Poker News

Jennifer Tilly won the Bellagio Cup $5k Tournament and $124,000 dollars

Actress and poker player Jennifer Tilly proved her talent again by winning the Bellagio Cup VI $5K tournament.

Tilly won other 90 players of the Bellagio CUP VI Event #23 $5,000 + $180 tournament. The world also got to hear from Jennifer’s victory through her boyfriend Phil “Unabomber” Laak’s Twitter:

“Holla! My girl just shipped the 5k Bellagio! Max ship. Max joy.”

The results:
1 Jennifer Tilly, Sherman Oaks, CA $124,455
2 Danny Yousefzadeh, Roslyn, NY $112,528
3 Dmitry Vitkind, Moscow, Russia $97,040
4 Mark Entwistle, Windsor, England $34,044
5 Robbie Verspui, Gibraltar, Gibraltar $27,661
6 Rodger Johnson, Grand Forks, ND $21,278
7 Ray Qartomy, Sugar Land, TX $14,894
8 Michael Friedrich, Zurich, Switzerland $10,639
9 Alexander Gomes, Curitiba, Brazil $8,511

After this victory Tilly has already cashed nearly $700,000 dollars from live tournaments.

Sources: 2+2, Bellagio and TheHendonMob

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Jennifer Tilly won the Bellagio Cup $5k Tournament and $124,000 dollars

WSOP Goes International

With three bracelets yet to be awarded, the 2010 WSOP has attracted players from 29% more countries than the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

It's a stark contrast to when the event started in 1971 and was exclusively attended by U.S. players.

"As the World Series of Poker's overall participation levels continue to establish new records, its vast geographic reach is repeatedly evidenced by the number of countries represented here in Las Vegas," said WSOP Vice President Ty Stewart.

"To outpace exceptional international events such as the Winter Olympics, firmly establishes the WSOP as a global brand with significant long-term growth potential."

In addition international players seem to be having a high rate of success than ever before.

This year players from the U.K., Canada, Hungary, France, New Zealand, Norway and Russia all secured gold WSOP bracelets.

Praz Bansi was one of the five U.K. bracelet winners and he seemed to think that poker and the WSOP will continue to expand in foreign countries.

"I think it's growing every year," said Bansi. "They are playing the game in countries where it wasn't played a few years back. The players are getting better in different countries as well."

In total 16 of the 54 bracelets that have been awarded thus far, have gone to international players. There is a chance this could be the biggest year for international players in WSOP history.

"I think the play outside America is getting much better," said Bansi. "They're getting better in America as well but overseas they are improving by a large margin."

After 41 years Antartica is the only continent that has never been represented at the WSOP.

The 2010 WSOP continues through July 17. For comprehensive coverage of the WSOP tune in to PokerListings' Live Updates and News.

Ryan Welch Defeats Jon Eaton to Win WSOP Bracelet

In what could best be described as “the calm before the storm,” only one bracelet was awarded on Thursday night in action at the World Series of Poker (WSOP).

In the $3,000 Triple Chance No Limit Hold’em tournament, Event #51 on the WSOP schedule, 12 men returned on Thursday afternoon for their shot at a coveted gold and diamond WSOP bracelet. Jon Eaton held a roughly 600,000 chip lead over Frank Rusnak, with underrated pro Will “The Thrill” Failla lurking in third place. The players wasted little time once the cards hit the air, getting down to the final table in roughly 4½ hours.

Rusnak was one of the victims of the early carnage, doubling up Bradley Craig and losing a key hand to Failla to drop his chip stack into the danger zone. Rusnak, who has almost $600,000 in tournament earnings since his debut in 2007, was never able to get any traction from the start and got his final chips in with K-Q. He was called by Koen de Bakker, who had him dominated with his A-Q. The flop offered an appealing A-5-J rainbow arrangement, but delivered no 10 for Rusnak, dropping him from the tournament in 11th place.

Once the final table was established, one of the rarer occurrences during a WSOP final table occurred. Guillaume Darcourt, after an all-in bet from Tad Jurgens and an all-in over the top from Noel Scruggs, agonized over a decision that would either make his tournament or crush his dreams of a WSOP bracelet. After the careful deliberation, Darcourt made the call with pocket sevens, only to see Jurgens table pocket queens and Scruggs show his A-Q. The seven that popped on the flop sent a thunderous roar through the audience and delivered a rare bird at a WSOP final table, the double knockout. Jurgens started the hand with fewer chips and finished in ninth and Scruggs took the eighth place slot.

Over the next four hours, the remainder of the final table would be eliminated, bringing the action to a heads-up battle between Eaton and Ryan Welch, who diligently ground his way through the final table. On the final hand, with Eaton holding slightly fewer chips than Welch, the duo got their chips to the center of a 9-7-6-10-K board. Eaton bet out roughly 525,000 on the river to start, only to face an all-in reraise from Welch. Eaton struggled with the decision, reasoning out the hands that Welch could possibly hold before making the call. Welch immediately showed Q-J for the rivered nut straight and, once the chips were counted, became the latest WSOP champion.

1. Ryan Welch (Henderson, NV) – $559,371
2. Jon Eaton (Las Vegas, NV) – $344,830
3. Guillaume Darcourt (Paris, France) – $223,459
4. Will Faille (Smithtown, NY) – $163,532
5. Bradley Craig (Cleveland, OH) – $121,451
6. Sergey Lebedev (Troitsk, Russia) – $91,407
7. Tommy Vedes (Fort Mojave, AZ) – $69,647
8. Noel Scruggs (Del Mar, CA) – $53,694
9. Tad Jurgens (Tempe, AZ) – $41,842

Four other events were in play on Thursday, with two tournaments that will award bracelets on Friday. In Event #52, the $25,000 Six-Handed No Limit Hold’em tournament, 18 players will come back on Friday afternoon from the original 191 starters. Bryn Kenney is the overnight chip leader stacked with 2.425 million, but there is danger lurking around every corner. Daniel Negreanu, who has had a quiet 2010 WSOP, is in sixth place, with 2010 double bracelet winner Frank Kassela ahead of him in fifth. Add in Sam Trickett, Isaac Haxton, Shawn Buchanan, Eugene Katchalov, Justin “ZeeJustin” Bonomo, Carlos Mortensen, and Vadim Trincher, and the final table of this event should hold for exciting poker.

In the $1,500 Limit Hold’em Shootout, Victory Poker pro Jonathan “FieryJustice” Little and Terrence “Unassigned” Chan lead a final table of eight. As with a Shootout tournament, all eight worked their way to the final table by defeating a full table of opponents over the first two days of play. Everyone will start with 450,000 in chips when the cards fly this afternoon.

The first Day 1 of the latest $1,000 No Limit Hold’em tournament drew a sizeable field of 2,340 players, potentially making this $1,000 event one of the largest of this year’s WSOP, depending on the second Day 1 gathering. The final table of this tournament will take place on Independence Day.

The $10,000 Pot Limit Omaha World Championship drew a starting field of 346, which was whittled down by over half to 171 by the end of Day 1. Australia’s Antonio Paino is the chip leader with 240,000, with several top pros mixed throughout the field. 2009 November Niner James Akenhead is in third, with Fabrice Soulier (sixth) and Ted Lawson (seventh) both in the top 10. Final table play in Event #55 will take place on Saturday.

Only one event will begin play on Friday, the $2,500 No Limit Hold’em event. It is also set to finish play on Sunday, prior to the start of the $10,000 World Championship event on Monday. Although there are tournaments in action over the next few days, it more than likely will be a preparation weekend for many of the top players as the WSOP moves into its final two weeks and its World Championship event.

PokerStars Big Game: Joe Cada Drops $35,000 in Week 3 Kickoff Episode

Defending World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event champion Joe Cada struggled in his debut on the PokerStars.net-powered “Big Game,” whose Week 3 kickoff episode aired on Monday night on Fox. The series is shown nightly starting at 1:00am or 2:00am in most markets.

Russian born Nadya Magnus was this week’s “Loose Cannon” online qualifier and each player at the table bought in for $100,000. The lineup was noticeably quieter than in past weeks and, in one of the first major pots of the episode, Cada bet $9,300 on a flop of 6-J-4 holding 9-8 of diamonds for air. Fellow PokerStars pro Jason Mercier, who flopped a set of sixes, called to bring a nine on the turn. Now with second pair, Cada bet $19,000 and Mercier slyly called behind. On a river three, Cada check-folded, sending the pot of more than $70,000 to Mercier.

The action is Pot Limit before the flop and No Limit thereafter. The “Big Game” features blinds of $200/$400 with a $100 per person ante that is paid entirely by the player on the button. Each “Loose Cannon” plays 150 hands and keeps whatever money they reel in over their $100,000 stake. Chris Rose and PokerRoad’s Joe Stapleton host the cash game series.

With three-way action and the board reading K-10-8-4, Justin “ZeeJustin” Bonomo bet $4,000 with A-Q and Magnus called with 4-3 for bottom pair. However, Bonomo spiked a miracle ace on the river and promptly fired out another bet, this time $10,000. Magnus came along and the dealer pushed the $35,500 pot to the Panorama Towers resident.

Magnus struck back, however, calling a raise from Daniel Alaei with K-Q. Alaei held A-4 of hearts and the flop came Q-J-3. Alaei bet $2,300 and Magnus wasted no time coming over the top for $6,200. Alaei mucked and Magnus scooped her first pot of the night. Alaei weighed in on Magnus’ facial expressions: “First she was giving me the stare down and then she broke into a smile. I can’t really figure that one out.”

Then, Magnus picked up A-6 and raised to $1,500 pre-flop. Mercier called with A-J and the flop came A-6-8. Mercier check-called a bet of $2,600 from Magnus and the turn was a four. Mercier once again reluctantly check-called a bet, this time of $6,100, and the river was another six, improving Magnus to a boat. Mercier checked, Magnus bet $13,200, and Mercier, despite seemingly smelling a rat, made the call. The pot was worth $47,600 and Mercier exclaimed, “God, I’m so f****** terrible.” Magnus moved out of the red and was up $7,700.

Magnus went from a VPIP of just over 6% during the first 15 hands of the night to 20% through Hand #25. However, she’d be the target of Cada late during play. The 2009 WSOP Main Event champ raised to $1,500 pre-flop with pocket queens and Magnus re-raised to $4,800 with pocket jacks. Cada made the call, the flop came a harmless 8-2-3, and Cada check-called a bet of $8,100.

The turn was a seven and Cada once again checked. Magnus fired out a bet of $15,600 with the worst hand and Cada called to see an eight on the river. The action went check-check and Cada rebounded to end the evening, pulling in the $58,200 pot. It marked Cada’s first pot of the week and the show concluded.

At the end of Monday night’s action, Bonomo was up $47,400 and Cada was down $35,500. The PokerStars “Big Game” airs nightly during the week on Fox. Check your local listings for more details.

PokerStars Restricts French Online Poker Play

Effective June 24th, action on PokerStars.com for French players was blocked due to new regulations put in place by the country’s government. A popup that appeared for French users read in part, “All money in PokerStars accounts is 100% safe and is available for withdrawal. You can choose to cash out now if you prefer.”

