Monday, December 31, 2012

New Year - New Games. Doke on PivMerge

Hi all.. Doke here, wishing you all a happy New Year.

I didn't have a bad 2012 (I remained profiitable enough online to continue making a decent living from the game) but I'm hopeful 2013 will be even better with some big live scores to go with continued online success. I have a busy few weeks right at the start with the WPT in Citywest, and two foreign trips I satellited into (UKIPT Edinburgh and EPT Deauville).

I'm particularly looking forward to Deauville as I haven't played an EPT in almost 2 years. My last EPT trip (Berlin in 2011) was a successful one as I managed to cash in the main event and final tabled a side event, so hopefully I can pick up where I left off.

Since Irish Eyes moved, I've been putting in decent volume, primarily on Cake (reviewed in the last letter) and I final tabled the Cake High Roller a couple of times and managed to win it one night.

But I also play on 'PivMerge' (the name of the Irish Eyes Merge software, also known as 'Onfire') and Irish Eyes Poker Ideal (reviewed in the next letter).

So far I've mainly played 6 max online holdem cash on PivMerge (which is very soft and well worth a try if you fancy dabbling in cash) but there are also some decent daily tournaments:

10 PM $5k gtd ($109 freezeout)
11 PM $3k gtd ($60 rebuy/addon)
12 PM $5k gtd Deepstack ($60 freezeout)
3 AM $3K gtd 6 max turbo ($22 rebuy/addon)

The PivMerge major is at 8 PM on Sunday's and is a $109 freezeout 100K gtd. This tournament will always have a special place in my heart as when I won it a few years ago it was my first online major.

I've been mixing things up a little by adding some online cash to my schedule. While mtts remain my main focus, I think it's no harm to diversify, and one of my new year's resolutions is to play more cash in 2013 (and also games other than holdem). PivMerge has some good low stakes cash action in Omaha, Omaha Hi/Lo, 7 Card Stud, 7 Card Stud Hi/Lo, Razz, 5 Card Stud, 5 Card Draw, Triple Draw and Badugi.


If you'd like to check these or any other tournaments out, Irish Eyes have released the 'reload' bonus code 'IERELOAD' which gives a reload bonus (once per player) of 150% up to €500 (t&c's apply). The bonus is cleared in 10 steps, so if you deposit 100 euro, you will get the bonus of 150%, in this case 150euro , the bonus will be credited in 10 steps 150/10 = 15 euro. Make sure to enter the promotional code IERELOAD when you are making a deposit.
 
If you missed the introduction to the system and my Cake tournament picks in my last letter, (including mention of Irish Open Qualifers with $4,000 package guaranteed and Super Poker Event sats) you can still read it at http://irisheyespoker.blogspot.ie/2012/12/letter-from-doke-doke-on-cake.html

And if you are having any issues regarding the move from our old site to the new system, you can read about the changes at these pages:

http://irisheyespoker.blogspot.ie/2012/12/accessing-your-irish-eyes-account.html

http://irisheyespoker.blogspot.ie/2012/12/letter-from-doke-with-help-for-players.html

Happy New Year from myself and all at Irish Eyes Poker

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Letter from Doke: Doke on Cake!

Hi, Doke here.

With Irish Eyes back up and running on a number of different networks, I've been getting in decent volume. In this letter I will give details on my favourite games on 'Irish Eyes Poker Cake', ( on the Revolution network).

Anyone watching me set up my Irish Eyes account after the migration would find it difficult to believe I was an IT consultant in a former life before poker. There seems to be a bit of confusion about the fact that you need to download software for each room (network). However, you only need to download the ones you intend to play on. So far I've restricted myself to Irish Eyes Poker rooms, Cake, Ideal, and Merge (to download the Irish Eyes Merge software you need to click on the 'Onfire' logo on the download page).

Irish Eyes choose to increase the number of different networks available on the site in order to bring players a wider choice of games at different times, rather than choose to be on just one network only like they were on with Entraction.

This means that along with downloading the different software, you are also asked to update the 'profile' in your account when you log in the first time, and whenever a new product is launched. This is because you have a username on all the different networks, and the username you choose must be checked for availabilty on each network. If you have different usernames on each network and want to check what they are, just log it to your Irish Eyes account at the website and click on the ID icon (the little man) at the top right hand side of the page. This will open a menu in which you can see your username on each network.

