Editor's Letter
Hard Lessons in the Land of Glitz and Gold
Triple Crown Winner Is Now Playing $8-$16 Limit Omaha/8
I heard that Gavin Griffin was playing $8-$16 limit Omaha eight-or-better in an out-of-the-way L.A. cardroom recently. He wasn’t doing it for grins – he was doing it because he had to. This is the same Gavin Griffin who was the world’s first Triple Crown winner. [more…]
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Fantasy Poker Studs at the World Series
Fantasy Poker Studs at the World Series
Recapping the $25k & ESPN Fantasy Poker Leagues
By Chad Holloway
For a little over two years now, I’ve been writing a fantasy poker column for Poker Pro magazine and I can honestly say, I’ve never been more excited for the game. The 2011 World Series of Poker proved to be the most exciting year in fantasy poker’s relatively short existence, with expanded coverage, highly publicized leagues and some big-time point earners.
This year, there were two major fantasy poker leagues in Daniel Negreanu’s $25,000 buy-in High Roller League and the annual ESPN Fantasy Poker League; however, before we get to those I want to tell you about a new site devoted to everything fantasy poker, OwnIvey.com. The site sprung up this past summer to help keep track of the various leagues, and it proved a tremendous success among both poker fans and professionals with its daily updates, news feed, and player profiles. For anyone interested in fantasy poker during the WSOP, it proved itself as the go-to resource.
The $25,000 High-Roller League
Daniel Negreanu’s 2011 $25,000 League Results
1st | Jason Mercier/Jason Somerville | 871
2nd | Erick Lindgren/David Oppenhiem | 480
3rd | Todd Brunson | 468
4th | James Bord/Toby Lewis | 445
5th | Scott Seiver/Justin Bonomo/Eric Froehlich | 418
6th | Joe Cassidy/Huck Seed | 379
7th | Eugene Katchalov/Daniel Alaei | 378
8th | Casey Katz | 325
9th | Daniel Negreanu | 324
10th | Justin Smith/Ashton Griffin | 253
11th | Robert Mizrachi/Greg Mueller/Jared Bleznick/“Crazy” Mike | 220
12th | Barry Greenstein | 208
13th | Mori Eskandani | 139
14th | Frank Kassela/Shaun Deeb | 99
15th | Vladimir Shchemelev | 89
Back in May, Daniel Negreanu organized a high-roller fantasy poker league that cost $25,000 per team. No one was sure what to expect, but the high-stakes professionals flocked to the competition. Some of the players to participate in the league, whether an independent owner or co-owner, were Todd Brunson, Erick Lindgren, Scott Seiver, Barry Greenstein, Mori Eskandani, Frank Kassela, Justin “Boosted J” Smith, Huck Seed, Toby Lewis, Robert Mizrachi, and Jared Bleznick, just to name a few. A total of 15 teams entered the league, creating a prize pool of $375,000 that was to be distributed among the top four teams:
1st place: $225,000
2nd place: $93,750
3rd place: $37,500
4th place: $18,750
The league was an auction draft, meaning each team was awarded a certain amount of points that it used to bid on poker players. Ironically, the player who fetched the biggest price was Phil Ivey, who went for a bid of 108 by Team Barry Greenstein; unfortunately for him, Ivey hit the “injured reserve” as he opted to sit out this year’s WSOP. For a full look at the $25k scoring system and team rosters, checkout OwnIvey.com.
I’d like to say that there was a heated competition in the $25k League, but it was a lopsided affair. As it turned out, Team Jason Mercier/Jason Somerville assembled quite the team and ran away with it. They racked up 871 points, nearly 400 more than the second-place finisher, by having such players as bracelet winner Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier and current November Niner and Player of the Year leader Ben Lamb on their team. In fact, the latter was responsible for 403 of the team’s points, which was more than the entire totals for ten of the teams.
