Danke Germany!
The Race Trophy Germany is now officially in the books, but not before the players capped off the weekend with a fantastic farewell dinner. The restaurant of choice was a highly recommended Italian place and it certainly didn't disappoint, serving up some great food and wine and the manager even serenaded us in Italian song.
It was then out to a karoke bar where everyone really let down their hair and celebrated the weekend. A real highlight was getting the chance to listen to gbpoker's friend, Heydaze1, absolutley rock out. A professional singer and member of Canadian rock band Crisis, HeyDaze1 had the entire bar rocking with a full set of classic rock hits.
The man can sing, and I mean seriously sing!!
With all the players now making their way back to their corners of the globe, let's take a look back at some of the highlights of the weekend;
Well that's all from me, the next Race Trophy event is in Monza, Italy and qualifiers are running right now. With only one seat left to the Race Trophy final in Vienna this will be your last chance to get a crack at the $500,000 guaranteed prize pool. Don't miss out!
What a Day at the Races!
With the big semi-final done and dusted, today provided the players with an opportunity to kick back, relax, and really enjoy the great atmosphere of the WTCC race day. Everyone was in for a real treat with Oschersleben turning on a magnificent sunny day and the guys getting the chance to walk out on the starting grid as the WTCC cars warmed up.
It was a very special day for last night's winner VikboBosse as he not only got to meet one of Sweden's best racing car drivers, Rickard Rydell, but also got to travel a lap of the track in the official WTCC leading car.
Bosse was literally brimming with excitement after the lap and he just couldn't believe how well his weekend had turned out. A factory worker with five children (all boys), the Swede qualified for the Race Trophy semi-final in a freeroll and only found out one week ago that he would be coming to Oschersleben. Now he has a seat to the guaranteed $500,000 Race Trophy Final in Vienna and has had the weekend of a lifetime doing everything from TV interviews, to chatting with sporting icons, to speeding around a race track at 150km an hour!
After watching the first WTCC race from the rooftop terrace of the VIP lounge and being stuffed full with another excellent buffet lunch, the guys decided it was poker o'clock and sat down for a few sit'n'go's in the PokerRoom.com tent. 0flushgordon and gbpoker were amongst the winnners and Tournament Director Thomas 'Lammy' Lamatsch also took down a tourney a provided the table with a lot of laughs.
The weekend might almost be over, but the party is just beginning with the guys heading out tonight for the big farewell dinner and then some more drinks at a local Magdeburg nightclub. I'll bring you all the pictures and a wrap up of the weekend tomorrow, see you then!
VikboBosse is Race Trophy Germany Champion
VikboBosse has become the Race Trophy Germany Champion, and guaranteed himself a seat to the Race Trophy Final in Vienna.
It was an absorbing heads up battle between the two elder statesmen of the team, but IntraVnus was never able to overcome the 3-to-1 chip lead that VikboBosse took in.
In the final hand, IntraVnus pushed all in with 9900 and was called by VikboBosse in the first showdown of heads up play. IntraVnus showed QQ and was out in front of VikboBosse's Ac3c, but when the flop showed As 8c 8s IntraVnus was going to need some help. The board then ran out with 4d Kd and VikboBosse took down the tournament.
It was a fantastic effort by VikboBosse who played solid poker all night and had that little bit of luck when he needed it. He can now prepare himself for the Race Trophy Final in November and a shot at the guaranteed 500,000 prize pool. Big congratulations must also go to IntraVnus who really played strong, aggressive poker all night and looked a winner during many stages.
Well that's all for from me tonight, tune back in tomorrow to see all the pictures from tonights celebrations and the action from the WTCC Race. Over and out!
0flushgordon Out in Third
Another pre-flop showdown, another coin flip, and this time the pocket pair didn't hold up.
0flushgordon pushed all in with his remaining 8900 holding 44 and was called by chip leader VikboBosse holding Ac9c. VikboBosse was going to have to find something on the board to take the pot and he got his wish when the flop showed Kd8c9h giving him the over pair. Now 0flush was the one hoping to connect on the turn, but when it showed with another 9 and gave Vibo trips he was in real trouble. A blank on the river handed a big pot to VikboBosse and ended 0flush's night in a very honorable third.
The hand also increased VikboBosse's chip lead even more, taking a 30k to 10k advantage into the heads up battle.
P.S. Sorry about the confusion over this hand, a hectic few minutes and bad hand writing were to blame and then the hole just kept getting deeper and deeper!!!
paskaapina Sent Packing
Four has become three with Finnish player paskaapina sent to the rail by VikboBosse.
VikboBosse opened up the pot by raising it to 2500 from the button. paskaapina then re-raised all in from the BB with 7700 and VikboBosse had the stack to call.
