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Doyle Brunson Eyeing June 11 Return To World Series Of Poker After Three-Year Hiatus

Brunson Will 'Probably' Play $10K No-Limit 2-7 Lowball Draw

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Card Player’s 2017 WSOP coverage is sponsored by BetOnline Poker.

Doyle Brunson said in late May that he was considering playing the $10,000 events at the 2017 World Series of Poker, which is now in full swing in Las Vegas.

Brunson skipped WSOP tournaments in 2014, 2015 and 2016.

As of Tuesday, one $10,000 event had been completed (the No-Limit Hold’em Tag Team Championship) and another—the $10,000 Omaha Hi-Low Eight-or-Better Championship—was underway. Brunson didn’t enter either.

Was the poker legend bluffing?

Brunson told Card Player that he is now thinking about playing the $50,000 Players Championship, which is scheduled to begin July 2 and will run for five days. He’s also eyeing the $10,000 No-Limit 2-7 Lowball Draw Championship, slated to kick off June 11.

“That’s probaby it,” Brunson said. “Play lasts too long into the night.”

“The Godfather of Poker” is in a three-way tie for second on the all-time bracelet list with Johnny Chan and Phil Ivey. Phil Hellmuth leads with 14 bracelets.

The $50,000 event in 2016 drew 91 players, while the 2-7 Lowball Draw Championship had 100 players. Both have small fields relative to other WSOP events. Brunson’s last bracelet came in 2005 when he won a $5,000 no-limit hold’em event for $367,800.

The 83-year-old made a deep run in the 2013 WSOP main event, finishing 408th for $28,000. That was his last cash in a poker tournament. He’s still a cash game regular in Las Vegas.

Brunson’s most recent main event run

Brunson entered Day 4 of the 2013 main event with about 700,000 in chips, which was good for a top 50 stack. However, he wasn’t able to get anything going through the half of the day. He was down to his last 290,000 when his elimination hand occurred.

With blinds at 4,000-8,000, a player in early position opened to 16,000. The bet was called in one spot, and Brunson raised to 86,000. The action folded to the original raiser, who elected to fold as well. The player in the middle shoved, and Brunson called off his last 204,000.

Brunson tabled the KDiamond Suit 10Spade Suit, while his opponent tabled pocket tens. The board ran out 7-3-2-9-A, offering no help to Brunson and he was eliminated.

The entire room, which contained about 400 entrants left in contention for the $8.3 million first-place prize, gave him a standing ovation as he made his exit.

For more coverage from the summer series, visit the 2017 WSOP landing page complete with a full schedule, news, player interviews and event recaps.

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