Poker News

WSOP on ESPN Ratings Down 8% After Two Weeks

Poker News Daily has learned that ESPN’s coverage of the 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) has experienced an 8% dip in television ratings through two weeks to 0.72. Last year, the mark was 0.78.

In addition to ratings seeing an 8% slide, household impressions also fell, albeit a modest 5%. The total number of household impressions through two weeks of the 2009 WSOP was 714,904, compared with last year’s tally of 750,315. Four one-hour episodes have aired so far, with 26 more comprising coverage of the Ante Up for Africa charity tournament and the prestigious $10,000 buy-in Main Event.

ESPN media contact George McNeilly told Poker News Daily that, despite the ratings slip, he remained optimistic: “These are very small declines and we’re just four telecasts into the season. We have almost 30 more episodes to go, so it’s way too early to start drawing any conclusions. One interesting trend we are watching is how ratings are flat among men 25 to 54, which bodes well for the rest of the season.”

Figures released after the July 28th kickoff telecast revealed that viewers were up 2% among men age 18 to 34. The number of viewers age 25 to 54 was up a commanding 16% after the first episode of the 2009 WSOP debuted on ESPN and the number of viewers age 18 to 49 was on par with the 2008 broadcast. The first telecast of the 2009 WSOP on ESPN featured the $40,000 buy-in No Limit Hold’em tournament commemorating the 40th running of the WSOP. In the end, Vitaly Lunkin dominated the 201 player field en route to a $1.9 million first place prize. He defeated Isaac Haxton heads-up in a star-studded final table that also included Greg Raymer, Ted Forrest, Justin “ZeeJustin” Bonomo, and Alec “traheho” Torelli.

On August 4th, the weekly Tuesday timeslot saw the WSOP Champions Invitational come to life. In one of the first non-bracelet events ever broadcast by ESPN, the Champions Invitational featured 20 former Main Event winners take to the felts. The unconventional 10-handed final table saw 1983 champ Tom McEvoy come out on top, taking home a vintage red 1970 Corvette Stingray and the Binion Cup. McEvoy defeated 2002 Main Event winner Robert Vakonyi heads-up in a final table that also included Peter Eastgate, Carlos Mortensen, Doyle Brunson, Huck Seed, and Dan Harrington.

Next week, the Ante Up for Africa charity poker tournament will headline ESPN coverage and begins at 8:00pm ET. The gala featured a veritable “who’s who” of the celebrity world, including “Rounders” star Matt Damon, “Pearl Harbor” actor Ben Affleck, “Celebrity Apprentice” candidate Herschel Walker, “Seinfeld’ star Jason Alexander, “Everybody Loves Raymond” star Brad Garrett, rapper Nelly, and legendary boxer Mike Tyson. The latter has developed a cult following stemming from his cameo in the blockbuster hit “The Hangover.” Tyson did not bring his tiger to the red carpet.

Poker stars who turned out to the charity event included Ante Up for Africa co-founder Annie Duke, Greg Raymer, Erik Seidel, Howard Lederer, Chris Ferguson, Jennifer Harman, Joe Hachem, Jason Mercier, and Andy Bloch. ESPN Coordinating Producer Jamie Horowitz told Poker News Daily what makes airing the charity gala unique: “We are excited to present a different type of poker tournament. In the Ante Up For Africa event, the story is more about the journey (the celebrities, the stars, and the pros) than the destination.”

Twenty-four hours of coverage of the 2009 WSOP Main Event will air on ESPN beginning on August 18th. The Main Event final table is scheduled to air on November 10th beginning at 9:00pm ET. Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest WSOP news.

Tom McEvoy Trumps WSOP Champions Invitational Field on ESPN

Tuesday night saw the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Champions Invitational play out on ESPN. A rather subdued final table competed for a vintage 1970 Corvette and the title of “Champion of Champions.”

The taking of the now-storied photo of 20 former WSOP Main Event champions kicked off the ESPN telecast on Tuesday and the final table began with an unconventional 10 players taking to the felts. Up for grabs was a red 1970 Corvette Stingray that formerly appeared in the Imperial Palace car collection. The WSOP Champions Invitational winner would also take home the Binion Cup, an oversized trophy with the inscription, “The Champion of Champions. The 40th Annual World Series of Poker ‘Champions Invitational’ Winner in Honor of Poker’s First Family.” The cup also bore the date that the final table played out, June 1st, 2009.

1989 Main Event Champion Phil Hellmuth came armed to the final table with a stack of 1,125, or just 1% of the chips in play. In fact, he held just three chips, which promptly went into the middle with 10-5 of spades against Carlos Mortensen’s pocket twos. The flop came 4-Q-J with no spades, but an ace on the turn gave Hellmuth a gutshot straight draw. Needing a 10, 5, or 3 to fall on the river to double up, Hellmuth watched as an 8 hit. Hellmuth holds the record for the most number of WSOP bracelets won with 11.

2008 Main Event Champion Peter Eastgate’s exit in ninth place meant that the two youngest winners of the $10,000 buy-in feature tournament had been eliminated. Eastgate’s 8-7 ran into “Action” Dan Harrington’s pocket aces and an open-ended straight draw on the flop failed to materialize. A bevy of poker authors remained in the final eight players, including Tom McEvoy (“Championship Hold’em”), Doyle Brunson (“Super System” Volumes I and II), and Harrington (“Harrington on Hold’em”).

Eastgate’s departure set up the first Jack Link’s Beef Jerky Wild Card Hand. The cards of one player are not revealed, leaving the viewing audience and ESPN announcers Lon McEachern and Norman Chad to guess what they may hold. Harrington raised to 1,800 with A-Q of diamonds and Mortensen made the call after his cards were obscured by the logo for the popular beef jerky brand. The flop came 3-3-8 and the action went check-check. A four fell on the turn and the action again went check-check. The river was a nine. Mortensen bet out 2,500 and Harrington called. Mortensen sheepishly turned over 6-7 of clubs for what Chad called “squadoosh.”

Watching the action in the WSOP Champions Invitational were several notable poker pros. “The Mad Genius of Poker” Mike Caro looked on as Brunson called all-in on a draw. Chad quipped, “He’s priced in, but he’s calling off all of his chips on a draw. I don’t remember that being mentioned in ‘Super System’ 1 or 2.” Brunson’s draw never hit and he was ousted from the televised table. McEvoy celebrated his elimination of Brunson with poker pro Kathy Liebert, who railed him throughout the finale.

The first installment of ESPN’s “40th Annual Memories” vignette was a tribute to Stu Ungar featuring comments by Joe Hachem, Howard Lederer, and Steve Zolotow. Ungar died in 1998 after winning 10 of 32 $5,000 buy-in events he had entered. Then, Berry Johnston, who won the 1986 Main Event, busted in seventh place. The 73 year-old has cashed in every WSOP since 1982, when he took third in the Main Event for $104,000.

“The Nuts” once again featured 40th Annual WSOP Trivia. Lederer, Jennifer Harman, and Bodog pro David Williams participated this week, answering questions from three categories: “2008,” “Poker Feats,” and “Is Poker a Sport?” In the end, Harman advanced to the next round, joining Adam Schoenfeld, who won last week. Huck Seed’s exit in sixth place and Mortensen’s departure in fifth rounded out the first of two one-hour episodes on Tuesday night.

The “40th Annual Memories” in the second installment of the WSOP on ESPN, which aired at 9:00pm ET, focused on Harrington’s back-to-back Main Event final tables in 2003 and 2004 after winning the feature tournament in 1995. Harrington took third in the former for $650,000 and finished fourth in 2004 for $1.5 million. A quiet Harrington remained in contention in the Champions Invitational.

The second Wild Card Hand featured McEvoy raising to 3,000 with unknown cards. 2002 Main Event Champion Robert Varkonyi called from the big blind with A-5 of clubs. The flop came 10-4-A. Varkonyi bet out 5,000 and McEvoy called immediately to see a queen fall on the turn. Varkonyi checked, McEvoy bet 12,000, and Varkonyi folded. Chad commented, “I originally thought Tom had pocket eights. Now, I think he had pocket fours and flopped a set.” Instead, McEvoy held A-6 offsuit.

I can’t recall very many three-handed final tables as silent as the one that took to the felts on Tuesday night. The survivors represented Main Event champions from the last three decades: Varkonyi (2002), Harrington (1995), and McEvoy (1983). McEvoy’s K-Q of diamonds finally sent Harrington to the rails in third and, in the final hand of the WSOP Champions Invitational, McEvoy turned a 10-high straight to take down the title. He told Chad following his monumental win, “I hadn’t won much lately and I think I was losing some respect from my peers… I was just determined that I was going to win it and I did.”

Tune into ESPN next Tuesday night at 8:00pm ET for the $5,000 buy-in Ante Up for Africa charity poker tournament.

ESPN 2009 WSOP Ratings Fall 4%

The 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) debuted on cable station ESPN on Tuesday with a $40,000 buy-in No Limit Hold’em tournament commemorating the 40th running of the prestigious series. In the end, ratings fell by 4%, but were up in several key demographics.

In 2008, the WSOP on ESPN began airing one week earlier than this year’s festivities. Nevertheless, ratings in 2009 were off by 4% for the premier episode and household impressions were down 2%, according to ESPN Media Contact George McNeilly. However, numbers for two key demographics increased year over year, an encouraging sign for the Bristol-based cable network. McNeilly told Poker News Daily that viewers were up 2% among men ages 18 to 34. In addition, the number of men ages 25 to 54 who tuned into the 2009 WSOP on ESPN grew by an astonishing 16%. Meanwhile, in men ages 18 to 49, the number of viewers was on par with last season’s telecast. Six players at the $40,000 buy-in tournament’s final table were in their 20s, with 2004 WSOP Main Event Champion Greg Raymer serving as its elder statesman at 44 years-old.

Despite overall ratings being down, McNeilly remains optimistic about the remainder of the 2009 WSOP on ESPN schedule. He commented, “We have a long season of outstanding events and great storylines to go.” Last year, the finale of the 2008 WSOP Main Event, which occurred after a 117 day delay at the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, turned in a 1.9 rating, up 46% from the rating that conclusion of the 2007 Main Event received (1.3). The latter tournament featured Jerry Yang defeating Tuan Lam. In total, pushing the final table of the Main Event back to coincide with its television broadcast paid off. Instead of viewers asking how a player won, they were left wondering who would win poker’s most prestigious title.

In 2008, the average rating for the 32 episodes that made up the WSOP broadcast was 0.9. That figure represents 919,000 households and 1.55 million viewers, which were up 13% and 15%, respectively, in comparison to 2007 figures. Next Tuesday, the WSOP Champions Invitational will air. The invite-only tournament attracted 20 former Main Event winners to the Rio to battle for a vintage Corvette from the Imperial Palace car collection and the Binion Cup. The tournament’s final nine include Dan Harrington (1995 Main Event Champion), Carlos Mortensen (2001), Huck Seed (1996), Tom McEvoy (1983), and Doyle Brunson (1976 and 1977). The spectacle kicks off at 8:00pm ET on ESPN and runs for two hours.

ESPN’s poker offering will also include the annual Ante Up for Africa charity tournament. The $5,000 buy-in event that raises money and awareness for the crisis in Darfur will pan out on television screens around the country on August 11th at 8:00pm ET. The tournament featured a “who’s who” of the celebrity world, including Mike Tyson, Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Sarah Silverman, Doug Benson, Nelly, and Jason Alexander, whose “Seinfeld” reunion on HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm” later this year has been the talk of the television industry.