As more networks are added the choice will get even bigger, but you will need to download each network's poker client in order to play on that particular network, and choose a username for that network. The advantage though is having only one wallet that can be used on all the networks, plus you get rewards in the VIP Club that are based on accumulated play on any of the networks you choose to play on (except Enet).

In this letter I will look at the tournaments on 'Irish Eyes Poker Cake', on the Revolution network.

The Irish Eyes Poker Cake schedule is particularly good for night owls with a lot of good games after midnight when European sites like Ipoker traditionally die. There are also a few good games in the evening. My favourite weekday games are:

4 PM $1500 gtd freezeout ($20 buyin)
5 PM $3k gtd freezeout ($55)
6 PM $1500 Deepstack freezeout ($30)
7 PM $5k gtd freezeout ($150)
9 PM $3k gtd rebuy ($30)
9 PM $7500 gtd Deepstack freezeout ($200)
10 PM $2k gtd shorthanded rebuy ($20)
10 PM $1500 gtd rebuy ($10)
11 PM $10k gtd ($100)
Midnight $3k gtd rebuy ($10)
1 AM $7500 gtd freezeout ($100)
1.30 AM $2k gtd Deepstack turbo ($20)
2 AM $4k gtd freezeout ($55)
2 AM $15k gtd High roller ($215)
2.30 AM $5k gtd rebuy ($15)
3 AM $5k gtd rebuy ($30)
4 AM $5k gtd shorthanded turbo rebuy ($20)
4.15 AM $3k gtd Deepstack turbo ($30)
5 AM $5k gtd turbo ($55)
6 AM $5k gtd turno rebuy ($30)

Their Sunday major is a $109 freezeout with a $100k guaranteed. This was recently won by Irish Eyes player Daragh Davey and is one of the softest Sunday majors. Like a lot of the games on the network, it often has an overlay, which is great news to value-hunters like me.

Some other tournaments currently on Irish Eyes Poker Cake are:

Irish Open sats daily to Main Qualifers with $4,000 package guaranteed. Sats have buy-ins from $3.30 to $11.

Super Poker Event sats are: Daily $6.60 sats at 8pm to the Super Poker Event Online Final ( $40 buy-in) on Sunday Dec 30th at 7pm with a Super Poker Event seat guaranteed.

Even though the games are in Dollars you still deposit and withdraw through your Irish Eyes wallet in Euro.

If you'd like to check these or any other tournaments out, Irish Eyes have just released the 'reload' bonus code 'IERELOAD' which gives a reload bonus (once per player) of 150% up to €500 (t&c's apply). The bonus is cleared in 10 steps, so if you deposit 100 euro, you will get the bonus of 150%, in this case 150euro , the bonus will be credited in 10 steps 150/10 = 15 euro. Make sure to enter the promotional code IERELOAD when you are making a deposit.

Away from poker for a minute, just in case you are interested in the market, Irish Eyes have launched a new product today called Binary Options.

Binary Options are predictions on how the market price of a certain financial product will perform over a specific amount of time. Binary options are simple, quick, and profitable. Trading is a straight forward and lucrative way of investing in any market of your choice, while not having to purchase assets or wait for your profits. Since Binary Options are predictions, there is no need to acquire the assets themselves. If this interests you go to http://www.irisheyesbet.com/openpage.php?pg=binaryoptions for more information.


If you have any issues about your account, email support@irisheyespoker.com or see http://irisheyespoker.blogspot.ie/2012/12/accessing-your-irish-eyes-account.html

Good luck at the tables - unless I'm at the same table :)

Doke

Wednesday, December 05, 2012

Letter from Doke (with help for players concerning the Irish Eyes site move).

 
I have been ticking along online (last Friday I won the main nightly tournament on French Stars for almost 10k). I have been lookingforward to the relaunch when I (and you) will be able to play on a number of different rooms through an Irish Eyes account. I will give some pointers on the juiciest games in forthcoming Letters. Also below I have outlined how the system works and a couple of the issues that are confusing a some players.

Since the last letter, I played EMOP Dublin. I was hoping to get a good run in this again this year but it wasn't to be. At least I had the consolation of seeing two of my close friends Daragh Davey and Padraig "Smidge" O'Neill make the final table. Both qualified through Irish Eyes satellites so it was especially pleasing when Smidge went all the way.

At dinner in Clontarf Castle after Smidge had gotten headsup, there was a bit of discussion among what we jokingly refer to as "the Firm" as to what Smidge's strategy should be now he was headsup against an unpredictable recreational player. While we usually focus on specifics of how to play hands, this was one of those occasions where the overall strategy had to be carefully considered.

