSOP after he cashed in six of the 32 events. Negreanu reached four final tables and won his third WSOP braclet in the $2,000 Limit Holdem event.

Negreanu would become the first two-time winner of the WSOP Player of the Year award in 2013 when he cashed 10 times, and from the four final tables he reached, he won two WSOP bracelets. Negreanu won his fifth WSOP bracelet in the WSOP Asia-Pacific Main Event and his sixth in the WSOP Europe High Roller.

In 2019, Negreanu was awarded his third WSOP Player of the Year after the race went down to the wire with 2018 WSOP Player of the Year and Australian Robert Campbell. However, after a data entry error was noticed, it would be Campbell being crowned the 2019 WSOP Player of the Year.

Ive changed my approach to Player of the Year, Negreanu said. I dont do the Shaun Deeb. Shaun Deeb is running round playing this and that, and these small buy-in, huge-field events. Im not doing any of that. Im going for wins.

Negreanu is very vocal with planning out his schedule and building in rest so that he can perform at his best. He would love to win the $800 No-Limit Holdem Deepstack, but he also understands that he has a better chance to win the $10,000 Omaha Hi-Lo Championship where more points are often available.

To win WSOP Player of the Year, you need big points, and you need to put up a couple of wins, Negreanu said You can do that by focusing on quality over quantity. There is still plenty of time. Im resilient as f***. I dont ever feel out of it.

With a WSOP bracelet drought of more than eight years, Negreanu has had many close calls with 11 top-three finishes since his WSOP Europe High Roller win. Negreanu is always a betting favorite at the start of each WSOP due to his volume of play and his incredible results - even without claiming pokers top prize.

I believe the bracelets come with it, Negreanu said on chasing WSOP bracelets and attempting to win another WSOP Player of the Year award. Youre rarely going to see WSOP Player of the Year won by somebody who didnt win a bracelet. Its very, very difficult to do.

Negreanus list of poker achievements and accolades is incredibly long, but for the Poker Hall of Fame member, would winning his seventh WSOP bracelet or unprecedented third WSOP Player of the Year award mean more to him?

Its a unique thing thats probably more important to me. To hit my third WSOP Player of the Year award before anyone else has two.

PokerGO is the exclusive home to watch live coverage of the World Series of Poker. PokerGO is available worldwide on Android phone, Android tablet, iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Roku, and Amazon Fire TV. You can also stream PokerGO on any web or mobile browser by going to PokerGO.com.

PokerGO is a subscription service with monthly, quarterly, and annual plans available. For a limited time, poker fans can sign up for an annual PokerGO subscription using the promo code WSOP22TSN to receive $30 off the annual price and get all access for less than $6 per month.

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Behind Daniel Negreanu's quest for a third World Series of Poker Player of the Year Award - Sporting News

If youre considering playing poker professionally you need to make sure that you understand exactly what youre getting into. While you can go pro if youre good enough, its not as simple and easy as it looks.

The first thing you need to do is make sure youre profitable in the long run. Then you need to be able to deal with the grind of playing poker more than youve ever played before.

The 12 tips for amateur poker players in this article cover both of these things and more.

If youve ever heard the term grinder associated with poker, you might have an idea of what I mean when I say the grind is real. A grinder plays poker for hours on end grinding out a profit.

People tend to see poker pros winning big tournaments and dream about how easy it is to make millions. But the truth is that most poker pros are simply grinding out a small profit every hour playing cash games.

If you want to be a poker pro you have to learn how to stay on top of your game while you grind out a profit. This can get to be worse than a job. Youve been warned.

Free play poker is a lot different than when you play for real money. But the fact is that if you cant figure out how to beat free poker games theres no way youre going to be able to figure out how to make a profit when you start playing for real money.

You are going to have to develop and use different skills when you play for real money than you have to use when you play for free, but poker pros learn how to either beat every game theyre in or learn how to find games they can beat. Whether those games happen to be cash games or poker tournaments.

This goes along a little bit with the last section, but I cant count how many times Ive heard poker players complain about the competition at low-stakes tables. They say that theyd get better results at higher limits because their opponents wouldnt make as many dumb plays.

The fact is that you want as many of your opponents to make dumb plays as possible. This is how you make money. The games arent ever easier at higher limits. Learn how to win at your current limit and then move to the next limit. Rinse and repeat until you find a limit you cant beat. Then move back down a limit and make as much money as you can.

Many poker players try to compare their skills to the best players in the world. They try to figure out how they stack u against the pros you see on television.

