According to witnesses who took in Event 28 at the World Series of Poker, today’s action produced some of best Omaha ever played at the WSOP, with two online players going head-to-head for the first place prize. When all was said and done Phil “OMGClayAiken” Galfond beat out Adam Hourani — along with a number of big-name pros — for the gold bracelet and $817,781. Hourani takes home $493,748 for being the runner-up. One can only imagine what it must have been like to go up against such pros as David Benyamine, John Juanda, Johnny Chan and Daniel Negreanu. (This just goes to show that online poker players are a force to be reckoned with, especially at the bigger tournaments!)

Here were the chip counts heading into the final table for Event 28 - $5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha:
Phil Galfond - 1,393,000
Brian Rast - 1,176,000
David Benyamine - 1,041,000
John Juanda - 694,000
Johnny Chan - 624,000
Kirill Gerasimov - 558,000
Daniel Negreanu - 460,000
Adam Hourani - 300,000
Phil Hellmuth - 119,000

Women have made a big splash at the 2008 WSOP and nobody has made a bigger splash so far than poker professional Vanessa Selbst, who won the $1500 pot limit Omaha event #18 ($227,933). Vanessa didn’t stop there, either; she finished third in the $10,000 Heads Up Championship, winning $108,288 three days later. Selbst has won over $600,000 in the last two years, and has had her coming out party at this year’s WSOP as one of the best female players in the world.

Kathy Liebert just missed wining her second WSOP bracelet when she came in third in event #1, winning $306,000 in the process. She already has four cashes this year. Jennifer Harman finished eighth in event #22, $3000 HORSE. She earned $30,851, and would have won her third bracelet if she could have prevailed. Svetlana “Glum Girl” Gromenkova won the $1000 Ladies event #15. She took home $244,702 and her first WSOP bracelet.

Jose Canseco is hoping to pick up a WSOP bracelet this year.

The main event at the World Series of Poker attracts more and more celebrities every year. Some have already made their mark on the poker scene, so BodogLife.com is offering action on which celebrity will go the deepest in the main event this year. There are 18 different celebrities, both actors and sports figures, from which to choose.

Getting the best odds at 5/1 are James Woods, Shannon Elizabeth, Jennifer Tilly and Yevgeny Kafelnikov. They spend more time on tour than other celebrities, and have had notable cashes in the past. Boris Becker, Ben Affleck, Norm MacDonald and Don Cheadle come in at 9/1.

Others come in at 14/1, and long shots like Jose Canseco, Lennox Lewis, Penn Gillette and Hank Azaria are only getting 30/1. James Woods and Jennifer Tilly are probably the best bets out of the entire list. They would likely boast the most playing experience over the last few years.

1. Poker is the most common free game on the internet. Any poker site or AOL and Facebook have versions.
2. Blackjack can be played for free at most online casinos.
3. Free slots are everywhere online. Online casinos have plenty of variations.
4. Video poker of many different varieties can be found quite easily at online casinos like BodogLife.com.
5. Roulette4fun.com has free roulette games to play and learn on, plus info and history on the game.
6. Free craps games are available at freecasinogames.com and most online casinos.
7. You can play free bingo on AOL. No download required with the flash version.
8. You can play baccarat at 777.com and get info on the game as well.
9. Caribbean Poker can also be found at 777.com, and articles on how to play are available for your reading pleasure.
10. Keno Play Free has a free keno game to play without download.

Frankly, the idea of a woman winning the WSOP main event is simply a far-fetched notion. There are a handful of women that are certainly good enough to win it, but the overall percentage of women compared to men is very small. You can get WSOP odds for a woman to make the final table, or you can bet on one particular woman going deeper than the others, but I haven’t found much action on a woman actually winning it.

If I had to pick one worthy candidate it would be Jennifer Harman. She is the best female poker player overall, and she would be able to handle the pressure of the final table. She plays in the biggest cash games in the world. I think she would handle the late stages better than other woman.

If I had to pick another dark horse it would be the experienced Kathy Liebert. She has the ability to win it all as well.

Texas holdem calculators have been around for a few years now. Most cost in the range of $20-$50 and promise to improve your game and win you lots of money. They calculate pot odds and advise you on the proper play for the situation.

Now Holdem Radar Company is offering a free version to anyone who may want it. Now players can try out the calculator without worrying about getting ripped off by a shady company with a junk product. Offering the free version lets the player try out the product without concern or commitment, and then the company can pitch the super-awesome updated deluxe’ professional version for $59.99.

Poker calculators are for suckers, whether they’re free or not. They’re used by players who are too lazy to read poker books and document their play. They’d rather find a way to cheat than get better by paying their dues. They can keep their free poker calculator.

Some people can play poker for a long time. I’m sure that I could handle a 24-hour session no problem. I’ve had a few 16-hour sessions, and I can’t recall any of them being difficult. There are some legendary stories about sessions going on for days. The official leader is Larry Olmsted, with a 72-hour session at Foxwoods in Connecticut. He started with $100 playing $0.50 ante Seven Card Stud. He managed to win close to $1,000.

Michael Mizrachi claims that he played for 75 hours at the Mirage. He played $6/$12 limit holdem and continued on a good run for the length of the session. He didn’t stay for any reason other than he was winning lots of money.

The official record for a game is 43 hours. It was set in 2006 by a bunch of guys in London England. They only stopped for bathroom breaks.

1. Barry Greenstein is very successful in tournaments, and is one of the kings of the Texas Holdem cash games. He donates all his tournament winnings, so one can just imagine what he makes in cash games.

2. Daniel Negreanu is the one of the best cash game and tournament Texas Holdem players. He is probably the best all-around Texas holdem player in Vegas.

3. Phil Ivey has won many tournaments and plays in the biggest cash games in Vegas. He started in Atlantic City, but you’re more likely to see him in Vegas these days.

4. Gus Hansen has been dominant both in cash games and in the tournament environment. His game has really evolved recently and he’s more dangerous than ever.

5. Phil Hellmuth is the best Texas Holdem tournament player in Vegas today, but not cash games. His 11 bracelets make him the No. 1 tournament player.

Most poker players know the best poker room in Vegas is at the Bellagio. They spread the widest selection of games there, but sometimes it can be hard to get on a Holdem table. Some players think that if you’re looking for Holdem action, the Wynn poker room might be a better option.

The new poker room at the Wynn has limit Holdem games starting at $4/8 and going to $100/200 and above. They also offer no-limit Texas Holdem starting at $1/3. They have 26 tables with most of them dedicated to holdem games. You can buy into a $1/3 no-limit game for $100 minimum, or $200 will get you a seat at $2/5 no-limit.

If you’re staying in the Wynn Hotel there is a poker perk. You can put your name on the waiting list and watch the queue on the in-house poker channel right in your room.

The WPT World Championship has wrapped up at the Bellagio and David Chiu is the big winner for 2008. Chui was able to battle back from a 6:1 chip deficit against Gus “The Great Dane” Hansen to win the $3,389,140 first prize. He also gets a new WPT bracelet and an entry into the $25,000 WPT Season 7 Championship.

Hansen had to settle for the $1,714,800 second-place money, and will likely take a little while to deal with a loss that should never have happened. Even on the last hand, Chiu had to hit a river ace to beat Gus.

Chiu is no stranger to the winner’s position. He has numerous victories including four WSOP bracelets to his credit. He was already considered one of the world’s best players, and now this impressive win solidifies his presence in the elite category of the world’s best poker players.