Welcome to the BLUFF Daily Buzz, where we scour the entire internet for all the latest news in and around the world of poker. If it involves chips and cards, or people known to associate with chips and cards, we’re there.

Paul Hannum’s story featured on CNN

The front page of CNN’s website today featured a story about Paul Hannum, the man who was best known to those in the poker world as the World Poker Tour’s ace photographer. Hannum, who had no health insurance, died after his appendix ruptured in August 2006, two months before his daughter Cameron was born. CNN’s article highlights two other cases of uninsured Americans whose families say they died before their time simply because they had no health insurance.

A consummate professional who made friends everywhere he went, Hannum was grieved by the poker community. A group of his friends, led by poker pro Gavin Smith, organized a tournament in Hannum’s memory at the 2006 Legends of Poker festival in Los Angeles, with the proceeds going to Hannum’s girlfriend Sarah and their child. Jennifer Tilly wrote about the tournament in her November 2006 BLUFF Magazine column.

(45,000 American deaths associated with lack of insurance – CNN.com)

South Carolina poker convictions overturned

According to Charleston Post and Courier newspaper, a South Carolina state circuit judge is set to overturn the convictions of five men convicted of violating state gambling laws by playing Texas hold’em. The five were arrested three years ago and were convicted earlier this year of operating a “gambling house,” even though the judge in their case ruled that hold’em is a game of skill. Circuit Judge R. Markley Dennis, who heard the men’s appeal, has ordered their attorneys to draft an order overturning those convictions for his review.

The decision to overturn the convictions isn’t an automatic win for the five men, though. More appeals are likely, which means the case could end up before the South Carolina Supreme Court. Judge Dennis’ opinion is that the Supreme Court would adopt a “dominate factor test” to determine whether poker is mostly luck or skill in deciding the case, meaning we won’t hear the end of that old argument for some time to come.

(Five Mount Pleasant poker player convictions reversed – postandcourier.com)

Clowns in space

Guy Laliberte, the Cirque Du Soleil founder also known to poker fans as “how top cash game pros build their bankrolls,” is going to be taking a trip into space for 12 days. Planning to become “the first clown in space,” the 50-year-old Canadian billionaire is paying $35 million to tag along with a Russian Soyuz spacecraft on its way to the international space station at the end of this month. Even with such a hefty price tag, space tourism has to be cheaper for Laliberte than playing poker with Tom Dwan.

Other than the view, why is the world’s biggest fish going into space? So that he can spend nearly two weeks tickling cosmonauts while they sleep. No joke. From the man himself: “I’m a person with a pretty high spirit, who’s there to crack jokes and make jokes to those guys, and while they’re sleeping, you know, I’ll be tickling them.”

To be fair, Laliberte also hopes his journey will raise awareness of drinking water problems around the world. But mostly it’s about the tickling.

(Canadian to lighten the mood aboard space station – NPR.org)

Negreanu, Binger appear on new ESPN Inside Deal

ESPN’s Inside Deal webcast returned again today with more marquee names on the guest list. Daniel Negreanu checks in by satellite to talk about the upcoming Caesars Cup at the WSOP Europe, hosts Laura Lane and Bernard Lee get in an interview with physicist-turned-poker-pro (and BLUFF Power Rankings #2 man) Michael Binger, and with some help from columnist Andrew Feldman the three host a “Nit-Twits Faceoff,” a game centering on Negreanu’s and Binger’s mutual love of Twitter.

You can check out the new episode of Inside Deal here.

More details from Houston poker room robbery

Pokerati.com has more details today on the Houston underground poker stick-up that left one of the would-be robbers dead at the hands of a poker player. Barron Glenn Boutte, who died in the poker room’s parking lot after taking four gunshots to the abdomen during his attempted robbery, was buried today in Houston. Pokerati says that underground rooms in Houston are currently quieter than usual, and that many are looking to hire on visible security in an effort to discourage any further trouble from their city’s violent criminal element.

(RE: Houston Poker Room Gun Battle (3) – Pokerati.com)

Exit interview

And finally, veteran poker writer Tim Lavalli is leaving the game for good. Sure, lots of people say that, but the co-author of Mike Matusow’s book Check-Raising The Devil says he’s really serious. Super-serious. So serious, in fact, that he went through the little-known exit interview process and posted the results on his blog. Any man who will go that far simply has to be believed.

The whole post, including his thoughts on the game and its current state, is worth reading. But by far the juiciest part of Lavalli’s goodbye letter to poker is when he names the players who WSOP senior staff told him were the worst in the game – a list that he says was “surprisingly uniform” from staff member to staff member. He dishes the dirt on a number of well-known players, including Todd Brunson, Annie Duke, Men “The Master” Nguyen, and David Singer.

Farewell, Tim, and best of luck with your future endeavors. It was a pleasure working alongside you.

(Exit Interview from the World of Poker – Keeping Your Head In (All) The Game(s))

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