Possible replacements for Hellmuth and Duke at UB Poker

Now that UB Poker has parted ways with both Annie Duke and Phil Hellmuth they have freed up a lot of money to offer potential sponsored pros -sort of like a pro sports team that cuts a bunch of players so they have a lot of room to maneuver under the” salary cap”. With this in mind, as well as Joe Sebok’s revelation that UB Poker will announce the signing of a big-name player next week, I thought I’d take a look at some of the more likely candidates for Hellmuth and Duke’s former positions.

Before I get to the players I think it’s important to look at the requisites UB Poker will surely be looking for:

• #1: Obviously the player will have to be a highly skilled poker player who participates in big tournaments around the world.
• #2: To replace Hellmuth and Duke the new sponsored pro(s) must have strong name recognition, even to casual fans.
• #3: Reputation! In light of UB Poker’s past issues, the prospective player must have an impeccable reputation in the poker world.

Most likely candidate = Prahlad Friedman

Friedman makes sense on a number of different levels. First off Prahlad is fairly well known (especially in online poker circles), is a top player, and has a good personality. More importantly Friedman is considered to be the biggest victim of the Super-User scandal at Ultimate Bet, so his signing would signal an end to Ultimate Bet, and the genesis of the newly branded UB Poker, and its new ownership group.

The longtime unsponsored Friedman even tinkered with the idea of finally signing with an online Poker Room in November via his Twitter account: “I said I would never sign with a pokersite. Should I ever reconsider? What yall think? I would have to get over the fact that I’m “selling out”. I’m the only poker player in the world that hasn’t wanted a deal that I know of.,”

The player I would like to see UB Poker sign = Phil Galfond

With the money UB Poker is saving by letting Annie Duke and Phil Hellmuth leave they have the opportunity to make a serious run at signing Phil Galfond -which would be on par with Tom Dwan’s signing at Full Tilt Poker or Isildur1 at PokerStars. Galfond is an online poker legend, is making a big name for himself in live cash games, tournaments and TV shows, and is one of the most respected poker players in the game.

Other Possibilities

Tom Marchese-The recent Card Player Magazine Player of the Year would be a welcome addition to any poker site, especially considering the sheer number of tournaments Marchese enters around the world.

Daniel Cates - Daniel ‘jungleman12′ Cates is a rising star in the online poker world, but his asking price may be a bit too high at the moment, especially for a player who at this point is a 1-year sensation.

Daniel Alaei - Alaei is the picture of consistency and professionalism. One of the top tournament and cash game players, Alaei is considered one of the best all around players in poker. The only thing working against Alaei is his soft-spoken demeanor.

William Reynolds - The up-and-coming Reynolds is a star in the making, and will likely be mulling offers from a number of poker sites.