Poker News Week In Review: Week Ending Nov. 26

by Bodog Poker | Nov 26 2010

Stan Quinn from Danville, CA took first place and $86,789 in prize money in the World Series of Poker Circuit Main Event at Harvey's Lake Tahoe Resort And Casino. Despite calamitous snowstorms and treacherous conditions, a healthy crowd shows up for the WSOP event, creating a healthy prize pool that was up 15% over last year, even with a dramatic reduction in the entry fee.

The first day of the event saw 246 players who made it down to 51 survivors in the first twelve hours. When play resumed on Monday, ten hours of play saw a final table emerge with Michael Traylor in the lead by a 3:1 margin over his nearest competitor. He eventually ended up in third while Quinn, a 51-year-old pro who formerly worked in IT management, won the event and one of the coveted circuit rings.

Palm Beach, FL & Chester, PA

Speaking of the WSOP circuit, it's gone and added two more stops to the 2010-2011 schedule, Palm Beach, Florida and Chester, Pennsylvania with both stops occurring in the 2011 Calendar year. Palm Beach should run from February 17 to March 1 while Chester is scheduled for April 28 through May 9. Florida has become a larger presence on the poker scene of late, with a third of this year's WSOP Main Event final table hailing from the sunshine state. That's why the 60-table Palm Beach Kennel Club is going to be hosting the event.

I visited the Palm Beach Kennel Club last summer and had a wonderful time," said 2007 WSOP Main Event champion Jerry Yang.  "The staff, the accommodations and the poker players were all top notch."

"Florida was definitely a market we wanted to serve, as the residents of the sunshine state have been loyal participants at the WSOP in Las Vegas," said WSOP Vice President Ty Stewart.  "After careful consideration of our options, it was clear that the Palm Beach Kennel Club could accommodate the kind of numbers we expect for a Circuit Event in this market.  Players who have visited there rave about the staff and the unique dynamic of playing poker overlooking the live action on the track."

The second addition to the 2010-2011 WSOP Circuit Tour is Caesars Entertainment's own property in Chester, Pennsylvania, the highest-grossing poker room in Pennsylvania.  The property is just south of the Philadelphia airport on the Delaware River waterfront. Chester's Circuit Event will be unique compared to the rest of the circuit stops in that it corresponds with multiple days of live horse racing on-site and the Main Event will be played over the First Saturday in May which is the biggest simulcast wagering event of the year.

"This is the ultimate double-up," commented Stewart. "We're going to have a lot of fun with the opportunity to combine the thrill of WSOP tournament poker with the pageantry of live horse racing."

Las Vegas

Peter Eastgate, the 2008 WSOP Main Event champion listed his bracelet on eBay to raise money for UNICEF in a move that surprised many observers of the game.  "In my 20 months following my WSOP win, I feel I have lost my motivation for playing high-level poker along the way," Eastgate said in a statement. "I have decided that now is the time to find out what I want do with the rest of my life. What this will be, I do not yet know."

The bracelet has sold for $147,500, a very hefty sum. 

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