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Greg Merson Becomes the New World Champion of Poker

November 4, 2012

Event #61 of the 2012 World Series of Poker, the Main Event, is complete, and the champion is none other than 24-year-old Greg Merson, delivering the Main Event gold bracelet to an American for the first time since 2009. After 18 hours of final table action, Merson took the $8,531,853 first place payout right out from under Jesse Sylvia, the runner up. Coming in third was Jake Balsiger.

Early Halloween morning, at around 6:00 a.m., Merson not only won the title of world champion poker player, but also rounded out the tournament with the esteemed 2012 WSOP Player of the Year title, just barely beating Phil Hellmuth.

Merson had already won one bracelet in this series back in the summer when the 2012 WSOP began. He won the $10K Six-Handed NLH event, and while that was a rush, it paled in comparison to his second bracelet win that would follow months later.

“I’ve played a lot of long cash games in my career, which helps you prepare for something like this, but this whole stage is something you can’t ever really prepare for,” explained Merson after he won the bracelet and slipped in on his mom’s wrist with tears in his eyes.

By the time the October Nine was down to the final three players, Merson had managed to move from the fifth largest chip stack to chip leader. After the 12-hour final session went long into the night, Merson finally managed to win the tournament with a rare hand, K/5 offsuit, winning with K high, beating Sylvia’s Q/J. Merson’s lucky Baltimore Orioles jerseys may just hold some lucky value after all, and you can rest assured, he will continue to sport the sports jerseys that have become synonymous with his game.

The coveted bracelet this year was designed by Jason of Beverly Hills, who presented the one-of-a-kind ornament to Merson upon his victory.

His plans now that he’s globally recognized as the world champion of poker include more poker. He said after winning, “I’m ready to go to Macau. I had already planned on going there. Obviously, this gives me some more opportunities. That’s what I am looking forward to the most, which is getting into the biggest cash games in the world and not blowing all my money. I’ll piece myself out if I have to.”

And the poker world is looking forward to hearing about more wins in the future of the new WSOP champ, as he’s picked up quite a number of fans on his journey. A recovering drug addict, Merson hopes to use his story to help others. “I feel very good about my recovery,” he says.

Written by Maria · Filed Under Poker News 

November 2012 PartyPoker Bonus Code

November 1, 2012

Poker Bonus

This month in poker, PartyPoker is offering an excellent sign up bonus worth $/£/€500 in poker bonus when you use PartyPoker Bonus Code 500PS when you register a new player account at PartyPoker. This bonus clears very easily as you play and earn PartyPoints. Earn two points for each dollar you pay in tournament fees and for every dollar you pay in rake at cash games. You will need to earn six times the bonus to clear your full bonus amount if playing in USD. If playing in Euros, you’ll need eight times the bonus; and for Sterling, you’ll need nine times. This bonus is good for 60 after you claim it using the bonus code above. Once you start clearing the bonus, you’ll earn 10 equal installments automatically deposited into your account as you earn the qualifying points.

New Player Freeroll

Each and every Saturday at PartyPoker, visit the “Freerolls” tab within the Tournament Lobby and enter the $1,500 New Player Freeroll. Just click “Register” to play. The first 5,000 players get in. You can play in this event within the first 60 days of your PartyPoker membership.

The Accelerator

This month’s big promotion at PartyPoker is the Accelerator. Players can opt in and win up to $5K in cash and up to $30K in freeroll prize pools. This promo begins today and runs through the end of the month (November 30th). To win, simply Opt In via PartyPoker and to claim your first prize, just earn five points. As you earn more points, you will collect more prizes—it’s that easy. Here’s a tip: if you want to earn even more points and prizes, focus your attention on the FastForward tables where you will get to play more hands more often and your points will rack up faster.

Written by Johnny · Filed Under Promotions 

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