Hi Michigan Poker Fans -

Hope we're finding you pulling in monster pots! Here's this week's listing of charity poker events - check it out & share our info with a friend.

UMichiganPoker llc is always working to get more and more tournaments from all over Michigan on the web site. Take a look and see if we’ve got a listing close to you.

Announcements!

On July 1, the state put out a new set of directives. Your local charity poker rooms will be updating their schedules and tweaking their offerings to comply with the new rules.

Friday $10 buy-in, $1000 Guaranteed Prize PoolSunday $30 Deep Stack Tournament, Trip Kings at Garden Lanes
Trip Kings at Garden Lanes is hosting a $10 buy-in, $1000 Guaranteed Tournament on Fridays, and a $30 Deep Stack Tournament on Sundays! Be sure to check out Trip Kings regular schedule! They also offer great Live Action Cash Games spreading Hold'em, Omaha, Round by Round & Blackjack daily.

Benefitting: K of C 5446 Sr Citizens Club General Fund M48724 July 9-12

When: July 10 & 12 starting at 7pm

Where: Trip Kings at Garden Lanes, 29145 Warren Rd, Garden City, MI 734-556-2163

$4000 Guaranteed Prize Pool, $20 buy-in, $20 Rebuys at Queen of Hearts July 10
Queen of Hearts at Woodhaven Lanes is hosting a $20 buy-in, $20 rebuy tournament with a Guaranteed Prize Pool of $4000! Queen of hearts also has some of the best live action cash games in the area!

Benefitting: Trenton High School for books & equipment M

When: Friday, July 10

Where: Queen of Hearts, 20000 Van Horn, Woodhaven MI 48183 734-556-2164

Ball Joint $400 buy-in Deep-Stack Tourney July 11
The Ball Joint is hosting an exciting, high payout Deep Stack Tournament. The tournament is capped at 37 players, with a $6000 First Prize, paying 6 places. Direct buy-in is $400 - you can reserve your seat today with a $50 non-refundable deposit. They are also running $60 Satellite tournaments every Thur - Sun to win a seat in the Main Event. Win your $400 Seat for $60!! Call the Ball Joint for more details!!

Benefitting: Lakeview High School General Fund M49176

When: July 11th with $60 satellites running every Thur - Sun until July 11

What: 37 player Deep Stack Tournament

Buy-in: $400 Main Event

Where: Ball Joint 4720 Beckley Rd, Battle Creek, MI 49015 269-979-0080

Hazel Park Deep Stack NL Texas Hold'em $20,000 estimated Prize Pool July 9-12
Don't miss this great deep stack tournament for some serious prize money. Satellites will run from Thur - Sat with the Main Event starting on Sunday at 2pm. All proceeds benefit the Bridging Communities General Fund M49025. Early Direct buy-in are $225. Here's the info:

Benefitting: Bridging Communities General Fund M49025

When: Thur July 9 - Sun July 12

• Thur @ 7pm $35 Main Event Qualifier Rebuy tourney min 10% to Main Event
  
• Fri & Sat @ 2:30 $35 Main Event Qualifier Rebuy tourney min 10% to Main Event
  
• Fri & Sat @ 7pm $65 Main Event Qualifier, min 20% to Main Event
  
• Sun @ 2pm $250 direct buy-in Deep Stack Main Event 85% payout, no rebuys, no add-ons, 30 min blinds for first 4 rounds, 20 min blinds thereafter
  

Where: Hazel Park Raceway Poker Room 1650 E. 10 Mile Rd, Hazel Park, MI

Trippers Deep Stack NL Texas Hold'em $10,000 estimated Prize Pool July 9-12
Don't miss this great deep stack tournament for some serious prize money. Satellites will run from Thur - Sat with the Main Event starting on Sunday at 2pm. All proceeds benefit the Williamston Foundation General Fund M48937. Here's the info:

