More World Series Of Poker headlines dominate this week’s edition of the Weekly Poker Net.  Phil Hellmuth’s got headlines again, and not even from sleeping on corduroy pillows.  Seriously, Hellmuth has enjoyed a wonderful WSOP to date, cementing his status as one of the world’s very best tournament no-limit players.  Here’s a peek at the latest news from the poker world:

Hellmuth Hits the Big Six-Oh --  We’re referring to career WSOP cashes, not years... people or puppy.  Phil Hellmuth picked up his third cash of the 2007 WSOP and 60th of his career by clearing the money bubble in Event #28, $3,000 No Limit Hold Em.  Hellmuth approaches the final table in this one as this week’s Net is being hauled, but if he does succeed, it would tie T.J. Cloutier’s career mark of 39 WSOP final tables.

Kaplan Denied Bail in BetOnSports Racketeering Case --  Former BetOnSports CEO Gary Kaplan’s chances of being granted his request for bail in the federal U.S. case brought against him were approximately equal to that of BetOnSports suddenly issuing full refunds to customers for that company’s misspent funds.  In other words, none.  Nonetheless, Kaplan’s attorneys duly made another request for bail and the U.S. judge in the case dutifully denied the motion.  Kaplan and BoS co-executive David Carruthers remain under house arrest in the St. Louis area pending more developments in the case.

Eli Elezra Takes WSOP $3K Seven Card Hi-Lo Championship --  One can wonder which ribbing was more persistent for veteran Bellagio "Big Game" player Eli Elezra: the fact that he’d never won a WSOP bracelet, while most of his Big Game playing partners have won several, or now that he has won one, what took him so long?  Elezra finished off a strong performance in Event #26, $3,000 Seven Card Stud High-Low Split by defeating Scotty Nguyen in a lengthy heads-up duel, long after the two had agreed on a chop for the money and played on for the bracelet itself.  Officially, Elezra collected $198,984 for the triumph.

Ralph Schwartz Grabs WSOP $5K H.O.R.S.E. Title --  H.O.R.S.E. is becoming the new glamour event of the WSOP, buttressed by the $50,000 buy-in tourney and championed by the poker world’s cash-game-centric old guard.  Ralph Schwartz claimed the bracelet at a topsy-turny final table in Event #26, winning $275,683 as well.  This could have been anyone’s win, from early leaders Yuebin Guo and Robert Mizrachi to Phil Ivey, who rushed from short-stack status to a commanding lead at one time during the day.  None of them won, nor even placed second, with that spot instead going to Bill Gazes; Gazes began play in 11th place among the 12 final-day players but was still there when the last hand was dealt.

Penn National Agrees to Buyout, Will Go Private --  Penn National Gaming, the jilted suitor of Harrah’s Entertainment that came out on the short end of a bidding war last year, will itself be taken private.  Penn National accepted a buyout from private-equity investors Fortress and Centerbridge Partners in a deal that will take the 18-casino enterprise into the private sector.  The deal is valued at either $6.1 billion or $8.9 billion, depending on whether a $2.8 billion debt repayment is included, but the big winners here are Penn shareholders -- the price of the stock jumped over 20% on the news.  Penn has a strong national presence, with the exception of Nevada, where it owns no properties.