Smidge had a chiplead of over 3 to 1, his opponent had less than 20 big blinds, and the general consensus was to try to grind him down even further using smallball before getting it in preflop. Against a more experienced opponent the plan would have been to get it in sooner rather than later, but the last thing Smidge wanted to do was let his opponent flip his way to the title.

There is a little confusion on how the new Irish Eyes multi-network system works.

The first thing to think about is that Irish Eyes have no access to your password, either on the old network or on the new network.  This is for security reasons. So, when the site moved, a new temporary password had to be sent to all players. This was done via an email sent to the registered email address on each account. If you did not receive this email it could be because your account was originally set up with a different email (so the password email would have gone there), or the email may have gone into your spam or junk email folder.

Check the spam/junk folder or if you know you set up the account originally with a different email address, and you cannot now access that email account, send an email to support@irisheyespoker.com asking them to change your email address and get the system to resend the temporary password to the updated address.

From the email, click on the link and you will be taken to a webpage and asked to fill in your username. (If you cannot remember your username email support@irisheyespoker.com and they will help you). Once this is done another email will be sent to you with a temporary password to access the website.

Get the new password and log in to your account at the website. Once you have logged into the new website (which you should do before you try to log into any poker client), the system will ask you to update you personal information and change your password to your own choosing.

The next step is to log into the poker client you want to play on. Assuming you have downloaded the poker software, then the first time you log in the poker client will see from your username and the fact you are coming onto the network through Irish Eyes, that you need to be asked for a nickname that will be used instead of your username on the network. You can choose a nickname or try using your existing username, and the poker network will check to see if it is available. If it is, then it will accept that name.

All of the new products use your Irish Eyes username to log in. So once you have logged into each poker client once, when you go back to the network you still log in with your Irish Eyes username (not your nickname that you set up). The network recognises your username and then signs you in under your nickname. So you do not have to remember each nickname. Your nickname is what will be shown on the poker tables when you play.

If you log into your account on the Irish Eyes Poker website, and then click on the ID icon of the 'little man' on the top right hand side of the page, a drop down menu will appear and all of your ID usernames on the sites will be shown. But remember, these are your usernames not your nicknames as you log into the poker clients and other products each time with your username.

To have funds available on the poker network or other product you want to play or bet on, you need to transer funds to the relevant product through your cashier, which is on the website. Log in, or click on the cashier button on any of the poker clients, and you will see your balances on the different sites.

There is an easy 'transfer' function at the top right hand side of the page where you can just move funds between any of the products. Once funds are in the correct account, you can play on that network or product.

There will be a few teething problems, (one effecting logging in through Internet Explorer for instance), and Irish Eyes tell me they are working on these right now to get them resolved asap.

I am also told that the system of allowing players to deposit and withdraw through the network of Irish Eyes affiliated clubs will be be back in operation. Ask your local club if they are affiliated and offer this service.

Keep up to date with news, tournament info, and sports bets by joining our Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/TeamIrishEyesPoker

Good luck at the tables - unless I'm at the same table :)

Doke

Friday, November 23, 2012

IRISH EYES POKER €2,000+ VIP FREEROLL

Irish Eyes Poker are holding a €2,000+ VIP Freeroll on Wednesday 28th November for all players with VIP point balances in their account.


VIP points cannot be redeemed for value except for tournament buy-ins and as we are moving platform on 3rd December we are now offering players the chance to win prizes by using their existing vip points in this VIP Freeroll. Use your vip points to buy into this event and win some great prizes - see prizepool list below.

The Irish Eyes Poker VIP Freeroll will have a 2,500 vip point buy-in, but we are also running 50 vip point and 250 vip point satellites into the main VIP Freeroll.

The schedule is as follows:

Irish Eyes Poker VIP Freeroll with 2,500 vip point buy-in on Wednesday 28th Nov at 8pm. NL Holdem. F/O. 2,500 starting stack chips. 12 min clock

250 vip point Satellite to VIP Freeroll on Sat 24th, Sun 25th, Mon 26th and Tue 27th Nov at 8pm. 3 seats guaranteed to VIP Freeroll in each. NL Holdem. F/O. 1,500 starting stack chips. 10 min clock.