It was another coin flip with paskaapina showing KQ against Vikbo's 88. As has happened often tonight, the pair held up and paskaapina's pain was VikboBosse's gain.
VikboBosse has now moved to a commanding chip lead.
Blinds now at 500/1000 and chipstacks are as follows:
VikboBosse 20,500
IntraVnus 10,900
0flushgordon 8,600
paskaapina 4th
99Kingworld 5th
gbpoker 6th
MR_DONPOKER 7th
XX-e46-XX 8t
99Kingworld Bows out in 5th
Hungarian player 99Kingworld has just been busted in 5th place after his pocket 4's ran into paskapina's pocket 8's.
99Kingworld pushed all his chips in from the button after paskaapina had limped from UTG. SB and BB folded before paskaapina called and was always ahead with his 88 against 99Kingworlds 44.
It is down to 4-handed and with the blinds increasing rapidly we can expect the action to get heavier and heavier from now on.
Chipstacks:
0flushgordon 13,000
paskaapina 12,500
VikboBosse 8,200
IntraVnus 6,300
99Kingworld 5th
gbpoker 6th
MR_DONPOKER 7th
XX-e46-XX 8th
0flushgordon Hits Back with Pocket K's
0flushgordon has just doubled up through IntraVnus with the help of pocket K's.
IntraVnus raised it pre-flop to 2000 from the button, only to be re-raised to 4000 by 0flush from BB. IntraVnus then re re-raised it to 6500 forcing 0flush all-in to call. 0flush made the call and turned over KK to dominate IntraVnus's 88.
The board ran out with no help for IntraVnus and 0flushgordon moved up to over 13000.
99Kingworld Doubles With Flopped Trips
99King world had just doubled up to over 6k through 0flushgordon.
99Kingworld push all in with just over 3k from EP. The action was folded to 0flushgordon on BB who called.
The showdown was 0flushgordon with Ac4c vs 99Kingworld with Qh8h.
The flop came Qc9xQx giving 99Kingworld a huge lead and leaving 0flush needing running clubs. He was drawing dead however after a blank on the turn and 99Kingworld took down the big pot.
gbpoker's German Adventure Over
After being crippled by paskaapina a few hands earlier, gbpoker has been booted from the tournament by 0flushgordon.
gb pushed pre-flop with 1300 before 0flushgordon pushed all-in over the top with his big stack. With no other callers they players showed their hands and gbpoker was going to need some help with his Q7off vs 0flush's AKoff.
The board ran out with no help for either player and gbpoker was unfortunately out in 6th place.
Just moved up to 300/600 blinds and here are the current chipstacks:
VikboBosse 12,350
0flushgordon 10,500
IntraVnus 9,725
paskaapina 4,400
99Kingworld 3,025
gbpoker 6th
MR_DONPOKER 7th
XX-e46-XX 8th
gbpoker Crippled
gbpoker has just been crippled by paskaapina in a pretty sick hand. gb pushed all-in pre-flop with 3500 and found a caller next door in paskaapina who pushed his 2200 in the middle.
They turned them over and gbpoker showed 22 against paskaapina AJ for a classic cion flip.
gbpoker wanted to see some low cards and he got it with a flop of 355. The turn then showed an 8 gbpoker was still ahead but paskaapina had some outs.
paskaapine then hit a 3 on the river for two pair on the board with an A kicker and doubled up to over 4.5k. gbpoker was left with only 1300.
MR_DONPOKER 2nd Player Out
MR_DONPOKER has just bowed out of the Race Trophy semi final in a dramatic three-way pot.
With 3000 in the pot pre-flop and Qd 2c 9c on the board, MR_DONPOKER pushed all in with 2250. He was called by VikboBosse, before paskaapina pushed all-in over the top with another 3000. VikboBosse called with his remaining 1200 and it was a three-way showdown.
MR_DONPOKER showed Ac7c for the flush draw, VikboBosse showed KhQh, and paskaapina show AdQc for top pair, top kicker.
The turn then showed Ks giving VikboBosse two pair and an unlikely lead. The river was then a 8d and VikboBosse almost tripled up, paskaapina was left crippled, and the popular MR_DONPOKER was out in 6th place.
The latest chip counts are just in and this is how things look:
VikboBosse 13,050
0flushgordon 8,500
IntraVnus 7,125
99Kingworld 5,025
gbpoker 4,500
paskaapina 1,800
MR_DONPOKER 7th
XX-e46-XX 8th
VikboBosse Doubles with AA
Short stacked VikboBosse has just doubled through gbpoker with pocket A's.
VikboBosse pushed all in from MP and gbpoker called an extra 900 from BB.
The turned them over and gb poker showed K4 against Vikbo's KJ. A J on the flop gave gbpoker some outs, but with no more help VikboBosse was able to double up back above 2k.