Alternately, French players who wish to continue placating the virtual felts under the PokerStars banner can continue doing so on PokerStars.fr. The world’s largest online poker site explained what players can expect on the French-focused site: “We will be running free tournaments on PokerStars.fr this weekend to win seats to live French Poker Series events.” PokerStars adds that the move, while unfortunate, is “mandated by law” and the site looks forward to continuing to service French customers using its PokerStars.fr arm.

Posters on the popular online poker forum PocketFives.com reacted to the news in a thread entitled “Goodbye PokerStars! Signed: All French Players.” The PokerStars French version pits players from the European country against each other, similar to the scene in neighboring Italy. Despite French online poker players departing the worldwide market in earnest, PocketFives.com member “squintster” remained optimistic: “It seems like at least once a year for the last 5-6 years, I’ve seen some scenario that is thought to destroy online poker forever. Somehow, we always seem to come out decently strong with ever increasing numbers, so hopefully this results in the same fashion.”

Traffic on PokerStars has appeared to drop off in recent days since the ban on French players. On June 24th, the site attracted a peak of 36,566 real money ring game players according to PokerScout.com, a drop of about 10% from the 40,943 players recorded one week prior. On June 23rd, the number of cash game players topped out at 37,637, down 9% from the 41,585 the previous week. June 23rd and 24th marked the first back-to-back days that featured peak real money ring game player totals below 40,000 since May 1st to 2nd. However, whether the drop off is due to the loss of French action or some other factor remains to be seen.

According to statistics found on PokerStars’ site, its Spring Championship of Online Poker (SCOOP) attracted 27,316 entrants from France, the fourth most of any country and about 6% of the field of 462,000. The country with the most number of entrants, not surprisingly, was the United States, which contributed 147,000 players to the cause in the three-tiered tournament series.

In terms of money won, French players banked $1.62 million, good for eighth worldwide behind the United States, Canada, Germany, Sweden, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Russia. Team PokerStars France includes Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier, Thomas Bichon, and Arnaud Mattern. Other popular French players include David Benyamine, Bruno Fitoussi, and Everest Poker sponsored pros Antoine Saout and Fabrice Soulier.

The PokerStars.com moratorium on French real money action went into effect at 9:30pm CET on June 24th. Earlier this month, the French Authority of Regulation of Online Games (ARJEL) granted gaming licenses to outfits like Unibet, Everest Poker, and the parent company of bwin. Online poker licenses were granted to Pari Mutuel Urbain (the former state-run outlet for gaming), Sajoo, SPS France Betting, and Table 14. Meanwhile, Microgaming, 888, and Party Gaming were not granted licenses despite being three of the largest companies in the industry.

Paradise Poker parent company Sportingbet, Betfair, and William Hill have shut their doors to the French poker market. Keep it tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest poker legislation news from France and around the world.

Russian leads the way

Phil Hellmuth Vying for 12th WSOP Bracelet in Omaha High-Low Split Event

A win for UB.com pro Phil Hellmuth in Event #41 of the 2010 World Series of Poker (WSOP), $1,500 Pot Limit Omaha High-Low Split Eight or Better, would be monumental on several levels. First, a “W” would mean Hellmuth’s 12th bracelet, a new record. Also, it would mark the “Poker Brat’s” first win in a non-Hold’em tournament, getting the proverbial monkey off his back. Hellmuth owns the fourth largest stack with 15 players remaining.

Hellmuth already has two deep runs at this year’s World Series. The 11-time bracelet winner finished 15th in Event #8, $1,500 No Limit Hold’em, and cashed for $25,000. Nine events later, it was back to the cage after finishing 50th in a $5,000 No Limit Hold’em tournament for $14,000. Given that all of his hardware has come in No Limit Hold’em, many consider Hellmuth to be the top player in the world in that genre of poker.

Hellmuth may have felt the heat earlier this week from Full Tilt Poker pro Phil Ivey, who said he’s gunning for 30 bracelets after taking down his eighth in a $3,000 HORSE event. Hellmuth responded with a deep run in Event #41, dispatching Cody Culp in 17th place. Hellmuth flopped top set, which held for the win.

Twitter was ablaze on Wednesday with Hellmuth giving updates on his progress during the second day of play in the Omaha High-Low Split event. Perhaps facetiously, he called his shot entering Wednesday’s action: “Ended Day One of Omaha 8/b with $31,600… another Day Two, but this feels different to me, maybe a cash, maybe a final table, maybe more…” Then, word of a Hellmuth sighting in the top 100 spread like wildfire around the internet: “Wow! I Ah-3h-3s-8d, flop Qd-Qh-3d, p1 bet, p2 call, p3 all in, I call $20,100, fold, fold, p3 had Q-J-10-10, I win; have over 60k!! 98 left.”

Hellmuth’s final chirp came just before 3:00am PT on Thursday morning after play had concluded for the day: “15 left in Omaha 8/b, and I am 4th in chips w $331,000, blinds will be 6k-12k tomorrow. All I can do is focus on playing great poker.” Hellmuth will have to contend with a talented lineup that includes three-time bracelet winner and PokerStars sponsored pro Barry Greenstein. Here’s how the final 15 shake out:

1. Ryan Karp – 564,000
2. Steve Jelinek – 538,000
3. Joel Ettedgi – 419,000
4. Phil Hellmuth – 331,000
5. Ben Lamb – 320,000
6. John Gottlieb – 277,000
7. Michael Chappus – 260,000
8. Jeffrey Baker – 247,000
9. Barry Greenstein – 204,000
10. Anders Taylor – 202,000
11. Darren Sprengers – 144,000
12. Bryan Andrews – 122,000
13. Igor Gotz – 105,000
14. Amanda Thomas – 60,000
15. Anthony Cousineau – 22,000

Elsewhere, UB.com pro Annie Duke finished Day 1 of the $10,000 HORSE Championship in 39th place with a stack of 61,600. Russia’s Sergey Altbregin and the World Poker Tour’s all-time money leader, Carlos Mortensen, lead the way with stacks of 143,000 and 125,800, respectively. A field of 169 will take to the felts today. Duke took a sizable hit to her stack during Hold’em play after she turned two pair with A-Q. However, close friend Perry Friedman, who was instrumental to Duke’s fundraising efforts on NBC’s “Celebrity Apprentice,” held pocket fives for a set and scooped a mammoth pot.

Duke one-outed Ivey in Omaha, making quads against Ivey’s trip aces. According to coverage found on WSOP.com, Duke exclaimed, “Oh my god! I just hit a one-outer on Phil Ivey! I had three queens in Omaha, and he had three aces, and I made quads!” In case you’re wondering, Ivey did not reach Day 2 of the HORSE Championship.

Will it be bracelet #12 for Hellmuth today? Stay tuned to Poker News Daily to find out.

Magnificent Montgomery - Day 27 WSOP Recap

It was a breakthrough day for one Scott Montgomery, who tallied his first WSOP bracelet win, while Frank Kassela snagged his second bracelet of the summer in $2.5k Razz.

In a strange turn of events the Rio also suffered a blackout around 2:00 a.m. which saw the lights go out in the entire Amazon Room and Pavilion Room.

Here's a look around the Rio on Day 27 of the 2010 WSOP:

Event 36 - $1k No-Limit Hold'em

Scott Montgomery already had an impressive WSOP resume, but now the 28-year-old Canadian has a gold bracelet all his own.

Montogomery broke through for his first career WSOP bracelet win, outlasting the field of 3,102 players and cashing for a first-place prize of $481,760.

The win brings Montgomery's career WSOP winnings total to more than $3.5 million, mostly thanks to his 2008 WSOP Main Event final table.

Svletlana Gromenkova was amongst the notables in the money, finishing 33rd.

Event 39 - $1.5k No-Limit Hold'em Shootout

The final table was a slugfest in the $1.5k Shootout, and it was relatively unknown Steve Kelly coming away with the bracelet victory and first-prize cash of $382,725.

Kelly had only cashed once in a WSOP event so to say it was a big score for him was an understatement.

1,397 players came out for the event, with Annette Obrestad appearing primed to make a final table run.

Luck didn't shine on the 21-year-old phenom near the final table bubble however, and Obrestad took an 11th place finish. She will have to wait another day to book her first WSOP final table appearance.

Event 40 - $2.5k 7-card Razz

The bracelet and first-place prize of $214,085 went to Frank Kassela, who outlasted the field of 365 players for the win. It was Kassela's second bracelet of the summer which should put him in contention for the 2010 Player of the Year.

Although the day began with some big names chasing WSOP glory, including arguably the best female poker player in the world Jennifer Harman and upstart Russian Vladimir Schmelev they were all relegated to the rail before getting even a sniff of the bracelet.

Heads-up proved to be a brutal marathan affair that eventually saw Kassela emerge unscathed at nearly 5 a.m.

Event 41 - $1.5k Pot-Limit Omaha Eight or Better Hi-Lo

157 of the original 847 entrants survived to play on Day 2, and the money bubble broke today at 80 players.

Chris "Jesus" Ferguson was amongst those making the payout structure, sneaking in just past the bubble with a 75th place finish.

Mike "The Mouth" Matusow also made a nice showing, finishing 40th.

Ryan Karp will head into Day 3 with the chip lead but big-time players Phil Hellmuth and Barry Greenstein are also in the running.

Play was originally scheduled to go down to a final table Wednesday, but instead 15 players will come back tomorrow as play resumes at 2:30 p.m.

Event 42 - $1.5k No-Limit Hold'em

It was another big turnout for another $1.5k No-Limit Hold'em event, as 2,521 rounders registered for this event.

The vast majority of that number was eliminated on Day 1, as we played all the way down to 297 players.

270 places get paid in this tournament, so the money bubble will come early in the day Thursday when play resumes at 2:30 p.m.

Tom Dwan, Humberto Brenes, Carter Phillips and Dan Skolovy are amongst the notables coming back for Day 2.

Event 43 - $10k H.O.R.S.E. Championship

We're almost done with this year's slate of $10k Championship event, with just three more to play in the 2010 WSOP.

$10k H.O.R.S.E. began Wednesday, and Chris "Jesus" Ferguson made a quick move to the top of the leader board, where he stayed much of the day.

241 players came out for Day 1, including Marco Traniello, Annie Duke, Ted Forrest and Jeffrey Lisandro who all made it to Day 2.

A total of 169 players including Chris "Jesus" Ferguson, Scott Seiver and Matt Glantz will come back for Day 2 as we continue to whittle down to the money in this event.

Play resumes at 3 p.m. Thursday.

For a full account of how today played out at the World Series of Poker, click through to PokerListings WSOP coverage.

WSOP Live!

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Russian player wins $1,500 HORSE event

Halfway through the 2010 World Series of Poker by Mike Sexton

As of this writing, the 2010 World Series of Poker (WSOP) is a little over half over.  As for me, I’ve played in six events and will probably play another six or so.  To date, I have one cash – a 10th place finish in the $10,000 Omaha Eight or Better tournament – for nearly $35,000 and that puts me in the plus column at the WSOP by about $10,000.  Ironically, the two guys who knocked me out in the two $10,000 buy-in events I played in went on to win bracelets!  Congratulations to Frank Kassela, who won the $10,000 Eight or Better Stud tournament, and Sammy Farha, who captured the $10,000 Omaha Eight or Better bracelet.  Obviously, they took good care of my chips.