50 vip point Satellite to VIP Freeroll on Sat 24th, Sun 25th, Mon 26th and Tue 27th Nov at 7.30pm. 1 seat guaranteed to VIP Freeroll in each. NL Holdem. F/O. 1,500 starting stack chips. 10 min clock

NOTE: PRE-REGISTRATION AND INCREASED STARTING STACK CHIPS

If you have more that 5,000 vip points, you can get even more starting stack chips by pre-registereing for the VIP Freeroll by emailing team@irisheyespoker.ie BEFORE Midnight Tuesday 27th November.

Email your username and how many vip points you want to use (2,500 for buy-in and 2,500 for each extra 1,000 starting stack chips). Example, if you have 10,000 vip points in your vip point balance and want to use them, email us for pre-registration and you will get 5,500 starting stack (buy-in = 2,500 vips points used getting you 2,500 starting stack chips plus 7,500 vip points used getting you a further 3,000 starting stack chips).

Email team@irisheyespoker.ie  BEFORE Midnight Tuesday 27th November to pre-register and get more starting chips.

NOTE: You can also satellite your way into the main VIP Freeroll AND also use any extra vip points over 2,500 to get extra starting stack chips. If you have won a satellite and secured you seat in the VIP Freeroll, email us with your username and date of satellite win, plus how many vip points you want to use for extra starting stack chips. Remember, 2,500 vips = 1,000 extra starting stack chips.

VIP Points will be removed from player accounts after email requests are received and players will have the extra starting stack chips on the table when the Freeroll tournament begins.

List of prizes:

1. Entry to Super Poker Event of Europe buy-in €350. See www.superpokerevent.com.

2. Entry to any Fitzwilliam Card Club Dublin, End of Month €270 Tournament. See www.fitzwilliamcardclub.com.

3.Two hours Professional Online Poker Tuition with Dara O'Kearney

4. €200 in players online account

5. Entry to the Gold Rush Casino €10,000 Guaranteed Christmas Tournament, Buy-in €200. See http://www.facebook.com/themug2

6. Entry to the JP Poker €10,000 guarantee in the Village Green Card Room on 11th Jan 2013, Buy-in €150. See www.jppoker.ie

7. Entry to any €120 Celtic Poker Tour Event. See www.celticpokertour.com

8. Entry to the Gleneagle Irish Poker Festival on in Killarney from 29th Nov to 2nd Dec 2012, Buy-in €120. See http://www.bigslickevents.net/poker-events

9. Entry to any €120 Celtic Poker Tour Event. See www.celticpokertour.com for more details.

10. €100 voucher for Circles Snooker Club or Ned Kelly's, Clonmel. http://www.facebook.com/nksclonmel

11. Entry to any Eglinton Casino Wednesday Night Poker Tournament. Buy-in €90. See http://www.theeglinton.com/default.aspx

12. Three Frames of Snooker with Ken Doherty in the Ken Doherty Snooker Academy, Terenure, Dublin. See http://www.kendoherty.ie/

13. Entry to the Gold Club Letterkenny €40 Friday night tournament. See http://www.thegoldclubcasino.ie/  

14. €40 in players online account

15. Entry to the Gold Club Letterkenny €40 Friday night tournament. See http://www.thegoldclubcasino.ie/

16. €30 in players online account

17. Irish Eyes Hoodie and polo shirt

18. Collection of Poker books

19. Irish Eyes Hoodie and polo shirt

20. Collection of Poker books

21. €10 in players online account

22. €10 in players online account

23. €10 in players online account

24. Irish Eyes Polo Shirt

25. Irish Eyes Polo Shirt

26. Irish Eyes Polo Shirt

27. Irish Eyes Polo Shirt

28. Irish Eyes Polo Shirt

29. Irish Eyes Polo Shirt

30. Irish Eyes Polo Shirt

31. Irish Eyes Polo Shirt

32. Irish Eyes Polo Shirt

33. Irish Eyes Polo Shirt


Best of Luck.

Irish Eyes Poker

Monday, November 19, 2012

Irish Eyes Bet

IRISH EYES BET.

(This article appears in Player Ireland magazine in November 2012. By Dara 'Doke' O'Kearney)
 
With the news that IGT Interactive Network (Malta) Ltd, formerly Entraction Network Limited (ENT) will close their gaming operations on December 11, 2012, Irish Eyes Poker took the decision to leave the network and will be launching an exciting new player offering in December. The new and improved site will allow players the option of playing, in 7 different poker rooms (with other big names joingin soon), in live casinos, and betting on our new sports book which includes live in-match betting and horse racing. And our new accounts will also provide access to Forex trading!

