Poker tournament coverage is often on the cutting edge with regular use of new media technologies — falling somewhere behind porn and still ahead of the mainstream — and today the Vine app seems to be all the rage … or at least will have been for about 6 seconds.
I’m not sure yet if these video snippets are the next Instagram, the next Draw Something, or video Pinterest … but whatever it is, there’s more and more #WSOP on Vine by the day (despite WSOP/ESPN no-video policies that are like sooo 2011-12). It seems early adopters are still trying to figure out what exactly makes for a good, um, vine, but view these moving squares all together (and turn on the volume for some) and you’ll get a sense of the WSOPatchwork — as seen in quick video loops of chip porn, hallway meet-n-greets, WSOP worker vids, tableside commentary from a world-class DJ, and even a marriage proposal that, well, er … see for yourself … over and over and over and over again, until you’re done forever …
Now when they break a table, it stays broke Photo: WSOP.com/Jay “WhoJedi” Newnum
It was Moving Day at the WSOP Main Event, where players are already in the money so they work to build a competitive stack or get out of Dodge. While this should have been the top story, a lot of time was spent discussing a player named Jarrett Nash. He had only $3k in tournament winnings on his résumé but was already in the money for the Main Event. He drew all the attention because he never returned to play his Day 5 stack and word quickly spread (thanks to a barely accurate forum post) he was not playing for religious reasons.
Turns out he left his stack around the dinner break on Day 4 after telling the WSOP staff he would not be returning until after 8pm on Day 5, even providing his Total Rewards cards for when he was blinded out. His stack never made it to 8pm so he officially finished in 171st for $44,655. Of course it just took the mere whiff of this for the forum trolls and Twitter jockeys to latch on like pitbulls. Because, according to those “smart folks”, any decision made without looking strictly at your Expected Value is clearly insane.
More information on Mr. Nash below in the Link Dump
The Day 5 stories that should have made the most splash included three former November Niners returning, five female players finishing the day with major chips, actor Kevin Pollak getting knocked out dirty with QQ vs QQ, and Joseph Cheong’s incredible Main Event streak.
Fun Fact: Joseph Cheong’s last 3 WSOP Main Event results are 3rd place in 2010 ($4,130,049), 114th place in 2011 ($54,851), and 116th place in 2012 ($52,718).
Some big names/big stacks in the list of 97 players returning to play on Day 6 include chipleader Kyle Keranen, Gaelle Baumann, Amnon Filippi, Elisabeth Hille, Yuvee Bronshtein, Eric Buchman, Amit Makhija, and Jason Somerville. Play on Day 6 will go five levels or 27 players, which ever takes longer.
Player Skips WSOP Main Event Day 5 – The gang at CardPlayer caught up with the mysteriously absent Jarrett Nash about his decision to not play Day 5.
Harry Reid and Jon Kyl Agree on Internet Poker Bill – Senators Harry Reid and Jon Kyle reportedly agreed on terms for an online poker bill. Of course that means absolutely nothing until they get off their tails and do something more than talk.
Year of the Woman Continues at the WSOP – BJ Nemeth takes a look at the Year of the Woman for 2012 and lists the Last Woman Standing in the Main Event during the Moneymaker era.
2012 WSOP: Brokedown Palace – I have been remiss in my linking up the great work Brad “Otis” Willis and Stephen Bartley have been doing over on the PokerStarsBlog. The latest gem takes a look at how the Rio Convention Center becomes a ghost town as the Main Event moves along.
Explain This: Amanda Leatherman – Everybody loves Amanda, and now Lynn Gilmartin of PokerNews gets the inside scoop on some of her interesting Twitter/Facebook pictures. Not remotely WSOP related.
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