Month: May 2022

Poker rules my world

Like an old bottle of whisky, the exceptional interest in poker has become more intense and interesting over the years. Today we see poker seeping into our way of life via every medium imaginable. From televisions, the internet, taxis, magazines, billboards and sponsorship, there is not a single avenue that casinos, and more importantly, online casinos have not used to their fullest advantage in order to capture a new generation of poker players.

But of all the mediums, the online arena has ultimately become poker’s greatest ambassador. With a sea of online casinos realising an untapped market of new gamblers waiting to learn and play this game of skill, and poker enthusiasts using blogs to create their own community of like minded people to share their own experiences, online poker has brought an unprecedented synergy to the world of communications resulting in a thriving multibillion dollar industry.

Poker sites, have not only utilised every marketing and advertising tool available at their disposable both online and offline, they are also expanding their promotional strategies to encompass household items such as oven mitts, aprons or coasters for example as part of their tangible brand offering. Others such as Golden Palace gain notoriety by buying shock items on eBay or sponsoring crazy stunts that guarantee a mention in the morning paper; or sites such as 888.com that spread their brand name through online spamming tactics. Such cheap tricks may help them stand out from the plethora of poker sites out there but consumers these days are becoming for savvy about where they want to spend their money and are therefore dubious about their integrity as a legitimate place to trust when gambling. Many sources have commented that such sites taint the reputation on the online gambling industry currently in its infancy and as a result, future legislations that are still being formulated are going to severely harm rather than protect other more reputable companies.

With major advances in hardware and software technology, improved bandwidths and increased sophistication in internet security, the experience of playing games like poker has been taken to higher real time platform. Games today are so personalised and interactive that it is almost like playing in a real casino but without the frilly distractions. The internet also allows time starved players to play 24/7 without needing to trek to a casino just to play a game of cards. With convenience and constant availability of player from around the world, gamers’ skill levels and expectations in turn have increased, thus raising the global bar of poker. This has been noticed with the rise and phenomenal coverage of tournaments such as the World Series of Poker (WSOP) and Extreme Poker to name but a few. These well publicized and televised games have brought poker to the masses with celebrities further bringing a sense of glamour and aspiration to the game. It has thus cemented its appeal to a younger generation that today view Poker not as an old man’s game but a very trendy and exciting pastime.

Organisations have realised the endless possibilities of using poker as a lucrative branding tool. Companies such as Endemol, who own the “Big Brother” TV show, Playboy as well as rap stars such as Ja Rule are all setting up their own online poker sites to expand their brands so that they are not only providing a product or service but a lifestyle ideal for their consumers.

Furthermore, variations in poker have transcended to other games such as slots and video poker allowing casinos to increase their arsenal of games and quench this craze. InterPoker.com is one such online poker company that aims to satisfy this insatiable need for people to experience all things poker. A dedicated poker site, InterPoker certainly is a leader in its field for delivering world class poker games, especially when facing scrutiny from the public and government bodies about the vices of gambling; rather hypocritical considering these same bodies seem to endorse lotteries which also come under the gambling family.

Thus with the wide availability of many advertising and marketing tools and the greater use of the online medium to capture an untapped demographic, its appears that poker and all poker related products and services are here to stay and will have a profound effect on everyday life. It will be up to the individual to decide the extent of its effect on their life.

Explanations And Excuses: Preakness Stakes Connections React In The Race’s Aftermath

Following is a collection of quotes from riders and trainers of each of the nine entries in Saturday's Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course, won by Early Voting.

Winning trainer Chad Brown, Early Voting: “I was really feeling pretty good. This horse, he's better with a target. I think when we ran him in the Wood, he was waiting on horses when he got to the lane. It's not because he can't go that far. So, I was hoping for a target, somebody would send. Given the way the track was playing all day, very speed favoring, I certainly wasn't going to take him out of his game. So, we were prepared to go to the lead. But when the other horse went to the front, [jockey] Jose [Ortiz] got a good position with a target in front of him. I felt very good on the backside.

“You know how hard it is. When you're training horses, oftentimes plans don't work. Things happen. And when you have a wonderful partner and close friend in Seth [Klarman], we try to do things that make sense.”

“I don't know about a mile and a half in three weeks, but we'll take a look at it. I can tell you he's going to go to Belmont [Park], so we'll start there. But, to win this race on Seth's birthday, three blocks from Pimlico, where he grew up, he's one of my very best friends, to be able to deliver a gift like that to somebody, it's hard to explain to people. On a personal level, very gratifying for me.”

Winning jockey Jose Ortiz, Early Voting: (NBC Broadcast): “It's a huge race. It's a dream come true. It's amazing to share this moment with my family, my mom and dad. I know they're watching, and my wife and kids are here.”

