tilted behaviour

There wasn’t too much gambling or kicking back in saunas, but pretty girls, great company and many drinks were favoured while Victorino Torres fought his way through a 342-player field to become the next champion of Macau when his 8♣ 7♣ for a flopped straight held true against Chong Cheong’s straight draw.

With Macau being the second stop for season four on the Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT), it is still highly prestigious, and therefore be setting the precedent for the upcoming five-stop season, and consequently, we’ll kick it off with The Eight Points of Enlightenment: APPT Macau.

1 – Accommodation: When traveling around the world covering tournaments there is always a budget that you are trying to sneak under so that you can make some money on the top. Both the PokerStars and PokerNews media members had no idea how, but were very willing to accept, the hell we lucked it out with fantastic rooms at the Grand Lisboa. I mentioned earlier that the rooms we had been allocated were incredibly balla, but really it’s so hard to imagine without actually being there! Poker journalists and tournament reporters will take any freebie we can get our hands on, and when the APPT and PokerStars put us up at a place like the Grand Lisboa, then the whole working week becomes a freeroll.

2 – Tournament Structure: Danny McDonagh has always created fantastic structures for any event that he is running, and the APPT one is no exception. WIth just seven levels on each of the three day ones, it means that players get maximum play without feeling run-down after a long day on the felt. Easily a three-day event, having the tournament spread over four days proves to the players that are willing to make the journey to Macau, that they’re interests are at the most importance.

3 – Where Is Everyone?: Last year the APPT increased the buy-in from HK$25,000 to HK$40,000 and there was always an expected decline in numbers. However it was enough to decrease from the prizepool as there was nearly a US$90,000 increase in first place prizemoney. This year however the numbers slid once again from the 429 that turned out last August down to the 342 that took to the felt over the past few days. Yes our poker economy might not be at it’s most vibrant right now, but I think it is the next point that lead to the disappointing numbers for 2010.

4 – It’s To Squishy!: No I’m not talking about the distance between tables and players but the fact that the season four stop for Macau was moved three months from it’s usual late-Winter time slot. I have nothing against moving the tournament, but whoever decided to do this really didn’t take a close look at the schedule of tournaments around the Australasian area. A few weeks previous we had the New Zealand Poker Championships, followed immediately by ANZPT Sydney only to have Macau and then the Melbourne Poker Championships. For those mid-tier players that want to reduce as many traveling expenses as possible, having to choose between New Zealand, Sydney, Macau and Melbourne, then they’re are likely to choose to Sydney and Melbourne due not only to the location but also the prizepools on offer and the schedule of events available. Let’s not forget about the WSOP Main Event where most online players will be looking to spend hours trying to satellite in ahead of one of the stops on the APPT!

5 – Media Considerations: I wrote about this in the last Eight Points of Enlightenment I did for Macau, but the staff at the Grand Lisboa do a great job in making us feel comfortable while we work. Whether it is PokerStars player packs or HK$50 and HK$100 meal vouchers, they do their best to make us feel at home. The only issue that we had – as we did last year – was where we were located. Although moving across the tournament floor, we were still jammed up against a wall that had people going to the toilet at one end, tables where the action was on one side and the buy-in desk and storage areas at the other end. The Grand Lisboa isn’t the most spacious poker room I’ve worked in, but some space reserved out the back away from all the smokers and railbirds would have made our life a lot easier.

6 – Poker Fans Welcome!: The one thing I have never seen around the world – well kind of apart from the WSOP – is the fact the Grand Lisboa sold PokerStars clothing, gear and accessories. From jackets, hoodies and hats to chip sets, card protectors and previous season DVDs, the Grand Lisboa merchandise store had nearly everything a poker crazed fan would love to own. None of the gear was dirt cheap, but it wasn’t going to cost you a buy-in on the tables either as nearly everyone – including us media freeloaders – walked away with one piece of gear for ourselves or friends back home. Hint to all poker tournaments . . . sell awesome gear for the players and they’ll keep coming back for more!

