NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

Semis and finals are today, May 20. 12pm EST. 3 hour show.

For those of you who didnt think there were enough hands shown in previous episodes, you will certainly get your fill this time around. 3 hours devoted to just a few matches.

Paul Wasicka v. Shannon Elizabeth and Gavin Smith v. Chad Brown in ths semis.

Winners play in a best of three in the finals (to follow immediately after the semis).

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

shannon elizabeth needs to learn poker etiquette if she wants to keep playing in these tournaments..oh wait she's hot..never mind

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

[ QUOTE ]
shannon elizabeth needs to learn poker if she wants to keep playing in these tournaments..oh wait she's hot..never mind

[/ QUOTE ]
I'm on tilt just watching this...

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

getting my energy up ... oh noes,Ace on river... doooh no energy

too much clonie on nbc this week

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

I don't mean to take anything away from Paul, because he played very well....but wow, run good often?

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

does running good count playing terrible players?

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

He ran good in the second match but he pwned him so hard time after time before that.

Chad Brown\'s white haired supporter man friend
 

Anybody know the name of the guy who is sitting behind Chad Brown in every camera shot when they turn to Chad? He must be a lesser known Vegas pro cuz when I first saw him last week I just about lost it, that dude knocked me out of 2 Main Event satellites when I was in Vegas for the first time in 2004.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

Starting this Friday at 9pm, or Saturday at 12 am, CNBC is rerunning the Heads-Up shows that just finished, if you'd rather not watch them online.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

[ QUOTE ]
Starting this Friday at 9pm, or Saturday at 12 am, CNBC is rerunning the Heads-Up shows that just finished, if you'd rather not watch them online.

[/ QUOTE ]

They've been doing this for a few weeks now.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

Good thing they are because the !@#$%^! Ducks/Redwings game is going long so it looks like we'll miss this weeks here in LA. Hockey, feh.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

Again, Congratulations to Paul Wasicka. Just one of many to come for you sir.

-I really liked that we got to see SOOOOOOO many hands over the 3hrs. I wasn't that annoyed by Ali Nejad for this show, he's growing on me.

-gg Shannon. Yes, she dogged a lot of those hands. Yes, she could've did this or that or w/e, but it was still fun to watch her get so far.

-Biggest Tournament Fact:
Wasicka wasn't even suppose to be in this field! He took Phil Hellmuth's spot b/c Hellmuth was overseas playing a tourney series for Party Poker.

LOL I wrote that^^^part just before they did a segment about it. I was posting while watching the show back on tape/dvr.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

Another interesting fact from the Smith/Brown match: According to statisticians, Chad was dealt 10 pocket pairs in the 66-hand match, meaning he had a pair to start 15.2% of the time. Smith, on the other hand, was only dealt 4 pocket pairs in that time, roughly one out of every 16-17 hands, which is considered average.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

[ QUOTE ]
Good thing they are because the !@#$%^! Ducks/Redwings game is going long so it looks like we'll miss this weeks here in LA. Hockey, feh.

[/ QUOTE ]

Definitely frustrating.

Go to nbcsports.com/poker to watch the episodes. And, eventually, they'll find theit way to CNBC, though they might only air in one-hour segments...

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

Do the announcers know what a [censored] suck out is? When Wasika and and the hottie get it all in preflop with a coin flip and she hits the flop and then he gets there on the River that is not a "giant suckout" please!

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

[ QUOTE ]
Do the announcers know what a [censored] suck out is? When Wasika and and the hottie get it all in preflop with a coin flip and she hits the flop and then he gets there on the River that is not a "giant suckout" please!

[/ QUOTE ]

The only reason I clicked this thread was to post the same thing. Holy [censored], I wanted to kill them both.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

Does Shannon get naked at any point? I don't really want to watch if not.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

[ QUOTE ]
Does Shannon get naked at any point? I don't really want to watch if not.

