View towards the High Table in the dining hall of Exeter College, Oxford.

At Oxford, Cambridge, Dublin and Durham colleges — and other, similarly traditional and prestigious UK and international academic institutions (such as University of London; University of Manchester and University of Bristol — the High Table is a table for the use of fellows (members of the Senior Common Room) and their guests. The table is normally on a raised platform and at the end of the dining hall, although not always. On more formal evening occasions, dinner jackets are worn. It is also normal to wear academic gowns.

External links [link]

• High Table at Churchill College, Cambridge
• High Table at Princeton University

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Round Table
King Arthur presides at the Round Table with all of his Knights.
Plot element from Arthurian legend
First appearance	Roman de Brut
Created by	Wace
Genre	Fantasy
In-story information
Type	Fictional table
Element of stories featuring	King Arthur

The Round Table is King Arthur's famed table in the Arthurian legend, around which he and his Knights congregate. As its name suggests, it has no head, implying that everyone who sits there has equal status. The table was first described in 1155 by Wace, who relied on previous depictions of Arthur's fabulous retinue. The symbolism of the Round Table developed over time; by the close of the 12th century it had come to represent the chivalric order associated with Arthur's court, the Knights of the Round Table.

History[link]

The Round Table first appears in Wace's Roman de Brut, a Norman language adaptation of Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae finished in 1155. Wace says Arthur created the Round Table to prevent quarrels among his barons, none of whom would accept a lower place than the others.^[1] Layamon added to the story when he adapted Wace's work into the Middle English Brut in the early 13th century, saying that the quarrel between Arthur's vassals led to violence at a Yuletide feast. In response a Cornish carpenter built an enormous but easily transportable Round Table to prevent further dispute.^[1] Wace claims he was not the source of the Round Table; both he and Layamon credit it instead to the Bretons. Some scholars have doubted this claim, while others believe it may be true.^[1] There is some similarity between the chroniclers' description of the Round Table and a custom recorded in Celtic stories, in which warriors sit in a circle around the king or lead warrior, in some cases feuding over the order of precedence as in Layamon.^[1] There is a possibility that Wace, contrary to his own claims, derived Arthur's round table not from any Breton source, but rather from medieval biographies of Charlemagne—notably Einhard's Vita Caroli and Notker the Stammerer's De Carolo Magno—in which the king is said to have possessed a round table decorated with a map of Rome.^[2]

Though the Round Table itself is not mentioned until Wace, the concept of Arthur having a marvellous court made up of many prominent warriors is much older. Geoffrey of Monmouth says that after establishing peace throughout Britain, Arthur "increased his personal entourage by inviting very distinguished men from far-distant kingdoms to join it."^[3] The code of chivalry so important in later romance figures in as well, as Geoffrey says Arthur established "such a code of courtliness in his household that he inspired peoples living far away to imitate him."^[3] Long before Geoffrey, Arthur's court was well known to Welsh storytellers; in the romance Culhwch and Olwen, written around 1100, the protagonist Culhwch invokes the names of 225 individuals affiliated with Arthur.^[4] In fact, the fame of Arthur's entourage became so prominent in Welsh tradition that in the later additions to the Welsh Triads, the formula "Arthur's Court" in the titles of the triads began to supersede the older "Island of Britain" formula.^[5] Though the code of chivalry crucial to later continental romances dealing with the Round Table is mostly absent from the earlier Welsh material, some passages of Culhwch and Olwen seem to prefigure it, for instance when Arthur explains the ethos of his court, saying "[w]e are nobles as long as we are sought out: the greater the bounty we may give, the greater our nobility, fame and honour."^[6]

Though no Round Table appears in the early Welsh texts, Arthur is associated with various items of household furniture. The earliest of these is Saint Carannog's mystical floating altar in that saint's 12th century Vita; in the story Arthur has found the altar and attempts unsuccessfully to use it for a table, and returns it to Carannog in exchange for the saint ridding the land of a meddlesome dragon.^[7] Arthur's household furniture figures into local topographical folklore throughout Britain as early as the early 12th century, with various landmarks being named "Arthur's Seat", "Arthur's Oven," and "Arthur's Bed-chamber."^[8] A henge at Eamont Bridge near Penrith, Cumbria is known as "King Arthur's Round Table".^[9] The still-visible Roman amphitheatre at Caerleon has been associated with the Round Table^[10] and has been suggested as a possible source for the legend.^[11]

In 2010, following archaeological discoveries at the Roman ruins in Chester, some writers suggested that the Chester Roman Amphitheatre was the true prototype of the Round Table^[12] but English Heritage, acting as consultants to a History Channel documentary in which the claim was made, declared that there was no archaeological basis to the story.^[13]