This is a waste of time, because the only thing that matter is how your skills compare to the people youre actually playing against. The most profitable poker players are the ones who can consistently play against other players who arent as good as them. This might be the most important point in this article, so dont take it lightly.

If you want a single tip that can instantly help you make more money when you play poker, this is it. You need to play fewer hands. This sounds simple, but its extremely rare when I play against an opponent who doesnt play too many hands.

Playing fewer hands means that when you do play a hand you have a better hand, and this means you make more money. Its as simple as that.

The oldest advice I remember about playing poker is that tight and aggressive play is the best way to play. While there are some poker pros that dont play as tight as others, the fact is that aggressive and tight play is still a profitable combination.

In the last section, I explained why playing tight is important, and playing aggressively when you do play a hand is more profitable than playing passively. The aggressive play forces your opponents to make more mistakes.

If you watch poker on television you might see many of the pros playing different variations of poker. They might play no-limit Texas Holdem, 7-card stud, and Omaha hi-lo. This is fine when youre making money and have plenty of experience, but while youre gaining experience and learning how to make good money, you need to specialize.

This means you have to pick a game, limit, and variation and master it first. This can be whatever you want it to be, but pick something to master. For example, you can play limit Texas holdem cash games.

Strong math skills arent required to be a profitable poker player, but they help. In fact, you have to learn how to use some fairly simple math if you want to be a professional poker player. The good news is that youre capable of learning what you need to know.

If you do have strong math skills you might find it easier to play either limit Texas Holdem or some form of Omaha when you start your career. Both of these options are easier to beat when you have strong math skills.

Your long-term poker goal is to make the right plays. Youre going to learn more about this in the next section, but it does go along with this section.

When you make the most profitable decision, you still lose sometimes. But the right decision returns a profit over time, so all that matter is your long-term results.

If you get all-in with a 75% chance to win you make money in the long run, but you still lose 25% of the time. You cant let the 25% keep you from the profits offered by the 75%.

When you play poker you have to make one decision after another. And every decision you make either helps you make money or it doesnt.

When you fold a starting hand of a 3 and 8 from an early position this helps you make money. It saves money that you can use to make more money when you have a better hand.

Your goal is to make the most profitable play every time you have to make a decision. You dont always know what the most profitable play is, but with experience, you can learn what plays to make and which ones to avoid.

The way you know how to make the most profitable play in every situation is to learn about expected value. The fact is that every decision you have to make when you play poker has an expected value.

The expected value can be negative or it can be positive. The key to being a professional poker player is making more decisions that have a positive expected value than ones that have a negative expected value.

Spend as much time as you need to learn how to determine the expected value and learn how to use it for every decision you make when you play poker.

Its always good to learn as much as you can from other people. This includes reading about things like poker strategy and watching others play. But learning from these sources can only do so much for you. Eventually, youre going to have to learn by playing.

You should continue learning from others as much as possible, but you also need to start investing serious time into putting what you learn into practice. If youre not spending at least 20 hours a week playing now, the odds are against you when youre suddenly playing 50 or 60 hours every week.

If you have the skills you need and want to give professional poker a shot, I wish you all the luck in the world. But theres no shame in deciding that you just want to play on a part-time basis. You might be just as profitable and enjoy life more if you can avoid the dreaded grind.

Most poker players have the ability to learn how to win, but they dont have the dedication to do whats required. Make sure you can win first, and then decide if youre willing to put in the long hours.

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12 Things Every Poker Player Needs to Know before Turning Professional - BestUSCasinos.org

Extras Billy Bush spoke with Matt Asner and his wife Navah Paskowitz-Asner as they promoted the 10th annual Ed Asner & Friends Celebrity Poker Night!

Its the first in-person poker night since Ed died in August 2021.

Matt noted, This event meant everything to him, so to keep this legacy going in his name is everything.

Was his dad a good poker player? Matt answered, He was a great poker player when he was younger.

Navah pointed out that the stars are taking part this year specifically for Ed, adding, Its our first year without him.

As for who is participating, the couple named Tom Arnold, Joely Fisher, Jean Smart and Judd Nelson.

Navah emphasized, Every penny that we make that night, all proceeds help us to continue our programs for special needs families like our own. Matt and I have three autistic sons.

Of how people can get involved, Matt shared, They can donate, they can take part in the silent auction, and they can help the cause.

The poker night takes place on Saturday, June 18!

For more, visit EdAsnerFamilyCenter.org/Poker-For-Ed.

