News Update: March 9th, 2012

March 8, 2012, Posted by Daniel.Smyth

Matchbook.com Odds on SuperStar Showdown

Every high stakes hero has a nemesis and while there are few who can touch the almighty “Isildur1”, there has been one who managed to bring the Swede to his knees. Indeed, during their last battle Isaac Haxton managed to walk away from their PokerStars Superstar Showdown with a $41,701 profit.

A cunning min-raise strategy from Haxton seemed to stifle Blom’s aggressive game, so much so that he even complained that the tactics were unfair. However, this time around we can expect to see a lot more action as Blom is looking to avenge the defeat.

Scheduled for Sunday, March 11^th at 12pm ET, the pair will square off at the $100/$200 NLHE tables (the previous match was played at $25/$50) for 2,500 hands of pure poker.

There is little doubt that both players rank amongst the best in the world, but which one will walk away victorious?

Thanks to Matchbook.com you can put your money where your mouth is and bet on the outcome. For the first time in the SuperStar Showdown’s history railbirds can access a live betting market and wager against who they think will win.

Currently Haxton is leading the way in the betting stakes at -145 (1.69), with Blom sitting at +125 (2.25). However, as the match nears those prices are bound to change.

To see the latest odds and to place a bet visit: matchbook.com

The Party is On

Tom “Durrrr” Dwan, Dan “Jungleman” Cates and Phil Laak have all confirmed their attendance for this year’s Party Poker Premier League event. The 16 player, $125,000 buy-in shootout tournament will take place as a special WPT event and feature a host of world class players.

With $200,000 and a $25K WPT Main Event seat being added to the prizepool by Party Poker, the gloves will certainly be off as some of the best players in the world compete across in this unique event.

Joining Dwan, Cates and Laak will be Patrik Antonius, Sam Trickett, Vanessa Selbst and Luke “FullFlush” Schwartz. One lucky qualifier will also be joining the game’s elite when the action kicks off at the Montesino Casino, Austria, on April 4^th.

Mystery Company to Buy Tilt?

According to sources at iGaming there may be hope for the future of Full Tilt if the ongoing Groupe Bernard Tapie deal falls through.

While GBT initially appeared to be the poker community’s knight in shining armour, their continued stalling has made a takeover bid seem less and less likely in recent months.

Although the UK company hasn’t been named, rumours are that three separate sources have confirmed the firm’s interest in acquiring Full Tilt.

One thing that is clear, however, is that the company will not look to re-launch the site. Instead they are looking to purchase Tilt’s software and utilise it in a different capacity.

This news is yet to be confirmed (indeed, some sources are speculating it isn't true) but whatever the truth, it seems that even without GBT’s investment the future of Full Tilt could be looking a lot brighter.

Side Action

While he may not be the betting favourite at the moment it would be foolish to rule out Blom’s chances against Haxton this Sunday. Indeed, when he’s got the balls to pull moves like the one below, anything could happen.