I live in California now, so I’m commuting back and forth to the WSOP this year.  I’m taking this week off to relax and spend time with my son, Ty (22 months old).  I love being with him and want to spend Father’s Day at home.  I’ll get back to the WSOP on Tuesday, June 22nd.

As for my upcoming schedule, I’m going to play in two Pot Limit Omaha Eight or Better tournaments this week and then next Sunday (June 27th), I’ll play in the WSOP Tournament of Champions. I’ll probably play in the $10,000 Pot Limit Omaha tournament as well as two or three more events in addition to the Main Event.

I’m excited about the WSOP Tournament of Champions (a $1,000,000 freeroll for 27 players) because it’s where I have an opportunity to defend my title!  I won this event in 2006, the last time it was played.  I look forward to finally getting a chance to defend my title.

The WSOP Tournament of Champions is supposedly poker’s All-Star event.  It is a made-for-television event that is guaranteed to have an amazing final table.  The three former WSOP Tournament of Champions winners (Annie Duke, Mike Matusow, and myself) were awarded exemptions as well as the reigning WSOP champion, Joe Cada, and WSOP European, champion Barry Shulman.  Two qualifiers, Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier and Andrew Barton, are in, as are 20 players voted in by the public.

They announced the 20 top vote getters for the WSOP Tournament of Champions this week and there were virtually no changes from the first ballot that was publicized a couple of months ago.  Here is the list of players (in order of finish) that were voted into the 2010 WSOP Tournament of Champions: Phil Ivey, Daniel Negreanu, Doyle Brunson, Phil Hellmuth, Chris Ferguson, Allen Cunningham, Johnny Chan, Scotty Nguyen, Barry Greenstein, John Juanda, Erik Seidel, Jennifer Harman, Huck Seed, Dan Harrington, T.J. Cloutier, Sammy Farha, Howard Lederer, Greg Raymer, Joe Hachem, and Antonio Esfandiari.

I congratulate the 20 players that were voted in, but honestly, I feel that a couple of deserving people were left off the list.  Two guys that I feel should be in that aren’t are Carlos Mortensen and David Chiu.  Mortensen is a multiple WSOP bracelet winner and a two-time World Poker Tour (WPT) champion.  He’s also the only player in the world who has won the Main Event at the WSOP and the Main Event of the World Poker Tour – a feat we may not see duplicated in our lifetime.

Chiu has won four WSOP bracelets and, like Mortensen, has a WPT World Championship title to his credit.  In addition, and perhaps most significant to this event, is that Chiu won the inaugural Tournament of Champions in 1999 (an event that I created).  Another player I believe deserves to play in the WSOP Tournament of Champions is Poker Hall of Famer and seven-time bracelet champion Billy Baxter.

I know some internet pros and young players feel slighted that none of them were voted into this event.  Even “if” they are better players than a number of players voted in – which I don’t disagree with – I don’t feel they deserve to be in poker’s All-Star game just yet.  They need to pay their dues over time and let their credentials speak for them.  In time, they’ll get their chance to play in this prestigious event.

There is a lot of buzz at the WSOP about the side bets a number of the top pros have on winning bracelets, cross-booking each other, etc.  I think these bets create an exciting atmosphere.  I’m also guessing that WSOP officials are happy about them because it gets the top players to literally play every event on the schedule.  And any time you have Phil Ivey and other top players playing in all of your tournaments, you have to love it.

I was pretty much exhausted and drained after playing in only a half-dozen events and am enjoying a little R & R.  I know how tough it is to play in all of the tournaments like a number of players are doing.  Those guys (and a few gals) are playing multiple events every day and are up until 3:00am many nights – and take it from me, it’s a grind.  It’s not easy to cash, let alone win, at the WSOP.

Playing 12-hour days so many days in a row is brutal on your body.   It also gets very cold in there in the wee hours in the morning.  I salute all those who play so many events and wish them luck in their quest to add to their bracelet count.

Let me take a moment to pay tribute to the foreign players and how well they do at the WSOP.  England is having its best WSOP ever and those Russians are really tough.  Although outnumbered significantly, there seems to be a number of them that show up in the money in every event!

I’ve been coming to the WSOP since 1984 and I can assure you that overall, the competition is much tougher today than yesteryear.  There are so many terrific young players as well as good foreign players out there.  Anyone who plays at the WSOP and goes home with a profit should be proud of themselves.  And to those lucky enough to win a bracelet, pat yourself on the back and enjoy it.  Trust me, they’re not easy to get.

Heads-Up: WSOP Day 24 Recap

Plenty of big-time tournaments were on display Sunday, with the $10k No-Limit Hold'em Championship final table as the main course.

A champion was also crowned in the $1k Seniors Championship, while a slew of former WSOP POYs battled it out in $3k H.O.R.S.E.

Here's a look around the WSOP on Day 24:

Event #34 - $1k Seniors No-Limit Hold'em Championship

Harold Angle outlasted the rest at the final table, winning a first-place prize of $487,994 and taking down the bracelet at the $1k Seniors Championship.

This event was open for registration to anyone over age 50, so there weren't any online whiz kids in the field of 3,142 players.

That doesn't mean there weren't a slew of great players in the field, including Tom Schneider, who finished 14th and cashed for $22,805.

This tournament saw a huge increase in attendance over 2009, when 2,707 players were in the field.

Event #35 - $10k Heads-Up Hold'em Championship

This 256-player event did not play down to a winner on Sunday as was originally scheduled.

The final two players, Ayaz Mahmood and Ernst Schmejkal, played the first of three heads-up matches until 5:30 a.m. Tuesday and decided to call it a night. Mahmood took the first match but they will return to decide a winner at 7 p.m. on Tuesday.

Vanessa Rousso finished in the quarterfinals for $94,956 while Russian Alex Kostritsyn lost in the quarterfinals $219,969. Gavin Smith, Alex Kravchenko and Chris Moorman also made it into the money.

Event #36 - $1k No-Limit Hold'em

Day 1b of this event drew 1,119 entrants, bringing the combined Day 1s total to 3,649.

We saw a good portion of the Day 1b field eliminated today, as only 165 players made it through.

Soheil Shamseddin will be amongst the chip leaders coming back after a terrific run in Day 1b.

Day 2 commences at 2:30 p.m. Monday with all 455 surviving players from Day 1a and 1b.

Event #37- $3k H.O.R.S.E.

The mixed games format continues to gain popularity at the WSOP, as 478 players registered for $3K H.O.R.S.E.

219 of poker's most well-rounded players came back Sunday for Day 2, with lots of notable names in attendance.

David Benyamine, John Juanda, Phil Ivey and Jeff Lisandro were a few of the sharks terrorizing the field on Day 2, and each of the four pros had chips to work with when the money bubble burst at 48 players.

Chau Giang, Robert Williamson III, Daniel Negreanu and Michael Binger were amongst the unlucky contenders eliminated before the cash.

By the end of the day 25 players remained with Juanda in the chip lead with 393,000 and Phil Ivey lurking in seventh place with 200,000.

We're scheduled to play down to a champion Monday, with the winner set to pocket $329,840.

Day 3 begins at 3 p.m. Monday.

Event #38- $10k Pot-Limit Hold'em Championship

268 deep-pocketed players hit the felt for the beginning of the $10k PLO Championship, and as expected a ton of big names registered for the event.

Daniel Negreanu, Annette Obrestad, Chris "Jesus" Ferguson, Tom Dwan and Jennifer Tilly were all in attendance on Day 1.

By the end of the day Tilly, Dwan, Ferguson, Obrestad were all eliminated but Negreanu will take a decent stack into Day 2.

Tom "Kingsofcards" Marchese was the man of the hour, however, as he finished with 334,000 for the chip lead.

Day 2 will kick off at 3 p.m. tomorrow.

For a full account of how day 24 of the WSOP 2010 played out, click through to PokerListings' WSOP coverage.

WSOP Live!

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H.O.R.S.E. Explodes at WSOP

The numbers are up all around for H.O.R.S.E. events at the 2010 WSOP, with the $1.5k event drawing 828 players earlier in the WSOP.

That event, won by Russian Konstantin Puchov, drew the largest field ever for a live H.O.R.S.E. tournament, and it seems like players can't get enough of the mixed-game events.

The $50k Poker Players Championship saw a significant increase in attendance in 2010, drawing 116 players in the first year after switching from H.O.R.S.E. to an 8-game mix format.

Mike "The Grinder" Mizrachi, the 2010 Players Championship bracelet winner, is just the kind of well-rounded player that thrives in a mixed-game format.

"I love the game of HORSE, but I like the 8-game better," Mizrachi said.

"It never hurts to have No-Limit, PLO and Deuce-to-Seven in there. Hopefully they'll add more games next year. The more games the better."

The WSOP created the most ambitious mixed-game event in its history when the switch was made to the 8-game format for the Players Championship, and it appears that players are ready for even more games to be added to the mix.

"There are a lot of new games coming out," Mizrachi said. "I know Badacey, Badeuce, Badugi, I play them all.

"Hopefully next year they'll add a few more games. It would be a lot more fun."

Todd Brunson echoed Mizrachi's statements, and Brunson expressed surprise that the mix wasn't even larger than an 8-game format.

"I can't believe that didn't happen this year," Brunson said. "There are so many more games that we've been playing for several years that aren't represented at all here."

"Badugi has been around a long time now. Badeuce, Badacey, this is probably the third year we've been playing them. I think they should definitely be part of the World Series."

Brunson thinks we might see more games in the mix next year, so stay tuned.

The 2010 WSOP continues through July 17. For comprehensive coverage live from Las Vegas tune in to PokerListings' Live Updates and News.

Mike Ellis, Konstantin Puchkov Win World Series of Poker Gold

Two more World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelets were handed out early Saturday morning at the Rio Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas as Events #30 and #31 came to an end. Mike Ellis won the $1,500 No Limit Hold’em Event #30, while Konstantin Puchkov took down the $1,500 HORSE Event #31, rewarding each player with his first bracelet.

Ellis, a 45-year-old financial trader from London, bested a field of 2,394 players to win $581,851 in Event #30. He defeated Christopher Gonzales in a marathon heads-up match that saw each player go back and forth holding the chip lead. Finally, after 5:00am local time, Ellis got the best of the California native. Ellis raised on the button, Gonzales re-raised, and Ellis made the call. On the Jd-7s-6d flop, Gonzales overbet the pot and Ellis called. The 5d fell on the turn and Gonzales moved all-in. Ellis called immediately and tabled Ad-Td for the nut flush, leaving Gonzales drawing dead with pocket aces. Gonzalez earned $360,906 for his second place finish.

Ellis became the fourth English player at this year’s WSOP to win a gold bracelet. The other champions were Praz Bansi, James Dempsey, and Richard Ashby. This is Ellis’ second major win on the poker circuit, the first coming in 2007 at the GUKPT Grand Final, where he collected £197,600 ($407,700). Saturday’s win gives him more than $1,000,000 in live tournament earnings.

WSOP Event #30 Results:

1. Mike Ellis – $581,851
2. Chistopher Gonzales – $360,906
3. David Wilkinson – $254,996
4. Martin Jacobson – $183,345
5. Billy Griner – $133,574
6. William Kakon – $98,605
7. Jason Hallee – $73,719
8. Chris Kastler – $55,814
9. Jeff Cohen – $42,790

Russians had come close to winning bracelets several times at this year’s WSOP and they finally earned one Saturday morning. Moscow’s Puchkov was crowned the winner of the $1,500 buy-in HORSE event, earning $256,820 and the coveted gold bracelet. The 58 year-old horse breeder topped a field of 828 players to win the title.