[/ QUOTE ]

Sadly, no. But after it's over she standing there getting interviewed and she's striking this pose looking very cute. Not a bad rack for a little girl. [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Does Shannon get naked at any point? I don't really want to watch if not.

[/ QUOTE ]

Sadly, no. But after it's over she standing there getting interviewed and she's striking this pose looking very cute. Not a bad rack for a little girl. [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[/ QUOTE ]

Fake boobs, FTW.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

Who cares?

Ali Nejad is anti-growing on me. It's unbelievable how much stupid crap comes out of his mouth regarding poker. I don't understand, I've been playing the game for about a year and a half, and I can talk much more intelligently, and have much deeper insights into the game than this guy, his partner, Konik, seif, etc etc. Gabe Kaplan is the only one who isn't a douche.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

[ QUOTE ]
Who cares?

Ali Nejad is anti-growing on me. It's unbelievable how much stupid crap comes out of his mouth regarding poker. I don't understand, I've been playing the game for about a year and a half, and I can talk much more intelligently, and have much deeper insights into the game than this guy, his partner, Konik, seif, etc etc. Gabe Kaplan is the only one who isn't a douche.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm an interested party, but I'm curious to hear examples of what you're referring to. Obviously, if he says so many things that are considered "stupid crap," it should be easy to link to / quote a few of them (all episodes are available on nbcsports.com/poker, i think). Thanks.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

In terms of poker analysis, Howard Lederer is the only one who does it right. I kinda like Gabe Kaplan though. He's a pretty funny guy who knows enough about poker to get buy without cheesy jokes regarding his three marriages or making sports-related references.

Out of curiosity, does anybody know how large the box is that Ali stands on when broadcasting with that other guy (whose name I forgot).

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

[ QUOTE ]

Does Shannon get naked at any point? I don't really want to watch if not.

Sadly, no. But after it's over she standing there getting interviewed and she's striking this pose looking very cute. Not a bad rack for a little girl.

[/ QUOTE ]

She also looked like she was about to cry which made me laugh and brightened up my otherwise crappy night.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

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She also looked like she was about to cry which made me laugh and brightened up my otherwise crappy night.

[/ QUOTE ]

I was about to cry when she folded the AJ preflop to Wasika's raise! WTF!??!?

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

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I was about to cry when she folded the AJ preflop to Wasika's raise! WTF!??!?

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That fold was pathetic. She must have thought there was a third player at the table that she and Wasicka could collude against.

Also, who is that chick sitting with Wasickas family? She looks like quite the treat.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Who cares?

Ali Nejad is anti-growing on me. It's unbelievable how much stupid crap comes out of his mouth regarding poker. I don't understand, I've been playing the game for about a year and a half, and I can talk much more intelligently, and have much deeper insights into the game than this guy, his partner, Konik, seif, etc etc. Gabe Kaplan is the only one who isn't a douche.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm an interested party, but I'm curious to hear examples of what you're referring to. Obviously, if he says so many things that are considered "stupid crap," it should be easy to link to / quote a few of them (all episodes are available on nbcsports.com/poker, i think). Thanks.

[/ QUOTE ]

While Nejad is funny (I really enjoyed the WSOP broadcast last year), he seems to not have a full understanding of no limit poker. An example is how he berates people for making routine checks because he's apparently from the Phil Gordon school of CONTINUATION BET EVERY TIME which is simply wrong. It's hard to explain but he also seems to have a hard time "pretending" he can't see the cards. His critical analysis seems results-oriented based on the fact that he can see the hands. The problem is, the players can't.

I don't want to seem like I'm slagging the guy - too much of that is done in these forums to commentators who for the most part are quite good. He seems like a nice guy and I heard he's a limit player anyways, but these are just the things that somewhat frustrated me when I was watching. I realize he's there to do a job and that's be critical of plays he doesn't feel are good ones but, heh, the majority of those players are very good (Shannon Elizabeth excluded... hey, let's fold AJ for 11x BB HU!) and aren't making *many* big mistakes. I guess the problem is that he's paid to be critical so he's stretching to find things perhaps. That's sort of the problem with the color commentator in poker.

