A little more leftover podcast action … the not-so-pokery crew over at The Black Whole (“raw, uncensored, urban commentary on sports and life”) wanted to know: What happened to Phil Ivey at the WSOP?

Yours truly stepped in Tuesday eve with SuperDave, Cityslickers, and Moopbrown (as the WSOP aired on ESPN) to try and explain, starting at about 44:30 in:

Also joined by poker-playin’ lawman Ricky Green.

Jim McManus appeared on All Things Considered the morning the November Nine was getting underway, to offer a little cultural (and presidential) history of the game, based on his new book, Cowboys Full.

Not to be a spoiler, but the closing line features a sound clip from Darvin Moon, with weekend host Guy Raz saying, “That is Darvin Moon, and he’s about as far away as you can get from poker royalty.” That is a funnier line than Raz even realizes, considering Moon’s resistance to all things sponsorship.

Raz does a follow-up the next day, just on Darvin Moon:

For more academic intellect surrounding Cowboys Full: The Story of Poker, check out our favorite new older-than-25 Betfair blogger Shamus’ interview with McManus here.

And for a little low-brow historical perspective on McManus from a pre-Darvin Moon era, here’s my interview with the author of Positively Fifth Street from 2004.

(Yikes, 2004!?!)

This week’s episode was all WSOP. Huff spoke about the November Nine as a guy who has seen many a tourney, but never one like this. Caldwell and I offered our thoughts having seen development from freshman to sophomore year, BJ lamented being stuck in Foxwoods, but along with Gary shared how the experience transcended beyond Vegas via the internet and TV.

Oh, plus Phil Ivey, Joe Cada, and Darvin Moon. And maybe a little Antoine Saout.

on PokerRoad

The Poker Beat
Huff, Caldwell, Wise, Michalski, Nemeth, Stapleton
11/12/09

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Happened to run into “Darv” after all was said and done last night …

Friends and family waiting for him to cash out.

Signing a few autographs.

Really, more of us should have friends who wear KIX shirts.

A few $5 million hugs.

Dennis Phillips explaining to Moon how just because you didn’t win doesn’t mean you can’t represent that you did.

And really, what better way to finish out your WSOP experience than by playing Three-Card Poker ($25-$50 a hand on a $5 table) with AlCantHang?

Pauly and I size things up on the first break, and are there as a winner is finally declared.

Episode 9: Cutting down Moon

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Episode 10: Cada’s Commencement

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It took 36 hands … back and forth for 34 of them … then came hands #35 and #36 (#s 363 and 364 of the whole final table).

From PokerListings:

Cada Wins It All!
12 minutes ago

After falling into an almost 3:1 chip deficit, Joe Cada grabbed control once again.

He made it 3 million preflop and Moon called.

The flopped rolled out Tc 9h 5d and both players tapped the table.

The 10d would bring some fireworks, however, as Moon check-raised all-in after a 3 million chip bet from Cada.

Cada leaned back in his chair for a few minutes pondering a call that would be for his tournament life.

Suddenly and decisively, he laid it all on the line making that call.

Moon showed 8s 7s for the open-ender and Cada’s Jh 9d was ahead.

Moon would need a six or a jack to win the Main Event title, but it was not to be as the 3h river fell, handing Cada the double-up and the chip lead.

Following the hand, Cada was up to 108 million and Moon ground down to 86 million.

A few hands later, the two got into a preflop raising war that saw Cada push in with nines and Moon make the call for his tournament life with Qd Jd.

The flop came 8c 7s 2c and chants of “Joey” filled the theatre. The turn brought the Kh and Cada needed to fade just one more card.

As the crowd murmured in anticipation, the river came the 7c and the Main Event title and $8.5 million was suddenly Cada’s.

A roar of approval could be heard all the way to Freemont Street.

Darvin Moon will take home $5.1 million for his second-place finish, but the World Championship and all the glory that goes now belongs to Joe Cada.

Level: 40
Blinds: 600,000/1,200,000
Ante: 200,000
Average Stack: $194,820,000
Players Left: 1
Tables Left: 1

Here are some pictures of what’s been going on off and around the table, during this $3mm+ heads-up match (because that’s really what they’re playing for) at the WSOP&T Theater:

You know how you would see fans at a baseball game watching the game live and on TV, usually with headphones? The poker version of that is this guy, who is watching the final update and following live updates on PokerNews.com.

The Joe Cada Michigan fan contingent. Alas, Rio security soon made them put on a little more clothing, despite Las Vegas’ general fondness for body paint counting as non-nudity.

HAND NOTE: The crowd tends to go rather nuts anytime a coordinated flop is followed by a related turn card.

