Huge field for POY at Derby
By Arnold Warner

The Lucky Derby Casino in Citrus Heights attracted more players than ever for their Mark Lamb POY Invitational Bounty Tournament on Aug. 20. Including alternates, their were 106 entries paying $60 each for a chance to take down the NorCal Player of the Year and the first place prize of $1,320.

In the end, Dino Disalvo of Lincoln and Curtis LaBay of Fair Oaks chose to chop first and second place for $1,060 each. Third place went to Citrus Heights resident Shaye Carter, good for $465.

“I’ve been playing here for quite a while. I love this casino,” said LaBay after his (shared) victory. “The staff is great. Tonight I got lucky. I loved it. This was the biggest tournament I’ve seen in this casino in years.” click here to read the whole article!

Northern Cal. World Series of Poker recap
By Raymond T. Akers

While the gold bracelet count was down for NorCal players at this year’s World Series of Poker (only one), the number of players who finished in the money was about the same as last year (268 in 2011, 276 in 2010). The total number of dollars brought back to Northern California was a whopping $4,950,878.

Granted, the lion’s share of that went to Palo Alto’s Phil Hellmuth who didn’t pick up his 12th bracelet, but still had an outstanding overall series with three second place finishes. He currently sits in second place on the WSOP’s Player of the Year leader board with a handful of events coming up in Europe to determine the winner. click here to read the whole article!

Club One has beach party
By Barbara Engler

Right on the heels of their fourth annual Central Valley Poker Classic series of tournaments, Club One Casino gave downtown Fresno a treat unlike anything it had ever seen before when they hosted the first ever Summer Splash Beach Party Aug. 12 to 14.

“We shut down a four-lane avenue in the middle of downtown Fresno and built a beach resort in front of our facility,” said Club One owner Kyle Kirkland. “We hauled in 750 tons of sand, 70 palm trees, 10 cabanas and 4 pools, set up a stage and regulation volleyball court, plus SlideZilla, a four-and-a-half story inflatable waterslide, reportedly the largest on the West Coast. click here to read the whole article!

The Cardroom turns 5!
By Paul Giambroni

Believe it or not, The Cardroom, Northern California’s Poker News, is now five years old as of this edition. We’ve survived the wars, the bad economy, gas prices, and the efforts to extinguish Internet poker. During that time, our circulation has increased from 12,000 to 64,000. (Imagine, if you will, a football stadium filled with people reading The Card­room.)

We’ve seen so many other publications and newspapers strug­gle and/or go down the drain in recent years it makes us wonder how we managed to succeed. In case you’re interested, the answer is simple: We love putting out this paper. It doesn’t hurt that we also have an extremely loyal readership (some might say fanatical!).When you love what you do for a living and people seem to appreciate your efforts, it makes you want to try even harder.

We here at The Cardroom hope our readers are fortunate enough in their lives to do the same. Good luck!

If you have any thoughts, wishes, rants, or questions, send us an email to info@thecardroom-norcal.com.

NorCal Poker Ambassador
Consistent results not an easy task
By Randall Rapp

Tournament poker is a tough way to make a buck. I’m sure many of the top pros would agree with this sentiment, especially with all the travel expenses associated with playing the big-time circuit. Even on a more local level, though, it’s not easy to show a consistent profit.

With this thought in mind, your humble Ambassador would like to sing the praises of the leaders of our Player of the Year contest. To consistently place in the top 10 percent of the field isn’t easy, yet these individuals manage to do so time and again.

The top of the leader board has held many of the same names all year long, as they continue to rack up points to fend off those moving up the list. It’s also quite a statement that many of these players were near the top last year (and some the year before as well). click here to read the whole article!

Semper Discentes
When is a grinder's mission accomplished?
By Mark Lamb

“Mission accomplished” is one of my favorite phrases in the English language. To hear these words directed at you will undoubtedly give rise to satisfaction. To proclaim it yourself is often another victory against the obstacle course called life.

As 2011 draws nearer to an end it seems the perfect time for some reflection. How many missions have you accomplished this year? Did you do everything you wanted to do? Has poker taken you where you hoped it would in the last 12 months?

To be honest, I find myself answering “no” to entirely too many of these questions. And while that answer is incredibly embarrassing and normally a very private issue, I have decided to share it with you anyway. I share my shortcomings as a poker player in hopes that you may come to a better understanding of who I am, what it really does take to make it, and maybe even learn a little about yourself. click here to read the whole article!

Book Review
McManus traces history of poker
By Raymond T. Akers

In “Cowboys Full, The Story of Poker” (Picador) James McManus follows the evolution of the game from before the invention of playing cards right on through to the Internet and the global poker explosion of the last 10 years.

It’s a fascinating tale full of deft observations and well-written anecdotes that is a must-read for anyone interested in poker, history, and/or American culture.

McManus starts (after a brief overview of poker’s role in American politics) with an anthropological look at why humans like to gamble. “The need to take risks is deeply embedded in our cells and emotions,” he points out. “Those who accept risk and learn to leverage or ‘play’ it continue to have big advantages over those who do not.” click here to read the whole article!

Why results-oriented poker is wrong
By Bernard Harris

How often have you seen a player fold but then, upon seeing the river, say, “I should have called.”? What about someone who loses on the river and then berates himself for not pushing the villain out on the turn? These types of reactions are common as is our tendency to judge decisions by their results. This form of retroactive analysis leads to a philosophy and style of play known as “results-oriented poker.” Hopefully, by the end of this article, you’ll understand why it should be avoided.

The logic behind results-oriented poker is not that far-fetched. After all, if the objective is to win, and a particular action results in a win, then how could that action be wrong? Subsequently, how could developing poker strategies based on results (winning and losing) be incorrect? Well, to answer this we must first understand what constitutes correct play in poker. click here to read the whole article!