LAS VEGAS–As play gets underway today in Day 5 — the battle for the deep money — there are more people from Texas than any other state … any other nation for that matter.
Click below to read the official recap/preview to learn more.
LAS VEGAS–By the way, one of the things I suspect they’ll rethink for next year … they got rid of the $1,000 bracelet events being held after the main event started. While a good idea not to cheapen the bracelets, it really has sent all the action to Bellagio … and has turned the Amazon Room into 3/4 of a ghost town at what is essentially the most exciting poker being played yet.
LAS VEGAS–It’s gettin’ kinda funky in here. As the intensity of the on-the-table action ramps up, everything else is dying down. They’re tearing down the tables in the tent and throughout the Amazon rooms, the cash games hearken back to a low-rent poker room (with just a few smallish stakes games going), the Lewis family is headed back to Houston … just a couple hours ago a guy from Pokerwire was being staked 60-40 for some online play by some online pro — I have no idea who, but he reportedly has had as much as 141k in his Full Tilt account.
“Don’t worry if you lose the first thousand,” he said. “I can keep giving it to you $1,000 at a time.”
Meanwhile, at “the crossroads” right outside the Amazon Room, Max Pescatori was talking to Jason from Full Tilt about a potential endorsement deal for an online phenom named Dario. (He’s the kid who bought a Porsche with his PokerStars points.) And we have new security guards on duty. One of them was advising (in a whisper) some Germans to go to “The Green Door” — a Las Vegas swingers club — and his replacement is talking WWII history to anyone who will listen.
Should be even more different as Day 5 moves on. Speaking of … with 112 players remaining, Josh Evans enters Day 5 with exactly 1,792,000 chips — enough to put him in the top 20. Everyone redrew for tables, and an exact map of who’s sitting where is forthcoming. But I looked at the bagged chips on his table, and while he’s not the chip leader, he should be relatively comfortable, with only three others in his chip vicinity.
LAS VEGAS–As mentioned before, there’s so much action going on a dwindling number of tables that it’s hard to keep up with it all. But that doesn’t stop Pauly and Otis from sneaking away for a little lime tossing.
The way this game works is you set up at the top of the dealer’s smoking porch steps … each player has a Corona, which comes with a single lime. At that point it is your task to chuck your lime down the stairs toward a rubbish bin. Hit it and you win $20. Land it in the ash tray and get $100. Stick it in the hole … $250. After about a week of playing, Brad and Pauly have each hit the thing like once or twice. I decided I had to get in on the action, and on my inaugural real-money throw … “Thunk!”
Pay up, beyotches! Otis balked that I “sucked out” thanks to a chair it bounced off of. “Nice catch, donkey!” Pauly shouted. Personally, I think I deserve the $50 trick shot bonus. But either way, they both are scared, as they seem baffled by my unorthodox overhand throwing technique. Please, nobody tell them that I briefly thought darts was going to be the next poker.
LAS VEGAS–I swear we’re following more people than just Josh from Dallas … but his chip stack has hardly changed. What has changed as he’s getting closer and closer to an average stack is the player to his right … now Gus Hansen, who has a similar stack size.
UPDATE: Table changes and a couple all-ins. Read the comments below for any necessary timeline. But overall, Josh is still fine, with the same chip stack he has had for about ever.
UPDATE: From PokerNews:
John Bird Doubles Through Josh Evans
Josh Evans, playing from middle position, opened the pot for a standard raise. Action folded around to John Bird in the small blind who moved all in. Evans called and the players showed…
Evans: {4-Spades}{4-Diamonds}
Bird: {A-Spades}{10-Hearts}The board ran out {A-Hearts}{A-Diamonds}{5-Clubs}{Q-Clubs}{3-Clubs} and John Bird doubled up to 500,000. Don’t feel bad for Evans just yet, he is still a force with just under 2,000,000.
LAS VEGAS - I just received word that I don’t need to be here for a potential press release (don’t ask, no hints, more on that later hence the expression…press release). After my brain realized my soul was granted freedom from the media room/The Rio/The WSOP/Las Vegas/Sao Paulo and The Tilted Kilt… my body crashed. In fact, I’m having difficulty holding my eyes open at this point. It has been 47 fun filled days of poker camp in the media room in what could best be described as…sitting in the back of the bus with my new fun brothers. Yes, it was fun but now, like every end of the WSOP, it’s “Time To Say Goodbye.”
The field has dwindled, the celebrities are gone, the halls are quiet and the only line you’ll see here is senior citizens at the buffet at 6pm. A handful of pros are still fighting for gold but the rest are new faces looking to be the new champ. There is still a buzz in the Amazon…all-in players standing on chairs with ten ESPN cameras zooming around, clapping, slapping on backs and the occasional waiter calling water, coffee, red bull? Gary Wise and Lacey Jones are still with camera but Mr. Peanut is gone.
Don’t fret…WSOP Europe will offer three bracelets in London this fall. Hmmm, London or Tunica? Tunica or London? For now, the closest I’ll be to London is flying over Big Ben on the Peter Pan ride as I’m off to Disneyland with my children.