The final table included a handful of highly talented players, including Robert Mizrachi, Blake “Balla-B13” Cahail, and Ken Lennaard. Puchkov began heads-up play at a slight chip disadvantage to Al “Sugar Bear” Barbieri and suddenly found himself crippled down to 200,000, with Barbieri holding 3.5 million. But Puchkov crawled his way back into the match, making a valiant comeback over the course of three hours and put his opponent away by making a full house in the Seven Card Stud High-Low round. Barbieri, who made a final table earlier this year and took third in an event last year, will have to wait to get his first WSOP bracelet.

WSOP Event #31 Results:

1. Konstantin Puchkov – $256,820
2. Al Barbieri – $158,647
3. Dustin Leary – $107,849
4. Ken Lennaard – $75,058
5. Hani Awad – $53,321
6. Andrew Revesz – $38,651
7. Blake Cahail – $28,569
8. Robert Mizrachi – $21,525

Saturday will be an exciting day at the Rio as two of poker’s biggest names are dangerously close to winning bracelets. Phil Ivey headlines a fantastic field of 14 remaining players in the $2,500 Pot Limit Hold’em/Omaha Event #33, which will play down to a winner. Joining Ivey will be Kevin “ImaLuckSac” MacPhee, Victor Ramdin, David Chiu, Josh Tieman, Rob Hollink, and chip leader Jose- Lius Velador, who has 455,000 chips going into the final day. Players will reconvene at 3:00pm local time and the winner will receive $260,517.

Erick Lindgren will also be vying for a bracelet, his second, in the $5,000 Six-Handed No Limit Hold’em Event #32. With 12 players still alive, Lindgren is second in chips, trailing only Mark Radoja. Taylor “El Mastermind” McFarland, Jeff Papola, and a short-stacked Men “The Master” Nguyen will also be playing for the massive $667,433 payday. Play gets underway at 3:00pm.

Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the continuous updates from the 2010 WSOP.

ESPN: No Decision Made Whether to Broadcast NAPT Los Angeles

In 146 days, the fourth stop on the PokerStars North American Poker Tour (NAPT) will pan out from the Bicycle Casino in Los Angeles. The tournament, which kicks off on November 12th, will crown a champ five days later. Still undecided is whether ESPN, which aired NAPT action from the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure, Venetian, and Mohegan Sun, will also broadcast the Bicycle Casino event.

An ESPN representative told Poker News Daily, “There is nothing in the works yet, but our programming team expects to meet with PokerStars on possibilities.” At the time of writing, no decision has been passed down as to whether NAPT Los Angeles will air on the cable giant, which carries related programming like the World Series of Poker (WSOP) and WSOP Europe every year.

The five-day Main Event in Los Angeles will carry a $5,000 buy-in, the same price tag as other U.S.-based NAPT stops. Despite potentially not having television coverage, a representative of The Bike commented in a press release distributed by PokerStars, “We are very enthusiastic to secure the West Coast tour stop. We clearly recognize the NAPT as the next major happening in the evolution of poker and we have no doubt this tour will entice and attract players from all over the world.”

Three months prior to the NAPT’s arrival at The Bike, the storied card room will host the annual World Poker Tour (WPT) Legends of Poker. The 2010 running of the WPT Legends of Poker is slated for August 20th to 25th, but in a new twist, the event will come with a $5,200 buy-in, one of the cheapest on the WPT schedule. Meanwhile, NAPT officials are expecting a sellout at The Bike, which drew 279 players for its 2009 Legends of Poker event.

In April and May, ESPN aired action from the NAPT Venetian High Roller Bounty Shootout and Main Event, Mohegan Sun High Roller Bounty Shootout and Main Event, and PokerStars Caribbean Adventure High Roller tournament. A total of 10 hours of NAPT coverage aired, hosted by longtime ESPN poker faces Lon McEachern and Norman Chad.

Harrison Gimbel won a record-setting PokerStars Caribbean Adventure Main Event in the Bahamas, collecting $2.2 million. Back on U.S. soil, the inaugural NAPT Venetian Main Event drew 872 players and Tom “kingsofcards” Marchese emerged victorious and banked $827,000. Then, 21 year-old Ashton Griffin landed in the top spot in the High Roller Event at the Las Vegas Strip casino for $560,000.

The NAPT then traveled to Mohegan Sun in Connecticut in April, where Yale law student Vanessa Selbst defeated over 700 players for the title. In addition, more than 20 countries were represented. Finally, Team PokerStars Pro member Jason Mercier brought home the High Roller title at Mohegan Sun for $475,000. The victory marked Mercier’s second High Roller title at a PokerStars sponsored event in two years.

In addition to the NAPT, PokerStars, the world’s largest online poker site, also manages the European Poker Tour (EPT), Latin American Poker Tour (LAPT), Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT), Australia New Zealand Poker Tour (ANZPT), U.K. and Ireland Poker Tour (UKIPT), Czech-Slovak Poker Tour (CSPT), Italian Poker Tour (IPT), and poker series in Russia, Spain, and France. Its “Big Game” cash game franchise can be seen nightly during the week on Fox.

According to Pokerati, the future of NAPT stops in Las Vegas appears to be in doubt due to the involvement of PokerStars. Other alternative landing spots for the NAPT include Chicago, Tunica, Biloxi, Atlantic City, and St. Louis. The latter is home to PokerStars pro Dennis Phillips and features Harrah’s, Isle of Capri, and Lumiere Place. Also potentially on tap is an NAPT stop in Canada.

Matt Keikoan Captures Second Bracelet, Miguel Proulx Wins First At WSOP

A busy Thursday at the World Series of Poker (WSOP) saw one of the most underrated players in the game capture his second bracelet and the crowning of a fresh face from north of the border.

In Event #28, the $2,500 Pot Limit Omaha tournament, 12 players from the original starting field of 596 returned for play on Thursday afternoon to determine a champion. The survivors of two days of battle reflected the international nature of the WSOP, with five Americans, two Frenchmen, two Germans, and Bulgaria, the United Kingdom, and Canada also represented among the players. Canada’s Miguel Proulx was at the head of the field with a chip count of 877,000, but he faced a serious challenge from France’s Patrick Hanoteau.

The action at the table started as soon as the cards hit the air, with the final table determined in slightly under two hours. Once Matthew Reid, top professional grinder Joe Serock, and Dilyan Kovachev were eliminated short of the final table, Hanoteau was able to seize a slim 1,000 chip lead over Proulx. Hanoteau would not enjoy his chip lead for long, however.

Once the final table began, Hanoteau became a victim of tough cards and tougher players. After turning the straight against Tommy Le’s set, Hanoteau was a victim of the river when Le filled up his boat, doubling up Le. He then doubled up actor Michael Greco and Karl Gal in a ten-minute span, chopping his chip stack down to 115,000. He would depart the tournament soon afterward in ninth place.

Hanoteau was the only player to depart before the dinner break, with Le assuming the lead of the tournament with eight players remaining. After the players came back, the action ratcheted up as Le fell victim to the same circumstances as Hanoteau, departing in eighth at the hands of Proulx. The Canadian continued to apply the pressure to the final table, eliminating four of the remaining players to reach the heads-up fight against L.J. Klein.

Klein held an approximate one million chip lead over Proulx at the start of heads-up play, but over the span of the 45-minute heads-up match, Proulx was able to assume the lead. On the final hand, Proulx was able to trap Klein into committing his chips while Proulx held the nut flush. After the three days of play, Proulx walked away with his first WSOP bracelet and the third bracelet for Canada.

1. Miguel Proulx (St. Charles, Quebec) $313,311
2. L. J. Klein (Golden, CO) $195,147
3. Michael Greco (London, United Kingdom) $129,691
4. Stephane Tayar (St. Mande, France) $96,243
5. Joerg Engels (Cologne, Germany) $72,227
6. Karl Gal (Munchen, Germany) $54,736
7. Trevor Pope (Gainesville, FL) $41,850
8. Tommy Le (Tustin, CA) $32,254
9. Patrick Hanoteau (Chauconin, France) $25,044

The marquee event on Thursday was the finale of the $10,000 Limit Hold’em World Championship. Thirteen players returned to the felt Thursday afternoon from the 171 players who began the tournament to determine the champion. There were no weak players in sight, with Kyle Ray and Daniel Idema leading a field that included Jameson Painter, Player’s Championship bracelet holder Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi, David Chiu, Brock Parker, and Matt Keikoan.

After two hours of play, the remainder of the field made the final table with the elimination of David Baker (eleventh) and Anh Van Nguyen (tenth) as the unfortunate bubble players. Painter held a 300,000 chip advantage over Ray when the final table started, but Idema was able to seize the lead over the duo at the dinner break. When the players came back to the table, Keikoan began his drive to take his second bracelet.

After an hour of play, Keikoan surpassed the chip leaders and continued to apply pressure. He eliminated Painter in fourth place and dispatched Ray in third to reach heads-up competition against Idema. After an hour of heads-up action, Keikoan lost his chip lead, as Idema worked his way to a 3:1 advantage. Keikoan was able to reverse his fortunes over the next hour, however, and the duo continued to swap the chip lead as the final table worked into the early hours of Friday.

After a five-hour heads-up fight, Keikoan was able to seize the advantage and eliminate Idema. After being crippled, Idema tabled an innocuous 4-2 and Keikoan showed a suited A-7; the board brought no miracles for Idema and gave Matt Keikoan his second WSOP bracelet.

1. Matt Keikoan (San Rafael, CA) $425,969
2. Daniel Idema (Vancouver, British Columbia) $263,243
3. Kyle Ray (Fayetteville, GA) $190,701
4. Jameson Painter (Las Vegas, NV) $140,760
5. Brock Parker (Silver Springs, MD) $105,782
6. Zvi Groysman (Thornhill, Ontario) $80,884
7. Simon Morris (Victoria, Austria) $62,897
8. Michael Mizrachi (Miramar, FL) $49,732
9. David Chiu (Las Vegas, NV) $39,959

Four other events were in action inside the Rio on Thursday, with several top pros in the hunt for WSOP bracelets. In Event #30, the $1,500 No Limit Hold’em tournament, Christopher Gonzales heads the 21 players remaining in the battle. Top pros Neil “Bad Beat” Channing and Jean “Prince” Gaspard are lurking in the middle of the pack, both looking for their first WSOP bracelet.

The $1,500 H.O.R.S.E. tournament has 24 players remaining, with Russia’s Konstantin Puchkov leading the remaining field. There are plenty of challengers for Puchkov, with several notable names in hot pursuit. Cliff “JohnnyBax” Josephy, Robert Mizrachi, Allen Kessler, Al “Sugar Bear” Barbieri, James Van Alstyne, and Chip Jett are all involved in what should be an exciting final table.

Event #32, the $5,000 Six-Handed No Limit Hold’em event, finished Day Two with 116 runners remaining from its 568 starters. Christian “charder30” Harder is the chip leader over Tony Dunst, but none other than Phil Ivey is holding down eighth place when play continues today. Also still on the front page of the leaderboard are Isaac Haxton, Jennifer Harman, Chad Brown, and Men “The Master” Nguyen.