ESPN will air 24 hours of the 2009 WSOP Main Event between August 18th and November 3rd. On November 10th, the conclusion of the $10,000 buy-in feature tournament will play out, with chip leader Darvin Moon taking on a final table that also includes Full Tilt Poker pro and 2009 two-time bracelet winner Phil Ivey and controversial CardPlayer Magazine Editor Jeff Shulman. The latter has threatened to trash his bracelet should he win due to an ongoing rift with Harrah’s, which owns the rights to the WSOP. Other members of the November Nine are James Akenhead, Kevin Schaffel, Steven Begleiter, Eric Buchman, Joe Cada, and Antoine Saout.

<i>Rounders 2</i> a reality?

"Everybody would probably come back," Rounders star Matt Damon told PokerListings. "The actors all had a really good time working together. I know Edward would want to do it; we had a blast working together. [Director] John Dahl I'm sure would like to do it. Maybe someday it will happen.

"The only reason to do a movie like that would be if we had a great idea. If the two writers suddenly said eureka! We have a great idea. Then everyone involved would be interested in exploring it."

According to one half of the David Levien and Brian Koppleman writing team, who penned both Rounders and the casino caper flick Oceans 13, that "eureka" moment may not be far off.

"We've been concentrating on Rounders 2 lately; Ideas are percolating," Levien told PokerListings. "It's great to know that all of the original players want to come back and do another one."

The Hollywood rumor mill recently had Leonardo DiCaprio set to star in a Rounders sequel using a Levien and Koppleman script based on online casinos.

Levien confirmed that project is in the works, but its association to Rounders is circumstantial at best.

"We did just set up a project centering on the world of offshore online casinos with Leonardo attached," Levien said. "It's a little ways down the road, but we've started researching."

"It's a great world. Some of the countries where online casinos are based are like the new version of the Wild West, and with so much money on the line there is lots of drama attached."

The two writers just seem drawn to the world of poker and gambling.

"Vegas, the poker world, the casino environment, and the characters that gravitate around them are endlessly fascinating to us," Levien said.

"We've always been interested in poker players who develop these skills and literally live by them; putting their money on the table and living or dying by how good they are."

Rounders is hands down the most popular and influential poker movie ever made.

It's been quoted, impersonated and dissected at more poker tables and online forums than any other film. Those discussions often center on how the movie was written and why these two writers picked poker as the setting for their first feature film.

Levien says it was the game itself that that drew them in.

"Brian and I had been working on the rough beginnings of a screenplay idea about two friends, and deciding what to do with one's life, and we weren't sure exactly what world we were going to set it in," he explained.

"Then Brian called me at about three in the morning and said 'I just lost all my money at an underground poker club. It was awesome. We've got to set the movie here.'

"The next night we went, and kept going back, playing at clubs all over the city every night for a year.  We read all the available important poker books too, and began writing the script during the mornings."

One of the underground poker clubs in question was New York's famed Mayfair Club, home court to Dan Harrington, Howard Lederer, Erik Seidel and a host of colorful characters.

Speculation regarding the various characters in the movie and who they were based on has run rampant since the film's 1998 release.

It has even been claimed the movie was based on actor/comedian Norm MacDonald and although he occasionally played at Mayfair, Levien says Rounders really had nothing to do with him.

However, he did confirm rumors that the "Teddy KGB" character was based on a player known as "Eddie KGB," and that "Joey Knish" was actually based on a rounder named "Joel Bagels," but he squashed all speculation regarding Damon's character "Mike McDermott."

"Brian had just gone to law school at night, but didn't want to practice law, so we got the idea: What if something that seemed conventionally wrong, like poker playing, was really the main character's destiny, and something usually considered proper, like being a lawyer, wasn't the right choice," he said.

For Rounders biggest fans, the most frequently argued question has always regarded what Teddy KGB was holding in the film's final hand.

Unfortunately, Levien and Koppleman still refuse to end that debate.

"That's probably the most asked question in regard to the movie, but it's something we never answer," Levien said.

Visit PokerListings.com

Tom Dwan Announces Live Million Dollar Durrrr Challenge

Play in the Million Dollar Challenge between Tom “durrrr” Dwan and Patrik Antonius has come to a screeching halt. No action has occurred since June 19th, but Dwan has announced a live version of the Challenge in London this September.

According to an article on Matchroom Sport, Dwan will ante up against four players in the historic European city two months from now. Dwan told Matchroom, “I am looking forward to sitting down and playing some of the world’s best players live in London. There looks to be lots of interest in people wanting to play me, but they never seem to appear online. It will be interesting to see the response [we get] and just who is willing to get it on.” The heads-up matches may take place in conjunction with the annual World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe, which runs from September 19th to October 2nd at the London Clubs International.

Each of Dwan’s four live opponents will battle against the young internet superstar for 500 hands. The buy-in will be $500,000 and blinds are $500-$1,000. Each opponent will take on Dwan mano-a-mano in Pot Limit Omaha or No Limit Hold’em. Matchroom added, “No player can leave the contest until either the 500 hands are up or the player has bust.” Eddie Hearn, Managing Director of Matchroom Sport, noted, “[Dwan] is totally fearless and ready to take on any player that is willing to face off in the Million Dollar match-up. This will be the most hotly anticipated match-up in modern day poker.”

Dwan’s battle against Antonius on the felts of Full Tilt Poker has largely stalled during the 2009 WSOP. As the Million Dollar Challenge currently stands, Dwan owns a $726,000 lead after 20,647 hands over 25 days of play. One month ago during a session on June 11th, Dwan stormed back from a sizable deficit, making up $376,000 in just 786 hands. Antonius led by $34,000 after play had concluded, but has since relinquished his lead to the aggressive internet star.

Antonius was one of 500 players locked out of 2009 WSOP Main Event when the fourth of four starting days reached its maximum capacity. Others who watched their Main Event title hopes evaporate before the tournament even began included Ted Forrest, T.J. Cloutier, and “Captain” Tom Franklin, who joined World Poker Tour (WPT) Host Mike Sexton to speak to Harrah’s officials on behalf of the shut out players. Solutions included ten-handed tables and a special Day 1E, although in the end no action was taken. Dwan played in the Main Event, but did not finish in the money. He recorded two final tables last year for a grand total of $112,000.

The Durrrr Challenge kicked off on February 18th with a 1,535 hand session. Dwan jumped out at a $134,000 lead, including a hand in which he made runner-runner quad fives. A total of 50,000 hands are required for the contest to reach completion. Dwan and Antonius four-table $200-$400 Pot Limit Omaha and attract a throng of onlookers to the virtual felts of Full Tilt Poker. To date, Dwan has faced off against Antonius, with November Nine member Phil Ivey and poker pro David Benyamine scheduled to follow.

Matchroom notes that Dwan has earned over $10 million online. The internet superstar was one of the top 10 vote-getters for the 2009 class of the Poker Hall of Fame, joining Mike Sexton, Barry Greenstein, Dan Harrington, Ivey, Tom McEvoy, Men “The Master” Nguyen, Scotty Nguyen, Daniel Negreanu, and Erik Seidel. Now, 15 members of the Poker Hall of Fame and 15 members of the media will determine who will be inducted during the final table of the WSOP Main Event in November.

Check out the latest from the Durrrr Challenge.

Bernard Lee at the 2009 WSOP

The 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) is underway.  Already, most of this year’s 57 WSOP bracelets have been awarded.  If you have never been to the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino during the summer, you owe it to yourself to attend one year to witness the spectacle that is the WSOP.  Table after table jam-packed with poker players.  A symphony of shuffling chips permeates through air.  A room overflowing with hopes and dreams of becoming the next WSOP bracelet winner.  Does it get any better than this?

On any given day, up to six different bracelet events were played.  Each day started off with a new WSOP bracelet event at Noon, while another often commenced at 5:00pm.  Meanwhile, the other WSOP bracelet events reassembled for Day 2 and final tables kicked off at 2:00pm and 4:00pm.  Additionally, two multi-table non-bracelet tournaments were played (7:00pm and 11:00pm), while two multi-table WSOP Main Event satellites were offered daily (3:00pm and 8:00pm).  All the while, there were single table satellites that occurred all day ranging from $65 to $1,030 down the hallway in the Brasilia Room.

This year, the WSOP started off with a bang, as 201 players registered for the first major event - the $40,000 No Limit Hold‘em tournament.  It was created as a celebration of the 40th anniversary of the WSOP and won by Russian Vitaly Lunkin.  Outlasting poker professionals Greg Raymer (2004 WSOP Main Event Champion) and Isaac Haxton, Lunkin took home the coveted WSOP bracelet in addition to almost $1.9 million.  Also during the first weekend, the Stimulus Special (Event # 4, $1,000 No Limit Hold‘em) had a record turnout.  The 6,012 participants made up the largest non-WSOP Main Event field in the history of poker. In the end, the tournament was won by poker professional Steve Sung, who took home $771,106.

However, one of the most anticipated events of the 40th annual WSOP was not even a bracelet event.  On Sunday, May 31st, the WSOP Champions Invitational brought together all of the past WSOP Main Event winners.  Although 34 different players have won the WSOP Main Event (remember, there have been players with multiple titles such as Doyle Brunson, Stu Unger, and Johnny Chan), there are 25 current living champions.  Of these, 20 former winners came together in the Amazon Room, making this winner-take-all event one of the most competitive fields in the history of poker.

The winner of this unprecedented Champions Invitational would take home a vintage red Corvette from 1970, marking the inaugural year of the WSOP.  More importantly, the winner would have the ultimate bragging rights as “The Champion of Champions.”

At the beginning of the tournament, Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack announced each player’s name one by one, culminating in a historic picture of all of the living WSOP champions.  The massive crowd was electric with anticipation for this once-in-a-lifetime event.

After 10 champions were eliminated on Day One, the final 10 players reassembled on June 1st. The field was comprised of a mix of old school and new style online aggression: Two-time champion Doyle “Texas Dolly” Brunson (finished 8th), “Action” Dan Harrington (finished 3rd), reigning WSOP Main Event champion Peter “Icegate” Eastgate (finished 9th), and 11-time WSOP bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth (finished 10th).  Overall, this final table would be one for the ages.

In the end, Robert Varkonyi, the 2002 Champion, succumbed to the winner of the WSOP Champions Invitational, Tom McEvoy.  McEvoy, the 1983 WSOP Main Event champion, is a four-time bracelet winner in his own right and author of 12 books, mainly on poker. However, he is best known as the first WSOP champion ever to have earned his seat into the Main Event via a satellite. By laying the groundwork, the majority of the players can today earn their seats in satellites, whether online or in live casinos.

Clearly emotional after his victory, McEvoy commented, “This is the toughest field I have ever played against.” After the grueling final table, McEvoy received the Corvette and the first-ever Binion Cup from its namesake and poker patriarch, Jack Binion.

I have known Tom for several years.  When I first began taking tournament poker very seriously back in 2004, the first book I read about playing No Limit Hold’em tournaments was Tom McEvoy’s and T.J. Cloutier’s “Championship No Limit and Pot Limit Hold’em.”  Before every tournament, I still re-read the book to prepare and focus on the upcoming event.  This book truly helped set the foundation of my game.  I even own a signed copy that I carry with me to every tournament.  Congratulations Tom on your historic victory.  In the end, the Champions Invitational is an event that all fans alike will enjoy and I will look forward to seeing later this fall on ESPN.

As for my WSOP, I could not have gotten off to a worse start.  I played in six preliminary events during the second week, starting with the Stimulus Event.  Originally, I was shut out of the $1,000 No Limit event because it was sold out.  However, on Day 1B, it was announced that there were six available seats, as several pre-registrations were voided.  Thus, I was fortunate to get into the event.  However, my K-K ran into A-A during Level 7 and I was sent packing.

