Logger Earns World Series of Poker Final

Players can participate in thousands of hands a day

(NEWSER) - The last winner of the World Series of Poker, 22-year-old Joe Cada, had been legally able to play poker in a casino for less than a year. Yet by the time he blew away the competition at the WSOP, Cada had played millions of hands—by his reckoning, 2,000 a day—for real stakes, online. Internet poker has revolutionizing the real-world version, helping teens gain impressive amounts of experience—and the winnings to prove it. More»

Joe Cada beats Darvin Moon with pocket nines in Las Vegas

(NEWSER) - Earlier this year, Joe Cada couldn’t legally gamble in Las Vegas—but early this morning, the 21-year-old was crowned the youngest-ever winner of the World Series of Poker in Sin City. “It’s a dream come true,” Cada, who won $8.5 million, tells the Sun . Pocket nines won it for him; he put opponent Darvin Moon all in on a queen-jack hand. “He’s a great player,” says Moon, a logger whose Cinderella run ended with a $5.2 million consolation prize. “He outplayed me two hands.” More»

Texan was game's first superstar

(NEWSER) - Amarillo Slim, a poker Hall of Famer who was instrumental in bringing the game into the national limelight, died Sunday at 83 of colon cancer, his son tells the Los Angeles Times . Slim, born Thomas Austin Preston, Jr., "brought poker out of the back alleys," says a historian of the game. "It was really Slim that became the face of poker for middle America." Born in Arkansas in 1928, Slim spent years as an illegal bookmaker and pool hustler—both in and out of the US Navy— before turning his attention to poker in the 60s. More»

(NEWSER) - The government's online poker ban isn't just hypocritical—given that state lotteries are "the nation's most aggressive promoters of gambling"—it's unfairly slandering a sport that requires great skill by labeling it mere gambling, George F. Will writes in the Washington Post. Professional poker player Howard Lederer—known as "The Professor"—believes lawmakers need to look at mathematicians' work on game theory, and realize that playing poker requires a brain-straining ability to calculate probabilities, use logic, and bluff. More»

How much do you want to bet Bruce sings Born to Run ?

(NEWSER) - Propositions, or "prop bets," can add some spice to a Super Bowl blowout even as they leave oddsmakers shaking their heads. "They're a pain in the ass," a Las Vegas bookmaker tells ESPN the Magazine. "But it keeps non-fans interested for the entire game." Under Nevada law, the wagers must concern issues verifiable by the league—meaning props like what color the victory Gatorade bath will be are nonstarters. More»