xTonyGx
TonyG Blog
Goodbye Australia and the Twister Panda competition
The Aussie Millions was a great time. It always is one of my favorite tournaments and The Crown knows how to take care of their players. But it's over for another year and I have other places to be. The WPT Vienna starts on April 10th at the Montesino Casino. I'll be there! I may even take the Australian Pandas with me to play Twister while I'm waiting to take everyone's money at the tables.
Isn't it amazing how much fun I have? I do have more fun than anyone else on the planet! Life can blow your mind out into the universe if you let all the steam build up from bad beats and the donkeys you send to the rail that don't know how to ride a bike.
Bike riding apparently isn't one of Melanie Weisner's strong points. I tempted her with a $10,000 unicycle challenge while we were at the Aussie Millions. She has a lot of heart and commitment but can she ride a unicycle? Find out!
The Pandas were at the $100,000 Scrabble challenge at the Aussie Millions too. Scrabble for $100K? I was looking for the Professor - I scoured the golf courses, I searched the poker tables, yachts, everywhere a professor would hide. He is hiding, right? No one can find him! But I finally found The Real Professor from Harvard.
The scrabble game had more...I set up bonus words that were worth 50 points - 'lion' and 'open' - ZASKO was a big part of the equation. The Real Professor won $100,000 and then he was going off to gamble on the Tennis games. The Pandas sat, pondering the whole scene. I took the microphone to get a statement from the Real Professor.
The Pandas were standing by as I was decked out in my incredibly mismatched outfit.
Am I a fashion statement?
I plan on throwing all the pirates overboard when I hit Venice. I have my eye on one in particular - the pretend pirate Max Pescatori. Get ready Max, the Pandas are coming, I'm coming to send you to feed the Piranhas!
The pretend pirate found out I'm going to make him walk the plank when we get to Venice for the World Poker Tour. He's fighting back, with words. I'm still laughing. No one can outword me! Not Phil Hellmuth, certainly not a pretend pirate. Rave on Max!
I'm teaching the Pandas to play at PartyPoker because that's where I play; look for me there and around the world in different places while I search for the Professor and taste the next adventure life has to offer.
P.S. I believe the Pandas can become world class players!
Leaving a trail of FUN at the Aussie Millions
It is my duty to make sure I have fun with whatever I'm doing at the time. Even if it meant the Poker Brat Phil Hellmuth sent me on a long trip around the edge of the world on a bike with two flat tires, searching for a way to beat him. That's his fairy tale, not mine!But if it did happen, I would still have fun along the way.
I'm at the final table of the 2012 Aussie Millions $100,000 buy-in and we're kicking off play before too long. Follow the action at PokerNews:
In my last post I was begging for accepting votes from everyone to help me win the Lithuanian Business Lighthouse Award - thank you everyone! I did win it out of 44 people that were nominated for the position, it was me! me! me! that took it down. I have all my loyal fans and readers to thank for it! And myself of course because I had to do something great to be nominated.
While we wait for the $100K Challenge to start the dance with me and the following poker tough guys, Gus Hansen-567,000, Nam Le-79,500, Sam Trickett-73,000, Mikhail Smirnov-265,000, Joe Hachem-538,500, Sorel Mizzi-228,500, and Dan Smith-346,500 take a look at the opinion of those in 'the know' when it comes to me and Hellmuth facing off heads-up:
And here's another one, you must have read about the Dan 'Jungleman' Cates $100K Challenge he made at the WPT in Prague, right? Here we are, in front of the camera for your viewing pleasure - and we're talking about the WPT Challenge.
Stay tuned to the Aussie Millions $100K Challenge Live Reporting and see what I can do to those without heart and commitment! They have a bike reserved just for them.
Notice anything? I didn't give you my starting chip count along with all the other poker tough guys. Here it is: 102,000. Just enough to knock the tough out of the game!
In Melbourne at the Aussie Millions
It's been awhile. It's always a crazy busy time for me with work and poker and life and laughter and fun - with very little time left over to just stop and relax. If I do take a break, who will take over the role of tormenting The Poker Brat? It's my job! Everything else I do is just for fun.
Life in Melbourne is good, great food, great poker and tennis every day. I've been playing poker with Patrik Antonius so if I mention looking for him for a match, it's all about poker baby. If we met for a tennis match, the only way I'd win is if he took a fall. Maybe we could set up a match where he played with a bucket over his head. I've been playing a little 200-400 PLO at The Crown trying to win enough to pay for Patrik's liters of Fiji water.