The rest of the week did not go much better, as once again my K-K faced A-A (Event #7), Ah-Qh went up against K-K on a Qs-9h-7h flop (Event #11), 10-10 lost to 9-9 on a nine-high board (Event #13), and my A-2 (I had checked my option from the big blind) got tangled with A-8 on an A-10-8-A-9 board (Event #15).  Finally, playing in the $1,500 Seven Card Stud event (my only non-No Limit Hold‘em tournament), my aces and eights got run down by a two-outer.  On 7th street, my opponent, holding only a pair of nines, hit trips and I could not improve.

Finally, don’t forget to listen to my radio show, “The Bernard Lee Poker Show,” on RoundersRadio.com and 1510 AM in the Boston area on Tuesday nights from 7:00pm to 8:00pm ET and repeated throughout the week.  Recent and upcoming guests include Tom McEvoy, Mike Matusow, and Brandon Cantu.

Warren Zackey Leads as 2009 WSOP Main Event Day Six Begins

Playing as if they had a plane to catch, the 407 players who came back for Day Five of the Main Event of the World Series of Poker (WSOP) wasted little time in whittling the field to fewer than 200 players.

The plan on Sunday was for the players, already guaranteed a payday of at least $27,469, to play for five two-hour levels or down to 175, whichever came first. After the carnage on Saturday - where the field went from 789 players to 407 - it was thought the field would be more deliberate as the money moved up. That was not the case, as the battle cry of “all in and a call” was heard immediately on the first hand and echoed throughout the Amazon Room frequently as the afternoon wore on.

The actual statistics from Sunday were mind-boggling with the stakes being played for. Over three levels of poker, the field was chopped from the 407 who walked through the doors Sunday afternoon to 185 players. This breaks down to a player being eliminated every 90 seconds, an unheard of casualty rate for a prestigious tournament.

Even with the significant number of departures, the notable players who remain in the tournament are perhaps the strongest in several years. Making a run reminiscent of Greg Raymer’s performance in the 2005 WSOP Main Event, defending champion Peter Eastgate is still in contention. Despite being down to the felt in the early going of this year’s WSOP Main Event, Eastgate has been able to pull himself up and will enter Day Six with 927,000 in chips.

Fellow former World Champion Joe Hachem is also demonstrating his skills in large field poker, as he is the only other former Main Event champion still in the running. He will start off Day Six with 540,000 in chips. Those former World Champions who didn’t make it through Sunday’s carnage were Bobby Baldwin (352nd) and Dan Harrington (252nd).

Along with Eastgate, another member of the “November Nine” is making a run at returning to this year’s final table. Dennis Phillips, who finished third last year, is over one million in chips as today’s play starts. Phillips is scheduled to be in St. Louis this evening for a charity event at Lumiere Place (his home casino) in conjunction with the Major League Baseball All-Star Game, which occurs tomorrow night. With $8.5 million on the line, Phillips may not be able to make his event this evening!

Others in the field include Day Three chip leader Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier, Joe Sebok, Antonio “The Magician” Esfandiari, and Fabrice Soulier. Phil Ivey, who has consistently been around the top of the leaderboard, has 1.38 million in chips.

2007 WSOP Player of the Year Tom Schneider, who has had a miserable run at the 2009 WSOP (one cash), has altered his fortunes and charged to the top of the leaderboard. Stacked with 3.17 million in chips (good for sixth place), Schneider is poised for a potential run at being among the next “November Nine.” Noah “Exclusive” Boeken, the young professional from the Netherlands, is keeping pace with Schneider and is just outside the Top 10 with 2.34 million (12th place).

Leading the pack is South Africa’s Warren Zackey, who has pulled 4.87 million in chips in front of him over the first five days. A plumbing supply salesman from Johannesburg who earned his way to his first WSOP with a second place finish in the All Africa Championship, Zackey admits he hasn’t done anything special to reach this moment in his poker career. “I got some really good hands,” Warren understated. “I tripled up on the first day and I doubled up again and again (over the next two days). I think I started with 730,000 today and then went up from there.”

With his wife in the Rio with him and his children keeping track through the internet back in Johannesburg, Zackey is not letting his run at the WSOP Main Event go to his head. When asked if he would drop his sales job if he won the title, Warren commented, “No. I have a family. I’d go back to it.” He also has a solid strategy for today’s action, saying, “I am going to take it easy unless I get some decent cards.”

Day Six will kick off at Noon Pacific Time and it could be a significantly longer affair. The plan is to work down to the final 63 players and, with the larger stacks, play could last deep into the night. Poker News Daily will be on site and have a complete recap of the action as the next “November Nine” is determined later this week.

Into the money and more at the 2009 Main Event

Play lasted just three levels as the field was whittled from 789 to just 407 in a little over seven hours on the felt, including nearly two hours of hand-for-hand play before the bubble burst.

While Team PokerStars Pro Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier came into the day with the chip lead, and still remained in serious contention when play wrapped for the night, someone else grabbed the reigns.

With over 1.8 million in chips, American Matt Affleck holds the overnight chip lead, just ahead of another Frenchman, Team Winamax pro and European Poker Tour star Ludovic Lacay.

2008 WSOP bracelet winner Blair Hinkle moved from the middle of the pack to the top ten in chips by the time play was through.

He told PokerListings it was just one of those days.

"During the second level I went on a huge heater and basically won every pot," he said. "I was running really good today."

Hinkle, who burst onto the high-stakes tournament scene with an 11th place finish at the WPT L.A. Poker Classic in 2008, said although he lost a more than 250k pot to end the day, it would not affect his mindset coming into Day 5 Sunday.

2007 WSOP Player of the Year Tom Schneider also had a big day, moving from just 230k to almost 800,000 and into contention for poker's biggest title.

"I feel great," he told PokerListings as he bagged his chips. "I finished 36th the year [Robert] Varkonyi won. I haven't had a cash in the Main Event since."

Schneider, more widely known for his prowess in mixed games, said it's wonderful to be doing well on No Limit Hold'em's biggest stage.

"Most people don't even think I really know how to play No Limit, so it's particularly nice to do well in this event," he said. "It's unbelievable; the stress, the strain on people and the duration. If you cash in this event you've accomplished something and if you make the final table you've really done something.

"I know you have to get lucky, but you've also played a lot of poker and gone through a lot to get there. It's just really impressive to do anything in this event."

Heading into Day 5 with a shot at poker immortality, Schneider said there's no place he'd rather be.

"This is it; this is the Masters of poker," he said. "The dream is still alive. That's the way I see it. You have a shot at the dream. We only have 400 players left or so and that's a reasonable dream."

The dream is also still alive for Team Full Tilt pro Phil Ivey, who sits dangerously just outside the top ten.

A host of other big names remain in contention as well, including 1995 WSOP Main Event champ and three-time final tablist Dan Harrington, 2007 WSOP and WSOPE Main Event 16th place finisher Kenny Tran, 2009 WSOP bracelet winner Nick Schulman, multiple WSOP bracelet event finalist Theo Tran and actor Lou Diamond Phillips.

PokerListings' comprehensive coverage of the 2009 WSOP Main Event continues Sunday at 12 p.m. PT on our 2009 WSOP home page.

With files from Arthur Crowson and Geoff Fisk.

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Bertrand Grospellier Leads after Day 3 of WSOP Main Event

Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier vaulted to the top of the leaderboard Friday evening and will enter Day 4 of the World Series of Poker Main Event as the chip leader with 1,380,500 in chips. Fellow Frenchman Ludovic Lacay is second with 896,000.

Day 3 began with 2,044 players and 789 survivors advanced. With the top 646 spots being paid, we are currently 141 spots from the money, which will likely be reached on Day 4.  Everyone that cashes will earn a minimum of $ 21,365.

While the rapid eliminations were eye opening on Day 3, the biggest story was Grospellier. A sudden rush of fear came over the Amazon Room as word got out about Grospellier’s tower of chips that eclipsed the one million mark late in the evening. Most of those came in a pot against Jerry Wong, which gave Grospellier a jolt into the chip lead. With the board reading Wong bet 33,000 and Grospellier raised to 133,300. Wong then moved all in for a total of 390,000, and after a few minutes of thought Grospellier called:

Wong:
Grospellier:

Grospellier’s set of nines were good and Wong was sent packing. Grospellier, meanwhile, had so many chips in front of him that the tournament staff had to exchange several of his lower denomination chips for higher ones.

“It was a very good day”, Grospellier said after play concluded for the night. “The beginning was pretty slow. Then, I began to get good hands and I picked my spots pretty well. I got good hands and people tried to push me off hands when I would flop sets, so it was pretty good timing.  Anyone that was weak and trying to stay alive, I tried to push around but that’s about it.”

Grospellier already has amassed nearly $6 million in live poker tournament winnings, all within the past four years. His major titles include two wins in 2008, at the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure and the Festa Al Lago Championship. He also finished fourth in the NBC Heads-Up World Championship held earlier this year.

Several former world champions continued play on Day 3 and all but two survived. Bobby Baldwin, Phil Hellmuth, Dan Harrington, Chris “Jesus” Ferguson, Joe Hachem, and Peter Eastgate all advanced to Day 4, while Greg “Fossilman” Raymer and Carlos Mortensen were eliminated. Other big names joining Raymer and Mortensen on the rail Friday were Humberto Brenes, John Juanda, Liz Lieu, Ville Wahlbeck and actor Jason Alexander.

With Wahlbeck’s elimination on Day 3, Jeffrey Lisandro officially locked up the 2009 WSOP Player of the Year title. When the results became known, Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack took the microphone and approached Lisandro, who was playing at the ESPN feature table. He announced Lisandro’s achievement, which received a nice round of applause. All of Lisandro’s opponents at the table also offered handshakes and congratulatory remarks. Lisandro was eliminated later in the day.

Here’s a look at the top 10 chip counts along with some notables heading into Day 4 of the WSOP Main Event:

1. Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier – 1,380,500
2. Ludovic Lacay – 896,000
3. Jason Brice – 858,500
4. Benjamin Jensen – 835,500
5. Kasper Cordes – 796000
6. James Akenhead – 794,000
7. Billy “Patrolman35” Kopp – 792,000
8. Tyler Patterson – 784,000
9. Adam Bilzerian – 767,000
10. Christian Heich – 735,500
Kenny Tran - 666,500
Justin Bonomo - 517,500
Phil Hellmuth - 485,000
Mike Sexton - 414,000
David Benyamine - 381,500
Phil Ivey - 371,000
Lou Diamond Phillips - 359,500
Alexander Kostritsyn - 340,500
Joe Sebok - 297,500
Sorel “Imper1um” Mizzi - 297,000
Paul Wasicka - 294,000
Peter Eastgate - 292,500
Antonio Esfandiari - 283,500
Joe Hachem - 239,500
Chris “Jesus” Ferguson - 232,500
Tom Schneider - 231,000
Dan Harrington - 187,500
Vitaly Lunkin - 159,500
JC Tran - 119,000
Greg “FBT” Mueller - 101,500

Day 4 of the Main Event will get underway at Noon Vegas time on Saturday. Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for continuing updates on the 2009 World Series of Poker.

Main Event Day 3 begins for Ivey, Tran, Benyamine

Play began at 12 p.m. in the Rio with five levels of play scheduled for the day.

There is a slim chance that the money bubble, which starts at 648 players remaining, will burst today but in all likelihood players will return tomorrow to make it into the coveted money spots.