Team Jason Mercier/Jason Somerville Breakdown
Players | Auction Price | Score
Michael Binger | 45 | 58
Dan Kelly |36 | 49
Bertrand Grospellier | 18 | 204
David Oppenheim | 6 | 0
Allen Bari | 36 | 60
Daivd Baker | 40 | 55
Ben Lamb | 15 | 403
Bryn Kenney | 4 | 41
The final payouts: Team Jason Mercier/Jason Somerville (1st- $225,000), Team Erick Lindgren/David Oppenhiem (2nd- 93,750), Team Todd Brunson (3rd- $37,500), and Team James Bord/Toby Lewis (4th- $18,750).
2011 ESPN Fantasy Poker League
2011 ESPN Fantasy Poker League Results
1st | Dennis Phillips | 1,063
2nd | Chops | 852
3rd | Mark Seif | 819
4th | Andrew Feldman | 746
5th | Dwyte Pilgrim | 699
6th | Lance Bradley | 650
7th | Chad Holloway | 631
8th | Daniel Negreanu | 597
9th | Eric Baldwin | 560
10th | Gary Wise | 550
11th | Bernard Lee | 383
While the ESPN Fantasy Poker League doesn’t boast a hefty price tag like the $25k League, it does have a rich and storied history. The invite-only league, which is comprised of poker pros and members of the media, saw 11 teams compete simply for bragging rights (with a few bets on the side). Last year, I was fortunate enough to take down the title, thanks largely to Michael Mizrachi’s amazing performance, but this year I fell well short of a title defense.
Like Greenstein in the aforementioned league, I lost my star player in Ivey before the Series even began. I had selected the eight-time bracelet winner second overall in the draft, and found myself between a rock and a hard place. I quickly replaced him with Steve Billirakis, but since our league only allows one change, it handcuffed my options for the rest of the Series.
While it was an unfortunate setback, all hope was not lost. My entire team managed to score, including a bracelet for Andy Frankenberger, so I managed to stay competitive throughout most of the WSOP and eked out a seventh-place finish.
Team Chad Holloway
Player | Round Selected | Overall Pick | Score
Phil Ivey | 1 | 2 | 0
Steve Billirakis* | – | – | 80
Alexander Kostritsyn | 2 | 19 | 78
Andy Frankenberger | 3 | 24 | 83
Sam Trickett | 4 | 44 | 43
Galen Hall | 5 | 43 | 11
Justin Young | 6 | 46 | 57
Phil Laak | 7 | 68 | 68
Sorel Mizzi | 8 | 87 | 211
On the opposite end of the spectrum, Team PokerStars Pro Dennis Phillips enjoyed the same success as I did last year. Like Team Jason Mercier/Jason Somerville in the $25k League, Phillips had the French superstar, Grospellier, on his team. That selection earned him 242 points, which was second on his roster behind Phil Hellmuth, who earned 335 points. Add Negreanu (175 points) and Allen Cunningham (150 points), and you have what turned out to be a championship lineup.
Team Dennis Phillips
Player | Round Selected | Overall Pick | Score
Daniel Negreanu | 1 | 4 | 175
Phil Hellmuth | 2 | 17 | 335
Allen Cunningham | 3 | 26 | 150
Bertrand Grospellier | 4 | 41 | 242
Mike Matusow | 5 | 48 | 32
Chris Ferguson | 6 | 63 | 0
Maria Ho* | NA | NA | 29
Jeff Madsen | 7 | 70 | 55
J.C. Tran | 8 | 85 | 45
Congratulations to both Dennis Phillips and Team Jason Mercier/Jason Somerville on their respective fantasy poker victories. While the WSOP is on hiatus until November, there are still plenty of opportunities for fantasy poker. With the European Poker Tour, Epic Poker League and WSOP Europe right around the corner, now is the perfect time to gather your friends and start a league of your own.
Chad Holloway is a semi-pro poker player from Baraboo, Wisconsin, who specializes in fantasy poker. He is now a featured blogger at UnaBomberPoker.com and senior writer for PokerNews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ChadAHolloway
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