Poker Vets Barry Greenstein, "Jennicide," "The Magician" Lead U.S. Team For First-Ever Nations Cup

PRLog (Press Release) - Oct 25, 2011 -
The United States Poker Federation (USPF), the newly created national governing body for the sport of poker in the United States, announced today the six-person team (plus one alternate) that will represent the country in the first-ever Nation’s Cup, a two-day event involving top players from 12 countries, which will take place in London November 17th and 18th, to be followed on November 19th and 20th by “The Table,” a world championship No-Limit Texas Hold’em tournament with a half-million dollar prize pool and participants from forty different countries.  Both events will serve as the kickoff for the International Poker Federation’s efforts to establish poker as a mind sport and game of skill.  

“We are very proud that these six accomplished players and personalities have elected to join us and represent the United States in this very unique team poker event, the first big step in getting the sport of poker recognized for what it really is, a mind sport which involves a great amount of skill and concentration,” said USPF President Peter Alson. “Our team is a very diverse, highly talented group with one aim…to show the world the value poker has to society for players of all levels and to grow the game internationally.”

The Nations Cup is an unprecedented Duplicate Poker tournament featuring 12 national teams – among them the U.K., U.S.A., Germany, Spain and Japan. Spanning two days, it will begin on the iconic London Eye, with tables situated inside the revolving pods, and will conclude with one team being crowned champion, in the equally iconic County Hall. Following the Nations Cup, the IFP World Championship, known as “The Table,”  will commence with an invited field of the world’s best players competing for a sponsored prize pool of $500,000. As of next year, the event will be open to every single poker player around the globe through the IFP’s new platform, to be launched by the end of this year.

Captaining the United States team will be Chicago native Barry Greenstein (@barrygreenstein). Known as “The Robin Hood of Poker,” for having donated large amounts of his winnings to children’s charities, Greenstein, a former software developer for Symantec, has been one of the most successful professional players on the circuit, with three World Series of Poker and two World Poker Tour titles, as well as numerous high finishes in other elite events. His methodical and precise style has earned him a reputation as one of the sport’s best large-field players.
 
Greenstein will be joined on the team by:

Antonio “The Magician” Esfandiari (@magicalpoker) , one of the most popular high-stakes poker players in the world, known on the poker tour for his chip tricks and magic at the tables, as well as for his two WPT titles and a WSOP bracelet.

Brown University graduate Isaac Haxton (@ikepoker), an expert at chess and Magic the Gathering, is considered one of the best heads up No-Limit players in the world.

Ali Eslami (@AliEslami), along with Phil Laak, took on and beat the University of Alberta’s Polaris AI poker computer, and is known for his highly mathematical and theoretical approach to the game.

Jennifer Leigh (@jennicide), known on the poker tour as “Jennicide,” is a self-described “nerd,” with a wide background in the tech and gaming industries.

Yale University graduate Vanessa Selbst (@VanessaSelbst) has captured consecutive NAPT championships in 2010 and 2011.

Alternate:

Matt Matros (@Matt_Matros), has a B.S. in mathematics from Yale University and an M.F.A. in fiction writing from Sarah Lawrence. He has written a book and numerous articles illuminating the theoretical side of the game, backing up his theories with two WSOP gold bracelets and 11 major event final tables.

In addition to the six-person team, the USPF will be represented in London by Alson and Executive Director Amy Handelsman, and award-winning author Jim McManus, who will serve as duplicate poker ambassador for the team.

Peter Alson (New York, NY): President of the United States Poker Federation. Peter is a well-respected author, screenwriter, editor and accomplished poker player. His titles include Take Me To The River, One of a Kind (a biography of poker champion Stuey Ungar) and Atlas (the autobiography of boxing trainer and commentator Teddy Atlas). He has written on numerous topics for the New York Times, Esquire, Playboy and People, and has served as an editor for Playboy and Hachette Publications.  

Amy Handelsman (New York, NY): Executive Director of the United States Poker Federation and the United States Mind Sports Federation. Amy is a producer, story editor and writer who has developed numerous feature films, network and cable movies, televisions series and plays. She has been a copy editor for Sports Illustrated, People and Fortune, and has produced projects for Disney and Tri-Star, PBS, Warner Brothers, HBO, CBS and Showtime during her career. She is a tournament Scrabble player and a lifelong participant in virtually all mind sports, including poker.

James McManus (Chicago, Ill.): Jim (@jimbosweetness) is one of the most accomplished and well-respected authors on the sport of poker in the world.  He is a former poker columnist for the New York Times, and his book on the World Series of Poker, Positively Fifth Street, is widely regarded as the classic work on the sport. Jim has lectured about the history, literature and tactics of the sport before corporations like Google Inc. and at institutes of higher learning ranging from Yale University to Harvard Law School.
   
About The U.S. Poker Federation

The mission of USPF is to be the governing body for the sport of poker, regulating its play in the United States as part of the International Poker Federation. It will hold a regular schedule of tournaments, rankings and sanctioning and with an aim for recognition of the sport of poker as a mind sport with great value to education, strategy, fair play and skill. For more information visit http://www.us.pokerfed.org