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The Stars Participating in Ed Asner & Friends Poker Tournament 2022 - Extra

GGPoker unveiled last week the two newest members of its GGTeam, Jeff Gross and Ali Nejad. They will represent the online poker room both live and online, Gross as Voice of GGPoker and Nejad as GGPoker Media Ambassador, alongside other global ambassadors Daniel Negreanu, Bertrand 'ElkY' Grospellier, Jason Koon, and Fedor Holz.

The new ambassadors' primary focus will be "creating new and exciting content, which will engage with new communities of players and help grow poker", the group stated in a press release.

Originally from Ann Arbor, MI, Gross currently divides his time between Miami, FL, Las Vegas, NV, and Brazil. He first played poker as a 14-year-old, and boasts over $5 million in career tournament earnings, making seven WSOP final tables thus far. Gross is an avid podcaster and streamer and engages with his large and supportive community of fans across multiple social media platforms.

Californian Ali Nejad is one of the best-known poker broadcasters in the world, having commentated on shows including NBC's Poker After Dark and National Heads-Up Poker Championship, ESPN's World Series of Poker coverage, The Ultimate Poker Challenge TV series, and World Poker Tour broadcasts. More recently, Nejad has hosted Triton Super High Roller broadcasts, commenting on the live action as well as interviewing players away from the table.

"I am thrilled to be joining GGPoker. It's an amazing time right now for poker and GG is leading the way," said Gross. "I am looking forward to being a brand ambassador as well as hosting the best tournament on the internet; the weekly $10,300 Super MILLION$, with final tables, broadcast every Tuesday!"

Daniel Negreanu, GGPoker Global Ambassador, added:"GGPoker is the world's biggest online poker room, but that doesn't mean we're not focused on growing even bigger! Adding two of poker's best contest-creating personalities to the GGTeam means we'll better entertain our existing customers while broadening the game to reach new ones."

New GGPoker players are eligible to claim the poker room's Welcome Bonus, earn even more rewards with the Honeymoon for Newcomers promotion, and automatically join GGPoker's Fish Buffet loyalty program, with regular cash prizes on offer.

In March, the World Series of Poker and GGPoker Network's online poker room WSOP.CA opened up for Ontario-based players in early April, when the new iGaming market kicked off in the Canadian province.

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GGPoker adds Jeff Gross and Ali Nejad to GGTeam to represent the online poker room - Yogonet International

Actionthe decision that a player reaches, can be either a fold, call, raise, or raise all-inAntethe mandatory bet players are required to put in the pot before cards are dealtAll-Inoccurs when a player commits all of their chips to a pot during a single handBackdoorthis refers to a hand needing two cards on the turn and river to make a flush or straight, also referred to as runner runnerBad Beata situation where a player loses a hand that they were initially a massive favorite to win in terms of raw equityBlinda forced bet players have to make before they participate in the hand, similar to an ante, typically observed as a Small Blind and Big Blind, sometimes as a StraddleBurnthe cards that the dealer discards after dealing the flop, turn, and river individuallyCallan action where a player matches the initial bet an opponent makes to stay in the handCheckan action that takes place when a player does not place a bet or foldCommunity Cardsalso called the board, these are the cards in the middle of the table which are shared by all players.Drawa type of hand that is not a made hand, but can improve on later streets to a flush or straight given the run outFlopthe initial trio of community cards that are dealtFoldan action where a player concedes making further bets and gives up their cards during a handGut-shot Straight Drawalso known as an inside straight draw, this refers to a a player need one distinct card to complete their straight, i.e. a player with 10-9 has a gut-shot to an 8 if the flop comes 7-6-5Heads Upa hand that only has two players involvedHole Cardsthe cards that make up each players two-card handKickerthe card that is used as a tiebreaker between hands that are basically the same, i.e. if players both have a pair of aces at showdown, but one player has A-K and another has A-J, A-K winsMuckthe discarded pile of folded and burned cards during a handNutsthe absolute best possible hand one can have based on the board textureOvercarda card that is higher than the highest-value card on the boardQuadsa four-of-a-kindRagged/Ragsa poor starting hand that in most cases, should not be playedRainbowa board that has cards of entirely different suit, ensuring the absence of a possible flush drawTilta mental handicap that inhibits players ability to critically think and make proper decisionsTripsoccurs when a player has one card in their hand that matches two on the board (Note: This is different than having a set as this occurs when a pocket pair hits a three of a kind)

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A Glossary of the Most Important Poker Terms You Need to Know - The Action Network