Later development[link]

Sir Galahad takes the "Siege Perilous"

The Round Table takes on new dimensions in the romances of the late 12th and early 13th century, where it becomes a symbol of the famed order of chivalry which flourishes under Arthur. In Robert de Boron's Merlin, written around the 1190s, the wizard Merlin creates the Round Table in imitation of the table of the Last Supper and of Joseph of Arimathea's Holy Grail table. This table, here made for Arthur's father Uther Pendragon rather than Arthur himself, has twelve seats and one empty place to mark the betrayal of Judas. This seat must remain empty until the coming of the knight who will achieve the Grail. The Didot Perceval, a prose continuation of Robert's work, takes up the story, and the knight Percival sits in the seat and initiates the Grail quest.^[1]

The prose cycles of the 13th century, the Lancelot-Grail cycle and the Post-Vulgate Cycle, further adapt the chivalric attributes of the Round Table. Here it is the perfect knight Galahad, rather than Percival, who assumes the empty seat, now called the Siege Perilous. Galahad's arrival marks the start of the Grail quest as well as the end of the Arthurian era.^[1] In these works the Round Table is kept by King Leodegrance of Cameliard after Uther's death; Arthur inherits it when he marries Leodegrance's daughter Guinevere. Other versions treat the Round Table differently, for instance Italian Arthurian works often distinguish between the "Old Table" of Uther's time and Arthur's "New Table."^[14]

Round Table tournaments[link]

Winchester Round Table

During the Middle Ages, festivals called Round Tables were celebrated throughout Europe in imitation of Arthur's court. These events featured jousting, dancing, and feasting, and in some cases attending knights assumed the identities of Arthur's knights.^[15] The earliest of these was held in Cyprus in 1223 to celebrate a knighting. Round Tables were popular in various European countries through the rest of the Middle Ages and were at times very elaborate; René of Anjou even erected an Arthurian castle for his 1446 Round Table.^[15] On 19 December 1566, in Stirling Castle, Mary Queen of Scots gave a feast with 30 guests at an imagined replica of Arthur's round table during the masque-themed celebrations of the baptism of the future James VI.^[16][17]

Winchester Round Table[link]

The artifact known as the "Winchester Round Table," a large tabletop hanging in Winchester Castle bearing the names of various knights of Arthur's court, was probably created for a Round Table tournament.^[18] The current paintwork is late; it was done by order of Henry VIII of England for Holy Roman Emperor Charles V's 1522 state visit, and depicts Henry himself sitting in Arthur's seat above a Tudor rose. The table itself is considerably older; dendrochronology calculates the date of construction to 1250–1280—during the reign of Edward I—using timber from store felled over a period of years.^[19] Edward was an Arthurian enthusiast who attended at least five Round Tables and hosted one himself in 1299, which may have been the occasion for the creation of the Winchester Round Table.^[18] Martin Biddle, from an examination of Edward's financial accounts, links it instead with a tournament Edward held near Winchester on April 20, 1290, to mark the betrothal of one of his daughters.^[20]

Notes[link]

References[link]

• Bromwich, Rachel (2006). Trioedd Ynys Prydein: The Triads of the Island of Britain. University Of Wales Press. ISBN 0-7083-1386-8.
• Geoffrey of Monmouth; Thorpe, Lewis (1988). The History of the Kings of Britain. New York: Penguin. ISBN 0-14-044170-0.
• Lacy, Norris J. (Ed.) (1991). The New Arthurian Encyclopedia. New York: Garland. ISBN 0-8240-4377-4.
• Loomis, Roger S. (1959). "Arthurian Influence on Sport and Spectacle". Arthurian Literature in the Middle Ages. Oxford.
• Padel, O. J. (2000). Arthur in Medieval Welsh Literature. University of Wales Press. ISBN 0-7083-7689-1.
• Rouse, Robert; and Cory Rushton (2005). The Medieval Quest for Arthur. Tempus, Stroud. ISBN 0-7524-3343-1.
• Thomas, Charles (1953). "Folklore from a Northern Henge Monument". Folklore 64 (3): 427–429. JSTOR 1256826. 

External links[link]

• Timeless Myths - Knights of the Round Table
• The 14th Century Round Table in Winchester, Hampshire. UK

Daniel Negreanu
Negreanu at the 2007 World Series of Poker
Nickname(s)	Kid Poker[1]
Residence	Toronto, Ontario Canada
Born	(1974-07-26) July 26, 1974 (age 37)
World Series of Poker
Bracelet(s)	4
Final table(s)	27
Money finish(es)	52
Highest ITM Main Event finish	11th, 2001
World Poker Tour
Title(s)	2
Final table(s)	8
Money finish(es)	18
European Poker Tour
Title(s)	None
Final table(s)	1
Money finish(es)	2
Information accurate as of 28 February 2012.