The $2,500 Pot Limit Hold’em/Omaha mixed game drew 482 players for its Day One action. Justin Smith holds an approximate 45,000 chip lead over Tyler Patterson, but what is most impressive is that Ivey is also in this event. He currently sits in 35th place, but will probably have to make a decision early as to whether to pursue the Event #32 bracelet or play for this one. Also in the mix in Event #33 are Andrew Black, Ross Boatman, Rob Hollink, and defending WSOP Player of the Year Jeffrey Lisandro.

Two tournaments will be initiating play on Friday, the $1,000 Seniors (50 and over) No Limit tournament and the $10,000 Heads-Up World Championship. The latter should be a pro-laden field, as it is capped at 256 players and offers an excellent opportunity at a bracelet. Even if the Heads-Up tournament weren’t occurring, there is still plenty of action for the railbirds at the Rio as the World Series of Poker rolls on.

World Team Poker Signs Kathy Liebert, Cyndy Violette, Antonio Esfandiari

The roster for the 24-team World Team Poker World Championship just got a little bit bigger. Top female poker pros Kathy Liebert and Cyndy Violette have been inked to play for Team Germany, whose roster currently includes Dan Heimiller. The World Championship will take place from October 11th to 17th in Las Vegas, although a host venue has not yet been announced.

Violette has been a staple of the poker scene since the 1980s. She final tabled Ladies’ Events at the World Series of Poker (WSOP) in 1985 and 1987 before winning her first bracelet in 2004 in a $2,000 Seven Card Stud High-Low Split Eight or Better tournament for $135,000. In 2005, Violette was the runner-up to Erik Seidel in a $2,000 No Limit Hold’em event for $295,000, but she has not made a final table at the WSOP in four years.

Liebert also won a bracelet in 2004, taking down a $1,500 Limit Hold’em Shootout for $110,000 in a final table that included Brock “t soprano” Parker, Kevin Song, and Joe Cassidy. Liebert finished third in the 2008 World Championship of Pot Limit Hold’em for just over $300,000 and owns over $1 million in WSOP and Circuit earnings. Last November, Liebert won a $2,325 No Limit Hold’em event held during the Foxwoods World Poker Finals for $74,000 and took third in the World Poker Tour (WPT) North American Poker Championship two years ago for nearly $300,000.

Now, these two poker divas, whose parents are German, will step up to bat on behalf of Team Germany. Competing against them under the Iranian banner will be Victory Poker pro Antonio Esfandiari, who also joined on with World Team Poker in recent days. Esfandiari already has two cashes during the 2010 WSOP, including a 12th place showing in a $5,000 No Limit Hold’em event for $47,000. Esfandiari finished 24th in last year’s Main Event for $352,000 and won a bracelet in 2004 in a $2,000 Pot Limit Hold’em contest.

Other World Team Poker rumors have two-time WSOP gold bracelet winner Greg “FBT” Mueller captaining Team Canada, whose roster of pros has yet to be announced. World Team Poker’s Robert Turner told Poker News Daily that the hype for the World Championship event in October is quickly building: “People like our concept. It’s something new in poker that’s never been done. Even though there have been attempts to do team events, we have it right. There is no collusion, we combine chips, and the fact that we’re with Fox Sports Net has helped. That’s the home run for us.”

On July 14th, a teaser episode of World Team Poker’s kickoff event at the Golden Nugget in Las Vegas will air on Fox Sports Net. Then, beginning in September, the rest of the action from the Downtown casino will be broadcast in one-hour episodes on the sports station on Sunday nights.

Earlier this month, World Team Poker signed Full Tilt pro Annette “Annette_15” Obrestad to Team Norway, whose roster also includes Thor Hansen. Team China took down the tournament series’ inaugural event at the Golden Nugget, besting Team Brazil. The Chinese squad included Johnny Chan, David Chiu, Chau Giang, Maria Ho, Winfred Yu, Rich Zhu, and Derek Cheung.

Twenty-three countries are listed on World Team Poker’s website, meaning that one more may need to come aboard in order to fill out a 24-team World Championship field: Armenia, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, the Czech Republic, England, Germany, Greece, India, Iran, Israel, Italy, Korea, Lebanon, Mexico, Norway, the Philippines, Russia, Switzerland, Turkey, the United States, and Vietnam. Curiously absent is France, whose roster could include players like Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier, Everest Poker’s Antoine Saout, and David Benyamine.

Stay tuned for the latest news from World Team Poker.

Setting The Stage: WSOP 2010 Day 19 Recap

No bracelets were handed out Tuesday, but things are really picking up now at the Rio Pavilion, as seven different events will happen Wednesday in what will shape up to be the busiest day so far at the 2010 WSOP.

Day 18 featured multi-tabling efforts from durrrr and Phil Ivey, while Jerry "The Shadow" Yang slipped out of the Rio after a cash finish.

We also saw the stars align in the Amazon Room for the start of the $10k Limit Hold'em Championship.

Here's a look at what went down Tuesday.

Event #24 - $1k No-Limit Hold'em

A short Day 3 played out Tuesday, as 30 players came in to play down to the final nine.

JD McNamara and Kiet Tran Tuan sit atop the leaderboard going into the final table, with each sitting at just more than 2 million chips.

The final table begins at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Event #26- $2.5k Six-Handed No-Limit Hold'em

This event was originally scheduled to play down to a final table Tuesday, but WSOP tournament directors decided to call it a night at the end of Level 20.

The blinds will be at 8k/16k when play reconvenes at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Daniel Negreanu held court in this event for most of the day, drawing lots of railbirds to the Amazon Room, before eventually becoming the final player to bust before Day 2 ended.

Sorel Mizzi was also in the hunt most of the day before busting late.

Perhaps nobody had a better day than Justin Smith. The 22-year-old Full Tilt Pro comes back Wednesday amongst the chip leaders vying for the first prize of $630,031.

Chris Moorman and Jerry Yang were amongst the notables eliminated in the cash.

Play resumes at 3 p.m. tomorrow.

Event #27 - $1.5k Seven-Card Stud Hi-Lo Eight or Better

Phil Ivey recorded his latest WSOP cash finish in this event, but the seven-time bracelet winner couldn't survive Day 2.

On a day that saw him play in at least three events, Ivey took a 52nd-place finish amongst the field of 644 players.

Blair Rodman, Brandon Cantu and Dutch Boyd are all in the hunt as we come back Wednesday at 3 p.m. and play down to a champion.

Event #28 - $2.5k Pot-Limit Omaha

The increasingly popular PLO was back in action Tuesday, as a sizeable field of 596 came out for Day 1.

J.C. Tran fell short of defending his 2009 championship in this event, going to the rail near the end of the day, while Erik Seidel was another notable elimination late in the day.

This event conflicted with the $10k Limit Hold'em Championship for some players, as Tom Dwan and Phil Ivey were amongst the players playing both tournaments simultaneously.

Both Full Tilt pros were eliminated from PLO contention on Day 1, while T.J. Cloutier, Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, Tex Barch and Joe Hachem were amongst the notables surviving Day 1.

105 players will come back and play for 54 money spots when Day 2 begins at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Event #29 - $10k Limit Hold'em Championship

The latest $10k Championship event is in the air, as 171 of poker's best hit the Amazon Room for a spectator's delight.

The Limit Hold'em Championship drew an all-star cast, with Phil Hellmuth, Doyle Brunson, Howard Lederer and Mike "The Mouth" Matusow all in the field.

Howard Lederer, Liz Lieu, Yevgeniy Timoshenko and Noah Boeken were among the 64 players to bust on Day 1.

On the other hand WSOP cashing machine and Russian banker Vladimir Schmelev finished with over 100,000 chips.

Day 2 will begin at 3 p.m. tomorrow.

For a full account of how day 15 of the WSOP 2010 played out, click through to PokerListings' WSOP coverage.

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Setting The Stage: WSOP 2010 Day 18 Recap

No bracelets were handed out Tuesday, but things are really picking up now at the Rio Pavilion, as seven different events will happen Wednesday in what will shape up to be the busiest day so far at the 2010 WSOP.

Day 18 featured multi-tabling efforts from durrrr and Phil Ivey, while Jerry "The Shadow" Yang slipped out of the Rio after a cash finish.

We also saw the stars align in the Amazon Room for the start of the $10k Limit Hold'em Championship.

Here's a look at what went down Tuesday.

Event #24 - $1k No-Limit Hold'em

A short Day 3 played out Tuesday, as 30 players came in to play down to the final nine.

JD McNamara and Kiet Tran Tuan sit atop the leaderboard going into the final table, with each sitting at just more than 2 million chips.

The final table begins at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Event #26- $2.5k Six-Handed No-Limit Hold'em

This event was originally scheduled to play down to a final table Tuesday, but WSOP tournament directors decided to call it a night at the end of Level 20.

The blinds will be at 8k/16k when play reconvenes at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Daniel Negreanu held court in this event for most of the day, drawing lots of railbirds to the Amazon Room, before eventually becoming the final player to bust before Day 2 ended.

Sorel Mizzi was also in the hunt most of the day before busting late.

Perhaps nobody had a better day than Justin Smith. The 22-year-old Full Tilt Pro comes back Wednesday amongst the chip leaders vying for the first prize of $630,031.

Chris Moorman and Jerry Yang were amongst the notables eliminated in the cash.

Play resumes at 3 p.m. tomorrow.

Event #27 - $1.5k Seven-Card Stud Hi-Lo Eight or Better

Phil Ivey recorded his latest WSOP cash finish in this event, but the seven-time bracelet winner couldn't survive Day 2.

On a day that saw him play in at least three events, Ivey took a 52nd-place finish amongst the field of 644 players.

Blair Rodman, Brandon Cantu and Dutch Boyd are all in the hunt as we come back Wednesday at 3 p.m. and play down to a champion.

Event #28 - $2.5k Pot-Limit Omaha

The increasingly popular PLO was back in action Tuesday, as a sizeable field of 596 came out for Day 1.

J.C. Tran fell short of defending his 2009 championship in this event, going to the rail near the end of the day, while Erik Seidel was another notable elimination late in the day.

This event conflicted with the $10k Limit Hold'em Championship for some players, as Tom Dwan and Phil Ivey were amongst the players playing both tournaments simultaneously.

Both Full Tilt pros were eliminated from PLO contention on Day 1, while T.J. Cloutier, Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, Tex Barch and Joe Hachem were amongst the notables surviving Day 1.

105 players will come back and play for 54 money spots when Day 2 begins at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Event #29 - $10k Limit Hold'em Championship

The latest $10k Championship event is in the air, as 171 of poker's best hit the Amazon Room for a spectator's delight.

The Limit Hold'em Championship drew an all-star cast, with Phil Hellmuth, Doyle Brunson, Howard Lederer and Mike "The Mouth" Matusow all in the field.

Howard Lederer, Liz Lieu, Yevgeniy Timoshenko and Noah Boeken were among the 64 players to bust on Day 1.

On the other hand WSOP cashing machine and Russian banker Vladimir Schmelev finished with over 100,000 chips.

Day 2 will begin at 3 p.m. tomorrow.

For a full account of how day 15 of the WSOP 2010 played out, click through to PokerListings' WSOP coverage.

WSOP Live!

