2016 Cash Game Festival Bulgaria

2016 Cash Game Festival Bulgaria
Day: 4

Jack Fenton Shares, "I am a Complete Fish in Sviten Special!"

Jack Fenton
Jack Fenton

United Kingdom's Jack Fenton is a cash-game specialist who is now a veteran of the Cash Game Festival after attending every stop thus far this year.

"This is now my third Cash Game Festival after earlier in the year attending in both London and Malta," shared Fenton. "I originally learned about the Cash Game Festival thanks to the advertising at Aspers Casino in London where I am a regular player."

While Fenton, aged 21 years old, doesn't describe himself as a professional player, it is his only source of income.

"I finished school when I was 18 years old, and a year later I started playing cash games in London as well as online," Fenton commented. "While I wouldn't say I am a professional poker player, it is what I do for money."

It was at the Cash Game Festival London in March that he met Brendon Krabill who he now considers to be a close friend. With a small push from Krabill, Fenton decided to head to Malta and now Bulgaria to attend the festival.

"I decided to head to Malta after getting in contact with Brendon who I played on the televised feature table in London and he expressed he was looking to go," Fenton said. "So, he asked me to go and I quickly agreed.

"I actually met Brendon at the Cash Game Festival London," added Fenton. "Even though he is a regular player at Aspers Casino as well, we never met before. After the feature table, we stayed in touch and after Malta heading to Bulgaria for this festival."

Obviously if Fenton didn't have a good time in Malta, he wouldn't be here this week for the Cash Game Festival Bulgaria.

"Malta was very good," Fenton explained with a big smile. "It was good games and a great play to spend time. It was just a great trip!"

The 21-year old is also enjoying a good time in Bulgaria informing us that, "Bulgaria is good and the games are good. The games definitely pick up in the evening."

Besides the social aspects of the festival, Fenton particularly enjoys the opportunity to be on a televised feature table. He took advantage of this first in London, next in Malta, and now three different times in Bulgaria.

Fenton shared what he likes the most about playing live in front of a TV audience is that, "The games tend to have more action since players have more to improve. Sometimes in a normal lower stakes card game, when players don't get cards the game slows down. When you only have two to three hours, it makes the game more interesting."

This isn't the only reason why Fenton always wants to be on the feature table whenever possible.

"It is just interesting to play in front of cameras, and watching yourself on the replay later is always fun," Fenton explained about the filmed experience." "It is definitely a good experience for cash game enthusiasts such as myself. Since I do not play many tournaments, under normal circumstances I do not get a lot of chance to appear on live streams."

On Day 3, Jack Fenton tested his luck on Sviten Special, a pot-limit game that combines both five-card draw and Omaha together. While Fenton quickly lost two buy-ins in as many hands, he did share he will play it again. The self-described "fish" at Sviten Special shared he needs to come into the game next time with a different strategy.

"I played two hands, and I lost two buy-ins during that time," Fenton began to explain about his Sviten Special experience. "Basically, I am a complete fish at Sviten Special. I was playing on the best Omaha hand instead of the best five-card draw hand. Both hands I just potted the action every time until I was all-in."

"I am thinking of trying it again as I think it is a great game in my limited experience of it," added Fenton. "I think it is very interesting, especially after an 8-10 hour hold'em session with my headphones in."

Tags: Brendon KrabillCash Game FestivalJack FentonPlatinum Casino

The Man Without a Home - Video Man Peter Trudolubov

Peter Trudolubov
Peter Trudolubov

We were just behind the scenes with Peter Trudolubov, whose last name means "one who loves to work" in Russian.

Trudolubov spent most of his life in Russia, and now describes himself as a man without a home.

"I was born and grew up in Moscow before moving not too long ago in 2013 to Latvia," shared Trudolubov. "From there I moved further north to Estonia. Just because my family lives in Latvia and Germany right now, I don't feel like I have a home. The closest thing I have to a home is in Tallinn, Estonia because after Moscow this is the place I spent most of my time. However, I can't say I feel completely at home there since the only things keeping me there right now is my job and school."



Trudolubov's studies and work go hand in hand as he is currently employed by Vita Pictura Productions who handles all the video and photography for the Cash Game Festival.

"I am currently studying media, and a big part of it is practical film and television production," shared Trudolubov. "The school encourages us to spend as much time as we can on working on actual production. Since I have this job at Vita Pictura Productions four months after I enrolled, I have most of the practice at my current company."

