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PocketFivesLive.com Heads to Las Vegas[ return to main articles page ]

By: Dan
Published on Dec 12th, 2006
On Thursday, December 14, the Five Diamond World Poker Classic will kick off from the center of the gambling universe, Las Vegas. This $15,000 buy-in World Poker Tour event will conclude on December 19. Several PocketFivers have won their way into this hallmark WPT event in pursuit of their place in poker lore. The event will be followed on location live by PocketFivesLive.com, which provides coverage of online players in the biggest live tournaments. PocketFivesLive.com Tournament Reporter Court Harrington, fresh off returning to the U.S. from the finals of the Ongame Network Poker Classic in Barcelona, Spain, will be on the scene in Las Vegas covering all of the action.

Last year, 555 poker hopefuls turned out for the event, which saw Rehne Pedersen defeat Finnish pro Patrick Antonius for just over $2 million. Pedersen defeated poker legend Doyle Brunson and “The Unabomber” Phil Laak, both of whom made the star-studded final table. This year, Bellagio Poker Room representatives estimate that between 400 and 600 players will compete. In Season 3, Daniel Negreanu took down $1.7 million for his victory, defeating poker pros Humberto Brenes, Jennifer Harman, and Nam Le along the way. Internet mogul Paul Phillips won the event in Season 2 for $1 million, and Gus Hansen won just over $500,000 in Season 1, defeating John Juanda. To say this event has grown in popularity and, consequently, prize money would be an understatement. The Five Diamond World Poker Classic will air in May on The Travel Channel.

Several PocketFivers, including Las Vegas resident and World Series of Poker bracelet holder Jon “pokertrip” Freidberg (picture at left), will compete. “Friedberg's experience in live events over the years gives him an advantage over a lot of online players who try to make the transition to live play,” said PocketFives.com Chief Editor Adam Small. “He's proven in both arenas that he's a top player in any tournament he enters.” Also making the trip is Devin “TranquilChaos” Porter, who has made two WPT final tables in his young poker career. He placed 4th for $200,000 at the ub.com Aruba Poker Classic in Season 4 and 3rd at the Mirage Poker Showdown earlier this year for $332,000. “Devin Porter is a perfect example of a player whose game elevates when he's playing live,” said Small. “He has always been a strong online player, but he steps it up big time in the live events.”

PocketFivesLive.com will head to Nassau in the Bahamas for the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure. The action starts January 5th, with the final table taking place on the 10th. We expect a large PocketFives.com contingent, as many of the entrants are successful online players who have qualified on PokerStars. Check out PocketFivesLive.com for more details.
 

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