“I've been on him since he was a baby. We always knew he was very talented, but we know he was going to be a late developer. He's always been very nice. We've always been very high on him.”

Trainer Steve Asmussen, Epicenter, 2nd: “Disappointed, you know what I mean? Where he was early, and they go 24-and-1 [seconds for the first quarter-mile]. He just left him way too much to do. You've got to leave the gates. They go 24-and-1. If you don't leave the gates, you get one option. First time by, and you saw where he was, he just had too much to overcome to be right at a length at the wire – giving too much away.

“I was past surprised. I was disappointed. You've got to leave the gates to have any position whatsoever. When they throw up 24-and-1, and you're that far back with a horse that obviously has pace and just gave him too much to do.”

(On pre-race instructions): “Try to be away from there cleanly and let them adjust around him. He didn't get away cleanly, then he just buried him from there.”

“Early Voting is the winner of the Preakness and deserves all the credit for doing so, and nothing but. The silver lining on that is Gun Runner is probably the greatest sire of all time. He's incredible.”

Jockey Joel Rosario, Epicenter, 2nd: “The break was ok. It looked like everybody wanted to get into position right away. I had to go to another plan, which was to be inside the whole race. He was fine with it, but if I had another opportunity, I wouldn't have been inside. It's not what I wanted, but he dealt with it, and we were making up ground. I stayed inside the whole time. Turning for home, I just couldn't get to the winner. The winner got the jump on me out of the gate. Being inside I had to wait for someone to move. I wanted to take him to the outside but couldn't and that cost us.”

Trainer Kenny McPeek, Creative Minister, 3rd: “I lost him on the far turn, but he was on the inside – rail trip. I'm curious why he tipped out on the turn, and I'll ask [jockey] Brian [Hernandez] about that, but I thought he ran a really good race. He showed he deserved that he belonged. Considering his lack of experience, he was fantastic. We just told him it was a two-other-than allowance race.

Jockey Brian Hernandez Jr., Creative Minister, 3rd: “Around the second turn, I decided to tip out and try to make a run at him and [Early Voting] just outsprinted us from the quarter-pole home.”

Trainer D. Wayne Lukas, Secret Oath, 4th: “The fractions being slow like that, it was hard to run down. She flattened out a little bit in the last eighth, trying to do it. She made a big, sweeping run. It wasn't her day. It looked like she pulled up fine.”

Jockey Luis Saez, Secret Oath, 4th: “She broke the way she was supposed to, but everyone was all over the place. At the half-mile pole, she made her move, but when we came to the top of the stretch, the winner just kept going. It was a tough race.”

Trainer Saffie Joseph Jr., Skippylongstocking, 5th: “He was a little wide on the first turn and [jockey] Junior[Alvarado] tried to save ground on the backside. He ended up running decent. He wasn't a disgrace. We will see how he comes out of this race. We may go to the Belmont, you never know. We'll see how he comes out and make a decision in about a week or so.”

Jockey Junior Alvarado, Skippylongstocking, 5th: “We didn't have the best trip that I wanted. We were hanging wide in the first turn. I tried to make it up in the second turn but hit a lot of traffic and it was too much to do for him.”

Trainer Antonio Sano, Simplification, 6th: “The horse bled in the race. I'll send him to the farm for a rest right now. He has never bled.  It was the first time.”

Jockey John Velazquez, Simplification, 6th: “We just didn't get our way today. Give credit to the winner. It just wasn't our day, but he tried hard.”

Trainer Tim Yakteen, Armagnac, 7th: “I would have liked to have hung around a little bit more towards the end, but we will regroup and come up with a game plan. He gave us a good scream. It looked like he got tired.”

Jockey Irad Ortiz Jr., Armagnac, 7th: “We had a perfect trip. My horse broke good, had an early, easy lead and relaxed. At about the half-mile pole, they started putting pressure on us and ran us down. There are some nice horses here, but he is a really nice horse and will keep improving.”

Trainer Doug O'Neill, Happy Jack, 8th: “Tyler rode a great race, and we didn't have it today. We will regroup. I am proud of this guy. We will give Happy Jack plenty of time and regroup. I thought he had a great trip. Tyler broke well and had him in a great stalking spot and when the real running came, he was a little bit flat. From my angle, I just have to back off him a little bit and refresh him and we'll be in good shape. 

“Obviously Steve's horse had looked good all week, and the eventual winner looked great, too. Those two were the logical two choices. We're extremely proud of our horse.”

Jockey Tyler Gaffalione, Happy Jack, 8th: “My horse broke well and put himself in a good spot following the winner. We were traveling well, went into a drive and I couldn't keep up. We will live to fight another day.”

