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PKR_Danski, Tournament Player of the Week

Wednesday, May 07, 2008

PKR's Asian Poker Tour Grand Final - just days to go!

08 May 2008

If exotic climates, fame and fortune are your thing, there are just a few days remaining before the running of our Asian Poker Tour Grand Final satellite. You could be sat with the best in the world in the luxurious surroundings of one of the finest five-star hotels in the Far East, playing for $1 million in prizes! Away from the felt, check out the bustling city of Manila, scuba dive in the surrounding tropical waters or shop til you drop!

On Monday night, we're guaranteeing three $5,000 packages to the inaugural leg of the tour, Asia's richest ever poker tournament. To take your shot at the huge $1million prize pool, buy in direct for $200 or check out the wide range of last chance satellites rolling right now. You could win your way in for just $2.06!

Best of luck at the tables,

Dan ‘Danski’ Grant
PKR Community Manager

Tournament Player of the Week 28 April – 04 May

07 May 2008

Players from all ends of the globe meet this week to receive applause for their impressive run in tournament poker. With a ticket to the $20,000 GTD TV Showdown and a prized PKR hoodie at stake, the competition is fierce….

Shortlist

DRFrever
A new face to the TPOTW pages and the first of two Brits to grace the shortlist, DRFrever reached three final tables, bubbling the 01 May PKR Open final table in 11th place to miss out on a fourth. From the three, he won two – a Terminator MTT to begin and a major victory in the 03 May $20,000 TV Showdown to finish. A profitable week for a player who rightly finds himself inside the top 100 ranked MTT players.

farryboy
The familiar Welshman returns for a fourth appearance on the shortlist, in line for a record two TPOTW awards. The #1 ranked MTT player on PKR continues his astonishing rate of success, notching 20 final tables (next highest – 11) of which he won five, notably two $1,500 GTD’s. Farry’s five firsts topped the win count, with one player on four and two more on three. Farryboy also owned the April Rankings, ending with 59,260 ranking points to the runner-up’s 37,550. He currently sits atop the May Rankings with more than double his nearest competitor’s tally.

finnpokerman
Difficult to guess the origins of this tournament pro! From the same stock as Patrick Antonius and Juha Helppi comes our only Nordic nominee, currently to be found #25 in the Overall MTT Rankings. Three wins, including the $1,500 GTD 6-seater MTT, and another five final tables is good enough to seal finnpokerman’s place on the shortlist. A final table in the 12 April Saturday Showdown lends further weight to his reputation.

RiverStarCar
Our penultimate spot, taken by the lone female on our shortlist, is filled by a tournament enthusiast from Sydney, Australia. Occupying 26th in the Overall MTT Rankings, this aussie found time from the beach to grace six final tables, winning a remarkable four! Victories included a first in the $2,000 GTD and the destruction of a Terminator MTT field. Anyone tuned into PKR TV will be impressed by her tricky, tough style - good enough to carry her to a TV tournament victory (10-seat SNG 03 March).

sourshark
After making his TPOTW shortlist debut last week with excellent results in the Open and $4,000 GTD, this Canadian returns leaner and meaner with two wins and five other final tables. The stats don’t tell the whole story. Getting into his stride with a fifth in a short-handed event, he earned third in the $4,000 GTD before the next day beating 283 others to the $1,500 GTD first prize. A cash in the Open followed by a 102-runner Speed MTT victory set up the week’s grand finale - second in the $20,000 GTD TV Showdown. Several thousand dollars and a place in digital history. Not a bad week!

And the winner is…

With DRFrever, farryboy and sourshark all taking down major scores to end the week, it’s a three-way photo. An Open or big weekend title is enough to edge it, and so we welcome DRFrever into the Tournament Player of the Week winners enclosure. One ticket to the TV Showdown for a repeat bid, plus a lucky PKR Hoodie are on their way. Congratulations to him and to nominees past and present, who continue to fly the flag for the significance of skill in the beautiful game.