Post deleted by Mat Sklansky
 

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

The last few minutes of the Shannon Elizabeth vs Wasicka was just agonizing to watch. That "suckout" comment was annoying enough but wtf was with them going on and on and on about it?

And LOL @ Shannon positively visualising herself an ace to lose that hand, that was pretty funny. I guess she does have ACTUAL supernatural magic powers after all.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

[ QUOTE ]
Good thing they are because the !@#$%^! Ducks/Redwings game is going long so it looks like we'll miss this weeks here in LA. Hockey, feh.

[/ QUOTE ]

NBC can pre-empt the HUPC all day, every day as far as I'm concerned. This year's HUPC has been horrible in almost every aspect. The stanley cup playoffs are far more entertaining to watch than Humberto Brenes being a douchebag. The commentary has been sub-par at best. The structure was horrible. Pretty much unwatchable.

- T

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Who cares?

Ali Nejad is anti-growing on me. It's unbelievable how much stupid crap comes out of his mouth regarding poker. I don't understand, I've been playing the game for about a year and a half, and I can talk much more intelligently, and have much deeper insights into the game than this guy, his partner, Konik, seif, etc etc. Gabe Kaplan is the only one who isn't a douche.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm an interested party, but I'm curious to hear examples of what you're referring to. Obviously, if he says so many things that are considered "stupid crap," it should be easy to link to / quote a few of them (all episodes are available on nbcsports.com/poker, i think). Thanks.

[/ QUOTE ]


No.

Well, send me a check for $100.00 and I'll do it. No joke, I really will. Otherwise, no.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

This will help. Paste this on your tv screen.

Shannon Elizabeth Photo

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Good thing they are because the !@#$%^! Ducks/Redwings game is going long so it looks like we'll miss this weeks here in LA. Hockey, feh.

[/ QUOTE ]

NBC can pre-empt the HUPC all day, every day as far as I'm concerned. This year's HUPC has been horrible in almost every aspect. The stanley cup playoffs are far more entertaining to watch than Humberto Brenes being a douchebag. The commentary has been sub-par at best. The structure was horrible. Pretty much unwatchable.

- T

[/ QUOTE ]

I was about to snap off a reply and then I saw it was you Tony. [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Who cares?

Ali Nejad is anti-growing on me. It's unbelievable how much stupid crap comes out of his mouth regarding poker. I don't understand, I've been playing the game for about a year and a half, and I can talk much more intelligently, and have much deeper insights into the game than this guy, his partner, Konik, seif, etc etc. Gabe Kaplan is the only one who isn't a douche.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm an interested party, but I'm curious to hear examples of what you're referring to. Obviously, if he says so many things that are considered "stupid crap," it should be easy to link to / quote a few of them (all episodes are available on nbcsports.com/poker, i think). Thanks.

[/ QUOTE ]


No.

Well, send me a check for $100.00 and I'll do it. No joke, I really will. Otherwise, no.

[/ QUOTE ]

I was just asking you to substantiate a claim you apparently feel very strongly about. I didnt think supporting a blanket statement like that would require payment. I'll pass on that.

I just think it's more constructive to actually support a statement, rather than state it and leave the support to our imagination. Apparently we disagree on that.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Who cares?

Ali Nejad is anti-growing on me. It's unbelievable how much stupid crap comes out of his mouth regarding poker. I don't understand, I've been playing the game for about a year and a half, and I can talk much more intelligently, and have much deeper insights into the game than this guy, his partner, Konik, seif, etc etc. Gabe Kaplan is the only one who isn't a douche.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm an interested party, but I'm curious to hear examples of what you're referring to. Obviously, if he says so many things that are considered "stupid crap," it should be easy to link to / quote a few of them (all episodes are available on nbcsports.com/poker, i think). Thanks.