Here's a clip from Our Mixed Game Championship show that came out on the 10th on Sky Sports in the UK. And when you're done watching it, I need your vote so keep reading.
I am one of the 44 Lithuanian business people that is up for The Lithuanian Business Lighthouse Award (the page is best viewed in Google Chrome). Lithuania's most successful entrepreneurs are just waiting for a vote from you to select me.
Please do take a minute and vote for me! Tell all your friends to vote for me!
No, I can't pay you. Consider all the entertainment I've put across in the media in YouTube and PokerNews videos payment enough. Just vote!
Poker Action in the Desert and Online Poker Payouts
have been in Las Vegas for awhile now. I came in to take a crack at the WPT World Championship at Bellagio, made it through day 2 and then out on day 3. And I’m here to work, it’s the life of The G, work out with my trainer, play a little poker, go back to work. I love it!
I recently did an interview on ESPN’s podcast, the Poker Edge, with Gary Wise and Andrew Feldman about Black Friday. If you haven’t listened to it, you should because I serve the online poker community and I’m concerned about the silence that is running through Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker for the players that are waiting for a scrap of news.
The whole poker universe is a bit on the downside since the indictments were served on the Big Three. It was just over a month ago and not much has been resolved in player payouts with Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker/UB. PokerStars has taken care of their players, that speaks volumes in helping settle the issues with the DOJ and internet poker in general. I am involved in trying to work through it with some of the top level people at Full Tilt. And I am involved because it affects my business at PokerNews and my lifestyle in poker. We need to move forward with a positive sign to clear the rubble from the past and start building online poker into a safe, regulated system for everyone that wants to play.
I have been very outspoken about player payouts and I believe it’s coming down to a big decision that must be made soon. But there is good news, I can’t elaborate too much but I have information that leads me to understand the FTP teams’ personal assets are on the line and they will liquidate to pay the players if need be. Since more talk or pressure won’t make things happen any faster, I am asking everyone to give Full Tilt Poker two weeks of grace to sort this out. Follow my poker tweets <http://www.pokernews.com/twitter/TonyGuoga/> for the unedited version of what’s going on in the mind of The G and updates with Full Tilt and the online poker world. Follow me on Twitter for more updates: @TonyGuoga
Along with work and working out, I’ve been searching for worthy opponents to play heads-up poker with while I’m in the desert. I’m not looking for a nit, I’m looking for action and someone that wants to rumble on the felt with The G. Find me at The Wynn, just look around for Steve Wynn’s German Shepherds and the guy that’s trying to outrun them on the golf course, that’s me.
While I’m in Vegas I won’t make it to the Sunday Bike Ride at Party Poker, but I will return soon, with a bunch of bikes for those of you that want to try to bust me out of the action.
Sunshine, Cash Outs, Wynn Hospitality
It’s been a great day in Las Vegas, the sun is out, the weather is comfortable and perfect for a bike ride – now if I could just find someone to send down the road it would be even better! My mood and attitude about the gloom surrounding Black Friday is starting to climb out of the hole it was buried in for the last two weeks. We can get around all of this. Online poker isn’t going away. Maybe this whole attack by the DOJ will finally make people realize they have to fight back if they want freedom in their own home.
The cash out status for Full Tilt Poker is improving and it seems things are getting much better. I feel really confident about players in the USA getting their money back soon. I’ve heard some really good chatter today and I know the whole team is working hard to get the player’s money into the USA. The players in Australia have been able to cash out with no problem and so have many other countries so there is no doubt that today there is real stability. I feel good about all of it, just from hearing the news.
PokerStars has paid most U.S. players by now and they are running poker around the clock as usual. That’s a very good sign for online poker.
On the player’s money being safe and coming back to them, I believe Absolute Poker is dead. PokerStars is 100% safe. Full Tilt Poker is 90% safe. That’s my opinion only and you shouldn’t take book on it. I hope that all online poker sites honor the player’s trust and investments of time and money by returning all funds as soon as possible.
I’ve heard some rumors running around the world of poker chatter and there is some huge news coming about Full Tilt but right now it is chatter and I can’t talk about it. I really like to know things I can’t talk about; it’s a game of its own, and I love games.
