John Juanda Wins 2008 WSOP Europe

John Juanda wins the record breaking Main Event at the World Series of Poker Europe presented by Betfair

LONDON, UK; October 3, 2008 --- At 10:32 am American John Juanda was the last man standing at the dramatic final table of the World Series of Poker Europe played at The Casino at The Empire, Leicester Square. Outlasting a starting field of poker heavyweights including Daniel Negreanu, Phil Ivey, Phil Hellmuth and Doyle Brunson the newly crowned 2008 WSOPE champion Juanda has taken home the £868,000 cash first prize and a coveted WSOPE winner's bracelet.

Juanda is the first American to win a WSOPE bracelet and his victory in London has ended his own personal drought dating back to 2003. Juanda came into the final table as chip leader and his shrewd and cunning performance throughout has landed him his 4th WSOP bracelet.

In a pulsating encounter which saw the record for the most hands played at a final table emphatically smashed, Juanda had to overcome two determined, rising Russian stars to claim the title. First he eliminated Ivan Demidov, the first man to reach both the WSOP and WSOPE final tables, and then he had to overcome Stanislav Alekhin, the man who had led for long periods of the day’s play. In the final heads up of the six day Main Event which lasted more than 19 hours Juanda revealed a (insert hand) beating Alekhin’s (insert cards).

Attracting the best players from around the world, WSOPE is the most prestigious event to take place outside of the US and compliments the WSOP which takes place annually in Las Vegas.

Beginning on the 19th September this year's WSOPE has seen established pros and Betfair online qualifiers go head-to-head to compete for the millions of prize money on offer.

Taking place at The Casino at The Empire, Leicester Square this year's showcase tournament has featured 1047 entrants for the four sanctioned bracelet events (No-Limit Hold'em / H.O.R.S.E / Pot Limit Omaha and World Championship No Limit Hold'em), with 362 chasing the Main Event dream.

1st Place – John Juanda (£868,800)
2nd Place – Stanislav Alekhin (£533,950)
3rd Place – Ivan Demidov (£334,850)
4th Place – Bengt Sonnert (£271,500)
5th Place – Daniel Negreanu (£217,200)
6th Place – Scott Fischman, USA (£171,950)
7th Place – Robin Keston, England (£135,750)
8th Place – Toni Hiltunen, Finland (£108,600)
9th Place - Chris Elliott, Scotland (£81,450)

Link: WSOPe2008.com

- Report by Nolan Dalla

http:blog.billbruce.info

Poker Players Move for Summary Judgment Against The World Poker Tour

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Players Argue That WPTE’s Illegal Agreements Constitute “Per Se” and “Quick Look” Violations of the Antitrust Laws

Los Angeles, March 14, 2007 – Today, seven of the world’s leading professional poker players filed a motion for summary judgment against WPT Enterprises, Inc. (“WPTE”) in federal district court in Los Angeles. In their motion for summary judgment, Plaintiffs Chris Ferguson, Andrew Bloch, Annie Duke, Phil Gordon, Joseph Hachem, Howard Lederer, and Greg Raymer have presented undisputed facts which establish that WPTE, which owns the World Poker Tour (“WPT”), has committed multiple violations of federal antitrust laws.

Specifically, the Plaintiffs seek a summary declaration by the Court that WPTE and the casinos which host WPT events have unlawfully conspired to force poker players to sign non-negotiable “releases” that require those players to grant WPTE the right to use their valuable names, likenesses, voices and images for zero compensation so that WPTE can exploit these rights to promote its own products and services. The Plaintiffs contend that the undisputed facts establish that WPTE and the casinos have agreed to boycott and exclude from WPT events any poker player who does not sign such a “release.” The Plaintiffs have also offered undisputed evidence that WPTE and the casinos are conspiring to restrict the number of poker tournaments in competition with the WPT by agreeing that the casinos cannot sponsor any televised non-WPT events. The Plaintiffs contend that these agreements constitute “per se” or “quick look” violations of federal antitrust laws. The “per se” and “quick look” tests apply to conduct which is so inherently anticompetitive that a court may summarily decide that such conduct violates U.S. antitrust laws without the need for full discovery or a trial.

If the motion is granted, WPTE will be permanently enjoined from: (1) agreeing with the casinos to require the Plaintiffs and other poker players to sign releases granting WPTE the right to use those players’ intellectual property rights to promote WPTE products and services; (2) using the grant of Plaintiffs’ intellectual property rights obtained from past releases; and (3) prohibiting casinos from sponsoring non-WPT poker tournaments.

Jeffrey Kessler, lead counsel for the poker players, stated: “If the players prevail in this summary judgment motion, WPTE’s unlawful agreements will come to a quick end without the need for further discovery or a trial. All poker players would then be able to compete in WPT tournaments without being forced to give up their valuable intellectual property rights for no compensation and the casinos would be free to sponsor competing televised poker tournaments of their own.”

A copy of the public version of Plaintiffs’ motion for summary judgment will be available at http://www.wptlawsuit.com/.
Plaintiffs are represented by the law firm of Dewey Ballantine LLP, whose attorneys have successfully represented NFL, NBA, and other players in similar antitrust lawsuits.

CONTACT:
Jeffrey Kessler (212) 259-8050, jkessler@deweyballantine.com
Alexander Kayne (212) 259-6915, akayne@ deweyballantine.com

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About Dewey Ballantine LLP Dewey Ballantine LLP, founded in 1909, is an international law firm with more than 550 attorneys and locations in New York, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, East Palo Alto, Austin, London, Warsaw, Frankfurt, Milan, Beijing, and Rome. Through its network of offices, the firm handles some of the largest and most complex legal matters in the world.

FullTiltPoker.net Invitational live from Monaco

Looks like I'll be staying here in Monte Carlo for a few extra days.

I've been selected to stay over for a special $120,000 buy-in one-table tournament that will be broadcast live in prime time on FSN Thanksgiving night.

The seven pros are listed below, additionally, Howard Lederer will be doing the commentary.

FullTiltPoker.net Invitational live from Monaco Thanksgiving Day

FSN, the only U.S. network to ever televise poker tournaments live, is doing it again. The FullTiltPoker.net Invitational live from Monaco, a four-hour live tournament from the legendary Monte Carlo Casino in Monaco, showcases seven of the world's best players vying for the top spot in this $1 million purse tournament. The first hand airs at 6:00 p.m. local time on FSN Thanksgiving evening, Thursday, Nov. 24, and it is live on the east coast. Scheduled to play are Phil Helmuth, Chris "Jesus" Ferguson, John Juanda, Dave "The Devilfish" Ulliot, Phil Ivey, Gus Hansen and Mike "The Mouth" Matusow.