As always…I don’t leave Vegas without getting a bit sappy with this below…
LAS VEGAS–We all heard the sound and paused for a moment … yep, that had to be what it was. A floorman dropped a rack of chips, right near the rail where spectators were gathered. Tourney officials handled it well, backing up the crowds immediately and authoritatively to secure the area and pick up the little (but very important) round pieces of plastic. It appears they were all yellow 1,000 chips — the smallest value in play right now — so there was little panic. But inside, just for a moment, you could tell the floor briefly feared another chip scandal.
With that said, the current total chip count is off by 5,000, as one orange 5k chip was found on the floor toward the end of Day 2 b and removed from play.
LAS VEGAS–Josh Evans has lost the chip lead … he’s now 4th, with just fewer than 2 million. With 191 players left, that’s about four times the average stack, so he’s still in very fine position. The chip leader has about 4 million.
UPDATE: Josh is down to 1.7 million … and he’s got a pretty tough table (that looks like it will be broken before the end of the night). At least four people on his table have at least a million, and, he says, “There are three Asians, so they really like to gamble.” Fortunately, he has enough chips that he can play extremely passively and wait out the typhoon, at least for a little while or until conditions change.
UPDATE: Josh’s table has turned rather passive all around. Very few hands played, almost no showdowns. Phil Hellmuth stopped by to wish two players good luck — including one guy who had just been re-raised by Josh … and folded before shaking hands with Phil.
LAS VEGAS–A good way to start the day …
From PokerNews:
Josh Evans Doubles Through Phillip Liou
After a flop of 10c-4s-3d, Phillip Liou bets 100,000, Josh Evans raises to 240,000, Liou pushes, and Evans calls all in for 582,000. Liou shows Ad-As, but Evans has 10h-10s for a set of tens.
The last two cards are 6d-8c, and Evans doubles up to over a million in chips.
UPDATE [3:07 pm pdt]: Josh is the chip leader, with more than 2 million chips. Should he end up on a table with Gus Hansen, he should be in prime shape after years of duking it out with Nic the Straddler. 225 players remaining … $50k guaranteed for all.
LAS VEGAS–Michele keeps reminding me that real players loathe talking to the media (or just about anyone for that matter) immediately after busting out of a tournament. But I wasn’t going to let good taste get in the way of good journalism a sponsor’s dream … so I nabbed the 2007 bubble boy within minutes of his exit to discuss the crowning moment of his disheartening WSOP adventure.
John Sigan (seen here with his wife, Diana) from the Cleveland area qualified for the main event by winning a series of freerolls on Milbestlight.com. And then, lo and behold, when he went out in 622nd place — one short of a $20,000 payday — he qualified for the Milwaukee’s Best Light Bubble Playoff … where he will be competing against 10 other invitees (they added two to make room for Ted Forrest) for a seat in next year’s main event.
Hear the interview below, (along with a tactless, failed attempt to get a promo spot for Beyond the Table):
[display_podcast]
As a Pokerati commenter points out, it was none other than North Texas’s Vandy Krouch who delivered the decisive blow — making a calculated decision to kill one poker player for the sake of saving dozens (if not hundreds) of others.
LAS VEGAS–Play has ended for the day, and Josh Evans is alive and well with exactly 400,000 chips — a still comfortably above average stack a slightly above average stack (briefly forgot they started with 20,000 this year), but way behind the chip leaders. (Ten players are already above a million.) He was into the 600s for a while, but gave a healthy chunk to the guy on his left. “I hate this table,” he told me. It had on it the aforementioned big stack, Humberto Brenes, Tobey Maguire, and an online phenom/Jackie’s alum I am learning more about named “The Waco Kid.”
Fortunately for Josh, his table was broken as players bagged their chips for the night … so we’ll see where he starts the day tomorrow — 337 players remain.
LAS VEGAS - Most media veterans would agree that the past few days have lacked the excitement of previous main events, but that changed today when players practically spent an entire level going hand for hand to “get in the money.” Some tables took so long to play a single hand one had to wonder if a player realized stalling was costing themselves money with the fast blind structure. Nevertheless, the tournament reached the 621 mark rewarding the remaining players a longer poker resume.
On the way to dinner John Duthie said he had about 160k. Duthie picked up pocket aces in the big blind with Gus Hansen on the button… but everyone folded. A fine example of not giving up is David Levi who is still working a short stack despite starting Day 2 with only 15k in chips.
Sexy (did I say that outloud?) Fabrice Soulier (….but not as sexy as my husband) is stacked at 325k. Fabrice took 7th against Hellmuth’s 11th bracelet win earlier this summer when the temperature was still in the 90’s.
Mimi Tran (long overdue to be on WPT Ladies Night) and Shirley Williams (sponsored by Bodog) are still in the tournament. Shirley’s table was filmed briefly by ESPN which should provide fun footage as Gavin Smith was on her left.
LAS VEGAS–Josh Evans crossed over … he’s got about 420k. So did Vandy Krouch, also with about 420k. Both guys are guaranteed more than $20,000 … and have a shot at $8.25 million.