Benefitting: Williamston Foundation General Fund M48937

When: Thur July 9 - Sun July 12

• Thur @ 7pm $20 Main Event Qualifier Rebuy tourney min 10% to Main Event
  
• Fri & Sat @ 2pm $20 Main Event Qualifier Rebuy tourney min 10% to Main Event
  
• Fri & Sat @ 7pm $40 Main Event Qualifier, min 20% to Main Event
  
• Sun @ 2pm $150 direct buy-in Deep Stack Main Event, no rebuys, no add-ons, 30 min blinds for first 4 rounds, 20 min blinds thereafter
  

Where: Trippers Sports Bar, 350 Frandor, Lansing, MI

Northville Downs Deep Stack NL Texas Hold'em $20,000 estimated Prize Pool July 23-26
Don't miss this great deep stack tournament for some serious prize money. Satellites will run from Thur - Sat with the Main Event starting on Sunday at 2pm. All proceeds benefit the Homer Trojan Athletic Club General Fund M43918. Early Direct buy-in are $225. Here's the info:
Benefitting: Homer Trojan Athletic Club General Fund M43918.
When: Thur July 23 - Sun July 26

• Thur @ 7pm $35 Main Event Qualifier Rebuy tourney min 10% to Main Event
  
• Fri & Sat @ 2pm $35 Main Event Qualifier Rebuy tourney min 10% to Main Event
  
• Fri & Sat @ 7pm $65 Main Event Qualifier, min 20% to Main Event
  
• Sun @ 2pm $250 direct buy-in Deep Stack Main Event, 85% payout, no rebuys, no add-ons, 30 min blinds for first 4 rounds, 20 min blinds thereafter
  
• Where: Northville Downs, 301 Center St, Northville, MI
  

August 4th at Kickers: Joe's vs Pro's
The first Joe's vs Pro's, $100.00 buy-in Hold em tourney, at Joey's Comedy club, inside Kicker's All American Grill. Here's your chance to play alongside some of the area's best atheltes and local celebrities. We will have book signings from the Pro's and special prizes, throughout the night.
Benefitting: VFW 4553 Building Fund M49224

When: August 4th, 2009 @ 7pm

Buy-in: $100 - pre-register at Kickers starting 7/6, only 100 seats available!

Who: Scheduled to appear Lem Barney NFL, Willie Horton MLB, Tyrone Wheatley NFL, Pete Stoyanovich NFL, Chris Tamer NHL, Dave Roberts NHL, Linda Lee (WYCD), Terry T Brown WWJ, plus more celeb's added each day.

Where: Kickers, 36071 Plymouth Rd, Livonia, MI 48150

Tuesday Online Tourney hosted by Nik's Poker Palace
UMichiganPoker.com and Nik's Poker Palace have partnered up to bring you the toughest private tournament on Poker Stars! Come join us every Tuesday at 8pm for a $5 + $0.50 buy-in tournament. More details are here!

Wed Online Tourney hosted by MIPokerForum.com
UMichiganPoker.com and MiPokerForum.com have partnered up to bring you a great forum, plus an exciting weekly tournament! For now, the MIPF weekly tournaments are on break through mid June. Be sure to check back to find out when they start up again! The tourneys will start at 8PM with the same $5 + $0.50 buy-in. More info here!

When you go to an event, please let the organizers know you found the listing on UMichiganPoker!


Putting More Buns in Seats
Promoting Local Charity Poker Tournaments
Michele Ingalls
734-864-1280
mich@umichiganpoker.com
http://umichiganpoker.com
myspace.com/umichiganpoker
facebook.com/umichiganpoker
twitter.com/umichiganpoker

Trip Report: The Links Poker Palace in Whitmore Lake, Michigan

The Links Poker Palace in Whitmore Lake, Michigan

Vital Stats
Date: May 23, 2009
Address: 1111 Six Mile Rd, Whitmore Lake, MI 48184
Phone: 734-449-5451
Charity & License: American Legion 419 Auxiliary M46441
Tournament: 8pm $5 entry, $500 Guaranteed

The Set-up:
It’s a beautiful sunny Saturday over Memorial Day week-end. Chris, my husband, Lisa, my sister and I headed out to the Links around 6pm, with the 45 minute drive, that would put us at the Links around 7pm – enough time to grab some dinner and maybe get into a cash game before the 8pm tournament start. We expected a little slower day due to the 80° weather and holiday week-end. The Links is at the golf course club-house, tables set up in the restaurant/bar area with huge windows overlooking the course, and a deck just outside. The room is non-smoking, easy to find, with a full bar, keno, kitchen and waitstaff.