The blinds have just moved up to 200/400.
XX-e46-XX First to Fall
The Race Trophy Germany semi final has lost it's first player with German player XX-e46-XX's 99 running into 99Kingworld's JJ.
99Kingworld raised from the button before xx-e46-XX pushed all-in over the top from SB. IntraVnus folded from the BB before 99Kingworld called.
It was 99 vs JJ and with the board running out with no help for either player XX-e46-XX's Race Trophy dream was over and 99Kingworld picked up a nice pot.
The chip counts are in and this is how it looks:
99Kingworld 8,375
IntraVnus 8,075
paskaapina 6,900
gbpoker 6,100
0flushgordon 4,750
MR_DONPOKER 4,650
VikboBosse 1,150
XX-e46-XX 8th
Still a pretty even field from the 5000 starting stacks, VikboBosse the only player really in the danger zone with 1,150.
First All-In Promptly Met with a Fold
XX-e46-XX has been the first player to push all-in, putting his stack into the middle from SB after 0flushgordon's pre-flop raise of 700 from MP. XX-e46-XX couldn't find a caller though and 8 handed play continues.
Blinds Increase and 0flushgordon Picks Up Nice Pot
The blinds have just increased to 100/200 and the action has finally started to heat up.
German player 0flushgordon just picked up a nice pot from XX-e46-XX and 99Kingworld. 99Kingworld's opened up the pot with a pre flop raise to 400 and found two callers in XX-e46-XX and 0flushgordon. The flop then showed 887 rainbow and with the action was checked to XX-e46-XX who bet out 700. 0flushgordon called and 99Kingworld folded making it heads up.
The turn was a another 8 and 0flushgordon bet out 500. XX-e46-XX then folded handing a tidy pot to the 0flush.
Still no all-in pushes as yet, but we are atleast starting to see some flops.
Cautiously into the 2nd Level
Blinds have just been raised to 50/100 with the first level providing no real action to speak of. I will have update-to-date chip counts for you ASAP.
Slow Going Early
Not surprisingly it has been a relatively slow start to the tournament. MR_DONPOKER and paskaapina have both taken down small down pots, but nothing too sizable just yet.
As this is my first time at a Race Trophy event, it is quite a novelty to be watching from inside the TV production truck. Instead of being table-side like all previous events, I am watching the action on a big TV screen with six camera angles and with the hole cards visable on an adjacent screen.
It certainly helps watching the game, just a few hands ago gbpoker folded a reasonable pot to 99Kingworld holding pocket Q's on a A x x flop. Tough fold, but justified considering 99Kingworld was sitting on AT.
The Cards Hit the Felt
Here we go! Finally we have started here at the WTCC Race Trophy Semi-Final in Oschersleben, Germany with Tournament Director Thomas 'Lammy' Lamatsch calling shuffle up and deal. Winner gets a seat to the $500,000 guaranteed Final in Vienna. Lets Go!
Here is how they are lining up:
Seat 1: VikboBosse / Seat 2: 99Kingworld / Seat 3: XX-e46-XX / Seat 4: IntraVnus / Seat 5: gbpoker / Seat 6: paskaapina / Seat 7: MR_DONPOKER / Seat 8: 0flushgordon
Starting stack in 5000 and blinds start at 25/50 for 20 minutes.
I'll keep you up to date with all the action right here on PokerRoom.com.
The Wait Begins
OK. So 7pm has come and gone and no action as yet, but we are getting closer! The production team is almost ready to kick things off and the players are practicing under the pressure of cameras and bright lights.
To keep you amused in the meantime here is our dear friend David Hasselhoff.
The Countdown has Begun
We are almost there! The players have arrived at the WTCC race track and are gearing up for the big Race Trophy semi final. In order to look pretty for the Eurosport cameras all the guys are getting their make up done and putting their 'TV faces' on. It's not long now and we are still hoping for a 7pm start.
Here is the starting line up for tonights action just in case you missed it:
gbpoker - Canada
XX-e46-XX - Germany
paskaapina - Finland
IntraVnus - UK
99kingworld - Hungary
0flushgordon - Germany
MR_DONPOKER - Spain
VikboBosse - Sweden
Talk to you next when the cards hit the felt.
TeamPokerRoom.com Tearing it up at the Race Track
Good afternoon race fans! Just had a great morning at the WTCC race track in Oschersleben, with the players getting the VIP treatment and soaking up the race day atmosphere.
Things kicked off with a breakfast in the VIP area with a birds eye view over the home straight before the players competed in the always entertaining 'Againstthewatch.com' tire change. All the boys put in a good effort and managed to get it done in under 40 seconds. Not quite ready for Formula 1 pit stops just yet, but still a good effort.
