Doug Polk Defeats Daniel Negreanu in High-Stakes Heads-Up Grudge Match Polk Wins $1.2 Million As Two Rivals Settle Seven-Year Feud
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www.CardPlayer.com Vol. 34/No. 7 March 24, 2021 Byran Pellegrino Explains How Artificial Intelligence Helped Team Polk Win Ankush Mandavia Wins Card Player Poker Tour Venetian Main Event Poker Strategy: Training Your Mind To Withstand Variance DOUG POLK DEFEATS DANIEL NEGREANU IN HIGH-STAKES HEADS-UP GRUDGE MATCH POLK WINS $1.2 MILLION AS TWO RIVALS SETTLE SEVEN-YEAR FEUD PLAYER_34_07_Cover.indd 1 3/4/21 8:05 AM PLAYER_05_GlobalPoker_DT.indd 2 2/2/21 10:24 AM PLAYER_05_GlobalPoker_DT.indd 3 2/2/21 10:24 AM Masthead - Card Player Vol. 34/No. 7 PUBLISHERS Barry Shulman | Jeff Shulman Editorial Corporate Office EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Julio Rodriguez 6940 O’Bannon Drive TOURNAMENT CONTENT MANAGER Erik Fast Las Vegas, Nevada 89117 ONLINE CONTENT MANAGER Steve Schult (702) 871-1720 Art [email protected] ART DIRECTOR Wendy McIntosh Subscriptions/Renewals 1-866-LVPOKER Website And Internet Services (1-866-587-6537) CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER Jaran Hardman PO Box 434 DATA COORDINATOR Morgan Young Congers, NY 10920-0434 Sales [email protected] ADVERTISING MANAGER Mary Hurbi Advertising Information NATIONAL SALES MANAGER Barbara Rogers [email protected] LAS VEGAS AND COLORADO SALES REPRESENTATIVE (702) 856-2206 Rich Korbin Distribution Information cardplayer Media LLC [email protected] CHAIRMAN AND CEO Barry Shulman PRESIDENT AND COO Jeff Shulman Results GENERAL COUNSEL Allyn Jaffrey Shulman [email protected] VP INTL. 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Published and printed in the United States. 4 CARDPLAYER.COM FOLLOW US ON TWITTER CardPlayerMedia 004_MastheadB.indd 4 3/4/21 11:43 AM High-Five-Cardplayer_Ad.indd 3 3/2/21 5:24 PM Table of Contents - Card Player Vol. 34/No. 7 20 12 24 Features Strategies, Analysis Also In this Issue 20 & Commentary 4 Doug Polk Defeats Daniel Negreanu In 28 About Us High-Stakes Heads-Up Grudge Match The Super Bowl and Game Selection 36 By Steve Schult By Gavin Griffin Tournament Schedules 29 38 The Inside Straight Three Tips For Crushing Live Poker Poker Leaderboards 8 By Jonathan Little Poker News Recap 30 Tournament 12 Pandemic Poker Adjustments Ankush Mandavia Wins 2021 Card Player By Alan Schoonmaker Hand Matchups Poker Tour Venetian $2,500 Main Event 32 31 By Erik Fast Contracts and Poker: Ambiguity Adrian Mateos vs. Damian Salas 14 By Scott J. Burnham 33 Player Of The Year Update 33 Damian Salas vs. Bert Stevens By Erik Fast Behavior At The Table: Part 4 34 By Greg Raymer 16 Bert Stevens vs. Sami Kelopuro Head Games: Training Your Mind To Withstand Variance 35 By Craig Tapscott Sami Kelopuro vs. Damian Salas 24 Team Polk’s Bryan Pellegrino Talks About His AI Research And How It Helped Formulate Strategies To Win $1.2 Million By Steve Schult Cover ©VPokerGO Cover 6 CARDPLAYER.COM VOLUME 34 / ISSUE 7 006_TOC.indd 6 3/4/21 7:56 AM SUBSCRIBE TODAY! PRINT + DIGITAL ACCESS ♠ 26 ISSUES PER YEAR ♠ FREE DIGITAL ACCESS ♠ VIEW ARCHIVES OF OVER 800 ISSUES Visit www.cardplayer.com/link/subscribe or Call 1-866-587-6537 CP_Sub_25_FT.indd 2 3/2/21 5:25 PM THE INSIDE STRAIGHT the INSIDE STRAIGHT News, Reviews, and Interviews From Around the Poker World POKER LEGENDS PHIL HELLMUTH AND DANIEL NEGREANU WILL PLAY HIGH-STAKES HEADS-UP MATCH By Steve Schult Negreanu publicly challenged Hellmuth to a heads-up match short- ly after the interview was released. e Canadian pro said that he would play any stakes and seemingly any format. “Yo Phil Hellmuth, you said you watched ‘zero’ of the match but seem to have strong opinions on the play,” said Negreanu. “I’ll play you a heads- up match live, online, at any stakes you feel comfortable with for as many hands as you would like. Wanna play, big guy?” e tweet seemed to imply a set number of hands in a cash game for- aniel Negreanu’s heads- reported $20,000 to Polk, getting 4:1 mat, but the format on High Stakes up match with Doug Polk on Negreanu to win. Duel is