The World Championship of Poker

Every April/May, the best poker players in the world assemble at Binion's Horseshoe in Las Vegas to play in the World Series of Poker (WSOP). It is where "millions are played and legends are made." The final event is the World Championship of Poker, which is the mecca of the poker world.

The championship event is a $10,000 buy-in no-limit hold'em tournament. This tournament is far and away the most exciting event in poker. Just ask anyone who has played in it. If you win this tournament once, you are revered for life in the poker world. If you win it twice, you can go ahead and pencil yourself into the Poker Hall of Fame.

The number of entrants in the world championship event has increased every year since 1970 (the first year of the WSOP). Last year, 613 players entered and a young Spaniard, Carlos Mortensen, played brilliantly to take home the title and $1.5 million. First place in this year's championship event, to be held May 20-24, will most likely be a whopping $2 million!

Here's the good part: Anyone can play and you don't necessarily need $10,000 to do so. More than half the field enters the "Big One" via supersatellites, in which a player puts up $220 in an effort to win a paid entry into the championship event. I recommend that players with a limited bankroll play a "super." Give yourself a chance to grab the brass ring and experience the thrill of playing in the World Championship of Poker.

Obviously, winning this event is not easy. You have to perform under intense pressure for five days against the best players in the world. It is poker's most grueling battle. Having said that, there is no place in the world a poker player would rather be on May 20, 2002, than bellied up to a table in the Big One at Binion's Horseshoe. If you play poker, nothing gets your heart pumping like the $10,000 buy-in World Championship of Poker.

How do you win this tournament? Well, if you look at the styles of play of the vast majority of those who have won this event, you will discover that they are aggressive, attacking players. They are "choppers," players who are continually chopping out pots, picking up blinds and antes. They also are not afraid to play a pot. To win, you have to play pots. That may sound silly, but you would be surprised at the number of players who, when they pick up a big hand, just want to move in and not play a pot.

Who will win the 2002 World Championship of Poker? I wish I knew. I like the choppers and the players who can handle the pressure when it gets down to crunch time. My top 10 seeds are Phil Hellmuth, Erik Seidel, David "Devilfish" Ulliott, Johnny Chan, Daniel Negreanu, T.J. Cloutier, Mike Laing, David Chiu, Ben Roberts, and Alan Betson.

Just for fun, I'll give you some odds as to how I see things:

• Former champion winning = 18-to-1

• Former bracelet winner of any event winning = 9-to-5 favorite

• Price of a woman to win = 45-to-1

• American to win = 3.5-to-1 favorite

• Odds against a top seed making it to the final day = 12-to-1

• Over/under on the number of players who made the money last year (45) making it again = 4.5

• Is anyone a favorite to get to day No. 3? No.

The winner of the 2002 championship event will be the envy of the poker world, but that may not be the player who performs the best throughout the WSOP. In recognition of that performance, Card Player is going to present that player a "Best All-Around Player" award. This award will be based on a points system in which the top 16 players in each event will get points – 50 for the winner, 44 for second, 40 for third, and so on.

Someone who will be playing lots of events will most likely win that award, and it figures to be a top professional. Here are my top 10 choices: Chris Bjorin, Men "The Master" Nguyen, Phil Hellmuth, Chris Ferguson, Jennifer Harman, Daniel Negreanu, Scotty Nguyen, Barry Shulman, Mike Matusow, and T.J. Cloutier. The competition will be fun to follow, and winning will certainly be an honor for the champion.

Good luck to everyone in the 2002 World Championship of Poker! Take care.