There was one waiting cash player when we arrived, and no cash games going before the tournament. The tournament did fill up just before 8pm with four full tables (36 players). The total prize pool was $750 paying 1st $375, 2nd $200, 3rd $175 and 4th $50.

Players on the trip: Lisa is a newbie live player this was her 3rd or 4th live tournament. Her biggest problem is that she tends to think players are bluffing – I think this may be directly related to living with three teen-agers...

Chris is a numbers guy and computer programmer (think Chris Ferguson). I’m always amazed at the statistics he can figure out in his head.

I’m a middle of the pack player. Sometimes I play by the numbers, sometimes I play by my guy. More often than not, I’m checking when I should be raising, and calling when I should be folding.

Tournament: We all sat at different tables for the $5 buy-in for 1k chips, $5 add-on for another 1k chips. Unlimited $10 (2k chips) or $20 (5k chips) rebuys until the break when a player busts out. At the break, add-ons were available for the same amounts, $10 for 2k chips or $20 for 5k chips. The blinds went up every 15 minutes, and doubled every level after the 1st break. This wrapped up the tournament quickly after the rebuy period was over.

There were two other ladies at my table. One I recognized from a tournament at an Ann Arbor poker room – a solid, aggressive player from what I remember. It’s nice to see the girls getting out there to play cards with the guys. Jeff, the dealer until the break, was familiar with a couple of the regular players, kept the game friendly and moving. He was really nice about washing the cards upon request, and demonstrating his custom “speed wash” a couple times. One guy at my table busted out before the break and didn’t rebuy. Lisa also busted out before the break after one rebuy.

Going into the first break, I was short-stacked 1350 chips and had been card dead for quite some time. Blinds were 400/800. In first position, I peeked at A-7 and figured if I bust out before the break, I can do the $20 rebuy, plus the $20 add-on and come back with a healthier stack. Bob, immediately to my left called with a smaller stack than mine, the blond called with 1300 chips, and John – one of the table big stacks. Three players all-in, last hand before the break.

Me: A©-7§
Flop: 4§-4¨-5© (no danger – good flop for me!)
Turn: A¨ **woo-hoo – Aces!!!
River: 3¨ seems to be a blank...

Bob turns up his cards: K¨-2¨ for a flush – winning the main pot
Blond turns up A§-7ª to split with me, each winning 1300 chips
John mucked his cards.

After the break, four tables went down to three, then down to two very quickly. I won a few small pots, stealing the blinds, but mostly I was card dead. I kept looking for a place to make my move. The best cards I got were Q-7. About three hands after we went to two tables, I was out. In the big blind, I was all-in blind with three callers/limpers. As much as I wished for it, I just didn’t come up with that miracle river card, and I was out.

Chris made it to the final table and ended up taking 4th. He too was short-stacked from the 2nd break on, but managed to make the right moves at the right times and held out to the money.


Cash Games: I played on the $1/$2 cash table for about an hour after I busted out of the tournament. The play was friendly, and not overly-aggressive. There were a few limped pots, a few expensive flops. I saw a really horrible bad beat – here it is to the best of my memory:

Limped pot, 4 players in – player 3, 4, small and big blinds. The flop comes A, Q, 7 rainbow. Player 3 bets ~$15, player 4 re-raises all-in ~$75, blinds fold. Player 3 has 4 covered and calls.

Flop: A-7-Q
Player 3: 7-7
Player 4: A-Q

Turn: 7
River: A

Just sick – full house, aces over queens beat by quad sevens. Player 3 scoops, player 4 buys more chips.

As players dropped out of the tournament, they joint the cash tables. There was one $1/$2 table going with a few players waiting for another. After the tournament, a full $1/$1 table opened up.