Best of luck at the tables,

Dan ‘Danski’ Grant
PKR Community Manager

The Tournament Trail 28 April - 04 May

07 May 2008

In a week where the Saturday Showdown became the TV Showdown and PKR's finest gathered in search of poker immortality, we sift the ashes to uncover great results and notable peformances. Here's the story of the week....

Monday - The PKR Open $10,000 GTD

The week jump-started with the PKR Open, this time sporting 410 runners. After five gruelling hours, the tournament was won by Moroccan HamzaBenj. He earned $3,075 for efforts, having also finished 3/378 in 16 March Sunday Classic. Runner-up northstar74 banked $1,845, with sirpercy clearing a cool $1,107 in third.

Tuesday - The PKR Open $10,000 GTD

A field of 357 runners gathered for the second $10k installment. The $2,677 first prize was claimed by Estonian AndrewBaron, whose record already boasted three previous $10k final tables. Scot hotdoggy1 won $1,606 for second place with SOCLAN in third.

Wednesday - $10,000 GTD Terminator Bounty

With a predatory chill in the air, 394 players took to the felt to bluff and bust our six bounties. Frenchman maillynx emerged with the Bounty title and $2,507 for the win. Runner-up Spazpecker bagged $1,537 and topped the elimination list with 12 knockouts.

Team Bounty rallied well with two cashes after disappointing in the previous week , PKR_Jake finishing 38th with PKR_Neil close behind in 45th. Congratulations to jonbonjay, Blondy22, Firetrooper, ogganova, 2tallbyfar and Maybury32 who all claimed a $100 bounty prize for eliminating a PKR_Player.

Thursday - The PKR Open $10,000 GTD

Thursday's Open winner T1gerAce outlasted 400 opponents on his way to the title and $3,007 in cash. Runner-up carltheraver earned $1,804. Other notables include fifth-placed MrPatel7 who won the 24 April $10k and came 4/405 in 30 March Sunday Classic. Proving that SNG'ers can mix it with the best, #2 ranked Overall STT player Governor911 turned in a solid sixth place.

Friday - The PKR Open $10,000 GTD

PKR new face clealo won his way into the Open via a $5 satellite, subsequently defeating 363 opponents on route to a $2,730 payday. Runner-up SLLIM732 earned $1,638 after cashing in the previous evening's PKR Open (and going deep in back-to-back Sunday Classics (11th & 15th). Fourth-placed pokerfreak013 added to his 6/338 in 12 April Saturday Showdown while Frenchman zakikarym came into the final table fresh from a 16/401 in the same event the previous evening, finishing fifth.

Saturday - $20,000 TV Showdown

With it's newly-attained status as a 'televised final table' tournament, the field size of our second-largest weekly event rose to 417 entrants. With $5,733 for first prize, not to mention a place in TV history for the ten players to reach the final table, there was plenty at stake. Tournament Player of the Week nominee sourshark found himself heads up for the title but couldn't bring it home, eventually filling the runner-up spot for $3,440. He's already an in-form horse, booking a $4,000 GTD victory on 26 April after a third place in 24 April $10,000 GTD.

However it was another Brit, DRFever who emerged from heads up play victorious, banking $5,733 and no doubt the respect of his peers once the final table has been aired! The winner carried on where he left off on 01 May having come 11/401 in the PKR Open. A one-hour replay of the final table (edited) with hole cards and commentary will be available soon on both Sky TV (Channels 842 & 157 - UK only) and the PKR TV youtube page. Check out the forum for details and discussion.

Sunday Classic - $25,000 GTD

Tobsn86 outlastedd 405 runners to claim the Sunday Classic title and $6,613. In addition to a $10,000 GTD third on 18 January and a 6/561 in the Christmas Eve $20,000 GTD, the German had already etched his name into PKR's history books with a runner-up finish and a win in last year's Oktoberfest (08 October Pot Limit Holdem and 11 October Limit Holdem)!

Runner-up berchem13, who lists 'Vodka and Red Bull' among his hobbies, used his wings for a fifth in 06 April Sunday Classic while third-placed desaidon boosted his roll with a third in 15 February $10,000 GTD.

Best of luck at the tables,

Dan ‘Danski’ Grant
PKR Community Manager