While it is evident that Trudolubov enjoys his work, he admits he doesn't really have much to compare it with as he is just getting his start in the industry.

"It is hard for me to judge since I haven't worked for other companies," said Trudolubov. "I have worked a bit for television and print media. From what I understand, I can tell that the latitude of the ranges of the fields we work in is rather big."

He also explained that how his job might differ from that at other companies. Lately, Trudolubov has had the opportunity to travel to place he may have not otherwise visited.

"There is normally a high-end company that works in big-budget commercials and don't work on anything that is lower than a certain amount," Trudolubov stated. "As with Vita Pictura, we take on many different projects. Sometimes I find myself doing something ridiculous for a ridiculous amount of money. Other times I get to spend a week in places all over the globe including London, Malta, and Bulgaria. This year in particular, we have been traveling quite a lot."

Vita Pictura Productions handles many music gigs. Trudolubov elaborates sharing that, "Mostly we work in the music industry. This means music festivals, music videos, and events."

Music festivals and poker events are two different beasts for Trudolubov as he explains in the former it is easy to capture emotion, where it can be challenging in the latter.

"The music events Vita Pictura covers all have to do with some kind of celebration that turn out to be very emotional things," Trudolubov explains. "Someone is always cheering, crying, or otherwise visibly displaying emotion. Whereas with poker, the point for players is to maintain their 'poker face' and display the least amount of emotions as possible."

"However, the organizers of the Cash Game Festival want me to capture emotion and sometimes it can be really tricky to catch," Trudolubov continues. "Basically it is my job to capture everything that is visibly interesting. A video or film is an extremely powerful medium. It also has to be efficient so you can put as much as you can in one picture and one frame. With poker and the Cash Game Festival, it is interesting. However, after the earlier stops in London and Malta and now in Bulgaria, I find myself thinking I have to come up with something new. Sometimes I feel every shot I could have taken, has already been taken. I then feel I have to come up with something more interesting."

Covering some of the side events of the felt have proven to be much less challenging for Trudolubov to capture the right moment. However, he recognizes that the televised table is where his job becomes the most important and explains his approach.

"I feel most comfortable at the events outside the Cash Game Festival such as the yacht trips and pool parties, however, I feel the televised table is the most important place," Trubolobov shared. "In the time I have spent with Vita Pictura Productions, I have figured out how to do it efficiently. With the TV table, a lot of it is just standing there and waiting with the camera for the right moment to capture the emotion. It requires both patience and knowing where to look."

To add to Trudolubov's challenges, he has never played a hand of poker outside with a few friends. He does understand the game, but prior to the Cash Game Festival he never visited a casino to compete on the felts.

"Before the Cash Game Festival, I knew very little about poker," admitted Trubolobov. "I played it once or twice with friends, but it is obviously different at a big festival. Now, after my third Cash Game Festival, I know exactly where to look and point my camera at so I get exactly what I need."

Trudolubov's interest in poker has grown since covering the Cash Game Festival, and one day he may decide to test his skills on a live poker table in a casino.

"Now that I see how experienced players play, I want to give poker a shot," Trudolubov shared. "I don't have a huge bankroll to put on the table, so if I give it a shot, I will start small."

Tags: Cash Game FestivalPeter TrudolubovVita Pictura Productions

Feature Table Begins!

The televised feature table is about to kick off. Joining the host Brandon Allen in the commentary booth is poker player Brendon Krabill.

Local poker player Emil Petkov began playing poker while he was a student in Germany in 2001. Yesterday was his first experience playing poker on a televised feature table.

The action promises to be lively no matter what due to the person playing from seat 2, Cash Game Festival co-founder Martin "Franke" von Zweigbergk. "Franke" has been playing throughout the festival, and it is always easy to find his table with him and his table mates constantly laughing.

Bulgaria's Anton Burnyakov in seat 3 has only been playing poker for one month, and shared that he is "very nervous" about being on the televised feature table.

SlotsMillions.com pro and Cash Game Festival veteran Maret Komarova is in seat 4. She shared with us yesterday that beach volleyball was her top thing to do in Sunny Beach outside the poker festival.

Also with SlotsMillions.com in seat 5 is Sweden's "Mr. Casino", who is a casino streamer and has only played poker with friends for fun. He shared that on the featured table that, "I'm going to hold my thumbs."

Young-gun Jack Fenton from the United Kingdom is over in seat 6. Fenton, who plays professionally in London, is far from nervous thanks to playing numerous times on the televised table in the past.