There were some other North Texas players I saw on the official roster for today — but not sure of their stati.
Also not sure about Jerry Randack. He was relatively short stacked going into today, and I didn’t see him on first perusal of the remaining 60something tables. (Jerry’s a hard guy to miss.) So it looks grim as to whether or not he survived atmospheric re-entry, but we’re not ready to write him off as dead, yet.
UPDATE: Jerry is dead. I mean not like Eskimo Clark dead or Lady Bird Johnson deceased (God Bless Texas). But the 2007 Pokerati Invitational runner-up is out, finishing just shy of the money. Nice-ish go, Jerry!
Huck Seed, by the way, is near the chip lead — and I’m rooting against him. I dropped him from my fantasy team just two weeks ago — for virtually no reason other than to make room for Danny Wong, who I haven’t even seen at the WSOP. Would hate to see Seed get paid off for my poor fantasy play.
UPDATE: Vandy is out. From one of his friend’s in Dallas:
vandy got popped in 474, set of 6’s and the guy hit his set of Q’s on the turn. That started the popping…anyway very exciting.
Congratulations, Krouch! Way to do North Texas poker proud … and I am sure there are a few folks who are more than happy to see you with an extra $29,883 in your bankroll.
LAS VEGAS - There were 797 players ready to take their seats at noon today. Still able to go for the gold as of 3:30pm PT are JC Tran, John Duthie - Mr. EPT (see photo), Gus Hansen, Huck Seed, Gavin Smith, Sorel Mizzi, Mimi Tran, Fabrice Soulier, Shirley Williams (David’s mom) and Tobey “Spiderman” Maguire.
LAS VEGAS–Play is coming to a close for the night, and both Josh Evans and Jerry Randack look like they should make it to Day 3 … where the bubble will get crossed.
Jerry will have his work cut out for him, as he has about 61k chips.
Josh, is still very strong with 306k. He’s got Chip Jett at his table. Previously, his toughest opponent at his table was Carlos Mortenson. “I was scared of him,” Josh says.
The avg. stack is currently 154,000.
UPDATE: Players are headed to returning from dinner break. JOSH EVANS is up to roughly 360,000. JERRY RANDACK is hanging on with 50something-thousand. PRIMO appears to be out. Quite a few pros are thriving … over/under on the number of known names who make the final table: 1.9. (This unofficial line could move.) People to watch today include:
TODD BRUNSON, DANIEL NEGREANU, LUCKY LIU, THOR HANSEN, CHRIS FERGUSON, ROBERT VARKONYI, CHIP JETT, BILL EDLER, CARLOS MORTENSON, JC TRAN, TED FORREST, CHAD BROWN, JOHN MURPHY, MIKE LAING, FABRICE SOULIER, a bunch of other “ferriners,” CHRIS MONEYMAKER, LEIF FORCE, et al.
They look to join JOHN DUTHIE, HUCK SEED, Dallas guy VANDY KROUCH, JAN SORENSON, BERRY JOHNSTON, ROBERT MIZRACHI, TOBEY MAGUIRE, JASON LESTER, BILLY BAXTER, SCOTTY NGUYEN, and too many others to name. Still early, I guess … even though we’ve whittled through nearly 3/4 of the field.
Chris Moneymaker, against the wall, wondering who’s going to be the next … him.
LAS VEGAS–Even though the World Series has suddenly kicked into a serious, all-about-poker phase, there’s a lot of interesting stuff going on off the tables that you might want to check out between refreshes for Day 2 main-event updates.
The Fresh Princess and I sat down for an interview yesterday on WSOP TV. It ran live but the archives aren’t up yet. We had some tough acts to follow, going on after former Sen. Al D’Amato of the PPA and Rep. Robert Wexler (D-FL):
Then, right before we were about to go on, JEFFREY POLLACK showed up wanting to chat a bit:
Speaking of … THE JEFFSTER has a new blog post up … always a worthwhile read, considering that he has more influence on the future of poker than just about anyone else.
According to USA TODAY, all is well in the poker world … in fact, better than expected based on the 2007 main event numbers. Can you imagine what this event woulda been if there wasn’t a UIGEA and PARTYPOKER pull-out? Logistical nightmare, to say the least.
An interesting article here about DAVID SINGER being denied his requested MAIN EVENT REFUND for theoretical inconsistencies in rules about cell phone and text messaging usage.
Meanwhile, poker media, players, and officials are abuzz about a CBS SPORTSLINE article about the INHERENT, OVERLOOKED EVILS of poker.
No worries. People said the same things about ROCK ‘N’ ROLL and JAZZ. Such are the archetypes of American culture. Hey, check out this neato “antique” book I just bought:
The USA TODAY reporter obviously doesn’t read blogs. For example, over on WiseHandPoker, MARK NEWHOUSE spells out why DUSTIN “Neverwin” WOOLF may or may not be a shyster — accusing him of owing lots and lots of money and calling his friend a SCUMBAG.
That’s good stuff, no!?! Kinda like sports/politics/business.
