Chris Halverson’s Blog

My God, I’ve turned into a total whore lately. All I do is shill…

WPBT “Charlie” Tournament
When: Sunday, July 17th, 6pm EST (That’s 5PM for us Midwest folk)
Where: PokerStars - Listed under the Private tab
Cost: $20 - Every penny goes to charity

How cool is it that Stars is not taking one cent from this? They rock, that’s all there is to it.

No prize money, just bragging rights. I’m going to register, but I don’t think I’ll be able to play, so no bounty or anything.

Sign up and let’s do some good.

ESPN Original Entertainment’s 2004 World Series of Poker Now Available on DVD

NEW YORK (June 28, 2005) — The poker phenomenon is still raging and so is its highest stakes game, No-Limit Texas Hold’Em. To the delight of poker fans nationwide, ESPN Original Entertainment and DVD Marketing Inc. have compiled the complete 2004 World Series of Poker’s Main Event, a six-day shoot-out between the crème de la crème of the poker world and wildcard amateurs to capture the multi-million dollar cash prize, onto an ultimate must-have three-disc DVD set.

The DVD set, packed with bonus features and more than 11 hours of poker action, will be available for online purchase as of today at www.espnshop.com and www.championshipdvd.com with a suggested retail price of $19.95. Availability in retail outlets will follow.

“Our fans will really enjoy the 2004 WSOP DVD collection because we’ve loaded it with four hours of bonus content,” said Victoria Stevens, vice president, ESPN. “It’s great for people who enjoy poker and dream of someday making it to the final table at the game’s biggest stage.”

A record-breaking 2,576 players, more than triple the number from last year, came to Las Vegas for the 2004 World Series of Poker. Once again, it was a virtual unknown in the poker world that would beat the poker masters and garner the top prize. Greg “Fossilman” Raymer, a patent attorney from Connecticut, parlayed a $160 online entry fee into $5 million in winnings and the coveted WSOP title.

This DVD set contains ESPN Original Entertainment’s final 10 programs from the telecast of the 2004 World Series of Poker, which earned a 1.7 rating for more than 1.5 million viewing households. Hosted by ESPN commentators and poker aficionados, Lon McEachern and Norman Chad, the DVD is presented in fullscreen (1.33:1) digital video without commercial interruption, and includes revealing interviews of star players, basic rules of No-Limit Texas Hold’Em and four hours of bonus features. Chapter points set at the key rounds allow the viewer to jump directly to the action putting them in control of every frame of video as ESPN captures the emotion, strategy and luck in route to crowning the champion of the World Series of Poker.

The unprecedented four hours of bonus features include:

* Top-10 moments from the 2004 tournament
* A Greg Raymer commentary
* A Greg Raymer All Access
* Greg Raymer’s Bio
* A Stu Unger feature
* Beyond the Felt: Poker Talk segment
* Coverage of the $1,000 Buy-In No-Limit Texas Hold’Em
* Coverage of the $2,000 Buy-In Pot Limit Omaha
* Tournament of Champions feature
* Coverage of the Kansas City Lowball event, exclusive only to the DVD

Virtually everybody has heard about the legendary poker prowess of Stu Ungar. The facts speak for themselves: 3 time WSOP main event champion; winner of a huge percentage of tournaments of $10,000 buyins or larger that he entered; generally regarded by other poker players as quite possibly the best NL and NL tournament player ever; he also was regarded as the world’s best gin rummy player. You may also have heard about his notorious drug usage which ultimately led to his death.

That background sets the stage for the book “One of a Kind: The Rise and Fall of Stuey Ungar” by Nolan Dalla and Peter Alson.

The authors give us an insider’s look into Stuey’s personality, in particular his total disregard for money, lack of self control and true desire to win. His desire to win is best demonstrated by his gin playing. Ungar turned out to be arguably the world’s bet gin rummy player and was backed by the New York mob to play all comers. They staked him on a trip to Las Vegas to play the best players there. They tried talking him into hustling the other players, but Stuey couldn’t bring himself to lose even if it meant killing future action. His action did indeed dry up, much to the chagrin of his backers. He then tried tournament gin, but again, they eventually told him that nobody else would play if he did, so even that action dried up. It was then that he turned to poker and into gambling immortality.

You can read about his achievements in the book, but the book was much more than a rehash of wins.

Dalla and Alson paint a wonderfully complete and intimate picture of Stuey’s life. What really makes this book interesting is the fact that it started out years ago intending to be a biography co-written by Ungar himself. Due to this, there are a lot of candid quotes from Ungar which would not have been possible in interviews alone or from later books. It also includes numerous quotes from his daughter with whom Stuey tried to foster a relationship with. You can tell that this book was authored by friends of the family due to the intimate details and honesty that Ungar and his family talked about. There are also various pros who lend insight to the various aspects, both good and bad, of Ungar’s life.

The book is very professionally written with a smooth style that made nice use of direct quotes. The authors have a strong professional writing background and it shows through in the book. You can tell that the authors were friends of Ungar: the intimate details of his life really shine through, both the good and the bad. By the end of the book you can’t help but feel for the family and friends that were left behind by Ungar’s death.

I would highly recommend this book if you are interested in a poker legend who self-destructed despite friends and family who tried to help. The book is very well written and has a unique insight that no other book on the subject has. Ungar is a truly interesting character and this book offers a unique and intimate view into this troubled man’s life.