MARYLAND PET STORE OWNER GETS ASSIST FROM HIS CAT
IN WINNING FERRARI ON FREE ONLINE POKER TOURNAMENT AT PARTYPOKER.NET

Bruce Bartfeld of Churchville, Maryland was playing a free-entry online poker tournament on PartyPoker.net and was running out of chips. The 52-year-old pet store owner says he has his cat Sadie to thank for helping him claw his way back—and right into the seat of a brand new Ferrari F430 Coupe.

“I was really short stacked,� said Bartfeld. “Then Sadie decided to jump up and sit on my lap and my luck changed for the better. They say cats have nine lives; Sadie certainly gave me a lifeline.�

Bartfeld was playing in his first tournament in an online poker room. PartyPoker operates the world’s largest online poker room, PartyPoker.com and its companion play-for-free education site, PartyPoker.net, where Bartfield played in a “freeroll� Texas Hold’em tournament—without spending a penny. The married grandfather of one beat thousands of top players and is now the proud owner of a sleek Ferrari F430 Coupe with a 4.3-litre, V8 engine that will top out at 195 mph.

PartyPoker spokesman Warren Lush said: “Bruce’s story shows how ordinary guys can go all the way in poker and win fantastic prizes.�

Commenting on his win, Bartfield said: “A friend of mine kept telling me to play online, but I was a bit cynical. I’d always been a five or seven-card stud man and have played for years with family over Thanksgiving and Christmas. I learned Texas Hold’em about a year ago, playing with friends, and finally thought I’d give it a go online when I saw the tournament offering the chance to win a Ferrari.�

“I remember shouting out to my wife Cookie during the tournament. ‘Honey I’m in the final three,’ I screamed and she didn’t react. She told me afterwards that she didn’t want to say anything since she was desperate not to distract me. I rode my luck a lot in the tournament. Sometimes I went all-in with very little and was just praying that others would fold. Luckily for me, they did. Thank goodness for Sadie.�

Other players may recognize Bartfeld’s poker user name “bestdragon.� He chose that name because he breeds bearded dragon lizards for sale as pets in his pet store. Lizards and poker are his two primary hobbies. Ten years ago he even provided the snake for WWE wrestler Jake “The Snake� Roberts when they were in town.

“This is a major event in my life, “said Bartfield. “I’m now going to take my poker a lot more seriously and try and qualify for the World Series of Poker. I’ve seen how ordinary guys like Greg Raymer and Chris Moneymaker can do it and now I want my chance at the big-time. My accountant knows Steve Dannenmann, who came second in the main event this year. If I could achieve even a little of what he has I’ll be a happy man. My mother made me a dreamer while my father taught me self discipline.�

No need to dream anymore. There’ll soon be a new Ferrari sitting in Bartfeld’s driveway. His current car is a Chrysler Town-and-Country van. “The fact that I won still hasn’t sunk in. I’d always dreamed of having a nice car, but a Ferrari? I haven’t had a speeding ticket in 10 years. I’m going to polish it and perhaps I will sit it on the driveway and let the neighbours look at it!�

Maybe he’ll even let Sadie go for a ride.

Bartfeld wasn’t the only winner. Jim Williamson, a 57 year-old railroad worker from Sebring, Florida won the tournament on PartyPoker.com, the company’s ‘real money’ gaming site, but decided to take $150,000, the cash equivalent to the car.

“I’m going to use it to pay off bills,� said Williamson. “I think I’ll never have a better day of poker than I did on the final table. I didn’t hit a full house once and never had a hand which I’d consider to be the nuts. I won the money with ace high. I passed on the car even though I can see the Sebring Speedway from my back garden!�

Lavalife and PartyPoker.com Host Singles Poker Tournament
Singles compete for prizes, snag dates

Toronto, Ontario, April 19, 2006 – Poker is a growing trend across the nation, but can it actually help you win a date? Deal yourself into the Lavalife PartyPoker .comChallenge, and you could get lucky – walking away with fabulous prizes and maybe even a date! Lavalife, a leading online dating site, and Party Poker, one of the world’s largest online poker sites, have partnered to host a 12 week-long poker tournament designed exclusively for singles. Visit www.lavalifepokerchallenge.com to find out more.

Singles who are members of Lavalife and PartyPoker.com can flirt over the poker table throughout the 12-week, no-limit Texas Hold’em tournament, happening now. The tournament takes place at 9:30 pm EST every Thursday and the top 20 players from each of the first 11 weeks will have the chance to compete on June 9 in the final online championship tournament. The 220 players in the final tournament will compete for prizes worth a total of $25,000, including an all expenses paid vacation for two to the Club Med Turkoise in the Turks & Caicos Islands, a 50-inch plasma screen TV, an X-BOX 360, iPODs, and gift certificates to various leading online vendors.

“Online dating and poker are both extremely popular today – the Lavalife PartyPoker.com Challenge tournament was a natural fit to offer Lavalife members a unique, fun way to mix and mingle,� said Lori Miller, Lavalife’s singles and dating expert. “Singles will be able to chat with each other via the poker table’s chat room as they play and hopefully they will walk away with a spot at the final tournament and with a date!�

“Online poker has grown so much as a social activity in recent years,” said Warren Lush, spokesperson for PartyPoker.com. “This partnership with Lavalife which creates poker tournament tables exclusively for singles was an inevitable move for us.”

How the Tournament Works:

The Thursday evening tournaments will begin with multiple 10-person tables, allowing singles seated around each table to chat - or flirt - during the games. Each table operates on a knock-out basis whereby players attempt to win each others’ chips, until there is only one chip-holder remaining. Players winning the “first” table proceed to the next one for further rounds of knock-out. The process will continue until only 20 players remain, who will then proceed to the final tournament on June 9.

Singles can sign up for a free profile and register to join the tournament fun! For more information, visit www.lavalifepokerchallenge.com. No money is needed to play.

Lavalife and PartyPoker.com Tips for Single Poker Players

Learn more about how to play – and how to flirt at the Lavalife PartyPoker.com Challenge. Check out these tips for singles from Lavalife and PartyPoker.com

• Chat! While chatting can reveal a lot about yourself (so be careful not to reveal your hand!), the Lavalife PartyPoker.com challenge is a great time to get to know your other players by instant messaging them during the game.

• Keep knowledge of your level of poker skill to yourself. Your opponents are at an advantage if they can learn your degree of skill (or lack of it!).

• Pay attention. Poker is a little like dating. Watch who is playing in an aggressive or loose way and who’s playing tight, try to play the loose players and avoid the tight players, unless you’ve got a strong hand.

• Like the person’s style who sits across the table? Flirt! You may not win the tournament, but you can win another single over.

• Exchange Lavalife profile names at the end of the game to keep in touch with your newfound friends and intriguing personalities.

About Lavalife:

Lavalife Corp., one of the leading providers of technology-based dating services, allows its members anytime, anywhere access to like-minded singles with revolutionary offerings like Lavalife® Mobile (www.lavalifemobile.com). Founded in 1987, Lavalife markets its web, telephone and mobile products across the United States, Canada and Australia. Lavalife’s open-minded approach to dating allows members to choose how they want to “click” with other singles by offering three unique categories: dating, relationships and intimate encounters. Lavalife has attracted millions of unique members who exchange 1.3 million messages every day. For more information on Lavalife, visit www.lavalife.com/corp and www.lavalife.com/mediaroom.