Tom is now the only player to let me interview him after busting (not counting controversial floor decisions). It’s the top episode on Expert Insight.
Expert Insight @ the WSOP
July 11, 2007[display_podcast]
Apologies for the shameless plug, but I do, in fact, work for the man. 
UPDATE (4:39 pdt): JOSH EVANS still kicking ass. 300k in chips puts him near the top.
LAS VEGAS–Day 2b action is well underway about to get underway. In fact, it probably already will be so by the time this post is finished. It rained last night in Las Vegas — I knew it would!
Today, like yesterday, is all about the serious, “somber” poker. Most of the folks who got chips early by getting lucky will be getting knocked out. Short stacks will consistently be all-in. And serious players with a real chance of going deep will figure out if they’ll be nursing their chips into the money or making moves to put them in a position to really contend.
2007 WSOP Player of the Year TOM SCHNEIDER, by the way, is out. Happened a few hands after the dinner break, at which point he told me he was so beat down from the World Series that he didn’t really care if he got eliminated, because it would mean he could go home. Shocking with that attitude that he didn’t win.
Perhaps RANDY BROWN will do better. He starts today with 67,000 chips.
UPDATE: TBR is out. Lost every hand he played, he says. Got it all-in on the button, pushing with pocket 9s into a single-limped pot. The small blind woke up with Kings, the big blind with Aces. The BATFACES officially go 0-fer in the 2007 WSOP, but win the award for best hats.
Better luck next year, “The Big Randy.” You seem to have Day 1 figured out, but can’t make it through Day 2 with terrible cards unless you have a tiny, tiny stack.
TBR, by the way, was sitting virtually back-to-back with SHANNON ELIZABETH throughout Day 1. Nice! Go Poker!
Oops, zoom lens malfunction … Anyhow, yes, SHANNON ELIZABETH is out.
JOSH EVANS (below, left) will be a guy to really watch, as he carries 240,000 chips into Day 2 … with the money just a day-and-a-half only a day away.
And another North Texas pokerer fighting to make it to the pre-money bubble is JERRY RANDACK (right). Considering that he took 2nd place in the 2007 Pokerati Invitational, we like his chances.
Dallas big-game player PRIMO is also still alive. He’s seen here tearing up the $5/$10 NLH cash game (moments away from bluffing — oops! — away more than $1,300 in a hand).
We’re still looking for VANDY CROUCH — seen here, cashing in the 6-handed No-Limit event — who is rumored to be protecting some 240,000 chips.
UPDATE: I mean not like right now. He finished Day 2a with about that many. He makes it to Day 3 — where the fight for the money begins!
For those who may have missed it, ROUNDER CLUB representative CHRIS COMO did not move on to day 2. Despite building up his stacks and taking control of his table, he got beat down toward the end of the day, and, in the end, surrendered them to online powerhouse CARL OLSON.
Familiar faces left in Day 2a are few and far between. John Duthie (one of my favorites) is among the chip leaders with Huck Seed not too far behind and David Levi working a short stack. On break Levi said he wasn’t too excited about 50k after a big loss but since he started the day with only 15k…then he shrugged his shoulders. John Duthie said he was up and down but thought he should be okay if he made it through tonight. I should say so…Duthie is looking good with a stack over 300k
Other notables are Houston’s Ted Leva, Bobby Baldwin (see photo), Bruno Fitoussi, Neil Channing, Robert Mizrachi and Tobey Maguire. They are down to 386 players and will play down to 350 tonight “no matter what.â€
BTW - I announced Liger in the media room and someone from not America said “Did you say Liger? I didn’t know anyone knew they existed, I know a lot about Ligers!”
LAS VEGAS–Players are fixin’ to go on dinner break, and I will not be able to fill you in on much … because Tom has asked me to secure him a seat at Buzio’s here in the Rio. Naturally, I obliged, and then started to feel like his bitch. He shrugged it off knowing I would draw the line at doing his laundry. (Because really, I’m just not good at clothes.)
Anyhow, we’ll be back in a couple hours. Shouldn’t you be in bed already anyhow? I have so much to tell/show you people.
Hate these celebrity poker types.
LAS VEGAS–Tom is still alive, and getting more comfortable. He’s sitting with about 61k.
Other people we are looking for (but haven’t yet found) are Vandy Krouch — his first table of the day has already broken — and Jerry Randack. Am sure there are a few others of particular interest still left in the field … and indeed, for the first time in weeks, the actual play is getting interesting.
NOTE: If any readers out there happen to have a textual relationship with either of these guys, let me know what table they are on!
They are playing five levels today — Day 2a — or down to 350 players left, whichever comes first.
Click here to follow chip counts.
And here for the semi-live reporting.
By the way, kinda cool that the first episode of the 2007 WSOP on ESPN is airing on the TV screens in the Amazon room. Very strange deja time-warp thing seeing the action on TV just more than a month afterwards, during the same WSOP that is still going on. It’s like almost semi-live. I have a feeling that say maybe a decade from now we will look back and laugh at how this video production turnaround seemed so quick.
