17 seasons of the World Poker Tour! I’ll tell you some interesting things that have happened.

I only got the part as the commentator because the producers knew of me. But, I didn’t have an agent at the time and my sister-in-law, Shana Hiatt, was up for a part and she mentioned that she used to work a big live poker game. They said ‘You got to be kidding! We wanted to get in touch with Vince Van Patten,’ then the connection happened. I took the job and that was 17 seasons ago!

Mike Sexton and I became close friends right from the start. We had a lot in common. Degenerate gamblers. Poker players. Action guys. We’d bet on anything. We bonded immediately and still remain great friends.

I quickly invited Mike to play my big Beverly Hills game which he loved and we played for years after. It got bigger and bigger and more and more exciting!

Even though we were best friends it still didn’t stop us from making huge bets against each other. We’d bet tennis, ping pong, and all kinds of sports, especially golf. We would bet between each other and cut the bookies vig out. Which win or lose, we felt good about.

For the first five years of World Poker Tour, we would have to do studio work for nine hours a day and we would come straight from the Beverly Hills game at 8:00 am with hardly any sleep. You might be able to tell in the voiceovers as we are very groggy, the producers literally had to wake me and Mike up on certain occasions during the show.

Mike Sexton used to drink five Cokes a day during studio work to keep him awake. I’d have six cups of coffee on average.

Mike Sexton is the greatest gambling negotiator, especially golf, I’ve ever been around! He disarms them with hillbilly charm and then traps them like a snake! On a golf course, it’s good to be on his betting side.

We literally traveled the entire world across five different continents! China was pretty amazing! Worst mistake I ever made was getting a haircut in China. She gave me a “bowl” cut and I resembled one of the dudes out of  Dumb and Dumber. But playing a round of golf for serious money against Matt Savage, another great gambling negotiator, also a huge mistake!

I loved the event in Paris, France at the Aviation Club! In the earlier years, I used to play all the cash games and there were some wild games to be played! I left one evening at 1:00 am and luckily for me five minutes later the place was held up and everyone gave up their money and profits to the thieves that evening! Phil Ivey and a few other name players lost their bankrolls that night. Luckily, no one was hurt.

So many great locations but my favorite one might be St. Maarten because I love the Caribbean waters, the casino, and the food!

The greatest moment on the World Poker Tour was watching Mike Sexton win in Montreal. Coming in a close second was seeing Tony Dunst make it to final tables and win! These are both great guys and I’m proud to have them as my partners!

Tony Dunst did a great job as the WPT Raw Deal host. Phil Hellmuth is really doing well with it now!

Finally, Lynn Gilmartin is the nuts. She’s got it all, and is a pleasure to work with!

Until next time, play loose and bluff on the river!

William Hill today announced that it has made a cash offer to acquire Malta-headquartered online gambling operator Mr Green & co AB (MRG) as the British bookmaker is seeking to bolster its digital arm and amid tumultuous times for the UK gambling industry.

William Hill has offered to buy the online gambling company, which is based in Malta but hails from Sweden, for SEK69 per MRG share or a total consideration of SEK2.8 billion (approximately £242 million).

Assuming approval by Mr Green shareholders, the deal is expected to be finalized in January 2019. In a statement from earlier today, MRG has notified that its Board of Directors has unanimously recommended that the company’s shareholders accept the offer.

The transaction will extend the international footprint of William Hill’s online business and will help it establish presence in new markets. MRG’s online gambling brands Mr Green and Redbet currently operate in 13 markets, including Italy, Denmark, and the UK. The Malta-based gambling group has also applied for a license in Sweden.

In a statement from earlier today, William Hill has lauded both MRG’s sports betting and casino products and has pointed out that pairing with the company would allow it to strengthen its digital business, improve its revenue mix, and reduce its exposure to the UK gambling market, which is set to go through massive regulatory disturbances next year with the expected cut of the maximum FOBT stake and the implementation of a remote gambling duty hike.

Commenting on the offer, William Hill CEO Philip Bowcock said today:

“This proposed acquisition accelerates the diversification of William Hill – immediately making us a more digital and more international business. MRG will provide William Hill with an international hub in Malta with market entry expertise and strong growth momentum in a number of European countries. William Hill will move from a single brand to a suite of brands that can maximise growth opportunities moving forward in new and existing markets.”

The British bookmaker expects the deal to be accretive to earnings from year one of ownership before synergy benefits. It also anticipates synergy benefits of no less than £6 million per year. The synergy benefits are expected to be achieved progressively, with full delivery being anticipated by the third year after the completion of the acquisition.