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Vladimir Schmelev – Poker Player Profile

Hailing from St. Petersburg, Russia, Vladimir Schmelev is a former chess stalwart and banker who has been playing poker as a hobby for 15 years. He honed his skills in the Golden Ring Club in Moscow, which is widely known as the biggest underground game in Europe. After building a sufficient bankroll, Schmelev began traveling the live tournament circuit in his spare time.

His first big score came in January of 2006 when he won the $200 East Europe Poker Championship in Moscow for $23K. A year later at the 2007 World Series of Poker, he ran deep in the $5000 World Championship Omaha Hi-Low Split-8 or Better event, ultimately taking 22nd for $12.5K. A few weeks later, he made his first WSOP final table, finishing sixth in the $1000 S.H.O.E. tournament for $20.5K.

More recently, Schmelev made waves at the 2010 World Series of Poker, recording a massive second place finish in the $50K Player’s Championship for $963K. A few days later, he made the final table of the $10K Seven Card Stud Championship, nabbing seventh place for $56K. All told, Schmelev has over $1 million in live tournament earnings.

On the final hand of the Player’s Championship, Schmelev actually got his money in good against the eventual winner, Michael Mizrachi. ‘The Grinder‘ shoved with Qs-5c, only to be called by Vladimir’s Qd-8s. The 9h-6h-4c flop looked good for Schmelev, but when the 5h fell on the turn, his bid for a bracelet came to an unfortunate end.

However, with his impressive showing at the World Series of Poker, Vladimir Schmelev joins fellow Russians Ivan Demidov, Vitaly Lunkin, Alexander Kravchenko, and Kirill Gerasimov as forces to be reckoned from the up-and-coming poker nation.

Main Event Champ Peter Eastgate Absent from World Series of Poker

Players from around the world have descended upon Las Vegas for the 2010 World Series of Poker (WSOP), which kicks off its 22nd and 23rd events today from the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino. Curiously absent is 2008 WSOP Main Event champion Peter Eastgate.

According to the PokerStars Blog, the World Cup in South Africa, Eastgate’s waning desire to win another bracelet, and the sizzling Las Vegas heat are three of the major reasons that he’s been MIA from the ongoing tournament series. He candidly told PokerStars Blog officials, “I don’t have the motivation to play all the small events at the WSOP. That would be a waste of money. To me it’s not that important to win bracelet number two.” Accordingly, expect to see Eastgate cough up the buy-in for only one tournament this year, the $10,000 Main Event.

Eastgate banked $9.1 million after besting Russian sensation Ivan Demidov in the 2008 WSOP Main Event. The tournament drew 6,844 players and Eastgate briefly became the youngest champion ever of the prestigious tournament in history at age 22. One year later, fellow PokerStars pro Joe Cada would trump Eastgate’s record. Previously, UB.com front man Phil Hellmuth was the youngest Main Event champ at age 24.

Eastgate also questioned whether fellow pros like Tom “durrrr” Dwan would enter smaller WSOP preliminary events if it weren’t for the multitude of side bets on the line: “I’m sure if they didn’t have huge bracelet bets going on that many of the other big poker names would feel the same as me. I see no reason to enter into such bets, as I’m primarily a Hold’em player. If you’re to enter bracelet bets, you have to play all the events and I have never had a flair for Mixed games.” According to Tao of Poker, Dwan’s side action could be worth up to $15 million.

The 2008 Main Event champ will be ardently rooting on his home nation of Denmark during the World Cup, which began today in South Africa. Denmark is off until Monday, when it faces the Netherlands in Johannesburg at 7:30am ET. Eastgate labeled the World Cup “an event I look forward to very much, especially to see all the big teams play great football.”

A debate raged on TwoPlusTwo as to whether Eastgate was obligated to play an active role in the 2010 WSOP by virtue of being a past Main Event winner. One poster opined, “If I had millions and a Main Event bracelet and was in my 20’s, I would certainly go to South Africa this summer. The WSOP is every year; World Cup is not. Pretty easy IMO.” Another community member empathized, “Eastgate seems like he is not the guy that feels he had to prove anything, so I can totally understand his decision.”

Eastgate has been extremely busy on the poker circuit until this point. The Dane finished fifth in the 2010 National Heads-Up Poker Championship for $75,000 and took seventh in the PokerStars North American Poker Tour (NAPT) High Roller Bounty Shootout at the Venetian in February for $85,000. In January, Eastgate landed in eighth place in the European Poker Tour (EPT) Deauville Main Event for nearly $100,000. One year after winning the 2008 WSOP Main Event, he took 78th in the 2009 installment for $69,000.

Despite missing out on the annual poker series in Las Vegas, Eastgate told the PokerStars Blog that he is quite content sitting on the sidelines: “It suits me perfectly to be home in London at the moment and leave all the attention to the defending World Champion Joe Cada. On the other hand, I’ll make sure to be motivated to play a good Main Event when I arrive in Vegas in July!”

Frank Kassela Wins WSOP Seven Card Stud High-Low Championship

Memphis, Tennessee transplant Frank Kassela defeated a star studded final table in Event #15 of the 2010 World Series of Poker (WSOP), the $10,000 Seven Card Stud High-Low Split Eight or Better Championship. Kassela collected $447,000 for his efforts and, more importantly, his first WSOP bracelet.

Kassela finished 22nd in last year’s $40,000 commemorative No Limit Hold’em event for $71,000 and is a 42 year-old married father of five. He told WSOP officials following his bracelet win on Tuesday, “Stud High-Low is about the slow accumulation of chips. You’re not going to get as many chips quickly as you are in Pot Limit Omaha (and other games). It’s a building process. It requires patience.” He began taking the game seriously 10 years ago.

Kassela made two pair in the final hand heads-up against acclaimed tournament pro Allen “Chainsaw” Kessler, who banked $276,000 for his troubles. Event #15 marked Kessler’s third WSOP final table and first since 2006, when he finished fourth in a $5,000 Seven Card Stud tournament. Kessler and the other 169 players who registered built the largest Seven Card Stud High-Low Split prize pool in WSOP history, passing the previous record by $56,000. The event marked just the third time a prize pool for any Seven Card Stud High-Low Split event had ever reached seven-figures.

Kassela will receive his bracelet at 2:20pm PT this afternoon inside the Rio Pavilion. Third place went to Full Tilt Poker pro Jennifer Harman, who walked away with $173,000. Harman passed $1.6 million in career WSOP earnings and was eliminated after Kessler made a pair of fours on his final card. Here were the final results from the Seven Card Stud High-Low Split Eight or Better Championship. Sixteen players finished in the money:

1. Frank Kassela – $447,446
2. Allen “Chainsaw” Kessler – $276,486
3. Jennifer Harman – $173,159
4. Steve Zolotow – $125,379
5. John Juanda – $97,989
6. Kirill Rabtsov – $78,142
7. Vladimir Schmelev – $63,457
8. Dario Minieri – $52,366
9. Gary Benson – $43,833
10. George “Jorj95” Lind – $43,833
11. Sergey Altbregin – $37,297
12. Alessio Isaia – $37,297
13. Marco “CrazyMarco” Johnson – $32,439
14. Christopher George – $32,439
15. Blair Rodman – $28,221
16. Toto Leonidas – $28,221

The story of the 2010 WSOP has to be Russia’s Vladimir Schmelev. Yes, brothers Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi and Robert Mizrachi making the final table of the Player’s Championship together was memorable, but Schmelev has been a one-man wrecking crew in Stud events so far. Schmelev finished second to “The Grinder” in the Player’s Championship for $963,000 and promptly took seventh in the Seven Card Stud World Championship for $56,000. Tuesday marked his third WSOP final table in as many cashes.

David Baker knocked off Daniel Duong in 10th place to set up Wednesday’s nine-handed finale in Event #13, the second open $1,000 No Limit Hold’em tournament on the WSOP schedule. Baker held A-Q, which quickly fell behind Duong’s 10-8 of hearts when the flop came 10-3-4. However, Baker hit an ace on the river to save the day and end play for the evening at the Rio in Las Vegas. Here’s how the final table will stack up when play resumes this afternoon at 2:30pm PT:

1. David Baker – 2,553,000
2. Matthew Vance – 1,731,000
3. Steven Gee – 1,540,000
4. Nicholas “Salamander” Heather – 993,000
5. Kyung Han – 613,000
6. Daniel Thomas – 602,000
7. Jared “TheWacoKidd” Hamby – 423,000
8. Mats Gavatin – 393,000
9. Jeffrey kidwhowon Gross – 281,000

Notable names that finished in the top 100 of Event #13 included:

32. Andy Black – $10,923
34. Ylon Schwartz – $10,923
51. Chris Karagulleyan – $7,364
73. Victor Ramdin – $4,380
84. John “The Razor” Phan – $3,750
86. Shaun Deeb – $3,750
88. Vitaly Lunkin – $3,750

Two events kick off today at the 2010 WSOP:

12:00pm PT
Event #18: Limit Hold’em
$2,000 buy-in

5:00pm PT
Event #19: 2-7 Draw Lowball World Championship
$10,000 buy-in

Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest from the 2010 WSOP.

Marathon Poker - WSOP Day 11 Recap

Kassela was crowned as the new $10k Seven-Card Stud Hi-Lo champion after a long, grueling final table, that didn't end until 4:15 a.m.

Day 11 also saw a star-studded lineup hit the felt for Day 1 of the $5k No-Limit Hold'em event, a final table set in the second $1k event of the WSOP and the $1.5k Six-Handed No-Limit event fall short of a final table.

Here's a closer look at what went  down:

Event 15 - $10k 7-stud Hi-Lo Championship

Event 15 began with 18 players all in the hunt of a shiny new WSOP bracelet.

It was a marathon event that took place over 13 hours. Noted pros John Juanda, Jennifer Harman, Dario Minieri and Toto Leonidas all fell short of WSOP glory.

In the end it was veteran grinder Frank Kassela who proved to be unbeatable.

He defeated Allen "Chainsaw" Kessler to take down the bracelet and $447,446. Despite over $1 million in lifetime tournament earnings it was Kassela's first victory at the WSOP.

Event 13 - $1k No-Limit Hold'em

The huge original field of 3,042 is down to a final table, as 56 players began Day 3 and played down to the final nine.

Jared "TheWacoKidd" Hamby made it through to the final nine, along with chip leader David Baker and Ireland's Nicholas Heather.

Notable players Andy Black, Burt Boutin and Ylon Schwartz all hit the rail before reaching the final table.

The final table starts at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Event 16 - $1.5k Six-Handed No-Limit Hold'em

This event was originally scheduled to play to a final table Tuesday, but instead we'll return with 16 players and play to a bracelet Wednesday.

Mark Seif, Lee Childs and JP Kelly were all eliminated on Day 2.

The chip leader heading into Day 3 is American Carter Phillips, and of the final 16 players, 14 are from the U.S.

Switzerland's Samuel Gerber and Russia's Mikhail Lakhitov are the only non-U.S. players remaining.

Play resumes at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Event 17 - $5k No-Limit Hold'em

The Pavilion Room was host to the most star-studded event of the day, with many of poker's finest joining the field of 792 players.

Day 1 played down to 225 players, with many big names coming back for Day 2. First place will pay out over $800,000.

Chino Rheem, Antonio Esfandiari, Shannon Elizabeth, Phil Hellmuth, Jason Mercier and Tony G are just several of the big names coming back for Day 2, with play beginning at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday.