UPDATE: Tom has taken some hits and looks to be growing frustrated. Just watched him fold AQ — which gave him “top top” on the flop — to a bet that woulda effectively put him all-in. He’s down to about 30,000 chips. Still haven’t found Vandy, so I am starting to think he must be out.
Media crowding is also becoming an issue. Nolan Dalla just got on the PA to inform us “no sweating” of players. Fair enough. That was met by applause from some players. (I’ve been shushed twice and shooed away once when too near players in the past couple days.) Jack Effel then got on the horn to inform the “new media” that “sweating means watching.” This was met by laughter and further player applause.
Duly noted.
Today is Day 2a, tomorrow will be Day 2b and Thursday will combine the two of two’s to make day 3, huh? Does it really matter? Just check the live updates here and watch ESPN tonight (schedule here) as they start airing two episodes of the 2007 WSOP. Yes, this year’s World Series of Poker will start tonight at 8pm ET on ESPN. Find more on ESPN’s Poker Club.
Floor Supervisor is standing near a table when there’s an all-in and a call pre-flop, and AA is cracked by QJo.
Floor Sup: “I don’t know why people play this sick f—ing game.”
My run at the WSOP main event ended six hours after it began when my short stack was put at risk while I held JJ vs. my opponent’s AQ. For the second year in a row, the player seated directly to my right gave me the confident elbow and whispered that they had mucked an ace, just as the card that sent me to the rail came whistling off the deck.
On a positive note: I played six hours of fantastic poker. I made big plays, small bluffs, and one giant laydown that saved half of my once healthy stack. I am very much a decision oriented poker player…I know that if I continue to make correct decisions at the poker table, the results will follow over the long run.
LAS VEGAS–Loyal Pokeratizens might know this guy … Josh Evans from Dallas is the Day 1d chip leader, with about 240,000:
(We watched him take down a second-chance tourney last year.)
UPDATE: The fact that I am eating my first Poker Kitchen fruit salad of the entire WSOP right now — just like the one the chip leader is eating! — is testament to the notion that non-online-poker-room endorsements, sponsorships, and product placements really work. Yum.
One of the asses he is currently kicking belongs to Paul Magriel, quack-quack.
With Day 1 (all four of ‘em) minutes away from coming to a close done — and almost 2/3 of the field eliminated — various poker dreams and fantasies are really starting to spin in people’s heads … though possibly not in the minds of those who actually have a chance to win it.
Payouts under a new “flattened” prize structure for the main event of the 2007 World Series of Poker … five new millionaire’s:
(You’ll also notice they’ve rounded off the champion’s share, but not the rest of the numbers.)
1st - $8,250,000
2nd - $4,840,981
3rd - $3,048,025
4th - $1,852,721
5th - $1,255,069
6th - $956,243
7th - $705,229
8th - $585,699
9th - $525,934
Vinnie Vinh has yet again graced us with an empty seat. Chops of WCP interviewed Vinnie earlier when he showed up for today’s Main Event. Growing his stack to 25k he failed to return after the dinner break. Word around the Amazon hallway is that he’s tired (seriously, no joke). But that’s no surprise as most people up here are exhausted, exhibited by a few sleeping on benches and the floor.
So, basically we’re writing about how Vinnie Vinh was tired and went to bed for a nap and ignoring the nameless that decided to roll around on the carpet.
UPDATE: Vinnie’s stack was closer to 36k at dinner time.
LAS VEGAS–The sun has set on the final registration day of the 2007 WSOP. Any dreams of winning a gold bracelet this year should now be terminated unless you’re one of the few left in the main event. This year thousands of players pushed between $1,000 and $50,000 per entry fee through the Amazon cage window for the most coveted award in the game of poker. With 54,000 paid entries into the 55 WSOP events, chances of winning a bracelet were much more difficult than earlier years that hosted a handful of tables.
Times have changed and while the Main Event entries took a dip, the previous trends were present with big crowds, long lines and large fields. Meaning one thing…poker ain’t going anywhere. Tangible numbers can soothe all those fears of losing their new best game of poker. And while the sun has disappeared beyond the Las Vegas skyline, one thing is for sure…just like Las Vegas at night, poker is still hot.
LAS VEGAS–If you had the over in any main-event field-size over-under bet … you almost certainly won. Considering the hit poker took as a whole since last year’s WSOP, everybody seems pretty happy about the numbers for 2007. Small dip … Clearly the 2017 WSOP will feature between 25,000 and 250,000 players.
For 2007:
6,358 players
621 spots paid
621st place — $20,320
1st place — $8.26 million
Thanks to Justin from PokerPages for the early info.
LAS VEGAS–Randy Brown (who is this guy, not this guy of similar nomenclature in the various player databases, fyi) was climbing up the leaderboard when his name appeared on the TV screens, and one fan, unaware that he was standing so close to TBR’s table said:
What the hell is “The Big Randy”? What a douchebag.
LAS VEGAS–OK, this will probably be my last update of the night, because I have TWO parties I HAVE to get to. One is with my old-good-good-ole friends at PartyPoker, and the other is a bikini party at a pool. So I am sure you understand.
