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There is speculation that ace swimmer Michael Phelps may soon become a brand ambassador for UB.com and the reason for this speculation is that Phelps has started figuring a lot in Phil Hellmuth’s Tweets. Hellmuth even has a special name for Phelps, which is MP3. The Tweets do not directly state anything about Phelps joining UB.com. They are about sundry things like Phelps signing a swimming cap for Hellmuth’s deceased sister, Miss USA contestants walking into Phelps, Phelps beating Hellmuth at golf and Phelps being a gentleman and warrior.

Hellmuth wooing Phelps is nothing new. The same scenario was played out in 2008 after Phelps landed in the US of A with a bagful of gold medals. Among the things Hellmuth then said was “… he’s a 14 time Gold Medal winner. I’m an 11 time gold bracelet winner! Marry me, Michael!” At that time Hellmuth was having competition from Doyle Brunson. Brunson was seen escorting Phelps to all the Vegas hot spots and it was even rumored that Brunson had introduced Phelps to his special girl friends, but Phelps did not bite. With his own girl friend like Caroline Pal why would he. Phelps even took Caroline to meet his parents but the wedding bells are silent so far.

UB.com and Michel Phelps would make a perfect pair. UB.com likes brand ambassadors who are always in the news and Phelps likes to be in the news, even if it is for the wrong reasons. Soon after his record breaking stint at the Beijing Olympics he was caught smoking marijuana through a bong. Daniel Negreanu, who has strong views on everything, surprisingly said that Phelps smoking pot was no big deal.

Whether Phelps does join UB.com remains to be seen, but what is signed, sealed and delivered is Blanca Game’s purchase of the Cereus Poker network. Cereus Poker includes UB.com and Absolute Poker. It is surprising that such a scandal ridden network finds buyer after buyer, but undoubtedly Tokwiro must have been glad to get rid of it. Stuart Gordon, the CEO of Blanca games, said that the target market for him is players in their 20s and 30s and this is where Phelps comes in perhaps.

A very unusual strip poker tournament has been organized in London next month. It is a part of the London Poker Festival, which kicks off on August 28 and runs till September 30. Apart from the strip poker event, the London Poker Festival will be hosting the London leg of the WPT, the WSOPE events and Poker in the Park, which will be inaugurated by poker babe Liv Boeree.

The strip poker event is called the Baller Strip Poker Championships. It will take place at the legendary Stringfellows gentlemen’s club in London’s Covent Garden on September 21. Stringfellows is the most famous gentlemen’s nightclub in the world and the ideal location for the event. However this strip poker tournament has a twist. The poker players will not be relieved of their clothing when they lose. According to the Baller Strip Poker rules, the Stringfellows girls will be doing the undressing on their behalf. Each player will be assigned a Stringfellows dancer and she will strip by removing an item of clothing instead of the player. The Baller Strip Poker Championships will raise money in support of cancer awareness charities. London hosts the regular type of strip poker championships as well. It was started in 2006 by Paddy Power. Today the World Strip Poker Championships have become an annual event. Each player begins wearing five items of clothing, supplied by the organizers and the event continues until only one player is left partially dressed. Towels are provided for modesty but there is only so much a towel can do.

In strip poker players end up naked, but in a recently announced event players will start that way. This is a regular poker tournament that will be played at Cap d’Agde, one of the world’s most popular naturist resorts located on the French Riviera. The resort features restaurants, bars, gyms, bakeries and a casino, all of which can be enjoyed au naturel. The nude poker tournament is being held to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the resort’s casino. No date or tournament structure has been announced yet. Those interested should track the resort’s web side and be prepared to lose their inhibitions.

The poker community knows Leeann Tweeden as the sexy hostess of the NBC late night television show Poker After Dark. Many may also recall her as the even sexier model who has posed for leading magazines like Playboy and Swimwear USA. But very few know that Leeann is the daughter of an Air Force mechanic who served in Vietnam and the wife of an Air Force pilot. Therefore it is but natural that she understands the country’s armed forces and in her own way she has supported them over the years.

Leeann’s latest endeavor in this regard is her participation in the Letters From Hollywood campaign. This project was started by actor D.B. Sweeney and allows celebrities from the entertainment industry to send a personal message thanking the men and women who have donned the uniform for the United States. Leeann’s hand written letter has been put up at the Letters From Hollywood web site along with photographs of her numerous outings to visit the troops in different parts of the world. She has visited Iraq and Afghanistan 13 times since 9/11.