Numerous pro poker players are still in the hunt with Kenny Tran, Bertrand Grospellier, Kevin Saul, Paul Wasicka, Dan Harrington, J.C. Alverado, Marc Karam, Joe Hachem, Noah Boeken, Nick Binger and Eugene Katchalov all looking to become the first pro to win the Main Event since Carlos Mortensen did in 2001.

Full Tilt Pro Phil Ivey might have the best chance to perform that feat as of Day 3 because he led his fellow pros with 346,000 chips.

Joining the pros will be a group of celebrity players including actors Jason Alexander, Lou Diamond Phillips, Patrick Bruel in addition to athletes like the NBA's Jordan Farmar and international cricket star Shane Warne.

The chip lead to start the day belongs to the relatively unknown Amir Lehavot who somehow amassed 610,000 on Day 2b thanks to a last minute monster pot.

There are several intriguing table matchups with Joe Hachem and Jeffrey Lisandro forced to face each other at the TV feature table while Finnish poker superstar Ville Wahlbeck will have to contend with Kenny Tran at the secondary feature table.

PokerListings.com will be live updating the event throughout the day with all the biggest hands, bustouts and breaking news. Check out the updates here.

Here are the top 10 chip leaders to start the day:

Amir Lehavot	610,500
Peter DeBaene	465,000
Troy Weber	453,000
Dan Bilzerian	439,000
Franklin Grigsby	424,000
Gabe Walls	417,000
Mikael Thuritz	395,000
Jason Brice	376,000
John Hammer	359,400
Phil Ivey	346,200

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WSOP Day 3 preview

2,044 of the original field of 6,494 are still dreaming about a return to Las Vegas in November and a payday of $8,546,435. Among those still in the hunt are former World Champions Bobby Baldwin, Phil Hellmuth, Jim Bechtel, Dan Harrington, Chris Ferguson, Carlos Mortensen, Greg Raymer, Joe Hachem and Peter Eastgate.

Ivey, Dwan headline Hall of Fame nominee list

This year, for the first-time ever, the public was invited into the nomination process and asked to vote on WSOP.com for the player they believed most deserving of the honor.

Voting was open from May 29th to July 2nd, and now after a month of collecting votes, WSOP.com has released the names of the top 10 most-nominated players.

The nominees are (in alphabetical order):

• Tom Dwan
• Barry Greenstein
• Dan Harrington
• Phil Ivey
• Tom McEvoy
• Men Nguyen
• Scotty Nguyen
• Daniel Negreanu
• Erik Seidel
• Mike Sexton

Once these nominations have been vetted by the Poker Hall of Fame Governing Council, a final list of candidates will be compiled.

The final vote will then be done by the 15 living members of the Hall of Fame along with a 15-person media panel, with the chosen player or players announced at an induction ceremony in concert with the WSOP Main Event Final Table in November.

In total, over 41 different names received multiple nominations during the public process including:

• Patrik Antonius
• Humberto Brenes
• Mike Caro
• Norman Chad
• Allen Cunningham
• Ivan Demidov
• Eric Drache
• Annie Duke
• John Duthie
• Sam Farha
• Chris Ferguson
• Ted Forrest
• Andy Glazer
• Bertrand Grospellier
• Gus Hansen
• Jennifer Harman-Traniello
• Jay Heimowitz
• Rob Hollink
• Jesper Hougaard
• Phil Laak
• Howard Lederer
• Marcel Luske
• Mike Matusow
• Chris Moneymaker
• Luca Pagano
• Greg Raymer
• Matt Savage
• David Sklansky

To be considered, a poker player must have the following qualifications:

• Must have played poker against acknowledged top competition
• Played for high stakes
• Played consistently well, gaining the respect of peers
• Stood the test of time
• Or, for non-players, contributed to the overall growth and success of the game of poker, with indelible positive and lasting results.

All of the above names remain eligible for future consideration.

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Nominees Announced for Poker Hall of Fame Class of 2009

Public nominations for the 2009 Poker Hall of Fame class closed on July 2nd. One week later during the off-day of the 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event, the Top 10 nominees were announced.

The criteria for induction into the Poker Hall of Fame are as follows: “A player must have played poker against acknowledged top competition, played for high stakes, played consistently well, gained the respect of peers, [and] stood the test of time. For non-players, [they must] contribute to the overall growth and success of the game of poker with indelible positive and lasting results.” The 2008 class included three-time WSOP bracelet winner Dewey Tomko, who first recorded a cash in poker’s most prestigious tournament series 30 years ago. Inducted along with Tomko was hole card camera inventor and WSOP bracelet winner Henry Orenstein.

Two players that online poker sites fiercely lobbied for lead this year’s nominating class: Mike Sexton and Tom McEvoy. Sexton earned a WSOP bracelet 20 years ago by virtue of taking down a $1,500 buy-in Limit Seven Card Stud High-Low event for $104,000. He is going on his eighth season as voice of the World Poker Tour (WPT) alongside Vince Van Patten. Sexton’s easy-to-understand analysis of the game led many of today’s top players to try their hand.

The Poker News Daily Guest Columnist is an ambassador and Card Room Manager for PartyPoker. Site spokesman Warren Lush told Poker News Daily, “I’m absolutely delighted to see Sexton on the list. He showed he’s the ambassador of poker by helping rectify the problems on Day 1D of the Main Event. Sometimes when you have public votes, they can go any way.”

PokerStars lobbied for McEvoy to be inducted. The four-time WSOP bracelet winner recently took down the Champions Invitational, a tournament that will be beamed into households across the United States on ESPN. McEvoy won the 1983 WSOP Main Event, defeating a challenging final table that included Doyle Brunson and Rod Peate. He has over 20 Top 10 finishes in WSOP tournaments and authored a bevy of poker literature including “How to Win No Limit Hold’em Tournaments” and “Championship Hold’em.”

Others who will be considered for induction into the Poker Hall of Fame include Tom “durrrr” Dwan, Barry Greenstein, “Action” Dan Harrington, Phil Ivey, Men “The Master” Nguyen, Scotty Nguyen, Daniel Negreanu, and Erik Seidel. Of that esteemed group, Seidel leads the way with eight WSOP bracelets and Scotty Nguyen owns the most career WSOP earnings at $4.7 million. Now, the fate of the Top 10 nominees lies in the hands of 15 media personnel and 15 living members of the Poker Hall of Fame. I am proud to be one of the group that will select the 2009 induction class.

A total of 41 players and personalities received nominations and are still eligible to be inducted in future years. Among those receiving votes, but falling outside of the Top 10, were poker authors Mike Caro and David Sklansky. Caro has seven WSOP in the money finishes to his name spread out over a 26 year period. He’s the author of “Mike Caro’s Book of Poker Tells” and “Caro’s Fundamental Secrets of Winning Poker.” Sklansky authored such poker gems as “Theory of Poker,” “Tournament Poker for Advanced Players,” and “No Limit Hold’em: Theory and Practice.” He also owns three WSOP bracelets.

Others receiving votes included Durrrr Challenge participant Patrik Antonius, ESPN commentator Norman Chad, 2008 WSOP November Nine member Ivan Demidov, “Celebrity Apprentice” runner-up Annie Duke, European Poker Tour (EPT) Founder John Duthie, 2003 WSOP Main Event Champion Chris Moneymaker, and popular tournament director Matt Savage. In addition, the public also cast votes for Doyle Brunson, Phil Hellmuth, and Stu Ungar, who are already enshrined in the Poker Hall of Fame.

The Poker Hall of Fame Class of 2009 will be inducted in November during the final table of the WSOP Main Event.

2009 WSOP Main Event Field Combines on Friday for Day 3

Due to the large crowds that turned out for the final two Day Ones in the 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event, there were 2,924 players that congregated throughout the Rio at the start of play on Wednesday.

WSOP officials were concerned that there wouldn’t be enough eliminations to be able to allow everyone to be seated in the Amazon Room when the Main Event begins Day 3 on Friday. Adding into those fears was that Day 2B would only be playing four levels of action to be able to mesh up with Day 2A (which had played five levels on Tuesday).

After the four scheduled levels had been completed, all questions were comfortably answered. In a stunning development, out of the 2,924 players who started Day 2B, more than half the field was ejected from the Rio; only 1,437 survived the day. Combining those players with the Day 2A group of 607 survivors means that 2,044 players will take to the felts for Day 3 on Friday.

Troy Weber, who ended up as the overall chip leader once the four Day Ones were completed, continued to play excellent poker and paced himself over the course of the day on Wednesday. While he was “only” able to move his stack up to 453,200, it was good enough to land him in third place on the overall leaderboard. Although no first day leader has ever gone on to win the $10,000 Main Event at the WSOP, Weber seems to be in good shape to break that curse.

Leading the 2,044 player field that remains is San Francisco’s Amir Lehavot, who is stacked with 610,500 in chips. After starting the day with only 80,000, Lehavot earned a large portion of his chips in a hand he played right after a table change. “Thirty minutes before we ended for the day, I had a huge hand,” Lehavot recalled to WSOP officials. “I had just moved to this table and sat down with about 350,000 in chips. There was this other big stack that had 250,000. I had pocket threes and flopped a set against his high pocket pair.”

Lehavot has a host of professionals to contend with. Former World Champions who are still alive include Bobby Baldwin, Phil Hellmuth, Jim Bechtel, Dan Harrington, Chris “Jesus” Ferguson, Carlos Mortensen, Greg Raymer, Joe Hachem, and defending champion Peter Eastgate, who had to fight from the felt during Day 2B to remain alive. Eastgate enters Day 3 with an average stack.

Even with all of the champions still alive, 2009 double bracelet winner Phil Ivey continues to demonstrate why he is considered one of the best in the game. Sitting on 346,200 in chips, the Full Tilt Poker pro is in the Top 20 on the leaderboard and is making strides to claim the WSOP Main Event as his third bracelet of 2009. Other bracelet winners from this year’s tournament schedule still battling include Jeffrey Lisandro, Ville Wahlbeck, Vitaly Lunkin, and Greg “FBT” Mueller.

Thursday is well-deserved day off for the 2,044 Main Event gladiators. The media charity event, set up to play in a Dream Team Poker format, will take center stage today. After today’s rest and relaxation, the drive to the final table will take place over the next week. By July 15th, we will know who the next members of the “November Nine” are.

Final Day One in 2009 WSOP Main Event to Occur Monday

After an eventful Day 1C that saw everything from politicians to Caesar, World Series of Poker (WSOP) officials are expecting the final field size for the 2009 Main Event to crack the 6,000 player mark with the last of four Day Ones to be played this afternoon.

The droves that entered into the Rio on Sunday constituted the largest Day One starting field yet. 1,697 players wedged their way into the Amazon Room and other gaming areas to surpass the fields that had been seen on Days 1A and 1B. All told, there are 3,686 players who laid $10,000 to attempt to win the 40th anniversary WSOP Main Event.

With the larger field that came into the event and the expected massive field for today, there were some changes to the play schedule that were put into effect. Instead of playing only four two hour levels - as Days 1A and 1B had - tournament officials determined that Days 1C and 1D would play the previously scheduled five levels. The difference will be corrected with Day Two play, which is scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday. Day 2A (the combination of Days 1A and 1B) will play five levels and Day 2B (the survivors of Days 1C and 1D) will play four levels.

Although there were some muted rumblings from the players gathered, Representative Barney Frank (D-MA) - whose attempts to overturn the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) are currently proceeding through the halls of Congress - gave the traditional call to “shuffle up and deal” and play was underway.