Clonie Gowen is out. Not happy.
Chris Como is holding together nicely, with about 33,000. UPDATE: Just took a hit and looks a little bummed. But now with about 24,000, he still has almost as many chips as Tom Schneider.
Randy Brown, whom you all know as “The Big Randy” is in the top 10 or 20 in chips for the day, with at least 115,000.
Um, Go Batfaces/Watch out Arizona Posse!?! Sorry folks … yes, I’ve got pictures, but they are going to have to wait. Enjoy what’s in the Pokerati Flickr files in the meantime.
LAS VEGAS–We all know poker, or at least the WSOP, is going NASCAR. Well Phil Hellmuth was at a track somewhere today — about two hours ago — and he was supposedly driving a car up on a red carpet … which was all fine and dandy until he wrecked the $200,000 vehicle into a pole.
Well done, Philly boy! If it wasn’t for bad luck, you would never wreck high-performance automobiles! Supposedly ESPN has video footage that will be airing tonight.
UPDATE: Here’s what actually happened
LAS VEGAS–Pokerati good friend Michele Lau will be playing in the main event tomorrow (Monday) and she is looking for some additional backing. She’s already bought herself in, but would like to give you a chance to make a little money on any success she may find. She’s selling 8 percent pieces of herself for $1,000 — but basically we’re talking the same 80-cents-on-the-dollar deal that Como offered (and sold 45 percent of himself under). Will sell in smaller increments, of course. Play starts tomorrow at noon pacific … so if you are interested, get in touch with me or Marcel Luske (whom she works for/studies).
LAS VEGAS–For the first time since the UIGEA “devastated” the poker world, WSOP officials have given an, er, official pronouncement about the expected number of players for the 2007 WSOP main event. Not sure who it was, but a voice over the intercom announced that there are [inaudible] players in todays Day 1c … “So we’ll easily have more than 6,000.”
Poker bizzers breathe a sigh of relief to know that the lack of online qualipaloozas for American players doesn’t set the magic measuring stick back even a year … as 2007 will end up falling to a number bigger than 2005, when Joe Hachem won it
LAS VEGAS–Everyone keeps texting me looking for results. Players are on break, and Como is just above where he started, with about 23,000. TBR is going strong, with something like 36 or 37ish k. And he looks quite stylish sporting his intriguing Batfaces lid.
UPDATE: The Big Randy is getting bigger. He’s at 63,500. I happen to be sitting next to some key PokerNews reporters and have informed them, and they have taken note of his progress but have also given me a polite, “let’s see how things stand after the dinner break before we start tracking someone we don’t know.” Fair enough, because you certainly can’t count on my sticking around any more than you can count on the running chip counters to recognize his Batfaces hat.
At that point his count would become “stale” — something PokerNews tries to avoid, I just learned.
(Cross-posted from Chris Hanel at Expert Insight.)
Phil, Rafe, and Andy are playing today, and we’ll be updating everyone throughout the day on their progress.
12:22 PM - Cards are in the air. Rafe’s way back in the corner in table 2, away from spectators, and Phil’s on the exact opposite side of the room at table 121. Both are feeling upbeat and ready to play cards. Rafe’s gone to great lengths to assure he’s well rested and ready for today, so there’s an extra spring in his step. Expect good things from Team EI today. Still trying to track down Andy. After yesterday’s incident with David Singer, I’ve decided not to try tracking him down by calling him on the phone.
ESPN is kicking off this years 2007 WSOP this Tuesday at 8pm ET for their earliest airing ever. Viewers will get a taste of what’s been going on over here while it’s still going on over here. Even better news is the variation of games they’ve added to the line up…omaha, pot limit hold’em, mixed hold’em and heads up have spiced up the life of this years series and kudos to ESPN for keeping with the flow.
The main event will be broadcast live on July 17th on PPV.
Now sit back and enjoy the show(s).
A few quotes from walking around the tables well into the late hours.
(An annoying, brash internet player is debating making a large call against an all-in)
Annoying Player: Cmon, what do you want me to do? Tell you what, I’ll do whatever you want me to.
All-in player: You will?
Annoying Player: Yeah, what do you want me to do?
All-in player: …Bust.
***
(Player makes a big fold)
Player 1: I wanted to call. You all know what I had.
Player 2: Oh, you had aces?
Player 1: (Hesitates) I can’t tell you, I’d be giving out too much info.
Player 2: Oh that’s okay, I’m a horrible player, it wouldn’t do me any good.
LAS VEGAS–Michele, check out beapokerboss.com. I’m not sure what to make of it yet — it’s a site that helps bring together backers and backees, whether they be pros or amateurs. They’ve been a quiet but noticeable presence here at the WSOP … and while in general I’d tend to dismiss any company with a CEO named “G Cash” as little more than snake-oil poker, these guys seem like they might be legit.
I’ve also learned about how other backing deals work in high-stakes tournament poker … it’s not always so simple as “buy me in and you get 50 percent.”
LAS VEGAS–Overheard in the back smoking / poker sauna area (where the extra restrooms are) …
Change100: My god! I’m going to get a sunburn just walking to and from the bathroom!”
