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Poker Blog established in 2003 as the first stop for poker news, poker stories, and bad poker advice.

March 26, 2009

South Carolina poker call to action

by Otis

I am naturally suspicious of people who use phrases like "call to action." It's one of those marketeer phrases that makes me cringe. That said, if you are a South Carolina poker player or one who travels here to play in some of the best home games around, you should be interested in this. Moreover, if you live in Greenville, South Carolina and don't join me on Monday night, you don't care about poker and your right to play it.

Monday March 30 at 5:30pm, South Carolina Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell will be holding two public hearings on a bill that would legalize home poker games and also expand charity gaming (including charity poker tournaments) in South Carolina.

I will be there and you should be, too.

Here's why.

More in this Poker Blog! -->
Permalink | Poker Law and Legal News

March 24, 2009

A Very Sweet Sixteen

by Luckbox

Message to the whiners: Who cares if there is no Cinderella?

In fact, I'll take it a step further. It's a good thing there's no Cinderella! It means the best teams are still playing. Sure, Cleveland St. and Western Kentucky were fun stories, but they're just not the same quality as the teams we have left. Instead, we have a selection of truly outstanding matchups:

More in this Poker Blog! -->
Permalink | March Madness , | NCAA Basketball

March 18, 2009

Johnny Cash Rises From Grave to Kill American Idol Contestant

by Luckbox

Okay, so perhaps that's a slight exaggeration in the headline. I'm guessing Johnny Cash merely rolled over in his grave when he heard Adam Lambert's bastardization of the classic "Ring of Fire." Had Jaoquin Phoenix not already gone crazy, maybe he would have rushed the stage to stop what millions of Americans witnessed last night.

Instead, we get one of the most horrifying performances in American Idol history. If you missed it, thank your lucky stars. If you saw it, I hope you've managed to block it from your mind.

I'll keep the rest of my American Idol thoughts short going into tonight's elimination. Looks like one of the ladies is leaving tonight. If it's Megan Joy Corker, so long. If it's either Alexis Grace or 16-year old Allison Iraheta, than the judges will have a difficult choice on whether to use their one save.

Matt Giraud continues as my favorite after another strong performance last night with Danny Gokey close behind. I was glad to see Anoop Desai bounce back like he did.

As you can guess, I'm fairly certain the men will extend their lead in American idol finalists. Thus far, there have been 8 male and 6 female finalists. When this season is over, it will be 10 male finalists... and the men will tie the women in total winners at 4 a piece.

Permalink | American Idol 2009

Poker legalization hearing in Greenville, SC

by Otis

The Poker Players Alliance has just sent out notice of a poker legalization hearing in Charleston and Greenville, SC this month.

From the e-mail:

Playing poker in the privacy of your own home is a crime in South Carolina thanks to a ridiculous outdated state law signed 209 years ago. Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell will be holding two public hearings to discuss S535 a bill that would legalize home poker games and also expand charity gaming (including charity poker tournaments) in the state. The first public hearing will be March 23rd in North Charleston City Hall and the second on March 30th in the Greenville County Council Chambers, both start at 5:30pm.

I plan to attend the March 30 hearing in Greenville. The PPA is looking for a large turn-out of pro-poker folks.

Details:
Monday, March 30th
5:30-7:30 pm
Greenville County Council Chambers
301 University Ridge
Greenville, SC 29601

I'll likely have more on the subject in the coming days. In the meantime, if you'd like to RSVP for the hearing, you can do so HERE.

To read the full text of the bill, click HERE.

Permalink | Poker Law and Legal News

March 16, 2009

Five Rules for Picking Your Bracket

by Luckbox

If you're like 99% of the adult population in America, you're working on your NCAA bracket this week (due by Noon ET on Thursday). And if you get it just right, there might even be some money in it for you. Here are five rules for picking your bracket that will give you an advantage over anyone who hasn't read this:

More in this Poker Blog! -->
Permalink | March Madness , | NCAA Basketball

March 15, 2009

Poker's frequently asked questions on Google

by Otis

Remember that time you four-bet pre-flop with aces, flopped your set, and got your opponent to get it all in? Remember when he shoved his chips in and then asked, "Do you have the ace?"

You probably thought, "What is this guy doing playing poker?"

We sometimes think the same thing about the search referrals we get here on the Up For Poker Blog.

Here are just a few recent questions that Google has thrown our way.

More in this Poker Blog! -->
Permalink | Otis' Thoughts , | Poker Blogs , | Poker Players

March 14, 2009

NCAA Tourney Bracket Revealed Early!!

by Luckbox

Why wait for the tournament selection committee? I've got your 65 teams right here. Joe Lunardi may be ESPN's Bracketologist, but he's not the best in the biz.

I now present the 65 teams headed to the Big Dance courtesy my Dad. Here is his email to me in its entirety (I've updated with MSU's win):

More in this Poker Blog! -->
Permalink | March Madness , | NCAA Basketball

Old news: Annie Duke's boytoy boinks boozy Judas

by Otis

The man sat at the bar under a cloud of tight curly hair. It was as if the hair thunderhead had sprung a storm and the downpour produced a guy with bad pickup lines. Beside him sat a pretty woman. She wasn't drinking for fun. Her order--shots and beer--had purpose. The drunker she got, the more she wanted to run naked in the hair storm.

I'll be honest, Joe Reitman's hair has always freaked me out.