Wrap-Up: This is a very nice poker room with a regular, friendly crowd. The players and dealers know eachother – there’s a lot of friendly banter going back and fourth. If you are in the area – drive out here and play in the tournaments or cash games.

ps. - Ed - I wrote all this stuff down ;)

$2000 Guaranteed Prize Pool & WSOP Satelite at Town & Country Lanes May 28 & 30

Town & Country Lanes : 2 Special Events this week!**$2000 Guaranteed Prize Pool $20 buy-in tournament Thur 5/28

**$2000 WSOP Satellite Tourney in Vegas Prize, $135 buy-in for 10k chips Sat 5/30
benefitting John Glenn HS Athletic Fund M45863

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$2000 Guarantee at Town & Country Lanes May 28
Benefitting John Glenn HS Athletic Fund M45863

$2000 guarantee prize pool, $20 buy in tourney, 6000 chips, 20 min blinds. Unlimited re-buys the first hour when under 6000 6 chips, 1 bonus add on the last 10 minutes of the first round.

$2000 WSOP Satellite Tourney in Vegas Prize, $135 buy-in for 10k chips May 30
Benefitting John Glenn HS Athletic Fund M45863

Saturday May 30, 2009 win a seat in the WSOP $2000 Satelitte tourney in Vegas. Starts at noon, OPEN TO THE FIRST 75 PLAYERS, $135 buy in, $10,000 CHIPS, 30 MIN BLINDS. TOP 3 FINISHERS, will have their seat bought for them in the WSOP satelitte in Vegas with $500.00 for accomodations. Next 3 finisher's will receive a cash prize.


MAKE NOTE: Coming soon The first Joe's vs Pro's, $100.00 buy-in Hold em tourney, at Joey's Comedy club, inside Kicker's All American Grill. Here's your chance to play alongside some of the area's best atheltes and local celebrities. We will have book signings from the Pro's, bounty chips for knocking out a Pro and special prizes, throughout the night. Stay tuned for more Info.

Town & Country Lanes
1100 S. Wayne Rd
Westland, MI 48184
734-722-5000

Kickers
36071 Plymouth Rd
Livonia, MI 48150
734-469-8177

The Links at Whitmore Lake:Freeze-Out Tournament and Poker 7 Days a Week!

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May 31, 5pm $60 Freeze-Out NLHE Tournament Benefitting Agnus Dei Academy M48543 May 28-31

The Links will be playing 7 Days a week starting June 8th!!

Benefitting the Whitmore Lake Rod & Gun Club for community projects M48438 June 8-10

The Links hosts 8pm $500 Freerolls with a $5 entry fee Thursday - Sundays. Starting June 8th, the freerolls will be 7 nights a week!

$25 Bounty Tournaments Sundays at 5pm (unless there is a special event - like the $60 Freeze-out on 5/31!

The Links hosts $1/$1, $1/$2 and $2/$4 Cash Tables, spreading NLHE, Round-by-Round and Black Jack from open to close.

The Links Poker Palace
1111 Six Mile Rd
Whitmore Lake, MI 48184

734-449-5451

UMichiganPoker Announcements - Updated April 8, 2009

What's going on Today? How 'bout Tomorrow? Click here to get to our listing of today and tomorrow's events!! We've got all our events listed by county - click on the county & venue name to get the charity, license number, start time, buy-in, address, phone number, etc. We think it's a really great new feature!