Daniel Negreanu (pronounced /nɨˈɡrɑːnoʊ/; born July 26, 1974) is a Canadian professional poker player of Romanian origin. He has won four World Series of Poker bracelets and two World Poker Tour Championship titles. He is currently ranked second in the all-time career earnings list^[2] and is the star of poker game show Million Dollar Challenge. He plays a big part in the Pokerstars.net Big Game.

Personal life[link]

Negreanu was born in Toronto, Ontario. In 1967, his parents, Annie and Constantin, emigrated from Communist Romania, hoping to start a new life in the United States. Instead, they ended up settling in Toronto, where Constantin worked as an electrician and sold confectionery. Daniel was born five years after his brother, and even at an early age was extremely ambitious. "From the age of four, I thought I’d be rich. I told my mom I’d build a house out of Popsicle sticks, and move to Cafornia (sic),” Daniel recalls in a 2009 interview.^[3]

Daniel Negreanu attended Pineway public middle school in North York, where the principal complained to his mother about Daniel's "poor manners or behavior" and threatened to expel him for "ignoring the school rules."^[3] While nursing dreams of a career as a professional snooker player, the now 15-year-old Daniel learned how to play poker. By 16, he was spending time in pool halls, hustling, sports betting, and playing cards.^[4] When he was several credits short of graduation Daniel dropped out of high school and began his life as a rounder playing at the local charity casinos, usually at Casino Country and Fundtime Games, and looking for illegal games around the city. While in Toronto, Daniel met and began dating Evelyn Ng,^[5] who would also become a well-known professional poker player. After building up his bankroll, he left for Las Vegas at the age of 22 to pursue his dream of becoming a professional poker player. However, "The Strip" got the better of him and he was forced to move back home to Toronto to rebuild his bankroll.

In August 2005, he married Lori Lin Weber and they later separated in November 2007.^[6] He resides in Las Vegas, Nevada. Negreanu has a blog at Full Contact Poker where he posts his thoughts and feelings about different things in life, politics, the poker world and everything. He is also a heavy NHL fan once claiming on Poker After Dark at the dream table he was thinking of declining the offer because the tournament was in the middle of hockey season. He is often seen wearing NHL jerseys of the Toronto Maple Leafs and other teams. Daniel became a vegetarian in 2000, he has been vegan since 2006.^[7] After many years living in the USA, he received his green card on July 15, 2009. On November 23, 2009 Daniel's mother died in her sleep after being ill for many months.^[8]

Philanthropy[link]

Negreanu has a personal history of philanthropy. In addition to frequent appearances in charity events, such as “Ante Up for Africa”, which raises money for crisis-torn Darfur, Negreanu is the founder of the annual “Big Swing” charity golf event.^[9]

The first annual Big Swing event was held on June 25 at the Harrah’s Rio Secco Golf Club. Professional poker players Scotty Nguyen and Erick Lindgren were among the celebrity poker players paired with foursomes who had donated $3,000 to the Lili Claire Foundation.^[10] The Lili Claire Foundation is a Las Vegas charity that serves children born with special needs and their families.^[11]

Poker[link]

Negreanu is an accomplished tournament and cash game player. Negreanu has amassed four WSOP and two WPT championships, numerous WSOP and WPT final tables, as well as various other tournament titles. Negreanu's most successful year came in 2004 when he was named the Card Player Player of the Year^[12] and the WSOP Player of the Year.^[13] He was also named the 2004-05 WPT Player of the Year.^[14] In 2006, Negreanu was named "Favorite Poker Player" at Card Player Magazine's Player of the Year Awards Gala.

In the past, Negreanu has regularly played the big game in Bobby's Room, in the Bellagio casino, Las Vegas, where the limits are $4,000-$8,000 or greater and the games are mixed. He is a self-admitted action junkie who always seeks new challenges and sets high goals for himself, not only at the poker table but also on the golf course. Unlike many other players, he is very outspoken about his poker results and regularly posts updates in the forums at the Full Contact Poker website. Some of Negreanu’s success is attributed to his ability to read opponents. When asked about this, Negreanu explained that the most important skill he employs is observing what hands his opponents play and how capable they are of playing them.^[15]

Live poker[link]

Tournaments[link]

Negreanu burst onto the tournament poker scene in 1997 with three tournament wins including two events at the World Poker Finals at Foxwoods, earning $55,064 as well as being named the tournament's best all-around player.