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World Team Poker Championship Event Tentative Dates Announced

The tentative dates for the World Championship event of World Team Poker have been announced. Poker News Daily has learned that the highly anticipated tournament will likely take place in Las Vegas from October 11th to 17th. World Team Poker officials are still negotiating with the Golden Nugget, which hosted the series’ first tournament last month. However, the Golden Nugget in Downtown Las Vegas has not been officially announced as the host venue.

The World Championship will air over the course of 10 episodes in primetime on Fox Sports Net. In July, a special teaser episode of the Golden Nugget tournament will air on the same cable station. Then, in September, the entire World Team Poker Golden Nugget event will play out. The World Championship and the tour’s kickoff event will likely run back-to-back on Fox Sports Net.

A total of 24 to 32 teams will take part in the World Championship, including two brand new squads, Canada and Russia. Team Canada promises to be a formidable one. Pros from the North American nation that could take to the felts under the Canadian banner include Team PokerStars Pro front man Daniel Negreanu, World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner Nenad Medic, former European Poker Tour (EPT) Monte Carlo Grand Final winner Glen Chorny, and Greg “FBT” Mueller.

Russia’s roster of pros could encompass the likes of WSOP bracelet winner Alexander Kravchenko, 2008 WSOP and WSOP Europe Main Event final table member Ivan Demidov, and last year’s $40,000 WSOP No Limit Hold’em commemorative event winner Vitaly Lunkin, who gained additional fame when the contest aired on ESPN.

Given the caliber of talent involved with World Team Poker, Poker News Daily asked organizer Robert Turner why the World Championship event was not held concurrently with the WSOP, while many of the game’s elite will be camped out in Las Vegas. Last year, for example, Dream Team Poker held a tournament during the WSOP that attracted 122 teams, or 366 players. Turner explained, “Next year, we may do that. For 2011, we’ll try to do our events when everyone is in town.”

Turner also revealed that two-time Olympic gold medal skier Petter Northug may join Team Norway at the World Team Poker Championship event. Northug won gold medals in the 50 km Classic and Team Sprint during the 2010 Vancouver Games and also captured a silver and a bronze. Team Norway recently added new Full Tilt Poker pro Annette “Annette_15” Obrestad to a lineup that already included Thor Hansen.

Given poker’s acceptance as a “mind sport” by the International Mind Sports Association (IMSA), poker in the Olympics may soon be a reality. Turner and company have already pitched the concept of a World Team Poker event during the 2012 Summer Games in London. In the same European city, the IMSA World Mind Sports Games will feature poker, chess, and bridge.

Team China emerged victorious from World Team Poker’s inaugural event at the Golden Nugget. Its roster included 10-time bracelet winner Johnny Chan, former WPT Championship winner David Chiu, Chau Giang, Mario Ho, Winfred Yu, Rich Zhu, and Derek Cheung. Heads-up, China bested Team Brazil, which included Juliano Maesano, Rodrigo “Zidane” Caprioli, Humberto “Kima” Kim, Raul Oliveira, Christian Kruel, Leandro “Brasa” Pimentel, and Felipe “Mojave” Ramos.

Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest from World Team Poker.

Seventh Heaven For The Master: WSOP 2010

A star-studded final table had been assembled, including the $50k Player's Championship winner Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi and the runner-up of that event, Russian Vladimir Schmelev.

The big story going into the final was Mizrachi attempting to win his second Championship event in a row - his red-hot form making him the front runner for the WSOP Player of the Year title.

The Grinder never got going however, crashing out in sixth place and come the early hours of the morning, it was Nguyen and Brandon Adams who were the last men standing. Following a largely one-sided heads-up game, Nguyen overcame his opponent to collect the bracelet and the $394,800 first prize money.

"This is a very big moment for me," said Nguyen afterward. "This is my game - the Stud."

The final moments of the tournament were dramatic and unique in WSOP history.

Men Nguyen had been drinking heavily throughout the final, and clearly inebriated he was betting blind and winning pot after pot from his bemused opponent.

Finally, Nguyen persuaded the short-stacked Adams to flip blind for the bracelet, and with no answer to Nguyen's run of good cards, Adams agreed.

Adams made a pair of queens by seventh, leaving Nguyen needing to turn over a queen or king on seventh street to take the title.

The Master milked the moment for maximum exposure, peeking at the card and revealing paint before slamming over the K♦ - enough to secure the bracelet.

Once regarded as the hottest property in poker, Nguyen had seen his stock fall somewhat over the last few years - his last bracelet won back in 2003. Nguyen gave several reasons why in recent times he may not have been the dominant force he once was.

"When the Series moved to the Rio, it was very hard to win," said The Master. "I like Binions. I'm superstitious!"

Men also referred to the influx of young internet players as an obstacle he had found tough to overcome.

"A lot of new people have come into our world. It's not like it used to be."

Nguyen made a point of paying tribute to America for making him into the player he is today. "I want to thank America for bringing me into this country with open arms," he said.

Although he has had a few lean years, Nguyen is chasing Phil Hellmuth's record of 76 WSOP cashes, now just eight behind Hellmuth with 68 cashes himself. He clearly has designs on catching up and overtaking the Poker Brat's record.

"In the future I will pass him. I'm younger than Phil Hellmuth!"

Early Favorites Emerge for WSOP Player of the Year

It's no small feat to win the title as players must play enough events to accumulate the points necessary to win and play well enough to cash multiple times against thousands of the best tournament poker players in the world.

The early favorite to win the 2010 crown is Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi, who has already collected the Player's Championship bracelet as well as final tabling the $10k Championship Stud Event, two of the three WSOP events that he's played so far.

Not many people picked Mizrachi as a favorite to win the crown prior to the start of the WSOP.

"We held a 96-man fantasy draft at Howard Lederer's house prior to the start of the tournament where 12 people each picked a team of eight players with a $25,000 buy in," said New York-based poker pro Amnon Filippi.

"Not one person took Mizrachi."

"I kind of came out of nowhere this year," said Mizrachi. "I haven't really been on the circuit and not many people knew if I was going to be playing all of the events or not."

Hindsight is 20-20 as Mizrachi is now the clear favorite to win the 2010 title. Past champ Erick Lindgren likes his chances.

"I guess Grinder should win if he goes deep in the Stud," Lindgren told PL.com. "He'd have to air ball the rest of the events not to."

Not everyone is ready to hand the trophy to Mizrachi, however.

"There are still a lot of $10k events and we're still going to see someone win two bracelets like we do every year," said Barry Greenstein. "Plus, I still plan on catching him."

Ever the mathematician, former POY Allen Cunningham took a more pragmatic, by-the-numbers approach to making a prediction.

"Who is leading the points? Mizrachi? That's who I've got," he said.

Russian player Vladimir Schemelev is currently giving The Grinder a run for his money, having made both of the same final tables. Daniel Negreanu, Eli Elezra and Victor Ramdin all said they think Schmelev is the favorite.

"There are a couple Russian players who are playing so damn well. It wouldn't surprise me to see [Schemelev] win it," said Ramdin.

But who does the defending champion think will win?

"I still think Phil Ivey can do it," 2009 Player of the Year Jeffrey Lisandro said.

"Even though he's got no points, he's got the style."

The race could hinge on the outcome of tonight's 7-card stud final table where both Mizrachi and Schmelev are still playing.

If Mizrachi wins tonight, then it will take a major upset to overtake him for the title. Needless to say, things are going pretty well for Mizrachi nowadays, but that doesn't mean he's entirely stress free.

"It's going to be hard to play in enough events if I keep making all these final tables," he said with a grin.

You can follow the progress of Mizrachi and Schmelev in the $10k Stud by clicking through to PokerListings live updates.

Early Favorites Emerging for WSOP Player of the Year

It's no small feat to win the title as players must first enter enough events to accumulate the points necessary to win and, oh by the way, they must also play well enough to cash multiple times against thousands of the best tournament poker players in the world.

The early favorite to win the 2010 crown is Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi, who has already made two final tables through only three WSOP events that he's played.

Not many people picked Mizrachi as a favorite to win the crown prior to the start of the WSOP. "We held a 96-man fantasy draft at Howard Lederer's house prior to the start of the tournament where 12 people each picked a team of eight players with a $25,000 buy in," said New York-based poker pro Amnon Filippi. "Not one person took Mizrachi."

"I kind of came out of nowhere this year," said Mizrachi. "I was just playing pot-limit Omaha cash games for seven days a week down in Miami. I haven't really been on the circuit and not many people knew if I was going to be playing all of the events or not."

Hindsight is 20-20 as Mizrachi is now the clear favorite to win the 2010 title. Past champs Eric Lingren and Allen Cunningham both like The Grinder's chances. "I guess Grinder should win if he goes deep in the stud [tournament]," Lingren told PL.com. "He'd have to air ball the rest of the events not to."

Not everyone is ready to hand the trophy to Mizrachi. "There are still a lot of $10k events and we're still going to see someone win two bracelets like we do every year," said Barry Greenstein. "Plus, I plan still plan on catching him."

Ever the mathematician, Cunningham took a more by-the-numbers approach to making a prediction. "Who is leading the points? Mizrachi? That's who I've got."

Russian player Vladimir Shchemelev is currently giving The Grinder a run for his money, having made both of the same final tables as Mizrachi. Daniel Negreanu, Eli Elezra and Victor Ramdin all said they think Shchemelev is the favorite. "There are a couple Russian players who are playing so damn well, it wouldn't surprise me to see [Shchemelev] win it," said Ramdin. Negreanu said that if he doesn't come back and win it himself, then Mike Schwartz is his underdog pick.

Who does the defending champion think will win? "I still think Phil Ivey can do it," Lisandro told PL.com "Even though he's got no points, he's got the style."

Other players to keep an eye on: Greg Raymer said he never bets against himself until it's mathematically impossible to win. Darvin Moon said that Annie Duke is the best female player in the world and should be a contender if she plays enough events.

The race could hinge on the outcome of tonight's 7-card stud final table where both Mizrachi and Shchemelev are still playing. If Mizrachi wins tonight, then it will take a major upset to overtake him for the title. Needless to say, things are going pretty well for Mizrachi nowadays, but that doesn't mean he's entirely stress free. "It's going to be hard to play in enough events if I keep making all these final tables," Mizrachi said with a grin.

Hellmuth Falls Short: Day 8 WSOP 2010

Phil Hellmuth came up short in his quest for another bracelet, while Doyle Brunson and Phil Ivey faced each other in a Seven-Card Stud showdown.

Here's a look at what went down:

Event #8 - $1.5k No-Limit Hold'em

Pascal LeFrancois took down the bracelet and a first-place prize of $568,974 after a grueling day that began with 25 players still in the field.

The buzz was all about Phil Hellmuth when the final day of this event kicked off.

Hellmuth began the day fifth in chips amongst the final 25 players, and a sizeable crowd gathered on the rail to see if the Poker Brat could take down bracelet No. 12.

Unfortunately for Hellmuth, the day didn't end in victory. Hellmuth finished 15th, cashing for $25,472. It was still a record-setting 76th WSOP cash for the Poker Brat.

Event #9 - $1.5k Pot-Limit Hold'em

After playing all the way down to the money bubble on Day 1, 65 players came back to play for 63 money spots Friday.

