Baron Von Slam Signs with PokerStars --  German tennis legend Boris Becker is the latest addition to PokerStars' growing European lineup of famous endorsers.  Becker, the blonde bomber who made history two decades ago by becoming the youngest-ever player to win Wimbledon (at age 17), has become quite the fan of poker and will represent PokerStars at various European functions, including EPT (European Poker Tour) stops.  Becker plans to begin his pro poker career in the January, 2008 German Open, followed by the EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo a couple of months later.

Chris "BluffMagCV" Disqualified from Full Tilt Win --  Bluff Magazine managing editor Chris Vaughn looked to be a breakthrough player when he captured major online tournaments on consecutive Sundays, but it turns out that the first of those wins likely involved the selling of his account to another player.  While the account-selling had been rumored for weeks, it became public only when the runner-up in the disputed tournament, Soren Kongsgaard, published the letter he received from Full Tilt Poker stating that a player had been disqualified for breaking the site’s Terms of Conduct, and that Kongsgaard was among those moved up for additional prize money.  Since Kongsgaard finished second, the only player above him, Vaughn, had to be the disqualified player.  The player who purchased Vaughn’s online account has not been officially, publicly identified, though speculation quickly focused on Sorel Imper1um Mizzi.

PartyPoker Planning U.S. Return? --  It’s hard to know exactly what’s in the minds of the bigwigs at PartyGaming, Ltd., parent company of PartyPoker.  Party’s rumored return to the U.S. market is complicated by the fact that it offers other table games and remains in outstanding negotiations with the U.S. Department of Justice over its earlier activities.   Nonetheless, Party is cited as a prime takeover target for many land-based casinos in the U.S. who are eyeing the online scene.  One interesting development this week was a pullback of a planned sale of 3.5 million shares of PartyGaming stock by CEO Mitch Garber.  The deal had been previously announced, but Garber not only pulled the stock block back from the deal, he exercised his option to receive an additional 3.5 million shares.  As expected, Party’s stock surged immediately afterwards, with onlookers believing that Garber must have good feelings about his company’s future.

Florida Governor Signs Compact with Seminoles, Limited Poker Expansion Possible --  Florida punters received a little bit of good news in the gambling compact signed by that state’s governor, Charlie Crist, and the Seminole tribe that runs casinos such as the Hard Rock in Tampa.  Only small-scale games are currently available in the state, and while the new 25-year deal does little to expand that, some expanded tournament offerings are in the works.  Interestingly, the compact is already under assault from other Florida legislators who believe that Governor Crist exceeded his authority in inking the deal.

Tony G Takes Moscow Millions, Donates Winnings -- Tony "Tony G" Guoga took down the first-ever Moscow Millions, then donated his $205,000 first-place prize to charity.  It’s not the first time Tony G has made such a philanthropic gesture; despite his bad-boy image at the tables, he also donated his winnings from the inaugural Betfair Asian Poker Open in the year.  As for the Moscow Millions, it was a bit on the small side at 53 players, with the numbers severely crimped after original sponsor Full Tilt Poker pulled out for undisclosed reasons a couple of months back.  Still, it was the highest-buyin tourney to date in a country where rich cash games often run.