Sorel ‘Imper1um’ Mizzi has signed with online poker site Titan Poker. The Canadian pro has more than $2.5 million in live cashes. He’ll be writing a blog as part of his arrangement with Titan.

The main event of the European Poker Tour Grand Final in Monte Carlo is in the books, and Lebanon’s Nicolas Chouity won. You can read about everything that went down in sordid detail at PokerStars’ blog. Or here’s a shorter recap of the action.

The 25K Euro high-roller shootout is at a final table, and the aforementioned Mizzi is there, as is Luke “Full_Flush” Schwartz. Get live updates at PokerStars’ blog.

If you wonder what you’re missing by not being in Monte Carlo, here’s a video look at the place you’re not at:

More Durrrr Challenge updates in the match of Tom Dwan vs. Patrick Antonius. This thing might have been exciting had they always played this much. Antonius won about $200K, but still trails by $1.8 million in the challenge.

David Williams recently took down the World Poker Tour $25K Championship. What’s he got to say after the big win? Cardplayer.com has the answer:

FTOPS XVI is 2/3 done. If you want to get up to date with yesterday’s events and what went down, check out an update here.

New Jersey the first state to regulate online poker in the United States? Story here handicaps the chances of that happening.

Change of policy over at the Cereus network (Absolute Poker and UB). A recent change meant that you could only have one account at Cereus. Now they are backtracking and you can have one at each site. Weird.

Speaking of Absolute, more news out on the ‘07 superuser scandal from Haley Hintze, a former reporter/writer for pokernews.com who covered the scandals. Here’s our original story, and here’s her latest update at her blog. It’s tl;dr if you aren’t super interested…basically more evidence/analysis of Hintze alleging that AP co-founder Scott Tom was at the heart of the cheating scandal.

Apparently, Poker Players Alliance execs can play poker, too. Rich Muny, a member of the PPA board and frequent 2+2 poster, won the Derby Poker Championship, a charity event, in Kentucky. 2+2 thread here.

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PTP:: How’s the Betfair sponsorship been working out for you so far? Has it changed anything dramatically about what / when you play?

SM: No, it hasn’t changed anything dramatically. I will probably end up playing more events with the Betfair contract then without it but it’s not that much of a change from what I was playing anyway.

PTP:: How did that sponsorship come about? What about Betfair attracted you?

SM: I had a few other offers at the time and after looking at each closely I felt that I would have the most opportunity by being sponsored by Betfair. What I really liked about Betfair was firstly that they were not interested in having a saturation of pro’s. They were interested in compiling a team of young guns who have proven themselves live and online to be top tier players. Also, Annette and I have always been pretty close friends and her being on the team was definitley something that attracted me to Betfair.

PTP:: How do you feel about sponsorship deals in general? Do you think the market has peaked or do you still see plenty of opportunities for your peers?

SM: Sponsorship deals are a great way to create a mutually beneficial situation for both the sponsor and the sponsored. I think there are still plenty of opportunities to get sponsored, especially if you stand out in a unique way (female pro’s, winning a huge or prestigious event, etc.)

PTP:: You haven’t done any extensive work with online poker training sites. What’s your thought on those services and the impact they’ve had on the game?

SM: Yes, I have had offers but have never really been interested in exposing my game to the world since it’s never really been worth it. The impact is huge, the online games are becoming noticeably a lot harder.

PTP:: Which is more profitable for you, online or live play?

SM: I definitley will have a higher ROI in live games then I would online. Just a matter of playing a lot more live tournaments.

PTP:: Which WSOP event are you looking forward to this year besides the main event?

SM: 10k Heads Up, 5k mixed limit/nl, any shootout

PTP:: When you were coming up in the online ranks, what players, if any, were really influential to you?

SM: Johnny Bax, since he was number 1 at the time and well liked / respected in the poker community.

PTP:: It’s a common belief that online poker has gotten tougher since the passage of the UIGEA. What’s your take on that belief and, if you agree, what would it take to get the games back to pre-UIGEA levels?

SM: I agree. What it would take to get the games back to pre-UIGEA levels would be either the US government abolishing the act or a constant influx of new players.. preferably who play high stakes

PTP:: What’s the single hardest thing about playing poker for a living?

SM: Downswings… they can effect your emotional well being in ways I never thought possible.. Will make you make worse decisions in poker and in life.

PTP:: If you stopped playing poker tomorrow, what would you do for a living?

SM: Either have my own business or real estate…. I’ve always been an entrepreneur and never liked the idea of working for someone else..

PTP:: How long do you see yourself continuing to play for a living?

SM: For a living , maybe 5-7 years.. playing for fun, my whole life.