7 – Party Time: For the last two years the Asian Poker Tour (APT) has set the trend in partying while in Macau, but PokerStars finally stepped up this year delivering a better-than-average player party on day 1c. Although it was randomly in the middle of the tournament – instead of being at the start or end – it meant that virtually everyone could attend. Unlike the APT where there are fantastically gorgeous girls in lingerie splashing round in a bath full of bubbles, PokerStars Macau delivered with a buffet, a spacious set up in the ballroom and huge variety and supply of alcohol along with a Michael Jackson impersonator that no one really appreciated (well apart from myself and a few others!). They are still learning the trade of throwing a party, but PokerStars Macau and the Grand Lisboa are definitely on the rise in my party power rating!

8 – The Money Is Staying Closish: Victorino Torres may not be a local, but he is only a hop, step and a jump away in the Northern Mariana Islands. It could have easily been different with players from New Zealand, Norway, Costa Rica, United Kingdom and the USA all on the final table. Keeping the money predominately local is a must in some of these developing poker areas so that new players that live in and around the area can be develop an interest in the game, so that in the long run, the small Australasian poker community can continue to grow.

With APPT Macau all wrapped up, it’s time to head over to Las Vegas for the Mecca of poker tournaments . . . the 2010 World Series of Poker!

Make sure to stay tuned to Tilted Behaviour for all my updates along the way!

After a late night spent packing, the final day of my stay in Macau has arrived with Day 3 of the APPT Macau Main Event kicking off.

APPT Macau Day 3 Level 15-18 Updates
APPT Macau Day 3 Level 19-21 Updates

Only forty-four players remained when the cards hit the air, and unfortunately four of them would be heading home empty handed albeit some crazy bubble chop.

Play was a little looser then what is the norm when on the bubble, but eventually it would Japan’s Takashi Ogura going home with a sour taste in his mouth as the remaining forty players jostled for position in the final nine.

With a flight just before midnight and a final airport-bound fairy leaving just after 8pm, I ended the day early so as to shower and pack the last of my belongings before saying au revoir to the PokerStars Blog team of Simon and Joe as well as my PokerNews peeps who I would be seeing in just a few days in the good old USA.

Oh . . . I guess I forgot to mention that . . . but I’m heading back to Las Vegas to be part of the 2010 WSOP PokerNews Live Reporting Team!

Now to Melbourne for the day to switch out most of my clothes, say hi and then goodbye to the family before catching that long flight across the Pacific ocean.

Arriving for day two, we always knew it was going to be action filled, but no one expected it to be this heavy of action!

APPT Macau Day 2 Level 8-10 Updates
APPT Macau Day 2 Level 11-14 Updates

Bust out after bust out kick-started the day as Tony Hachem, Eric Assadourian, Daren Yoon, Andrew Scott, Dinh Le, Aaron Benton, Raymond Wu, David Steicke, Michael Pedley and Julian Powell all biting the dust before the end of play.

160 players began the day, but only 44 would survive with just four eliminations needed until we hit the money . . . I guess we’ll be reserving that until tomorrow!

During the day we had all received word that there was a secret karaoke party occurring later that night, so after showering and changing into some fresh clothes we all made our way to the VIP night of singing, gambling and boozing!

We were not disappointed with the constant bottle service, the giant screen displaying the video clips to all the songs that were going to get destroyed by us and the large display of dice to keep the inner degen satisfied! Straight into the Vodka Redbull and then the gambling games where I firstly had to teach everyone the game of Bluff before we all decided to play for some money . . . a whopping HK$20!

Donnie and I ended up chopping the small but pride-earning prizepool as the girls left us three boys alone to run amok as we downed a few more drinks while talking shit.

GG grabbed the mic and started to tear it up as both he and Donnie seemed to know every word to every rap song they played. Unfortunately for GG the award for the coolest crooner of the night would go straight to Marcel Luske who’s presence was enough to see the award on a plane back to Holland.

We talked up the thoughts of heading to massage parlour after being advised on some nearby good ones by a few of the Australians that now call Macau home, but eventually those plans would be dismissed since Donnie was getting tired and GG might get yelled at if he was any later than he already was.

Consequently we called it a night and made our way back to the rooms as I decided to get a start on my packing in preparation for my trip back home tomorrow.