This exciting new venture sees 1997 World Snooker Champion Ken Doherty joining Irish Eyes Bet so watch out for tips and news from Ken on our brand new sports book. Ken told me, "I'm really looking forward to getting involved and making some money for our clients through my hot tips for each competition".

As a multi-platform site, Irish eyes will offer players the ability to deposit and withdraw from all the poker rooms, casinos and betting products through one centralised account. Through this account players will be able to: Play Poker in the following Poker Rooms: Merge, Cake, Enet, Ideal, Everleaf, InstaPoker, and Poker Venezia. (Other poker rooms will also be added in 2013).

Play Casino in our 'Live Casinos' and 'Online Casino'. Place Sports Bets on our completely new sports book, which includes live in-match betting and horse racing. Plus Forex trade through the same account.


All of this will be made simple and convenient through the new Irish Eyes 'Flexi-Account', the first innovation of its kind in online poker.

Current players on Irish Eyes Poker will be able to have their account migrated to our new platform with all details and balances (except VIP Points and unredeemed Instant Reward Bonuses, which we advice current players to use or redeem before 30th November in order not to lose them). If you have a current Irish Eyes Poker account you will receive an email shortly asking if you agree to have your account migrated to our new system. We advise that you update your email address in your Irish Eyes account and 'allow' emails from Irish Eyes Poker in your email inbox, to ensure you receive this email, or subscribe to our newsletter below.

All migrated accounts will move seamlessly to our new platform where players can then log in with their current username and have their account details and balance immediately available. Current account holder balances are perfectly safe and will be available to use or withdraw immediately after migration to our new platform. Migrated account holders will simply be asked to accept the new terms and conditions when first logging into the new system and change their password.

All migrated accounts will be automatically set up on all 7 poker rooms and other products. All you will need to do to play poker is choose a 'nickname' in each room when you first log in 'if' your Irish Eyes username is already taken in that poker room. When a player creates a new account on Irish Eyes, the account will automatically be set up for access to all poker rooms and other products.
We will also provide a 'Multi-Installer' that you can choose to download after you sign up that will install all poker room clients onto your desktop in one go. Or you can choose to install whichever poker room(s) you would like to play on individually.

The ability to play different poker rooms from the same account offers advantages to both recreational players and high volume grinders. For recreational players, the main advantages will be a richer variety of tournaments and cash games available at different times of the day. Different rooms have different peak times. For high volume grinders like me, there is the added convenience of a central cashier. Like all players who play on multiple sites, one of my major logistical nightmares is moving money between sites.

With a central cashier that allows money to be moved directly from one room to another without an intermediary bank or Neteller account, these hassles will be greatly reduced. This is of particular benefit to players such as myself who also stake other players. The hassle of having to move your own bankroll around between different sites multiplies when you start having to do the same for other players.

We will also launch a fantastic new reward program that will reward players on all play on our site. No activation is required. Simply by making your first deposit you are eligible. Starting your rise to power is easy: with your first deposit, you automatically join our VIP program and you have the chance to reach the most prestigious levels, and obtain incredible bonuses. Every bet in the casino, every poker hand played in any poker room (except ENET), every wager on Sports Betting, allows you earn “ DOUBLOONS”, golden coins that let you climb the nobility ranks in our "VIP CLUB". The amount of DOUBLOONS you have determines your rank. The more you climb in the ranks, the easier it is to earn and accumulate DOUBLOONS and to receive our biggest BONUSES.

If you currently have an Irish Eyes account and need advise on our existing or new products starting in December, please email us at team@irisheyespoker.ie and we will be delighted to answer your questions.

Our new site is planned to be up and running on the 3rd December, so visit us at www.irisheyesbet.com or www.irisheyespoker.com in December. We look forward to seeing you.

There will be some important information coming soon also, so the best way to receive all the information is to subscribe to our new Newsletter.

If you are a current Irish Eyes newsletter subscriber and account holder, important news will be delivered to your email inbox shortly. Therefore please make sure emails from Irish Eyes Poker.com do not go to your junk/spam folder.

To subscribe to our Newsletter just enter your email in the box below.

Best of Luck
Irish Eyes Poker

Wednesday, November 07, 2012

PLAYER NOTIFICATION

Major changes to Irish Eye Poker that will effect your account.

