Poker bloggers, Falstaff and Special K, have taken to the Internet airways with the all new Gambling Tales Podcast. They already have their first installment in the can and available for listening. Listen to the premier edition of the show at http://www.gtpodcast.com. It's 40 minutes of easy listening with an interesting analysis of the 2009 WSOP Main Event final table followed by an interview with "A-list" poker blogger and math whiz, Bad Blood. The show concludes with a bit of early gambling history.

Upcoming shows will feature Dr. Pauly, Lee Jones, and internationally acclaimed gambling expert Dr. David Schwartz, author of the definitive history of gambling tome, Roll the Bones. New shows will be broadcast every two weeks.

RSS Feed: http://feeds.feedburner.com/GamblingTalesPodcast

Available on iTunes at: http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=339814710.

The Venetian Deep Stack Tournament IV continues through Nov. 25.

And now, all tournament players in the Deep Stack Extravaganza will get access to a free buffet. That's pretty impressive, as The Venetian doesn't have a regular buffet. Chow down between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., and show your tournament entry receipt.

Remaining no-limit tourneys (all begin at noon):

Tuesday, 11/17 $340
Wednesday, 11/18 $340
Thursday, 11/19 $340
Friday, 11/20 $340
Saturday, 11/21 $550
Sunday, 11/22 $275 (super satellite)
Monday, 11/23 $2500 (main event, day 1)
Tuesday, 11/24 $2500 (main event, day 2)
Wednesday, 11/25 $2500 (main event, day 3)

Sit-n-go satellites run throughout the day beginning at 8 a.m., with lammers awarded that can be used for any tournament, even for the next Deep Stack.

After four years of success running the world's best known poker tournaments, Jeffrey Pollack, resigned his position as Commissioner of the World Series of Poker on Thursday and will leave the Harrah's organization at the close of business today. Pollack is generally credited with taking the WSOP from the confines of Binion's in downtown Las Vegas to the Rio Resort's huge convention facilities.

Additionally, Jeffrey Pollack, negotiated lucrative sponsorship contracts with national and international corporations. He also worked closely with ESPN Sports TV to provide the world a ringside seat at the WSOP poker events and is credited with creating the 4 month break between the summer tournament and the Main Event's November final table.

Jeffrey Pollack said he has no definite plans for the future, but will pursue other interests and business opportunities. Harrah's stated they have no immediate plans to fill the Commissioner of the WSOP position.

In an abbreviated session heads-up that lasted less than four hours the 2009 World Series of Poker crowned the youngest player to ever win a WSOP Main Event. Joseph Cada is a 21-year-old from Michigan that now claims the title of World Poker Champion after eclipsing the record set last year by 22-year-old Peter Eastgate.

Cada takes home a winner's purse of over $8.5 million and a very special bracelet from the 40th anniversary edition of the World Series of Poker. Darvin Moon, a logger from Maryland, traded the chip lead with the young player a number of times before the final hand was dealt and Joe Cada took all the chips with a pair of Nines.

Watch all of the November Nine playing the final table of the 2009 WSOP tonight on ESPN at 9 PM ET. Included in tonight's two hour show is all the action from the heads-up match between Moon and Cada and it's delivered on the same day it was played.

A gallery of photos from the 2009 WSOP Main Event November Nine Final Table will be posted in a few days including exclusive backstage photos.

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

Tonight at 10 PM PT the final two players will take their seats on the stage at the Penn & Teller Theater inside the Rio Resort in Las Vegas to decide the World Championship of Poker. An unlikely pair of poker players consisting of a logger from Oakland, Maryland, Darvin Moon, facing the youngest finalist to make a Main Event heads-up match, Joseph Cada, a college dropout from Shelby Township, Michigan.

Joseph Cada goes into this evening event with a commanding chip lead of 136 million to Moon's 59 million. The winner will receive $8,547,042 in cash and the the most coveted prize in poker, the WSOP Championship Bracelet, while the runner-up walks away with a cool $5,182,928.

Fans can catch the action on ESPN Tuesday evening at 9 PM ET. Two hours of coverage from the final table that will conclude with the winner claiming the championship. Follow along as it happens with PokerNews' hand-by-hand live blogging and Flipchip photographs. Poker's premier writer, Dr. Pauly, is offering his WSOP coverage and sanitized observations of the event as it happens. It all begins tonight, Monday, November 9, at 10 PM PT.

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

WSOP Poker, play it and they will come by the thousands to watch and cheer for their favorites. The Penn & Teller Theater at the Rio resort is filled and a long lines of fans are waiting outside in the corridor for a seat to open.

The November Nine returned from the four month break and will play down to the final two players tonight. The two finalists will return on Monday evening to go heads-up for the $8.5 million reserved for the 2009 WSOP World Champion Poker Player.