I arrived a little later than normal – as expected – and was greeted with some puzzling looks from the majority of the PokerNews crew before settling into another day behind the computer.

APPT Macau Day 1c Level 1-3 Updates
APPT Macau Day 1c Level 4-7 Updates

It was a fairly standard day with some of the bigger names taking to the felt including Tony Hachem, Aaron Benton, Brendon Rubie, Steve Yea, Dinh Le, Nam Le and Quinn Do.

Rubie finished up near the top along with Darren Judges and Ralf Westphal, but to read a decent recap of the day, check out how Simon Young saw it from alongside me.

With everyone wanting to have a quiet night, I decided to head downstairs to play some HK$10-20 NLH.

In my first major hand I was dealt A♠ J♠ in the small blind and bumped it up to 170 after a few limpers. Only two players made the call and I fired out 320 on a J♣ 10♣ 6♣ with both of them making the call before we checked down the Q♠ and 7♦ to see me rake in the pot and move up to HK$2,900 from my HK$2,000 buy-in.

There was a donk on the table that was calling every preflop raise and at least a bet on the flop with complete junk. I was unable to catch any cards while he was at the table apart from having my A♣ A♥ and it’s accompanying 60-chip raise from early position go uncalled by anyone – even from the donk in the big blind!

Late in the session I won a flip with 9♦ 9♠ against Ace-King to double my stack only to over HK$4,100 only to have it slip down to just over HK$3,500 before I turned in for the evening.

After a relatively early night last night, we were all back on the floor for day two action.

APPT Macau Day 1b Level 15-18 Updates
APPT Macau Day 1b Level 19-21 Updates

The highlight of the day was the fact that David Steicke was playing. Why? Because it is David Steicke!

Also in the field however were JC Tran, John ‘The Razor’ Phan, Neil Arce, Terrence Chan, Mike Kim, Andrew Scott and Eric Assadourian as Steicke finished near the top of the counts – second to be exact – behind Henrick Gwinner.

Unsually the APPT Player Party was scheduled for tonight instead of being at the start or the end of the tournament, but either way, that wasn’t stopping any of us from partying!

Heading up to the Grand Ballroom there was tables full of varying types of alcohol and a small buffet for all to enjoy as the music played on and on. With rumours of a cool show for everyone, it would be Jordan Sam – the world’s greatest Michael Jackson impersonator – doing his thing to a few tunes.

We thought it was pretty cool, and it actually felt like we were at a Michael Jackson concert, but in reality it didn’t seem like the rest of the crowd appreciated it.

As the night began to wind up we all found our way to the Lion’s Bar at the MGM where we managed to share a booth with some of my mates from back home that now live here in Macau.

The Grey Goose flowed, the dance moves were embarrassing but the view was amazing as we had lines of ladies looking down on us. Of course GG began the flirt-off as he would find a girl, give her the look, and she would be instantly hooked on this ‘whitey’ giving her the time of day!

Jordan Sam somehow made an appearance and rocked a few songs as the crowd went wild! Donnie got in on the flirting action as GG somehow managed to step it up (didn’t think it was possible) as I had my eye on this Filipino girl how seemed to be enjoying the night out bopping away to the music as we were doing too.

The night kicked past 3am and the question was where we were off to next. I made my up to the bar – and courtesy of a mad friend – somehow got introduced to the girl I had my eye on.

Her name was Cindy and she lived in Manila, but was studying dentistry off-campus at Brisbane (university?). She was young, petite and attractive, and consequently I bought her a drink as we all vacated the Lion’s Bar in preparation to head to D2.

“Don’t hang out with him, come hang with us. We’re going to D2″ a drunk GG kept saying to her as we walked out of the MGM to await for a taxi.

With no one (of the twenty or so people that we had been partying with) moving or doing anything, me and Cindy jumped in a cab and headed back to the Grand Lisboa for the night.

The Boys: Donnie, GG and myself enjoying a drink at the Lion’s Bar

The start of another tournament series, but this time there is a twist!

I’m doing my maiden gig for the PokerStars Blog . . . so who knows how this will turn out!