• Holiday Week-end!! If you celebrate it, Happy Easter!! If you don't celebrate Easter - Happy Sunday!! Some Poker Rooms are off for the Easter Holiday, others are celebrating Easter the way they celebrate any other Sunday by hosting charity poker tournaments! Be sure to double-check the poker schedule to see of your favorite poker room is playing over the week-end.
• WIN A UMichiganPoker.com T-SHIRT!! Fill out our survey about UMichiganPoker.com e-mail notices and win a free t-shirt! Here is the link to our survey (just a few short questions!!!). All the people who respond will be entered into a drawing - one lucky random person will win a brand new UMP T-shirt. These shirts are navy blue short sleeved shirts with a small UMP logo on the front, and a really cool UMP logo on the back. These shirts repel bad beats, and have been treated with donkey-repellant. Start the Survey NOW!!
• Northville Downs Texas Hold'em Derby! $20,000 NL Deep Stack Tournament & Qualifiers April 30 - May 3 benefitting the VFW 345 General Fund M45870!! Thursday at 7pm is the first $30 Main Event Qualifier, Friday & Saturday at 2pm, $30 Main Event Qualifier, at 7pm $60 Main Event Qualifier. Sunday at 2pm starts the main event! Early direct buy-in $225. The day of the tournament, $250 direct buy-in for the $20,000 prize pool!!!
• New Poker Room in Farmington Hills: Players Billiards Now OPEN!!! Players had its Grand Opening on Friday! Come out and play in one of their $20 rebuy tournaments with guaranteed prize pools, or sit down at a cash table for a while. This week Players is playing for Eagles 3816 for community projects license M45836 and Eagles Fastpitch Softball Club M47330.
• New Poker Room in Jackson: The Main Event at Avenue Billiards Grand Opening April 16th with the Columbia Athletic Boosters M47137. The Main Event will host $25 Monster Stack Tournaments every Thur - Sun at 6:30pm. Cash Tables will run from open to close! Thur 6pm - 2am, Fri 6pm - 2am, Sat 1pm - 2am and Sun 1pm - midnight.
• New Poker Room in Ann Arbor: Ann Arbor Country Club Grand Opening April 23rd Grand Opening April 23rd with the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation Metro Detroit General Fund M46853. The Ann Arbor Country Club will be open from 6pm - midnight on Thur, 6pm to 2am on Friday & Saturday and 6pm to midnight on Sunday. 85% payback on all tournaments, and cash games from open to close.
• MVP in Romulus is hosting $500 & $1000 freerolls 7 days a week. Be sure to check out MVP's cash game promos! If you get a full house during a cash game, MVP will give you 500 extra tournament chips the next time you play in the tournament!

Ask the Newbie: Why do some people wear dark sunglasses to play hold'em?

Ask the Newbie
by Lisa Bannon

Question:
Why do some people wear dark sunglasses to play hold'em?

Answer:
Usually I am not exactly certain of my answers. This time, I truely know the answer. Some people think it is becasue the wearer of the light filtering attire is attempting to hide their "tells". This is completely untrue - the wearer of the patently dark eye wear is actively attempting to see their CARDS better. One time, in a tournament I accidently bluffed my way into a pot. I was *not* attempting to bluff though. I had (because of a glare on my card) mistakenly bet on a flush that in reality I did NOT have. Although I did win that pot, I wouldnot recommend playing in this manner. I think that the next time I play I will bring along the darkest sunglasses I can purchase. This way, I will not mistake a diamond for a heart because of a light reflection on my shiney new card.

PPL Premier Poker Lounge in Brighton

Premier Poker Lounge
4141 Bauer Rd
Brighton, MI
810-610-7208
http://www.premierpokerlounge.com

4 Days a Week
Thursday to Saturday: 5pm – 2am
Sunday: 2pm - midnight

Date Room Reviewed: Saturday, March 21, 2009
22 of 25 Chips



The Premier Poker Lounge was hosting United Retired Government Employees Local 1 (M45910) playing to monitor and protect government employee pensions. The PPL is located inside the Mt Brighton Ski Lodge and Jackal Golf Course. My partner Lisa and I came out to play between seasons – skiing season just ended, and golf starts up the next week-end.

There was one cash game going before the tournament. PPL offers great cash game promos - $3 max rake before the tournament starts on Thur – Sat, $4 max rake all day on Sunday. We played in the Saturday night FreeRoll. $0 buy-in for 1000 chips, optional $20 add-on at registration for 6000 chips, and another optional $20 add-on at the first break for 10,000 chips. The tournament was maxed out at 50 players with two alternates.

#1 Games: 5 of 5 chips
Five of five chips for games offered at PPL! The rake is 10% up to $3 before the tournament start at 7pm, 10% up to $4 all day on Sunday, or 10% up to $5 any other time.
· $1/$2 NLHE $50 min / $200 max
· $1/$2 NLHE $100 min / $300 max
· $2/$5 NLHE $200 min / $500 max
· $1/$2 Round by Round Omaha / NLHE
· Blackjack
· Sit-n-goes available any time!
PPL is starting a high hand jackpot that pays out every 2 hours! 90% payback on high hand; both card in your hand must play.