Short stacked James Akenhead was the first player eliminated from the table by Kevin Schaffel. Unfortunately, Kevin Schaffel was soon eliminated in 8th place. At the dinner break 7 players remain including crowd favorite Phil Ivey.

Stop by PokerNews.com and follow all the action as it happens. You can also catch more of Flipchip's photos on PokerNews, the official and only live blog of the event.

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

Most of the WSOP talk this week has been orbiting around Phil Ivey, poker's Superstar. Can he come from the back of the pack and charge to the lead to go heads-up with one of the other eight players? Chips and luck averaging out of a two-handed contest would make Ivey the favorite to take poker's biggest prize. That outcome would let it be known that a "King of Poker" had been crowned at a Coronation of Elimination in Las Vegas, the WSOP at the Rio All-Suite Resort. Hail! King Phil I.

Ivey fans are reminded that ESPN's award-winning primetime newsmagazine E:60 tonight at 7 PM ET will be taking a close look at professional poker superstar Phil Ivey. If you just can't get enough of poker's elusive king then grab a copy of ESPN The Magazine for the suitable-for-framing photo of Phil Ivey on the cover.

Tune into ESPN Sports TV tonight at 9 PM ET for two hours of WSOP Main Event March-to-the-Nine poker show. Viewers will finally get to meet the November Nine as the great tournament begins the evening with 18 players and concludes at the nine. Expect plenty of coverage of Phil Ivey.

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

Deep Stack Extravaganza IV begins on Friday, October 30th, and runs through November 25th. These highly popular events will again have the Venetian's poker room filled with players from around the world vying for a piece of the prize money. Twenty-four events with buy-ins ranging from a low $340 up to $2,500 for the Championship event insures all players will find something that fits the budget.

Venetian's Deep Stack Extravaganza is the original, innovative tournament series that changed the face of competitive poker forever. Built around lower buy-ins the Deep Stack Extravaganza Series features longer blind levels -- 40 minutes to 90 minutes -- and more starting chips -- 10,000 to 15,000 -- giving entrants the same playing conditions as major tournaments with buy-ins costing thousands more. Another great feature centers around larger prize pools as a result of more players entering the popular events.

A promotional room rate is available for players and goes for $109 to $199 (based on availability) Check with the poker room or call The Venetian Room Reservations toll-free number at 877-444-3777 and reference group code #CP910L1.

Event registration begins at 9 PM the day before each tournament and all play begins at High Noon and continues until a final table or 2 AM, whichever is reached first. Final table play begins at 4 PM and continues until a winner is declared. Super Satellites for the Championship and daily single table are available. A Second Chance tournament runs nightly at 7 PM everyday. Check out the Venetian Deep Stack Extravaganza IV schedule/fact sheet or call the poker room direct at 702.414.7657.

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

Tune in tonight to ESPN at 9 PM ET for the exciting conclusion of the race to the WSOP November Nine. The final table will be set at the end of tonight's two hours of top flight poker. Poker Pro Phil Ivey stands apart from the field with thousands of hours of major tournament play and 7 WSOP bracelets. Poker pro Jeff Shulman has no WSOP bracelets but he has twice as many chips as Ivey. Chip leader Darvin Moon enjoying his first ever visit to Las Vegas has three times as many chips as Shulman.

Given a few early breaks Phil Ivey might walk away with the big poker prize. Given the huge chip lead of Darvin Moon, he is favored to join the expanding ranks of unknowns scooping the poker's holy grail. Only a couple of weeks remain before we know the winner of the 2009 WSOP Main Event World Championship of Poker. Don't forget today's Noon ET installment of ESPN.com's Inside Deal featuring Kevin Schaffel.

A November Nine group photo and individual images of the field of nine after the jump. Click any photo for a gallery image. Use this link to the Photo Gallery.

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

The Bodog Poker Open IV is a once in a lifetime opportunity for poker players to win big and become the next online poker superstar. Success in this tournament will require both strategy and luck, but because you can't control your luck, here are some poker strategy tips to help you come out on top.

Regular poker tournament strategy is all about the size of your stack and the size of the blinds. Playing a deeper stacked event affords the player more time to be selective in the early stages of online poker tournaments. Starting chip stacks are generous enough that players can play a tight game, while waiting for premium hands or strong position plays with medium strength holdings.

Hands that are in the lead for value are your best bets and keep bluffs to a minimum. Avoid getting all your chips in without the absolute nuts and try to win medium-size pots that don't jeopardize your poker tournament life.

Decisions to change your level of aggression should be determined by the size of your chip stack compared to the size of the blinds. If your chip stack shrinks to an amount where the blinds are taking 10% or more of your stack, then you should start to increase your level of action to increase your chip stack by either stealing small pots or doubling up through an opponent.

If you find yourself deep into the late stages of the Bodog Poker Open IV, you will have outlasted some of the best online poker players in the world. You would have either beaten out Bodog pros like Justin Bonomo, David Williams, and Evelyn Ng, or you'll possibly be seated at the final table with some of them.

