TRAN AND TONY G TRIUMPH ON DAY ONE OF PARTYPOKER.COM PREMIER LEAGUE III WSOP CHAMP EASTGATE DERAILED AND ‘DURRR’ DAZZLES
London – 24th November 2008 – PartyPoker.com Premier League III has its most formidable line-up in its history and there is no doubt that the newcomers have laid down a big marker on day one! JC Tran took down the first heat for ten points beating WSOP champion Peter Eastgate heads-up, while Tom ‘Durrr’ Dwan completely dominated heat two only to lose out heads-up to Tony G. You can follow the action live and analyze the hands at: http://www.matchroompoker.com/forums/index.php
Tran derailed the Eastgate juggernaut in the Dane’s first appearance following his $9 million WSOP Main Event triumph. The heads-up between Tran and Eastgate was grueling but after a number of swings it was Tran who triumphed. Eastgate started the heads-up with the advantage, holding 395,000 to Tran’s 205,000 but there was to be no repeat of Eastgate’s clinical heads-up destruction of Ivan Demidov at the WSOP Main Event final table as Tran brought the world champion down to earth with a bang. The final hand saw Eastgate push all-in with Q3 off-suit, with JC instantly calling with AK off-suit. The board failed to bring anything for either player. First out for a bagel was David ‘Devilfish’ Ulliott, whose rotten run in the Premier League continues. The top three in the heat were all making their Premier League debuts, with Annette Obrestad finishing third for four points.
In heat two there was huge anticipation ahead of the first match-up between Phil Hellmuth and Tom ‘Durrr’ Dwan. The very first hand saw Dwan flop a full-house only for the ‘Poker Brat’ to hit a flush on the turn. With the history of their animosity from the NBC Heads-Up Championship in the minds of all those who watching it was a bad spot for the 11 time WSOP bracelet winner. Hellmuth eventually made the huge lay down but his stack took a pounding. The ‘Poker Brat’ recovered well to finish fourth, while Dwan continued to look for action whenever he could find it. At the heads-up stage Dwan held the advantage but when his 88 failed to hold up after Tony G had gone all-in with J10 offsuit the advantage swung dramatically in the favour of the ‘mouth from down under.’ Tony dominated the league heats in season two and has kicked-off this Premier League campaign with ten valuable points.
Party Poker Premier League III sees the buy-in elevated to $75,000 and the added money increased to $350,000, making a total prize pool of $1.25 million. The next event wasn’t due to take place until 2009 but the demands of international broadcasters for coverage of the event has brought it forward! The series features 12 of the world’s best players playing in a unique league format. All 12 players will play six times in the preliminary stages. The leading four players will then progress to the final table with the next four battling it out in heads-up matches for the final two seats. Phil Hellmuth leads the strongest ever line-up that includes Tom ‘Durrrr’ Dwan, JC Tran, Nenad Medic, Devilfish, Tony G, Vicky Coren, Annette Obrestad, Roland de Wolfe, Andy Black, Juha Helppi and WSOP Main Event winner Peter Eastgate. The event runs until Sunday 30th November.
At the start of play season one winner Juha Helppi was the 6/1 outright favourite with PartyBets.com, with JC Tran 7/1, Nenad Medic 8/1, Tony G 8/1, Devilfish 8/1, Annette Obrestad 8/1, Tom Dwan 9/1, Phil Hellmuth 10/1, Roland de Wolfe 10/1, Peter Eastgate 12/1, Andy Black 14/1 and Vicky Coren at 16/1.
PartyPoker.com Premier League III – Heat 1 – Monday 24th November
10 points - JC Tran
6 points - Peter Eastgate
4 points - Annette Obrestad
3 points - Andy Black
2 points - Roland de Wolfe
0 points – Devilfish
Heat 2
10 points – Tony G
6 points – Tom Dwan
4 points - Vicky Coren
3 points - Phil Hellmuth
2 points - Juha Helppi
0 points - Nenad Medic
Qualifiers are still running for the King of the Table $2 million guaranteed online tournament at PartyPoker.com on Sunday 30th November at 12.45 ET, which has a $600+$40 buy-in and a championship blind structure. PartyPoker.com provides a diverse qualifying structure allowing ALL players, no matter the size of their bankroll, an opportunity to qualify, and you can join in the action from as little as $1.
November 25, 2008