Due to matters beyond our control, from 3rd Decemeber 2012 we will not be able to continue to offer you the opportunity to play on the Poker Network with whom we currently partner. However, we have undertaken serious enquiries to find a suitable replacement network where you could continue to enjoy your Poker play for a long time to come. We have found a partner who can offer you, the player, tremendous opportunities for playing poker on 7 different poker networks, as well as casino games and sportsbetting, through your existing account. The partner is well known and trusted and has been granted various licenses in Malta to operate online gambling and betting services all over the world. PIVgame Ltd is a company established in Malta with an impeccable history in online gambling and betting.

Obviously, to simplify matters for everyone and to expedite and facilitate the move to our new Partner, we will be migrating the data of all players from our existing system to our new partner's systems on the 3rd December 2012. We are obliged to strictly follow the laws stipulated in the Data Protection Act which is based on the EU Directive on Data Protection (Directive 95/46/EC). You obviously have to right to object to us transferring your data to our new partner and you may do this by simply sending an email to migration@irisheyespoker.com and stating: I do not Accept, and provide your username, within 14 days from receipt of this email. In order to assist you in your decision you may view the new terms and conditions and see our new products by clicking the following link http://www.irisheyesbet.com.

If you do not object, your personal details and balance will be transferred to our new partner, with the exception of your password and your VIP Points & unredeemed Instant Reward Bonuses. We therefore advise you to use your VIP Points or redeem any outstanding Instant Reward Bonus before 30th November in order not to lose them. Once the data has been successfully transferred an email will be sent to all players with instructions on how you are to log on for the first time with your existing username. In order to satisfy Regulatory requirements you will be required to accept the Terms and Conditions up on first logon. Once logged in you will find your balance is available for game play on all of our new products.

We are sure that you will find that we have made the right move and chosen the right partner for you to continue enjoying playing poker. Should you have any questions or require further information please do not hesitate to contact us on support@irisheyespoker.com

Yours sincerely,

Kind Regards Irish Eyes Poker

Tuesday, November 06, 2012

Exciting News from Irish Eyes

Hi

You may be aware that Irish Eyes Poker is leaving the IGT network (formerly Entraction) in December. Much has happened over the past few weeks and we are now delighted to announce Irish Eyes Poker will launch a completely new offer at the start of December. The planned lauch date is December 3rd.

Irish Eyes will have brand new products with lots of new Poker Tournaments, New Rewards, Live Casino, Sports Betting including in-match Live betting, Irish and UK Horse racing and much much more.

The best way to receive all the information is to subscribe to our new Newsletter.
If you are a current Irish Eyes account holder, important news will be delivered to yout email inbox shortly. Therefore please make sure emails from Irish Eyes Poker.com do not go to your junk/spam folder.

To subscrible to our Newsletter just enter your email in the box below.

Best of Luck
Irish Eyes Poker


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Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Letter from Doke and Irish Eyes Gaming News 23rd Oct 2012

It's been a while since my last confession, mainly because there hasn't been much to say other than "Grinding online". Anyone who reads my personal blog will know I've been a little disillusioned lately with live poker. It's always been my view that if I'm not enjoying something any more I should stop doing it. Faced with these two options I would prefer to start enjoying it again rather than stop playing. With this in mind I decided to enter the IPO for the first time in 3 years as it has a reputation for being a fun tournament. It certainly lived up to this as although it didn't quite go to plan for me it was the most fun I've had live in a long time. I ran into a lot of great characters and people at the tables and the breaks. Hats off to Stephen McLean and the rest of the crew involved.

My main event started badly. I dropped to 6k in a very unclear spot where I decided I had to fold an overpair on the turn. I had to make a number of other big folds to stay alive. The other advantage to making big folds is that it makes it easier to get paid when you do hit a big hand. Once your opponents realise you're capable of making big folds they become more inclined to bluff you. As a result of hitting some hands and running into people willing to try to bluff me off them I climbed up to 40k. I'd drifted back a bit from that high point when two comedies of errors ended my campaign.

First I opened queens in early position. After it was folded to Benjamin Reeves-Smyth in the small blind, not realising it had already been raised he put in just enough to call the big blind. When the dealer pointed out that it had been raised he elected to call my raise. The big blind came along too. Benjamin check raised me all in on the 765 flop with two diamonds. Given the preflop action I ruled out sets and while it was possible he had two pair, I thought it was more likely on balance he had one pair, a pair/draw combo or a flush or straight draw all of which I was ahead of so I called.

Unfortunately he had flopped a straight with 43s. Benjamin is a very good player and wouldn't have been in the hand if he'd seen my raise as he had less than 20 big blinds, and apologised to me afterwards. No apology needed since it's one just one of those things in poker where someone makes a minor mistake but profits from it in the short term.

