The World Series of Poker continues this week as we move closer to the main event. A number of players made their way into the winner’s circle and that’s where we’ll start our recap of the poker news of the week:
Racener Wins WSOP Dealer’s Choice Championship
We’ll start our poker recap of the week with some good news as John Racener had himself a big payday. The 31-year-old from Dunedin, Florida won $273,962 as he beat out a 102-player field to win the 2017 World Series of Poker $10,000 Dealer’s Choice Championship. Racener, who previously finished second to Jonathan Duhamel at the WSOP Main Event in 2010, won his first career gold bracelet. It was also his third win of 2017 as Racener, who dedicated this win to his late mother, won $68,130 at the $5,250 Pot Limit Omaha #57 7 Handed event in Los Angeles in February, and then $59,258 at the $1,100 No Limit Hold ’em event in Sarasota in April.
Hansen, Brunson Spotted In Bobby’s Room
Poker legends Gus Hansen and Doyle Brunson were recently spotted in Bobby’s Room at the Bellagio in Las Vegas, which has sparked conversation as to whether or not they could get back into WSOP tournaments. Hansen has been quiet since 2014 as money problems seem to be the root of his issues. Brunson is a two-time winner of the Main Event, which he won in 1976 and 1977, but at 83, Brunson isn’t sure if he wants to sit at the tables for those kinds of long hours.
The Texas Dolly had been away from the spotlight for some time after all but retiring from tournaments three years ago. However, speculation has been rampant that the Poker Hall of Famer would return to chase his 11th WSOP bracelet – specifically, for the WSOP $10,000 events – and seeing him out in the wild with Hansen has fueled the rumors.
888Poker Will Sponsor WSOPC
For the second straight year, 888Poker is going to sponsor the World Series Of Poker Circuit. The full schedule has yet to be released, but there will be 26 stops on the tour, which is the most in its history, and there will also be at least six chances to win a WSOPC gold ring. This is going to be huge for South American players that have always wanted to play in a WSOP event, but haven’t been able to get to the United States. This year, they’ll be going to go to Argentina and there are rumors that there will be more South American stops in the future, so that’s something to keep an eye on.
Former Absolute Poker Co-Founder Pleads Guilty
The final stop comes from the courtroom where Scott Tom has found himself in trouble. Tom, who is the former president and co-founder of Absolute Poker, has pled guilty to a misdemeanor count of being an accessory after the fact in connection with the transmission of gambling information. Tom is connected to a massive cheating scandal from 2006. While the scheme was complex, the short version is that he basically made it so that he could enter tournaments that his company was putting on while having the ability to see his opponents’ hole cards. Jail time isn’t anticipated at this point but the expectation is that Tom will have to pay quite the hefty fine.