Hey, look, it’s Annette_15 — presumably taking a special interest in any youngin’ looking for a big-time bracelet. We love Annette_15! Favorite 21-year-old young lady Betfair blogger! (Sitting with a Poker Royalty agent, plausibly interestingly.)

Joe Navarro would tell me this means Darvin Moon has the goods. However, when Cada re-re-raised him here, Moon folded.

UPDATE: Cada just doubled up, as Moon failed to get there moving all-in with an open-ender … (Cada called with two-pair, the second being his alone) … Cada dodged 8 outs to rake in 108 million chips, to Moon’s now 86 million.

Fans taking in the action.

Somebody forgot to tell this guy that Allen Kessler did not make the November Nine.

Not sure what to tell you off the bat … they’re about six hands in … and Darvin Moon has chipped up … he now has 90some million to Joe Cada’s 101ish million.

The WSOP&T Theater is packed-packed again … with plenty of folks lined up outside waiting to fill any empties.

So far I think I’ve seen the best ever rail-fan prop — about 10 rows from the stage, in Darvin Moon section of fans, a guy is holding up a toy chainsaw every time something positive for Moon occurs on the felt. Poker Loggers unite! Crap/LOL: domain name long taken/abandoned.

Lots of heckling, too … which gotta say, much to my surprise, Jack “Link’s” Effel is deflecting quite well.

MORE in this spot TK, at least for a while … keep refreshing.

– Everything intensified with such an audience watching. Even “checks” get gasps from the crowd … and mucks get “whoop whoop whoops!”

– Frat boy chants: “Let’s Go CA-DA! Let’s Go CA-DA!”

– Darvin now has the chip lead.

UPDATE: New level … and Linda “Tranwreck’ is the dealer … bad beats on the way?

NOTE: Blinds at 600k/1.2mm … exceeding the level where the 2008 WSOP main event came to a close.

STATING THE OBVIOUS: Barry Greenstein is a big fan of Linda Tran. @barrygreenstein tweets:

Linda Tran is the current dealer and she is beautiful and Asian. More incentive for me to final table next year.

via @WickedChops

–The gaming agents (not to be confused with gaming-agents) that Pauly loves to talk about are here … but either they have little business to attend to and are simply supporting their client Joe Cada … or they have learned how to prevent people like me from taking pictures of them looking devious by saying things like, “hey, how’s it goin’?” (Foiled!)

– Blinds are 600k/1.2mm … and with 195 million total chips in play, that means an average stack has roughly 81 BB

UPDATE CHIP COUNT:

Darvin Moon – 97,650,000
Joe Cada – 97,150,000

Excerpts from a post that never quite saw the light of day … my outcome predictions based on ESPN Inside Deal’s pre-Nov-9 episode and their interviews with seven of the players … some of my reads are quasi-spot-on!

(Not sure why that ep is no longer available … you’ll just have to trust my take on it.)

Half-penned on Nov 6-7:

Steve Begleiter — he’s eager and anxious to get playing, perhaps overly so. Just ask Karridy what that results in. Expect Begs to go out disappointingly early.
ED NOTE: Close!

Darvin Moon — he’s got more than a hundred friends and family members out here with him, some of whom he doesn’t know. Still too little info to call his fate. But he won’t win it. Probably 4th place. Maybe 2nd. But hey, if he gets there, than yeah … Moneymaker vs. Farha.
ED NOTE: Yep!

James Akenhead — good spirits, but joviality doesn’t matter when he’s still hung up on the bad luck that left him as the short stack. Even if he doubles-up twice, he won’t be prepared for being in that position. 9th or 5th.
ED NOTE: Got it!

Antoine Saout — too broken-English to call. He gives away little in this interview, so we’ll go with WCP’s take on why the Frenchman lacks the necessary killer instinct.
ED NOTE: Hey, French …

Joe Cada — just a kid havin’ a good time, enjoying it all. Care-free attitude could mean middle-of-the-pack, or if he runs good … 3.5 Months 8.5 Million baby!
ED NOTE: Boo-yah!

Eric Buchman — he’s all poker. He’s got experience and has clearly and carefully thought this thing through. Plenty of chips. It all means he’s a real real threat to take it down, but hey, gotta think his controversial handling of sponsorship deals could suggests he understands that even more’s at stake, and under pressure has a history of getting himself into non-ideal situations. 3rdish place. Maybe 6th or 7th.
ED NOTE: A little on, a little off!

Kevin Schaffel — he’s a lucky guy, enjoying it all, but in an older way than Cada. Congrats, Mr. Schaffel, on making the November Nine. You should be very proud, and hey, they were suited, right?
ED NOTE: Sorta right.