Final table strategy dictates that you play your favorable position hands with aggression and you get out of the way when other players are battling aggressively for a pot. Any player that goes out before you pays you tens of thousand of dollars.

You could be the next big thing in poker if you stick to this general formula and if luck hands you winning cards. Whatever you do, don't miss out on playing the Bodog Poker Open IV and this opportunity to win big! Download poker software for free at Bodog and check out the Poker Open IV schedule for information on all the events.

Kevin Schaffel will be featured on Tuesday's ESPN.com's 30 minute ESPN Inside Deal poker show at Noon ET. The Coral Springs, Florida poker pro will be interviewed by the Inside Deal crew about his preparations for the November final table and how he has made almost a half million since the summer WSOP Main Event's four month break. Fans can e-mail their questions for Kevin Schaffel to insidedeal@espn.com.

Sitting in the sixth spot on the leader board with 12,390,000 in play money, Kevin Schaffel will be in seat 4 to the left of Phil Ivey when the next WSOP "Shuffle Up and Deal" commands goes out. Bodog odds makers have him in the bottom three as a 12/1 shot to win the event. Fans can view previous episodes of ESPN Inside Deal with this link.

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

Two hours of 2009 WSOP Main Event poker tonight on ESPN Sports. Tune in to ESPN at 8PM ET for two hours of exciting poker. The original 6,494 players swapping $10,000 in cash for a seat in the game has been cut to just 64 runners with chips. They are deep into the prize money with a guarantee of $90,344 for tonight's first outer. And all that $10,000 entry money collected? It's now in a giant prize pool totaling $61,043,600 + Interest.

By the end of tonight's second hour the field will be reduced to 27 players each guaranteed at least $352,832. One in every three of the 27 remaining players will become a millionaire in a few days. Leo Margets is the sole female survivor in the field of 26 men as she presses to become the first woman at a WSOP Main Event final table since 1995 when Barbara Enright finished 5th.

More photos from the 2009 WSOP Main Event's final days on the shrinking tournament floor located within the Rio All-Suite Resort...after the jump.

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

The search for the next online poker superstar is on! Starting November 1st, Bodog is offering players the best in poker tournament action in the Bodog Poker Open IV Championship Series. This event will include two series of tournaments for different types of poker players.

The Championship Series is comprised of 7 events, 6 tournaments and 1 championship event. The buy-ins will range from a $50+5 (re-buy), to the $470+30 championship event. This series kicks off on Sunday November 1, and will run until the following Sunday.

The Contender Series will consist of 8 events, and runs over the same time period. This tournament is more suited for up and coming players with buy-ins starting as low as $5+0.50 (re-buy) and culminates in the Contender Series championship event at $46+4.

The winner of the Championship Series will instantly become a Bodog Poker celebrity. Aside from the largest share of the prize pool, the winner will get a spread in Card Player Magazine, feature articles in the Bodog Beat poker news, and a new blog where they can write about their experiences.

Bodog is also adding on their usual huge layovers to these online poker tournaments. Between $2,500 and $25,000 extra will be added to each tournament depending on the event that's being played.

To get into the championship event, players can buy in direct or play in numerous satellite options. All Contender Series Main Event final table members win an automatic seat into the championship event, while the winner of each Contender Series tournament will also get a seat to the championship event.

Don't miss your chance to win big bucks and become an instant poker star! Start by getting the free Bodog poker download and then check the Bodog Bodog Poker Open IV schedule for all tournament times and buy-in costs so you can play in the tournaments that best suit you.

Tuesdays are WSOP days on ESPN beginning at Noon ET with ESPN.com's Inside Deal. Tuesday's 30-minutes will be spent with November Nine finalist, Joseph Cada, and his poker coach, Greg Raymer, 2004 WSOP Main Event Champion. Stop by on Tuesday at Noon to meet this young poker phenom. Submit your questions for Cada and Raymer via e-mail to insidedeal@espn.com.

For a college dropout that turned 21 last year, Joe Cada, isn't doing too bad. His first foray into the mine field of a WSOP Main Event has already earned him $1,263,602 plus a November Nine finalist seat with a shot at a total of $8,546,435 and a very rare gold bracelet. On the leader board Cada is fifth with 13,215,000 in play money, more than enough for a ride to the top.

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

Poker pro and Las Vegas resident Mike Sexton is now the 38th member of the Poker Hall of Fame.

Sexton, 62, is well known for being ambassador and commentator of the World Poker Tour, but he also has had a 30-year career as poker player, racking up $3.7 million in winnings.

Even as recently as this year, Sexton came in 420 out of 6,500 players in the main event of the World Series of Poker.

He will be honored Nov. 7 at Rio Las Vegas, which happens to coincide with the playing of the WSOP main event final table.