It seemed that Sunday was the day of choice for many of the top professionals in the game. Five of the original “November Nine” chose to start their assault on the WSOP Main Event championship, with Kelly Kim, Darus Suharto, Ylon Schwartz, and Dennis Phillips surviving the day; David “Chino” Rheem was ousted during play on Sunday. Several former World Champions were on-hand for play, including Tom McEvoy, Dan Harrington, Scotty Nguyen, Joe Hachem, and Jamie Gold, with McEvoy and Gold not able to survive the day.

In what is quickly becoming a WSOP tradition, Phil Hellmuth made a flamboyant entry. With 11 body painted women trailing him (representing his record bracelet total) and led by muses in tunics tossing rose petals, the 1989 champion donned Roman emperor regalia as he was carried into the Amazon Room by four “slaves” at the time the first level of play was scheduled to end. Amid the jeers and cheers, Hellmuth came to the tables and was just under the starting stack when play ended for the day.

The grand entrance of Hellmuth to the Main Event has become somewhat of a tradition over the past few years. In 2007, he entered the Rio with a phalanx of models representing his bracelets and dressed in an auto racing fire suit the day after crashing his Ultimate Bet stock car into a pole on the grounds of the Rio. Last year, Hellmuth made his entrance leading a camouflage-clad contingent of models as General George Patton. When asked if this was going to continue at future WSOPs, “The Poker Brat” commented, “Absolutely! Next year, my plan is to be Gambit (a fictional character from the latest X-Men movie “X-Men Origins: Wolverine”). If not Gambit, we will come up with something else. Maybe it will be Uncle Sam. We’ll see.”

Leading the day and claiming the overall chip lead was Michigan’s Joseph Cada, who garnered 187,000 chips. For the record, no Day One leader has ever held on to win the WSOP Main Event. With an anticipated 2,500 players expected for Day 1D, the 2009 Main Event will eclipse the 6,000 mark and have a run at hitting 6,500. Ideas for accommodating the field have ranged from running ten-handed tables (not yet seen at this year’s Main Event) to using restaurant space around the Rio.

Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest from the 2009 WSOP.

Final Day One in 2009 WSOP Main Event to Occur Monday

After an eventful Day 1C that saw everything from politicians to Caesar, World Series of Poker (WSOP) officials are expecting the final field size for the 2009 Main Event to crack the 6,000 player mark with the last of four Day Ones to be played this afternoon.

The droves that entered into the Rio on Sunday constituted the largest Day One starting field yet. 1,697 players wedged their way into the Amazon Room and other gaming areas to surpass the fields that had been seen on Days 1A and 1B. All told, there are 3,686 players who laid $10,000 to attempt to win the 40th anniversary WSOP Main Event.

With the larger field that came into the event and the expected massive field for today, there were some changes to the play schedule that were put into effect. Instead of playing only four two hour levels - as Days 1A and 1B had - tournament officials determined that Days 1C and 1D would play the previously scheduled five levels. The difference will be corrected with Day Two play, which is scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday. Day 2A (the combination of Days 1A and 1B) will play five levels and Day 2B (the survivors of Days 1C and 1D) will play four levels.

Although there were some muted rumblings from the players gathered, Representative Barney Frank (D-MA) - whose attempts to overturn the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) are currently proceeding through the halls of Congress - gave the traditional call to “shuffle up and deal” and play was underway.

It seemed that Sunday was the day of choice for many of the top professionals in the game. Five of the original “November Nine” chose to start their assault on the WSOP Main Event championship, with Kelly Kim, Darus Suharto, Ylon Schwartz, and Dennis Phillips surviving the day; David “Chino” Rheem was ousted during play on Sunday. Several former World Champions were on-hand for play, including Tom McEvoy, Dan Harrington, Scotty Nguyen, Joe Hachem, and Jamie Gold, with McEvoy and Gold not able to survive the day.

In what is quickly becoming a WSOP tradition, Phil Hellmuth made a flamboyant entry. With 11 body painted women trailing him (representing his record bracelet total) and led by muses in tunics tossing rose petals, the 1989 champion donned Roman emperor regalia as he was carried into the Amazon Room by four “slaves” at the time the first level of play was scheduled to end. Amid the jeers and cheers, Hellmuth came to the tables and was just under the starting stack when play ended for the day.

The grand entrance of Hellmuth to the Main Event has become somewhat of a tradition over the past few years. In 2007, he entered the Rio with a phalanx of models representing his bracelets and dressed in an auto racing fire suit the day after crashing his Ultimate Bet stock car into a pole on the grounds of the Rio. Last year, Hellmuth made his entrance leading a camouflage-clad contingent of models as General George Patton. When asked if this was going to continue at future WSOPs, “The Poker Brat” commented, “Absolutely! Next year, my plan is to be Gambit (a fictional character from the latest X-Men movie “X-Men Origins: Wolverine”). If not Gambit, we will come up with something else. Maybe it will be Uncle Sam. We’ll see.”

Leading the day and claiming the overall chip lead was Michigan’s Joseph Cada, who garnered 187,000 chips. For the record, no Day One leader has ever held on to win the WSOP Main Event. With an anticipated 2,500 players expected for Day 1D, the 2009 Main Event will eclipse the 6,000 mark and have a run at hitting 6,500. Ideas for accommodating the field have ranged from running ten-handed tables (not yet seen at this year’s Main Event) to using restaurant space around the Rio.

Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest from the 2009 WSOP.

Final Day One in 2009 WSOP Main Event to Occur Monday

After an eventful Day 1C that saw everything from politicians to Caesar, World Series of Poker (WSOP) officials are expecting the final field size for the 2009 Main Event to crack the 6,000 player mark with the last of four Day Ones to be played this afternoon.

The droves that entered into the Rio on Sunday constituted the largest Day One starting field yet. 1,697 players wedged their way into the Amazon Room and other gaming areas to surpass the fields that had been seen on Days 1A and 1B. All told, there are 3,686 players who laid $10,000 to attempt to win the 40th anniversary WSOP Main Event.

With the larger field that came into the event and the expected massive field for today, there were some changes to the play schedule that were put into effect. Instead of playing only four two hour levels - as Days 1A and 1B had - tournament officials determined that Days 1C and 1D would play the previously scheduled five levels. The difference will be corrected with Day Two play, which is scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday. Day 2A (the combination of Days 1A and 1B) will play five levels and Day 2B (the survivors of Days 1C and 1D) will play four levels.

Although there were some muted rumblings from the players gathered, Representative Barney Frank (D-MA) - whose attempts to overturn the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) are currently proceeding through the halls of Congress - gave the traditional call to “shuffle up and deal” and play was underway.

It seemed that Sunday was the day of choice for many of the top professionals in the game. Five of the original “November Nine” chose to start their assault on the WSOP Main Event championship, with Kelly Kim, Darus Suharto, Ylon Schwartz, and Dennis Phillips surviving the day; David “Chino” Rheem was ousted during play on Sunday. Several former World Champions were on-hand for play, including Tom McEvoy, Dan Harrington, Scotty Nguyen, Joe Hachem, and Jamie Gold, with McEvoy and Gold not able to survive the day.

In what is quickly becoming a WSOP tradition, Phil Hellmuth made a flamboyant entry. With 11 body painted women trailing him (representing his record bracelet total) and led by muses in tunics tossing rose petals, the 1989 champion donned Roman emperor regalia as he was carried into the Amazon Room by four “slaves” at the time the first level of play was scheduled to end. Amid the jeers and cheers, Hellmuth came to the tables and was just under the starting stack when play ended for the day.

The grand entrance of Hellmuth to the Main Event has become somewhat of a tradition over the past few years. In 2007, he entered the Rio with a phalanx of models representing his bracelets and dressed in an auto racing fire suit the day after crashing his Ultimate Bet stock car into a pole on the grounds of the Rio. Last year, Hellmuth made his entrance leading a camouflage-clad contingent of models as General George Patton. When asked if this was going to continue at future WSOPs, “The Poker Brat” commented, “Absolutely! Next year, my plan is to be Gambit (a fictional character from the latest X-Men movie “X-Men Origins: Wolverine”). If not Gambit, we will come up with something else. Maybe it will be Uncle Sam. We’ll see.”

Leading the day and claiming the overall chip lead was Michigan’s Joseph Cada, who garnered 187,000 chips. For the record, no Day One leader has ever held on to win the WSOP Main Event. With an anticipated 2,500 players expected for Day 1D, the 2009 Main Event will eclipse the 6,000 mark and have a run at hitting 6,500. Ideas for accommodating the field have ranged from running ten-handed tables (not yet seen at this year’s Main Event) to using restaurant space around the Rio.

Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest from the 2009 WSOP.

Final Day One in 2009 WSOP Main Event to Occur Monday

After an eventful Day 1C that saw everything from politicians to Caesar, World Series of Poker (WSOP) officials are expecting the final field size for the 2009 Main Event to crack the 6,000 player mark with the last of four Day Ones to be played this afternoon.

The droves that entered into the Rio on Sunday constituted the largest Day One starting field yet. 1,697 players wedged their way into the Amazon Room and other gaming areas to surpass the fields that had been seen on Days 1A and 1B. All told, there are 3,686 players who laid $10,000 to attempt to win the 40th anniversary WSOP Main Event.

With the larger field that came into the event and the expected massive field for today, there were some changes to the play schedule that were put into effect. Instead of playing only four two hour levels - as Days 1A and 1B had - tournament officials determined that Days 1C and 1D would play the previously scheduled five levels. The difference will be corrected with Day Two play, which is scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday. Day 2A (the combination of Days 1A and 1B) will play five levels and Day 2B (the survivors of Days 1C and 1D) will play four levels.

Although there were some muted rumblings from the players gathered, Representative Barney Frank (D-MA) - whose attempts to overturn the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) are currently proceeding through the halls of Congress - gave the traditional call to “shuffle up and deal” and play was underway.

It seemed that Sunday was the day of choice for many of the top professionals in the game. Five of the original “November Nine” chose to start their assault on the WSOP Main Event championship, with Kelly Kim, Darus Suharto, Ylon Schwartz, and Dennis Phillips surviving the day; David “Chino” Rheem was ousted during play on Sunday. Several former World Champions were on-hand for play, including Tom McEvoy, Dan Harrington, Scotty Nguyen, Joe Hachem, and Jamie Gold, with McEvoy and Gold not able to survive the day.

In what is quickly becoming a WSOP tradition, Phil Hellmuth made a flamboyant entry. With 11 body painted women trailing him (representing his record bracelet total) and led by muses in tunics tossing rose petals, the 1989 champion donned Roman emperor regalia as he was carried into the Amazon Room by four “slaves” at the time the first level of play was scheduled to end. Amid the jeers and cheers, Hellmuth came to the tables and was just under the starting stack when play ended for the day.

The grand entrance of Hellmuth to the Main Event has become somewhat of a tradition over the past few years. In 2007, he entered the Rio with a phalanx of models representing his bracelets and dressed in an auto racing fire suit the day after crashing his Ultimate Bet stock car into a pole on the grounds of the Rio. Last year, Hellmuth made his entrance leading a camouflage-clad contingent of models as General George Patton. When asked if this was going to continue at future WSOPs, “The Poker Brat” commented, “Absolutely! Next year, my plan is to be Gambit (a fictional character from the latest X-Men movie “X-Men Origins: Wolverine”). If not Gambit, we will come up with something else. Maybe it will be Uncle Sam. We’ll see.”

Leading the day and claiming the overall chip lead was Michigan’s Joseph Cada, who garnered 187,000 chips. For the record, no Day One leader has ever held on to win the WSOP Main Event. With an anticipated 2,500 players expected for Day 1D, the 2009 Main Event will eclipse the 6,000 mark and have a run at hitting 6,500. Ideas for accommodating the field have ranged from running ten-handed tables (not yet seen at this year’s Main Event) to using restaurant space around the Rio.

Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest from the 2009 WSOP.

Final Day One in 2009 WSOP Main Event to Occur Monday

After an eventful Day 1C that saw everything from politicians to Caesar, World Series of Poker (WSOP) officials are expecting the final field size for the 2009 Main Event to crack the 6,000 player mark with the last of four Day Ones to be played this afternoon.

The droves that entered into the Rio on Sunday constituted the largest Day One starting field yet. 1,697 players wedged their way into the Amazon Room and other gaming areas to surpass the fields that had been seen on Days 1A and 1B. All told, there are 3,686 players who laid $10,000 to attempt to win the 40th anniversary WSOP Main Event.

With the larger field that came into the event and the expected massive field for today, there were some changes to the play schedule that were put into effect. Instead of playing only four two hour levels - as Days 1A and 1B had - tournament officials determined that Days 1C and 1D would play the previously scheduled five levels. The difference will be corrected with Day Two play, which is scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday. Day 2A (the combination of Days 1A and 1B) will play five levels and Day 2B (the survivors of Days 1C and 1D) will play four levels.

Although there were some muted rumblings from the players gathered, Representative Barney Frank (D-MA) - whose attempts to overturn the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) are currently proceeding through the halls of Congress - gave the traditional call to “shuffle up and deal” and play was underway.

It seemed that Sunday was the day of choice for many of the top professionals in the game. Five of the original “November Nine” chose to start their assault on the WSOP Main Event championship, with Kelly Kim, Darus Suharto, Ylon Schwartz, and Dennis Phillips surviving the day; David “Chino” Rheem was ousted during play on Sunday. Several former World Champions were on-hand for play, including Tom McEvoy, Dan Harrington, Scotty Nguyen, Joe Hachem, and Jamie Gold, with McEvoy and Gold not able to survive the day.

In what is quickly becoming a WSOP tradition, Phil Hellmuth made a flamboyant entry. With 11 body painted women trailing him (representing his record bracelet total) and led by muses in tunics tossing rose petals, the 1989 champion donned Roman emperor regalia as he was carried into the Amazon Room by four “slaves” at the time the first level of play was scheduled to end. Amid the jeers and cheers, Hellmuth came to the tables and was just under the starting stack when play ended for the day.

The grand entrance of Hellmuth to the Main Event has become somewhat of a tradition over the past few years. In 2007, he entered the Rio with a phalanx of models representing his bracelets and dressed in an auto racing fire suit the day after crashing his Ultimate Bet stock car into a pole on the grounds of the Rio. Last year, Hellmuth made his entrance leading a camouflage-clad contingent of models as General George Patton. When asked if this was going to continue at future WSOPs, “The Poker Brat” commented, “Absolutely! Next year, my plan is to be Gambit (a fictional character from the latest X-Men movie “X-Men Origins: Wolverine”). If not Gambit, we will come up with something else. Maybe it will be Uncle Sam. We’ll see.”

Leading the day and claiming the overall chip lead was Michigan’s Joseph Cada, who garnered 187,000 chips. For the record, no Day One leader has ever held on to win the WSOP Main Event. With an anticipated 2,500 players expected for Day 1D, the 2009 Main Event will eclipse the 6,000 mark and have a run at hitting 6,500. Ideas for accommodating the field have ranged from running ten-handed tables (not yet seen at this year’s Main Event) to using restaurant space around the Rio.

Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest from the 2009 WSOP.

Final Day One in 2009 WSOP Main Event to Occur Monday

After an eventful Day 1C that saw everything from politicians to Caesar, World Series of Poker (WSOP) officials are expecting the final field size for the 2009 Main Event to crack the 6,000 player mark with the last of four Day Ones to be played this afternoon.

The droves that entered into the Rio on Sunday constituted the largest Day One starting field yet. 1,697 players wedged their way into the Amazon Room and other gaming areas to surpass the fields that had been seen on Days 1A and 1B. All told, there are 3,686 players who laid $10,000 to attempt to win the 40th anniversary WSOP Main Event.

With the larger field that came into the event and the expected massive field for today, there were some changes to the play schedule that were put into effect. Instead of playing only four two hour levels - as Days 1A and 1B had - tournament officials determined that Days 1C and 1D would play the previously scheduled five levels. The difference will be corrected with Day Two play, which is scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday. Day 2A (the combination of Days 1A and 1B) will play five levels and Day 2B (the survivors of Days 1C and 1D) will play four levels.

Although there were some muted rumblings from the players gathered, Representative Barney Frank (D-MA) - whose attempts to overturn the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) are currently proceeding through the halls of Congress - gave the traditional call to “shuffle up and deal” and play was underway.

It seemed that Sunday was the day of choice for many of the top professionals in the game. Five of the original “November Nine” chose to start their assault on the WSOP Main Event championship, with Kelly Kim, Darus Suharto, Ylon Schwartz, and Dennis Phillips surviving the day; David “Chino” Rheem was ousted during play on Sunday. Several former World Champions were on-hand for play, including Tom McEvoy, Dan Harrington, Scotty Nguyen, Joe Hachem, and Jamie Gold, with McEvoy and Gold not able to survive the day.

In what is quickly becoming a WSOP tradition, Phil Hellmuth made a flamboyant entry. With 11 body painted women trailing him (representing his record bracelet total) and led by muses in tunics tossing rose petals, the 1989 champion donned Roman emperor regalia as he was carried into the Amazon Room by four “slaves” at the time the first level of play was scheduled to end. Amid the jeers and cheers, Hellmuth came to the tables and was just under the starting stack when play ended for the day.

The grand entrance of Hellmuth to the Main Event has become somewhat of a tradition over the past few years. In 2007, he entered the Rio with a phalanx of models representing his bracelets and dressed in an auto racing fire suit the day after crashing his Ultimate Bet stock car into a pole on the grounds of the Rio. Last year, Hellmuth made his entrance leading a camouflage-clad contingent of models as General George Patton. When asked if this was going to continue at future WSOPs, “The Poker Brat” commented, “Absolutely! Next year, my plan is to be Gambit (a fictional character from the latest X-Men movie “X-Men Origins: Wolverine”). If not Gambit, we will come up with something else. Maybe it will be Uncle Sam. We’ll see.”

Leading the day and claiming the overall chip lead was Michigan’s Joseph Cada, who garnered 187,000 chips. For the record, no Day One leader has ever held on to win the WSOP Main Event. With an anticipated 2,500 players expected for Day 1D, the 2009 Main Event will eclipse the 6,000 mark and have a run at hitting 6,500. Ideas for accommodating the field have ranged from running ten-handed tables (not yet seen at this year’s Main Event) to using restaurant space around the Rio.

Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest from the 2009 WSOP.

Final Day One in 2009 WSOP Main Event to Occur Monday

After an eventful Day 1C that saw everything from politicians to Caesar, World Series of Poker (WSOP) officials are expecting the final field size for the 2009 Main Event to crack the 6,000 player mark with the last of four Day Ones to be played this afternoon.

The droves that entered into the Rio on Sunday constituted the largest Day One starting field yet. 1,697 players wedged their way into the Amazon Room and other gaming areas to surpass the fields that had been seen on Days 1A and 1B. All told, there are 3,686 players who laid $10,000 to attempt to win the 40th anniversary WSOP Main Event.

With the larger field that came into the event and the expected massive field for today, there were some changes to the play schedule that were put into effect. Instead of playing only four two hour levels - as Days 1A and 1B had - tournament officials determined that Days 1C and 1D would play the previously scheduled five levels. The difference will be corrected with Day Two play, which is scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday. Day 2A (the combination of Days 1A and 1B) will play five levels and Day 2B (the survivors of Days 1C and 1D) will play four levels.

Although there were some muted rumblings from the players gathered, Representative Barney Frank (D-MA) - whose attempts to overturn the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) are currently proceeding through the halls of Congress - gave the traditional call to “shuffle up and deal” and play was underway.

It seemed that Sunday was the day of choice for many of the top professionals in the game. Five of the original “November Nine” chose to start their assault on the WSOP Main Event championship, with Kelly Kim, Darus Suharto, Ylon Schwartz, and Dennis Phillips surviving the day; David “Chino” Rheem was ousted during play on Sunday. Several former World Champions were on-hand for play, including Tom McEvoy, Dan Harrington, Scotty Nguyen, Joe Hachem, and Jamie Gold, with McEvoy and Gold not able to survive the day.

In what is quickly becoming a WSOP tradition, Phil Hellmuth made a flamboyant entry. With 11 body painted women trailing him (representing his record bracelet total) and led by muses in tunics tossing rose petals, the 1989 champion donned Roman emperor regalia as he was carried into the Amazon Room by four “slaves” at the time the first level of play was scheduled to end. Amid the jeers and cheers, Hellmuth came to the tables and was just under the starting stack when play ended for the day.

The grand entrance of Hellmuth to the Main Event has become somewhat of a tradition over the past few years. In 2007, he entered the Rio with a phalanx of models representing his bracelets and dressed in an auto racing fire suit the day after crashing his Ultimate Bet stock car into a pole on the grounds of the Rio. Last year, Hellmuth made his entrance leading a camouflage-clad contingent of models as General George Patton. When asked if this was going to continue at future WSOPs, “The Poker Brat” commented, “Absolutely! Next year, my plan is to be Gambit (a fictional character from the latest X-Men movie “X-Men Origins: Wolverine”). If not Gambit, we will come up with something else. Maybe it will be Uncle Sam. We’ll see.”

Leading the day and claiming the overall chip lead was Michigan’s Joseph Cada, who garnered 187,000 chips. For the record, no Day One leader has ever held on to win the WSOP Main Event. With an anticipated 2,500 players expected for Day 1D, the 2009 Main Event will eclipse the 6,000 mark and have a run at hitting 6,500. Ideas for accommodating the field have ranged from running ten-handed tables (not yet seen at this year’s Main Event) to using restaurant space around the Rio.

Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest from the 2009 WSOP.

Abe Mosseri wins WSOP Event #55 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball Limit

Backgammon has often proved a great primer for poker players, just look at the success of Dan Harrington and Gus Hansen. And now the ranks have swelled further as former backgammon pro Abe Mosseri has won his first WSOP bracelet.

High Stakes Omaha Games in Las Vegas

Since the inception of the World Series of Poker 40 years ago, one of the biggest attractions wasn’t the tournament series itself but the side games that occurred after people had busted out of their tournaments. All too often the real sharks of Las Vegas would be waiting in the juicy side games where the home game heroes would end up after their tournament was finished. All too often the result was that the sharks cleaned the tourists out and fattened their bankrolls for the rest of the year.

Times are a little different in Las Vegas 40 years later as poker is offered at just about every major casino in town. The idea of sharks waiting at every cash game is something of the past since so many casual tourists in town have some experience playing poker and don’t mind sitting down at the games when they are out gambling. This means that the fields for the small stakes tables, be it Limit Hold’em, No Limit Texas Hold’em or Pot Limit Omaha are so big that good poker players should do well if they can avoid the coolers and bad beats no matter where they play.

More often than not, the biggest game in a poker room is Pot Limit Omaha. Because of the drawing nature of the game, pots are always bigger in PLO games than they are for No Limit Hold’em. When a huge whale comes in to town (someone with ridiculous amounts of money to burn) and wants big poker action, they’re playing Pot Limit Omaha. As famed rounder Sammy Farha was quoted as saying, “If No Limit Texas Hold’em is the Cadillac of poker, then Pot Limit Omaha is the Porsche.”