Trainer Kevin McKathan, Fenwick, 9th: “It didn't go as planned again. We'll just have to regroup. He looks sound. He just kind of flattened out. He kind of got beat up right as they broke. He was bounced around and got out-footed early. Down the backside he was just covered up, eating dirt and kind of flattened out on us.”

Jockey Florent Geroux, Fenwick, 9th: “There weren't any holes. Hopefully we can get a little better trip next time.”

The post Explanations And Excuses: Preakness Stakes Connections React In The Race’s Aftermath appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Maryland-Bred Joe Captures James W. Murphy; Joy’s Rocket Wires Skipat On Preakness Undercard

The Elkstone Group's Maryland homebred Joe, a multiple stakes winner on dirt, made the successful transition to the turf with a hard-fought neck victory in the $100,000 James W. Murphy Stakes, and Team Hanley and Parkland Thoroughbreds' Joy's Rocket scored a dominant 4 ¼-length triumph in the $100,000 Skipat Stakes Saturday on the Preakness Stakes undercard at Pimlico Race Course.

Briefly under consideration for the Preakness following his victory in the April 16 Federico Tesio at Laurel Park, Joe ($5) was instead redirected to the Murphy by Elkstone's Stuart Grant and trainer Michael Trombetta. A Declaration of War colt out of the Arch mare Battle Bridge, he had tried turf once before when he was fifth in a 5 ½-furlong sprint in his career debut last October.

In the Murphy, regular rider Victor Carrasco rated Joe in sixth along the rail inside Crabs N Beer as Uncaptured Spirit and 30-1 long shot Epic Luck dueled up front through splits of :22.85 and :45.85, with Local Motive and Ready to Purrform – both previous stakes winners in Maryland – leading the second flight.

Advancing strongly and still with plenty of horse, Carrasco maintained his inside position until midway around the far turn when he tipped out to split Uncaptured Spirit and Ready to Purrform and straightened for home with a short lead. Ready to Purrform ranged up on their outside and the two horses raced stride-for-stride through the stretch with Joe getting clear late.

Crabs N Beer was third, 2 ¼ lengths behind the runner-up, followed by Uncaptured Spirit, Determined Kingdom, Shake Em Loose, Local Motive and Epic Luck. The winning time was 1:35.26 over a firm course.

Joe – named for Grant's friend U.S. President Joe Biden – was named Maryland's champion 2-year-old male for 2021 after breaking his maiden and winning the Maryland Juvenile in mid-December at Laurel Park. This year, he won his two-turn debut in a 1 1/16-mile optional claiming allowance Jan. 23 and was second to Shake Em Loose in the Private Terms prior to his Tesio victory.

It was the first Murphy win for Carrasco. Trombetta previously won the Murphy in 2016 with Marengo Road.

The James W. Murphy pays homage to the late trainer that won nearly 1,400 races and more than 50 stakes and $24 million in purses starting in 1965. He was named the MTHA's Trainer of the Year in 2006, three years before he died at age 82.

In the Skipat, Joy's Rocket, winless in her previous eight starts that included four second-place finishes, looked like a winner all the way around historic Pimlico.

It was the second stakes victory of the day for jockey Joel Rosario and Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen, who combined to take the $150,000 Maryland Sprint (G3) with Jaxon Traveler. The pair also teamed with Kentucky Derby (G1) runner-up Epicenter, who later on the card was second in the $1.5 million Preakness Stakes (G1).

Joy's Rocket broke running and was quickly joined up front by 2-1 favorite Cilla as they went a quarter-mile in :22.57 with Time Limit, a stakes winner in Maryland to open her 2022 season, positioned to the outside in third. Time Limit moved up to second after a half in :45.06 and loomed a threat approaching the stretch, when Joy's Rocket began to steadily edge clear under a hand ride to win in 1:09.76 over a fast main track.

Fillie d'Esprit made a belated move on the outside to get up for second, 1 ½ lengths ahead of Time Limit. Cinnabunny, Cilla, Oxana, Glory Dia and Street Lute, an eight-time stakes winner making her second start of the year, completed the order of finish.

Joy's Rocket had not won since taking the Letellier Memorial in December 2020 at Fair Grounds for her third stakes victory in five starts. The 4-year-old filly was 0-for-5 in 2021 with three seconds, including a head loss in the Raven Run (G2) at Keeneland. She was runner-up to Southern Grayce in an April 30 optional claimer at Oaklawn Park.

Bred in Connecticut, Skipat won 26 of 45 career races over six years, earning $614,215 between 1977 and 1981. Two of her wins came in the Barbara Fritchie (G3), in 1979 and 1981, the latter coming the year after she had been retired and bred and brought back to the races.

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