The Poker Beat - July 1

[Willing2die]

Stapes seemed like he was completely out of the loop on a number of stories. Notably, he seemed to have no idea about the context of Durrrr finishing 2nd in a bracelet event. He dismissed it and moved on. He also seemed to have no idea about the impact of the new Florida legislature.

[Lon VanPatten]

Well, he is busy doing a TV show and it looks like he got to be the host at the last minute.

It is a trait for PokerRoad Radio hosts to not be fully aware of the various goings-on in the poker community as could be expected. Of course, if a poker geek type was hosting the show, it'd be a lot less fun imo.

[Willing2die]

Originally Posted by Lon VanPatten

Well, he is busy doing a TV show and it looks like he got to be the host at the last minute.

It is a trait for PokerRoad Radio hosts to not be fully aware of the various goings-on in the poker community as could be expected. Of course, if a poker geek type was hosting the show, it'd be a lot less fun imo.

LOL. Yeah, none of us are "busy" with full-time jobs, wife, 3 kids, coaching youth sports, etc. It doesn't seem too difficult to read PokerNews or follow some Poker twitter accounts if you have a job in the poker industry.

No worries although I'm pretty sure 6th Wilbury, 99 Problems, and myself were just called poker geeks.

[Gary Wise]

you're reading a poker podcast forum (so am I) what else would you call yourself? Wear that badge with pride!

[BJ Nemeth]

We need a non-geek host for this show just to make it easier for the rest of us (especially the panelists) to delude ourselves into thinking we're not geeks.

Not that there's anything wrong with that! [/Seinfeld]

[The 6th Wilbury]

Originally Posted by Willing2die

No worries although I'm pretty sure 6th Wilbury, 99 Problems, and myself were just called poker geeks.

Originally Posted by Gary Wise

you're reading a poker podcast forum (so am I) what else would you call yourself? Wear that badge with pride!

Oh hell yeah! Although I bow to your greater geekitude (geekage?).

That Huff and Stapes aren't quite as embedded in the WSOP probably helps their cause as hosts for the Poker Beat. It allows them to lob the questions to the panelists and spark the discussion. It just comes across differently from the two hosts:

Huff: "So News Story X... Just how significant is this?"
Panel: "I'm glad you bring it up. I think it's a huge story, and here's why..."

versus

Stapes: "News Story X... This doesn't seem like a big deal, so I'll just skip it--"
Panel: "Whoa, whoa, whoa -- it is a big deal, and we probably should talk about it. Here's why..."

Both accomplish the same end, but the second version makes the host more out of touch and disinterested.

But speaking of being out of the loop, I'll reveal some ignorance when it comes to this stuff. The panel spoke of top unsigned players, or free agents. Are any of the following players sponsored by a real-money poker site (i.e. other than instructional ones)? Also, I'm not talking about a temporary patch deals that take place for the duration of an event.

Phil Galfond
Yevgeniy Timoshenko
Shaun Deeb
Christian Harder
J.C. Tran
Shawn Buchanan
Cole South (now that he's no longer with CardRunners and, by extension, Full Tilt)
Brian Townsend (see Cole South)

Also, are some of the older guys like Johnny Chan and Scotty Nguyen sponsored? I know Scotty was a PokerStars guy but I don't see him on their site right now.

There are certainly more, but these are the ones who come to mind right now.

[Lon VanPatten]

Scotty Nguyen is sponsored by Expekt
I think Tran is still sponsored by the Asian Poker Tour?

[The 6th Wilbury]

Originally Posted by Lon VanPatten

Scotty Nguyen is sponsored by Expekt

Oh duh, they even said that on the show.

Also, I'm afraid to know what years Jess Welman watched Sesame Street, but I would hope no episode featured the word "fellatious." (Although you never know with Bert and Ernie.)

[Fetch]

Originally Posted by The 6th Wilbury

But speaking of being out of the loop, I'll reveal some ignorance when it comes to this stuff. The panel spoke of top unsigned players, or free agents. Are any of the following players sponsored by a real-money poker site (i.e. other than instructional ones)? Also, I'm not talking about a temporary patch deals that take place for the duration of an event.

Phil Galfond
Yevgeniy Timoshenko
Shaun Deeb
Christian Harder
J.C. Tran
Shawn Buchanan
Cole South (now that he's no longer with CardRunners and, by extension, Full Tilt)
Brian Townsend (see Cole South)

Also, are some of the older guys like Johnny Chan and Scotty Nguyen sponsored? I know Scotty was a PokerStars guy but I don't see him on their site right now.

There are certainly more, but these are the ones who come to mind right now.

Christian Harder is not officially an FTP Red Pro, but he does have a Patch agreement with them for live events (Luckychewy had a similar deal prior to becoming a Red Pro). Also, I could be mistaken, but I am pretty sure Cole still sports his FTP patch when he plays--I may have to go back thru some photos and look to be certain though.

The people on that list are certainly good at poker, but with the exception of Deeb and maybe Townsend, none of them really keep that high of a media profile imo. They appear on TV from time to time, but generally keep quiet at the table, so I can't recall too many "memorable" appearances of them on a given show. There is some +EV for them being unsigned as well, which is that they keep getting invites from both FTP and Stars to participate in the various High Roller Shootouts and cash game shows to fill out the lineup, so it could be a deliberate choice on their part to remain unaffiliated...I'm not sayin, I'm just sayin...

Also, I have another unsigned player I would sign in a heartbeat if I could that came to my mind just after the show wrapped: Cliff Josephy. He may not be young and hip per se, but he is universally well-likd by the online set, talented at poker, extremely well-spoken, and one of my absolute favorite people to watch at the table thanks to his play, but mostly his dry sense of humor.

[The 6th Wilbury]

Originally Posted by Fetch

Also, I have another unsigned player I would sign in a heartbeat if I could that came to my mind just after the show wrapped: Cliff Josephy. He may not be young and hip per se, but he is universally well-likd by the online set, talented at poker, extremely well-spoken, and one of my absolute favorite people to watch at the table thanks to his play, but mostly his dry sense of humor.

Ah, another good one... I suppose the failed UB thing was the last time someone attempted to sign him?