The days of juicy side cash games at the World Series of Poker aren’t too removed as the venue has changed to the swankier and bigger poker room at the Rio in Las Vegas. With the WSOP in town, the high rollers are constantly on the lookout for a big game to prove their skills in addition to taking home big profits. According to more than one source, one of the biggest games for Pot Limit Omaha is currently running daily at the Rio in the form of a 25-25-50 game. That means that there’s two small blinds of $25 and one big blind of $50 in a 9-handed format. To say this is an action packed game would be the littlest complement one could bestow on the game.

Regular players in that game include popular pro David “Devilfish” Ulliot and other internet PLO superstars such as DJ Sensei, Eric Liu, Harrington25 (not Dan Harrington) and colson10 have been spotted at the main game at the Rio. Many in that main game, as evidenced by recent posts in their blogs, have said that the game isn’t juicy at all and is similar to their regular games online. The idea for them was finding juicy games against lesser competition while in Las Vegas. Omaha does seem to be taking off in Las Vegas this summer as the game is more widespread than it has been in recent memory.

According to reports, the aforementioned Rio has been running 25-25-50 PLO every day and if requested, they have started up a 50-100-200 game during peak gambling hours in Sin City. Also at the Rio was a half 100-200 PLO and half 100-200-400 No Limit Hold’em game with antes which was running regularly through the WSOP week. Finally, the Rio has been known to run a 75-150 Pot Limit Omaha 8 or Better game and players are encouraged to call in to the Rio poker room to request a seat at any of the big games.

Other hotels in Vegas are also running Pot Limit Omaha, including some of the smallest stakes seen for poker in Vegas casinos for players looking to learn the game live. At the Excalibur Hotel, they are offering up a regular $0.50-$1 Pot Limit Omaha game at their electronic PokerPro table which seems perfectly suited for the game to keep it moving quickly, as most dealt Omaha games run quite slow. Regular PLO games are known to be going at both Caesars Palace and Bellagio.

If you’re in Las Vegas this summer during the WSOP event season and are looking to get in on the action, there’s plenty of mega-high limit games at the Rio, in addition to games at Caesars. For those of you with oil company ownership money, you can always get in on the mixed game action at Bobby’s Room at Bellagio which requires a minimum $20,000 buy-in. If you win in that game, you just might be able to buy that Porsche Sammy Farha was talking about.

McEvoy is WSOP champion’s champion

"The car was just the frosting on the cake," McEvoy told PokerListings.

"Beating all my colleagues that were talented enough to win the Main Event was what it was really about."

To help celebrate the 40th anniversary of the World Series of Poker, the Champions Invitational brought together 20 Main Event champions to compete for the car and the newly created Binion's Cup.

McEvoy, who won the WSOP Main Event in 1983 when there were just 108 entrants and a $540,000 first-place prize, said winning this prestigious event was also about gaining the respect of the entire poker world.

"I'm totally overjoyed," he said. "One of the reasons I was so determined to win this was to reestablish myself and prove, not only to myself, but to everybody else, that I can still do this."

After a first day Sunday that saw a huge crowds gather to catch a glimpse of the star-studded field, the final table began Monday with Carlos Mortensen holding the lead.

2008 WSOP champ Peter Eastgate was actually the first to hit the rail taking ninth before two-time Main Event winner Doyle Brunson said goodbye in eighth position.

Short stacks Berry Johnson and Huck Seed were given the gate in seventh and sixth respectively when suddenly Jim Bechtel doubled through Mortensen, knocking him down to size.

A few hands later Bechtel hit a set against Mortensen's top pair and it was all over for the 2001 Main Event champion.

McEvoy sent Bechtel home fourth and after 2002 Main Event champ Robert Varkonyi doubled through Dan Harrington, all three players remaining appeared evenly stacked.

Three-handed play turned out to be an epic four-hour battle before McEvoy sent Harrington packing.

He waltzed into heads-up holding a 3:1 chip lead and ended Varkonyi's hopes in short order.

"I had a great time and it was a great success for me to even come in second," Varkonyi said. "I would have loved to win it, but these are all champions. It was probably the toughest field ever."

Now the champion of champions, McEvoy is putting the 2009 World Series of Poker on notice.

"I think I proved that I can compete at the highest level against the best players in the world," he said.

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Mortensen leads WSOP Champions Invitational

Of the 20 former champs who started the day, 10 survivors will return to face off for the Binion Cup and a restored 1970 Corvette starting at 3 p.m. today.

After Mortenson, the contingent of famous names includes reigning champ Peter Eastgate as well as poker icons Doyle Brunson and Dan Harrington.

Short-stacked Phil Hellmuth - as has now seemed to become the custom - has been allowed to survive to see the TV cameras on Day 2, even with only 1,125 to his name.

Full chip counts are as follows:

Carlos Mortensen: 42,375

Tom McEvoy: 31,000

Jim Bechtel: 30,475

Doyle Brunson: 20,250

Dan Harrington: 19,975

Peter Eastgate: 18,425

Huck Seed: 15,400

Robert Varkonyi: 13,450

Berry Johnston: 7,625

Phil Hellmuth: 1,125

2005 champ Joe Hachem bubbled the final table, while Mortensen amassed his monster stack by eliminating the likes of Jamie Gold, Greg Raymer and Chris "Jesus" Ferguson.

Given the full slate of events on tap at the Rio today, the Champions Invitational won't be getting the full live-update treatment, but check out the PokerListings blog for Day 2 highlights as it plays down to a winner.

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WSOP Main Event champs appreciate the invite

However, the first ever WSOP Champions Invitational event brought together the largest collection of Main Event winners ever assembled for one tournament at the Rio today.

Spectators created a chaotic scene for the 20-player event, as throngs of people gathered to get a look at a group of players that includes nearly every living Main Event champion.

Every champion from the year 2000 and beyond is playing, along with legends like Amarillo Slim (1972), Doyle Brunson (1976, 1977), Johnny Chan (1987, 1988), Phil Hellmuth (1989), Dan Harrington (1995), Huck Seed (1996) and Scotty Nguyen (1998).

"This is the only time it's ever happened," said 2003 Main Event winner Chris Moneymaker. "You get to play with legends, so it'll definitely be fun."

Also in the field are Tom McEvoy (1983), Berry Johnston (1986), Brad Dougherty (1991) and Jim Bechtel (1993).

ESPN will feature the Champions Invitational as part of its television coverage of the 2009 WSOP.

"I haven't played with some of these guys in a long time," added Chris "Jesus" Ferguson, the 2000 champ.

"A lot of these World Series of Poker champions aren't nearly as well known as a lot of these young kids, and all of them have really interesting stories.

"It makes for great TV. These guys are all really interesting people."

If there is a grey cloud to this silver lining, it is the fact the players involved may have to avoid other events for the duration, although Greg Raymer is multi-tabling.

He was still at the $40k final table at press time, but told PokerListings the Champions Invitational wasn't exactly a priority anyway.

"I love the concept, and have suggested exactly an event like this to Jeffrey Pollack several times in the past, as well as to the ESPN people," he said.

"The only downside here is that I expected them to put up a somewhat more vigorous prize pool than an old car."

Those who do advance to Day 2 may be forced to skip the $10,000 Seven Card Stud World Championship bracelet event, which begins Monday.

"It might interfere with tomorrow," Ferguson said. "I haven't made a decision on what I'm going to do if that happens."

Despite the scheduling conflict and the fact first prize is nothing more than a re-built 1970 Corvette, the event is still a fan favorite.

As the players started entering the tournament floor for the 4 p.m. start today, a huge crowd flocked to the Amazon room, creating a red carpet-like scene with cameras flashing and fans desperately attempting to get autographs.

Moneymaker, whose run to the 2003 Main Event championship played a large role in the rise of poker's popularity, will be looking to use the event to change his fortunes after bubbling the WSOP's $40k event Saturday.

"It's going to be a lot of fun," Moneymaker said. "Coming off the $40k bubble, it's not going to be as much fun as it would have been if I had cashed in that or busted out earlier, but it's going to be fun."

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40 years of the WSOP: The new millenium

Back in 1991, Jack Binion was asked to look into the future and see where the WSOP might go.

Jack had no way of knowing how the WSOP would explode in popularity, bringing thousands to his casino in search of fame and fortune and said he expected a slow, steady 10 to 15 percent growth rate.

The last winner of the twentieth century was Jesus himself, Chris Ferguson.

He took home $1.5 million after outlasting 512 other players in the 2000 Main Event.

Poker author and fifth place finisher Jim McManus chronicled the final table in his book Positively Fifth Street.

The final battle between Ferguson and T.J. Cloutier was epic, with T.J. overcoming Ferguson's huge chip lead only to lose when his A-Q was out-flopped by Fergusons' A-9.

In the preliminary events, Jennifer Harman, Phil Ivey and Howard Lederer each won their first bracelet and Ferguson won another in 7-card stud.

Carlos Mortenson won the title in 2001 playing at the first final table with nine players, including poker standouts Mike Matusow, Phil Gordon, Phil Hellmuth and Dewey Tomko.

An unknown patent attorney Greg "Fossilman" Raymer came in 12th in the $1,500 Omaha Hi/Lo event that year.

2002 saw a whopping 39 preliminary events, three of which were won by Phil Ivey.

Robert Varkonyi was the Main Event champion, besting 631 hopefuls on his way to winning a then-record $2 million in his first ever WSOP event.

"I won my buy-in in my first ever single-table satellite," Varkonyi told PokerListings.

"I was extremely surprised to make the final table, it was completely unexpected. I was totally pumped with adrenaline, not nervous, just totally out of control excited to be there."

The fact that Varkonyi was a recreational - not professional - poker player caused some to doubt his chances, including Phil Hellmuth, who Varkonyi had doubled through earlier with Q-10 against his A-K.

During the televised final table, Hellmuth memorably promised to shave his head if Varkonyi were to pull out a win.

Eventually Hellmuth was forced to get a trim, but the name Robert Varkonyi was really lost in the shuffle with what happened next.

There is no poker aficionado who does not remember every moment of the 2003 Main Event.

The final nine, outlasting the record 839 who started, included Sammy Farha, Dan Harrington, Jason Lester, Amir Vahedi, David Grey, and David Singer.

But in their midst was a mild-mannered accountant who had dreamed of playing the Main Event since he saw the movie Rounders years earlier.

When Chris Moneymaker turned his online-qualifying win into $2.5 million, poker would never be the same.

Somewhat forgotten was the fact that Layne Flack had his second consecutive two-bracelet WSOP that year or that Ferguson, Hellmuth, Johnny Chan, Men "the Master" Nguyen and John Juanda each won two bracelets as well.

Women poker players did well in 2004 with Kathy Liebert, Cyndy Violette and Annie Duke each winning bracelets in open-field events.

But the story that year was the phenomenal increase in Main Event participants due in no small part to Moneymaker's historic win.

A total of 2,576 played and of course Greg Raymer won the $5 million dollar prize. Just like Moneymaker, Raymer had won his seat through an online satellite at PokerStars.

The 2005 WSOP was held outside of Binions for the first time, though the final two days of the Main Event took place in the old haunt.

Aussie Joe Hachem came out on top of the 5,619 person field, taking home $7.5 million.

His supporters' cheers are now legendary as was the final table that had a wide array of talent from the recently paroled Mike Matusow to the loveable everyman Steve Dannenmann.

The final table was also the site of the memorable meltdown from Ireland's Andy Black.

Raymer made a believer of everyone by coming close to repeating, finishing 25th in the big show.