Second Wave of Merger and Acquisition Deals

The UK gambling industry is facing massive regulatory challenges as Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond announced that the government will look to offset the losses from the planned cut of the maximum FOBT stake from £100 to £2 with an increased Remote Gambling Duty rate. Both changes will take force in October 2019 and come as part of Chancellor Hammond’s new Budget. Online gambling operators currently pay a 15% tax on gross gambling yield, but after the announced hike they will be required to contribute 21% of their GGY to the nation’s coffers.

Both the looming crackdown on the highly controversial FOBTs and the recently announced tax hike will hit William Hill’s profitability significantly. The British bookmaker owns one of the nation’s largest chains of betting shops with FOBTs, but its digital business has only shown mediocre performance over the past several years.

The introduction of the 15% Point of Consumption tax in 2014 sparked an unprecedented wave of merger and acquisition deals in the gambling industry. As a result, six of UK’s largest gambling companies paired to better position themselves in the changing landscape. The FOBTs clampdown and the new tax rate could certainly unleash a second wave of M&A activity and William Hill could become the main initiator of that wave.

Questions and comments about the plausibility of a marriage between William Hill and MRG have emerged immediately after the British bookmaker announced its intentions earlier today. While many would consider William Hill’s decision to acquire MRG a bit unexpected and its £242-million offer a bit too high, it should be said that the latter company has performed more than well over the past year. It has strengthened its position in the lucrative Nordics, has improved significantly its gaming product and has diversified its offering with a sportsbook, and has thus improved its financial performance.

William Hill will thus benefit from the addition of more brands to its portfolio and of revenue from European markets. It is also important to note that the proposed acquisition of MRG comes at a time when the British bookmaker is looking to cement its position in the recently liberalized US sports betting market.

William Hill has begun to gradually expand its sports betting presence beyond Nevada, where it has been operating sportsbooks for many years, and in other states where sports betting has become legal following the mid-May SCOTUS ruling that annulled a long-standing wagering ban. The company recently struck a deal with US casino operator Eldorado Resorts to lock up access to 23 million customers across the US. The deal has also made the British company Eldorado’s exclusive sports betting and online gambling partner across its 26 casinos in 13 states.

Martin Kabrhel Wins 2018 World Series of Poker Europe Event #9: €100,000 Super High Roller for €2,624,340. He made two bracelets in two years. If anyone was going to win back-to-back WSOP Europe bracelets here at King’s Casino, it was always going to be Martin Kabrhel. 368 days ago, he was crowned champion of the €1,100 No-Limit Hold’em Super Turbo Bounty at the 2017 WSOPE. After winning Event #9: €100,000 Super High Roller for €2,624,340 he made two bracelets in two years.

Unsurprisingly, the outcome is Kabrhel’s biggest cash to date, overshadowing the EUR366,762 he won for completing 8th in this occasion last year. Such were the payments in this occasion – the most significant buy-in of the event – that runner-up David Peters and also Julian Thomas both left with seven-figure ratings of their very own.

David Peters’ runner-up finish moves him into the top ten all-time money list and it also looks likely that Peters will move into top spot in the GPI World Poker Rankings.

“The greatest victory, I’m very happy,” said Kabrhel shortly after he won. “I’m only satisfied when I win it so I don’t really care too much about the players that are in it.”

Kabrhel is leading in King’s Casino. Not just has he currently won two bracelets at the place, yet he has actually won 4 WSOP Circuit rings here, his last coming previously this month.

“You can be the best player in the world and run like shit,” said Kabrhel. “But you can’t do anything about that sometimes.

Final Day Action Review:

The eight remaining players entered into the day with a 47 big blind average to start the final, so the speed was anticipated to be a sluggish one.

The short stack at the table was Spaniard Adrian Mateos nonetheless, it was the second shortest stack and wsope EUR25,000 High Roller champion Michael Addamo who breast inside the first half hour of play. He three-bet all in with a suited ace just to face the kings of chip leader Dominik Nitsche. He flopped an ace but a king came with it, giving Nitsche a set, and he was eliminated.

Kabrhel was able to score a double knockout to further thin the field. Jan-Eric Schwippert moved all-in for 10,700,000 from the cutoff with the AClub Suit8Heart Suit and Kabrhel shoved for 23,800,000 on the button with ASpade SuitADiamond Suit. Nitsche, who had begun the day as the chip leader but fallen to one of the shorter stacks in the early going, called for his last 15,500,000 out of the big blind with QSpade SuitQDiamond Suit. The board came down 9Spade Suit6Diamond Suit4Club SuitKHeart Suit10Club Suit and Kabrhel’s aces held up to bust Schwippert (6th – $494,751 USD) and Nitsche (5th – $660,636 USD). As a result of this huge hand Kabrhel shot up the leaderboard and into second chip position.