In her letter Leeann recalls the ecstasy she felt when she was first asked if she would entertain the troops on a USO tour. She writes, “I couldn’t believe it…I just said YES YES YES, hung up the phone and immediately called my dad and said Guess what?!” Her dad had told her how the morale of the troops in Viet Nam was raised when Bob Hope and Raquel Welch visited them and now she was doing her bit. Leann also reaches out to the families of the service men and women because she knows from personal experience what it is like to have a loved one fighting a war. She writes, “When he’s gone, I sleep with my laptop on my bed next to me so I can hear the ‘you’ve got mail’ chime in the middle of the night letting me know that he made it back to the base safe and sound.”

Back to poker, poker babe Leeann has just shot an episode with six of the most eligible bachelors of poker for Poker After Dark. It is called Lonesome Shark and features Erick Lindgren, James Akenhead, Antonio Esfandiari, Mike Matusow, David Williams and Brad Booth.

It was not too long ago that the professional poker player Phil “The Unibomber” Laak broke the world record for endurance poker. His endurance skills will now come into play again because he was just involved in a major accident. The Unabomber had to be hospitalized with lacerations to his right eye and broken bones.

It happened on the way to a camping trip in Oregon last week. Laak and some friends that included poker colleagues David Wells, Brian Rast, Antonio Esfandiari and Alec Torelli were riding All Terrain Vehicles (ATVs). Esfandiari, who accompanied Laak to hospital, explained what happened. Incidentally Esfandiari has been involved in plenty of outdoor action searching for a Poker Playboy for Victory Poker. Esfandiari said, “We went over a sand dune, but there was a drop hidden behind it. It could have happened to either of us, honestly. Phil tried to jump off in mid-air, but he ended up landing on his bike. His elbow is broken and his wrist is all jacked up. His eye is also really messed up. Had it been one millimeter off, he’d probably be blind.”

Thanks to Twitter, Laak was able to keep giving his fans an update on his situation. Immediately after the accident on August 5 he Tweeted, “Atv accident, massive arm injury and lacerations to eye in oregon. Life is good.” Later he was able to see the better side of the accident because he told his fans that though he will have to be stitched up things could have been worse for him and he is really lucky to be in one piece. In the hospital Laak joked with the police and paramedics who were around. Fortunately the stay in the hospital was a short one and Laak was able to go home on August 7 for rest and relaxation in the arms of his girl friend poker babe Jennifer Tilly. He messaged on Twitter, “Jennifer is the best. Cuddling w her is better for the pain then even my perkocet pain medicine.”

Fortunately Esfandiari was not hurt because he has no Jennifer like girl friend waiting at home. In fact he due to play in a Poker After Dark event featuring five other bachelor poker professionals along with him. The episode is being billed as Lonesome Shark Week.

Poker babes have an affinity for reality shows. Annie Duke acquitted herself fabulously on Celebrity Apprentice. Then Tiffany Michelle and Maria Ho paired up for The Amazing Race, where they did not fare as well. The latest to join the reality television bandwagon is poker babe Beth Shak. A report in the New York Post says that poker pro Beth Shak has signed up for the next season of Millionaire Matchmaker.

Millionaire Matchmaker, as its name suggests, sets out to match single, certified millionaires with potential spouses. It is based on Millionaire’s Club founded by Patti Stranger in Beverly Hills, which caters to wealthy men looking for partners. Patti is the presenter of the television series. After three successful seasons Millionaire Matchmaker is moving to New York City, where Beth lives. Beth is an intriguing candidate for this show because she is a divorcee and a mother of three children. Beth was married to poker player Daniel Shak. The New York Post report states that accompanying Beth on the show could be DJ Sky Nellor and Christopher and Albie Manzo, the sons of “The Real Housewives of New Jersey” matriarch Caroline Manzo.

Beth Shak is not that prominent a figure in poker circles, meaning she does not hog the headlines as many of the other poker babes do. The response to the news of her being a part of Millionaire Matchmaker has been quite demeaning. One of the more printable ones at a poker forum said, “Based on what I have seen of her, I find it hard to believe she is an overall winning poker player. It is laughable to see some of the people who hold themselves out “professional poker players” these days. As far as whether she is attractive or not, I like the fact that she is putting out photos of herself in G-strings and garters …” This is an obvious reference to Beth’s line of exclusive shoes and lingerie that can be seen at her stylish web site.

Poker wise she cut her teeth at Full Tilt Poker and between 2005 and 2008 she notched up 11 cashes the best being a 2nd place at a WSOP 2007 event, which was not a Ladies Only event. Maybe Millionaire Matchmaker is her way of making a comeback to the limelight.