[/ QUOTE ]

How are you an interested party?

To answer your question, the whole business about Wasicka "sucking out" when he got all the money in w/ a pair vs. 2 overs was awful. If any analysis was need there, it was to explain why that is not a suckout at all.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Who cares?

Ali Nejad is anti-growing on me. It's unbelievable how much stupid crap comes out of his mouth regarding poker. I don't understand, I've been playing the game for about a year and a half, and I can talk much more intelligently, and have much deeper insights into the game than this guy, his partner, Konik, seif, etc etc. Gabe Kaplan is the only one who isn't a douche.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm an interested party, but I'm curious to hear examples of what you're referring to. Obviously, if he says so many things that are considered "stupid crap," it should be easy to link to / quote a few of them (all episodes are available on nbcsports.com/poker, i think). Thanks.

[/ QUOTE ]

How are you an interested party?

To answer your question, the whole business about Wasicka "sucking out" when he got all the money in w/ a pair vs. 2 overs was awful. If any analysis was need there, it was to explain why that is not a suckout at all.

[/ QUOTE ]

Because his TT turned into a draw after the turn (his T would have made Elizabeth's nut straight) his river was technically a suckout.

Poker Glossery

Suckout: It means someone hit a draw against you to win the hand.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Who cares?

Ali Nejad is anti-growing on me. It's unbelievable how much stupid crap comes out of his mouth regarding poker. I don't understand, I've been playing the game for about a year and a half, and I can talk much more intelligently, and have much deeper insights into the game than this guy, his partner, Konik, seif, etc etc. Gabe Kaplan is the only one who isn't a douche.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm an interested party, but I'm curious to hear examples of what you're referring to. Obviously, if he says so many things that are considered "stupid crap," it should be easy to link to / quote a few of them (all episodes are available on nbcsports.com/poker, i think). Thanks.

[/ QUOTE ]

How are you an interested party?

To answer your question, the whole business about Wasicka "sucking out" when he got all the money in w/ a pair vs. 2 overs was awful. If any analysis was need there, it was to explain why that is not a suckout at all.

[/ QUOTE ]


Some people equate bad beat and suckout. Some people believe there is a nuanced difference.

Some people think that a suckout is when a miracle card hits, no matter when the money went in. That is not "wrong." It is a different way of looking at the same scenario.

Others think whether or not a situation is a "suckout" matters entirely when the money went in.

I can see arguments for both.

No one is saying Paul didnt deserve to win the hand (he was a statistical favorite when the money went in). But, the fact of the matter is, he did "suckout" on the river.

Shannon shouldn't have viewed it as a bad beat, since the money went in preflop, but, technically, it can be correct to call it a suckout. There isn't, as you posit, one way to look at it.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Who cares?

Ali Nejad is anti-growing on me. It's unbelievable how much stupid crap comes out of his mouth regarding poker. I don't understand, I've been playing the game for about a year and a half, and I can talk much more intelligently, and have much deeper insights into the game than this guy, his partner, Konik, seif, etc etc. Gabe Kaplan is the only one who isn't a douche.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm an interested party, but I'm curious to hear examples of what you're referring to. Obviously, if he says so many things that are considered "stupid crap," it should be easy to link to / quote a few of them (all episodes are available on nbcsports.com/poker, i think). Thanks.

[/ QUOTE ]

How are you an interested party?

To answer your question, the whole business about Wasicka "sucking out" when he got all the money in w/ a pair vs. 2 overs was awful. If any analysis was need there, it was to explain why that is not a suckout at all.

[/ QUOTE ]


Some people equate bad beat and suckout. Some people believe there is a nuanced difference.

Some people think that a suckout is when a miracle card hits, no matter when the money went in. That is not "wrong." It is a different way of looking at the same scenario.

Others think whether or not a situation is a "suckout" matters entirely when the money went in.

I can see arguments for both.