Mikita Badziakouski had fallen to less than nine big blinds. In his final hand he raised to 7,700,000 in the small blind after Kabrhel had limped in under the gun, leaving himself with just 500,000 left in his stack. David Peters called out of the big blind and Kabrhel came along. The flop brought the 4Club Suit2Spade Suit2Heart Suit and all three players checked. The turn was the 9Spade Suit and it checked to Kabrhel, who bet 6,000,000. Badziakouski called for his last 500,000 and Peters folded. Kabrhel was ahead with the AClub SuitQClub Suit up against Badziakouski’s ADiamond Suit3Diamond Suit. The river was the 2Club Suit and the Belarusian tournament star was sent home in fourth place, earning €789,612 ($908,054 USD) for his latest deep run.

2016 Card Player Player of the Year winner David Peters took the chip lead into three-handed play and was able to expand it as the day wore on. Heads-up play was set when short stack Julian Thomas three-bet all-in with the 6Heart Suit6Diamond Suit only to run into Peters’ 8Diamond Suit8Club Suit. Neither player improved from there and Thomas was eliminated from the tournament in third place, earning €1,116,308 ($1,283,754 USD).

Peters took roughly a 3.5-to-1 chip lead into heads-up play with Kabrhel. The Czech was able to nearly even things out after making a flush to win a big pot. The two were incredibly close by the time the final hand arose. Kabrhel picked up the 6Spade Suit6Diamond Suit on the button and raised to 5,500,000. Peters three-bet to 22,000,000 with the AClub SuitKHeart Suit from the big blind. Kabrhel made the call and the flop brought the 6Club Suit5Heart Suit3Diamond Suit to give Kabrhel top set. He bet 14,900,000 and Peters opted to move all-in with his ace-king high. Kabrhel called right away and the 8Heart Suit on the turn was enough to lock up the pot for Kabrhel and eliminate Peters in second place. The 9Diamond Suit made it official, and Peters was awarded €1,621,960 ($1,865,254 USD) for his second-place showing.

The World Poker Tour and partypoker Live will be co-hosting five poker events next year, including the popular WPT Barcelona and the first ever WPT festival in Russia. The two brands announced they are extending their partnership in 2019, offering players in Canada and Europe various live poker formats at all buy-in levels.

On Tuesday, the World Poker Tour (WPT) released details regarding their schedule for 2019, revealing brand new festivals that will be held in co-operation with partypoker LIVE. In an official statement, Adam Pliska, CEO of the World Poker Tour, announced that they will be expanding their relationship with the online poker room and will be adding more locations to the current list of events. Most notably, the two brands will co-host WPT Russia, the first ever WPT festival in the country.

The announcement has naturally attracted the attention of European players who will be able to take part in various WPT500, WPTDeepStacks, and WPT Main Tourevents. WPT and partypoker are currently among the largest and most respected poker brands in the industry, and their names and reputation only drew in thousands of poker pros from all over the globe. The popularity of their events means, of course, much larger prize pools than the prizes advertised in standard live tournaments.

WPT also said that at some of the events, players will have the opportunity to use partypoker LIVE Dollars. This is a flexible currency, introduced by the online poker network, and it can be won in online satellites and later used by players for buy-ins, travel expenses and hotel reservations for the partypoker LIVE events.

WPT and partypoker LIVE Schedule 2019

There are currently five events scheduled for 2019 and they will be co-hosted by WPT and partypoker LIVE. Casino Sochi in the Russian summer resort will be the opening stop on the schedule, with WPT Russia running from January 18 to January 27. The Main Event will start on January 21 and will feature a $3,300 buy-in and a guarantee of $1,500,000.

Next on the schedule is the beautiful city of Barcelona in Spain, which will welcome WPT Barcelona between March 9 and March 17. The venue will be Casino Barcelona, a regular host of premier live poker tournaments, and players will be able to take part in a wide range of events, including WPTDeepStacks, WPT500, €10,000 High Roller and WPT Main Event.

In April, WPT heads to the United Kingdom for the 17th Season of the WPT European Championship, which will take place from April 6 to April 14 at the Dusk Till Dawn Poker and Casino in Nottingham. It will be headlined by the £3 Million GTD Main Event that will start on April 8.

