The PokerListings Daily 3-Bet is a dusty bottle in the sand, an incidental rub and three wishes fulfilled by the kindest afternoon poker news genie.
Got a tip for a future edition of the 3-Bet? Drop us a note about it in the comments.
Today in the 3-Bet we find Maurice Hawkins putting his stamp on the WSOPC again, Mike McDonald has two more wishes and poker joins the United story.
1) Hawkins Gets Ring #10
The gold standard, if you will, for poker tournament play over the years has typically been the WSOP gold bracelet.
Win one and you're considered 'legit.' Win 14, like Phil Hellmuth, and some say you're the best tournament player of all-time.
With the general explosion of WSOP bracelets on offer over the past 5-10 years, though, the value of WSOP gold has fluctuated some.
And with the WPT, EPT and PokerStars Championships offering plenty of prestigious titles of their own, a WSOP bracelet isn't the only way to earn your tourney props.
Another good example? Long-time pro and WSOP Circuit kingpin Maurice Hawkins.
Hawkins has had his fair share of near misses at the WSOP but has yet to win his first bracelet. He has, however, just won his 10th career WSOPC gold ring after taking down the 2017 Horseshoe Council Bluffs Main Event this weekend.
That gives him 10 rings all time - one more than Alex Masek. He's also the first player to win 4 WSOP-C Main Events. That's a pretty impressive poker resume any way you look at it. So is $2.5m in live earnings.
Kudos to Hawkins, again. More from the WSOP here.
2) AP/UB Money? Check. durrrr Challenge + $1m Freeroll? Waiting
Yesterday's surprising announcement of the beginning of claims processing for old Absolute Poker and Ultimate Bet balances sent a few shockwaves through the poker world.
Just how much of that balance will be repaid remains to be seen - and many players just had marginal amounts in there, anyway.
But for some who had substantial sums taken away it was a very pleasant surprise to find balances there and properly accounted for.
For someone like Mike "Timex" McDonald, for example, who played the biggest games and likely had high six-figures tied up, it was almost like Christmas, even.
Now all he needs is a couple more gifts under the tree for his poker bankroll journey to come full circle:
Just heard the UB news. Now all I need is for the Durrrr challenge to finish and the Epic Poker $1,000,000 freeroll to happen and I'm set— Mike McDonald (@MikeMcDonald89) April 11, 2017
Lol. #1 sounds like it actually has a slim chance. #2, not so much. Find out how you can reclaim your old AP/UB balance here.
3) David Dao is a Poker Player?
As you likely know, physician David Dao was forcibly removed from an overbooked United Airlines flight in Chicago yesterday to the consternation and dismay of, now, millions of people.
It was an atrocious situation and the furor that has consumed the American public over his treatment is, well, deserved.
A strange sub-twist to it all?
Mainstream and tabloid media have since delved deep into Dao's personal history as if it has some sort of relevance to the situation at hand.
Primarily, media has focused on Dao's alleged troubled past as a doctor. But they've also (or at least TMZ has), for some reason, tied his poker career into it as well.
If it is the same Dao, he has about $266k in career earnings according to the Hendon Mob with his most recent score being an 11th-place finish at the WSOPC in Tunica in January.
He also finished 30th in last year's Crazy 8s event at the WSOP.
Some players, like pro Matt Stout, say they recognized Dao from playing against him and have been asked to speak to the media.
Holy crap, I just realized the doctor dragged off the @United flight is David Dao who I played 3-handed with in '09 $5k #WSOP-C Tunica ME! https://t.co/fAXOtbI9yl— Matt Stout (@MattStoutPoker) April 11, 2017
So @TMZ Facetimed me to talk about the Dr. dragged off the flight. Hope it airs, mostly bc I was wearing my @SHRPO & @BorgataPokerpatches!— Matt Stout (@MattStoutPoker) April 11, 2017
We still can't really connect how his poker playing is relevant to his harrowing experience at O'Hare but we hope it doesn't become a real 'story' in all this. We also hope Dao recovers soon and finds his way back to the WSOP this summer.