My exit came a few hands and a break later on the feature table. After it was folded around to a gentleman from Newcastle who seemed to be opening every hand folded to him in late position, KQ looked like a good enough hand to reship all in from the small blind. He asked for a count, the dealer miscounted my stack (he said 6500: it was actually 12500). My opponent said "OK, I have to call" and turned over his hand at the same time as I was telling the dealer he'd miscounted. When my opponent heard the correct total, he was less than pleased and asked what his options were. He was told he could fold to my raise or call. He took a while to think about it and I assumed my KQ was in reasonable shape (even though he had already exposed his hand, I resisted the temptation to look at it for fear of giving away any indication of the strength of my hand by comparison when I saw it).

After he eventually called, I finally looked and was pretty surprised to see AK. I went from bad shape to great shape as the flop came queen high, but an ace on the turn sent me packing. I played a few fast structured side events without troubling the scorers.

On Sunday night, I attended the Irish Poker awards. I'd been nominated in 4 categories and took home two awards for Best Blog and Best (use of) Social Media. It's always nice to win something and since the awards were voted for by the public, it was very nice to win and I'd like to thank everyone who voted for me. A big well done to the winners in all the other categories, including my friends Jason Tompkins (Best Tourney player), Niall Smyth (Breakout Year), Phil Baker (Personality), JP McCann (TD) and Padraig Parkinson (Hall of Fame).

Stephen McLean always puts on a great show so you can be assured that the second running of the Super Poker Event will be another great occasion. I played in the first one and it was a lot of fun.

The Super Poker Event of Europe 2013 will take place in the International Conference and Events Centre at Citywest Hotel, Saggart, Co. Dublin on Saturday 23rd & Sunday 24th February with play beginning at 12pm sharp each day.

Last year 877 players attended this amazing two day no limit hold'em poker event, with a prize-pool of over €260,000 (for just a €300 entry fee per player). The deserved winner was Vincent Buis from the Netherlands, who took home the first prize of just over €43,000 (the top 90 players made the money).

This year we are aiming for a field of 1,000 players and so an estimated prize-pool of €300,000 (winner will take home approx €50,000 for a €300 entry fee +€50 registration).

As well as the partnership of Irish Eyes Poker and the Super Poker Event of Europe 2013, this poker festival is also being backed strongly by Gathering Dublin, a government tourism initiative aimed at promoting events that bring tourists into Ireland.

With the good will of players that participated in the event's first year (2012) and with the exposure that will be gained through the Gathering initiative, the organisers believe they will smash the 1,000 player field so a €300,000 prize-pool is a conservative estimate for the last weekend in February 2013.

Entry costs €300 (+€50 Registration Fee)

The blind level duration will be 30 minutes on Day 1 and 45 minutes on Day 2.

A winner will be declared around midnight on Sunday 24th February 2013.

Irish Eyes Guaranteed Online Satellites:

We are delighted to announce that we are running a twice daily schedule of satallite tournaments with guaranteed tokens into main event qualifiers, each qualifier having two guaranteed seats to the main event.

Every two weeks, each main event qualifer will have a guaranteed prize-pool of €910, so two tickets are guarnateed, plus cash for players that just miss out.

Irish Eyes are running two daily €5 re-buy feeders with one €35 token guaranteed in each. One feeder will run at 1pm and the other at 8pm daily (Monday through to Sunday).

First €35 qualifier will take place on Sunday 4th November at 6pm.

Qualifiers will then run once every fortnight on a Sunday at 6pm.

In order to guarantee player comfort and security the event organisers cover every aspect from player transport to and from Dublin Airport, to helping with accommodation bookings. For more information please contact stephen@pokerireland.ie

Other partners of the event include Main Event Travel, Bluff Europe & Plus Ev Media.

EMOP Dublin is just around the corner and is on from 15 - 18 November 2012 in Clontarf Castle Hotel, Dublin, Ireland. Satellites from only €2 are online now on www.irisheyespoker.com.

Qualifiers from €75 every Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday with guaranteed packages. All qualifiers who win a €2,000 package will receive 4 nights at hotel, €350 for travel contribution into their account and entry to EMOP Dublin main event. See you in Dublin.

Don't forget to 'Like' our Team Irish Eyes Poker page on Facebook and you can get the password to the Weekly Facebook €100 Freeroll every Wednesday night.