As of 2012, his total live tournament winnings exceed $16,100,000.^[2] His 51 cashes at the WSOP account for $3,634,251 of those winnings.^[16] He recently became the all-time leading money winner for tournament poker, surpassing Phil Ivey, only to be surpassed by Erik Seidel.^[17]

World Series of Poker[link]

Negreanu's first in the money finish at the WSOP also happened to be his first WSOP bracelet. Negreanu won $169,460 in the $2,000 Pot Limit Hold'em event in the 1998 World Series of Poker (WSOP) and became the youngest WSOP bracelet winner in history — a record he held until 2004.^[18] Negreanu has since captured another three bracelets. He has 23 career WSOP final table appearances, including two at the WSOP Europe, and 51 money finishes.^[13]

World Poker Tour[link]

Other notable tournaments[link]

In 1997, he won two events at the World Poker Finals at Foxwoods, earning $55,064 as well as being named the tournament's best all-around player.

In November 2008, Negreanu won the fourth-annual British Columbia Poker Championships main event, topping a field of 690 players (a personal high for Daniel), and earning $371,910 CAD ($299,951 USD).^[19]

Cash games[link]

In addition to Negreanu's regular appearances in the big game at Bobby's Room, he played in six seasons of High Stakes Poker. He also played in two seasons of PokerStars Big Game.

Online poker[link]

In December 2005, he started his own online poker cardroom "skin" site on his official site, Full Contact Poker, which also includes his blog and a variety of poker forums. He played at his cardroom under the screen name "KidPoker". In 2006, he used Full Contact Poker to launch a competition to select a protege, whom Daniel would attempt to mold into a world-class live tournament poker player. In addition, he agreed to pay the protege's entry fee into four $10,000 buy-in events. Daniel's first protege was Brian Fidler. In 2007, Daniel ran a second protege promotion, which was won by Anthony Mak. After the events of Black Friday, Negreanu moved back to Canada in order to continue playing online poker on Poker Stars.

In June 2007 Negreanu signed with PokerStars, joining Chris Moneymaker, Joe Hachem, Greg Raymer and many other professional poker players as a member of Team PokerStars.^[20] His Full Contact Poker site has since returned to being a forum and informational site.

Other poker activities[link]

Upon opening, the Wynn Las Vegas resort recruited him as their "Poker Ambassador" to play for any stake in their poker room. The arrangement lasted until October 2005, when he opted out because it was restricting his ability to play for high stakes outside the Wynn.

Negreanu has played poker on various TV shows such as Late Night Poker, Poker After Dark, and High Stakes Poker, as well as serving as a commentator and stand-in host on Ultimate Poker Challenge. He also appeared in the third season of Poker Superstars Invitational Tournament. In January 2007, Negreanu appeared in the Fox Reality original series Rob and Amber: Against the Odds, in which he mentored reality television personality Rob Mariano in his bid to become a professional poker player.

In May 2008, Negreanu's book Power Hold'em Strategy was released. The book resembles the Doyle Brunson book Super/System in that it has contributions from several other poker players, including Evelyn Ng, Erick Lindgren, Paul Wasicka, Todd Brunson and David Williams. Negreanu's section presents and explains the strategy of small ball poker. At the same time he started a poker teaching site called Poker VT.^[21] Negreanu is also featured in the 2006 poker video game Stacked with Daniel Negreanu, providing tips and hints as to how to play effectively. He has written over 100 articles for CardPlayer Magazine and contributed to Doyle Brunson's revised book, Super System II. He has tutored on the web as part of Poker School Online and also personally given lessons to celebrities such as Tobey Maguire.

Other ventures[link]

Negreanu made cameo appearances as a poker player playing against the mutant Gambit in the film X-Men Origins: Wolverine as well as a poker player in The Grand, and as himself in the film Lucky You. On Season two of Sports Science, Daniel attempts to show if a professional poker player can bluff a lie detector. He also appeared in Katy Perry's music video for "Waking Up in Vegas", also as a poker player.

Bibliography[link]

• Hold'em Wisdom for all Players (2007) ISBN 1-58042-210-1
• Power Hold'em Strategy (2008) ISBN 1-58042-204-7
• More Hold'em Wisdom for all Players (2008) ISBN 1-58042-224-1

Notes[link]

External links[link]

• Official site
• Cardplayer articles by Negreanu
• Negreanu's vlog

Dana Hadačová (born 3 September 1983) is a Czech table tennis player.

She competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics, reaching the second round of the singles competition.

She was born in Hodonín, and resides there.

References[link]

• 2008 Olympic profile

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This biographical article relating to a Czech sportsperson is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e