APPT Macau Day 1a Level 1-3 Updates
APPT Macau Day 1a Level 4-7 Updates

The blogging and back-end system was totally different to what I had been use to while working the tournament trial with PokerNews and PokerNetwork.

As you can see by reading the updates from today (but more from previous events) you will see that the blog is more about providing colourful stories from the floor instead of the pure hand reporting format that many have become so accustomed too.

Unfortunately it was difficult for me to shake the pure seek and find aspect of tournament coverage, and consequently there is still a very PokerNews-styled reporting format that I took to the blog.

Following a rather successful first day Donnie and I, along with Elissa, decided to venture out to grab some local food instead of the westernised cuisine that the hotel offered.

After talking to the concierge, he guided us to a place down the street, past the carpark and next to an alley where there wasn’t a non-slanty eye in the room.

We ordered a range of food that collectively was nearly cheaper then just one meal at the Grand Lisboa as we all tucked into some fantastic tasting grub. Wonton Noodle Soup, Prawns and Vegetables, Noodles and Fried Wontons were what was on the cards as every little bit was devoured quite easily.

Returning back to the hotel, Donnie and I decided to play some cash, and although I lost a little bit, profit splitting with Donnie had it’s advantages as he won some money for me!

Baccarat . . . Spas . . . Saunas . . . it must be Macau, and with it, two Champions have been crowned with Dermot Blain taking out the Main Event and Vladimir Geshkenbein victorious in the High Rollers Event.

With Macau being the first stop for season three on the Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT) it will be setting the precedent for the upcoming five-stop season, and consequently, we’ll kick it off with The Eight Points of Enlightenment: APPT Macau.

1 – Location: After being based at the Grand Waldo, the APPT moved to the Grand Lisboa for season three. Not only is it based on the main island of Macau instead of the very quiet island of Taipa, but it is also nestled amongst the bustling nightlife, shopping and gambling district. The Grand Lisboa is also a magnificent hotel and casino; from its 58-floor lotus leaf design to the hundreds of tables in play for any novice or gambler to lay a bet or two.

2 – It’s A Little Packed Isn’t It?: The Grand Lisboa poker room was packed with 33-tables for both the tournament and all night cash games. The one problem with this was the way they actually laid out the tables in the room. Not entirely cramped for space, although you would believe so, every table in the tournament area had less than a metre between the next meaning that passing between each table was a little more than difficult. With the journey from the media desk to the tournament needing to be taken between and around tables, it made it difficult for both us and the players as we were often sliding between their chairs or asking them to move slightly. In the future, if the Grand Lisboa staff took a good look at the table layout, they could definitely re-arrange the tables so that everyone involved is at ease.

3 – Media Considerations: Whenever we travel to a poker tournament the most important and first thing on our list is the combination of internet and suitable space to work. Arriving at the Grand Lisboa we were informed of no wireless connection and that we would have to set up our own broadband modem connection with a few boxes and cords supplied. To make things worse they also gave us a small desk to accommodate our team of seven, which not only made it uncomfortable to work but also added to the awkwardness of the space between us and the poker tables.
There was a positive side to the event for us as the PokerStars team gave us a handful of HK$50 and HK$100 vouchers to keep us very happy during breaks as we made the most of the cafe downstairs.

4 – Gorgeous Models : In Macau last year the Asian Poker Tour set the standard for absolutely stunning girls floating around the tournament floor doing absolutely nothing apart from looking good. APPT didn’t replicate, but after the Asian Poker Tour repeated their feats with success, the APPT followed suit. Not only did they bring some gorgeous girls along for the tournament but they were also (semi) local being from Malaysia – thanks to the Malaysian tournament directors. Another plus to these girls was that they actually were productive by carrying bottles of water and handing them out to both player and media all day and every day.
For those that need some visual stimulation . . . no need to ask . . . Tilted Behaviour understands completely!

5 – Plenty Of Side Events: The APPT packed its schedule full of fifteen events along with some great value satellites to make anyone here in Macau poised with a decision of a variety of tournaments differing in both game type and price. To me, this is one of the most important aspects of a tournament series, because a schedule that provides a good range of events will always be successful.