And at the front smoking porch area — where and picked up and dropped off by taxis/limos …
Mussy British guy: My god, man, this might be the hottest place on bloody Earth!”
Actually, the hottest place on Earth right now is Death Valley, Cali., just a few mountain ridges away. The high temperature there today was 123°F (felt like 118). Here in Las Vegas, it was only 114°F (felt like 114).
But still, point’s the same … we are in the middle of a major heat wave. Amazing that right now, a little before midnight, no sun in the sky, it’s 104°F.
Looking for a golden ticket into the wsop main event? Get in line…and a long one at that. With a few people willing to back my action (not with sex or anything remotely close) it has left me with a dilemma on whether or not I want to play in the main event. Hmmmm, decisions can be hard to make sometimes. I would put up most of the money but I’ve spent my tournament budget on earlier events and I’m very strict about money management. I want to play but I’ve been so busy writing and working on business endeavors that it has left me with very little time to play cash. My days are filled with writing, my days off are given to my children, and nights are the crumbs given to my husband. Fortunately, he’s a supportive and understanding player.
Dreams and deals are made often in the hallways here. Swaps, saves, chops (not wickedchopspoker), 50/50, 50/50 after taxes, 60/40, 70/30 and even worse deals occur when you’re desperate, owe money or favors. At least three people have asked my husband for money. I had one guy ask me for $200 today. Last year a man interrupted a conversation I was having with Freddie Deeb to ask him for money. And after all that…isn’t such a large field a crapshoot?
I just ran into a pro from Houston who told me:
I stood in line last night to register for the main event. While waiting, I looked around and could only recognize two people in the room. I got to the window, took out my 10k and put it back in my pocket and decided I’m not playing this year. I then went over to play ten and quarter and won 7500 dollars. If I win a satellite I’ll play but I’m not buying in because it’s too much of a crapshoot.
In every event I played this year I was crippled by a three outer which brings to mind Hellmuth’s line “If it weren’t for luck I’d win every time.†That poem being said…I’m done with playing the WSOP this year (pacifying words).
However, if you read that I am in the 2007 WSOP Main Event then that means one of three things:
1. I had 100% backing
2. The live update was wrong
3. I sold my media badge on ebay for 10k!
Day 1A is underway at the 2007 WSOP and it’s a madhouse. Mel Judah, Liz Lieu, Johnny Chan, Tobey Maguire, Jeff Gibralter (Dallas player) and Pokerati’s Tom Schneider are playing today. Vinnie Vinh did an infamous no-show and received a refund thanks to Houston’s Jimmy Tran. “The Poker Biz†has the story on Vinnie Vinh’s stack here.
Three more days make up the first round and the growing field has rumors of a sold out Monday.
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Ok… Seriously, this is my last Tom post for the next month.
Tom and the uber-bonerific Lacey Jones teach us how to play Stud. (See the video) BTW, Hang around for the last few seconds of the video to see exactly why Tom is NOT nice to dealers, despite what he would leave to you believe on Beyond The Table. |
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The Bodog Lounge is on wheels this year for the 2007 WSOP Main Event. Bodog’s big busty bus came to town yesterday and whisked players from hotels to the felt while enjoying television, sofas, pretty girls and frosty beverages. Who knows, you may get picked up off the street to hang with David Williams, Josh Arieh or Evelyn Ng.
Anyone sporting Bodog’s black & red gear just might have an awaiting carriage ride. The bus driver, John Doe*, drove the bus from Atlanta to Las Vegas and will be parking the monster at the back entrance of the convention center. Yo check it.
*Name changed because I don’t know his name.
LAS VEGAS–Real quick, in 2-7 Draw Lowball w/ Rebuys … Tom Schneider goes out in 16th place. Boo! Jeff Lisandro goes out in 14th. Yay!
And with that, Tom Schneider is the 2007 WSOP Player of the Year. Wooo! More TK …
LAS VEGAS–The fireworks are still going off, just not as frequently anymore … and Tom has taken the chip lead. He’s been at a pretty tough table:
Seat 1 - Tony G
Seat 3 - John Juanda
Seat 4 - Tom Schneider
Seat 5 - Gavin Smith
Seat 6 - Howard Lederer
Click here to follow. Or here.
John Juanda (fantasy team disappointment) was just eliminated, so not sure if that means their table will break or have a player added. Also not sure where Jeff Lisandro stands, as an obvious typo has him listed with 146 chips (even though the antes were recently at 700).
At present, the official prize payouts and total number of entries haven’t been released yet, but we know (from our seat overlooking the action 12 miles away) that there were 78 players in the field, seven of whom get paid. Bottom payout is about $55k, top prize being $500somethingish-k.
UPDATE: Lisandro is the chip leader with 240,000. Tom is second in chips with 171,000. This doozy of a race for Player of the Year in a high-dollar obscure game played no-limit-style is back, baby!
BIASED JOURNALISM ALERT: Go Big Tom!