But on the lighter side, I am at the Wynn enjoying Steve Wynn’s hospitality and staying one step ahead of his German shepherds this time. I played a freeroll Baccarat tourney yesterday and was first out. I’m playing again tonight in the second chance, there’s $1M up for grabs and Johnny Chan is fighting to win too. After the tourney I’m off to the gym with my personal trainer Paul.
The Aftermath of Black Friday
I caught a flight from Orlando to Vegas and touched down in Vegas late last night. Sin City is the usual for me, I’m here and ready to work. I like to play, but work is what keeps me moving across the globe and I’m on it today too. Black Friday has put the damper on posting and trying to remain upbeat about online poker when the US players aren’t able to play. Everyone is waiting to see what happens next. I don’t think it’s going to turn into a quick, happy ending because no one has ever won against the DOJ.
Next week is crunch week for Full Tilt Poker. They have to get some of the money out to people that has been frozen in accounts since the 15th of April. If players start to see their funds coming home, I think all will be fine and stable. I really feel for everyone involved. I think the key person at Full Tilt Poker is Nelson Burtnick since it appears he had the keys to the vault and the pin codes so he is the guy that could tell everyone where all the cookies are.
When you compare the two online poker sites, Full Tilt and PokerStars, there should be no difference with how the money is held. All the players’ money should be in a separate account. PokerStars has been able to come back to the players with a payment resolution already and Full Tilt should be able to do the same thing – that is unless Nelson had a crack with the cash. That is pure speculation on my part, I have no evidence, but Nelson should speak up and initiate a release and everyone will relax a little bit. It’s now become a situation where the time to make a statement is now and loyal supporters need to see action, waiting doesn’t help anything.
No matter how they do it, they have got to get the player’s accounts paid back to the player’s bank accounts. Luckily the owners have lots of personal assets and Durrrr and his mate are kind by offering $1Million. If all of the Full Tilt Poker Team could chip in with $1M each to start with, that would really help ease the tension. I feel that team FTP needs to step up right now and guarantee player funds with their own personal wealth.
I’m sure the DOJ is willing to help get the money back to players so if the money is there, it should be coming your way soon if you have an account at Full Tilt Poker.
I’ve reached out to the top owners at Full Tilt and while I don’t have the solution to any of it, I am here to help in any way I can. I’m waiting and hoping like everyone else, hoping the next move is a positive step for online poker everywhere.
Laura Cornelius Surrounded by Frenemies – Big Game Live
Laura has Alec Torelli, Mike Matusow, The G, and Roland de Wolfe on deck for Tony’s video blog at the PokerNews Interactive live stream of the Party Poker Big Game V. Laura is holding a Phil Ivey doll and says, “Phil Ivey’s in the house!” before she asks Tony if he’s coming back to the game.
Tony says it’s up to the organizers and a big discussion starts about who is ahead at this point, Jennifer Tilly is according to Matusow and de Wolfe but Tony disagrees, he says they are tallying it up right now. Tony believes Jennifer isn’t coming back to play and Matusow says they will all give her 500 to come back so Tony won’t win.
Tony says he will wait for the organizers to give him the green light so he can jet off to London. de Wolfe says they are fixing it up so Tony will have the badge to say winner and that Jennifer is actually ahead.
Laura asks Matusow what he thinks of his doll; the doll takes a beating as Mike ’shows’ what he thinks of the doll by throwing it onto the floor, stepping on it, drop kicking it as he talks, and ends with, “I’m playing better now!”
Laura asks Mike who he’s going to get at the table and Mike stammers through, “I don’t know…” when Torelli pipes in, “It’s hard for Mike to find the target when he is the target…”
Laura tells them all to shake hands and they do! Tony rousts them with a team huddle cheer, “WE CAN DO IT!”
As they go back to the table, Laura spins the yarn that they all love each other…really!
Party Poker Big Game V – There’s a Bike Here Somewhere
Tony comes riding into the dimly lit Dusk Till Dawn Casino in Nottingham UK, for the Party Poker Big Game V that is being live streamed on PokerNews Interactive. He’s got a basket on his bike – for the poker dolls to ride in.
Tony takes a ride around the table and sizes up the players, letting them know that the bike is waiting for their exit. He lets one of the dolls get a look at the players as it stands on the rail, and then does a double back flip before Tony puts the doll back in the basket. Tony stands by the table and talks to the players, sitting down for just a moment to show the doll the game.
Laura Cornelius is waiting for Tony once he parks the bike.