Phil Ivey — does not appear. But we all know what’s up — he’s got 40 big blinds! It’s Ivey’s table not just to win, but methodically destroy.
ED NOTE: Oops, wrong.

Jeff Shulman — also does not appear. We know, of course, he’s got a mathematical edge because he’sBut yeah, really, his to win, too, and he starts in a pretty good spot to do so. And we’re not saying. What is inevitable is he’ll put himself in a spot where he should win it, and he’ll suffer a bad beat for third place. Happy moans, Dad Barry smirks, Phil Hellmuth takes center stage.
ED NOTE: Wrong again, save for the bad beat.

Even earlier WSOP predictions here.

From the Twitter of Washington Post reporter blog-shadowing Darvin Moon (@jfdulac) comes a story from the Baltimore City Paper, detailing Darvin’s numerous past transgressions over the past few years. It includes him pleading guilty and receiving probation for forgery and theft, along with three counts of passing bad checks. Court records also show Moon posting bail for others on two occasions, in 2002 for a man who plead guilty to drug dealing and is serving a 10-year sentence, and once for an apparent relative on assault charges.

From the BCP’s look at his financial and legal past:

But it is Moon’s record of civil judgments against him that may come into play in the future, given the kitties he’s been winning in Vegas. Court records show liens filed against Moon for nearly $20,000 owed to City National Bank of West Virginia, a little over $1,000 owed to Miners and Merchants Bank, nearly $13,000 owed to Pasadena Receivables, and about $1,000 owned to Southern Auto Supply in Moon’s own community of Mountain Lake Park, near Oakland in Western Maryland.

His creditors, no doubt, will be much obliged to share in his recent winnings.

Confirmation that Darvin Moon and Jack Link’s Beef Jerky should be a match made in thick-forest heaven … @washintonpost-er Josh du Lac tweets:

Darvin Moon’s brother, Bill, says folks wanted him to pose for a pic w/Jack Link’s mascot Sasquatch. “Hell no reminds me too much of Darvin”

I, meanwhile, couldn’t help myself when I saw such a happily hirsute homonid:

Though personally I don’t expect Darvin Moon to look anything like Sammy Farha en route to 2nd place … you gotta love the debate going on over who will, and who should win … let alone whose victory would be “better for poker”.

Super-young but true online pro vs. the “Ultimate Everyman” … you know, if everyman happened to cut trees for a living.

As you know by now, I’m probably as much a Cada fan as I am an Aston Villan (I’ve got Fake$100 invested in his winning) … but the hubbub going on right now reminds me a bit of funny-in-retrospect conversation as WSOP things got down to heads-up in 2003 …

From my first poker magazine piece in the first issue of (the recently resurrected) ALL IN:

On the last day of the 2003 WSOP main event, a handful of eliminated pros gathered around the final table to watch the action. Moneymaker — the Tennessee accountant who had never before played a live tournament — had amassed a sizable chip lead when Mike Matusow turned to fellow professional Eric Siedel and said, “I can’t believe another donkey is going to win the World Series of Poker.”

“You better hope he wins,” Seidel responded. “If Moneymaker can pull this off, it’s going to be worth at least $5 million to you and me over the next two years.”

“Are you crazy?” Matusow said, dismissively.

The only difference this go-round, of course, is that the world has already been introduced to online poker, and the Sammy Farha pro character is being played by a 21-year-old who stands to be the youngest WSOP main event champ in history (for the second year in a row).

It’s pretty safe to assume that Darvin Moon didn’t get the memo that complementary promotion of the NFL goes against the ways of the pay-for-play online sites. However, it is not clear if his donning of attire for his local card room came at a cost. Check it out … though I didn’t see this yesterday, he’s clearly getting some good logo placement for the Wheeling Island Casino in Wheeling, West Virginia:

click for more Darvin

We’ll see if we can’t find out what sorta deal is in place there if any, or if this is just a friendly gesture to the card room where he won his seat into the WSOP. Regardless though, it does make you wonder why sponsorships from the likes of The Venetian, Caesar’s, Bellagio, and other B&M card rooms have yet to come in play.

Beyond being the alligator on Darvin Moon’s Izod, here’s what we do know about the place, via the ThePokerAtlas:

Great Room
Wheeling Island
Wheeling, West Virginia
by fiftyouts

Even though this room has only 20 some tables it is very nice. Great staff and friendly folks. This is a “MUST PLAY” room if you’re in the area. The casino is upscale (you might think you’re in Vegas) with good action. This is the ‘Best Kept Secret’ of West Virginia !!!

photos: IMPD for WSOP.com