Brett Collson

PROFILE Name: Ben Lamb Age: 26 Hometown: Tulsa, Oklahoma Online Handle: benba In 2011, Ben Lamb put together one of the most impressive performances the World Series of Poker has ever seen. And with a date at the Main Event final table set for November, Lamb’s fairy-tale series is far from over. The 26-year-old had…

The inaugural $20,000 Epic Poker League Main Event is down to three six-handed tables as the loaded field of 137 has been trimmed down to 18. Each remaining member of the star-studded field is guaranteed a minimum payday of $43,190 with the winner receiving a cool $1 million in the first of four “epic” Main…

PROFILE Name: Phil Collins Age: 26 Hometown: Aiken, South Carolina Online Handle: USCPhildo No, he’s not that Phil Collins. But you will hear dreadful versions of the popular musician’s songs during the WSOP Main Event final table, as Collins’ rowdy friends will definitely create an entertaining atmosphere for the 26-year old pro in November. It…

The eighth season of the PokerStars European Poker Tour (EPT) has its first champion. Switzerland’s Ronnie Kaiser became the country’s first EPT winner by running over the field at Tallinn this week to earn a first-place prize of €275,000. Kaiser claimed the chip lead on Day 3 and maintained the pole position nearly the rest…

PROFILE Name: Matt Giannetti Age: 26 Hometown: Austin, Texas Online Handle: hazards21 Poker pro Matt Giannetti is a Longhorn through and through, but the 26-year old makes his home in Las Vegas, the Mecca of the poker world. Giannetti left the University of Texas in 2006 in order to focus on poker, where he played…

On Friday, the Alderney Gambling Control Commission (AGCC) released a statement regarding Full Tilt Poker’s overdue licensing fees that were disclosed during the hearing in London last month. The AGCC said that Full Tilt has paid the fees, which were reported to be around $410,000. The statement reads: “As a result of the AGCC’s investigations…

PROFILE Name: Eoghan O’Dea Age: 26 Hometown: Dublin, Ireland Online Handle: intruder123 Poker isn’t a hobby in the O’Dea family. It’s a legacy. Irishman Eoghan O’Dea followed in his father’s footsteps by reaching the final table of the 2011 World Series of Poker Main Event in July. The 26-year-old poker pro from Dublin amassed 33,925,000…

Huck Seed hasn’t cashed in a poker tournament since last September, but the former World Series of Poker Main Event champ is finding other ways to hit six-figure scores at the casino. Seed won $670,665 playing video poker when he hit a Royal Flush at Aria in Las Vegas this week. The 42-year-old was putting…

PROFILE Name: Martin Staszko Age: 35 Hometown: Trinec, Czech Republic Online Handle: filfedra Martin Staszko seemingly came out of nowhere to claim the chip lead going into the 2011 World Series of Poker Main Event final table. The pro from the Czech Republic takes 40,175,000 chips into November and is one of the more mysterious…

New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez is being investigated by Major League Baseball for his participation in a high-stakes poker game that included A-list celebrities such as Tobey Maguire, Leonardo DiCaprio, Ben Affleck and Matt Damon. Rodriguez, currently on the disabled list following knee surgery, could face a suspension if his participation in the…

A trial date has been set for Spiderman star Tobey Maguire for his involvement in a Hollywood high-stakes poker game allegedly perpetrated by a criminal Beverly Hills hedge fund manager. Maguire is set to appear in court on January 30, 2012, following a lawsuit filed against the actor by a trustee for investors seeking the…

With the World Series of Poker coming to a halt in Las Vegas this month, many pro poker players were left with one underlying question: What’s next? Some threw in the towel, dusted off their resume and entered the competitive job market. Others, though, have made efforts to move out of the country in order…

Now that most online grinders in the U.S. have been forced to play cards in brick and mortar casinos, the majority of online tracking programs have been rendered useless for American players. PokerTracker, Hold’em Manager and Table Ninja, to name a few, have been left abandoned on the desktops of thousands across the county and…

On April 19, four days after the U.S. Department of Justice seized the three major online poker rooms, Tom “durrrr” Dwan and Phil Galfond turned to Twitter to try and calm the storm. The two poker superstars each guaranteed $1 million from their own pockets if PokerStars and Full Tilt didn’t pay back players, and…

After being included in a class-action lawsuit filed against Full Tilt Poker last month, Phil Gordon immediately went to work to clear his name from any illegal activity involving the embattled company. He hired Maurice Suh of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher of Los Angeles to press a civil suit filed by a group of poker…

With the November Nine officially in place, it’s always interesting to see how the oddsmakers view the crop of players at the biggest final table of the year. Online bookmaker Bodog released the odds of each player winning the World Series of Poker Main Event yesterday, giving poker fans and bettors alike even more reason…

With the eliminations of Claudia Crawford and Amanda Musumeci on Sunday, Erika Moutinho is officially the last woman alive at the 2011 World Series of Poker Main Event. Moutinho, a native of Easton, Conn., finished Day 6 with just over 2 million chips and has joined the likes of Maria Ho, Tiffany Michelle, Leo Margets…

Georgia-based poker pro David Bach leads a field of 142 heading into Day 6 of the World Series of Poker Main Event. Bach, best known for winning the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. Championship in 2009, more than quadrupled his stack on “Moving Day” as the field was trimmed down from 378 Saturday. Bach survived elimination late on…

Day 4 of the World Series of Poker Main Event brought a lot of excitement and several tense moments as the money bubble approached late Friday afternoon. A total of 853 players made their way to the Amazon Room knowing that only 693 would cash, and the title of “bubble boy” was at the forefront…