More in this Poker Blog! -->
Permalink | Poker Players

March 13, 2009

Greatest College Basketball Game. Ever.

by Luckbox

I'm prone to hyperbole. And hyperbole in headlines helps bring readers. Was last night's six overtime marathon between Syracuse and Connecticut the greatest college basketball game ever played? Probably not. But let's take a closer look:

More in this Poker Blog! -->
Permalink | March Madness , | NCAA Basketball

March 12, 2009

American Idol: From 13 to 11

by Luckbox

The biggest television juggernaut is back. Well, it's been back for weeks, but it only really counts when we get to the Top 12 13. It's been an unusual year so far with lots of changes. We started with 36 instead of 24. We had the judges fill out the final spots of the Top 13 on a wild card show. And this year, the judges will get to save one performer who they feel has been unfairly voted off (see: Hudson, Jennifer and Daughtry, Chris).

In the first week, we said goodbye to Puerto Rico's Jorge Nuñez and diva-in-training Jasmine Murray. Neither will be especially missed, but I was sorry to see Jorge go because he's a better singer than some of those remaining. He had no real chance of winning, though, so it doesn't matter.

So who's the odds-on favorite right now?

More in this Poker Blog! -->
Permalink | American Idol 2009

March 11, 2009

How I became a millionaire

by Otis

I remember the long nights my father spent at the office, his tired face, and his hours of undone work that we helped him do in the middle of our living room floor. I remember the business trips, the budgets, and the work ethic. Most of all, I remember what he said when I questioned why he worked so hard.

"Making money takes hard work, son. No one can become a millionaire overnight."

Dad was wrong.

More in this Poker Blog! -->
Permalink | B&M Poker , | Otis' Thoughts , | Playing For Money

March 10, 2009

High Stakes Poker Remains On Top

by Luckbox

Is there better poker television than GSN's High Stakes Poker? If there is, I haven't seen it. While it may lack some of the flashy production value of ESPN's WSOP or the various incarnations of the WPT, it's still better than them all.

Here are 5 reasons why High Stakes Poker is the best poker show on television:

More in this Poker Blog! -->
Permalink | Poker on TV

March 8, 2009

Hard Eight: The gambling movie you didn't see

by Otis

In recent years, it's been pretty difficult to find a movie about Las Vegas that didn't suck. It was nice to luck into one on Netflix this weekend.

More in this Poker Blog! -->
Permalink | Poker Movies

March 7, 2009

2009 Most Anticipated Movies

by Luckbox

Watchmen opened this weekend. It's apparently a fanboy's dream. I never read the graphic novel (was too busy with baseball cards to get into comics), but I am looking forward to seeing it on the IMAX screen tomorrow morning. For some, Watchmen was was far and away the most anticipated movie of the year... but not for everyone.

Here's a few others I'm excited to see (in order of release):

More in this Poker Blog! -->
Permalink | Movie Previews

North Carolina opens poker room at Harrah's Cherokee

by Otis

Legal, live poker just got about four or five hours closer to G-Vegas.

Last night, the Harrah's in Cherokee, NC opened up a brand new poker room.

But, wait! There's more. Because of the vagaries of North Carolina law, the room has no live dealers. All the games are played PokerTek automated tables. Of course, in an ideal world, live poker would be live poker, but after not having a legal room here forever, this will do for now.

Word on the street says the room currently has five tables with room for more. Early reports indicate low limit hold'em games running and 1/2 and 2/5 no-limit also going.

Current news can be found below.

Charlotte business journal

2+2 thread

Cherokee is a little more than two hours from Greenville, SC, if my memory serves me. Feel confident the G-Vegas boys will be making a run up there soon to check it out.

Now, if South Carolina could just get its head...

Permalink | B&M Poker , | Playing For Money

March 5, 2009

Mastodon Weekend 2009 in video

by Otis

Nearly six years ago, we started blogging here as a way to write about our poker game. We played poker this past weekend, but the weekend was more about what you see in the video, as shot and edited by my brother, Dr. Jeff. In it, you will see rock and roll, mass debauchery, and gambling on rickshaw races. Not to mention degeneracy of the first, second, and third order. The video is posted here because everyone in the video and everybody else you don't see in the video met because of poker blogs.That is, in a word, sick. In another word...cool.

RSS readers may have to click through to see the video
Permalink | Poker Blogs

March 3, 2009

Undone

by Otis

You wouldn't know it by reading here, but I am enjoying poker right now more than I have at any point in the past three years. I look forward to it. I play at every chance I give myself. I read poker blogs every day. I think about strategy and record every session in a nifty little iPhone app. My hourly rate is fantastic. In fact, I can look at my phone and see I have played 59 hours and 46 minutes since January 1.

Why so little?

I haven't played a hand of online poker since 2008.

More in this Poker Blog! -->
Permalink | Online Poker , | Otis' Thoughts

March 2, 2009

Movie Review: Taken

by Luckbox

And so it begins. It's called "Up For Poker ...and More" for a reason. As the three of us spend a little less time playing poker and a little more time doing other things, it made sense not to constrain ourselves in a creative box.

Which brings me to Taken. My wife and I saw the Liam Neeson-fueled action flick on Saturday night and we'd recommend to anyone looking for some good old-fashioned movie fun.

More in this Poker Blog! -->
Permalink | Movie review