The next stop on the WPT schedule is King’s Casino in Rozvadov, the Czech Republic, a popular venue that has welcomed plenty of major poker festivals and brands over the years. From August 9 to August 18, it will be home to WPT Germany, a large festival that promises more than €6 million in guarantees.

The fifth and final stop on the tour will be Canada next fall. WPT and partypoker LIVE will be returning to Playground Poker Club in Montreal with an exciting festival that starts October 25 and ends November 3 and a centerpiece CA$5,300 Main Event.

US’ poker pro Zachery Schneider came out victorious Monday night at the $1,700 Main Event during the 2018/2019 WSOP Circuit Horseshoe Hammond. After three days of grinding poker play, he managed to survive the strong 1,094 entry field and take the title, securing the second WSOP ring in his career.

It was an easy victory for Schneider, who started Day 3 of the tournament with the second biggest stack and once the final table was set up, he came second in the chip count once again. The 25-year-old professional poker player then eliminated four of the nine finalists and overtook Nick Pupillo in the heads-up battle. There were no serious hurdles to get over, he later admitted after taking the WSOP Circuit Main Event title and the first-place prize of $302,492.

This is the 11th WSOP event cash and the second ring for the young poker pro from Harvard, Illinois. Almost exactly three years ago, on October 25, 2015, Schneider finished first in the WSOP Circuit $5,300 NHL High Roller Ring Event, which took place at the same casino, the Horseshoe Hammond, just 25 miles away from Chicago. Back then, he won the first World Series of Poker ring in his career along with a cash prize of $101,250.

Monday’s win was a huge success for Schneider, who said that he was not such a good player and it was not until the final table that became confident in his own skills. During the entire tournament, he was not entirely serious on the felt, he added, so the first-place finish was, apparently, a surprise for him. It was also his largest live reported cash ever and now his total earnings from live tournaments total nearly $450,000.

Apart from Zachery Schneider, another 116 players made it to the money levels and received guaranteed $2,718. The tournament drew in 1,094 contenders for the title over the two starting flights on Friday and Saturday. Entering the $1,700 buy-in event, they contributed to a total prize pool of $1,657,410. Day 1 ended with most players eliminated and the chip leader from the first flight returned as the big stack on Day 2, along with 235 other survivors. By the end of the night, the field was reduced to only 23 players, who would continue playing on the third, final day.

Horseshoe Hammond Main Event Final Table Action

Day 3 of the tournament kicked off at noon with Sam Miller leading the way with his stack of 3,535,000. He was followed by Schneider, who had bagged 2.8 million in tournament chips the previous night. Two-time gold ring winner Nick Pupillo came third in the temporary leaderboard with a stack of 1.85 million in chips. Soon after cards went into the air, Miller lost his lead to David McDermott, while the first elimination was Kevin Johnson who took home $11,386 for his 23rd finish.

Following several eliminations and a fortunate win against Porfirio Mendez (19th, $13,524), Schneider took the chip lead and right until the heads-up battle, he did not go too far from the first position. After Don Hines was sent home in 11th place for $24,182, the final table was set up led by Nick Pupillo who had a huge advantage with his stack of over 9 million. Zachert Schneider came in second with 7,555,000 in chips, while the rest of the players could not reach the 3 million. Miller was the short stack with only 385,000 and he was almost immediately eliminated in the 10th place for $24,182.

Royce Matheson finished 9th ($29,999) after being defeated by Schneider, while the 8th place in the tournament was for Jake Baumgartner ($37,640) who was sent home by Pupillo. He then eliminated Mark Wahba (7th, $47,750). After the dinner break, Giuliano Lentini left the tournament (6th, $61,258), followed by the person who eliminated him, Young Hoon Koh (5th, $79,506). By that time, the two main contenders were Pupillo and Schneider and after David McDermott (4th, $104,417) finally gave in, Sami Shurbaji and the two players were the only survivors. Shurbaji moved all in against Schneider and lost, collecting a nice cash prize of $138,825 for his third-place finish.

Schneider started the heads-up against Pupillo with a 2 to 1 advantage and did not have to try a lot to claim the title. In the final hand, Schneider defeated his competitor with Queen-7 against Pupillo’s 4-2 on a flop of Queen-6-5, a 6 on the turn and a King on the river. Pupillo was eliminated in the second place and took home $186,823, while Schneider was crowned Horseshoe Hammond Main Event Champion and received $302,492.