Best of luck at the tables - unless I'm at the same table.

Doke

Monday, October 15, 2012

Super Poker Event of Europe 2013

Irish Eyes Poker are delighted to be a partner to the Super Poker Event of Europe 2013


The Super Poker Event of Europe 2013 will take place in the International Conference and Events Centre at Citywest Hotel, Saggart, Co. Dublin on Saturday 23rd & Sunday 24th February with play beginning at 12pm sharp each day.

Last year 877 players attended this amazing two day no limit hold'em poker event, with a prize-pool of over €260,000 (for just a €300 entry fee per player). The deserved winner was Vincent Buis from the Netherlands, who took home the first prize of just over €43,000 (the top 90 players made the money).

This year we are aiming for a field of 1,000 players and so an estimated prize-pool of €300,000 (winner will take home approx €50,000 for a €300 entry fee +€50 registration).

As well as the partnership of Irish Eyes Poker and the Super Poker Event of Europe 2013, this poker festival is also being backed strongly by Gathering Dublin, a government tourism initiative aimed at promoting events that bring tourists into Ireland.

With the good will of players that participated in the event's first year (2012) and with the exposure that will be gained through the Gathering initiative, the organisers believe they will smash the 1,000 player field so a €300,000 prize-pool is a conservative estimate for the last weekend in February 2013.

Entry costs €300 (+€50 Registration Fee)

The blind level duration will be 30 minutes on Day 1 and 45 minutes on Day 2.

A winner will be declared around midnight on Sunday 24th February 2013.

Irish Eyes Guaranteed Online Satellites Now:

We are delighted to announce that Irish Eyes Poker have launched a schedule of tournaments that will guarantee tokens into guaranteed two ticket satellites twice per day, every day.

Every two weeks, each super satellite will have a guaranteed prize-pool of €910, so two tickets and cash for players that just miss out.

Irish Eyes are running two daily €5 re-buy feeders with one €35 token guaranteed in each, from Monday 22nd October 2012.
  • One feeder is running at 1pm and the other at 8pm daily (Monday through to Sunday).
  • First €35 (+€3.50) super satellite will take place on Sunday 4th November at 6pm.
  • Super Satellite to run once every fortnight on a Sunday at 6pm.
In order to guarantee player comfort and security the event organisers cover every aspect from player transport to and from Dublin Airport, to helping with accommodation bookings. For more information please contact stephen@pokerireland.ie

Other partners of the event include Main Event Travel, Bluff Europe & Plus Ev Media.
 
Live Event Blind Structure:
Day 1 Level SB BB Ante
12:00-12:30 1 25 50 -
12:30-13:00 2 50 100 -
13:00-13:30 3 75 150 -
13:30-14:00 4 100 200 -
14:00-14:20 Break      
14:20-14:50 5 150 300 -
14;50-15:20 6 150 300 25
15:20-15:50 7 200 400 25
15:50-16:20 8 300 600 50
16:20-16:40 Break Race Off 25 Chips
16:40-17:10 9 400 800 100
17:10-17:40 10 500 1000 100
17:40-18:10 11 600 1200 100
18:10-18:40 12 800 1600 200
18:40-19:40 Dinner Break Group A      
19:40-20:10 13 1000 2000 200
20:10-20:40 14 1200 2400 200
20:40-21:10 15 1500 3000 300
21:10-21:40 16 2000 4000 400
21:40-22:00 Break Race Off 100 Chips
22:00-22:30 17 2500 5000 500
22:30-23:00 18 3000 6000 500
23:00-23:30 19 4000 8000 1000
23:30-00:00 20 5000 10000 1000
  Finish Play Day 1      
Day 2 Level SB BB Ante
12:00-12:45 21 6000 12000 1000
12:45-13:30 22 8000 16000 1500
13:30-14:15 23 10000 20000 2000
14:15-14:35 Break Race Off 500 Chips
14:35-15:20 24 12000 24000 2000
15:20-16:05 25 15000 30000 3000
16:05-16:50 26 20000 40000 4000
16:50-17:30 Dinner Break Race Off 1,000 Chips
17:30-18:30 27 30000 60000 5000
18:30-19:30 28 40000 80000 5000
19:30-19:45 Break      
19:45-20:45 29 50000 100000 10000
20:45-21:45 30 60000 120000 15000
21:45-22:00 Break      
22:00-23:00 31 80000 160000 15000
23:00-00:00 32 100000 200000 20000
  Finish Play Day 2