Tom Schneider was amongst the notables eliminated in the cash, as the 2007 WSOP Player of the Year took home a 52nd-place finish. Tom McEvoy also cashed, finishing 41st.

The event finishes up Saturday, with the final table beginning at 2:30 p.m. First place will be worth $197,470.

American Steve Chanthabouasy leads a field of mostly unknown players heading into Saturday's final nine, although JJ Liu is still in the hunt.

Event #10 - $10k Seven-Card Stud Championship

Day 2 of the World Championship Seven-Card Championship began with 85 players and played into the wee hours of the morning trying to set a final table.

By the time the dust cleared, 12 players remained with a shot at winning a WSOP bracelet.

Doyle Brunson, Phil Ivey and Daniel Negreanu all took their place on the rail during Day 2.

Upstart Russian Vladimir Schmelev finished the day as the chip leader with 921,000 chips but nemises Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi finished close behind with 544,000 chips.

In case you haven't been following the WSOP, Mizrachi won the $50k Player's Championship with Schmelev finishing second less than a week ago.

The field is rounded out by noted players Nikolay Evdakov, Steve Billirakis, Men Nguyen, Dan Heimiller and Brandon Adams.

Players will be back on Saturday at 3 p.m. with the intent to play to a winner.

Event #11 - $1.5k No-Limit Hold'em

The latest $1.5k No-Limit event drew a huge field, as 2,563 rounders came out for a shot at a bracelet.

Many notable names registered for the event, and amongst the big names to bust on Day 1 were Joe Cada, Hevad Khan, Greg "Fossilman" Raymer and Humberto Brenes.

Annette Obrestad also made an appearance, and the 21-year-old phenom was still holding on to a short stack as Day 1 came to a close.

Tom Dwan, Neil Channing and Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier were amongst the notable big-stacks to make it to Day 2.

Action resumes at 3 p.m. Saturday.

Event #12 - $1.5k Limit Hold'em

Day 1 brought out some of poker's finest, making a pro-heavy minefield out of the 625 players in the event.

Marco Traniello, Vanessa Rousso, Marcel Luske, Jeff Madsen, JC Tran, John Juanda and Alex Kravchenko were just some of the stars entering the event.

Phil Ivey, Sorel Mizzi and Shawn Buchanan all plowed their way through the field to make it to Day 2.

Day 2 of the event kicks off at 3 p.m. Saturday.

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Hellmuth Falls Short: Day 7 WSOP 2010

Phil Hellmuth came up short in his quest for another bracelet, while Doyle Brunson and Phil Ivey faced each other in a Seven-Card Stud showdown.

Here's a look at what went down:

Event #8 - $1.5k No-Limit Hold'em

Pascal LeFrancois took down the bracelet and a first-place prize of $568,974 after a grueling day that began with 25 players still in the field.

The buzz was all about Phil Hellmuth when the final day of this event kicked off.

Hellmuth began the day fifth in chips amongst the final 25 players, and a sizeable crowd gathered on the rail to see if the Poker Brat could take down bracelet No. 12.

Unfortunately for Hellmuth, the day didn't end in victory. Hellmuth finished 15th, cashing for $25,472. It was still a record-setting 76th WSOP cash for the Poker Brat.

Event #9 - $1.5k Pot-Limit Hold'em

After playing all the way down to the money bubble on Day 1, 65 players came back to play for 63 money spots Friday.

Tom Schneider was amongst the notables eliminated in the cash, as the 2007 WSOP Player of the Year took home a 52nd-place finish. Tom McEvoy also cashed, finishing 41st.

The event finishes up Saturday, with the final table beginning at 2:30 p.m. First place will be worth $197,470.

American Steve Chanthabouasy leads a field of mostly unknown players heading into Saturday's final nine, although JJ Liu is still in the hunt.

Event #10 - $10k Seven-Card Stud Championship

Day 2 of the World Championship Seven-Card Championship began with 85 players and played into the wee hours of the morning trying to set a final table.

By the time the dust cleared, 12 players remained with a shot at winning a WSOP bracelet.

Doyle Brunson, Phil Ivey and Daniel Negreanu all took their place on the rail during Day 2.

Upstart Russian Vladimir Schmelev finished the day as the chip leader with 921,000 chips but nemises Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi finished close behind with 544,000 chips.

In case you haven't been following the WSOP, Mizrachi won the $50k Player's Championship with Schmelev finishing second less than a week ago.

The field is rounded out by noted players Nikolay Evdakov, Steve Billirakis, Men Nguyen, Dan Heimiller and Brandon Adams.

Players will be back on Saturday at 3 p.m. with the intent to play to a winner.

Event #11 - $1.5k No-Limit Hold'em

The latest $1.5k No-Limit event drew a huge field, as 2,563 rounders came out for a shot at a bracelet.

Many notable names registered for the event, and amongst the big names to bust on Day 1 were Joe Cada, Hevad Khan, Greg "Fossilman" Raymer and Humberto Brenes.

Annette Obrestad also made an appearance, and the 21-year-old phenom was still holding on to a short stack as Day 1 came to a close.

Tom Dwan, Neil Channing and Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier were amongst the notable big-stacks to make it to Day 2.

Action resumes at 3 p.m. tomorrow.

Event #12 - $1.5k Limit Hold'em

Day 1 brought out some of poker's finest, making a pro-heavy minefield out of the 625 players in the event.

Marco Traniello, Vanessa Rousso, Marcel Luske, Jeff Madsen, JC Tran, John Juanda and Alex Kravchenko were just some of the stars entering the event.

Phil Ivey, Sorel Mizzi and Shawn Buchanan all plowed their way through the field to make it to Day 2.

Day 2 of the event kicks off at 3 p.m. Saturday.

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WSOP $50k Player’s Championship: Mizrachi Strikes Gold

A toughly contested final saw Mizrachi come out on top in the early hours of the morning and both he and his many fans were elated at his victory.

"It's definitely worth the wait," he said. "This is one of the most prestigious tournaments in poker."

The backdrop to the final had all the ingredients for a dramatic finish.

The $1.5 million dollar first prize, the Chip Reese Memorial trophy, the WSOP bracelet and a star-studded field ensured it would be a special event.

However there was another plot twist - both the Mizrachi brothers, Michael and Robert, making the final. Fate saw to it that Michael eliminated Robert in 5th place on his way to victory and he explained he had mixed emotions about that bittersweet moment.

"My mom was crying. I don't know who she wanted to win. I don't know if I wanted to win!" said Michael.

"It was heartbreaking but at least it turned out well...I put his chips to good use."

He did just that, using the elimination of his brother as the springboard to success, fighting off the combined talents of John Juanda and David Oppenheim to face off against the largely unknown Russian Vladimir Schmelev, heads-up.

In the early stages, Schmelev was in the ascendant and a key hand saw Mizrachi's tournament life hanging in the balance. Needing a club on the river to keep his hopes alive, the right card fell and Mizrachi's boisterous rail brought the house down as their hero's fortunes turned round.

"I never give up...that's Rocky style," said Mizrachi.

"Usually when I get to a final table, I have this great support behind me. It really helps."

From there on in, it was all about Mizrachi as he dominated his way to the title and the $1,559,046 first prize. When questioned about his plans for the rest of the series, Mizrachi was confident about his chances.

"I can play any sort of game. I can play any sort of tournament," he said.

"Maybe I can win Player Of The Year. I'll just do my best."

To read the latest news from the Rio, click through to the PokerListings Live Updates.

Mizrachi Conquers Player’s Championship: Day 5 WSOP 2010

Here's how things played in Las Vegas Tuesday:

Event 2 - $50k Player's Championship

A slew of talented names returned to battle it out for one of the most coveted bracelets on the 2010 WSOP schedule. The big story was that brothers Robert and Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi both made the final - Though they proved there would be no softplaying each other with Michael Mizrachi actually sending his brother to the rail in the middle stages.

It proved the springboard for success for Michael, as he went from strength to strength, eventually shouldering his way past Russian Vladimir Schmelev to win the title, the Chip Reese Memorial Trophy, his first WSOP bracelet and $1,559,046.

"It's definitely worth the wait," he said. "This is one of the most prestigious tournaments in poker."

Check back later for our full account of Mizrachi's victory along with more quotes from the newly minted champion.

Event 3 - $1k No-Limit Hold'em

43 players reconvened to play down to the final table in Event 3 and hopes were high for Eric Baldwin - one of the more celebrated players still in the hunt.

It wasn't to be Baldwin's day, however, as he crashed out with two tables left.

As with the $50k Player's Championship, there was hope of yet another WSOP final table family pairing - this time father and son.

Irving and Richard Rice had both managed to navigate through to the last two tables, but there was to be no fairy-tale ending as although Richard made it through, Irving  - his father - narrowly missed a final table berth - finishing up in 10th spot.

The remaining players will be back tomorrow from 2.30 p.m. to contend the bracelet with Adam Daya the man to beat.

Event 4 - $1.5k Omaha/8

Event 4 provided the second bracelet of the day and proved to be an epic contest. Going into the final day, the plan was to play down from 26 players to a winner - and that's just what happened.

Ultimately it looked like Dan Heimiller would see off a tough field including names like Ylon Shwartz, Jeff Madsen and David Bach, to sweep up his second WSOP bracelet.

Instead it was Michael Chow who kept his cool to turn round a heads-up deficit versus Heimiller, win the WSOP bracelet and $237,140 in prize money.

Bansi shows Moorman how it's done.

 

Event 5 - $1.5k No-Limit Hold-em

Just over 200 runners returned in the $1.5k with the intention of running good enough to reach the final table.

Brit Chris Moorman had high hopes coming into the day of breaking his live jinx, but he couldn't build on his good position, cashing but crashing in the middle stages.

Fellow Brit and former bracelet-winner Praz Bansi was better able to ride the waves of fortune, however, gliding through the field to finish in the top ten by the end of play.

Ultimately, the players weren't able to trim themselves sufficiently to reach the final table spots, so 23 of them will return tomorrow at 2.30 p.m to play to a finish.

Event 6 - $5k No-Limit Hold'em Shootout

Day one of the $5k NLHE Shootout produced a who’s who of No-Limit players and led to some fierce battles between top pros.

There were 358 players who turned out for the shootout, with action spread out over 36 tables. Each table played down to a winner who will take home at least $16k and the chance to play for a $441,692 top prize.

When asked about the impressive list of entrants, Barry Greenstein said this will be the third toughest field of the 2010 WSOP, second only to the $25k six-handed event and the $10k Heads Up Championship.

Tomorrow’s action will take place on six six-handed tables beginning at 2:30 p.m.  The final table of six is set for Thursday afternoon.

Event 7 - $2.5k Triple Draw 2-7

If big-name players were moths then the more obscure poker variants would be bright, burning flames, as the pros just can't seem to keep away.

Smaller fields mean bigger chances to snag those all-important bracelets and it was no surprise to see the likes of Daniel Negreanu, Isaac Haxton, Sorel Mizzi, Jeffrey Lisandro and many others numbered amongst the 291 Triple Draw entrants today.

Come the end of the day many of them had limbered up the leaderboard, although when the 96 remaining players return tomorrow at 3.00 p.m., it will be the cowboy-hat wearing Hoyt Corkins who is the man to catch.

For more information on how the day went click through to PokerListings Live Update section.

WSOP Live!

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