Jennifer Tilly became the first celebrity player to win a bracelet and Doyle and Todd Brunson became the first father/son combo to win bracelets the same year.

If it were not for Jamie Gold, the 2006 WSOP would be remembered for its Player of the Year, Jeff Madsen.

Madsen became the youngest bracelet winner in history taking down the $2,000 NLHE, then won his second bracelet in Short-Handed NLHE six days later.

He also had two third place finishes - one in Omaha 8 and another in Stud Hi/Lo, an astounding feat at any age.

But Gold's $12 million win, outlasting the largest Main Event field ever at 8,773, is the story of 2006 as much for Gold's brash and controversial style as for the legal dustup that his win caused when another player claimed Gold had promised him half.

As if preordained, 2007 Main Event winner Jerry Yang was the anti-Gold. Quiet, pious, unassuming, Yang won $8.25 million with an aggressive, steam-roller approach to the final table that his co-finalists could not match.

With 6,358 players entering, there were 2,415 fewer than the previous year, only the second time in WSOP history that the number of entrants to the Main Event decreased.

Steve Billirakis was crowned the new-youngest bracelet winner in history, breaking Madsen's record from the previous year. Hellmuth won his record 11th bracelet and had a then-record 63 WSOP cashes.

Last year's WSOP set records for attendance (58,720), countries represented (118), and prize pool ($180,676,248).

It also saw the introduction of the November Nine, which ratcheted up the interest in and attention to the final table.

For poker purists who had been decrying the lack of "professional" winners of the Main Event, this final table had many players for whom poker was not just a hobby.

Runner-up Ivan Demidov went on to place third at the WSOP-Europe, David "Chino" Rheem is a respected pro, and eventual $9.1 million winner, the taciturn Dane Peter Eastgate, has proved himself a worthy title-holder.

2008 had a rash of memorable bracelet winners in preliminary events from the brothers Hinkle (Grant and Blair) to first-time bracelet-winners Erick Lindgren, David Singer, Kenny Tran, Nenad Medic, David Benyamine, JC Tran, and John Phan all breaking their "one of the best to never win a bracelet" record - now currently held by Andy Bloch.

So what is in store for 2009?  What records will be set, which will be broken?  Who will be the big story, the one talked about another forty years from now?

Will a big name take the big title, or will another "relative" unknown take poker's biggest prize?

For those answers and a whole lot more, follow PokerListings' Live Reporting from the Rio throughout the 2009 WSOP.

Related Articles:

• 40 years of the WSOP: The beginning
• 40 years of the WSOP: The 70s
• 40 years of the WSOP: The 80s
• 40 years of the WSOP: The 90's

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Phil Hellmuth the favorite to win WSOP Champions Invitational

A total of 34 players have won the WSOP Main Event, but some of them have already passed away, including three-time winners Johnny Moss and Stu Ungar. Only living champion who has indicated that he will not play the event is 1978 champ Bobby Baldwin.

Poker Brat is the favorite of the tournament of champions.

Hellmuth has smallest odds for winning the tournament, 9:1. A strong group of former champions all have 23:2 odds. The 2005 champ Joe Hachem, 2004 Main Event winner Greg Raymer, 1998 world champion and reigning HORSE champion Scotty Nguyen, 1996 Main Event champion and 2009 Heads-Up Poker Championship winner Huck Seed, 1995 WSOP Main Event victor Dan Harrington and 10-time bracelet winners Doyle Brunson and Johnny Chan.

Reigning champion Peter Eastgate has 13:1 odds, even though he feels like he should be the favorite:

“I should be one of the strongest [players] as I have emerged from the second biggest field,” he said. “However, you can’t disregard the champions like Doyle Brunson, Huck Seed and Phil Hellmuth, who have proven to stay on top ever since they won their championships.”

The winner of the biggest ever WSOP Main Event, Jamie Gold, who has 15:1 odds for winning the tournament, is also excited about the tournament:

“There is a 40-year history of excitement and prestige surrounding the WSOP,” he said. “This event will celebrate all of it and give us a once in a lifetime opportunity to compete with each other. We’re going to have a great time.”

The least favorite of bettors with 65:1 odds is Russ Hamilton, the 1994 Main Event Champion and the main suspect of the super user cheating scandal at Ultimate Bet. Though, it is fairly easy to predict that Hamilton will not participate in the tournament, as he has lost pretty much all the respect of the poker community.

The winner of the tournament will not win money or a bracelet, but he will take home a commemorative trophy named in honor of the Series-founding Binion family as well as a restored 1970 Corvette.

Sources: pokernewsdaily, pokerlistings

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Phil Hellmuth the favorite to win WSOP Champions Invitational

Phil Hellmuth Favored to Win WSOP Champions Invitational

According to betting lines posted on Bodog, Ultimate Bet pro and 11-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth is the favorite to win the WSOP Champions Invitational, fetching 9:1 odds. The tournament will consist solely of former Main Event champions.

Hellmuth took down the 1989 Main Event, earning an automatic entry into the WSOP Champions Invitational. The non-bracelet event kicks off at the beginning of the 2009 festivities on May 31st and crowns a winner the next day. The “champion of champions” will take home the Binion Cup along with a brand new car. Jack Binion will be on-hand for the festivities and present the trophy. A total of 34 players have won the previous 39 Main Events, although seven have since passed away (Johnny Moss, Puggy Pearson, Stu Ungar, Hal Fowler, Jack Strauss, Jack Keller, and Bill Smith).

Hellmuth leads the field at 9:1 odds. Just behind him and coming in at 23:2 (or 11.5:1) are 2005 WSOP Main Event winner and Team PokerStars Pro member Joe Hachem, 2004 WSOP Main Event Champion Greg Raymer, new Expekt Poker pro and reigning HORSE Championship winner Scotty Nguyen, 2009 Heads-Up Poker Championship winner Huck Seed, 1995 WSOP Main Event victor Dan Harrington, and 10-time bracelet winners Doyle Brunson and Johnny Chan. Last year’s Main Event winner, Peter Eastgate, is fetching 13:1 odds and holds the record as the youngest champion of the feature tournament ever at age 22. Eastgate took home $9.1 million for his efforts in the second largest Main Event field in history, 6,844 runners.

Four former Main Event champs sit at 15:1 odds. Jerry Yang trumped the field in 2007 for $8.25 million, his lone WSOP cash to date. Members of that final table watched Team PokerStars Pro member Hevad “RaiNKhaN” Khan boisterously play his way through the event, ultimately grabbing sixth place for just under $1 million. Jamie Gold, the winner of the largest Main Event field ever in 2006, is also generating 15:1 odds. Gold is a former ACED Poker pro, but recently parted ways with the Merge Gaming Network site. Tied in odds with Gold and Yang is the man many would credit with sparking the modern poker boom, former Tennessee accountant Chris Moneymaker, who won it all in 2003. Full Tilt Poker pro Chris Ferguson is also fetching 15:1 odds. The man they call “Jesus” took down the first Main Event of the new millennium.

Robert Varkonyi and Tom McEvoy, who won the 2002 and 1983 WSOP Main Events, respectively, are both going off at 19:1 odds. Also seeing 19:1 odds is 1991 World Champion Brad Daugherty, who took home an even $1 million for his efforts and bested Don Holt heads-up. Several brand name pros are coming in at 24:1, including Noel Furlong, Jim Bechtel, Hamid Dastmalchi, Mansour Matloubi, Berry Johnston, and Bobby Baldwin.

At the bottom of the field and coming in at 65:1 is Russ Hamilton, the 1994 Main Event Champion. Last September, Hamilton was found to be “the main person responsible for and benefiting from the multiple cheating incidents” on Ultimate Bet, according to the Kahnawake Gaming Commission. The revelation came after members of the online poker community linked Hamilton’s Las Vegas home to one of the accounts involved in the scandal, Sleeplesss. The events were revealed to the entire world as part of a November feature story on the CBS News program “60 Minutes” and a joint investigation with the Washington Post newspaper.

The WSOP Champions Invitational is one of four tournaments that will comprise ESPN’s television coverage this year. It will air on August 4th from 8:00pm to 10:00pm ET. Also seeing time in the spotlight will be the $40,000 buy-in No Limit Hold’em tournament commemorating the 40th running of the WSOP, the Ante Up for Africa charity poker tournament, and the Main Event. The tournament series itself begins on Wednesday, May 27th with the $500 Casino Employees event. The $40,000 festivities begin the following day.

A Poker Pro Mortgages His Life For a Trip To Vegas!

It is probably wrong to call Bo Fric a poker pro in a sense that we normally know it. He has never had big success in poker, actually he is almost broke. He calls himself “just a regular guy who likes to play poker”.

Mister Fric himself.

Many, or should I say all, poker players dream of a trip to Las Vegas to play the Main Event of WSOP. Fric, a fan of Eli Elezra (because he wears his hair the same way like Fric), is going to fulfill that dream and many others on this summer in a project he calls “My Poker Bucket List”.

Here is the list what Fric is planning on doing in Las Vegas:

# Take Doyle Brunson out for dinner
# Shoot craps with Phil Ivey
# Play Golden Tee, Wii, and Pool with Daniel Negreanu
# Win a hand in Bobby’s Room
# Have lunch with the Canadian heroes: Daniel, Brad, Gavin and Nenad and FBT
# Train MMA with Team Cardrunners and a UFC star
# Play a $10,000 hand of blackjack
# Have a drinking contest with Gavin Smith
# Go club hopping with Antonio Esfandiari and Phil Laak
# Play the main event
# Go to a gentlemen’s club with Layne Flack
# Drive cart for Patrick Antonius or David Benyamine in high stakes golf match
# Learn to pick up Asian women from Barry Greenstein
# Play a game of pickup basketball with Nenad, Grinder, Huck, J.C. and others
# Go suit shopping with Sammy Farha
# Get business advice from Eli Elezra and Howard Lederer
# Drink coronas with Scotty Nguyen
# Play Mike Matusow in a match play golf game
# Sweat $5,000 sportsbet with Erick Lindgren
# Spend an afternoon at the spa with Tom “Durrr” Dwan
# Play Chinese Poker with Poker Road crew Ali, Gavin, Joe, and Huff.
# Appear on Poker Road Radio
# ATV with the Poker Road Crew
# Cash in a WSOP event
# Ride in a Bugatti with Guy Laliberte
# Play Video Poker with Archie Karas
# Take a helicopter ride with Chris Moneymaker
# Go stockcar racing with Gus Hansen
# Take a balloon ride with Sam Grizzle
# Get Joel some female help
# Play Rock Band with Evelyn Ng
# Play blackjack with Andy Bloch
# Practice Yoga with Allen Cunningham
# Go out for an evening of swing dancing with Chris Ferguson
# Practice Buddhism with Andy Black
# Visit Fremont St. with Gabe Kaplan
# Meet the guy who got breast implants for a prop bet
# Get marriage advice from Norman Chad
# Have a smoke break with Eugene Todd
# Get publishing advice from Dan Harrington
# Host the world’s largest poker pro paintball game

Well, that is a long list to accomplish and he will need a lot of money to do all the stuff. Fric is planning on filming his trip and make a documentary about it afterwards and of course a book. But there are few problems in his plans:

1. I don’t know any of these people on a personal level and really don’t know how to begin.

2. I currently have a slight negative balance in my bank account, $30,000 in credit card debt, and less than $3,000 liquid cash.

3. I don’t know the first damn thing about writing a book or filming a documentary.

Mortgaging a house is a good start for making money. If you want to help Fric in this plan and find more information about him, check out the website of the Poker Bucket List and sign as a member for free.

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A Poker Pro Mortgages His Life For a Trip To Vegas!