Famous Swedish e-gamer "Pani" is over in seat 7. His fans are already out and chatting on the stream.

Kalle Fagerstrom rounds out the table and loves action. While he normally plays poker fully dressed, we learned during the festival that he recently played from his bathrobe during a tournament in Tallinn, Estonia.

Tags: Brandon AllenBrendon KrabillCash Game FestivalJack FentonKalle FagerstromMaret KomarovaMartin "Franke" von ZweigbergkPlatinum Casino

Pool Party Over, Feature Table Getting Ready

Brandon Allen
Brandon Allen

The pool party just ended and we will have plenty of pictures to share later in the coverage. The first televised feature table of the day is getting set-up and you will be able to check it out live with Brandon Allen as your host.

As a reminder, you can watch the stream here on PokerNews as well as on the Cash Game Festival website and on the Cash Game Festival Twitch channel.

Tags: Brandon AllenCash Game Festival

Pool Party in Full Force

Cash Game Festival Pool Party
Cash Game Festival Pool Party

The pool party is currently in full force. Just a minute ago there was a drinking contest underwater. Players that competed against each other last night on the felts are now relaxing and laughing in and out of pool.

Welcome to Day 4 of the 2016 Cash Game Festival Bulgaria at Platinum Casino

Platinum Casino
Platinum Casino

Welcome to PokerNews' live coverage of Day 4 of the 2016 Cash Game Festival Bulgaria at Platinum Casino located just steps away from the boardwalk in Sunny Beach.

Yesterday was the biggest day of them all with at least a dozen tables taking place among a variety of games include pot-limit Omaha, Sviten Special, and of course no-limit hold'em.

The festival kicked off on Wednesday with welcome drinks on Day 1 along with a few no-limit hold'em tables ranging from €1/€2 to €2/€5. As the day moved along, a variety of pot-limit Omaha and Sviten Special tables were added to the mix creating a positive atmosphere all night long

The following day, many players competed in a fun mini-golf competition on the beach followed by a VIP dinner at Terra Fish & Steak. As the night picked up, the vibe at the Platinum Casino poker room was hot with action featuring a wide variety of no-limit hold'em and pot-limit Omaha games at different stakes.

Yesterday on Day 3, the action both on and off the felts transformed to a new level. The day began with a relaxing yacht ride around the sea for players with the hospitality package. The action in the poker room was also the biggest of the poker festival yesterday with stakes ranging from €1/€2 to €5/€10. Local Bulgarian poker pro Jasen Dichev won the biggest pot of the evening by hauling down a huge pot for €3,400.

The big hand began just a few minutes after Dichev was caught bluffing against Estonia's Janar Kokk to give his opponent the previous biggest hand in the 2016 Cash Game Festival Bulgaria with a pot worth €2,400. However, Dichev was able to gain it all back and then some just a few minutes later.

In this hand, Dichev went all-in for €1,200 with {J-Spades}{J-Clubs} on a {A-Clubs}{7-Hearts}{J-Diamonds}{8-Clubs}{A-Hearts} board for a full-house. Fellow countrymate Yuliyan Kolev, holding {A-Spades}{K-Clubs} for three-of-a-kind and top kicker tanked for a minute before calling to ship a huge €3,400 pot to his opponent. Dichev has at least for the moment taken down the biggest pot of the festival.

As was the case during the past three days, the first televised feature table today will be €1/€2 at 5:30 p.m. (GMT +3) on a 20 minute delay before the table switches up to higher stakes at 8:30 p.m. What makes the feature table is unique is that not only it is for ring games, but many of the players will be taking part in a televised poker table for the first time.

Brandon Allen will once again be leading the commentary with many guests popping in and out. You will be able to check out the action here on PokerNews as well as on the Cash Game Festival website and on the Cash Game Festival Twitch channel.

If you have been following the action the past two days, the Cash Game Festival is far from just being about poker, as many players socialize on and off the felts and become friends for life. Many players are currently enjoying activities outside the casino for just that reason. At 2:00 p.m. a pool party begins for those that want to take a break from poker, and a huge VIP party is planned late in the evening at 11:00 p.m.

The PokerNews Live Reporting Team will be providing updates with some 2016 Cash Game Festival Bulgaria highlights of action on and off the felts throughout the day. Coverage of the poker action will begin around 5:00 p.m., however, we will also give an update about the pool party before then.

Tags: Branden AllenCash Game FestivalJanar KokkJasen DichevPlatinum Casino

2016 Cash Game Festival Bulgaria

Day 4 Started