6 – Great Numbers: When the APPT upped the buy-in of the Main Event from HK$25,000 to HK$40,000, there was always a fear of a steep decline in the numbers. Once the dust had settled, the 538 runners from last year had been trimmed to 429, but a substantially larger prizepool had been created with a near US$90,000 increase in first place.
For the High Rollers Event the number of players only increased by a few; and I think this was mainly due to the fact that the event was run simultaneously with the last two days of the Main Event. Dropping the buy-in substantially only effected the prizepool as first prize was cut by nearly half, but when you review the event I think getting 64 was about what they expected due to the scheduling and the players that were in town.

7 – Lights, Camera, Action?: The first two seasons of the APPT saw a purpose built stage with bright lights and purple velvet curtains that appeared at every venue in the same formation – but this year it was all gone! No Erin McNaught as host and no 411 productions filming the event. Instead it was an Asian TV company and a stage erected in the middle of the Grand Lisboa gaming floor that looked very poor in comparison to the previous two seasons. Maybe it was due to budget constraints or a change in direction, but either way it was a terrible mistake as it definitely decreases the professionalism of the tour, and maybe even takes a step backward in poker development and growth in the region.

8 – From Busto To Bankrolled: During day two of the High Rollers Event, Vladimir Geshkenbein approached Jonathan ‘xMONSTERxDONGx’ Karamalikis and discussed with him that all he had to his name was ten bucks and four maxed-out credit cards. First of all why would you tell this to a player when you’re on the bubble, and secondly it’s kind of tempting fate. Once I heard this story I felt that it was guaranteed that Geshkenbein would either bubble the final table and the money or win the whole thing.
The bubble passed when, ironically, Geshkenbein knocked out Karamalikis, and from then on no one else stood a chance. It was one of those heart-felt kind of wins and rags to riches story with Geshkenbein going from busto to bankrolled in two days of tournament poker.

With Seoul, South Korea now postponed our attention will be turned to Melbourne for the third running of the PokerNews Cup Australia and possibly the Sydney Poker Championships beforehand if PokerNetwork get the nod.

After five days behind the computer we have finally reached the final day with the APPT Macau High Rollers Event playing down to just one.

The final table for the Main Event was being played over on the purpose built stage in the middle of the Grand Lisboa gaming floor while our final four tables and 25 players were battling it out in the normal tournament area.

GG was back to help out and we were down to three tables of eight and then two tables soon after. The next seven players fell relatively fast with friend Michael Marvanek unfortunately falling in tenth as the unofficial final table was created.

However it would take nearly three hours until we lost the bubble – and yet again it was another friend – with Jonathan ‘xMONSTERxDONGx’ Karamalikis having his Kings cracked by a two-outer.

Seat 1: Grant ‘grunter’ Levy – 1,428,000
Seat 2: Gap Young Kim – 760,000
Seat 3: Vladimir Geshkenbein – 678,000
Seat 4: Danny Huynh – 432,000
Seat 5: Neil Arce – 1,153,000
Seat 6: In Wook Choi – 490,000
Seat 7: Nicolas Wong – 224,000
Seat 8: Johnny Chan – 518,000

The final eight took an hour long dinner break only to lose Nicolas Wong, Gap Young Kim and In Wook Choi in quick succession once play recommenced before taking a break to move to the purpose built stage since the Main Event had just been wrapped up by Dermot Blain.

The remainder of the tournament ran out pretty standard – Grant Levy finished in fifth and Filipino Neil Arce fell in third to put everyone’s hopes on Johnny Chan being victorious. However that wish wouldn’t be granted as the kid with only $10 and four maxed-out credit cards to his name – Vladimir Geshkenbein – became the High Rollers Champion for 2009.

Heath, Kirsty and F-Train were already at the hotel along with Craig and Lynn, and with GG heading to WPT Cyprus tomorrow I retired to the hotel to complete my second article for the PokerNews website.

Like I said previously, check it out, click the thumbs up icon and give me your feedback.

PokerStars.net Asia Pacific Poker Tour Macau Day 4: Dermot Blain Wins the Main Event .