Tony says he was asleep and plugging away in bed in a dream. He says he will slip into the game and do his best. Laura asks if he’s been watching any of the live stream of the game and he says yes, it has been a bit of motivation. Laura says they’re about to lose someone in the game and asks if Tony knows whose seat he will take. Tony says he thinks it’s Neil Channing. He’s going to get biked, he’s the most sort of popular hated player in the UK. Tony says he’s the most hated. Tony says that’s not a bad title, he’s won something, and Channing’s been working hard to win.
Tony introduces his friends, the dolls that he brought in the basket on his bike, the first one is Devilfish – Tony brings up the doll that Bruno got when he got evicted because he’s also one of the most hated players – the next doll Tony shows is Phil Hellmuth and Tony turns the doll upside down and cracks jokes about Hellmuth’s private jet; the third doll is Daniel, Laura likes the beard.
Tony says there’s a bulldog in the house but they’re not allowing German Shepherds because they don’t want a dog fight. He says there’s a lot of controversy in America and he’s staying away from that. He says the dog is going to eat Hellmuth and Devilfish.
And Tony’s off…to take the dolls to the table.
The Big Game V on PokerNews Interactive Live Stream
I’m in LT right now feeding my dogs and working hard but I’ll be in Nottingham UK in the Dusk Till Dawn Poker Club working my way through some of the starting line-up of the Party Poker Big Game V – these are the ones: Viffer, Annette Obrestad, Jennifer Tilly, Sam Trickett, Bruno Fitoussi, Devilfish, Neil Channing, and a Party Poker qualifier – starting April 15th.
I’ll be playing for sure, I think I’m coming in first man down, coaxing my fellow players to drink, barking (since my dogs can’t come), and trying to build my cash stack up. It’s a 48 hour poker marathon where anything can happen and probably will because something new has been added.
You can interact as you watch the live stream at PokerNews, the whole 48 hours. You get to see the hole cards, hear all the noisy chatter with players, listen and watch for trivia and password hints and clues in the live stream, and find the restricted password for two Freerolls at PartyPoker that have cash added and a seat to the Party Poker Spring Million, and the best part is, you can vote on evicting a player that you don’t want at the table. Of course you want me there, I’m not a nit, I’m fun, I’m crazy, and I get things going. I promise to be the entertainment manager when I’m in the game.
You get to decide on Bike Time, big time. Tune in and stay tuned for all the fun and action and become part of it this weekend at PokerNews.
In Las Vegas for Poker and Russians
I am playing the PokerStars Big Game. Thursday was a completely fun day when I got to punish and repunish Phil Hellmuth. It was my typical Tony G takes no prisoners kind of day and Phil was part of the aftermath I left laying behind me. He will probably give up poker altogether soon. Especially when he knows he has to face me. He must start shaking as soon as he knows he’s going to play against me now since he never wins. Obviously I can’t tell you any of the results because it would give away the show and that’s a BIG no-no but destroying Hellmuth is one of the things I enjoy most. Just watch the show.
I’ve been relaxing in my Villa at the Wynn when I’m not busy eating up poker players. It’s such a beautiful place, the golf course is right outside my balcony, I’m on the second floor and the view spreads out into rolling green, sand traps, ducks on the grass, the pool in the villa below, and right next to me is Steve Wynn’s villa. It’s completely fenced and his dogs are kept inside and not trying to take a piece of me off for lunch like before when I went to take a peek at Wynn’s villa.
The tranquil area outside my window keeps a wall between me and the lunacy of the Las Vegas Strip. The city that never sleeps is always calling. I have the best of everything. I can feed my crazy attitude and appetite anywhere I want, any time I want, and then return to quiet and peace and work on the inner spirit of The G. This inner spirit is in need of taking on Russian poker players and that’s what I get in my next trip to South Point Casino for The Big Game where I’m playing against a table full of them. It’s one of the things I love most, the next best thing to playing a table full of French players is a table full of Russians.
Before I went off to play the Russians, I had work to do,
then I needed a massage which I received in the massage room in my villa by a beautiful masseuse with great hands,
and donned my Party Poker wear for the day.
Isn’t it great that my sponsor, Party Poker, lets me play against and with Full Tilt Poker and PokerStars players? And on the subject of playing wherever I want, I was snubbed again in the picks for the 2011 NBC Heads-up. I am irritated about it and have sounded off on the 2+2 Forums.
Then I was off to play the Russians, driven in style,