#2 Tournaments : 4 of 5 chips

Tournaments at PPL start ON TIME! There’s a countdown clock in the poker room to let players know when to take their seats. Card will be dealt when the clock reaches zero. With the number of players showing up for the Saturday FreeRoll, arrive early or call ahead to reserve your seat! These tourneys fill up quick!

The tournaments offered at PPL are all low or no buy-in with add-ons or rebuys available for each one. Each tournament has a generous 80% payback, which builds some nice prize pools. This is the schedule we played for the URGW:

• Thursday: 7pm $5 rebuy with $200 guaranteed prize pool. 1000 starting stack with unlimited $5 rebuys until the first break. $10 add-on at the break for 3000 chips. 10 min blinds.
• Friday: 7pm $300 Freeroll with $10 rebuys and add-on. 1000 starting chips for free! Unlimited rebuys until the first break, must be at or below 1000 chips to rebuy. $10 add-on for 3000 chips at the break. 15 min blinds Min 30 players, max 50 players.
• Saturday: 7pm $750 Freeroll 20/20. 1000 starting chips for free. Optional $20 add-on at registration for 5000 chips. Another optional $20 add-on at the break for 10,000 chips. 15 min blinds. Min 30 players, max 50 players.
• Sunday: 7pm $5 rebuy with $200 guaranteed prize pool. 1000 starting stack with unlimited $5 rebuys until the first break. $10 add-on at the break for 3000 chips. 10 min blinds.

Tournament director software is on one of the TV’s – keeping everyone at the same blind level, and informed of the time left in the current round. All tournaments start with 25/50 blinds, and notch up at a reasonable pace.

PPL has a generous payout, good blind structure, standard house rules evenly enforced. We would really like to see some higher buy-in or deep stack tournaments on the schedule.

#3 Atmosphere: 4 of 5 chips

The poker room is located at the north end of the lodge. Go in through the gate next to the Pepsi machine and turn left. Once you’re inside, walk all the way to the end of the building. The poker room has a gazebo inside where the charity volunteers sell chips and tournament buy-ins. There’s also a bar at the end of the poker room, and booths on both sides.

This is a really fun poker room! There is music playing in the background, TV’s with the March Madness games going, big globe lights coming down from the vaulted ceiling, fully stocked bar and a gazebo. A full wall of windows opens the room up to the face of Mt Brighton’s ski hill. The room is non-smoking. The full menu from the Bauery Restaurant is available. The Bauery makes home-made potato chips every day. You can order at the bar – the food is delicious!

PPL is always looking for ways to make your visit better. If you have a compliment or concern, bring it directly to Brian, or fill out one of the customer satisfaction surveys on the tables in the booths.

Lack of lighting in the parking lot and difficulty finding the poker room are why PPL gets 4 of 5 chips.

#4 Equipment : 4 of 5 chips
Brian & Dan have a fully equipped poker room. Each of the seven custom-made table seats 9 players plus a dealer comfortably. There are plenty of drink/snack scooters to keep food and beverages out of the playing area. Cushy banquet chairs seat each player, with plenty of room between tables so you don’t bump someone else’s chair when you get up. Custom chips on the cash table, brand new cards at each table, nice tournament chips too.

#5 Staff: 5 of 5 chips
Kyle, Heresh, Adam and the rest of the dealer team are fast, friendly and accurate at the cash and tournament tables at PPL. Brian, the poker room manager, and the dealers all had a friendly rapport with the players, welcoming them to the poker room. Cash players were quickly seated, tournament players directed to the right seat at the right table. The dealers are great at making new players feel welcome and keeping the game moving to make the veteran players happy. PPL also gets an extra chip for fast friendly wait staff!

Tournaments are PPL’s big strength. They regularly fill up, so arrive early or be an alternate. They really have a deadly combination with the golf course and the poker room. What a beautiful outing – 9 holes of golf, a cold beer and a cash game!