structured as a live heads-up is over (check out this “I was disappointed in the way sit-n-go format, which is drastically issue’s cover story), but that Daniel played,” Hellmuth said. diff erent than what Negreanu just Dhe’s already got a second high-profi le “But I know his coaches. His coaches spent months playing. But it looks battle lined up. are brilliant. Everything that I had like the two will play regardless. Negreanu is set to take on talked about with his coaches… you During Negreanu’s match with 15-time World Series of Poker bracelet see, I talked to these guys for a couple Polk, Polk was considered the mas- winner Phil Hellmuth on PokerGO’s of hours and I loved the way they sive favorite. Most betting markets High Stakes Duel, according to a thought about no-limit [hold’em].” had him as at least a 4:1 favorite. In social media post from Hellmuth. He went on to admit that he Negreanu’s match with Hellmuth, “Looks like they are bringing me thought Negreanu should’ve coun- however, the tables have turned and the great Daniel Negreanu, the guy tered Polk with a diff erent strategy. it’s the Canadian pro that is the get- that studied heads-up for months “I was betting on Daniel’s talent,” ting the nod in the early markets. with coaches I respect,” tweeted said Hellmuth. “I think if Daniel is According to online sportsbook Hellmuth. “So be it. It will be a great going to try to play Doug playing BetOnline, Negreanu is a 2.5:1 favor- challenge for me.” pure GTO [game theory optimal] ite as they are setting the moneyline Despite some kind words in his or next-level GTO, then I think that at -250. tweet, the fuel for the match started Doug has a lot of fi re, so Daniel is Hellmuth played this format last after Hellmuth criticized Negreanu’s going to fi ght fi re with fi re. And I year and defeated Antonio Esfandiari play against Polk while being inter- think Daniel should’ve fought fi re in three straight matches, winning viewed on PokerGO. Hellmuth lost a with Daniel.” $400,000 in the process. m Sign Up For Card Player’s Free Poker School. Review Hundreds of Articles and Videos On Winning Poker Strategy. www.CardPlayerPokerSchool.com 8 CARDPLAYER.COM VOLUME 34 / ISSUE 7 008_News.indd 8 3/4/21 7:58 AM THE INSIDE STRAIGHT FULL TILT POKER OFFICIALLY SHUTDOWN BY POKERSTARS By Steve Schult e Full Tilt Poker brand is officially called the site a “global ponzi scheme.” extinct. Poker Hall of Fame nominee Isai According to an announcement by Scheinberg, who owned PokerStars during PokerStars, the company officially closed the U.S. federal government’s attack on both desktop and mobile applications for online poker, worked out a deal with the the poker site on Feb. 25 and all account feds to acquire the company and its soft- information and balances have been moved ware for $547 million. to the corresponding PokerStars account. As part of the deal, PokerStars would During the poker boom, Full Tilt Poker repay all of the U.S. players who weren’t emerged as one of the largest online poker paid back by the previous owners. At the sites in the world. It was neck-and-neck with time of the deal, both PokerStars and Full PokerStars as the largest site on the planet. It Phil Ivey Wearing Tilt were not allowed to enter the U.S. was home of the “Rail Heaven” cash games, Full Tilt Gear In 2006 market. U.S. players were paid towards the a $500-$1,000 no-limit hold’em game that end of 2014, but the resentment towards the featured nosebleed legends like Tom Dwan and Phil Galfond site’s former owners remains to this day. regularly playing for six-figure and sometimes seven-figure PokerStars owned both companies and kept them as pots. separate platforms until 2016, when all active accounts on Full Its roster of sponsored pros were some of the most highly Tilt Poker would be merged with a corresponding PokerStars regarded players in the world at the time, including Phil Ivey, account. But now, five years later, e Stars Group, which is Gus Hansen, Howard Lederer, Chris Ferguson, Jennifer owned by Flutter, has decided to shut the site down for good Harman, and Erick Lindgren, among others.