No one is saying Paul didnt deserve to win the hand (he was a statistical favorite when the money went in). But, the fact of the matter is, he did "suckout" on the river.

Shannon shouldn't have viewed it as a bad beat, since the money went in preflop, but, technically, it can be correct to call it a suckout. There isn't, as you posit, one way to look at it.



[/ QUOTE ]

From the way you so vigorously defend him, I get the feeling you are related to Ali or something. Again, how are you an interested party?

Anyway, the only people I've ever heard of who subscribe to the "nuanced" version of the term are unskilled mopes at B&Ms who find any excuse to blame luck for their consistently awful results. Regardless, even if you are correct (which I don't think you are) about the term, it was bad commentary for Ali and Matt to keep dwelling about how lucky Wasicka was on that particular hand. It doesn't matter what order the cards come once the money goes in, it only matters what the final board is. From your comments here I think you know this, but that certainly wasn't the impression the announcers gave.

And as long as I'm critiquing the announcers, some of the jokes were incredibly lame. I don't have the inclination to link to the corresponding video on NBC.com, but I hope they tone that down on any future broadcasts. It's okay when Gabe does that kind of stuff, because Gabe is a comedian and knows what's funny. I could be wrong, but I don't think Ali and Matt come from a comedy background, and their jokes tend to fall flat.

These guys aren't the worst announcers I've heard, but there is major room for improvement here.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

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I'm an interested party...

[/ QUOTE ]

Constructive criticism unrelated to announcing.

If you've just broadcast an entire hand from start-to-finish, is it really necessary to show an abbreviated version of the same hand before going to commercial? I mean, it just aired like two seconds ago.

Then, when coming back from commercial, is it again necessary to recap the same hand again?

Couldn't believe I was watching three versions of the same hand within five minutes of each other.

I've liked the HU coverage in past years-- this year was unwatchable and I didn't make it through a few of the broadcasts.

ps. Ali Nejad is horrible for many of the reasons stated here. Not Brian Mollica bad, but bad nonetheless.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
I'm an interested party...

[/ QUOTE ]

Constructive criticism unrelated to announcing.

If you've just broadcast an entire hand from start-to-finish, is it really necessary to show an abbreviated version of the same hand before going to commercial? I mean, it just aired like two seconds ago.

Then, when coming back from commercial, is it again necessary to recap the same hand again?

Couldn't believe I was watching three versions of the same hand within five minutes of each other.

I've liked the HU coverage in past years-- this year was unwatchable and I didn't make it through a few of the broadcasts.

ps. Ali Nejad is horrible for many of the reasons stated here. Not Brian Mollica bad, but bad nonetheless.

[/ QUOTE ]

All points are well-taken (both from you and the poster above). There are some who like to see replays - very often, you'll see a dunk or a TD multiple times, both in and out of break.

Re: Ali - I'm not defending him (or Matt Vasgersian) - I was simply curious as to what people considered to be "bad" or "stupid" commentary. Often, people post things on these boards without backing them up. Now that I know where people are coming from, I have a better understanding of what the issues are.

Re: NBC HeadsUp Poker Championship - Semis and Finals - Sunday, May 20
 

Agree with most of the posts that this show's format was hard to watch (re-plays of the hand before and after the commercial, etc.).

I also like the post about Ali's analysis seems to be results oriented based on him viewing the cards, that seems to be dead on and any donk who watches this as a spectator views play based on results which is always hilarious to me.

(Like the guy at the B/M who beats himself up mentally for laying down Q5 before the flop when 2Q's hit the flop, I die of laughter everytime inside). I get the feeling that if Ali plays that's how he views his game like it was a bad fold because he woulda made a monster on the flop.

Paul Wasicka was great on the other hand, and I really like his play. No flash, good reads, and just seems to make a lot of high percentage plays. He is a breath of fresh air in the poker world compared to all the other fist pumping jocko's that lately have been representing poker lately.