The players then had to get into 'TV mode' as they headed out onto the track to pre-record their short interviews with Eurosport. With English being nearly every player's second or third language I thought this might provide a quite a challenge for some, but all the guys were right at home in front of the camera.
With the smell of burning rubber in the air, the players really got into the racing spirit with two races on the linked 'Race Pro' virtual racer game. 0flushgordon proved to be the most handy on the track easily taking down first place, a performance I'm sure he is looking to repeat tonight in the Race Trophy semi-final.
Even on the race track poker was never to far from the players minds and, before a buffet lunch back in the V.I.P club, the players all sat down in the PokerRoom.com Tent for a couple of quick sit'n'go's.
For everyone out there waiting for the poker to get started, we are getting close now. The players are just having a quick rest at the hotel before we head back to the race track at 4pm to get ready for the big night. The tournament is scheduled for 7pm so stay tuned to PokerRoom.com for all the live updates and photos..I can't wait!
Let's Get This Thing Started!
All the players have arrived and we just got back from a great welcome dinner where everyone got a chance to meet, put faces to nicknames, and talk some serious poker. The restaurant of choice was Landhuas Hardys which served up some terrific meals and, as always, the beer wine flowed freely.
A really good night was had by all and it was a great warm up for the two big days of action ahead. Tomorrow morning it is off to the race track for some VIP access to all the WTCC festivities, before the Race Trophy semi-final tomorrow evening. We will bring you all the details right here on PokerRoom.com! See you then!
Mighty Magdeburg
Hi all! With the players still making their way to Magdeburg this morning we decided to head out and see what the city had to offer. It is a relatively small city (230,000 people), but it certainly has a huge history that dates back to medieval times when it was home to the first Holy Roman Emperor, Emperor Otto I. I won't bore everyone with the itty bitty details, (why would I when Wikipedia does it so well), but lets just say that it makes for some pretty interesting sights.
We also made it to Elbauenpark which is home to the largest wooden tower in the world, The Millennium Tower. Inside the tower is a pretty kick arse history museum, but unfortunately for us everything was in German and the staff enjoyed giving long lectures despite the fact we were clearly clueless to what the were saying.
Nightrider finished
The players are just arriving so we are about to head out for some welcome drinks, dinner, and then more welcome drinks so make sure you stay glued to PokerRoom.com for all the pictures and updates. Tomorrow we get into the real action with a day at the WTCC racetrack followed by the massive Race Trophy semi-final. With a seat to the guaranteed $500,000 Race Trophy Final in Vienna up for grabs it promises to be an absolute cracker.
Team PokerRoom.com Reporting for Duty
Evening ladies and gentlemen! Team PokerRoom.com signing in for the next installment of Race Trophy madness.... German Style!
We touched down in Berlin this morning and took a drive on the Autobahn to Magdeburg
where we will be setting up base for the next few days. The WTCC race track is in the small town of Oschersleben, but Magdeburg has a few more facilities so we will be staying here and making the short trip out to the race track for all the action on Saturday and Sunday.
We can't wait to get this thing started and the players will be flying in from their corners of the world tomorrow, here is the starting line up..
gbpoker - Canada
XX-e46-XX - Germany
paskaapina - Finland
IntraVnus - UK
99kingworld - Hungary
0flushgordon - Germany
MR_DONPOKER - Spain
VikboBosse - Sweden.
Once the players get checked into their digs we will be hitting the town for some sight seeing, followed by a nice big dinner, and then finishing the night off with a good ol' fashion 'team bonding' session at the best nightspot Magdeburg has to offer.
Stay tuned tomorrow for all the action and plenty of photos of the players kickin' it Magdeburg style ... See you then!
Hello Hasselhof Fans
Well well well! how did we get here so quickly? With four very very ‘entertaining’ stops on our fantastic WTCC Race Trophy already in the can, it's now time for Team PokerRoom to take Germany by storm as we turn our attention to Race 5 in the wonderful city of Oschersleben.
With 8 eager Pokerroom.com players packing their bags as we speak and getting ready to fight it out for the 5th seat at the $500,000 final in Vienna… it should be a cracker!
So stay tuned to PokerRoom.com over this entire weekend, that’s right cancel everything!!! Don’t leave the house and don’t turn off your computer. Just sit tight and keep pushing that all important F5 button for the coolest in cool and the freshest in fresh that our blogmasters have to offer. Keep an eye on how the 5th semi-final goes down and of course, the all important partying…..Team PokerRoom style….Oh yeah it’s time to party, party like a Rockstar baby!
Don’t forget qualifiers have now started for the Italian leg of the Race Trophy in October. For more information on the Race Trophy, and how to qualify visit the Race Trophy Promo Page Now!
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