CLARIFICATION: Phil Hellmuth is also technically still in the hunt for Player of the Year. He reportedly has a paltry 25,000 chips. But he has had those 25,000 chips for at least two hours now. So for all we know he may or may not be the actual chip leader at some point during one of three levels.
ALT HED: Horserace Poker
(Yeah, but what a nail biter!)
LAS VEGAS–So wow, what a night it’s shaping up to be … with 49 players left, Jeff Lisandro is the chip leader, and Tom is second in chips.
I’m not at the Rio right now, am instead sitting solo on my rooftop at Mountains Edge. It’s supposedly 105 degrees right now, but I swear it doesn’t feel warmer than 90. The sky is perfectly clear and the stars are bright. And as I follow the WSOP’s $5,000 No Limit 2-7 Draw w/ Rebuys — Player of the Year on the line — I am encircled by the colorful snap, crackle, and boom of pyrotechnics. Anywhere I look — whether toward the Strip, over Green Valley, behind me in the mountains, North Las Vegas, and even eye-level from one house ever — there are fireworks going off. I can’t do the 360-degree panorama justice with my photographic skills and camera equipment, but I can tell you this is really cool. A second hasn’t passed in the last hour without a sparkle in the sky — some from big fireworks shows, some from big spenders at the roadside stands, and others just shooting off the small things out their windows.
Amazing to think of the thousands inside the Rio (and other casinos for that matter) who haven’t a clue about the brilliance going on all around them. What a celebration of all that is right in Poker America.
UPDATE: Huck Seed has been eliminated. So glad I dropped him from my fantasy team instead of Tom. Change100 is no longer the reporter on duty for PokerNews. That means I no longer have a Tom-pimping connection with the official information provider. Ooh, just saw a really cool blue sparkler, followed by crazy screamers! The sky is really pretty all across the Las Vegas Valley.
LAS VEGAS–We’ve got a doozy brewing in the final points event of the 2007 WSOP … with much more on the line than a single bracelet in the $5,000 No-Limit 2-7 Draw Lowball w/ Rebuys.
With 60 players remaining …
Tom Schneider, WSOP Player of the Year points leader, is currently 3rd in chips. Jeff Lisandro, who is only 20 points behind him, is currently 4th in chips. (Phil Hellmuth is also still alive in 2-7 Lowball, but he is a below-average stack, and has never made a WSOP final table in a non-hold’em game … so not much of a threat.)
UPDATE: Players are on dinner break, and Lisandro has jumped into the chip lead. Tom is 6th in chips. Also kinda interesting that Tony G — the man behind the money behind PokerNews.com — is second in chips. Wonder if it’s too late for Tom to hire someone to pull a Nancy Kerrigan on Lisandro’s ass.
Lisandro reportedly wants Player of the Year so badly that he was willing to invest $100k in this event. Tom took a more fiscally conservative approach — taking a rebuy and double add-on for $20,000 total.
Not only does WSOP Player of the Year come with a certain amount of cache, but also it comes with extra cash. The winner receives an automatic buy-in to next year’s main event ($10,000), a buy-in to a circuit main event of his choice ($5,000), entry into the WSOP Europe main event ($10,000), and $5,000 in walking-around-money … adding up to a mano-y-mano lasts-longest battle for essentially a $30,000 overlay and any added business goodies that go with Player of the Year accolades.
In my last post on this subject, HERE, I was bitching about what I felt was inexcusable *coverage* by PokerNews’ “low-ranking, fresh-out-of-college interns”, as Dan Michalski described them in a very poor, and a bit unflattering, attempt to counter. He went on to explain that the cheap, inexperienced labor should not be expected to know all of the players in any given event. Dan, I agree 110%. But being able to identify the current top-ranked WSOP player and the only 2007 double bracelet winner should be a bit of a prerequisite for obtaining a media pass. BJ Nemeth also commented, a little more productively, stating “If the junior reporters are missing someone like this, we *would* like it brought to our attention”. He also invited me in on the efforts, saying “tell me, or Pauly, or whoever, and we’ll get it done.” Hmm. Ok. The critic in me gives PokerNews a failing grade on day-1 coverage, which BJ would later talk into a B+ based on customer service. I might have upgraded them to an “A”, but as this is being written, Tom is still without a chip count update for Day 1 of Deuce to Seven. But hey, least he’s listed.
[Ed. Note: They found him while Karridy was writing.-DM]
I start my day today by looking forward to the last WSOP Player of The Year point awarding event, hoping that my good friend Tom Schneider is able to keep Lessandro, Hellmuth, and the other POTY hopeful hounds at bay. Tom’s wife, Julie, is home in Arizona doing the same. I typically only get calls from Julie when Tom is doing great and can’t talk, or busted out and doesn’t want to. So, I was not crazy about seeing her name come up on my phone that early in the day.
“Karridy, I’m so freaking pissed right now. I’m just soo… I’m just sick of it!”
Below are the results of my request that Julie put her feelings in print. It should be known that Tom had caught wind of Julie’s intent to provide me this to post and he tried to talk her out of it. Sorry, dood. I’m thinking he hates the nametag too.
