WSOP Europe Main Event Final: Exciting Lineup, Sloooow Action
The main event of WSOP Europe is underway now, with a super exciting final table of poker stars. These were the starting chip counts when they took their seats:
Seat 1: Barry Shulman (1,090,000)
Seat 2: Jason Mercier (3,198,000)
Seat 3: Praz Bansi (1,160,000)
Seat 4: Markus Ristola (784,000)
Seat 5: Chris Bjorin (518,000)
Seat 6: James Akenhead (1,398,000)
Seat 7: Daniel Negreanu (438,000)
Seat 8: Antoine Saout (701,000)
Seat 9: Matt Hawrilenko (674,000)
The group consists of six previous WSOP bracelet winners (Shulman, Mercier, Bansi, Bjorin, Negreanu, & Hawrilenko), two members of the November Nine (Akenhead & Saout), and a father of a November Niner (Shulman).
More than four hours into the final table “action,” Negreanu worked his way into second place. And that’s about it. Play continues with the likelihood that someone will eventually be eliminated. Live coverage can be found on the World Series of Poker website.
BJ Nemeth says:
October 1st, 2009 at 10:39am
Negreanu moves from 9th place to 2nd place, and all you can say is “That’s it”? One of the five most popular poker players in the world has greatly increased his chances of winning a top-tier major, which I think is pretty huge.
It also gives Negreanu a chance to pass Jamie Gold to take first place on the all-time earnings list before Phil Ivey takes his shot in November. Not a bad little B-story. 🙂
There’s been more action since you wrote this post, particularly the elimination of the two November Niners (Akenhead in 9th, Saout in 7th) along with Hawrilenko in 8th. The top three in chips are Mercier, Negreanu, and Shulman. (As of ~1:35 pm ET.)
Worst-case scenario: Markus Ristola wins. He’s currently in 4th place with six remaining.
California Jen says:
October 1st, 2009 at 10:43am
I’m not writing an essay on the table action, BJ! If I was live blogging this, it would be a different story, but I’m not. Just wanted to mention the final table lineup.
Yes, it’s a big deal that Negreanu doubled and chipped up, but I’m not his cheerleader. (Rooting for him personally, though.) There are many scenarios here that would be exciting…except, as you mentioned, the November Niners are gone now.
BJ Nemeth says:
October 1st, 2009 at 10:54am
Chris Bjorin out in 6th.
Sorry, Jen, but it’s the tournament reporter in me, and I can’t help it. Negreanu entering as the underdog (9th in chips) and emerging halfway through as a favorite (he’s now the chipleader) is a big deal!
BJ Nemeth says:
October 1st, 2009 at 11:48am
Markus Ristola out in 5th (poker fans say “Phew!”), and they are on a 90-minute dinner break. Praz Bansi has taken the chip lead, followed by Negreanu, Mercier, and Shulman.